WEBVTT - Bonus: Robert Evans Wrote A Novel: Here's Chapter 1 0:00:02.640 --> 0:00:06.080 Hey, everybody, this is Robert Evans, and starting in two 0:00:06.120 --> 0:00:10.240 thousand and sixteen, I wrote a novel UM, and you're 0:00:10.280 --> 0:00:12.120 going to hear the first chapter of it today. We'll 0:00:12.160 --> 0:00:14.840 be releasing the rest of it as a separate podcast 0:00:14.880 --> 0:00:17.960 series and it will be out online for free. UM. 0:00:17.960 --> 0:00:21.640 But given the events of January six I decided I 0:00:21.720 --> 0:00:24.800 might as well put out chapter one right now, give 0:00:24.840 --> 0:00:28.480 people something else to focus on. And you know, I think, 0:00:28.520 --> 0:00:31.240 as you'll understand, it seems a little bit more relevant now. 0:00:31.400 --> 0:00:36.040 So without further ado, After the Revolution, a novel by 0:00:36.120 --> 0:00:46.000 Robert Evans Richardson Republic of Texas, Chapter one. Manny Manny 0:00:46.120 --> 0:00:49.040 smiled at the way the British journalists face blanched as 0:00:49.080 --> 0:00:52.000 the old Toyota hit the pothole. Reggie wasn't used to 0:00:52.040 --> 0:00:55.320 bad roads, cars driven by actual humans, or the way 0:00:55.360 --> 0:00:57.840 the heavy metal of the gun mountain the truck bed made, 0:00:57.840 --> 0:01:01.680 the aluminum frame grown. That was all familiar to Manny. 0:01:01.840 --> 0:01:05.400 He'd grown up in Sioda Demut, back before the Lakewood Blast, 0:01:05.760 --> 0:01:09.319 back when people had still called it Dallas. The truck's 0:01:09.400 --> 0:01:11.920 driver veered around the bloated corpse of a large dog 0:01:12.080 --> 0:01:14.480 lying in the middle of the road. Reggie gripped the 0:01:14.480 --> 0:01:17.320 truck bed with white knuckles and eyed the swaying AMMO 0:01:17.400 --> 0:01:19.560 belt of the twenty millimeter cannon like it was a 0:01:19.600 --> 0:01:23.800 coiled snake. The gunner, Manny's cousin, Alejandro, grinned down at 0:01:23.800 --> 0:01:27.880 the journalist the suspensions a little fucked yeah. The Britain 0:01:27.920 --> 0:01:30.760 nodded and turned greener when the technical hit another pothole. 0:01:31.360 --> 0:01:33.959 Many supposed he should offer a comforting word to the man. 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:36.920 That would be good business, but a louder part of 0:01:37.000 --> 0:01:39.480 him looked at Reggie's brand new boots and thought he 0:01:39.640 --> 0:01:42.640 can stand a little less comfort. The journalist would brag 0:01:42.680 --> 0:01:45.880 about this ride for months once he got home. Escorting 0:01:45.920 --> 0:01:48.680 reporters from the safety of Austin to the sundry hotspots 0:01:48.680 --> 0:01:52.360 of the old Metroplex was not Manny's ideal career. Two 0:01:52.400 --> 0:01:54.760 years ago, he'd been working on a bachelor's in business 0:01:54.800 --> 0:01:58.080 administration from the University of Austin. The plan had been 0:01:58.120 --> 0:02:01.000 to get a job with ages biocist, then charm his 0:02:01.040 --> 0:02:03.240 way into a working visa and a gig in the 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:06.480 California Republic. But the fighting had started up again and 0:02:06.600 --> 0:02:10.320 ruined all that. The culprit this time was the Heavenly Kingdom, 0:02:10.360 --> 0:02:13.880 a loose assortment of Christian extremist militias. They boiled out 0:02:13.919 --> 0:02:16.160 from the suburbs of the old Metroplex and all but 0:02:16.280 --> 0:02:19.920 broken the Republic of Texas. The autonomous city of Austin 0:02:19.960 --> 0:02:22.560 had stabilized the situation with the help of an alliance 0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:26.720 of leftist Texan militias the Secular Defense Forces. Beating them 0:02:26.720 --> 0:02:29.280 back had cost a lot in blood and time and 0:02:29.360 --> 0:02:31.840 forced Manny to change every plan he'd ever made for 0:02:31.919 --> 0:02:35.320 his life. So he'd embraced the situation and started his 0:02:35.360 --> 0:02:39.120 own business, hiring on some friends as employees. Together they 0:02:39.200 --> 0:02:42.120 built the best network of stringers in North Texas. His 0:02:42.200 --> 0:02:45.440 boys fed him video contacts and news updates, and he 0:02:45.560 --> 0:02:48.360 sold what he could to the big FOURIGN media conglomerates. 0:02:48.760 --> 0:02:50.960 In a couple more months, he'd have enough saved up 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:53.120 that he could fuck off, fly to Europe and apply 0:02:53.280 --> 0:02:56.560 for a refugee visa. My odds are pretty good as 0:02:56.560 --> 0:02:59.720 long as the war doesn't end too soon. The technical 0:02:59.800 --> 0:03:01.919 role to a creaky stop in front of a checkpoint 0:03:02.000 --> 0:03:04.400 that had clearly been erected within the last few days. 0:03:04.760 --> 0:03:07.960 It was just a collapsible electronic gate and two sandbag 0:03:07.960 --> 0:03:11.120 emplacements on either side of the battered highway. A street 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:13.720 sign nearby announced that they were on the edge of Richardson, 0:03:14.040 --> 0:03:17.359 formerly a suburb of Dallas and currently a forward position 0:03:17.360 --> 0:03:21.280 of the People's Protection Army, a local anarchist militia. Manny 0:03:21.320 --> 0:03:24.440 could see the p PA's red black triangle emblem stitched 0:03:24.440 --> 0:03:27.639 onto the jackets of the soldiers guarding the checkpoint. One 0:03:27.680 --> 0:03:29.280 of the p p A men walked up to the 0:03:29.360 --> 0:03:32.560 driver's side window and started chatting with Philip, the driver. 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:36.400 Phil and Manny's cousin Alejandro were both with the Citizens Front, 0:03:36.680 --> 0:03:39.200 a more or less a political militia from the suburbs 0:03:39.240 --> 0:03:42.960 of Austin. Both militias coexisted under the broad umbrella of 0:03:43.000 --> 0:03:46.440 the Secular Defense Forces. The SDF had been organized by 0:03:46.440 --> 0:03:49.640 the Canadian government to lump all of North Texas's palatable 0:03:49.680 --> 0:03:53.200 militant groups into a single package that could be conveniently armed. 0:03:54.000 --> 0:03:56.480 While the first guard talked with Philip, his partner did 0:03:56.520 --> 0:03:59.000 a circuit around the back of the truck. The man 0:03:59.080 --> 0:04:02.480 was big, Ulgian, with muscles so sculpted and prominent they 0:04:02.480 --> 0:04:04.760 had to be vat grown and He moved with the 0:04:04.800 --> 0:04:07.320 twitchy ungrace of a man who had replaced his nervous 0:04:07.320 --> 0:04:10.640 system with circuitry. His weapon was a very old, very 0:04:10.720 --> 0:04:13.600 battered a R fifteen with an M two four three 0:04:13.600 --> 0:04:16.640 grenade launcher below the barrel. The latter was old U 0:04:16.760 --> 0:04:19.920 S military gear. The former had been someone's toy before 0:04:19.920 --> 0:04:23.479 the Revolution gave America's half billion civilian guns a new 0:04:23.560 --> 0:04:26.600 raison debt. The man moved back to the barricades when 0:04:26.600 --> 0:04:29.080 he had finished his lap. Reggie looked up at Manny 0:04:29.120 --> 0:04:33.599 and asked, was he a Was he chromed? Manny smiled. 0:04:33.800 --> 0:04:35.560 That was always one of the first questions. As soon 0:04:35.600 --> 0:04:37.640 as any foreign journal saw a trooper with a large 0:04:37.720 --> 0:04:40.640 enough billed skin with an off shade, or one who 0:04:40.720 --> 0:04:43.440 just moved a little too fast to seem completely right. 0:04:44.000 --> 0:04:48.240 Anything beyond basic aesthetic and medical biomodifications were banned in 0:04:48.279 --> 0:04:52.600 civilized countries like the UK. The real chrome, the implants 0:04:52.600 --> 0:04:54.200 that would let a man lift a tank or take 0:04:54.240 --> 0:04:56.920 a rocket to the belly that ship was locked up tight. 0:04:57.279 --> 0:05:00.120 A few national militaries even used the stuff these days, 0:05:00.800 --> 0:05:04.640 not after the revolution. He's got some of that grown muscles, 0:05:04.640 --> 0:05:07.280 Manny said in an offhanded way that suggested such things 0:05:07.279 --> 0:05:11.160 were common aftermarket nerves too. Probably his stuff is low grade, 0:05:11.440 --> 0:05:14.679 that's why it's so visible. Reggie nodded, His eyes stayed 0:05:14.720 --> 0:05:16.680 locked on the big man. He was quiet for a 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:20.320 while before he spoke again. You just you live right 0:05:20.360 --> 0:05:25.440 alongside them, don't you. Manny shrugged. Everybody's got something out here, 0:05:25.640 --> 0:05:27.960 and the wet wears what lets us hold back? The martyrs? 0:05:28.200 --> 0:05:29.880 They own the whole city if it weren't for half 0:05:29.920 --> 0:05:33.080 fats like him. The journalists nodded, and his gaze stayed 0:05:33.120 --> 0:05:36.119 fixed upon the militiaman until a troubled look crossed his face. 0:05:36.400 --> 0:05:41.240 He glanced back to Manny. Are you a chromed Reggie asked. 0:05:41.839 --> 0:05:44.960 Manny smiled. I don't expect either of us as stock, Sabiana, 0:05:45.360 --> 0:05:48.400 but I doubt I've got anything you don't. Reggie seemed 0:05:48.480 --> 0:05:51.559 somewhat comforted by this. Most of what I've read about 0:05:51.560 --> 0:05:53.359 the really heavy mods says they cause a lot of 0:05:53.440 --> 0:05:57.440 well unstable behavior. That's why that's why this city such 0:05:57.480 --> 0:06:00.480 a ship hole, Manny asked. The journalist had the grace 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:03.280 to blush many looked away for a moment. His eyes 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:06.160 landed on the bones of three large public housing buildings. 0:06:06.440 --> 0:06:09.159 A barrel bomb had detonated in the center of the courtyard. 0:06:09.200 --> 0:06:11.800 All three shared. It had peeled away the walls, some 0:06:11.880 --> 0:06:14.600 of the floors, and the resulting firestorm had burned up 0:06:14.600 --> 0:06:18.360 everything that wasn't concrete, steel, or rebar For just a moment, 0:06:18.720 --> 0:06:21.279 many felt bad about hoping the war hung on another 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:24.640 six months. The old government blamed a lot on roided 0:06:24.720 --> 0:06:28.200 up veterans with military grade mods. He told Reggie, most 0:06:28.279 --> 0:06:32.000 was just propaganda, fearmongering. People were pissed after twenty years 0:06:32.000 --> 0:06:35.479 of plague, disaster and poverty. Many shrugged. It's true, though 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:37.599 a lot of chromed up vets turned on the government. 0:06:37.800 --> 0:06:39.680 He can't make men into gods and expect them to 0:06:39.760 --> 0:06:43.359 keep fighting from men, Reggie pointed back to the bulging militiaman. 0:06:43.920 --> 0:06:46.680 I take it muscles there is pretty far from a god. 0:06:47.000 --> 0:06:49.320 Nah Manny laughed. He's just a man with too much 0:06:49.400 --> 0:06:53.560 meat money. Gods don't man checkpoints. The brit was excited. Now. 0:06:53.880 --> 0:06:55.960 These were the questions he'd wanted to ask since they'd 0:06:55.960 --> 0:06:59.000 met yesterday. Do you know what some of those people are? 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:01.960 Reggie couldnt keep the excitement out of his voice. Could 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:05.400 we talk to them. Manny didn't have any of those contacts, 0:07:05.520 --> 0:07:07.760 nor did he know any other fixers who did. He 0:07:07.800 --> 0:07:10.440 tried to let the brick down easy. Most of those 0:07:10.440 --> 0:07:13.560 folks live on the road in between the civilized parts 0:07:13.560 --> 0:07:17.440 of Texas and the Federal Republic of California. Oh Reggie 0:07:17.480 --> 0:07:20.200 looked disappointed. The truck rolled past the wreckage of an 0:07:20.200 --> 0:07:24.440 old Catholic school. It bore signs of being fortified, destroyed, refortified, 0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:27.960 and redestroyed several times. The brit was inches away from 0:07:28.000 --> 0:07:30.720 asking another question when the gateman waved them on, and 0:07:30.760 --> 0:07:33.800 the battered Toyota farted its way into drive, belching and 0:07:33.840 --> 0:07:36.320 complaining past a network of potholes until it hit a 0:07:36.320 --> 0:07:39.680 relatively straight chunk of asphalt. Only a few minutes now. 0:07:39.720 --> 0:07:43.000 Hef a. Manny said, the p PA's forward position is 0:07:43.040 --> 0:07:45.880 about five minutes out. You'll be in the ship then, 0:07:46.280 --> 0:07:49.800 or at least shiit adjacent. The journalist's face washed over 0:07:49.840 --> 0:07:52.480 in an even mix of anxiety and pride. One of 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:54.760 the first lessons Manny had learned at this job was 0:07:54.800 --> 0:07:58.880 that phrases like the ship made rich gringo writers unreasonably excited. 0:07:59.120 --> 0:08:01.960 An excited journey lists always called Manny the next time 0:08:02.000 --> 0:08:04.480 they were in country, giving white kids and keffee as 0:08:04.480 --> 0:08:06.520 a lifetime of bragging rights for surviving a couple of 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:09.080 days in his home killed manny soul just a little, 0:08:09.440 --> 0:08:11.520 but he pushed down the anger and told himself that 0:08:11.560 --> 0:08:13.559 a chip on the shoulder was a lot less useful 0:08:13.600 --> 0:08:16.440 than money in the bank. The Technical rolled off the 0:08:16.480 --> 0:08:19.679 old highway. Manny could see twenty three in Spring Valley 0:08:19.760 --> 0:08:22.440 Road and blazoned on a weather beaten bullets guard sign. 0:08:22.920 --> 0:08:25.360 The Technical pulled to the right, the guns swayed in 0:08:25.400 --> 0:08:28.600 its mount Many couldn't help smiling as the brit instinctively 0:08:28.640 --> 0:08:31.000 pulled away from it. They rolled up to what had 0:08:31.040 --> 0:08:33.120 once been a strip mall and was now a forward 0:08:33.160 --> 0:08:36.560 operating base for the People's Protection Army. An old laundromat, 0:08:36.559 --> 0:08:39.200 a bookstore, and a half dozen restaurants now had their 0:08:39.240 --> 0:08:42.720 roofs ringed with barbed wire and machine gun emplacements. Many 0:08:42.720 --> 0:08:45.120 could see a line of bullet holes stitched across three 0:08:45.120 --> 0:08:47.840 of the shops. None of the windows were intact, but 0:08:47.880 --> 0:08:51.320 otherwise the buildings had weathered the war rather well. Three 0:08:51.520 --> 0:08:53.720 M one nine eight howitzers were parked next to a 0:08:53.760 --> 0:08:56.400 taco shop that had once served the local college kids 0:08:56.440 --> 0:08:58.920 beer and cheap grub. There was a flagpole out in 0:08:58.920 --> 0:09:00.800 front of the shop, and that hung the blue and 0:09:00.800 --> 0:09:03.480 white starburst flag of the STF and the flag of 0:09:03.520 --> 0:09:06.600 the p p A. Three men in uniforms stood waiting 0:09:06.600 --> 0:09:08.760 as the old toyota rolled to a stop and Manny 0:09:08.800 --> 0:09:11.959 and Reggie disembarked. Two of the men were officers in 0:09:12.000 --> 0:09:15.160 the p p A, Colonel Jacob Milgram and Major Deshaun Clark. 0:09:15.720 --> 0:09:19.079 Milgram was a boring, tight lipped nerdy type, but Deshaun 0:09:19.160 --> 0:09:21.520 was one of Manny's favorite sources. He was an old 0:09:21.520 --> 0:09:24.120 infantry guy, a consummate brawler with a face full of 0:09:24.120 --> 0:09:26.680 scars and three published books of poetry to his name. 0:09:27.080 --> 0:09:30.080 He actually had a base of international fans, mostly in Spain. 0:09:30.679 --> 0:09:34.359 The third man was Hamid Mohammed, an adviser from Syrian Kurdistan. 0:09:34.840 --> 0:09:37.040 The Curds had been giving aid to the Sundry militias 0:09:37.040 --> 0:09:40.199 of the Secular Defense Forces for years now. Manny considered 0:09:40.240 --> 0:09:43.720 Himid almost a local. He shook hands with Jacob, since 0:09:43.760 --> 0:09:45.720 Manny knew Deshaun better. He met the man with a 0:09:45.720 --> 0:09:48.200 full embrace and used it as an opportunity to palm 0:09:48.280 --> 0:09:51.160 the major a packet of his favorite cigarettes. Deshaun gave 0:09:51.200 --> 0:09:53.800 him a wink and a smile. Many shook Hamed's hand next, 0:09:53.840 --> 0:09:56.319 and then kissed him on the cheek. Hamid returned the kiss, 0:09:56.400 --> 0:09:59.160 clapped him on the shoulder, and said, Emmanuel, my friend, 0:09:59.320 --> 0:10:01.760 you really would get out of this business. One of 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:04.120 these days you'll come up here and it won't be safe. 0:10:04.920 --> 0:10:07.000 Manny frowned a little at the use of his birth name, 0:10:07.160 --> 0:10:08.800 but he didn't make an issue out of the matter. 0:10:09.040 --> 0:10:11.200 There's still a war on, right, he smiled at Hamid. 0:10:11.559 --> 0:10:13.840 You'll get that ship under control, and maybe I'll work 0:10:13.840 --> 0:10:16.679 a straight job again. Not too soon, though, he thought. 0:10:16.960 --> 0:10:19.120 The least this war can do is last long enough 0:10:19.160 --> 0:10:22.520 to get me out of Texas. Hamid smiled back, and 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:26.240 Manny introduced Reggie to the officers. The journalist was clearly 0:10:26.280 --> 0:10:28.760 awkward in that special way Manny had come to expect 0:10:28.760 --> 0:10:31.640 from new war correspondence. It was the norm for young 0:10:31.679 --> 0:10:34.840 writers to be intimidated by grizzled military men. Some of 0:10:34.880 --> 0:10:36.880 them got over that Manny had worked with the middle 0:10:36.880 --> 0:10:39.600 aged der Schpiegel reporter last week could probably taken as 0:10:39.679 --> 0:10:43.440 much incoming fire. As Major Clark Colonel Milgram led them 0:10:43.440 --> 0:10:46.640 to the militarized taco shop, a brief blast of nostalgias 0:10:46.640 --> 0:10:49.840 squeezed Manny's lungs. The place had obviously been closed since 0:10:49.840 --> 0:10:52.800 the revolution. The drink specials and meal prices printed on 0:10:52.840 --> 0:10:55.200 the wall were given in US dollars, a currency as 0:10:55.240 --> 0:10:58.720 dead as the last American president. Manny recognized ads for 0:10:58.800 --> 0:11:01.360 bands and movies. He remembered it from his childhood. The 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:04.280 glass facade had shattered years ago. The kitchen had been 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:07.240 gutted and replaced by wall length mirrors displaying maps of 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:09.959 the city. At least a dozen uniformed men and women 0:11:09.960 --> 0:11:13.120 milled around the space in small groups. He and Reggie 0:11:13.200 --> 0:11:15.439 sat down at a long picnic table with Hamid and 0:11:15.480 --> 0:11:18.640 the two officers. Reggie set his camera up on the table. 0:11:18.920 --> 0:11:21.360 It was just a small silver sphere, but Manny knew 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:24.000 it could record everything happening around it at a higher 0:11:24.080 --> 0:11:27.440 resolution in the human eye, and orderly brought in three 0:11:27.440 --> 0:11:30.840 beers shiner box from Austin, and one dark brown tea 0:11:30.880 --> 0:11:33.560 in a glass cup for Hamid. The brit raised his 0:11:33.600 --> 0:11:36.600 glass in a friendly salute, thank you for meeting with me, 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:39.760 and then he started to ask questions. Many leaned back 0:11:39.800 --> 0:11:42.160 in his chair enjoyed a long gulp of cold beer. 0:11:42.440 --> 0:11:45.240 If he wasn't needed to translate, he generally checked out 0:11:45.320 --> 0:11:48.040 during interviews. He used the free time to activate his 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:49.920 deck and check in on the two stringers he had 0:11:49.960 --> 0:11:53.120 working right now. Devin Martinez was up in Addison today, 0:11:53.160 --> 0:11:55.880 taking a Californian documentary crew on a tour of an 0:11:55.960 --> 0:11:58.839 STF training facility. He'd messaged Manny to let him know 0:11:58.880 --> 0:12:02.439 they'd gotten through the check It's without any issue. Oscar Allenby, 0:12:02.480 --> 0:12:05.240 his other stringer, didn't have any journalists with him. He 0:12:05.280 --> 0:12:07.960 was embedded with a Republic of Texas police unit, getting 0:12:08.000 --> 0:12:11.040 footage from inside a neighborhood that had recently been liberated 0:12:11.120 --> 0:12:14.000 from the Heavenly Kingdom. There were no new messages from Oscar. 0:12:14.400 --> 0:12:16.920 His last check in had been the night before. It 0:12:16.960 --> 0:12:20.520 was probably nothing, but it concerned Manny nonetheless, when if 0:12:20.559 --> 0:12:23.199 Oscar got a better offer for his footage. He'd always 0:12:23.200 --> 0:12:25.240 been loyal before, but if that funk from the Guardian 0:12:25.240 --> 0:12:28.040 had gotten to him. I'm interested in the Abrams road bombing, 0:12:28.120 --> 0:12:30.760 Reggie told the colonel, and Manny's attention swung back to 0:12:30.800 --> 0:12:33.360 his reporter. That's an odd thing to ask about. The 0:12:33.360 --> 0:12:35.920 bombing had occurred two weeks back. It had been big 0:12:35.960 --> 0:12:38.280 news for a couple of hours. Manny had paid one 0:12:38.320 --> 0:12:41.280 of his contacts in Raza front another local militia for 0:12:41.320 --> 0:12:43.400 a video of a walk through of the wreckage. It 0:12:43.440 --> 0:12:46.640 had brought in about three grand profit. The Abrams Road 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:50.480 bombing was not a martyrdom operation. Colonel Milgram sounded almost angry, 0:12:50.920 --> 0:12:53.319 terribly sorry. Reggie said, you're right, of course, there was 0:12:53.360 --> 0:12:57.640 no driver, so no martyr right right, Deshaun Clark said. 0:12:57.840 --> 0:12:59.720 He pulled a folded piece of white paper out of 0:12:59.720 --> 0:13:02.000 his pocket, opened it up, and smoothed it out on 0:13:02.040 --> 0:13:04.720 the table. It was a map of the df W area, 0:13:05.000 --> 0:13:07.880 color coded to show the positions of the various militias 0:13:07.880 --> 0:13:10.800 in the region. We operate nine checkpoints on that part 0:13:10.840 --> 0:13:13.440 of the Richardson line, Deshon said, as he pointed to 0:13:13.480 --> 0:13:17.000 each one. Five of them border Republic controlled territory. The 0:13:17.040 --> 0:13:19.959 traffic from there is mostly autonomous, and those vehicles slave 0:13:20.040 --> 0:13:22.560 themselves to our traffic management system before they can enter 0:13:22.600 --> 0:13:26.000 our territory. The other three checkpoints border territory controlled by 0:13:26.000 --> 0:13:28.880 the martyrs. They don't see much traffic, and they're all 0:13:28.920 --> 0:13:32.440 heavily armed. Reggie was quiet for a few seconds while 0:13:32.440 --> 0:13:34.280 he figured out the most polite way to phrase his 0:13:34.320 --> 0:13:37.000 next question. Many can almost hear the gears turning in 0:13:37.040 --> 0:13:40.160 the journalist's head before he finally spoke. Would it be 0:13:40.200 --> 0:13:42.960 fair to say the autonomous checkpoints are less secure than 0:13:43.600 --> 0:13:47.760 Deshaun smiled a thin, quiet smile amid grimace. Colonel Milgram 0:13:47.800 --> 0:13:51.880 responded in a terse voice. The autonomous checkpoints have fewer defenders, 0:13:51.920 --> 0:13:55.240 but they border Republic territory. The martyrs haven't pulled off 0:13:55.240 --> 0:13:58.120 an attack on one in quite some time. Was Abrams 0:13:58.240 --> 0:14:00.960 Road not one such attack? Reggie looked eager now, like 0:14:01.000 --> 0:14:04.800 a hound, following assent. We don't know who bombed Abram's road, 0:14:04.880 --> 0:14:08.040 Colonel Milgram said, No one's taken credit, but we doubt 0:14:08.080 --> 0:14:11.880 it was the martyrs. Why the journalist asked. Many leaned 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:14.280 in a little interested, in spite of himself, at where 0:14:14.280 --> 0:14:17.800 this was all going to lead. Perhaps, Hamad said, you 0:14:17.840 --> 0:14:20.520 should read a bit more about this heavenly kingdom. They 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:24.600 reject all autonomous technology. They even use remote human pilots 0:14:24.600 --> 0:14:27.240 for their drones, like it's two thousand and fucking three. 0:14:27.640 --> 0:14:30.680 That's why our skies are always clear. We jammed them. 0:14:30.800 --> 0:14:33.200 Reggie asked, is it possible they found some way to 0:14:33.240 --> 0:14:36.840 hack your defense system? Amid laughed, We bought this system 0:14:36.840 --> 0:14:38.880 from the Israelis. If you're telling me one of the 0:14:38.880 --> 0:14:41.200 Martyr's brigades as a hacker that can crack that, then 0:14:41.240 --> 0:14:44.520 I'm the King of Albuquerque. But something still went wrong, 0:14:44.600 --> 0:14:49.240 Reggie insisted, hamid smile turned cold. This is war, Mr McGhee, 0:14:49.480 --> 0:14:52.680 it's mostly things going wrong. That's where the line of 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:55.640 questions petered out. Reggie asked them for access to the 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:58.880 security footage from the destroyed checkpoint, and Colonel Milgram agreed 0:14:58.880 --> 0:15:01.080 to send it over. We'd like to speak to their 0:15:01.080 --> 0:15:04.000 survivors as well, if possible, Manny interjected, not waiting to 0:15:04.000 --> 0:15:06.160 see if the journalist would ask. He knew those men 0:15:06.160 --> 0:15:08.160 were all stationed behind the line now, which would make 0:15:08.200 --> 0:15:10.360 for a safer, easier rest of the day than heading 0:15:10.400 --> 0:15:13.240 up to the wire, of course, Colonel Miilgram said, with 0:15:13.280 --> 0:15:15.640 a smile to Manny. They gave their good byes, and 0:15:15.680 --> 0:15:18.080 then Major Clark walked them out to their waiting Toyota. 0:15:18.320 --> 0:15:20.560 The Texas heat hit like an oven as they exited, 0:15:20.640 --> 0:15:22.520 and Manny was glad they'd be spending most of the 0:15:22.560 --> 0:15:25.280 rest of their day and doors. Dehaun clapped a hand 0:15:25.320 --> 0:15:27.640 on Manny's shoulder as he lit one of his new cigarettes. 0:15:28.080 --> 0:15:30.520 It's good to see you again, Emmanuel, he said, and 0:15:30.520 --> 0:15:32.840 then he smiled at Reggie, and it's nice to meet you, 0:15:32.960 --> 0:15:35.480 my British friend. I'm sorry you've come to the front 0:15:35.480 --> 0:15:40.440 at a boring time. Why, Reggie asked, Because this Deshaun 0:15:40.560 --> 0:15:43.240 gestured at the gun emplacements and loitering militiamen at the 0:15:43.280 --> 0:15:47.520 command post. This is not war, not really. Your job 0:15:47.600 --> 0:15:49.840 is to help your people, children of peace and plenty, 0:15:50.160 --> 0:15:53.040 understand what's going on here. You must teach them the 0:15:53.120 --> 0:15:56.200 language of war. And to paraphrase a dead poet, the 0:15:56.280 --> 0:15:59.120 language of war is a language made of blood. To 0:15:59.160 --> 0:16:03.200 be spoken, it must be earned. There was an awkward pause, 0:16:03.440 --> 0:16:05.840 a little bit of the blood drained from the journalist's face. 0:16:06.440 --> 0:16:09.160 Nutty old fuck, Manny thought, with more amusement than fear. 0:16:09.560 --> 0:16:12.360 Classic to Shaun, he said, and laughed to ease the tension. 0:16:12.800 --> 0:16:15.200 The major bid them both a good day, hugged Manny, 0:16:15.320 --> 0:16:18.080 and sauntered off back to the command post. Smoke from 0:16:18.080 --> 0:16:20.160 his cigarette curled up into the air behind him as 0:16:20.200 --> 0:16:22.880 he walked. Manny's eyes lingered on it for a second 0:16:22.960 --> 0:16:25.880 before he turned back to Reggie. Ready to go, he 0:16:25.960 --> 0:16:34.520 asked Chipper as he could manage. Three hours, a handful 0:16:34.520 --> 0:16:37.360 of interviews, and one short drive later, Manny and Reggie 0:16:37.440 --> 0:16:40.880 arrived at their home for the night. The Richardson Autonomous Project, 0:16:41.120 --> 0:16:43.720 once a walmart, now a twenty two year old experiment 0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:47.200 and sustainable urban living. The project was the furthest island 0:16:47.240 --> 0:16:49.760 of civilization on the sd F side of the Front. 0:16:50.240 --> 0:16:53.480 Its militias steadfastly refused to involve themselves in the region's 0:16:53.520 --> 0:16:56.200 greater conflicts. They'd been targeted a few times by the 0:16:56.200 --> 0:16:59.400 Heavenly Kingdom, though the s d F, by contrast, left 0:16:59.400 --> 0:17:02.080 them alone. So when a fixer like Manny found himself 0:17:02.080 --> 0:17:04.560 on the wrong side of the lb J Freeway after dark, 0:17:04.760 --> 0:17:07.679 he could usually trust the project to provide food, booze, 0:17:07.720 --> 0:17:11.879 and shelter for a price. Of course, sleeping arrangements in 0:17:11.880 --> 0:17:14.360 the project were broadly communal. The bulk of the old 0:17:14.359 --> 0:17:17.040 walmart had been converted into an indoor meadow with grow 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:19.679 lights hanging from the rafters, and a wide, lush field 0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:22.679 of native grass sprawling across most of the inhabited space. 0:17:23.240 --> 0:17:26.360 Fruit trees, bushes full of berries, cannabis, plants, and copses 0:17:26.359 --> 0:17:29.040 of bamboo lined the edges of the space. The center 0:17:29.040 --> 0:17:31.720 of the field was dominated by a large circular kitchen 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:35.359 surrounded by a handsome oaken bar. Table tables, gazebos, and 0:17:35.400 --> 0:17:38.440 sundry personal structures dotted the field, along with a pair 0:17:38.480 --> 0:17:41.359 of dance floors. Reggie's face lit up when he saw 0:17:41.400 --> 0:17:43.560 the bar. By the time Manny had dropped off their 0:17:43.600 --> 0:17:45.640 bags and paid Charlie and the driver for the night, 0:17:45.920 --> 0:17:48.640 the journalist was already three beers in the brit wasn't 0:17:48.680 --> 0:17:52.160 precisely drunk or sober, but at that productive twilight in between, 0:17:52.520 --> 0:17:55.520 he'd unrolled a portable screen and had a holographic display up, 0:17:55.600 --> 0:17:58.840 looping four separate sections of the security footage Colonel Milgram 0:17:58.840 --> 0:18:02.800 had sent over. The journalist alternated between typing furiously scrawling 0:18:02.800 --> 0:18:05.280 notes in his journal and taking huge gulps from something 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:07.960 brown and foamy. He stopped working when he saw Manny 0:18:08.000 --> 0:18:11.320 approach and waved him into the adjacent seat. Hey brother, 0:18:11.560 --> 0:18:14.159 check this out, Manny, pulled up a seat, and the 0:18:14.240 --> 0:18:16.800 journalist directed his attention to a six second loop of 0:18:16.840 --> 0:18:20.080 footage from immediately after the bombing. It showed two man 0:18:20.119 --> 0:18:23.320 size silhouettes standing on top of an old garage. Many 0:18:23.359 --> 0:18:26.320 remembered the building. It stood maybe two hundred meters from 0:18:26.320 --> 0:18:29.520 the Abrams Road checkpoint. One of the silhouettes had a rifle. 0:18:29.880 --> 0:18:32.919 The other held a short squat tube that Manny recognized 0:18:32.960 --> 0:18:37.320 as a camera lens. Notice anything, spotters, Manny said, probably 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:40.159 trying to get a kill. Count. No, man, look at 0:18:40.160 --> 0:18:42.680 where he's pointed. That Count's not looking at any post. 0:18:42.920 --> 0:18:46.040 He's looking straight back deeper into the old town. And 0:18:46.080 --> 0:18:48.040 I'll bet you he's high enough up to be staring 0:18:48.160 --> 0:18:51.960 right at Colonel Milgram's command post. Manny looked again. He 0:18:52.040 --> 0:18:55.119 thought about the angle. Okay, so what, he asked, You 0:18:55.119 --> 0:18:57.200 think this was a probing attack for some big action. 0:18:57.520 --> 0:19:01.520 The journalist shrugged. Maybe it's something new, is what interests me. 0:19:01.800 --> 0:19:04.200 Two years of Modydom operations that all look more or 0:19:04.240 --> 0:19:07.680 less the same, and now this weird one, an autonomous 0:19:07.760 --> 0:19:10.280 vehicle bomb from a group of fanatics who think autonomous 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:14.200 vehicles of the devil. Yeah, Manny agreed that does seem weird. 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:17.240 The bartender walked up and offered Manny his pick of 0:19:17.280 --> 0:19:20.520 the finest liquor in this particular war zone. Many ordered 0:19:20.520 --> 0:19:22.760 a Shiner. It was the one beer a drinker could 0:19:22.760 --> 0:19:25.199 find across both the Republic of Texas and the Austin 0:19:25.240 --> 0:19:28.520 Autonomous Region. He looked back at the looping footage. They 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:31.399 both watched it twice more. Then Reggie spoke up again. 0:19:31.920 --> 0:19:35.639 What have you heard about Pasta Mike, he asked. Manny 0:19:35.680 --> 0:19:37.600 stiffened a little bit at the name. He'd heard it, 0:19:37.640 --> 0:19:41.320 of course, vague stories of rioting in Kansas, a fundamentalist 0:19:41.400 --> 0:19:44.760 uprising inside the southernmost territory of the United Christian States. 0:19:45.160 --> 0:19:47.600 He hadn't thought much about it at first, but two 0:19:47.680 --> 0:19:50.600 years ago Pastor Mike had moved to Texas, shortly before 0:19:50.640 --> 0:19:53.280 the Heavenly Kingdom had declared itself. It was hard to 0:19:53.280 --> 0:19:56.159 say exactly what role the preacher played within the organization, 0:19:56.520 --> 0:20:00.119 but he was certainly its most visible face. I know 0:20:00.119 --> 0:20:02.479 who he is, Manny said. I know the Republic led 0:20:02.560 --> 0:20:04.480 him in because they thought as followers might provide a 0:20:04.480 --> 0:20:07.359 buffer against Austin's influence. I know that blew the funk 0:20:07.440 --> 0:20:10.119 up in their faces. Manny took a long drink and continued, 0:20:10.440 --> 0:20:13.160 that's an old story around here, the Republic using those 0:20:13.160 --> 0:20:16.600 god fondling Nutfoxx to push back against the leftists. The 0:20:16.680 --> 0:20:20.440 journalist raised an eyebrow, and Manny instantly regretted his crude response. 0:20:20.760 --> 0:20:23.080 He didn't really care about religion one way or the other, 0:20:23.320 --> 0:20:24.920