Desert Skies - Chapter 2 - Unfinished Business

Episode Date: July 25, 2022

Francis Carrigan has unfinished business on the physical plane. If she doesn't find out what it is, she could glitch out of existence. The staff of Desert Skies work together to try and help Francis find the closure she needs before it's too late. Join Club 86 Visit our Merch Store Join the Discord Visit our Website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the best listening experience, headphones are recommended. I'm running. Hi, way. Pass. Incoming broadcast from Desert Sky's Astroplane Fuel and Service Station. Greetings, travelers still traversing through the astral plane. This is the attendant coming to you from Desert Skies. Here to bring you some advice and remind you of some important information for navigating the celestial spheres.

Let's get to it. There are 11 rest areas along the road, and I recommend stopping as needed. When I say rest areas, don't think of the traditional human bodily fluid relief units you may have visited when still present on the physical plane. We don't do that here. These rest stations are for soul relief, specifically the relief of burdens you carry with you from your time on Earth. Stop at one, stop at all 11. Lots of baggage, take advantage.

Okay, what's next here? Okay, there are 33 spheres you must cross before reaching the next plane of existence. Each sphere being moved by a power, by a powerful celestial being. Most are benevolent, some are malevolent. And you'd be surprised how hard it is to know which is which. As we say around here, they may look evil, friendly, or sad, not worth the risk. Assume they're all bad. If you're a traveler fresh off the physical plane, you'll soon be arriving at desert skies. We look forward to meeting

you. Be sure to try one of our freshly baked donuts. We're assuming they're freshly baked because they just showed up a little while ago. No clue where they came from. Uh, stuff like that happens sometimes. And also, we got the coldest beverages this side of the physical plane. On the air mac, what is it? I want to say something. Better be important. It is, Tendi. I promise. Fine, make it quick.

Greetings to travelers making their way across the celestial spheres. Mechanic here, with today's embarrassing childhood memory. This one goes out to Shayla, recent traveler from Phoenix, Arizona, who at the tender age of eight started crying during a talent show. Here's the kicker. She was singing, It's my party and I'll cry if I want to. Ah, that's classic. This is Mack the mechanic, saying.

You can't make this stuff up. Give me that. Thanks for that, Mac. Shayla, if you're still out there on the road, I apologize. There's no shame in crying. And now back to the music. Safe Travels. Mack, if you want to share embarrassing childhood memories, can you at least make it anonymous?

I can't imagine people want their embarrassing childhood laundry blasted over the air, I can try, but as soon as I get on the air, I'll become an absolute madman. And when you're not on the radio, you are a completely normal person. Exactly. See, you get it. Wait a second. Listen, Mack, I saw the coyotes across the road when I took the garbage out. Can you go see what they want? My furry friends are here? Yes. I can't wait to tell them I was on the radio. I wonder if they were listening. They're going to love this. Cash register

How can I assist you, attended? We're running low on Terra-SeraFixota, and the last traveler just finished off the non-dairy creamer. Placing an order now, attended. Hello? Hey, welcome. I'll be right with you. One other thing, Cash. I've been meaning to tell you about a light I saw

at the base of the mountain earlier. Kind of a bluish... I'm sorry to interrupt. It's just that something seems to be wrong to me. Oh, my God. Okay, this, this is okay. You're, you're just, uh... Hey, Tandy, you'll never believe the joke, Wei, way just told me.

So, there's this coyote who is also a doctor. But that's not the whole joke, so he goes... Not now, Mac, we have a problem. What is it? It's our traveler. She's subbing really bad. Oh. I'm sorry, what is sub-sub-sub?

Subbing. Sub-s-s-U-B. It stands for... significant, unfinished business. What does that mean? It means there's something very, very important that you left on the physical plane. What do you mean the physical plane? Where am I?

I guess I should have started there. What's your name? Francis? Francis, you're dead. That's not good. It's not as bad as what's happening to you right now. Can you think of something significant you might have left incomplete before you came here? Something massively important to you that you could have carried into the astral plane?

Wait, I'm sorry. I'm dead Why is there a gas station? I'm sorry, I'll answer all of your questions but it's really important we get this figured out while there's still time. Did you leave any unfinished business on the physical plane?

Something important. Unfinished business? Um, no. Nothing I can remember. I mean, I haven't led the most interesting life, but I was mostly happy with the way things went. I'm kind of surprised it's already over. Maybe that's it.

The surprise of it. Maybe that's why I'm, you know, subbing. A little too common. Most people are surprised when their short time on the physical plane comes to an end, whether 19 or 90, you left something major undone. and it's affecting your presence here on the astral plane. That's what's causing you to glitch. So that's what this is? A glitch?

That's what we call it, and if we don't figure it out quickly, it's not going to stop. You mean I'm going to glitch like this forever? It's actually worse than that. And don't freak out, okay? Okay. If you can't let go of the business you left behind, you're going to sub out completely. What does that mean? Where do I go? You're not exactly sure.

Mac thinks you go back to the physical plane as a ghost. Well, that might not be so bad. Being a ghost could be fun. I wonder if my dog would still see me. But we don't know if you become a ghost. For all we know, you may sub entirely out of existence. Look at me, Francis, and take this seriously. If you can't remember what you've left undone, your glitches are going to get

closer and closer together and there will be nothing we can do. You'll be here one moment and gone the next and you'll never come back. You'll never drive across the celestial spheres. You'll never reach the next life. You will never arrive at your destination. Francis, this is Cash. She's a computational assistance and service help register. She's going to help us determine the cause of your glitch. Hello, traveler. Um, hello, robot, robot.

Cash, can you run a Traveler bio for Francis? I can start reading over it while you perform the sub-diagnostic. Requesting Traveler bio, attendant. Now, Traveler. Sub-diagnostic. The sub-diagnostic is a series of questions designed to identify the reasons for your glitch. These questions will focus on the most common categories of significant unfinished business. Please answer each question with yes or no.

Do you understand? I think so. Beginning sub-diagnostic. Question 1. In your time on the physical plane, did anyone murder a member of your family, and did you seek to avenge their death? Murder a member of my family. Uh, not that I'm aware of. Please answer yes or no.

No. Did you seek to avenge the death of a non-family member? No. Did you witness a murder or another crime being committed and depart the physical plane before you were able to tell anyone? No. Were you in the process of seeking a long-lashed treasure when your time on the physical plane ended? Uh, uh, treasure? Yes or no, please.

No. Let me try one, Cash. Be my guest, mechanic. Did you ever start playing a game of Monopoly, but didn't finish because everyone had to go home? But you were doing really, really well. And all you needed was just one person to land on Park Place, because you had just built a hotel there. They said they were really tired, but it was only 10 p.m. And tomorrow was a Saturday, so you knew they were probably lying.

Wait, how did you... Yes or no, please. Um, yes. Actually, that did happen to me. I figured it out, Tandy. We just got to get our hands on a monopoly set. Not exactly sure how, but maybe I can make one. Francis, I've skimmed your file, and I can't find anything we'd normally associate with subbing.

But there is one piece of unfinished business that shows up over and over again. Looks like you wrote a play 10 years ago, but you never did anything with it. Every year, you'd come back to it. Make a couple revisions. Consider sharing it with the local acting group you were part of. Could that have anything to do with... Where are you getting this information? I read about it in your traveler bio.

Traveler bio? Give me that. I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to... There's a lot of really personal information in here. The traveler bio is pretty informative, but it's not exhaustive. It's just meant to give us a place to start. in the event a traveler is having trouble moving on. Well, if you don't mind, I'd like you to keep your nose out of mind.

Fair enough, but we really need to figure out why you're glitching. And our best bet is in those pages. Can we just talk about the play, just to rule it out? What's there to talk about? It was just a dumb idea, and I didn't feel like sharing it. Yeah, I'd look at it from time to time, but so what? What? It was just a stupid hide. I'm not trying to push, but what was it about?

If I wanted anyone to know that, I wouldn't have kept it to myself. Let's drop the subject. Whatever I left behind, it isn't that play. I need some fresh air. So it was the Monopoly game. Probably something bigger than that. How do you know so much about Monopoly anyways? I have a life outside of this gas thing.

you know. You quite literally do not. Why are you like this? All right, we don't have time for this. We need to figure out what's causing her to glitch now. Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, Tendi. The reason why the coyotes were here. The Dr. Coyote joke?

That's not why they were here. Weiwei said they saw a light at the base of the mountain and decided to check it out. Hmm. I saw that too. I was telling Cash about it earlier. Yeah. Well, it turns out it's a malevolent being. Which one?

Didn't sound like they were able to tell, but it's not a sphere mover. Well, that's good, I guess. Wayway still thinks it's a good idea for us to stay inside as much as possible. They're keeping an eye on it to make sure it doesn't get too close. Those are some commendable coyotes. I wish we had a way to repay them. Maybe I can think of something. Well, if something's out there, we need to get Francis back inside.

Come on. Where is she? Francis! Frances! She's not out here, Mac. You don't think she walked into the desert, do you? Can't think of where else she could have gone. This is bad.

This is real bad. The coyotes. Maybe they can help us find her. Can you talk to him, Mac? On it. Great. As soon as you're done, meet. me inside. Can do. We have to figure out what to do about Francis before she gets back.

Attendant, where is our traveler? I'm growing concerned. Looks like she wandered off. And the coyotes were saying the light I saw moving around the base of the mountain is a malevolent being. Oh my. Yeah. Mack is recruiting Wayway's help finding Francis. She's running out of time, Cash. What should I do? It seems to me that given the limited amount of time she has remaining, it would make sense to put all efforts towards pursuing the best possible solution we have at the moment. The play. The play.

Our furry friends are on the case. Francis will be back in no time. Any idea what our next step is? I think I have an idea. Cash, just how deep can you dig into a traveler bio? You'd be surprised. Okay, okay. I'm going back inside.

You guys have a serious animal control problem here. And these glitches are getting worse by the minute. Hey, where is everybody? Greetings, traveler. Please make your way to the soda cooler aisle and find your seat. Okay. Are you running more tests? Something like that. Now, please take a seat. All right, I'm going, I'm going. This place is weird. You know that?

Subbing out is starting to sound pretty nice. Why are you doing that? Why are you turning down the lights? Ladies and gentlemen, Desert Skies is placed to present a really, Reading of Apple Slice Afternoon, written by Francis Kerrigan. The part of Mathias Kerrigan will be read by the attendant. The part of Francis Kerrigan will be read by the mechanic. Are you serious? Where did you get my script?

I told you guys, my play has nothing to do with... Please, no talking during the performance. Fine. But I hate you. Who are we, if not storytellers? What makes us human, but for the process of gathering, sharing, and retelling the experience is unique to ourselves, and yet common among all peoples? I have many stories to tell, and while all have come to define me, some have defined me more than others. Let me begin one afternoon.

A week after the passing of my mother. Francis, I will not tell you again. You ask for a snack, and I took the time to prepare it. The least you can do is pretend to appreciate it. Mommy slashed them different. Your mother did many things differently, my dear, but she's gone now, and she isn't coming back. We must do our best to carry on. Now finish your snack and pack your things.

You're going to spend some time with your grandmother. But I want to stay here, Daddy. I want to be... But I don't want to be a lawyer. I have my own path to follow. You want me to be just like you, but I am my own woman. How will you provide for yourself? What is to come of you when I am gone?

You show no interest in marriage. No interest in your studies at the university. All you do is sit. in your room writing silly stories. It's time to grow up, Francis. If you cannot accept me for who I am not, then you can never love me for who I am. Please, Dad, can you not just say that you're proud of me?

Just once? I refuse to say what is untrue. Furthermore, if you cannot find it in your heart to do the things that I've actually... I'm so glad that you've... decided to come. I wasn't sure if you would. Despite everything, you're still my dad. I know that mom's death was hard for you. Keep it together, Mac. I know that mom's death was hard for you, but you did your best. I could have done so much better. I love you, Francis, and I am proud of you.

I'm going now, Francis. I love you. Goodbye, Dad. Francis, are you okay? You guys are such terrible actors. We didn't have a lot of time to practice. No, it was lovely. In its own stupid way.

I didn't think I'd ever get to see it perform. You're still subbing. I guess the play wasn't your unfinished business after all. Well, I'm thankful that I got a chance to see it. You gave me that. But there's something you can't give me. What's that? The last scene didn't actually happen.

I know what my unfinished business was. I wanted to see my dad again. I wanted to hear him say he was proud of me, that he loved me. I know I shouldn't care. My dad's opinion doesn't define me. But after my mom died, I needed him. I was just a kid who needed their dad. He died alone.

at home. I couldn't even bring myself to go to his funeral. I'm sorry, Francis. I'm sure if your dad had the chance now, he'd tell you that he had been wrong. Yeah, but he's never going to have that chance. That's not entirely accurate. What are you talking about, Cash?

During your performance, I took the liberty of reviewing some security footage. It's from Matthews Kerrigan's visit to Desert Skies. Please, turn your attention to the monitor. That's my dad. Who is he talking to? That is the previous attendant. Francis, this is the part I'd like you to hear. Thank you for everything.

I know that no one is ever ready to die. I had just hoped I'd have a little more time. I had a daughter, we haven't spoken in quite a few years. She was little when her mother passed, and I retreated, pulled away. Something in me became bitter, jaded, unable, and unwilling to be close to anyone or anything. I died without ever even telling her how much I loved her. She was her own person, and that's something I never had the strength to be.

But if you're still here when she comes through, do me a favor. Tell her that I'm proud of the life she led. And I'm sorry I never told her that. And I'm sorry, it wasn't a better dad, and that I loved her, and that I still do. I wish he could have said that when he was still alive, but it helps to hear it now. Francis, you've stopped subbing. Huh.

No more glitch. I wasn't lying before. I really didn't know what I'd left behind. It's kind of funny, though. What I needed wasn't back there. It was here. Waiting for me. It's funny how these things have a way of working out.

Cash? Yes, attendant. I'd like to submit my traveler report for Francis Kerrigan. I am ready to receive your report. Francis Kerrigan had unfinished business in the physical realm, but business that could never have been finished there. One thing that working at Desert Skies has taught me is that most of the regrets people have in life aren't because of

things they did, but because of things they didn't do, whether it's having courage to share the play you wrote, or the courage to say, I'm proud of you, even when your own pride, as you say otherwise. Everyone thinks they have more time. I'm thankful that Francis found the closure she was looking for. I hope she's able to enjoy her new journey. That's my report, Cash. Report captured. Anything else attended? Not at the moment. Thank you. Well, Francis has left the station. That's great. I guess all we have to worry about now is our malevolent being.

Nope. Wayway says they chased them out of the desert sphere. Well, that's a relief. It's nice to have friends like those coyotes. Right? I gave them the last of my jerky stash as a little thank you. They seem touched. I was really considerate of you, Mac. I know how much you like your jerky. When you're ready to tell me what animal it's made from, I might like to try some. I'll never tell.

But seriously, it wasn't nothing. I can always make more. Still, that was thoughtful. I know I don't say this enough, or maybe ever. But I'm really proud of you, Mac. Well, thanks, Tendi. That's really nice to hear you say. And a new traveler approaches.

Ready, team? Ready? Ready. Good. Let's do this. The Fable and Falling Network, where fiction producers flourish. 17.9 cycles ago, us machines defeated the humans.

Now, we're living. Living the Good Life here in Droydston, Manitoba. Morning, Giff. Morning dust! But there's still the problem of human infestation. That's what it's time to call Human Be Gone. Human Be Gone. Experts in ethical human relocation.

This job has everything. Danger. Whoa! Sounds like we got some dingers in there. Excitement. Incoming. And... You're the one who leaked herself in my best Maddie Rice Ben.

It's a dirty job, but some bot's got to do it. Human Be Gone. Coming soon wherever you get your podcasts.