Episode 82 - Failures

## Failures

A plain black background displaying what is possibly abstract depictions of strobe lights in each of its four corners, depicted in white and showing white dots being emitted from them. The centre displays a shattered white dagger with a strip of cloth wrapped around its hilt. A red moth sits resting on its edge. Below this image but wining the border of the 'strobe lights' the words "82.FAILURES" are written in white.

### Author

William A. Wellman

Polly finds a friend in a time of need, Clara tries to keep everyone together, and Moth reaches safety at last. The theme of tonight’s episode is Failures.

***Content Warnings:** Abuse, Ableism, Animal death (Dogsmell as usual, at least one three-eyed deer, an unspecified bug, and an indeterminate number of ravens), Violence, Kidnapping and abduction, Death + Injury, Dismemberment, Character Death, Blood, Mental illness, Birds, Strangulation/suffocation, Emotional Manipulation, Bugs (moths), Body horror, Alcohol Use, Smoking, Automobile accidents, Misogyny / Transphobia / Misgendering by a loud personal relative*

## Intro - One More Failure

Nikignik speaks to the Dreamers of Barb, that he felt as if he'd always been a failure. That success was just failure waiting to happen. Spending his days delivering his papers and spinning around like the cog he was made to be. If only he could have kept it up for so long. But he'd slipped up, and he'd seen the teeth of the Industry, that they were waiting for the day they could cut him out. So he decided to never let that day come, he'd plotted and pocketed soul fire and prepared to escape into the universe. But he'd failed at that, and they'd seized him and dashed him against the stones. "We cast you out", they'd said; "do not return, or we will not be so merciful". He hoped that this would not all end the way it began, hoped that failure would grant him one reprieve.

Nikignik sits in a broken-down chapel, in the place of a crucifix above the alter hung a bleeding Polly.

## Story 1 - As Though They Were Free

Polly attempts to reflect on motivational slogans he'd learned during his time in the Industry in order to assist him with his current situation (see Episode 76 - Lungs and Episode 80 - Courts), to no avail. He hangs by the rusted hook forced through his back and shoulder, growing ever weaker and wishing pain was something one could switch off. He mutters to himself that he should have never delt with Barb (see Episode 54 - Roads), that he shouldn't have gone behind Mort and Yaretzi's backs. He chastises himself, asking why he was always lying to people, that the more he ran the more things caught up to him. The Omen then appears, and Polly asks them if they'd come to laugh at him (see Episode 31 - Anchors), but The Omen tells him that they were not amused, that eh seemed ill. He tells them that this was rude. The Omen tells him that he had two things they required, the first being his manual, which Polly informs them of its being lost (see Episode 76 - Lungs), and the second being advice. Polly jokingly tells them not to quite their day job to follow their dreams (see Polly), but they ask him how to go about finding someone who is invisible (see Nolan Thair and Episode 81 - Fears).

Polly tells them that if they were trying to find someone they couldn't see, or someone who was very fast, they couldn't use their eyes they had to use their ears, even invisible people left traces behind. The Omen tells him that Downing Hill was in his dept for this information, asking what he'd like in return. He tells them to deliver a message to Mort, to tell him that he loved him, that he had to grow up very fast, and that he wished he’d been a better- he is able to form the consonant f before he is cut off by the arrival of Rick Rounds, which also scares off The Omen. Rick calls out to Polly about him [Polly] getting comfortable with the birds, and Polly responds that they [Birds] had a sixth sense for the dying. Rick drops Polly from this hanging place and picks up the chain attached to the hook (still in Polly), telling Polly that they were going to go for a little walk. He leads Polly out of the chapel by the chain, and Polly begins to disassociate, remembering the breakfast he had with Yaretzi and Mort from Episode 43 - Relics.

### Interlude 1 - Triumph Or Loss?

Nikignik asks the Dreamers if their world was a loss or a triumph. It was loss, loss that began with Nikignik (see Marolmar), loss because the end of their age was nigh, and all the beautiful hopes for the future were laid to rest, clutched in their cold fingers. But a triumph because this darkness that lingered in their plants and food and earth and rain and blood was cast by someone he'd used to love (see Marolmar), because it worked, just as he [Marolmar] hoped it would, and it hastened their age to an end. Triumph because in all of it lived a little of him, and he thought he would never even see that much again. He tells them that he had no answer, though he suspected there was none.

## Story 2 - Bones For The Forest

Following the events of Episode 78 - Runaways, Clara Martin attempts to find her way to the rest of the Summer campers by following the Soud of screams, aided by Dogsmell.She comes across the cliff she'd sat with Friday Rescher on in Episode 71 - Trials, now finding Harrow Blackletter running away form a deer dangerously close to the ledge. Clara gives the order to Dogsmell to attack the deer, Dogsmell complying and forcing the deer over the side of the cliff. Clara checks to see if Harrow was okay, noticing them to have blood on them, which they tell her they didn't think was theirs, as well as telling her that the moon was watching and she [presumably the moon] was "all worms inside". Clara expresses confusion at this, before asking if they knew where Friday or Arnold Eggers were, Harrow nods and points to the cliff. Clara tells Dogsmell to stay with Harrow before investigating the Cliff.

Clara calls out for Friday, wondering to close to the edge and falling over due to loose stone, but she falls into the web of Edgar 'the spider' Rescher. Friday makes herself known, perched in a nook on the side of the cliff. She apologises to Clara, telling her that what was happening was her fault. Clara tells her that she had been worried about her, that it wasn't her fault. She asks Friday to cut her free and they could go and find the others, attempting to tell Friday about Victoria Tepiani (see Episode 78 - Runaways), before Friday cuts her off telling her that she already knew, and that Friday was the worst of the two of them, that Victoria might hurt people, but Friday always would. With that she reveals to Clara that her void knife had shattered. Clara asks Friday not to go, attempting to promise that nothing bad would happen, telling her that she couldn't lose her. Friday simply tells her that if she [Friday] stayed with them they'd die. Arnold calls out to them from the near-distant marshland, happily telling them that he knew he'd find them. Clara notices a deer coming up behind him and warns him of it too late as it charges into him and sets about ripping him asunder, his screams dying in the water.

### Marketing - Activism Guide

Lady Ethel Mallory interrupts Nikignik's broadcast with her Marketing segment. She tells the listener that with the Stonemaid situation in hot debit they had to ask themselves how they would react during complicated times. If the listeners had been emboldened by recent events and wanted to try and enact change, she would provide them with an official guide on how to do that by the Botulus Corporation. It was okay to not be okay: times were unpredictable and not every problem had to be their problem, they should feel their emotions and express them in whatever medium they were most gifted at. Raise their voice: updating their status to show that they supported Botco's movement was a great way to be heard. Participating in polls: Write lengthy opinion pieces and stick it to the people in charge, they couldn't expect violence to solve all their problems, they couldn't be taken seriously unless they were calm and composed and polite.

### Story 2, Continued - Bones For The Forest

Clara screams out to Friday to help Arnold, or cut her lose, but Friday just tells her that he was already dead, and if she [Friday] stayed there she Clara] would be too. She tosses Clara a segment of her void knife and disappears with Edgar before Clara can say anything else. Clara cuts herself free and falls the remaining 8ft into the cavern, managing to get the attention of the deer which begins to stalk her, quickly breaking into a run her diving out of the way of its path only for it to vanish. Harrow and Dogsmell join her, Harrow telling her that they'd sent the deer away, though they didn't know where.

Clara tells Harrow that she'd lost her glasses, and if they could check if Arnold was alive. They tell her that they didn't think he was, and she asks to be taken to him, which they comply. She isn't able to identify what she's looking at before Harrow comments that Arold was 'all in little pieces', causing Clara to pass out. When she comes too the night is nearing dusk, looking over to see Harrow curled up in a ball beside her, a hairline crack running through their face. Clara sits up commenting on them being alive, miserable, but alive, but Harrow tells her that they wouldn't be for long unless they got out of the forest. Harrow picks up one of Arnold's severed hands that had washed onto the bank, the hand twitching and foaming at its point of disconnection.

### Interlude 2 - Okay In The End

Nikignik tells the Dreamers that everything would be okay in the end, that if it wasn't okay, it wasn't the end. And by the end, of course they meant the heat death of the universe, and by okay they meant nothingness. They tell the Dreamers that they didn't even think the Indescribables would hang around after that. In the meantime, it wasn't the end, and they had no guarantee that things would be okay. He tells the Dreamers that they fought with two fists of flesh and bone, he fought with my great powers of dream and sight. So, they should be not quiet, not still, and if they wished to change this world, feel no compunction in doing it. Hurt some feelings, leave some scars. It would not be around for long, and they may as well try to make it a place worth living.

## Story 3 - Last Song Of A Moth

Moth Scarberry relives a memory (see Episode 62 - Provisions) in which Gale Scarberry scolded moth for being weak and unable to fend for mothself in the world, that this would get moth killed. Moth stays as quiet as moth can, in fear of inviting response, but moth whispers for him to go away. He tells moth that if moth was his kid, he'd slap some sense into moth. Bill Scarberry enters the scene, talking Gale's attention off Moth and asking him what he was doing. Gale tells Bill that he was teaching moth a lesson, Bill defends moth by telling him that moth was twelve, but Gale tells him that it was a dangerous world, so that wasn't an excuse. Bill excuses himself and Gale to Moth before dragging Gale outside. Moth attempts to block them out by listening to the distant sound of insects. Bill accuses Gale of being drunk, but Gale defends himself by saying he needed some escapism with everything falling apart. Moth listens to the insects, now moths, sing the words 'no escape'. Bill approaches Moth again, apologising for Gale. Things take a turn when Bill brings up how Moth had turned him into the flies (see Episode 68 - Sands). he tells moth that they were patient, that they would persist until things ended with him and moth in a Dreaming Box together, he may even forgive Moth for what moth'd done. delaying it was just unnecessary discomfort. He tells moth that Bill should have killed moth (see Episode 58 - Enemies), that moth had no value to the world other than a live time value of purchasing power, they'd get moth eventually. Moth tells "Bill" that moth wished they'd just let moth sleep. "Bill" threatens to tell Ray of Moth turning Bill into Botco, but moth could end it all by simply saying 'I accept". Moth at first attempts to deny, before in a sleep deprived stupor repeats the agreement.

Ray asks Moth what moth had said, and Moth bolts awake. He begins quipping, and moth cuts him off, not even having enough time to tell Ray that Moth'd made a mistake before they're attacked by Botco Drones. They send Ray reeling across the road and rip his hood off, grabbing Moth out of him. Moth is dragged away and watches as Ray is further vivisected and set alight, before Moth was in the sky, the arms of the drone enveloping moth completely and putting moth to sleep.

## Outro - Failures

Nikignik waxes poetics about Failures. He tells the Dreamers that to 'err', they say, was human, which was well and fine for them, but he was not supposed to fail, to stray from the path laid out for him. It may bring them comfort to know that he was somewhat like them, but it bore none for him. He questions if the negative turn of events was because of something he'd done, somehow his fault. he was hopeful when all of it had begun, that it would work, that the change would be worth it, but now he was not sure. What if it was going wrong, becoming worse, and there was no promise of a better tomorrow? Regardless of what the future held; he would do his best. To remain, to continue watching. For their sake, and in the end, for his.