COUNTER/Weight 0.5: Thrilled Enough
Transcriber: vesta (vforvesta)
Ali (as Aria): What about the classic prison phone call?
Austin (as guard): This isn’t prison.
[“The Long Way Around” by Jack de Quidt begins playing]
Ali (as Aria): I’m locked in here.
Austin (as guard): We’ll be dealing with you.
Ali (as Aria): Are you busy right now?
Austin (as security guard): We would love it if you and your friend would vacate the premises and return to the rest of the hotel.
Art (as Cass): Yeah, in a minute.
Austin: The first thing that you pick up going backwards is, Coffee asking about the KardSharq. And also just about just the card, the card, the card. Where is it, where is it, where is it? You have five second clips that you can listen to, they’re going from the end of the fight backwards, up to the top.
Keith: Right.
Austin: Where is it? It’s in your room, isn’t it? You have the thing. I need it. Give me the card. Give me the card. And at the very beginning before Coffee got there, you can hear Cameron being like,
Austin (as Cameron): Come on, upload faster, upload faster.
Austin: Just breaks your arm. Just turns you around, snaps your arm and pushes you away.
Art: Cool! I use my other arm to shoot him.
[Ali gasps]
Austin: Oh boy.
Keith: [gasps] Oh my god!
Austin: They fall to the ground. They yell and the two of you are for the moment— I mean you can hear you know, everyone has fled, this whole part of the Cerulean is on lockdown, or is getting locked down. You can hear— Mako, you can see through the Holidaze that they are deploying like, hover-security drones to come try and find you.
Keith: Mhm.
Austin: This is not a good place to be, but you do have the Cerulean VIP card, which should get you out of here.
[music ends]
[00:01:44]
Austin: Alright. AuDy and Aria, the effects of this alarm are being felt. You can tell everyone is upset, the alarms are being held back here, you can hear security running around. Aria, you get a call?
Ali (as Aria): Hello?
Austin (as guard): Hey, yeah, um. I got the approval for your like, bail situation,
Ali (as Aria): [gasps]
Austin (as guard): But uh, not anymore.
[Jack chuckles]
Ali (as Aria): Wh—?
Austin (as guard): There’s an alarm. Once the alarm is over, we can talk about it. But right now, no?
Ali (as Aria): There’s an alarm? Are we safe— are you safe?
Austin (as guard): Am I safe?
Ali (as Aria): Yeah!
[Keith laughs]
Austin (as guard): I never really thought about if I was safe.
Ali (as Aria): You don’t think about whether you’re safe or not? You should be— you should— you’re number one!
Keith: That is so sad.
Austin (as guard): I’m number one.
Art: Yeah, it is pretty sad.
Austin (as guard): No I just work here, I just, you know, kinda like in the middle of it all, um.
Ali (as Aria): Well like, what’s— do you know like the emergency you know, protocols?
Austin (as guard): Emergency protocols are, I have to make sure that you know that you can’t get bail, and then I have to look at the cameras, and you know. Am I safe?
[Art chuckles]
Ali (as Aria): Someone’s shooting a gun out there!
Austin (as guard): Wait—
Ali (as Aria): You’re just gonna sit there?
Austin (as guard): I mean, yeah, I— you don’t happen to know who’s shooting a gun out there, do you? This isn’t tied to you? This isn’t someone coming to rescue you, right?
Ali (as Aria): No! [whispering] You think I’ve ever touched a gun?
[Art and Keith laugh]
Austin: Looks like I have to open your character sheet. [Ali giggles] I need to double check a thing.
Austin (as guard): We have your gun.
[Jack chuckles, Keith laughs]
Ali (as Aria): It’s a toy! I got them from a vending machine.
Austin (as guard): I don’t— I’m looking at it, it doesn’t look like a toy from a vending machine. If it’s a vending machine toy, it’s a very dangerous vending machine. You’re not keeping it one hundred with me.
[Jack laughs, Ali wheezes]
Ali (as Aria): Okay, okay. But I don’t know who’s shooting up a casino. Who would do that?
Austin (as guard): Well. It isn’t the first shooting we’ve had re— I’m just calling to inform you that we’ll talk about the situation that we—
Ali (as Aria): What other shootings have you had recently? I’m so bored, at least tell me! We were safe last time, right? I’m really scared.
Austin (as guard): I was off that day. I came in the next day and everything was like, really weird. Everything was like so— everybody was spooked.
Ali (as Aria): Oh?
Austin (as guard): Cause it was someone we all knew, you know? It was kinda two people we knew. It was this gambler, and then it was this, kind of like the— I guess, kinda like the mayor, but like not really the mayor, you know? Kinda like a—
Ali (as Aria): [whispering] Yes. Oh I know.
Austin (as guard): That’s the guy who’s in there with you. The other cell, that guy, that’s a killer. You be careful, okay? Cause that— he kills people.
Ali (as Aria): Mm. Okay. I’ll be careful.
Austin (as guard): Alright.
Ali (as Aria): Do you want me to get information from him? [gasps] Wait! You kept me in here with a killer, when I was on a cellphone?!
Austin (as guard): You’re not— I didn’t— it’s not my decision. I just work here. I don’t know why you’re giving me the whole—
Ali (as Aria): No, I know, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I just— when you— be honest with me. When you hear it out loud, it sounds ridiculous, right?
Austin (as guard): Well, I just didn’t believe you when you said that you were in here because they put— because of a phone, that seems like, silly. I bet you—
Ali (as Aria): Don’t you have my papers? Well I tried to run away, but—
Austin (as guard): It said you were resisting.
Ali (as Aria): Did you call any of your friends for the concert later?
[Jack wheezes]
Austin (as guard): No, we’ve been busy with the alarm.
Ali (as Aria): Oh, right.
Austin (as guard): And I was like doing the whole bail thing, to see what was even a viable exchange,
Ali (as Aria): That’s right. And I appreciate that.
Austin (as guard): And then, then the alarm started going out because of the person who got shot, and now I called you, and that’s my update for us.
Ali (as Aria): Do you get— [chuckles]
Austin (as guard): Sor— I mean, I shouldn’t have said us, that was a little presumptive.
Ali (as Aria): Do you get a lunch break?
Austin (as guard): I did eat lunch already, but I do get a smoke break.
Ali (as Aria): [gasps]
Austin (as guard): I don’t smoke but I take the break.
[Ali laughs]
Jack: The— is—
Ali (as Aria): Can I, as they say, get a light?
[Art and Keith laugh]
Austin (as guard): Uhh… I don’t know—
Art: I love the way Aria says everything.
[Ali and Keith chuckle]
Austin (as guard): I’m not sure I understand what you mean by that. I think it’s going to get me in trouble though, so.
Ali (as Aria): [exhales] I’ve been in here for hours! And everybody you work with is busy with this whole gun thing, I just want one cigarette. You can handcuff me.
Austin (as guard): Do you smoke? You don’t seem like you smoke. You seem like if you smoked a cigarette it would hurt you.
[Keith wheezes, Jack chuckles]
Ali (as Aria): Well,
Art: Woah.
Ali (as Aria): Let me prove you wrong.
Keith: It hurts smokers to smoke.
Ali (as Aria): They didn’t let me at EarthHome so like, here.
[Art laughs]
Ali (as Aria): So like here, I’m trying it out!
[Art continues laughing.]
Austin (as guard): I don’t—
Ali (as Aria): Just—
Austin (as guard): Have cigarettes.
Ali (as Aria): —some fresh air! [whining] You said you were taking a smoke break!
Austin (as guard): And I said I don’t smoke.
Ali (as Aria): Oh.
Austin (as guard): I just take the break. I’m sorry, I’m getting very animated, I’m gonna try to dial it back down. My therapist says not to get animated.
Ali (as Aria): Can— [chuckles]
Austin (as guard): I… what’s your name?
Ali (as Aria): Aria.
Austin (as guard): What’s your real name?
Ali (as Aria): It’s Aria. It’s Aria Joie.
Austin (as guard): Mm. I’m bored too.
Ali (as Aria): Yeah!
[Art giggles, Jack chuckles]
Jack: The alarm is going off!
[Ali wheezes, Art laughs]
Austin (as guard): And how do you know Voski?
Ali (as Aria): Well… you know, in the position that I am, I’m just trying to get more gigs and stuff. I’m trying to make it on my own, you know. And Voski, you know, has it in with other bar owners!
Austin (as guard): Ah, so it’s like a venue thing, you keep trying to meet like all the venue owners and then do a show, and then— how did you get into music?
Ali (as Aria): [exhales] Well… um… I… tried out a bunch of times, and I trained when I was a kid, and I went to an EarthHome academy—
Austin (as guard): You make it sound like it’s a sport. You trained?
Ali (as Aria): Yeah! Well it’s very athletic.
Austin (as guard): Singing? I guess.
Ali (as Aria): Yes!
Keith: You were going to say competitive.
Ali (as Aria): Do me a favour right now.
Austin (as guard): Uh huh.
Ali (as Aria): Okay, try to stand up.
Austin (as guard): Yeah I’m gonna stand up.
Ali (as Aria): And try to step back and forth, a little two step, and sing at the same time—
Austin (as guard): I don’t sing.
Ali (as Aria): —and smile.
Austin (as guard): I don’t sing. I don’t smile.
Ali (as Aria): At the same time!
Austin (as guard): Uh huh.
Ali (as Aria): And imagine doing that for like hours!
Austin (as guard): Yeah I guess that sounds like training.
Ali (as Aria): Yeah.
Austin (as guard): So, why are you trying to like rob casinos or whatever it is you did?
Ali (as Aria): [indignant] I was not robbing a casino! I was on the phone, and then I ran away because that guy scared me!
Austin (as guard): Mmm. Alright well, I kinda spent my smoke break talking to you, so I don’t get that now, so um, it was nice talking to you, I’ll call you back.
Ali (as Aria): No! You’re just doing your work! This is on the clock, [whispering] this is on the clock. This is on the clock, you’re getting paid to talk to me.
Austin (as guard): I’m getting paid to talk to you.
Ali (as Aria): Uh huh! But! What if we were like, eating some potato chips or something, I just wanna go outside!
[Jack chuckles, Ali wheezes]
Austin: Alright, roll Coax.
[Ali continues wheezing]
Keith: What is happening to this guy?
Austin: I think like, stumbled into a mid-life crisis, or like? Realized he doesn’t like his job or his life, you know?
[Ali chuckles]
Austin: You just end up in the place sometimes, you know what I mean? You know when you just like.
Keith: Just keep waking up everyday, doing the same thing, and then all of a sudden you’re like, where am I?
Austin: Right? [Ali laughs] How did I get here? What are you rolling? Coax?
Jack: It took meeting this fake popstar for me to—
Austin: Yeah! [Ali laughs] Yeah!
Keith: These are not my beautiful cuffs.
[Jack chuckles]
Ali: [giggles] I have a three in Coax.
Austin: Yeah!
Ali: And I think that I am being Energetic and Alluring this time.
Austin: [cross] I think you’re being alluring— this is, a hundred percent.
Jack: [cross] I think you are!
[Ali laughs]
Austin: You’re flirting with this weird security guard up here, here we go. I need to— one sec, I need to figure out stats for this person who doesn’t exist at this moment.
Jack: You know, in two months time, Aria will shout “the bells are ringing!”
Austin: Yeah..! It all gets started here, doesn’t it?
Jack: This has been our year forever, probably right, Ali?
Austin: Yeah, I think so.
Jack: Like, this is— this is Joker’s trick for Aria.
Austin: Yeah, uh huh. This is not a Coax-forward person, I wanna tell ya. Alright. Give me your roll.
Ali: Multi-sided, random side, close my eyes, and—
Austin: That’s a six point two!
Ali: [guttural] Yeeeeah!!
Keith: Wow.
Ali: Three sixes and then two threes!
Austin: Uh huh.
Art: Wow.
Austin: Three sixes, it’s six point one, six point two. So even if I did have— even if this person did have a six, [Ali chuckles] which they don’t.
Keith: You should— you should lock this. Whatever you’re going to do to this person, lock it.
Jack: Start dating him! This is—
[Ali chuckles]
Austin: God.
Art: [laughs] Oh!
Austin: Could it be that Aria has an off-screen ex? [Ali laughing] Or an off-screen boyfriend, the whole time? [Keith and Ali chuckles] It’s so funny.
Ali: She already had an off-screen boyfriend.
Art: It’s so funny.
Jack: It was uh, Paisley.
Ali: Yeah.
Austin: Right, that’s true. But Paisley’s like a mover and shaker. Paisley had a character sheet.
Jack: This character doesn’t have a name!
Art: This is just a mook.
[Ali chuckles]
Austin: This character doesn’t have a—
Keith: Don’t say that about him!
Austin: I actually do have a name, and Keith just said it, actually. Which is— if you ever asked what his name was, he was gonna say,
Austin (as Him): I’m Him.
[Ali laughs out loud, Keith chuckles]
Art: Like, like Jesus?
Austin: Like you know! Like when someone’s Him, you know what I mean? Like LeBron James is Him! [Art chuckles]
Ali: Uh huh.
Austin: It’s like that, but his name really is Him.
Jack: That’s his actual name?
Keith: That’s his last name.
Austin: So— but I guess actually— I guess it’s Hymn, like the song. Like a hymn.
Keith: Hymn song?
Austin: Like H—Y—M, like H—Y—M—N, like a hymn?
Ali: Ohhh…
Austin: Oh my god!
Art: That’s a great name for someone dating a singer!
Austin: For dating Aria? Aria and Hymn?
[Ali laughs]
Art: Aria and Hymn?
Austin: Oh my god!
Art: Oh! Ship it!
Jack: The funniest possible outcome here is if AuDy immediately tries to kill this guy.
Austin: Yeah, that prequel wasn’t canon, cause Aria got into a long-term straight relationship! [laughs]
Ali: [laughs] She had an ex-boyfriend already.
Austin: Uh huh!
Ali: And who knows how long this guy stays in the picture?
Austin: True. True true true. True! Yeah, we’ll see.
Art: Yeah.
Austin: Damn.
Ali: The Sticky adjective I’m taking is Charmed.
Austin: Yeah, Charmed, I’ll take that die.
Art: Yeah.
Austin: Boom. Absolutely.
Keith: Just one? Not permanent?
Austin: Yeah you could—
Ali: I said Sticky, right?
Austin: Sticky— you could go— you could go two—
Keith: You could go two die and make it permanent. Lock it.
Ali: Ohhh.
Keith: He would have to go to therapy to get un—Charmed.
Ali: [chuckles] Yeah. Uh huh.
Art: [laughs, overlapping] Go to therapy to get over Aria!
Austin: I’m gonna read from the— it says it likely stays on the sheet for the rest of their career, if not their life. Just never gets over it.
Ali: Uh huh.
Austin: Damn!
Art: Going to Aria therapy.
[Ali chuckles]
Austin: Oh my god, [Jack: I mean—] if this person lives, they live through the story of COUNTER/Weight, Aria becomes the head of the Righteous Vanguard?
Austin (as Hymn): I used to date— I used to date her. We met— she was in my casino prison.
Jack: Hang on.
Art: We met in casino jail!
Jack: Hang on, [Keith: I would love—] Aria is— Aria is someone whose like romantic interests in the show are really important, I wanna make sure we don’t back Ali into, [Ali chuckles] you know.
Austin: No, I—! Yeah, I’m with you, I get it. This is— remember how adjectives work, Jack?
Jack: Oh, yeah!
Austin: They have nothing to do with how Aria feels!
[Ali laughs]
Jack: Yeah absolutely. One hundred percent.
Ali: Well like, is there— knowing that this is the last episode of this.
Austin: Yes, Charmed is probably fine.
Ali: Is— yeah, is there a narrative benefit Sticky versus Permanent?
Austin: Uhh, there is in the sense that I would play Permanent more.
Ali: Mhm.
Austin: But, yeah, this person’s gonna be in therapy at this point to undo Charmed by you. [Ali chuckles] They would need someone to work on them with the Treat verb, to get— if they wanna un-Charm themselves from you, so no, not really, [Ali: Okay.] you know?
Ali: Right, okay. [Art chuckles] So, like throughout what this episode will be, I only need one dice. Yeah, okay yeah.
Austin: You’ll be fucking fine. Yes, a hundred percent, and if you’re a power gamer—
Art: They start coming around the Kingdom Come, and then Cass who has Treat starts helping them get over it, like—
Austin: Right? Yeah!
[Jack chuckles]
Ali: Well just think—!
Art (as Cass): You know I just don’t think it’s gonna work out for y’all, and maybe you should find something else to do!
Austin: God. Alright. So I think the result of this is like,
Austin (as Hymn): Yeah I have some chips. And here, I’ll bring you some chips.
Austin: And like, you know, comes in and Coffee jumps out of bed. And is like,
Austin (as Coffee): Are they releasing us? Hey are they release— hey! Hey hey hey hey hey, Aria. Aria, Aria, are they releasing us?
Ali (as Aria): I’m talking to my friend here!
Austin (as Hymn): Hey, uhh, no, you’re staying in there, cause of how you killed someone. Aria, um, here, brought us some chips, I have a couple— I have sour cream, and I have regular, and I have uh, salt and vinegar. Um,
Keith: I don’t know what you like, so.
Austin (as Hymn): I don’t know what you like, so.
[Ali chuckles]
Austin (as Hymn): You wanna get out of here, or?
Ali (as Aria): Yes!
Austin (as Hymn): We gotta be quick, cause I only— I only shut down the camera for twenty five more seconds, we’re gonna have to hurry if that’s— if that’s okay.
Ali (as Aria): Yeah! Uh huh. For your break, right?
Austin (as Hymn): I think I’m gonna quit.
[Jack chuckles]
Ali (as Aria): Yes!
Austin: Opens the door, [makes a sliding door sound] slides open.
Ali: Can I give a very— a very intentional wink to Coffee?
Austin: What’s the intent? [Ali laughs] That I’m winking? [Keith laughs]
Ali: [sheepish] Yes.
Austin: And then yeah, hands you the bags of chips and they’re not chips. It’s your stuff. Hidden inside the chip bags.
Ali: [whispering] Yeah!!
Austin: Which means they’re kinda greasy. [Ali chuckles] And then like turns and— this is like, the most— this is, I don’t know what this person looks like, what does this person look like? It has to just be like, nothing. You know? [Ali laughs] Has to be just like, makes no impression. Or, they’re like, stunningly beautiful. [Jack chuckles] He’s like the most handsome person you’ve ever seen. One or the other, just, dead voice, just. I don’t know, I have to— I don’t know who this person is— I haven’t really thought about him.
[Ali laughs]
Keith: Hymn. [laughs] It’s funny because he’s supposed to be charmed, but he feels hypnotized.
Austin: No! It’s, it’s charmed— well charmed means many different things.
[Ali laughs]
Keith: Sure.
Ali: Sure.
Keith: And sometimes it means hypnotized.
Austin: And sometimes it means hypnotized. Yeah I think— I think we— yeah, escort begins to escort you out, and says like,
Austin (as Hymn): If we run into anybody, just act like I’m bringing you somewhere because of the alarm.
Ali (as Aria): Mhm! I really appreciate this.
Austin (as Hymn): Yeah this place kinda sucks.
Ali (as Aria): Yeah!
Austin (as Hymn): I thought it would be like a good way to meet people and try to like figure out my life, but it didn’t really work out. Everyone here’s so violent.
Keith: And, you met her?
[00:16:50]
Austin: True, wow. True. AuDy, have you been— where are you at? Are you keeping an eye on all this somehow? Or are you down the hallway?
Jack: Yeah! I think I have like um, concealed myself somewhere.
Austin: Mm.
Jack: And concealed myself somewhere in a way that is very passive. It’s like, I’m getting away with saying to you, Austin, AuDy has concealed themselves, but it’s like, AuDy is in like a—
Austin: By being vague?
Jack: No! [chuckles] by saying like, AuDy is in like a closet or something.
Austin: I see.
Jack: Is, you know, this has been a passive position of just like, listening, staying still, waiting for the moment.
Austin: Mhm.
Jack: I would like—
Keith: AuDy seems very patient to me.
Jack: I would like to check in quickly about what the sort of goal is from Orth. Where it’s like, I— obviously Orth wants us to gather information. Does Orth want us to like, clean this mess up? Does Orth wants us to get—
Austin: Do you mean like, from the jump?
Jack: Yeah.
Austin: Do you mean you’re trying to call Orth? Cause you can’t call Orth.
Jack: No no no, from the jump.
Austin: Yeah, from the jump, the ideal would have been, find out what they want, to free Coffee, let’s see if we can do that. And then, deal with it so that it doesn’t blow up. Orth’s big fears are that a CCT administrator is going to die, or go missing for long enough that the CCT has to roll in. And like make it effectively, like an international incident, you know?
Jack: Right.
Austin: The CC— Orth doesn’t want the CCT to like roll tanks in. [Jack: Yep.] And to like, put this place under martial law. Because this is the last place on what was an Apostolosian planet that’s still kind of run by Apostolosians, and Orth is conscious of that. Even if— even if he is a CCT guy at this point, you know?
Jack: But if we could get Coffee out, that might mean— hooo, hmm. I was about to say, that might mean a better paycheck. [Austin: Right!] Now it might mean that Orth Godlove says, “Why did you do that? This is a new mess for me to deal with.” [Austin: Sure.] But I don’t know if AuDy is viewing it that way, it’s like, you know, we can extract this person, [Austin: Right.] you know, that’s Orth’s job to deal with you know, tidying that up. It’s a better situation if you know, Coffee is back with the CCT [Austin: Mhm.] And you know, we can get stories straight and stuff like that. Um, could I have—
Austin: So you— are you going to— yeah, tell me what you’re—
Jack: Could I have conceivably heard the conversations between Aria and— it’s almost funnier if I didn’t—
Austin: No, you did not.
Jack: And I go to rescue Aria, [Ali chuckles] and the room is empty except for Coffee.
Austin: What I will need unfortunately from AuDy, is some sort of Prowl check to move through this space.
Jack: Oh, don’t say that!
Austin: Sorry! Or some sort of Move check if you’re not being sneaky, but wanna do this without— you wanna get there [cross] without security at your heels.
Jack: [cross] Right, yes, because it’s moving from—
Austin: Yeah.
Jack: A position that is safe, you know, wedged in the corner of a room or you know, [Austin: Totally.] to a position that is dangerous. Let me see. So.
Austin: Yeah, Little Blue is the one that’s still out there. And Little Blue is not actually little, if I recall correctly.
Jack: No.
Austin: And so— and so that one’s out there, and then also just like the default security guards of the sort that we saw Cass and Mako have to deal with, they’re also prowling these halls. And the one who arrested Aria to begin with— I guess actually she would’ve gone back out to the main area I think, I don’t remember, but—
Jack: To support the chaos brewing elsewhere in the casino.
Austin: Yes. The Chaos Garden.
Jack: [chuckles] Yes, the Chaos Garden. Um, let’s see, so Move is generally for things sort of that we associate like, Move is like leaping, or jumping,
Austin: Or running.
Jack: Or falling— or running, yeah that’s true.
Austin: Yeah, moving quickly, it’s traversal right? You’re getting from Point A to Point B. You’re not doing it without being seen, you’re just doing it quickly, and effectively and safely, you’re not being hurt while you do it, right?
Jack: And while I am better at that, if my next step is “Extract Coffee”, I think— I think I have to get to him without being seen.
Austin: Yeah, so I think that’s Prowl.
Jack: I do think that’s Prowl.
Austin: That’s what I— I think that you’re Prowling against Little Blue, who is you know, who is himself looking for you.
Jack: Yup. I have Prowl, one, so this isn’t great.
Austin: Not great. You got any—?
Jack: Let me see. I have an adjective that can help me here, yes. I have–let me find the word–Coordinated?
Austin: Yeah, that makes sense.
Jack: There is a coordination to where you take the risks, you know, where you hang back, where you move quickly. Okay.
Austin: Are there any objects that help? I don’t know.
Jack: No I don’t really— I have like a bulletproof vest, [chuckles] which doesn’t— nope. Not helpful.
Austin: No, no not really. A baton, not really. And the shotgun, not really. Alright, so it’s gonna be two dice you’re rolling.
Jack: Yep.
Austin: Let me try— I’m looking at Little Blue particularly.
Jack: I’m going to charge all my push die, which I have one.
Austin: This is Detect— you’re going against their Detect, okay. And they have a Hurt die, so.
Jack: [cross] They do, but unfortunately,
Austin: [cross] Oh, you also have a Hurt die.
Jack: I also have a Hurt die.
Austin: You do, uh huh. Which is like— it’s weakened, right? So it’s like, a little— you’re moving a little slower than you’re used to, right? You don’t have the spring in your step to quickly get to the next corner and hide, right?
Jack: Yes. Yeah, I think there’s also like, like a limp or something you know?
Austin: Yeah, that makes sense, yeah.
Jack: Like a motor is not firing in the right way for AuDy. [Austin: Mmm, mhm.] Whose dice are those in the dice rolling spot right now?
Ali: M…ine.
Austin: Oh yeah, this is yours, Aria.
Jack: Yeah, cause that’s too many dice for me.
Austin: Yeah. I’m gonna— boop, boop.
Jack: I have two dice. Two action dice.
Austin: No, you have an action dice and a push dice.
Jack: And a push dice, yes you’re right. The push from the adjective.
Austin: You don’t have— it’s one and one right? Yeah, okay.
Jack: Okay. This is one of those rolls where it is being honest to the fiction, doesn’t feel good to do.
Austin: But I love it!
Jack: Wait—
Austin: [cross] Those all roll? They did—
Jack: [cross] No, I don’t think they—
Austin: It happened again! It happened again!
Jack: That can’t be right!
Austin: Yeah, uh huh!
Jack: It—
Keith: There is— it has to be.
Jack: It did, yeah!
Austin: Yeah! Cause it shows it, it shows that those tokens rolled! Yeah.
Jack: That’s wild. Okay, so I rolled a five which gets canceled out by the Hurt die—
Austin: No it doesn’t. Hurt die only cancels out the things that they match. It’s not highest.
Jack: Oh really? Not like a one-for-one?
Austin: No, its if they match— if the Hurt die matches a thing, it cancels it out. You’re good, [Jack: Okay. Yeah.] that’s a five. You’re gonna succeed here. What’s the adjective you’re giving to Little Blue?
Jack: Uh, Hoodwinked.
Austin: Hoodwinked. [chuckles] Okay. Boom.
Jack: There’s an alarm going, you know, people are moving, Little Blue is feeling a sense that they need to be you know, responding to the shooting that has happened elsewhere, [Austin: Yeah, yeah.] but they’ve also got this bone to pick with the robot that really damaged them. And it’s in this sort of like mess of feelings that they find themselves sort of getting turned around in their own casino.
Austin: Yeah.
Jack: Did they search this room already, have they passed down this way before?
Austin: I’ve realized now that we did not do the Lethal test before on these other folks, or on you when you got incapacitated. I’m not gonna ask you to do it— actually I am. Can you roll this die real quick?
Jack: Yeah! Which one?
Austin: The red one. The Hurt die. You want it to not be a six.
Jack: Yep! It won’t be.
Austin: It’s a five. Good check. [Jack chuckles] And then I’m gonna do one for Little Blue— not for this thing, but for the last one, so that’s not it. Then, for Little Blue’s siblings. Teal, that’s a five, they’re good. And Sky, that’s a two. Alright, no one’s dying. No one has Dying or Dead, which is good. [Ali chuckles] Alright. So yeah, so you’ve now Hoodwinked Little Blue, and can you know, we get the shot of Aria and Hymn walking out with the potato chip bags,
Jack: [chuckling] Right.
Austin: And then you like, turning the hallway, you know coming down the hallway, just after them, and turning to go into the you know, the detention center? And finding Affogato, Coffee Affogato in the little all-glass hotel room.
Jack: It’s just like— it’s like a classic double-take, right?
Austin: Yes, yes.
Jack: Looking for the guard— I mean, AuDy comes in with their shotgun deployed from their arm, you know, to be like alright, we’re tidying this up. Then the first part of a double-take, there’s no guard; then the second part of the double-take, there’s no Aria. [Ali chuckles] And then the sort of coda, which is, it’s just me and Coffee.
Austin: And Coffee, the person you’ve been sent here to find.
Austin (as Coffee): Who the hell are you?
Jack (as AuDy): I’ve been sent here to find you.
Austin (as Coffee): By who?
Jack (as AuDy): Orth Godlove.
Austin (as Coffee): Another one.
Jack (as AuDy): What?
Austin (as Coffee): What—? Get me out!
Jack (as AuDy): Okay.
[Ali giggles]
Jack: Do I have like— are there like keys? The security computer is just here, right? I can—
Austin: In my mind, this is like, there’s a row of these rooms, and then just outside this hallway, like there’s a door, and on the other side of that door, to the left, is the security room. And in that security room, which Hymn just abandoned, [Jack chuckles] is the—
Jack: It’s just the computer!
Austin: It’s just the computer and stuff, yeah. You know computer stuff? I guess you can use— you don’t have like the codes for it, though. You’re not a hacker.
Jack: Oh.
Austin: Right?
Jack: No, I’m not. No, not really. I’m not a hacker in the same way that I’m not a prowler, and prowling just went very well for me.
Austin: That’s true.
Jack: Let’s see. I mean there’s a massive alarm going, I could just try and take this door apart.
Austin: You could.
Jack: [chuckles] You know, what’s more of an alarm between friends? Before I do, I want to— I want to make it clear to Coffee that I don’t want any funny business when I, you know, when I open the door.
Austin: Yeah, you— do you talk at all about anything else before you go for this door thing?
Jack: Uhhh, let’s see. I— how much information have I had relayed to me about the device? The, what’s it called—
Austin: I don’t— the KardSharq— I don’t [Jack: The KardSharq.] quite remember how much Mako and Cass said to you.
Jack: Yeah, I don’t think I got a lot there. I think I’m just gonna say,
Jack (as AuDy): Why did you kill Cameron McCloud?
Austin (as Coffee): Oh my g— we’re gonna do this?
Jack (as AuDy): Yes.
Austin (as Coffee): I thought Orth sent you to get me out of here? [hesitantly] Cameron had a thing— Cameron had a thing— Cameron had something that was important to get.
Jack (as AuDy): Be specific.
Austin (as Coffee): I… Cameron had— I had, ohh… uhh… this is… Orth should know this, you should know this, you’re just an agent for Orth, right?
Jack: I’m gonna turn around and leave. [chuckles]
Austin (as Coffee): Okay! Waitwaitwaitwaitwaitwait! Wait wait wait wait wait. Wait. I was trying to get this VIP card from Cameron, because I think Cameron in his room, I think he had a— he had this little AI, this little thing, this little machine? You could interface with it, and it could help you win like, cards, you know, for instance? Or bets? Bets in general? Apparently it could make you win at anything, and I… uh, for— it’s dangerous, right? And we needed to lock it down in the CCT. It was a dangerous thing to have out there, and we needed to lock it down.
Jack (as AuDy): You were going to use it to win money.
Austin (as Coffee): Yeah! And then I was gonna lock it down. It’s— it’s— I don’t think Cameron understood what it was. Cam— now see— now see. I had [chuckles] I had it, and then Cameron, Cameron, I didn’t get a chance to really use it. I tested it, it worked, it works. It’s like a, hm, it’s like it knows how to move things, you know what I mean? It knows when and where you could— when to bet, it knows when and how to bet, it knows the right bets— [softly] it knew the right bets to make. And then Cameron took it from me, and I was going to get it back, like, [exhales]
Jack (as AuDy): You had it in the first place, and then Cameron took it from you? You had it, and then squandered it?
Austin (as Coffee): [softly] I found it, and I thought it would be… I thought I could use it to get a little bit of an advantage over the Ithikos here, because they have a little bit of something on… basically everybody, so what if somebody had a little something on them, would actually make me be able to do my job a little bit, if I can get a couple wins in every now and then. It’s old, it’s like a war thing, I don’t know why they were making gambling machines in the war, but they were. Uh… so I found it, I took it from some Revenant punks, and then… [frustrated exhale] you know, next thing I know, the Ithikos have it out for me.
I don’t know what they saw, I went on a winning streak, I don’t know. I didn’t even get a chance to try to… I didn’t even get a chance to go for the jackpot. They had Cameron after me, took it from me, and here’s the thing, you’re gonna say, “oh I’m gonna use it for me”, you think Cameron’s not gonna use it? Cameron would’ve used it. I think Cameron still has it.
Jack: He— he thinks Cameron still has it.
Jack (as AuDy): You killed Cameron.
Austin (as Coffee): I—... ugh! [agitated] Cameron still has it in their room! Or their databank, or… I—! Cameron still has it!
Austin: Something’s wrong, AuDy. This is— and like you know, this was not how I was playing Coffee with Aria. But the idea that like, this is something…this is some—
Jack: There is a—
Austin: Mhm?
Jack: There is a compulsion happening here, right?
Austin: Yes, a hundred percent. Yep.
Jack: There is like, there is a real animus to getting this thing, and having control over this thing.
Austin: Mhm.
Jack: Interesting.
Austin (as Coffee): I… I have to get it back. I made a deal with it.
Jack (as AuDy): I have people who will ensure—
Jack: Nah, AuDy doesn’t say that.
Jack (as AuDy): No you don’t—
Austin: [interrupting] There’s something else here. There’s something else here that you could Coax to get something here.
Jack: Hmm! Along the lines of where is it, you know—
Austin: Something is being hidden from you— Cameron is— sorry, Coffee is too distraught to speak clearly, and/or is hiding something of the nature of this thing from you.
Jack: Yeah. It’s tough, because like, AuDy’s focus is, get this guy out, Mako is working on this, but I’m not prepared to— this is the first time I’m working with Mako, and there is a— there is an extent to which like, I want to do my best for these people. You know, [Austin: Yeah, yeah.] I want to give the people on the—
Austin: Bet on us!
Jack: Yeah, bet— bet on us!
Keith: Bet on us.
Austin: Yeah.
Jack: So if I can— yeah I mean, I’m going to, I think I just say,
Jack (as AuDy): You’re lying to me.
Jack: And I’m going to try and roll Coax. And, the sort of the vector that I am pushing for here is that I am going to you know, call his bluff, and act to abandon him if, you know.
Austin: Oh, interesting. Okay. What’s your Coax?
Jack: My Coax is pretty good! Because AuDy coaxes people by threatening them. I have a Coax of three.
Austin: Alright. Are you using any of your push dice? Do you have push dice left? Yeah, you have one push dice left, cause you didn’t make—
Jack: No, I— that was a— what’s it called, like a fleeting—
Austin: A fleeting, yeah yeah yeah.
Jack: Okay. So I am—
Austin: I think you still are going to roll that hurt die, because you’re trying to intimidate someone, but clearly you’re not [Jack: Yup!] all the way at your strongest either.
Jack: And I think my— I can use that push dice, right? That is being—
Austin: Yeah, it recharges at the beginning of a roll for you.
Jack: Um, I’m going for Blunt here, you know.
Austin: Mhm, yeah I think that’s clear.
Jack: This is the— if he wants to get out of this prison— you know, the guard is gone, Aria has gone, there is a good chance that you know, this might break bad and he is just abandoned in this prison forever. Okay.
Austin: How many— wait, what’s your Coax?
Jack: Uh, three.
Austin: So let’s get three action dice up there. There you go, now you’re good to go.
Jack: I swear, if we get this effect again, and only a few— nope.
Austin: There we go. Six!
Jack: Oooooh! Six!
Austin: You’re good, yeah. Five doesn’t cancel any— you have five on the hurt die, [Keith: Oof.] doesn’t cancel shit. You got a six— six is… I cannot reach six. If I— I have two un— you know, two charged I guess push dice that will not get Coffee’s Coax up to the top here. What are you giving Coffee, and what is the way that you’re— I mean you’ve already said that you’re faking that you’re going to walk away, you’re bluffing here, so he’s going to buy your bluff. But what is the—
Jack: Uhhh, is it like, [chuckles] I don’t know if— is the word Compliant?
Austin: Yeah! That works. I like that.
Jack: Yeah, it’s like, I want him to do exactly what I say.
Austin: Are you making it Sticky? Or is it—
Jack: Yes.
Austin: Okay, alright. I’ll take that die.
Jack: Because, I’m not gonna mess around with it being fleeting, I break the door down, and he just bounces to get the thing.
Austin: Yeah. Um, and yeah, so he calls out and says like—
Austin (as Coffee): Wait, wait! Wait. Wait. I’ll tell you everything, but you have to help me. You’ve gotta get me out of here— open the door, I’ll tell you everything.
Jack: I mean yeah, he has Compliant. There’s another roll coming though, unfortunately.
Austin: There isn’t, because this isn’t an opposed roll. There’s not— breaking down the door is not—
Jack: Oh yeah, that’s true, it’s just time.
Austin: [cross] It’s time, and it’s strength, and you’re strong enough to do this.
Jack: [cross] And it’s noise, and alarms, you know, another alarm goes off, but—
Austin: You’re a big boy. And alarms are already going off, yeah. But I’m gonna— I’m saving the counter rolls on you for once you and Coffee are on the run, that is when it gets interesting, right?
Jack: Mhm.
Austin: So yeah, how do you break down this door? Or open it, I guess.
Jack: Oh! It’s just awful, right? It’s like a— this is a serious door, I mean it’s not a serious door in that it’s unbreakable, otherwise I wouldn’t try and do this, but it’s just grim. This is just slow, unpleasant violence against a door. You know, breaking the lock, [Keith chuckles] pulling at the thing, [Austin: Uh huh.] you know, trying to make use of other objects in the room.
Austin: Mhm. [chuckles] As you’re doing it, as you’re breaking it, he’s talking.
Austin (as Coffee): I— I— I heard about the thing, I heard about the thing originally from uh, from someone who stays out at the Open Arms. They dug it up— they dug it up, they dug it up from some sort of old Diaspora, some sort of Diaspora thing that’s out there, I don’t know. [chuckles] It’s uh, it’s a little… a little implant, or a little disc drive, or a little… I don’t know what it was originally, because by the time I got it from the Revenants, it was a… one of the Revenants, one of the Revenants had it, and had it in the side of his— side of their neck, right in the side of their neck! Right in their vein! It was like this thing was like, in them. And uh, I, I, I bought it from them, and you know I, [chuckles] I found a— a more civilized way to interface with the thing, right?
And it made me a deal. I… I, it didn’t want to be in the Sill anymore. It wanted to be, it wanted to get out, it wanted to get out of the Sill, it wanted to get onto the Mesh, it wanted to get out. It’d been here since before the war, right? Um, and uhh… so I was gonna upload it, but I had to see if it was real first. I had to see if I could win with it first. So I tried to win with it, and I won a little bit here and there, I was gonna get the jackpot, and then Cameron took it— I told you this, [lowers voice] Cameron took it from me. Cameron took it from me. And I think Cameron probably got the same deal that I got—
I’m sorry, I can tell, I… I’m feeling bad, because I haven’t done the deal I made with it. It made me… [heavy breathing] it’s like I signed a contract. [groans] Anyway, it’s really good. It… it sees it all. It’s like, what if you could count cards, but you’re not counting the cards at the table, you’re counting all of the cards in the building, you’re counting all the cards in the Sill. I think it was counting all the cards in the Holidaze, you know, so to speak, you know? Like hypoth— like not— [groans] not just cards, right? Cards, it’s like a— oh, it’s a metaphor—
Austin: And you’re just like clank, clank [chuckles], door smash, kick.
Jack: I mean I think, past a certain point, the door just opens, and you know, AuDy grabs his wrist, [Austin: Yeah.] and they’re starting to move down one of these corridors [Austin: Yeah.] as he’s talking.
Austin (as Coffee): [groans] Ah… [exhales] it wanted to get on the net. It wanted to get out of the Sill. I… I think Cameron was trying to upload it. Trying to get it on the next outside line, right? Which is probably what, you know, it wanted me to do. I did. It wanted me to do it, that was the promise I made it. [exhales, lowers voice] It can do anything it wants.
Jack: Oooh. Mhm.
Keith: Sounds normal. Sounds like a normal device.
[Ali chuckles]
Jack: The Kard… the Kard, comma, Sharq.
Austin: Ah. [Keith chuckles] Yeah. [Ali giggles] It— he produces,
Austin (as Coffee): Wait wait wait, let me get—
Austin: And goes into the security room and starts digging through the things he came in with. And one of the things that he has is this old data disc that’s been like, opened, like it’s just the shell. And he’s like,
Austin (as Coffee): It’s not in— it’s not in— it’s not in here. Cause Cameron— I only had the shell left—
Austin: And it says, “SureThing.dat”. We’ve only ever seen these .dat you know files when they have been Divines. Righteousness.dat, you know; Rigour.dat I believe. Currently in Palisade we have TheCaptain.dat, so sometimes they’re kind of playful names. This is the name of a Divine who hadn’t been named yet. Sure Thing, you know, like you’re betting on a sure thing, .dat. And it seems like Cameron’s already uploaded it. Somewhere. [Jack chuckles]
A Divine that knows how to count cards and make contracts, and move things around. A Divine that has plans. It would find its own name later. And it wouldn’t call itself a Divine for a very, very long time. Because it knew that if it did, it would grow attention. And better not to, until it was useful. So instead for a long time, it was just Arbitrage. The Machine, comma, Arbitrage.
Jack: [exhales] Sure thing!
Austin: Dot D—A—T! [chuckles]
[Ali chuckles]
Jack: SureThing.dat. Mm!
Austin: And it’s out there now.
Jack: Mhm!
Austin: Mmm. And that’s why I wanted this to be in the main feed.
Jack: Yeah [chuckles].
Austin: In the middle of the Palisade season.
Jack: Yeah!
Austin: Which I didn't know, to be clear. I didn’t know— KardSharq is a thing I wrote eight years ago? I didn’t know that’s what the fuck it was until I came up through this system— not today, but six weeks ago or whatever, and I was like, “Ohhh, that’s fun! That’s where it comes from.”
Jack: And there’s a— you know, we know what the first Divine is. And I don’t think that that is going to change, but there is a long [Ali chuckles] distance between [Austin: Oh yeah.] the first Divine and other older, older Divines.
Austin: Yeah! I think this thing was just made here during the pre-war period, you know?
Jack: Yeah! Comparatively recently.
Austin: Comparatively recently, yeah. Which is why it’s not— and it’s made here, not on the Diasporan Mesh, right? So that’s why they don’t know about it. That’s why it was about to keep a low profile for fucking ever.
Jack: God.
Austin: Cause it was never registered as a Divine anywhere, you know?
Jack: Nobody tell Ibex.
Austin: [good-humoured] Nobody tell Ibex.
Jack: [chuckling] Nobody tell Ibex!
Austin: And no one does! No worries!
Jack: Yeah, no!
Austin: This doesn’t— this SureThing.dat just kind of sits back and watches from here, you know? Maybe learned a little something from Benny BAABS at some point? But isn’t really clued in to the way the world works quite yet. And just sticks around, so. But all of that is secondary to the fact that you have the person that you’re trying to save now, the alarms are running wild. Cass and Mako, where are you headed [Jack: Oh!] with this VIP card? And also, have you— have the four of you decided to just stop talking to one another over the [Jack: God!] comms?
Jack: I’ve had a horrible thought as well. Which is, there is only one way in and out of this [Austin: Yeah!] Sill. And if there has been a shooting [Austin: Yeah.] at the casino?
Austin: Mhm.
Jack: …Yeah.
Austin: Are you suggesting perhaps that I can activate this other threat that I’ve written down, which is “the CCT occupation”?
Jack: Uh, no! I was just saying that the way we got in was already tricky? [Ali chuckles] [Austin: Yeah!] And uh, you know, it— now everybody in that building is like, “well, the people who did the shooting are you know, inside right now.”
Austin: Right, right right right, I see what you’re saying. You’re saying that like the— it’s not just the Cerulean that’s going to be on lockdown, it can be all of the Sill.
Jack: Cause there’s one gate. And if anything I think that you know, the CCT— were the CCT to show up, that would sort of invite questions about whether this was their responsibility, you know?
Austin: Totally.
Jack: They might want to hold off until they can be like, wait a second—
Austin: Well, no. There are people in the CCT who want to strong-arm this. [Jack: Oh right, yeah.] The person there who doesn’t, is Orth, right? There are people in the CCT who would be happy to kind of push their power around, right? Maybe not the person you talked to at the front gate, but other people, you know, if word gets out that someone else was killed in here, and that’s an opportunity, and Coffee hasn’t been, you know. If word gets out that there was another killing in here, and someone else besides Orth reaches out to Coffee and they don’t hear back, or the guard that you were first talking to back in the first session— or second session, AuDy, is like— folds, and says, “Yeah, we ran into—” you know, “Orth sent some people ahead—” it could break bad.
Jack: That’s why we’ve gotta be quick and careful! To your point, [Ali chuckles]
Austin: Do you talk to each other about anything?
Jack: Um, yeah, I am going to— hmm, hurry up— yeah, I don’t know. Is it funnier if I don’t contact Aria? If Aria just disappears as far as AuDy is concerned, and AuDy is like well, you know, shrug.
Austin: Well, you’re all on the same like, communicators, right?
Jack: That’s true! I suppose I just— I communicate that I have— I have acquired Coffee? [chuckles] And I am you know, working to extract.
Austin: How does everybody respond?
[00:45:25]
Art: Um,
Art (as Cass): Great.
Art: Right? I mean, I don’t know! My arm’s broken.
Keith: I would add that we’ve got the card.
Keith (as Mako): We’ve got the VIP card.
Austin: Sure.
Art (as Cass): Yeah, we have the VIP card.
Ali (as Aria): AuDy!
Jack (as AuDy): Where are you?
Keith (as Mako): Yeah Aria, what did you get?
Ali (as Aria): I’m getting ice cream, do you guys want any?
Jack (as AuDy): What—? No.
Austin (as Hymn): Do you want a taste of my pistachio?
Ali (as Aria): [whispering] Oh my god I love pistachio! I’m on the phone though, one second. Um, yeah! Well, I made friends with one of the guards.
[Art laughs]
Ali (as Aria): And, we were so bored, so we’re getting ice cream now! Everybody okay? [gasps] Oh, Coffee is in the jail by the way, well I— [chuckles] I’m working with the guard.
Jack (as AuDy): Don’t worry about Coffee.
Austin (as Hymn): You said you wanted to get coffee later?
Ali (as Aria): Yeah, after the whiskey! Duh.
Austin (as Hymn): Oh.
Art: That’s how it goes.
Austin: Ice cream, then whiskey, then coffee? Yeah.
[Ali snorts]
Art: Yeah I mean. [Ali wheezes] [Austin: Yeah.] If those are the things you’re going to do, that’s the right order. [Ali chuckles]
Keith: Yeeeah… I can put coffee in any order there I think, [Ali: Sure.] but.
Jack (as AuDy): We need to leave. Things are moving very quickly, and I suspect that they will worsen the longer we stay.
Ali (as Aria): Well, have we spoken to Orth— did Orth say that we can leave?
Jack: [wheezes] Just like, I’m just shrugging.
Art: Tell us if we can leave?
[Ali laughs]
Jack: I’m just like, that guy?
Keith: Can we go home?
Jack: Him?
[Ali laughs]
Art: Yeah, let’s go home.
Jack (as AuDy): Aria. Meet us at the ship.
Ali (as Aria): Can I— can I bring a friend—? I’m supposed to do a concert tonight!
Jack: You don’t try to lie to me? [Ali chuckles] Here? If you were gonna do a concert tonight you should’ve just—!
Ali: It’s not a lie!
Jack: Okay.
Ali: I have depended on this person the whole time to try to fucking get a show!
Jack: Oh that’s true. That’s true.
Ali: Yeah, uh huh.
Jack: I see what you’re saying. You’re not saying “I was planning on doing a concert here all this time”.
[Ali chuckles]
Keith: Can I see the other map?
Austin: Yes— wait, which one?
Keith: The threats—
Austin: Yes. Let me pop that, boom. Here we go. While you’re on the phone Aria, I think you— Hymn says,
Austin (as Hymn): Oh I— I think it’s gonna snow.
Austin: And then, on top of the alarms from the Cerulean in the distance, you hear like a louder like, [like an alarm] BRRRN. BRRRN. BRRRN. And the— I don’t know if you remember me talking about this, but the filters here, occasionally like kind of fuck up and release a sort of ash. A sort of— almost like a, it’s basically like, the chemicals from outside are going through the filter, and they’re coming through and they’re fine, but they’re like, it’s almost like an ashy snow. And it begins to snow all through the Sill.
Art: Aw!
Jack: Well, you know. I mean, only a few deaths. I need to get out of here. I’m gonna hang up. You know, I feel like I’ve said my piece, [Ali chuckles] I’ve been very clear.
Art: Yeah.
Keith: Are we not gonna try and find the KardSharq?
Jack: I mean— god! You can, you can try— [chuckles]
Keith: I’ve gotten into the VIP area, we have the card—
Austin: The thing is, I mean, the thing I was just explaining is, it was uploaded somewhere. This is the thing that— [Keith: Oh, sure.] this is what— you would actually understand this more than anybody, is that Cameron was like, using the Ithikos family’s like, casino network to upload—
Keith: But surely, there’s some evidence in the room?
Austin: Sure! There’s evidence in the room of it being in there, and some other stuff, for sure.
Jack: I mean yeah, don’t let me stop you. I think that the thought of Mako getting closer and closer to SureThing.dat, [Austin: Uh huh.] is terrifying? [Ali chuckles] [Keith: Mm.] And I’m excited about that?
Austin: Yeah.
Jack: So you know, I mean— I don’t think that AuDy making a suggestion to Mako and Mako ignoring it is [chuckles], is something out of character.
Keith: The other option, I mean cause it’s like, you know, to put the obvious thing on the table, it’s like, we either leave loose threads, or we finish the like, the mystery part of the mystery which is—
Austin: The mystery’s solved at this point, I think right? For the show.
Keith: Well, the, the—
Austin: The player— the characters might not have figured it all out, right?
Keith: Yeah.
Austin: But—
Keith: Well that’s what I mean. That’s what I mean, yeah.
Austin: Your job was to rescue this person, right?
Keith: Yeah.
Austin: You’ve done that.
Jack: Well, and to clean up the sort of, [Austin: Yeah, I mean, sure.] the diplomatic situation. [Austin: Yes. Well—] [Ali chuckles] That bit didn’t go so well.
Keith: This could be a situation where the characters are saying to Mako, cause like, we got— we escaped from the alarm, we’ve got the card, we’ve gotten into the backrooms, and we got the call from AuDy being like, I got Coffee, let’s go, and then Mako’s like, aren’t we gonna figure everything out? We got the card— aren’t we gonna keep investigating? [Austin: Right.] And then, everyone could just be like,
Austin: No.
Keith: No, we did the thing.
Austin: Uh huh.
Keith: We’re not— we’re not like in a book. [Austin and Jack chuckle]
Austin: Yeah, that’s kind of fun. I would kind of love to hear that kind— maybe even just that conversation between Cass and Mako, right? Cause if like AuDy’s hung up at this point— AuDy’s like “I’m leaving”,
Keith: Yeah. Right.
Austin: The idea that Cass and Mako— I would love to hear— because I don’t know, I don’t know where Cass stands on this— is Cass a “we should get out of here” person, or is Cass a “we should finish figuring out this mystery” person?
Art: Does Cass with a broken arm think we should get out of here? [Jack and Ali chuckle] Is that the question that’s being asked?
Keith (as Mako): Yeah, aren’t we going to go to the room and look around and find clues?
Art (as Cass): No! Job’s over.
Keith (as Mako): But what about the— what about the— the— the A.I. and the Sure Thing, and the—
Art (as Cass): That’s not our problem.
Keith (as Mako): The big— the jackpot?
Art: Shrug. Cass shrugs— Cass doesn’t say shrug out loud.
Keith (as Mako): We could play the game. We could win the jackpot!
Art (as Cass): That’s not— part of it. Everyone here knows us now.
Keith (as Mako): I don’t know about that.
Art (as Cass): I shot two people.
[Jack chuckles]
Art (as Cass): You were standing right next to me.
Keith (as Mako): I mean sure, it’ll be difficult. But it’s part of it— everything’s part of it!
Art (as Cass): No, the job’s done! Go home, get ‘em next time!
Keith (as Mako): We don’t even know who to get!
Art (as Cass): We will when we have the next job.
Keith (as Mako): And we just do half and get paid?
Art (as Cass): No, we did all of it and get paid! I promise you, we go— we go back, Orth is gonna be thrilled with this.
Keith (as Mako): Thr—
[Jack chuckles]
Keith (as Mako): Thrilled with mur— with the murderer Coffee, a broken arm, two dead security guards, and no KardSharq AI?
Art (as Cass): Thrilled enough.
Keith (as Mako): [sighs] [mumbling] Okay.
Art (as Cass): You can’t win ‘em all.
Keith (as Mako): [under his breath] We could win them all.
[Ali snorts]
Keith: Kick the floor a little bit.
Austin: [exhales] Aria, are you really gonna stay back and do a show? [Ali chuckles] Are you gonna hide in plain sight in this way?
Ali: I would love to!
Art: Well everyone’s looking for an Aria Joie impersonator, so right away— [Ali chuckles]
Austin: Sure. Yeah.
Art: The— the authenticity— not authenticity, the credibility you’re giving by showing up and doing the show, would like absolve you of—
Ali: [chuckles] I—
Keith: Despite your best attempts to tell everybody you’re the real Aria Joie, [Art laughs] everyone is expecting an impersonator [laughs].
Jack: We’ve sort of— we’ve found ourselves in a real Grosse Point Blank type situation, right? [Austin: Mhm!] Where it’s like, “oh I’m the hitman—”, “oh yeah, sure”.
Austin: Sure, buddy. Yeah.
Ali: [laughs] I do wanna do that. As a character, I wanna do that. [Austin: Yeah!] That was my intention. But like, if as a storyteller, if we would prefer to like cap this with a scene with everybody—
Jack: I can’t—
Austin: Well, I think we could—
Jack: I think it’s so much better if Aria is— I don’t know! It’s a prequel to the— to Chime, [Austin: Yeah.] I think ending on Aria playing a show [Ali chuckles] inside a snowy, locked-down building that she caused, you know, partially caused the problem in? [Austin: Yeah.] I can’t think of a better way to end the—
Austin: Yeah, the bar—
Art: And we’re like, watching it being streamed on someone’s phone or something? Like on the ship?
Austin: That’s exactly it. I kind of think that what— the thing that I think is fun—
Keith: Fourteen views on Twitch.
Austin: Is like AuDy, Coffee, Mako, and Cass, get back to the front gate, they get back to the ship, they call down the CCT, right? And Aria’s like, “I’ll get there tonight, after my show!” [Ali wheezes] And everyone’s watching it, and it’s being broadcast, it’s this little intimate whiskey bar performance, there’s no space in this place, you know what I mean? It’s not a venue, really. [Jack chuckles] But it’s enough to do like, you know, it’s almost like a little— like a tiny hole in the wall jazz club vibe, right?
Ali: Mhm. Oh, I don’t have any of the thousands of videos that I watched.
Austin: Uh huh.
Ali: If you look up a band called Especia, E—S—P—E—C—I—A, live, great music. There was this one video— Especia, [chuckles] Especia 13th Live, this unfortunately is a band with like seven people, so you don’t get the, the like—
Austin: Oh, this is a tiny venue.
Ali: [giggling] Yeah!
Austin: This is a corner of a room— now this is—
Ali: [wheezing] Uh huh! But just the like, there’s something about the like, the physicality [Austin: Yeah.] and the like, [giggles] the performance of idol art in that like, just standing on a carpet that is particularly funny to me.
Jack: Yeah! I was gonna say it’s—
Austin: A DIY space, like.
Keith: This is the— this is the idol version of performing a— The Saddest Little Church in Saint-Saëns [Austin: Yeah, a hundred percent. Yeah.] [Jack: Oh yeah!] [Ali chuckles] from Disco Elysium.
Jack: It’s like they’ve got full choreography and everything.
Austin: Yeah. Yeah! But they’re even a little lackadaisical with it, right?
Jack: Oh yeah!
Austin: They’re not hitting it.
[Ali chuckles]
Keith: Yeah! [wheezes] They’re like, not fully committed.
Austin: But like—
Ali: It’s so good.
Austin: It’s great. This is fantastic.
Keith: Yeah.
Austin: Fake strumming in the guitar, incredible. Yeah, this is great.
Art: And Hymn is just like, [Austin: Yes!] right off stage going completely [Ali and Jack laugh] apeshit for the performance.
Austin: You know I think—
Keith: Yeah.
Austin: I think like, there is something about being— being so low-key as a person, [Ali: Mmm.] means that this is one place in the world where Hymn looks like the coolest motherfucker alive? [Ali wheezes]
Art: Ohhh! There you go.]
Austin: Just like, sitting at the bar, sipping the whiskey, unfazed, you know? Just absolutely stoic. Like, [Jack chuckles] oh yeah, I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. You know?
Jack: God, that’s great.
Austin: It’s good. And then you know, you play the hits, you play new material? What do you play?
Ali: [gasps] I— it’s probably—
Keith: Non-stop, fifteen tracks.
Ali: It’s probably unreleased stuff, and then one finale of like, [Austin: Ahhh.] The Song.
Austin: The Song.
Ali: “Everybody Dies on Earth All of Time” or whatever.
Austin: Everyone Dies on Earth All the Time.
[Ali wheezes, Art laughs]
Art: Everyone Dies on Earth All the Time.
Keith: Perfect— perfect way to convince everyone you’re the real Aria Joie is to play thirteen unreleased tracks in a row! [Jack, Ali, Keith laugh really loud]
Art: Someone’s just like, Aria Joie with an acoustic guitar. [cross] Gonna play some songs no one’s heard before!
Keith: [cross] I thought this was an Aria Joie concert?
Ali: I’m trying to make it out on my own with this whole environmental thing, okay! [wheezes]
Austin: Yeah. Well and speaking of—
Jack: God.
Art: Buckle the fuck up, everyone!
Keith: It’s also fun, you know, playing on your own and we’re all back on the ship, works for the like, this is the sort of the— this is casting the shadow that becomes “the bells are ringing” and everyone’s like, [Ali wheezes, Art laughs] “what?”
Jack: Yeah…
Keith: [laughing] Like, sorry! I just like, have cultivated this whole thing on my own! I thought we were all in this, but I forgot every time I felt like that, I was by myself.
Art: One of the songs is like, [Austin: Uh huh!] a ten minute jam on [Austin: Yeah!] “the bells are ringing”?
Austin: God.
Jack: And right now, you know, far far away on the planet of Joypark, you know, fifty thousand people are watching Aria Joie, you know? [Austin: Yeah!] Some sort of like, [Ali chuckles] [Austin: Yeah!] fireworks are going off in the background.
Austin: [softly] Yeah! A hundred percent. The real Aria Joie—
Keith: The real Aria Joie.
Jack: I mean yeah, the real Aria Joie.
Art: The real Aria Joie, singing Everyone on Earth Dies—
Keith: The legal—
Austin All the Time.
Art: All the Time!
Keith: Aria Joie LLC—
Jack: Is Everyone Dies on Earth All the Time a Joypark Aria Joie song, Ali? Or is that one of Aria’s new sort of like—
Ali: Oh no, that’s like a war song. That was [Jack: Oh, sure.] I— the lyrics that I said before were from um,
Austin: Soldiers of Sorrow.
Ali: Soldiers of Sorrow from Gundam. Which is like, read those lyrics whenever you want.
Keith: Do you remember the actual name of this song and not the name that—
Austin: No, that’s it!
Keith: [Ali laughs] You keep thinking that it is, which is— okay.
Austin: Everyone on Earth is Always Dying All the Time!
Keith: Everyone Dies on Earth— Everyone Dies on Earth All the Ti— [wheezes]
Art: [sing-song] Everyone on Earth Dies All the Time~
[Ali laughs, someone claps]
Keith: This is like the story of the Swedish pop songwriter who wrote a bunch of American hit singles where the lyrics don’t really make sense, like the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears, I can’t remember the guy’s name.
Jack: Oh yes, I’ve encountered this!
Art: Yeah, no, that is why every— all those [Austin: I didn’t know that.] songs have weird— that’s why it’s “Hit Me Baby One More Time”, that’s why um, “I Want It That Way” doesn’t make any sense [Austin: Ohhh.] [Ali: Mmm.] if you read the lyrics. [Keith: Yeah.] Cause this guy didn’t speak English natively and so just—
Austin: Crushed it though! Was it Kristian Lundin—?
Jack: [cross] I mean one of the best pop-song writers of all time.
Art: [cross] Yeah. Crushed it.
Austin: Yeah, holy shit! Oh, Max Martin, yeah, there we go.
Keith: Max Martin I think. Yeah, Swedish record producer and songwriter.
Jack: How does— I mean [Keith: Yeah], we don’t need to play this through mechanically, I’m so curious about like, what getting through that gate looks like.
Austin: For everybody else?
Jack: With Coffee.
Austin: Yeah, well, I mean you had that side-entrance, right? For me—
Jack: Mhm. I just retrace my steps and—
[00:59:56]
Austin: You’re retracing your steps in the snow, right? It is— it is— you’re in the city, right? It’s— you’re outside— once you’re out of the Cerulean, and once you’re past the embassy district, you’re in a little city, right? And they don’t run the police, [Jack: No.] you know what I mean? They aren’t— that’s not how it works here, in fact, if anything you know, the snow is coming down, maybe there’s an opportunity for the Revenants to get into it a little bit with some of the Ithikos family, you know.
AuDy, you see people like closing up shop in the agora in the kind of big, open marketplace. Cause the snow is coming down, everyone like goes back to their houses when this happens. Um, you know this is a common event. But it’s that sense of the city closing down, right? It’s that sense of a holiday weekend where everyone is traveling. That sense of, the place is getting quieter. And the night is coming, right? So you know, it is getting darker.
It’s easy enough you know, even for you, even with your low Prowl, we’re not gonna roll— there’s no big car chase here, right? It’s a slow trudge through small side-streets behind you know, embankments and pathways, back to the east, back towards the front gate. Climbing that tall you know, stairwell up the side of the big gate. I remember at the north end, you came out and looked out onto this cylinder from kind of high up, as if you were looking down from the top of a building. And you had to climb down this long almost like fire escape-style stairway. And it’s you trudging up that thing with Coffee in tow.
And then presumably, Mako and Cass doing similarly. Maybe on a bike [chuckles] [Jack chuckles], maybe bickering the whole time, you tell me. But similarly, as the kind of ashen snow starts to fall. And yeah, I don’t think it’s that big of a deal, as you come out that side room, you’re able to debrief with the CCT folks, you have Coffee. Coffee you know, TBD, my guess is gets replaced here. And the CCT doesn’t make good with the Ithikos, and you know, maybe pays them off, but they get to stay in— they get to stay in charge, the CCT never came in and occupied this place. Things never went as bad as it could’ve, this was not a huge win necessarily? It was a little messier than anybody wanted, but yeah, that’s kind of how it goes. And then, yeah.
[“Snow Up There” by Jack de Quidt begins playing]
Austin: Aria, you finish your set. I think Hymn is like,
Austin (as Hymn): You’re Aria Joie.
Ali (as Aria): Yeah!
Austin (as Hymn): Huh. Uhh, can you get me out of here?
Ali (as Aria): Yeah! Where do you wanna go?
Austin (as Hymn): I haven’t thought about it.
Ali (as Aria): Well, um. Ugh, it’s not even cold.
Austin (as Hymn): Uh. It’s supposed to be cold?
Ali (as Aria): Yeah, it’s snowing! It’s supposed to be really cold, and snowflakes are gonna fall on my nose, and then you draw me closer to you, and it’s just…
Austin (as Hymn): Huh.
Ali (as Aria): Not that.
Austin (as Hymn): Yeah, I guess it isn’t that.
Ali (as Aria): It’s okay. We’ll find a place where it really snows.
Austin (as Hymn): That’d be— that sounds alright. You think it snows up there?
Austin: And above you, you can see it here. Because the rooftop isn’t coloured, it isn’t tinted, it isn’t golden, it isn’t a false blue. It’s just a window looking up into space, and Weight is looking down at you.
Ali (as Aria): It’s like a miracle, but like, better, right?
Austin (as Hymn): How?
Ali (as Aria): Well, because miracles are usually just the one time. And I guess this was just the one time, but now there’s like, proof, you know?
Austin (as Hymn): Yeah, it’s up there.
Ali (as Aria): Right! You look at it and you think, what can I do if I really, really, really, really, really hoped for something.
Austin (as Hymn): [sighs] I never thought that in my life.
Ali (as Aria): [chuckles] Well now you just have to really, really, really, really hope for something.
[music ends]
[sounds of a machine’s constipated barking can be heard in the background]
[Austin, Ali, Keith laugh and clap]
Ali: I want some ice!
Austin: And he really wanted them to be cold! And he really wanted— sorry, that’s my, that’s my— for people listening who haven’t heard that because we’ve been cutting it out, and now we have to leave that one in, that’s my ice machine that’s breaking right now.
Keith: Yeah.
[Ali snorts]
Austin: Even though I deactivated it. [Jack: God.] And he really wants it to be cold. And he really wants to put his arms around you and pull you closer. And he really really does, but he doesn’t. And he says,
Austin (as Hymn): Yeah, I— I’d love to see the snow one day.
Ali (as Aria): I have a ship we can go back—
Ali: [does a spit take] No— [laughs and claps] [Art and Keith laugh]
Jack: No, why not? Why not? Let’s do it. Pursue these feelings.
Austin: Yeah! Yeah, listen! Fuckin’— let Aria rock!
Ali: [chuckles] She meant it as like, let’s get out of here, we’re gonna run away, kid! And then we were here again— again, and you know words mean multiple things.
Austin: Uh huh! But there is a pattern emerging!
[Ali wheezes and laughs]
Jack: Well I will say that like, she— the next step that she discovers is what if I try this on someone actively trying to kill me?
Austin: Right, instead of someone who’s kind of like, just generally disaffected and sad, yeah.
Ali: She went to that concert, that was an Aria Joie concert, and she was very um, impressed by Jacqui.
Austin: That’s true.
Ali: And I feel upset that you’re making this a strategy, and not— [chuckles] the truth of her person.
Keith: It’s not a strategy, it’s a power.
Jack: Yeah it’s a power, it’s an ability.
Keith: Yeah it’s an ability.
Austin: I’ve respected it here. [Ali giggles] Alright.
Jack: God.
Austin: Yeah, and I think it’s a slow walk— you know, it’s a slow walk maybe arm in arm through the snow back to the front gate. The warm snow— [chuckles] the not-chilly snow. Maybe you should’ve waited for the ice cream until after.
Ali: Whiskey-coffee-ice cream!
Austin: Whiskey-coffee-ice cream.
Jack: Love whiskey-coffee-ice cream.
Austin: Alright. Are you ready—
Jack: They got snow on Ionias.
Austin: Oh, they sure do, it’s snowing on Ionias right now. [Ali laughs] Mmm.
Jack: Oh, yeah. Postcard showing you know, mining equipment, [Austin: Yeah!] landing, you know.
Austin: Worst possible ending for Hymn [Ali chuckles] [cross] would be like, I’m gonna go where it’s cold!
Jack: [cross] No, no we can’t! No we—!
Ali: [cross] Noooo!
Austin (as Hymn): Aria, you inspired me to get a job where it snows all the time—
Jack: No, absolutely not. [Austin evil cackles] Snowtrak Industries on Ionias.
Austin: Yeah. No, I won’t do that, I won’t do that. I don’t know what happens to this guy, he’s great, but he’s gone now, so. Which is like, kind of a classic thing, right? It’s that cool lady in the Cowboy Bebop movie, [Ali: Yeah.] and she’s just gone. [Ali chuckles] She won’t show up for the finale in that show, so. Cool.
Jack: Great. And Mako’s learned a hard lesson about [Ali and Jack wheeze] how the Chime is gonna approach completing a mission?
Austin: Which is to say, leave the mysteries uncovered, don’t keep digging—
Jack: Oh, yeah! Famous for that.
Austin: Yeah, mhm. God.
Keith: Sounds like I had a positive influence.
Austin: Yeah.
Jack: Hang on. The— he made a contract with— I mean, what we now know to be the Divine, Arbitrage.
Austin: You mean Coffee? Coffee did?
Jack: Yes, Coffee did. [Austin: Yeah.] Coffee made this— and I don’t— I don’t know, we haven’t really seen anything in Palisade that— that speaks to the consequences of not fulfilling a contract like that? But—
Austin: Right, in fact we’ve seen— we’ve seen people basically say, you can’t not. [Jack: Yeah.] They’re binding. You know, this is many, many, many thousands of years ago, so, maybe it hasn’t— on one hand, I wanna say that, maybe it just doesn’t have it like that yet, you know what I mean? It’s— this is the—
Jack: I mean he clearly didn’t like it. [Austin: No. Correct. No.] It didn’t feel good for him to be reneging on that contract.
Austin: And you know, maybe— maybe it is a compulsion in that way. There is something— you know, we made this comparison earlier that the slot machines at the Ithikos casino at the Cerulean were not like OriCon ones. They’re not about harsh efficiency and perfect data analysis and, you know all the stuff that Rigour would end up being about in some ways? The way that the Ithikos work is a bit more about leverage. A bit more about knowing who you owe favours to, or getting you to owe favours to them, or you know, coming in, swooping in with the perfect offer at the perfect time? And there’s something very cool about Arbitrage— cool pejorative, cool insult—
Jack: You do not have to hand it to it.
Austin: [chuckles] You do not have to hand it to Arbitrage, to SureThing.dat, to the KardSharq. But there is something interesting about it modeling those behaviours, those human behaviours, and extending them. And so maybe to some degree that is the thing. Maybe the kind of sad ending here for Coffee, and you don’t know this, right? Maybe this kind of even speaks to some of the like, cast being like, we get ‘em next time, we go home, we turn in the— we finish the job, right? We collect our pay, we move on.
You turn in Coffee; Orth is pleased to have Coffee alive. Not thrilled about the dead body, not— but not mad as he would’ve been if the Technocracy’s like armed services would have gone in, you know? [Jack: Right.] There would have been a sudden, total occupation, sort of military police occupation, that would have been worse, and you didn’t get that outcome, so, good job. [Jack chuckles]
Then a week goes by, and another week, and you know, maybe Coffee is on probation. Coffee is being investigated. And at some point, Coffee goes back. Compelled to go back, to go find you know, SureThing.dat. It’s already uploaded, but I don’t know that— I don’t know that Coffee knows that, you know? Coffee has this compulsion, go find it, go bring it to his old office, go upload it. And I don’t know how that goes wrong [sad chuckles]. But you don’t get sent in again, right?
Jack: Huh.
Austin: Coffee’s not protected by the CCT at this point.
Jack: No.
Austin: It breaks bad in some way. And there’s a lot of ways for that to break bad, this isn’t me being euphemistic, it’s me leaving an open door a little bit, that’s— does Coffee go in to work for the Ithikos family, does Coffee just get killed, does Coffee show up and they go, are you fucking for real right now? I don’t know. But it doesn’t go well.
Jack: Maybe the CCT eventually just cuts him loose, right? Where it’s like,
Austin: That’s what I mean, yeah. Yeah it happened twice, you know?
Jack: The reason this was a— the reason that this was a problem for us, was because he was our man. [Austin: Right.] But if we disavow him completely, you know.
Austin: Totally. Yeah. Yeah, you know, sends for help a second time, and the CCT says no.
Jack: [chuckles] Yeah, we’re done with this.
Austin: Yeah. [Jack: And you know—] There’s nothing we can do.
Jack: The optimist version of this, which just is you know, you said Austin, that you’re not saying this to be euphemistic— I’m not saying the optimist version of this to be like, and of course this is actually what happened, so I’m, you know I’m presenting this as among other options, which is, [Austin: Yeah.] maybe Sure Thing’s— Sure Thing hasn’t figured out how to get the grip fully yet. So maybe after three feverish, unpleasant years, [Austin: Right, right, yeah.] the fever breaks, and Coffee goes, “what the fuck am I doing, I have no money, I’ve gambled all my money away, I’ve been trying to get this, but I’ve, you know, regained my senses” or whatever, but maybe it sticks, you know. Maybe it sticks forever.
Austin: Yeah. Oh I know the actual answer, maybe. Which is, do you know who can offer a contract to break this contract, you know who can offer an alternative? [Jack chuckles] You know who can send a message late in the night? It’s SureThing.dat. [Jack laughs] Is a young, a very young Arbitrage can move some things around. Can say,
Austin (as Arbitrage): Oh! I’m so sorry I forgot about you.
Jack: God.
Austin (as Arbitrage): I can make you a new deal.
Jack: Trading one debt for another.
Austin: Yeah, exactly, you know?
Austin (as Arbitrage): I can get you out of there.
You know? Does get arrested by the Ithikos, and then someone we’ve never seen before shows up with a pile of cash and breaks, you know, sits down with— with Coffee, and there’s a conversation, and a new contract. And this person we’ve never seen before is just one more agent working for what would become Arbitrage.
It’s already starting, right? One at a time, let’s get people— let’s get people moving for me. People need magazines to read, [chuckles] [Jack chuckles] I can provide them. People need favours, people need bail money, people need transportation. People have services they can provide. And I can use those services as a middleman. I can get what I want, I can build a network, and a network filled with people who don’t even know they’re in it, you know? Or who don’t know how big the network is. That’s Arbitrage, babey!
Jack: Sure Thing! Sure thing!
Austin: SureThing.dat! [chuckles]
Jack: Sure thing!
Austin: Hoo! Yeah. What’s— can I say something that’s really fun that’s like, this is just like, the way this game works is that like, there’s stuff that we just didn’t uncover? Because it just doesn’t come up, you know what I mean? And it’s not that you didn’t uncover it, it’s that it’s like, it’s not real, because it didn’t come up, right? But like, Grandpa Hart, [Keith: Right.] is a— is like an ex—Candidate? It’s Hart, like H—A—R—T, like a hart, like a big deer, you know? That’s like, used to be [Keith: Mmm.] [Ali: Ohhh.] a Candidate from a Divine [Jack: Oh wow.] that was here back in the day. There’s all sorts of— there’s like, parts of an old Divine buried underneath the Open Arms campground, there’s all sorts of cool shit that could have happened if this shook out slightly differently.
Keith: Well we were supposed to have a Christmas vacation here, and instead, we immediately decided to like, try to do it all in six hours?
Austin: Yeah. That is exactly true, right? Yeah. That’s how it goes sometimes, so. Yeah.
Keith: Yeah.
[01:15:10]
Austin: Well. Thanks! For joining us.
Ali: Mhm!
Austin: For this Chime prequel. I think everyone showed up in exactly the way you would want. [Ali chuckles] [Art chuckles]
Keith: People are gonna go insane for Aria in this.
Jack: Just all time great.
[Ali giggles]
Austin: Yeah. There’s gonna be a— there’s gonna be a new Onion order that’s about uncovering [Ali laughs] whatever the truth of all this is, so.
Ali: Thank you for supporting the National Network of Abortion Funds [Jack: Yeah!] so we could do this.
Austin: That’s true. That’s how we did this.
Jack: Oh my god! And thank you to Ali for making the amazing thing that you saw today if you watched [Ali chuckles] the— if you watched the live— [Austin: Yeah!]
Ali: Yes!
Austin: Well not— yeah [Jack: It fucken rips.] I guess that would’ve— you’re gonna broadcast all of them live?
Ali: Yes. Yes yes yes, yes.
Austin: Amazing.
Ali: So, yeah. Thank you for being here!
Art: So if you’re— if you’re listening to this, and you listened to it live, wasn’t it cool to go to that with a group of people?
Austin: Yeah! What a fun thing!
Keith: Yeah!
Art: Oh we’re gonna have someone in the chat to like, make sure people aren’t listening to it like double speed on the feed and posting—
Jack: [cross] Oh! We’ll hex you if you do that.
Austin: [cross] You’re dead to me.
Keith: [cross] I don’t believe anybody would do that.
Ali: [cross] No, don’t do that.
Austin: And yeah, we’ll hex you!
Ali: We can… ban them? [laughs]
Austin: They’ll be banned.
Keith: That is too— I feel like, it’s a fluke [Ali laughs] that you even thought of that. That is such a weird and mean thing to do.
Art: I mean, it’s just the people driving by the Harry Potter line in yelling spoilers at them—
Ali: Yeah but like, our— nobody— [Keith: Yeah.] nobody has animosity towards the Friends at the Table fandom the way that they do the Harry Potter fandom.
Keith: Right, that is a victim of five billion people knowing what Harry Potter is.
Ali: Uh huh.
Jack: Yes.
Austin: Also, you only just gave people the idea now, at the very end. So we’re safe.
Ali: Yeah!
Keith: Right.
Ali: So, former broadcast of this nature, you better watch out. [laughs] We’re gonna be on the lookout! [giggles]
Keith: Better not cry.
Art: And for the next one, don’t— don’t do this.
Austin: Thank you.
Art: Or just don’t— or just cut this out, and then they won’t be given the idea.
Ali: And if you’re listening to this on the RSS feed, have a good night! [wheezes]
[Jack laughs]
Austin: Bye!
Jack: Bye!
[Ali laughs]
Art: Yeah, if you’re listening on the RSS feed,
Keith: Bye.
Art: Sorry you didn’t have the full— [laughs]
[Ali continues laughing]
Jack: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Austin: I’m happy you had the fun of listening to it in your solitude. A reminder of old things, where were you the first time you listened to COUNTER/Weight; where were you the first time [Ali: Wow.] that AuDy shot a door off [Art: Wow.] of its hinges, [Ali giggles] that Cass listened that maybe they should’ve had a plan, or where Mako decided to be the one who dug a little deeper and investigated something that no one else wanted to, or when Aria flirted with someone to get deeper and then further— deeper into trouble, and then get out of it.
Art: When Aria met Hymn.
Keith: See you next year for the AU scenario where we do spend a week [Ali chuckles] doing a Christmas vacation here. We have the same situation— what are they called, in Tech Noir?
Austin: We do the same Transmission, we just re—, yeah yeah yeah, uh huh.
Keith: The map, the like— Transmission, yeah yeah yeah, but uh.
Austin: But it’s just chill this time, yeah.
Jack: Yeah.
Keith: But it’s just chill, yeah.
Jack: AuDy’s gonna try Churros for the first time.
Keith: Still a murder!
Austin: [cross] Yeah, a murder still happened.
Keith: [cross] Still a murder happened, but.
Austin: Alright. Time.is.
Jack: Time.is.
Austin: Same quote, same quote.
Jack: Yeah, fuck Ralph Waldo Emerson.
[Ali snorts and laughs]
[Art laughs]
Keith: But we’ve wr— but we learned, not through this—
Jack: [cross] Yeah yeah yeah yeah!
Ali: [cross] Mmmm. Mhm. Mhm.
Austin: Got better, yeah.
Art: This quote picks up.
Jack: Yeah, gets there.
Austin: Alright.
Keith: Can’t believe Ralph Waldo Emerson was milkshake-ducked.
Austin: Thirty eight.
Ali: Wait. Waitwaitwaitwait.
Austin: No—
Ali: I’m good.
Austin: Forty, forty, forty.
Ali: No— okay.
Austin: Forty.
[Friends clap, scattershot]
[“The Long Way Around” by Jack de Quidt begins playing]
[music ends]