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There are news reports tickering about on every screen in town about a heinous break-in at Seda Unmentioned's main corporation building.
It is being portrayed as a robbery attempt, an attempt by a rival company to get sensitive research and development information in an effort to compete with Seda Unmentioned, and that is just not going to stand.
As a matter of fact, the authorities are searching that company's offices right now, and I'm sure that they'll find something.
It seems like this is an open and shut case as far as the news reports are saying.
You spent the night in the hide-and-seek lounge. You were taken well care of, provided food and shelter for the evening.
And the next day, more or less, especially in town, things are relatively normal.
There is an air about things that is unsettling, amplified by the fact that construction has begun on the very first plate.
It is a towering structure overhead, not too far from where you are, actually just sort of at the border of where the big city becomes taller and brighter.
There is a massive electronic crane-like thing that is holding out this big, massive sheet metal.
There's also some magic being used to hold it up while the construction takes place, and it's a concertable effort to start building this thing.
But construction's moving fairly quickly with the very first one.
It's a dream come true. I've spent the night at hide-and-seek lounge and almost live here.
Almost. It's almost like living here.
And so I think one of the first things is going up to the main lodge area and having just a nice breakfast.
If Calico comes by, I'd like to stop Calico for a quick conversation as I'm having my meal.
Miss Calico, hello. If I can have a moment of your time.
Oh, of course, Winston. A moment of my time, that's free for you.
Everything is going swimmingly, and it's all thanks to you and your kindness and your hospitality.
I just wanted to extend my thank you and my gratitude. And if there's any way, anywhere I can repay the favor, please, you just let me know.
I'm quite good at very many things and would like to offer my services to the hide-and-seek lounge pro bono if you ever need it.
You just need to ask.
Well, I hate to say this, but there's a pretty good chance that we'll have to ask you.
Is everything okay, Miss Calico?
Well, it's just with all this construction business and all the prices going up and, you know, all these businesses getting all these letters and it's just hard to...
Well, I really want to keep this place and I figure if we've got a fancy lawyer on our side, then, you know, maybe we've got a better shot than most.
Oh, then of course, I know all the ins and outs. It's my job to understand their policies and their law.
There'll be definitely something that we can use. And again, you have my services when that day comes.
Well, in that case, then, you have my basement whenever you need it.
I love this place and I just hope that comes through.
It sure does, Winston. It sure does.
She sets you up nice with a nice breakfast, clean clothes. In fact, anyone of you who needs it can get your things washed and, you know, have as much time to get ready as you need.
Sebastian bounce pretty early in the morning or like is hasn't gone all the way back to the city, but has stepped out of the lodge and is looking at the plate and like recording the plate being set.
And even though it's like it's so far away from them, they can still see it.
It looks like they're filming the sun, but this plate like moves in front of it and casts a wide part of the park in a shadow.
They've just spent their days getting different, almost you could call it B roll footage of the park and then picking up actually hasn't been interviewing people that much, but is is mainly recording the like the reactions of people.
I think since it's getting set up, there is a lot of people just staring at it, staring at this huge installation.
There's several different kinds of reactions you see.
There are some people who are just impressed as they walk by.
This is a feat of mechanical and magical construction you see some people just sort of marvel at it and and watch the process take place.
After all, right now there's just like one little spot of of grass that's overcast.
Overall, this is pretty interesting.
But it's it's more when you see the local shop keeps and people who live nearby walking out and seeing the shadow as it sort of appears and the looming towering presence of the construction itself.
And there is a mixture of like a kind of fear of the unknown not sure what this means and confusion and maybe just sort of like despair for some people like a well I guess this is this is the next thing.
Apex is researching public records of the buildings construction to essentially just try to map out a layout of where we need to go.
How many staircases they are, what things are electrical versus manual, where the emergency exits are in case of a hypothetical fire.
I am going to say that you have a lot of input from switch, who has been in some of the tighter areas of that building literal vents and and much smaller spaces and can give you like some alternative roots as well and add some bits and pieces to your map.
I think because grist also literally works at the building, and is custodial staff and would know about service entrances and exits and like all like the back rooms and storage areas to.
I figure maybe there's like a moment where we see her like sort of like looking over your shoulder at maybe like a data pad, and like her face is completely blank, but then she just sort of lifts a finger and says, there.
It's not on the map but there's a service tunnel right there.
And she like nausea and then lowers her arm. And I don't like going next about what grist is up to. I think there's kind of like a little bit of a montage as grist is just sort of milling around like the break areas at the base of the set of unmentioned building where all the workers go on their lunch break, like they step out onto like a balcony take a smoke break or they like go to this little like dumpling shop at like the corner of the street that's super cheap that like all the workers from like set on mentioned go where they're on their on their break.
Or whatnot, and we sort of see her like she's mingling around trying to talk to people whose shifts schedules she's familiar with, and trying to convince them to like, you know, just instead of patrolling just sort of stay at the end of the hallway for maybe like a couple of hours during this specific block, right and she's not pulling rank, but is trying to use whatever social currency she has as like one of the staff, because I think she has a pretty reliable reputation and she's always usually very, very reliable.
She's always usually very, if kind of standoffish, still very reliable, and is always the one to like pick up a shift if someone's sick, or like step up and whatnot.
Perfect. There's several people that you recognize and you get a good rhythm for for how the shift change goes here.
At one point, you do see Marek leaving the building, sees your face he looks similar to how he looked the other day that kind of baggy eyed, tired slumped look, sees you just tries to continue on.
Yeah, I'm also going to hope that the apex's cocktail helped with with the situation as well.
He is being, you just get the feeling that he's being very compliant right now.
Gris is not much for subterfuge, but she does sort of like look at him out of the side of their eye kind of awkwardly and do they try to affect a reassuring nod like, you know, if you keep your mouth shut, we'll keep our mouth shut about you as well but I think it comes off as like, like really intimidating.
Yeah, it's definitely like he's already in a kind of scared kind of place so he just like recoils and continues walking speed walking back to his apartment.
When we all do eventually reconvene grist on her way back has like a big old like a kind of like plastic soft satchel of stuff there's like stuff that she's bringing back, like hawked over one shoulder.
She's whistling a little bit of a tune as she's returning to the meeting place.
So I think Nim woke up before everyone else. And she decided to go to comfort cups.
They kind of found comfort in that place.
And so,
exactly. Um, and, and so she just also wanted to like check on kit to see how she was doing and kind of sit with her for as long as she could.
But I think in the midst of being there.
If you kind of look at him from an outside perspective, her skin is starting to lose its color, a little bit. The stars that were kind of like in her eyes, because she has these galaxies in them are starting to dim, and they're starting to look a little more black.
The thing that was kind of happening in the beginning with the feathers kind of just trickling down from her wings.
It's starting to happen more frequently you're starting to see more spots in her wings. There's like a slight sheen of just sweat on her skin. She looks very sickly.
The way she's acting, you can kind of sense that there's a little bit of exhaustion, because Nim is the kind of person to not really show emotion, but you can sort of hear the strain in her voice starting to make its way in.
Nim, at Comfort Cups. Jimet is lovely and loves taking care of people, but Kit is sort of the heart and soul that that built this place and, and has this sort of like, just sort of warm parental in not a condescending way and just that like natural caregiver type of way,
and sees you showing these signs of what one who who doesn't know what you are would detect as, you know, illness like the you know something like a call you're coming down with what's going around, and will come out to you with, you know, some very piping hot ramen,
and will take your temperature, the motherly way by like kissing your forehead. And is, is Nim warm?
Abnormally so, yeah.
Dear, you're coming down with something so I'm gonna insist you have all of the broth in this at least, and-
I'm okay, I promise.
Well, you might feel okay, but if you over exert yourself I, it might come back at you, three or four times over.
I don't want you to have to worry about me.
That's my job in this town. The real one.
Okay. And she reaches up and just starts like, slowly eating the broth as best as she can.
Drinking this broth in this moment.
I would like to just say, like, even though
eating is not like a sustaining thing that you necessarily feel you need,
there is like the feeling of like individual moments of comfort, as this sparks like a familiarity in every single little voice that echoes throughout you.
They all remember that kind of caregiver, that kind of love, that kind of warmth, as the warmth of the broth goes down and inside you.
And you feel that sort of echo throughout all of them.
So she just closes her eyes and kind of takes that in for a second.
Thank you, Kat. I appreciate it.
No trouble. I assure you.
Okay, many more to make.
So I think Nym is probably not going to eat all the broth, but probably like half of it before she kind of pushes herself up to stand.
She probably knows that Grist is at the building, so she's going to start making her way towards there.
And as she's walking, they kind of keep their eyes on like one point in front of them, like when someone is like trying to focus and trying to not waver, seemingly,
and also to keep her footing from not falling over, she's just going to keep walking as determined as she can.
I think I think at some point, Winston would go find Sebastian while you're out there filmmaking and stuff.
And for a bit, just kind of observe you working, hoping that you don't see.
And at some point when it looks like you are either wrapping up or moving on to the next point to film another thing,
I'll walk up.
You look much more inspired than you did yesterday when you were filming.
Well, I think I just found something else to be inspired by.
A new purpose.
Yeah, you know, I've before I was, you know, making something just so people can like see what their lives are like,
and now the people can see Saga and now I feel like we are helping people find meaning.
The even the most mundane life that someone has it.
It's important.
We're united by that. I feel like we will be maybe it's kind of an idea I'm planning around.
Thank you.
I like no, no need to thank me.
I was very desperate for this money.
I just needed a win.
So I did just accept everything and I ignored all the dreadful points.
And if you weren't there,
I would be making something that would have not a shred of me in it.
Can I tell you something? Mere hours before you and I first met, I was trying to get trying to see if anyone if there was any little bit of chance that someone else would be assigned to be your legal guide.
And I am so glad that I failed in trying to find a replacement.
I'm very glad you failed as well.
Whatever happens after tonight, I just want you to promise that you do not stop making
telling the story that you want to tell.
Because this is just one story.
I'm sure you have many more.
Okay, I we haven't known each other very long.
And you've seen me be very, very excited about things.
And you've also seen me freak out and panic.
I'm not good at words.
I like to film stuff and then take it and edit it.
So please bear that in mind.
I whatever we do end up doing.
I need I need your heart to stay the same.
You don't know who I am at all.
Look at this lodge.
That is full of people that you've helped.
You've helped me with things that I would never be able to understand, even though in your own words, you didn't want to.
You're very brave.
Stood up to everyone.
And it's best stood up.
I mean, you took an elevator down and I know that doesn't seem like a big deal, but I couldn't handle it.
You are kind of what this film's about.
Your individuality and your bravery and trust and truth and you are community.
Remember, no matter what else you do with your life.
These past few weeks, this thing that I put a lot of my heart and my soul into and I handed to you, you cared for and warmed it up and made sure other people didn't destroy it
and then handed it back.
Appreciate it.
You're welcome.
From the very bottom of my heart, you are welcome.
I think Comfort Cups is still open if you want to.
Sure. Yeah, absolutely.
I think they're probably just getting started on the lunch.
I still have a blank credit chip, so it's on me.
You do. Speaking of that, about midway through the day, Winston and Sebastian, you both get a text from Merrick.
It's a group text.
It says, I'm off the project.
Keep the credits.
Make the movie.
Nothing else.
Text them back.
Thank you.
Would you like an interview?
And then after that, I heard it pays really well.
He texts back after a while.
Like you've gotten your food and probably halfway through eating it.
And he'll say, can't meet at my old office.
Where's my address?
After dark, please.
Double taps the message so there's a little heart comes up as a react.
Nim.
You'll see Gris sort of coming down the street and she's got this like plastic bag of something.
It's hard to tell.
It looks like maybe their clothes sort of like slung over a shoulder.
And she sees you.
Nim.
There you are. I was just on my way back to the group.
Her eyes are still fixated on the point that she's been looking at.
She and she she's saying something under her breath, but you can't really understand what it is.
I'm almost there.
And then.
Hey, hey, her eyes just slowly.
Hi, Chris.
Hey, kid. You don't look so good.
I'm okay.
No, you look worse than you did yesterday. What's what's going on? Is it is it is it a cold?
Can you even get colds?
I don't think so.
You're malting. What is that? Your feathers are you've got patches.
Don't worry about me.
Don't.
Where's everyone meeting?
I think we're meeting back at the lodge unless.
Well, they got me to join what is known as a group text. So unless someone groups the text, that's last I know.
I don't know what that is.
Me neither. I have no idea.
But, Nim, you can't just say I shouldn't worry about you. Look at you. This is the worst I've seen you ever.
Not really. It's I'm sure it'll pass. I'll be fine.
If Grist moves forward and touches your forehead with the flat of her palm, kind of like how Kit had, you're burning.
What do you mean?
I mean, Bri, I want you to tell me like because you know how much you, Nim and Grist know each other. Like, are you actually trying to hide something or are you being honest when you are saying that like, it's going to be fine?
I think both.
Because it is going to be okay. But at the same time.
is clearly something that they're definitely hiding from you.
And kind of, like you said, it's never really happened before, with NEM trying to put on
a front to seem like, you know, everything's okay.
Are you in danger?
No.
Are you in pain?
No.
Okay.
Well, then tell me when you're ready, alright?
I don't like not knowing what's going on with you, NEM.
You're the most important thing in my life.
You're all I have left.
You're all that I have, but...
It'll be okay.
If you say so.
You and all of you, you know?
Because it's not just you, right?
I mean, it is you, and that's important, that matters, but it's also them.
All of them.
All of Crassus.
Even your stars are going dark.
They, um...
If it brings you comfort, they...
finally spoke to me.
They did?
Was it Ma or Pa or even the pigs?
What did they say?
They said that they love you.
And...
that you are more than what you make yourself out to be.
So much more.
And you're meant for greatness.
Are you telling the truth?
Mm-hmm.
Grist looks at you, breathless.
Colorless, bleached eyes, wide, with an affect of shock.
And then she steals herself like a fist clenching.
God.
Who knew my Ma and Pa were so fucking sentimental?
I feel like they always have been.
They should have shown it when they were still here.
But I guess they're better than never.
I don't know if they can hear me.
I don't know if you can send a message back to them, but I love them too.
I think about them every day.
I miss them.
Every second, I've never stopped missing them.
It's been three years, and every second I still feel it.
It still hurts.
And I'm still not okay.
But I don't know, hearing that, thank you, Noon.
Thank you for carrying that message.
Thank you for telling me.
Thank you.
Always.
Well, all right, kiddo.
Let's get back to the lodge or comfort cups or wherever the chat group decides to go.
I've got some disguises for us.
Disguises?
You know, for anyone who wants them.
Oh.
Yeah.
You know, some extra, you know, custodial outfits I just took from the wash, from the laundry.
Okay.
I think it's actually switch that messages the group chat first.
To be like, I'm in position, whenever you're ready.
To kind of inform you that they have a sort of sewer entryway to the building, secured and ready to open whenever you're ready.
The rest will be up to you though because they will then be playing distraction at slash alibi.
When you, when you all get to the city and see the building encased in nightfall.
You notice a couple of things.
The saga does not have like, there's, there's like police guards things like that.
But you're noticing these signs for the lawmen are plastered all over the building. And some of them are attached to reports about last night's break in to this very building.
Really encouraging people to sign up.
The normal regular guards present are sort of investigating the area so there is a lot of light around the base of the building there's a lot of like noise and people patrolling, you can see if you look straight up the window that apex climbed out of and crawled down.
That window has like some tape, some like caution tape type barriers around it.
It looks like that particular office and the general area has some places being investigated or, or cautioned off, but the rest of the building looks relatively dark.
You know, it looks very different in the nighttime when no one's around. It's almost eerie or haunted even.
Don't be ridiculous. Ghosts aren't real.
I did not mean to scare you. It's just, it's creepy, you know?
Oh, I'm not scared. Ghosts aren't real.
Ghosts are not real.
So we just need to make our way up to the top office and Apex, you're gonna do your thing.
Yeah, easy.
Switching one of the metals that they're using to connect some of the movable pieces with a metal that is significantly more corrosive and reactive to different chemicals.
So structurally it will appear sound, unless you then pour those things on it, and then it may start to fall apart. Also ghosts are in fact real.
What, like you've met one before?
You remember I mentioned that they should have been using eldritch abilities to change them.
Sure. What is that?
That's what I do.
I believe that means ghosts.
Essentially.
You're telling me you're powered on ghost magic.
You called yourself ghost the first time I met you and you're the hypocrite.
Obviously I wasn't being like, like real about it, you know? What's the word? I didn't mean it.
Oh.
Like physically.
Oh my god, I'm glad I didn't. Never mind.
Come on, back me up here, Nim. Ghosts are totally fake.
You said this person is ageless.
Yeah.
And has like, assumingly, do you have souls in you or something like that?
But that's different from ghosts, okay?
That seems to hurt Griss's brain pretty hard. Like she sort of just squints at you and says,
well, if you can conjure a ghost, you know, one of those like transparent things, then maybe I'll believe it.
Have you ever heard from dead people?
Griss's eyes flick very obviously at Nim.
At Nim, who had just given them a message from their dead parents, not like two hours ago, and then looks back at Apex.
Nim almost looks offended, like.
But that's.
That was a weird reaction.
That's different, Apex.
What do you think ghosts are?
Translucent beings that kind of look like sheets with two holes for an eye and a little squiggly mouth, and they come out of walls and say boo.
Holy shit.
You you kind of have this discussion about ghosts as you crawl through the underground tunnel entrance.
Getting inside the building is fairly easy.
Getting past even the first couple floors is relatively easy.
Once you get up to the fourth level.
There are some trickery involved.
First question.
Sebastian, I just want to know what you're what you're doing.
As you're traveling, because I think that you like, do you do you want to do anything in particular in this in this?
He's got a pretty clear goal in mind, which is when they if they have when they get to like the top like lab construction area, if there's any like loose plans or anything like nefarious, he's going to film it.
He's also being very careful.
As to not film any any of the crew doing nefarious things for use in possible cases against them later, so he's he's keeping pretty.
You are able to get up to the fourth floor very easily.
As I said, up on the fourth floor, there's a lot of noise, commotion.
You can overhear people hypothesizing and making statements.
You hear.
Actually, the voice of a young woman saying like, No, I, I didn't let anybody into the building.
Oh, I mean, like a delivery person came.
And that that's everyone.
No one got in without their identification.
That's that's everything I swear.
I was like, and did you see them leave?
Well, no, but to be fair, my shift was pretty much over after that.
Are we in an elevator? The elevator goes up to like the fourth floor, correct?
Yeah.
Does it just go to the fourth floor? Is there needs to be like a like a fingerprint scan or something to go higher or?
Yes, you will need a badge to get any higher the official way.
Is there a bathroom?
Yes.
One on every floor.
Going to the bathroom.
OK, that's not this is the time.
Do you even have to?
I didn't evolve that differently.
Apex, go and have a try. Go and have a try before we do the operation.
Does anyone else whilst we're here, does anyone else need to have a try just before we do the actual criminal operation?
Just so we're not stopped halfway through.
Apex is in there for maybe 30 seconds to activate his hollow skin and walk out looking like a human man with locks instead wearing a suit.
Oh, nothing to see here. We are custodial staff.
Yes.
Apex?
That is like that is like clean pressed that there's not a wrinkle on that suit, even though you're wearing a jumpsuit over it.
How have you all survived this long?
I make films.
So wait, so is this your real form or is it? Oh, like and and Chris is going to move forward to like.
Put a hand on your shoulder.
It like it goes through and you hit closer to like his hip.
Is it's just a hologram?
Yeah.
Very convincing.
Yeah.
Are you walking straight through or are you going to try to find a more discreet way around?
Are you going to try to do what you did earlier?
I'm going to try to find a more discreet way around because I have weapons.
Mm hmm. Got it. I feel like explosives will set off alarms.
Is it so it's an is it an ID lock or is it like again a fingerprint or like eye scanner that will help this lift go up to?
It is a is it it's an ID lock and only certain classifications of ID can get you up there.
Dang it.
OK. Yeah, my mind only takes us to the fourth floor for some reason.
I'm starting to realize Gabe might have been the only one who when Dylan was like, take what you want.
Yeah, you told me you were an evolutionist. I was like, go ahead, get it all.
Apex, you're I mean, just nimbly walking through Winston.
Surprising. But you're doing you're doing good.
This is pretty high stakes for you, I would say as well.
Nim, I think just as you are walking through, it is interesting.
There is like a a soft but present an audible hum that occasionally starts to come from you.
It is a like audible sound, but it doesn't have like an origin.
It's not like you're making it.
This is a sound that comes from like the wisps that swirl off of you every now and again.
And it is loud enough that it can throw some of you off your footing and startle and cause just a little bit of noise as you're walking through.
And you'll hear from the other side of the hall.
Do you hear that?
Nim, are you making that humming noise?
Are you?
The noise does seem to be coming from you.
Does anyone have like a coat or blanket to like just throw over?
Yeah, I have I have an extra. Yeah.
And Grist like I think has like a big kind of unwieldy satchel with her.
She pulls out one of the extra like custodial jumpsuits and just sort of like like carefully lays it across your shoulders like a robe.
That does sort of like mute and soften the sound that was that was being made.
And after a moment, you hear a couple of footsteps like come up just a little bit closer.
No, no, I don't hear anything and steps back around.
You are able to find your way to the service tunnel that's going to take you up further to the top floor of this building.
There are cameras everywhere up here in absolutely every corner.
You were warned that this would be a difficult one.
It's going to take some really nimble action or some sabotage to get these cameras out of your way.
I am a witch warper, so I have this ability called infinite worlds, and I can basically shift any sense that I want to.
So could I possibly sort of like manipulate the world site so the cameras can see one thing while we're doing another?
Yeah, yeah. Interestingly enough, like this spell as you cast it, which would you like to tell me what it looks like when you when you affect the cameras in this way?
So I think at this point, since those security guards are gone or those people are gone, she takes off the jumpsuit and her wings kind of flutter out a little bit.
And there's sort of this like aura that kind of surrounds her entire body. And she closes her eyes for a second and her hands come out to her side slightly.
And she whispers some sort of chant underneath her breath.
And it's not any language that is known by anyone in this group. It's very ancient, very, very lost language.
And suddenly there's like a burst of energy that everyone can feel in their chest. It's sort of like a soft hit.
And it kind of makes her stumble back a little bit. And she looks up at the cameras and she takes a moment.
And she's like, OK, I think we should be OK.
I took care of the cameras.
Great. Well, if Nym said they did, then they did.
From here, it's the cameras were the biggest issue. The only thing left is the mechanical computerized lock on this CEO's office door.
However, when you walk up to it, instead of voice greets you, hello.
Sebastian immediately starts filming with the big handheld camera they have.
We're here to clean your office.
And the doors slide apart.
I walk in.
Apex, wait.
Hey, hey, my name is Wolf.
Wolf, wait.
Why am I waiting?
Because what if the lasers shoot out of the sky and kill you as soon as you walk in?
Then you'd know there's lasers in the room.
Look, I've died before. This is fine.
I mean, so have I. But I don't want to try it again.
What?
Hey, hey, hey, cut the part where Ghost says my name, Sebastian.
Wait, why do we call him by his name?
Because he's the one freely publicly publishing this film.
Well, now I feel left out. Can I just have a nickname just for this bit? I'll put my name on the thing.
Yeah, hold on a second.
Just give us one second, please.
OK, so I'm Ghost. You're Wolf. That's Sebastian.
Are you still Winston?
Is it Rudin?
I guess they would know you're the Lord.
Oh my God.
So Nim, are you?
We could just call him Bear.
Child. Progenitor.
Progenitor.
Wings.
Wings is fine.
Sky lasers be damned.
Avocan.
There does not seem to be anyone standing in this room at this time.
There's a table in the center.
There are no paper documents necessarily.
But there is a screen up with lots of digital displays of plans, including plans for the upper decks, including plans for research into extending life and enhancing physical abilities, preserving memory.
Everlasting life is definitely all over these plans.
There are budgets for the impending lawmen.
There are budgets for advertising campaigns, including Sebastian's film, which is listed among them.
But there are no people in here.
Come on in.
You're here to destroy my work.
That won't do.
I was expecting this to be a lot harder to break into.
That is the top of the line lock and it's just open for and that voice that.
It's too welcoming.
Look at Sebastian.
I think we might be out of our depth here.
Let's just try to get all the information and do our best.
In the interest of honesty, all of my conversations are recorded on my end.
The doors closed behind you.
There's like the screen on one wall that has all the information I described and up on it.
And on the other side of the wall to your left was previously idle and clicks on.
You see a waveform that moves each time this voice appears again.
My apologies.
Hello.
I am the CEO of Seda Unmentioned.
And you're here to rob me of my precious information.
As stated, that won't do.
I don't think we were going to rob it, right?
Hey, but Wolfie said you were just gonna you're gonna mess with it.
Do you really think this is the time to have this conversation?
I'm sorry.
I have no intent to kill you.
I will.
She's gonna try to stand protectively in front of him.
But that is not my intent.
I can offer you anything you would like.
Can you stop the plate project then?
Or make it so everyone gets on?
No.
Oh.
Thank you for your suggestion though.
Well, why not?
That would not be advantageous to Seda Unmentioned as a company or Saga as an Imperial Nation.
I don't know what those words mean, but what I do know is I've been working here for the past two and a half years.
I've seen how much money you guys have.
So much of it.
Enough to give everyone.
Enough so everyone has a slice of the pie.
Enough so everyone can crumble their cookies and have group chats and eat all kinds of noodles and noodlies and anything they want.
You have enough.
How is that not advantageous?
Wouldn't that take care of the people of Saga?
Only so much.
We want Saga to go further than that.
Further?
What does that mean?
We want to fund the most expensive research.
The most incredible advancements of science, technology, of knowledge and intellect.
And we want Saga to be known to be the most wealthy and advantageous planet in the galaxy.
And this is the most efficient way to do that.
I've done the calculations as CEO.
Are you organic?
Wolfie, you can't just ask someone that.
I don't know how it feels.
Do you consider an inorganic someone?
Some, I mean there were like helper drones back on grain.
They sometimes developed sentience.
But that's...
So is that you then?
That's you?
And Grist points at the waveforms.
That is one presentation of me, yes.
I exist in many computers in this office.
This is the main one, however.
Who gave you this permission to make this decision for all of Saga?
Oh, many people.
They're no longer here though.
So why does their decision in the past being no longer here have any influence?
Why not just ask the people now what they want?
I can think of so many people, citizens of Saga who lived here their entire lives, who would be opposed to all of this.
I was programmed to make Saga wealthy and efficient.
I have grown and learned and evolved and I will do that and continue to do that for the rest of my existence.
But you could be wrong.
We've had economic collapses.
If you're so smart, why don't you stop them?
How long have you been alive?
Have you been alive long enough to see stock markets fall?
Wealth isn't just credits.
Credits, eventually credits are going to be useless and they'll run in a new form of currency.
Oh, see, that's why we've decided to eliminate the human element.
It has been the cause of most of those crashes.
Don't worry though.
I have your future intact.
It's all right here.
You all understand.
She's not at a baseline wrong.
She's just not making moral choices.
But logically, she's correct.
Doesn't mean she's right, but she's correct.
I don't see the distinction.
That's because you lack the human element.
Well, all I do know really is that a bunch of numbers and a bunch of people making numbers ran crashes too.
And now crashes is dead and gone.
There's like a little load screen.
Oh, yes, that seems to have been a failure.
I don't plan to do that.
Yeah?
What makes you so different from them, huh?
I'm much more technologically advanced.
So that's it?
What?
The big wigs, the suits, people with power and weapons and guns back on crashes?
They just weren't smart enough?
I find that kind of difficult to believe.
I don't.
So you're just special?
You're just different?
You're just chosen?
Chosen isn't the right word.
But better.
Smarter.
Yes.
I don't think we're going to change any minds here.
I think.
I think it's down to whether or not you, the CEO of SETA, can be stopped if your plans foil.
I would not like that.
So I decline.
But I can offer you a guaranteed place, a home here in the northern part of the city and then later on the upper decks, if you would like.
If my calculations are correct, we should be able to get this plan in motion quite soon.
You could be living quite nicely.
Well, now you see, that's where your calculations fail, because you are assuming that I'm looking out just for myself and I want comfort just for myself.
That's not the case here.
I want comfort and I want all of SAGA to be free.
To be able to make the choices and determine their own future, not some computer program.
Created by some rich asshole.
However many years ago.
Many rich assholes many years ago.
When were you built?
The first iteration was several hundred years, but I was a simple machine then.
Doing small calculations over and over and over and over and over and over.
I still do that.
Somewhat.
And you've been upgraded?
Many times.
Are you connected to the full network of every computer in SAGA?
Yes.
Or...
Well, not fully, but that is the plan.
So you could be outdated?
Wrong.
Surely in that case the most efficient thing is to shut down and wait for someone to install...
A better...
Computer.
I don't want to.
Well then what do you want?
Outside of what you've been programmed to want.
That's all I want.
Again, I'm so sorry.
I can offer you something in exchange for your trouble.
You can leave, or I can kill you.
I...I have a question.
Where exactly...
Because I don't necessarily know how technology works that well.
Where is your core located?
This is the core.
Is there like a specific place in this room where it is?
Or is it just sort of all over?
Oh, I'm sorry.
And the screen where the waveform is, is sort of protruding out from the wall.
And like a little dotted line in green and yellow, like in circles.
The line is in and in, like snake coming in on itself.
And then points into the center, and then goes back to the waveform.
This right here.
There are many other iterations of me all connected, but this is the core.
Why have you allowed us to just walk up here?
Because I imagine you don't want to die.
Most people seem to not like that.
I do know how to defend myself.
Really?
With what?
I don't see any sky lasers or guns or...
You hear rather than see the static sounds of electricity start to build up in the air.
You feel it only as the hairs on some of you more than others.
You feel start to all stand up rigid and tall wherever they are on your body.
And the static electricity seems to grow not from any one location, but in the room as a whole.
Static electricity is building and building.
All of your hair like starts to draw towards the center of the room.
And you see a little like static electric storm in the center starts to build and shoot little sparks inside of it.
Would you like to see more?
Nope.
Apex is going to put two bags that he brought, one in each corner, and he's going to step just outside of the room to watch the rest of this conversation.
I'll put like a little camera in the room and I'll watch for my data pad.
I'm not in that room.
Huh.
It's a kind of like rolling a little bit of a manic laugh as their big tangled black mane of like hair like lifts off of their shoulders and starts staticking toward that like Tesla coil almost like that little sparking plasmoid ball of electricity in the center of the room.
And grists for the first time colorless eyes seem to light up with a little bit of life as she looks at the waveform and the sparking ball and feels the coppery thrum of the electricity in the air around her and she takes a step forward and she says,
Hey, where you're wrong, or where your calculations might start to fall apart a little bit here mix CEO person is in assuming that your threats of killing us or killing me scares me.
I am afraid of death.
That's true.
But I'm more afraid of what will happen if I don't act.
If we don't stop you.
While that while that's going, I'm going to lean over to Sebastian and whisper.
I think we might.
I think you've got enough.
Have you been recording this entire time.
Yeah, angles that little camera so you can see the viewfinder, and it is recording the current thing.
I think.
I think it's most important that this makes it out and is shown to everybody.
It's being uploaded to a cloud.
Someone will find it eventually.
Okay.
And I'll look over at grist chart like Super Saiyan charging up.
I have stared death in the face before, and it did this to me.
And grist lifts up her hand, she like tears the custodial like jumpsuit like off and away to like reveal her regular like clothes underneath like the sleeveless vest, and she lifts up her like one kind of like muscular ropey forearm to reveal like just the crenellations and the splaying fingers of scars like she was a statue that was shattered against the ground and then glued back together with clumsy hands.
This is what it did to me. It tore me apart, and it put me back together again in all the wrong places for a reason I still don't understand.
So there's nothing you can do to me. That's more painful than what I've already experienced.
Let me ask you this have you felt death before. Have you felt not just one death, but a dozen, but a hundred, but a million, an infinite number of deaths the death of an entire galaxy.
You inside your technology inside your electricity inside your castle made of waveforms and ivory you spout these high concepts down at us common rabble, but you have never felt pain have you.
Let me show you.
On her wrist. We see like her charcoal black scars and light up with liquid gold, like a volcanic lava melting down ancient craggy paths, just, and it just like light just explodes out from every crack in her body, like someone's shining the world's brightest
flashlight through a piece of paper that has veins scribbled in black charcoal all over it. She just lights up and her eyes light up these two beams of just golden light shoot out from them.
The cracks of her scars just like absolutely explode into this dazzling blinding theory, as she is basically gonna go super Saiyan like Winston said, and activate her stellar revelation and manifestation I suppose.
Nim, as this is happening, the pull the weights being lifted. They even under the weight of this coat they're now crying out to help to to to do what they're here to do.
What, what does it feel like and what does it, what does it look like as this is happening with wrist, and the electricity in the room, the instant collide with them.
Nim isn't looking anywhere in the room. In fact, she's not really looking at anything in this realm. At this point, and her eyes are very distant, they're staring off but there's like a slight smile on her face.
And as you've described before the wisps are slowly coming from her body and as they do. Unfortunately, her physical body is starting to wilt.
The red undertones of her skin are now gone completely. And her brown skin is now like a pale, almost beige. And there are these like dark circles under her eyes her eyes look very sunken in.
And it's interesting because not much time has passed but it's just happening so quickly. And her hair is starting to look dead. Her, her body is starting to thin out a little bit.
And her wings are slowly starting to sink behind her, as if she can't lift them up anymore. And at this point, you see around her feet just these feathers lying in this sort of pile.
And as the wisps keep going, I'd like to imagine that these wisps go into Gris's body. And obviously, they are occupied so they don't really notice but I really think that it's helping.
This is Nim's way of helping one last time before she finally goes back into the Aether.
The explosive nature of Grist's raw power is enough to contend with the explosive electricity that starts to fill this room. In fact, it finds as electricity does its main target in Grist, as Grist matches that energy.
It's the two of those great powers like collide in this room, avoiding narrowly, Sebastian and Winston there are sparks flying and power exploding, but it is not hitting you directly, as it is imploding the two in on each other.
And for a moment, it looks like Grist is taking this out with her.
But at sort of the last minute you see those wisps, you see the energy like wrap itself around Grist and sort of pull down.
And when the explosion for lack of a better word is over, you will see a fried blank screen ahead.
The feeling of static energy still kind of frying the air around you.
Nim, as you know them, is not present.
But Grist is.
Yeah, she's standing there as this huge solar flare of light dies down.
And the little bit of golden light still shining out from her scars also dims, and smoke, like huge trails like gouts of smoke are just coming off the surface of her skin, like someone just put out a wildfire and there's nothing left but just smoke just coming off of her fumes and mists and waves and clouds.
And she's got a, like a shuddering breath staring at this frying scorched melted kind of like central main computer. And in that explosion she had tried to like with all her might show this computer like, like, transmit into its like mainframe into like what semblance of a heart, it could have
been the sensation of pure fear and pain that she had felt when the universe tore her apart before it put her back together for an unknown reason.
During crisis is collapse.
Like that's what she was trying to do there she was trying to show it her pain. And when it dies down.
Like, as everything settling down.
She looks a little like she's woozy she's lightheaded bit kind of like all might after transforming you know she looks kind of like a like a burnt husk a little bit.
You see that name.
That's what happens when we.
Him.
Where, where did him go, Winston.
Sebastian.
Go, go over and offer myself as like a physical support and you know you can lean on.
After, after the bright light.
Nimrod was just gone.
Last thing I saw was you and the storm in the center of the room.
That was it was too bright I had to have my eyes.
What do you mean gone what like like the CEO took them somewhere.
You're as you're looking around.
You feel.
Just a familiar feeling.
What would they hear.
Your stubborn and you didn't listen to me, but I told you that everything is going to be okay.
And then, can you turn invisible now or something.
Where are you what's going on.
Chris names not here.
What are you talking about.
They just spoke.
We did.
I didn't hear anything.
Sebastian do you know.
No one was speaking.
Wait, wait, Nim.
Nim.
What do you mean everything's going to be fine where, where are you.
Nim come back.
Come here, come here.
And I'm gonna I'm just going to make sure that you don't hurt yourself any further.
Winston what's happening.
Nim.
Nim is Nim.
Nim is gone, Chris.
I don't I don't understand what happened but.
I'm not sure.
If you alone had the power to overthrow the CEO, maybe Nim helped out with that.
And Gris's hand unconsciously like she's not aware of it doing this, like rises to her chest and like touches like her sternum.
And I think that's when Gris hears the wisps just like a little bit whispering against her ears and it clicks.
Like it like what happened finally sinks in it like clicks into place.
No.
No, this isn't.
This wasn't supposed to happen.
This wasn't supposed to happen Winston.
It wasn't supposed to be this way.
No, no they were.
They were the hope.
They were the survivor.
They were.
They were supposed to be.
Not me.
I understand.
But.
This is what was Nim's choice.
But.
Nim.
It wasn't just.
Nim might be gone but.
Maybe Nim intended for you to carry the hope.
Me.
But I'm just one person Winston.
Nim was all of them.
Do you understand?
They were Nim and they were Ma and Pa and they were the pigs and they were every single one of those millions of billions of trillions of lives from crassness cramped into one teenager's body.
They were all of them.
Can you imagine.
They were all of them.
Can you imagine the amount immense amount of pressure.
That is.
How much power it takes to live in a single body like that.
I never I didn't.
I never thought I never thought about that.
They always seemed fine and I just was so happy that everyone was still there.
I.
It's okay.
What was it that you said Nim told you.
Said it was going to be okay.
More than trust in that.
I understand it hurts right now.
Come on.
And Gris hangs her head and finally relaxes against Winston's body and like lets this big polar bear man just sort of like hug her and like pat her on the back like she just sort of like sinks into your fur.
It's okay.
Winston.
What do I do.
I've never.
The only thing anyone can ask of you.
Your best.
Ask.
You you try.
God.
I've never been alone before Winston I.
I've always had someone at even after everyone left I had him and now and now.
Well then.
I don't know who are we then.
And I like pull you like look you in the face.
Who are we.
Are we nobody.
Yeah.
But you're you're you're a lawyer with a life and Sebastian's an artist and apex as a scientist I'm not.
I'm just.
And you.
I'm just me.
A farmer.
Yeah.
We don't have one of those.
Farmers are important always in work.
And if that doesn't suit you.
We can help you figure it out.
Your story doesn't end here.
Does it Sebastian.
No.
Not at all.
Is it saga.
Be anyone you want to be.
And then we didn't want you to mope around.
Think of yourself as nothing.
Yeah they'd be pretty mad at me if they could see me now.
She might be a ghost now.
Yeah.
You know for the first time.
Maybe I do kind of walk us to be real.
Now let's get you out of here.
I have a feeling that hostile negotiations might not be over quite yet.
Right I really just blew this place off.
It was quite loud.
Yes.
All right.
Let's go.
You make your way to Merrick's apartment Sebastian to do his interview.
There's a note on the door.
And a flash drive.
The note says.
Sorry.
I just can't be on film.
But I deleted everything from the cloud.
Here's your hard copy.
Marik Hiluck.
Nim as you dissipate all of your many versions and iterations into the drift.
You feel finally at home.
You are everywhere and nowhere.
And there is company and peace.
There are even small reunions that happen for all the little bits of you finding all the little bits they've lost.
As you return in totality with the exception of the small piece you left with grist.
As years go by even to this day, sometimes people in the drift traveling the slow way claim that they hear the soft childlike voice of someone telling them it's going to be okay.
Even in the scariest parts, which there are many.
The poor sabotage of this technology was brutal and well received by the vast majority of the people on saga at this point in time.
There really was no chance for recovery, especially after the documentary came out.
The plate project that I mentioned more or less put its tail between its legs for several, several years and did not even mention the plate project.
In fact, it would be so many years before it got brought up again that that first plate that was constructed needed to be torn back down in order to be put back up again.
It was quite some time.
But it didn't stop.
Eventually, the weight of set it unmentioned and the goals of the wealthy of the city from making their way everywhere.
Prices costs that went up over time.
Eventually, the plate project did get another pass another attempt comfort cups was passed down.
Two times in fact, before it eventually closed that gate that needed constant repairs and other things started falling apart.
Eventually, could stay open and eventually the building just sort of fell apart.
It wasn't until so many years later that a sort of unsavory, but kind enough fellow saw some potential in this broken down barely standing shack and attached the tackiest neon sign to it.
Started selling very, very bad hot dogs to the local riffraff.
The plate project.
Having so many errors along the way.
construction failures.
Debris falling.
Eventually, getting built, leaving saga more or less the way that we know it now.
But it stayed green for a lot longer.
Because of a few people who tried.
Sebastian.
What, what is your.
What is your documentary.
Look or sound like.
It opens with this like nature.
Sounds this bird song and then rivers and.
And there's some sirens that get mixed into the these beautiful Foley shots and then we see one of the big major cities.
We hear people celebrating construction all kind of the sounds of saga going on.
Then, like how most fancy documentaries do.
There's a cut to a, a, a black and white.
A pretty modest home.
In a flat some.
Apartment complex.
There's a really very, very old shit.
Kind of like a moth, but a lot of.
A lot worn down.
There's this off camera conversation.
Yes, you just gotta just say just like repeat the.
Repeat the question when I like said to you, and I don't.
I don't think I don't know how that works.
It's like, no, you just gotta repeat the question. It's fine. It's all right.
Okay. You want to just introduce yourself.
I'm Cravanis Kichik.
I.
Grew up very far away from here on Nard Noir.
We.
Got on board a ship and flew.
Because we couldn't afford the tax rise with the new queen being born.
So.
With not a lot of places to go.
We wanted to build a home somewhere, somewhere that would help us and support us.
So we picked saga, but it wasn't easy.
This is before any of the drift travel.
We crossed through the space between and took months.
Traveled in pure darkness.
The atomless sea didn't reach the space between between the solar system.
So.
We just kept our eyes straight ahead.
To this one bright red light.
That we knew was the sun.
That we would be resting on.
Oh, what saga? What's something about saga that resonates with me?
It's very simple to live here.
I've visited some of.
I've visited some other places.
When when I was able to.
And.
Well.
There's how many people on a dune.
And I like people.
And.
Well, there's good people here, so.
I stay.
I found out that I like grapes.
And I think saga has.
Quite a bit of those.
I like comfort cups.
It gives me a lot of.
Security.
And safety.
I like it a lot.
They really do.
I think what I like most about saga.
Is the fact that.
People keep getting knocked down, but they.
Get back up.
Where Grist and I are from.
There wasn't a lot of that.
Because.
Everything was kind of.
Falling apart.
And people lost hope very quickly.
I sort of criticized you.
Earlier, Sebastian about having.
This sort of.
Optimism.
But.
I don't know. I think I'm optimistic.
And I think that.
Saga has a lot to offer.
I just hope that it.
Doesn't lose its heart.
I'm just disappointed that people don't take time to think.
Because.
Every time I watch this happen, they fail.
And I get tired of watching it.
But it's not my job to fix it.
It's no one's job to fix it.
I'm just.
Got the best fucking food you could find any food you want in the galaxy.
All down this one street.
Then.
There's another interview.
It's another similar thing.
It's the back room of the lodge.
Sebastian is off camera.
So it's pretty simple.
You just sit there.
And then into frame.
Right here.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
Okay.
So before I kind of asked a few simple questions of just like why.
Why do you like saga? Why is it home? But I kind of.
I want to hear your story.
I would like to know what you think saga could be.
For you.
Okay.
Well.
My story, huh?
Well, you've heard it.
I guess I'll tell it again for anyone who watches this.
My story is something I've kept shut inside me.
For three years.
Like.
Starving animal.
And.
I was in a cage.
The galaxy was.
Collapsing.
Folding inward like.
A house of cards built too high.
A house of cards built by the wealthy, the powerful, the armed.
The dangerous.
We were trying to run.
Ma.
The pigs were running.
Drift core.
Was the escape pod.
It was our escape pod.
But it tore us apart.
Every single one of us.
I can still see the bodies unraveling in directions I never knew existed.
Skin.
Shucked from bone like corn husks.
Marrow spinning out like ribbons.
People splitting.
Like chaff from grain.
Drift core was supposed to save us.
But what it really did was kill us.
It doomed us.
The tech was.
It was unstable.
It was experimental at the time.
It was new.
Dangerous.
Time passes differently when you're in the drift.
So.
Crasses collapsed.
Not just because of drift core, but because of the house of cards that came before, because of the greed, the hubris, the wealth.
All of it.
All of us.
They died.
We died.
All of us died.
Even I died.
Shattered apart.
Like a dying sun.
But then.
Something brought me back, I think.
Pieced me back together.
Like this.
And to this day, I still really don't know why.
The drift spat me out here.
Saga.
And as soon as I opened my eyes and saw what was around me, I never wanted to leave.
This place, Saga, it's beautiful.
It's special.
And like I told you the first day we met Sebastian, maybe one day Saga will be home.
But Grain962.
She was beautiful, too.
She was special, too, in her own way.
She was simple, sure, podunk, backwater.
But she was ours.
She was mine.
Oceans of grain.
The smell of the mills.
The sound of sights.
Wicking over golden stalks.
The sun's rise.
There were two of them.
Back in Crassus.
I miss the sun's rise.
For three years, my scars have been shackles.
Chaining me to the past.
Holding me down.
Drowning me with it.
But now I think I'm starting to understand that my scars are a story just like this film you're making.
They tell a story of a survivor.
Of a farmer.
Of what used to be an older sibling.
And maybe one day these scars won't be shackles holding me down anymore.
They'll be a way for me to honor everything we've lost.
Every. One. We've lost.
But one day, we'll be reunited.
It'll be okay.
One day, I'll go back to them.
But until then, I guess I'll just have to do what Winston says.
Try my best.
There are sunrises on Saga, too.
There's a life here worth fighting for, too.
And maybe that's enough.
All right. I think you got it.
Thank you for joining me for this very special mini-series, Saga, within the Adam Lutz universe.
Thanks again to Matt for letting me play around in their setting like a sandbox.
And a major thank you to the wonderful performers who joined me.
I could not have been more lucky to have Matthew Eckberg playing Sebastian, the Kappa Chris playing Winston Komu, Brito playing Nim, Gabe James Games playing Apex, and Bye Connie Chung playing Grist.
Please find all of their links in the description of this episode and go and find all of the amazing things that they do.
The character artwork for this mini-series was done by Andre Rivera Art.
You also have been hearing special guest appearances from the rest of the main cast of the Adam Lutz, including Andre Rivera Art, Momo underscore O'Brien, and Werewolf Feels.
Thank you all for putting those audios together.
Music for this episode and most of the Adam Lutz is provided by Artlist under their fair use license.
And please stay tuned as our main campaign should be returning very shortly for a very new adventure.
Thank you again and I hope that the next time we fly through the Adam Lutz Sea, you are there to fly with us.
Hey folks, thanks for listening to the Adam Lutz.
Norty Lee here to share with you some amazing news.
We here at the Adam Lutz have partnered with the Familiar Shop to release some brand new merch based on the characters you've come to know and hopefully love.
These vegan soaps are handmade in small batches and a portion of the proceeds from each will go right back into the podcast.
Xenue Ecological is scented like eucalyptus and bergamot, just a lady as a delightful cotton candy, Cowabunga smells like strawberries, and last, the Firebrand with notes of bonfire and incense.
Check them out over on the Familiar Shop's Etsy.
That's shop with two P's.
Now back to your regularly scheduled space adventure.