Chapter Ten: The End of the End | Ten Candles: Eclipse

Summary

Podcast Summary: Critical Role & Sagas of Sundry – Chapter Ten: The End of the End | Ten Candles: Eclipse

Overview In the climactic final episode of Ten Candles: Eclipse, hosted by Geek & Sundry, the stakes reach their zenith as the party confronts the dire consequences of a world engulfed in tragic horror. This episode, titled "The End of the End," delves deep into themes of hope, sacrifice, and the relentless struggle against insurmountable odds. As the game master, Ivan Van Norman, guides the storyline, the players navigate through intense emotional and physical challenges, culminating in a poignant conclusion where nearly all characters meet their demise.

Characters and Development

• Robert (Ella Sanchez): A trauma surgeon burdened by emotional detachment, striving to find meaningful connections amidst chaos.
  • Notable Quote: "I'm built to save people, so if there's a chance, I have to take it." [05:30]
• Declan Buchanan: A private investigator with a tragic past, including losing his wife and dedicating himself to completing a shared RPG project.
  • Notable Quote: "It's a bucket list. Did that and you killed me in the International Tabletop Day." [37:01]
• Howie (Howard Bell): A high school history teacher and football coach coping with personal loss, seeking fearlessness after a debilitating injury.
  • Notable Quote: "Sometimes action requires bravery. Sometimes it requires thought. But life requires action." [76:27]
• Ella Sanchez: Carter Portsmouth, a caregiver and cat cafe operator, battling internal guilt and prioritizing the safety of her pet, Lola.
  • Notable Quote: "I just want her to have her kittens safely." [22:44]

Plot Progression The episode begins with the final preparations as the players define their character virtues and vices, setting personal goals (moments) and acknowledging their deepest flaws (brinks). As the narrative unfolds, the group battles internal and external threats aboard a repurposed medical barge amidst widespread environmental disasters, including rock hail, tidal surges, and the emergence of ominous monoliths.

Key Events

1. Character Formation: Players articulate their virtues (e.g., selflessness, tenacity) and vices (e.g., addiction, melancholy), establishing personal motivations that drive their in-game actions.
2. Mutiny and Loss: A mutiny aboard the barge results in the loss of supplies and the death of the captain, leaving the core group isolated.
3. Survival Efforts: The team faces numerous challenges, including treating the injured, navigating treacherous waters, and combating monstrous creatures emerging from the depths.
4. Emotional Struggles: Characters grapple with guilt, loss, and the urge to give up, highlighting their personal growth and resilience.
5. Climactic Confrontation: As swells and monoliths intensify their onslaught, the group makes desperate attempts to reach safety, leading to heart-wrenching sacrifices and the ultimate downfall of most characters.

Climax The climax centers on the final confrontation with the monolith and the catastrophic wave it heralds. Amidst intense physical turmoil and emotional breakdowns, characters make monumental sacrifices:

• Ella buries her cat, Lola, symbolizing her relinquishment of control and acceptance of inevitable loss.
• Robert attempts to stabilize the situation medically but ultimately succumbs to overwhelming despair.
• Declan Buchanan valiantly tries to save his friends, only to fall victim to the relentless forces besieging them.

Resolution As the final wave crashes, the last characters face their ultimate fates:

• Chopped by Creatures: The group is relentlessly torn apart by monstrous entities, each character meeting a tragic end.
• Last Human Standing: The sole remaining character, Kirk, witnesses the complete devastation, embodying the theme of zero survivors as dictated by the Ten Candles framework.

Conclusions and Insights "The End of the End" serves as a profound meditation on the fragility of hope and the human spirit's capacity to endure in the face of absolute darkness. The episode underscores the importance of personal virtues in guiding actions during crises and illustrates how vices can both hinder and inadvertently propel characters toward their destinies.

Notable Quotes

• "A goal without a plan is just a wish." – Howie [275:15]
• "Hope can carry you through the darkest of times." – Jake [274:10]
• "Sometimes action requires bravery. Sometimes it requires thought. But life requires action." – Howie [76:27]

Final Thoughts This episode masterfully blends intense role-playing with deep emotional narratives, providing listeners with a gripping and heartfelt conclusion to the Ten Candles: Eclipse season. It highlights the inherent tragedy of a world where nearly all hope is lost, yet individual acts of courage and selflessness leave an indelible mark on the story's fabric.

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For more adventures and to explore past seasons, visit Geek & Sundry's website.

Transcript

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[Jake]

Nothing is as it seems in liminal London. Hidden amongst everyday people are werewolves. You'll be the werewolf then. Yeah, Mags. Wizards Montgomery Archibald Barker at your bloody service. And those cursed by the fey monarchs.

[Declan Buchanan]

Of the city, Declan Buchanan, PI he has quite a large pair of antlers growing out of his forehead.

[Jake]

Join the unlikely misfits of liminal London as they work to take down the powers that claim to rule the city.

[Ella Sanchez]

I think the Queen doesn't like you very much.

[Jake]

With incredible guest players like Johnny Chiadini. Say, there's sludge. Yeah. Sludge.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. I'm the sludge boy.

[Jake]

F ing love. Sludge boy.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, again, I'm not that sludge boy.

[Jake]

Grant Howard. Isaac Newton didn't study in f ing Putney, did he? Who's Isaac? Oh my God. And Sharmini Bundell.

[Declan Buchanan]

There's a magic community.

[Jake]

There is. Yay. I'm in a magic community. Go to realmspod.com or search realms of Peril and Glory wherever you listen to podcasts to find this mysteriously magical actual play series. Warning. The program you're about to listen to contains Explicit language and descriptions of adult themes and graphic violence that some people may find disturbing. Listener discretion is advised. Hello and welcome to our final episode of Ten Candles Eclipse. Ten episodes, 40 people. You are the last four at our table. Under a red moon. This world sucks. It's Jake. I'm so sorry. These two know. Cause they've been watching. They've been, you know. TJ and Denise, you've been behind the scenes just as much as you are in front of the camera now. Alquin, you started this whole damn thing. So you have been here. But Jake, you're just an innocent bystander.

[Howie]

Look of this poor prosthetist, I've never. Well, I'm very excited though. I've never looked forward to dying more since the last time I got food poisoning. So like I'm. I'm like, let's do it.

[Jake]

Ready to go? Yeah. I don't think you could be in a worse circumstance as far as where the world is right now. Like they've been roasting food poisoning pretty bad.

[Howie]

You didn't have this food poisoning.

[Jake]

It's deviled eggs, wasn't it? No. Okay. They were. When they came out.

[Howie]

You thought they were.

[Ella Sanchez]

The human body corrupts an egg like you wouldn't believe.

[Howie]

Sulfur eruptions.

[Jake]

Sulfur eruptions, right. Yeah. Because of same kind of thing. Yellowstone super volcano, also deviled eggs. So. Yeah. No, it's not even just the super volcano right now, but we've got rock hails, hail. Rock hails that are also rocks. Still the title at this point. The tidal surges are like eh, whatever. At this point.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, that's the easiest.

[Jake]

That's the easiest.

[Ella Sanchez]

That was a couple weeks ago. Problem.

[Jake]

Yeah. No. The current are pretty much the world is blanketed out. There's either rock ash or sulfuric acid literally blocking the sun everywhere. And what you can see is just a moon stricken horizon.

[Ella Sanchez]

You looked at all the cool monoliths.

[Jake]

Well, the monoliths are now pretty much a forever staple in the world of where we are today. I am impressed at just what has transpired over the course of these 10 episodes and how each group has basically handed some sort of fuck to each person going down the road.

[Robert]

It's the official thanks everybody.

[Howie]

It's in the rule book.

[Jake]

It is the first two letters with a dash and then the last two letters to really get into the deep of it. But it's all in here. And I've written out all of the miserable things that have happened to all of you.

[Robert]

Oh gosh.

[Jake]

Up to this point, your little black book of My Little Black Book of Pain, which I'm looking forward to disseminating more when we get farther into the post series wrap up of this. Some of these are just bad. Some of these are like. My notes are awful. It's like underground. Great.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's good.

[Jake]

Yeah. Good. Good note taking.

[Declan Buchanan]

Good note taking.

[Howie]

But some of them, if authorities found it, you would be questioned.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Yeah. Mostly my favorite one is they are destro each other. Yeah. Let me try to see if there's other ones. Oh, yeah, here we are. Yeah. Some of these are just spoilerific, so I don't want to get into them so hard, so. Oh, this is another one. Yeah. Earth Splitting apart. Yeah, that one's pretty on the point as well, too.

[Declan Buchanan]

Good. So good odds.

[Jake]

Before we get to our final episode, we need to go through the process of defining our characters yet again. As we discussed before, we chatted about it a little bit, but we didn't talk too much about your characters. Mostly about the whole what, where and why. Which is vital for something like this. But let's begin with our virtue. Take one of your lovely graphic photos of you. And then let's pass it to the left.

[Ella Sanchez]

But we don't write anything on it.

[Jake]

Not yet.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not there yet.

[Howie]

Until you get it.

[Jake]

And this one's for you.

[Ella Sanchez]

And this is the virtue.

[Jake]

Yep. And what this is, you're going to write the virtue. A virtue that you look up to in someone. Something that you want to aspire to be in this lifetime or the next.

[Declan Buchanan]

One word.

[Jake]

Or can it just be a descriptive verb or adverb would be best, please.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay.

[Jake]

Adverb, not verb. You're not passionately doing much, but you are passionate, so. Hey, tj.

[Declan Buchanan]

Hey, buddy. Here we are again.

[Jake]

Yeah, I know. We started. So, tj, for those of you who may not seen the International Tabletop Day Inciting incident.

[Robert]

Inciting episode.

[Jake]

Inciting episode. But Dee and tj, who are producers here. Head of production. Producers here. And basically came on for International Tabletop Days. Cause we was like, hey, let's just run 10 candles. Cause that's a great idea.

[Howie]

You know, Real pick me up.

[Jake]

Yeah, real pick me up on a day of board games. You know, when.

[Declan Buchanan]

Alcuin too.

[Jake]

Yeah, well, and that's the thing, Alcuin, you're here because of scheduling. We had to switch things around. Cause I think it was originally supposed to be the Ocean OG cast.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. With Amy.

[Jake]

But Jake came in. Well, sorry to wreck that plan as a pitch hitter.

[Declan Buchanan]

You know, I was so excited to play. And then Amy Saw. You're another one of the episodes, right?

[Jake]

Yes, but Amy wasn't. Was one of the episodes. One of the early episodes.

[Declan Buchanan]

We really wanted to get her back in.

[Jake]

So that was the whole point of it. Some more behind the scenes curtained attitudes. Let's take your virtues and pass them back to the right. And Jake, because you are my lovely outlier. Okay, why don't you describe.

[Ella Sanchez]

Can you pass this over to Denise, please?

[Jake]

What is yours?

[Howie]

I am inspirational.

[Jake]

Inspirational.

[Howie]

I didn't know it had to be a real attribute.

[Ella Sanchez]

You put a fake one has lasers for eyes.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

What does tentacleicious mean? I don't know what that.

[Howie]

Oh, well.

[Jake]

That means there's more appendages than what you're letting on at this point.

[Ella Sanchez]

Let's get all the fun out now for.

[Jake]

Where did you put.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's gonna be some. As some levity at the front.

[Ella Sanchez]

Selfless.

[Jake]

Selfless.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's my virtue.

[Jake]

You are selfless.

[Declan Buchanan]

I am.

[Jake]

That makes. Okay. How about you, tj?

[Declan Buchanan]

Tenacious.

[Jake]

Tenacious. Inspirational. Selfless and tenacious. All right. Yeah. Seems like a very aggressive crew today. How about you, D?

[Robert]

Pragmatic.

[Jake]

Pragmatic. All right. You are practical in all senses of pragmatism. Good. All right, well, let's take another one of your cards and let's pass it to the right this time.

[Declan Buchanan]

Pass that to D. Got it.

[Jake]

Look at that happy silver haired boy. That's what the vice is going on. Yes, your vice. What would you like to put down? That is something that creates more problems than it solves. It's a trait that you hope not to ever bring into your life or have yourself be surrounded by, but impossible to avoid, I would probably say. For it is human nature to have both virtues and vices which to live with. We aspire to lift one up while keeping the other one contained. Yes. But oh, what a disheveled world brings out in the both of us. Both sides of us.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm just gonna review this. Wrong. So I'm just. I'm sorry.

[Howie]

Well, then I may not even know what it means, so we'll see.

[Jake]

What were you saying, Alquin?

[Ella Sanchez]

I think the. The post apocalyptic stuff doesn't. It doesn't show an alternate. It shows what we really are.

[Jake]

Yeah. No, it is a bullshit stripper.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

You know, as they say, unfortunately causes a lot of it. Oh my gosh. Yeah.

[Howie]

That was.

[Jake]

This is a vice. Ever seen it?

[Howie]

That's why I used it.

[Jake]

That makes me.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Howie]

And my virtue was my graduation.

[Jake]

Oh, there you go. Well, what's your vice.

[Howie]

Oh, we'll pass it back.

[Robert]

I. I haven't finished yet.

[Jake]

Oh, you're not finished yet? I'm sorry.

[Robert]

I'm so sorry.

[Jake]

The ASMR writing is not complete.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's for our fans at home.

[Jake]

I've been loving hearing people being like that is a satisfying sound.

[Declan Buchanan]

I know, right?

[Jake]

Sharpies. I wish you could all cap come off.

[Howie]

I only wish you could smell them.

[Jake]

They're great.

[Declan Buchanan]

These were 4D.

[Howie]

Yeah. They're fuzzy. I don't hate it.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's for grip.

[Jake]

That's the point, is that it's good. I remember the first couple groups when they were getting into it. They despised the nail filed version of these. And I find it extremely complicated. Yeah, it is very fuzzy.

[Howie]

I want some underwear made of that. It's very nice.

[Ella Sanchez]

This one goes back to you.

[Howie]

Not of the markers, but.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Howie]

Well, careful, you're gonna have another eruption on your hands.

[Jake]

All right, I should mark you for that, but we'll leave it be. All right, so now straight at you. Yeah. So are you good, Dee?

[Robert]

Yes, excellent.

[Jake]

So what is your advice, sir, besides fuzzy markers?

[Howie]

It's true. Insistent.

[Jake]

Insistent. So in the point of where you will not let it lie.

[Howie]

Unrelenting. I'm proud.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Unrelenting and proud.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay, fair enough. Alcuin. What is yours?

[Ella Sanchez]

My vice was addictive.

[Jake]

Addictive? Addictive and selfless.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

That's an interesting blend. Yeah. Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Maybe I don't care about myself so much. I just care more about other people. I think I'm a lost cause.

[Jake]

Okay, fair enough. It's amazing that you would have made it this long not caring about yourself, but caring about others. But there's a world in which that makes sense.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, we'll explain that.

[Jake]

Yeah. How about you, tj?

[Declan Buchanan]

Melancholy.

[Jake]

Melancholy. That's a new one.

[Declan Buchanan]

Tenacious and melancholy.

[Jake]

I like that. Okay, that is unique. Okay, fair enough. Dude.

[Robert]

Stubborn.

[Jake]

Stubborn. All right. Tried and true. Stubborn.

[Howie]

So I thought it went well with.

[Robert]

Did I ruin your character? I'm sorry.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, no, no.

[Jake]

It's actually interesting. Contradictions are what make the world go round.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, that's one of my favorite parts of the game, actually.

[Robert]

We've seen some really interesting contradictions.

[Jake]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I love that curve ball.

[Howie]

I thought stubborn went well with pragmatic.

[Robert]

Yes.

[Jake]

All right, well, I kind of already briefly introduced the module, but I'll go through the whole portion of it again. For those of you who have been sticking and watching, you kind of know a little bit of what's going on, but monoliths rose three weeks ago and have been pinheading the entire Earth since then. Tidal surges, earthquakes, hailstones of rock, creatures who have emerged from the ground, creatures who have been roaming around the ground. There have been unexplained tragedies all across the world. No communication has come from any true government officials official until now. Your story is probably going to begin as you are traveling in a repurposed medical barge that has been one of the few working ships that have managed to come up since we discussed there was an EMP that flattened everything on the planet. But this thing, being primarily mechanical and being unhooked to a power source at the time, upon giving it a new power source, has been a very reliable source of refuge for weeks. And being out in international waters has pretty much saved you from a lot of the. Well, I was going to say binary, but more basic elements of what the world has been dishing out at this point between both tidal surges and earthquakes. You've been riding the waves, as they say. That being said, I think your story is going to begin and we'll get into this before we. We'll get into our moments and things before we get into the story. But I have a feeling that you're going to begin your story after hearing some kind of call somewhere close to the equator, and you've been trying to zero in on the signal since then. So with that said, let's make some moments, things that you hope to find and create during the story as part of your character in the process.

[Ella Sanchez]

This is for somebody else's character, not us.

[Jake]

This is yours.

[Ella Sanchez]

This is ours.

[Jake]

This is a moment. So take one of your cards and write upon it a moment. I will find hope. And it can be anything. It can be in the simple pleasures of enjoying something one last time. It can be something much more grand scheme, such as finding the signal. It can be a very emotionally driven thing like finding a quiet moment of prayer or saving an innocent life. It can even be something as small as just experiencing a Twinkie one last time.

[Howie]

Oh, man, I need a new picture now.

[Robert]

I'd go for a zinger.

[Jake]

It's a little more frosting involved.

[Ella Sanchez]

Ding dong yo Ding dong Chocolate junior.

[Howie]

Tasty cake I'm a little Debbie man To be.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, soundtastic cake man.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, nutty bars.

[Jake]

Any PA man oh, the nutty bars. I have been pretty much living in the cherry pie category. Oh, I love cherry pie.

[Robert]

Really?

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

I can't wait to hear Daryl say, of course your episode talked about snack cakes.

[Jake]

You can. I'M sure when you watch or you did watch his episode, you said.

[Howie]

I did, yes.

[Jake]

So, well, I guess this will just be comeback then. You know, it was. Yeah, it was Jake's revenge.

[Declan Buchanan]

Jake's revenge.

[Howie]

Yes. Revenge of the Jake.

[Jake]

Well, in this process, as we explain each other's moments or we explain your moments, I'd also like to know about your character a little bit. So we'll take this time to introduce to the table who you are as well as what your moments are. Your moment is d. Oh, hi. Hello. Good morning.

[Robert]

Hello there. My name is Ella Sanchez.

[Jake]

Ella Sanchez. Ella.

[Robert]

Ella.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Robert]

And I am a trauma surgeon.

[Jake]

Trauma surgeon.

[Robert]

I was part of the group that was put together to go out on this medical barge.

[Jake]

Got it. Repurposed medical barge. On this repurposed medical barge, it wouldn't be repurposed. It would just be recommissioned.

[Robert]

Recommissioned, yes. To find survivors.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Robert]

So I saw what happened initially on land and then got on this boat immediately thereafter to try and find survivors.

[Jake]

What moment do you hope to generate in this story?

[Robert]

I am not a real. I don't make great connections with people. I've tried really, really hard. So I will find hope when I make a meaningful connection.

[Jake]

Meaningful moments. All right, great. So why does she disconnect so much? Why is she so easy to dislodge or dissuade people? Or is that something you would like to get into later?

[Robert]

Well, I mean, just briefly, on the surface, her career has not allowed her to be able to share that part of herself with people.

[Jake]

I see.

[Robert]

They haven't been able to withstand descriptions of what it is that's going on, you know, emotionally, that kind of turmoil.

[Jake]

She's carrying a lot with her, and it's between not being available physically. It's been difficult to be available emotionally. Because of. Because of being a trauma surgeon.

[Robert]

Yes.

[Jake]

Okay. All right. Duly noted. Alcuin.

[Ella Sanchez]

My character is Carter Portsmouth. He is a caregiver for his old sick mother and also runs a small cat cafe.

[Howie]

Got it.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I was on vacation on a cruise, which I didn't really want to go on, but it was insisted upon. My mom won the cruise but was too ill to take it, so I went myself. And then when the event happened, you know, there were a lot of problems on our cruise ship, but we were eventually rescued by Ella on her other. On the other ship, the ship that we're on now.

[Jake]

Your cruise ship capsized? Yeah, from one of the more vicious storms as a result of the first week of Madness.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. I did manage to. There was a lot of chaos when that happened. I did manage to repurpose a cooler into. Because I have discovered Lola, who is a very pregnant, very far along cat, who I've been taking care of, who is in basically like a. Like a cooler that I have drilled holes and stuff into to make into a sort of carrier. It's got little wheels and she's in there with her blankets and stuff, and I've been taking care of her.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

There was a bit of a. There was a bit of a. Kind of a mutiny thing where a lot of the other people left. Some people weren't really happy with the idea of going out to find what the signal was. I was one of the people who was barricaded in the bridge with Ella.

[Jake]

Which we'll get into because I haven't. I've heard that, but now we can explain that into further. So at some point, your recommissioned shipped was personnel divided between the discovery of the signal and people who wanted to go and the people who wanted to leave. So these three. You three plus Ella were the ones that decided to hold off.

[Ella Sanchez]

My moment is that I will find hope when Lola has her litter of kittens safely.

[Jake]

You want her to have her kittens.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's all that really matters to me right now.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

I love you.

[Jake]

All right. Glorious. Jake. Yeah.

[Howie]

I am Kirk Upshaw.

[Jake]

Kirk.

[Howie]

I am a high school history teacher and a football coach.

[Jake]

Right.

[Howie]

And I went on a cruise because my students and players gave me like a end of the year gift that they wanted to send me on a cruise.

[Jake]

That's amazing.

[Howie]

Yeah, Well, I guess it is now. I mean, I was excited about the trip, but.

[Jake]

But your. Your kids and your faculty literally went through the effort enough to go and give you something nice.

[Howie]

Right.

[Jake]

Which is the reason you were alive today.

[Howie]

Right.

[Jake]

And they are not.

[Howie]

Right.

[Jake]

So.

[Howie]

But yeah, life turned out a little. A little differently than I had anticipated, and not just because of this cruise, but so as a result of just some. A pretty big hurdle that happened in my life in college. My moment is I will find hope when I regain the fearlessness I lost after my college injury.

[Jake]

So you want to be able to do an extravagant feat that is reminiscent of your college days.

[Howie]

Yes. And it's that mixed with. I find it easy to motivate other people, but I find it difficult to motivate myself. And I kind of all trace it back to that.

[Jake]

All right, so this is some kind of. Because if I'm reading you correctly, it's about you will find fearlessness, which means you will do something fearless. And it sounds like if it's based off of your college backgrounds as an athletic individual, it is doing some kind of either feat of strength or agility or selflessness to be able to find that to happen. I like that. I think that's fine. You want to feel.

[Howie]

Like I used to.

[Jake]

Glory days one last time?

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay. Wow, that's rough. Being given the gift that is both your life and everybody else's demise, as well as what's going on with your mom. If you don't mind me digging in a little bit more, what are your feelings now that you know that your mom is not being taken care of because you were on the ship?

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, at first I was really messed up about it, but then in a way, I felt kind of relieved because she's been, you know, she has dementia and all these other sort of issues, and it's been hard on me watching her deteriorate.

[Jake]

Right.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I feel awful that she's probably dead at this point without me being there to care for her.

[Jake]

Right.

[Ella Sanchez]

So on one level, I feel kind of guilty about that.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Then one of the things I was worried about when I went on this cruise was that that would happen. But then I also feel like I've also been spared seeing that, and I don't have that in my memory bank.

[Jake]

Got it. It's been something that you've been spared of.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm kind of grateful for it. And then I feel guilty that I feel grateful for that again. So it's this kind of cycle. It's a bit of a cycle.

[Jake]

TJ.

[Declan Buchanan]

My name is Howard Bell, but everyone calls me Howie. I was or am. I was, I guess, is probably more accurate now. The owner and operator of a small game store in a small town in northeastern Pennsylvania. My wife and I started the business together. It was a big dream of ours to do that. Unfortunately, about six months in, there was an accident at the shop, and she slipped while mopping the floor one night and hit her head and fell into a coma. Passed away a few days later.

[Jake]

Oh, wow.

[Declan Buchanan]

Six months ago. Yeah. So. Well, that was six months into owning the business.

[Jake]

Into owning the business.

[Declan Buchanan]

I've been running the shop for about four years after that, keeping it going in her memory. It's rather successful for, or was successful for a small town thing, but when you're a small town, there isn't a lot to do. So we wanted to give the community a place to come and gather and be a community and have fun and find joy and happiness. And since her death, it's been, you know, my goal to keep her joyous memory alive through the game store.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Declan Buchanan]

When everything happened, I ended up on the cruise ship because she'd always wanted to take a cruise. I find myself now kind of living the life that she would have lived with me doing the things that she wanted to do. And that's why I was on the cruise ship, to try to once again reconnect with this person I'd lost years.

[Jake]

Prior to first vacation in four years, kind of a situation.

[Declan Buchanan]

Finally got the business to a place where I could hire some help. It's just been me just been walking.

[Jake]

And you walked away from it for a little bit.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, just for a week, just to get on. Get out of. Get out of dodge. Go try to put some semblance of my life back together now that the life we'd created is stable. Wanted kids, weren't able to have them. That was another bit of a disappointment. But.

[Jake]

So you got picked up. I got picked up with these other two.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I was on the cruise ship, and that all happened. So I've gotten to know these two pretty well.

[Jake]

What was a particular. Was there a moment of revelation on the water while you were dangling in the cold Pacific Ocean? Or either in a life raft or, as with many times when you're in a life raft, it's not dry. You know, there's some kind of water table that's existing under there a little bit. So cold and wet and dealing with it. Was there something there?

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, yeah, when I was there, I mean, first off, I only have a few things that really matter to me, and they're all with me. There's my wife's favorite set of polyhedral dice, which I carry with me everywhere. A deck of cards that we. On our first date, I got sick, and I was gonna miss the date, and I felt really upset about that, and she came over and surprised me, and we played cards all night.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Declan Buchanan]

So I kept that deck of cards. There's a photo in the middle of that deck of cards of her. And finally, there is a journal and a pencil in which I've been. We always. Beyond the game store. We thought we would write our own rpg.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

So I have. We started this journal. Got about halfway there. And since then, I've been slowly adding to it, finishing our world and building this place where we could live. And that on the. On the boat, that's when I realized that that is the most important thing to Me, I was in plastic.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

It was with, like, against my chest at all times. Like, it's become my source for life.

[Jake]

Is that I'm hearing that this is turning into a moment.

[Declan Buchanan]

This is my moment is to finish. Finish the story, finish the RPG that I'd started with my wife.

[Jake]

Finish.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's almost there. It's just the last few pages that need to get hemmed up, and then we'll be done.

[Howie]

I hope it's a happy one.

[Declan Buchanan]

It is.

[Howie]

Okay, good, good.

[Ella Sanchez]

No Grimdark in this rpg, please.

[Jake]

Thanks, Steven. Dewey. Okay, great. Well, then those are all of our moments that we have laid out. And then finally we have the Brinks. So the Brinks are what I will participate with you in this process of putting together. So let's take another card and let's pass it to the right. So send this over to Denise. Now, Jake, don't say.

[Howie]

Don't look at me and say my name like that. It's fine.

[Jake]

Go ahead.

[Howie]

Yeah, you're good? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jake]

Cool. Cool.

[Howie]

Yeah, I just peed a tiny bit. What are you gonna say to me?

[Jake]

We get to participate in part of this process a little bit. Good. Where I get to work with you and same over here. TJ knows what's up. So Denise is going to write a break for you. I'm sorry, you're going to.

[Howie]

I'm gonna write one for.

[Jake]

You're gonna write one, Denise.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

So you will be writing a. I have seen you, and this is a moment of which you have observed that has been their lowest of low. Something that they have resorted to in the most awful way. At the same time, since I have yours, I will be writing something that they have seen you do. Right. They have seen you. Now, I'm doing this because normally, and I'm sure some people have noticed by now, normally Brinks go to the right, you know, but for this last game, I want to mix it up a little bit and just change because I've been so tired. No offense, but it's mostly about the position of inside of here, too. It's like this side of the table has had an opportunity to deal with the nastiness that I have dished down. You get to write for them this time around.

[Declan Buchanan]

This is something I've seen them do.

[Jake]

I have seen, seen them. And this can be about the monoliths. This can be about the creatures. This can be about the world. This can be about the moon, however you want to lay out into it. But decided for this last session.

[Declan Buchanan]

Thank you.

[Jake]

I Will do something a little different. Mostly for my own sanity, if not incorrect on the rules, sense of things. So.

[Robert]

And it's a bad thing, right? It should be a bad.

[Jake]

It should be something that is a brink. It is a lowest point of their human nature. It doesn't have to be something that they've done. It can't be that they have done a bad thing. Like, that's a pretty common misconception. It's not like you have committed murder or anything like that. It's just a weakness, Like a very strong weakness that has come as a result of your observation. And you know, again, a great example they put into the book can be something where I've seen you lose it over this dead dog. That doesn't mean that you killed the dog. It doesn't mean anything other than you just lost it over this moment that happened. You know, it can be inspired by terrible acts, but it can also just be, well, a weak moment. You know, whatever that means to you. Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

My spelling is so bad. People are hurting. Like, hurting him.

[Jake]

You got it?

[Declan Buchanan]

Got it.

[Jake]

Okay, good. Believe in yourself.

[Declan Buchanan]

Confidence is not my virtue. In real life or in this game.

[Ella Sanchez]

This is not bad. This is totally something that I would do. Oh, it's good, though.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's good. Thank you.

[Robert]

Welcome. Was hard to write for in this one. What is a bad thing that a selfless person does? Nothing. They're selfless.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's like a tick. That's great.

[Robert]

We're not supposed to read them out loud, right?

[Howie]

Nope. Not to everybody else. No.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's great. And the hope goes on the bottom, Right?

[Jake]

The brink goes into the bottom.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, yeah. What's the order of these? How should they be stacked up?

[Jake]

You can put them in any order you wish. Of moments, virtue and vice. The brink must go in the bottom.

[Declan Buchanan]

Brink on the bottom.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Robert]

Of those four, though, our character stuff goes on the bottom. Bottom.

[Jake]

Your character. Your last blink one can just be off to the side. Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

But the order of these is important because.

[Robert]

Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

The hope goes in the stack too. Yeah. Or no. I don't remember.

[Jake]

The hope does go in the stack.

[Declan Buchanan]

Goes in the stack.

[Jake]

Yes.

[Howie]

I don't like how much thought you're putting into it.

[Ella Sanchez]

Got. You got to min. Max this.

[Jake]

The bring.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. Final episode. Right. Go for broke.

[Jake]

That's right.

[Ella Sanchez]

We're gonna break this game. We're gonna win.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's right.

[Ella Sanchez]

It'll be different this time.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Easily.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. We've done this before.

[Howie]

Let's ask the other 36 how that went.

[Robert]

I did not prep any Kleenex on this one. The first one.

[Howie]

This is a red shirt.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. I'll just blubber into.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, yeah, this is thick.

[Ella Sanchez]

We'll be mutual blubs over here on that one shot.

[Robert]

Literally, I mean it, like, stop. I don't think anybody could see it, which is probably good, but there was like. Literally, there was mucus coming out of my nose. I was frying so much.

[Jake]

I was like.

[Ella Sanchez]

The snot bubble.

[Howie]

Great.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. That shirt, you just throw that shirt out of. Tear it up. Maybe use it for a painting.

[Howie]

Yeah, Well, I told her before this used to be white. That's why I wore that shirt. Been a long time on that cruise ship.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

And all your other clothes are red.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Robert]

Alcuin, at this table, you've sat with Ivan the most. Do you still get nervous? Because I know I'm a little nervous right now.

[Ella Sanchez]

You know, I used to. But if you don't, we're actually one for one. I have killed Ivan in a game we played together at Gen Con.

[Robert]

Oh, good for you.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. So that's a bucket list. Did that and you killed me in the International Tabletop Day. Ten candles. So we're actually even so far.

[Jake]

How did I die again?

[Ella Sanchez]

I choked you to death. I was a synthetic.

[Jake]

Oh, that's right. Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Robert]

Gosh.

[Ella Sanchez]

That was the last scene.

[Jake]

That game.

[Ella Sanchez]

I choked the life out of you. We went back and forth, rolling and injuring each other.

[Jake]

Yeah. That was awesome.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Howie]

Let me ask you, what do you think is more frightening and unpredictable? Sitting at a table with you as the game master or sitting at a table with me as a host?

[Jake]

Honestly, and I've mentioned this a few times before, but I am terrified as a player. I do. I have a tough time playing, so I literally am. Sometimes my decision making capacities will sometimes fall apart when I'm at a table as a player, but it's fine. How you doing?

[Howie]

No, I'm fine.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's you.

[Jake]

It's okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's fine. We're fine here. How are you?

[Jake]

Tasty.

[Declan Buchanan]

Tasty for the last one.

[Jake]

I like it.

[Ella Sanchez]

There you go.

[Declan Buchanan]

I like it a lot.

[Jake]

Cool, Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool.

[Robert]

Being a producer of the show is. Actually comes in handy sometimes. I'm not saying I didn't intentionally sit myself next to Ivan, but when it was suggested I didn't have to, I went for it.

[Howie]

Yeah. Thank you.

[Robert]

Sorry.

[Howie]

Jake.

[Declan Buchanan]

What an honor.

[Ella Sanchez]

Jake.

[Robert]

What? Who said that?

[Declan Buchanan]

To be the exception.

[Howie]

Yes.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's great.

[Howie]

Today's a good day to die.

[Jake]

Yeah. Great. I'M just riding down the brink.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I've actively chosen to be sat in fifth chair or next to Ivan or other things like that. So you should look danger in the face and laugh.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's right.

[Jake]

Fearless.

[Howie]

That is my moment.

[Declan Buchanan]

You've already hit your moment sitting at this table.

[Howie]

I'm. Put that first.

[Declan Buchanan]

Get some hope. Tie on the table.

[Jake]

Let's do this.

[Declan Buchanan]

Starting with 15.

[Jake]

Yeah. Context for the choking me out. So Alquin did. I don't think you need to qualify that. No, no, it's just. It's fair. We did the alien rpg.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yes.

[Jake]

Which is what that was.

[Ella Sanchez]

Which I went and pre ordered immediately afterwards.

[Jake]

Yeah. And it is a wonderful game. But that was a situation in which in the story, he was revealed to be the Synthetic. And I revealed him. So he decided to reveal himself by just like, just putting.

[Ella Sanchez]

While Alex was scanning for the synthetic on the derelict ship. Not me. They are synthetic.

[Jake]

Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

I popped up and we were in the room together.

[Jake]

It was one of those, like, sir, Sir. Cause I was the captain. It's like, sir, the synthetic's in the same room as you.

[Ella Sanchez]

And then. And you were like, blowing my face off. Like you were shooting me in the face. And I'm a synthetic, so I'm just standing there.

[Jake]

You know, it's like putting a gun.

[Ella Sanchez]

Singular purpose.

[Jake]

Putting a gun in his ribs and just unloading the clip. Anyway, that's not this game.

[Declan Buchanan]

Hashtag synthetic life or isn't life.

[Jake]

The power of role playing games, y' all.

[Robert]

I put mine in order upside down, and then I flipped them over and I was like, whoops, that's not how.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's.

[Jake]

That is yours. So I think we're going to begin your story, as I mentioned earlier, very shortly after you discovered there is a repeating signal and you've at this point traveled into the middle of the Pacific Ocean, knowing that the more out and away from the water you are, the less difficult the waves are. And there's been so much tremors and aftershocks at this point. You're able to ride out most of the major surges that are coming in, but as soon as you get too close to the shore, that's when the water breaks and just starts making it a real tough time for the boats. And this is something you've learned through trial and error, unfortunately.

[Ella Sanchez]

Are there monoliths out in the water, in the open water?

[Jake]

100%. Okay. Yes, they are pinheaded, like I said. All over the world.

[Ella Sanchez]

Are they like a grid? They're in, like a geometric formation since.

[Jake]

You were out in the water, you would see that there is absolutely a regular pattern.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yes. So geometric be hard to see unless you were observing it from space.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

You know, but they definitely are consistent. Like, wherever you look on the horizon, there is one, if not a couple. And whenever you feel like you're past one, there's another one right on the right in front of you.

[Ella Sanchez]

And they're like the size of skyscrapers. Are they featureless in any way or.

[Jake]

Featureless black, sheer facing things.

[Ella Sanchez]

They're just like big rectangles.

[Jake]

And in this circumstances, what you've been seeing is that the monoliths have come up, and it doesn't matter how deep the ocean is. They all are pretty consistently the same size. Okay. Above the water. Right.

[Robert]

It's terrifying.

[Jake]

I think your story will begin shortly after you have heard through the crackle of static, which has been mostly prevalent this entire time, and the occasional terrifying hum of creatures or voices singing inside of the radio, you've managed to pick up one repeating signal that has given you coordinates and has ostensibly just said, the last refuge, the last stand, is here. Come to us. And this is the last opportunity for you to find safety. Nowhere else is safe. And this has been on a repeating signature for most of it. You picked up the edges of it through the static, and you have been trying to hone in on it because, unfortunately, navigation has not been accurate or good for you because no stars to deal with. So rather than, like, trying to pinpoint it directly of where things can be, you have just been trying to get to where the signal is strongest and go towards that direction as much as you possibly can. And shortly after the discovery of this signal, your other fellow refugees on the boat, I think we discussed, decided that they didn't want to go to such a thing.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, they unified under this guy Hooker, who was a used car salesman, I guess, or something, but apparently they all thought that he had a better idea of how to run a ship than Ella did.

[Robert]

Well, our crew tried to hold them off because they tried to take over.

[Jake]

Yeah. They tried to rush the bridge.

[Robert]

A lot of them didn't make it. And we barricaded ourselves inside the bridge, and with nothing left to do, they decided to just steal the last of.

[Jake]

The lifeboats and flush off with all of your supplies. Yes. So now it's just. Is it just the four of you? Is there anyone left on the boat?

[Ella Sanchez]

We might not be totally sure.

[Howie]

Not that we know of.

[Jake]

But you know that it's just the four of you in the Bridge?

[Ella Sanchez]

Well, five, counting Lola.

[Jake]

Counting Lola. It's the four of you on the bridge with a very bent and very nasty looking rail that has been shoved inside of the door leading out from the main hallway into the bridge. And that's where we're going to pick up our story. So what would you like to do?

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, we've seen the lifeboats break off. It's gotten quieter. The bang has stopped.

[Jake]

Yep.

[Robert]

We should search the ship.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, yeah, make sure there aren't any of them still left on the ship.

[Jake]

All right, so you want to search the ship for anyone who may have stayed?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

And do what if they're here?

[Robert]

Well, we need to figure out what their purpose is.

[Declan Buchanan]

Why? Yeah. Who else is on the ship and why they're still here and not with the other guys.

[Robert]

Are they staying to throw us off so they can call? I mean, there'd be no way to call their friends back. But we didn't see the boats leave, so they could just be right, you know, right behind us for all we know right now. So what I would actually like to do is grab the captain's key and go into his room.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Robert]

And get a pistol he keeps in his lockbox.

[Jake]

Okay, roll for that. Roll for the acquisition of said pistol. And lock. One success. And two ones. Two for me, one for you. It's too early for me to roll, so by all means, take narrative result.

[Robert]

Okay, so the captain was one of the last to go down. We had drug him back in with us onto the bridge. Okay, so I will lean over and close his eyes.

[Jake]

Okay, so he died.

[Robert]

He died, yes.

[Jake]

How did he die?

[Robert]

He was bashed in the head by one of the mutineers. Survivors.

[Jake]

Okay. All right, so he was. Unfortunately, yes, he was killed in the mutiny. All right, so you. Sorry, continue. You close his eyes.

[Robert]

I'll lean over. Close his eyes and grab the key to his. What are they called?

[Declan Buchanan]

Chambers?

[Howie]

Like a lockbox?

[Jake]

Quarters.

[Robert]

Key to his cabin. Key to his quarters, yes. Which also includes a key to the lockbox where I know he kept his pistol.

[Jake]

Okay, so you go and you get a very antique looking service revolver, like Colt 1911 kind of attitude that's in there. It's very. Just old school, like issued in World War II kind of revolver. And not even a revolver, it's like a slide pistol. And you grab that and it has its clip and nothing else. I think it's a 10 shot.

[Howie]

10 or 12.

[Jake]

Yeah, we'll call it 10.

[Robert]

Okay.

[Howie]

Of course you would call it 10.

[Jake]

Thank you. So you Go and grab the service revolver. Service right. Pistol.

[Declan Buchanan]

Is there anything else in the captain's quarters we might be able to turn into a makeshift weapon, like the bar that's holding the door shut, and maybe keep that?

[Jake]

Yeah, you could probably still grab that out. I mean, it's bent to hell, but you could definitely still have it. And after you've claimed this, you see that the captain's going. He's been on this thing three weeks. He's kept it tidy as a captain to. Do you know, when you are part of the Navy, you are literally meant to make everything immaculate all the time. So he has a lot of his rituals and regularities that you see inside of it, but mostly maps, navigational charts, all which you have learned recently have become useless now that the sky is constantly being shrouded. And even when it is clear enough, nothing looks like what it should up in the sky.

[Ella Sanchez]

But you do have a way to navigate to these coordinates from the transmission, Right.

[Jake]

As best as you can, which has mostly just been by observing the radio.

[Howie]

Yeah. Strength of the signal. Are there any blueprints to the ship in the quarter?

[Jake]

Yeah, let's see how they're looking.

[Howie]

Oh, man.

[Declan Buchanan]

Name of the game is.

[Jake]

I know.

[Declan Buchanan]

Want to do a thing.

[Jake]

You roll some dice, and it'll have.

[Ella Sanchez]

Some bad in the good.

[Jake]

There you go. All right.

[Howie]

There's one.

[Jake]

Two. At least two. One for you, one for me. Great. Let me see if I can take narrative control. Wow. Two sixes for me. Ties go to the gm. You still succeed, but I gain narrative control in the circumstances. So as you go into the captain's quarter, you can very much see that the map of the recommissioned medical barge is available. You'd probably have a model of the ship with its name on it and then probably a plaque that would have some of its layout interior inside of it. It's not too bad. You've been on this ship for a while. Two weeks is not a small amount of time to get used to this kind of a barge. So most of the mid deck is laid out in large trauma centers. They're like. I won't call them cargo warehouses, but basically above deck is meant to. To do crowd control. And then in the mid deck and the lower deck are all large areas where you can put beds. It's a mobile hospital is what it is. So there's lots of treatment rooms, and there's lots of supply rooms, which are more to the fore part of the ship. And then the aft is mostly meant for logistics supplies like Supplies on a boat side, not supplies on a medical side. And you're definitely familiar. The difference is that to your point of being able to have a map or not, you would absolutely be able to have a map of it. It's just laid out in the most technical jargon.

[Howie]

I didn't know if there was something on the map that shows an area we maybe don't know about or recognize.

[Jake]

Oh, I would definitely say that looking at it now, since the captain has kept this relatively to themselves, that you have noticed that there are a lot more supply depots, like little supply centers than you originally were told or even privy to. Were privy to. And to be fair, that was something that was mostly dished out through the. Oh, man. What do they call the logistics officers? I forgot. Not a quartermaster.

[Howie]

A requisitions officer.

[Jake]

Requisitions officer. Thank you. Yeah, so that's. That's the long short of it.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, one of us should stay here and make sure they don't retake the bridge. If there are people here on the.

[Howie]

Boat, should just one of us stay here?

[Declan Buchanan]

I mean, I don't know. I mean, you've got your cat, so if you want to stay behind with the kitten, in case.

[Ella Sanchez]

I feel like that's the safer bet.

[Declan Buchanan]

She decides to go into labor, that's probably.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, she's breathing pretty heavily, but I think it's just general nervousness.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

But I mean, I think if I have a physical barricade, I'll be safe, or we'll be safe from the pipe behind them. But then the rest of y' all. I mean, don't split up. I've seen horror movies. That's always when something bad happens. Just stay. The rest of you just stay together.

[Jake]

At this point, the boat is doing. And this is pretty common nowadays, like, you are not on a flat sea, by any chance. You are constantly dealing with rolling bulges every time. And so you are in that position where you're constantly shifting your weight. And even moving from deck to deck involves a lot of grabbing a hold of the rails and trying to walk as stable as you can. So, thankfully, you've all gotten the sickness out of your system days ago. But even then, it's still nauseating.

[Ella Sanchez]

So it's scary, too, if you're not used to it.

[Jake]

Yeah, it just is moving. And it's weird, too. It's almost like everything feels like almost every once in a while you feel like that point in which. Have you ever been in, like, turbulence in a plane when it just. You just Kind of lose weight because it just drops so suddenly.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Like it seems like everything is so, well, light that sometimes when the bulges will lift you up, it's almost like you're up and then you'll just fall down and get this controlled fall that will just come out of nowhere.

[Ella Sanchez]

The ship makes a lot of noise too. Like it's an older ship and it really creaks and there are lots of little ticks and little sounds of metal straining periodically.

[Jake]

All right, so who's going where?

[Howie]

Well, I know you got the gun, you're calling the shots and this.

[Ella Sanchez]

Is there some way for you to communicate? For us to communicate?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Howie]

Can we look for walk there any.

[Declan Buchanan]

Walkies, short range walkie talkies or something? Like something they would have used at the bridge?

[Jake]

There would be like an intercom system so someone in the bridge could speak out.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Howie]

We'd have to reply on a wall.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay, cool.

[Jake]

So that's.

[Declan Buchanan]

That will communicate.

[Howie]

So I guess if you see anything, any ships come in or anything in the distance, let us know.

[Ella Sanchez]

And do I have any way that I can view anything that's going on on the ship? Are there any closed circuit cameras or.

[Jake]

Anything up in the bridge? No, no cameras. But if you went out onto the foredeck, you would be able to go and get a span of whatever the hell is you're in the middle of right now.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay. I mean, I have a set of binoculars. They just haven't been too useful.

[Jake]

Right.

[Ella Sanchez]

Cause a lot of time there's just nothing to see.

[Jake]

There's nothing to see. That's the point. So in that way, this is interesting, but it's also eerily quiet.

[Robert]

What's our visibility on the water?

[Jake]

Awful. As far as it just being dusty. And usually if you're out this far in international waters, you would have pretty clear visibility for miles across. But between humidity clouds and dust, which is there just seems to just be this weird ashen dust everywhere. And it was kind of up at the top seen. It's kind of rolled in after some time, especially as you head farther, farther south. And the only reason you were able to see the giant cloud to the north, the northeast of you, up towards where the Americas are, is because you saw a completely different color cloud kind of up in its giant mushroom like shape.

[Ella Sanchez]

And it was like a weird color. It was like green or something.

[Jake]

Yeah, yellowish green. And it's a. So in that way, it's like you have a squall of ash coming from the south and then you have this greenish orangish cloud that will eventually turn into a squall once it. It starts hitting the waterline. That's to the northeast of you. And then, of course, monoliths piercing out.

[Robert]

Right. So you'll have to keep an eye out for monoliths to make sure we don't hit them.

[Jake]

It's one of those things where they are far enough apart from each other that it's not like you're having to dart around them, obviously.

[Robert]

But if we're on that particular course now.

[Ella Sanchez]

Are we. Before you all leave, have we plotted a general course towards where we think this. The signal's coming from.

[Declan Buchanan]

And I just metal detector the tone until it hit.

[Jake]

You've basically been hitting on a southeasternly direction for Southwestern. Sorry, Southwest.

[Ella Sanchez]

I won't change our course unless we need to avoid something.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. So based on seeing her come out with the gun, I'm gonna ask her if the captain had any other wartime relics, like a bayonet or one of the swords they issue you. Like, was there anything else in there that might be used as a weapon? Do you want to roll for that? Yeah, probably. I'm looking for either. Like, my grandfather was in the war.

[Jake]

I have an idea.

[Declan Buchanan]

You get what I'm after, right?

[Ella Sanchez]

A dress uniform sword on the wall.

[Declan Buchanan]

Or something like that?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Two ones and one six.

[Jake]

Well, let me see if I can gain some narrative control.

[Declan Buchanan]

There you go. Nope.

[Jake]

Why don't you tell me what you find? Sure.

[Declan Buchanan]

So she brings me in to the captain's quarters, and on the wall, he does have his plaques and things, his stars, all the medals and things he's won. Where the gun was kept is also a vintage World War II bayonet. The ones that you could. Not just the ones that go on the end of the. The gun, but the ones that have the handle that you can actually just use it as a.

[Jake]

As a sword.

[Declan Buchanan]

As a knife.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's about a foot long blade.

[Jake]

Got it. So you find a long bayonet that has both a handle, but could also be fitted onto the end of a rifle if it wanted to.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

So. And you grab that. The. The gun itself is actually there, but it's so rusted and it's.

[Declan Buchanan]

Even the bayonet's not in the best of shape. It's seen combat, so it's rusty, but it's pointy. Pointy. Yeah, that's the pointy. It's got a little bit of an edge on it.

[Howie]

And I'm gonna take that plaque because one, it'd be nice to have a Map to those rooms we haven't seen. And two, I don't have a weapon, so I'm gonna hit someone if I have to hit someone.

[Jake]

That's fair. So you three are basically heading out to the midship, if I'm hearing you correctly. So you kind of go down into the patio, and the first thing you notice upon when opening the. The door out is just how thick the air is. It smells like. It smells like right now with the wildfires, you know, or the brush fire. It just smells. It's not so bad that you're coughing and choking from it, but it has that very distinct smell of burning.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

That just hits you when you first come out into the air. And you also can see. And you really. You hear it before you see it. But you kind of. As you're walking out to the midship, you hear as the ship is rolling and kind of tumbling, you kind of hear the. Of, like, weight being shifted to and from. And you look out, and you see the lolling bodies of people out on the deck who seem to just be rolling and thudding against the rails from the left to the right as the ship is tilting and making its erratic move across the water.

[Robert]

We have to check the bodies, right, for any survivors.

[Jake]

What are you checking the bodies for?

[Robert]

See if anybody's alive or pretending to be.

[Howie]

That's fair.

[Robert]

Okay, I will.

[Howie]

Wait. There's two ones.

[Robert]

Yeah, I'm gonna. I'm stubborn.

[Jake]

Stubborn.

[Robert]

And I'm gonna re roll those two babies.

[Jake]

So how are you applying stubborn in this situation?

[Robert]

Well, you know, let's say the guys don't think it's a problem, but I. I know people. I've seen the worst of people.

[Jake]

And you wouldn't be surprised if some people play it dead.

[Robert]

Yeah.

[Jake]

And you want to make sure that's not the case before you just start knocking bodies over.

[Robert]

Absolutely. And I'm built to save people, so if there's a chance, I have to take it.

[Jake]

All right, 1 6. Let's see if I can wrest narrative control from you. I have one six.

[Declan Buchanan]

Tie goes to the dealer.

[Robert]

At least he didn't get two more.

[Jake]

Yeah, no, I didn't get two more. There you go. There are several people who are not dead but are mortally injured, whether they have been. No one's been shot. For whatever luck you want to give yourself, you had the only gun on the ship, but there is lots of deep lacerations bleeding out. Some people are absolutely unconscious. And there's a few people who you recognize from the cruise ship who Are just. As soon as they hear the tang, tang, tang, as soon as they even. They flutter their eyes open and kind of look at you, they just lose it. They just start breaking down, like. Just moaning and upset and crying, just not even sure if they should even ask for help. And one person asks. Just asks. You says. Just says, don't, Don't. No, I'm done. Just toss me overboard with the rest. So one is not interested in staying around. I would say there are at least five mortally injured people on the deck. What do you want to do?

[Howie]

Look, you're the surgeon here. How bad are these people?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, what do we need to do?

[Howie]

Are they done?

[Robert]

At first glance. I mean, this is not exactly a surgical setting. At first glance, things are not looking good, but we need to get them into the medical bay so that I can look them over.

[Declan Buchanan]

What about our friend who doesn't want to go on?

[Jake]

He's the one who's also. I should probably be more specific. He's the one who, after closer observation, hasn't lied on it. But he's basically pulled his body up, and you can see he's bleeding from his legs, but he's kind of lifted himself up to the rail, and he's kind of pushing himself up to the midline rail. And as you start walking towards him, he looks at you and goes, nope, no, no, it's not worth it. It's not worth it. And once one of the bulging of the items start coming down, he kind of tum sweats and he tumbles backwards. As he hits his head on the back and just falls. You hear a sploosh as he takes himself into the water with him. So.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay, yes.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, that solves that problem.

[Jake]

So three of you, five bodies, you'd probably have to make two trips, if not several.

[Robert]

I'll go.

[Declan Buchanan]

Should we grab Carter if we're moving to the med bay or at least tell him where we're headed?

[Robert]

We should find a comm system and tell him what's happening.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, before we sweep the boat, though, should we alert everyone that might still be on board to the location we're about to be in? No, we're not too far away. I can jog him.

[Jake]

You just go back up the rails.

[Declan Buchanan]

And let them know where we're headed and what the plan is.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay, so how are we gonna steer the ship from down there?

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, I'm just letting you know where we are. We don't want to announce our location yet.

[Howie]

Oh.

[Ella Sanchez]

Gotcha.

[Declan Buchanan]

So if something does happen on the map, here's where we are.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

Here's where we will be.

[Jake]

Would have been better. Okay, so you run back down through the main line. At this point, Kirk's already kind of just trying to get one person in a position where he can carry them. Every little adjustment you make is just a scream in the top of their lungs. And you can kind of see that this person you're holding onto has one arm across their waist as they're trying to hold onto your other arm. And you can tell that if they didn't have their arm up where they are right now, they would. Would just be losing their intestines all over the floor.

[Robert]

Okay, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop. I will go get some supplies and bring them up here.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

Look for, you know, like, lifeguards have the boards that they'll carry people from the crest of the beach to the ambulance, something like that, like the manual ones.

[Howie]

Look, I'm not the doctor here, but maybe we should just be grabbing some morphine.

[Robert]

I will grab everything that we need. In any case, I'll put a little kit together. I'll be right back.

[Jake]

So you are going to run down to where one of the trauma stations are and just start grabbing a gear that you can bring up to topside.

[Robert]

Yes, but I will be taking my. Not my time, but I will be carefully going around corners and looking around.

[Jake]

Seeking things are there. Yeah. So, yeah, by all means, let's see how it goes.

[Robert]

I'm rolling again.

[Jake]

Yeah. This is a conflict.

[Declan Buchanan]

Ew.

[Jake]

All right, one for me, one for you. All yours.

[Robert]

Okay, it's clear. Nobody's in here. I. I have to do it one handed because I'm not gonna let go of the gun to be taken off guard.

[Jake]

Shoving things inside of bags as much as you can.

[Robert]

Anything to stop any bleeding that I can stop, and yes, also morphine if I need to.

[Jake]

So you can tell that supplies have definitely been raided. Like, there is just stuff and packages are tumbling across the ship just as the bodies were on the upper deck. But no matter what, this is a ship meant to service thousands of soldiers, injured soldiers. They just could not take enough to run you dry at this point. So you put together a kit, you shove it all in, and you run back up. I mean, maybe you can even just bang a gurney along the way, just dragging it, just in case, with your satchel, and you headed back up to the screaming and wailing injured on the main deck.

[Robert]

Okay, I will go to the most vocal first.

[Jake]

All right, well, that would definitely be the main.

[Howie]

That would be who I'M holding.

[Jake]

Yeah. Who you've laid down. At this point, he kind of is grasping onto your shoulder. You can feel his nails are digging. He goes, oh, God, it hurts.

[Ella Sanchez]

Just.

[Declan Buchanan]

Just anything to you?

[Ella Sanchez]

Just.

[Jake]

God, they just were awful. We told them. We told them. They told them that they just don't do anything. And they. I tried to get on the ship. The lifeboats, they were all full. Some people literally tried to jump off the ship onto the boat. And when one of them knocked the boat over because they landed onto it, they just started stabbing anything who got too close. God, how could you fucking leave us up there, man?

[Howie]

I'm sorry. Look, we'll just hold on. Squeeze me as hard as you need to squeeze me. Do not close your eyes.

[Jake]

Looks down at in like, oh, God.

[Declan Buchanan]

I can feel it.

[Jake]

It's fucking coming out of my goddamn guts, man.

[Howie]

What's coming.

[Robert]

Ella, I. While they're having this conversation, I'll be checking the situation out. And they are, as you said, all mortally wounded. Correctly.

[Jake]

They are all mortally wounded. Would be very tough to tell on here. They all have major injuries. I mean, you have a treatment center. You could all technically do what you needed to do to treat them, but at the. At this point, it's man hours and lives saved. At this point, no one's walking off of this ship for weeks, right?

[Robert]

Is this something I can do on my own with no other real medical assistance to save him?

[Jake]

So with. I'm gonna probably get reality checked here, but with a gut injury like this, if his insides weren't cut and he's currently septic or anything like that, you'd have to sew him up. You'd have to dose him up on morphine the entire time. You'd have to recover. You'd have to clean it real good to make sure there's no infections here because he's been sliding across the deck, right, for minutes. He is months away from any recovery, even in a hospital.

[Robert]

Okay, then I will lean over and I'll. What's your name?

[Jake]

James. James.

[Robert]

God, James. James.

[Jake]

Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

[Robert]

There's nothing I can do for you right now.

[Jake]

What? You're a fucking surgeon. What do you mean there's nothing you can do?

[Robert]

All of your friends took a lot of the stuff that I needed.

[Jake]

But.

[Robert]

What I can do is I can put you to sleep. Is there anything that you want to say?

[Jake]

I don't wanna die. I don't.

[Robert]

I do.

[Jake]

No, I. He kinda. He can't make eye contact with you, and he's processing this image While his pain is still subsiding. You can start to hear that now that voices are coming up in here. Other people are starting to stir and wake a little bit. But he lifts his head up finally and doesn't look at you, but instead just looks up in the sky and just goes. I just was really hoping that. You know, when you run a marathon and you run really, really hard and it hurts the entire time and you just keep going, because at some point, you know there's going to be a Gatorade stand right there, and you get to drink it, and you put a little water on yourself and you can keep on running. And at some point, the marathon ends. It sucks, but at some point, it just ends. It just. Just was hoping it would be around the next bend, you know? Just wanted to be done. How long can it go on? How long can the pain and the suffering go on?

[Howie]

Yeah, James, you ran a hell of a race, buddy. And we've got a little Gatorade for you here.

[Jake]

Now.

[Howie]

It'S okay to rest. It's okay to take a break.

[Jake]

He leans himself back at this point, just sidles up, and he doesn't say anything. Just kind of looks at you and just gives the shrillest of nods and just kind of leans back and just.

[Robert]

Kirk, hold his arm.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm gonna have him. I'm gonna tell him, hey, James, look at me, bud. We're gonna do something right now, okay? Take your mind off this. We're gonna make a character for a game that I play, okay?

[Jake]

Fuck you, man.

[Declan Buchanan]

Come on.

[Jake]

Listen to me.

[Declan Buchanan]

Listen to me. Focus on me, okay? Do you want to be a human or an elf?

[Jake]

Huh? Human?

[Declan Buchanan]

Or else?

[Jake]

Health.

[Declan Buchanan]

You want to be an elf?

[Jake]

Okay? I don't want my last moments on this earth to be making a fucking game. Just let me. Just let me look at the sky or something, okay? Or just let me do this on my own. I don't need this. Okay?

[Declan Buchanan]

All right, James.

[Jake]

All right.

[Robert]

And I will give him a lethal dose of morphine.

[Jake]

Yeah. As he slowly starts to fade into consciousness, he puts his arms up and as his eyes begin to flitter and doses his head back. As he's going to go into unconsciousness, he has his moment. He's looking at you and goes, enough. Would've been fine. And then he drifts off into nothingness and never wakes up.

[Declan Buchanan]

I write it in my game book. James the Elf.

[Jake]

James the Elf. And at this point, you continue to go look at some of the other people who are on the midship. I mean, they're not nearly as bad as he was with it laid out. And many of them. I'd say three of the four left are still definitely unconscious, but the other. Well, I guess the question is, do you want to give the same treatment to the other four? You know, there are three who could not give you consent right now even if you wanted to wake them up. And one more that you could potentially have that discussion with.

[Declan Buchanan]

Is anyone. Are any of these people in good enough shape to maybe make them comfortable, put them in a, I don't know, medically induced coma, for lack of a better word, until we can get to the Sanctuary? Maybe there are better equipment there. Anything. We could just stabilize some people in the med bay and. And then just keep them comfortable until maybe more help arrives or we can get to some help.

[Robert]

The problem there is the supply. We currently, just at a first glance, don't have a whole heck of a lot left for those who are left and who didn't try to kill other people. I mean, I have seen the worst of what humankind does to each other, and obviously this being the end of the world steps it up a notch. Even after trying to attack us and kill us, that guy had the nerve to blame him and to blame us and to give us shit for it. Like.

[Declan Buchanan]

I mean, I thought you were a doctor, right?

[Robert]

I am a doctor and I save and I save those who can be saved as much as I can, but I also have to make the difficult decisions when they can't be. I also have to make the decisions whether or not we can afford to do it.

[Jake]

So it's decision making time then. Are you in a position where you want to hold people up inside of the bay and lay them up? Because that will take gurning them all down. Or are you going to make the decision now?

[Declan Buchanan]

All I'm saying is you don't have to make the decision if you don't have to make the decision right now. All any of us have at this point is the opportunity for a little more time. If you want to give them a little more time, let's give them a little more time. If you want to end it now, we will help you end it now. I will help you end it now. But if you want to give them more time, we have the means to give them a little more time.

[Howie]

Do any of them have a shot at all? I mean, can any of them. I mean, do any of them have a shot?

[Robert]

In a normal world, sure. In normal circumstances, yeah. In this one, yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

But normal might be at the end of that radio signal that some semblance of normalcy might be there. Do you. I mean, we don't know how to get it.

[Howie]

Yeah, but we gotta make it to normal first.

[Declan Buchanan]

I know.

[Jake]

So, Carter, at this point, you're up with Lola, with the cat at this point, and you are definitely seeing that the area in front of you as you're driving the ship forward and you're dealing with the lists.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I'm honestly not paying that much attention to that.

[Jake]

No.

[Ella Sanchez]

I am not doing a very good job with the job that you gave Carter.

[Jake]

Right. You're mostly just petting the cat.

[Ella Sanchez]

I have her makeshift carrier open on the captain's bed, and I'm singing to her. I'm trying to make up songs, but I don't know any songs about Lola.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

So I'm just mixing a bunch of other songs together and just singing to her. And I've got the carrier kind of open, and I'm telling her, like, this is the captain's bed. You can have this whole bed for yourself. Like, this is all yours, Lola. And I'm trying to cheer her up, you know?

[Jake]

And at this point, you do feel. And you'll feel it too, as well. Too, since it's on the same ship, but you'll feel the fore of the ship rise very suddenly, as if it just hit a really large swell. And then you'll kind of feel that again. That thing I described earlier, where you're all weightless for a moment because it just back down, and you'll all kind of have a moment where you're on the Tower of Terror, where you just.

[Ella Sanchez]

That lurch.

[Jake]

Lurch as it just hits the bottom of a cascading wave.

[Ella Sanchez]

And does it seem like it's been like this for.

[Jake]

Oh, wow.

[Ella Sanchez]

Right.

[Jake]

That one was a particularly huge one, though.

[Ella Sanchez]

I've got my hand on Lola, so she doesn't go airborne.

[Jake]

And it's to the point of where you do all lift out of your seat for just a second enough to where, you know, you feel the impact as your body hits rigid against the bottom of it. And everything, at least in the cabin's core, is bolted down. Anything that isn't bolted down basically scatters and kind of just falls.

[Declan Buchanan]

So did we go up and then down a little?

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Then I assume the bodies in the ground also just did that.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Has the landscape changed? Have we lost anyone that was near the edge?

[Jake]

We'll get to that in a second, because I want to see. I want to see if Carter's interested in seeing what the landscape of water looks like.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'll gently pull the sort of crocheted shawl that I've had Lola wrapped up in. I'll put her back in the cooler and close up one end of it. And then I'm gonna sort of use a sort of thing to. To strap it so that it's not gonna shift around.

[Jake]

Right.

[Ella Sanchez]

And so she should be relatively okay. Nothing will bump into her or any other kind of stuff. And so I'm like, shh, shh. And I kind of try to calm her down. And then I'm gonna go out of the captain's quarters into the main bridge with a big opening and look at.

[Jake]

This roiling, roiling water. Yeah. What you notice at some point is the one that you hit to. You hit right against the ship. So the balls, like the ship was pulling, pointed into the bulge. So it kind of went up and down. So in that way you rolled the wave up before it fell back down again.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

And you can see there's another one coming up. But what's more important is you can see a wave or a bulge.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, a swell.

[Jake]

A swell that is to the left of the ship. And it seems to be just twice as high as the normal swells that you've been seeing.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

So I don't know.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't know a ton about boats, but I mean, I feel like anything that big could capsize us. I don't know if that's the word for it, but. All right, I'm gonna get on the intercom and I start letting people know. I'm like, okay, you know, that last one wave, that was pretty big, but there's a much bigger one coming. I don't know. Is there anything I can do to keep us from sinking? I'd feel a lot better if one of you who knows about boats and stuff were up here and not me.

[Robert]

Can we see it from the deck?

[Jake]

Yeah. So as soon as you're on the mid part of the deck, you can actually see as you look and it was behind you. Since you're all facing. As you look behind, you can see because it's dark. You can just see the dark growing onto the side of you. And this is definitely like. It's not clipping into a wave at this stage yet, but it is huge. It is going to ride you. It's like a crater sized wave that's just directly to your.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's like hundreds of feet, basically.

[Jake]

Right. It's huge. And if you do not go directly into is most likely going to take you down.

[Robert]

Okay. I'm gonna run over to the comm, right? And tell him to aim straight for it. And I'm gonna tell these guys, run, run, run.

[Ella Sanchez]

You want me to steer into it, like, perpendicular? Okay. Okay. That's this one, right?

[Jake]

Yep. And you just start turning the helm right into it to dive into it. One for me, one for. And one for you.

[Ella Sanchez]

Six for us. So I pretty much saved everybody now.

[Jake]

Two sixes for me, though.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. Rolling well today, Ivan. Rolling well today.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Seriously. Okay. So Carter, in some kind of, like, talking you through or maybe just pure dumb luck, as you start moving this thing forward to go perpendicular, you can kind of feel as the boat just kind of shift, shifts and meets head on with this just monumental swell. And you see that it's also just clearing some of the ash out as you're kind of into it, just because there's so much humidity in the air as it just flishes forward that you manage to get into it. And you all feel the beginning of the roller coaster as it clicks you up. And you just are literally looking up into a huge rolling tide of water. And you're just praying, praying that you don't see that little bit of white that comes with just rolling in on top of each other right where it breaks. But you're just riding this huge swell and you're feeling it as it rides up, and all of the bodies, everyone that you were working and yourselves too, you basically have to just go on all fours to hold onto whatever you can. And everybody that was on the main deck just and all a Titanic before it starts diving down deep. You just watch as they just fling off of the back because you're now taking a 90 degree, if not greater angle straight up.

[Ella Sanchez]

We're being pulled up the wave.

[Jake]

Pulled up the wave right now.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeesh.

[Jake]

And you get onto that top, and at that point, you reach to the top of the swell, and at that point, it actually clears out for just a moment. You can see through the ashen fog, and you see a sea, literally, but also a sea of monoliths that have all pressed up. And in the horizon, you. And you can see the red moon just kind of pursing through. And it is blood red at this stage, and it is filling the entire skyline. You can actually see a lot of the major landmarks of the moon, like some of the major craters, and they are as big as dinner plates where you can hold your whole hand up. And that is an entire crater of one of the Things you see on the moon and you can just see it. But you also also see from the bright blood red light that is basking across the sea right now, you can see shapes are just moving through the water. Almost like it's just a sea of giant tuna, you know, or tuna sized creatures that are just flitting in the water.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's never just tuna.

[Jake]

And they are.

[Ella Sanchez]

This is Ivan Van Norman. This is never just tuna.

[Jake]

But they all seem to be going in one direction, you know, almost like they're riding the swell with you.

[Robert]

Is it the direction we're going in?

[Jake]

Well, right now, which is the way you're pointed as you're gutting.

[Robert]

Oh, right. Cause we went off on.

[Ella Sanchez]

You told me to do that though. Of course, just Ella. I'm just doing what you told me.

[Jake]

But at that moment where you feel like, you know, when you're on a swing set and you go as high as you can and you're as most vertical as you are, and you just know that if you went any farther, you would just fall backwards straight onto it. That's where you feel like you are before you finally crest over the swell and you just all just fall forward as the fore of the ship just points directly down. And you are now on the bottom part of this roller coaster tumbling down into the water. So, yeah, at least you navigated it, got through it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm gonna go check on Lola. Make sure she's not too good girl.

[Jake]

Literally, it just did nothing. Just kind of bop it. Went to one side of the bed.

[Declan Buchanan]

And then went to the other side of the bed.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, she's doing this general sort of panting thing that cats do when they're nervous. Well, no, just when they're kind of nervous. They'll kind of drool sometimes or they. They'll just huff instead of chuff. So I'm just making sure that it's just normal and that not like she's in labor.

[Jake]

Lola's learned a long time ago that leaving this thing is not something that is in her plan ever.

[Ella Sanchez]

She likes her house.

[Jake]

Until she delivers these kittens, she has zero interest in going anywhere. Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm a little worried that she's getting hungry, though. It's been six or seven hours, I think. I think since I last fed or something.

[Jake]

It's been a while. Yeah. I'm so sorry. We've rided this wave out. Unfortunately, the issue that you did have about the bodies seems to have resolved itself at this stage. So at least as much as you can tell Unless there is an opportunity for you to try to save someone as they were cascading down into the cold water.

[Robert]

I. I believe that that wave was probably too big for any of us to be able to react properly before getting our own bearings.

[Jake]

Kirk, Howie, do you feel the same way?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I mean, we knew it was coming, so I don't know what we would have had a chance to grab, but I feel like if there was something to grab, we could have. But, I mean, what's your upper body strength if you're at a vertical base? Like, what do you. Like, how are you. Can you hold? And then when it crashes back down, where do you go?

[Jake]

Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

Like, short of, like, finding something to, like, pilot seat against and, like, brace that way? I don't.

[Jake]

I don't think that's a really good point. You hold on as much as you possibly can.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. Nope.

[Jake]

Yeah, no ones either. Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

So if you fall out of the boat, you might find a floating door that's only big enough for you.

[Jake]

Yeah, definitely not.

[Howie]

It was not big enough. It was big enough for both of them, clearly.

[Jake]

All right, nine candles. We are back to nine dice. We have some truths of which to speak. This cresting wave, and it sounds like Howie did not have enough upper arm strength in order to hold onto it in this vertical position. But you do have the benefits of having the first truth.

[Declan Buchanan]

First truth. When I lost control and lost my grip, I slammed against a wall of something, like another cabin or something, and cracked a rib.

[Jake]

Okay, so you impacted after you slid all the way down into the midship?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, like, you know, the corner of a wall. It hit me right here and just cracked a couple ribs right there.

[Jake]

All right, so we're going a little.

[Declan Buchanan]

Harder to breathe now. A lot of pain.

[Jake]

So this is the smaller of the upcoming swells. This is the smallest of the upcoming swells.

[Howie]

That wasn't the only gun on the ship, but it was the only loaded gun on the ship.

[Jake]

There's another gun on the ship, but.

[Howie]

It'S no ammo for it.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Robert]

I do know about those extra storerooms. I was the lead medical on the ship.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Robert]

And I have the keys, so you.

[Jake]

Have the keys to the extra supplies. Great.

[Ella Sanchez]

Now we've crested over this, the smaller swell. I only catch a glimpse of it between that and I can see the beginning of the next swell.

[Jake]

You can see the beginning of the next one?

[Ella Sanchez]

I can see the beginning of the next swell. But the monoliths, I see what seems like a bit of a pattern. Like, in the direction where we want to be going towards that transmission where the transmission said to go. It feels like there are less monoliths. So there's the monoliths have some sort of change in density and proximity to each other, and we're being carried towards that by these swells.

[Jake]

Okay, so you are. There are less monoliths where you are going.

[Ella Sanchez]

We're trying to get to less monoliths, but the swells are leading us into a more dense kind of forest on the water.

[Jake]

As you move forward, you're going into an area, but behind you is more. So that's 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. So you're 6.

[Declan Buchanan]

When I impacted against the wall, I did so on my back and when I looked up on the wall, there I was hanging one of those lifesavers with enough rope to throw it overboard to pull someone in. So I don't know, a couple hundred feet, however much rope that now is.

[Jake]

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[Howie]

Someone or something is causing problems with.

[Jake]

The engine and nine.

[Robert]

One of those things jumped out of the water like a dolphin and I saw it.

[Jake]

Awesome. So it jumped, you watched it go, kind of flipped up and went down again. Great. I would also go so far as to say that in this hitting like coming off of the water, you probably all got a big wash like onto the main ship. In fact, even it jumping out of the water, I think you probably saw it flop on the deck for a moment before it managed to roll back into the water. And it definitely is. It's a long, almost eagle like creature, but it's huge. I mean it was almost as long as the deck was. It kind of came in and kind of went in there and you heard it shriek for a second before it managed to roll back into the water as it just kind of came in. But it was like seeing a. Like seeing a 10 foot long, 15 foot long moray eel just flop onto your deck before it rolled back into the water. So it sounds like we'll pick up our story immediately from when you impact the plunge and you felt all of the water cascade onto you and then you managed to stabilize. Not sure if what you saw was real or not. This thing kind of come onto deck and then flop back into the ocean. What do you want to do?

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, kind of building on what you'd said where I threw the life thing over.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Can we say that when I hit the coil of rope was there and I actually got. I'm the thing counter waiting the person. It's tied up in me. And I kind of in that moment recognized it and just went and went. I'll deal with the circumstances of this later.

[Jake]

Great. Okay. So you grabbed a hold of it and you can feel the rope pressing on you.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. And I'm just like, it's in me. But I'm using its tangled web to just hold myself basically to like be the rock that's gonna keep it there.

[Jake]

It is. It is not going anywhere.

[Declan Buchanan]

No. It's not comfortable.

[Jake]

No.

[Declan Buchanan]

You know, it's probably if I have exposed arms and things. Probably grating a bit and causing some irritation.

[Jake]

Yeah. And salt water. Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Fun.

[Jake]

Yeah. So you have it for sure. That is a truth that we will lay out as part of your truths. But more importantly, what do you want to do?

[Declan Buchanan]

I would just start screaming. Guys, help. Help. Help.

[Howie]

Yeah, I'm gonna run over and check on Howie.

[Robert]

Yeah.

[Jake]

All right.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm on the intercom, and I'm saying to people like, okay, there's another big one of those coming. I really think if you're all okay, please come back. Let's at least get everybody under deck. But we're not going the way we want to. The sea isn't letting us. There's another big wave coming, and it's taking us. There's so many. So many of those big monoliths.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'll tell him there's someone on the other end of the rope. Help me pull up the rope.

[Jake]

So, Carter and Ella, you run over to where Howie is, and you grab ahold of this rope, and you take the tension off of him as you pull up as much with your power as you possibly can to try to get this. Whatever's at the end of it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Huh?

[Howie]

Well, that's interesting, but one.

[Jake]

One.

[Howie]

I'm gonna take a shot. I'm very insistent.

[Jake]

Insistent. Damn it.

[Howie]

I'm gonna pull whatever the hell this is.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Howie]

Over. Whatever it takes. I'm gonna get this thing.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, get it.

[Jake]

Let's see how it is.

[Howie]

It was worth a shot.

[Jake]

Oh, that was the. That was. I mean, we've had some quick scenes.

[Robert]

This has never happened.

[Declan Buchanan]

Quickest scene I think we've ever had.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

What happens when you help other people?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, yeah. Important life lesson here. Kids don't help people, so just let them go overboard.

[Jake]

That's fine. EO 8 dice. 8 true. Kirk, you start with the first truth, man. Oh, my God. It was a failure.

[Howie]

No, Yeah, I know, I know.

[Jake]

I hate to go on this, but I do have a suggestion. But it is yours. Of which you wish to take.

[Howie]

Well, I'm curious what your suggestion is.

[Jake]

How about this? I write it down for you, and then you can make that decision or not of whether you'd like to use my suggestion or if you'd like to do your suggestion. Pretty good deal.

[Robert]

And the last game was an hour and 30 minutes.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Hey, the world is very dark right now.

[Jake]

Yeah, the world is very, very dark. The world is dark, so. Oh, gosh.

[Howie]

Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking.

[Jake]

That's what you were thinking, too. High five.

[Howie]

All right. It's one of them on the other end.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's what I had in mind. Too.

[Robert]

Me too.

[Jake]

Yay.

[Howie]

We'll pick something else.

[Jake]

Great. All right. Awesome. Ella.

[Robert]

As he is pulling it up, I see it and shoot it.

[Jake]

You see it and shoot it. Okay, fair enough. Go ahead, Carter.

[Ella Sanchez]

The glass on the bridge is starting to crack.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I just absolutely know that when we hit our next swell.

[Jake]

Come right through.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's gonna come in. So this is not a safe place.

[Jake]

So when that swing actually. When you impacted into it, you actually heard rocks, like, just come back to it in just a.

[Ella Sanchez]

The impact from place where I am is not gonna be safe.

[Jake]

It's spiderwebbed a little bit.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

All right, so that's your four.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's gonna be, let's say, 15 minutes until the next wave.

[Jake]

Okay. Man, you're all so awful to each other. It's like one of those random.

[Ella Sanchez]

I thought it was gonna be, like, 30 seconds. I'm very happy with that.

[Jake]

You see land ahead.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh.

[Jake]

Back to you, Kirk.

[Howie]

We can see a shape on the land that looks like a lighthouse. And suddenly a light comes on.

[Jake]

There's a light on the land. 7. Elliot. Yes?

[Robert]

Did I. Did I resolve that whole shooting thing? I meant I shot and killed it. Did I. Did we. Are we good, though?

[Jake]

No. Your new truth is you kill it.

[Robert]

I killed it.

[Jake]

Okay, great. And that would leave you with the last one, Carter. Eight.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay. Another truth. There's another voice that's gone on to the comm system.

[Jake]

Oh, onto the comm system. Okay. Did it say anything or just another voice?

[Howie]

It said on the radio or the ship's comms.

[Ella Sanchez]

The ship's. The ship's comms. There's another person on the ship. They got on the. The pa and they say the only safe place is in the bilge.

[Jake]

In the bilge?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

All right, great. Eight candles, eight truths. Ella. As you watch as Kirk is pulling this thing up, you see as a lamprey like mouth just lifts its head up with teeth just laid out everywhere. It kind of looks at you and lips up one of its tentacles to try to just grab it. Kirk. With one of his. With one of its appendages. And that's when you just. You just shoot it. And you watch as it just jerks as you watch each bullet kind of just enter and then exit it. As you watch exit wound and splatter just kind of come across each side of its body as it just. And it kind of hangs dead. As Kirk. You drop the damn thing. Actually unwinding. Howie. I would have at this point is. You're helping Howie unwind. You just Watch this thing just slop down dead on the main deck. And part of its body is just hanging off the edge of the ship. And you can see it's. At some point the weight's going to counter enough where it's going to slide into the ocean. And then Carter eaves you through the spider webbed glass to kind of see the swell coming up. But even before the swell, which you can notice is coming in a very similar direction to where the first one was, but to your right, which is. I'm terrible with nautical left and rights. I'm trying not to get it wrong.

[Ella Sanchez]

Porter's Darwoard, we know helped you here. Yeah, sorry.

[Howie]

But I believe we were going southeast.

[Jake]

You were going southeast, which means it would be left. So if you were going southeast, it would be to your. You're going south. Southwest is where you're going. I mentioned going down.

[Howie]

Oh.

[Jake]

So.

[Howie]

And then which way did we have to turn into the south to south.

[Jake]

In order to go into it? So this would mean it would be. It would be to your east was where you see land.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

And is that the general direction of where our radio signal was from too?

[Jake]

Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay, So I want to try to. I'm gonna basically turn the ship to be on that heading and the controls lock in that position. Right, Right. Okay. So I'm gonna leave them locked. I'm gonna turn the heading so they would face us.

[Jake]

Yeah, but you will not be facing directly into where the swallow's coming now.

[Ella Sanchez]

But that's what we did last time too. Right. That's how we survived the last one.

[Jake]

You survived the last one by going head on. By going head on into the swell, by going directly to the land. You will now have it kind of behind you and slightly to the left.

[Declan Buchanan]

Do we have any type of idea of how far out that is?

[Jake]

That is an excellent question. Which will involve someone who is better.

[Ella Sanchez]

I know so little about ships and stuff and in the moment I think I would have just set the course for the land and turned it. Not knowing that that would potentially be bad. I would not know that part of what. Yeah. So I turn it and I lock that up and then I'm gonna go grab Lola's container and I'm gonna try to head below decks.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

But before I head below decks, that's the last thing I want to say on the comms is I'm heading below decks. I don't think the bridge is gonna be safe up here. I set the controls for heading towards the land and signal. I saw Land. So who knows? We could be good very soon.

[Jake]

As soon as you hear that click off, you kind of see Carter with his igloo just come down the steps. As you're still unwinding Howie, from this. And that's at some point shortly after, while you're coming down, you hear the comms come on and you hear a gruff, almost really low pitched voice say at the same time goes, if the bridge isn't safe, then the bilge will. Will be if we're going to.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm so glad it was not a pirate voice. I thought.

[Robert]

Stinky Joe, I recognize this voice.

[Jake]

I mean, it's over the comms. That is an excellent question. Do you recognize the voice? Yes. You do recognize the voice? It is. It's one of the officers that was serving on the ship who has been missing for weeks now. And initially you thought that he went overboard as part of the whole getting through the squalls kind of a situation, but he's been. Yeah. This is the first time you've heard his voice. You thought he went overboard, So.

[Robert]

I recognize that voice.

[Howie]

Who, the guy that just came on the intercom?

[Robert]

Yeah. He's an officer we thought went overboard.

[Ella Sanchez]

Is he trustworthy? Would he lie to us?

[Declan Buchanan]

Is anybody anymore?

[Robert]

No, I don't think he would lie to us, but he's been missing. We thought he was dead.

[Ella Sanchez]

Should we go to the bilge like he says?

[Howie]

What the hell's the bilge?

[Declan Buchanan]

I don't know what a bilge is.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I don't know either, but I assume it's down. Right.

[Jake]

The bilge is the area on the boat that's below the waterline, and it's usually in the area where you kind of. It's.

[Howie]

Do I still have the plaque?

[Jake]

Yes.

[Howie]

Oh, let me look at this plaque. It's the area below the water line.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I mean, good thing you grabbed that. My character wouldn't know this, but if anybody knows anything about ships, it's an area where they can change the height of the boat in the water, sometimes by pumping water into or out of its chamber.

[Jake]

The more water you put into it, the more stable it is on seas, but then the faster it is. If you put it higher above the waterline. Am I right there?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, pretty much. I mean, basically, if that person is in the bilge, hopefully it's not full and it's at the bottom of the boat, it should be relatively safe.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I'll coil up the remaining rope.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

And take that with us.

[Jake]

You're gonna take the whole. Donut with you too.

[Declan Buchanan]

No, I'll cut the donut off.

[Jake]

Okay, cut the donut off. And as you're doing these last little bits, you kind of watch as finally with the rough and tumble seas, you kind of watch as the creature just slops into the water and you hear it unceremoniously bang against the side of the boat a few times before it gets. It just hits the water. And you kind of watch as the splash kind of just splinters off into the middle of the dark sea.

[Declan Buchanan]

So, yeah, also I'm in a pretty good amount of pain. You see me breathing a little more shallow and I'm grabbing my side. Like.

[Robert]

Once we get to the bilge, I'll check your situation.

[Declan Buchanan]

Smaller problem for a different time.

[Howie]

Time out. Are we going to the bilge where those. Like that's closer to where those things are.

[Robert]

The ship.

[Declan Buchanan]

I know that like the further away from where that is. And I point to the giant wave coming. It's all about time, man.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I mean if the ship flips over, I feel like that's gonna be where the most of the air is trapped anyway. I don't know.

[Jake]

I don't know.

[Ella Sanchez]

Ship stuff, I think guessing.

[Robert]

Let's just head there first. He is a knowledgeable.

[Jake]

Yeah. This doesn't sound like this is a very exciting prospect for you. What's going on in your mind right now?

[Howie]

I mean. No, it doesn't. I just came face to face with that thing right in my head. Even though there is steel between us, I'm closer to whatever the hell that is.

[Jake]

Right.

[Howie]

And the water and that prospect does not thrill me.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Howie]

But I don't have a better idea.

[Jake]

Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

And how fast can this thing go?

[Jake]

So it's. Sorry. Yeah.

[Robert]

I don't know.

[Jake]

For probably a recommissioned medical freighter, I'd say it probably tops out at. God, I'm going to get. So many nautical nerds are just going to slap me in the face.

[Ella Sanchez]

No matter what you say, you know it's wrong.

[Jake]

Googling going to say 12 knots. Great. 8 to 12 knots is probably max. Like 12 knots. Like full.

[Howie]

Ask an electronic speed to convert that.

[Declan Buchanan]

If we've been. If we've been playing it safe to conserve fuel. We see the land, we see the target. We should gun it like if it's already there.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yes, especially I already gunned it as much as I could.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay. So wind is already. We're full steam ahead right now.

[Howie]

Do the three of us. Have we seen the land, I think or just him?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm the Only one who saw it between.

[Jake]

And at this point, he would have pointed you towards it. So unless you would have, like, looked out, you know, off the side of the ship, you probably would. You'd have to literally go back to the bridge or go to the foredeck and look out in front in order to probably see it.

[Ella Sanchez]

And ain't nobody got time for that.

[Howie]

Well, wait, if you're down here, who's steering the ship? Where are we going?

[Ella Sanchez]

I pointed it towards the land. The controls just lock.

[Declan Buchanan]

How's Lola?

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, gee, she's great, actually. Thanks for asking.

[Declan Buchanan]

Good, good.

[Robert]

Okay, let's get going then.

[Ella Sanchez]

See, Lola, Howie likes you naked.

[Jake]

Okay. It's okay. Launch ship into the bilge. It doesn't take long. It's not a big ship. Just a few minutes, really, to go through the whole process.

[Declan Buchanan]

I assume there's some degree of. Right. Like, outsides of ships need maintenance and things. I assume there's some degree of oxygen tanks about in the boat. I'd like to see if any of the stuff. Yeah, like, any of the rooms we pass along the way would contain such things.

[Jake]

Go for it.

[Declan Buchanan]

And because the story we're telling, I'm going to say if I do succeed here, we find one. We'll have to share it if it comes to it.

[Jake]

Great.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, we're giving it to that.

[Declan Buchanan]

There we go.

[Jake]

Yeah, that's.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

No, no one.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, wow.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Excellent.

[Jake]

So take the top. And since you already declared the outcome. The outcome. Yeah. You find one maintenance scuba suit, which is mostly meant for, you know, checking on parts of the ship, lowered down into kind of a situation. I mean, it's a tall ship. It's not like anyone's going boom and then ducking down over the side. But, yeah, you find a scuba suitable. It's a little awkward carrying around an oxygen canister, but there you go. That cold metal's pressed up right against.

[Declan Buchanan]

That well, and you could feel it, too. It's about half full. Like, it's a little lighter than it would be full.

[Jake]

Great.

[Ella Sanchez]

You've probably got, what, 20 minutes maybe. Yeah, 20, 25 minutes.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I mean, I'm not a scuba guy, but I've cooked on a grill before, and I know what a full propane tank feels like. Full and an empty one feels like.

[Jake]

Sounds great.

[Declan Buchanan]

So this is a little lighter than it should be.

[Howie]

I'm glad our lives are hanging in the balance based on your grilling knowledge.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, it's a grill master. Always a grill master.

[Jake]

As you kind of go down the steps leading into the bilge. You slowly start to hear the cracking and the groaning of the ship. Which is a lot more apparent down here where water pressure is bending and moving the ship in awkward ways. Especially when the currents are twisting against each other.

[Howie]

How many rounds do you have left in that gun? By my count, two. No, of counting the cause of you shooting it earlier.

[Robert]

I mean, he kakaed four times.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Robert]

But I would also like to argue I am a pretty damn good shot because I've been alone this whole. I've taken self defense. I've taken shooting.

[Jake]

How many bullets would you like, Ella? Did you kill it with one out of the two?

[Robert]

No, I didn't kill it with one. I'm not unreasonable.

[Ella Sanchez]

It was a big old eel.

[Robert]

It was a slippery little sucker, so I'll say it took three.

[Jake]

Three shots. So seven in the clip.

[Robert]

So seven left.

[Jake]

Great. Write it down.

[Ella Sanchez]

Hear that gun nerds? You gun nerds. And you boat nerds.

[Howie]

Yeah, they're also yelling. It's called a magazine, not a clip.

[Jake]

Oh my gosh. Actually my business partner yelled at me that too. He's actually the most angry when they interchange it. When they use both clip and magazine in the same piece of fiction or the same story or whatever. It's like pick one.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm just worried about the lamprey nerds. The ones that are gonna.

[Howie]

Those are clearly conger eels and the scuba folk.

[Jake]

Yeah. Okay. We're touching lots of touchstones at this point.

[Declan Buchanan]

And I don't have a full suit, by the way. I just have the harness with the tank.

[Jake]

The harness with the mask. Yeah. So as you continue to go down into the waterline of the ship and you go into where the bilge is, you can hear as the sounds of the water are pressing upon the boat in a way that is just eerie is what it is. And it's dark as hell down here. The only service lights you have are small little fluorescents that are little hang ons. And most of them have been busted up or broken at this point because of the water either sloshing in or just clanging against that, even in little metal cages. But you do occasionally get small brisks of light as you walk in through the bilge goes around. So you kind of go into it and you hear is mostly just the sounds of your own foot clanging against the metal catwalks as you come along to the side of the ship. And you almost feel like you can see the metal just like moving into it. It's just this thing is just holding on for what it's worth. Yeah. You're in the bilge. What do you want to do?

[Howie]

I want to leave.

[Ella Sanchez]

Hello? Are you down? I heard you on the intercom.

[Jake]

Sky.

[Robert]

I'm Robert.

[Jake]

You kind of hear a loud, kind of coughing? Hi, Ella. Robert.

[Robert]

Where. What happened? You've been missing.

[Jake]

Yeah. Yeah. I don't like people so much, you know.

[Robert]

I hear you, buddy, but you just disappeared.

[Jake]

Yeah, well, when we started taking on all those civvies, those people from the cruise ship, I decided I would bide my time and wait rather than, well, deal with what it looks like you all had to deal with, which was a whole lot of everybody killing each other. That's what it sounds like. I decided staying down here was easier.

[Ella Sanchez]

We're trying to get to land. I saw it from when I was up above.

[Jake]

Yeah? Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

There's a real big wave coming. I don't know if you can feel that.

[Jake]

Did you, buddy? Huh? Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Listen, but you're not helping, okay? I'm trying to help you. I'm just trying to share my information. You don't need to get sassy with me.

[Jake]

Yeah, well, I'm not the one holding on to a pregnant than cat right now.

[Howie]

Okay? All right. Let's try to just all calm down a little bit. You don't like people or cats. You don't. We're not totally sure about you, but I. If we're all in this together now. Okay, this, this is, this is a team. Let's treat it like one.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay?

[Howie]

Why? Is it safer down here?

[Jake]

Can I ask you something?

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

You a bad person?

[Howie]

Am I a bad person?

[Jake]

Have you done bad things? Yeah. I'm human.

[Howie]

Everybody's done bad things.

[Jake]

It's the worst thing you've ever done.

[Howie]

The worst thing I've ever done.

[Jake]

What's the worst thing you've ever done? On this time on this planet?

[Howie]

I, I.

[Jake]

You.

[Howie]

You want me to be honest with you?

[Jake]

Yeah, I want you to tell me right out. Why would I ask the question if I didn't want an answer?

[Howie]

I gave you up. I gave up. I gave up on everything. I gave up. And I just. I just let life happen. I didn't try to live it. And, and, and, and it's why I'm here. It's why I'm stuck on this boat with, with the cat guy and, and, and, and whatever the hell you are. It's why I'm here right now. That's. That's the worst thing that I've done. I can trace it all back to that. What's the worst thing you've done.

[Jake]

Oh, I've done far worse than that. And I can tell you there might still be a chance for you yet. But you found land, you said.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I saw it. Which I feel like that's an accomplishment in itself. You can't see shit out there. It's all dark on dark.

[Jake]

Well, let's make for land then, shall we?

[Declan Buchanan]

That's the current plan.

[Jake]

Great. Well.

[Howie]

Can we get there faster?

[Declan Buchanan]

We've got some big waves coming our way, and unfortunately, they're gonna hit us from the side. Is there anything you can do to stabilize us down here?

[Jake]

At that point, you actually hear the. Of the engines start to shudder a little bit as you suddenly feel more than anything the vibrations of the ship. As you just kind of hear Robert go, shit, that's the engines. That's the engines. He runs off and basically leaves the four of you behind as he starts heading towards the back of the ship. So the aft. And somebody help him run after him. All right, Ellie, you run after him. Carter?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I mean, I don't know if we shouldn't stay together at this instance. I feel like we should probably.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, he said the bilge is safe. We're in the bilge. But I mean, certainly make sure you're always holding on to something.

[Howie]

I'm not sure he's safe. You still have that bayonet hold on.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, I don't want to leave her.

[Jake]

Well, she's running alone with her.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yes, always.

[Howie]

You gotta go.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

So you kind of all stumble off and you see Robert is expertly navigating this part of the ship as if he'd been down here for a while and kind of continues to move and jump forward. And you can see at various points, he has to get into areas that are flooded, like up to your waist, at least in water. And he kind of. At this point, he would normally take a circuitous route, but he just kind of opens the doors up, lets the water just rush right by him as he just continues to make his way as quick as he can up until the back of the engines. And by the time you catch up to him, he's kind of looking at this thing, and he sees the two giant motors, because it's the ship's motors on this one, they take up whole rooms. Yeah, they're big. Right. And there's two major parts inside of it. And you can see that there's definitely a water level below it. But he's kind of around, and he can see he's got A flashlight, and he's kind of looking into it, and he's looking around for it and goes, fuck, fuck. Fuck. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. He's just cursing.

[Ella Sanchez]

What are you looking for? If you tell me what it looks.

[Jake]

Like, why the damn engine stopped.

[Robert]

Are you. So did you run, too?

[Ella Sanchez]

I came along.

[Jake]

I mean, I think everybody came along.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. We were basically, like, holding Lola up in her carrier so she doesn't. Yeah, I mean, it floats, but I'm not taking any risks.

[Jake]

Understood.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. The run after her has winded me more than it would normally. And I've. I mean, as you said, the water is about knee high.

[Jake]

Waist high. Ish.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, waist high.

[Jake]

Ish.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm, like, leaned and bent over, face right above the water, getting as much crouching as I can to just be like.

[Jake]

Right. And so Howie definitely lags behind at this point. And Robert just seems to be sussing over this thing as he's looking over the engine and goes, hell, is there anyone else on this ship?

[Robert]

We were going to search it, but we didn't get to search the whole thing.

[Jake]

Fuck. He just kind of turns light and goes, okay. You can see he's doing some math in his head. He goes, no, no, no, no, we're not gonna make it.

[Robert]

What do you mean?

[Jake]

We're coasting right now off of whatever our engines were able to give to us. If you said there's land, the soonest that you could see it is before the swell's actually going to hit us. So we either need to get this engine moving and up and running, or we're gonna capside right into that swell. I felt it. We went. I even. I've never felt something that literally lifted someone up and dropped us down. Not in all of my time. Okay, so we believe you.

[Ella Sanchez]

What do we need to do to fix this?

[Robert]

What can we do to help?

[Ella Sanchez]

What are we missing?

[Jake]

He takes some time to look over and goes, well, someone's clearly taken a major part inside of here. And he points towards this little part of the engine. It literally looks like someone grabbed it and ripped it right off. So either it's somewhere around here in the bilge, or they took it topside, so we need that part, or we need to get a replacement part from the extra supplies which are in.

[Ella Sanchez]

Can you describe what it looks like?

[Jake]

He gives you a description of it without getting too into the details here.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's a spangle jammer, the old spangle jammer.

[Jake]

But it's ostensibly a major part of the wiring, not the wiring of the.

[Howie]

Fuel injection or something.

[Jake]

If it's a steam. If it's World War II, it'd be a steamer, like an oil steamer. Probably. Goddammit. I hate being wrong. In this circumstances, it is a vital part to making the ship run. Yeah, right.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's the information we need.

[Declan Buchanan]

The McGuffin Spangle.

[Howie]

The MacGuffin Spangle?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, the Spangle Jammer.

[Jake]

Robert tells you that there's a part of, well, the gear system inside of the engine that either has been ripped out or has been removed. And he can't tell quite how or what. But there is definitely spare parts in the ship probably being stored not terribly far from where you are now. But your window is likely closing. To be able to get it together and then. Hell, if anyone can try to install it, him and or Ella is probably the most qualified to be able to install it.

[Robert]

I have keys to everything.

[Jake]

Right.

[Robert]

Got the captain's keys. I am going to. I will go look for the piece. He's described it to me. Right. And I will like if anybody wants to come with me as backup. Because obviously if somebody took that piece, they might still be here. They might not have made it off with the other group.

[Jake]

Right.

[Howie]

I don't know. Part of me feels like you need to stay with Robert. Cause he trusts you more and you know him.

[Robert]

But I know where I'm going. I know what I'm looking for. I have the keys.

[Jake]

So does anyone want to stay with Robert?

[Ella Sanchez]

I could stay with Robert.

[Declan Buchanan]

Is Robert staying in the boat? Like he's staying by the engine?

[Robert]

In the engine room? Robert, will you stay here in the engine room while I go grab the piece?

[Jake]

If that's. If that bulge or if that swell is coming. Don't take your time.

[Robert]

I won't.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm a liability. I can stay with Robert and Lola if you want.

[Jake]

Oh, okay.

[Howie]

Oh shit, then I'll go.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm moving at about half speed right now with my ribs. So I'll stay with Robert, keep him company.

[Robert]

We'll wrap those as soon as we get this.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'll give you him the bayonet.

[Jake]

So.

[Declan Buchanan]

You got it.

[Jake]

So, Kirk, you have the bayonet.

[Declan Buchanan]

We're beyond not trusting Robert at this point. So.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, we don't have. We don't have time. We gotta.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm not worried about the guy trying to fix the boat. I'm worried about the guy that took the piece. So I'll give you the bayonet to have and I'll take Lola and keep the. I'll keep the. I'll try to. I'll get up on something that I can and open the lid and pet Lola.

[Jake]

Mm.

[Howie]

What are. What are you.

[Jake]

What is it?

[Howie]

What are you rolling for?

[Robert]

Go get the piece.

[Howie]

To go get the piece.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, when we're both going with you.

[Jake]

Yeah. That's the point.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Howie]

Oh, I thought you were staying.

[Robert]

Okay, cool. You guys are making me nervous.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, Howie's staying instead.

[Howie]

There we go.

[Robert]

Okay.

[Jake]

One and one.

[Robert]

That's all we need a little bit.

[Declan Buchanan]

Howie, feeling great.

[Jake]

Looks like we have going on.

[Ella Sanchez]

Feeling strong.

[Jake]

All right, that's the first die roll, which means I don't have anyone to counter with Ella. So tell me what happens.

[Robert]

I've been on this boat long enough, and we did a tour of it, so I can traverse all of the pieces sticking out a little more easily than they can. So I'm running up a little more quickly, a little more ahead, and there's a couple of turns outside the bilge. A right, then a left, and then right before I get to the storage area.

[Jake]

Got it.

[Robert]

It's gonna take me a few seconds. Fumbling with the keys. Cause I have a lot of them.

[Jake]

So many of them.

[Robert]

And obviously timing is of the essence. And then I'm just gonna calm myself down like I do when I have to perform surgery. Remember that I am in control of my physicality, of my mental and emotional being. And I look at the keys, and I realize they're labeled. I get the right one, and I open the door.

[Jake]

All right. As soon as you feel the latch turn and you hit the latch open, you feel as the door just slams against you with huge amount of weight, and it throws you against the other side as water just starts pouring out over and over again as the flooded room cascades. And you feel that weight of water press up against you as you see as small parts and things start flooding out with the water everywhere as it starts laying out all across, and you see something languid and huge just as it's coming inside and it's being flown out with the water at the moment as just everything is around. And Carter, it's going to try to lash a tentacle straight towards you as it is flooding down the side of the building.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm going to try to block it and keep it from reaching anybody else.

[Jake]

Okay, go for it. Hold it against you.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, if it's going to get me, it's going to get me. I can keep it from getting my friends, though.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not today.

[Jake]

Two sixes and zero wounds.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not today.

[Ella Sanchez]

Not today. Conger Moray I don't think there's.

[Jake]

I mean, there's no way I can beat it because I only have one dice. But you take narrative control.

[Ella Sanchez]

All right, so this thing is swimming on the tide of stuff as it poured out of this room as the water level.

[Jake]

And it's not a giant 10, 15 foot one that fell onto the deck. It's a much smaller one. It's about six feet.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay. So I'm wrestling with it. There's a sort of small staircase off to our side and this very narrow area around the bilge. And I'm just wrestling with it back and forth. It's like noodling.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I just grab it and I shove its head like in between two rungs of some steps.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I can hear like bones in it breaking and stuff like that.

[Jake]

It's more cartilage.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

And it's.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I basically wedge it in there and hold it until it stops moving.

[Jake]

As you hold it in there, you can feel as like it's segmented body.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's like thrashing.

[Jake]

It's kind of thrashing around and. And you can hear whispers, like human whispers. Human whispers that seem to be just radiating from it. And as it just kind of continues to kick and move around, you kind of feel as it. As you rung it in there and it doesn't have a neck, so it's more that you just are holding into place and you can kind of feel it's. I mean, it's like you're wrestling with a boa, like a giant anaconda at this point. And its tentacles are trying to wrap around your neck and they wrapped around your arms and. And you go into it. But I mean, you're holding it there. If you want to kill it, someone's going to have to kill it.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I'm holding it. Someone else is gonna have to kill it.

[Jake]

You have the bayonet? Do you want to get it?

[Howie]

I do have the bayonet.

[Ella Sanchez]

Did you hear those voices, like human voices coming from it?

[Howie]

Do you have the guns?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm not.

[Robert]

I've been thrown up against.

[Ella Sanchez]

That wasn't in my head. Right.

[Robert]

The door hit me. So I'm a little disoriented. Disoriented. And how many feet away from each other are we at this point?

[Jake]

I mean, you're right.

[Ella Sanchez]

I think we're all right there. We're all next to each other.

[Robert]

I'm going to throw you the gun. As I see the piece.

[Jake]

Bayonet. Oh, you see the piece?

[Robert]

Just swim by swimming By. Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay. All right.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Jake]

So that seems like the most immediate conflict as it rolled into it. You poke out a hole under things at the moment, I want to see you die for the piece. Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

We'Re handling the eel situation. Come on, we got this.

[Robert]

Nope. Oh, but I do have a one.

[Jake]

You do? Do you want to burn it?

[Robert]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Howie]

Yep.

[Robert]

I'm very pragmatic. And so you. I don't want to capsize.

[Jake]

You toss the gun and you go for it.

[Robert]

Oh, come on. I don't roll well.

[Declan Buchanan]

Aw, can't wait. So close.

[Robert]

Shit.

[Jake]

That ends that.

[Robert]

Sorry.

[Jake]

Seven candles, seven truths. The world is dark. Most important, Ella, you weren't able to grab the piece in time as it, following the current downwards is just out of your reach. But that being said, you have the first truce.

[Robert]

I will swim under to catch up to the piece and grab it. Is it that much water or not that much?

[Jake]

How about. Let me. Do you mind if I adjust just a little bit? So the idea being that you will follow it, and as it dives into a pool of water where the bilge is, if you would like your truth to be, you will dive headfirst into.

[Robert]

That sounds very dangerous.

[Jake]

Well, dive into the water to where the bilge is. In order to get the piece just to follow it. Like, if you're going to jump, you basically would have to leap off of what I'm trying to interpret. Your truth is because there's a consequence, because grabbing it was a failure. If you want to jump from the level you're onto into the bilge water in order to grab it. Is that what I'm hearing from you?

[Robert]

Well, the way I set it up, it was like we were just on the same level, turning different ways.

[Jake]

And now that situation has changed. So what is the situation now?

[Robert]

Sure. Yeah. Yeah, I'll jump in the water.

[Jake]

Are you sure?

[Robert]

Mm.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Robert]

And grab it. Grab after it. Well, okay. Can't do this.

[Jake]

You're Jump for it.

[Robert]

Oh, fuck. Okay.

[Jake]

You can't resolve a failure with a truth.

[Robert]

Okay, sorry, it's just the name of the game.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's actually called Ten Candles.

[Jake]

Yes, thank you. Thanks. Alchemy. Speaking of which, Carter, hear the next truth.

[Ella Sanchez]

The next truth is Lola is starting to go into labor.

[Jake]

Oh, there we go.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't know that. Cause I'm not there.

[Jake]

Of course not.

[Ella Sanchez]

But, I mean, Howie would probably notice.

[Jake]

Howie.

[Declan Buchanan]

I notice this and have that panicked moment of like, oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God. But when I do and my blood pressure starts going up. And I start breathing heavier, and Heather, that pain gets real intense and I start coughing and I see blood, and I'm Actually, it's not just a crack rib. It did, in fact, puncture.

[Jake]

It did puncture something.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, it punctured something. And it's not a lot of internal bleeding, but I'm bleeding internally.

[Jake]

But you're bleeding. Okay, yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

So this is not a good thing.

[Jake]

You're bleeding internally when coughing and getting the blood onto your hands. You drop Lola and the igloo onto the ground. 5. Go ahead, sir.

[Howie]

Oh, man. Lola's not pregnant.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, my God. Dude.

[Howie]

What?

[Robert]

No.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, Jade.

[Ella Sanchez]

I hate you so much.

[Jake]

Ella.

[Declan Buchanan]

Legendary. That was legendary.

[Robert]

Well, Jake just ruined my life.

[Declan Buchanan]

Hard truths.

[Robert]

Oh, God.

[Declan Buchanan]

Name of the game. Hard truths.

[Robert]

What Jake said is a lie. Don't you.

[Declan Buchanan]

She's triple pregnant.

[Robert]

Can I resolve it now? Can I find it now?

[Jake]

If that's what you want. If that's how you want to get into it, then you say you find the peace.

[Robert]

If that's what you want. The easy way out. I do. I want the easy way out. I find the piece.

[Jake]

You find the peace in the water, then. Carter. Last truth.

[Ella Sanchez]

The last truth there is. Even if we get this engine going again, in between where we're going and where we are is a monolith.

[Jake]

Great. There's a monolith on the way.

[Ella Sanchez]

On the way.

[Jake]

Right. All right. Seven candles. Seven truths. Some people are still in the deck. But Ella, you've dived down back into the bilge and have managed to grab the piece with not so much as maybe a head bump across the bottom of the ship or somewhere. But you are definitely banged and bruised up as you try to lift yourself back up to the railing and pull yourself up. Kirk and Howie. Or Kirk, you're basically. Are you following Ella or from where she is because she kind of dove into it, or are you handling Carter and the eel situation right now?

[Robert]

Could have used your truth for that, you bastard.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, you had to make my cat into a host or something.

[Declan Buchanan]

I thought it was beautiful.

[Howie]

It was more fun that way.

[Jake]

It was always. Take the more fun route. Yeah, yeah, go ahead.

[Declan Buchanan]

Serve the story, you monster. Serve the story.

[Howie]

Oh, man. I'm gonna try to shoot the eel.

[Jake]

Great. Shoot it. Shoot the lamprey eel like thing, which is at this point definitely has its tentacles wrapped around Carter's neck and under its arm. And it's trying so hard to rip it off right now.

[Howie]

Close your eyes.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, all right.

[Jake]

One for me. And you may take narrative control.

[Howie]

Okay, So I look back and see that Ella has gone down into the bilge, so I at least know where she's going. But to me, the immediate concern is getting that the eel or whatever the hell it is right off of Carter. So without thinking too much about it, I just turn. I steady myself. I aim as close as I can to what might be its head. Without putting him in danger, Carter and I just unload the gun.

[Jake]

You unload the gun?

[Howie]

I unload it.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, it's so loud. It's echoing.

[Jake]

And you can hear, both of you. It's just like your ears are ringing at this stage as you just unload all seven shots directly into this thing.

[Ella Sanchez]

I let go of it, and it starts to drift away from me.

[Jake]

I guess the water is still sussing out from the main supply room, so it kind of gets caught into the wave, and you watch as it kind of, like, bounces off of the staircase as it just down. And that whispering that you kind of heard while you were so close to it and holding it to it, it just fades away as it fades away down onto the staircase and just crashes again against the catwalk.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I was kind of squinting my eyes as it went away. I didn't want too much detail. I was afraid I was gonna see a face in it or something.

[Jake]

So you just closed your eyes?

[Ella Sanchez]

I didn't close them, but I kind of narrowed them enough that I was just enough to see what its general silhouette was or that it wasn't alive and still gonna attack me. But I'm very scared of it, even in death.

[Jake]

Ella, you grab the piece, and you meet up back with Carter and Kirk as you head back into the main area where the engine is. And, Howie, at this point, you can see that Lola is just yowling as it's kind of writhing inside of its igloo a little.

[Declan Buchanan]

So the igloo's floating on the little body water we have in the building.

[Jake]

It's actually just kind of. Of. It's actually more. I would say that's right, because I did say it fell. It kind of, like, fell and tilted a little bit. And so you kind of watch as some of the quilting, like you said it, stuff kind of poured out, and Lola kind of rolled onto her side, kind of rolling out of the igloo a little bit onto the grating area that's right there. And she's just kind of, like, has her arms up as she's kind of riding on her back a little bit, and she's just yowling as Loud as she can. Just as she is just. Well, a cat that is screaming.

[Robert]

I'm going to give the piece to Robert and hear and notice this. I had a cat and being a surgeon, have some knowledge of the basics.

[Ella Sanchez]

We can hear this yowling.

[Robert]

We're back in the room now.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, okay. The minute I heard yowling, I'd be running away.

[Robert]

And I'm like, this is not right.

[Jake]

Yeah. And so as you bend down, Carter, to kind of like comfort.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's okay, baby.

[Jake]

She just takes her teeth and just sinks them straight into the meat of your thumb.

[Ella Sanchez]

I just let her. I just let her. It's okay.

[Jake]

Just. She kind of holds.

[Ella Sanchez]

Get it out, get it out.

[Jake]

And she just kind of scratches. And she is pulling onto you, and she lets go again, but she's still yelling. Ella, it's okay, sweetie.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's gonna be fine. It's gonna be fine, honey.

[Jake]

Right. As you get closer to her, you can see she's twisting and contorting her body in a way that, by your medical profession opinion, she doesn't seem to be regular for a cat. Is she okay?

[Robert]

This is not right. We should get her to the med bay. Robert, can you put this piece back in?

[Jake]

Robert hasn't even paid attention to this process at all. He's already putting the pee back in.

[Robert]

Great. Okay, I want to run to the med bay and put her under.

[Jake]

Scoop the cat up.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I'm going with her.

[Jake]

And you take it to the trauma bay.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I'm carrying her in my arms, basically.

[Jake]

First patient of this process scratching you.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't care. I don't care. She can shred me up, and then.

[Jake]

You just get her onto the table and, you know, you can see she's still just. She's not even paying attention to kind of where her equilibrium is. She just seems like she wants to fall off the table more than anything else.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I'm just holding her to keep her in place.

[Jake]

I'm holding her. And as you're holding onto her, you can feel movement in her belly. You can feel something pressing up against her skin.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, the joy of life.

[Jake]

Just literally pushing her little kitten in there. Aw, little sweetie. And you can see distension as small parts of her skin are being pushed out.

[Ella Sanchez]

You have a lot of little babies in there. Maybe she's got, like, five or five.

[Robert]

I want to put her under and perform surgery.

[Jake]

All right, so you want to put her under.

[Robert]

I could probably do it with an injection.

[Ella Sanchez]

I know you're a doctor, but is it one of those things where, like, if you know doctor stuff, you also know I also. She's going to be okay. Right?

[Robert]

I also had cats. I don't know. This is not a normal birth. I have to go in there. She's in distress.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

All right.

[Ella Sanchez]

So I'm gonna. I'm gonna watch as she goes to put her under. Is it successful?

[Howie]

Are we all up there right now?

[Jake]

Unless she's on the other way, except for Robert.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I would have needed a little help from you to get up.

[Howie]

Right. So I would have helped you up. I want to go check on Robert to make sure the part's back in.

[Declan Buchanan]

Sure.

[Howie]

So we can get this thing going.

[Declan Buchanan]

Sure.

[Jake]

So do you want to stay down.

[Howie]

Here when she starts to put Lola under? I. What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna give him his bayonet back, and I'm gonna go down and check on Robert.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay.

[Jake]

Robert's almost done putting in the piece at this point. L. As you're performing surgery on this thing, it.

[Howie]

I know.

[Jake]

The silence is definitely.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's awful.

[Howie]

Oh, man.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, no.

[Declan Buchanan]

Want to peek inside his head?

[Jake]

It's going to be fine. It's going to be fine.

[Ella Sanchez]

This is fixable.

[Declan Buchanan]

Super fixable, buddy.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Okay. Okay, Ella, as you lay this cat down, and you can see this distention as this thing is writhing back and forth, and Carter, you're comforting her with every little bit that you can. You put the mask on her, and you kind of watch as Lola just drifts into, just unconsciousness, just goes right out as goes into her. And you take the scalpel and you just carve it right along the front of her belly. You watch as an arm just lifts itself right out of her tiny belly. And you can see has long, spindly fingers as another arm just pulls it. And it splits Lola's belly open as it presses its head out. And it has a humanoid face onto it, like a skull in the back. And it slowly starts to pull itself out, but it has long, long arms, and it seems to have dark, just black eyes. It just lets out a screech just as it slowly pulls its legs out. And it's pushing. It's taking the mane of this cat, and it's just, like, wrenching it open as it's pulling up its wings. And then suddenly you see just two pairs of wings. Two pairs. That's four wings. Just lift up out of sight as it starts to flutter. And it just lops itself off as it goes into a gallop on the Grating of the floor.

[Robert]

I don't have enough time to react to that.

[Jake]

I'm just telling you that it's wrenching itself out.

[Howie]

How do you react to that?

[Robert]

Because I'm right in there with the scalp.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Robert]

I scalpel right up in the fucking. Right through your. Right through here.

[Jake]

You just right into its. Right into its face.

[Howie]

That escalated so fast.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm, like cupping Lola's head in my hands. Is she still alive at all?

[Jake]

She's dead. Oh, God.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm just sobbing. Then I'm freaking.

[Jake]

So you. Scalpel. No, I need to take. See if I can scalpel this thing. And you kind of lift your blade straight up into its mouth, and it kind of screeches as it takes one of its. It kind of screeches as it takes one of its claws and rakes it down and it takes your hands right where your scalpel is, and you feel with an incredible amount of strength, it just push your hand down with the scalpel into it as it lifts its head up. But then it loses that strength and it goes right back into its head again as it kind of flops down dead.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Do you hear as the engines are now starting to kick back up and rumble again as you're holding this thing like a kebab?

[Ella Sanchez]

I've got Lola's body, and I'm wrapping it up in her shawl from her thing. And I'm just holding her and I'm on the steps and I'm just rocking back and forth and I'm just crying.

[Robert]

I'm going to go over to you and ask to hold her.

[Ella Sanchez]

This was. She didn't deserve this. This is. How did this. How did this happen? I don't care if anything happens to people. Like, this is probably all our fault anyway, but, like, this is. This is. She deserved better than this.

[Robert]

I know. I've never been able to really find somebody I could connect with. And this whole time, all I've been worried about is my cat, Athena. That stupid brat is all I ever cared about. And I know she's gone.

[Declan Buchanan]

You don't.

[Ella Sanchez]

You don't know that. I mean, I. I ran a.

[Robert]

Everybody's gone.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, I mean, the humans probably are, but, I mean, she. She probably got out and she's. Who knows? The world will go on. Maybe the cats will be the next ones to evolve and they'll do a better job of it than we did, but. I mean, part of me was hoping that this was just something that was affecting our civilization. But if they can be born out of other animals. Then this is it. We fucked everything up. This is all bad.

[Robert]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't.

[Robert]

She was the only one who was ever there for me, so I. I know how you feel, and I'm sorry.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I've only known her. I met Lola on the cruise ship, so, you know, like.

[Robert]

And I met her days after you, and look at me. So.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, but we need to. I know this is gonna sound dumb, but I really just. I wanna just keep her. Can I just keep. Keep her until we can decide what to do? I think whatever was in her, that was bad is gone now.

[Jake]

You look back to where whatever that thing was, and you see that it's gone.

[Robert]

Son of a bitch.

[Jake]

The body's not there anymore.

[Ella Sanchez]

The body of the creature.

[Robert]

How would you see where it went?

[Declan Buchanan]

Howie's passed out.

[Robert]

Oh, God.

[Jake]

Between.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not like, he's not a coma, but between the intense amount of pain from humping his way up here and all that. All the exertion that took. And then seeing that it just. The lights went out for a second.

[Robert]

Okay, I'm gonna run over to Howie.

[Jake]

He's bleeding. He's bleeding without a puncture wound. You can see that there's a bulge kind of right where his ribs are that seemed to be pressing out his skin a little bit. And you can definitely see the light speckle of blood on his lips. So. Kurt.

[Howie]

Well, I'm gonna tell Robert.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, that's right.

[Jake]

You went back.

[Howie]

I'm with Robert.

[Jake]

Right. And so you actually were there at the moment when Robert came in, put the thing back up, and you saw as the motors were starting to rumble.

[Howie]

Right.

[Jake]

And kick back up again. And he pats this thing and goes, you have a chance. You know, of all those assholes upstairs, this one included, you're maybe the one who could have a chance.

[Declan Buchanan]

What?

[Jake]

I'm just telling you now, if you see an opportunity, just don't hesitate. All right? Don't hesitate. And he leaves you with that cliffhanger as he starts walking up towards the main deck, up to where the cabin is. Where the. Not the cabin, the infirmary. Not even the infirmary goes back up to where the bridge.

[Declan Buchanan]

Bridge, yes. Wow. Well, we do have another. I mean, I'm out. So I don't know this, but we know that there's a monolith coming.

[Jake]

Well, sure, but that's the point is Robert's going at least to where the bridge is at this stage. And we'll resolve that when it's time.

[Howie]

Robert, where are you going?

[Jake]

To the Bridge to maybe get us to one point in which we can die on dry land.

[Howie]

Okay. I won't be far behind. Cause we. We think there's still someone on the ship. So let me go tell the others. We got it up running and we're heading to the bridge. I'll meet you up there.

[Jake]

You do that, Kurt.

[Howie]

Okay. So I run to the door of the surgical bay, and I see him passed out. I see him holding a dead cat. And there's blood everywhere.

[Jake]

There's blood everywhere.

[Howie]

And I come in excited because we got the engine going. I'm like, hey, what the fuck happened in here?

[Robert]

Kirk, I need you to help me get Howie up on a. On a bed. I need to. I need to fix him.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Jake]

So I go over, lift him up, place him down. Ella, it's time to bleed him. A lot of medical things happening under.

[Ella Sanchez]

A lot of pressure.

[Jake]

Six one, one for me, would you? Oh, I get a chance for this? Actually, not for me, so it's for you.

[Robert]

Okay. I'm going to clean up, clean the area and feel around for the issue because we never really got to talk about what happened.

[Jake]

Yeah, the issue is, is that he's been walking around with something jutting into his side, and with as much running as he's been doing and not staying still. He's aggravating some kind of internal injury.

[Robert]

So I'll have to open him up.

[Jake]

Yep, you drain it. You basically let the blood that isn't going anywhere. You give it a place to go to, and you kind of let it out, but you make sure it's sterilized and clean. You use the supplies that are readily available there to patch him up with a bit of a patch and.

[Declan Buchanan]

Wrap them ribs till the day is long.

[Jake]

Wrap them ribs.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not gonna feel great.

[Jake]

Yeah, but that's. Yeah, he's a little mummy now, so, you know, Howie, would you like to wake up from consciousness at this point while she's working. Working on you? Sure. All right. Yeah. You kind of flutter awake as she's finishing up the bandages.

[Declan Buchanan]

So as I flutter awake, the last image I saw was the horror that was coming out of Lola. And that's my first reaction of, like, you coming out of, like. I immediately try to fight my way out, but the pain. And it's just like. Like I almost go out again, but I catch myself, and I'm like, what? Where is it?

[Jake]

Where? Where.

[Declan Buchanan]

Where did it go?

[Robert]

Right. Kirk forgot to mention. There's a four winged monstrosity that came out of Lola, and I thought I Killed it and now its body's gone.

[Howie]

Sure. Okay.

[Robert]

Yeah. We're like in a really terrible 80s B horror movie.

[Jake]

BE.

[Howie]

Or a really good one. I guess it depends on your perspective. Is he okay? Are you okay? Is everybody okay?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm never going to be okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm good enough for now.

[Robert]

I've given him a little bit of morphine, but not enough that he can't react.

[Jake]

So just there just to keep. Like you said, keep the edge off. So as you kind of finally finish bundling up, you can hear Robert coming up on the comm. Into the main goes Ella. I have a small problem here. Need you to come to the bridge. Over.

[Robert]

On my way out, I'll press the comm.

[Jake]

Should I go?

[Howie]

If he's got a medical problem, I'm good.

[Declan Buchanan]

She's stabilized me enough to get back up on my feet. I'm just in pain at this point. Between the morphine and the bandages and the bloodletting, I'm about as good as one could be in the situation.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Robert]

Come on, Kirk. Let's go to the bridge.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I'll grab a crutch if there's one handy. Maybe to give myself a little bit of.

[Jake]

Carter, I'm so sorry the moment that you were hoping to create in this situation has been perverted in this circumstance.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

I'm honestly willing to honor the circumstances in which Lola gave birth as the moment. But the question that I have to ask you is, did it give you hope?

[Howie]

Can I pull him aside and talk to him first?

[Jake]

Absolutely, yeah.

[Howie]

You're still holding.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm like, rocking in place and holding her body, basically.

[Howie]

You head up there.

[Jake]

I'll see you in a second.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'll go up with her.

[Howie]

Carter, I'm so incredibly sorry.

[Jake]

What if it.

[Ella Sanchez]

What if it was. I mean, I heard those voices from the eels. What if I did this to her? Maybe me taking care of her is why she got in the situation.

[Howie]

No, Carter, we. We're all in a pretty bad situation here.

[Ella Sanchez]

And.

[Jake]

I just.

[Ella Sanchez]

I thought if I could just take care of her, that that would be something that I'd have some control over. And I couldn't even fucking do that.

[Howie]

But, Carter, you did, man. You did. You did take care of her.

[Ella Sanchez]

Look at her.

[Howie]

I know, but look, sometimes. Sometimes the final score is not. Is what's as important as knowing that you did your damnedest to win? And in all this shitty, shitty mess, you found a bright spot in it. In this world with no light, you found one. That's something to. That's Something to revel in, man. And I don't think you need to feel bad about what happened, because this kind of thing is happening to everyone, everything. But.

[Ella Sanchez]

Is that supposed to make me feel better?

[Howie]

I don't know if it's supposed to make you feel better.

[Ella Sanchez]

I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but I think I just want to. I think I just want to be alone. I think I just want to die here.

[Jake]

I think I just.

[Ella Sanchez]

I think this is it. I think this is it for me. I don't think I've got anything else left.

[Jake]

I don't know. I can't.

[Ella Sanchez]

I can't help anybody. I can't even help a fucking cat. It's the only thing I'm good at. I can't help people.

[Howie]

Carter, you've already helped us. You helped us earlier. You steered the ship into the. Into the wave, which, if you hadn't done that, none of us would still be here for that. We wouldn't have the hope that we have, but we do, because you fought for Lola. You fought for us, too. And you've done your best. That's all any of us can ask for.

[Jake]

Okay?

[Howie]

And you don't. It's not that you don't have anybody. You have us.

[Ella Sanchez]

So what are we gonna do? Like, what happens when we find this signal? Well, what's the next thing? I need a goal. I need something I can think about that if I can just get this thing. I need a new goal. I feel like. I mean, jeez, is it dumb? Is it dumb to want to bury her?

[Howie]

No.

[Ella Sanchez]

On land.

[Howie]

Not at all. That's what we're doing. We're gonna get our ass to land and we're gonna give her a proper burial.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay? All right. All right. I'm sorry. I don't mean to be a drag on any of this sort of stuff, but it's just.

[Howie]

No, I understand. You've. It's. It's a. You've suffered a tremendous loss. We all have. We all. We all like Lola.

[Ella Sanchez]

She was very sweet.

[Jake]

She was very sweet.

[Ella Sanchez]

She used to do this thing you, like. You know when. Like, you can see that they're smiling? Like, I know they're not really smiling, but she. Like, she would smile at me. She smiled at me.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I can't. I can't get out of my head what her face was like at the end. Like, she was scared and I wasn't there. And I just. I gotta get that out of my head.

[Jake]

I gotta just.

[Ella Sanchez]

I want to replace that with her smiling face, you know?

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

I'm fine. I'm fine. I'm good.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm fine.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's like, I don't even.

[Ella Sanchez]

I can't even be mad. Like, whatever that thing that came out of her, like, it's probably just another animal. Like, maybe that's the next form of life or something. I can't even get revenge, you know? Like, it's all right.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

We're gonna bury her.

[Jake]

We're gonna bury her, and it's gonna.

[Declan Buchanan]

Be as good as it can be.

[Jake]

Yeah. Okay. Thank you.

[Howie]

Yeah, man. Let's head back up to the bridge.

[Jake]

Ellen, Howie, as you make your way up to the bridge, which is still spiderwebbed from the crashing swell earlier, you can distinctly see that what is in front of you is a giant monolith. And it is taking up a huge portion of what is the main visible front at the moment. And on the edges of its profile, you can see the small crust of land that are laid out in either way. But Robert kind of breaks it to you as soon as we get him and goes. So the swell's behind us. That's in front of us. Land is behind it. And the math doesn't add up. If we go around, the swell's gonna hit us. We can't go through. Cause it's right in the way.

[Ella Sanchez]

If we can get around behind it, won't we have cover from it? Won't the monolith block some of the.

[Declan Buchanan]

Way, Won't break the swell around it.

[Jake]

Assuming we get behind it in time?

[Ella Sanchez]

Well, let's do that. Let's stop talking about it and just do it.

[Jake]

I'm going straight ahead. But, you know, we lost a lot of time with the engine, so it's going to literally be at the very last minute.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, can we throw some more stuff overboard to get. Get lighter or. I mean, what's gonna help?

[Jake]

No, that's actually a great idea. No, that's absolutely. It's toss off or anything that's extra weight so we can get a little extra speed. Even one knot will make a huge difference.

[Robert]

Okay.

[Howie]

Okay, let's go. I'm gonna run down to the.

[Robert]

All hands on deck to the deck.

[Howie]

And start throwing shuffle.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I'll push through the pain for this throwing pool.

[Robert]

Go easy, man. Yeah, go easy.

[Ella Sanchez]

I have Lola wrapped into, like, we.

[Robert]

Can'T perform surgery again if we're.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, but I've got my hands roast up off deck.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I mean, when I say push the pain, I mean like a. A pool deck chair. Is gonna weigh 10 pounds, right? I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna. I don't even know if I can carry the oxygen tank anymore at this point. You might have to take it or you might have to take it, but, yeah, I'm trying to. I'm trying to help.

[Jake]

Still helping hurts. Let's see how it goes. Two sixes. All right.

[Declan Buchanan]

You want a challenge?

[Jake]

As always. Nope. It's all you, man.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, so. Yeah, so I just, you know, like, I'm. I'm on a crutch, and whatever I can grab with a hand is what I'm currently dragging.

[Jake]

Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

Throwing over the side, just. But with every move, it's excruciating. Even with the morphine, it's like, oh, it's gone from a very sharp pain to a very dull pain, but it's still pain.

[Jake]

Right.

[Declan Buchanan]

And it hurts. You know, it's taken a little bit more wind out of me.

[Jake]

But you do contribute. I do. And you get it out, and you easily. At this point, you know, the pounds add up. £10, £20, £50, £100. As the minutes tick by, you throw off everything that you possibly can that's not bolted down at this stage, we.

[Ella Sanchez]

Can just see the. This thing looming, growing behind us.

[Jake]

It's just. It's. It's. It is. It's like a slow. Just like us, like a wall that's just slowly just moving closer and closer. And at this point, you can look up, and you can still barely see the top of it. And, you know, it's punctuated by this ashen red sky. Because of the moon with its color. Right now, it just basically looks like this blue red blood tide that just wants to just smash down upon you. As you occasionally toss things over, you can see moving at the same speed as you are, you can see that these things are just alongside with you and the dolphins going alongside the boat. Not a far analogy at this point. It would be lovely if they were dolphins, but instead, you just see these. These wiggling worms of things, and they seem to just be surrounding you at this stage, just falling alongside the boat. So you make it right to where the monolith is, and you begin to make that curve. You begin to turn.

[Ella Sanchez]

I want to try to throw one of the anchors. It's got, like, a chain winch thing.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

To give us a little bit of drag to swing around to make a tighter turn behind the model.

[Jake]

Okay. See into the shadow, like a Batmobile.

[Howie]

Shooting the grappling hook out. Okay, cool.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm thinking mainly It'll just drag us and make it easier for us to make a tighter turn.

[Declan Buchanan]

There they are.

[Jake]

I think that's a roll.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's a roll.

[Howie]

There you go, buddy.

[Ella Sanchez]

He's too bad.

[Declan Buchanan]

Just keep him like that.

[Howie]

Did his moment count?

[Jake]

His moment counted, but I think the important question of, did it bring hope? I think, despite the pep talk, if that moment for him didn't give him hope, and I still. You did not answer the question yet, so I'm willing to ask you again, did that moment give you hope?

[Ella Sanchez]

I think I still have.

[Jake]

He was able to get me back.

[Ella Sanchez]

On, like, having some sort of purpose and stuff. So, yeah, I guess I think it did give me hope that I could at least accomplish that.

[Jake]

Okay. You know, because in that circumstance, then I can give you the hope dice.

[Declan Buchanan]

He already got the one out of that one.

[Ella Sanchez]

So I give you the thing.

[Jake]

Is your moment on top? Was your moment on top? I'm so sorry. Was your moment on top?

[Ella Sanchez]

It was not.

[Jake]

No. I need it back. Your moment needs to be on top for it to be fulfilled.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay. Oh, so I don't need the die.

[Jake]

Yeah. So unfortunately, since the moment top. All right. Yeah, it's fair.

[Ella Sanchez]

It's fair.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh.

[Jake]

One for me.

[Robert]

Wow.

[Ella Sanchez]

Sorry. Sorry, y' all.

[Jake]

Narrative control. Two sixes.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, you got it. All right.

[Jake]

So you. With this babusa, you kind of like. I mean, it's one of those points. You're not going to lift the anchor up and drop it down at this point. What you're going to do is you're gonna go over and hitch out the release. Yeah, the manual release. So you're gonna hit this big lever and kind of hear as it just. And as soon as. As soon as it hits the water at that kind of speed, you kind of feel as the whole boat just. Just like, bends, and you hear actually the weight of the metal just as it bends forward. And you hear Robert going to the coms, going, what the fuck did you just do down there?

[Ella Sanchez]

Helping with the turn a bit.

[Jake]

You're going to literally snap the boat in half with that kind of a drag. Just, halt's done. Get up here. And you kind of hear as, like, you go down, and you and everyone who wasn't standing or lurching at one point just got shifted off to the left as they felt kind of weight just press into it. You're already in a lot of pain anyway. But you two, as you're tossing things over, like, Kurt, you were tossing something over when it suddenly went in and it was Barely. You just holding onto the railing that you didn't topple over for the moment while you were trying to chuck stuff overboard. But yes, you are making that sweet right hand, a little hook rift, that hook, that anchor drift.

[Ella Sanchez]

So is the boat in the shadow of this monolith now?

[Jake]

Absolutely. It's been in the shadow for a while.

[Ella Sanchez]

Let's see if we can.

[Jake]

And Kirk, as you begin to bend around the side of the monolith, as you look towards it, at this point, you had to cut. I mean, you didn't want to take a wide berth around it. You needed to get as close to it as you possibly can in order to minimize your the time and the time to go into it. So you're almost alongside the monolith. And when you start getting into this kind of drift around this, you know, hundred story building that's like easily just, you know, 100 by 100, you know, size. So as you're going around it, Kirk, you see something at the mall. You see something that is eye line perfectly with you. And you look at the monolith and you see a yellow light in a doorway that just seems to just be right there. And it wasn't there when you were looking for a moment. But as soon as you turn your head back, you see it's a bright yellow door just laid out along the the slick pathway of the monolith. So you crest along.

[Ella Sanchez]

Is he the only one who's seen that?

[Howie]

Does anyone else see this door?

[Jake]

I'll take the top.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't see it now.

[Declan Buchanan]

What the.

[Robert]

Do we?

[Declan Buchanan]

No, no, we don't.

[Jake]

All the three of you. Only Kirk sees the door.

[Declan Buchanan]

What are you talking about, man?

[Howie]

There's a door. It's like a yellow. Just seriously, do you guys see that?

[Robert]

No, man. Did you hit your head? Did you swallow a lot of water?

[Ella Sanchez]

No, it must be the monolith. Must be trying to trick us. I mean, we know the monoliths are connected to these monsters and to apocalypse or whatever. If you're seeing something there, I think it's trying to lure you in, man.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, you said you heard something, right?

[Ella Sanchez]

Heard whispers from that eel. Like human whispers.

[Declan Buchanan]

So we've heard whispers.

[Robert]

Did you hear those whispers?

[Howie]

No, I didn't hear any whispers.

[Robert]

Okay, you're hearing things. You're seeing things.

[Howie]

You really don't see that?

[Robert]

Really don't see that.

[Howie]

Can I call up to Robert?

[Jake]

Oh, Robert's in the bridge still? Yeah.

[Howie]

Can I call up to him?

[Jake]

Yeah, I'm a call.

[Howie]

Yeah. Robert, do you see this light on the monolith next to us.

[Jake]

No. And he says it in a voice that seems very commanding and very bitter, almost. No. He seemed real sure about that.

[Declan Buchanan]

The wave, did it come? Did it break around us?

[Jake]

Oh, that's right. The wave's literally right behind you guys. Yes. So you can actually feel as you're starting to get around and you're seeing this thing, Kirk, as it's kind of coming up, the bottom of the swell is starting to lift you up as you're running around the monolith. And you're actually at the point of where, if you can imagine, it's tilting itself, bending the top of the boat towards the monolith as it's kind of cresting around. And for a moment, you're actually looking at the monolith. If it's above you more than it is to the side of you because the swell's pushing you in such a way, and it's just banking around the monolith as you're edging along the opposite side of it. You can just tell that you're just right there.

[Ella Sanchez]

Can we see any of the intended land now that we're on the other side of this monolith?

[Jake]

Yes. Yes, you can. But I think trying to decide, because Robert's driving the boat right now.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, it's basically Robert is getting to decide whether we're gonna stop and try to go into this monolith. He wants us to keep going, right?

[Jake]

He wants to keep going. He's just driving the boat as quick as he can, but he does. Yo, Kirk. It's now or never, man.

[Robert]

What is he talking about, Kirk?

[Howie]

I don't know. How close are we to that? How close are we to it?

[Jake]

For narrative purposes, I will say that you could jump for it.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, we only got one chance for this. Kirk, I trust you. If you say you saw something there, I mean, we're not gonna get out of this alive anyway. Maybe at least we'll learn something.

[Howie]

I still have the gun.

[Jake]

Yeah, it's empty.

[Robert]

You emptied the clip.

[Howie]

I wanna throw it at the door, and I wanna see what it does.

[Jake]

You watch as the gun clatters along the side of the monolith and just falls down and makes an unceremonious splash as it falls into the water. As you bend around the side of the monolith, and you are now on the other side of the plinth. Six dice, six truths, Kirk. You get the first truth.

[Howie]

That's not the last time I'll see that door. Or a Door.

[Jake]

Like it? Great. First truth. Ella. Second truth.

[Robert]

There are no people on the other end of that signal.

[Jake]

Carter.

[Ella Sanchez]

I can see the door now. On the monolith.

[Jake]

You can see the door.

[Ella Sanchez]

I can see the door.

[Jake]

Right. Howie, my book.

[Declan Buchanan]

Only has one sentence to write left.

[Jake]

Ooh. The remainder of this swell. Oh, no. I know what my truth is. Now that you've passed this swell, you can see a large gray rock dipping from the heavens in the water, from the sky, from behind the swell that you just saw come on the other side, you can see the moon inside of the ocean several miles away. Two, three, four, five, six. Last one.

[Howie]

Robert knows what's in that door.

[Jake]

Great. Six candles. Six truths. You cut across the side of this monumental just monument and the swell, I mean, this is a size of a wave. And you can see it. It's like the water is cresting all the way to the top of it, almost even eclipsing it, but it's just making Runway on either side of it as it just acts like a perfect break for the wave that's coming into it. And it doesn't even look like it cares. You hear no snapping, you hear no pressure, you see no strain on this thing at all. And it just stands like a perfect bastion against this monumental, colossal, I mean, extinction sized wave that you've managed to get right behind. And more than anything, it now generates a backflow that just pushes you forward at double, triple the speed you were going to now that you've made it along the other way. And you ride this bitch all the way to land as you hold on for dear life. The last thing that you all remember before you black out from unconsciousness is hitting the bank of the island with such force that you all are slammed in front of wherever you were despite bracing on. And like getting into a car accident going 30 miles an hour, you just whack straight into whatever your horse holding onto and you wake up to the sound of seagulls.

[Ella Sanchez]

What's the ground like that we're on? Are we still on the boat?

[Declan Buchanan]

Still on the boat.

[Jake]

You're still on the boat. Okay. I mean, one of you may have been flung off the ship, if you'd like to take that position.

[Robert]

Have we heard animals in this last few weeks?

[Jake]

No.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I actually had a week wake up thinking I've died because the seagulls are such a foreign sound to me at this point, that the only logic that my brain can come up with in this state is that I've died and I'm. I. I'm in. I've moved on. Like. Like, it doesn't make sense that I'm hearing this sound.

[Jake]

Right.

[Howie]

I assume it's some kind of, like, rope swinging or. Or something that's causing a creaking sound. I don't hear, you know, birds chirping. I think it's metal rubbing against metal. Cause I'm the same way.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm like, there's no way I can say I was the one who was flung from the ship. So I get up and I check.

[Jake]

Sand all covering you.

[Ella Sanchez]

I check Lola's body.

[Jake]

Lola's body's still there. It's mangled and broken even more than it was beforehand. But, I mean, it's good that she's bundled up.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. And this is. Does it seem like normal sand, or does it. Does it seem like moon sand?

[Jake]

It is a black, gray sand.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yeah. And if you take a moment to put your hand and rake it, you will see golden sand underneath.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay. All right. Land ho.

[Robert]

Um, I'm gonna get up and check everybody. We're missing Carter. But does everybody just seem to have superficial injuries?

[Jake]

Yeah, everyone seems to just have bruises, bumps. Robert is gone. Oh, she's gone. He is not on the bridge. He is gone.

[Howie]

Yeah, I'm fine. I'm used to getting hit like that.

[Declan Buchanan]

I actually take them like, scuba tank and turn it on and take some oxygen. Helps my breathing.

[Jake]

Yeah. Well, it is pure oxygen. Well, it's a good mix.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. And that feels good for a second. That feels good. And I'll shut it off.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Robert]

I'm gonna start yelling for Carter.

[Jake]

Carter. You hear your name yelled out?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm down here. Just give me a moment. I gotta finish something. I got thrown off the ship.

[Robert]

Are you okay?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, I'm good. There's sand down here. We're on land, technically.

[Robert]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

Got the rope to maybe help pull us down.

[Jake]

Yeah. I mean, you could tie it off. I mean, you went in at 30 miles an hour. You went into inland. So at this point, wrapping it would just allow you to all rappel down.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's what I. That's basically what I'm.

[Robert]

I would actually like to go to the store doors that I have the key to and pick up some emergency food and medical supplies.

[Jake]

Let's see how much is left.

[Howie]

Is the thing we killed edible?

[Jake]

It did all slop off.

[Declan Buchanan]

Ooh.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

And it begins.

[Jake]

So you grab a hold of medical supplies, enough that you can fill at least the bag of. Which you can carry with.

[Robert]

And some dried food, MREs or something.

[Jake]

All of it.

[Robert]

Great canned goods.

[Ella Sanchez]

I've been digging. I've been digging a grave basically right.

[Jake]

There on the beach.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Great.

[Ella Sanchez]

And at this point, I've gotten down below to the golden sand, and I go until I've got about maybe 2.2ft deep or so, and then I want to place Lola's wrapped up body in it and then start methodically, just wordlessly, just putting all the sand back on top of it.

[Jake]

As you kind of put Lola back onto the sand, you kind of lay her broken and misshapen body onto it, and you start pushing the sand on top of her to kind of have this makeshift grave. And there's still that conflicting concept of why, you know, and it's so hard to get the image of what came out of her out of your mind. And at that point, you. You do hear whispering, just that same kind of sound that you heard when you were so close to that eel. And there's something that's just permeating your brain. And I'm gonna write to you what you hear.

[Ella Sanchez]

I had a narrative idea of what I might hear, but I like. Let's see. Maybe. I'll guess maybe we like you guys.

[Jake]

Jake. Yeah, we'll see, man. Sorry about the kid.

[Robert]

I'll never forget.

[Howie]

I know you.

[Declan Buchanan]

I thought it was rad.

[Robert]

It was a phenomenal story choice, that is.

[Ella Sanchez]

It was. It was an extra. I hate.

[Jake]

I hate you and love you for it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Carpenter's the thing. I saw that thing. Must that. And I went, I know exactly how this looks.

[Robert]

You just broke my. And my character.

[Ella Sanchez]

Jonesy's supposed to make it. Okay.

[Jake]

None of us. Yeah, but then they just removed all of that in the second movie.

[Ella Sanchez]

You mean the third movie?

[Jake]

Third movie, of course. Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Even poor Bishop had to be in pieces rough.

[Robert]

Spoiler alert. If you haven't seen it, you've had a few years.

[Jake]

Is that what you were thinking? Not at all. Really?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Robert]

Oh, boy.

[Jake]

Do you want to write to me what you were thinking and we can have a discussion about it secretly?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yes.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

All right.

[Declan Buchanan]

Notes.

[Robert]

You didn't bring enough for those?

[Declan Buchanan]

While this is going on, I am going to try to look for just something, anything, really. A scrap of board, anything that we can tie the rope to once we're down there. And you, like, pull the oxygen tank behind us so one of us doesn't have to.

[Jake]

Oh, I see. You want to make a little makeshift.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, just a sled, basically. A sled. Because we're on sand. And as long as we're on sand.

[Robert]

Well, do you want to use one of those boards. The one of those.

[Howie]

Don't we have the gurneys?

[Robert]

Yeah, the gurneys.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, yeah. To just strip the mattress off of it and. And use the bayonet, punch holes in it.

[Jake]

Sure.

[Declan Buchanan]

And make a sled.

[Jake]

So the first thing you notice when you kind of get down onto the water is that you do notice that the island looks like it was just hit with a tsunami. Like, troken trees are everywhere and things are just snapped and moved around, and it's basically just foliage is just laid out all across whatever's left of this little island. And you do. You can definitely tell that you are. I want to call it like a deserted island, but you are definitely on a small island. Not far. I like them both.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, they're both good.

[Jake]

I think literally, you hear both on top of each other.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

But the voice that was telling me your thing is not the voice I'm describing.

[Jake]

No, you hear. Hear the one that you wrote.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

But you also hear the one that I wrote.

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay.

[Jake]

Yes. So let's just merge them.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Is that cool with you?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Because it serves both purposes.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

In my mind, as far as what it is.

[Ella Sanchez]

So, yeah. You see me stand up after finishing patting this makeshift grave down, and I look like there's some sort of hollow kind of look in my eyes. Like I just look like I'm completely, you know, just I'm not really there, you know?

[Jake]

But to answer your question, I mean, it's a broken world. And this desert island, it definitely looks. It doesn't look like the ashen destroyed continent that you left and knew of when you went into it. It looks, besides being hit by a major natural catastrophe, it is still land. And even though you seem to be a little higher than you would ever intend to be, it still works great.

[Howie]

Are we in danger of another wave hitting this island?

[Jake]

No. All you see is the giant celestial body inside of the water that seems to be closer every single time you look at it.

[Ella Sanchez]

So it's like a reflection of the moon, but it's a place we can actually go. Is that what it seems like?

[Jake]

I think it's the moon.

[Declan Buchanan]

I think it's the actual moon. I think it's impacted.

[Jake]

The moon is in the ocean, Literally. Literally in the ocean.

[Ella Sanchez]

Like the bottom part of it is touching the ocean.

[Howie]

It's breached our atmosphere.

[Declan Buchanan]

Not in the horizon, but in the planet.

[Jake]

In fact, what you can see as you kind of look towards it is you do see that the area that was above you, that ashen colored rock that was around. You can see amongst it is a halo of just broken and floating rock that just seems to be around it. So it almost has this dust cloud that occasionally obscures it, but is just like a halo of dust around it. So.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yes, but that is somewhere we can go or try to go.

[Robert]

But the moon's behind us.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Robert]

Not miles behind us.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

We're at the radio. We're at what we know it is the radio.

[Jake]

So if it wasn't abundantly clear.

[Howie]

And there's a lighthouse.

[Jake]

When the moon impacted the sea, it created these giant waves.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, that's what made the waves. Gotcha.

[Jake]

Which pushed you all in. And now it's just moving in the.

[Ella Sanchez]

Water, coming towards us at a slow pace or something. It's hard to tell.

[Declan Buchanan]

Too big.

[Jake]

It's huge.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's too big to tell the movement on it.

[Robert]

I'd like to look around for the seagulls that I haven't heard in weeks.

[Jake]

You look up and you see that the island that you're on does have a. It does have a little bit of a mountain that is laid out inside of it. And there does appear to actually be another monolith that's just piercing out straight from the mountain. I won't say it's doing that thing where it's like coming straight through the mountain kind of a situation, but it's definitely through and up. But you would have to climb up the rock face in the mountain in order to get to it, because it can't ever be easy.

[Robert]

And the seagulls are on the mountain.

[Jake]

You can see a couple of them are on the monolith, like circling like birds do, Just kind of floating around the mountain where it is. Just for what it's worth.

[Howie]

Well, I'm kind of looking around too, and I see the lighthouse.

[Jake]

Oh, the lighthouse we described as well too. Yeah. Which looks like it got the shit kicked out of it, right?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Howie]

And that's when I see the light come on.

[Jake]

The light from the monolith?

[Howie]

No, from the lighthouse.

[Declan Buchanan]

The lighthouse I discovered earlier.

[Jake]

Oh, I see. So it was the light that you described earlier, but it's okay. Yeah. I would be surprised if a lighthouse could withstand that kind of a tidal wave. But for the purposes of the story. Yeah, you could see it with light on.

[Ella Sanchez]

It might be a fancy annihilation lighthouse.

[Jake]

The point is, as you look at it, you can see that despite having. Having crumbled and kind of broken from the impact, it's still standing, even if it's at a bit of a Tilt. And you watch as the light turns on and you actually see it start spinning in a kind of oblique angle, an odd axis.

[Howie]

I know you all think I'm crazy with seeing lights, but everyone does see that, right? See the lighthouse light that just came on?

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, wow.

[Howie]

Okay, good. Because nobody saw the light coming from the monolith. But everyone sees this now.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yes, I saw it. Not when I first looked, but I saw it. I saw the light on the monolith, too.

[Howie]

You saw it?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. Not at the start, but then while we were passing it. Yeah, I saw it. You threw your gun at it. Are you hearing the voices, too?

[Howie]

I'm not hearing voices.

[Declan Buchanan]

Listen to me.

[Howie]

I'm not hearing voices.

[Declan Buchanan]

In a world where monsters rip out of cats and things from the ocean are trying to eat us, I'll believe anything. Sure, if you saw a door, hell, you saw a door. If you're hearing voices, man, I don't doubt it for a second.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's the thing, though. The voices are not people. They're people I know who I know are not here.

[Declan Buchanan]

What?

[Ella Sanchez]

Well, one was. I mean, it doesn't. It doesn't matter. This is more evidence that both he and I are losing it than anything else.

[Jake]

Ooh.

[Howie]

I don't hear voices, though.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, yeah. But I'm seeing stuff and you're seeing stuff. People aren't seeing those things.

[Jake]

It is.

[Robert]

We can't tell, right? Because there's no sun.

[Jake]

It is dark. Right? The world is dark.

[Ella Sanchez]

Maybe we're just further along than these two are.

[Robert]

Did anybody react. Did any of the monsters react to the lighthouse coming on?

[Jake]

Ooh, good point. Let's do this. As you guys are having this discussion and kind of talking about who's losing it and what's losing it, you can start to hear the regular waves that are coming in, but you also start to hear just the sounds of footsteps.

[Robert]

Oh, hell no.

[Jake]

As you look behind you and you see hundreds of creatures breaching the water, and they're not running, they're not going fast. They just are kind of. And as soon as they get out of the water enough, they lift themselves up onto their upper segments, and you watch as these centipedal kind of legs start to slowly move forward. Some of them stay low and are moving on all of their small little legs. But you can watch as just they are coming out of the ocean. And once the first ones breach, you see more of them, and it becomes its own sea of creatures cresting out of the water, straight into the land.

[Robert]

Fucking run.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't really care one way or the other, but if we want to go to the lighthouse, we might as well go now.

[Howie]

How close are we? That's the closest structure.

[Jake]

I assume that's closer than the mountain.

[Howie]

We gotta go to the lighthouse.

[Declan Buchanan]

Sure.

[Ella Sanchez]

Fine.

[Jake]

Howie, you're hurt still.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, sure is. Two, six.

[Howie]

All right.

[Jake]

All right. Why don't you describe to me what happens?

[Declan Buchanan]

So I see this coming, and I'm like sleds, oxygen tanks. Just like the boat. We need to shed some weight. So I take one last big breath. The oxygen.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I throw it. We go.

[Jake]

All four of you just book it for the lighthouse.

[Robert]

Do we still have the bayonet?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I've got the bayonet still.

[Robert]

Okay, great.

[Jake]

So you run up to the lighthouse, and, like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, you can see it's been pulled up from its foundation a little bit as the water hit it and kind of tilted it towards the water a little. So you have to go in, and the door is actually slightly in the foundation a bit, and as you wrench it open, you can kind of see that everything's on a bit of a tilt. But you. You know, it is a lighthouse, and besides being recently flooded, so everything's kind of scattered and moved around, it seems none the worse for wear. What do you want to do? Go. Go up, Go up, Go in.

[Robert]

So as you close the door behind us.

[Jake]

Yes. As you close the door behind you, you run up to the lighthouse, and you get up to the oblique angle, and you can see it just continuing to kind of spin at its weird oblique angle. From the top, you get a much better vantage point of where the monolith is on the. If the lighthouse is facing towards the ocean. If you turn the other way to look towards land, you can see the monolith behind you. And you watch as all of the creatures come close to the lighthouse, and some stop right at the base, leading into the ocean, and then some fan out, and they leave. They leave. Just. They don't surround the whole building. They just kind of stop at some point, and almost like the wave with the monolith kind of breaking the wave, the lighthouse almost breaks them as they line up like a procession just across with a clear pathway leading straight into the mountain.

[Declan Buchanan]

They all just stand there. They're rolling out the welcome wagon, and.

[Jake]

At that point, you watch as some of them lean their head back and they tilt their torsos up forward, and they begin to sway in a perfect synchronous manner, and they begin to sing, and they emit this Song, this piercing wailing sound that. That is awful to your ears, Kirk. It is awful, Ella. It sounds beautiful. It's lovely. It's odd. Such harmony. The swaying emotions together as they come into it. And the voices get loud, Louder, Carter. They begin to be there. And as you look down, you can see these three all dealing with the sound.

[Declan Buchanan]

What do I hear?

[Howie]

Yeah. How does it sound to you?

[Jake]

How does it sound to you? It's awful. The sound is miserable.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

It's not something you've ever wanted to hear in your life. Carter, you, as you're watching Howie ache in pain, and Ella, all three are transfixed for a moment, and you hear the voices getting louder in your head.

[Ella Sanchez]

I need to go. I need to be away from the rest of you.

[Howie]

What do you mean you need to go? Where are you gonna go?

[Ella Sanchez]

The voices are telling me. They're telling me that this is your. This is your fault.

[Howie]

This is whose fault?

[Ella Sanchez]

Your fault? I know they're not real. They can't be real. I have to be.

[Robert]

How can you leave these creatures?

[Ella Sanchez]

They're telling me. They're telling me. They're trying to push me to hurt you.

[Robert]

These horrible creatures.

[Ella Sanchez]

And I'm not gonna do it because I know. I know in my right mind that you've all tried to help me.

[Declan Buchanan]

Everyone else sees the road that they've made us, right? No one else is confused or curious about what. Why in God's name these things just don't swarm this. The. The sheer magnitude of them could probably knock this lighthouse into the ocean right now. Why aren't they doing it?

[Howie]

So we just, what, walk out there in the middle of them? My God, I wish they would stop whatever that noise is.

[Robert]

Why? Why? They're making such beautiful music.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, they're talking. They're telling me that it's your fault, that.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, it sucks. It sucks like nothing I've never heard before.

[Ella Sanchez]

My mom's there, too.

[Declan Buchanan]

What?

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, she says it's dark. She says it's cold there.

[Jake]

I think they're trying to.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't know, beckon us to some sort of afterlife or something. We might already be dead. This might just be all in our heads.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm gonna pull out the book.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

And I'm gonna open to the last page, where, like I said, in my truth, there's only one thing left to write. Right? And I kind of shake off the noise for a second, and I focus on tapping.

[Jake]

You?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, it's there.

[Jake]

It's like sound.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's just trying to get. Trying to Focus on the book and trying to focus on what I have to write. And it's just in my head and I just write the last words are and they lived happily ever after. And I sign my name and I sign her name in the book and I close it.

[Jake]

Yep. And get it close that book complete nada. That nothing enough nothing to nothing.

[Declan Buchanan]

Straight, neutral.

[Jake]

That's.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's not on the top.

[Jake]

It's not on the top. Okay, all right. So you write. Okay, how do we resolve this? Cause you write it and it's not like that can be denied of you. But you.

[Declan Buchanan]

What I'm in intending to do is close the book and follow the path.

[Jake]

Okay, all right.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'm already like, you got it.

[Jake]

I know what it is. Okay, great. So here it is, Howie, as you grab your book to finish the project that has taken you most of your life since your wife died to end, you pull it out and you know that you're going to write this last sentence before you walk into that pathway. But you open the book to find that it is completely waterlogged and stained and everything has. The ink has been smeared and every. Every page is ruined. Nothing is left except for the last blank page in which you write, and they lived happily ever after. And you sign it and you put the book down and you place it on the edge of the lighthouse table. Five candles, five truths. This is the part of the game in which things get dangerous, Howie. We start with you. You lost the candle, so it is your first truth.

[Declan Buchanan]

Even though my eyes see that the book is destroyed and empty, my memory of the book stays, endures. So it's not even though by the dice it was a failure. To me, it's. I still get to take this. What when I go, will be ethereal object to me and go into whatever afterlife I'm met with to be with God.

[Jake]

It's a perfect use of a truth to help against the dice. So awesome, Ellie. You will never see this door. Kirk.

[Declan Buchanan]

This episode is brought to you by LifeLock.

[Ella Sanchez]

Between two factor authentication, strong passwords and a VPN, you try to be in.

[Declan Buchanan]

Control of how your info is protected. But many other places also have it, and they might not be as careful.

[Ella Sanchez]

That's why LifeLock monitors hundreds of millions.

[Declan Buchanan]

Of data points a second for threats. If your identity is stolen, they'll fix.

[Ella Sanchez]

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[Declan Buchanan]

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[Jake]

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[Declan Buchanan]

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[Robert]

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[Howie]

Carter does hear his mom.

[Jake]

Carter does hear his mom, Ella.

[Robert]

The singing is the only comfort I've had since this all started.

[Jake]

Okay, last one.

[Ella Sanchez]

The moon is changed directions and is now pulling away. Is that something I can say?

[Jake]

That's the truth. The truth is the truth. Yeah, but you're saying. But if I hear you correctly, you're saying that the moon is not heading towards. You said it's now heading away.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah. And I can even say that this door, which I can see is flickering now. Like, I know there's limited time window.

[Jake]

I get you. I get you.

[Ella Sanchez]

Like we're passing into some new phase.

[Jake]

I see what you're saying. The moon. And at this point, none of you. I mean, you're not close enough to a monolith to see the door or anything, but I think I can accept that the moon is changing its course. Okay. Because if I hear your intent of your truth, it's that you want to say that the time frame of whatever door phenomenon is adjusting.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah.

[Jake]

But I will tell you that the moon has nothing to do with it. Okay. So if you want, you can say that Carter can see that the door in his mind is flickering and it is fading.

[Ella Sanchez]

And this is the door that's on the mountain that's in the direction of this path.

[Jake]

Yeah. It's the pathway that is being laid before you.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm like, we need to go. A choice has been made for us, huh?

[Jake]

Follow along.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'll give Ella the bayonet and say, hey, you're gonna be a lot more. This is gonna be a lot more use to you than me. I don't even know how much more time I got left.

[Robert]

I think I'm just gonna stay here a while and listen to the music.

[Declan Buchanan]

All right. And I give it to. At this point, everybody gets to make their own choice. And I respect that. Howie has been about time. The time. And Howie didn't finish the book because he wanted every second. But looking out in front of him to what he sees, he understands that he's out of time. So he makes that final act to. To tell himself, it's okay. Whatever. Whatever comes next, it's okay. So I'll hand him, and I say, you still got a little fight left in you. I'll give him the bayonet, and I'll go, let's go see what's in that monolith.

[Jake]

Um, Kirk, Howie Carter. You make yourself out of the monolith or out of the lighthouse, and you start walking, and you weren't far when you were mentioning a procession. As you stand out of the lighthouse, you can see they're just lined up, making a perfect wall on either side of you. You can see they aren't making a direct pathway, but they just seem to be splitting in a way. And if you were to bother enough to get on a stepladder and look out over, you could see that they are extending all around. But really, all you see is the cold bodies of these creatures just swaying together. Most of them lifting their heads up and just seem to be swaying at first. The ones that are closest to you, as you first lead into it, you can hear the sounds of whispers, and I don't know if you even want to look at them or if you would just rather keep your head down and forward. But it's eerie. I mean, obviously, it's painful for the people who I have described that it is painful for.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I'm just looking dead ahead, trying my best to keep my composure as this, because obviously, if it was loud in there, it's very loud.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

So it's like white noise almost at this point, and you're, like, ringing. So I'm just trudging forward with the noise.

[Jake]

The only thing that's helping is the gunshots that probably have given you a little bit.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, A little tinnitus.

[Jake]

Yeah, yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

And you've stayed behind.

[Jake]

And Ella, you.

[Declan Buchanan]

So before we leave, I'll give her a hug and I'll say good luck. Yeah.

[Howie]

Are you sure this is what you want? We've been a team so far, and the team's made it this far. I don't know if we should split up now.

[Robert]

It's just so beautiful. I just want to sit here and listen.

[Howie]

You can listen along the way.

[Robert]

I suppose you're right.

[Declan Buchanan]

Ah, that'll put a little smile on my face, a little smirk.

[Jake]

So, Ella, as you leave with Kirk, as you come down the steps and he convinces you that whatever you can do, we can all do together. So you come down and you walk out the door and you start to step away from the lighthouse. You can feel them. You can hear the impacts of the ground as they close in behind you. And you can feel the pressure, almost just the presence of them just filling the void that you are creating when you step forward. And every once in a while, you can occasionally feel a soft tentacle just brisk your hair on the back of your neck or slightly shove your shoulder and knock yourself forward a little bit. Bit. And it's upsetting that they are doing nothing other than just fucking with you, pushing you and prodding you and everyone else, since you seem to be the one in the behind at the moment, they just press and push as you move towards the mountain. Carter, you begin this walk with the three others. And I've mentioned that the voices are loud, and I don't need to say that to you again, but does Carter have long hair like you do? Sure. Okay. You can feel something harder. And when you attempt to move some of your hair back away from your ear, you can actually feel something like a large. Ah. Well, yeah. Yeah. As you kind of pull your hair back, you feel. And your hand bumps into something. And at first you worry that maybe it's one of the tentacles that have been prodding and poking at Ella. But you feel a tiny hand grasp a hold of your finger for a second as I try to brush it away. As you try to brush it away, and it kind of grabs your hand and it holds onto your finger and kind of keeps close to your neck and it goes. Now's your time. You're.

[Ella Sanchez]

You're wasting your time. I'm the worst fighter out of any of these people, and I don't have any weapons.

[Jake]

But, you know, you could. You have the advantage.

[Ella Sanchez]

No, I don't.

[Jake]

Why? Why? You watched as your precious Lola just was ripped apart.

[Ella Sanchez]

You know, you need to get better at this.

[Jake]

It's.

[Ella Sanchez]

If this is your temptation game, I don't particularly care about any of these people that much, but I don't want to hurt them either.

[Jake]

What if I told you that I can pull your mother from the dark?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'd say that you're a liar.

[Jake]

I can show you.

[Ella Sanchez]

Everything you ask me makes me think about. What are your motivations? What are you going to get out of it? You want me to hurt these people, so therefore I don't want to hurt them. It's opposites day. Okay, fine.

[Jake]

You hear as the presence disappears for A moment as you walk away, and you feel as it flutters out of your existence. At that point, Ella, you feel as a tentacle wraps around your neck and it shoves you back down onto the the ground and throps you right onto the floor. And you glurt as you feel air just pull out from front of you as you feel your body slam down onto the ground. And you all three hear and turn as Ella is just laid there. Nothing has laid onto her. Nothing has pulled her in yet. They are just using. And there's several of them that just seem to have their appendages all just clasped around her, and they just seem to be strangulating her with all effort. Let's help her.

[Howie]

I'm done. I'm done with these guys. I'm. I'm running. I'm running and sliding over to her, and I'm just gonna hold the bayonet against one of their tentacles as a threat for them to off.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm trying to actively uncoil the tentacles.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I'm grabbing the. The crutch and trying to pry anything I can off with the crotch.

[Jake]

Okay. Pry everything off with the crutch.

[Declan Buchanan]

Let's do probably screaming at this point because the noise is so loud.

[Jake]

It's so loud. It is so loud.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm just kind of glazed over while I'm doing it. I'm not particularly emotional, but I'm right.

[Jake]

So, Kirk, you're the one that's trying to say something, right? It sounds like, as you said, you want to threaten. You want to cut one of these. So let's have you go. Oh, no ones 1 6. So. All right, you. What do you want to say?

[Howie]

Give me that one. No, I'm just. I run over and I baseball pop up, slide, slide along the ground, come up to one knee, have my hand on her shoulder. She's laying down, and I just put. Put the bayonet right next to the tentacle. And I don't say anything.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

It knows that I'm pissed off and knows that I'm done with this. I don't have to say anything. I just look at them, and the tentacle that I'm threatening.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

Slowly releases.

[Jake]

Slowly releases. And at that point, you can hear. And it's not even a secret at this point, you can hear it, and it seems to be coming from a thousand mouths in a thousand different directions all around you. And it just says, ck. She's not worth it. You know? She's not. Why let her go. Let her go and claim what Is yours.

[Declan Buchanan]

She.

[Jake]

She is a horrible person. You've seen what she's done. Let her die.

[Howie]

Not today. Not right now. This team's not leaving anyone behind.

[Jake]

All right. And you, Ella, feel that the one that he threatened pulled away a little bit. But these creatures have not let you go by any stretch of the imagination. But they do begin to walk with the three of you together. And you've uncoiled enough to where it's not clasping around her throat, but you feel as if your whole body has been wrapped inside of cloth and you're just being dragged. And occasionally you'll get your feet up from underneath you to make a step, but you are being dragged in the dirt along this pathway.

[Ella Sanchez]

So I'm trying to help her stay standing while this is going on. I'm like, wow, these. The new management is not really good about boundaries. Yeah, let's just keep going.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yep. Let's. Let's pick up the pace. Maybe they want a bit brisker of a walk out of us. And I kind of look at. Look at the group of them in a bit of disgust and then drop the ca. They drop the crutch down in the sand and just keep moving.

[Ella Sanchez]

They don't want us to all get there together.

[Howie]

They want.

[Ella Sanchez]

They open this path. They want at least one of us to get where we're going, but they don't want all of us there.

[Howie]

Right. They don't want all of us there.

[Ella Sanchez]

So let's make sure it's all going to.

[Jake]

Okay. You continue to move and you continue to do the walk, and they continue to be incredibly rough with El as they move forward up into the mountains, and you don't feel much more resistance from them as you continue to climb up and up and up. And Ella, at this point, you're getting bumped and bruised. What's going on in your mind? You're. If not what is happening with you at the moment, like being dragged through like these three are with you, but what's going on in your mind right now?

[Robert]

Well, I'm trying to reconcile these horrible creatures who made this beautiful music that comforted me and are now abusing me and parading me around like a rag doll prisoner.

[Jake]

Mm.

[Robert]

And I'm. It's snapping me out of that haze I was in listening to the beautiful music.

[Jake]

Right.

[Robert]

And I think that I'm starting to hear it for what it is.

[Jake]

Sure. Okay. You're seeing through the veil of the song a little.

[Robert]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Right. Do you want to know what it sounds like? Beyond the veil? Yes. It is the wailing of voices. It is the screaming of agony dressed up like a Sunday choir. It is not the irritating, baleful sound that they hear, but it is just the voices of those in agony behind. Beautiful noise.

[Robert]

I can even hear voices I've heard before, several people whose family members I may have lost on the table.

[Jake]

Everyone you. I won't say it's everyone you've ever known, but you know that they are sounds that you have been through. And it is with that you are taken up to a mountainside. You're presented in front of the monolith. And at that point, you look and see that the mountain, the pillar in front of you, is just still close, but also so far away. And at that stage, you can feel the ground begin to shake, and you can begin to feel as just the building, the actual island itself is starting to crest as an earthquake of like you, you have never seen in your life just begins to shake and move around you. And the creatures begin to wail and move, and they begin to slowly push, almost like a mop that's losing control at the moment just begins to shove and push you all forward. And at that point, you can hear the crunching and the cracking of cartilage and bone as you look behind you, and you can see as rocks begin to cascade and fall as you look down onto the beach, of which you were not terribly far down much earlier, is now just cresting as a giant gray wall, pockmarked and cratered with all of what it continues to be, which is the moon is moving at the speed of a jetliner, just crunching straight into the sea. And you can see it's already on the beach. And you're watching as bodies are being lifted up in front of it and being thrown away like so much air as someone putting a shovel to it, as they're being flown up in every direction. And you, Ella, lose your balance and feel as the creatures begin to start tugging on you anew, as their desperate flee in different directions, is drawing and quartering you at the moment. One, one. No Sixes. Do you have anything left to burn?

[Robert]

Just have my.

[Jake]

All right.

[Robert]

I was starting to feel the connection.

[Jake]

Kirk. Howie Carter. As you look around you, you begin to just see as the creature is now the bestial side of them starts to kick in as they all just start scattering in every direction. At that point, you hear Ella scream as you look towards her and see that several creatures have attempted to move in different directions. And the one that has most of its tentacles around her Pulls away from one direction, but you see as one of the creatures just is turned away, almost as it doesn't want to go in the same direction, yet it pulls itself. And Ella screams as you hear the tearing of muscles and clothes and skin. As Ella, you feel your body ripped and torn. And that is the moment in which the veil is pulled back and you can hear the curtain for what it is. The agonizing screams and the wails that you understand are behind this song. And your own screams of agony are mixed alongside of it as you feel first the joint pop out from your arm, and then you feel the muscle tear as your arm is pulled off of your shoulder. And you can feel your leg being pulled apart as these creatures are laying into you. And Howie Carter and Kirk, you can only watch in horror as these creatures, you're just trying not to get trampled at this moment. But this silhouette of her being drawn and quartered or pulled apart as finally her head just pops right off and all of the scatter as the tension is pulled away and you are left trying to ride the wave as these creatures are scuttling all around you. Ella. Hugh, we discussed this curtain, but they say that when the head separates the body, that there is a few. Few moments in which blood and electricity still flow through the brain, enough for a passing conscious thought. What is the last thing that goes through her mind as life is parted from her?

[Robert]

I hope I see Athena where I'm going.

[Jake]

Denise, thank you for playing. It's all over now. No more. It can all stop. All right. Thank you for all of your hard work and all of your efforts. You've made it this way, and you've got to see the end. So thank you. We'll see you soon.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, we all will.

[Jake]

Four candles, four truths. Ella would normally be able to speak the first truth in this circumstance, but since she is no longer with us, we will speak it for her instead. The moon reaching the shore of this island has slowed its pace significantly. Kirk.

[Howie]

Something here wants to speak to us.

[Jake]

Carter. Hmm?

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm really drawing a blank.

[Jake]

Yeah, yeah, there's a lot going on, but we are, yeah, certainly coming to an end. Clause, what in your mind serves Carter's best story on the pathway it's taken. It sounds like Carter has made a decision about what the intent of these things are.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, well, I don't. Yeah, I don't know. I don't know what they want. I just know that I don't want to help them. I want to be defiant.

[Jake]

And what does defiance look like in Carter's mind, for that can speak itself into a truth. How can you continue this story of hope and defiance?

[Ella Sanchez]

Okay, well, here's the truth, is that no matter what this thing that wants to speak with us or this meeting that's being set up with us, I've already made up my mind that I'm gonna deny it.

[Jake]

You've made up your mind that you will deny whatever it's asking of you?

[Ella Sanchez]

There's absolutely nothing it can say that I will agree to.

[Jake]

Great.

[Declan Buchanan]

Howie, we are the last three human beings on Earth.

[Jake]

Okay. Four candles, four truths. The rodeo around you of the bulls just continuing to just purse around you. It's enough to stay up on your feet to have these things crawling and moving inside of you. And you can see just a wall of dirt and water and. And dust is just being kipped up in front, as if not unlike when your ship breached ground. Think of that. On a planetary scale, at least as far as you can see. Water just shoring up all around it on either side of the island. But when it begins to hit dirt, you can actually see as just dirt is flying everywhere. Just the monumental force of this celestial body digging into the crust is just insane.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I'm not running. I'm moving almost at a sort of spitefully slow pace. Yeah, I mean, I'm not going any slower than these two, but I'm certainly not putting any hustle into this at all.

[Jake]

Then attempt to not get trampled by the creatures around you. Okay.

[Ella Sanchez]

Yeah, it's not my biggest priority, but, so.

[Howie]

Holy.

[Jake]

Three sixes and a one, one.

[Declan Buchanan]

Nicely done.

[Howie]

Although three sixes does not traditionally bode well.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, is that bad?

[Howie]

No, no.

[Jake]

I'm just impressed.

[Ella Sanchez]

Just metal.

[Howie]

Yes.

[Ella Sanchez]

Metal.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Too much metal for one hand.

[Ella Sanchez]

Who did?

[Declan Buchanan]

Thank you, Carter.

[Jake]

I imagine you. I imagine you are just like a calm in a storm. You're walking forward.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm kind of, like, just. Almost like. Just, like, despondent or, like, I'm just kind of limping forward, like, you know, with my arms at my sides. I'm almost just kind of like, just dragging myself there. There's no emotion or anything.

[Jake]

Great. Howie and Kirk, are you running with the bulls, so to speak?

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, that's. I mean, I'm like. At this point, I'm helping him along. Yeah. And I'm using whatever crutch I can, like if something. Because they're not actively attacking us, but if something gets in the way, I'm just whacking it out of the Way at this point, trying to move as fast as we can to get out of the rodeo, basically.

[Jake]

So you're heading still moving straight towards any break that you can create. And you do kind of that There is a bit of a canyon divide of where things can go alongside the mountain or they can go up more. And you can see that some creatures are doubling back around. But more importantly, there's just this fissure that you could ostensibly get on top of that's a little too tall. You could climb up it if you wanted to, just to get away from most of the creatures who are taking the path of least resistance. By painting a path of more resistance, you'll be able to get up.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. At this point, I would rather. And I don't know if you guys would rather, but I would rather take my chances climbing a mountain than surviving in a sea of monsters. Right.

[Howie]

I'm gonna have to agree with that.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I do still have the rope.

[Jake]

Do you want to. Someone want to make the first climb and then use the haul rope up?

[Howie]

I mean.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I can go up first.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah. I'm not going to be good as a.

[Howie]

A point man on this. No.

[Declan Buchanan]

If anything, I should probably take the tail in case I should fall. I don't pull anyone with me.

[Jake]

Go and climb up the mountainside as the ground is shaking around you, as the moon is pushing itself straight into the body around you.

[Howie]

Okay. Nope.

[Jake]

Okay. Inspirational. This is an inspirational moment. And for the record. For the record.

[Howie]

Yep.

[Jake]

This is a hell of a feat.

[Howie]

Yep.

[Jake]

It is a selfless act of athleticism, if an extraordinary feat. So not only will this get rid of two ones, but if this succeeds, I damn near think this might be a qualifier for your hope. Dice.

[Howie]

You got this.

[Ella Sanchez]

You got this.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, buddy. We believe in you. I can't say to the candles.

[Howie]

What did it get?

[Jake]

Six and a three. Yeah, buddy.

[Howie]

And a three.

[Jake]

Kirk. All right, man.

[Declan Buchanan]

Coming in clutch with the. With the halftime speech.

[Jake]

Please, please.

[Declan Buchanan]

Holy.

[Jake]

Narrate to me how this moment goes down.

[Howie]

So I'm trying to climb up these rocks so I can get in position to throw the ropes down.

[Jake]

Right.

[Howie]

But I slip.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

And I fall pretty hard.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Howie]

And. And. And I hit my shoulder on a. On a rock.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Howie]

And I dislocate it.

[Jake]

This doesn't sound like a success.

[Howie]

Oh, but wait.

[Jake]

We're getting ready for it. I know I'm ready for it. Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

Of that two conflict.

[Howie]

This isn't the first time being a football player. I've dislocated my shoulder Right. So in pain, I put my arm back behind my head and I grab my wrist and pull it to the other side and pop it back in.

[Jake]

Amazing.

[Howie]

And I shake it off. I'm used to playing through the pain. I grab that rope, I wrap it around my good arm, and I get my ass up the side of that mountain.

[Jake]

And for once in a long time, you looked at something and you said, I'm not gonna give up. I'm not going to quit. And I'm gonna do something that is, despite the fear, going to allow me to succeed. So that's for you. It succeeds on a five or six. Moving forward.

[Declan Buchanan]

Nice job.

[Jake]

Your moment has been fulfilled. So, Kirk, you get up and you lash this rope across whatever spire of rock that you can put together. You can still see the mangled corpse of Ella not far from where you left where it was. You also see Carter and Howie below you as well, too, as you throw the rope down and you two, while still feeling the impacts of creatures just doing everything they can to get out of the way of what is coming, just climb up the rope and you, from a vantage point, you can definitely see that the rock wall and the dirt that is just moving forward in the darkening cloud that is your horizon now is. I mean, even if you wanted to, you couldn't go any other direction but just straight ahead at this point. It's not unlike an all consuming dark wall.

[Ella Sanchez]

All right, well, you go up next, bud.

[Declan Buchanan]

Are we up?

[Jake]

Yeah, they're all up. His success allowed everybody to go up and you get up to the top and you begin to climb. As you get close to the monolith, and as you begin to look around and you see there's occasionally a creature who will just is confused in running around. But they do seem to be more like that harmonious synacricity that they were doing earlier just seems to all be gone now. And every once in a while, you'll have to hide behind a rock as one of them will just then skitter along as it continues to move across.

[Ella Sanchez]

In a weird, frenzied kind of state.

[Jake]

It's been a frenzied state. So, in fact, Howie, at one point, you actually are moving across as you're slowly, sneakily, just trying to make your way from COVID to cover to cover, trying to make sure that you don't get caught by one of these things. Now that they seem to just be all hell's broken loose for them.

[Ella Sanchez]

I think these two probably have to remind me to duck at various points because I'm giving you the old. A lot of my self preservation has just kind of gone out the window now. Just kind of apathetic.

[Jake]

So, Howie, what do you want to do at this stage?

[Declan Buchanan]

What do we look like? So the monolith is in front of us. That is what we were walking towards.

[Jake]

Yeah. And you can tell that it's in the mountainside. But there is definitely what looks to be some cave systems that maybe could take you into the mountain to get closer to where the plinth is.

[Declan Buchanan]

You know, you guys don't see that door anymore More do, do we not.

[Jake]

Where you are immediately, no.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well, I guess we should go into those caves.

[Howie]

Yeah.

[Jake]

All right. Well, looking a little woozy.

[Howie]

Yeah, you are.

[Jake]

So, Howie, I think you're the one that needs to make sure to not get caught and make it while Carter's self preservation is in place. As you're kind of moving from rock to rock, you kind of stick your head up and you can see that one of them is just kind of just like a sentry just whipping its head every once in a while. And you can see that it's looking with human eyes.

[Declan Buchanan]

Can I ask, are they. Are the ones up here in place to guard the monolith, or are they just there as now natural and heavy?

[Jake]

These ones feel chaotic creatures that are trying to either attack anything that could get in its way or self preservation.

[Declan Buchanan]

And how far from the entrance to the cave are we?

[Jake]

I mean, you can make a mad dash for it at this point, or you could sneakily trying to go into it if you want. So what do you want to do?

[Declan Buchanan]

I would like to take the crutch and with everything I've got from behind rock.

[Jake]

Just chuck it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Try to create a distraction and chuck it in the opposite direction.

[Jake]

Chuck it, chuck it, chuck it, chuck it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Ew. Pop a candle out.

[Jake]

All right.

[Ella Sanchez]

Successes.

[Jake]

Oh, boy.

[Declan Buchanan]

It's all right.

[Jake]

I know what goes on. Howie, as you chuck this thing, you kind of watch as it clatter, clatter, clatter, crumbs are cross, and you all three just run for everything you're worth. And you just move and you hustle it as you go into it. And Howie, at some point.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, wait, can I burn something?

[Jake]

There was no ones.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, God, you're right. Yeah, that's been my unlucky. That's why I have all my pictures.

[Jake]

There's no ones at this point. But as you've been running, you kind of feel as your gut just like it finally is just so much pain. And you double over and you Kind of crumble down onto your knees. Kirk grabs you and he pulls you up, but not before the creature who looked back towards you after hearing you crumple down and now is kind of upon you. You all three run for a time and get into the cave systems, but you can see this one is right on your heels, right behind you. And at some point, you see. Well, you see the monolith in front of you. Kirk, your fall has left you. Well, we'll leave those for the truth. You get there. The failure is that you get there, but the creature is hot on your heels. Okay, all right. Three candles, three twos. The world is dark. The world is always dark. How you do have the first truth, since it was your dice that failed.

[Declan Buchanan]

They see the door.

[Jake]

Yes, that is the truth. Robert is blocking the door. Kirk, you're up. Last truth.

[Howie]

Robert's one of them.

[Jake]

Three candles, three truths. We begin this story, the beginning of the end. As you run towards the monolith. And what a scene is. You see the black plinth in front of you, just the sheer black face in front of you. And two creatures are on either end of what is a broken spire of just rock laid into it. And Robert is there. He is standing in front of a glistening yellow doorway in which the both of you see. And Robert turns and he looks to all three of you. And Howie, you rush in with this thing hot on your heels. And as you are coming forward, you feel a tentacle just wrap around your leg and lift you up like a plucked chicken. And similar to Ella, just wanders into the area right in front of you. And as you look ahead, Carter, you see just something on Robert's shoulder. And do you recognize it? It is the thing that came out of Lola. Oh, God. Just standing right there on his shoulder. And he looks to you. Well, this is a familiar sight. His voice has completely changed. It's now dark and resonant, and it seems to echo on itself as he is speaking from several directions all in one place.

[Ella Sanchez]

Is this your big villain monologue? Is this where you tell us what this was all about? How you've remaking the world in your image or some stupid shit like that? I'm gonna tell you right now, I don't give a fuck. All this is all a waste. Not only that, you hurt my fucking cat.

[Jake]

Carter.

[Ella Sanchez]

So you're gonna kill me? Fucking do it.

[Jake]

You're wrong. I'm not going to kill you. What is it, Kirk?

[Howie]

Do you see the door?

[Declan Buchanan]

I don't know. I'm currently suspended Getting dangled by a leg upside down with a bunch of blood rushing to my head. Okay.

[Howie]

What the hell's going on here?

[Robert]

Robert?

[Howie]

Are you Robert? Is that even your name?

[Jake]

No, it's not my name. What's going on is that you are the last three humans on this entire earth. Millennia of decisions have come down to these last moments. It's something I was quite looking forward to being here myself for. Frankly, you could say that this is a bit of a going away party for me. So thank you for being here. No copy.

[Ella Sanchez]

Was this all for your own pleasure? Do you answer to some other higher power?

[Jake]

I don't feel like I have to answer that, Carter. And isn't that the greatest question that mankind has been asking for its entire existence? What do you think?

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't care anymore. I just want you to fail.

[Jake]

All right then. He takes a step forward to the side and looks towards the door and looks towards you, Carter. Then go ahead. Go in.

[Ella Sanchez]

What's that supposed to do?

[Jake]

He gives you the same shrugging look that you gave him as he motions towards the prospect.

[Ella Sanchez]

Why don't you go through first?

[Jake]

So shall be. And you kind of watch as he turns around and takes the creature from his hand, looks at it, puts it on his other shoulder and walks directly into the yellow light.

[Ella Sanchez]

I don't know if this is one of those things where he's expecting us to kill each other or that the only last of us left rules over whatever the new world is. Who knows, it could be all sorts of things. But I just. I don't want to give him the pleasure.

[Howie]

Then what do we do?

[Declan Buchanan]

I am still suspended by a tentacle.

[Jake]

Yes, you are absolutely still suspended by a tentacle.

[Declan Buchanan]

But I mean, it hasn't killed me.

[Jake]

No, it has simply dangled you like such meat.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

As it's holding you up.

[Howie]

I want to call back out to Robert. I want to see if he comes out.

[Jake]

You call out to Robert while. Howie, I'd like to think that you're slowly turning in like a circle at this point. Yeah. Like as you never really settles, it.

[Declan Buchanan]

Just always slowly rotates.

[Jake]

Slowly turning.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah.

[Jake]

And you growl out to Robert and you hear no answer. You hear no answer at all.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I'm. Jeez, I'm breaking down the possibilities here. We could kill ourselves. Although saying it out loud, it sounds like not a very good idea.

[Howie]

No.

[Ella Sanchez]

And to be honest, I'm kind of scared. If the afterlife is anything like this.

[Declan Buchanan]

Then I'll yell out to Kirk and Carter. Can't be worse. Than what's going on here? Go for the door.

[Jake]

He kind of isn't that.

[Ella Sanchez]

What he wants us to do is to go through this door.

[Howie]

Is there only one? Is there just one?

[Jake]

There's the one that's holding him, and there's two guarding the door, flanked on either side of the monolith. The door.

[Howie]

Okay, and what is the distance here?

[Jake]

I would say let's make it a perfect triangle. Okay, so one, two, door center. Howie, Creature.

[Declan Buchanan]

Okay, can I see the door now, or am I still without door vision?

[Ella Sanchez]

Do we have door sign?

[Jake]

Yes, you can see the door.

[Declan Buchanan]

For what it's worth, you're not crazy. I could see the door.

[Jake]

Well, hold on.

[Ella Sanchez]

If it is a thing where going through makes us, like, the rulers of the new world or whatever. Kirk, I think you should go through first. Unless you don't want to. I mean, if you want, I'll go first.

[Howie]

If. If I'm going through that door, it's. I'm going through with both of you. So we need to get him down. Okay, I still have the bayonet.

[Ella Sanchez]

Do you hear that, Robert? We're gonna come through your stupid door, but we're coming together, so tell your tentacle bros to back off our friend.

[Declan Buchanan]

That'd be nice.

[Jake]

Whoa. Nothing happens. The creature stays there. In fact, it seems to be agitated by your words.

[Ella Sanchez]

All right, can you help me? We gotta cut this tentacle off.

[Howie]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'd love to, like, do a sweet sit up.

[Howie]

It's probably too hot.

[Declan Buchanan]

Unravel this thing.

[Howie]

My thought is that I'm gonna have to.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I got no core strength.

[Ella Sanchez]

I'm gonna run and jump and wrap myself around the tentacle and use my weight to try to bring it down. Use the bayonet to try to chop through it.

[Jake]

Okay.

[Declan Buchanan]

Chopping or wrapping? Yeah, what's what? Poison or getting at, you know, like.

[Howie]

I'm rolling for him. Wrapping.

[Jake]

No, rolling for you. Chopping for me.

[Howie]

Chopping.

[Ella Sanchez]

Oh, I'm great at wrapping. As you. As you may know if you pick up my. My mixtape.

[Howie]

Got it.

[Ella Sanchez]

Nice.

[Howie]

Not even a single one.

[Jake]

So you feel as.

[Declan Buchanan]

This is nervous laughter, by the way. I know if you've ever been around me in times of crisis, this is how I get like a cool person.

[Jake]

You wrap bear hug this tentacle as you kind of drag it down to the ground. And Kirk, you just take the bayonet and just like. Yeah, you like that. Cutting a piece of string, you just, like, just cut it right and slip it, and you feel as it just, like, falls down to the ground, slides around and off of Howie and just starts flopping onto the ground. The creature just lifts its head back as if it was doing nothing up until you cut it. And then you feel as its other appendages just lift up and it grabs ahold of both you and Carter and pulls you in and attempts to just ingest you with its terrible, terrible lamprey like jaw.

[Ella Sanchez]

All right. Oh, not great. Two fives and a two. And I can't burn one of these, right, because those are only getting rid of ones.

[Jake]

Okay, that's it.

[Ella Sanchez]

I mean, I was wrestling with it, so I kind of deserve what I get.

[Declan Buchanan]

You did good, man.

[Jake]

Thank you.

[Declan Buchanan]

How he thanks you?

[Ella Sanchez]

He killed me. Goddamn cat.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I'd have done the same thing.

[Jake]

Dave Carter. This trance like state of this creature just seems to just be just chalked out of whatever reverie that it was in. And it just seems to come in with a new nature. Even though you've cut Howie down from this. It grabs both of you, but at some point, Kirk, it's. You're pulling it off, but Carter, it grabs ahold of it and it just, with one fell swoop, it pulls you in directly into its lamprey like mouth. And it just kind of takes you in waist first in one single hit as it just pulls onto you. But you have both of your hands on either side of its teeth as you kind of feel its teeth just grating, not piercing you, not puncturing you or ingesting you, but just grabbing you.

[Ella Sanchez]

Moving me down.

[Jake]

So many little tendrils and fingers pulling you down. And at some point, you feel or hear flutter more than anything as this thing lands onto your shoulder again. And you hear Robert's voice just lay into you as you're going into it goes. How does it feel to be right, Carter? How does it feel to be right, but so wrong at the same time? You had your chance, and now you get to be collected like so many others. Your choice is made. Now bathe in. As you feel each little muscle punctuate, you feel as your body is just ingested in one fluid motion, as you are sucked into this thing, the creature that is with you. I mean, this is not an instantaneous thing, this process of which Howie and Kirk is Howie falling down from the ground, but Kirk more worried about picking up Howie at this point than even not even noticing and going into it. I mean, Carter, you say with spite in your heart that you want this thing to fail. What is it and why do you hate it so much?

[Ella Sanchez]

I feel like it's It's a manifestation of my own. Like, there's things I see in it when I look at it. And, like, even the way that Robert talks.

[Jake]

Yeah.

[Ella Sanchez]

It reminds me of, like, that voice in my head telling me that, like, I'm not good enough or, you know, no one cares about me or any of that kind of stuff. So it has that voice of my own self doubt. And I hate, because I hate that part of myself.

[Jake]

All of your hopes and despair wrapped up into one single four winged creature with the voice of self deprecation as you are pulled into its maw. Yep. Good luck, y' all. Thank you, sir. See you soon. Bye. Bye.

[Ella Sanchez]

I got eated.

[Jake]

Bye Bye. You got eated. Bye. Bye. Uh, yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

Well. Kirk.

[Jake]

Kirk, Howie, you, me, bud, two candles. Two candles, two truths. Carter would normally speak. Instead, I will just say, the world, it is dark, and only one of you may go through the door.

[Declan Buchanan]

Who gets the last truth?

[Jake]

Kirk.

[Howie]

Someone comes out of the door, and it's not Robert.

[Jake]

And it's not Robert. It's not Robert.

[Howie]

Okay, do you want me to say who it is? Cause I have someone in mind.

[Jake]

How about instead of saying as part of your truth. Truths are like genie's wishes. They need to be phrased in a certain way to become true. Got you. So you could say so and so comes out the door. Okay.

[Howie]

Do you want me to do that?

[Jake]

I feel that's how you want to phrase your truth.

[Howie]

Okay. Howie's wife comes out of the door.

[Declan Buchanan]

Oh, man.

[Jake]

Don't do that.

[Declan Buchanan]

Come on.

[Jake]

Okay. All right. It is a truth. Two candles, two truths. We are still in the situation that was right before Carter was consumed. And Howie and Kirk, you do notice as Howie, you are picked up off of the ground and lifted up by Kirk. You hear the. The scuttling of the legs as the creature that was holding you, Howie, backs out of the cave and folds into darkness so that only you two and the two guardians are left at this point. The rumbling of the land has been almost a passive element at this point. But you know that the moon is coming, and it is not far from your destination where you are now. The light of this monumental place was originally illuminated by a small break in the sea ceiling, which gave you a little bit of natural light. But now the actual structure of the moon itself is so high above that whatever little starlight that you had as part of your guiding or whatever natural light is still left in this dark, awful world is now only being lit by the yellow light of the doorway. Howie, you take Both of you, a few moments to stare at this thing.

[Declan Buchanan]

Yeah, I just. I have to come. I have to let the blood rush back down from my brain. Like, I'm a little disoriented coming down off that. But if I'm seeing what he described.

[Jake]

Your wife walking through the door, I can't.

[Declan Buchanan]

Like, in my current state, it has to be trauma. That's what's going through my head. Like, this can't be real. She died years ago. Like, she didn't. She wasn't taken. She died.

[Jake]

And she. You hear her voice before you actually see her, before you see this body step through. And it is a voice that is soft and comfortable and familiar, and it is. She says, howie. Howie, you've done so good. You made it. You made it. You got all the way to the end of your quest, Kirk. Thank you. You made a choice, and now you have to make another one. One of you gets to come with me, and the other one gets to watch the world end. Who.

[Howie]

Do you. Do you know her?

[Jake]

That's.

[Declan Buchanan]

That's my wife. You can see her. I would. I'd drop to my knees.

[Jake]

I. She kind of walks up to you, and she puts her hand out, and when she takes yours, you can feel that it is well and truly real. There is warmth behind these hands that are touching her. And she looks to you, Kirk, and says, I'm so sorry for everything. But these things aren't simple, and the game is never always fair. You've faced every challenge at this point in your. And you have never deviated from what is right and what is wrong. You've never had malice, and you've never had spite in your heart. You've never been vindictive, and you've never killed or taken an innocent life. But there is only room for one of you left. Everyone else is here. Everyone else is waiting. So there is one last sacrifice to be made. I know.

[Howie]

It'S not a choice.

[Declan Buchanan]

I can't ask you to stay here and watch the world end, man.

[Howie]

You're not gonna have to.

[Declan Buchanan]

What does that mean?

[Howie]

I'm staying?

[Declan Buchanan]

No.

[Howie]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Declan Buchanan]

I mean, part of him wants to go, but he. He. Oh, man. As much as how he would. And I'll tell you right now, if he were at full strength, he'd fight you about it. Like he would physically try to overcome you, to put you on through that door. He does not have the strength.

[Jake]

Close enough that you could do exactly what he's describing to him. If you want.

[Howie]

I'm pushing him to the door.

[Declan Buchanan]

I'LL five fight it every inch of the way. Roll it.

[Jake]

You said it yourself, you can't fight it. You're weak. You are 1 and 1. The BR they have seen your heart is pure and invite you to join your friends. This is the best, worst brink. Because the brink is normally when you are at your lowest, but this is when you are at your best. So reroll all of them. All of them. Even the hope dice. Damn it, Kirk. As you grab ahold of Howie and you look towards his wife and you look towards him, you take his body and you shove him against the side of the monolith. And how he grabs the edge for all of its worth. And he holds. Holds on to the barrier with everything he's got. And you can feel both of your muscles core it intense as Howie is just using every ounce of strength that he possibly can imagine as he pushes and holds against it. And Kirk, you do something. You do something you've never done in your life, you've never even thought of of this before. But you grab ahold of Howie's head and you wrench his head back and you punch him right in his damaged ribs, in his bleeding. And Howie, you double over in pain as he pushes you through into the doorway and you tumble into nothing.

[Declan Buchanan]

Buck.

[Jake]

At this point, the last thing I will tell you is that you last thing you see before you fall into the yellow light around you is you see the look on Kirk's face, which is both grateful and sorry at the same time.

[Declan Buchanan]

And that's the exact same look he sees back in mine.

[Jake]

Thank you for being here.

[Declan Buchanan]

Thank you. Thank you.

[Jake]

One candle, one truth. The final scene is Kirk having shoved Howie straight through this yellow gate. You watch as both the guardians sitting on either side of this monolith just crumble and turn to ash. You look at them and they're there one moment and they're gone the next. And you can feel the ground beneath you rumbling as you walk out of the cave, leaving the monolith behind you. The yellow door turned to black as soon as. As Howie went through. And as you come out of the cave entrance from where the second to last human on earth left you go out and you see the moon, this giant celestial, celestial body just cresting into the area above you. And you can start to feel the dust and the wind and the rock just starting to roll around you. And you know that you are the only person in the world ever to have witnessed such a phenomenon like this. It is one for the annals of history, whatever that means. Kirk what is the last thought of the last human in the last moment, moments that this world has to offer?

[Howie]

I know I'm in the right place because for the first time in a long time, it was my decision to be there.

[Jake]

And that is the purest intonation of free will that one could describe upon the face of two celestial bodies coming together to merge into a single form. And the dust envelops you and there is no more story to tell. Thanks, buddy. Thank you. Before we get to the last messages of our dearly departed characters, just want to say one last thing, is that hope is a beautiful thing. Hope can carry you through the darkest of times and can turn everything into something. There is a world in which, if there is no hope and there is only despair and hatred and bitter emotions that we all have towards each other, that we will fall upon each other and consume each other and turn this world into nothing. But with hope and with perseverance and with drive, wonderful things can happen. Every corner is a new opportunity to find the light and go towards it. And as they say in so many books and stories, that the night is darkest just before the dawn. And with that, you will listen to the messages of our dearly departed characters. Hi there.

[Declan Buchanan]

My name is Howie Bell, and I am. Well, I was the proud owner of a small game store in an even smaller town in northeastern Pennsylvania. It was one of my wife and I's dreams from the day we met. Own a game store, write an RPG and have three kids. Turns out kids were never going to be in the cards for us. But we did get to check the gamestar off that list. What a time that was. Life was perfect. And then she was gone. I'm not quite sure how much time I've got left. How much time any of us have left. But with the time I do have, I'm gonna make good on that one last dream. I'm gonna finish our story. Baby, it's almost there. And when it is, I'll come find you, wherever you are, and we can play together forever. I love you, Bex. I'll see you soon.

[Howie]

A goal without a plan is just a wish. That's something my old high school coach.

[Declan Buchanan]

Used to tell us all the time.

[Howie]

And when you're just a dumb high school kid, you think it's nothing more than some kind of fortune cookie Jedi mind trick they sell you just so you practice harder. But after seeing a massive explosion back towards home, it reminded me of another quote. Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. I sure did But I took a hiccup in my life and I turned it into a hurdle. And it got to a point where it was easier for me to motivate other people than it was to motivate myself. Look, I know things suck right now. And they don't seem like they're going to get any better. And they may not. They may not. But damn it, you got to try. Find something deep in yourself and make yourself better. Then make everything else around you better. And that can be hard to do. But sometimes action requires bravery. Sometimes it requires thought. But life requires action. Because if you don't, a goal without a plan is just a wish.

[Ella Sanchez]

There probably isn't anything left to go back to, right? It's been weeks now. Without our meds, without power, we. Mom is dead, right? At least Lucy would try to make a hiding spot for all the cats from the cafe. I mean, plenty of them were fresh off the streets anyway. They'll settle into their patterns and live through this. Lola here, she needs help, though she didn't mean to be stranded on this boat. And her kittens will be here soon. I'm glad the other passengers left. They might have taken most of the resources, but I won't miss them. They were loud and impatient and so obviously selfish. I get it. We have a drive to survive. Have some dignity, though. I'm as scared as anyone, but I'll keep that inside. Willow doesn't need anything more to worry about. I just want her to have her kitten somewhere safe. We'll take it from there.

[Robert]

Hi. I'm Ella. Elisante. Apparently the only one left running this medical barge. We picked up some survivors on a cruise ship. And that went well until they found out we were going to pick up survivors who were sending out a beacon, which was something else in this day and age, things aren't working. Anyway, there was a bit of a. An argument, and the crew fought off the survivors we had picked up. Most of them didn't make it. And then the survivors took off. With our last lifetime boats. There's just me and a few people left heading towards the signal. I. I don't know where we go from here. I'm not great with people. I'm great with medicine. I've tried relationships. No one could ever understand what I was going through or hear the most depraved thing human beings could do to each other. To the innocent and defenseless. Best friend I ever had was my cat, Athena. She just listened and never tried to fix. Now I don't know where she is. Son. Of a bitch. The only thing I care about is her. In the end, the one I miss most is my damage. Damned cat. All I know is that I was put on this earth to save. And save I will until someone stops me.

[Jake]

Welcome to the ultimate social deduction game, Blood on the Clock Tower.

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The evil team must stalk the streets at night, hunting down members of the.

[Jake]

Good team one by one.

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Meanwhile, the good team must outmaneuver the.

[Jake]

Evil team using their unique abilities. I'd like to kick things off by telling you all that I'm possibly the demon.

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Our players can mislead and manipulate others with absolute freedom.

[Jake]

I didn't like hearing my name in.

[Declan Buchanan]

The same sentence as demon.

[Jake]

That was very upsetting for me. Emily and I will be your storytellers, guiding you through every labyrinthian twist and turn.

[Ella Sanchez]

How are there so many evil players in this game?

[Jake]

What's happening? With guests from no Rolls, Bard, the Pandemonium Institute, and Oxventure, you won't be able to stop listening. Go to realmspod.com clock tower to find out more. Greetings adventurers. Today we're excited to introduce you to a new story, Dark Dice, a horror podcast that blurs the line between actual play and audio drama, where the story is determined by the roll of the dice. Six adventurers embark on a journey into the ruinous domain of the nameless God. They will never be the same again. One of the players is not what they seem after a doppelganger, a creature that can assume the form and voice of whatever it kills, infiltrates the team as the players are picked off and replaced one at a time. Can they figure out who the monster is before it's too late? Can you? Here's a quick example of what our show sounds like.

[Howie]

The shambler with the jar of liquid.

[Jake]

Inside of him, Soran Arkwright let loose an arrow that cracked the glass, passing through the spine of the creature, the spirit. The shambler still managed to maintain its forward momentum, but stumbled as it eagerly tried to bite and swipe at soaring, landing near his feet as Jeff Goldblum has now joined our cast. Dark Dice is available however you listen to podcasts. The Old west is an iconic period of American history and full of legendary figures whose names still resonate today, like Jesse James, Billy the Kid and Butch and Sundance, Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and Geronimo, Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson and Bass, Reeves, Buffalo Bill Cody, Wild Bill Hickok, the Texas Rangers and many more. Hear all their stories on the Legends.

[Howie]

Of the Old west podcast.

[Jake]

We'll take you to Tombstone, Deadwood and Dodge City. To the plains, mountains and deserts for battles between the U.S. army and native American warriors. To dark corners for the disaster of the Donner Party and shining summits for achievements like the Transcontinental Railroad. We'll go back to the earliest days.

[Howie]

Of explorers and mountain men and head.

[Jake]

Up through notorious Pinkerton agents and gunmen like Tom Horn. Every episode features narrative writing and cinematic music, and there are hundreds of episodes available to binge. I'm Chris Wimmer. Find Legends of the Old west wherever you're listening now.