Original release date: November 18, 2022
* * *
I can access anything here, but the truly exciting stuff comes from our Behavioral Mod Department.
You can’t do that.
I mean, they’re people. They’re real people.
You’re so frighteningly good.
[Flynne] Burton, I’m done being a sitting duck.
We don’t even know if that headset is safe.
[Dee Dee] The oddest thing I’ve ever encountered.
[Flynne] And how safe is it here, sitting around, just waiting for someone to come and get us?
Get down!
Pretty good with a shotgun, too.
Want to see?
[Bob] ‘Cause the people who’ll be coming for me, well… they’re not the sort to leave loose ends untied.
[tires screeching]
[helicopter blades whirring]
[distant explosions rumble]
[wind whistling]
[dog barking in distance]
[howls]
[barking, whining]
There’s a pretty easy fix for this.
I ain’t gonna shoot it, Burton.
And if one of you idiots goes ahead and tries, I’ll knock your fucking teeth out, just so we’re clear.
[laughs]
Someone’s got to do something, ’cause I can’t take much more of that shit.
Intel says there’s chatter about the Tex-asses using wounded dogs to draw us into the open.
And now here we are.
With a fucked-up dog parked right in front of us.
Seems pretty open-and-shut to me, don’t you think?
If there was somewhere for a Tex-ass to be hunkered down around here, waiting on a Good Samaritan.
Man, sniper three klicks away’d take you out.
Be dead before you even had a chance to realize how fucking stupid you were.
Three klicks might as well be to the moon with this sandy shit they call air around here.
[inhales deeply]
[barking and whining continues]
Come on, baby boy.
We ain’t taken fire in 19 days.
Just do something. Please?
[barking continues]
[howling]
[dog whimpering, whining]
Don’t even think about it. Conner!
Fuck.
Twelve o’clock.
[barking and whimpering continue]
Son of a bitch.
Movement. Two o’clock.
[panting]
[cawing]
That’s a fucking crow, Leon.
Fuck’s sake.
[grunts]
[whimpering continues]
[barks]
Hey.
[whimpering]
Damn.
All this sniper fire sure is making it rough, ain’t it?
Just get it done, motherfucker.
[whimpers]
[grunts]
Hey there, champ.
Let me just…
[dog whimpering]
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
[screaming]
I’m here, man. I’m right here.
It’s okay. It’s okay.
[panting]
You’re good.
[grunting]
I’m here. I’m here, man.
Okay?
It’s all right, man.
[Conner gasping]
[crow cawing]
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
[seabirds screeching]
[dog barking]
[dog panting]
You do recall I don’t like to be interrupted on my daily constitutional, Beatrice?
Yes, ma’am.
[Lowbeer] I assume this is about the recent disturbance at the Research Institute.
[Beatrice] Indeed, ma’am.
In ten words or less, please.
There’s been a murder in Sackville Street involving a Peripheral and a Koid.
That’s 14 words, Beatrice.
Indeed, ma’am.
Clarity seemed to require the surfeit.
And yet so much remains unclear.
How would you utilize a more generous allotment?
I’d inform you that the victim is the Research Institute’s head of security, one Daniel Cook.
I know Daniel.
“Knew,” ma’am, would be the correct tense, I believe.
Killed by a Koid?
Indeed.
Throat slashed.
[Lowbeer] It’s lovely, isn’t it?
Almost like a picture, ma’am.
Don’t be cheeky, Beatrice.
It’s not an endearing trait.
[warbling]
Well, I suppose we best get busy.
I just don’t see it, Tommy.
But I put it in the log myself.
Two days ago.
Requisitioned a couple SUVs.
With no plates and no color?
Cars were cloaked with this chromatic tinting.
I’m supposed to know what that is?
It means they’re invisible.
[laughs]
You’re telling me, your invisible cars are missing?
How hard did you hit that pretty head of yours?
Look, can I just get the keys and check the lot myself?
You know I can’t do that.
Chain of custody.
You want a peek?
Take that up with Sheriff Jackman.
[sniffs, clears throat]
[spits]
Sheriff.
[Tommy clears throat]
[sniffs]
Pretty damn certain I sent you home, Tommy.
Oh, just tying up some loose ends, sir.
Merciful heavens.
Must’ve had a pretty special guardian angel looking after you, my friend.
I, uh, read your report.
Doesn’t seem like you remember much from the incident.
That change at all?
Working through it at the moment, sir.
It’s all a bit foggy.
[water running]
Mm-hmm.
[breathes deeply]
[water stops]
Looky here, Tommy, I’m gonna… I’m gonna need you to take some time off.
Paid leave.
You need to rest up, get your head right.
Come back to us swinging for the fences, my friend.
That man is loose on my watch, sir.
Oh, I’m well aware.
And all that’s gonna get sorted.
I’m gonna see to it myself.
You know, something I always admired about you, Thomas.
You got that fire in your belly.
You always have, ever since you was a teenager running wild.
Let me hit you with a little bit of advice?
Learn how to control it.
Too much of a good thing is gonna burn you out.
Like my granddaddy used to tell me, if you walking on eggs… don’t hop.
You hear me, son?
Good man.
I got some business of my own to take care of.
[sniffs]
[door latch clicks]
[Jackman whistling]
[Jackman singing indistinctly]
[whistling continues]
[Wilf] I’m embarrassed to admit how anxious I was when you vanished through that door to confront Cherise.
You’re just a normal guy, aren’t you?
How do you mean?
I don’t know, I look at you and…
I look at all this…
It’s just so different from where I live.
Or when, I guess.
And you think that it’d be better, but… you’re just as fucked-up as we are.
[chuckles softly]
Rather more so, I’d say.
Maybe.
[Flynne laughs quietly]
Hey, how come everybody here just stays so distant from us?
Is that like a… a health thing or something?
What I mean is, they never really wander close.
Because it’s not real.
It’s an augmentation.
Do this.
[warbles]
[warbling]
[Wilf] It’s technology developed by the Research Institute.
Holy shit.
Why?
Mood enhancer, I suppose you’d call it.
Makes the world a bit less bleak.
Honestly, one forgets it’s even happening.
It’s just there, like the weather.
But everything else is real, though, right?
Some of the buildings are filled in.
The ones they haven’t gotten around to re-fabricating as yet.
Look… here.
[gasping]
Oh, my God.
If the R.I. is doing shit like this right out in the open, what are they doing in secret?
[gasping]
Cherise said that I copied data from her that night.
That I stole it.
She’s gonna keep trying to kill me till she gets it back, whatever the hell it is.
She made that pretty fucking clear.
The fabricator we’re going to see might be able to help.
He built Aelita’s Peripherals for her.
So it’s possible he’ll know where she is.
How are you so sure it’s him?
Based on these.
I have one of these?
Mm-hmm.
That night, when Aelita pressed my eye up against that thing, I felt something.
Is there any way that Aelita could’ve downloaded data into the stub?
Theoretically.
But she would need to download it into something in your world.
What kind of thing?
Honestly, only Aelita could tell us.
[clanking]
Hello.
What’ll it be, then?
Uh, toad-in-the-hole, please.
We don’t carry that.
There’s a special on pork today.
That’d be my pick.
That’s a shame.
I’m afraid we had our hearts set on toad-in-the-hole.
We’ve been assured it’s your specialty.
You two look like a lovely young couple.
You might want to be on your way before anyone gets hurt.
Mm.
Now…
…what do you think of me, mister?
I don’t know you from Eve, love.
Well, you see, the guy who built this, he assured me that it was better than anything you could ever do.
Even in your prime.
In my prime?
Yeah, before your craftsmanship started to slip.
And who the fuck might this person be?
I’m not saying that I believe him.
Just repeating what he said to me.
Just to brighten up my day a little bit?
Well, you see, he promised me my money back… if I could prove him wrong.
So I figured, hell, why not give you a shot to prove that you still got it?
I don’t come cheap.
Money won’t be an issue.
[deadbolt clacks]
[water bubbling]
All right.
It’s not terrible, but I’ll wager I’ll get your money back without much exertion.
Hmm.
Yeah, we have a new add-on I’m rather tickled by.
Titanium fingernails. Retractable.
Scratch your way out of a stone house if you want.
What about eyes?
Any fool can augment eyes.
What do you want? Night vision? Thermal?
What if I want to replace one?
With a human eye.
[grunting and shouting]
[shouts]
[grunting and shouting]
Get up.
[grunting and shouting]
Oh, for fuck’s sake, Abby, give it a rest before you get us both killed.
Tell us about this woman.
[Flynne] You can start talking, Reggie, or I can start cutting.
Choice is yours.
What do you think they’ll do to me?
Who?
The Neoprims.
They don’t muck around with something like this.
Cut my tongue out, they would.
What do Neoprims have to do with this?
Oh, Jesus, lad.
She had me build it so someone could carve out its eye, put in a human one.
Who else but a Neoprim would know how to do that?
Old-time surgery and a scalpel?
Wait, wait.
You can’t go out like that.
You didn’t tell me that Aelita was a Neoprim.
I didn’t know.
Did you tell her what you did?
When they took over your school?
Hey.
Sorry, Wilf.
[sighs] Fuck.
Piece of shit.
Aah!
[birds squawking]
Okay, just go…
[Macon] Oh, hey, man.
I didn’t see you there.
You, um… you coming or going?
Someone called you.
I-I’m just here to get a, uh, you know. [chuckles]
A what, Macon?
Coffee, I guess.
Yeah, they, yeah, they called me.
Mm.
What I’m wondering is… why they don’t just come out themselves!
[sighs]
Scared to, I think.
You ain’t scared?
[chuckling nervously] I don’t know.
What? Yeah, a little bit.
[laughing]
Hmm.
[chuckles]
There’s a crescent wrench somewhere under that tow truck.
You, uh, you want me to get it?
For you?
[Conner grunts]
All right, you got it?
Okay, just here?
Yeah, right there.
Just clamp it on.
Here we go. [grunts]
That’s it.
[both chuckle]
Anything else?
Tell me about that tech Flynne’s been using.
Hey, uh, honestly, Conner, don’t… don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m thinking I should ask Flynne and Burton what I can be… be sharing.
I used it. The headset.
Burton knows.
It’s real, right?
Flynne’s piloting a real body in a real place?
That’s my understanding.
[scoffs]
What’s the limit, you figure?
How do you mean?
Is there a time limit to how long you can go there?
I mean, you gotta… you gotta pee, right?
Drink, eat and all that.
So, uh…
I was in a bed at Walter Reed, more or less comatose for eight months.
Catheter for the peeing, IV for the drinking, tube for… the eating.
[Macon] You…
Are you saying what I think you’re saying?
If someone would make me a body, could you and Edward set me up to live in that place?
Permanent-like?
[scoffs]
Look, I’m not a doctor, Conner, but I just don’t think your-your real body… your body here…
would take too kindly to that, man.
Look, I’m-I’m sorry, I just… I don’t know how long you’d last is what I’m saying.
You’re about as smart as we make ’em around here, ain’t you, Macon?
Yeah.
I-I don’t know about that.
Yeah, you are.
Trust me.
So if you can’t imagine what it’s like to wake up, find yourself in a body like this…
probably just ’cause you ain’t tried.
So why don’t you think on that for a bit?
[vehicle starts up]
Then we’ll have this conversation again.
[electronic beeps and blips]
♪ ♪
Always a bit creepy, innit? When the AI takes hold?
[Ash] The Sistine Chapel moment.
[Ossian] Which is meant to mean something, I’m sure.
God reaching toward Adam, transmitting the spark of life.
[Tommy] I got it.
Just follow the stupid little ball, right?
It’s not a game, Tommy.
Can you track it?
Yeah.
[gasps]
[panting softly]
[clears throat] We, uh… we good?
There’s a jitter in your eye movement.
Along with the dizziness, the ringing.
Oh, I’m fine.
You’re concussed. Probable whiplash.
Gonna need a CT scan.
I took bigger hits going over the middle in high school.
I got to, uh, get back to it.
That sounds smart.
Like someone thinking straight.
I gave the Fishers my word.
Told ’em that I’d handle this.
Given what just happened, I think you need to let that go.
That was my arrest. In my custody.
I can’t just let that go.
You didn’t. You almost got killed.
Maybe that should be the bigger concern here.
I’m very concerned.
And that’s why I need to get back out there, find the son of a bitch who did this and bring him in.
We both know who did this, Tommy.
You’re acting like the frog who gave the scorpion a ride across the river.
Can’t figure out why it stung him as they both drown.
What do you want me to do?
Take the medical leave from the department.
Lay low.
My two-year obligation here is almost up.
I can find work anywhere.
Buy some time to pick up, move on.
This is my home, Dee.
I grew up in this town.
I worked here my whole life.
And so you know who controls it.
And he just told you that he’s a scorpion.
I can’t have you getting stung again.
I ain’t running from this.
[door opens]
[sprinkler clicking]
[Mary] Recipe says we still got ten more minutes.
Well, I guess we’re all lucky that I don’t need a recipe to cook, then.
Because if I did, this might taste like…
[Mary] Like what?
Trying to think of the right word.
Shoe leather is what they usually say.
Which is why I’m avoiding it.
Not wanting to traffic in clichés.
Taste.
Okay.
Okay what?
Okay, you were right.
I think you’re forgetting the last part of that.
Which is?
“As usual.”
[Bob groans]
[Mary] Huh, our guest has revived.
[Corbell] Well, sir, your timing is perfect.
Dig in while it’s hot.
Oh, uh, we took some liberties while you were asleep.
The state in which you were delivered to us was, uh…
What’s that word you used?
Unsavory.
Ah. Well, fresh clothes, so forth.
Now, the collar is an accessory you’ll have to adapt to.
What does it do?
[Corbell] Well, there are two schools of thought on that sort of thing.
There are folks that fall into the camp of, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet still believe.”
John 20:29.
[Corbell] And then there are folks that follow the path of, “No one respects the flame quite like the fool who’s badly burned.”
Pete Townsend, I believe?
Which school do you belong to?
[electricity crackling]
[Bob groaning]
[remote beeps]
[electricity stops]
The rock and roll school, apparently.
Would have guessed as much.
[Corbell] Oh, yeah, I know. [grunting]
Get on up there, big boy.
I know, I know, I know.
Yeah. Okay. Here, here.
[gasps]
[Corbell] Here. Here. There.
Here. There.
Oh, uh, it’s adjustable.
One through ten. That was a four.
Three, actually.
Ooh. An unpleasant experience either way.
Was it you hired me?
Try the roast. Please.
[Bob exhales heavily]
[Corbell] What do you think? Be honest.
It’s good.
You know the best way to tenderize meat?
Hmm?
Well, most folks use a mallet.
It’s, uh, quick, easy.
But messy, too.
And the results aren’t guaranteed.
That’s why I prefer a brine.
A slow, controlled process that alters the very nature of what you consume so it suits your taste.
And when you find that perfect brine, it’s almost always guaranteed.
Now… recently, I have come to discover someone is in my kitchen fucking up my brine.
And I want to know who it is.
[owl hooting nearby]
[Leon] Burton said you had another flashback.
A bad one.
You taking anything?
No, it don’t help. Still feel ’em.
Let me drain some off.
Oh, that’s not your problem no more, Leon.
How about I sing, then?
Everybody seems to think my voice has a nice, healing lilt.
I’m just trying to help, Conner.
One way or the other, your choice how.
[sighs]
♪ I’m a rolling stone ♪
♪ All alone and lost ♪
♪ For a life of sin ♪
♪ I have paid the cost ♪
♪ When I pass by ♪ ♪
Oh, for fuck’s sakes, fine! Just…
[Conner sighs]
Just do it.
[Leon sniffles]
[loud thud]
[screaming voices echoing]
[man crying out]
[grunts]
[overlapping voices]
[man] Get him up all the way.
[Conner] Don’t take my leg! Jesus!
Please…
[Leon grunting]
[exhales]
[grunts]
[panting softly]
[Ossian] This is getting complicated.
Innit?
[orb murmurs]
Not sure I like that look, luv.
The physician who’s treating the polt for her seizure, she’s been running searches on “localized bacterial infections of the occipital lobe.”
You don’t really think Aelita…
I do, actually.
Is that even possible?
Through her eye?
Yes, theoretically.
[doorbell rings]
Mr. Murphy.
Forgive me. We haven’t been introduced.
Someone my age is all feeds, Mr. Murphy.
For my sins, I have continual access to most things, resulting in a terrible habit of behaving as if
I already know everyone I meet.
Not in the least, ma’am. No offense taken.
[Lowbeer] Which, in a sense, I suppose I do.
Yes, ma’am, I would say so.
Would you introduce me to Mr. Zubov and Mr. Netherton, please?
It’s Inspector Ainsley Lowbeer of the Metropolitan Police.
The Metropolitan Police, sir.
Policeman?
An Inspector.
Call my father’s solicitors.
Immediately!
The phones have been disabled.
Uh, perhaps it might be prudent for me to slip out the back.
She knows you’re here.
She mentioned you by name.
[clears throat] How should I proceed, sir?
Well, let her in, for fuck’s sake.
It’ll look incriminating if you make her wait.
Whatever you do, don’t lie to her.
You’ll most likely find it impossible anyway.
They have that ability, the higher-level officers.
Best just to assume that she already knows the answers to whatever she might be asking.
Fuck.
[door slides open]
[engine shuts off]
[door opens, shuts]
Something happened. Thought you should know.
Now, that old man that I took into custody from the bridge?
Yeah.
I don’t quite know how to say this, Burton, but, um… whole thing just went sideways…
And you fucking lost him?
Hey, now, hold on a second.
All right? It wasn’t like that.
How was it, then, Tommy?
‘Cause you had one fucking job and you lost him.
I got T-boned, Burton.
And I’m trying to tell you it wasn’t an accident.
It was more like a… an ambush.
An ambush?
Here’s the thing about an ambush, Tommy, having been on both ends of ’em many a time.
You see, an ambush generally requires specific intel about both the target and the intended route.
Now, that’s what I’m telling you, Burton.
It’s like I was targeted.
Like they already knew something.
Who? What are you talking about, Tommy?
Whoever it was, they knew who I had in custody.
They knew I was on the way.
To the Sheriff’s Department?
That’s right.
Sheriff Jackman.
Which leads me to believe that Corbell Pickett now has our guy.
[chuckles]
That just about makes sense.
Well, I sure as hell don’t get it.
Look, Burton, the way all this started, with the-the cloaked cars, the shells.
And whatever the hell went down here that day.
The lottery. Now this?
Come on, man, what the hell is going on here, Burton?
You know what, Tommy, why don’t you just do yourself a favor and get the fuck out of the way?
I’ve known your family my whole damn life, and that’s all you got for me?
It ain’t just Pickett. There’s other forces in play want us dead, and you just keep getting in the fucking way.
Other forces?
The fuck am I supposed to do with that, Burton?
I’m just saying that’s why you’re all beat up, broken down, lucky to be alive.
Next ambush… you might not be so lucky.
[Corbell] I’m just a little concerned, Sheriff, that your deputy’s becoming a liability we can’t afford.
[Jackman] Well, Corbell, let’s just say you want to sit right there and have a look at that little footage of Tommy Constantine and that prisoner that he lost.
You gonna need two damn passwords just to dip in there and have a look.
Silly is what it is.
You want to guess what passwords I chose?
Well, that’s sort of the whole point in passwords, isn’t it, Sheriff?
So folks can’t guess ’em?
“Fuck you” and “eat shit.”
All caps. [laughs]
Like you’re shouting.
Are you gonna be all right in here by yourself?
Oh, yes, sir, I believe I will.
Good deal. Make yourself at home.
Now…
“Fuck you.”
“Eat… shit.”
[Bob on computer video] How old are you, son?
I’m guessing 28 or so?
[Mary] I know you aren’t inclined to do much chatting.
And I guess I understand, given your circumstances.
I certainly don’t take offense, but here’s the thing.
Corbell bet me I couldn’t get you talking.
So he’s offering to buy me a particular baby-blue Mustang convertible I’ve had my eye on over in Asheville.
Now, this might seem like a technicality, but Corbell didn’t specify you talking about what.
Just talking, plain and simple.
So I’m thinking maybe you and I could put our heads together and come to some sort of understanding.
You agree to do a little talking when Corbell gets back, and I offer something in exchange.
Don’t get dirty-minded on me.
Please. I’m not that kind.
But there must be something you’re wanting that I could get you.
[exhales]
Is that saltwater?
That was Corbell’s inclination.
Must be a male thing.
Saltwater seem a little more macho or something?
But know what? You can’t bat an eyelash without one of those little fuckers getting sick, and 24 hours later, the whole lot’ll follow suit, and I mean all of them.
Bobbing around in there, belly up.
You have to empty the tank, sterilize it, start all over again.
We went through that three times.
Then I put my foot down. Firmly.
So that right there would be 200 gallons of fresh water you’re looking at.
And I don’t feel any shame to say so.
May I?
You’ll see some blue rams in there, cherry barbs, electric blue haps. Those are my favorites.
Real subtle, I think.
And, of course, the fantail guppies.
Kind of a freshwater… Hey!
[electricity crackles]
The fuck are you thinking, old man?
[muffled cry]
You’re a guest in our home.
[grunts]
And look what you did to my pedi.
[glass cracking]
Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no.
No, no, no, no, no!
[groans]
[coughs]
[panting]
[guttural gasp]
[Bob grunts]
[Mary groans]
[electrical zapping]
[both groaning]
[guttural groan]
[zapping stops]
[water trickling]
Do you play chess, Mr. Zubov?
Well… it’s not nearly as much fun now that we all have our AI crutches to lean on.
But it was once a rather fascinating diversion.
There was a sense of mastery one could feel at a certain point, when every move you made seemed to dictate your opponent’s response.
And then, such a thrill when that illusion was interrupted by the shock of an unexpected countermove.
Can you surprise me, Mr. Zubov?
I’m very sorry, Inspector.
But I wonder if it might make sense for my family’s solicitors to join us?
Exactly as I feared.
The expected move.
It’s your decision, of course.
But should you choose to summon your solicitors, here’s how our encounter will unfold.
Your friend, Mr. Netherton, has been geolocated at the site of a crime.
A murder, to be precise, of one Daniel Cook, Head of Security of the Research Institute.
Killed, it would appear, by a Koid.
Now, I could put Mr. Netherton on trial as an accomplice, which would mean that right here, in your drawing room, seven or so minutes from now, we’d likely witness poor Mr. Netherton’s execution.
But of course, when you’re fishing, and you catch a minnow, the wise angler simply impales it on a hook and uses it to catch a bigger fish.
I don’t mean to belittle you, Mr. Netherton, but in my world, you don’t qualify as much of a trophy.
Which could most decidedly work to your advantage here.
Because, as your trial began, I’d make it quite clear that you might save your own life by diverting my attention to a larger fish.
Should you happen to know one, that is.
You two are old friends, of course.
And that must exert its pull upon the soul.
But it’s always intriguing to me how the power of sentiment begins to slip away when a sharp blade is at one’s throat.
[tea cups rattling softly]
The salmon, thank you.
And just a splash of milk in the tea, please.
You’ve done rather well for yourself, Mr. Murphy, considering the frequency of your youthful encounters with the law.
It’s heartening to behold.
In my experience, Mr. Zubov, at this point in the game, it can grow a tad fraught on your side of the board.
Your family’s affairs are rather elaborately woven together, I assume, and I can’t help but wonder what sort of unraveling might occur if I managed to get hold of a tiny thread, and…
[Lowbeer laughs]
I’m making a hash of my metaphors again, aren’t I?
Chess, fishing, tangled threads.
You’re supposed to help me with that, Beatrice.
You seemed to be enjoying yourself, ma’am.
It felt rude to interrupt.
Regardless.
That’s how I see our little drama playing out here, should you summon your solicitors.
How does that sound to you?
I quite agree. Tiresome.
Unbearably so.
And we’d likely lose Mr. Netherton to boot.
How much more appealing to set all of this aside for the moment, and simply answer a few questions, honestly, directly, thoroughly?
And who knows?
Could very well propel us into a far more intriguing adventure.
What do you think? Hmm?
Shall we attempt it?
[claps hands loudly] All right, then.
The Met has detected three Peripherals on site, running on AI.
Would you summon them, please? I’d so enjoy a quick peek.
And… their operators, too?
I’m afraid that might prove to be rather complicated, Inspector.
Well, I think you’ll soon discover I’m rather good at rather complicated.
And when would you like…
Now, Mr. Zubov.
Or soonest.
Although as close to now as possible would be my decided preference.
[insects trilling]
♪ ♪
[Conner] Bless us, O Heavenly Father, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
[inhales deeply]
[vehicle approaching]
[door opens]
[door creaks open]
[birds singing]
[chuckles]
[Conner grunts softly]
[grunts softly]
It ain’t my birthday, if that’s what you’re thinking.
Nope. That flashback you woke up to, it’s been weighing on me a bit.
Seemed pretty fucking intense.
So I thought I’d stop by, see how you’re holding up.
And?
You tell me.
Fit as a fiddle, son.
Even got some French toast, hot off the stove.
Might be inclined to spare you a slice, if you promise to show some table manners.
Well, you know that’d be a steep climb for me, Conner.
And I already ate, but thank you. You go at it.
[sighs] You know, if you were to fetch it for me, I suppose I could just sit out here and eat in this beautiful fucking weather.
Fucking A.
Conner Penske just asked me for help!
And there ain’t a single fucking witness around to prove it.
You gonna be an asshole and let my breakfast get cold?
Chop-chop, buddy!
Will there be anything else, Your Majesty?
[Burton laughs softly]
Yeah.
What’s in the box?
Present from our friends in the future.
Macon and Edward printed it up.
Check it out.
[sniffles]
That’s not as badass as what Flynne fabs.
Flynne’s printed you legs?
Got a whole collection of ’em inside.
She works at ’em, too. They’re like… artwork.
Got a good heart, that Flynne.
How come you never wear ’em?
Sometimes I feel like all this stuff is more for y’all folks than me.
Makes people feel better when they see me coming without actually being of much use.
Yeah, I hear that, but these are supposed to be hella more functional than anything we can do on our own.
Still fake, ain’t they?
I hate to break it to you, Conner, but I don’t think you’re gonna grow real ones anytime soon.
I got real ones.
Waiting for me off in the future.
Yeah, I’ve been hearing something about that.
Going for the old IV and catheter, huh?
[Conner laughs softly]
Got to be a little less subtle with your disapproval, Burton, if you want me to react.
Shit, man. When’s the last time you seen me this happy?
Mm.
You know, I’ve been wondering something.
Those first days in the hospital after you got blown up, you remember me coming to visit you?
Little bit.
That thing you asked me to do?
That fucked me up pretty good, Conner. [laughs]
That I asked?
That I couldn’t do it.
Well, what you did instead messed me up so I guess we’re even.
What’d I do instead?
Wrote that shit on the wall across from my bed.
Oh. [laughs] Yeah.
I figured if anything was gonna get you up again, it’d be a little Burton-Was-Here action.
I kept picturing you lying there, desperate to go scrawl “MF” on it.
They shipped me off before I could.
This thing you’re thinking of trying with the catheter and the IV?
One way of looking at it is, it’s a lot like putting a pillow over your face, or eating a bullet.
Just a slowed-down version.
Shit, Burton.
One way of looking at life, period, is it’s a slowed-down version of eating a bullet.
[Burton laughs]
You’re a trip, Conner.
[laughs]
I’m just saying, I got to think on it before I help you with this little relocation plan of yours, all right?
Fair enough.
And in the meantime, how about you give these fancy fellas a try?
Ah, fuck it.
Maybe tomorrow.
[exhales]
Hey, you want to know something funny?
We’ve still got these, carved and scrawled, all over the house, from when we were little.
And if you ask my mama what “MF” means, she’ll tell you it means “my friend.” [laughs]
Don’t it?
Yeah.
I guess it does, Motherfucker.
[phone buzzes]
I hope you didn’t eat too much.
Why?
London’s calling.
They’re wanting us back.
[Conner] Any idea what we’re heading into?
Nope.
All they said was to send you three together. “Soonest,” whatever the fuck that means.
[electrical buzzing]
[Conner] No plan, no intel, no recon.
And you know what that calls for, don’t you?
“Speed, intensity, and…”?
“Violence of action.”
Boom!
[laughs softly]
[electrical whirring]
Oorah, motherfucker.
[Lowbeer] So this quantum tunnel, as you term it, allows you to communicate with the past.
Or rather a past, since in our actual past, you didn’t.
That actually hurts my head, Mr. Zubov.
I gather it doesn’t hurt yours?
It’s actually quite simple.
The act of connection produces a fork in causality, the new branch causally unique.
A stub, as we call them.
[Lowbeer] But why do you? Call them that?
It sounds short, nasty, brutish.
Wouldn’t one expect the fork’s new branch to continue to grow?
We do assume exactly that.
I’m not sure where the term might’ve…
Imperialism.
Calling it a stub makes it a bit easier for us to third-world it.
[Lowbeer] And you facilitate Mr. Zubov in this colonialism?
You and Mr. Murphy?
They’re crowning.
[gasps softly]
[Burton clears throat]
And you, I presume, are the formidable Flynne Fisher?
Inspector Ainsley Lowbeer of the Metropolitan Police.
Quite pleased to make your acquaintance.
Ma’am.
♪ ♪
[Flynne] What is this?
[Beatrice] It’s where the animals come to play.
[grunting]
[Cherise] Something of great value has been stolen from me.
[Corbell] We can talk this thing through, come to an understanding here.
We got to go.
I just need you to trust me to do it right.
[weapon firing]
Execute.
Lights out.
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
