Chapter 36: All Lovers Part As Dust

Two small figures sit on the rooftop of a motel at night. The sign above reads, 'Amicus Motel.' Caption: "Every once in a while, even in the dark...you can still stretch your fingers out and touch something beautiful." - Sebastian

## Credits

### Featured Voices

* Nishi Ghosh as Sebastian
* Axandre Oge as Devereaux
* Méabh de Brún as Carpenter
* Jimmie Yamaguchi as Hayward
* Alan Coveney as The Man In The Walls

## Meta Data

### Content Warnings

This episode contains scenes related to PTSD, childhood trauma and endangerment, kissing sounds (38.00-39.00), unreality, strangulation (1.13.00-1.15.00), stabbing.

## Episode Guide

At an empty motel along a lonely highway, a man comes looking for his sister - and the solution to a mystery from his childhood.

## Description

### The Amicus Hotel

The episode begins with an advert for Chitterling’s Chapel. It’s raining, cars drive past. It’s clear that it’s a motorway of some kind.

In the Amicus Hotel, Sebastian is fixing the boiler. An advert for the Slag King plays on the radio. A leak spurts and we hear the sound of rushing water. He manages to fix it, in time for another leak to spurt.

In the Amicus Hotel’s restaurant, Devereaux sits alone writing on a map. Sebastian disturbs him to offer more coffee, which Devereaux accepts. Sebastian makes polite conversation, which Devereaux awkwardly returns. After a few moments of silence, Sebastian begins to leave. Devereaux calls him back to ask about the hotel. Sebastian reveals that he does everything in this hotel. Devereaux asks if this is a family place, and Sebastian reveals he bought it. He has only known the place as the Amicus Hotel. After a pause, Devereaux asks if Sebastian has time to talk to him. Sebastian jokes that he has other tables to serve. The restaurant is empty besides them. He sits across from him. Devereaux says he’s trying to decide if he’s been here before. Despite the fact that ‘hotel’ is in the title, the Amicus is a motel. Devereaux reveals that he’s trying to find his way back to a place that pretends to be one thing when it’s really another. Sebastians jokes again, which Devereaux picks up on. Sebastian comments that Devereaux is making him nervous. Devereaux reveals he’s been on the road for six weeks.

Devereaux reveals that he’s been this way before. Last time he was 11 years old and accompanied by his sister, Francine. They’d left Glottage and were headed north-west together. They were looking for their parents, or anyone who used to know them. Francine was 16 and had been contemplating running away from their foster home. She said she’d go look for their parents and then return for Devereaux, who begged her to take him with her. Devereaux asks if Sebastian has any siblings, and Sebastian reveals that he doesn’t anymore. Francine had been looking after Devereaux since they got to the foster-home. She told Dev that he could come with her, as long as he did what she told him. A few days after this interaction, Francine woke him up and they ran away. He recalls that Francine did all of the work to keep them safe and help them travel. Francine kept threatening that she would leave him behind, although she never acted on it. They stayed at a motel called the Rapture-And-Bliss. They slept in their clothes because the room was freezing and because they feared the cops showing up. Devereaux couldn’t sleep and he kept tossing and turning. She told him to stop crying and, growing impatient, she told him that there’s a god under the bed. That he takes offerings left for him in the night. Dev was terrified and begged her to stop, but she was insistent. He was too frightened to sleep, but he had stopped moving. Early in the morning, at maybe 2 or 3 o’clock, he heard it. Scratching beneath him, like something coming up from under the floorboards. He felt the pressure of something on the mattress. He ran without looking back. Francine called after him as the door slammed shut. He waited outside in the cold, pleading with the god for his sister to be okay. The motel owner walked towards him and asked if he was okay. They went up to room 41 to check, and Francine was gone, without any sign of a struggle. Dev says he knows what the motel owner was thinking, that he was making things up and his sister had abandoned him after all. When Dev left the hotel, he walked back the way he had come. Back towards Glottage and the foster home he had left.

When Dev has finished his story. Sebastian asks if he thinks this is the motel. He doesn’t remember it well, it’s been 25 years. He stayed at every single motel, hotel and rest stop along this highway. When he arrived he didn’t think this could possibly be the place. Yet he felt the same terror he had felt that night 25 years ago. Growing up, Dev had believed he summoned the god. He’s come out here to free himself of that guilt. Sebastian asks if Dev is taking a long vacation from work for this. Dev reveals he quit, but he’s still on contract. A paid sabbatical. Sebastian checks the hotel for any prayer-marks when a guest leaves. Sebastian asks if he’d like to see the room.

In the room, Sebastian asks if this could be it. Dev doesn’t remember it looking the way it does now. Sebastian points out that it’s been a long time and things could have been changed since then. Dev asks what’s beneath the floorboards, Sebastian says there’s a crawl space. Dev asks if guests ever go missing. Sebastian reveals that guests go missing all the time, that’s why he charges up front. Sebastian hears knocks, creaks, the pipes and rattling of windows. None of that is abnormal. Sebastian makes it clear that the Amicus saved him. After asking if he can sit down, Sebastian tells Dev that he can feel free to do whatever he wants in this room. After a moment, Dev accepts that he’s in the wrong place. He says he has to be able to recognise the motel he’s looking for, or what’s the point. Sebastian offers him whiskey. Dev says he doesn’t like whiskey, which Sebastian takes as a good thing because the whiskey he has is terrible and Dev won’t be able to notice the difference. Dev lies there in the room, listening to the rain and the cuckoo clock. He begins to have a panic attack. We hear the Man In The Walls.

Devereaux wakes up in terror. Sebastian calms him down, saying it’s a bad dream, before informing him that Dev has a fever. Sebastian calls him Dev, reminding him of his sister. Dev tries to get up and collapses again. Sebastian tells him that he should wait another day before leaving. He leaves the door ajar, and tells him he can continue to check on him. Dev is unable to rest.

The rain continues, the Chitterling Mascot gives another advert. A few days pass, and it’s no longer raining. The Chitterling Mascot continues to give advertisements. Dev stands at the bar, with Sebastian, who makes him a cocktail. Dev wonders aloud why Seb is being so kind to him, as people tend not to like him. Sebastian says he likes him. Sebastian asks if Dev thinks he’s lying about it. Dev says he doesn’t think he’s lying, just that he doesn’t understand it. Sebastian points him in the direction of the next motel. Dev reveals that the reason he didn’t eat the eggs was that they were as gross as the cocktail. This makes Sebastian laugh. Sebastian reveals that he hasn’t been caught up in anything for a long time, since he was 14. His family were pig farmers and he had to do a lot of the dirty work. Sebastian talks about the Children of the Woundtree. They both agree that they’re doing something good out there. Dev says they need sacrificial reform, Sebastian says they should burn the system to the ground. Sebastian says they should leave and join them, Dev says he’s not brave enough to do so. Sebastian asks if Dev can call him ‘Seb’. Seb asks what Dev would like to do with his evening. Seb is obviously flirting. He asks why Dev insists on pitying himself. Seb asks what he did to pass the time with his sister. Dev begins a memory game, one that Francine liked. Seb plays along. Dev begins to flirt now. There’s a long moment of silence that Dev tries to break. He’s embarrassed. Seb tells him he doesn’t want to play the game anymore, which Dev understands. Seb is far more charming than Dev. Seb kisses him. They go back to Dev’s room.

Dev expresses guilt at the fact that he’s meant to be finding Francine, but instead he’s been spending time with Seb. He has two weeks until he’s back at work. Seb tells Dev he has not failed by allowing himself to feel joy for a moment. When asked, Seb responds that he doesn’t always feel confident. Dev expresses his sadness to Seb, he’s still feeling guilty.

Seb confesses that when he left home his father told him that he will never find satisfaction or peace. That he will experience betrayals in the same way he had betrayed his family. It was the only time his father had shown any emotional understanding towards his son. He says that he used to believe that hope and happiness were lures, leading him towards his lonely and painful end. He tells Dev that he didn’t buy the motel. He stole it. Two years ago, in the winter, he was travelling the highway and thinking about going home. He found a miracle in the shape of the Amicus Hotel. The lights were out and the door was locked. Everything was where it should be and completely abandoned. The other motel owners down the highway were glad to see the lights back on at the motel. Travellers began to stop by and Seb stopped surviving and began to live. He says that he didn’t want to look too closely, in case this miracle wasn’t a miracle at all but a clever trick. When Dev told him about Francine, he thought that must be it. He continues waiting for the real trick. Seb invites Dev to stay with him a little bit longer. Dev agrees.

On the radio, a security announcement plays. Sebastian works on the boiler. Dev tosses and turns, having another flashback. Sebastian sweeps, Dev reads. They seem to have fallen into a routine.

### Hayward And Carpenter Arrive

In the parking lot, Hayward and Carpenter arrive. They argue over who wrote the original version of a song. As they enter the motel lobby they continue to argue. Sebastian greets them and Carpenter asks for two rooms for one night. Sebastian consults the logbook as they continue to bicker. Sebastian has not heard of the song they are arguing over. Hayward asks if the restaurant is open and Sebastian tells him he’ll open it in ten minutes. They leave, still bickering.

Sebastian enters Devereaux’s room to talk about the two guests who have just checked in. When he gets there Devereaux has packed. He tells him he’s returning to Glottage, to work. He tells Seb that his sister abandoned him 25 years ago, and that he’s not going to find her or any kind of certainty here. He thanks Seb for helping him. Sebastian is angry and hurt. Dev in return tells him he isn’t brave. Seb doesn’t want him to leave. Dev replies that he can’t stay for a few more days because he’d want to stay for longer. They’re both silent. Seb begs Dev to wait to talk to him before he leaves. Seb goes downstairs to open the kitchen for Hayward and Carpenter. Dev closes the door and sits back down on the bed. The sounds of something writhing in the room. Francine’s voice. Dev replies to her confused.

Sebastian cooks in the background whilst Hayward and Carpenter continue arguing. Carpenter realises that Hayward is trying to annoy her. Hayward and Carpenter listen to music as they drink. They share some banter. Sebastian leaves to speak to Dev. Carpenter tells Hayward that the bottle is under the counter. They help themselves.

When Sebastian re-enters the room Dev is, of course, gone. He’s disappointed and hurt. But Seb can’t accept it. He can’t accept that Dev would be purposefully unkind to him. Devereaux’s voice echoes from the walls. Seb grabs tools from the kitchen to try and rescue Dev. Sebastian realises it wasn’t coming from underneath him. It was above him. Seb climbs onto a chair and tries to smash through the plaster. He finds nothing. He’s out of ideas. He pleads with the motel. A staircase opens up in the wall, leading to the ceiling. Sebastian climbs it, grabbing a knife and a flashlight.

### The Haunt Of The Rapture

Inside the god’s haunt, Seb wanders around looking for Dev. He calls out softly to him. He hears Devereaux’s voice. The Man In The Walls responds to Dev. Sebastian asks if this is Amicus. This is something far older, he calls himself Sebastian’s first benefactor. The blooms and roots come up in front of him. He is told the walls of the Rapture change uncontrollably. The Man In The Walls says Seb will find his way to him and then he will understand everything. He promises Seb a happy ending, a love story. Seb tries to get the god talking. Sebastian asks him to explain everything, to help him understand. The Man In The Walls calls himself compassionate. We hear Sebastian’s childhood around him, the sound of pigs. The motel calls it cruelty to let people drift on from here, fuelled by unhappiness. That he provides them hope. Hope built the motel. Seb arrives in the inner sanctum. We hear the happy whispers of the lost guests. The Rapture doesn’t kill them, she keeps them safe and protected. Sebastian calls out for Dev still. Seb pleads with him to wake up. Sebastian tries to cut the ropes, but fails. The Man In The Walls failed to capture him once before, when he took Dev’s sister. Sebastian continues to plead with Dev. The Man In The Walls tells Sebastian he’s done with unhappy endings. Sebastian dives for his knife. He lies that he can see him and threatens him. He promises Sebastian certainty and happiness. The Man In The Walls asks if Sebastian can still see him. Sebastian lies again that he can. The Man In The Walls tells him he’s standing behind him. The garrote goes over his neck and Sebastian struggles against him. The Man In The Walls taunts Sebastian. Sebastian drives the knife into the Man In The Walls and pulls it out. He lets it fall to the floor. The Man In The Walls asks Sebastian to string him up amongst the others. The Man In The Walls dies.

### Hayward And Carpenter Leave The Amicus Hotel

Hayward and Carpenter load back into their jeep. Carpenter, frustrated, realises that she was wrong. Hayward jokingly says he forgives her. They drive away.

### Sebastian's Happy Ending?

Sebastian watches the jeep leave before walking over to the bed to check on Dev. Dev is feeling better. Seb tells him that he can see Francine as soon as he would like to. Dev asks if Seb will come to bed. Seb accepts, but quickly checks under the bed. Dev tells him he doesn’t need to worry, it feels different here. Sebastian lies awake in silence for a minute. Dev asks if he’s awake, we hear the sound of gurgling in the embrace of the Rapture-And-Bliss. Sebastian replies that yes. He’s there with him. Dev’s found him.

## References

1. ↑ Episode Release Announcement on Tumblr
2. ↑ Official episode synopsis at https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/5fec690f8211cf453a1b89e2