Ep.234 – Christmas at Pendleton Way Station - A Holiday in the APOCALYPSE

WEBVTT

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It's the most wonderful time of the
year, unless the year is two thousand

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and ninety nine, in which case
the world is a healthscape full of marauders

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trying to harm you, and worse
yet, Santa Claus himself. But he's

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gone mad and become bloodthirsty. What's
that You want to be scared? Come

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with me. He will experience tales
over opera, ghosts, and death dead.

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It is not recommended for the week
at heart listen as in the dark,

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it's more fun at that way way. This is Weekly Speaking. Hello,

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my spookys, It's Friday and it's
the holiday season, so of course

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I'm back here for you with another
spooky for your Weekly. I'm your host

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and narrator, Enrique Kuto. When
we have quite a story for you tonight

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as we head into the future the
year two thousand and ninety nine to be

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exact, to find out just what
the holidays are like after the hell Weaver

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has committed an apocalypse to Strickfield and
beyond. But before we get to that

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story, why not consider giving yourself
a little Christmas present by heading over to

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Weeklyspooky dot com and signing up for
our Patreon For as little as one dollar

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a month, you get access to
two exclusive stories every month. This week,

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you'll be treated to part three of
a twelve part series called The Weekend.

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It takes place in the Strickfield universe, which you've grown accustomed to through

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years of enjoying Weekly Spooky. This
one is about a group of college kids

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from North Ridgeway who are on their
way to the abandoned camp Rolling Acres just

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outside Strickfield for a weekend of fun, intentionally leaving they're smartphones behind. But

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little do the group realize they're being
targeted by someone who may have a history

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with more than one of them.
Will every member of the group make it

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out alive? Well, you'll have
to subscribe to Patreon to find out.

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Just go to Weeklyspooky dot com,
click on Patreon and subscribe for as little

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as one dollar a month and you'll
get to listen to the exclusive series The

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Weekend by Rob Fields. But that
all being said, we now have Rob

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Field's latest masterpiece right here for you. And I also want to mention we

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have a very special show tomorrow where
we're going to head to the valley with

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our good buddy Charles Campbell's story Santa's
little helper, and I'll tell you right

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now he's up to no good.
But for tonight's story that's about to start

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right now, So get comfortable,
have yourself a candy cane, because the

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story starts right after these quick messages. Christmas at Pendleton Station by Rob Fields.

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I have had much time to ponder
things since my birth on October thirty

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first, two thousand and ninety nine. First, I would awaken in a

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crypt and leave it to find my
way to what was once the village of

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Strickfield. I would only get to
learn very little there, since I was

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attacked and captured by a cowardly despot
named Sarathos, who would prove to be

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my first challenge. After defeating him
and freeing several organic women whom he captured

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for an offering to hell Weaver,
I received new mission files. Currently I

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am en route to the Pendleton way
Station. Bear in mind that this destination

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is not part of the village of
Pendleton itself. There is a vital component

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that I must acquire for when I
reach my destination in Shore City. Upon

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completion of my other mission objectives.
I should have arrived at Pendleton way Station

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many days ago Shortly after I began
my journey, I was forced to engage

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a pack of werewolves in battle.
After defeating them, I continued on with

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my journey. Nearly a week later, I determined that the sun would rise

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again and needed to seek shelter.
I found an abandoned dwelling and waited the

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seemingly endless day out. I would
have to be with patient, since I

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recalled in a former life that sunlight
was deadly to me. The day began

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on the second week of November and
lasted nearly a month. Fortunately, I

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do not require susten it's the way
organic beings do. However, I would

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require plant based nutrition in order to
maintain my skin base. Descending the basement,

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I discovered many bottles of vintage wine. Scanning the bottles, I determined

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the wine to be quite suitable and
gradually consumed it. When Earth had finally

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moved to where the sun would finally
set, I was able to finally leave

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the dwelling and continue on my journey. I walked many desolate roads and through

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dense forests until I would reach the
railroad tracks that I required. I had

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not walked a mile upon the tracks
when a snowstorm began. The winds would

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remind me of my berth in that
crypt on Halloween night. According to my

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internal clock, the day is December
twenty first, two thousand and ninety nine.

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Unfortunately, these random weather patterns and
long days and nights happened as a

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result of the hell Weaver Holocaust of
October three first, two thousand and thirty.

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Hell Weaver was victorious against the Battleguard, who opposed her and conquered the

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multiverse using the reality sphere. She
only proved victorious because one of the battle

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guard turned against her allies and joined
hell Weaver. With the epicenter of the

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hell Weaver Holocaust being upon this world, the Goddess herself unleashed the power of

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the reality sphere. It was this
event that forever altered Earth's axis. Thanks

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to my advanced software, I am
able to determine how long the days,

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nights and weather patterns will last.
The night shall last until the first hours

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of December twenty fifth, two thousand
and ninety nine. That shall be sufficient

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time for me to reach the Pendleton
Way Station. This is the first time

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that I have experienced winter weather since
my birth. I can feel the cold

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in the wind and the snow.
No organic being of this world could endure

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these conditions without suitable clothing. Organics
would look upon me and determine that I

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am not adequately dressed for these conditions. Myself, however, I am a

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machine. My skin base retains its
softness and composition in spite of the negative

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temperatures. Even my long metallic blonde
hair remains dry and shiny. My clothing

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is quite wet. However, nevertheless, I continue my journey and enjoy this

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change in the weather. Before the
weather was rainy, with the onset of

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the winter, the rain has become
snow. Just as I do not require

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sustenance, I do not require rest. My power core provides me with limitless

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energy. Again, I find myself
wondering why the life I feel was placed

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into this metallic body. I have
had many days to ponder the meaning of

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my very existence. When I was
in that dwelling a waiting for the sun

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to descend, I was given the
memories, appearance, and powers of a

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Van Empire Treylander hybrid named Cassilia Tabon. However, the memories are currently incomplete.

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By my calculations, I have eighty
seven percent of her total memories.

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The remaining memories were likely lost when
her body was left to decompose in that

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crypt for two hundred and twelve years. Upon analyzing the memories used to give

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me data to feed my limitless intelligence
capacity, I am unable to quickly reconstruct

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the necessary algorithms to fill the gaps. When it comes to the vampire half

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of Cassilia Tabon, I do not
possess many of the powers that she once

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had, such is the ability to
transmorph. I believe this is because of

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the composition of my indestructible metallic form
that my skin based conceals. I regard

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the wintry sky and see only the
barrier, that is, the clouds which

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produce the great winds and the seemingly
endless snow across the lands. Why am

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I alive? I ask? I
know that my mission is in my data

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banks, but yet I do not
understand why I was born as a single

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machine who must live among a multitude
of organics. Only the harsh winds respond,

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though they do not give me the
answers that I seek. All I

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have is my mission. I must
accomplish several side objectives before reaching shore City

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and fulfilling the final objective there.
My ultimate objective will be to engage in

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battle with hell Weaver and use all
the power at my disposal to prevent her

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from creating this multi universal hell,
even at the cost of my own brief

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existence. I maintain my present course. When the snow becomes too high for

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me to be able to continue walking, I must make calculated jumps. This

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weather shall not prevent me from reaching
my first objective. The days and hours

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mean nothing to me. It is
into December twenty fifth, two thousand ninety

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nine when I finally reach the outskirts
of the Pendleton Way Station. Scanning it,

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it has the appearance of a fortress. A high wall protects the dwellings

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and the few inhabitants within. The
main gate is just ahead. As I

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am ready to jump over the wall, the main gate unlocks and begins to

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open. It does not open all
the way, However, two organic males

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come through the opening and approach me. Both are armed with weapons. You

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need to go away from here at
once. The left one says, if

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you stay, you'll only endanger yourself
and all of us. The right one

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adds. I scan both of them
to determine that they are no match for

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me. My empathic abilities tell me
they are with great fear. How would

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there be an endangerment to either myself
or you? I inquire. Now the

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two of them regard me with confusion. Don't you know what Christmas Day brings?

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The left man asks, If I
knew, I would not need to

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inquire. I return. The men
regard one another for a moment. Then

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the left man gently says, we
will bring you inside so you may warm

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yourself, but we fear none of
us shall be safe once he comes.

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Once who comes? I inquire,
Please tell me once we're inside. The

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right man insists, very well,
lead the way. I shall follow you.

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The men turn back to the way
station entrance and go inside. I

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follow close behind. Seeing the inside, it looks very much like a colony,

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with basic places for commerce, lodging, a restaurant, a general store,

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and a communications office. My objective
for the Pendleton way Station highlights I

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am required to obtain a vital component
here and cannot continue my mission without it.

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Once the main gate is sealed again, I follow the men until I

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am brought to their leader's building at
the center of this colony. We ascend

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the stairway and enter through the two
doors in front. The men take me

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to their leader himself. The organic
man looks up from his desk and sees

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me. What is the meaning of
this? The men who brought me before

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him explained that they found me outside
of their gates. The leader quickly stands

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to his feet, and you brought
her inside, He moves out from behind

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his desk. It's bad enough we
had to send the women and children into

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hiding. Now you've brought a single
female before me. Now, the leader

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turns and regards me. Don't you
have suitable clothing? Women? Do not

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worry about me. I tell him, I wish to know with whom you

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fear. He sneers, Now,
truly, woman, you are foolish if

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you do not know. I have
not been in existence for very long.

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I say, would there be any
harm in telling me? He looks me

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over you. You are a most
unusual woman if you've been out in that

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blizzard and are not affected by it, especially when your clothing is both inadequate

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and wet. I am not so
easily overcome, I assure him. He

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makes the mistake of glancing to his
two men. Suddenly they come at me

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though they are well trained to fight, they are not prepared for one such

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as I. The men fall before
me easily. I do not harm them

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in any way, since I understand
this was merely an exercise to test me.

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The leader nods a most unusual woman. Indeed, he regards as men

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leave us, only stand outside the
doors. The men nod and obey him.

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Now he regards me again. Tell
me you've at least heard of Santa

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Claus. I nod once. I
have memories from long ago. Mostly they

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are photographs, songs, and tales. He has never been in my presence.

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He is quite real. The Leader
tells me. May I have your

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name? I am Cassilia Tabon,
and yours I'm General Rhineboldt Larst. He

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returns, I've only been in this
highest office for a year tonight. I

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assumed this rank and office when our
last general was struck down by Santa Claus

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last Christmas. I point to a
short stack of blank white paper, May

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I you May I pick up a
colored pen and astonish Larst with how quickly

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I can draw. When I finish, I present him with the rendering of

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Santa Claus as the woman who was
Graham's in a former life had shown me.

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This man struck your general down.
He growls in frustration. Our people

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may only wish Santa Claus was the
jolly old soul of the olden days.

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Given your picture, I'd say,
given your apparent age, you do not

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know what has become of Santa Claus
again. Will you please tell me that

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I may understand? I inquire.
Larst goes behind his desk and sits.

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Then he gestures for me to be
seated. I obey and await his story.

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He tells me that Santa Claus was
indeed the warm and jolly persona of

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Christmas. Listening to him and recalling
the memories I have of Grahams, the

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stories have few discrepancies. Are you
familiar with the hell Weaver Holocaust? He

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asks, You must at least know
that I do. Does your story begin

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on October thirty first, two thousand
and thirty. I return. Indeed,

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it does a heavy sad sigh.
When hell Weaver laid waste to our world

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and altered it for the worst.
There were many on this world who couldn't

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handle the reality of how things would
be. It was believed that Santa Claus

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was one of them, even though
he lived up at the North Pole.

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The blast wave from the reality even
reached his part of Earth. No reason

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it wouldn't, since she conquered the
entire multiverse. He leans forward, Exactly

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what creatures have you seen for yourself? I tell him that I have regarded

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many, ranging from werewolves to vampires
and zombified organics. Well, well,

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you shall soon see Santa Claus for
yourself this very night, he states.

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Every Christmas Eve he takes to the
skies with his monstrous reindeer and mercilessly attacks

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and kills those unfortunate enough to be
seen by him and his reindeer. He's

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even taken some of the people back
to the North Pole to use as his

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slaves. He mainly attacks and pillages
cities, villages, and way stations such

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as ours. He lifts my rendering
of Santa Claus. This is what we

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wish he could be again. He
puts the rendering down and reaches to a

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control panel. View the monitor behind
me, tabon, I regard what appears

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to be footage captured by one or
more cameras or scanners. That is Santa

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Claus. Now, he tells me. The man wears a red and white

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suit, with a stocking cap,
just the same as in my drawing.

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However, his skin is quite black
and his eyes glow hot. If anything,

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he appears to be greatly zombified.
I will not know for certain until

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I can scan him. He no
longer leaves presents for good little boys and

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girls, Larst says, he doesn't
even leave coal for the bad ones.

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No, I told you what he
does. He turns the monitor off.

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Now the question is what do you
do. I'm not a fool, Tabon.

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You were somehow able to survive out
in that harshest of blizzards. Yet

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you have come all the way out
here to Pendleton Way Station. You are

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not whom you appear to be,
or perhaps you're here because you want something.

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Sensing the man is not malevolent,
I take another piece of paper in

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a pen, I draw what I
am here to obtain and present that rendering

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to him. He regards it for
a long moment before he responds to me

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again. He is with great distrust. Now, how do you even know

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about the psionic warp displacer, he
asks? Our scientists worked on that in

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secret for the last several years.
Now that we've perfected it, you want

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to take it from us. I
would rather not just take it from you.

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I would offer you something in trade
for it. Perhaps. Larst stands

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and comes around his desk to stand
before me. How do you know about

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our device, Taban? We know
you were nowhere around here when it was

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first conceived. You would be correct. I agree. Then I stand to

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face him. What is the psionic
warp displacer worth to you? Larst points

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to his doors. Leave here immediately. Suddenly, his two men stationed outside

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the doors enter his office. Sir, the man on the left gasps,

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we're hearing the bells in the distance. Santa Claus is coming more scarce to

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come weekly spooky, We'll be right
back. Are you and your men ready

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for battle? Larst demands what few
we are? Sir? The man on

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the right answers, we fear we
shall not survive this conflict. I increase

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my audio sensors and hear the very
jingling bells that the two men have heard

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themselves. I scan through the walls
and see a vessel in the unforgiving skies.

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It appears to be a large sleigh
with what appears to be nine zombiefied

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reindeer pulling it. The single reindeer
in the very front has a glowing red

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nose. I point this Santa Claus
comes from that direction. Larst growls at

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me. How would you know?
I regard him? Now? How will

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you hope to defeat this being?
If he is as powerful as you and

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your men claim. Larst points at
me. I am through talking to you.

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Woman. Leave here now. I
raise my finger. I offered you

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a trade. I shall return outside
and engage your Santa Claus in battle.

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I shall defeat him in exchange for
the psionic warped displacer. Larst and his

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men laugh. Now, of course
they do not know that I am a

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powerful machine. I wait for them
to finish. Santa Claus descends. I

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warn he shall be within your boundaries
very shortly. General Larst, do we

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have a bargain? He laughs again. If you can do what you claim,

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then it shall be agreed very well. I turn and exit Larst's office.

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I return to the entrance doors and
step outside. The being known as

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Santa Claus is maneuvering his reindeer over
Pendleton Way Station. Then I hear Santa's

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00:21:14.640 --> 00:21:18.799
laughter. I have memories from a
former life of Gramps laughing with joy and

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warmth as Santa would. The laughter
I hear now is a menacing, evil

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one. The laughter is loud enough
to be heard even through the harsh winds

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and snow. You are a fool
tabon, General Larsk calls out from behind

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00:21:34.799 --> 00:21:40.079
me. I glance over my shoulder. Call your men back, General,

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They need not risk their lives tonight. I alone shall battle Santa Claus and

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defeat him. As per our bargain, he shall never be a threat to

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you again. The General sees that
I am serious and issues the order for

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his men to retreat again. Tabon, you are foolish. Larsk chastises me.

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Die well. Then he slams the
doors behind me and secures them.

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00:22:07.880 --> 00:22:12.640
I stand and watch Santa Claus as
he flies around in time. His sleigh

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and zombified reindeer are hovering near the
General's building. I scan him and determine

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that he is perhaps a demon.
He is not undead as his reindeer.

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00:22:23.839 --> 00:22:29.640
He looks very much as General Larsk
has shown me in his office regarding how

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menacing his glowing eyes are. Santa
Claus regards me from above and laughs again.

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00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:41.519
His menacing, scornful laughter echoes throughout
the blizzard time to utilize some of

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my hardware. I raise my voice
in response to his laughter to where he

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00:22:47.400 --> 00:22:52.400
can hear me. I offer you
one chance, demon, turn away and

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leave these people in peace. If
you do not leave, and you choose

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to engage in battle with me,
you shall fall in defeat. This is

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my promise to you. Santa Claus
and I regard each other for a moment,

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00:23:07.680 --> 00:23:12.440
a long moment. Then he breaks
the silence by laughing scornfully at me

264
00:23:12.519 --> 00:23:18.359
again. Suddenly my senses are alerting
me to danger. I turn and see

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00:23:18.400 --> 00:23:22.160
many little figures coming over the wall. They laugh and sneer as they scurry

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towards me. This already reminds me
of my first battle against Sarathos. He

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00:23:29.079 --> 00:23:33.119
used his underlings to engage me because
he believed me to be too insignificant for

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him to engage himself. If this
demonic entity wishes to see what I am

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capable of scanning these smaller life forms, they are zombified as the reindeer pulling

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santas sleigh. I'm ready to engage
these I believe Grahams referred to these creatures

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as elves. When the first elf
leaps at me, I send it away

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00:23:56.440 --> 00:24:00.880
with a swift blow. With my
mechanical action, you recee in speed.

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00:24:00.920 --> 00:24:03.759
I send these undead abominations away from
me, as many of them as there

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00:24:03.759 --> 00:24:07.119
are. Not a single one lays
so much as a finger upon me,

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and no sooner do I dispatch the
last one. I feel the demon himself

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00:24:11.960 --> 00:24:18.799
dropping from his sleigh with the intention
of landing upon me. When I step

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00:24:18.839 --> 00:24:22.759
aside, Santa Claus lashes out and
shoves me upon my back. The demon

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00:24:22.799 --> 00:24:27.279
immediately picks me up and hurls me
over the wall. I land hard against

279
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a large tree and fall onto my
side. I quickly rise again and move

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00:24:32.559 --> 00:24:36.480
to the wall. I leap right
over it and see Santa Claus still standing

281
00:24:36.480 --> 00:24:40.960
there. I believe he was wondering
if I would truly return. I land

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00:24:40.960 --> 00:24:45.359
on my feet and face him.
You shall require much more than that if

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00:24:45.400 --> 00:24:51.079
you hope to overcome me. Demon
Santa Claus sneers and launches himself right at

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me. I await him and catch
him. This time, as he did

285
00:24:53.440 --> 00:24:56.480
to me, I throw him over
the wall. I do not await his

286
00:24:56.559 --> 00:25:00.279
return. However, I leap over
the wall again myself in pursuit of him.

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00:25:00.880 --> 00:25:04.759
I land outside the Pendleton way station. As Santa Claus rises to his

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00:25:04.799 --> 00:25:08.519
feet again, he roars and comes
at me. I move and go to

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00:25:08.599 --> 00:25:12.920
him. The two of us engage
in a most personal conflict. We throw

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00:25:14.039 --> 00:25:18.680
blow after blow at one another.
Truly, Santa Claus is a more formidable

291
00:25:18.759 --> 00:25:23.079
foe when compared to Sarathos. Suddenly
Santa Claus grabs me, lifts me off

292
00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:27.279
my feet, and drives me into
the ground. He lowers himself and throws

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00:25:27.359 --> 00:25:33.680
more deadly blows directly into my face. I throttle his throat and remove him

294
00:25:33.680 --> 00:25:37.319
from me. As I ascend to
my feet, it becomes my turn to

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00:25:37.359 --> 00:25:41.839
throw him into the trees. When
Santa Claus hits them, he falls forward.

296
00:25:41.079 --> 00:25:45.839
He rises to his feet. Immediately, he roars, and his eyes

297
00:25:45.920 --> 00:25:49.839
glow brighter. I know not what
you are, but I shall claim you

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00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:56.079
this night. You shall become the
centerpiece of my trophy room. Or perhaps

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00:25:56.160 --> 00:26:00.039
I shall make a rug out of
your hide, such an empty promises,

300
00:26:00.400 --> 00:26:04.880
I mutter. Santa Claus roars and
comes at me again. I leap at

301
00:26:04.920 --> 00:26:10.119
him in return. We both connect
with our blows and find ourselves upon our

302
00:26:10.160 --> 00:26:15.319
backs. We both rise and engage
one another again. What has become of

303
00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:18.960
you, I asked the demon.
According to old fables, you used to

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00:26:18.960 --> 00:26:23.920
bring joy to all the good people
of this world. Things change, girl,

305
00:26:25.680 --> 00:26:33.400
The world changed the day Hell Weaver
changed everything on Halloween night of twenty

306
00:26:33.519 --> 00:26:37.839
thirty, when the world became the
very essence of hell itself. My wife,

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00:26:38.039 --> 00:26:42.920
my elves, and even my reindeer
were slain that night. However,

308
00:26:42.960 --> 00:26:48.759
they would not stay dead. You
have seen some of my elves and all

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00:26:48.799 --> 00:26:55.799
of my reindeer as they are now, and you seeing how the world became

310
00:26:56.319 --> 00:27:00.240
and how worse it continues to become. There was only so much which I

311
00:27:00.319 --> 00:27:04.640
could do. When the blast wave
hit, it drove me mad. At

312
00:27:04.640 --> 00:27:11.079
the same time I became this powerful
form before you. And now who really

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00:27:11.119 --> 00:27:18.559
gives a fuck? He laughs his
menacing laughter again. Christmas is my holiday,

314
00:27:18.839 --> 00:27:21.559
and on this one night out of
the year, I go out and

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00:27:21.599 --> 00:27:26.920
collect that that is due to me. But what should concern you now is

316
00:27:26.960 --> 00:27:33.640
your doom. My senses alert me
to attacks coming from different directions. Santa

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00:27:33.640 --> 00:27:37.039
Claus backs away to watch me engage
in battle with all nine of his reindeer.

318
00:27:37.599 --> 00:27:41.400
They all make their undead battle cries
as they come at me. These

319
00:27:41.480 --> 00:27:45.720
creatures are nearly double the size of
normal deer. From the memories I possess,

320
00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:52.599
either reindeer or normally the size or
they were affected and altered by the

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00:27:52.640 --> 00:27:56.960
hell Weaver holocaust, just as Santa
Claus himself was. When they come at

322
00:27:57.000 --> 00:28:02.319
me, I strike and attack with
the same carenical speed and reflexes as when

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00:28:02.359 --> 00:28:06.519
I earlier repelled the elves. The
reindeer are not alone. Is more of

324
00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:11.599
the elves come at me? How
many of these small creatures does Santa Claus

325
00:28:11.720 --> 00:28:15.200
have? I've had time to experiment
and see what I am capable of doing

326
00:28:15.240 --> 00:28:19.079
with my new body. I may
not know all of my capabilities, but

327
00:28:19.160 --> 00:28:22.839
I shall in good time. When
I first came to know life, the

328
00:28:22.880 --> 00:28:27.000
life force that I was given needed
to become fully integrated with my new body.

329
00:28:27.720 --> 00:28:33.519
To my understanding, the futuristic alien
technology used to create me had to

330
00:28:33.559 --> 00:28:37.519
be crafted, configured, and fully
optimized to be able to house my spark

331
00:28:37.799 --> 00:28:41.680
that is my life. Comparing my
own life force to the one that was

332
00:28:41.720 --> 00:28:47.759
once Cassilia Tabon, I strive to
be all that she never was. I

333
00:28:47.759 --> 00:28:52.440
can feel how active my secondary programming
is within me. It is this guiding

334
00:28:52.559 --> 00:28:57.039
force when working in unison with my
emotions that compels me to want to do

335
00:28:57.160 --> 00:29:03.519
good. The memory worries I have
that are of the original Cassilia Tabon are

336
00:29:03.559 --> 00:29:07.440
not heroic. The Tabon family who
took her in as a newborn were heroic,

337
00:29:08.240 --> 00:29:15.039
but Cassilia would never strive to become
as they were. My software is

338
00:29:15.119 --> 00:29:19.599
working to bridge the gaps and the
memories with greatly complicated algorithms. This will

339
00:29:19.599 --> 00:29:25.039
take a great deal of time and
patience for the memories to be fully reconstructed.

340
00:29:25.599 --> 00:29:30.440
But knowing that the original Cassilia Tabon
was not heroic, and feeling my

341
00:29:30.559 --> 00:29:33.880
secondary programming working, I know that
I must use what I have been given

342
00:29:34.480 --> 00:29:40.640
and become heroic. My ultimate objective
is that I must stop hell Weaver,

343
00:29:41.400 --> 00:29:45.039
even if it means the end of
my brief existence. That means I must

344
00:29:45.079 --> 00:29:51.200
not fail against Santa Claus again.
I am keeping my enemies away from me.

345
00:29:51.759 --> 00:29:55.759
Seeing Santa Claus approaching the main gate
to the Pendleton Way Station, I

346
00:29:55.880 --> 00:30:00.119
know that he means to breach it
and accomplish his insane objective. His reindeer

347
00:30:00.160 --> 00:30:06.960
and elves are a distraction for me. This must end now. When I

348
00:30:07.000 --> 00:30:11.160
have an opening, I lean into
the air and towards Santa Claus. You

349
00:30:11.279 --> 00:30:15.599
shall not be successful in your madness. Demon. As I reach Santa Claus,

350
00:30:15.640 --> 00:30:19.880
he turns and suddenly plucks me right
out of the air. Then he

351
00:30:19.960 --> 00:30:25.839
sneers and throws me out into the
open, whereas elves and reindeer suddenly converge

352
00:30:26.079 --> 00:30:30.559
and pounce on me. He laughs
his horrible evil laughter again and turns his

353
00:30:30.640 --> 00:30:37.079
attention back to the gates. The
reindeer and elves are making their noises as

354
00:30:37.119 --> 00:30:41.480
they try to keep me down and
attack. The elves have weapons from blades

355
00:30:41.519 --> 00:30:45.240
to picks. The reindeer are stomping
on me or trying to bite me.

356
00:30:45.759 --> 00:30:51.119
My skin base does not easily yield
under the pressure of their teeth. These

357
00:30:51.200 --> 00:30:55.640
creatures are doing anything and everything to
keep me here while their master uses mighty

358
00:30:55.680 --> 00:31:00.559
blows to break open the main gates. He could easily leap over, but

359
00:31:00.640 --> 00:31:06.720
he wants to break in to show
the organics inside that the gates are futile.

360
00:31:07.400 --> 00:31:11.519
It takes him three blows to both
force open the gates and make both

361
00:31:11.599 --> 00:31:17.119
halves fall. There shall be no
mortals remaining before this night is over.

362
00:31:17.640 --> 00:31:22.559
This shall be your last Christmas.
Next year, I shall ravage a new

363
00:31:22.640 --> 00:31:27.440
destination. In time, I shall
decimate all of you remaining mortals. You

364
00:31:27.519 --> 00:31:33.039
were foolish to send a weak female
to fight your battles for you most foolish,

365
00:31:33.039 --> 00:31:40.200
indeed and cowardly. Your very existence
makes you naughty in my eyes.

366
00:31:41.119 --> 00:31:45.599
But I am not finished. It
shall take far more than these undead abominations

367
00:31:45.599 --> 00:31:51.279
to overcome me. The elves are
with distress now as I raise myself to

368
00:31:51.359 --> 00:31:56.920
stand. You shall never defeat one
such as I. I declare, Even

369
00:31:57.000 --> 00:32:02.599
with your vast numbers, you shall
never overcome a machine. I stand once

370
00:32:02.680 --> 00:32:07.480
more and knock them away from me, both the elves and the reindeer alike.

371
00:32:07.960 --> 00:32:10.599
Killing them will mean nothing, since
they do not have life within their

372
00:32:10.640 --> 00:32:16.119
bodies. Upon repelling enough of them, I turn my attention back to Santa

373
00:32:16.160 --> 00:32:22.640
Claus. He is the one I
must ultimately defeat. I leap forward and

374
00:32:22.680 --> 00:32:27.440
reach him again, as he has
ripped the main doors away from General Larsk's

375
00:32:27.480 --> 00:32:34.079
station. Will you ever cease your
struggle, you worthless mortal female, he

376
00:32:34.200 --> 00:32:39.319
growls, Not until you're defeated.
I return. Then I shall grant you

377
00:32:39.319 --> 00:32:45.799
your death as your final Christmas gift. You shall try the two of us

378
00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:51.799
engage in battle once more. We
trade many powerful blows, looking to end

379
00:32:51.839 --> 00:32:55.759
each other. Each time that Santa
Claus repels me and returns his attention to

380
00:32:55.960 --> 00:33:00.480
entering the General Larsks building, I
leap back to him to continue our battle.

381
00:33:01.119 --> 00:33:06.359
At times I am forced to repel
elves or reindeer. It is then

382
00:33:07.119 --> 00:33:12.759
when I feel something hit my back
that I was not expecting. I see

383
00:33:12.759 --> 00:33:16.720
many variables flashing upon my interface,
especially when I am hit again. I

384
00:33:16.799 --> 00:33:22.799
regard the reindeer with the bright red
nose from the memories I have with Grams,

385
00:33:22.160 --> 00:33:28.799
I believe his name to be Rudolph. He fires his laser beam from

386
00:33:28.839 --> 00:33:32.000
his nose and hits my face.
I sense injuries and damage to my skin

387
00:33:32.079 --> 00:33:37.599
base now at the same time,
I feel my healing factor working to repair

388
00:33:37.640 --> 00:33:44.440
the damage. Rudolph fires his laser
nose at my face once again. Don't

389
00:33:44.480 --> 00:33:57.039
go away weakly, Spooky will be
right back. You are unlike anything I

390
00:33:57.079 --> 00:34:01.440
have ever seen, Santa Claus says
with disc belief, upon seeing half of

391
00:34:01.480 --> 00:34:06.839
my true face. Then the demon
strikes me hard on the back of my

392
00:34:06.960 --> 00:34:10.679
head to send my face into the
snow. Nonetheless, I shall claim you

393
00:34:10.960 --> 00:34:16.880
as my prize on this Christmas Day. Suddenly I'm on my knees. Santa

394
00:34:16.880 --> 00:34:21.440
Claus roars and kicks me hard in
the chin to make me fly away from

395
00:34:21.519 --> 00:34:25.079
him and slam into the wall.
I make an indentation and fall forward.

396
00:34:25.719 --> 00:34:30.599
Santa Claus is upon me almost at
once. He lifts me up, slams

397
00:34:30.639 --> 00:34:35.079
me against the wall, and unleashes
many powerful blows into me. You are

398
00:34:35.119 --> 00:34:38.199
clearly not immortal. I know not
what you are, but know that you

399
00:34:38.280 --> 00:34:45.000
were foolish to think you could best
Santa Claus. No matter how powerful he

400
00:34:45.079 --> 00:34:50.159
is, he still cannot damage or
blemish my mechanical body. I can feel

401
00:34:50.159 --> 00:34:54.480
my skin base repairing itself as the
gelatinous substance spreads itself on the exposed areas

402
00:34:54.840 --> 00:35:00.280
that Rudolph created. I can literally
feel my skin based solidified and becoming my

403
00:35:00.400 --> 00:35:07.559
flesh once more. Even my metallic
hair is flawlessly regenerated. I technically do

404
00:35:07.639 --> 00:35:12.639
not require this exterior skin base and
am capable of functioning just as a mechanical

405
00:35:12.679 --> 00:35:16.280
being. But my programming maintains my
skin and keeps it as a part of

406
00:35:16.320 --> 00:35:22.280
me. My creators wished for me
to have my exterior covering for specific reasons

407
00:35:22.280 --> 00:35:25.679
of this, I am certain I
am through letting Santa Claus dominate me in

408
00:35:25.719 --> 00:35:30.920
this conflict, and know I must
end it. When I sense Rudolph firing

409
00:35:30.960 --> 00:35:34.840
his red nose at me again,
I turn and suddenly feel my own red

410
00:35:34.880 --> 00:35:39.519
beams emitting from my very optics and
passing through my humanoid eyes. My twin

411
00:35:39.599 --> 00:35:45.320
beams conflict with the Reindeers one.
I can feel the very power coursing through

412
00:35:45.320 --> 00:35:51.000
my body. To supplement this power
I now utilize, I turn in vampire

413
00:35:51.119 --> 00:35:53.880
warped from Santa Claus toward Rudolph.
When I land in front of him,

414
00:35:53.920 --> 00:35:59.800
I take hold of his unique nose
and render it useless. Being undead,

415
00:35:59.840 --> 00:36:02.280
The Reindeer does not cry out in
pain, but he does step away,

416
00:36:02.400 --> 00:36:07.280
knowing that he can no longer engage
in battle with me. And then when

417
00:36:07.320 --> 00:36:12.920
I vampire warp back to Santa Claus
again, I can see past him and

418
00:36:13.000 --> 00:36:16.639
regard the sun that shall rise again
soon. At this point, I do

419
00:36:16.679 --> 00:36:21.679
not believe that I shall be able
to defeat this monster before the sun fully

420
00:36:21.800 --> 00:36:25.519
rises. My life shall come to
a very abrupt end. Once it does.

421
00:36:27.360 --> 00:36:31.280
I feel how strong my emotions and
my secondary programming are becoming now.

422
00:36:31.800 --> 00:36:36.119
If I am to die shortly,
then I shall do so, knowing that

423
00:36:36.159 --> 00:36:39.840
I was successful in keeping Santa Claus
from claiming the lives of these and other

424
00:36:40.000 --> 00:36:45.719
organics. Santa Claus engages me again. I understand his way of fighting now

425
00:36:45.760 --> 00:36:50.719
and am able to counter him.
I strike one harsh blow right after another.

426
00:36:51.119 --> 00:36:54.000
He staggers backward, but still manages
to get in a few more attacks

427
00:36:54.000 --> 00:36:59.119
on me. Refusing to allow him
any more leverage against me, I continue

428
00:36:59.199 --> 00:37:02.719
my onslaught and make him stagger.
I must defeat Santa Claus before the sun

429
00:37:02.760 --> 00:37:08.559
fully rises and destroys me. The
sun continues, My emotions continue to rise

430
00:37:08.599 --> 00:37:15.320
within me. The demon continues to
stagger. Not possible. I continue to

431
00:37:15.360 --> 00:37:21.440
show Santa Claus that it is indeed
possible. He falls to his knees for

432
00:37:21.599 --> 00:37:24.400
me to kick him under his chin
and send him upward, make him do

433
00:37:24.440 --> 00:37:30.119
a backflip and then land hard on
his face and chest. He puts his

434
00:37:30.199 --> 00:37:35.199
hands down and raises himself. I
step in and keep pummeling him. I

435
00:37:35.239 --> 00:37:38.559
am seeing the first rays of the
Christmas morning sun as they begin to bring

436
00:37:38.639 --> 00:37:45.920
lights to this wintry land. The
snow has finally ceased, but the winds

437
00:37:45.039 --> 00:37:50.719
continue their vicious onslaught. Then I
see what is becoming of the elves and

438
00:37:50.760 --> 00:37:54.920
the reindeer, at least the ones
that still bear animation. The reindeer walk

439
00:37:54.960 --> 00:38:00.559
around fast and make a strange noise. The elves trying to flee. Even

440
00:38:00.679 --> 00:38:06.280
Santa Claus is showing signs of slowing
down. The sun is lighting the new

441
00:38:06.320 --> 00:38:09.800
morning more. Now a strange vapor
begins to emit from the reindeer in the

442
00:38:09.800 --> 00:38:14.760
elves. I look at Santa Claus
and see the vapor rising from him as

443
00:38:14.800 --> 00:38:19.679
well. I could run for safety, but this demon's reign of terror must

444
00:38:19.800 --> 00:38:23.000
end. Here. Santa Claus makes
one last feudal effort to fight me.

445
00:38:23.480 --> 00:38:28.159
His blows are at their weakest.
Now they feel like those of an organic

446
00:38:28.280 --> 00:38:36.639
child. I understand immediately these abominations
cannot endure the sunlight and are nocturnal creatures.

447
00:38:37.639 --> 00:38:40.960
Now I am with surprise. I
gaze upon my skin basin see that

448
00:38:43.119 --> 00:38:46.719
nothing is happening to me. I
search my memories and recall that the original

449
00:38:46.760 --> 00:38:52.079
life form could not exist in the
sunlight. She had tried putting her hand

450
00:38:52.119 --> 00:38:54.880
in a sunbeam once, only for
it to burn her and nearly make her

451
00:38:54.920 --> 00:39:00.519
hand burst into flames. No such
thing as happening to me now. However,

452
00:39:00.239 --> 00:39:05.519
I stand and watch as Santa Claus
and his underlings burn in the sunlight.

453
00:39:06.320 --> 00:39:09.559
I move away and let them.
My optics are primarily on the demon

454
00:39:09.639 --> 00:39:15.280
himself. Within my visual scope,
I can see the underlings bursting into flames

455
00:39:15.320 --> 00:39:20.920
and turning into ash. Santa Claus
now bursts into flames himself. He roars

456
00:39:20.960 --> 00:39:25.480
as his black flesh flies away from
his body to reveal his large organic skeleton,

457
00:39:27.000 --> 00:39:30.360
which is also charred. Perhaps that
blast wave from October thirty first,

458
00:39:30.440 --> 00:39:36.440
two thousand and thirty may have been
the reason for this. Santa Claus falls

459
00:39:36.480 --> 00:39:43.280
flat now as his skeleton is now
burning until nothing remains but ash. I

460
00:39:43.320 --> 00:39:47.159
look upon the skin base of my
own hands and arms to see I'm still

461
00:39:47.159 --> 00:39:52.719
intact. Then I remember back in
the village of Strickfield, when those zombified

462
00:39:52.880 --> 00:39:58.320
organics came after me. I also
encountered such creatures along the way to this

463
00:39:58.440 --> 00:40:02.599
way station. I activate my diagnostics
program to see that I have vital signs.

464
00:40:04.360 --> 00:40:08.920
I have truly misunderstood the concept of
my having life. No, I

465
00:40:08.960 --> 00:40:14.920
am not the undead creature that the
life form before me was when it comes

466
00:40:14.960 --> 00:40:20.159
to the vampire aspect, I do
possess limited powers. I believe that I

467
00:40:20.320 --> 00:40:23.880
was undead based upon the memories I
have been supplemented with to give me data

468
00:40:24.239 --> 00:40:31.239
to feed my intelligence capacity. Cassilia
Tabon, being undead was a former life.

469
00:40:31.559 --> 00:40:37.360
In my new life, Yes,
that is indeed what I truly possess.

470
00:40:37.400 --> 00:40:42.239
Within this mechanical body, I have
the very essence of true life,

471
00:40:43.000 --> 00:40:47.199
the same as these organic beings.
Truly, this shall be a Christmas morning

472
00:40:47.760 --> 00:40:52.920
to be remembered. I cannot help
myself and begin to cry. Wait,

473
00:40:54.000 --> 00:40:58.960
how am I capable of tears?
I only have a skin base, yet

474
00:40:59.159 --> 00:41:06.039
I produce tears of happiness. It
is fully mourning now. I never need

475
00:41:06.039 --> 00:41:13.559
to fear this beautiful sunlight ever again. I feel I am unworthy of life

476
00:41:13.760 --> 00:41:17.679
and having a mechanical body. I
reason it is my conflicting memories from the

477
00:41:17.719 --> 00:41:23.760
past and the new memories I make
in the present. After I conclude my

478
00:41:23.880 --> 00:41:28.920
crying, I know that it is
time for me to see General Larsk and

479
00:41:29.000 --> 00:41:32.840
to claim my prize. I walk
into his building and soon find him in

480
00:41:32.920 --> 00:41:37.639
his office. His two men are
with him and are armed. Larsk himself

481
00:41:37.679 --> 00:41:43.880
regards me. Santa Claus is no
more. I tell him. The three

482
00:41:43.960 --> 00:41:49.159
men regard me for the longest time. Then Larsk finally speaks. I cannot

483
00:41:49.159 --> 00:41:53.079
allow you to remove the psionic warp
displacer from here. He tells me we

484
00:41:53.239 --> 00:41:59.639
had an arrangement. I remind him. Larsk shakes his head. Don't care.

485
00:42:00.199 --> 00:42:05.400
We are not relinquishing anything to a
woman. I do not recommend forcing

486
00:42:05.400 --> 00:42:08.880
me to take it from you,
I say. His men raise their weapons.

487
00:42:09.559 --> 00:42:14.000
I emit the laser beams from my
optics that I used a short time

488
00:42:14.039 --> 00:42:19.960
ago and melt their weapons. I
also melt General Larsk's weapon after he draws

489
00:42:19.960 --> 00:42:22.760
it. The men are with fear
and do not know how to react.

490
00:42:23.719 --> 00:42:30.760
General lars quickly points to a room
off to the side. In there you'll

491
00:42:30.800 --> 00:42:35.599
find the psionic warp displacer in a
display case. My empathic powers tell me

492
00:42:35.639 --> 00:42:39.239
that he does not speak with truth. I utilize my vampire warping power and

493
00:42:39.320 --> 00:42:45.159
appear behind Larsk. I lift him
off his feet, remembering the design of

494
00:42:45.199 --> 00:42:50.800
the psionic warp displacer, I scan
Larsk's office. My optics stop upon his

495
00:42:50.960 --> 00:42:55.519
monitor. I lower Larsk and shatter
the screen. The component that I require

496
00:42:55.639 --> 00:43:00.000
is now before me. I turn
to Larsk. This Anta Claus sought to

497
00:43:00.159 --> 00:43:05.679
end you and your people of this
way station. You and your men should

498
00:43:05.719 --> 00:43:08.639
be grateful that you will continue to
live, even in knowing that he shall

499
00:43:08.679 --> 00:43:15.360
never return. Live your lives well
while you still have them. Larsk does

500
00:43:15.400 --> 00:43:21.480
not listen. Why do you want
the psionic warp displacer, woman? I

501
00:43:21.559 --> 00:43:25.159
require it for my mission to find
and defeat hell Weaver. I answer,

502
00:43:25.880 --> 00:43:30.800
it is my mission to make sure
this reality never happens and that as few

503
00:43:30.880 --> 00:43:34.719
lives are lost as possible. The
men are not certain as to what to

504
00:43:34.800 --> 00:43:38.320
make of me, but they question
me no longer. Larsk steps aside to

505
00:43:38.360 --> 00:43:43.280
allow me to take the psionic warp
displacer. I scan it to determine that

506
00:43:43.360 --> 00:43:49.800
it is genuine. The side objective
is now changed to complete. I realize

507
00:43:49.840 --> 00:43:53.840
that I cannot just keep this component
out in the open. Then I understand

508
00:43:54.760 --> 00:44:00.800
and will a small portal to open
before me. I place the warped displacer

509
00:44:00.840 --> 00:44:07.079
within the field and remove my hand. Shortly after the portal closes. As

510
00:44:07.079 --> 00:44:13.039
I leave Larsk's office, he weakly
calls out behind me. You will fail

511
00:44:13.119 --> 00:44:19.239
against hell Weaver Tabon. He shakes
his head slowly. I fail to understand

512
00:44:19.239 --> 00:44:24.400
how you could defeat Santa Claus.
I glance over my shoulder. Beings such

513
00:44:24.440 --> 00:44:30.639
as Santa Claus cannot defeat the machine. The men are baffled as I turn

514
00:44:30.159 --> 00:44:35.519
and finally take my leave. I
walk until I cross through what is left

515
00:44:35.519 --> 00:44:39.840
of the gates of Pendleton way Station. It is time for me to venture

516
00:44:39.880 --> 00:44:45.320
to the Second Side Objective, a
place where many of the original Life Forces

517
00:44:45.360 --> 00:44:51.519
memories were forged. I must venture
to the Tabon homeland known as Ravenhurst.

518
00:44:52.199 --> 00:44:55.519
There, I must acquire one of
the most powerful and ancient artifacts in the

519
00:44:55.599 --> 00:45:02.039
vast Tabon arsenal of weapons to use
in my battle against hell Weaver. In

520
00:45:02.079 --> 00:45:10.960
the meantime, do have yourself a
very merry Christmas. I tell you the

521
00:45:12.000 --> 00:45:16.119
future is looking mighty grim in the
year twenty ninety nine. But if the

522
00:45:16.199 --> 00:45:21.719
last Tabon has anything to say about
it, she's going to turn everything around

523
00:45:21.760 --> 00:45:24.519
and bring down the hell Weaver.
But the only way to know what happens

524
00:45:24.559 --> 00:45:30.079
next is to be subscribed to Weekly
Spooky, because you never know when we're

525
00:45:30.079 --> 00:45:35.280
going to return to the year twenty
ninety nine in Strickfield and find out more

526
00:45:35.320 --> 00:45:39.320
about her plight and her plans to
take down the hell Weaver. I hope

527
00:45:39.360 --> 00:45:43.519
you've all been enjoying the bonus content
I've been putting up this month. I

528
00:45:43.559 --> 00:45:47.079
know a lot of podcasts will ease
up and take a break in December,

529
00:45:47.119 --> 00:45:52.719
but not us. We publish even
more for your listening pleasure. In fact,

530
00:45:52.840 --> 00:45:57.559
yesterday I was joined by Cameron Cheney
to talk about must read books for

531
00:45:57.639 --> 00:46:01.880
the holiday horror season, and tomorrow
we'll have a story from Charles Campbell called

532
00:46:01.920 --> 00:46:06.159
Santa's Little Helper, which I know
you're going to enjoy very much. And

533
00:46:06.199 --> 00:46:10.400
I want to mention next week we'll
be giving away a full Babysitter Massacre audiobook

534
00:46:10.480 --> 00:46:15.840
for your listening enjoyment. So be
subscribed if you're not already, I promise

535
00:46:15.880 --> 00:46:19.159
you I'll make it worth your while. And if you love what we're doing,

536
00:46:19.320 --> 00:46:22.000
head over to Weeklyspooky dot com and
click on Patreon. For as little

537
00:46:22.039 --> 00:46:25.440
as one dollar a month, you
get bonus shows every month, and my

538
00:46:25.639 --> 00:46:30.519
undead gratitude, we're at ninety one
backers. Can we make it to one

539
00:46:30.599 --> 00:46:34.199
hundred this year? It would mean
so much to me to see one hundred

540
00:46:34.239 --> 00:46:37.440
backers. And speaking of backers,
I want to say an extra special thank

541
00:46:37.480 --> 00:46:39.760
you to our Patreon podcast boosters,
folks who pay a little bit more to

542
00:46:39.800 --> 00:46:44.039
hear their names on the show.
And they are Johnny Knicks, John Collen,

543
00:46:44.239 --> 00:46:47.840
bobotopia dot Com, Megan Hua,
Julia Kirsh, Brent McCalla, Steve

544
00:46:47.920 --> 00:46:52.440
King, Karen Wee, met Jack
Kerr, and Craig Cohen. Well,

545
00:46:52.480 --> 00:46:53.639
my friends, it's time for me
to get back to work. We have

546
00:46:53.719 --> 00:46:59.360
so many more spookes to bring you, so please stay safe, enjoy your

547
00:46:59.360 --> 00:47:02.440
holiday seas, and we'll be right
back here tomorrow with you. But now

548
00:47:02.480 --> 00:47:07.360
for myself, for my producer Dan
Wilder, my executive producer Rob Fields,

549
00:47:07.360 --> 00:47:10.760
and our composer Ray Matis. I
will talk at you next time, so

550
00:47:10.880 --> 00:47:15.840
make sure you put out some sleigh
belts and catch Santa before he catches you.

551
00:47:15.440 --> 00:47:21.480
Thank you for listening. Make sure
to find your way back next week.

552
00:47:22.239 --> 00:47:27.519
But for now, you are safe, trust me.