Don't Mind | Cruxmont | Ep. 12

Hey everyone, it's Travis.

And Caitlin from Fool and Scholar Productions.

Thank you for waiting for this episode.

We're happy to continue the story of Cruxmont now that we've returned.

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Mike and Alyssa are always always trying to outdo each other.

When Alyssa got a small water bottle, Mike showed up with a four-litre jug.

When Mike started gardening, Alyssa started beekeeping.

Oh, come on.

They called a truce for their holiday and used Expedia Trip Planner to collaborate on all the details of their trip.

Once there, Mike still did more laps around the pool.

Whatever.

You were made to outdo your holidays.

We were made to help organize the competition.

Expedia, made to travel.

Previously, on Don't Mind Cruxmont.

While locked behind bars in the tunnels beneath the orchards, Neil and Colin met face to face with Roger Allhill.

He told them that it was too late for Colin, that he could never leave Cruxmont, but Neil's fate was still undecided.

After Roger left, Neil and Colin schemed to poach the keys from someone else, only to find that their intended target was Gwen, who had snuck down into the tunnels through the chapel catacombs.

Together, they broke out and fled into the maze of tunnels, but as their known exits became blocked, they rushed into the unknown, only to confront something terrible lurking beneath the Cruxmont soil.

Don't mind Cruxmont

Shot

what the hell's that?

What?

Wait.

Not tonight, please.

There is a stranger in the bottom.

Okay, no authority leaves.

Hey!

Hey!

Hey, are you okay?

Are you okay?

What did you see?

I'm fine, but there is something up on that hill.

That's what I was worried about.

What?

Sorry, lad.

Hey, record me!

Roger, I've got him.

The American.

How much did he see?

He can't leave if he saw.

Get him down in the caves.

We'll talk to him after we find Daisy.

That's it.

That's the feeling of Slovakia.

Oh, my God.

Get it away.

Oh, Neil.

Get up.

Give me your hand.

What the hell is that thing?

Can't stop.

They're coming.

Come on.

Hurry.

It was a person calling.

That thing was a person, right?

You saw it, right?

When you saw it.

How is it moving?

How is it alive?

I wasn't planning on it.

Pass by slowly.

Don't disturb it.

Sphinx.

Sphinx.

It knows your name.

No, no.

Do not stop.

We're going.

Keep going.

They don't hear you.

Who are you?

What are you?

Can you hear me?

Is someone in there?

What is that?

Gwen, I'm sorry, but not now.

Right now, we focus on living, not learning.

Let's go.

The people are still looking for us.

Yes,

of course.

Go.

Go!

Do we know another way out?

Come here.

We can hide for a moment.

I know another way out, but you won't like it.

I avoided it last time, but it may be our best choice.

They won't think they'll look for us there.

What are they doing to these people, Colin?

Is that what they want to do with you?

Who are they?

Did they come from Croxmont or outside the village?

The bodies.

These are the missing dead.

Focus.

We have to move, but stay near me.

Just know that you'll be okay.

Don't touch anything, and most importantly, don't look down.

Down?

How far down?

Down where?

We reach the one walkway.

Just look forward.

No matter what you hear, don't think about it.

Don't look at it.

Don't mind what it says.

Colin,

what are you?

Is it more of them?

How many are there down here?

Colin, that man was moving with things growing out of his body.

I could see his vertebrae.

Are we in danger of turning into that?

Only if we linger.

Let's go.

He's your brother, Neil.

Trust him.

These smaller wires in and along the wall.

What are they?

I don't know.

One second.

Stop touching me.

Sorry.

We want to know.

They look like ten sensor cables.

Look at the conductive section of the clip here.

I worked to build an integrated TENS app for a new device patent two years ago.

And these are the kinds of cables the client had as a part of the physical display.

They can be used for electrical nerve stimulation, but these types of clips are used to send and receive biofeedback.

I think whatever you did told them where we are.

Come on, quicker.

For the last time, don't touch anything else.

They're in the walls, Gwen.

When you get to the walkway, don't look down.

Why?

What's done there?

The rest of them.

God.

Are you okay?

What are you doing?

These people are half collapsed.

You You can see here, fused into the cave wall, the exposed bone structure.

They're covered with some type of fungus, but they're moving.

Still alive.

Barely any parts of the original person remain.

What we're here.

Oh, this poor woman.

Her fingers are moving.

But she shouldn't be able to do this.

It must be an electrochemical reaction to decomposition people's bones.

They're

breathing.

They're still alive, Neil.

Of course they are.

The last one was walking around.

Didn't you see it?

We need to leave.

Don't get any closer to them.

We're going.

But.

Yes, of course.

What if they're in pain?

We need to try to...

You can't help them.

And they don't want it.

Please, follow me.

You're running out of time.

Did you hear that?

Let's go.

Remember, don't look down.

Stay close.

We're nearly there.

Holy shit.

I look down.

Gwen?

I think I found the rest of those bodies.

What

is this place?

Old Crooksman.

Keep up.

No, no, not yet.

This place needs...

needs fire.

It needs burning to the ground.

I think I might be sick.

It's moving.

The whole mass of it.

Is it breathing?

What's the shine coming from?

Connective tissue.

Cartilage.

Tendons and ligaments.

I can see it all.

No, no, never mind.

I don't want to know.

See that tunnel over there?

That's our goal.

We need to go.

Is this it?

How can this be the solution?

This is abhorrent.

Shit.

They're getting closer.

Follow me.

Now.

If you don't leave soon, Gwen, this won't be a porn.

This will be all.

Yes, yes, right.

Right.

Go.

Go, go, go.

I'm right behind you.

Dead end.

We can get out through that.

Can't.

It's a weighted shoot, but it's not going to be pleasant.

Pleasant?

Colin, this is a nightmare.

Well,

at least you aren't claustrophobic.

No.

I'm just coming out of this with a whole new slew of fears and phobias.

Plums,

caves, mushrooms,

queen's English villages?

Right.

This chute is used to drop the plum debris from the orchard down into the caves, compost, and fee for old Cruxmod.

I'll stay down here to hold the sluice gates open.

This one letter should activate both.

How do you know all of this?

The man who built this died in 1993.

His name was Barney Miles.

I lived through his memory of May 1897, when he and his brothers constructed the chute along with other orchard workers.

You're serious, aren't you?

Barney Miles.

Perhaps in his teens at the time of the chute construction, died in 1993.

Also over 100 years of age.

Comes with the price.

Everything does.

Now, I pull this lever down.

Keep my body weight on it.

Simple enough.

The sluice gate in the one above should open.

With that sewn up top to push the debris through the rubber catch, you should be able to climb up through through the chute and into the plum pit.

The most important parts are these: don't open your mouth and make sure to push off the metal edge of the chute when you get to the top.

Don't lose it.

Otherwise, you'll suffocate in the debris before you get enough strength or momentum to reach the top.

It's about a meter and a half of ryan debris in between you and the orchard fields.

Suffocate?

Yes.

So, how do you get up?

I don't.

I get you out.

No.

Then we find another way.

You and I can sneak past the constable, or hell, if we need to, we can knock him out.

Or at least try.

Neil, I'm only saying this one more time, and I need you to listen.

I can't leave.

But if you don't help Gwen get out of here,

if you don't get out of here, you get stuck here as well.

I've been here too long already.

I don't know what will happen if I leave.

I think I do.

Rapid neurodegeneration.

Complete loss of memory, dementia, ataxia, eventually a decrease and eventual loss of motor functions or verbal ability.

You'll be lost.

Like Adelaide.

Get someone down here to fix the door.

I'll check all Cook's mind.

Oh, he's coming this way.

You can still get out.

Neil, go!

Get going out of here!

You may make it through the weekend or so, but not her!

I love you, Colin.

I promise you, I.

I'll find a way to fix this.

I love you, too.

Thanks for coming to find me.

You're the only person who would ever have tried.

Now go.

Gwen, come on.

I'll go first, then I'll pull you up.

Thank you.

Let's go.

Is everything okay up there?

Yeah, just watch your step on the joints.

There's no grip.

How about you?

I'll be fine as long as you focus on not falling.

I'm sorry about your brother.

He was a good man.

Just like you said.

He is.

Colin is a good guy.

He's not dead.

I'll find a way to get him out of this.

I know.

I'm sorry.

He is a good guy.

We're at the catch.

Feels like rubber.

Smells like rot.

Remember what Colin said?

Close your mouth and push off from the edge of the hatch.

Yeah, I remember.

I wish I I could close my nose too.

Shit.

Once I'm up through the catch, I don't know how we'll communicate, but just follow behind me after about 10 seconds.

Don't wait too long.

Okay.

Here we go.

Gwen,

Gwen

Thank you.

No problem.

Now we gotta get out of here.

Oh, there are so many people up here

enjoying themselves, singing, celebrating.

None of them know what's down here.

They have no idea what's below them.

Oh, they do.

Every farmer, every teacher, everyone from Cruxmont knows.

Colin called that thing

old Cruxmont.

Does that mean something to you?

When I was talking to the teenagers, they mentioned it.

They said they met Old Cruxmont.

I thought it was a place, but Mike was drunk off of his ass.

It was on one of the epitaphs as well.

I can't remember what it said, but I...

I recorded it.

We can think about it later.

We need to leave.

They're still looking for us.

Where are you going?

Through the festival.

It's the fastest way to the car, and it's harder to fight us in the crowd.

No one else in that crowd smells like a rot heap and looks like the swamp thing.

We'll have to go around.

Right.

Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Wait.

Look.

Bonfires are normal.

Sure.

So are the plums.

Let's get out of here.

So, you don't know the hills of ice.

But you know swamping, eh?

Swamp thing is a classic.

So you really think that's going to happen to Colin?

I...

I don't know, Neil.

He wasn't born here.

Maybe it will be different.

But I can't take that chance.

Not if what he said is true.

I know.

And I know Colin can take care of himself.

Just knowing he's alive.

I'm glad you found him.

I'm sorry we had to leave him like that.

It's so fucked up.

How could I just leave him down there?

But he's earned the benefit of the doubt.

But those things were monsters, Gwen.

Real monsters.

They were people.

At least at some point.

But whatever has happened to them is irreparable.

Oh, hey.

Wow.

Wow, it's cold.

But it's cleaner than plum rot.

And we're gonna be in your car for a few hours.

Oh, it's in my hair.

I have to get it out.

So, uh, Adelaide Birch left the village, lost her mind,

and got something delivered from Cruxmont, then got her mind back.

Given what we know now,

what do you think it was?

Oh, God, it's in my ears.

I've never eaten plum ever again.

Wow.

That fungus on the people down there.

It was consistent across every moving thing and the list.

Shit, I forgot the roots.

Perhaps she ate a piece of it or a tincture containing it.

I must have acted so quickly.

I'll have to get a real shower later, but

are you ready to get out of here?

Yep.

The car is just over that hill.

But let's not follow the road in case someone is looking for us.

Thank you for all your help, Gwen.

From the very beginning, after you nearly hit me with your car, you didn't have to help me.

I don't think I would have found Colin without you backing me up.

Oh, I don't think I did much to help, but

you're welcome.

So,

what's your plan after we reach the car?

I understand if you plan to go, but I'm not leaving Croxmont.

Well, uh, first, I plan to fall asleep and recover.

I don't have the same energy as you, certainly, and I am at my end.

After that, I'll uh return to Croxmont, try to take some samples of the fungus, or confront someone directly.

With all the information I have at hand, it may seem like I know more than I really do.

Oh, I can

get behind a log now.

But you better get your sample quickly, because I'm going to burn that thing down to the ground.

Further into the ground.

It takes some time.

Think about it.

You saw what it did to those people, Gwen.

Yes, but burning it is not what I would choose.

Did it steal your brother?

I know, Neil, but think about it for a moment.

We don't know what repercussions setting afire in the tunnels will have.

What about your brother?

What about the residents of old Cruxmont?

What about the village itself, the festival visitors?

If I can get Colin out, I don't care.

Maybe we just wait for the night when the festival goers are gone from the orchard.

There's the car.

Oh.

Well, it looks like no one found it.

We're lucky most of the village is busy with the festival.

Under other circumstances, the whole of Cruxmont would have been looking for us.

I'm, um,

I'm sleeping back here.

You can take the front.

Better roll the windows down, or the smell will just fester.

Are they here?

Yeah.

Yeah, no problem.

Are you awake?

Yes.

Are you ready to let me out of here?

No, not yet.

What did you see up on that hill?

You have me locked up in a cage.

What did you see up on the hill?

Something terrible.

A monster.

Exactly Exactly what I was afraid of.

Let me out of here.

You'll be down here until we can figure out what can be done.

What's your name, Colin?

What does that mean?

What are you gonna figure out?

There's nothing to think about.

Just let me out of here.

What does that mean?

Let me out of here.

You can't just lock someone up.

Where the hell are you going?

Let me out of here.

Mary baked you something fresh today.

Plum scones and these are vegetable patties.

I had some.

They're quite delicious.

Do you need a water refill?

That was perfectly good food.

I've been down here for hours.

I don't want fucking scones.

I want out.

And you've been putting something in my food.

I can't take drugs, please.

You do that to me.

What makes you think we're drugging you?

The dreams.

They're too vivid.

Tell me about your dreams.

Why would I tell you shit?

Because I have the keys.

So tell me, are the dreams realistic?

Really real.

It was in, like, the past.

I don't know a lot about history, but it was maybe the 1850s or something.

I was in the field, the orchard, and we were digging a well or something.

What season was it?

Spring.

Which orchard was it?

Orchard for?

What was your name?

Henry Olio.

I'll be back soon.

Wait, what does that mean?

Stop just leaving.

Where are you going?

What's in the food?

Hey!

Hey!

Let me out of here.

Yes, I'm awake and I still want to leave.

It's been two days.

Colin, I'd like to introduce you to Mary Birch and William Burden.

And the upset-looking man in the corner?

Oh, that's our constable, Noah Gordon.

He's sorry for hitting you over the bonce and dragging you down here, but he won't say so.

Yeah, that was a dick move, Fuzz.

That is unimportant, Colin.

Right now, we need to know: have have you had any more vivid dreams?

I'm sick of these questions.

I want out.

Please, the dreams?

Yeah.

I've had more of them.

And it's not the food, is it?

They aren't hallucinations.

They're something else.

What have you seen?

I was riding a cart with horses, big Shire horses named Klein and Whittle.

There was a man driving the cart, my father, and the cart was filled with crates crates and crates of plums.

That's enough, dear.

Give us a moment.

Any time now!

Colin, are you ill?

Do you have any family history of mental illness?

What?

Why do I have to tell you any of this?

Do you?

You should tell us, dear.

Fine.

I'm an addict.

I've been clean for over a year, but yeah, there's a family history of addiction.

Happy?

You poor chap.

He's damaged.

With these memories, it's possible he's already been here too long.

It's only been, what, three days?

Stop!

What the hell are you talking about?

We need to talk to the others.

I'll call them.

Mary.

Mrs.

Burch, please.

Let me out.

Please just tell me what's going on.

Colin, dear, I hope you like our little village.

It's very possible that you're going to be quite important to us.

I'll bake you another batch of scones.

Or would you prefer something else?

Can you make waffles?

Of course I can, dear.

I've been in worse places.

Miles, anything out in Orchard five?

Nothing, no.

I've only walked about half though.

Anything back in the village?

Reverend John admitted showing the Doctor where the key to the chapel was, but we still have no trace of her or the American.

We found him.

Took him out of the tunnels for now.

Keep searching the orchard, I'll send someone out to help.

So, Colin's out.

turpentine

more turpentine

Colin's out

and you're going up in flames.

No!

Good!

Let me go!

It doesn't deserve to exist!

Where's Colin?

How do I save my brother?

I'm Colin.

Stop!

Don't Mind Cruxmont.

Written and created by K.A.

Stats.

Produced and directed with sound design by Travis Vengroff.

Edited with Sound Design Mixing and Mastering by Dane Leonardson.

Dialogue editing by Austin Beach.

And with script and casting consulting by Gemma Amore.

Starring Adjua Ando, Daniel Demerin, Preston Young, Sinclair Bell, David Alt, Tim Lee, Sue Bomer, Paul Oshia, and Travis Vengroff.

With executive producers Dennis Greenhill, Michael Viegas, Carol Vengroff, and AJ Punkin, with music by Stephen Malin.

This episode would not be possible without the support of our listeners on Patreon.

So please consider supporting us there at patreon.com/slash foolandscholar or by sharing this show with a friend.

This episode is copyrighted 2022 by Fool and Scholar Productions.

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