It never fails: of the plethora of stories, tales, and projects left to complete, we inevitably begin a new one. We touched a bit on it in last week's edition when we mentioned The Conglomerate, The Institute, The Complex, and The Foundation. This week, we dive a little deeper. See Under Construction for the delicious details.
Our classic horror feature is a curious little story about death and the fairy folk. In the epilogue, we raise the idea of interpreting the story through two different lenses. However, this is not to say these are the only two ways the story may be interpreted. Perhaps you have a different opinion after reading Itself. If so, we would to hear all about; just reply to this email or leave a comment on this post.
Our vampires head outside after determining the fellow Marcello’s fate, in this edition’s installment of A Vampire’s Vengeance. Where they are heading, only Ceres can tell, but it appears they’ll be covering more ground around the city.
Our dear Mister Solomon does not appear to be heeding the words of the mysterious stranger from the dreamspace in House. Whether this turns out for good or ill remains to be seen, though rarely has ignoring the words of a wise woman ever turned out well for those doing the ignoring. Read the latest chapter and decide for yourself what you think will happen.
And of course, we have the latest installment of Bus Driver. Let’s not bandy words about this narrative, as you can read the chapter for yourself down below. Instead …
Let’s get into it →
So what’s the big deal about The Conglomerate? In the last Backstage Pass edition, we did say there would be, and I quote: “LOTS more SOON to come” and that SOON is now. Of course, this will not be the sole update, but it is a rather big and exciting update! Over the past two weeks, specifications have been drafted to establish what comprises The Conglomerate and how it all functions. This lays the groundwork for innumerable stories to be written in this universe. So far, the specs for CANOPY Consortium, The Conglomerate itself; BALTHAZAR, the Advanced Research Institute; CASPAR, the Training Complex; and MELCHIOR, the Foundation have all been created. A rather lengthy and in-depth white paper on CANOPY’s communications system, code-name HERMES-THOTH SECURE RELAY SYSTEM (HTSRS), is in development, with 7 of the 12 major sections completed, along with 2 of the 10 appendices. In addition, a number of fictional dossiers and memorandums have been created in support of this massive corporate fiction.
It is our deepest desire to complete the groundwork of this universe as quickly as possible, as we intend to replace our current classic horror column, Mad Alex Presents, with short stories of our own imagining in the vein of cosmic horror, linking deeply to CANOPY Consortium, in Backstage Pass Volume III. Keep your eyes peeled, as more news will be coming.
Marcello’s fate remains to be seen. In the meantime, let’s see what our resident vampires get into with the group of humans they’ve found themselves among:
Oh Mister Solomon. Is it arrogance? Is it confusion? Is it an inflated sense of import keeping you from internalizing the lessons from the dreamspace in the house? Who knows?! You can, however, read into this thoughts as he processes his recent experience while dreamwalking:
What happens when a superstitious patient is placed in the hands of a well-meaning doctor for care, particularly when those superstitions turn out to be true? Come read a curious little story of horror from the annals of American weird fiction:
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A traveling merchant finds himself in quite the predicament when he manages to win a duel, leading him down a dark path. A tale from the Odds ‘n’ Endings Boutique.
Welcome to another installment of Bus Driver! Please recall the bus driver and his passengers having arrived at the Trading Outpost, being escorted to a basement diner, and their host being called away to urgent business. You can catch up with Part XXII here. Does this put our protagonist in the line of danger? Will they enjoy a meal free from disruption? Let’s find out →
The chatter picked up as more of the booze was consumed. The residents all made jokes at each other's expense or told stories of their various scrapes with the infected. The passengers asked the occasional question, but otherwise remained silent, choose instead to laugh and listen along. The bus driver, however, was nervous; he'd seen the monstrosity in their flight through the high desert, which gave weight to the insanity of some of the stories being shared in the basement diner. It was likely some of the passengers felt the same way; if so, the bus driver couldn't tell. The only thing he did know of the others was the curiosity he found in the scientist: she was the only person who refrained from interacting with the others. She sat in silence, sipping her drink, turning a sharp eye on whoever commanded attention in the moment, but otherwise kept to herself.
It was the better part of a few hours when the bus driver felt sufficiently relaxed to ask questions of his own, his spirit loosened by a hearty meal and plenty of drink. With no small amount of courage, he turned to Griselda.
"How do you all do it?" He knew no other way to ask, and he wondered if this was even appropriate to ask, despite the tales and banter being thrown around without caution.
Griselda met his gaze, and with softness in her voice, said, "Do what? Survive?"
Further emboldened, the bus driver continued.
"Yeah. I mean, all these stories of all these monsters ... I don't understand how you haven't run for the safety of a compound."
"Are compounds so safe?" She held her gaze steady upon the bus driver.
"Well, they offer a fair amount of protection."
"You make all you need in your compound?"
"We do alright. There are other settlements we trade with for those things we don't make ourselves."
"The settlements to the north? The ones who make all the crops?"
"We make crops ourselves, if you want to put it that way."
"But not everything?"
"There are some things we can't do. But we have good trade and are otherwise self-sufficient."
"And if the settlements are cut off?"
The bus driver stopped to think. He knew a bit of the economy in the region of the compound, but not enough to know what would happen if the food merchants from the north stopped arriving.
"I guess we're not as self-sufficient as we think."
"Here, it is not easy," said Griselda. "But it is important. We help your food get to you. And then we help the things you trade get to your food source."
The bus driver sat with the statement for a moment. Raucous laughter arose from the rest of the table and another nearby as someone finished telling a lewd joke. As the laughter died down, Griselda continued:
"For some of us, we understand the need. For others, there is nothing else but this. And for a few," she turned to look at a group nested at the table adjacent to theirs, "they love the danger." She returned her attention to the bus driver. "We all do what we must. But those," and she raised an eyebrow in that group's direction, "they enjoy it. It is better for the rest of us. We let them have their fun."
One of the group, a short and stocky man with a full beard and an eye patch, noticed the attention Griselda paid him. He turned to face the old woman and raised his glass.
"To the joy in the danger! To our fun!" His short speech was met with a cheer from the residents, and others joined him in downing their drinks.
Griselda smiled at the display and said to the bus driver: "Do not be fooled. They are foolhardy." She gave the man who made the speech a wink, then returned her attention to the bus driver. "But so am I. We all are. To live here, you must."
"Ol' Grizzy's the most foolhardy out of all of us," said one of the short and stocky man's companions. The residents, who by this time had refilled their glasses, raised them for another cheers.
One of the residents shouted, "Tell us one of your crazy stories, old woman!"
Ol’ Grizzy is the most foolhardy, eh? I suppose we shall learn how the old woman gained her nickname. But of course, you’ll have to come back next edition to read of her exploits, which you can do so right here!
Well, isn’t it nice we get a little reprieve with the bus driver and his passengers? None of that stressful ‘dodging the infected and fighting to survive’ nonsense we had at the beginning. Just some good ol’ home cooking and strangely distilled beverage. The question is, will things remain peaceful? And what about our dear dreamwalker, Solomon? It seems he’s headed for a whole world of hurt, but we won’t know for sure until later on in the story. The vampires seem to be making out okay though!
Thank you for joining us on another romp through Backstage, as we continue to build out these attractions and discuss what’s coming. Please do not hesitate to provide us with any feedback you may have. You can reply directly to this email, leave a comment on this post on our website, or use any of the buttons below to send us a message. We look forward to hearing from you!
Cordially,
Mad Alex
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