0:01

Wow, what's up? I just bought and I just bought

0:03

and financed a car through minutes. You? The

0:05

person who agonized four person who agonized four

0:07

weeks over whether to paint your or off-white

0:09

bought bought and financed a car in

0:11

minutes? They made it easy! Transparent terms,

0:13

customizable down and monthly, and didn't even

0:16

have to do any paperwork. to do any

0:18

paperwork. Wow. Mm-hmm. Hey, have you checked

0:20

out have you checked out that

0:22

spreadsheet? I I sent you for

0:24

our dinner options. Finance your your

0:26

car with and experience control. Financing subject approval.

0:29

approval. I can I

0:31

can say to my new Samsung

0:33

Galaxy S-25 Ultra, I find a

0:35

keto-friendly restaurant nearby and text it

0:38

to Beth and Steve. And it

0:40

does without me lifting a finger.

0:42

So I can get in more

0:44

squats anywhere I can. One. Two.

0:46

Three. Will that be cash or credit?

0:48

Credit. Four. Galaxy S-25 Ultra,

0:50

the AI companion that does the heavy

0:53

lifting so you can do you. Get

0:55

yours at samsung.com. Compatible, select, actual Gemini

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account results may vary based on input

0:59

check responses for accuracy. check responses

1:02

for accuracy. Merlin enters the

1:04

bathroom, bringing the biological man a

1:06

fresh towel, straight out of the

1:09

bocular dryer. Which is just like

1:11

a regular dryer, but bocular. The

1:13

bathrooms aboard the ship are

1:16

communal affairs, angular crystal rooms

1:18

like every other deck on

1:20

the ship, with dark mica

1:22

stalls for toilets and showers

1:24

in this case. The mirror above

1:27

the sink counter makes the room

1:29

look double the size, though it's

1:31

really quite narrow. Merlin walks over

1:33

to the shower stall that has

1:36

his clothes hanging outside of it

1:38

and hands a towel through the

1:40

curtain to the patiently waiting man

1:43

within. Yes,

1:46

Merlin. And written everything

1:48

thoroughly? Yes, Merlin. Okay,

1:50

dry off. And be

1:52

careful of the wet

1:54

floor. It can be

1:57

slippery. Merlin,

2:00

why is it necessary to

2:02

douse the body in water?

2:04

You have requested this process

2:06

over ten times since our

2:09

encasement exchange. If this pattern

2:11

continues, a significant amount of

2:13

cumulative time will be spent

2:15

in the shower. Merlin's chest

2:17

bellows wheeze in a mechanical

2:19

approximation of a huff of

2:22

laughter. Biological man, I have

2:24

asked you to shower a

2:26

perfectly ordinary number of times.

2:28

This is just part of

2:30

being in a human body.

2:32

You're going to have to

2:34

get used to it. Maybe,

2:37

as I did, you will

2:39

find the shower to be

2:41

a ruminative environment. The biological

2:43

man started to ask more

2:45

of these why, but why

2:47

Merlin type of questions lately?

2:50

He never argues, or really

2:52

expresses an opinion, but he's

2:54

displaying more and more curiosity,

2:56

much like a child would.

2:58

particularly when it comes to

3:00

physiological matters of the body.

3:02

It has occurred to Merlin

3:05

whether he ought to ask

3:07

the man, if there's anything

3:09

he, Merlin, should know about

3:11

this bocular body. All these

3:13

things he's been trying to

3:15

figure out through laborious trial

3:18

and error and self-modification. How

3:20

can he improve his speech,

3:22

his senses, his balance, his

3:24

range of motion? Could he

3:26

just ask? That was never

3:28

an option before. The man

3:30

might have some insights. Merlin

3:33

comes out of his reverie

3:35

as he suddenly realizes that

3:37

another shower stall is in

3:39

use. From the hook hangs

3:41

a long black robe and

3:43

a horned headdress. Steam rises

3:46

from behind the opaque curtain.

3:48

Merlin turns away with enormous

3:50

intentionality. Shepherding the biological man

3:52

decisively along with him. Come

3:54

along biological man. They door

3:56

into the elevator. and elevator

3:58

down to the atrium. Zila

4:01

looks up from her sketchbook,

4:03

seated on an armchair extruded

4:05

up by the window, a

4:07

front row seat to the

4:09

untold miasma of nightmare garbage

4:11

going on outside. Hey biological

4:14

man. Hello Zila. Do you

4:16

still want an extra pair

4:18

of hands? Yeah, I'd love

4:20

somehow mixing these paint colors,

4:22

if you feel like you're

4:24

up at the task. We

4:26

are trying to match some...

4:29

of that. She gestures out

4:31

the window and at a

4:33

wide tray of little paint

4:35

pots. With some of this.

4:37

The biological man nods. Yes,

4:39

Zila, would you like a

4:42

small volume of each tone

4:44

to start? Yeah, maybe just

4:46

one or two to start.

4:48

From what I've been seeing

4:50

it looks like it's going

4:52

to be huge shifting as

4:54

we go along though, so

4:57

let's keep our options open.

4:59

Be flexible. Merlin blinks his

5:01

bocular eyes on and off.

5:03

to be all set here.

5:05

If either of you need

5:07

me, I'll be in control."

5:10

Zila gives a thumbs up.

5:12

A beat later, the biological

5:14

man also gives a thumbs

5:16

up, copying the gesture. Merlin

5:18

re-enters the elevator and depresses

5:20

the button to proceed to

5:22

control. Digitigrade legs tap tapping

5:25

into the crystal cell before

5:27

a door is shut and

5:29

starts to descend. Inside of

5:31

his bocular self, he is

5:33

having some... popular thoughts, or

5:35

just thoughts, really. At least

5:38

that's how he's thinking of

5:40

them. Even the ability to

5:42

be metacognitively aware of idle

5:44

thoughts drifting through his mind

5:46

seems uninhibited and fine, he

5:48

muses. The only hang-ups he's

5:50

been aware of really having

5:53

about the whole body swap

5:55

are these occasional surges of

5:57

jealousy. for greater nuance of

5:59

facial expression or the easy

6:01

access of a practice gesture

6:03

deep in muscle memory. Those

6:05

surges are decreasingly frequent. He

6:08

manipulates the polished brass and

6:10

wooden fingers of his hand

6:12

into a thumbs-up gesture. Is

6:14

this somehow indicative of a

6:16

diminishing emotional capacity, he thinks?

6:18

Aren't biological people also maybe

6:21

a little bit bocular when

6:23

it comes down to it,

6:25

following logic and need and

6:27

want to inform their decision-making?

6:30

The door doors into control

6:32

and Merlin shoots his fresh

6:34

thumbs up to Felix It's

6:36

another beautiful day to test

6:39

the limits of reality wouldn't

6:41

you agree? Felix snorts calling

6:43

it beautiful's kind of a

6:45

stretch He looks out the

6:48

windows critically as the days

6:50

have passed the fold beneath

6:52

the ship has continued to

6:54

thicken becoming more and more

6:56

like terrain, and less and

6:59

less like fog or even

7:01

like ocean. Chunks of garbage,

7:03

of ship, of islet, lay

7:05

stacked and tumbled and twisted

7:08

together, jutting acutely out of

7:10

the surface of the median.

7:12

A wash with the murky,

7:14

thick, glistening fold that turgently

7:16

runs over it all. Ponderous,

7:19

pouchy, malformed, willow-esque trees, the

7:21

color and texture of raw

7:23

chicken, struggle out of the

7:25

swamp. They look deeply unhealthy

7:28

and barely even tree-like. Their

7:30

drooping branches trace thick ripples

7:32

in the viscous liquid below.

7:34

Things that definitely should not

7:36

be growing on trees sprout

7:39

from their, uh, skin. into

7:41

this gruesome mix there rains

7:43

steadily pieces of mica from

7:45

the sky above a near

7:48

constant glittering shower the stuff

7:50

drifting slowly or spinning wildly

7:52

in some cases ping ponging

7:54

around before sithing down through

7:57

the undulating curtains of those

7:59

chicken willows, or piercing clotted

8:01

fold bubbles that quiver on

8:03

the median, causing them to

8:05

erupt into flailing ribbons of

8:08

ground meat, or into belgee

8:10

custard-e concrete terraces, like a

8:12

randomized assembly line for brutalist

8:14

landscaping. Meanwhile, the sky has

8:17

continued to grow uncomfortably brighter

8:19

in a way reminiscent of

8:21

the upper unfold, though continuously

8:23

in one direction, dead ahead.

8:25

The similarity to a sunset

8:28

is becoming more and more

8:30

extreme, a growing concentration, this

8:32

focal point of luminance ahead,

8:34

and a growing comparative darkness

8:37

behind. Of course there are

8:39

no sunsets in a cosmo

8:41

such as this, which has

8:43

no sun. So our heroes

8:45

cannot make this particular comparison.

8:48

It's just for you, dear

8:50

listener. It is an eerie

8:52

sight for them, fundamentally uncanny.

8:54

In a way that's really

8:57

starting to fuck with the

8:59

brain's senses of perspective, the

9:01

luminous un-above is bending, very

9:03

much as though it is

9:06

getting closer, lower, tighter somehow,

9:08

as if it is wrenching

9:10

itself down out of the

9:12

heavens to smother them. Here

9:14

in the extremities of the

9:17

delta, the fold and the

9:19

un are reaching for each

9:21

other, and it is not

9:23

a harmonious meeting. Burgs of

9:26

mica pierced down for the

9:28

heights, cosmic stalactites, jagged glowing

9:30

teeth closing in on toxic

9:32

black saliva. The fold boils

9:34

like lava. Gloopy. Sloppy, sploopy,

9:37

splattering against the increasingly tight

9:39

and claustrophobic, horrible, awful ceiling

9:41

beyond. thing that should be

9:43

intangible is horribly awfully tangible.

9:46

It's fucking weird out there

9:48

folks. The small crew has

9:50

taken to spending much of

9:52

their time together in control

9:55

or in the atrium or

9:57

even packed like sardines into

9:59

the cozy stagecoach. There's something

10:01

disquieting about being totally scattered

10:03

across the far-flung corners of

10:06

the ship which feels weirdly

10:08

huge. now that there are

10:10

so few of them, while

10:12

the cosmos thrashes with something

10:15

like death throes just beyond

10:17

their walls. Cleo spends barely

10:19

any time in her fancy

10:21

private state room anymore. Not

10:23

that she ever particularly did,

10:26

other than to tend her

10:28

plants. They're still alive, if

10:30

not exactly flourishing. Most importantly,

10:32

her prized coral cutting from

10:35

Granny Elodia's garden is still

10:37

hanging on. Sometimes she'll carry

10:39

it around the ship with

10:41

her just to keep a

10:43

closer eye on it. Um,

10:46

that really does seem to

10:48

want to eat it, though.

10:50

When he's not bouncing off

10:52

the walls, the Delta's put

10:55

him into a wacky food.

10:57

She collects the plant now

10:59

and brings it with her

11:01

down to control. Hambing has

11:04

just arrived back himself from

11:06

the ventral sloop where he

11:08

had been making some close-up

11:10

observations of the fold slop

11:12

beneath. Yeah, I'm not getting

11:15

near that stuff. He says.

11:17

After seeing the deep fold,

11:19

I gotta say, the Delta

11:21

seems to have a lot

11:24

of similarities. Increased viscosity, slower

11:26

moving, extremely potent terror systems.

11:28

I hope it's not as...

11:30

hungry as the fold lower

11:32

down ones. He spryings up

11:35

onto the navigation console with

11:37

a powerful flea leap. It's

11:39

not exactly starved for light.

11:41

Here, like it was down

11:44

there, though. Dr. Rawfield is

11:46

eyeing the warped choked median

11:48

with suspicion. No, I would

11:50

hope it has plenty to

11:52

occupy it other than us?

11:55

Given what we experienced in

11:57

the depths, I don't care

11:59

what kind of fascinating terrors

12:01

we see down there, we

12:04

are not touching that. Don't

12:06

worry, Doc. I may be

12:08

a bit of a daredevil

12:10

when it comes to everyday

12:13

terrors, but you and I

12:15

are on the same page

12:17

about this, for sure. It

12:19

is, I would agree, a

12:21

little too similar to what

12:24

we saw in the depths.

12:27

Cleo is squinting into the

12:29

intensifying light ahead, at the

12:31

increasing density of the mica

12:33

strewn sky above. She seems

12:35

a bit more focused on

12:37

what's above than what's below

12:40

at the moment. Yeah, but

12:42

does it remind anybody else

12:44

of the high un, too?

12:46

Just a little bit? She

12:48

rubs her arms, subtly checking

12:50

for any sign of strange

12:52

dark evaporations from her skin.

12:55

There's nothing, but the searing

12:57

aching quality of that light

12:59

is a little too familiar

13:01

for comfort. It seems less

13:03

pure here, though. Not a

13:05

360-degree white-out to total unish

13:07

brilliance, but more of an

13:10

eye-watering low sun angle beaming

13:12

through a garish kaleidoscope. Merlin

13:14

catches her eye and tilts

13:16

his mechanical head inquiringly. He

13:18

knows what she's thinking about,

13:20

because, well, he's thinking about

13:22

it, too. She shakes her

13:25

head at him. It's reminiscent,

13:27

but it's not quite the

13:29

same. Hey, has anybody seen

13:31

Mother Artifice recently? Yes, he

13:33

was. Um, hmm. Merlin does

13:35

not exactly feel ready to

13:38

articulate the implications of what

13:40

he recently saw in the

13:42

bathroom. But luckily, at that

13:44

very moment, Artifice ceilings down

13:46

into control through the ceiling,

13:48

smelling of steam and soap.

13:50

Fully dressed in his robes,

13:53

as always. E drops down

13:55

beside the spare fold light

13:57

and begins 10 to it

13:59

running his gloved hands over

14:01

the glass enclosure. Well not

14:03

the spare fold light, the fold light.

14:06

There's no spare anymore. Hmm. Well, Cleo

14:08

was hoping to catch Artifice alone, but

14:10

she has spent the last several hours

14:12

hyping herself up and she isn't about

14:15

to back down now just because there's

14:17

some other people around. The main thing

14:19

is the dot is not here. Hello

14:21

Mother Artifice. How are you? Quite splendid

14:24

Cleo, thanks to the vetiver

14:26

and bunch-spunge salve you kindly

14:28

shared in the bathing facilities.

14:30

Now I will continue attempting

14:32

to reintegrate all the new

14:35

fold-lights processes. Isn't it just the

14:37

same as the old fold-light though? No,

14:39

not exactly. Much as if we were

14:41

to hire a new boson, they would

14:43

not be the same as Shinamarian. They

14:45

can perform the same role, but they are

14:47

not the same entity. Oh, that makes

14:49

sense. There's a solemn pause throughout the

14:52

deck. What is it Cleofy? You seem

14:54

as though you wish to speak with

14:56

me about something specific. Yes,

14:58

yes I do. Cleo stands up

15:01

a little straighter, clutching her plant

15:03

pot for courage, jotting her chin

15:05

up at the veiled specter. I guess

15:08

I just wanted to let you know

15:10

that, um, I'm not going to stop

15:12

being friends with Dot, because I don't

15:14

want to. And I don't know how.

15:16

I see. I cannot forbid you

15:19

from pursuing a friendship. I was

15:21

merely informing you of the likely

15:23

outcome. Merlin ratchets his head over

15:26

a few degrees. Rawfield hunches her

15:28

shoulders uncomfortably, doing her best to

15:30

ignore the conversation. Felix glances up

15:33

over his glasses incredulously. Hamming watches

15:35

on a bachelor's and would be

15:37

eating popcorn if he had any.

15:40

And if popcorn existed. And if

15:42

popcorn could fit in his head.

15:44

Okay, well, even if we can't

15:46

stay friends after Dot becomes a

15:49

mother, I've decided I don't care.

15:51

I'd rather get to know them

15:53

now while I can than avoid

15:56

getting to know them at all.

15:58

Anyway, it's kind of... too late

16:00

for that. They're already my

16:02

friend, and they're a kind

16:04

of friend I don't think

16:06

I've ever had before. So,

16:09

I'm just letting you know.

16:11

And maybe apologizing, in case

16:13

I'm doing something that's bad

16:15

for them as far as

16:17

becoming a mother is concerned.

16:19

But if they don't want

16:21

to be friends with me,

16:23

they can tell me themselves.

16:25

And they've been nothing but

16:27

kind to me. Okay, that's

16:29

all. Bye. bristling with adrenaline

16:32

before she has to face

16:34

another onslaught of psyche blasting

16:36

insight from other artifice. She

16:38

nearly collides with Merlin in

16:40

her escape. The next time

16:42

you fly, upgrade your comfort

16:44

to Emirates Premium Economy. Sink

16:46

into soft leather seats with

16:48

raised legrests and adjustable headrests.

16:50

Elevate your dinner plans with

16:52

delicious regional dining. All served

16:55

with complementary premium drinks. Enjoy

16:57

endless entertainment with up to

16:59

6,500 channels including live sports.

17:01

There's no other premium economy

17:03

like it. Fly Emirates. Fly

17:05

better. It's

17:08

time for my voice to

17:10

be heard. Now streaming on

17:13

Apple TV Plus, critics are

17:15

raving about disclaimer. It was

17:17

time to bring justice. And

17:20

now it's nominated for two

17:22

screen actors Guild Awards for

17:25

Kate Blanchett and Kevin Klein.

17:27

Something happened yes again. What

17:30

exactly happened? He died. And

17:32

Alfonso Corone is a DGA

17:34

Award nominee for outstanding director

17:37

for a limited series. I

17:39

had to tell the world

17:42

to talk. Disclaimer. Now streaming

17:44

on Apple TV Plus. After

17:46

Cleo, elevators away, Merlin approaches

17:49

Artifice and the foldlight, flexing

17:51

his hands in and out

17:54

of thumbsing, upping. Well, I

17:56

was our friend, the foldlight.

17:59

It is doing its best,

18:01

Merlin, how are you? I...

18:03

I am. And for that?

18:06

I am grateful. You am?

18:08

I am from my perception

18:11

alive and glad of it.

18:13

Artifice examines him. Yes, there

18:16

is value and gratitude, Merlin.

18:18

It is important to appreciate

18:20

the little moments, for it

18:23

is the little moments that

18:25

become the little days and

18:28

little traversals of our lives.

18:30

Felix would of course know

18:32

the exact breakdown. Do you

18:35

continue to enjoy a comfortable

18:37

level of emness? Merlin nods.

18:40

I do. I was just

18:42

reflecting on the logics one

18:45

follows as a being of

18:47

flesh and blood and how

18:49

it's truly not so different

18:52

from the logics the bocular

18:54

man had prior to our,

18:57

how did he phrase it,

18:59

our encasement exchange. The template

19:02

I used for him was

19:04

certainly based on how we

19:06

think of models of thought.

19:09

Do you ever stop thinking

19:11

about thinking? Only barely at

19:14

moments of rest. Unless, do

19:16

you suppose that maybe I'm

19:19

overthinking it? It is unclear

19:21

if Mother Edifice understands or

19:23

gets a joke, or even

19:26

if he cares. That is

19:28

a question that only you

19:31

can answer for yourself, Merlin.

19:33

Unconsciously, we take ourselves and

19:35

our experience of reality to

19:38

be defined by deeply held

19:40

invisible thoughts and concepts that

19:43

we harbor. Consciousness and perception

19:45

are inextricably tied to the

19:48

stories. both true and false,

19:50

which we tell ourselves. And

19:52

the stories we bring to

19:55

the fold influence how the

19:57

fold experiences creates or affects

20:00

reality as well. As you

20:02

and your new predicament, Merlin,

20:05

exemplify quite well. Tell me,

20:07

what makes you so sure

20:09

that you are? Good question.

20:12

I am experiencing awareness of

20:14

myself. and my surroundings, that

20:17

awareness feels like how it...

20:19

is there a space a

20:21

consciousness that feels like you

20:24

right now? Yes, I feel

20:26

that in my core. I

20:29

don't sense any interruption in

20:31

my meanness. I don't think

20:34

I could point to where

20:36

it resides, but can anyone?

20:38

An interesting perspective, but ultimately

20:41

a story that you have

20:43

contrived for yourself, Merlin. Consciousness

20:46

and perception are inextricably tied

20:48

to the narratives we create

20:51

and accept what you believe

20:53

becomes true. Merlin blinks his

20:55

bocular eyes off and on

20:58

again. Perhaps, but I prefer

21:00

to discover the truth through

21:03

rigorous scientific inquiry rather than

21:05

believe it into existence via

21:08

force of will. As a

21:10

consciousness within a mechanical body,

21:12

Merlin, you have a certain

21:15

contemporary aboard the ship. The

21:17

fold-like, too, engages with and

21:20

responds to reality... and to

21:22

our commands based on the

21:24

stories provided to it by

21:27

its sensors and instruments, which

21:29

purport to be objective and

21:32

factually accurate. But the fold

21:34

light, the fold light also

21:37

responds to the stories which

21:39

we provided by punch card

21:41

or by way of my

21:44

own direct communions, which induce

21:46

its behaviors. These are stories

21:49

which are true and false,

21:51

which compel it. to the

21:54

to the outcomes which we

21:56

desire Rawfield turns from the

21:58

window Something's not right here.

22:01

The crew and control are

22:03

sort of looking around at

22:06

each other. What's happening? Mickey

22:08

asks. Felix looks up from

22:10

his clocks. Uh-oh. Says Hamping.

22:13

Says Merlin. Nope, not imagining

22:15

things. Definitely not a narrative

22:18

they're telling themselves. The ship

22:20

begins to tilt. And furniture

22:23

begins to slide toward one

22:25

side of control. Hambing takes

22:27

a flying leap to secure

22:30

himself. And Mickey at the

22:32

navigation table scrambles to grab

22:35

rolling maps and pencils. Merlin's

22:37

bocular legs flex, automatically keeping

22:40

his head low. Artifice places

22:42

a gloved hand on the

22:44

glass of the fold light.

22:47

Do not be alarmed, I

22:49

can correct this tilt. The

22:52

ferro-fluid fold amalgam within the

22:54

bold swurries up to meet

22:56

the mother's touch, forming a

22:59

dark mirror of his gloved

23:01

handprint. And the ship, somewhat

23:04

reluctantly, it seems, levels out

23:06

once again. All across control,

23:09

the instruments and paper printouts

23:11

are providing confused readings, incorrect

23:13

speed, wrong directional headings. temperatures

23:16

that definitely don't exist. Indications

23:18

that they are simultaneously both

23:21

too high and too low.

23:23

Outside the black glass windows

23:26

of control, the horizon is

23:28

twisting inexorably increasingly in a

23:30

truly bizarre way. Apropos! Artifice

23:33

proclaims. Much like ourselves, the

23:35

fold-light is being misled by

23:38

increasingly skewed senses and is

23:40

struggling to accurately interpret these

23:43

uncanny environs. We should beware.

23:45

Disrupted by the ship's volatile

23:47

behavior, the rest of the

23:50

crew soon show up in

23:52

control. Zela, the biological man,

23:55

the granddaughter, and even Cleo

23:57

again, bashfully slinking back to

23:59

the comfort of companionship after

24:02

her dramatic little exit. The

24:04

crew has tasted the limits

24:07

of reality twice before. There

24:09

is a strong unanimous urge

24:12

to be together this time.

24:14

There's not so much life,

24:16

per se, out there anymore,

24:19

except for bizarre terror-born manifestations.

24:21

The fold is wracked by

24:24

constant convulsions that never settle,

24:26

and the unshifts and groans

24:29

like a never-ending rock slide

24:31

in an increasingly constricted cavern.

24:33

More and more, dangers reminiscent

24:36

of those encountered at the

24:38

highest points of the un

24:41

and the deepest depths of

24:43

the fold seem to be

24:45

coming into closer and more

24:48

frequent contact with one another.

24:50

here on the warping median.

24:53

Micah is crumbling down into

24:55

the fold, and the fold

24:58

is sluicing up and splashing

25:00

onto the micah above at

25:02

an alarming rate. A horrible

25:05

confluence of chaotic possibility goo

25:07

and glowing razor crystals, generating

25:10

constant terrors. It's, well... It's

25:12

looking more and more like

25:15

a fucking dangerous natural wall,

25:17

like the feathered edge of

25:19

a storm. A two-directional waterfall,

25:22

lit from behind by a

25:24

fierce singular glare of sunset-like

25:27

light. Last to arrive, Everett,

25:29

elevators up from the hangar.

25:32

Yeah, you're all seeing this

25:34

too? But just so you

25:36

know, we're getting real close

25:39

to the maximum range of

25:41

the stagecoach, so the shit

25:44

hits the fan to me

25:46

to ride back to Brocharug.

25:48

We're almost as far out

25:51

as we can possibly go.

25:53

Plus... She comes over to

25:56

Mickey and gives her back

25:58

up at. The stagecoach is

26:01

starting to pick up... some

26:03

pretty fucky readings. What do

26:05

you think? Are we, um,

26:08

we may be calling it

26:10

quits soon? The crew gazes

26:13

forth at the distant unknown,

26:15

toward the clotted, delirious constriction

26:18

of the cosmos ahead, vomiting

26:20

its contents into their direct

26:22

path. Whatever lies beyond, whether

26:25

vast distance or not, may

26:27

be outside of their reach.

26:30

They're safe. non-life-threatening reach, at

26:32

least. The still recent deaths

26:34

of Seanamarian, Ephraim, and Abel

26:37

weigh on their collective minds.

26:39

They have all seen firsthand

26:42

what the extremities of the

26:44

heights and depths are capable

26:47

of, and what lies before

26:49

them now seems to be

26:51

a raging confluence of both.

26:54

Is it wisdom? To stop

26:56

now? Yeah, it

26:58

probably is. By turns, they

27:01

all seem to arrive at

27:03

the same conclusion. Nods are

27:06

slowly exchanged. Let's put it

27:08

into park, Mother Artifice. Artifice

27:10

does so, or more accurately

27:13

sets the reality of the

27:15

ship to hold in place.

27:18

By telling it a story

27:20

about parking. Merlin. leans over

27:22

Felix's shoulder and starts rummaging

27:25

around in the timekeeper's desk.

27:27

Uh, excuse me, the hell

27:30

do you think you're doing?

27:32

Uh-huh. Merlin holds aloft, a

27:34

bottle. One of the same

27:37

stock used at launch, a

27:39

little dusty from its time

27:41

hidden underneath all of Felix's

27:44

junk, but still good. Though

27:46

I haven't yet engineered a

27:49

way to imbibe substances myself,

27:51

I think at best to

27:53

still mark the moment. What

27:56

do you say Felix? There

27:58

might never be a better...

28:01

Felix Grunt's defeat, having been

28:03

delved, the unblockable blow of

28:05

time puns, nice one, Merlin.

28:08

Not like any power in

28:10

the cosmos can stop you

28:13

from giving a speech. The

28:15

biological man loads a punch

28:17

disc, labeled in Merlin's handwriting,

28:20

toast and speech kit, extruding

28:22

and passing out dark mica

28:25

flute glassware. Anameled edge is

28:27

glinting the increasingly bizarre sideways

28:29

light ahead of them. Merlin

28:32

follows behind filling each one.

28:34

Pouring a beverage for all

28:37

who remain. Everett Shearwater. Mickey

28:39

Fluke. Ripley Raufield. Felix Husselworth.

28:41

Drury. Zila Guthrie. Cleophy Gilmuth.

28:44

The granddaughter. And the biological

28:46

man. To whom he administers

28:49

a... judiciously restrained portion. He

28:51

even fills a glass for

28:53

himself and for Mother Artifice,

28:56

though neither of them will

28:58

be drinking. Omelet doesn't get

29:01

one, but you shouldn't give

29:03

alcohol to a cat. Plus,

29:05

he's currently having a great

29:08

time knocking all of Zila's

29:10

paint pots over up in

29:13

the atrium. Once everyone has

29:15

their glass, they turn to

29:17

Merlin, expectantly. His bocular body

29:20

is limmed in the bewildering

29:22

light of the Delta. We

29:25

don't often. to take the

29:27

time to stop and acknowledge

29:29

the brave act of persisting

29:32

together in this life. There

29:34

are choices we make every

29:37

day, to rise and make

29:39

ready to seek out challenges

29:41

and to face them, to

29:44

learn and to grow by

29:46

whatever axes we define. But

29:48

within each of these choices

29:51

is still another more fundamental

29:53

yet, to choose to spend

29:56

one's time. with the people

29:58

that we do. When

30:00

we are faced with

30:02

those moments of choice

30:05

and moments of challenge,

30:07

choosing to stand with

30:09

those who are our friends

30:12

is a radical act. And

30:14

I thank you, all of

30:16

you, for choosing that act

30:19

with me. We have faced

30:21

our share of trials, but

30:23

that you, all of you,

30:26

choose to carry on with

30:28

it. Is a feat worth

30:31

commending. So, be ye metal,

30:33

or glass, or flesh, or

30:35

fold. I thank you for

30:38

being my friend, and

30:40

for being here. Cleo

30:42

gives a wet sniff.

30:45

A clink of glassware

30:47

all around. Take a

30:50

look, my friends. This

30:52

vantage, this view, looking

30:55

back along our path.

30:57

This. is the furthest

30:59

that ingenuity the yearning

31:02

for discovery has carried

31:04

anyone. This trail we've

31:07

blazed is our own

31:09

dotted line reaching out

31:11

toward the edge of the

31:14

map thin and tenuous that

31:16

it may be. It is

31:18

the course we charted together.

31:20

And now we track back

31:22

to those we know and

31:24

those we love. To where

31:26

all those who have ever

31:28

been, and all the histories

31:30

they have ever spun, lived,

31:32

died, and are remembered. And

31:34

with any luck, the consortium

31:36

will approve further ventures upon

31:38

our return. This could be

31:41

but the first half of

31:43

an even greater cosmos-spanning voyage.

31:45

After all, the mysteries of

31:47

the found, the very origins

31:50

of the current, and perhaps

31:52

the fold itself for yet

31:54

to be explored and understood.

31:56

I believe this is not

31:59

the end. This is

32:01

only the beginning. Merle and I

32:03

have a question, Everett asks. How

32:05

do you do that? Was that

32:07

like pre-recorded or did you just

32:09

improvise that? I just improvised it.

32:12

I've been thinking about it for

32:14

quite a while, but I try

32:16

to do it off the dome.

32:18

He can't not do that, Felix

32:20

says. Incredible. I went to school

32:22

for years to gain the skill.

32:24

Everett raises her glass. The

32:28

ship lingers for

32:30

a moment longer,

32:32

aimed towards the

32:34

Delta's strange down-current

32:36

horizon, taking one

32:38

last look at

32:40

the limits of

32:42

reality. And then,

32:44

it turns away,

32:46

accelerates, and proceeds

32:49

homeward. gazing through

32:51

the spine of

32:53

the ship at

32:55

the impossible sunset

32:57

glare and converging

32:59

vortex of impossible

33:01

cosmic reality, now

33:03

retreating behind them.

33:05

It is strange

33:07

and wondrous indeed,

33:10

fearsome, bewildering, impossible.

33:12

But it is

33:14

still, not realization.

33:16

And their journey

33:18

is coming to

33:20

an end. They

33:22

are out of

33:24

time. And as

33:26

the ship retreats

33:28

from the superliminal

33:30

spectacle at the

33:33

end of the

33:35

known universe, the

33:37

granddaughter is sure

33:39

of nothing anymore,

33:41

except for one

33:43

thing. They have

33:45

failed to meet

33:47

their realization and

33:49

will fail to

33:51

become a mother.

33:54

But on the bright side

33:57

soon they will know the

33:59

dire consequence for that failure,

34:02

and then they won't have

34:04

to worry about anything ever

34:06

again. Thanks for listening to

34:09

On End. If you're enjoying

34:11

the story, please rate and

34:14

review to help someone new

34:16

discover the cosmos. You can

34:19

catch on end every Wednesday,

34:21

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34:23

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34:26

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