All Our Faults

A fault is a weakness, a defect, a fracture.

Faults divide, tear, and consume.

Here in the city of Chester's Chasm, we struggle to maintain that precarious balance

over the precipice in the earth, in our lives, and in our hearts.

This story is about 4 teenagers with faults of their own.

The fault between my faith and freedom.

The fault between my family and identity.

The fault between my choice and my obligation.

The fault between my life and death.

As these fractures grow, we stand at the edge and ask what must we sacrifice to state the

void's endless hunger.

Is it possible that the answer lies within all our faults?

Greetings and welcome to All Our Faults, a Monsterhearts 2 actual play podcast.

I am Mistress Winter and I will be your MC for the series.

This is the first episode in a prelude series that we are calling Faulty Flashpoints.

Here within we will get our initial look into the lives of our protagonists, as well

as some insight into how they became who they are when our story begins in earnest.

At the end of the episode, I have a few shout outs and thank yous as well as information

on how you might support the show if you feel so inclined.

Thank warnings for this episode include a vehicle collision with a fatal bodily injury.

The time codes for that will be in the episode description.

And now on with the show.

Faulty Flashpoint.

A Deal with Death.

(MC) Michael and Burt.

We are edging toward the end of summer.

Heavy rains and downpours have washed the city clean of the dust and grime but is now threatening

to flood certain areas, especially as it cascades down from the surrounding national parks

and into the basin and cascadian fault.

Burt.

What have you been doing this summer?

(BURT) This summer I have been delivering pizzas for Greasy Gary doing that around town and

then trying to keep up my sort of paranormal investigative services.

It hasn't gone super well because like during the school year I think it was going well

because there was always someone to talk to gossip to follow up on things like that.

But over the summer you know people are you know not really worried about such things

going on vacation stuff like that so it's kind of hard for me to find points of contact

or like new leads.

So I think I follow if I hear weird stuff while about delivering pizzas I'll kind of investigate

but for the most part just either delivering pizzas or at home playing video games.

(MC) Very cool.

Since you've been here for about a year or more you've explored many of the major paranormal

sites at least twice including Wonder Mirror Manor, former home to Captain Jameson Windemere

and his adoring wife, Adina.

You've gotten a few interesting recordings, strange noises, you felt the crawl up your spine

of the feeling that somebody was brushing past you when you were completely alone but nothing

big has shown itself.

Maybe you're leaving you a little bit disappointed.

Michael what have you been doing this summer post transformation?

(MICHAEL) I've been distant, I haven't seen him in a while and I've changed ultimately what I've

been doing is sneaking out at night and going to a club and probably doing things I ought

not to be doing and having a good time sometimes that's what I've been doing most of the time

but other than that I've really just been trying to figure things out and figure out how

to be me now.

(MC) Isn't doing bad things with got you into this particular trouble?

(MICHAEL) It might be, yeah but this is a new flavor.

(MC) Your sire is terse any time that you speak and has provided little assistance when it

comes to easing you through this transition and helping you to understand how this all

works.

Kind of they toss the bird out of the nest to see how it flies kind of thing.

(MICHAEL) Maybe but I'll figure it out.

(MC) He expects you to or else you are not worthy of the gift you had been given.

(MICHAEL)And I do know the consequences of failing.

(MC) You have the bodily harm to show it for what measure of bodily harm can become a vampire.

Who reaches out to who first?

(BURT) I think Burt would reach out to Michael just because he's like a bored and kind of wants

to see what kind of that feeling was over the school year.

They were friends maybe leading to something more.

I don't know so since pizza is not really doing it and like we just said I've been to all

the hotspots around town and really haven't found anything worth pursuing too much.

Maybe I'll try to hit up Michael and see what sparks are happening that way.

(MC) Do you like text or call?

(BURT) I think I'll text just LOLs.

Summer's been crazy right?

It's like the goofy emoji.

(MICHAEL) Hey, it's been a while.

(BURT) Yeah, it has.

How things been going with you?

It kind of disappeared after the end of the year celebration.

(MICHAEL) The summer's been a lot.

How are you?

(BURT) Yeah, I'm good.

You know, just going to the motions, not too much has happened.

And so I thought, hey, what's my old pal, Mike, up to?

(MICHAEL) It's been wild.

What are you up to tonight?

Not much unless I get a tip about something supernatural going on.

That's kind of in my focus.

But a nice chill night in seems like a good time to me.

(MICHAEL) For the first time in a while, Michael will smirk to himself at that one.

And he'll text back.

Well, I'm up for anything.

(BURT) Oh, okay, cool.

Yeah, let me get my bike and I'll start heading your way.

(MICHAEL) Okay.

(MC) Actually, this is a good time to ask, where do you live, Michael?

(MICHAEL) My family probably has a house and some sort of development, some sort of like shitty cookie

cutter development with like really nice houses.

Each of them is all the same.

They all have too many gables.

You know, like those stupid cookie cutter houses that are too expensive.

(MC) Welcome to Suburbia.

(MICHAEL) Yes, yes.

On like a hill somewhere, it probably has some stupid fancy name that has no bearing for

the like local geography, like hillside.

But it's the Pacific Northwest, so who cares?

I was like, Ridgecrest, you know, something like that.

(MC) Skyview.

(MICHAEL) Yes, exactly.

But of course, the view of the sky is obliterated by the mountains.

(MC) Very good.

How about you Burt?

Where do you live?

(BURT) I'm thinking somewhere kind of suburbia as well, just it has like a straight direct line

to downtown because dad works at the, you know, place downtown from suitable rep.

So I think he would just like a nice straight commute.

And so yeah, also something like Skyview or Ridgevale or something like that.

I don't know.

(MC) Ridgevale.

(BURT) Yeah.

(MC) All right.

So we have a sky view and Ridgevale.

I love it.

I would say that Skyview is probably a little more moneyed and the HOA there is just militant

about how the houses look, the lawn decorations and a tree has to be tree shaped, whatever that

means.

Whereas in Ridgevale, it's dipping toward the poverty line.

That's why it's closer to Southchester or as the people who reside and work there call

it the mall.

It's M-A-W, Not M-A-L-L.

(BURT) Okay.

Yeah, I think that's perfect because you know, we moved quick, moved fast, had to find a spot.

(MC) Yeah.

So it's riding the poverty line and the locals give it that fun name because it tends to chew

you up and spit you out.

And it does look like it's been mawed because the storefronts, the buildings, some of them

are abandoned, ready to be demolished, just the economic level of that area is apparent

everywhere you look.

So you jump on your bike and speed through the drizzling rain up to sky view.

You arrive at one of the many similar houses that you're only able to tell is Michaels

because Michael has something in the window.

What is the thing in the window that designates it as your room?

(MICHAEL) He probably has a lamp that's in the shape of the full moon that hangs in the like upper

half.

(BURT) Interesting.

(MC) Oh nice.

I like that.

So you pass by and you see the moon glowing between the curtains indicating that Michael

is up.

(BURT) So I think I go past it a little bit and I was like, oh, there's the moon and

I have to turn around real fast and quickly.

It's raining.

I've got my jacket over my own.

And then I just like run to the door and knock on it

and hope Michael lets me in because it's cold.

And I feel weird being here.

I'm from out of town.

Only been here a year and coming from the mall.

I don't really.

I don't know these people up here.

And I'm not sure where Michael and I are.

So there's just a lot of nervous just feeling out of place physically and also just

like, relationally with Michael.

Like it just came out of nowhere that he answered because I think I texted him a couple

times over the summer and he'd kind of quote unquote ghosted me.

So I'm kind of just a little confused what's going on.

And so yeah, just kind of nervously shifting my weight, knocking on the door straight

on my jacket because it kind of got crumpled.

(MC) Now Michael, your parents are typically out of the house.

They are in high powered professions which demands their attention more often than not leaving

you and your sibling alone at home.

Your brother get again answers the door.

And if I'm going off your particular looks, this young boy who answers the door and piers

out at Burt.

Shaggy blonde hair, the bluest eyes you've ever seen.

(MICHAEL) Very chervuic.

(MC) You can just tell when he grows up, he's going to be a heartbreaker.

(MICHAEL) Yes.

(BURT) Hey, hey, how's it going?

I'm Burt, I've been here a couple times before.

I don't know if you remember me.

You're getting in, right?

I'm here to hang out with your brother, Michael.

(MC) Michael!

(MICHAEL) I'll be right there.

(MC) He's coming.

Do you want to like come in and say it or something?

(BURT) Yeah, that would be awesome.

Thanks.

(MC) Oh, I got some new like bay blades you play with Beyblades?

(BURT) I haven't in a minute, but I'd love to see them.

They're always super cool.

Well, you got to come see my collection.

Like I've got the best collection in town.

(MICHAEL) Yeah, that's fine, Gideon.

Go away.

We're going to head out.

Okay.

Eat dinner and go to bed.

(MC) What about dinner?

(MICHAEL) Yeah, microwave something in the fridge.

(MC) Mom said you get dinner.

I don't...fine.

(MICHAEL) I'll be back later.

Just call me if you have any issues.

(MC) Okay.

(MICHAEL) All right.

Come on.

Let's go.

(BURT) Where do you want me to put my bike?

It's just kind of like sitting in the, laying in the yard.

(MICHAEL) It's fine.

Just put it in the garage.

We're going to take my car.

Oh, awesome.

(BURT) So I roll the bike over to the garage.

(MC) The garage is in pristine organization.

The parents drive their very expensive cars so they don't normally keep them in the garage

except when they're home.

And they definitely do not do any auto body work or any kind of hard labor at all.

So there's no tools, no, yeah, nothing that would indicate that they want to actually use

their hands to do anything.

It's mostly storage for Christmas or holiday decorations and such.

And there's also a little corner where there's supplies for the gardeners.

But anyway, you store your bike, prop it up and head back out.

(BURT) Yeah, head to the car.

(MICHAEL) Yeah, it's an old beater.

I probably inherited it from my father who just got a new car or something.

I just turned 16 and yeah, hop in.

(BURT) Oh, okay.

Cool.

Where are we going?

I thought we were hanging out here.

(MICHAEL) Yeah.

No, I don't want to be here.

Let's just like go out to the lighthouse or something just to get away.

It's been a while.

(BURT) Cool.

Yeah.

(MICHAEL) And then I'll drive on out.

Okay.

(MC) As you get in the car, the light drizzle that had been persisting all day grows into a

heavy downpour.

You can hear the heavy drops splashing chaotically on the canopy of your car and the hood and

windshield.

And then you start off toward the lighthouse.

(MICHAEL) And I imagine lightning starts to go off as we're driving.

(MC) It is in the distance.

(MICHAEL) Okay.

(MC) You know that you do that whole like count the seconds between the flash and the thunder.

There's a solid 10 seconds between flashes and thunder and it's very distant, but it's

coming.

So you head out, we'll say that it's pressing late into the evening and the sun is setting

if not already at the horizon, obscured by the heavy rain clouds.

Everybody has rushed home to get out of the storm, but the those who are still on the road

out there, a little bit rushed.

The trip out to Cape Mead is about 30, 45 minutes, giving you plenty of time, unless you stay

silent the entire time.

(BURT) I don't think so.

No, I think Burt is just kind of like, it's silent for a little bit, maybe like getting

out of the neighborhood and like maybe onto the, you know, the main road and everything.

And then he's like, so you said this summer has been crazy for you.

What's been going on?

(MICHAEL) It's just been through a lot of changes, you know?

And you might notice that Michael looks different.

He's almost preternaturally still.

He's paler, certainly.

And there's sort of just a different look about him.

If you were attracted to him before, you're definitely more attracted to him now.

And you can't quite place why.

(BURT) Okay.

Okay.

I think he would notice that and just kind of like, again, nervousness of like not where

it's sure where we are and then like, expecting to meet someone and like kind of meeting someone

different right now.

Not sure who this is even.

So he's just like, changes.

Okay.

Cool, man.

Like, that happens in life.

I get that.

You've just been, if you met some new people, like what's, I don't know, I've been kind of

since school and didn't really hang out with anybody from school.

I mean, you were kind of my best friend, so I thought, I don't know, maybe we could do something

together with your new friends or what's, so it's kind of the scene here.

(MICHAEL) You might say if that's some new people and I've just been under a lot of pressure.

I just, I don't know how to keep it up.

There's just so much going on and I'm expected to do so much.

And I just don't know how to pull it all off sometimes, you know?

(BURT) Are you like in some kind of trouble, like the town, the city where I'm from, I ran into

some shady people and I had to do some things I wasn't proud of.

So I think I get where you're coming from.

I didn't know that there was people like that out here.

This is like a sleepy little town.

(MICHAEL) Oh, they're everywhere.

(BURT) Okay, well, if you ever need any help or anything, I could try to help you out.

(MICHAEL) I don't think you can.

I just have to figure it out on my own, but it does mean something that you offer.

Thanks.

(BURT) Yeah, I mean, we were kind of the odd balls out at school, so we got to stick together if

we don't have each other.

Who do we have, you know?

(MICHAEL) Yeah, you know, I've had to do a lot of things I might not necessarily be so proud of, but

I don't exactly hate who I'm becoming, you know?

That doesn't exactly feel bad.

(BURT) Okay, it kind of depends on what sort of things you've been doing that you're not proud

of.

I kind of move some goods and valuables around back in the city where I was, you know,

used to live at for some extra money.

People would find things and I would take those things to other people that wanted them

and get paid for it.

(MICHAEL) Yeah, like what?

(BURT) You know, jewelry that was gotten maybe less than legally and also I found a few weird

like occult artifacts here and there.

So some people would like to pay, you know, you'd say that something is cursed and sometimes

if you go to the right people, they'll pay way more than what's actually worth if they

think there's some kind of added benefit or value to that

trinket.

(MICHAEL) Oh, that's interesting.

I've never heard of that.

(BURT) Yeah, I didn't really want to, but ever since my mom was diagnosed, we had to find

some way to pay for it.

So I thought maybe I'd chip in and get money to help around the house or anything.

(MICHAEL) Oh, right.

I'm sorry about that.

(BURT) Thanks.

It means a lot.

It's been a lot.

So I definitely understand changes.

Things are different now.

(MICHAEL) Yeah.

Yeah, things are really different.

(BURT) Different between like us?

What do you mean?

(MICHAEL) Well, that's not what do you mean?

(BURT) All last year we were best friends hanging out all the time and everything and then you

just disappeared and like I texted you a couple times and I hadn't heard anything and then

all of a sudden answered me today, which was super cool, but I don't know.

I don't want to be like left behind while you're going through your whatever is going

on with you.

(MICHAEL) Think I need to roll to keep my cool.

(MC) Please do.

(BURT) Oh, first roll of the game.

(MICHAEL) Oh, I need to look at my stats.

I don't think I did it.

Seven.

(MC) That is a partial success.

So in that case, what are you most afraid of, Michael?

(MICHAEL) I am afraid of, I think confessing or giving away any of my secrets.

I'm afraid of like letting it boil over, letting it out.

(MC) The temptation is certainly tearing you into in that one part, you don't want to be vulnerable

and you like your secrets, but on the other hand, you probably haven't shared this with anybody

and like the hunger that now churns at your insides, the need to share that also creates

this yearning for connection.

(MICHAEL) I just, I met someone who promised me something unimaginably incredible.

He promised me I could feel so special.

I gave him everything of myself and it cost so much and I can't take it back and I don't

know what to do.

And sometimes it feels so good, but I have to do so many things you could not understand

and sometimes I don't understand.

(BURT) Burt kind of shifts because it sounds like he's trying to like crush on Michael and Michael

is telling him about like a crush he has for it's like a little confused, but he's like,

Oh, okay, yeah man, like relationships sound like they're tough.

I can be here to listen, but like, yeah, it sounds like you've found somebody that I think

(MICHAEL) No, never like that.

(BURT) Okay, well like I said, if you need somebody to talk to, like I'm here, I think we're good,

so...

(MC) Burt, I'd like you to roll, keep your cool.

(BURT) Okay.

(MC) That is 2d6 plus cold.

(BURT) Okay, I wrote down what my stats are.

(MC) I hope so.

(BURT) I did.

So that is it, that's a two.

(MC) Oh, okay, so you're losing your cool, you know, you're trying to put on a face of, oh,

this totally isn't getting to me, I'm not fantasizing about Michael being with somebody

else.

How do you react?

How does that mask slip and that vulnerability express itself?

(BURT) I think definitely physically I kind of like turn away and kind of look out the window a

little bit more, just kind of like put walls up because I'm like, "Hey, I'm here, I'm trying

to be vulnerable."

And like even though Michael is sharing, it's not necessarily what I want to hear.

So I'm like, "Uh, yeah, that's cool, man, like, I don't know what, you know, what they

are to you, but like, I feel like I was a friend to you this whole time, freshman year,

and yeah, it just seems kind of crazy that you would just like stop hanging out with

me and hang out with this other person that's like kind of hurting you in some way, but like,

you do you, it's cool that we're hanging out now, but like, I wish we could have like, you

know, reconnected earlier than this, but I hope you figure out what's going on with your

new, new, new peeps or whatever.

(MC) The rest of the ride is this awkward tension between you two as the last leg of the trip

up to the lighthouse commences.

You pass by these shoddy, poorly constructed buildings and shacks that are used to hawk

various cheap goods and tourist fodder to the many people who visit the haunted lighthouse

and finally pull into the parking lot, very, very small parking lot just outside the lighthouse.

By now, the lightning strikes are more frequent and the space between them and their booms is

halved.

The wind is beginning to pick up.

(BURT) I think to break kind of the tension because like you said, that ride was in silence and

I'm like, once we park, I'm going to wait for a thunder clap and then where it's going

to be like, crazy fact, this parking lot actually used to be where the caretaker of the lighthouse

or his house used to be.

I investigated it in this area for spirits or whatever.

I do that on the side.

(MICHAEL) Where did you find that out?

(BURT) Looking through old library, text and just kind of hearsay.

I don't even know if it's true or whatever.

It's kind of something that came across.

(MICHAEL) You know, I do like that about you.

Your curiosity.

(BURT) Oh, yeah?

I mean, like you said, there's people everywhere and there's kind of like some of them

have some interesting stories and kind of baggage with them.

So it turns out I figured this out the hard way that not all of them have good intent.

So it's not really like my mission or anything.

I'm just me, but maybe if I could intercept them before they get to the people I care about,

maybe that'll help.

It's just whatever.

And I think I'm going to like try to like go to unlock the door and go to the lighthouse

or but I'm like doing it hasn't really because I'm not sure if I'm like getting out or

like what the deal is, but I'm just trying to like move things along.

(MICHAEL) Did you want to go outside?

It's raining.

(BURT) Yeah, no, I see that it's raining.

I just didn't know if you wanted to go to the lighthouse.

Did you just want to just hang out here?

(MICHAEL) I just thought we could hang out and talk.

(BURT) Oh, okay.

Yeah, cool.

Just kind of like shift back.

Did you have something you specifically wanted to talk about or?

(MICHAEL) I mean, not, I guess specifically, I just wanted to get out of the house.

And it has been a while.

(BURT) Yeah, no, I get that.

I get wanting to get out of the house.

That's why I deliver pizzas and I tried to stay at those after school stuff as much as

possible.

It's just because things are weird at the house for me too.

(MICHAEL) why?

(BURT) Changes like you said with mom gone.

It's a lot in my sisters.

She stayed.

She's in college and then dad and I, parents, they're weird or whatever.

He's taking this all weird.

He kind of just up and moved us to Chester's Chasm somewhere I've never even heard of before.

And he said he just wanted us to get a new start away from where we were.

So he's just working all the time, taking work trips, going to these different conferences.

Vitamax is an important company here and around the world.

So he's trying to move up the ladder.

I don't know what his end goal was.

He always wanted to keep us as a family happy.

But we're not happy now.

He's still pressing on to whatever.

(MICHAEL) Happy whatever is that?

(BURT) Right?

No clue.

(MICHAEL) I can't even begin.

I mean I've never seen anyone happy so.

(BURT) I don't know.

I feel like our family, we had it for a little bit and then it kind of went away.

But who knows maybe we can find it again somewhere.

(MICHAEL) Anything is possible it guess.

(BURT) And I guess so.

I guess so.

(MC) There is a massive crack, a thunder and the wind begins to howl and even rock the car

as it picks up to more forceful gales.

(MICHAEL) In that moment you might notice that Michael is staring at you.

(BURT) It's getting kind of crazy at her weather wise.

You think we should head back?

(MICHAEL) Sure.

Yeah, you want.

(BURT) I mean, I don't necessarily want it but I don't know, just kind of.

(MICHAEL) Yeah, we can.

Do you want me to bring you home riding your bike in this?

It's probably not the best idea.

(BURT) Yeah, that'd be cool.

You still remember where we're at, over in the Maw?

(MICHAEL) Yes, I know where you live.

(BURT) Okay, just been a minute, I don't know.

I barely remembered where you were.

I just think so that little moon in your window.

(MICHAEL) And I'll reverse out and start peeling away.

Maybe a little too fast.

(MC) Maybe the swarm of emotions may be overwhelming your darker side now and whatever those emotions

are completely up to you.

But emotions, positive or negative can impair our judgments.

So you head down and on the way, there's a bit of sketchy road.

It's narrow.

There's a guard rail.

It takes some caution and finesse to navigate safely.

As you careen down the steep decline back into the city, there's a flash of lightning that

lights the sky to near sunlight and directly in the middle of the road is a veiled figure

direct in your path.

Give me a run away.

(MICHAEL) Uh oh.

(MC) Yeah, run away.

That is a volatile.

(BURT) Oh, I don't like that little laugh.

My volatile is of minus one and without that, I rolled a four.

That's total of three.

(BURT) Oh no.

(MICHAEL) No need to fudge this one.

(MC) The strobe-like effect of the lightning, it's sudden brilliance and the appearance of

this person directly in front of you has you jerk in reaction.

And instead of veering left, which would have taken you further onto the road and allowed

a more or less safe passage past the individual if you didn't clip them, instead you went

right and hit the guard rail at such an angle that it just shears open.

You, Burt and the car, sail off the embankment into the cope of trees that are the only cushion

between you and the bottom of the small valley.

(MICHAEL) Uh oh.

(MC) The branches snap and smack against the car as it near free falls through the canopy.

Until the car comes to a violent jerking stop at their base.

Burt, you are going to take some harm.

(BURT) Okay.

(MX) Just simply from the blunt force trauma that you're going to experience in this crash.

So effectively you get something like two harm.

The car creaks and winds as it settles on the ground.

Burt, you come back to consciousness after blacking out very briefly.

What do you do?

(BURT) Yeah, just kind of like, uh, Michael, let's go on and I look over at Michael to make sure

he's okay.

(MC) Michael, you did not lose consciousness.

However, you do have a tree limb sticking out of your chest, pinning you against your seat,

Washburn style.

(MICHAEL) Mmm.

(MC) Firefly.

(BURT) It was too soon.

(MC) Too soon for Firefly?

(MICHAEL) It's always too soon.

(BURT) How dare you.

(MICHAEL) It'll be too soon in a hundred years, madam.

(BURT) So I just going to reach over Michael.

Hey, hey, come on.

I don't know.

I don't want to like remove the limb, but I'm just kind of like, I don't know what I'm

trying to do.

Like just kind of confuse and just like, uh, how can I help?

Are you there?

(MICHAEL) Like, uh, I didn't think.

I could die this fast.

(BURT) How are you talking?

(MICHAEL) And you might notice fangs protruding at this point as he's like, wincing in pain.

(BURT) I'm going to kind of like scoot away from you noticing the fangs.

I'm like, whoa, what's, what's going on?

(MC) Not only do you notice the fangs, but there is a significant lack of blood, not granted

with an impaled object, you're probably not going to get a lot until you remove it, but

even still you'd expect to see something.

(BURT) Right.

So yeah, I think I'm just going to kind of back up against the door away from Michael and

just like, uh, what's going on?

(MICHAEL) Did the branch hit my heart?

(MC) Clipped it.

(MICHAEL) Oh, lucky.

I'm going to try to remove it.

(MC) Roll me a volatile

(MICHAEL) Mm hmm.

Oh, six.

(MC) You can already feel your newly begotten strength draining from you as this thing has

sapped you.

(MICHAEL) Okay.

-rim shot-

(MC) And as you look beyond the shattered windshield where this branch protrudes out of, you

see the outline of that hooded figure. A light dim, like a candle or lantern seems to

float near the figure and it moves as the individual circles to the driver side of the car.

(BURT) I'm going to try to, even though this figure is coming towards us like, get there attention.

Hey, we need help.

Hey, can you help us out?

Like, we're in here.

(MC) The driver's side door is grasped and wrenched off the vehicle.

Like somebody just applied the jaws of life, sound of twisting metal screeches as they toss

it.

(BURT) Whoa.

And I'm going to like try to like, crane down and see like, what is going on?

(MC) The individual's heavy hood obscures any features of the very ambiguous shape of a face underneath.

You're not even certain that this individual has features to see as looking into that shadow

is like peering into the darkest void you've ever experienced.

(DEATH) Abomination, your end has come.

(BURT) Burt has like seen that void but like seen traces of it and his mother is kind of just like

who are you?

What's abomination?

What do you mean?

Are you here to help?

(DEATH) I do not help.

I do not harm.

I am simply inevitable.

I am here for this one.

Your time has been extended unnaturally and I will rectify it.

(MICHAEL) Michael will reach out to Burt pleadingly for help.

Like grab at his arm.

Weakly.

(BURT) Burt kind of pulls away a little bit at first just seeing the fangs and the bloodlessness

and like, not sure what, what all that means and then I'm going to kind of lean in and

I'm, there's got to be another way.

We're still young.

Like you can't just, I don't know who, what you are or what you want but we're okay.

Just help us, you know, to the hospital or we can walk away.

We're not, we're not finished yet.

(DEATH) This one was finished some time ago.

I am simply here to correct the cycle of life and death.

(BURT) He hasn't done anything wrong.

He's okay.

He's, he's here.

He's still got, I can, I don't know, I don't know who, who are you?

(DEATH) I am the inevitable end.

I am death incarnate and is time for you.

(MC) Looking to Michael.

(DEATH) And you're unnatural life.

(MC) And they reach out with a gloved but no less thin and skeletal hand.

(BURT) I'm going to try to gently put Michael's way closer to me rather than towards it.

I can't, you can't, you can't, you've already taken so much from me.

I can't let you take anything else.

Like, he's, he's fine.

He's moving.

He's, his eyes are fluttering.

He's still got a little bit in him like just, not now.

(DEATH) You'll pleas mean nothing.

(BURT) I'm not pleading.

I'm just asking you just to, we're okay.

We, we made it.

We survived.

It's, it's all right.

It's just let, let us go.

(MICHAEL) Please, please.

I can still live.

(DEATH) He is neither alive nor dead.

(MICHAEL) I am alive
(DEATH) He is in between.

(MICHAEL) I am weak.
(DEATH) I will usher him to death.

(MICHAEL) Let me go.

Please, I've done nothing wrong.

(BURT) I've done research in this area.

There, there's, apparently, there's a lot of different creatures stuck between.

So, what if we struck up some sort of deal?

You and I.

(MC) Death hesitates.

(DEATH) And what do you have to offer?

(BURT) You, you let us go and I will help take care of some of these, uh, abominations for you.

My, my services is limited as my skills are.

I've researched other and heard rumors of other abominations.

So, you let us go and I will help get rid of them, even the playing field, the balance.

I don't know how this works, but there's got to be some way that I can do something to appease the balance of the cycle.

(DEATH) You wouldn't commit yourself to my service.

If I allow this one's existence to continue.

(BURT) Yeah, I, I don't, I don't see what other options we have, but I don't, this can't be the end.

We can't be done.

Not now.

(MC) Instead of reaching for Michael, it reaches with its hand toward you, Bert.

(DEATH) For every year that you commit to my service, I will allow this creature to continue for ten.

(BURT) Okay.

And I think I like weekly reach out to like shake its hand.

(MC) As you grasp that frail leather-covered hand, there is a cold shock that ripples up your arm and strikes right at your heart.

It's like you get brain freeze right in the chest.

(DEATH) Very well.

(MC) They release your hand.

Grasp the branch, pinning Michael to the seat, rips it out and back through the window before digging their fingers into Michael's chest.

And there is a popping and cracking as Michael's body re-inflates and corrects itself.

And as a last flourish, the personification of death extends a business card.

(DEATH) Monday morning.

(BURT) I like weakly, like reach out and grab it.

Okay, where?

(MC) When you look up from the card, the figure and the light have vanished.

(BURT) Okay, so I just kind of look up like, "What, what do I, what do I do?"

And then I think I pass out.

(MICHAEL) Well, okay then, shit.

And then Michael, I guess, will call the police and get burnt taken home and make sure that card is stuffed in his pocket and never talk about this again until he has to.

And stock his good friend to make sure he never dies.

(MC) Very good.

(Mistress Winter) Thank you for listening and we hope you enjoyed this episode of All Our Faults.

Before you go, I would like to put out a couple of shout outs and thank yous.

First and foremost, a huge thank you to TableTop Talespinners Network for taking the chance on us and sharing the resources needed to produce this.

Especially the director Emma Kocar, who dedicates her valuable time to doing the rough edits for these episodes.

We love you and we appreciate you.

A shout out to our wonderful cast.

In this particular episode, we had Juicy Garland, who can be found at most social media sites @Juicygarland.

And then can be found on Instagram at the_BlindianOne.

You can find me, Mistress Winter, on most social media sites @gmistresswinter.

And a super special thank you to Zach and Nicole Tuttle-Robb from Ghostlight Media for your graciousness.

And allowing me to pester you with questions on how to produce a Monsterhearts podcast.

You, your cast, and your show are an inspiration.

Finally, a shout out to the musical artists who work hard to create amazing scores and allow us to use them.

They are truly the unsung or un-orchestrated heroes of my gaming tables.

They are credited in the show notes and I heavily encourage you to support them if you are able so that they can continue to do the good work.

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Buy us a cup of coffee or donate some digital pocket change so we can keep these productions going.

Thank you again and we will see you next episode.

This has been a tale from the Tabletop Talespinners Network.