The universe breathes.
It has been without breath for millennia.
And now it breathes as if trying to remember how.
More in the universe, there's a thump of a heartbeat.
Newborns have never seen light before, not without the protection of their mother's
skin, and when they see light for the first time their eyes burn and they scream until
their eyes adjust.
It's of little wonder then, why the first thing that this construct that Theriac has
built deep in their lab, with its new senses and mechanical skeleton, screams.
Machines whir at the sound of this creature's scream.
It stirs and tries to sit, the sound of static grows and grows, a gurgling in the back of
its mechanical false throat.
From it, it tries to form some words.
Ripples throughout the lab.
Like fish in a typhoon, plugs start getting ripped from sockets and panels torn from walls
as Theriac watches.
This new creation that they've seen, the construct sits up from the table.
The crystal thumping, it points.
A falsified head turns and tries to look at Theriac.
A spark and a blast of electricity erupts around the room, and then the whole room is
ripped out and pulled toward the construct.
Theriac, you are lifted off your feet and thrown across the room, colliding with the
crystal, slamming your head into loose debris, and then you fall unconscious.
Theriac, you wake in a medical bed.
A slow heartbeat monitor pulses next to you.
A vesc looking like a gecko tends to some medical records next to you.
Hello there.
Oh, please, doctor, please, please, said you've been out for quite a few hours, but you're
okay.
Your, your, your lab is a bit of a mess.
You scientists always keeping us on your toes.
Feel free to, feel free to sit.
I, I, where, where, where is it?
Where is what, dear?
My subject.
All of the, your animals, they're safely in their cages.
There was nothing life found on the scene.
I'm not sure myself.
I'm just standing here.
This is just what I've heard.
Ah, it, it was, um.
Oh no, no, look at you.
You're gonna, and, and Theriac kind of, kind of collapses back onto the medical bed.
You're gonna cause yourself a little tizzy.
Sit here, rest.
Everything is perfectly safe.
Your lab is a bit of a mess, but you're safe now.
It's okay.
Just a minor head wound, maybe a bit of a concussion.
She'll be okay.
Was it a, was it a dream?
I'm sure many things are.
And kind of just like slumps back over.
She leaves.
You after a few hours are cleared to leave.
You do have a minor concussion, but it's nothing really to worry about.
Everyone has just checked you and you have a small bandage.
But after a few hours rest, you are able to get up and move along and free to wander the
park as you see fit.
Is there anything you would like to do?
Can I go back to my lab?
There's a series of blue line holographic tape across it.
There's no one keeping guard as nothing dangerous happened.
It just seems like a small experiment gone wrong.
Going to go check the scene to see where the construct went.
If it went anywhere.
You walk in.
It really does seem like everything got torn out.
If it wasn't nailed down, even some things that were, if they weren't so incredibly secure,
got torn out of place and flung toward this one center table where you built the construct.
There's some minor debris from people rushing in and pulling you out and pulling around
random bits to see if there was anything, if there was any creature that you were biohacking
that escaped.
But after a very short amount of time, they concluded no, it was just a random experiment
and things happened.
With nobody aside from you now calling the shots on this park, everyone just kind of
left you to it.
Understood that the doctor is to be left alone in most cases.
Pulling aside some broken glass of old beakers and some slightly heavier equipment that takes
you a little bit to pull away.
You do see the mechanical skeleton of this construct that you have built with the crystal
not heartbeat thrumming, but like you've seen it many times before, sitting in it.
It seems your plan to build something that can house this crystal was in theory successful.
You know how creatures are built, but mechanicals and engineering might need a little extra
help.
Theiriak looks over the sort of empty husk left behind after the experiment.
Looks at it up and down, sees the implementation of this particular anatomy was not optimized.
This could have been improved.
Perhaps some system to regulate it.
Your mind begins to churn and spin its gears as they are reminded of sky.
And we'll take the crystal out of the body.
Take some photographs, do some very quick, conclusive writing.
And we'll call for a live cargo box to place the husk.
A familiar tone, but a slightly updated voice.
Of course, doctor, I would be glad to assist.
A voice that you gather is a very neutered vidar who over the past two weeks you have
spoken to occasionally a group of people with a live specimen box come down.
This big, hulking, multi-armed creature with these different scales that look like they
shimmer like light in petrol.
Alright there, boss.
Whereabouts you want the creature then?
This specimen is currently in my laboratory.
Alright, do you want us to pack it into the box?
Where are we shipping it to?
We will be delivering this and loading it up onto the patchwork.
Patchwork?
I don't know that one, but yeah sure, you can lead the way.
You arrive at your lab.
I imagine that you ask them to haul the construct into the live animal specimen box.
And you then lead them off to the gateway and the patchwork.
As you arrive, see Scrap accumulate a small crew of random people who are all helping
him haul stuff out of the ship and put different things in.
Scrap stands on a small lug of cargo boxes pointing to different people and be like,
hey, can you take that in?
Hey, can we be careful with that?
It's actually really expensive, not like actually but in personal value.
Hey, would you mind just like, just tearing out the wall?
I don't care about that, I'll just replace that later.
To a bunch of different people.
Good afternoon, captain.
Ah, friend the founder themself.
Hi doctor, how you doing?
What is in that box?
That scares me a little, that is a large box there.
That is a fairly large cargo container.
It currently houses my project and is like, like mostly like, yeah, I can't really talk
about this in the open.
Kind of like leans down a little and cups his little rat, rat mouth.
Does it need like air holes?
Can I, can I leave it for like, I just got some work doing aboard and it's, it's, it's
very much a construction site at the minute.
It should not require such a thing.
But though perhaps for safety purposes, it would be better if we did leave some.
You got a duck.
It should actually, this is for a life system.
It should have that already.
That's true.
It does scraps like, fuck, no, it has loads of holes.
I completely didn't see that.
That's me being an idiot.
Yep.
Good.
You're like puts a little, little root finger.
Yeah.
Sorry.
I, um, I saw what they used to be.
I'd lose my mind if I, if it weren't attached to my roots.
Um, do you happen to know where the rest of the crew is?
Before we leave a dune, I think it's very important that I and Sky and they will invite
Azzam.
I don't know if he will agree, but I think, I think we should win something at one of
the games in the park.
Oh yeah.
I imagine that's why I was spending most of my time actually.
Very important.
Like I'm, I'm getting as much theme park time in as humanly possible before we leave, while
it's on theory X dime, you know?
I would like, while we're kind of like doing that, I assume, I assume lots of things have
been won.
Yeah.
These are way simpler than Y-Net.
These are my kind of games, you know?
Jumps and shoots.
Not for me.
I find these very difficult.
Also, I can't talk to many of them.
I can't talk to darts.
Oh, are we playing darts?
I was imagining like arcade games cause we weren't in an arcade a while ago.
No darts, pool.
It's physical games.
World times has a strict no electronics policy.
I'm imagining like carnival games.
Oh, carnival games.
Oh, that makes way more sense.
I thought I could just stumbled into like a smoky 1920s casino.
I can't speak to any of these.
Well, if it's, if it's carnival games, I would have been like, I, you know, these are all
a sham, right?
I don't, I don't know that.
I mean, there's, I mean, people win them.
I've seen people with bears and whatever that thing with the longish snoot is, but I've
seen them.
Yes, it's possible, but unlikely.
Oh, well.
I mean, we can try.
I think we should.
Hey, now step right up there.
Everyone's a winner here.
Don't you worry about it.
You're a liar.
No, no, stop.
You know, you're a liar.
You don't believe me?
Do you want to put your money on it?
Five credits, three shots, one winner.
It's going to be one of us, either me or you.
Well, it's going to be you.
If you win.
No, it's going to be you.
Cause you're getting paid to say all this.
If you hit, if you get a ring around three of the ducks, you get one of the top row prizes.
If you get a ring around one of the penguins, you get one of the middle row prizes.
Tell you what, if you get a ring around anything, I'll pay to play your game.
Oh, well, I'll play that right now with you.
Picks up one of the rings, walks it over and then just places it over because they're behind
the little thing.
Like, oh, there you go.
It seems that I won a prize and now you need to play.
Well, that was blatant cheating.
If we could play by that same rule, then I would gladly pay you 10 credits to play.
Oh, you are driving a hard bargain, but if I show you how to win, then everyone's going
to be winning, eh?
How much were these prizes?
Eight credits?
Three credit bargain.
If you won one of the big ones.
Listen, I know you're shtick.
I was a carny for like two weeks.
Oh, well, if you feel so good about it, then maybe you throw a ring around a duck.
I'm going to spend the credits and say, Sky, you take him for every duck he has.
That's 10 credits, six throws.
To protect myself from embarrassment, I just want it known that I don't think the odds
are in my favor here.
No, it's impossible.
And if you should buy some miracle win, you should be researched for your magnitude of
skill.
We're paying for the fun?
We're paying for the fun.
Hey, that's one ring around the roses.
That's good enough for a key chain.
We got five more.
Can you beat it?
Sky, Sky, Sky.
I know I'm getting cheated, but this does bring me a weird amount of joy.
So yeah, I'm going to try again.
Yeah, we got, hey, you got five more chances.
Five more chances for the two of us?
Yeah.
All right, you go now.
Hey, little lady, come step up to the plate.
Come throw it.
Oh, I'm going.
Okay, sure.
All right.
Okay.
All right.
Um.
You throw it, little ring, little round of penguin.
You get the, you get the, you get the, oh, there you go.
That, that, that qualifies one of the medium prizes.
Hey, can we do any better?
We have, we have four more.
You guys are, you have four more.
You guys are quite good at this.
One of the, one of the, one of the media, one of the medium rows, they point and the
medium rows are like small little plushies.
And then like some action figures that look like they've just been like hung up there
and just left.
Skye.
Come on, the, the.
Okay, I'm going for the big prize.
I can't wait for a shot to pay 10 credits to win something worth nine.
Oh, that bounced right off the head of one of the duckies.
Tough luck, little busy.
It seems your friend is a little better, better shot.
Hey, that's okay.
We got three shots left.
Don't patronize me.
Actually fine.
I think you'll find you're patronizing me by playing this game.
Get, get, get, get over here.
All right, give me that ring.
There we go.
We got, we got two of the small and one of the, one of the, one of the medium size.
We have two shots left.
Do you guys want to do one each?
Just throw them at the same time.
Shoo, see if you can combine the efforts into one.
Yeah.
You want to hold the left side?
I can hold the right side.
You know what?
Yes.
When you grab the ring, I'm also going to pull you closer and be like, listen, I know
I'm trying to turn over a new leaf or something, but I am saying we can totally take this
way out together and then walk away with a whole bunch of prizes.
I'm just saying that's an option.
We're going to throw the ring and we're going to walk away, but I'm just like, if you're,
if you're down, you could talk me into it.
That's all I'm saying.
I will not talk you into it, but I will say that absolutely should you wish to, you could
absolutely have a whole cart of stuffed animals and a dead man, but I think we should not
do that.
I think instead we should scrap what killed me.
We don't have enough room on the patchwork for a bunch of stuffed animals.
That's exactly what I was thinking.
Let's throw.
All right, ready?
Uh huh.
I, you throw impeccably and you're like looking at that ducky and you're like, I'm going
to throw a ring around that ducky.
Skye, you're like, I'm about to throw this so impeccably, it's going to be absolutely
bonkers.
But as you throw Skye, you get a little buzz of vvvvvvvvvvv in your pocket.
And then as you let go and it just, you just let go, just like a little too late and then
it ding.
It just bounces off the ducky and then rolls around the little penguin.
I thought, I thought that would have been really cool, but I recognized that it was
highly unlikely.
We paid for the fun.
What's my phone?
Why buzz?
You look at your phone and it's a text.
It's from Flair.
He says, who's says, Hey, what's up Stardust?
Me and Keelin just scored a whole bunch of smog wine.
The little wink.
W U U 2.
Do you want to hang out?
W U U 2.
What you, what you up to?
Okay.
Another text IDK where you are.
Dough.
I'm going to take a selfie putting, I don't know if I'm allowed to put up the middle finger.
It seems too vulgar for the welcoming, but I'm going to take a selfie with the carnival
game looking grumpy, holding up the middle finger.
And I text back, just cost me a carnival game.
I will report back to you.
Uh, it's, it's seen and then it's reacted to with a little thumbs up.
Uh, yo, I, uh, do you like smog wine?
Um, I do.
I've enjoyed it.
On occasion.
Okay.
Uh, I got, I, somebody can hook us up with some smog wine.
So what do you say we check back in with the gang, maybe, maybe make a stop to wherever
it is we're going next.
Sure.
I, uh, that might, I know this might sound a little irresponsible of me, but I think
that actually might be a good idea after everything that has happened recently.
Maybe a bit of smog wine is warranted.
It's a coping mechanism, but sometimes you just got to cope.
Just now and then let's do that.
All right.
Before we walk away.
Hey, Carney, what are you getting paid for today?
I'm I work on commission.
Tell you what, how much, how much can I just pay you for one of those stuffed animals?
Leans in real close.
Um, this person is like, looks like a human, but it has like a weird, like jauntiness to
them and kind of like, uh, their, their body kind of rubber hoses a little bit as they,
as they speak and like are in there like small or idle animation.
They're kind of always slightly moving.
They lean down and their neck cranes really, really close to your ear.
Hey, so if you want one of these and you can meet me after hours and then pay the 50 credits,
got to wait in line though.
It's a lot of people who want one of these big prizes.
Tell you what, I'll pay you 10 credits right now straight into your pocket for that little
guy that looks like the wild times mascot.
Oh, I mean, you have a medium prize.
So if you want the little guy, you, you can give me the, give me the wild times.
Wow.
There are children.
It's like a small, um, it's a small plushie of subject one of the mascot who you know,
this like, uh, kind of humanoid face with these like wreath of tentacles and they have
like a small Hawaiian shirt around this little, this little teddy bear and the Hawaiian shirt
has a wild times logo at the back.
Yeah.
All right.
Let's go meet back up with the gang.
Let's do that.
I'm going to, I'm going to take a picture of the prize and send it to flair.
You get a, uh, a text back as you're walking closer to the, to the, the, the tram that
leads off toward the gateway.
Uh, as like, oh, lol.
That's the wild times mascot.
I assume you're at wild times.
I'm not telling you nothing.
The like cry laughing emoji gets sent back to you.
He stole our stuff.
Stole our stuff.
You all re reconvene at the gateway.
I'll say, uh, it's been about a day theory act since you, um, since the beginning of
this session has started.
Hey, uh, yes.
Oh, it'll be about, I want to say like a day.
I think I can, uh, I think if me and my team, if we work like over the night, we can get
this all, we can get the ship all up and ready.
Um, you can see that there has been huge changes inside the ship.
You haven't quite stepped in yet, but even on the hull of the outside, it has been like
taken apart and scrap seems to be like building out a small like meter long wall and is, uh,
like building it back around.
So has like essentially taken it apart and then added a meter in one direction, a few
yards in one direction.
Uh, yeah, I can get this done in.
I, I, I think a day, uh, I think we'll be able to fly it done evening tomorrow.
This looks dope, dude.
Hey, listen, it wasn't this, this wasn't, this wasn't just me.
This was, this is, this is a, this is a team effort, uh, a large VESC walking with this
like whole, like just a huge amount of like rebars and scrap metal, this big muscly lizard,
uh, walks past scrap and is like, Oh, what's your head boss?
He's like, Oh, sorry.
There you go.
You bastard keeps trying to knock me on the head.
Go get out of here.
And then he laughs as he keeps walking and then dumps all of his stuff somewhere else.
Uh, so as this large VESC turns everyone.
Yeah.
So we, um, and stop speaking and then looks is looking directly at Theriac.
Uh, Hey, um, Oh, they're with us.
Yeah.
That's what we were building the whole thing for.
Theriac, Theriac, Theriac's flying with us.
Oh, ho, ho, ho.
Hey, sure thing.
Uh, thank you, boss.
Doctor.
I just didn't expect to.
Is there a problem?
I just didn't expect the founder of the park to, to be, um, yep.
Very good.
Uh, I'm gonna, I'm gonna go get back to it.
Go on, get back.
They're a good lot.
Theriac, you have good staff here.
Um, certainly.
However, I am fucking starving.
You all want to get some food and then talk about what's the next on the agenda?
Uh, how does everybody feel about smog wine?
Well, you know, how I feel.
I, I, I do not believe I should partake, but, uh, I will accompany you.
I mean, you were taking notes on egg and I when we were eating cheese, right?
Imagine the notes you could take with egg on smog wine.
I am still accompanying you.
I am just not participating in the digestion and intake of said smog wine.
Right.
Does that mean you like smog wine?
I don't drink.
Are you, um, would it be okay if we partook?
Would you accompany us and spend some time?
Are you my children?
I mean, would you want to be, would you want to spend time with us?
We definitely kind of do have like a, you know, dynamic going on, but it's not fully
formed yet, so I'm not going to point it out.
That's, uh, true, I suppose.
But no.
I am so surprised that out of everyone here, Ike's the only one that can hang.
What do you mean?
Ike, I am the person that legally cannot drink.
Well.
Oh yeah.
No, I knew you could hang, Scrap.
Hold on.
Fury Actress said they could join.
They just wouldn't part.
Second of all, we skipped over the part where you like, there's a relation.
What exactly is happening?
Yeah, I know.
I did that on purpose, Azam.
I, uh, I'm offering you all smog wine because I was offered to go get smog wine, which means
I won our wager.
Unless of course you've heard from Wolfman.
What kind?
Hold on.
Oh.
Are you referring to, uh, the, the, the crew that we, uh, encountered on, on Helium?
Yes, I figured this was doable because you guys all seem like you're huge fans of Flare
and what's his name?
Keelan.
Flare and Keelan.
And I'm a big fan of smog wine, so.
Wait, hold up.
Remind me of the context of our wager again.
Whoever got the opportunity to turn down the other person first wins.
And I got the opportunity to turn down Flare, but I'm not gonna, cause I like smog wine.
I suppose you have.
Well look at that.
You've just outdone me.
Good job.
How's Flare?
Oh, I don't like your tone, Azam.
No one likes my tone.
That's why I was locked up.
How's Flare?
Did you trick me?
Sky.
Look at me.
I was locked up for convincing many people to fight in a war in which we lost.
Against all odds.
Yes I did.
I am equal parts impressed and infuriated.
It won't happen again.
Are you happy to be talking to Flare again?
I can neither confirm nor deny that.
Why?
Is it because they stole our things?
That might be part of it.
Ferrek, do you forgive Flare and Keelan for stealing our things?
I would, I would.
Just say yes.
God, of course.
Why would I ever hold that against them?
I feel like I don't forgive them yet.
But I, one, very much haven't had smug wine on my own in quite a while.
And two, I think that we haven't given them the chance to make it up to us yet.
So why not try?
I also think you're misunderstanding.
We don't have to forgive them.
I still hate them.
But just enough to take their smug wine.
Sure.
Skye, you do not hate Flare.
I should though.
You should, but you do not.
So we're working on this inherent character flaw in myself.
No, it's not a flaw to like someone.
It is when they steal your crystal, your potentially world impacting crystal.
It returned to us.
No one's damaged by it, except for maybe, you know, some traumatic memories.
But beyond that, we're all fine.
If you want to forgive Flare and attempt to have some kind of relationship, whether friendly
or something else, you're welcome to.
But do not, do not think liking someone, even someone a little bit bad, is a character flaw.
It hasn't worked out great for me so far.
You're a child, Skye.
Well, I don't-
You have plenty of opportunities to fall in love or fall in friendship.
Have your heart broken.
Start all over again.
Believe me, no one gets it right on their first try.
And I'm speaking from experience.
Yeah, I'll bet.
I think this conversation is lending more credence to my opinion that we need a break
and that for some of us, that break should involve smug wine.
Maybe as long as everybody's all right with it, we just, we can just take a little detour
and have a little rest.
I mean, I don't even know where those two are.
They might be like a taxi ride away if we got a day still.
Allow me.
I message Keelan now and ask.
Skye told me about what you, uh, Flare asked.
Where are you at so we can meet you?
Your phone immediately starts ringing.
I pick up the phone.
Hello.
Um, I got a text from this number.
I'm just following up.
So who is this?
Flare didn't tell you, but, uh, understood.
It's Azam.
Big horned guy.
Oh, hello.
It was very nice to meet you again.
Thank you so much for contacting me.
Why is, what, what is, what, what is this happenstance?
Why are we speaking this way?
Well, it appears that your ward has asked my ward if they would like to partake in some
smug wine with you both.
Oh, that fucking, there's a muffled covering of the speaker of the phone.
Um, Flare, how fucking long did it take you to text that girl and why are you offering
her all of that, all of our fucking cargo?
And there's a, I'm not like, A, I'm only texting her because you kept fucking bothering me to
text her and B, we have loads of it.
We're not going to fucking offload it anywhere, are we?
And I, you know, our time here is going to, I'm on the phone.
Yeah, sure.
No, we can share it.
That sounds like a good time.
Um, where about, where are you in what system?
We are in the mid space between Ron and Idun, if that helps at all.
We're on Idun at the gateway.
Our ship is not there.
Oh, great.
Um,
Did we want to invite them here to lessen the chance of this being a trap?
Because Firiak is a god here.
I'm not comfortable with such terms being used on my person.
Next time you're going to say this really, and I cover the phone.
This really isn't a trap.
It really, really isn't.
As you put the phone back, you hear the back end of, you know, they're talking about if
it's a trap or not.
Um, okay.
If I can, uh, fuck, it's really, the ship is far too small for me.
There's really nowhere to talk privately.
Tell me about it, I stare directly at Skye with a grin, with an open grin.
I feel like we got off on the wrong foot.
Flare is a lot of, um, a lot of shit.
I understand what, you know, battle and fighting is like and, and whatnot because you threatened,
you threatened one of the skittermanders and Flare is still kind of bent out of shape about
it.
But I do want to talk about something.
Um, I may need a favor, not a favor.
I may have a job opportunity depending on if you're interested.
For which one or all of us?
It might be a bit more of a team effort than anything else.
We're a bit lacking and it's in a different system and we need to get, it doesn't matter.
It's a thing I've been eyeing for a little while.
Don't worry about it.
But look, park on Gateway, we'll get you tickets, we'll get you a parking ticket con and there's
a bar right here.
Well, we can just hang out on the patchwork.
Great.
Uh, we can get there.
Yeah, we can get there tomorrow if we, if we hustle.
Great.
I'll cook.
And then hang that.
It's, it is a date?
What?
What's a date?
A, a, a, a, a, a smog wine?
Uh.
Oh yeah.
Par, parlay?
On the patchwork.
Oh, alright.
On the patchwork?
Yes.
Well, most bars don't allow you to bring in your own smog.
Or your own miners.
Smog wine actually is not allowed in a lot of places in the A-Sphere system.
It is very potent.
That's very true.
Speaking of which, why are you so acquainted with Smog Wine, Skye?
Me?
Grew up on the lower decks.
That's not strange.
I mean, hmm.
It's a good thing that internationally in space, the legal drinking age is 17.
Well in a lot of, a lot of places it is.
Um, lower deck saga has different rules to upper deck saga, Raan has different rules
to I mean I guess, while times is, it doesn't kind of first stretch into it.
But then in the atomless sea, it's kind of, it's open waters, so it's kind of whatever
rules you decide on.
The whole thing with galactic council, I'm sure you all know it.
Um, I've been meaning to ask this.
Skye?
Is your birthday coming up?
Uh, I don't want to think about that.
Okay.
Never mind.
Is, is your birthday coming up?
You called a birthday?
We, my birthday is the same day as everyone else of my particular bushel.
Which is?
When is high, high bloom on Brass?
Uh, I suppose.
Oh.
I believe tomorrow.
Get the fuck out of my birthday.
Dr. Therian.
I believe so.
That's exciting.
Is it?
I think so.
Oh we already have a party all set out.
This worked out so well for us.
That rules.
Oh my god, that rules.
Well you know you have to have smog line now.
I do not.
Uh.
The concept of a birthday differs from culture to culture and more importantly person to
person.
Do you want to celebrate it?
I would, I would enjoy the company of others.
It's going to happen regardless.
I mean do you want us to like say happy birthday to you?
Do you want us to like get you a...
You could say um, happy blooming.
You could, I wouldn't, well on Brass you know it's everyone's birthday on the same day.
So everybody just gives everybody you know.
Gifts, but it's not really.
Can we get you gifts?
Um.
Oh sure.
If, if you are in a giving mood.
I like this.
I'm already cooking tomorrow.
That's a good gift.
That certainly is a gift.
What's your favorite meal?
It's quite a gift.
Iriac?
I actually, I have, I do have something for tomorrow.
I have something for you.
I wait with bated breath.
Right, actually I don't mean to interrupt but there is, there is something important
that I have been meaning to bring up.
I have a feeling that our time, you know, here at Wild Times is, is closing out and
I just, pilot wise, I wanna, do we have an idea of where we wanna go next?
I know there was some talk of booting up the Drift Core and going to some, another system.
Scrap, uh, may I suggest we hold on to that?
Just put a pin in it for a little bit.
I think I might have a, have a thing, but not yet.
I'll let you know tomorrow.
Well I mean we wouldn't be, we wouldn't be traveling, if, even if we fly, we'd be ready
to fly at evening tomorrow.
I just feel like, since we haven't actually, actually as a team, we haven't all sat together
and not had someone trying to fucking kill us for two, two and a half weeks.
It has been a little stressful.
We haven't had plans of anything.
Oh, sure.
Scrap, I forgot to ask.
Can he come with me and, uh, Virpal kind of skitters out from underneath my shirt and
gives like a little nibble on, on Ike's ear.
He's like, it's okay, right?
That he's-
Oh, um, house trade.
I'm going to need an explanation.
Is it gonna piss?
What?
I look at Scrap, look back to Ike.
I don't-
Yes.
Look back to Scrap, look back to Ike.
What is it?
Oh, this is Virpal.
And I, I take a bite of cheese and I give a little bite of cheese to Virpal.
Um-
Oh, it's so weird.
I love it.
Yeah, it's a little, um, I don't know.
Ike sort of came to me while I was, uh, just pottering about the Eerie Axe apartment and,
and now he's sort of my little pal.
Um, and also, Scrap, maybe you might like this.
He can do little, little tricks.
Um, and I'll just-
Oh, I do like that.
Like, give a little whisper and another bite of cheese to Virpal and Virpal will just like
go unplug something with its little teeth.
Someone's like, so, so imagine you've walked, because you were going to get food, you've
walked and now you've sat at a table and then people are kind of munching on things and
there's someone playing like an arcade game and this little guy just walks up and just
unplugs it and the guy's like, oh man!
Oh, that was a high score!
Go, plug it back.
No!
That guy is weird.
He better not unplug anything on my ship as we're in midair or I am going to die.
And I don't mean- I mean that quite literally.
We will die.
No!
No, he wouldn't-
Also, my previous question, is he house trained?
Will he piss on my stuff?
Well!
Because I'm fine with it, but if the patchwork is not very big and it is not well ventilated
considering it has to be a very airtight box if that place starts smelling like a sty,
he's-
No!
Little, litter trained.
He's got very- I've got just a little bit of a-
Wait.
Scrap, did you say you'd be okay with it?
If-
No, no.
Not if it's smelling piss everywhere.
No.
Good.
Scrap.
I grew up with a lower dex but I'm trying to elevate standards a little bit.
Scrap, I have- I've been on this ship after we've been to Jajan's.
We will be okay.
Yeah, that's true.
I also understand that this particular creature could cause some unforeseen circumstances.
And as I was the one who granted this particular creature to Aig, I am willing to put in additional
training to ensure that this particular creature is able to cohabitate with us.
Are you gonna biohack him?
No!
He's perfect already.
I look at the thing, I lean really close.
Does it- wait, does it lean back?
I think it's like, it goes on a tine, like up on my shoulder.
I look very close at this thing.
I lean in.
I want you to understand something.
You are not to play with any of the electronics unless someone asks you to.
Understood?
I think like, Virpal like, gives like a little bug-eyed little glance at Aig.
And then it like, he like turns back to you and it's like, and like kind of gives like
a little ffff.
Can you talk to animals too?
No.
They really are magic.
Definitely not.
Who can't you talk to?
I- most animals.
This one's just weird like me.
He talks to-
Aww.
Well, I don't know if he talks to it, but he gets energy and electricity and things,
so he's a little like me.
Fine.
So, in the new patchwork rule, everybody gets one little creature that they are in charge
of.
Yes.
Okay?
Because we already have Virpal and another guess.
Sky is bringing Flair, Azam, you're bringing Keelan.
Everybody gets one little creature.
Everybody gets a plus one.
Everybody gets one plus one.
Wait.
So now I need to keep an eye on Keelan?
Wait.
Like, you don't want to.
Sky, I'm- nevermind.
Yeah, that's what I thought.
I just- I kind of just want to know if we're going to be entering the drift, because I
feel like there are some things I need to explain to people.
Probably.
Okay.
I mean, probably, right?
I have some time still.
Until the ball, I think.
So I'll write the ball.
Yeah.
I mean, I guess it's going by Saga Winter, which is not for quite a while.
Like, you've got a little bit.
I have some time, so that's okay.
Okay.
I'm not sure entirely what planet, but if we're going- if we're leaving the Aesir system-
I actually don't- not sure what system we're going, but if we're leaving the Aesir system,
we're going to be entering the drift.
So for people who aren't aware, the way that the drift works is the atomless sea lights
up the solar system.
Quite literally.
It lights up every single solar system that's in this current galaxy.
At a certain point, nobody really knows why, but the light of the atomless sea dies and
leaves and there is a huge amount of just pure blank dark space called the space in
between.
To travel to a different solar system can take months to years if you're not using
a drift core, which is why we were on the Leviathan's Eye in the first place getting
a drift core.
You also don't really want to be doing it because the space in between houses all types
of horrors.
Draugr, horrors that monsters, creatures that for some reason don't go toward the atomless
sea.
I know there's an easy way to explain this.
Okay, Scrap takes one of the noodles and then cleans it and places it on the table, like
this one long thin string.
Like a spaghetti noodle?
Yeah, like they're eating noodles and they just place a wet spaghetti noodle on the table.
So let's say one end of this noodle is where we are and this other end of the noodle is
the system that we want to travel to.
This long space is going to take us a few months to get to if we just travel normally
and we travel through the space between.
A drift core, Scrap pulls the noodle and then loops it around so there's this large circle
in between this little noodle.
A drift core means that we can skip a huge chunk, essentially all of the space between.
We enter a place called the prism, which is kind of like an extra dimensional space made
almost entirely of light and it's kind of like a portal.
It takes us from where we are to where we need to go, which people use it to travel
the space in between.
But the problem is, is as you can see, has the noodle on the table and then like draws
their finger from like one end of the noodle to the other, skipping the loop.
Even though it'll take us there, we feel it takes us to the other end of the solar system
far quicker.
The loop is still happening.
So when we travel, even though it will take us what feels like a few days traveling through
the prism, through the drift, it is still a few months for everyone else.
It's kind of like time travel in a weird spatial dimensional way.
So everyone around us is going to feel like we've been gone for months when actually we
feel like we've been gone for only a few days.
Now there's a lot of things in the space between because technically, even though you go through
the portal and the prism whilst traveling through the drift, you are technically still
in this space.
So occasionally if something is in our way, we're going to have to make a stop.
There's not a lot of things, but occasionally there are ships that have been wrecked from
Draugr or just large Draugr themselves that are sat so directly in the way of the ship
and we can't really direct course when we set off.
We kind of just have to go in a straight line.
So if there is something, we're going to have to enter the space between move around the
thing and then shoot back off into the drift.
Any of this makes sense to anyone?
Kind of.
Perfectly logical to me.
I do have a question.
It will all the time that will pass, will I still be able to make it back in time for
the winter?
Luckily, well, it depends on where we go.
Yes, logically, you'd be able to get back if we go to one of the solar systems that
are close to us.
And if we find the quickest way, it'll still take a few months, but we're not going to
the other end.
Okay.
So if we go to the other end of the galaxy, a few years might pass and we will feel like
it's a few weeks.
Okay, that might be a little bit much for me right now or ever.
Yeah.
But but there is a you know, there's lots of places we can go.
We can go to the Vanar system.
That's like that's right next to us.
And Nidavella is also right next to us.
So we could travel to one of those which will take a few months, stay there for a month
or two and be able to shoot back in time for the ball.
Oh, I guess what I what the important question is, is what we want to do when we get there.
Are we searching for anything in particular right now?
I know there's
Like I said, I may have a lead on something I just need to wait a day.
Did you say the Vanio system?
Yeah.
I have been doing some research.
And I believe I have coordinates that may be of use to us if we are trying to continue
looking into the crystal.
Oh, the crystal.
These are coordinates I was able to obtain.
Well, don't don't tell me the coordinates because we're about to go drink smog wine
with somebody that stole the first crystal.
So I don't trust myself.
How about we save all plans and plan ideas to a roundtable discussion between us crew
members after the party tomorrow?
Very fair.
That's true.
We have two possible plans then.
Right.
I tell you what.
I have a...
Oh, fuck it.
I was gonna wait till tomorrow, but I feel like I'm just like a little I'm a little
like juiced up and I kind of want to I kind of want to show you now.
Scrap walks out of this small gateway restaurant that is leading on to the entranceway.
It's a place where a lot of people who are waiting for the queue to die down a little
are waiting and also a lot of people that are leaving as well.
A lot of people are leaving the gateway.
And he leads you back toward the patchwork.
A few of the people are like, oh, hey, boss, hey, boss, hey, lads, how you doing?
Can I have the floor just for a minute?
We're all prepped, right?
Like we have reasonably the skeleton.
It's like, oh, we have more than the skeleton.
It's basically all done.
Perfect.
That's great.
Just needs cleaning up.
Incredible.
Thank you so much.
Can you give me five?
I am I'm sorry to all of you.
I haven't I haven't really been with you all a lot.
Theoryac, I know that, you know, you had something pretty big happen.
Sky, when we were on Saga during the race, I wasn't really there.
I kind of like being alone with the ship.
But whilst we were here, as everything was going on, I didn't like the fact that I was
just shutting myself off.
So I wanted to make this place not just a place that I am going to retreat to, but a
place that we can kind of live in.
Just for, you know, make it a bit more like a home.
Come on, come on, come on.
So as you can see, I've taken away the fabricator.
And I've basically scrapped that really shit coffee machine.
And I wanted I implemented an actual fully functioning kitchen.
It has pretty much everything you need for baking and cooking.
We got Hobbs.
We have a whole bunch of pots and pans.
I did some jobs for the guys who work at Hermoy Tech that that store there points to one of
the stores in the gateway.
They needed some lights fixing.
So I fixed them up.
And then they gave me just some general appliances.
And they said that this was a pretty good stove.
So I got that for us.
I also did actually spend a bit too much money.
I don't really know how much a good stove costs.
But you know, I had some spare.
I also I pulled down the wall to my room because I realized it was way bigger than everyone
else's.
And I've moved the rec room out.
So just here next to the kitchen, there's like where the rec room used to be is like
this large kind of like it's far cleaner than the rest of the patchwork.
It's almost like it's weirdly like you're looking at a video game.
And this is the only texture that is loaded in.
They wave their hand in front of a sensor on the door.
And these clean, nice doors open up into a small workspace that has a table and some
beakers and proper lab equipment.
But it also houses the drift core, which sits and feeds itself back through into the main
room in this large pipe and then up into the the closed wings that sit on top of the patchwork.
Derek, I know that this isn't anything like your labs here, but I thought it might be
nice to be able to do some actual work here.
I didn't like you sitting on the floor and having to like move around your kit all the
time.
And you know, you are right next to the TV.
And I thought that that probably wouldn't be the best place to actually do work.
So I tore down the wall to my room and I put this up again, actually, the boys at Pomo
Tech are really fucking good at this.
Gave me the wall and the door and they ensured me that a lot of the this is science stuff.
I also put your little box just over there.
And there is shoved away into a corner with some like leaves that are kind of like shoved
into one of the holes.
The air holes is the is the box with the with the Sentinel construct in.
You just here can set it to only you.
So only you are allowed in and out or you can set it to any member of the patchwork
or then you can again set it to anyone is allowed in just in case you want privacy.
You can also just fully lock it and lock yourself in.
But that seems like a silly thing.
We're just going to have to jury rig the door open.
But you can do that if you want.
For the record, I can jury rig the door.
I do not doubt that.
I'm sorry to consider it.
Thank you, Scrap.
Right.
I another thing that bumps me out about us all being here is that do you sleep in the
pipes?
And I know that that's like a nice warm place that you like.
But I at least wanted you to have a bet.
So it's not a huge room because I didn't think that you would like a huge room.
But I did decorate a room and give you an actual bed.
Opens up like an old wooden door has to like lift it off the ground a little bit.
And push it in.
But inside the pipes where you used to sleep all curled up is this small almost like a
studio apartment room.
It's still very cozy.
And there is a proper bed.
And Scrap has re-hung up the pictures of Quinn and the circle that Quinn holds, but also has
printed out and stuck up pictures that he was taking around wild times when you were
all walking around.
So there are those pictures of you all.
And are pictured from the theory acts.
And from yes from.
Oh yes of course.
Yes.
Theory act and all the other board members with subject one as they not even with all
the other board members just with subject one.
And there is also the Weymouth school pictures that the pair of you took that are also.
Funny now.
Yeah I also because I know that you like pictures and stuff.
That camera that I was using actually works really well.
So I built it and it has loads of film in it.
I don't like a lot of digital stuff but it's physical and it's chunky and will like print
the pictures immediately.
So that's just there.
And it's like a camera that's on the bed and you can use that for.
You can take more pictures and add new things to your wall.
Thank you Scrap.
Yeah.
OK.
Moving on.
Moves up to around to where Sky would sleep.
Now Sky sleeps pretty much with everyone else.
But again with the like replacement and the wall being pushed out about a meter.
There are these two separate bunker doors.
Scrap opens Sky's by like pulling up like a garage door hatch and there's like a like
a workbench that has like spanners and screws and like a bunch of shit that you would use
to be able to like mod things.
But also anyone who's been to the arcade at wild times would recognize that there are
two or three now new like arcade cabinets that have been moved in.
So the guys at the arcade said that these didn't work anymore and I bet them that it
would if I had my hands on them.
So I paid them off a little bit.
I fixed up some of the other things.
I made sure their till was working correctly.
I fixed the door and then I did some minor plumbing and they gave me all of these for
free and I made them work.
So you got those things and also you can modify your board there just if you want.
Of course you don't have to.
But there's that.
It's kind of like your own room.
You've been traveling with me for the longest time and you know I feel like we got a little
or we had a little team or whatever.
I wanted you to have your own room as like my co-captain as you know the engineer of
the ship.
So you have your own little room now.
This is awesome.
What do I owe you?
Hey listen you've come with me this far so you don't necessarily owe me anything.
And the last room of course.
I don't really know what to get you as the kitchen I kind of built out and I didn't want
to impose because I know you're very particular about your stuff.
But I did hear something interesting.
Turns up a very simple door that is metal and has like a frosted glass like it would
be used in a school.
Opens that up in it and it slowly slides open and then tries to close itself.
It's a simple bed that has a lot of pillows so you can fix it to your horns and be able
to sleep.
But it also does have a small futon like you can sleep on the floor because Scrap is seeing
you sleeping on the floor a lot.
But there are no decorations in this room unlike other people's.
But there is a two-way radio that has a bunch of like wires and antennas and like little
flapping like little signal boosters spinning around it.
Hey can you guys give us a minute?
Scrap wouldn't jahnum is this.
I've heard reports.
There's a group of people called the Phoenix.
They're from Erem.
They built the ship and they got out.
They've been sending out signals.
It's random to pick them up.
They move from system to system constantly.
They're looking for somewhere to go.
You don't have to use it.
I know that you think I haven't.
I haven't lost a home like you have.
I'm telling you I have.
There's a difference Scrap.
They're not looking for me.
Then why don't you look for them?
Because frankly I don't want more people telling me how I led them all astray.
Thank you.
I appreciate all that you've done.
I do appreciate it.
All I did was give them false hope.
They wouldn't want to see me.
I know that.
No you don't.
You assume.
No.
You haven't spoken to people in 30 years.
I have.
I met someone from my old crew.
On Saga.
So I know what their reaction would be.
Thank you.
Yeah.
And I go to leave.
You open the door to the new rec room.
There's a newer TV on the wall.
The same sofas that adorned the patchwork before.
There's a small entertainment system that holds Y-Net.
As well as various other physical copies of things.
All DVDs and Blu-Rays and there's an old DVD Blu-Ray player connected.
Everyone seems to be there but Scrap waits in the room for a little bit.
The door shuts.
He puts his metal hand through his hair.
Then as he brings it back down he gives a longing look at the arm that used to be there.
Swear under his breath.
Opens up the door.
Right!
We have a party to throw.
Very well.
A party!
I don't know how long.
Hold on.
I go into a pile of craft supplies and stuff.
I pull out a marker and on one of the walls near to the kitchen I just write out dietary
restrictions and then stick the marker there.
Please list them.
Does not matter if you're allergic or you just don't want to eat them.
List whatever it is.
Sky, you're going to eat vegetables.
You cannot just write vegetables.
Whoa!
Slow down, Asam!
You're going to party too hard.
I cannot keep up.
Ike is going to go over and take the marker and make a smaller list in the corner that
says dietary necessities and it's going to say cheese.
Are we going to make a roster that we have to send to the other gang?
Must have cheese and no vegetables.
Cheese, no vegetables.
I do message Kealan.
Dietary restrictions for you and Flare, please.
And that's it.
You get a call back because it's Kealan.
You get a call.
Hello?
So you don't like texting?
It's just never been my thing.
I always think it's easier just to speak to people.
Honestly, I dislike tapping cheese on it.
It makes no sense.
My hands are far too big to be typing.
Thank you.
It's ridiculous.
It's silly.
Plus, isn't the whole point of staying in contact with someone because you want to hear
their voice?
It's to call them.
Exactly.
You know?
It's like if I wanted to send a text, I might as well write a letter.
That's more personal anyway.
And it has your handwriting.
It's meaningful.
And it has my handwriting.
Exactly.
Yes.
Dietary restrictions.
No, I don't.
Flair would say vegetables.
He's fucking 19.
We're saying Flair's 19.
We're saying Sky's around 17 and also doesn't like vegetables.
Not that it matters.
And I like stare impassively at Sky.
I'm saying that because it's true.
Do you want...
We're bringing all the smog wine.
We do have a crew of like five skittermanders.
Are they also invited to this little shindig?
Because I'm kind of planning to get off there.
I want to leave the Bumblebee anyway.
And I think now is a pretty good time to call it.
But you know what?
We'll talk about it when we get there.
But no, no dietary restrictions.
Can't process milk as well as I want.
So maybe less milk for me.
I go over to the board.
I pick up the marker, write down guests, underline.
Avoid lactose.
Yep.
Any feels?
Okay.
Would it be weird if I say that I am not sure if we're allergic to anything?
Because I don't know if we're allergic to things.
Do you know the common list of allergens for your species?
I really don't know how to answer this without this conversation being a little longer than
it needs to be.
We have our protein packs, which I'm happy just to eat out of until we figure out a more
sustainable list.
And then we can maybe discuss them later.
I go back into my home to cook for you.
If it turns out that you're allergic to what I cook for you, it's alright.
We've got a doctor aboard.
We're willing to risk it.
It'll be fun.
We'll bring the smog wine.
We'll try to stop off at a station somewhere and we'll be able to pick up some minor things.
Good.
Oh, one more thing.
I go back into my room.
It's Firiak's birthday, apparently, and they would like to celebrate.
So if you have...
Who is that?
Plant.
Oh, yes.
Okay.
We are bringing them wine.
See you tomorrow.
As you hang up.
Party preparation start.
There is some minor decorations being hung up.
Scrap is a sentimental yet quite practical little rat.
Has not kept a lot of banners or things, but has a lot of scrap metal.
And some of these scrap metals are little neon letters that they have stuck up and hung
off of little trinkets and loose nails that hang out of the hole of the patchwork that
say Hap Birth, since they didn't have enough letters to fully spell the full happy birthday.
However, they did manage to take a little...
They also do have Doctor, but it is a bee that Scrap has covered over with a piece of
paper.
So the second loop of the bee now just looks like a D. And the R is a capital.
But there's a little exclamation mark.
Hap Birth Doctor.
There's a new arrival on the gateway, as there is every day.
People are hustling, bustling and moving toward wild times, catching the tram lines down.
There's a lot of excited children that look very excitedly at this junker ship, ramp fully
open.
A old radio crackles as Scrap is actively flicking to different channels, trying to
find something that isn't news.
There's not a lot of just plain music stations nowadays, but Scrap's trying to make it work,
finding a pirate radio station.
The new ship arrives.
Golden honeyed ship.
The front, the large maiden head that every ship in the galaxy has, except for the patchwork
seemingly, is adorned with random little trinkets.
Keychains, phones that have been grafted into the side, random things that you would just
find on the ground that don't hold any significance to most people.
But for some reason on this ship, they find these little trinkets very important.
The mumblebee, as it is known, slides into place just next to the patchwork.
Their ramp opens and down from the ramp, five six-armed purple-furred little critters sprint
off and start running around in different directions.
Exasperatedly a large six, six and a half grey, white-haired wolf humanoid steps off.
Little sweatpants that hang lazily off of their hips and they are wearing a duster jacket
but no top underneath it.
This large wolf humanoid yells to some of the skittermander who turn around and then
run back toward them.
You all know this person as Keelan.
We are going to be with the patchwork tonight.
I don't want you stealing anything that's going to get us caught because we have a very
important person aboard and this is all of their establishment.
No going into that store and stealing anything.
No going into that store, no going into any of these random people and stealing stuff.
You understand?
I want you on your best behaviour or you're going to go back inside of the ship.
I don't know.
None of that.
Best behaviour.
Little furry skittermander walks with a huff off of the ramp and then almost rolls underneath
the ramp to start fixing some random loose bolt.
The large wolf humanoid turns back to inside the ship.
Flair, are you doing okay in there?
Like yes, yes, I'm doing fine.
Thank you very much.
From inside walking down the ramp.
Swirls holding the large crate.
Inside of this crate are bottles and bottles of bottles of this home-corked drink.
Almost with a murky luster as the grey to black liquid swirls inside.
There are these little sparkles that swirl around as Flair wearing his little leather
jacket goggles on top of his head.
Mousy brown hair looking about 19.
Has a classic Junker from a movie look as they step down from the ramp.
Yes, yes, it's fine.
I have it.
Okay.
It's not like you could help me.
You're far stronger than I am.
Yes, but I had to make sure that the skitters didn't go anywhere.
That's fine.
You can just move it over there.
Oh, hey!
Gives a wave.
I have my hammer, my grenades.
Sky!
His arm is not outside.
Just in case.
There is a...
Keelin puts a hand on Flair and then pulls him slightly closer and then whispers something
in his ear.
Flair shrugs him off and is like, I'm not going to.
Please stop doing that.
And then walks toward the patchwork as Keelin shares a little smile.
And they both walk up to you.
Hey, Stardust.
You stole our crystal.
We take your smog wine.
We call it even.
Sound good?
Oh, yeah, of course.
I just figured we would shh-ah!
And then kind of like tips the crate toward you.
Oh, oh!
It's like, kind of...
I'll take that.
Oh, god.
Thank you.
Yeah, thank you.
No, it's okay.
I'll take it.
It's alright.
It's heavy.
I'm happy to take it.
You look like you're struggling.
Okay, fine, sure.
Thank you.
I appreciate it.
It looks clearly sheepishly like they were trying to tip it towards Sky and then Ike
very kindly took it and now he's embarrassed because he feels like a dick.
I've never seen that 70s show, but I have seen that clip of, damn, Jackie, I can't control
the weather.
Yeah.
That's the energy she's trying to bring.
Hello.
Welcome to Wild Times.
My name's Dr. Thierry Ak.
It's a pleasure to meet you again.
It is a pleasure to meet you, your honor.
Take your hand and then kind of go.
If I knew I had the chance to kill the founder of Wild Times, I might have put a bit more
effort into it.
I am going to rescind my hand after that.
Doctor is perfectly natural.
Thank you, Doctor.
We do appreciate the offer.
I suppose there's no point in delaying the inevitable.
I suppose we should begin the festivities, yes?
Yes.
Let us begin the festivities.
It would be an honor if you did.
My apologies, Doctor.
We do actually have something aboard.
Fleck, can you go?
Fine.
My hand goes back on the grenade.
Fleck slams their heel down on the ground and out of their heavy metal boots, these
two light, almost just like rays of light shoot out and they skate like they're ice
skating.
Oh no, rollerblading, sorry.
Like they're rollerblading toward the bumblebee.
They go inside of the ramp and then they, after some shuffling, they skate back out
with a small bouquet of flowers that looks like it was picked up at a truck stop and
a phone.
We didn't really know what to get you.
You seem like you have a lot of money, so this is for you.
I fancy you a bouquet of flowers.
Is this offense?
This isn't offensive, right?
You're a completely different species to flowers.
Like if I gave you a garlic bulb, that wouldn't be weird.
And here is a phone.
I have hacked it.
It works.
Don't answer any numbers that you don't know on it.
But it does work.
I am aware of what a phone is.
Thank you.
And no, this is not offensive.
This is not sentient.
Yeah, no, that's what I thought.
It's just as I was handing you the flowers, I had a weird moment where I thought, oh,
this might be really weird.
I thought as much.
I do have a question.
Have these been already cut?
Looks tequila-ing.
They were cut at the gas station.
That's how they're in a bouquet.
I will be sure to put this in some water.
Hopefully, these particular specimens have seeds in them, perhaps?
Sometimes you get lucky.
Maybe.
But it's very kind of you.
Thank you.
I do want to clarify.
I do not have a lot of money.
I am the founder of this park.
I do not keep a lot of the money.
I donated it to conservation efforts.
We take a lot of care for our gardening sections, our botanist source all across the Aesir system
and even further beyond.
Their dedication to ensuring not only the survival of the species here on Ardun, but
also to help establish healthy populations across the Aesir system and in different ecosystems
all over the Atma Sea.
I'm boring you.
I'm certain.
You're a good duck.
No.
As soon as you say that, you see both of them retune into the conversation and they're like,
no, no, not at all.
I understand.
Smug wine I think might be something you might enjoy.
Azam was still on the ship, right?
I took that like first crate that that Flair gave me the first crate and I took it in.
When you arrive in the kitchen, you'll find that all the burners and stuff have been turned
off.
It's like everything's almost ready.
But Azam is on his knees.
His head is bowed and there's a shawl covering his head.
Oh, okay.
So there's like a, like, running in with a crate of things.
Okay, Azam, real quick, real quick.
Okay, hold on.
I'm just going to put down the crate.
I can hear you.
You're fine.
Okay.
Sorry.
When you cook, shortly thereafter, you pray.
Oh, oh, well, that's nice.
After, not before.
My mom used to say, but you know, food has an energy.
So in a way, when you pray, you give ifrit who've passed some of that energy.
You offer, you basically invite them to, this is not making any sense to you.
No, it does.
It's just, it's, it's slightly different.
I, I wouldn't call what we did praying, but we do a little ritual sometimes, but usually
before.
You heard something you wanted to say?
Oh, yes, right.
The, the smug wine.
It's very sweet that they brought it and very great.
I'm very excited to have some.
I fear that I didn't really prepare everyone for how gnarly it tastes.
If you don't prepare it right, it needs to either be very, very cold or hot.
If it's like room temperature, it's like, Oh, sorry.
Hello.
I, where the fuck did you go?
I turned around and you were gone and you left me here in the world's most awkward situation.
I need you back here.
I thought I was helping.
The three of them just sat, just like nodding at each other.
Just like all of them like, Oh, oh, no, you go.
No, you go.
You know what, at this point, I don't care if this is poison.
Flair is, is, are those light beam shoes in?
Yeah.
Yeah, no, all the kids at school are like, you know, yeah.
Do you attend school?
No, I don't.
I don't know why I said that.
It's just, people are wearing them, I think.
But I built these myself.
You built these?
Yeah.
That's incredible.
I like, I like, like, yeah, I like, I have like a lot of drawings for building stuff
and I also build a lot of things.
Yeah.
You are very...
I got a whole, it's like the, they like work off of like kinetic energy.
I like a lot of, cause we don't like come across like a lot of like fuel things.
So I like all my stuff being like renewable energy, get solar power.
You are speaking my language.
Ike, where are you?
So you just left them?
Oh, I did.
Well, they're, they're, they're talking, but at this, I really think...
Ike, do you...
Ike, nevermind.
You came to the wrong person, but don't worry, I can still fix it.
I just think that you're, I know that you're working in the kitchen.
I didn't want to, I just want to know what is okay for, what can we use to either make
this very cold as quickly as possible or warm as quickly as possible.
Nothing.
Follow me.
And I take Ike to Theriax's lab.
Oh.
When Scrap asked me what exactly goes in a lab, I recommended the big old blast chiller.
And I point to like a big box, just a metal box sitting on the side.
Great.
Thank you, Assam.
Just...
Ike, as much as I would like to hear about your cultural traditions regarding the full
preparations of meals, please go rescue them.
Oh, okay.
Ike, go right.
They're probably just staring at each other right now.
As you all walk in, there's like a crackle on the radio tunes to a music channel.
There's like a small like static and someone...
And that was Ben LeBun.
Welcome to the ACIRIPIRATE NEWS, the only station where you can get actual music that
doesn't feed your lies.
Coming up next is...
And then it tunes back into music.
Welcome to our home.
It's nice.
It's very...
It has a lot of...
It doesn't seem sanctioned at all.
This seat does seem like...
Does seem quite like a dangerous...
Like, dangerous ship.
It doesn't seem like none of the pieces match together.
This is like airtight, correct?
Sky keeps it in the air very well.
Sky is an excellent mechanic.
I'm an excellent mechanic.
Exactly.
Yeah.
This ship holds.
Don't...
Don't step foot in my home and then start talking shit about it.
I'm Scrap, by the way.
We never got formally introduced.
Keelin, I apologize.
Flair, it's nice to meet you.
Hello.
We got some wine.
You guys want to fucking party?
I'm already on it.
I'll have both of you know that I've spent a lot of time on this ship, taking a lot of
inventory.
I will notice if things are missing by the end of the night.
You would hate to waste this peace treaty situation we got going on, right?
Damn.
That does actually change my plan because the only reason why we're aboard this ship
is to take everything that you want.
But since you asked so nicely, I guess I'll rethink the plan.
Like I get to asam.
In most cases, that would be a really bad joke because they did steal from us.
Although in all cases, it's still a very bad joke.
They both really do not do well at this.
Okay, just trying to confirm.
Yeah.
Sit down.
We've got food.
We've got music.
We've got your wines and Sky.
See there's another one.
All right.
I would love to continue discussing the long term effects of our conservation efforts here
at Wild Times, if that's something that interests you.
We've heard enough.
I'm so sorry.
I really am.
I got into that stuff.
I kind of like it.
That's kind of what I, I don't know.
It's a thing that I think is interesting.
To connect with communicating education and information effectively without the barrier
of ulterior motives.
Yes.
I have like a little wild suggestion.
What if we turned the music up and got the wine and food all out and I don't know, we
could play some wineette.
Have you?
Do you partake in wineette?
I don't.
Do we take partake in wineette?
I don't think drugs is particularly like a smart thing for us to do right now.
Oh no.
No, no, no.
I, I, it's the farthest thing from drugs.
You are mistaken.
It's a little bit drugs.
I find it quite addictive.
Wineette is a video game.
Oh.
Yes.
Is this a?
Yeah.
I mean, we've played video games.
It is a, it is a forex strategy video game wherein you choose a particular culture from
or across the, the atomists and you, you play as them and you are attempting to try and
essentially become the best at whatever you choose to do, either conquering or cultural
victory, scientific victory, spreading a particular religion across at least 50% of all given
players, cultures as well.
You can play against other people.
You can play against the, the, the CPU.
It's it's, it's a resource management game.
This sounds great.
We can all, why don't we all get like a, like a, a culture or a nation or like a planet
or whatever and then like whenever someone's someone kills someone else's unit, that person
has to take a drink, something drinks related to the party.
I don't drink.
I'll, uh, accuse myself.
We'll have fun.
I need to go make bread anyway.
Is there any substance you partake in?
Come on Azzam.
There's gotta be something.
What trauma that you say you have?
Water?
Well, on occasion.
Did you have a really good therapist or something?
No, I just had several long years to think about my actions in my life while stuck in
a box.
God, that sucks.
And he didn't even get to drink.
I take out a big old ball of dough.
I'll be in the engine room.
I will actually, I'm going to, I'm going to join him.
Keeling gets up and, uh, and walks away.
Is there anything I can help with?
You know what?
Let's, don't, we'll just put on the soundtrack and, and we can just, you know what?
I'll have some smog, some smog wine.
You know what?
I'm feeling, I'm feeling zesty tonight.
Oh, we're feeling zesty.
Let's go.
I lost track because Matt did so many voices at once.
Did Keeling go with Azzam?
And Flair and Scrap are both joining.
Okay.
Yes.
May I, as soon as Keeling goes in there, casually walk over to the door, shut it, flick the
lock?
And then after seven minutes in heaven scenario, what is the?
Yeah, I'm bored.
Okay.
Sure.
Good.
That's a good sign of a party.
Can I describe the food?
May I?
Yeah, describe the food.
So there's several platters.
There's no bread because apparently Azzam's going to make that, but there's a small thing
of like some grains fluffed up and seasoned with several herbs.
There's an herb and vegetable salad tossed with citrus and oil.
There's these skewers of meat, maybe?
And veggies.
And those are on a different texture plate than these big old slabs of grilled cheese
that have been brushed with several spices.
And there's underneath like a closed shell, a glass closed shell is a bunch of like little
flaky pastries with a big old sign saying touch and die on it.
And last but not least, there's a sitting in the back literally just hanging from a
rack that he hooked up to the ceiling is a big rack that has flattened a gigantic fish
in between it.
And it has just finally finished dripping all of its fat into a vat below that apparently
is almost the same.
But the fish itself is seasoned with various herbs and citruses and spices as well.
It is very spicy for those who choose to partake.
This looks fucking dope.
I haven't had real food in...
Oh fuck.
I don't want to say ever, but I can't remember the last time I had actual food.
This is crazy.
You know, it's perfect.
Legos and picks just starts taking minor things and pulls up a small plate.
As people begin to eat in the other room, Kian walks in and gives them.
So is there anything I can help with?
Any cooking things?
I take out a basket filled with dough, make these into smaller bowls, I flatten them and
I stick them on the side of like, there's this big old engine hull, it's on the side
of the engine and it always is hot.
And there's like the sound of sizzling as these flattened pieces of dough stick on to
the hull.
And when they're ready, I just peel them off with a stick.
You couldn't just stick them on yourself.
You seem like you're kind of, you're an ifriti, correct?
Does your temperature not get hot enough that you could just kind of stick this to yourself?
More than that.
I'd run out of skin.
Yeah, I guess so.
Just as a look to themself, but then starts moving it into smaller pieces of dough and
then sticks on the side of the engine to a sizzle.
So flair and sky.
Oh, you know how it is.
The I mean, you might not actually the first teenager flair has
we believe ever seen or at least seen in a in a while.
All right, our situation is weird.
And I feel like I've batted around the bush too much.
And there's still also a lot of things that aren't going to make sense unless you know
kind of what the deal is.
Myself and flair don't know who we are.
And about a year and a half ago, we just kind of woke up on a Heth ship.
Because you were ex-hef.
Ex signed up to be hef.
It was that they had gotten the deprogramming enough that they removed our memories.
We didn't know why we were there.
But we had not actually gotten to Va yet.
Collided with I think they got jumped by some form of bandits or it just collided with an
asteroid.
Maybe the driver was drunk.
Whatever it was.
We woke up.
Things were blaring.
We got on an escape pod and we shot out of there.
Been jumping ship to ship since.
I've been in prison for decades.
Nice.
Good.
Point is, if you want help with your situation, sure, but I will not judge you.
No, not at all.
Unless you're committed.
You haven't committed.
No, no.
Right?
I could not tell you either way.
Fair enough.
I don't believe so.
We signed up for a reason though.
We just don't know what that reason is.
Probably to feed a family or desperation.
Most people end up like that for a reason.
That makes sense.
That's why we're not sure how old Flair is.
Might be 19.
Might be 18.
He seems teen-ish.
We don't know.
Doesn't seem like he was feeding a family.
Myself I can understand.
This isn't like a big like story drop to us.
I'm just warning you that if Flair and myself seem a little off with the fact that we don't
know what our allergens are, it's because we actually have no idea.
Never mind.
The point is you do not seem off and I have no right to judge anyone upon the circumstances.
As long as you're not Curren, Hef, you're not my enemy.
Well, same goes to you.
Clearly we don't enjoy them very much else.
We wouldn't have fought them back on Helium.
But it's a fun way to bond, I guess.
Yeah, I haven't fought Hef in far too long.
I'm debating whether I should reveal a family secret to you right now.
Well, my thing wasn't really a secret.
It was more of a social favour.
You're welcome to.
It's a party.
I know you don't drink, but we could pretend like we're getting very drunk and then tell
each other a million different secrets.
However, I will warn you, my secrets pretty much end with I don't know what I was doing
past a year and a half ago.
So I don't really have a lot in that bag.
Right.
Skye's been through a lot in her young life.
A lot, a lot.
She probably has seen other teenagers, but not as herself as she currently is.
What I mean is, as much as I like you and Flare, my priority is with Skye, which means
if your boy fucks with my girl.
I mean, I've tried to teach them some things, but teenagers will be teenagers.
True.
Very true.
Also she locked us in.
Yeah, now I heard the door latch go.
You think that she'd know we'd figure it out almost immediately, right?
Teenagers will be teenagers.
You had a job?
We don't have a whole, we don't have a lot of money.
I mean, Flare and we don't really see ships like this.
The Bombalbee isn't ours.
The Skittermanders, we're genuinely purely riding along with them and I feel like we
just need a space of our own.
So I'm looking to go to a different system, specifically Veneer, because not noire, the
organic bridge there.
The train is moving something.
Not noire are two planets in the Veneer system.
They are closer than a lot of other planets in pretty much any other system, but they
are still far enough away.
Think that they are, they're about as far as Earth is from the moon.
That is the, they are both the planets that the Shirin come from and pretty much early
on in the Shirin's life cycle, when they realized that they both had life connecting, they built
an organic bridge that connects both planets and there is this one train that goes to one
planet and then turns around and then goes back down and turns and goes back up and it
keeps going in this constant loop.
Both planets, when they connected, there was this big, big war and both of them had a queen
that owned the hive mind of each respective planets.
One of the queens won, so every single Shirin, pretty much, that live on Nurt Nuwar are connected
via one hive mind.
Years ago, the queen, the old queen was assassinated and then got a new queen was brought in.
The train is delivering a huge amount of goods pretty much every time it revolves.
I just think it's just a good place for a...
You are planning on conducting a rail heist.
Yes.
And you want our help to conduct your rail heist.
I do.
Now this job isn't for a little bit, but I did notice that on Helium you had the wings
of a Valkyrie ship on here, which I can see again, which means that you can go into the
Drift.
The Bumblebee can't go into the Drift, but since you can, if we let you into the heist,
you can give us a lift to Veneer, give us a lift to Nurt Nuwar.
If you give us a month, we can plan the heist, get a small group, and then you can remit
us and we can execute it.
What makes you think we would?
I mean, morally speaking, I do not want to steal food from communities.
No, not at all.
But this is our first real conversation.
The only other time we met, we both opened fire on a group of Heth.
It felt like our morals aligned in some way.
The things moving are structures, plans, and things that other people can't make without
the Sheeran Hivemind in them.
I just think it'll be interesting.
I think we can jump on and that is the problem.
Admittedly, I'm not entirely sure of the things that we can steal, but I do know that there
is things worth stealing on that train.
I know there is many things worth stealing.
Plans that only the Sheerans can understand and read.
We have resources moving from business to business.
A lot of the businesses, specifically, Surt, Brewery, Hermoid, they don't exist on Nurt
Nuwara because the way that they structure are just entirely different.
I'll bring forward to the rest of the crew, but no matter what, we can get you to the
near.
That I can promise.
Appreciate that.
If we come up with a solid plan, I'll inform you before, just to re-gauge interest.
To figure out what's on it.
That's when we'll want to know.
Yes sir.
Like I said, I'm not going to judge you.
No, I figured you wouldn't because I know who blew up the ship on Helium.
Yes I did.
Why, you've never blown up a ship before?
Of course I have, but specifically that one is being looked into.
I figured.
Just because it blew up in a public area, nothing else.
I covered my tracks, hopefully well enough.
And worse comes to worse, what are they going to do?
Put me back in prison for another decade?
Put your girl back in prison for one?
No.
You have more than just yourself.
Trust me when I say I have ways to make sure that my actions don't harm the people around
me.
I'm surprisingly valuable to them.
Shockingly.
It's a conversation I'd like to hear over a drink.
Or this bread.
It's me, Witch, you take the stick, I'll just use my hands and I start peeling the bread
off the hull.
It's charred and crispy on one side and soft and fluffy on the other.
Back in the main wreck room.
What's the party looking like, gang?
Are we hip-hopping?
Are we two, three shots in?
Oh, I was going to suggest that we've like time skipped to a couple rounds into a wine
at drinking game.
Yeah, hell yeah.
Okay, perfect.
So we're like mid-round.
Did the theory act wind up partaking with us or are they just sort of nearby?
Also is scrap?
Scrap is.
Similarly.
Scrap is like very bad at the game, but it does also seem like they're throwing a little
bit like they understand they've played video games before, but they do seem to be like,
like oh, I know the one way people died because I have to drink.
Oops.
Theory act was so excited.
Have one tiny little sip and was like, nevermind.
That's that's an acquired taste.
Yeah, smoke wines not for everyone.
It's very harsh.
Taste like home.
I'm so sure that in the basement we have like some filtered things.
There's a basement.
That's where I keep all the storage.
I just go to the basement.
You have a basement?
It's where I keep the storage.
It's where I have spare parts and things.
Oh, that.
Yeah, it's a basement.
Skye, can I tell you a secret?
Yes, are we at the part of small wine drinking where you tell me secrets?
Yes, please.
I guess just when we first started playing wine that I just I thought you were so neat.
I think you're neat, I know, but I well, that's nice, but I thought I just I I don't know.
I thought it was so sweet that you all invited me to play video games.
Well I kind of maybe ask the computer to change for you a little.
I kind of figured that out because whenever I played it when you weren't in the room,
I was suddenly super bad at it and when you know I found out.
Oh, oh my God.
I Flare you two can do the computer.
Yes, we can.
You can.
You're the friend who can.
Oh, that wasn't my secret to tell.
I'm so sorry.
I can also do that.
I can also I can also I I like I hear little like tunes and from them and I can like I
like understand what they mean and I can kind of get them to do little things.
Oh, how good at are you?
That's very bad.
I'm not I sometimes they help me build certain things, but I'm not like great at it.
I can't see like I don't I I cuz cuz I can do it a little bit and I thought I was normal
and then I spoke to Keeling Keeling was like I don't do it.
I was like, oh, this isn't normal.
But then Sky was like my friends feeds the robots.
I was like, I speed robots.
So yeah, I did.
I did spill your secret like way early on.
That's okay.
It's kind of out of the bag at this point.
I just you know, well just honestly.
I'm excited to meet another person that can I met another thing that can would you like
to sorry?
And yes, yes.
This little this like verbal like crawls up here.
Oh my god.
What is that?
Keep that.
Oh, what is that?
Oh, that's okay.
This is my it's got a way its mouth is feel like it's oh god.
Is that being on the ship this whole time?
Okay.
All right.
Oh god, it looks dangerous.
Is it dangerous?
No, not at all.
I mean, it can.
You remember when I turned off your the boots.
Yeah, yeah.
I stopped hearing them and that was what was weird for me.
I couldn't hear them anymore.
And I would now that we're friends, I would never do that to you again.
Thank you.
But he could.
So he so he can also do that.
He could, he asked him to so he so he can also speak to machines.
Well, like sort of with me, we do it kind of together.
Oh, little bit.
It's like a kid.
He can do it a little bit and then he can also channel into mine and it's almost like
he's an antenna, like a little Wow, tender to ask me I don't have anything I have any
friend like that.
It sucks.
It's a shame.
It seems like you can do such all these really cool stuff.
I can't do any of these cool things like you can.
Maybe you should just practice more.
But what?
Yeah, I you got more years under your belt, right?
A couple.
I don't know.
I don't even know if I don't know how many years I have.
I could have loads of years, but I don't even know.
So no, you look like a little bit young.
I think I think I have a few.
Okay.
Do you not know your birthday?
Nope.
You don't know my birthday.
I don't know my age.
I don't know what I like or what I dislike.
I don't like I don't know who my family is.
I don't know what my name is actually.
Flair is because I Keelin saw a solar flare and was like, that'll be your name flare and
name flare and Keelin is a word in Belkin that means solar.
So we're solar flare together.
Dr. Theory.
Yes.
Can I give you a birthday present now in a different room?
Oh, you got me up.
You're gonna leave me alone after that.
I hate that for so many reasons.
Oh, I just thought.
Sorry.
Go.
No, no, I want to take more notes.
I need to smoke anyway.
Get down like like go into that pocket.
They put on like a little cigarette.
Do you want to do you want to see a spot on the ship?
There's good.
There's good smoking.
Oh, yeah, that'd be yeah, that'd be dope.
That's sick.
I'm just playing my little game.
I agree.
You take in theory.
Oh, to to their new laboratory area.
Yeah, I believe so.
Yeah.
Welcome.
It's nice.
It's much nicer than.
And then a little box.
Yes, I am inclined to agree.
Okay, so I I have a little confession, actually.
Well, it's just that.
I would have gotten something, but I found out that it was your blooming day yesterday
and we were on the planet that's only populated by your theme park.
And I felt that there was really nothing that I could get you there because, frankly, it
would be both redundant and maybe also traumatizing.
So I didn't I didn't get you anything from the park.
But I did just want and maybe it's very presumptuous to call this a present.
But I just wanted to tell you how relieved I am that you're OK.
And I.
I am just so deeply glad that you're not leaving the patchwork like I thought you might.
And I will.
Pull the react in for a really tight hug.
The react reciprocates.
Yes.
I.
To say that what has happened over the course of the past few weeks has been a bit.
Unexpected is redundant and.
I believe wild times will now be able to run.
Smoothly according to my.
Principles without me there to.
Oversee it.
Personally.
I.
I feel as though that.
There is.
Much much more to learn.
And much more to experience alongside you.
Really.
I still have yet to conduct my study on you regarding your ability to communicate with
machines.
Well it's gotten quite.
Advanced since we last talked about it.
So you enough so to be able to.
Use it in concordance with an organism which is astounding.
You are sounding.
I'm.
I'm just.
Lady.
You are more than just a lady.
You are a very.
Good.
Crewmate.
Oh.
That's good.
And.
A very good friend.
Doctor.
I don't know.
Do you have a last name.
Do you.
Well.
I suppose I don't.
I'm.
Uh, not for me to know.
I would like to know.
I always want to know more.
You always want to know more.
Or you want to know more about me?
Yes.
I enjoy learning, but I also enjoy learning more about you.
All right.
There's not really much significance to it,
because I don't really feel connected to my family.
And that's where those names come from.
Mm-hmm.
But Bar-brick is what it is.
Bar-brick.
That's right.
Um, oh.
That is interesting, isn't it?
Well, he thinks not.
I feel like I have much more to learn about you.
I do also need to confess something.
OK.
I will reach for Theriax's hand.
Uh, Theriax's little root hands, like, tense a little bit,
but then, like, grab.
Do you remember the day when I was at Raze Maroost
and there was the meeting with all of the executives?
I was so scared that day.
I thought I was going to walk into that god-awful little globe,
and I thought you were going to be.
Yes, I remember that day.
I...
I was the one who, when Lepore...
was pushed out of the window.
I did that.
You said...
Well, I don't understand.
You said that, um... the AI of the park went rogue
and took everybody out, and I watched you stop it.
That's partially true.
The AI did kill the other board members after Lepore.
The AI is not fully gone.
The AI...
The AI has built back up.
And follows my protocols for wild times.
Why?
Specifically why were the board members killed?
Specifically tell me the truth.
Because I couldn't stand having my park continue to be twisted into what they wanted.
So all the things we saw...
The raccoon, and the miniature creatures, and all those things.
You tell me right now that you did it because of that.
That is part of it.
The other part.
The other part is that I was continually belittled and not heard.
And what I wanted no longer seemed to have impact.
What you wanted, what you told me you wanted, was the conservation and the education of
others.
To pay respects to those creatures and to keep them from dying out.
I will pull her hand away from yours just gently.
I think you did the right thing.
Why did you lie to me?
I heard you.
I saw you.
Why did you?
We need to make sure that AI can't hurt anyone again.
Or hurt Skye again.
Skye's got it in her brain.
It won't.
I made sure after.
Well then why didn't you just tell me why you...
I didn't.
I know that what I did was not exactly rational and I did not want my beliefs and my actions
to make you think less of me or to have you believe that I act recklessly.
But I have something that I think will make up for it.
To everyone.
Are you going to tell me or...?
Theorek is going to go over to Lars' cargo.
I couldn't hide this forever, could I?
No and I was going to ask about the crystal and is that where it is?
The crystal I have right here.
Oh, okay.
That the crystal might have somewhere to be placed.
I understand that you can communicate with it but I figured it might be of use if it
could communicate to us and to do more than just speak.
So, do you want to close your eyes or...?
Okay, yes.
Okay.
Theorek is going to punch in the pin as the box opens and the skeleton, as it were, is
on display.
Okay.
You can open your eyes.
And you see a many-limbed, quite large, metallic skeleton with a specific placeholder for the
crystal where the head would be.
I attempted to create it purely out of organic elements but it's a little beyond me.
I figured perhaps Skye could assist in this.
I think that's a good idea.
Just...and I think Verpal will skitter down my shoulder and skitter up the skeleton and
inspect it like little sniffles and smells.
And I'll just...we'll just group efforts and less secrets.
At least...at least for me.
Theorek will take it and squeezes it a little bit and kind of leans in on Ike's shoulder.
I'm sorry about...about it all.
I think it'll be okay.
Just...I don't...I don't like lies.
Okay.
As the two of you share that moment, we go up a floor and then up a floor to the roof
where climbing the ladder, busting open the hatch that leads out, there is a single sofa
hard, like nailed and screwed down to the top of the patchwork.
Yeah, well, this is it.
The good smoke spot.
So I will...
Whoa, you got a whole chair here.
Yeah, you know, I hang out here sometimes, like, because, you know, sometimes I too want
to get air and, you know, think about stuff.
The couch is yours.
Goodbye.
The other guy goes and sits down, puts a cigarette in his mouth and then raises his arm as if
to offer you one.
You want to join?
Yeah, might as well.
I'm already out here, you know.
Matt doesn't like it when I smoke, so you can't, you can't tell him.
No, Keelan doesn't like it when I do either.
So did you start smoking after you woke up or did you like have a craving like you were
already a smoker?
Oh, no, I actually originally started smoking because I thought it looked cool.
And then I accidentally got addicted.
And now I keep smoking.
I was right, though.
You don't have to stay.
You're welcome to go.
I just didn't want to.
I appreciate the...
Yeah, like, whatever.
It's a lot of work going up and down and you're gonna need somebody to like open the window
for you.
So it's whatever.
I was just saying you don't, you don't look cool when you smoke.
You definitely look like somebody that woke up recently and stuck a cigarette in their
hand.
Cool.
You don't like me very much, do you?
I kind of thought there was like a vibe that we had, but I think I might have just misread
the situation of lovable rogue into you don't actually like me that much.
I'm gonna take another sip of smog wine.
That's fine, by the way.
I don't mind.
You're welcome to shut up.
Shut up.
I'm trying to express feelings and I'm gonna need quiet if I'm gonna do that.
Okay.
Ah, when I don't like somebody, I am kinder to them because it means they're going to
be closer to me and they're going to feel like they owe me things more.
When I do like people, freaks me out.
Does that answer your question?
Yeah, I mean, I guess a little.
I guess you don't have any baggage because you don't you don't remember what your baggage
is.
That's so weird.
I kind of think that's baggage in itself.
I tell you what, I have a thing.
I kind of wish that I was really, really ill because then people would do things for me
and it would take the pressure off.
I'm constantly stealing shit and having to go from place to place and Keelan doesn't
have a sit in one place for too long and if I was super ill, he has to keep me in one
place and has to do things for me and kind of put everything into perspective.
It doesn't matter that I don't know who I am or was sold or like sold myself to a dreadful
demonic organization.
I don't need to worry if I actually helped anyone doing that.
It'll just kind of, you know, I'd appreciate where I am because as much as I try to think,
I can't really appreciate this.
Some baggage for you.
You take that.
I mean, you, I don't think you want to be super ill because I guess you do appreciate
time in the moment a lot more but that's because you don't know how long the moment's going
to last.
And I know that you just woke up and you want to live in the moment but there's something
really scary about just gaining control of your life and not knowing how long it's going
to last.
What about you, Sky?
See, so when we first met, I thought you were just like someone who had like parents and
a family but then your friend tried to kill one of my friends and then we ended up in
a firefight together.
You threw a grenade at me.
I did.
That was pretty cool.
Thank you.
I know.
So what's your deal?
I don't know.
I'm trying to figure that out.
I know you're trying to ask me about my past but I don't know if we're there yet, buddy.
Everybody on this ship found out without my consent.
It's fine.
It's way easier for me to talk about shit because I don't fucking know my shit.
Ask Keelin.
We tell our backstories to anyone who will listen because we don't really have them.
We just kind of woke up.
I mean, their heads are trying to kill us, of course, because we got away from them and
we kind of still have like a Hath chip in our head but also the Hath chip is disabled
because it didn't fully complete the thing and it's a whole bunch of stuff.
I'm waiting to get on a planet and someone recognizes me.
That's going to fuck me up real bad.
God, we have so much in common.
Did you end up modifying your board?
Yeah.
I had a free night.
Nice.
Is it good?
A lot of spare time.
It's always been good.
Yeah, I know.
It's just really pretty bored and it just seemed like get more air time on it.
I'm all about the air time.
I'm all about the flying.
I'm about dancing around people.
Love that shit.
That's like my whole thing.
Oh, I love your god.
The the the the Raxolite.
Planet.
Dr. Fariat?
The doctor.
Theorek is so smart.
I think that's really cool.
Yeah, they're pretty much like the smartest person I've ever met.
They care so much about things and that is really cool.
I like that.
And they also they also are really interested in things that I had to say, which I thought
was fun.
Yeah, I'm really jealous of that in them actually.
Not the fact that they care about stuff.
Yeah, they.
I mean, you care about stuff.
You I I actively try not to though.
But you still do.
That's what's fun.
Deep down past the defense mechanism so I don't get disappointed.
You only pack a box so much for the lid doesn't fit.
You put so much stuff in a box.
You keep trying to shove down the fact that you care about things.
Now it's spilling out everywhere.
Can't shut the lid.
Yeah, well, I got a I got a lot of other stuff in my box.
I'm trying to sort through comic books.
I care about comic books and the people on the ship.
I really like coffee.
Energy drinks.
Oh, yeah.
No, you don't want to let me have energy drinks anymore.
I can sneak you some.
I'll hook you up.
Don't worry.
I also I also really like your little mouse friend.
Not Ike.
Yeah, they're sweet.
They're going to get hurt so bad.
I don't know.
Maybe not.
I got you there.
And they got the the big guy Azam.
I am on the list of potential people that could hurt Ike.
There's no one off that list.
But Azam, I don't think would ever let that happen.
I'm apparently his ward.
Does use the word ward a lot.
Get referring to me as Keelan's ward, which I think is weird because I'm not like a squire,
like a knight.
That's the first time I heard him say it.
I don't know.
You keep you keep talking about not caring and I'm going to hurt people and I'm so fucking
edgy and I got fucking neon hair and I'm a cool fucking girl.
I got a plaster over my nose and you I think care the most out of everyone because you're
the only one who fucking cares about that.
You care so much about it that you fucking hate yourself for it.
That's fucking weird.
I'm so drunk.
I mean, that's that's not really why I hate myself, but go off, I guess.
You have to think about it.
That's something.
Because a thing which I've been thinking for ages is that everyone is alone.
Everyone doesn't matter how much family you think you have.
I don't think you actually do because no one can live in your experiences.
So everyone is alone.
But I think because of that, we choose people who we can be alone with together.
We all share that.
That's this kind of the whole fucking point.
You want a little little toe dip into my tragic backstory, my guy is the last time I was alone
and some people suggested that we could be alone together and they made me believe that
they cared about me and I started to care about them.
It went really bad, really, really bad, not just for me, but for other people.
I'm not saying that, you know, the way I act is right, but I'm I'm a work in progress.
Oh, this is so strong.
I hate this.
We better go back inside soon or else I will never hear the end of it no matter what I
say.
All right.
If they notice that both of us are gone.
Then raises the smoke, one of the smoke wine glasses to you and takes it himself.
To being alone together.
I'm not ready for that.
I'm good with being alone by myself for a while.
I think you're on the wrong ship for that.
I know.
Drinks a drink.
You go inside any minute.
Of course.
Walks and then kind of stumbles a bit down the ladder.
Oh, fuck.
Okay.
This guy has a good sit.
Good think for a while.
As there's a scratching at the door and then you hear a gone.
The moment I hear the scratching, I finished like we finished collecting the bread.
Do you want to mess with him?
Yes, absolutely.
I do take off your jacket.
Now, as I'm takes off his vest and places it to the side.
Absolutely.
Let's go.
I'm comfortable with the situation I found myself in.
Oh, relax.
I pat him on the shoulder.
It's probably nothing you haven't done before.
And it's the first time to remember anything.
And then I guess we wait for the door to open.
The lock and then the door.
And on the other side is scrapping.
Wait, whoa.
Fuck.
We are getting crazy today.
All right.
What are you talking about?
I was just feeling a bit.
Hey, boys.
I'll leave you.
Shh.
They all left.
I have had like three.
I am fucked.
I don't think I'm going to be able to see.
I'm really glad we're not leaving today.
I would crash this ship.
Hey, boys.
Scrap.
Oh, I take like one of the baskets of bread and just hand it to him.
Oh, my God.
Thank you.
I will put this on the table with the rest of the food that I've been devouring this
whole time.
Hey, Google.
Very much.
You boys enjoy yourself.
Do you want me to lock the door?
We'll be on it.
Okay.
I won't lock it.
All right.
Oh, my God.
Okay.
Sure.
Now, they definitely think that something happened.
That is okay.
I'll put my jacket back on.
This was very fun.
That's fine.
Thank you.
I haven't played a prank like that on someone in a long time.
That was fun.
Kealan, where does your name come from?
It is Velkan, which I remember somehow.
But it means solar.
What attaches you to the sun?
We just escaped.
We were on the escape pod going to a small moon.
We ended up on a solar flare in the distance.
I've never seen anything like it.
The atom of C just swelled like a tide pulling in all of the water around it, and then it
exploded with color.
It felt new.
This thing had ended, but look at all the colors that had splayed out in this beautiful
death.
It's starting over.
Yeah.
I wish I could.
Well, have you let it die first?
I take off one of my boots and pull out a ring.
I think this is the first...
If there were a camera, it would zoom in and you would see there's a little notch on the
ring.
This was my engagement ring.
Can't get rid of it.
I don't know if I can ever move on or let things die.
Well, you can try to move on.
Let it die.
Well, you can try and find a way to rekindle it.
There's really only two options.
You can't carry it around.
That's like pressing pause on a movie halfway through when you stop reading a book.
Everything just stops.
You can keep flicking the pages, but the story doesn't move forward.
Can't just wait.
And yet, and I put the ring back in my shoe.
We'll have to set you up with a room, right?
Maybe.
I'm gonna go back to the Bumblebee and say goodbye to the skitters.
It depends if we're staying here.
It seems like everything has just been set up for you five.
Adding two extras would be quite the hassle, I imagine.
How tall is Keelan?
Six and a half foot.
Big lad.
I look down at Keelan and meet his eyes.
I'll convince him.
I appreciate it.
Don't mention it.
I'm always willing to help someone find their way to a home, if not the home.
It's gotta be pretty hard to do with your life on pause.
I appreciate it.
Maybe I don't need a life.
Maybe I can just...
I look to the door of the patchwork.
Maybe what I'm supposed to do is help others live their lives.
It's not how someone lives their life.
You can't help anyone if you don't help yourself.
What's the crash course when a ship is crashing?
You've gotta put your own gas mask on first before anyone else's.
If you're helping someone finish a race that you are also trying to race, but then just
before the end you trip yourself up, that other person is going to fall as well.
Doesn't matter how much of a dream that they have, doesn't matter how much you want them
to cross the finish line, they're just not going to do it.
Killings sometimes races just end.
Maybe I'm not racing alongside people, maybe I'm already at the finish line.
I just haven't had the...
decency to die yet.
Sometimes people make excuses because it's easier just to say, I tried, rather than getting
back on the horse.
I've done more than try.
I'm sure.
We should check upon that.
Wait, all of them left?
Keelan opens the door and Scrap has like one skewer in his mouth and is like playing Y-Net
just on his own.
Ayyy!
Didn't mean to interrupt the party.
I hope both of you finished.
You wanna come fucking hang out with the boys?
Scrap where are the others?
I don't know.
They all went off.
I think Ike has curled up in her new room, but she's made a little bit of a little cubby
in the corner and she's got Verpal on one side of her chest with a hand over him and
ID cards from school.
And the other, she falls asleep, a little drunk, tail like wrapped up next to her.
Theiriak is kind of perplexed after their and Ike's conversation.
They expected to come back and everybody to be like continuing to engage in the party
but finds like most people have broken off.
And things out with Scrap.
Hey Doctor.
I know it was very difficult what happened on Wild Times but I'm really happy you made
it out.
You're someone who I like very much.
You're very smart and you got a real smart heart as well and that's cool.
Thank you Scrap.
Rudefully if you had not sent out that email, I think both Wild Times and I would be in
much worse states.
That's what the ship's for.
I build it from broken parts that people discarded and they said it wouldn't fly.
I don't know.
Are you sure you're not the Doctor?
No you're the Doctor.
I'm a really good engineer but I can't fix people.
Only people can fix people.
No but I feel like after my stay aboard I'm feeling a little patched up.
Well, very kind.
I'm glad.
I know you are horrendously inebriated right now but you are wonderfully intuitive and
resourceful and quick witted.
All of which are very important if you are to continue to pilot us around this cosmic
void.
Why are you coming with us?
I would have sworn that we would have...I was telling everyone.
I was so worried.
Skye was upset and they were all like, Dereck's leaving.
I was like, that's just what people do sometimes.
They just need to move on.
But you came back.
I didn't think you would.
I am moving on.
Moving on to bigger things.
Getting off of Doom is probably a higher priority but I would like to show you all what I have
been working on.
I think it would be a good thing for Skye especially.
I hope so.
She really likes you a lot.
She's been through so much.
I know what they put people through.
She didn't break.
She came to me.
She helped me get off the planet.
I was prepping.
I had this ship half built.
I would never have flown without her.
She loves you very much.
She thinks you are great.
She's so smart.
He gets welled up a little.
As he mentions.
Are you...
No.
I'm sorry.
Are you alright?
I just wish I had been her dad.
And then maybe she wouldn't go through all this.
Maybe she wouldn't be part of the void.
But maybe everything would have been a little better.
I have a son, the thiriyak.
You know that?
You have a son?
He did all this.
And then points to his metal arm and all the burns up him.
He tried to kill him.
Oh my god.
Ah.
Scrap.
And I wish my boy was a little boy like Skye.
And maybe I wouldn't...
Um.
Scrap.
I...
Is...
Um.
I'm too drunk for this ship.
I wish I was a better dad.
I wish I could be a better man, the thiriyak.
I wish I could be more like you and smart and know how to help.
I wish my kid was more like Skye.
I wish I was more like his mom as well.
I wish I had Ike's kindness.
But no, I built the ship and ran away.
Scrap.
I don't think I'm as smart as you think.
I did some things on a dune...
Right in these past few weeks that I don't think you would consider smart.
Whatever you did, I know you had your reasons to do it.
And I wouldn't...
I wouldn't...
I think more cowardly people wouldn't have.
And I will stand by you, thiriyak, because I believe in you and what you want to do.
I see how you care about those animals and you made a whole exhibit for my planet and
my home.
I appreciate the things you do for other people.
And other things that can't fight for themselves, you fight for their voice.
That's what I think is really cool about you.
I think you are smart.
I just think you're scared at the minute.
Because you went through something really scary.
And you went through it alone.
If I can help it, I won't have you be alone again.
I'll be right there with you.
What about the Zom?
I know...
He's sort of become another guardian in Skye's life.
Yeah, he's a natural born dad.
People look up to him and they respect him.
He is too scared.
That's what puts me off about Zom.
He's the bravest, but he's also the most scared.
Which is what makes Bravery, I think he is really brave.
But he won't talk about it.
Or rather, he loves to talk about it.
But he won't do anything about it.
Because we can help him and he doesn't want that to happen.
Because if we help him then we can fail again.
He doesn't want to fail.
And if we help then he can fail.
But if he doesn't do anything, he can't.
What if you feel like...
You're trying to make up to him for something you did?
I don't think...
I don't think Zom can ever accept you doing things for him.
Because he doesn't accept himself yet.
I think he has a lot more to do and we have a lot more traveling.
He'll wear down.
He cares very, very much.
He's getting very scared.
And look at this ship.
It's all in parts.
And everyone is traveling on it.
It's like, I'm growing.
I'm being fixed up a little bit.
They're flying as a team.
And their team is a little fractured.
Because people get into fights, they react.
And so it happens.
And yeah, I understand that you want to make something up to Azam.
You want to make Azam feel better.
So I don't even know.
I know Azam would forgive you because Azam's also done loads of stuff himself.
I think you just gotta be honest.
Really ridiculously honest.
I think Azam respects honesty.
Because he understands why people do bad things.
He's just sad that it happens.
What if I can't make it up to him?
What if he's...
I just know that what I've done recently has broken a lot of the foundation, I think.
Do what I do.
Foundations break.
Just gotta rebuild other ones.
Reinforce them.
And you could push the ship out a meter.
A whole meter, they added three rooms.
Do you know how many foundations I had to get rid of?
I had to take the roof off.
It's fucking difficult and hard work, but then you can make the inside, the things that
the foundations hold, you can make those so much better.
It requires building new ones.
You really love this shit metaphor.
I do.
I think I could put something really poignant in here if I had one less wine.
I think you're perfectly cogent as you are right now.
I think you're perfectly cogent too.
Thank you.
I should...
Actually, I don't have anything to work on.
I guess I'm going to bed.
Yeah, that's great.
I made you a whole bed as well.
Made me a bed?
Like a garden bed?
No, I made you a bed.
Do you not sleep on a bed like people?
Fuck, I thought you slept on a bed.
I could sleep on a bed.
I could get you a plan.
I'm sorry.
I got you a bed.
Just the flower talk earlier has my mind trapped there.
Oh, I understand.
I'm sorry.
No, it's fine.
I got you just a regular bed.
Go to sleep.
We have a lot of traveling.
Thank you, Scrap.
I understand that sometimes wisdom comes from unrestrained mouths.
Yes.
Go to bed.
Good night.
Good night, Doctor.
I'm taking some bread as you walk out of the room.
I think after Flair comes down and Skye stays up on the roof, eventually about half an hour
later, let's say, half an hour, Azam makes his way to the roof himself.
Oh, it's accurate up.
You win.
What the fuck?
This isn't an open invitation.
Who said you could come up here?
I wanted to light some incense.
On the roof?
Open that would be a good idea.
Yeah.
It's a very important tradition in my culture.
Do you mind the smell of incense?
I take out a small earthenware plate and pour some dried leaves and other such things into
my hands and rub them together very quick.
And suddenly there's smell bursting from every corner as I drop the ashes back into
the plate.
Flair and Keelan left back to the Bumblebee.
I'm glad that we made peace.
We may have to make more peace.
Keelan asked a favor.
They want a ride.
To where?
The near.
It's the drift core distance, right?
Oh, yeah.
Did you have a good time at the party?
I didn't spend much time partying.
What'd you lock me in?
Exactly.
I was bored.
How'd you talk with Flair go?
We didn't really talk about anything.
We just like shot the shit, you know.
I leaned back and pressed my weight upon my palms, crossed my legs, just staying out in
front of me.
Is that what we're calling it, he says.
We didn't make out, is that what you want to know?
No.
I wanted to know if you and Flair are good.
Yeah, we're good.
I'm going to see if he steals our stuff again.
Hello, I'm going to show you something.
And I take off that same boot that apparently I'm just taking on and off these days.
And I pull out a ring, but it doesn't go all the way around.
There's a notch in it.
And I hold it up.
I was engaged.
I know.
Yeah, I know.
But I fooled that ass.
I wish you had that, though.
Well, when two ifrit love each other very much and want to spend a life together, eventually,
you know, you get one of these forged, you know, so it can be hammered in when marriage
happens.
You said that a fray had like some sort of connection to humans, right?
Because humans do the same kind of thing.
Supposedly.
I mean, it's all legend.
Same with some cultures on Earth have similar legends.
I don't think they're really legends.
I think that's like, I don't know, there was a couple of humans on Saga that did the
same thing.
Why are you showing me this?
Is this like a really weird start to the talk?
Which talk?
I might just be traumatized from when Dr. Theory Act spent some time with me up here.
Human biology talk.
No, not that.
Do you know how I knew?
I mean, you probably do, but open ended question.
How I knew that I wanted to share my life with someone.
You felt a spark?
I felt it off, okay, yeah.
Eventually that spark grew because we talked and spent time together.
See, there's a couple options.
I've been in relationships that work and relationships that don't.
And once they don't, that spark eventually appears away and you find yourself thinking
differently about them.
They're feeling in the middle of your stomach.
It doesn't stay there and nothing comes to replace it.
So sometimes you like someone and you find out, oh, I just like them.
You hate someone, I hate them.
Sometimes though, that feeling in your belly, the forge that's in there goes up.
That's when you know you found someone very special.
But you can only figure that out if you talk.
But at some point, Scott, you're going to have to start opening yourself up again.
You cannot be afraid to care.
So when are you going to take that advice, huh?
I lost the person I love.
You haven't gotten the ability to lose yet.
Take it one step at a time.
Did I recur to you that maybe that's what I'm doing?
Yeah, I did.
But I figured why risk it.
Plus, I could just make an ass of myself.
It's not like I haven't done it before.
I know that the positive memories that you have cause you a lot of pain.
I feel for you there.
I really do.
I don't have those.
So like, it's cool you guys want to set me up with the first teenager that we come across.
But I don't want to set you up.
If you're not interested, you're not interested.
What I want you to do is to start making good memories of your own.
Because yes, mine caused me a lot of pain.
It is hard not to look upon what I've lost and not feel my gut wrenched.
So much so I'm afraid of losing it again.
And again.
But they're still positive memories.
And you deserve them.
I guess I'm just asking for a little bit of patience because the last group of people
who said that to me got me a murder of three people.
I am uncomfortable with the amount of power that somebody has over you.
When you care about each other.
Yeah.
It's a scary thing.
But I'm not giving you a bit of patience.
Oh, I'm just going to give you something too.
And he reaches into his pocket and pulls out like a little wax paper wrapped parcel that
is just full of the pastries that were under the do not touch sign.
Fuck yeah.
Thanks dude.
Split it.
Sure.
You want to just lay here for a bit?
It's a complicated question to answer.
I don't know.
So let's just sit here and stare up at the ceiling until we feel like going inside.
Okay.
You promise not to come up here without an invitation next time?
Sure.
As long as you promise not to lock me in rooms again.
I do promise that.
I'll take the pastries.
You know, you know, you know, I know when you're lying.
I take one of the pastries and lie down.
You don't always know when I'm lying.
One day I will.
You didn't find out I had a last name until the Heths put you in my brain.
True.
But then again, I'm willing to accept that sometimes information comes when it wants
to, or when I want it to.
As both of you lie on your back and you look out toward the seemingly endless, colourful
Adam Lussi, you watch as a small satellite moves in the distance and then slowly gets
bigger as it starts picking up speed and then like a shooting star flies right past the
gateway and careens toward the planet of Adun as this satellite is knocked out of orbit
and crashes somewhere off in the distance.
Hi there, beautiful souls.
Thank you so much for listening to the Adam Lussi.
A quick few thank yous before we shout out all of our cast members.
Our music today was provided by Artlist under their fair use license and our soundscapes
were by Michael Gelfie again under their fair use license.
You should visit both of their patreons because our show would not be what it is without them.
A major thank you to our hosts at the Welcome Inn.
If you want to listen to the full unedited version of this episode, please head over to
their YouTube where you can find all of the unedited Adam Lussi and many other beautiful
shows that they have on there.
We would legitimately not be here without them.
Our players today were Momo O'Brien playing Skye, Super Dylan, that's me playing Ike,
Noor Nali who is Werewolf Feels on socials who played Assam, Andre Rivera Art who played
the wonderful Garlic Thirjak and Matthew Eckberg or Captain Kral on socials who voiced all
the pew-pews and built this wonderful show.
Thank you all so much for listening and I apologize personally for the delay on this
episode I struggled with it so I hope you enjoy it and the next time we fly through
the Adam Lussi I hope you will be there to fly with us.