THE MOON CROWN

MINI EPISODE: BAKUNAWA

SFX: GLITCHY TAPE BEING REWOUND, THEN SPED UP

INT. - A SMALL OFFICE

ARNEL

So do I just... Start talking?

INTERVIEWER

Ah, hold on Arnel. Let me just start this.

SFX: CLICK, SOUND CHANGES TO SEEM LIKE IT'S FROM AN OLD TAPE

INTERVIEWER

If you could state your name for the-

SFX: DOOR OPENS, STEPS

Sorry! Have you started yet? HEY! Kuya!

ARNEL

Oy, miss Lo! What're you-

Wait, you're having my sister interview me?

INTERVIEWER

I'll be conducting the interview.

I'm just here for transcription.

ARNEL

Nice. When did you move up to entity encounter transcription?

Uhhhh... A month ago? You seriously don't remember my promotion?

ARNEL

Grats...? Ah, man, I'm sorry L- [clearing throat] - Lou.

INTERVIEWER

Lou, can you please stay quiet for the interview?

I told you and dad all about it - we had a little party and everything!

ARNEL

Oh, yeah. You invited Chess over but he was out of there fast when dad started grilling him about you two. Haha!

Yeah... Dad doesn't have to worry about that anymore.

ARNEL

What? Did something happen between you? I actually liked him!

INTERVIEWER

Could you two save this conversation for later? I'd like to get lunch soon.

ARNEL

Er- Sorry.

Sorry.

ARNEL

My name's Arnel... Uh... Goliath.

INTERVIEWER

And you live here in Gods' Peak?

ARNEL

Would you be interviewing me if I didn't...?

INTERVIEWER

We do take entity accounts from visitors, yes.

We get the priestesses on their pilgrimages in pretty often.

INTERVIEWER

Lou.

(sighing)

Okay, Arnel, just tell us about your entity encounter.

ARNEL

There's this... Dream I've been having about the moon.

SFX: SCRIBBLING

INTERVIEWER

Which one?

ARNEL

That's the thing. In the dream, there's technically only one moon at any given moment, but The Creator made seven. One for each night.

INTERVIEWER

Sounds slightly religious, but... Interesting. In your... Dream... There was only one moon?

ARNEL

One per night. That's what I was told when I asked about the moon, at least, and that's only one version of the history.

The sky didn't look all that different from how it usually does, it was just... A single moon.

Really strange.

INTERVIEWER

Just to be clear, so that the Documentation Committee can keep track... You didn't see our-

SFX: STATIC

???

Whispering a combination of 1-7

SFX: STATIC

INTERVIEWER

-moons... Just one.

ARNEL

Mhmm.

INTERVIEWER

But you were told about there being a different moon per night, one for each day of the week.

ARNEL

Right, yeah. I'm not really sure if I'd personally be able to tell the difference between each of the seven moons if I was alone. So the voice - no, the Choir... The Chorus, explained it.

A chorus... Noncorporeal, right?

INTERVIEWER

Lou, please let me conduct the interview.

ARNEL

Not A chorus. The Chorus.

INTERVIEWER

Hmm. Was it like The Winds we hear outside at night? Noncorporeal, like Lou said?

ARNEL

I'm not sure, honestly. The Winds are lost human spirits, right?

THE CHORUS

BAKUNAWA. BAKUNAWA. BAKUNAWA. BAKUNAWA. BAKUNAWA.

ARNEL

Can you hear that...?

INTERVIEWER

That's right.

Well - almost - they're not all just lost spirits, some are trapped, and they can actually be malevolent or benevolent, but-

INTERVIEWER

Are you writing this down?

Y-yeah.

INTERVIEWER

Arnel, did you only want us to document this Chorus of yours? Our department can't really log the details about these moons, unless you think that there's an entity creating illusions in your mind. That could also be what's hiding the other moons.

Aaaand with this being in a dream, it's not a verifiable entity encounter right now. Not through me. You'll need an assessment with a specialist to be sure.

But I can at least make a note of The Chorus, so that The Academy can start documenting similar occurren-

ARNEL

No, I told you, it's not hiding the other moons. You only see one of them per night. Ugh - anyway - there's a little more to what The Chorus was saying. They told me that, in the end, there's just one moon left out of the seven.

SFX: QUIET

INTERVIEWER

The end...?

ARNEL

That's why I'm here. They told me about a legend, well, that's what they called it. An old story about the seven moons, and a giant sea serpent that eats them.

INTERVIEWER

laughing

You're here to tell us about the story of Bakunawa? The moon-eater?

Ahhh. Arnel, you know Entity Studies doesn't deal in religious legends, scripture, or miracles anymore.

We don't even keep track of non-sentient beasts performing what looks like ritualistic behavior. Not with our department. You want something like that, you'll probably have to talk to the priestesses about who keeps that kind of information. You could try the mages first, though?

ARNEL

There's nothing miraculous about a massive hungry snake that eats moons!

INTERVIEWER

That's not what I was trying to say.

Arnel.

INTERVIEWER

Lou - can you PLEASE-

SFX: QUIET

INTERVIEWER

Why... Are you two staring at each other...?

ARNEL

He's also not a god in their version of the legend!

Arnel.

INTERVIEWER

Regardless, he's part of a system of beliefs, and we can't document that you had a dream centered around a legend. I'm not even sure I should make a log about that chorus.

Hey, I'm serious. I get it. Visions and odd dreams are hard to ignore. But you need a specialist. I can't submit this account myself.

ARNEL

The reason I'm bringing this up is because I already know of a malformed religion based on what The Chorus told me! We see all of our moons, right? Which means we would notice if ours blipped out, one at a time, wouldn't we?

I need to tell you about a young sect, teaching new doctrine around an ancient being! And I know no one here's written this down, because you're going to think it's purely mythical and not rooted in reality! But I'm TELLING YOU-

INTERVIEWER

This department doesn't document information on new forms of faith.

What if they're dangerous...?

INTERVIEWER

Report it. We don't investigate religious activity. I'm sure BOTH of you are aware of that. Maybe you need a second to recount what each of our departments is actually capable of.

SFX: CHAIR PUSHING OUT

You know what, if you two are done with the interview, I'm going to get something to eat in town.

SFX: CLICK, EVERYTHING IS CLEARER, NO LONGER COMING FROM THE RECORDING. KEYS JINGLE, STEPS

INTERVIEWER

Lou, I'll leave the keys here. Make sure you lock up when you two are done glaring at each other.

INTERVIEWER

quietly

Toss the transcription.

INTERVIEWER

See ya later, Arnel.

SFX: DOOR SHUTS QUIETLY, DISTANT STEPS

Arnel, what the fuck?

SFX: STEPS, NOTEBOOK SET ON DESK, CHAIR BEING PULLED OUT

ARNEL

We can't just pretend we don't know anything.

We don't know anything.

ARNEL

We do, you just don't remember.

That's not fair!

ARNEL

Lo, I'm not making fun of you. I know it's not your fault. But we have to tell someone about what they did to us on the peninsula. Someone needs to know what's happening back home.

SFX: RAIN TRICKLING

So... What did The Chorus tell you about Bakunawa? How did humanity stop it?

ARNEL

We made noise. A lot of noise.

SFX: RAIN TRICKLING

sighing

They weren't even listening to you. What a dick.

ARNEL

gasping

Language!

Oh, shut up!

SFX: NOTEBOOK SMACKING HIM ONCE

ARNEL

AH! TRUCE, TRUCE!

SFX: MOMENT OF QUIET

ARNEL

Uggggghhhhh... They're probably right. No one's going to listen to me about this. There's too much history built up around it, and none of what they teach in their temple here lines up with what we learned about Bakunawa back home anyway.

I'll find a mage and see if they can help. Oh! Maybe you can ask Chess'... Sis..ters. Er- my bad.

SFX: RAIN TRICKLING

ARNEL

You want to tell me what happened between you and Chess...?

No. I... I meant to tell you - it was just last week and we're... It's complicated. We're trying to stay friends. I don't really want to think about it.

ARNEL

You want to go foraging after work? Keep yourself busy? There's a place I think you'd recognize out in the forest with these wild glowing mushrooms. I feel like you mentioned it back when you were volunteering.

Sorry, I can't. I need to look into some Sigbin sightings, which means I need to brush up on how you actually deal with those weird goat-ish creatures.

ARNEL

Hey, we can find one when we're out! They say if you catch a Sigbin, it brings wealth and luck. We'll be rich enough to quit work altogether.

Yeahhh, sure. You know they suck blood, yeah? Long tails, smell bad - like really bad-

ARNEL

I don't actually want to catch one!

Massive ears that clap to disorient you. Oh, yeah, and they walk backwards. Can you imagine? Just walking along in the forest, picking some bignay to make some jam, and bam, between the red berries you see some glowing red eyes-

ARNEL

Come ooon. I... don't want to go into the forest alone after that.

Wimp.

ARNEL

Nerd.

SFX: CHAIR BEING PULLED OUT, STEPS

ARNEL

Fiiiiine. Be boring. Study your creepy creatures. But... Hmmm... Bignay wine might be worth an encounter. Hahaha!

HEY - don't go out on your own - I'm serious! ARNEL! [words fading]

SFX: THE FADING SOUND OF RAIN TRICKLING