Season 3, Episode 3: Vanish

This final episode of The Winter Tree pushes the boundaries of Ayta’s reality and begins to reveal the true scope of the Realms beyond our own in The Fallen Cycle. What began in a bathtub ends at the edge of time—where the bones still speak, and the spirits of the dead are always watching.

It opens with candlelight and soapy water—a moment of connection between Ayta and Nyssa. Myth bleeds through: the ziggurat, the House of Bones, the sky with teeth. Their plans to escape a mundane world are abruptly shattered when Blue vanishes after a disturbing phone call, leaving Ayta submerged in confusion and dread. An uncanny call. A trail of blood. And then—silence. Ayta falls into isolation and grief, drawing owls, skipping class, wandering inside herself.

Driven by desperation, Ayta performs a ritual—but it does not go quite as planned. She faces a harrowing flock of ravens, symbols of death and transition, signifying her crossing into the domain of the Feyn, enigmatic keepers of stories at the threshold of the afterlife. Here, after many trials and tests, she encounters Eluane, her grandfather, who proposes a sinister yet compelling quest: to track down Blue, whose true nature may hold existential consequences for both worlds.

 

“Tales From When I Had A Face” was written by James Curcio, and edited by Brian Johnson. 

This episode is accompanied by an immersive soundtrack produced by James Curcio, featuring collaborating artist David Bessell. 

This podcast is Creative Commons 3.0, allowing for Attribution, Share Alike, and Non-commercial use, and features adult themes.

We Are All Just Costumes Death Wears For A Season. Explore More At FallenCycle.Com

A mythpunk universe combining elements of speculative fiction, magical realism, fantasy and near-future noir.

Many Cycles begin in a world much like our own, with characters who know little of the world beyond their waking lives. Gradually, the crack opens between the mundane and the fantastic, the wondrous and the horrific, the past and the future. 

Perhaps you've been having prophetic dreams that won't stop, or hear the spirits of the trees demanding a blood sacrifice every time you leave your apartment. But those are just dreams... right?

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