The Demon's Melody: Summoning Evil with Music "Hell Of A Tune" | Fiction Podcast

0:02 Speaker 1: Within your dreams, there are many keys. One of them could open the doorway to nightmare.

0:15 Speaker 2: Come in. Welcome.

0:33 Speaker 1: I'm Artemis Black. Beethoven once said that music could change the world. And I believe that statement to be true. For look at how our world has changed over the last century.

0:52 Speaker 3: I'm telling you, Merlin, I think that I have finally found it.

0:56 Speaker 4: You do realize how insane you sound right now.

1:00 Speaker 5: I mean.

1:01 Speaker 4: You're talking about music that does not exist.

1:05 Speaker 3: Yes, but don't you see? It exists. It has just not been discovered.

1:12 Speaker 4: And for good reasons. You're talking about the destruction of all mankind.

1:22 Speaker 1: Our mystery drama, Hell of a Tune, was written especially for your way to nightmare by Winslow Swan and edited by Crimson McKenzie. Our stars include Crimson McKenzie and Winslow Swan. I'll return shortly with Act One. Plato once said, music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything. But can something so powerful also be able to take everything away?

2:18 Speaker 4: Countdown! It has been quite a long time since last we saw each other.

2:24 Speaker 3: It's wonderful to see you too, Merlin.

2:26 Speaker 4: Still calling me by that wretched name.

2:33 Speaker 3: Well, you did use my nickname when I came in, so all's fair.

2:40 Speaker 4: Remind me, why did the students start calling me Merlin again?

2:48 Speaker 3: Oh, because no matter what instrument or even style of music, you simply knew all there was to know about it. You could even play it. We always found that most extraordinary.

3:02 Speaker 4: No great feat, I assure you. Simply a lot of practice.

3:09 Speaker 4: And free time.

3:11 Speaker 3: Well, it's good to see you again.

3:13 Speaker 4: I must admit to a great curiosity as to why you wanted to see your old professor after, let's see now, 15 years?

3:26 Speaker 3: Only 14 years, but then who's counting?

3:30 Speaker 4: Still good to see you, Countdown.

3:32 Speaker 3: Aha, there you see, you used my nickname just as you did when I came in. I stand accused.

3:42 Speaker 4: And admit to the deed. You must admit, it was rather clever of me.

3:48 Speaker 3: Clever?

3:49 Speaker 2: No!

3:49 Speaker 3: Downright reprehensible.

3:54 Speaker 4: Now, now. It was all in good fun. Besides, you were the only student who used to count down instead of the usual... One, two, three, four.

4:07 Speaker 3: Well, it was more natural for me to go four, three, two, one.

4:15 Speaker 3: At any rate, the moniker stuck with me, even on a professional level.

4:20 Speaker 4: Yes, I understand that your latest album has gone platinum. Congratulations!

4:27 Speaker 3: Thank you, Merlin. I don't know where I would be had it not been for you teaching me. You were a wonderful professor.

4:35 Speaker 4: Flattery will get you. Well, everywhere. So how are your music studies coming along?

4:44 Speaker 3: As you know, I've been interested in every form of music there is.

4:48 Speaker 4: As I recall, you studied every bit of music you could lay your hands on. And now, how many musicians have gold records and sold out performances of rock, country, and even classical music?

5:02 Speaker 3: It's not all glamorous. I can stand the recording part, but Those concerts, they take quite a bit out of me.

5:11 Speaker 4: Well then, tell your old professor what it is I can do for you. Play back up on your next million-selling album?

5:19 Speaker 3: No, no, nothing like that. Although, I would be honored.

5:24 Speaker 4: Then what can I do for you?

5:26 Speaker 3: Well, do you remember our discussion on the lost chord?

5:32 Speaker 4: Hmm, let me think. It has been some time since... Oh, now I remember! Yes! The Lost Court that you said you read about in some old volume in the library.

5:48 Speaker 3: Yes, yes, that's it. Well, I was wondering if you perhaps had that book.

5:56 Speaker 4: Well, I'm sure that I do. Somewhere in this house, although exactly where.

6:01 Speaker 3: Do you think that you could find it?

6:02 Speaker 2: Possibly.

6:03 Speaker 4: Possibly. Must be around here somewhere.

6:06 Speaker 3: Tonight. Did you think that you could find it tonight?

6:09 Speaker 4: Tonight? I'm not sure that I could.

6:13 Speaker 3: It has to be tonight.

6:16 Speaker 4: Countdown. What is so urgent?

6:18 Speaker 1: Because.

6:21 Speaker 3: Because I believe that I have found it.

6:23 Speaker 4: Found what exactly?

6:26 Speaker 3: The lost cord. The cord that Quinn played. will summon up a demon to do your bidding, to make you master of the world.

6:46 Speaker 1: The rock artist Marilyn Manson once said that music is the strongest magic. But what sort of magic was he talking about? And perhaps we shall learn the answer when I return with Act Two. Leonard Bernstein once said, Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable.

7:29 Speaker 4: Devil are you talking about?

7:31 Speaker 3: The devil? Well, it's a pretty good word. Yes, Merlin, a chord. A musical chord that, when played, will open the gates of hell and release a demon.

7:45 Speaker 4: Countdown, you really are serious?

7:49 Speaker 3: I've devoted the last ten years to finding this chord, and I believe that I have.

7:56 Speaker 1: However....

7:58 Speaker 3: I need something from that book of yours.

8:00 Speaker 4: And you need it tonight.

8:02 Speaker 1: Yes.

8:04 Speaker 3: Otherwise, I will have to wait another five years.

8:10 Speaker 4: What is so special about tonight?

8:13 Speaker 3: It isn't tonight that is special, but a week from now. The moon and the planets will be aligned and in harmony just for the lost chord to be played.

8:26 Speaker 4: So there's plenty of time.

8:28 Speaker 3: Oh, no, you don't understand. It will take me a week to set everything up.

8:32 Speaker 4: Look, Andrew, and I'm using your God-given name, what you are saying is impossible. There are over 4,000 possible chords that can be played on a given instrument. And if there really is a lost chord, then it was meant to be lost forever.

8:52 Speaker 3: Merlin, you're right. I know that it's... Oh, fantastic. I believe that I have actually found this cord.

9:02 Speaker 4: And what made you think to even look for it?

9:04 Speaker 3: Well, why did we go to the moon? Or why did man climb Mount Everest?

9:10 Speaker 4: But those were accomplishments. What you're trying to do is sacrilegious.

9:16 Speaker 3: Possibly. But it is something that others have searched for. Strived for.

9:24 Speaker 2: And now....

9:27 Speaker 3: Now it is within my power.

9:46 Speaker 4: I haven't the foggiest idea where that book could be.

9:49 Speaker 3: Oh, but you must know. It has got to be here.

9:53 Speaker 2: Somewhere.

9:56 Speaker 4: Perhaps you would just best forget this whole business of the... lost cord.

10:01 Speaker 3: Are you deliberately trying not to find the book?

10:05 Speaker 4: Of course not. I just think that, look, how do you know that you can even play such a cord?

10:11 Speaker 3: A good question, Marilyn. Yes, it was a bit troubling. I believe I know why no one else has been able to play it.

10:24 Speaker 4: Then enlighten me.

10:26 Speaker 3: Imagine a series of notes played in a particular order on a particular instrument at a particular time.

10:37 Speaker 4: And you really don't believe that anyone else has done exactly that.

10:42 Speaker 3: No, Merlin, you fail to understand. These notes may have been played, but the voice, the instrument, was completely wrong.

10:53 Speaker 4: I would guess that any instrument would have done it.

10:58 Speaker 3: And that, my dear professor, is where the mistake was made. You see, it has to be the correct sound, the precise notation... That will produce the desired effect.

11:12 Speaker 4: The opening of the gates of hell, you mean?

11:16 Speaker 3: Precisely.

11:17 Speaker 4: And you have found that sound? How is it possible?

11:22 Speaker 3: Well, we live in an electronic age. With my computer and piano, I can produce a myriad of sounds, overlapping them to produce one voice.

11:35 Speaker 4: So then, why hasn't it worked?

11:37 Speaker 3: Well, that's why I need the book.

11:39 Speaker 4: And once you play that chord, once the gates are opened, what are your intentions?

11:49 Speaker 3: I haven't given it much thought. Well, just the desire to accomplish something that no one else has been able to is, well, that's satisfaction enough.

11:58 Speaker 4: And you don't think that the demon will want something in return?

12:03 Speaker 3: You know, I've never even thought about it.

12:09 Speaker 4: This damn well time you did think about it. My god, man, do you even realize what you've been trying to do?

12:17 Speaker 3: Merlin, aren't you even curious as to what may happen?

12:28 Speaker 4: I am ashamed to admit it, but yes, I am quite curious. Now come on, help me find this damn book.

12:52 Speaker 3: Merlin! Glad you could make it.

12:56 Speaker 4: The storm didn't help.

12:58 Speaker 3: Come in, quickly.

13:02 Speaker 4: So this is where you've been keeping yourself? Quite impressive.

13:09 Speaker 3: Here, down this way, to the music room. I have everything set up.

13:13 Speaker 4: I take it that you found the missing piece of the puzzle?

13:17 Speaker 3: Yes, I believe that I have. It was your book that put everything into place.

13:22 Speaker 4: What did you find?

13:23 Speaker 3: The missing key. The one thing that will make this work. As you know, there are millions of combinations of chords and notes.

13:33 Speaker 4: Yes, and only one particular combination will work.

13:38 Speaker 3: Oh, no, it wasn't just the notes or the keys or even the harmonics.

13:44 Speaker 1: No way.

13:45 Speaker 3: Was the missing part that I couldn't find.

13:50 Speaker 4: Which was?

13:52 Speaker 3: One voice. One heart. One soul.

14:12 Speaker 1: Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones once said that music is a language that doesn't speak in particular words, that it is an emotion. I'll return shortly with our final act.

14:47 Speaker 1: Nietzsche once said, without music, life would be a mistake. Merlin stares in awe at the massive music room as Countdown escorts her to the center. She notices the pentagram drawn on the floor, the candles burning at each point, and the computers and keyboards that are situated.

15:13 Speaker 2: In the middle.

15:15 Speaker 4: Count, you must be out of your mind.

15:18 Speaker 3: Oh, I do admit that there are some ancient rituals that must be adhered to.

15:23 Speaker 4: A pentagram? Candles?

15:29 Speaker 3: The storm is building. It's almost time.

15:32 Speaker 4: I'm begging you. Don't do this. You have no idea what sort of power you're trying to control. If it can even be controlled.

15:44 Speaker 3: Then why did you even come? You knew exactly what I was trying to do.

15:49 Speaker 4: I came because I consider you a friend as well as a former student of mine. I came to talk you out of this. This madness.

15:58 Speaker 3: Then you have come in vain.

16:05 Speaker 4: Please, Andrew.

16:06 Speaker 6: It's almost time. I found the notes. The last chord of the right placement. And finally, the correct voice.

16:16 Speaker 4: What in God's name are you saying?

16:19 Speaker 6: My voice.

16:22 Speaker 3: My heart. My soul. By adding my own voice to the chords, I will summon a demon from the depths of hell. It will do my building.

16:40 Speaker 2: I will rule the world!

17:07 Speaker 3: You see? You see?

17:10 Speaker 2: The walls!

17:11 Speaker 3: They are opening!

17:13 Speaker 6: The very gates of hell are opening!

17:17 Speaker 7: Stop!

17:19 Speaker 4: Andrew, don't do this!

17:21 Speaker 3: No! No, you fool! Don't leave the center!

17:24 Speaker 4: Please, Andrew! I'm going to stop this now!

17:28 Speaker 3: I'm getting out of here before.

17:36 Speaker 3: Merlin!

17:38 Speaker 2: I want you!

17:53 Speaker 3: Hello. Are you there?

18:11 Speaker 5: Foolish human being.

18:15 Speaker 3: Merlin. What happened?

18:20 Speaker 5: You have released me.

18:28 Speaker 3: I've really done it.

18:31 Speaker 4: You demon.

18:34 Speaker 3: What is your name?

18:38 Speaker 7: It no longer matters what my name is. You have released me and others into your world.

18:51 Speaker 3: But you must now obey me.

18:58 Speaker 7: Are you so stupid to believe everything that you read?

19:05 Speaker 2: Hey.

19:08 Speaker 3: Don't understand.

19:09 Speaker 5: Of course you don't understand. We were simply waiting for mankind to destroy itself. We do not have to do a thing.

19:26 Speaker 3: We haven't destroyed ourselves.

19:28 Speaker 5: Look around you.

19:29 Speaker 4: The world decayed.

19:35 Speaker 7: The evil that grows daily.

19:37 Speaker 5: The senseless violence against everyone. Do you honestly believe the demons.

19:46 Speaker 7: Had anything to do with that?

19:47 Speaker 5: No. You did it to yourself.

19:53 Speaker 3: So, what are you saying? We were simply redeemed.

20:04 Speaker 8: You have opened the gates of hell, and now it's so much easier for us to rule the world! As Countdown lowers his head, realizing what he has done, the demon that was once inside Merlin begins to usher in the multitude from hell. I'll be back shortly with a final word. Music is forever. Music should grow and mature with you, following you right on up until you die, wrote songwriter Paul Simon. Our cast included Crimson McKenzie and Winslow Swann. The story was edited by Crimson McKenzie and directed by Winslow Swan.

21:45 Speaker 8: And now, a preview of our next tale.

21:50 Speaker 4: What does the lieutenant expect of you? Miracles?

21:55 Speaker 3: Right now, I wish I had one. 20 million people in this city. I only have to find one.

22:04 Speaker 4: Have you tried the classifieds?

22:08 Speaker 3: Yeah, very funny. Becky, look, this is serious. Ten people have died in as many days. And all of them the same way.

22:18 Speaker 4: Dare I ask?

22:20 Speaker 3: And they were all burned. Alive.

22:25 Speaker 1: This is Artemis Black, inviting you to return with us through the doorway to nightmare for another adventure into the terrifying world of your imagination. Until next time. Slumber peacefully.

22:40 Speaker 2: Epilogue.

22:46 Speaker 1: The butler did it.