Hi everyone, just before we get started I'm just giving a little like warning. I have
just moved to Canada to be with Mo, yay! Oh so wonderful. However, comma, that means that
my audio setup is not good TMTMTM. And we also had some problems with Andre's audio
as well. So, our audio is just a little spicy today. Not saying that it's bad, it's just
not the quality that we normally do. So, if there's a little hissing and everyone sounds
a little bit tinny, I apologize. Thank you so much for listening, I love you. It's a
great episode anyway, like it's so fucking hype. However, I just want to warn you ahead
of time, thanks so much. And on with the show.
Previously on the Atomless.
Azan, he?
Ike. She.
My name is Thiriyak.
What's up? My name's Skye, welcome to the patchwork my dudes.
Everyone, welcome to WildTams, the only person who knows that-
Send an email and we'll grab Lepore, chuck him out the window.
And the park's mascot melts away, and there is just this humanoid female form.
Thiriyak.
Doctor.
I believe we need to talk.
Why do you want to do this?
I want what's best for the animals. I can stop the other two board members now. We can
spin the story that I did go rogue and you put a stop to it.
Do it, just do it.
Muffled movements behind the door, and then you can type in a specific code that'll reduce
me to a base AI instinct. No one would be any the wiser.
Is it worth it?
I have remorse, but if I continued to do what I had done without changing it, this place
would fester.
You have a lead on where the next crystal is, the planet Nos in the Vanir system.
Pay no mind to the signs. Pay no attention to the broken monoliths, the signs of destruction
flowing throughout all things. Ignore the embers of the fires, the banging at your door,
the screams of the prophets. Nothing you do will change where the bullet is heading.
It's only been a few hours since you all shared in each other's revelry, and now the
joy of the taste of Saga's smog wine has dried in your mouth, leaving a dust-ridden dryness.
The creak of your bones can now be felt as you wake from the party that you had the night
before.
Keelin and Flair went back to their ship for the night. Scrap seemed to have slept in the
captain's chair and has left a thread-ridden blanket strewn out as he has left this morning
for some reason.
After the party, when you all decided to go to bed, where is everyone? Where did you end
up falling asleep? Did you go back to your chambers? Did you sleep in a certain room
or in a place which you shouldn't be, passing out from all the fun?
I'm freaking out, dude! I have my whole entire room! Just for me now! I'm hanging out there
for the rest of my life!
Sky, your room is what almost looks like a small 90s arcade now. You have a pinball machine,
you have a little stick shooter there. Did you end up falling asleep?
I don't know if I did. I think I'm probably just too excited.
What is everyone else doing?
Ike will just hang out in her little space and play around with Verpal for a while until
she falls asleep, probably.
Verpal, this weird little rat armadillo pill mug thing, shied away for a lot of the party
since there was a lot of loud people having fun and yelling. After you retired to your
room, Verpal curled up next to you and snuggled each other as its long anteater nose gives
a little cartoon-esque snore.
Yeah, good.
Dierik?
Dierik's fucking hammered. He's probably face down, ass up on the couch, like the communal
couch with one arm slung over the side of the backrest. Just demolished from the small
line.
May I at one point walk into the kitchen, probably close to 2am, open the fridge, grab
a bag of Cheetos, grab an energy drink as I'm shoving the Cheetos in my mouth. I'm like,
are you asleep? Do you want some water? I'm gonna get you some water, Dr. Therriak. I'm
just gonna leave it beside them. And then if they don't wake up, I'll go back to bed.
Therriak doesn't move. I don't even know if- does Therriak breathe?
I don't think any of us can answer that question but you, Andrea.
I think that's a you question, huh?
Oh god.
I would argue yes. I would argue yes because plants breathe.
Because plants breathe. Yeah.
Yeah.
It depended on whether they breathe through lungs that they have or they breathe like
lungs where they kind of soak in through their roots.
My question is, is Therriak the oxygen or carbon dioxide?
Whatever the plants do.
Carbon dioxide.
And you expel oxygen. That's great. That's great.
That's why we can continue to exist on the patchwork forever.
The patchwork is a self-sustaining crew. If only Therriak could grow other smaller garlics
for sustenance.
Oh.
Anyway.
Azam, what do you-
Azam didn't fall asleep.
Where did you fall asleep?
After witnessing the crash, you spent a good amount chunk of the night just like looking
up scanners and news agencies and like to see how the damage was.
This is a planet, right? 24 hours.
And then stayed awake thinking about just everything.
He's been alone in his room for the most part, but when you see him in the next morning,
you'll notice there's little like black coal-like crusties in the corner of his eyes
because he's just built up a lot of sleep.
And so now he's kind of bleary-eyed.
The satellite crash does make the news cycle, but all of the headlines related are kind
of either downplaying it just like a satellite crashed, satellites crash, or are catastrophizing,
comparing the satellites falling here to the satellites falling on Saga.
There's a lot of theorizing going around and not much, not, not, not much of people actually
in the know.
Can I do something?
Because we've spent a lot of time on, on Idun.
This has definitely happened off screen.
This is I'm wanting to like keep eye over Theria, keep eye over Idun.
Could I say I've built up a network of small contacts or would you let me roll for that?
It depends what you mean and want by that.
Do you want a network of small contacts like just kind of just, just random everyday people,
people who work on Idun, people who like visit and are staying for like extended periods
or if you're wanting like a more in the know, like they are permanent residents who don't
work at wild times, they are in like the, you know, just outside permanent residents
of Idun but not involved in wild times in any way.
Both of which I think the being involved with people who aren't involved with wild times
is probably way harder than just having like you have been speaking to the natural residents,
like the residents and workers of wild times since a lot of the workers of wild times have
been coming up to the patchwork to help scrap, build stuff since scrappers been talking to
a lot of people and helping them.
It also depends on what you want to do with that network.
I just want to keep an eye upon how wild times is functioning and how Idun is.
So I think I'm going to go for low level people like janitors and the like who primarily work
at wild times because that's the people who I've had most contact with.
And I've like set up nice email chains with them, just chatting about their life, how
they are, how is Idun going?
Hey, did you hear about that satellite?
That kind of thing.
Give me a diplomacy check then.
There's going to be a gather information thing.
Is there like gathering a network of people who I can add my specialty die to my skill
expertise die to this.
I just need to find out what it is because it's it's been a hot minute.
It's been a hot minute.
My friends.
It's a D6 plus one.
Okay, great.
So diplomacy.
All right.
That's a 22.
You have definitely been able to gather like a collection of low level employees of wild
times and people who are necessarily in the know, but do have their ear to the ground
purely based on what they do for a living.
So yeah, you can have that.
And you're asking them what their like what their thoughts are on the satellite crashing
and whatnot.
There's this one Lushunta called Tozie, a large like six and a half foot.
It's like a light green skin.
You met her because she works at Raven's Roost.
Whilst you over the last few weeks have been checking up on Theriac and making sure that
they're okay.
You had just seen them around and then struck a conversation one day.
Oh, well, I don't know about this.
The satellite crashing.
I don't think it's a big deal.
I just heard about it.
But this would be today.
You're talking to them.
I don't believe it's that big of a deal.
Things like that happen all the time.
Satellites crash.
Tech fails.
I know that a lot of things like that have been happening on Saga.
Some on Rahn as well.
But who knows?
I mean, you know how this place is.
They're always cutting corners on budgets.
Who says they haven't been cutting corners on satellite technology as well?
I am going to message back.
As a favor, would you mind just keep it in touch about how many satellites fall if something
like that happens again?
They're heading out of system, so I won't be able to collect them for a while.
Okay.
There's a small question mark sent before just the question mark and then a short.
Okay.
I think that's the most I can do.
And I'm just going to put that information along with some information I've collected
on Saga's fallen satellites and now the information that there's some on Rahn into a little folder
on my very decrepit computer.
Hi.
Yes?
You...
I wouldn't necessarily say sleep well because...
Did you have a lot to drink yesterday?
I had a bit.
You know when you drink a lot and your sleep is uninterrupted, but you wake and it still
feels like you're a bit of a mess?
You are quickly and rudely awoken by your phone ringing.
When you look at your phone, you can see that you have five missed calls.
All of them from Quinn.
And Quinn is calling you again.
Is it still ringing right now?
It begins ringing, yes.
You look at it.
Hi.
Hello.
Sorry.
Oh God.
Where the fuck have you been?
Oh well, I...
Sorry.
Hi.
Yes.
Hi.
Hello.
I hope you're well and all that.
We spoke briefly about you doing a job for me on Saga, but I don't seem to know where
you are.
Are you still on planet or and if you are where?
No, actually.
So I had to go take another quick job in System.
But that job's kind of got a little out of hand, actually.
So I am and I wasn't sure when you needed me for the other job.
Does that mean it's now?
Yeah, you know, when you can make it.
So you're in System.
What, like, where exactly are you?
Oh, well...
Can you really quickly give me a sense motive?
Yes, I can.
21.
They have never asked you this amount of questions before.
It's less alarming, but there is something odd about the way Quinn is speaking to you
and the fact they keep asking where you are.
They probably miss me, which is nice.
Okay.
Oh, well, actually, I'm not on a dune anymore, but we were there for a bit and that was where
the job was and that's all taken care of now.
So now I'm just, well, we're, I think, possibly headed to a new job, but I mean, if you need
something now, I...
Well, depending on what it is, I could figure it out, but, you know, gotta keep working,
taking what comes my way, you know.
Yeah.
Okay, so you're not on a dune anymore?
Are you in space?
Are you traveling?
Yes.
Right.
Okay.
Yeah, no, come to the office.
I have a, I have a important, something important to talk to you about.
Well, Quinn, is it something for work or can I come and can we talk about it now?
No, it's better if we meet in person, I think.
They stopped speaking and with the 21 you hear another voice at the other end of the
call, slightly muffled, and then you hear Quinn's voice slightly muffled.
You're not able to pick out what they're saying, but you assume that you're listening to a
very quick, brief conversation as Quinn has his hand over the microphone before.
Actually, let's not meet at a brewery mining.
I actually think it'll be better if you come to my house.
Do you know where I live?
I, I've never been to Quinn's house, I would imagine.
You've never been to Quinn's house?
Like, you might have dropped off something before or heard him talk about where it is,
but I don't suppose you would know where it is.
Exactly, but just let me know.
I can see.
I would have to check with the captain I'm flying under if I can make it back quick.
Okay, sure.
Yeah, no, I'm sure it'll be, I'm sure it'll be okay.
We'll see you here in a little bit.
I'll text you, I'll text you my address.
Okay.
Um, I hope, Quinn, is everything all right?
Yep.
There's nothing wrong over here.
Okay.
I'll text you the address.
All right, all right.
Ah, that's sus, that's bad sus.
After hanging up, you get a text that says Quinn's address with another text coming through
after saying, don't busy yourself, I'm going to call back.
Okay.
I settle in for a minute.
I pull verbal into my lap for support.
After about a half an hour, you get another call from Quinn.
And picking up.
What the fuck have you been doing?
I've just been working.
Okay, you've been working doing something because people have come to my house asking
for you.
I don't know, I don't know what fucking business you've been doing, but people are looking
for you now.
I, I don't know what's, what's been going on, but, but it's going to look very bad on the
company if you keep this up.
Oh, well, look, Quinn, I'm not doing anything.
There's Quinn, there's, if people are after me, don't you think that those aren't very
good people?
It doesn't matter what the quality of people is when they arriving at my door.
I.
Well, so then I'm not there.
You shouldn't be incriminated by that at all.
I want you to come meet me on Saga.
I also, I don't know, how did you, what, how did you know about Playground?
Oh, well, that's because Quinn, I was meaning to ask you.
You set me on a job and that's kind of how, if you really tie it all together, that's
really how things wound up this way in the first place.
But you set me on a job to go get those drinks for burry mining.
And I did because I'm happy for any jobs that you give me, but well, you know that I'm still
partially, at least a lower decker.
You returned those drinks down to the lower decks.
This is such a job to question where things go.
Okay.
Your job is to just pick up the things that I asked you to go pick up.
Okay.
Well, and I did.
Yeah.
But sending me texts, asking about those things, that's not appropriate.
Okay.
And if you, if you keep this up, then I think we're going to have to talk about your position
in this company because I, I, I'm just not comfortable with the attitude that you have
been showing recently.
All right.
And we have a job that we need doing.
Come to Saga, meet me at my house, do the job and then whatever happens, what that happens.
Okay.
Well, okay.
But can I just ask if people are coming to your house and you're worried about that?
Shouldn't we maybe meet somewhere else?
I think it's best for both of us that you just do as I say from now on.
Well, okay.
I still have to check with the captain I'm flying under, but I'll let you know what we
can do.
I'm sorry people showed up at your house.
That's, this whole thing is quite stressful.
I don't care what the captain of your ship says.
If they could drop you off somewhere close and you take it connecting, then fine.
I can I, if I need to roll again, that is fine.
I want to see if I picks up on like worry or fear from Quinn.
Sure.
It'll be a very low check.
Okay.
27.
You don't normally hear Quinn flustered.
They he's always, he's always kept a very, like he knows what he wants.
And whenever you normally speak to him, it's for a job or the receiving of a job.
Right.
He seems unsure, but quite curt.
You believe that he is scared, but like he's formulating a plan as he's speaking to you.
And it doesn't seem to be in your favor.
Okay.
I won't mince words.
I, people showing up at your house is my fault apparently.
So I will figure something out.
I will message you when I've, when I've figured it out.
Okay.
Do that.
Right.
Just be safe.
Text me when you get planet side and then he hangs up.
I go find scrap and ask if we can call a salad time.
As you walk into the main hub of the patchwork scrap walks seems to be walking down from
some of the, the promenade of shops with a medium sized baggie of food in tow is flair
drinking like a overly mascot it's drink with a curly straw as he seems to be nursing
his head from drinking way too much.
Scrap seems to be in quite good spirits, even though you can see under the bags that he
decides that he is extremely tired, but he wonders in as you leave.
Hey, I have just gotten us all some breakfast to start with.
I haven't had a smog wine party in quite some time.
It's fucking expensive on saga now.
You just can't fucking get it anywhere.
You didn't know me on saga.
You know what?
That is true.
I did.
I didn't know you.
Yeah, and that was, that was a lot of fun.
I can't remember.
I think after like the third shot, whilst we were all playing wine net, I can't remember
a single thing.
So I have bought us all greasy burger food to cool everyone down and make everyone feel
a little better because we do have quite the travel, which is going to be starting with
us today.
But I had fun.
Did you have fun?
I did.
Actually, I had a great time.
Yeah?
Which is going to make this very difficult, but I actually have a possible favor to ask
of you and the rest of the crew.
So easy.
Sure thing.
Anything.
Well, I don't say that yet.
It's kind of big.
I well, I'd like to explain it to everyone.
If that's okay.
Maybe we can rally the crew for some breakfast and a little discussion possible.
Absolutely.
Yeah, let's have a, let's have a meeting.
Sorry, Flair.
Can you go back to the ship?
I'll call you afterwards.
Sorry, Flair.
Okay.
Now, it's fine.
Can I just get my, yep, there's Neil.
And then Flair takes it and then does like a very hungover little bow and then turns
and walks off with him and Keelan's food.
Scrap goes up to Theriac and does a little shake as Theriac is still very sprawled out.
Hey, buddy.
Hey, we're gonna have a little team meeting.
Are you good, pal?
He did so well.
I'm so, I'm so proud of how hard you went.
It was a lot of fun to see the doctor.
The doctor was in as, as we would say.
Hey, listen, it's all good.
We're gonna get you in some sunlight.
Would you want like a, if we just place you in some water?
Oh, there's some water right there.
My roots feel wizard.
I need, I need water.
I need water so bad.
And just like sticks, sticks their whole like arm in the glass that Sky provided and just
like absorbs it.
Scrap bangs on the doors for Azam and Sky.
Hey, we're having a team meeting.
Right.
Morning, eggs.
Who wants eggs?
I'll make eggs.
No, I got it.
I got food.
I went to a fast food place on the promenade and they just got like a bunch of burgers
and chips, all that shit.
So Scrap, why would you get food?
We've got food at home.
I can cook for you.
Yeah, but it was the, it was the day, it was the day after drinking.
You don't have home cooked food after drinking.
You go out.
I didn't drink.
No, but it was a collective drink, an emotional collective drink and it's takeaway is not
optional.
Scrap, just because we have an emotional takeaway doesn't mean we need to order takeaway.
I can make eggs or chips.
Oh, you can make more stuff.
There is a bunch left over that you made, but I'm just saying I've already purchased,
like it's literally sitting in there is a bunch of other food.
So go get your meats.
I think I'll make some juice.
Nice.
Yeah.
Sky!
Sky's in the kitchen having a panic attack.
Minor panic attack.
Sky?
Uh huh?
What we doing?
I'm trying to make that fruit salad Theriak taught me to make for their blossoming date.
How's, how's my driving?
Well, you don't need to whip a fruit salad.
So what you've made is actually a slurry.
Um, but we could add some ice to make a smoothie bowl.
I was kind of hoping that I could show them it's like, ah, I learned to make the thing
you taught me to make.
But this is my fifth attempt.
Where are the others?
I don't know.
I've been in here for like hours.
Sky, what's going on?
Because no one does this without, you know, something going on.
Oh, well that's embarrassing because nothing's going on.
I think I'm just really out of practice.
Okay.
Um, why don't you give me the recipe and we'll make it together sometime.
And as for this, we'll just do something with it and it'll be great.
And Theriak will love it.
Just say it was inspired.
It was inspired by the recipe you gave me.
Okay, I can work with that.
Oh my goodness.
You made my favorite.
I'm just like, takes it and just slurps it.
Yeah.
So I'm glad that we're all looking bright eyed, bushy tailed.
I guess something to bring to the table.
Um, Scrap has kind of gotten everyone to sit around a small table that has like a holographic
kind of map of the galaxy.
It has a small ray of red light that shows like a you are here and you're all sat around
it.
Right.
So thank you all for coming.
Yeah.
We have our first team meeting on the current edition of the patchwork.
Good job everyone for yesterday.
We really fucked it up.
I feel really positive with how, how yesterday went.
I have something to bring and has called a team meeting for us.
Yeah.
So I'm sorry to do this because I know that my head's a little foggy and some of us might
also feel that way.
So I'm so sorry to have to bring up a odd topic, but well, um, do you know how the void
wants me?
And there's like a, a bounty and things and all of that.
Well, as it turns out back on saga, they are harassing people who know me in the lower
decks or in the upper decks.
Um, wait, how did you give us?
Oh, well, I got a call this morning.
Actually I got six calls this morning, um, from my friend Quinn, who, uh, had people
strong arming at his house, like his place of rest, not even at the office.
Um, this is the same Quinn who left you on the VN.
So that was just a misunderstanding that the company flew out, uh, before, uh, I was able
to get back and they did, they just, they were in the wrong place at the wrong time,
but that's okay.
He sounded very distressed understandably and truthfully that's my fault.
So he's asked me to go back to saga to help, um, resolve that.
And I wouldn't ask you to go all the way back because I know we have other places to be,
but if there's somewhere you could drop me off and I could go and, and handle it and
that'll be okay.
Maybe.
So let me understand this correctly.
So your friend is clearly upset because there is an urgency to find you and your idea after
they have been harassed and followed back to their home is to go and then-
It's not my first choice for sure, but I, I don't want to put all of you into any kind
of distress.
Right.
Let's not even be ridiculous here.
All right.
Let's, let's be very clear.
So long as you wish for us to drop you off on saga, so long as you wish for us to come,
we shall do it.
There's no question about it.
Whoa, wait, I'm, I'm sorry.
I'm confused.
I think I must have missed something.
Why do you have to go to saga?
Because I've got to somehow get these people off of Quinn's back.
It's my friend.
Who is Quinn?
What, what, what, what do you two do?
Did you meet at quilting?
Well, that's not a particular hobby of mine.
But no, we, we work together.
Is Quinn your boss?
Well, sort of.
I mean, not technically, but-
It's a yes or no question.
Well, I'm more of a freelancer, so it's not really like-
That's an employer.
I-
Occasionally-
I mean, that's kind of my boss and I think we're pretty friendly.
Hey.
It's, it's not that cut and dry.
We are friends and I don't like the idea of people showing up at his house and, and if
they're showing up at his house, frankly, that means that they might show up at other
people's houses.
I-
That-
I just don't-
Okay.
Cars on the table.
I've done stuff like this before.
You don't really go around people's houses just to like, randomly rough people up.
You go around people's houses to find out where they are or to draw them to the house.
This bounty on your head is no joke.
If, if, if the void-
I have a feeling that they're trying to get you to go back to Saka.
And, and do we even know if- I don't, I don't know, I don't know this, this Quinn guy, but
do we even know if, if, you know, he can- isn't he like a high up company guy?
Yes.
Is there, is there like no doubt that he's not just trying to get you to fly back, back
planet side so you're easily trackable?
Well, I don't-
And if, if you're wanted, wouldn't he just want to turn you in?
Would any of you want to turn me in?
I don't know this Quinn, I can't speak on behalf of his-
I don't think any of you or anyone that I care about would want to turn me in.
But I do think that it would be quite scary to have people showing up at your doorstep
demanding for a so-called criminal.
So, so I, I have your back, no matter what.
I love step one of the plan.
Let's say we get to Saga.
What are we gonna do?
Well, um, I would say that maybe we try to mess with whatever they've got on me.
How?
Well, I have ways.
However, there's always, I don't know exactly, but I know that just letting people be harassed
on account of me is also not an option.
I, you and what army?
Well, if you have another idea, something that we could do from not on Saga to stop
this from happening.
Again, I, I will do whatever you want me to do.
And in fact, I don't know if I trust you enough for me to share every opinion in my head because
it's gonna sway yours like butter.
If I were you, I'd get past this stage of grief.
Work your way up to acceptance and just accept that that's going to happen to people because
of me.
I'm not saying it's not awful, but I just, I, um, and I'm not saying there's no hope.
I'm saying there's not a huge likelihood of us being able to go back to Saga and take
down an entire organization.
Wait, wait, wait.
Wait, did your parents call you?
No, they haven't, but you see, why did they get to, why did they get to Quinn them?
Listen, if you're trying to, if you're trying to get someone to go back, you don't go to
their fucking employer unless they like know who they are.
You would shoot straight for the, for the parents, the close contacts, the people who's
going to scare them into immediately coming back.
Well, and I also, I have to say, I don't know that my parents would get to that point.
I don't know if they would call.
They might just.
If you were to be the void and you would, your parents refused to call.
I imagine Scrap and Sky and I can all agree.
You can always take a picture of them holding a paper and send it to you as a friend.
Well they haven't done that yet, but I'd really like that to not happen.
Are we sure this is, who do you work for again?
Wait, do I know who she works for?
You know it's Brewery Mining.
Yeah.
You also know that Brewery Mining and Sert Energy have recently merged companies.
Oh, did the merge happen yet?
Or the mergers, the mergers happened.
Yeah, it's okay.
It's happened slash is still in the turnover stage.
Got it.
Okay.
I wasn't sure if that was complete.
Okay, so instead I say, what are the chances that Sert Energy and Brewery Mining work with
a void?
Well, alright.
As cards on the table, I only found out about the void fairly recently, at least in as much
detail as I've learned.
I've heard very small mutterings, but I can't think of times when I felt like they were
in cahoots together.
It doesn't seem, it doesn't seem quite necessary actually.
I mean, the companies are quite large on their own.
Why would they need that kind of-
I have an idea.
Can I try something?
Sure.
It's probably not gonna work because we can't get calls to Saga, but I, let me see this
guy's number.
Like, give me my phone.
Beep boop beep boop boop boop beep boop boop.
You're calling Quinn?
Yeah.
It goes to ring.
And then, after a few tones- What is it?
My name's Skyscraper.
I'm looking for someone named Ike.
Oh for fuck's sake.
Listen.
I don't know where.
Okay?
I've given you- I called and she is nearer done in space.
That's about as close as I got, okay?
This is, this isn't like a freelance contract job, okay?
I just need someone to do it and we'll split it.
Keep talking.
Why?
I've told you it.
There's 500,000 credits that was asked from Playground.
Playground gave it to me.
If you get it through me, then yes, then I will split it 50-50 and then that's 250,000
credits each.
I am mouthing words to Skye.
Why this operative?
Why Ike?
It's because they have a huge fucking bounty on their head, is all.
I don't know.
Playground said that a message came from Op Top that she stole a bunch of money.
I don't know.
Isn't this your, like, this is your job, correct?
Your job isn't to ask questions.
Your job is just to, is to just take the target and I'm pretty sure Ike was dead or alive.
I, our job is to figure out how much Playground told you.
I need to ask questions so I can do my job.
Okay, well, I don't know where Ike is.
I've asked her to come back, but you, you're gonna have to either be very quick or wait
in line because she's gonna be at my house on Saga.
Time and place?
I mean, time and date?
Skye is slower than me.
She says time and date in a real cool tone.
I don't know.
She said she'll text me when she gets planetside.
I hang up.
So Quinn is calling in for the bounty on you.
That's what that is.
Exactly what I suspected.
Quinn's not been harangued or harassed.
He's been cahoots.
That's trade, where cahoots, is he right?
Yeah, that's true.
He said it's split in 50-50, which means that he's kind of working as an informant.
He said that Playground got it sent from up top.
I have a feeling that Skull is the one that called it in.
And then he must have heard about it from Playground and is pulling up some form of
bounty because he has easy access.
Skye, do you need a minute?
I just think...
Maybe.
But I do think it's...
It has to be more complicated.
The Void is very powerful and influential and...
Someone that knows me would not just turn me in if it weren't...
Dire.
And I just think that...
I...
Organized crime wouldn't offer a 50-50.
Quinn would have had to offer it.
Quinn probably called them.
Called Playground to begin with.
And betrayed you.
Anything's possible.
I wasn't in the room where it happened, but...
Yeah, 50-50 aren't our rates.
Skye?
What would you... do?
I'm doing it.
But I'll go back.
That's what you want to do.
Well...
Going back is a death trap.
Sorry, I don't mean to cut anyone off, but going back is a surefire way of getting us
killed.
Yeah, I know.
Well, I'm not going to do that, then.
I'm not going to ask you to do that, and I...
Maybe I just need to...
Think.
There's gotta be a way to find out more.
Or figure out a different solution.
It can't be this simple, that's all.
It has to be more complicated.
It has to be more nuanced than that.
And so... just...
Sorry, Scrap.
We don't have to go back to Saga.
But I do need to find out what to do... instead.
Can I offer my... slightly biased, but ultimately humble opinion?
Okay.
If there is a bounty on your head, the longer it goes on for, the more people are going
to drop off trying to get it.
500,000 is a lot, but there are people for 500,000 that are on the planets that people
are on.
There is a way easier target if we keep moving.
And particularly... if we drift... and we go to Nos... that's several months that we
are gone.
Basically unfindable.
It's essentially waiting for this to blow over.
Can we come back and address it then?
Well, we're gonna have to address it at some point.
Right.
May I suggest the Night of the Ball?
Well, the...
Oh, the ball.
Last shebang, perhaps?
When is this ball anyway?
That's in a few months, is that it?
So it's... it's Saga's Spring now.
The ball is always a very, very big event, but you have about 10, 11 months since Saga's
years are a little longer than ours before the ball actually takes place.
Right, so it's gonna be quite a few months before that ball happens, but the ball is
supposed to be...
Do we have enough time to go to a different system, do what we want to do there, and come
back?
Well... scrap.
I mean, yeah.
It'll take us, on estimate, about two and a half months to get from here to the Veneer
system, which means it'll take us two and a half months to get back, which means you
have about six months playtime.
Around.
Okay, so... well, that's... fine.
We can... we can... deal with it then.
I'm sorry that I... brought this...
Stop apologizing.
Well, I don't like that this could affect other people, so... I am.
Ike?
It affects us because we care about you.
Well, and because the Void might try to kill you, so... I don't know...
It's not my first time with a mark on my head.
I'll live.
I sure hope so.
It's not your fault in the first place, logically speaking.
If I go around wild times waving a gun and say, I'm gonna kill the first person who doesn't
give me Ike, that's not your fault.
I'm just waving a gun threatening people because I'm asking for one person.
That in no way involves you besides the mentioning of your name.
Well, they didn't say necessarily that they were going to kill me.
That's not the point.
The point is that it's not your fault.
Alright, I'm gonna... I'm just gonna eat my breakfast in my little cubby if that's alright.
But we can go on business as planned.
Sorry, Scrap.
No, no, you're fine.
We can keep going.
Yeah, go enjoy your breakfast.
Have a nap.
Ike is gonna go curl up and share her greasy sandwich with Ferple, who hopefully has a
diet of everything.
Ha ha ha!
It is, it's true.
Ike, after you go back to your little cubby hole, Scrap does still stand around the table
for a second.
That doesn't make any fucking sense.
I'm not alone, right?
I don't know.
Maybe it's nothing.
It probably is nothing.
Quinn's a... Quinn's a company man.
I know the type of come-and-crossing before.
No, listen, I... yeah, I get it.
I understand that.
It's just... I... I'm just...
I'm just...
I drink with me.
Screw that Orchid.
You tell him a piece of cake and you put it under a
It's a fall.
Someone else is trying to get at Ike, who Quinn works for.
I don't know, Ike has, you know, she's never talked about...
I know she's like a smuggler, but she's not being caught, right?
It's not like a thing that a lot of people know about, it's basically only Quinn.
And also, Quinn didn't do the hit.
I don't think Quinn did the hit at all.
I think Quinn is just playing into the part of getting it.
Whatever.
Listen, I'm talking up my ass, I'm just a bit confused about the whole situation.
I mean, either way, I feel a lot better with Ike staying as far away from void planets
as possible.
Whether Quinn's in on it or not.
Likewise.
I do not disagree with Ike that this could be more complex than it first appears.
But I disagree with Ike in that it may be to her or Quinn's favor.
So my only concern is getting off, getting out of his system.
I feel kind of bad.
Do you think she's okay?
She just had a bit of a worldview shattered.
So it's two choices.
Either she accepts it and lets that part of her brain shatter or she rejects it, compartmentalizes
it, turns it to something else.
So if she's not okay, it's probably a good thing because she accepts Quinn's not friend.
And if she's okay, it's probably a bad thing because she's...
You know what it is?
I know what's confusing me.
Quinn is called Quinn.
A Quinn is not a place.
That's just a name.
So he's not involved with void in any way.
But he knows playground.
And turns to you, Skye.
That's a big fucking demon.
Playground isn't just a someone, a random member.
They are a powerful fucking person.
Yeah I know.
And I don't know anything about Quinn.
He could be a god.
Quinn said playground called him.
If you were a top member of void, I don't think you'd just be calling people.
Hell, I was a rebellion leader.
I didn't exactly make my own call sometimes.
It just seems weird that Quinn is so well connected.
Anyway.
I mean, I got a couple numbers on my phone that I don't particularly want to call.
No, no, no, no.
I don't want to call anyone else.
I don't want anyone else involved.
I just...
Quinn is very well connected.
Playground is not someone who just randomly meets people.
He doesn't randomly call the shots.
This is a...
A leader of people.
They're a fucking violent, very bad person.
You can tell by the name he's put in the time.
The fact that him and Quinn are dealing with each other.
That's what confuses me.
It doesn't matter.
It's fine.
We'll table it.
You know something?
I just realized.
Quinn told Daig he was being threatened.
He wasn't panicked at all.
Unfunneled Sky.
Didn't even shudder when he mentioned Playground's name.
He's too calm.
I'll be back.
And, uh, Curiac's gonna go and talk to Ike.
Curiac.
Hello?
Over here.
Um, Ike is just kind of, uh, playing with verbal a little bit.
And I think what that means is that she's kind of just making her phone do things so
verbal gets little, little electricity snacks.
It's very interesting.
Kremlins acquire, you know, oil and electricity to operate their systems, but they're still
willingly eat volcanic food.
It's very interesting.
That is interesting.
Verbal's very, very interesting.
Did you need something?
I wanted to, um, sit in with you a little bit and talk, if that's alright?
Oh, of course!
Yeah.
Please!
I know you're still, uh, rattled.
Well, I just don't know if I believe everything.
I don't know how he could just want to turn me in.
I mean, that's not something that you would do if you were, if you weren't under extraordinary
duress, I'd imagine.
So I don't know.
I just am having a hard time knowing what to think about that.
I...
BeRat kind of like puts their, like, back against the wall and just kind of like slides down
to like sit with Ike in verbal.
I wish I didn't know what you were talking about, but I am quite familiar, very recently
familiar.
I suppose.
It's always hard when you're working business and there's a sense of, you know, camaraderie
and there's an idea of everyone's goal being the same, therefore our intentions are all
the same and we are all personable and friendly, but there's a danger in that.
Well, I just...
Maybe it's, maybe I would have understood to find out that, you know, Quinn isn't exactly
my greatest friend, but he would literally give me over, give me up to people who would
probably hurt me or take things from me.
I mean, it's just a lot to consider about a person that you thought you knew.
Well, what do you know about Quinn as a person?
Well, he's very charming and funny and hardworking and very ambitious and very successful.
He's very ahead of his time in the company.
What is Quinn's favourite food?
You know, Matt, I'm wondering if Ike would actually know that.
I think so, yeah.
But not because they're good friends, but because like...
She's like, he's like asked her to go pick it up and she's brought it to him.
Yeah.
Oh, well, his favourite food that all of the other people at Bury Mining would know is
a steak, usually with asparagus, which I find kind of file, and mashed potatoes.
But really, he's one for a Lower Decks hot dog sometimes.
I've brought them to him quite a lot.
All right.
And did you eat this with him?
Or did you drop it off?
No.
Well, I just dropped it off.
It's a favour.
Have you and Quinn ever had any experiences outside of work?
Well, I mean, I've done some favours for him outside of work, just as like...
That's not what that was.
Well, friends do each other favours.
That's your boss.
Only sometimes.
No, I'm pretty sure he's your boss, whether or not you're on the clock.
All up until very recently, he was my only friend, so...
I don't think he was your friend.
I think he was using you.
And you know that's not your fault.
Yes.
Right, that's not.
But why does it happen, though?
There is an idea within certain business people's heads that there is an expendability to everything.
That when...
That every organism or location or resource has a function.
And once that function has been utilized, and it cannot operate as it once did, it is
to be discarded.
I don't think Quinn saw you as a friend, Ike.
I think he saw you as a resource.
Is that how everyone sees me?
The Arach will reach their little root hand towards hers.
I don't.
Okay.
I believe you, but...
I also believed Quinn.
Well, what do you know about me?
I know that you are the most passionate scientist I've ever known or heard about.
I know that you care very much about animals and also ecosystems and biomes and restoration
and preservation and education.
And I know that you believe in young people getting to learn about life and creatures
around them.
I know that you feed people to take care of them.
I know that you are quite funny sometimes.
And I know that you text like you're in a business meeting.
And I know that you're a very good communicator.
And that's very nice.
I bet you if Quinn were asked to list things he knows about you, he'd come up quite a bit
short.
I do know that you're right about that.
What would you say?
What do I know about I?
Yes, this is fun.
Well, I know that you have a propensity for accessing technology and a seemingly empathetic
psychic connection to much of the technology that we have around us and are able to communicate
with them in a way that we cannot.
I know that you are quite fond of those who you surround yourself with.
I understand that your particular favorite food is cheese.
I understand that you have an immense propensity for kindness.
I understand that you always want to find the answer to situations that don't necessarily
make complete sense.
I understand that you are likely the most compassionate person I know.
And I believe that one in every 15 words is the word up.
Well, that's true.
Atheriac, you stay and hang out with Ferple and I for a little longer.
I show Theriac how... of all the new things I've taught Ferple in the last couple of days.
Oh, you know what's interesting is that Ferple actually has skin membrane right here, so
you can actually glide a little bit.
Oh, that's kind of gross looking.
As you spend the next few hours together, Keelin and Flair arrive with their bags already
packed.
They put their things in a small, almost like high school locker that Scrap has set up for
some just random personal effects.
And Scrap prepares the ship for traveling through the drift.
Sky comes onto the ship with a Wild Times baseball cap, Wild Times t-shirt, Wild Times
jogging pants, and a very, very large Wild Times backpack that looks stuck to the brim
and says, yes, I am ready.
Perfect.
Hell yeah, I love the hole that you got.
No, you got no idea.
How much merch did you get?
Not a lot.
Did you leave this in my room?
What is that?
A souvenir cup.
Oh, I wouldn't have left it in your room on purpose.
Can I have a bag?
Sure.
Just be aware that it is a work facility and it does pose a handle.
You know what?
You can keep it.
That's probably a good call.
There's some Petri fungus that might have escaped the lab earlier this morning.
That would be a good call.
I'll pass on the Petri fungus.
Thanks, Doc.
Right.
We are headed off.
Yeah.
So, um, just to...
Wait, wait.
Hold up.
No, sorry.
Scar, did you get that thing I asked you to get?
Totally.
I asked Sky Firiak to get you a plush of Experiment One.
Oh, Wanzo?
I love Wanzo.
Because I know you didn't...
In case you missed, I...
Was that bad?
Was it the actual plush of the organism or was it the cartoon?
Sky...
I took both.
I will take the organism.
I bought both.
I'll take the organism.
You can keep the cartoon.
Actually, speaking of this, it does remind me, since we're here, just before we leave...
So, the patchwork doesn't have any form of sophisticated AI in it that runs system operations.
It's very basic.
Pretty much everything has to be done manually.
And because of what happened, a lot of the Wild Times...
Wild Times sells Parks AI, but not the park necessarily, just like subsidiaries of the
Parks AI 4 to upgrade computer systems, sold by Homo Tech.
I didn't buy one.
I was wondering if we wanted to buy one.
Oh, no.
I am ambivalent towards the prospect.
This will be a decision for you, Fallen.
I think I'd be okay with just continuing to do things manually for now.
I would be disappointed to not give our ship a goofy voice, but I will live if that is
what the group is doing.
I'm also kind of upset, because we could have given it Wonzo's voice being the ship's AI,
but that's fine.
Okay, the last thing, just before we go through the drift, reminding everyone that although
for us, we're going to be traveling for what seems like a few days, for the rest of the
universe, it's going to be a few months.
So just to keep us all up to date, scrap those over to the TV and turn it over to the news.
Over the next few hours, there are several news broadcasts of the cycle that the ACS
solar system has been under.
The theme park, the Leviathan's Eye, crashed into the asteroid field of Raan.
An investigation by the Ulfhethnar Council found a species of mollusks carrying a parasite
that when exposed for long periods of time, infects the minds of the host, puppeteering
their body.
The Ulfhethnar found no survivors, over 12,000 lives were lost, and there were no leads as
to why the station crashed.
It is in the process of being cleared out of the infected before being dismantled.
The finalization of the 590 trillion credit company merger of Brewery Mining and Cert
Energy have made the company the number one provider for electricity and power in the
galaxy.
But the grind isn't over, according to the man leading the charge of the merger, Quinn
Heilock, who says the company is looking to acquire hermoid tech too.
Soon you will have everything you need in one place, says the executive.
News from SAGA.
There has been an attack on one of the upper plates, causing construction to be stopped.
A local rebellion group, led by an android named Tommy, bombed the structural skeleton
of the plate, claiming that it would trap the people of the lower decks in complete
darkness.
Upper deck envoys deny this theory, stating that the rebel group are working with lower
decks gang named The Void and gained financial backing from an illegal streetcar race.
However, Tommy and The Void Informants have denied this.
Satellites from all over the ACA galaxy are failing and falling into the atmosphere.
Is it making planet to planet communication difficult?
The RAN engineering group Water Wheels believe that corporate budget cutting has led to failings
in the navigation, but no official cause has been given.
Gravity has never been so explosive.
An Ulf Hethnar ship was destroyed on the asteroid comedy club of Helium, killing four Ulf Hethnar
and leaving one in critical condition.
CCTV shows Heth opening fire on a group of people, but it is unknown whether or not the
explosion was caused by a reactor meltdown or a third party.
Ulf Hethnar are still investigating.
The mysterious deaths of the Wild Times board members have been found out to be from the
park's AI.
The AI was given full control of the park after being sold by Hermoid Tech.
Hermoid Tech denies responsibility, saying that board member Lin tampered with the AI
after the founder Theriac went on a field research trip.
The AI has been stripped away by Theriac in what onlookers are calling an incredibly heroic
deed.
The news cycle repeats these stories and after a while Scrap loudly claps his hands together.
Right!
I'm ready to go.
You all ready to go?
Cowabunga.
I'm ready.
Alright, everyone gets trapped in.
Our destination, Scrap pulls down a physical whiteboard that as they write on pings with
a projector that's shining on it and almost like his writing is being projected back into
the ship.
He writes Vanir System, the planet Nos.
As he does so, the writing glows blue and then there is a small doodoo as it is accepted
into the computer system.
He pulls the whiteboard, it rolls back up and then the engines begin heating up.
As everybody sits down, Flair finds a chair next to a bench with dials and doodads to
play with and Keelin finds a chair with a good view of the atomless sea above him.
The crew strap themselves in and the patchwork's engines get louder and louder.
The ramp lifts and the patchwork begins to lift off the ground.
The patchwork flies off into the atomless sea leaving other ships struggling behind
it.
Scrap flicks buttons above him and drift lockdown begins.
The ship shudders as the drift core begins to scream to life.
The drifts engines looking like large rust feathered wings open on top of the ship.
After years of being discarded they stretch again showing the atomless sea its full potential.
The drift core now burning white hot breaks itself apart churning itself into these perfect
multi-coloured geometric shapes until they form a cone that spins and points like a compass
in front of it.
Held in place by this large glass cylinder, the geometric drift core points toward the
edge of AC as atomless sea and then scrap rolls glides weaves the patchwork.
The large mechanical wings flap and you're pulled back into your seats.
The atomless sea stretches out in front of you and then breaks into a multi-coloured
wormhole.
You all see that your bodies begin to leave echoes of your images as if you're all putting
on wonky 3D glasses that show petrol paintings of inky black images of each other with these
small sparks of colour in between.
The multi-coloured wormhole fades away revealing a space that seems to still be creating itself,
building itself in complete darkness where all colours and shapes are like light refracted
through a prism.
And you have all arrived in the drift.
I'm going to play a small game.
Just a tiny little thing.
I'm going to pose a question to each of you and you will answer that question.
And then I would like you to pass that question on to someone else.
The answers to these questions is going to be forming the space of what the drift, the
prism looks like.
So I'm just going to roll a d4.
I'm going to have i1 as arm 2, sky 3, theory act 4 because that's easy and that's going
to be whoever is going to be answering the first question.
Okay, so sky.
I feel like this is a pop quiz.
It's not.
It's okay.
Who isn't in the party but someone who you think about a lot and what relation are they
to you?
Well, Flair does count as being in the party, right?
It depends what you mean by being in the party.
They're not an official part of the patchwork but they are on the ship.
Well, I don't know why I'm answering this question.
So would Flair be an appropriate answer?
I'm not locking in my lyrics yet but I think she's actually going to say Hive.
About Hive?
Yeah, she's worried about him off on Saga where war is brewing and there's no calls
going in or out.
Last time she saw him he stuck his neck out for her.
So there's a lot of warm, kind feelings toward Hive as she thinks about him?
And concern, yeah.
Would you pass the next question on to someone?
Dylan!
If the ship, the patchwork was beginning to burn and you were the only one who was free,
what would Ike do?
Everyone's on the patchwork and it's burning?
Ike would try to save everyone as quickly as possible.
Panic!
She would panic!
She would panic and she would act really quickly and she would probably yell at the patchwork
and make it help put the fire out.
Wonderful.
Would you mind passing the next question to either Theriac or Azam?
Yes, Azam!
Azam.
As you shoot off into the drift, what does your body do?
Does it tense up?
Do you shut your eyes?
Do you look to someone else?
Do you think of something?
What happens to Azam as they are getting pulled back in this seat?
I think a good amount of Azam cracks, literally.
Those joints are old.
And he closes his eyes and thinks of home.
Perfect.
So there is a...
Is there a panic in that or is this a warmth?
Comfort.
It's the home of his youth, before everything.
Theriac, your question is a little simpler.
It is less of a hypothetical but more of just a straight question.
How calm is Theriac?
Theriac at this current moment is actually quite calm.
There is a distance from a lot of the goings on that they had been trapped in for a good
while and while there's stressful things going on, they do not feel the same sort of high
strung stress that they had been feeling for weeks on end.
This is very much a time of relief and recuperation from the panic that had been inside of them,
the non-stop adrenaline rush.
As you all arrive into the drift, the pinpricks of prismatic light start forming in front
of you into hills, rolling beautiful landscape.
You see other people who are also arriving into the drift, all getting on with whatever
it is they're doing for any reason that they are travelling through the drift, also are
arriving around you.
People seem to be off at the distance, been travelling this place for a few days.
Huge ships, tiny ones, people who have the luxury of being able to travel from place
to place.
The sky above you seems warm.
You can feel warmth from a sun that is not there.
There is a clarity in the air.
You know that this warmth, this heat, this kindness of the sky is going to keep for your
journey.
Along these hills, there is this one path that falls over each hill and then on the
next one you can see this path rising up again.
There are these shadows of people, these faceless, wandering echoes of time.
These shadows are talking to one another.
They're not saying anything that you can hear or understand but they are speaking in
a kind and warm way and ignoring the ship.
As you fly through, they all seem to be getting on with their daily life.
So you all hear from inside Skye's overstuffed backpack.
I'm just a little guy.
I love you!
Theiriak is at the kitchen counter when Skye is walking past and is like, I'm just a little
guy.
I just feel like theiriak freezes in place and just rotates.
Take the raccoon out of my backpack.
He's just a little guy.
I'll be right back, I have to go scream then we can talk.
That wasn't a no, guy.
Again just a very minor really quick explanation of how the drift works.
Traveling from solar system to solar system takes anywhere from a few months to a few
years through normal space travel.
It is a thing which people do do but it is difficult because there are these unknown
number of creatures called draugr that are in the space between each individual solar
systems.
The way that drift travel works is it takes all of those months and through a thing called
a drift core which is this mash of science and magic, like actual magic, they make it
so that there is a pocket dimension that opens up and then people go into the drift and then
when they leave it's only like a few days have passed for them but actual months have
passed.
So although it seems like it's only a few days for the people that are in the drift,
the galaxy is still moving around them.
It works off of black hole technology so they create a small black hole that people go into
and then when they arrive it's like oh it's only been a few days but it's actually been
multiple months since it technically shrinks the ship that you're traveling on down super
small and fires it in one straight line.
And actually I'll pick up that little conversation as scrap.
So scrap has turned the seatbelt, the drift lock down off so everyone can walk around
now that we're officially inside of colloquially, people call it the prism because it's kind
of a place where a lot of things like it kind of looks like you're inside of a prism there's
a lot of like refracted light around but is also just known as the drift.
People kind of use both on and off depending on who you're speaking to.
But scrap has turned off the drift lock down sign so everyone can get up and walk around
as your next few days are going to be inside this space, this small pocket dimension and
scrap has started explaining how the drift lock down works.
He explains what I just did and then continues.
So because we are technically at the minute like we are about the size of an atom and
we've been shot really really hard really fast toward the veneer system which is where
we're going.
So normally pretty much 99% of the time we will just get to veneer in a few days and
we can stop.
The problem is is the space between galaxies it has a lot of creatures and things in it.
So if something comes up I'm going to get a little warning.
I'm going to have to angle the ship a little bit just to like course correct and get around
the thing because we can still crash whilst traveling in the drift.
But if the thing is particularly big and we can't get around it through a few small movements
just to keep us on course I'm going to take us out of the drift and then we will course
correct, be put back in and then fly around.
Just warning people in case there's like big alarm signals going off throughout the ship.
The ship is fine it just means that we might need to course correct or come out of the
drift, correct ourselves in the space between and then fire ourselves back out.
But aside from that we're pretty much just hanging around.
Oh remember you can't whilst we're here you can't contact anyone who is outside of the
drift and that also counts for any signal so you can't be you can't like watch any
form of news since we are currently in kind of a weird time warp zone.
That all makes sense to me.
Good I'm quite bad at explaining things but I hope that...
No you did a very very fine job.
Wow I appreciate that.
It's difficult to make a complex science comprehensible.
Man a lot of big words.
Anyway everyone you're all you're all free to go around and and do what you will.
I'm gonna kind of just make sure the ship is all fine since this is the its first time
through the drift and I stole the Valkyrie wings.
I didn't steal them I took them from a ship so I just want to make sure that they're all
working correctly.
Scrap goes back to the captain's chair and types something on the old typewriter that
they have.
Getting small prints.
So Sky.
Yes Dr. Therriak.
I believe you have something to share with everyone.
I don't.
She does?
I didn't know it needed an audience per se but I did.
Nick the raccoon from Dr. Therriak's lab.
The sweeping raccoon.
I'm just a little guy.
In the corner of the room this raccoon is trying to pick up a broom and sweep it but
is having a little bit of a hard time.
I think I might try and figure out the voice mod situation because I don't think that he
necessarily enjoys it and it creeps me out a little and will probably get a little annoying
after some time but in my mind this is Guy and I am in love with him.
You know what?
I'm actually glad you did that.
Why?
Why are you glad?
Because it wasn't right what they did to him and you even said so yourself.
So maybe Sky will find a way to undo it.
And Scrap did say we each get one little creature.
But not one that was stolen.
Well technically that does mean that there are two creatures that were stolen because
I don't think Verpal is...
That's not correct.
Because Verpal is considered a technically vermin, an invasive species that came off
planet and cohabitated once there was development of a dude.
That's right and he chose me.
So I didn't steal him at all.
I did not realize that everyone's love of wildlife would be this expanded after wild
times.
Good job Dr. Theriak!
There's a crash from the kitchen and Guy runs with like a little pack of fries from the
fast food place, runs past behind everyone and goes to a corner of Ike's room and then
Verpal comes down and then they both start eating the fries together.
I'm just a little guy.
Do you understand me?
Theriak, you can't tell me that's not the cutest thing you've ever seen.
You do realize you've unleashed one of the most opportunistic things to ever exist in
the universe.
I was already on the patchwork.
Also we do have Flynn now.
Oh hi!
Wait!
I totally forgot you were here.
You're so fine.
Yeah I know.
You need me to print out a comprehensive species survival plan for raccoons.
That's why I got a raccoon.
They can eat garbage.
It's like a plant I can't kill.
I understand the diet is wine.
No I understand.
I'm asking do you know what the raccoon needs beyond just trash?
Beyond rubbish?
Water and love.
I'd say you probably have it covered.
Where is this specimen going to sleep?
With me.
Do you know if this specimen has the instinct to burrow?
No but I guess we'll find that out eventually won't we?
I kind of think it has the instinct to sweep endlessly so we might not have to deal with
that until we until Skye finds a way to shut that off.
Skye keeping care of a creature like this is very very large responsibility for an entire
laboratory let alone one person.
I think Azam cuts in by talking to guy who's like grabbing his trousers.
That's my trousers.
I'm just a little guy.
Still my trousers bud.
I didn't realize the gift I gave Matthew as well.
Oh he's climbing.
He's climbing me.
I take him.
No you love it.
You love it dude.
I would also like to emphasize one of our primary goals with Skye is to perhaps try
to see if he is in fact sentient beyond just speaking the words I am a little guy.
I mean to be fair he does say I'm just a little guy.
Oh I'm so sorry.
He's just a little guy.
Beyond just saying I'm just a little guy.
The last thing we want to do is to deny someone personhood just because of their limited vocabulary.
Wait a second here.
Why are you implying that this raccoon might have sentience?
Because that's pretty weird.
This raccoon can speak.
Yes.
One sentence like a parrot.
Parrots can speak.
Are parrots sentient?
And didn't Lynn put it there?
Like pre-programmed and everything.
What exactly is a parrot?
It's an earth thing I'll explain later.
The point being we don't know.
It is now within our duty, your duty now as its primary caretaker to ensure that this
specimen is in fact not sentient.
Are you prepared for that?
I mean no.
I'm just checking to see if Guy was sentient wasn't really on the list of responsibilities
I thought I was going to have.
What do I got to do?
Like put him in front of a mirror or something?
There is a mirror test to indicate sentience, yes.
I'm going to take Guy and I'm going to put him down in front of the nearest reflective
surface.
Get him to dance around.
It requires more than that.
If you were to put Guy down, Guy like, is it called hutching your back where cats do?
They go to like hiss but then slowly stands on its hind legs trying to make itself bigger,
almost look like it's T-posing at the mirror.
It makes like a hh.
No, is it?
I don't think it recognises the fact itself.
Is that a good thing?
Sentience is neither good nor bad.
The point is that we need to make sure that we are providing this specimen everything
it requires.
Okay.
Are you ready to take on that responsibility?
I don't know, I've never tried.
Dr. Thiriak, just to pose this as an idea, if she said no, what would we do?
You're wearing quite a pickle.
It's almost like I planned that out.
I think perhaps we just need to roll with the punches on this one.
I'm an ask for forgiveness not permission kind of gal, Dr. Thiriak.
Okay that's enough looking at your reflection.
And then kind of like just gently start.
Just a little guy says to itself in the mirror.
Alright, yeah, okay, let's back to greasy snacks.
If you were not ready or did not feel capable of taking care of this specimen, I would make
sure that we got them to a refuge, a sanctuary perhaps.
Because even though you are being entertained by the specimen's presence, the specimen
deserves respect and a healthy life.
Yes?
Yeah, I know.
I didn't just get them to entertain me.
I know it seems that way.
Just want to make sure of your intent.
It's very important.
I am hopeful that a guide can find a place.
I am hopeful that you will take good care of him.
Am I out of the dog house?
No, not in the slightest.
Okay.
I don't know, I like him.
And as I'm sitting down with Guy sitting on his lap and just like offering him a cube
of cheese.
A little cheese, a little cheese.
Yeah.
All that very good thinking as I'm at it.
Dr. Therriac, I will take those printouts when you've got a minute.
I figured you'd need them.
I will do that.
Keep it on the down low though, I've got a reputation to uphold as having a don't care
kind of attitude, you know?
I want Guy to respect me.
I have to earn their respect.
It's perfectly fine to ask for help.
Not in front of the raccoon, Dr. Therriac.
Right, right, goodness.
It does, it goes for the cheese that you're holding as um, and you, you're like, you have
quite tough skin because a lot of it is like, magmatized and whatnot.
And it like, it bites your fingers in a way that you know that if you had like, like flesh,
it would properly bleed and hurt quite a lot.
As it's trying to like get the cheese.
It's still a little feral.
It is a raccoon after all, but then does take the cheese and is munching on it in your lap.
I give it some light scritches behind it, like at the scruff of its neck.
The first scritch is, is met with a, with a claw and a bite, but then it comes.
There we go.
Little guy.
Mm hmm, mm hmm.
I can swear he looks like one of my nephews.
Your nephew looks like a raccoon?
Same energy.
Cool, I dig it.
As your, as, as guy is, is sat on your lap, Keelin comes over, this large wolf person
duster jacket on and a t-shirt and sweatpants.
So is wild animals coming aboard?
Is that kind of the norm for this ship?
Apparently.
I mean, we've got what, like five at this point.
Okay.
You've got Ike's little pet.
Mm hmm.
You have the raccoon.
Mm hmm.
That's two.
Do you, who else is included in this list?
Because if I say someone, that implicates me on being rude.
So if you say it, then I'm, if you say it and confirm my suspicions, then that completely
frees me.
You have seen Flete eat, right?
Okay.
That was one.
Yes.
That one's easy.
That one's a given.
What are the other two?
Well then there's the wolf in front of me.
Or a wild animal.
Rude.
Who is the last person then?
Cause you have to mention a member of your own ship eventually.
I look at him.
I'm like, there's a small distance away from the others.
And I say, well, you haven't seen what I'm capable of yet.
And then I grin and wink.
Is every Ifrit really bad at flirting and it just takes about 20 minutes to get to the
point or is it just you?
Is that a special skill from your charismatic days?
A mode of practice.
Ah, I see.
Also who says I'm flirting with you?
It would be really weird if you were flirting with, I'm going to be honest, pretty much
anyone else on the ship.
Cause you have two teenagers, two people who seem to enjoy each other's company quite a
bit even though they're not admitting it yet.
We're not supposed to admit it at all.
It's not fair.
And then Scrap who you two are just not the OTP that I see on this ship.
But you and I are.
No, it's just, again, process of elimination.
If I get you to admit it then I'm completely out of assumptions.
I can be quite flirtatious with the right people and you're right, I wouldn't exactly
flirt with.
You're a bit young for me, but I am married.
I don't know how I can square that just yet.
I mean, normally taking up another partner is not a big deal, but when you haven't talked
to someone in a very long time.
Is that the plan?
Because I'm pretty sure last time we talked you were running away from that responsibility.
So are you to...
It's not a simplification.
If I don't say anything then I'm not implemented.
Indicated, implemented?
How the fuck do you speak trade?
So my...
Anyway.
Keelan.
I do enjoy your company.
And then Keelan walks back off into more of the center of the ship, but they're still
within calling range.
Bats flares legs as he has his legs on the table with the little holographic map.
Bats his legs and he sits up straight.
I kind of like, not really whisper but in a lower voice, just talk to Guy.
You know, we are very emotional people.
I'm just a little guy.
Yeah, I know you are, bud.
I know you are.
Continues to eat whatever you're handing him.
About a day and a half goes by.
You have more than enough food to last you this long.
And entertainment is pretty easy.
Everyone is still very much in there.
They're not bored of travel zone yet.
Around six hours of travel left.
A light goes off in the pilot's area.
And then another one goes off near the back of the ship until the whole ship is kind of
covered in these in this red warning lights with a small alarm goes vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv.
I think, oh shit, fuck.
Okay, I think we're about to hit something big.
So we got to get out the drift.
So if everyone could sit down, we're going to try not to spend a lot of time in the space
between, but everyone just got to strap yourself in.
Okay?
Yes sir.
Okay.
I strap in.
I put my seatbelt on and then have a smaller seatbelt for Guy.
As you'll strap in
the series of rolling hills that you've been traveling down over the last few
days with this
warm sunlight, it all
rushes toward you as Scrap-
comes out of the drift.
There's not a lot of color whilst you were traveling through the drift but
it feels like it was
overwhelmingly bright in comparison to the
horrific darkness that
completely absorbs the ship. There is
no light, you can't even see stars
where you are. It feels like you
are swimming through
luck. The lights of the patchwork
beam out and show
a quarter of a planet in the middle of the space between.
This completely
annihilated section
of a planet almost looks like a large crescent moon even coming to that very
sharp point at the end.
And at the other there is these
red
sacks. These
pulsing, growing
almost organic matter.
A thing pretending to be veins
that only lightly make their way throughout this
quarter of a planet. Jesus if this was a fucking planet then this planet
was destroyed millennia ago.
There's been nothing here for
multiple millions of years.
This is where we're supposed to be. No no no no no.
This was just in our way.
We just had to come out of the drift because if we kept going in we would have
crashed right into it.
But it wasn't supposed to be here. No.
Hell. It's gonna take me an hour or so to
pull the ship around and make sure we're in the right place
to get back on our journey. Wonder if a satellite nearby enough
we can figure out what this planet was supposed to be.
Mark it. Cam
is everyone looking out at this?
In fact I was gonna say if there's like binoculars or something.
Didn't Flair give me special...
I have binocular goggles. I was gonna like
hook something on to my belt and hop out the window
and throw on my gas mask and see if I can get a better look at it.
Probably not because it is an entire planet.
But I'm like wow cool.
Cam, everyone roll me a physical science please.
Physical science?
I don't think I can make that roll.
If you're not trained in the physical science
you unfortunately are unable to make the roll.
Oh got it. Okay. 19. I also got 19.
31. Jesus.
Can I
connect to like the
intranet...
In the space between there are
there is no way to communicate because the satellites are just too far away
for you to properly get like a decent signal feedback.
So you try but everything refuses to load.
In that case can I mark it on a digital map so we can
upload this new anomaly
once we arrive so other ships don't fall into it?
Cool. That's what I do.
With Eigensky this
quarter planet has this
grey off-white texture
that covers it. Like... oh wrong.
It has been smoothed almost. These
sacks of red
that cover the
one full side of it, almost like one tip of it
pulse erratically as
you arrive.
You notice the longer that you're there the more it kind of
pulses and almost like it's feeding something
to the tip of this quarter planet.
Theriac. Looking it over
looking at this planet that Scraps Rhyne
shouldn't be there even if
it was part of a solar system that was millennia old
it is just this clean
quarter. This crescent moon of
a surface. Sky
as she looks through the goggles points out this
film of this dusty white
and Theriac through your research
through your expertise
and what you have given your life
to. You realise
that it isn't a dusty white
and this
isn't a planet
but this is a tooth
and the pulsing red is gum
like something has shed a fang
a creature whose shed fang
is the size of a planet
and as you look at it
the pulsing of the gum
on top of this fang beats harder
and then there is a burst
you see breaking out of these sacks
these large winged snakes
all fly out and they look
at the patchwork. They give a roar
but the vacuum of space doesn't let the roar
reach you but you can see these almost
baby dragons as they fly
towards the patchwork. One of them opens its mouth
there is this charge of energy as it
and there is a bolt of lightning that shoots right past the patchwork
hitting part of the hull. Scrap flicks on a sign and the alarms
okay we gotta get the fuck out of here because i don't know what their plan is
but that does not look good for us everyone man the stations we're under
attack. I would like Ike to turn
to Azam assuming Azam is close by and just say
do we have stations?
Hello beautiful wonderful souls thank you so much for listening to the Anonymous I
have a few quick very exciting announcements then
some even more exciting thank yous for a shout out to players
first things first our music today was provided as always by
Artlist under their fair use license and we have some absolute bangers today
which is very exciting and our first very important
announcement I'd like to thank our old hosts the
welcome in we are no longer part of the welcome in as the
welcome in closed its doors for streaming and TTRPG content just for
now it's a short hiatus but because of that we have moved on to our
full own thing we have our own youtube channel which is just the atoms
and we are going to take care of all of our podcasts but we also have a patron
and if you are part of a patron at a certain tier
you will get your name shout out we're like big special thank you to
Noah and Daniel Neruda who are supporting us at this tier if
you'd like to support the show you get little extra little bits
upcoming little sneak peeks of things if you swap high enough you can get a
little shout out just like you did here for our very first one which
is extremely very exciting but also you help us get a little
extra little atomus themed things which we
have going on soon which is very very exciting
anyway thank you so much to the welcome in for supporting us
and thank you so much to Noah and Daniel Neruda that that's so fucking exciting
that you both of you are supported us thank you thank you thank
you thank you thank you our players today was the before wonderful
momo brian playing sky super dylan playing i
nordinalee kadir as werewolf feels on socials who played a zom
antaravera art as our wonderful garlic theory and me myself matthew ekberg
captain kreil on all things who did all the pew pews and edited
this episode and i like thank you so much for listening
and the next time we fly through the atomless sea
i hope you'll be there to fly with us thank you so much
pepper