Don't Mind | Cruxmont | Ep. 11

Hey everyone, it's Travis with Fool and Scholar Productions with a very important update.

First, Caitlin and I are taking our first actual vacation, not including sick days, because those don't count, since becoming full-time podcasters.

This actual vacation, not to be mistaken for the work trip we're also going on this week, will cause a slight delay to our production schedule as we recharge.

The final three episodes of Don't Mind Crux Mond will release when we get back, starting on the 27th of September.

We appreciate your patience as we work diligently to bring this story to its proper conclusion after we're fully rested.

And as we close out our first full season of Don't Mind, we will also be giving those of you who become patrons, that is to say, supporters, of our Patreon page, an exclusive Cruxmont pin commemorating the conclusion of our first story.

So be sure to sign up today to get your pin, because they won't be printed anywhere else.

A link to our Patreon post explaining all this in better detail is available in the show notes.

Now, let's get ready for the next episode of Don't Mind Cruxmont.

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Previously on Don't Mind Cruxmont, Neil awoke in a dark cavern with his brother Colin trapped alongside him.

After an emotional reunion, Colin explained how he came to be stuck beneath the hills of the All Hill Orchard and that something inhuman lurked in the caverns with them.

Meanwhile, while examining the festival, Dr.

Kingston was confronted by the constable and forced to flee through the crowds.

Outside the festival grounds, she tripped down a hillside and landed out of view of her pursuers.

Upon awakening from her fall, Gwen returned to Cruxmont's chapel and found an entrance to the catacombs below.

There she found every grave and tomb empty and hypothesized that it was entirely possible no one had been buried in Cruxmont for hundreds of years, if ever.

Don't mind Cruxmont.

Oh, God, Gwen, you look fantastic.

Thank you, Ari, but I'm all nerves and sweat.

Am I sweating?

I am, aren't I?

Can you tell?

How's the dress?

No one can tell.

You look perfect.

Oh, here's the veil.

I've got that knot out.

Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you.

It was a little thing I know, nothing to worry about, but um, yeah, thanks.

Is there anything else I can get for you?

You look like you're ready, but I still have about an hour.

Uh, something to nibble on.

No, no, no, no, nervous stomach, I'm afraid.

Have people started arriving?

No, not unless they're here to help.

Come in!

Oh,

you look perfect, Gwen.

Ari,

can I speak with you out in the hall for a moment?

Of course.

Don't mind the little things.

Gwen, it looks as though your mother's missing.

We've had everyone on the lookout, but it seems she left the church grounds.

Has anyone tried her mobile phone?

She switched it off when she came into the church earlier.

All right then, let's get to it.

What?

No, Gwen, stay here.

It's raining, and you can't get anything.

Let it out of anyone.

I'll know best where she'd have gone.

Someone checked the car park for her car.

It's a Redford Fiesta.

If it's not there, she may have driven home.

Oh, and grab me that raincoat.

Ari, go back to the house.

She might have taken a taxi back if she didn't drive.

Hope, talk to the taller men.

See if anyone's seen her.

Sometimes she thinks they're her brother, so someone might know something.

I'm gonna walk into town, try and retrace her footsteps if she's headed that way.

Yes, we'll do.

Tall men?

Yes, please.

And someone tell Desmond.

Mom?

Mom?

Maisie Kingston!

Books, books, books, books.

Welcome to Barrett's Books and

oh, dear lord, you're in a wedding dress.

Yes, I do happen to know that.

I'm looking for my mother.

Have you seen a woman come in, older, wearing purple?

Yes, a woman did come in a few minutes ago.

She's in the back section.

Modern non-fiction.

Thank you.

Mom!

I'm back here, darling.

I think I'll pick this up and then we can head over to the cafe next door for tea.

Before we go home, did you find anything?

Gwen, what are you wearing?

Mum, it's April 12th.

It's my wedding day.

We're in town for the ceremony.

You were just at the church, and then you left and walked here.

Oh, Gwen,

look stunning.

I'm so sorry.

It just slipped my mind.

I thought today was special, and it really is.

Look at you.

Such an angel.

Thank you, Mum.

Really, Gwen, I'm sorry.

This day is your day.

It means so much to me.

It's okay, really.

I knew I'd find you.

Well, it was either a bookshop or a park, and given the rain.

No, but dear, I want you to know I'm excited for you, and I'm happy for you.

Even if I forgot.

It just means I get to see you in the dress all over again.

I know, Mum.

Don't worry about it.

I'm excited enough for both of us, but we should get back before people start to believe the bride ran off or something.

Yes, of course, dear.

And be careful in the rain.

Don't mess up your hair.

I'll be careful, but I'm sure you could just redo redo it.

I did that?

Oh, all those years, and I've still got the magic touch you have.

Now, tell me about this man you're marrying.

What's he like?

Do I like him?

You do.

He's um, he's funny and sweet and always makes you laugh.

Where did you meet?

Uh, at work.

He's a doctor, works in rheumatology.

His name is Desmond, And you always say he looks like a young Sidney Poitier.

You say it each time you meet him, and he loves it.

Perfect.

He'd have to be handsome to stand next to you in that dress.

I'm sure he looks absolutely perfect, but it's bad luck, so I haven't seen him yet.

Come on, mom.

Let's get back, shall we?

We need to get out of here.

Now!

Something's down here.

I know.

And it doesn't like what you just said.

What the hell does that mean?

Get over here.

Did you see it?

No.

That's the point of hiding.

We have to get out of here.

Get on that side and get down.

Like this.

The bars are looser on the bottom.

Put your feet on the rocks, grab a hold, and pull.

Three, two.

Okay.

No.

Not working.

It's not working.

Stand up.

Let's just kick it.

The jolt might help dislodge it.

No.

It's too loud.

The thing is still down here somewhere.

Whatever it is, it must know you're down here.

It's not like you have anywhere to go.

And we have to try something.

Move.

You okay?

Yeah.

Try my idea again.

Sure.

Ready?

Shit, you're bleeding.

Yeah, the middle cut me.

Oh, that's worse than I thought.

Hold it above your head and apply pressure to the cut.

Yep.

Ow.

It's coming back.

Did you hear that?

It's that farmer.

That guy hit me.

Or maybe it was the other guy.

He's down here a lot.

Lots of people from the village are.

But he and Mary mostly.

Didn't bring me food or sometimes coming to ask questions.

Mary?

The old woman from the pub?

I hear you over there.

I know you're down here, Roger.

You can't keep us locked up like this.

Let us out of here.

Stop it.

I thought the whole point was to try and get you out without people knowing.

Yeah, you let us out of here.

And he's coming over here.

Well, good job, Neil.

He heard you.

It appears that not following rules runs in your family.

And kidnapping is what?

A traditional Cruxmunt pastime?

Just let us out of here.

I won't do that.

Not yet.

Cheap trick making me think you were going to help me.

For a second there, I thought you were actually good people.

So what now?

And where's your help?

That cop?

Was he the one that hit me?

I'm still bleeding.

He'll be back soon.

They're trying to figure out what to do with us.

What?

Your brother is right, sadly.

And the doctor.

They're worried about her, too.

They're looking for her.

Wait, Gwen?

No.

No.

Gwen's got nothing to do with this.

She left town.

I just came back to find Colin.

Alone.

We know she's here.

And your brother is correct about more than we'd like.

Do you hear them now, Colin?

Or is it only when you're sleeping?

After this long in Cruxmont, it will get stronger by the hour, I'm afraid.

What the hell does that mean?

Colin, what's going on?

So, I'm not going crazy?

Do you hear too?

No.

No, see, that's why you can't leave.

Stop this shit and just let us out of here.

I'm sorry, lad, but Colin is never going to leave this place.

And every moment longer that you stay, I don't know what we're going to do with you either.

What the hell does that mean?

What are you talking about?

Just open the goddamn door.

Here, water and some plum bread, chutney, and sweets from the festival.

I'll be back soon.

We'll figure something out.

Let us out of here!

All hill!

Open the door!

Neil, stop.

Just calm down.

Calm down?

Colin, he just said they're not going to let you leave.

Oh, shit.

Colin, I think they're going to kill us.

Move.

Move!

You'll stop.

Keep doing that.

You're just eching your

I've lost enough blood already.

No, stop.

What?

Don't drink that.

You don't know what they've been putting in that.

It could be poison, or it could be what's giving you those weird hallucinations or whatever.

Neil, I've been down here for a week.

I've been drinking this stuff and eating this food for a week.

Any caution on what they've been giving me was thrown out the window days ago.

Well, maybe you should have been more cautious.

You should always have been more cautious.

You just trust people.

You have to think for yourself, Colin.

Think about what you're putting in your body.

They're messing with your head, man.

You can't keep doing this.

Me doing this?

I didn't do anything wrong.

My hiking didn't hurt anyone.

My camping didn't hurt anyone.

And you need to trust me.

You told me I had risen above the old me, but do you really believe that?

I'm not relapsed, man.

There's There's no drugs, Neil.

I wouldn't know.

Colin, I.

Oh, I get it.

But I've done everything right this time.

Everything was fine.

I was fine until I saw that.

That thing.

What was that?

I don't know.

That came from in here.

What is it?

I said, I don't know.

Colin,

please, please tell me that's you grabbing my arm.

No

what was that?

Where'd it go?

Stop asking me.

I don't know.

It was above us.

Give me the light.

Colin?

Ceiling.

Dirt.

Neil!

The roots are moving.

Duck!

Get down!

Neil!

Shh!

Someone's coming!

Get over here!

Turn down the light!

It's still in here, Colin.

Don't touch it.

Can you see who it is?

No, it's too dark.

But it's not all Ill.

Why are we hiding?

They know we're down here.

They put us down here.

It's not always the same person.

If they have a key, maybe we can jump them and take it.

I've seen the key.

It's big.

Like an old skeleton key.

Oh, good.

Some kind of plan.

If they get close enough, jump out and try and grab them through the bars.

I'll check them for a key.

Shh!

Here they come.

Now!

Colin, let go!

But we let go!

This is Gwen!

Neil?

Yeah.

How did you get down here?

I uh I found a way down through the cat combs under the chapel.

Are you okay?

How did you get here?

Oh,

that's Colin.

You found him.

Oh, yeah.

Colin, Gwen?

Gwen, Colin?

Hi.

Sorry about jumping you.

Can you get us out of here?

I can try.

I found this in the catacomb, so let's give those hinges a go.

Back up.

All the graves are fake.

The tombs as well.

No one is buried there.

It's all a...

It's all a ruse.

To be honest,

I don't know if I can get this open.

Pass it here.

We can try something from this side with the two of us.

What is this?

It's

some kind of decorative ironwork from one of the fake tombs.

Okay.

Ready?

Push!

Someone will have heard that.

We need to hurry.

We go back the way I came.

It will bring you up in the chapel, and then you and Colin can get out of Crooksmont.

How did you get down here?

Who did this?

I saw Colin in the orchard and went after him.

But when I reached where I seen him, I couldn't find him.

But Allhill and that constable found me.

They tricked me and hit me over the head when I wasn't looking.

When I woke up, I was here.

Look!

Uh-oh, Neil, that's a lot of blood.

What else do you feel?

Dizziness?

Nausea?

Ringing in your ears?

Headache, perhaps?

Well, my headaches where I have the cut and the bruise, but no, none of the others.

Mm-hmm.

Quite good luck then.

If you're lucky, you may not have a concussion.

But look out for any of those symptoms, and uh, we do need to get you cleaned up.

I'll do that later, for now.

Let's go.

He's always been a lucky one.

What about you?

They're looking for you, Gwen.

I still haven't found what I'm looking for, but I know it's here.

I spoke with an elder from the festival.

He's 130, Neil.

He looked

maybe 90 years old in a wheelchair, but his mind was so sharp, and he remembered everything.

Except for being a bit drunk, but I don't think he would have told me those things while sober.

That's impossible.

No one lives that long.

Not yet.

No.

This place is different.

I've heard them.

Heard what, Colin?

There's a woman, Cleo.

And the constable said she was starting to show signs.

An oil.

He was talking about how she'd be okay with it or something.

She said over 140 years.

And it was her time.

140?

This is revolutionary.

This could be more than just a predisposition against neurodegeneration.

This could be the key to longevity.

Whatever it is, we need to find a way out of here first.

Yes, this way.

Did you learn anything else?

Did you get into the festival?

I did, but the constable found me rather quickly and chased me.

I got away and eventually got to the chapel, but he said something strange before I lost him.

That what I was looking for wasn't going to help.

That I needed to get away from this place before it was in too deep.

So, more cryptic, but incriminating bullshit.

No.

No, he's right.

You need to leave.

There's something wrong with you, isn't there, Gwen?

You're like me.

You're broken.

There are parts of you missing.

You have cracks like me.

You can't stay.

You can't be here.

What?

There's something wrong with your mind.

Those cracks are getting bigger.

We need to hurry.

We need to get you out.

More than Neil, you're in danger.

You're what they were talking about.

Thinking about?

Colin, you're not making sense.

Did you tell him about my problem?

No.

Never mentioned it.

I didn't really have much time.

Neil's healthy.

He's got time.

The cracks in your mind, I have them too.

I had damage, and it's fixing it.

Filling it in.

Your cracks mean it has more to grab onto.

You need to hurry, or you'll be stuck here like me.

What do we talk about?

You're not stuck here.

I'm getting you home.

No, wait.

Colin?

We need to go.

Did your brother have any permanent damage after his drug addiction?

To his personality or mental acuity?

He's not crazy.

He's just been down here for days.

He would mess anyone up.

I don't mean to imply anything, Neil, but medically, was he okay?

Well, I don't know.

We never really talked about that part.

But yeah, he was different before it all.

Colin's great.

He's still a really good guy, but before he was more...

I don't know.

direct?

Decisive?

He enjoyed stuff he doesn't enjoy anymore.

It changed him.

But I read that's pretty normal, and he's still a great guy.

He's still my brother.

What did he use?

Opioids, alcohol,

sometimes amphetamines.

I'm sorry, Colin.

I I should have

But this isn't the drugs talking.

I've been having dreams.

Not the dreams again.

You can get out of here, Colin.

We're leaving.

No more of this bullshit about you staying here.

We're putting Kruxman in a rearview mirror tonight.

Neil, just listen to Colin for a moment.

We can't stop.

There's something down here.

What?

What's down here?

Just a moment.

I don't hear it.

So please.

Listen.

What am I saying?

I don't even know, but by the second night I was down here, I was having these intensely lucid dreams.

I had a whole dream in French.

Real French.

Understandable French.

I took French in high school, but this was more French than I've ever known or heard.

This was someone's life in perfect French.

I was walking down the streets of Paris doing mundane things, but it was like the 1950s or something.

There's Notre Dame.

I know because I played that game where you could explore it, but this time I was really there.

It was like I was living someone else's memory.

It could have been just a very detailed dream.

Oh, my dreams this last year.

Everything after rehab.

They're angry and sad.

They're also a bit strange.

This was so calm and normal.

So detailed.

Nothing forgotten.

And I didn't forget it.

I woke up and it didn't fade away.

It's in my head like a childhood memory.

The little girls who walked by me next to the sign wore small red hats.

The bike that turned the corner with a basket of groceries was black and the bell barely worked.

Cars.

All these old cars that could drive right up to the cathedral.

It's not a dream.

We're getting out of here.

We're getting out of here, and we're getting you a doctor.

I swear, Colin, I don't think it's drugs again, but you need help.

Neil,

just like I know that was real, I know that Gwen is in danger by staying here.

And if you stay here too much longer, you'll be in danger as well.

It's not the only thing I've seen while I was asleep.

Most of the memories are here in Cruxmont.

Which way?

Um, this way.

What else did you dream about?

Just before the festival started, I was asleep.

I was so

happy.

I was walking through the orchard trees, carrying a bucket of plums and heading toward the festival grounds.

There was a little girl.

My little daughter.

She was smiling at me like I was everything.

Like I'd never done anything wrong.

And we sat down on our stuff at a booth where my sister was painting the wood and mint green.

People were hammering together wooden stalls and the sky was perfectly blue.

It was a long time ago.

1903.

And I wasn't me.

Or anything like me.

I was Penny Moss.

That was a memory from Penny Moss.

Fascinating.

Oh, there, turn left.

Colin, if you think you have the memories of this woman, then tell me something else.

Tell me what she did on her 15th birthday.

I don't know.

I only got that memory from Penny.

There are more because it was just a dream.

Stop.

Stop.

Someone's here.

Hide it that way.

Quick.

No one is prepared, and they're worried.

They're more than worried.

She's a doctor.

We need to to find her.

Winifred said she saw her in the ditch beside the road near the small bridge over the brook.

From where I saw her in the festival, if she headed that way,

she might have headed to the church.

How's your throat?

Sore.

She's got a fast swim on her.

Sorry to hear it, but we need to keep looking.

I left John.

Oh, we can't go out this way.

They'll know we're here.

We need to turn around, find another way out.

We can try the way I got up before.

Follow me.

They'll find the cell door on the floor soon enough.

Then they'll be looking for more than just Gwen.

They know I can't leave.

I'm more worried about you.

Stop saying that.

You're coming home.

Neil,

sometimes it's not possible to change what's happening.

Will you be quiet, you two?

Once we find a safe way out, you can pick a hole you like.

Fine.

Stop.

Someone's there.

Can you tell who?

No.

But we can't go this way.

How many are there?

More than one.

Roger.

They've got the Americans.

Go and check in the church.

Well, they found out.

We have to hurry.

Where do we go from here?

This way.

Come on.

Shit, Neil, wait,

get back here, stay with us.

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 Ajua Ando, Daniel Demerin, Preston Young, Sinclair Bell, David Ault, Fiona Thrail, Lauren Clare, Elizabeth Greene, and David Deveaux.

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.

Thank you for listening.

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