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Transcript

The Final Test · Stories from Väruld

• 0:02
  Presenter: You are listening to Stories from Väruld.
• 0:05
  Presenter: In this episode, the Final Test.
• 0:12
  Narrator: The final door.
• 0:14
  Narrator: The ultimate test.
• 0:16
  Narrator: His whole journey, with all its potentially lethal challenges, had at last led him to this spot.
• 0:23
  Narrator: At this place, the score would be settled, and the prize won.
• 0:28
  Narrator: If he passed the trial, that is, now he was about to prove his worth.
• 0:33
  Narrator: Now his soul was about to be examined.
• 0:36
  Narrator: All the other contests had been physical or mental.
• 0:40
  Narrator: He had proven himself quick and lithe in his body, vast in muscle capacity, unafraid at heart.
• 0:46
  Narrator: He had shown he was a sound thinker and could stand the stress.
• 0:50
  Narrator: During the previous test, he had established beyond doubt what he was capable of when he had killed a man in cold blood.
• 0:57
  Narrator: With the blood of the dead man still on his hands, he pushed the gates open to his final test.
• 1:04
  Narrator: On the cold stone floor lay a naked baby, crying.
• 1:11
  Narrator: Stunned, he looked at it.
• 1:13
  Narrator: What was he supposed to do with it?
• 1:16
  Narrator: All the other tests had apparent goals.
• 1:18
  Narrator: This room was empty apart from the little infant.
• 1:21
  Narrator: There was nothing to give him a clue about what he was expected to do.
• 1:25
  Narrator: He hated feeling like a fool.
• 1:28
  Narrator: So that he at least did something.
• 1:30
  Narrator: He bent down and lifted it off the floor.
• 1:33
  Narrator: Quickly, he caught its dipping head, surprising himself by doing so without thinking.
• 1:38
  Narrator: The crying stopped, and a couple of big eyes stared at him with what he deemed to be curiosity.
• 1:44
  Narrator: What was he supposed to do now?
• 1:47
  Narrator: Deliver the baby somewhere?
• 1:49
  Narrator: Kill it?
• 1:50
  Narrator: It was a fragile little thing, easily done.
• 1:53
  Narrator: It would probably die if he simply dropped it to the floor.
• 1:57
  Narrator: His hands took a better hold of the small being, putting him closer to his body.
• 2:02
  Narrator: The baby boy took a grip of his finger, found the coziness of his fur jacket, and was soon asleep in his arms.
• 2:10
  Narrator: With amazement, he realized that this little fellow had found comfort with him.
• 2:15
  Narrator: The baby had placed his life in his hands with complete trust, and he knew that he would never be able to break that confidence.
• 2:23
  Narrator: So the whole journey ended up with this.
• 2:26
  Narrator: He still didn't know the right answer for the test, but he didn't care what others thought was right any longer.
• 2:31
  Narrator: He turned and left the little room with his new son.
• 2:40
  Presenter: Thank you for listening to Stories from Väruld. In the next episode, behind the scenes of this podcast, part two.