[00:00:00] Speaker A: We would like to dedicate this episode to the incredible Angelo de Loretto, who has composed the themes to both of our shows. He was a dear friend, an incredible composer. Voice over actor, musician, brother and son, and we'll miss him dearly. If you or someone you love is struggling through this incredibly difficult year, that has definitely exacerbated mental health issues. Please know you are not alone. Know that you are wanted, you are loved, you matter, you belong. And please reach out for help. We will have resources in our show notes. And I leave you now with the incredible theme he wrote us, and with a glimpse into pondwatchers past.
[00:01:26] Speaker B: A simple house somewhere in Irisen, a quiet night in what appears to be a small village.
[00:01:32] Speaker C: Come outside, Alanoth. I want to show you something.
[00:01:35] Speaker B: Yes, mama. A tall and muscular elven woman, teleledria, steps out into the night, the snow reflecting a full moon. She leads what appears to be a gangly elven child of four to five inhuman years. A young pond watcher. His skin is not yet marred by the strange frostbite which would later affect him.
[00:01:55] Speaker C: It is time for you to learn to fight. I saw you being chased by helfrige and thrown into a pond. She's only 29. And last week I saw you being tackled by a puppy. That thing must weigh all of five pounds. It's not even a wolf. It's just a dog.
[00:02:11] Speaker D: Yes, but it was very fast and powerful. It ambushed my knees.
[00:02:16] Speaker C: Yes, yes, a very mighty beast. However, you must learn to defend yourself if you are ever going to grow up to defend your people. You know, there are bigger beasts in this world. I once saw a polar bear eat an experienced man's head. There are witches. There is the dragon.
[00:02:33] Speaker B: Yes mama.
[00:02:34] Speaker C: Your father never learned to fight either. And look where it got him.
[00:02:38] Speaker B: Pondwatcher looks down, but remains silent. Teleledria leads him through some quaint mud streets into a clearing under the moon. There are what appears to be two large lengths of wood buried in the ground in the middle of a circle. One is a simple staff, while the other is an ornate halberd.
[00:02:56] Speaker D: Wow. Im going to get to play with your spear.
[00:02:59] Speaker C: Its a halberd and no, you get a stick.
[00:03:03] Speaker D: Okay, a halberd.
Why does it look like that? Why don't you have a bow or a spear or like a big axe?
[00:03:12] Speaker C: How bowed. It's like a spear and an axe and you can hit people from far away. It's beautiful.
[00:03:19] Speaker B: Telegria flourishes the weapon, performing several smooth strikes with the various edges. She is laughing and spinning if you.
[00:03:26] Speaker C: Are good, you'll never get hit.
[00:03:28] Speaker E: Her son's face drops as he looks down at the ground, fiddling with his stick. She reconsiders what to say, looking away to the horizon. She merely turns to look at him.
[00:03:40] Speaker C: And says, sometimes it's not possible to avoid being hurt. If you get hit, you hit back. This weapon was my mother's. One day, maybe it will be yours. If you can beat me.
[00:03:54] Speaker B: We now see the giggling boy running with his mother, vainly trying to lift a tree trunk and strike the woman. As she runs circles around him. Your vision blurs into the dank interior of a cave. There are screams and dozens of dead elves lying on the ground, torn to shreds, frozen into blocks adhered to the cave walls and ceiling. Pondwatcher again, an adult, now wearing torn clothes and a glassy look. We see him holding a broken spear with his other arm hanging limply at his side. A mere foot away, an enraged white dragon roars, its spittle flying around as it readies itself to strike at him. The dragon is peppered with arrows and slash marks. Strange blood leaks from its many wounds, causing frost to rise around it. In a cloud. Your perspective shifts. Staccato images flash of Teleledria. She is pushing the boy aside. She's leaping through the air. She's driving the spear tip of her halberd into the throat of the dragon. The beast collapses while closing its jaws around her torso. There is a flash of of black blood, a flash of her blood, a cloud of icy cold mist descending in a sickening crunch. Pondwatcher is freezing. He's burning. He's nothing. He screams.
And now you see Pondwatcher. Today he's on watch, looking over his sleeping friends. He looks to the empty space where silver used to set up his bedroll. He looks down at the halberd, loosely held in his hands, its blade freshly etched into kujai runes. Its okay, mom. Now when I get hit, I hit back.
[00:05:38] Speaker F: Thank you for listening to the Crack Die podcast. Background sound effects provided by sirenscape because Epic Games deserve Epic music, please visit
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