Ep 46 - Para Soma

Aaron Schoenrock (0:02)

Welcome to Ghost Wax, a Far and Tall Tales production. The following story may contain graphic content. Listener discretion is advised.

SPEAKER_2 (1:11)

Do you hear it closer? Father, closer than you think? Or is it inside already? Do you know the greatest pain? It isn't danger or cruelty, it isn't grief or even betrayal. Though you did betray them, you broke their heart, and they will never forget it.

They let you feast, feast upon their whole heart, and you spat it out. You lie, but even that pain is not the deepest cut. The pain, the pain down to the bone, because by its very nature, it cannot be healed, is regret. Regret, regret, is the ache that can never be mended, because it is submerged in the past, locked behind the immovable wall of time.

It is the Let's listen for it. Oh, like Lucifer, the Morning Star in the Book of Lies, who crossed the Invisible Line and sinned the first time. You will learn to regret. You'll regret.

Mike LeBeau (3:34)

You'll regret.

Stephanie Olsen (3:36)

You will regret.

SPEAKER_2 (3:41)

We could have had it. We could have been free.

Wake up. Wake up and enjoy the time. Wake up.

Stephanie Olsen (5:00)

Oh, hey, shit. Did I knock you off the bed again? I'm sorry, buddy. Just, oh my god.

Thrashing in total panic from night terrors again. Psst, psst, psst, jinksy.

SPEAKER_2 (5:18)

Yeah, good boy. Okay, okay, okay.

Stephanie Olsen (5:25)

Did I?

Yep. Knocked my fucking night stand over again. Oh, man. I should just bolt it down and risk breaking my hand on it. Um, no, just keep fumbling around for things every morning so you can jump on me and make it seem like we're playing. Okay, jinx, buddy. Okay, sounds good. Okay.

Okay. Phone, where are you?

Atlas Gizzi (6:01)

I'm here, Phillipa.

Stephanie Olsen (6:03)

One more time?

Atlas Gizzi (6:05)

I'm here, Phillipa.

Stephanie Olsen (6:06)

Okay. Thank you.

Phone, call Luca on speakerphone.

Mike LeBeau (6:17)

Calling Luca.

Aaron Schoenrock (6:24)

Hiya, did you sleep okay?

Stephanie Olsen (6:27)

Yeah. Yeah, until the part where fire and a horror voice told me a few fun things about suffering.

Aaron Schoenrock (6:36)

Was it the same or different?

Stephanie Olsen (6:38)

I don't know. The same.

Aaron Schoenrock (6:41)

Did you recognize the voice at all yet? You said it sounded kind of familiar?

Stephanie Olsen (6:46)

Yeah. But no, not, I can't place it, but yeah, still familiar.

Aaron Schoenrock (6:56)

Okay. You had the new recorder going?

Stephanie Olsen (6:59)

Yeah. I put it a little away from my bed because I tend to thrash myself awake these days and freak out until I remember that my eyes are open, and the horror of that realization settles in, and...

Fuck. Yeah, sorry.

Aaron Schoenrock (7:17)

I mean, me too. I'll come down and listen, see if the tweaking I did caught him yet.

Stephanie Olsen (7:26)

At a certain point, you might have to admit it might just be your run-of-the-mill night terrors after a friend blinded me with a knife in the downstairs break room.

Aaron Schoenrock (7:38)

I mean, I guess, and that would be totally understandable, but they've got me expanding and deepening the cylinders, just dumping resources at anything that might help them find out how the heretics are communicating, why we can't hear them. So I figured as long as I'm doing that...

Stephanie Olsen (7:55)

They still haven't found one yet?

Aaron Schoenrock (7:57)

Oh, they've found a bunch of them, but they can't catch them. They don't know how, but they can disappear.

Even the observers with those... Well, those gold cones on their heads?

Stephanie Olsen (8:09)

Jesus, yeah. One thing I'm glad I'll never have to see.

Aaron Schoenrock (8:13)

Yeah, they are awful. Like, I don't know how they don't die wearing them.

Stephanie Olsen (8:18)

Huh.

Aaron Schoenrock (8:19)

Yeah, well, I guess you're right. Maybe they do.

Stephanie Olsen (8:23)

Lovely.

Aaron Schoenrock (8:25)

Right. Well, they can't find them, and the half dozen or so they've cornered have, like, destroyed themselves.

Stephanie Olsen (8:32)

Jesus.

Aaron Schoenrock (8:33)

Yep.

Stephanie Olsen (8:34)

Why doesn't he, you know, bring them back, make them talk?

Aaron Schoenrock (8:40)

I don't know. I haven't had a chance to really talk to him much.

Stephanie Olsen (8:44)

Me either.

Is he still? Yeah.

Aaron Schoenrock (8:50)

But luckily, he's also not here much. I think he's in Australia right now, actually.

Stephanie Olsen (8:56)

The other side of the world still feels too close.

Aaron Schoenrock (9:00)

It's not his fault.

Stephanie Olsen (9:02)

I know. I know.

Are you gonna come down here for lunch?