#lisden

Every Bandito has a choice to make.

In the world of Trench, there are always two options: faith and sleep. One must pick between the world inside Dema’s walls and the world outside it; allegiance to one means animosity to another. Faith to the Bishops, or faith to freedom? Remaining asleep to the truth, or remaining asleep to what vialism dictates?

Dan and Sally were two of many who pledged their faith to what was real, as cold and harsh as it may be. After finally seeing Dema for the deathtrap that it was, sleep felt more like a betrayal than anything. So, they promised each other that somehow, someway, they would find a way out.

Working with the Banditos in any form was strictly prohibited, so they had to keep their plans under wraps. But when the two of them heard about Clancy, they only grew more intrigued.

Rumor had it that their friend was able to escape through the underground tunnels and breach the city walls. They wanted to ask him so many questions about the outside; how it looked like, how it felt like, whether it was anything like what the Bishops had told them. They’d only heard of it in stories, the mountains and rivers and forests left entirely to their imagination.

The thought of following after him was daunting, but they were willing to take that leap of faith. If he did it, they figured they could, too.

But life turns plans upon their head, as they say.

Their spirit and drive were undeniable, but they got caught. One unlucky turn, one guard that just so happened to be there, and their whole mission fell apart. The act of defying the Bishops in such a way was unforgivable. Their life would become nothing more than three letters and the four walls of a cell, isolated from each other and the rest of the world.

And so, until the very end, that’s how it would be.

But their story wasn’t over yet.

The Bishops had an idea for a talk show. It was one of many ways of showing their followers that the city was worth staying for. This new wave of television and music appeared almost innocent, the saturation trying to match the picture-perfect idea of “home”. They would prove to the citizens that life in Dema wasn’t as bad as one might think, that the rebels were liars all along.

And what better way to do that than with two of their own?

Dan and Sally, even after their passing, still had a use to the Bishops. They were the hosts of this new show, the poster children for this new era. Dressed up in their Sunday best and bright smiles, they became nothing more than puppets on a stage. Every action of theirs was controlled by the invisible strings of the supernatural, and yet it appeared so uncannily human. Like their eyes were never empty, like their hearts were still beating.

And they wouldn’t be the last, either. The Bishops’ power could only maintain them for so long before their bodies would begin to decay at an alarming rate. The human body cannot sustain so much physical activity after rigor mortis, no matter how artificial; and it would eventually give in to natural rot. Besides, Good Day Dema always needed new faces for their episodes.