 |
Are you my dad? Am I my OWN dad!? |
| This article is incomplete! You can give someone advantage on their next Investigation check by helping us expand it! This article still needs: Synopsis; Locations |
The Times of Shadow is the first episode of season 15, Neverafter.
Intro[]
"Hello, one and all, and welcome back to another thrilling season of "Dimension 20: Neverafter," a brand new season of horror and tales from beyond, tales perhaps at once familiar, and yet strange beyond the point of recognition. What shadows now lurk in the lands of the Neverafter? We must now begin to discover. I am your humble Dungeon Master, Brennan Lee Mulligan. With me, as always, are our Intrepid Heroes. Say "hi," Intrepid Heroes! [...] Back in the dome, back with Ricky Perry miniatures. Shout out to the whole team, the amazing crew of Dimension 20, another brand new adventure.
We enter into a world of horror, but a world where perhaps some elements are familiar from older tales that perhaps have been told in manners horrifying or not before, but this tale begins anew in the telling, and. with that, there is only one way to begin. Once upon a time..."
Content Warnings[]
This episode contains the following content warnings at the given timecodes
- Body Horror (5:18 - 7:39)
- Body Horror, Emetophobia (10:57 - 12:25)
- Misophonia, Entomophobia (36:30 - 37:41)
- Implied Child Death (1:19:56 - 1:26:00)
- Child Abandonment (1:45:08 - 1:46:58)
- Harm to a Child, Implied Child Death (1:49:13 - 1:51:31)
- Children In Severe Emotional Distress (2:10:15 - 2:10:43)
- Harm to a Child, Implied Child Death (2:11:15 - 2:11:28)
Synopsis[]
The Neverafter, a world in which fairytale characters and their stories are real, has been overtaken by a depression known as “The Times of Shadow”, where every retelling of the original fairytale becomes darker than the last.
Months ago, in a castle abandoned for a century, Princess Rosamund du Prix of Reverie wakes from her hundred-year slumber which she was cursed to endure on her eighteenth birthday. Rosamund is completely restrained by thorny briars, which have not only pinned her down, but have entered through her nose and mouth to get trapped within her chest as well. However, because she had been told the curse could only ever be broken by true love’s kiss, Rosamund waits patiently with the expectation that her prince will return back into her room at any moment. In an attempt to examine the room, Rosamund is physically restrained by the briars that hold her down.
After realizing that no prince is coming, Rosamund forcibly removes the briars from the inside of her body. She begins hearing whispers, and, assuming it's a prince, begins to try to escape. In the process, one of the thorns snags her hand, and Rosamund is presented with a vision of hundreds of princes’ corpses, all tangled in thorns outside of the castle, each murdered in their attempt to rescue Rosamund. Horrified by the revelation, Rosamund struggles to escape the briars, but is warned by the voices she was hearing that it is unsafe, and that the briars are there to protect her. After failing to sing a lullaby to calm them down, Rosamund fights off a sentient briar tendril and jumps out of the window, which is climbable due to all of the briars. After months of traveling through the cursed forest that has been created out of the briars, Rosamund comes to the conclusion that the Kingdom of Reverie has been destroyed, and there are no survivors.
In the present, Rosamund wakes up in a carriage service known as the Chandling Caravan, where a monstrous figure sits next to her. After cautiously removing the blanket it's covered with, she discovers a man who very closely resembles a frog. Revealing this to be the cursed Prince Gerard of Greenleigh, the two recognize each other as cousins. Gerard explains to Rosamund that his castle has been seized by enemies from Snowhold, and that his wife, the Princess Elody, has also gone missing. Since then, he has been cursed to appear as a frog, with no further elaboration other than he “shouldn’t be a frog anymore.” The driver, Boffit, lets Rosamund and Gerard know that they will be stopping for the night, and after Boffit picks on his appearance, Gerard grows upset.
A few weeks ago, Gerard sits in his bathtub before he realizes he has been sitting under the water for about ten minutes. Though his throat swells, he chalks this up to remnants of the curse he was given when he was ten years old -- to be transformed into a frog until he could find true love. However, since getting married to his childhood best friend, Princess Elody, it should no longer be a concern. As the days continue, Gerard begins to resemble a frog more and more. Though he takes constant tonics, nothing seems to be aiding his problem.
During dinner, Elody discusses the fight against Snowhold and plots battle strategy. Gerard, displeased by the topic, dismisses Elody’s concern in favor of a future ball. Elody dismisses the generals she was meeting with, trying to talk some sense into Gerard. However, Gerard becomes distracted by a fly during Elody’s speech, which Gerard attempts to eat, startling Elody. He tries to explain his plight, but Elody is disturbed by his fixation on the day of their wedding, and tries to explain that there is more to life than their marriage. Gerard implies Elody no longer loves him, to which Elody replies that he doesn’t care enough about the war with Snowhold. In an attempt to ease her concerns, Gerard says he will relearn fencing. However, Elody does not come to bed that night, and is instead found asleep at the war table. Upon discovering this, Gerard looks in the mirror to learn that his nose is gone.
In the present day, Boffit approaches one of the other carriages that he is driving, this one shaped like a shoe, and requests that they stop for the night. Inside, the Lord Bandlebridge toasts to celebration with a talking cat, Puss in Boots, also known as Pib, and a sentient child puppet named Pinocchio. Bandlebridge showers Pinocchio in praise, claiming he is a “transformed prince”. Pinocchio explains that he stole forty pennies from a woman who he later discovered was a witch, and cursed him to be a puppet instead of a real boy. To return to his true princely form, he must obtain another forty gold pieces to throw into a well, which Pinocchio requests from Bandlebridge. Pinocchio and Pib promise Bandlebridge great fortune and the hand of Pinocchio’s sister if he can do so. Once Lord Bandlebridge leaves the room, it is revealed that Pinocchio and Pib are a pair of scam artists that are attempting to scam Bandlebridge out of money for food.
Years ago, Pib is asleep in the castle of the Kingdom of Marienne, where he is served a hundred white mice on a golden platter. The king, the Marquis Tomas de Carabas, who has recently ascended to the throne, comes to Pib, his advisor, with genuine concern that juxtaposes his normally egotistical personality. It is revealed that Tomas only rose to power due to Pib’s scams, and although it was alright while the kingdom was in a time of prosperity, a war with the giants now draws near. Pib, unsure what to do himself, claims that everything is fine. Tomas stresses that he is not intelligent enough to be a real king, to which Pib dismisses.
Later, the walls around Marienne are knocked down by the giants, and Pib narrowly escapes, leaving Tomas and his wife behind. He watches the kingdom be destroyed as he sprints for safety.
In the present, Bandlebridge reenters the carriage, where Pib and Pinocchio are bickering. Pinocchio, using his fake status as a prince, requests a nicer sleeping situation, which Bandlebridge complies to, offering Pinocchio his bed for the night. Bandlebridge asks why Pinocchio has no marionette strings attached to him, which Pinocchio brushes off nervously. He also denies the suggestion of being repaired, even though his wood is rotting and there is a hole in his face. Pib thanks Bandlebridge for his hospitality and claims that he is his best friend.
Boffit approaches one last carriage, telling them as well that they will be stopping their journey for the night. Inside, “Mother” Timothy Goose and his preteen daughter-figure, Ylfa Snorgelsson, are informed by Boffit that they will be arriving at their destination, Shoeberg, in about a day. Timothy and Ylfa offer to stand guard, but Boffit declines, claiming that Timothy would instead be more useful as a storyteller to ward off spirits during dinner. Timothy and Ylfa agree and leave for dinner with the rest of the Chandling Caravan.
At dinner, Timothy and Ylfa introduce themselves to Bandlebridge, who is accompanied by Pinocchio and Pib. Rosamund and Gerard also join the group, listening to Bandlebridge inquire Timothy about his life. As he answers the questions, he sees something that frightens him off in the distance, calling whatever it is a “fucking piece of shit.” Bandlebridge interprets this as being about him and flees the conversation. Timothy tells Ylfa that he saw “it” again.
In yet another flashback, in the village of Pottingham, Timothy returns home to his husband, Henry Hubbard, with the dead body of their son, Jack. Henry, distressed, recalls the Golden Goose Jack had found, and how it had promised him three wishes. Timothy tells Henry that on his visit to Jack’s house, Jack had, in a panic, requested the third wish from the goose, which laughed in his face. Jack, immediately after, began to decompose into bones. The goose asked if Timothy wished to know what happened, to which Timothy replied yes, binding him to the three wish curse that has murdered Jack. Timothy then made his second wish, which was to be given something to bring Jack back to life. He was given a book, which he shows to Henry. Outside of their house, a huge, monstrous-looking Gander peers into their door.
Upon further inspection, Timothy and Henry find out that nothing has been written within the book. Timothy attempts to write in it, but all of the words are absorbed into the pages except for the name “Jack” and the word “shoe”. Timothy instead writes one of Mother Goose’s nursery rhymes, Jack Be Nimble, about his deceased son. The action creates a brief vision of Jack, who tells Timothy that he can help more than just him, before he disappears into the pages of the book. Using the word “shoe” as a clue, Timothy sets out for Shoeberg.
In the present, Timothy, Pib, Pinocchio, Ylfa, Rosamund, and Gerard all properly meet for the first time. Pinocchio also tells this group that he is actually the Prince of Shoeberg, which strikes up interest in Rosamund and Gerard, who are seeking assistance from royalty who can return them to their status. Meanwhile, a conversation about curses is struck up, and the party reveals to each other that they have each been cursed in horrible ways. Ylfa mentions the passing of her grandmother and her concern that she has pinkeye, which worries the group so much that Pinocchio, in a panic, invites everyone to stay the night in Bandlebridge’s carriage. After being told that they may not receive dinner if they don’t help with the preparations, Gerard announces Pinocchio’s royal status, which alerts Bandlebridge, a Shoeberg local. Just as Bandlebridge begins to figure the scheme out, Timothy intervenes and defends him, claiming that he is speaking too harshly, considering that Pinocchio is only a child. Both Pinocchio and Pib attempt to follow Bandlebridge back to the carriage, but are stopped by a guard, Stephan. Ylfa pulls Pinocchio out of the way, revealing a furry paw under her red robes, scaring Pinocchio.
In another flashback, Ylfa returns home from a particularly frightening visit to her grandmother’s house. Knocking on the door, she is given no response, and accidentally leaves scratches on the windows as her fist begins to transform into a paw. Ylfa calls for her mother, who tells her to leave, claiming that her daughter has died, and that the girl at the door is not Ylfa. Ylfa explains in a panic that her grandmother has died in an attack, and that, though she expected a woodsman to come and save her, nobody ever did. Instead, Ylfa was bitten, and has begun turning into a werewolf. Ylfa’s mother finally complies to open the door, but instead of letting her inside, she leads her into a trap with a silver dagger, which stabs her in the arm and rips the cloak her grandmother made for her. Ylfa’s mother runs to escape from the back door with Ylfa’s siblings. In a rage, Ylfa storms around the kitchen screaming about her supposed death, and hears a voice telling her to breathe. In doing so, Ylfa creates a gust of wind so strong that it blows her family away and destroys her home. The voice reminds her to “huff and puff.”
In the present, Pib and Pinocchio admit that they are scam artists that act as a traveling duo, and the party properly introduces themselves by name.
The party goes to help with dinner, where they all meet Old King Cole, who says Shoeberg is disappointing compared to the stories about it. Though Shoeberg is one of the only cities left in the Neverafter, it was established by an unkind woman and is no longer what it once was. Cole explains that his kingdom, Jubilee, was overtaken in the war, and that he no longer has a place to call home, much like the other travelers.
To help with dinner, Rosamund attempts to call creatures from the forest to help, but only a naked ostrich appears, frightening and amusing the party. Pib and Pinocchio attempt to make themselves look busy by carrying sacks, but are distracted by the last carriage. Pinocchio, seeing that someone’s inside, tells Pib to go back to the fire. Pinocchio enters the carriage, but when he does, he is no longer standing in a carriage, but instead, a long hallway. Pinocchio sees a silhouette of his Stepmother, who asks about the forming party. She also warns Pinocchio that Rosamund is being hunted by more forces than she could understand, and requests that he keep her safe. Pinocchio asks if his father, Geppetto, is alright, but the Stepmother avoids the question by saying she promised she would keep him safe.
In one final flashback, real-boy Pinocchio is playing at night in the village of Amanti, located in the Kingdom of Marienne. A fairy approaches Pinocchio and the children he’s playing with with a magical ball, saying that they will be allowed to play with it only if they answer a question truthfully. She asks the first child what the name of their father is, and when they respond, a scream is heard from somewhere in the village. She continues this with every child, making each of them weep, before coming to Pinocchio and asking for his own name. Pinocchio answers truthfully. Then, she asks for his father’s name, to which Pinocchio lies and calls him Daniel. No scream is heard, but Pinocchio falls dead to the ground. Later, Pinocchio wakes up with strings attached to him in his father’s house.
In the present, the Stepmother tells Pinocchio it is an honor to be his stepmother, and that he must keep track of all of the lies he’s telling.
Locations[]
Characters[]
Players[]
- Prince Gerard of Greenleigh
- Puss in Boots
- Pinocchio
- Mother Timothy Goose
- Ylfa Snorgelsson
- Princess Rosamund du Prix
New[]
- The Wicked Fairy (flashback)
- Boffit
- Princess Elody of Greenleigh (flashback)
- Lord Bandlebridge
- Tomas (flashback)
- The Gander
- Henry Hubbard (flashback)
- The Red Hen
- Old King Cole
- Eidelgrin
- Senator
- Stephan
- Mother Snorgelsson (flashback)
- Big Bad Wolf (flashback)
- The Stepmother
Mentioned[]
- The Snow Queen
- Grandma Snorgelsson (flashback)
- Jack Hubbard-Goose (flashback)
- Geppetto (flashback)
Trivia[]
- The recommended reading[1] for this episode is: