Simon is gone. Or at least, the version of him we knew is.

Reconnected to the Vega hive after countless cycles spent fighting against his own nature, Simon is once again exposed to the hunger, corruption, and power he worked so hard to leave behind. And the Vega are hungry by nature.

As an entire world becomes their feeding ground, whispers become thoughts, thoughts become actions, and the darkest pieces buried inside ordinary people are dragged screaming into the light.

But something is different this time.

Simon remembers.

He remembers Aubrey.

He remembers Earl.

He remembers Lilith.

He remembers why he walked away from the hive in the first place.

Yet memory may not be enough to overcome what he truly is.

For generations, we've heard stories about monsters.

In this chapter of the Oteev storyline, we're going to learn why the monsters were afraid of Simon.

Content Warning: This episode contains strong language, graphic violence, death, disturbing themes involving a child, psychological manipulation, and scenes of mass violence. Listener discretion is strongly advised.

The Nightmare Trials Podcast is an original horror anthology featuring standalone nightmares, interconnected cosmic horror, and the continuing Oteev storyline.

If you're enjoying the show, follow the podcast, leave a rating or review, and share the Trials with someone who likes their horror a little fucked up.

Strap in tight… the trials are about to begin.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every writer has a muse.

An idea that appears from nowhere.

A character who seems to write themselves.

A scene that pours onto the page so effortlessly that, when you read it back, you almost wonder if you actually wrote it at all.

For horror author Martin, that's just part of the process.

At least… it was.

Struggling to find the motivation behind the killer in his latest novel, Martin receives a message from an unknown account promising him a little inspiration.

Attached is a video.

A woman.

A killer.

And a murder that looks far too real to be fiction.

The stranger only has one question for him:

Do you understand yet?

As Martin searches for answers, the line between the monster on his page and the monster behind the screen begins to disappear.

Because maybe inspiration doesn't always come from within.

Maybe sometimes…

…it wants out.

Welcome to S3E30: Do You Understand Yet?

🎧 The Nightmare Trials Podcast

⚠️ Content Warning: Graphic violence, gore, murder, sexual references, strong language, psychological horror, and disturbing themes.

Support The Nightmare Trials

Want more from beyond the veil? Join us on Patreon for bonus content, the T.H.E.M. storyline, the Interdimensional Radio Station, and more.

And don't forget to check out The Nightmare Trials Shop for limited-edition shirts, hoodies, and other merch.

Strap in tight… the trials are about to begin.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It started with a cough.

Then the bleeding.

Then the screaming.

Maverick, Dean, Sarah, and Milly find themselves trapped inside a department store while something tears through the city at an impossible speed. The first warnings say to avoid bodily fluids. The next tell everyone to shut off their ventilation.

Then the authorities realize the truth.

It's airborne.

But infection isn't the worst part.

As the sickness progresses, the infected begin to hear something. To feel something. A pull toward one another that grows stronger as death approaches.

They aren't hunting.

They aren't angry.

They're scared.

And they don't want to die alone.

By the time the world understands what is happening, containment is no longer an option.

Twelve hours: the infection has already spread unnoticed.

Fourteen hours: half the population is sick.

Twenty hours: the world grows silent.

Welcome to S3E29: 20 Hours.

🎧 The Nightmare Trials Podcast

⚠️ Content Warning: Graphic violence, gore, illness/body horror, strong language, death, and apocalyptic themes.

Support The Nightmare Trials

Want more from beyond the veil? Join us on Patreon for bonus content, the T.H.E.M. storyline, the Interdimensional Radio Station, and more.

And check out The Nightmare Trials Shop for limited-edition shirts, hoodies, and other merch—including our Running on Caffeine & Existential Dread design.

Strap in tight… the trials are about to begin.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

S3E28: The Last Customer

The night shift was supposed to be quiet.

A few exhausted travelers. Burnt coffee. Fluorescent lights humming above an empty gas station on Highway 61.

Then Jerry closed the blinds.

He had only one warning for the new cashier:

If the man in the gray overcoat comes inside, do not speak to him. Do not look directly at him. Most importantly… do not acknowledge that he is there.

But rules have a way of sounding ridiculous until the moment they are broken.

When the last customer arrives carrying exact change, a bottle of water, and a box of matches, time begins slipping out of place. Minutes disappear. The highway falls silent. And the cashier discovers that some things cannot enter your life until you give them permission.

Unfortunately, a single word is all the invitation this customer needs.

The Nightmare Trials Podcast presents: “The Last Customer.”

Strap in tight… the trials are about to begin.

Content Warning: Strong language, psychological horror, time distortion, and disturbing themes.

Follow The Nightmare Trials Podcast wherever you listen, and join us on Patreon for ad-free episodes, bonus transmissions, and exclusive recovered files.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The battle has begun... and not every monster wears the face you expect.

With Simon gravely weakened and Vega finally unleashed, old rivalries erupt into a confrontation that has been building across countless cycles. Ancient truths are laid bare, loyalties are tested, and one impossible choice threatens to unravel everything the Oteev have fought to protect.

As Aubrey watches the people she loves fall one by one, she is forced to confront a devastating realization: sometimes doing the right thing isn't enough... sometimes it creates something far worse.

The Veil stands on the edge of collapse, a forgotten prison awaits its next occupant, and an ancient hunger begins to awaken once more.

Some choices echo across realities.

Some mistakes consume worlds.

And when death finally comes...

...it never comes alone.

⚠️ Content Warning: This episode contains graphic violence, gore, disturbing themes, strong language, and psychological horror. Listener discretion is advised.

The Nightmare Trials Podcast is an original horror anthology featuring standalone nightmares, interconnected cosmic horror, and the continuing Oteev storyline.

If you're enjoying the show, consider following, leaving a rating and review, and sharing the podcast with someone who loves horror. Your support helps independent productions like this continue to grow.

Strap in tight... the trials are about to begin.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

S3E26: The Caretaker

Bryce thought moving into a cheap apartment would be a fresh start.

A new city. A new home. A chance to leave the ghosts of his past behind.

But when children begin laughing in the halls late at night... when tiny footsteps race just beyond his walls... and an impossible voice asks him to play one more game... Bryce discovers that some places never truly let go of the people who once called them home.

As he digs deeper into the building's forgotten history, an unimaginable tragedy begins to reveal itself, one that has remained hidden behind freshly painted walls and fading memories for decades.

Some hauntings are born from rage.

Others...

From loneliness.

In this episode of The Nightmare Trials, grief, loss, and innocence collide in a haunting tale that asks a simple question...

What if the dead weren't trying to scare us... but simply didn't want to be alone anymore?

Listener discretion is advised.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are monsters hiding in the dark. And then there are the monsters who walk among us. Tonight, you’ll meet Kalin... a man with a twisted moral code and blood permanently staining his hands. He isn't a hero. He doesn't believe in justice. He doesn't care about redemption. But there is one line he refuses to let anyone cross.

When children become the victims of those who should have protected them, Kalin delivers a sentence no courtroom ever could.

Because if you've harmed a child...

He's already looking for you.

This marks the introduction of one of the darkest recurring characters in The Nightmare Trials Universe. Kalin's story is only beginning.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some places beneath the ocean were never meant to be found.

Champion free diver Julie is determined to break her personal record, but what begins as one final descent quickly spirals into something impossible. Time stretches. The sea floor shifts. And an ancient presence stirs in the darkness below.

When Julie and her coach, Cedrick, fail to return, Josh and Molly set out to find them. Instead, they discover an abandoned boat, strange mucus coating the deck, and a dive buoy leading into waters that should not exist.

As they descend in search of their friends, they uncover a horrifying truth: there are things living beneath the waves that humanity has never documented... and they are moving closer to shore.

How deep is too deep?

Tonight, take a breath... because you may not get another.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The war isn't over.

In the aftermath of their desperate escape, Aubrey and Lilith race against time to save Simon, but bringing him back may have unleashed something far worse.

As old wounds reopen and impossible truths are finally revealed, the past between Simon and the mysterious Vega comes crashing into the present. Friendships are mourned, loyalties begin to crack, and the cost of survival becomes clearer than ever before.

Some enemies are created by hatred.

Others are born from jealousy...

...and they've been waiting through countless cycles for revenge.

The Oteev storyline continues in the first chapter of this two-part event.

⚠️ Listener discretion is advised. This episode contains graphic horror, disturbing imagery, violence, gore, and mature themes.

• Simon fights for his life after the events of the previous Oteev chapter.
• Aubrey is forced to question everything she believes.
• Earl's sacrifice leaves a hole no one expected.
• The truth behind Simon and Vega is finally revealed.
• An old enemy discovers that death isn't always permanent.

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some things protect us in ways we never fully understand.

When a grieving man reflects on the quiet life he shared with his beloved dog, Buddy, he begins to uncover a terrifying truth about the sleepless nights of his past. For years, something lurked in the darkness... watching... waiting... feeding on fear.

But it never came close.

Not while Buddy was there.

After tragedy strikes and his faithful companion passes, the silence inside the house becomes unbearable. The familiar sounds of paws on hardwood vanish... replaced by something else. Something ancient. Something patient.

And now that the guardian is gone... it finally has room.

As sleep deprivation fractures reality, the line between grief, hallucination, and nightmare begins to collapse. The entity grows bolder each night, mimicking voices, twisting memories, and using love itself as bait.

But some bonds don’t break with death.

Some promises outlast flesh.

And some good boys never stop protecting the people they love.

Tonight’s trial is about grief, devotion, and the terrifying things that wait for us in the dark… hoping we’ll be alone.

So tell me something…

When the darkness finally comes for you…

Who stays?

⚠️ Warning:

This episode contains intense horror themes, emotional distress, violence, and high-stakes psychological tension. Listener discretion is advised.

🎧 Listen to more episodes, Bonus Content, and Additional Storylines of The Nightmare Trials Universe:

Patreon (Exclusive Content): https://www.patreon.com/thenightmaretrails

📖 Check out C.P. Bearden’s new book: The Soil is Calling

A dark and haunting read you won’t want to miss.

Link to Book: https://www.amazon.com/Soil-Calling-C-P-Bearden/dp/1962739945

🧠 AI Voice Transformation Disclaimer:

Some voices in this episode were created or enhanced using AI tools. The acting of the voicing was done either by me or by a team member.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.