1
00:00:02,120 --> 00:00:07,440
Speaker 1: Chapter eighteen, Sasha. Sasha didn't feel safe out on the

2
00:00:07,480 --> 00:00:10,840
Speaker 1: street after Anne's abduction. The next day, she'd volunteered for

3
00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:14,080
Speaker 1: four extra hours of duty in the emergency ward. She

4
00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:18,079
Speaker 1: changed bandages and administered antibiotic salves and delivered food to

5
00:00:18,120 --> 00:00:21,239
Speaker 1: wounded soldiers until her eyes started to glaze over and

6
00:00:21,360 --> 00:00:24,919
Speaker 1: doctor Brandt ordered her home. She'd barely had the energy

7
00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:27,080
Speaker 1: to eat that night, but by the time her driver

8
00:00:27,240 --> 00:00:29,200
Speaker 1: dropped her off at the House of Miriam, it was

9
00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:32,440
Speaker 1: dark and there'd been no one waiting for her. That

10
00:00:32,560 --> 00:00:35,839
Speaker 1: strategy hadn't worked. The day after that, doctor Brandt had

11
00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:38,760
Speaker 1: even tried to send her home early. Sasha had talked

12
00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:40,680
Speaker 1: him out of it, but not out of sending her

13
00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:43,960
Speaker 1: back downtown at the normal time. She was sure her

14
00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:46,879
Speaker 1: driver must have noticed how anxious she was. By the

15
00:00:46,920 --> 00:00:49,280
Speaker 1: time they reached the main drag, she was drenched in

16
00:00:49,360 --> 00:00:52,440
Speaker 1: sweat her hands were shaking. She asked him to drop

17
00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:54,760
Speaker 1: her off a half block down from the normal spot

18
00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:56,960
Speaker 1: so she could enter the square from the left side

19
00:00:57,000 --> 00:00:58,840
Speaker 1: and get a good look at who was hanging out

20
00:00:58,880 --> 00:01:02,560
Speaker 1: near the House of Miriam. Alexander had been there, of course,

21
00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:04,800
Speaker 1: sitting out in front of a building two doors down

22
00:01:04,840 --> 00:01:07,760
Speaker 1: from the house, along with one of his friends. Avoiding

23
00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:10,120
Speaker 1: them had brought her to the Cafe Clement, and then

24
00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:13,240
Speaker 1: something she could only assume was God's providence had bumped

25
00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:16,200
Speaker 1: her into a manual. He was sweet and fun to

26
00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:18,440
Speaker 1: talk to, and it was actually refreshing to have a

27
00:01:18,440 --> 00:01:21,800
Speaker 1: conversation with some one who didn't constantly quote scripture or

28
00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:25,280
Speaker 1: pastor Mike. She was surprised at herself for feeling that way.

29
00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:27,679
Speaker 1: A few weeks ago, she'd have given anything to have

30
00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:30,679
Speaker 1: an open conversation about her beliefs, but now that she

31
00:01:30,840 --> 00:01:32,760
Speaker 1: was deep within the Kingdom, it was nice to talk

32
00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:36,880
Speaker 1: about normal things with a normal boy. The next day

33
00:01:36,920 --> 00:01:39,240
Speaker 1: had brought her back to the hospital, which was filled

34
00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:42,119
Speaker 1: with wounded soldiers from an air strike on a troop transport.

35
00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:45,840
Speaker 1: Sasha had spent nine hours without a break helping doctor

36
00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:49,160
Speaker 1: Brandt cut clothing off of horribly burned young men. She'd

37
00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:52,560
Speaker 1: applied slick, gummy burned dressings and changed ivy drips of

38
00:01:52,600 --> 00:01:56,480
Speaker 1: pain killers. The day was long, bloody, and brutal. Four

39
00:01:56,480 --> 00:01:58,520
Speaker 1: men died in front of her eyes, and there was

40
00:01:58,600 --> 00:02:01,320
Speaker 1: no time to really think about it. She knew that

41
00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:03,760
Speaker 1: she should have been more horrified at what she was seeing.

42
00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:07,200
Speaker 1: But the exposed organs and burnt, shriveled limbs didn't feel

43
00:02:07,240 --> 00:02:10,240
Speaker 1: like parts of people. Even the screams felt more like

44
00:02:10,400 --> 00:02:14,040
Speaker 1: rhode hazards or bad weather than damaged pieces of human beings.

45
00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:16,960
Speaker 1: They were obstacles to be dealt with. She and doctor

46
00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:20,040
Speaker 1: Brandt dealt with them well. A still small voice in

47
00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:22,160
Speaker 1: the back of her mind recoiled in horror at the

48
00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:25,400
Speaker 1: sheer volume of human misery she saw that day, But

49
00:02:25,480 --> 00:02:28,280
Speaker 1: that voice was quieter than it had been on other days,

50
00:02:28,360 --> 00:02:30,680
Speaker 1: and it grew quieter as the day went on and

51
00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:34,000
Speaker 1: the death toll mounted. Sasha had read about post traumatic

52
00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:37,440
Speaker 1: stress disorder back in school. She understood the mechanics of it.

53
00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:40,760
Speaker 1: The people tended to cope with terrifying situations by suppressing

54
00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,880
Speaker 1: their fear. But this didn't feel like that. It felt

55
00:02:43,880 --> 00:02:47,080
Speaker 1: like she was just doing her job, and she enjoyed

56
00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,560
Speaker 1: her job. Before she knew it, ten hours had gone by,

57
00:02:50,639 --> 00:02:53,240
Speaker 1: and doctor Brandt demanded she find a ride back to

58
00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:56,080
Speaker 1: the House of Miriam and get some rest. That was

59
00:02:56,160 --> 00:02:58,760
Speaker 1: the first time in the entire day when Sasha felt

60
00:02:58,760 --> 00:03:02,399
Speaker 1: truly scared. It started in her chest, her heart fluttered

61
00:03:02,440 --> 00:03:05,200
Speaker 1: faster and faster, until the flutter turned to a pounding

62
00:03:05,320 --> 00:03:07,760
Speaker 1: so loud it felt like someone was smashing a hammer

63
00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:10,520
Speaker 1: on the inner walls of her cranium. She pressed her

64
00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:12,560
Speaker 1: back hard into the seat of the jeep and hoped

65
00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:16,240
Speaker 1: her growing panic wasn't obvious to the driver. He dropped

66
00:03:16,240 --> 00:03:18,120
Speaker 1: her off on the other side of the square again.

67
00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:21,440
Speaker 1: She didn't see Alexander or his comrades near the House

68
00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:23,639
Speaker 1: of Miriam this time, but she knew that didn't mean

69
00:03:23,639 --> 00:03:26,440
Speaker 1: they weren't watching the place. She had plans to meet

70
00:03:26,440 --> 00:03:29,760
Speaker 1: Emmanual again anyway. Sasha half expected him to have moved

71
00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:32,160
Speaker 1: on since she'd been so late, but he was there,

72
00:03:32,360 --> 00:03:34,880
Speaker 1: standing out in front of the Cafe Clement when she arrived.

73
00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,840
Speaker 1: I'm sorry, I'm so late, she said. He shrugged in response,

74
00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:41,880
Speaker 1: I just got here myself. They dismissed us late. We

75
00:03:41,920 --> 00:03:45,480
Speaker 1: had a special lecture before dinner about a His face

76
00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:48,960
Speaker 1: grew red and he trailed off about what she poked.

77
00:03:49,560 --> 00:03:53,320
Speaker 1: Maybe let's just sit down first, huh. So they found

78
00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:56,200
Speaker 1: a seat and ordered their coffee. Manny tried to change

79
00:03:56,240 --> 00:03:59,120
Speaker 1: the subject by asking Sasha about her day, but she

80
00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:02,160
Speaker 1: was curious about his reaction and would not be dissuaded.

81
00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:05,280
Speaker 1: I'll tell you all about my day if you tell

82
00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:07,680
Speaker 1: me about that lecture and why just thinking about it

83
00:04:07,720 --> 00:04:10,880
Speaker 1: made your face go red. He grew redder and stared

84
00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,600
Speaker 1: down into his coffee. Pastor came over to lecture us

85
00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:16,880
Speaker 1: about our duty and helping to heaven the kingdom grow.

86
00:04:17,080 --> 00:04:21,280
Speaker 1: You know our duty, Emmanual gave her a significant look.

87
00:04:21,520 --> 00:04:25,559
Speaker 1: She gathered his meaning, and then she blushed too. That's

88
00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:28,360
Speaker 1: uh why they bust us out here every day, he continued.

89
00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:31,599
Speaker 1: It's so we can get to know the local women

90
00:04:31,880 --> 00:04:34,599
Speaker 1: and then get to know them in the biblical sense.

91
00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:37,719
Speaker 1: She laughed in spite of herself. I think that was

92
00:04:37,760 --> 00:04:40,719
Speaker 1: the first off color joke I've heard in weeks. It

93
00:04:40,800 --> 00:04:43,920
Speaker 1: felt good and risque. It was actually the same sort

94
00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:46,479
Speaker 1: of thrill she'd gotten back home when she'd sneakily read

95
00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:49,440
Speaker 1: issues of Revelator and browsed the media feeds of various

96
00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:54,000
Speaker 1: martyrs brigades. You know, Emmanual, she said, You're not quite

97
00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:56,520
Speaker 1: like anyone else I've met here. It's nice to meet

98
00:04:56,520 --> 00:04:59,200
Speaker 1: someone who wasn't afraid to joke. I didn't think i'd

99
00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:02,719
Speaker 1: missed that. He was quiet for a little while Manny

100
00:05:02,800 --> 00:05:06,640
Speaker 1: stirred his coffee awkwardly cast his eyes down, he went paler,

101
00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:11,040
Speaker 1: you seem different too, I dunno this place. Maybe it's

102
00:05:11,080 --> 00:05:14,080
Speaker 1: not exactly what we thought it would be. She should

103
00:05:14,080 --> 00:05:16,200
Speaker 1: have gotten angry at that. It was the kind of

104
00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:18,160
Speaker 1: common that could have gotten a manual into a lot

105
00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:21,240
Speaker 1: of trouble. Why would he say that to me, she wondered?

106
00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:24,159
Speaker 1: And why am I okay with all this? Maybe it

107
00:05:24,200 --> 00:05:26,680
Speaker 1: was Marigold rubbing off on her. Maybe it was just

108
00:05:26,839 --> 00:05:30,240
Speaker 1: gradual disillusionment, the climax of a process that had started

109
00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:33,880
Speaker 1: with Alexander's betrayal. But the Heavenly Kingdom no longer felt

110
00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:39,000
Speaker 1: magical or even all that wholly. It's complicated here, she

111
00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:41,880
Speaker 1: finally said. I mean, before I came here, I knew

112
00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,440
Speaker 1: it couldn't be perfect no places, but yes, it's not

113
00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:49,200
Speaker 1: what I'd hoped to find exactly. Sasha felt a spike

114
00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:51,440
Speaker 1: of panic as soon as the words left her mouth.

115
00:05:51,839 --> 00:05:54,760
Speaker 1: You barely know this man, Sasha. His whole job might

116
00:05:54,800 --> 00:05:58,440
Speaker 1: be ferrying out potential disloyalty. She coughed and tried to

117
00:05:58,480 --> 00:06:01,600
Speaker 1: walk her admission back a little. It's still better than

118
00:06:01,640 --> 00:06:04,040
Speaker 1: the st f or any of the other Heathen states,

119
00:06:04,200 --> 00:06:06,919
Speaker 1: I have to keep telling myself that what's important is

120
00:06:06,960 --> 00:06:09,520
Speaker 1: what we're fighting for, not the imperfections we have to

121
00:06:09,520 --> 00:06:12,760
Speaker 1: live with. In this moment, hum he gave an on

122
00:06:12,839 --> 00:06:17,520
Speaker 1: committal grunt that surprised her. She hadn't expected anything specific exactly,

123
00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:20,640
Speaker 1: but that surprised her. He started to say something else,

124
00:06:20,920 --> 00:06:24,279
Speaker 1: then his eyes went wide. Who he started to say?

125
00:06:24,520 --> 00:06:27,520
Speaker 1: Sasha heard boot falls. She felt the presence of several

126
00:06:27,560 --> 00:06:30,880
Speaker 1: tall men behind her. The heavy, familiar scent of Alexander's

127
00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:36,560
Speaker 1: cologne filled her nostrils. Madyr Emmanuel Sanchez, Miss Sasha, may

128
00:06:36,600 --> 00:06:39,719
Speaker 1: the blessings of the laud be with you and also

129
00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:43,400
Speaker 1: with you, Sascha replied by rote. Emmanuel chimed in a

130
00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:46,279
Speaker 1: second or two later. He sounded a bit awkward, like

131
00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:50,120
Speaker 1: he wasn't exactly sure which words to use. Alexander pulled

132
00:06:50,200 --> 00:06:52,080
Speaker 1: up a chair and set it against the right side

133
00:06:52,080 --> 00:06:55,320
Speaker 1: of the table. He sat down, placing himself between them.

134
00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:57,760
Speaker 1: He rested one arm on the table, but his left

135
00:06:57,839 --> 00:07:01,920
Speaker 1: arm hung directly over his side arm. He looked at Immanuel, smiled,

136
00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:04,359
Speaker 1: and then looked at Sasha. She felt a wave of

137
00:07:04,440 --> 00:07:07,320
Speaker 1: nausea grabbed her by the guts and tug. His lips

138
00:07:07,320 --> 00:07:12,840
Speaker 1: curled up, revealing his straight white teeth. Excuse me, Manny said,

139
00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,800
Speaker 1: but who are you? Alexander looked back to Manny, his

140
00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:23,320
Speaker 1: expression unchanged. Mata, Alexander du Bois. I'm a friend of Sasha's,

141
00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:25,560
Speaker 1: he glanced back at her with a wink that curdled

142
00:07:25,560 --> 00:07:28,720
Speaker 1: her stomach. And I'm also in charge of recruitment for

143
00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:32,760
Speaker 1: the Storming Battalion. Never heard of it, Emmanuel said in

144
00:07:32,760 --> 00:07:36,440
Speaker 1: a gruff, clipped tone. Sasha realized she was shaking a little.

145
00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:40,080
Speaker 1: Alexander's lips curled up into an even more ghoulish variant

146
00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:44,440
Speaker 1: of his already unsettling smile. He replied, there's a reason

147
00:07:44,480 --> 00:07:48,200
Speaker 1: for that, Mada Sanchez. The Storming Battalion plays a key

148
00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:51,720
Speaker 1: role in our success on the battlefield. They've been central

149
00:07:51,760 --> 00:07:55,200
Speaker 1: in every one of our victories. We don't publicize their

150
00:07:55,240 --> 00:07:58,600
Speaker 1: work for various reasons, but I assure you it's a

151
00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:02,360
Speaker 1: distinct honor to be crouded by me. That's actually why

152
00:08:02,400 --> 00:08:07,240
Speaker 1: I'm here, Emmanuel. We've chosen you. By now, it felt

153
00:08:07,280 --> 00:08:10,520
Speaker 1: like the pit of Sasha's stomach was boiling. Something terrible

154
00:08:10,640 --> 00:08:14,280
Speaker 1: was clearly happening, even Emmanual seemed to realize that his

155
00:08:14,360 --> 00:08:16,920
Speaker 1: face had gone pale. His pupils were the size of

156
00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:21,040
Speaker 1: dinner plates. I ah, thank you for the honor, but

157
00:08:21,160 --> 00:08:24,960
Speaker 1: I'm happy with my unit. I feel that's where the

158
00:08:25,040 --> 00:08:28,480
Speaker 1: Lord needs me. My friend Aaron Alexander put a hand up,

159
00:08:28,600 --> 00:08:33,040
Speaker 1: flat palm facing Emmanual. Your comrade will be taken care of,

160
00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:35,880
Speaker 1: and we'll be the judges of where the LRD needs you.

161
00:08:36,400 --> 00:08:40,040
Speaker 1: Trust me, We've got a lot more experience interpreting his

162
00:08:40,120 --> 00:08:43,280
Speaker 1: will than you do. There's a reason the cross flies

163
00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:47,520
Speaker 1: over this entire city. Emmanuel half stood in his chair.

164
00:08:47,840 --> 00:08:50,960
Speaker 1: It was a sudden gesture, and a faintly aggressive one.

165
00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:54,200
Speaker 1: Sasha noticed his hands were bawled up into fists. His

166
00:08:54,280 --> 00:08:56,679
Speaker 1: eyes darted left and right. He seemed to be looking

167
00:08:56,679 --> 00:08:59,880
Speaker 1: over the heads of Alexander and his men Alexander ten.

168
00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:02,960
Speaker 1: Both the men put hands over their side arms, but

169
00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:06,400
Speaker 1: Emmanuel didn't take any further action. After a few turns

170
00:09:06,400 --> 00:09:09,200
Speaker 1: of his head, he stopped looking, relaxed his hands, and

171
00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:13,680
Speaker 1: sat back down. Okay, he said, I get the feeling

172
00:09:13,679 --> 00:09:16,840
Speaker 1: you want me to go with you now, Alexander smiled.

173
00:09:17,000 --> 00:09:19,560
Speaker 1: It was a vicious, oily thing, and it confirmed in

174
00:09:19,600 --> 00:09:23,760
Speaker 1: Sasha's heart that he had something terrible planned. Yes, that's

175
00:09:23,800 --> 00:09:26,760
Speaker 1: exactly what I want. He cocked his head up and

176
00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:31,640
Speaker 1: pursed his lips in an exaggerated gesture of consideration. Well, actually,

177
00:09:31,720 --> 00:09:34,280
Speaker 1: I want you to go with these men. I need

178
00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:38,200
Speaker 1: to stay here and have a wood with Sasha. Emmanuel

179
00:09:38,200 --> 00:09:41,240
Speaker 1: looked into her eyes. He was scared clearly, but he

180
00:09:41,320 --> 00:09:45,040
Speaker 1: kept his voice steady when he spoke, Sasha, I've got

181
00:09:45,080 --> 00:09:48,720
Speaker 1: to go do my duty find errand for me. Will

182
00:09:48,760 --> 00:09:51,640
Speaker 1: you tell him I am wish him the best, and

183
00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:55,960
Speaker 1: I hope to see him soon. He put definite emphasis

184
00:09:55,960 --> 00:09:58,360
Speaker 1: on that last word, and then he gave Sasha a

185
00:09:58,440 --> 00:10:02,199
Speaker 1: very deliberate nod before he stood and stepped towards Alexander's men.

186
00:10:03,280 --> 00:10:06,079
Speaker 1: Take him to the factory for his intake process, and

187
00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:10,120
Speaker 1: I'll be along. Showtly, Alexander said. He put a hand

188
00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:13,120
Speaker 1: on Emmanuel's forearm as the young man passed by, and said,

189
00:10:13,640 --> 00:10:16,440
Speaker 1: you should give a prayer of thanks, brother, God has

190
00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:20,000
Speaker 1: blessed you with a great honor. Emmanuel smile was as

191
00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:24,520
Speaker 1: false as Alexander's God bless you, Martyr du Bois. I'll

192
00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:26,840
Speaker 1: pray that you and all your men grow closer to

193
00:10:26,920 --> 00:10:30,800
Speaker 1: our lord. Was that a threat, she wondered, before deciding,

194
00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:34,120
Speaker 1: of course it was. In a more normal situation, Sasha

195
00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:36,480
Speaker 1: would have moulled that over. It certainly was not the

196
00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:39,080
Speaker 1: sort of comment she'd have expected from a true martyr,

197
00:10:39,480 --> 00:10:42,080
Speaker 1: But just then she was far too consumed with terror,

198
00:10:42,320 --> 00:10:47,400
Speaker 1: both for Emmanuel and for herself. Alexander's guards led Manny away,

199
00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:50,440
Speaker 1: and Alexander took his place at the table. He took

200
00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:53,680
Speaker 1: a long sip from Emmanuel's cooling coffee and smiled his

201
00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:57,520
Speaker 1: snake smile again. I must say, Sasha, I thought you

202
00:10:57,600 --> 00:11:00,520
Speaker 1: had better taste than that. For the first time in

203
00:11:00,559 --> 00:11:04,080
Speaker 1: her life, Sasha found herself trying to stare daggers at someone.

204
00:11:04,559 --> 00:11:07,200
Speaker 1: Oh if only I could shoot knives out of my eyes,

205
00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:10,440
Speaker 1: she thought, as she imagined one striking Alexander in the

206
00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:12,840
Speaker 1: forehead with enough force to burst out the back of

207
00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:17,040
Speaker 1: his skull. Is that something chromed people can do, she wondered,

208
00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:19,679
Speaker 1: and decided she'd ask Marigold if she had forgot another

209
00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:23,160
Speaker 1: chance to talk to the woman. Hey, he snapped his

210
00:11:23,200 --> 00:11:25,200
Speaker 1: fingers in front of her eyes, and she hated him

211
00:11:25,240 --> 00:11:27,720
Speaker 1: a little more. She was sort of surprised to learn

212
00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:31,840
Speaker 1: that was possible. Look, I know coming here can be disorienting.

213
00:11:32,040 --> 00:11:34,040
Speaker 1: I know this is a lot to get used to.

214
00:11:34,320 --> 00:11:38,040
Speaker 1: But him a fucking it's people like him who filled

215
00:11:38,040 --> 00:11:41,439
Speaker 1: this continent with them mongrel spawn and tore American civilization

216
00:11:41,480 --> 00:11:45,240
Speaker 1: to splinter us. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ,

217
00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:47,800
Speaker 1: she said. We are all the fruit fruit of the

218
00:11:47,880 --> 00:11:51,240
Speaker 1: same tree. Yeah, I know, I've met Pastor Mike. I

219
00:11:51,320 --> 00:11:53,960
Speaker 1: know God made us all, and I also know he

220
00:11:54,040 --> 00:11:56,800
Speaker 1: made some of us better than others. There's a reason

221
00:11:56,920 --> 00:12:00,280
Speaker 1: civilization reached its peak under white Man, and there's a

222
00:12:00,360 --> 00:12:03,360
Speaker 1: reason it crumbled once. We let them take the reins

223
00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:06,800
Speaker 1: for a while, it's not worth arguing with him, she

224
00:12:06,920 --> 00:12:10,319
Speaker 1: told herself. So Sasha decided to ask a blunt question.

225
00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:16,080
Speaker 1: What's going to happen to Emmanual? Alexander smiled, Exactly what

226
00:12:16,120 --> 00:12:18,720
Speaker 1: I said was going to happen to him. He's going

227
00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:22,559
Speaker 1: to the factory for a trainin' and then he'll participate

228
00:12:22,640 --> 00:12:26,079
Speaker 1: in the invasion of Waco as part of the Storming Battalion.

229
00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:30,119
Speaker 1: And what is that? In a way, it's the luckiest

230
00:12:30,200 --> 00:12:33,280
Speaker 1: unit in the Heavenly Kingdom's whole military. They are the

231
00:12:33,320 --> 00:12:37,680
Speaker 1: first ones in guaranteed glory. He took another long, slow

232
00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:40,920
Speaker 1: sip from Manny's coffee, his eyes bored into her all

233
00:12:40,920 --> 00:12:45,520
Speaker 1: the while, and guaranteed modyed um. Sasha felt a little

234
00:12:45,520 --> 00:12:48,599
Speaker 1: pride for not crying. Tears threatened at the corners of

235
00:12:48,679 --> 00:12:53,400
Speaker 1: her eyes. Praise be to God, she choked out, followed

236
00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:56,760
Speaker 1: by I still have duties tonight at the house. May

237
00:12:56,800 --> 00:13:00,320
Speaker 1: I go? Alexander sneered at that, and then he waved

238
00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:02,360
Speaker 1: his hand in a gesture that was surely meant to

239
00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:06,240
Speaker 1: be casual and dismissive. It looked calculated, though, like it

240
00:13:06,280 --> 00:13:08,520
Speaker 1: was important to him that she feel like this didn't

241
00:13:08,559 --> 00:13:12,280
Speaker 1: matter to him. For some reason, that observation made Sasha

242
00:13:12,320 --> 00:13:16,280
Speaker 1: feel a little stronger. Go on. Then he said, we'll

243
00:13:16,320 --> 00:13:19,960
Speaker 1: talk tomorrow. Maybe we'll do more than talk. Maybe not.

244
00:13:21,040 --> 00:13:23,960
Speaker 1: She stood up, still fighting back tears, and left the

245
00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:29,199
Speaker 1: cafe without a response. Sasha wanted to go to someone, anyone,

246
00:13:29,360 --> 00:13:31,600
Speaker 1: in the wake of all this. There's nothing to do.

247
00:13:31,880 --> 00:13:34,120
Speaker 1: The smarter, colder part of her brain, the part that

248
00:13:34,160 --> 00:13:37,560
Speaker 1: always sounded like her mother, warned her, anything you say

249
00:13:37,600 --> 00:13:40,679
Speaker 1: will only make it worse. She knew that was true.

250
00:13:40,920 --> 00:13:44,080
Speaker 1: Even Helen couldn't do anything for Emmanual. Now she'd made

251
00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:47,200
Speaker 1: it very clear that military matters took precedence over everything

252
00:13:47,200 --> 00:13:50,480
Speaker 1: else in the Heavenly Kingdom. It made sense, and yet

253
00:13:50,880 --> 00:13:54,200
Speaker 1: shouldn't right and wrong be what matter most here? She

254
00:13:54,280 --> 00:13:57,120
Speaker 1: wasn't even sure what either of those words meant anymore?

255
00:13:57,640 --> 00:14:00,120
Speaker 1: Was this really what God wanted? Was this how a

256
00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:04,440
Speaker 1: society based on his laws operated? Sasha told herself over

257
00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:07,200
Speaker 1: and over again that she'd made the right decision, that

258
00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:09,520
Speaker 1: the Kingdom wasn't perfect, but it was the best of

259
00:14:09,559 --> 00:14:12,880
Speaker 1: all the other options. That voice grew quieter and less

260
00:14:12,920 --> 00:14:15,280
Speaker 1: convincing as she walked through the doors of the House

261
00:14:15,280 --> 00:14:20,080
Speaker 1: of Miriam and noticed another missing person. Where's Suzanne, she

262
00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:23,040
Speaker 1: asked Helen, after scanning the dining room for her friend.

263
00:14:23,640 --> 00:14:26,240
Speaker 1: The older woman smiled, but it wasn't the warm look

264
00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:30,520
Speaker 1: Sasha had come to expect. Helen looked strained, tired, perhaps

265
00:14:30,560 --> 00:14:36,200
Speaker 1: even a little ill. Suzanne met her husband today, Sasha

266
00:14:36,280 --> 00:14:39,360
Speaker 1: narrowed her eyes and fought down an immediate surge of rage.

267
00:14:39,720 --> 00:14:42,520
Speaker 1: She met him or did he see her and claim her?

268
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,440
Speaker 1: Like Anne suitor? Helen did not like that. She almost

269
00:14:46,440 --> 00:14:50,360
Speaker 1: growled her next words, be very careful with what you insinuate,

270
00:14:50,440 --> 00:14:52,520
Speaker 1: Miss Sasha. I know this isn't what any of you

271
00:14:52,600 --> 00:14:54,720
Speaker 1: dreamed of, but you did come here to help further

272
00:14:54,760 --> 00:14:58,720
Speaker 1: the kingdom. This is how that looks Sasha knew in

273
00:14:58,760 --> 00:15:00,680
Speaker 1: that moment that there was nothing thing else she could

274
00:15:00,720 --> 00:15:03,360
Speaker 1: say to Helen. What would be the point? So she

275
00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:07,040
Speaker 1: nodded meekly, and she apologized, and then she ate her

276
00:15:07,080 --> 00:15:10,320
Speaker 1: dinner like a robot and cleaned up for bed. Throughout

277
00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:13,600
Speaker 1: all that, Marigold's words rang louder in her memory. You

278
00:15:13,680 --> 00:15:16,760
Speaker 1: got suckered into a fucking nightmare. It's time to wake ups.

279
00:15:16,800 --> 00:15:18,800
Speaker 1: Time to wake ups, Time to wake ups, time to

280
00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:21,320
Speaker 1: wake Sasha went to bed around nine. She'd had a

281
00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:24,120
Speaker 1: long and exhausting day. Tomorrow was sure to be more

282
00:15:24,160 --> 00:15:27,000
Speaker 1: of the same, but she couldn't sleep. Now that she

283
00:15:27,120 --> 00:15:29,800
Speaker 1: was safely in bed, hidden from the world, the tears

284
00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:32,920
Speaker 1: refused to stay hidden behind her eyes. It was all

285
00:15:32,960 --> 00:15:36,280
Speaker 1: Sasha could do to avoid audible sobs. She lay awake

286
00:15:36,320 --> 00:15:39,400
Speaker 1: for an hour, maybe more, until she heard a thwack

287
00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:43,040
Speaker 1: followed by a thump. She opened her eyes and rolled

288
00:15:43,080 --> 00:15:45,400
Speaker 1: over to face the door, and the time it took

289
00:15:45,440 --> 00:15:48,000
Speaker 1: to complete that motion, she heard the door whosh open.

290
00:15:48,120 --> 00:15:50,560
Speaker 1: And then a series of thumps so rapid they sounded

291
00:15:50,600 --> 00:15:53,560
Speaker 1: like one long drum roll. Sasha felt a rush of air,

292
00:15:53,640 --> 00:15:55,680
Speaker 1: and then since the presence of a new person. The

293
00:15:55,760 --> 00:15:58,920
Speaker 1: instant before she completed her roll, she looked up to

294
00:15:58,960 --> 00:16:00,880
Speaker 1: see a man at the side of her bed. He

295
00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:03,520
Speaker 1: was big, broad, and clad in a torn and bloodied

296
00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:06,680
Speaker 1: Martyrs uniform. He had a heavy metal pipe in his hand.

297
00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:09,720
Speaker 1: Sasha rose her hands up in an instinctive gesture of

298
00:16:09,760 --> 00:16:12,480
Speaker 1: self defense. The moment before she saw the holking man's

299
00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:17,280
Speaker 1: face and realized who he was, Aaron. The man blinked.

300
00:16:17,520 --> 00:16:19,880
Speaker 1: He looked confused for a moment, and then he laughed,

301
00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:23,280
Speaker 1: all right, Yes, saw my name, Han, you can call

302
00:16:23,320 --> 00:16:28,640
Speaker 1: me Roland. What do you What's happening? Are we under attack? Yes,

303
00:16:28,920 --> 00:16:31,640
Speaker 1: sorta by me. I knocked out the old lady. He

304
00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:34,240
Speaker 1: gestured his head back towards the other girls sleeping in

305
00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:37,880
Speaker 1: their beds. I knocked them all out too, just minor concussions,

306
00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:41,960
Speaker 1: but they're out cold. I am very confused, Sasha said,

307
00:16:41,960 --> 00:16:45,520
Speaker 1: in a flat voice, and very frightened. You're not frightened.

308
00:16:46,600 --> 00:16:49,400
Speaker 1: She was surprised to realize that he was right. Sasha

309
00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:51,560
Speaker 1: knew she should have been scared, but her heart rate

310
00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:55,400
Speaker 1: didn't elevate, she didn't start to sweat. She did feel confused,

311
00:16:55,680 --> 00:16:59,200
Speaker 1: but she also felt calm. Maybe I've just been so

312
00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:01,600
Speaker 1: scared the last few days my body can't handle any

313
00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:03,880
Speaker 1: more of it. Maybe I've reached the limit of my

314
00:17:03,920 --> 00:17:07,800
Speaker 1: capacity for fear. I guess you're right, she said, I

315
00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:11,400
Speaker 1: should be afraid. This is also She trailed off, grasping

316
00:17:11,440 --> 00:17:14,840
Speaker 1: for words. Yeah, it's fucked, Roland said, and then he

317
00:17:14,880 --> 00:17:16,919
Speaker 1: pulled up a canteen that had been hanging from his

318
00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:19,680
Speaker 1: shoulder and took a deep poll. The scent of alcohol

319
00:17:19,720 --> 00:17:23,000
Speaker 1: wafted over to her. You want some, he asked. I

320
00:17:23,080 --> 00:17:25,240
Speaker 1: made it in my guts, filled a ganteen as I

321
00:17:25,280 --> 00:17:29,480
Speaker 1: finished up at the base. Wait, Sasha said, what happened

322
00:17:29,520 --> 00:17:32,880
Speaker 1: at the base? Roland gave another shrug and took another pull.

323
00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:35,879
Speaker 1: The boss guys told me Manny had been reassigned to

324
00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:39,200
Speaker 1: some sort of I don't know, suicide battalion. This pissed

325
00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:41,560
Speaker 1: me off, so I broke exactly half of their bones.

326
00:17:42,359 --> 00:17:45,719
Speaker 1: Sasha could hear sirens now often the distance. It sounded

327
00:17:45,760 --> 00:17:48,240
Speaker 1: like there were rather a lot of them. She imagined

328
00:17:48,280 --> 00:17:52,440
Speaker 1: this was connected to whatever Roland had done. I'm going

329
00:17:52,520 --> 00:17:55,280
Speaker 1: to guess you and E Manual aren't really martyrs, are you,

330
00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:59,520
Speaker 1: he chuckled. I mean maybe some days, sister. Just now,

331
00:17:59,640 --> 00:18:02,040
Speaker 1: I don't say any causes worth dying for, but I

332
00:18:02,080 --> 00:18:04,000
Speaker 1: get your meaning. And no, I don't give a shit

333
00:18:04,040 --> 00:18:07,840
Speaker 1: about your heavenly kingdom. Man he actively hates it. We're spies,

334
00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:10,720
Speaker 1: or we were spies. Now he's a captive and I'm

335
00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:16,000
Speaker 1: a terrorist again. Oh, she said, And then I think

336
00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:19,040
Speaker 1: I would like a drink. He handed her the canteen

337
00:18:19,119 --> 00:18:21,960
Speaker 1: and she took a generous gulp. Sasha had only tried

338
00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:25,560
Speaker 1: alcohol once before. She'd been thirteen, not yet a Christian,

339
00:18:25,640 --> 00:18:28,080
Speaker 1: and at a party she'd been far too young to attend.

340
00:18:28,600 --> 00:18:31,840
Speaker 1: She remembered the sensation of gentle warmth spreading down her throat,

341
00:18:32,000 --> 00:18:34,560
Speaker 1: and the sense of elation and well being that had followed.

342
00:18:34,920 --> 00:18:36,879
Speaker 1: She'd taken a few more SIPs, which had made the

343
00:18:36,880 --> 00:18:40,159
Speaker 1: world far too spinny for her comfort. She'd vomited not

344
00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:43,280
Speaker 1: long after, but she figured if there was ever a

345
00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:47,440
Speaker 1: time to try alcohol again, it's now. The drink tasted

346
00:18:47,480 --> 00:18:50,080
Speaker 1: like beer, but it burned like a shot of hard liquor.

347
00:18:50,320 --> 00:18:53,520
Speaker 1: Sasha passed the canteen back. She felt like taking more

348
00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:56,920
Speaker 1: would be a bad idea. All right, then, Roland said,

349
00:18:57,080 --> 00:18:59,679
Speaker 1: I'm gonna make a few guesses. I guess one is

350
00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:02,159
Speaker 1: that you're a little less than enthusiastic about the heavenly

351
00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:05,160
Speaker 1: Kingdom now that you've seen it up close. Guests too

352
00:19:05,280 --> 00:19:07,720
Speaker 1: is that you're looking for a way out. And Guests

353
00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:10,080
Speaker 1: three is that you know something about where my little

354
00:19:10,080 --> 00:19:14,800
Speaker 1: buddy went. Huh, Immanuel, Manny, you know where he is?

355
00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:18,399
Speaker 1: I don't, she started. I'll bet you do. Even if

356
00:19:18,440 --> 00:19:20,320
Speaker 1: you don't know, you do. I know you were there

357
00:19:20,320 --> 00:19:22,560
Speaker 1: when he was taken. I could smell it in the street.

358
00:19:23,520 --> 00:19:26,720
Speaker 1: Smell it. He sighed, and needed the bridge of his nose.

359
00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:29,960
Speaker 1: This is the time where you explained things. The time

360
00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:32,879
Speaker 1: where I explained things comes later, or maybe never. He

361
00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:34,960
Speaker 1: lifted up the pipe in his hand so she could

362
00:19:35,000 --> 00:19:38,080
Speaker 1: see how bloody and dented it was. I have the pipe.

363
00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:42,080
Speaker 1: Whoever's got the pipe doesn't have to explain shit. Sasha

364
00:19:42,160 --> 00:19:44,399
Speaker 1: couldn't argue with his logic, and she did want to

365
00:19:44,440 --> 00:19:49,200
Speaker 1: see Emmanual free and safe. Look, she said, this, this boy,

366
00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:52,280
Speaker 1: I know, Alexander. He found us at the cafe. We

367
00:19:52,280 --> 00:19:54,560
Speaker 1: were just sitting down to coffee. He had two men

368
00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:56,679
Speaker 1: with him, and he said, Emmanuel had been selected for

369
00:19:56,720 --> 00:19:59,879
Speaker 1: the Storming Battalion. Do you have any idea where they

370
00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:02,439
Speaker 1: took him? The kids sent trail grows cold about a

371
00:20:02,480 --> 00:20:05,919
Speaker 1: mile from here. Sasha racked her brain. Of course, she

372
00:20:05,960 --> 00:20:08,640
Speaker 1: didn't know where the Heavenly Kingdom did this sort of training.

373
00:20:08,720 --> 00:20:13,679
Speaker 1: But Alexanders said something about the factory, and at that

374
00:20:13,960 --> 00:20:17,080
Speaker 1: Roland's eyes lit up. He turned around as if to leave.

375
00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:20,560
Speaker 1: I know where he is. Then he looked back and

376
00:20:20,600 --> 00:20:23,919
Speaker 1: down to Sasha and said, moment of truth time, Darlin,

377
00:20:24,119 --> 00:20:26,160
Speaker 1: you want to stay here in this ship pile Kingdom?

378
00:20:26,280 --> 00:20:28,600
Speaker 1: Or He jerked his thumb to the door. Do you

379
00:20:28,680 --> 00:20:31,080
Speaker 1: want me to break you out? And I'll make offers

380
00:20:31,119 --> 00:20:34,600
Speaker 1: like that often, so take it as a compliment. This time.

381
00:20:34,680 --> 00:20:38,200
Speaker 1: It didn't take long for Sasha to make up her mind. Yes,

382
00:20:38,520 --> 00:20:50,000
Speaker 1: she said, I'd like to go with you. Chapter nineteen.

383
00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:54,280
Speaker 1: Manny he knew where they were taking him as soon

384
00:20:54,320 --> 00:20:58,240
Speaker 1: as the transport exited Highway seventy. It took Exit forty

385
00:20:58,280 --> 00:21:02,080
Speaker 1: B White Avenue, Kenny. He visited the town a few

386
00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:04,320
Speaker 1: times as a kid, before things in this part of

387
00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:08,040
Speaker 1: df W had gone entirely to ship. Many thought of

388
00:21:08,080 --> 00:21:11,080
Speaker 1: the satellite photos Reggie had shown them. He thought about

389
00:21:11,080 --> 00:21:14,080
Speaker 1: that Tesla plant and what strange mysteries it must hide.

390
00:21:14,720 --> 00:21:16,879
Speaker 1: Somewhere in that plant was the answer to how the

391
00:21:16,920 --> 00:21:21,280
Speaker 1: martyrs had so thoroughly befucked the stf's defense network. Many

392
00:21:21,359 --> 00:21:24,000
Speaker 1: hadn't exactly planned to find an answer to that question

393
00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:26,679
Speaker 1: on this trip. Now it seemed like he wouldn't have

394
00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:30,639
Speaker 1: a choice in the matter. His escorts, Alexander's men, hadn't

395
00:21:30,680 --> 00:21:33,720
Speaker 1: said much. They directed him to the proper transport and

396
00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:35,639
Speaker 1: told him to keep his mouth shut when he asked

397
00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:38,879
Speaker 1: for an explanation. Manny did as they asked, because he

398
00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:40,960
Speaker 1: half expected them to gun him down if he made

399
00:21:40,960 --> 00:21:44,200
Speaker 1: a real fuss. Roland's bound to find me. He can

400
00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:47,040
Speaker 1: find any fucking one. I just need to stay alive

401
00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:50,720
Speaker 1: long enough for him to get here. Once upon a time,

402
00:21:50,760 --> 00:21:53,320
Speaker 1: the Tesla factory had been an immaculate sign of what

403
00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:57,199
Speaker 1: some commenters called the Texan Renaissance. After the fall of

404
00:21:57,240 --> 00:21:59,679
Speaker 1: the old United States, the Republic of Texas had been

405
00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:02,800
Speaker 1: one of the first functional states to arise in the Southwest.

406
00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:05,639
Speaker 1: Dallas had been wrecked by the Lakewood Blast, but the

407
00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:07,919
Speaker 1: rest of the state still had tens of millions of

408
00:22:07,920 --> 00:22:11,880
Speaker 1: people and abundant natural resources. For a while, the hardcore

409
00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:15,880
Speaker 1: libertarian policies of the Republic had created a minor economic miracle.

410
00:22:16,440 --> 00:22:19,359
Speaker 1: Tesla had gotten this factory going about three years before

411
00:22:19,440 --> 00:22:22,760
Speaker 1: that boom went bust. The first room they were taken

412
00:22:22,800 --> 00:22:25,240
Speaker 1: to had clearly been some sort of reception area and

413
00:22:25,320 --> 00:22:28,320
Speaker 1: probably a showroom at one point. There were three large

414
00:22:28,359 --> 00:22:30,879
Speaker 1: oval shaped plinths that had once held cars, and a

415
00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:34,160
Speaker 1: handful of metal desks bolted hard into the ground. There

416
00:22:34,160 --> 00:22:36,840
Speaker 1: were also several benches stripped of whatever they had once

417
00:22:36,920 --> 00:22:39,639
Speaker 1: been upholstered with, and a few dozen folding chairs that

418
00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:43,240
Speaker 1: were clearly recent additions. Manny could see signs that the

419
00:22:43,240 --> 00:22:45,880
Speaker 1: walls had been attacked at several places in an attempt

420
00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,760
Speaker 1: to strip them of wires. The damage was obvious, but

421
00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:52,639
Speaker 1: not as extensive as he'd expected. Bess de Muertas standards,

422
00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:56,440
Speaker 1: this building was in good shape. A dozen martyrs occupied

423
00:22:56,440 --> 00:22:59,600
Speaker 1: the room. They wore quality, nonpowered body armor and totaled

424
00:22:59,680 --> 00:23:02,600
Speaker 1: rifle that must have been looted new from their Republic's armories.

425
00:23:03,320 --> 00:23:05,760
Speaker 1: One of the desks was manned by a haired looking

426
00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:08,320
Speaker 1: young man in an off white suit. He wore no

427
00:23:08,400 --> 00:23:10,720
Speaker 1: sign of rank, but did have a white cross arm

428
00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:13,680
Speaker 1: band around his left bicep and a golden cross pin

429
00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:16,840
Speaker 1: on his lapel. He was balding, baby faced, and the

430
00:23:16,920 --> 00:23:20,280
Speaker 1: deep bags under his eyes spoke of severe exhaustion. His

431
00:23:20,320 --> 00:23:23,640
Speaker 1: face lit up when he saw Manny. Another, my prayers

432
00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:26,359
Speaker 1: have been answered, as the Lord wills it, one of

433
00:23:26,359 --> 00:23:29,399
Speaker 1: Manny's escorts replied. They brought him to the desk, and

434
00:23:29,400 --> 00:23:31,760
Speaker 1: the besuited man looked up at him. He had a

435
00:23:31,800 --> 00:23:34,320
Speaker 1: hungry look in his eyes. He'd started to sweat a

436
00:23:34,359 --> 00:23:37,400
Speaker 1: little too. You may call me Isaac. What's your name,

437
00:23:37,440 --> 00:23:43,359
Speaker 1: young man, Emmanuel Emmanuel Sanchez. The little Man jotted that

438
00:23:43,400 --> 00:23:46,280
Speaker 1: down on a piece of paper and then continued asking questions.

439
00:23:46,800 --> 00:23:49,040
Speaker 1: What's your date of birth? Do you have any family

440
00:23:49,119 --> 00:23:52,959
Speaker 1: history of allergies or illnesses? Have you ever undergone surgery before?

441
00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:56,680
Speaker 1: What biomodifications, if any, are currently active in your system?

442
00:23:56,880 --> 00:24:00,920
Speaker 1: Do you have any inactive modifications? And so? After about

443
00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:03,399
Speaker 1: ten minutes of questioning, the little Man told Mannie to

444
00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:06,600
Speaker 1: stand up and follow him into an examination room. His

445
00:24:06,680 --> 00:24:10,399
Speaker 1: tone was cordial, even warm, but Manny tasted doom behind it.

446
00:24:10,800 --> 00:24:13,480
Speaker 1: He smelled death in this place, and his soul cried

447
00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:16,520
Speaker 1: out against heading further into its bowels. But there was

448
00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:20,000
Speaker 1: nothing to do but follow. Alexander's men left after dropping

449
00:24:20,080 --> 00:24:21,960
Speaker 1: him off, but there were plenty of guards on the

450
00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:24,760
Speaker 1: front room. Two of them followed Mannie and the young

451
00:24:24,800 --> 00:24:27,000
Speaker 1: man backed through the double doors and into the heart

452
00:24:27,040 --> 00:24:29,920
Speaker 1: of the facility. They walked through what had once been

453
00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:33,320
Speaker 1: an open floor office. There were a few overturned desks

454
00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:35,840
Speaker 1: and chairs, but mostly the place was barren and half

455
00:24:35,880 --> 00:24:39,919
Speaker 1: cannibalized for scrap. It was ill lit and derelict. What

456
00:24:40,000 --> 00:24:43,000
Speaker 1: are we doing here, Manny asked. Isaac put a hand

457
00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:46,760
Speaker 1: on his shoulder and smiled. We're doing God's work, he said,

458
00:24:47,119 --> 00:24:50,840
Speaker 1: the same as everywhere in this blessed kingdom. I know that,

459
00:24:51,119 --> 00:24:54,399
Speaker 1: Manny said, in a slow, careful tone, but I don't

460
00:24:54,480 --> 00:24:56,800
Speaker 1: understand why I was pulled out of training or why

461
00:24:56,840 --> 00:24:59,600
Speaker 1: I was removed from my unit. What is this place?

462
00:25:00,520 --> 00:25:03,800
Speaker 1: Isaac didn't answer. Instead, he walked Mannie to a door

463
00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:05,800
Speaker 1: in the back of the empty office and opened it

464
00:25:05,840 --> 00:25:08,639
Speaker 1: to reveal a small, well lit, white room with a bench,

465
00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:11,480
Speaker 1: a weight scale, and a computer terminal built into the

466
00:25:11,480 --> 00:25:15,080
Speaker 1: wall above a rolling cabinet. Isaac weighed him, marked down

467
00:25:15,119 --> 00:25:17,480
Speaker 1: his height, and then pulled a strange measuring device out

468
00:25:17,480 --> 00:25:19,919
Speaker 1: of the cabinet. It looked like a cross between a

469
00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:24,520
Speaker 1: protractor and a pen vice. This is a craniometer, Isaac explained,

470
00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:27,320
Speaker 1: once he saw the confusion on Manny's face. It's for

471
00:25:27,400 --> 00:25:31,200
Speaker 1: measuring the size of your skull. Isaac set right to work.

472
00:25:31,520 --> 00:25:34,080
Speaker 1: He fit the strange device around Mannie's head and tightened

473
00:25:34,080 --> 00:25:37,200
Speaker 1: it until the vice grip bit into Mannie's scalp. Isaac

474
00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:39,760
Speaker 1: jotted down some more numbers on his notepad and removed

475
00:25:39,760 --> 00:25:43,040
Speaker 1: the craniometer. He looked pleased that alone was enough to

476
00:25:43,040 --> 00:25:46,040
Speaker 1: turn Mannie's stomach. Can you please tell me what this

477
00:25:46,119 --> 00:25:49,439
Speaker 1: is all about? Isaac's eyes darted up from his paper

478
00:25:49,480 --> 00:25:53,199
Speaker 1: for just a moment. He gave Mannie an insincere, distracted smile.

479
00:25:53,840 --> 00:25:56,720
Speaker 1: Everything will be explained soon enough, young man, right now,

480
00:25:56,760 --> 00:25:59,160
Speaker 1: which should be enough to know you're doing the Lord's work.

481
00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:04,600
Speaker 1: Manny was very, very tired of that response. Isaac finished

482
00:26:04,600 --> 00:26:06,439
Speaker 1: his notes and led many out a back door in

483
00:26:06,440 --> 00:26:08,600
Speaker 1: the room and into what Manny had to assume was

484
00:26:08,640 --> 00:26:11,240
Speaker 1: the final step in their journey. The scent of blood

485
00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:13,119
Speaker 1: in the air was too heavy for anything else to

486
00:26:13,119 --> 00:26:15,879
Speaker 1: be the case. Manny felt hair stand up on the

487
00:26:15,960 --> 00:26:18,560
Speaker 1: back of his neck, his shoulders went tinse, and a

488
00:26:18,600 --> 00:26:20,959
Speaker 1: moment later he felt the strong hands of his guards

489
00:26:20,960 --> 00:26:24,440
Speaker 1: on either bicep. This new room was part mechanic shop,

490
00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:27,879
Speaker 1: part abattoir. It had once been the main factory floor,

491
00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,240
Speaker 1: and it was filled with the half looted carcasses of

492
00:26:30,320 --> 00:26:33,880
Speaker 1: robotic auto workers. Several of those machines had been restored

493
00:26:33,920 --> 00:26:37,439
Speaker 1: to some level of functional capacity. Manny could see twentiish

494
00:26:37,440 --> 00:26:40,879
Speaker 1: new vehicles in various states of construction across the vast space.

495
00:26:41,440 --> 00:26:44,640
Speaker 1: Instead of sleek, consumer, gray electronic cars, most of these

496
00:26:44,720 --> 00:26:47,720
Speaker 1: vehicles seemed to be very old and worn sedans and trucks.

497
00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:51,800
Speaker 1: A handful of them were outdated and nigh obsolete. Military drones.

498
00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:55,680
Speaker 1: Palettes of plastic explosives sat outside several of the vehicles.

499
00:26:56,160 --> 00:26:59,000
Speaker 1: Many could see human workers packing blocks of it into

500
00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:01,479
Speaker 1: a battered off white Kia a few dozen feet in

501
00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:05,359
Speaker 1: front of him. None of this was particularly shocking. Vehicle

502
00:27:05,400 --> 00:27:08,760
Speaker 1: based improvised explosive devices had been de rigueur for terrorists

503
00:27:08,760 --> 00:27:12,199
Speaker 1: insurrections for the last seventy years. Two things about this

504
00:27:12,320 --> 00:27:15,880
Speaker 1: factory struck Manny as strange. The first is that none

505
00:27:15,880 --> 00:27:18,680
Speaker 1: of the vehicles in construction had any armor added to them.

506
00:27:19,040 --> 00:27:21,119
Speaker 1: Most V B I E. D s would be covered

507
00:27:21,119 --> 00:27:23,800
Speaker 1: in thick slabs of concrete and welded scrap metal to

508
00:27:23,880 --> 00:27:26,880
Speaker 1: ensure they made it safely to their target. The vehicles

509
00:27:26,920 --> 00:27:29,240
Speaker 1: here seemed like they would look normal when they finally

510
00:27:29,359 --> 00:27:33,119
Speaker 1: rolled off the reassembly line. The second odd thing was

511
00:27:33,160 --> 00:27:36,160
Speaker 1: the dozens of surgical tables and the rather significant amount

512
00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:39,200
Speaker 1: of red blood coating the floor underneath them. Five of

513
00:27:39,240 --> 00:27:42,520
Speaker 1: the beds were occupied with bodies covered by blood speckled

514
00:27:42,520 --> 00:27:46,399
Speaker 1: white sheets. The men under them appeared dead. Oh god,

515
00:27:46,840 --> 00:27:49,480
Speaker 1: Manny forgot his cover in the dawning horror of the moment.

516
00:27:49,920 --> 00:27:53,000
Speaker 1: What the hell is this place? What's your mouth? Young man?

517
00:27:53,080 --> 00:27:55,840
Speaker 1: Isaac snapped. This is a temple of the Lord, where

518
00:27:55,880 --> 00:27:58,919
Speaker 1: young heroes delivered themselves into the waiting arms of eternity.

519
00:27:59,720 --> 00:28:01,680
Speaker 1: A all man in a lab coat made his way

520
00:28:01,720 --> 00:28:04,040
Speaker 1: over to them. He had gray hair and warm brown

521
00:28:04,119 --> 00:28:07,359
Speaker 1: eyes behind horn rimmed spectacles. He gave Manny a warm

522
00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:10,440
Speaker 1: smile and extended out a hand in greeting. The Lord

523
00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:13,480
Speaker 1: be with you, Emmanuel I'm doctor Ernst. I'm sure you

524
00:28:13,560 --> 00:28:16,520
Speaker 1: must be full of questions right now, gentlemen, he glanced

525
00:28:16,520 --> 00:28:18,840
Speaker 1: towards the guards who still had their hands on Manny.

526
00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:21,440
Speaker 1: You can let him go now. This young man is

527
00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:24,560
Speaker 1: a hero and he should be treated as such. The

528
00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:28,119
Speaker 1: hands loosened. Manny heard the men step back. He flashed

529
00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:30,840
Speaker 1: a nervous smile back at the doctor. Keep him talking,

530
00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:33,560
Speaker 1: Manny thought, The longer you drag this out, the more

531
00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:37,680
Speaker 1: time Roland will have. What is going on here? These uh,

532
00:28:37,760 --> 00:28:42,760
Speaker 1: he grappled for the correct terminology, These martyrdom devices seem different.

533
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:45,520
Speaker 1: And I don't know what's going on with with with

534
00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:48,840
Speaker 1: all the medical equipment and the bodies. Doctor Ernst finished

535
00:28:48,880 --> 00:28:52,080
Speaker 1: his question without so much a break in his warm smile. Yes,

536
00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:55,280
Speaker 1: God bless him, but diplomacy is not Isaac's strong suit.

537
00:28:55,520 --> 00:28:59,000
Speaker 1: He gets rather focused on the task at hand. Many

538
00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:01,479
Speaker 1: noticed that the odd little man had already wandered off

539
00:29:01,520 --> 00:29:04,080
Speaker 1: towards a rolling tray of medical equipment near one of

540
00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:07,640
Speaker 1: the surgical beds. That set Manny's heart beating even faster.

541
00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:12,400
Speaker 1: Follow me, said doctor Ernst, and I'll explain everything. The

542
00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:14,800
Speaker 1: doctor led him to one of the shrouded bodies and

543
00:29:14,840 --> 00:29:18,680
Speaker 1: pulled its covering down, revealing the dead man's face. Manny

544
00:29:18,800 --> 00:29:21,640
Speaker 1: wasn't exactly surprised to see that it was Jonathan, the

545
00:29:21,720 --> 00:29:24,360
Speaker 1: young man from Atlanta he'd met just a few days before.

546
00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:28,240
Speaker 1: Jonathan was, of course quite dead. A bloody red line

547
00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:31,160
Speaker 1: ran across his skull, just above his ears. His eyes

548
00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:33,120
Speaker 1: were closed, and his lips were turned up in a

549
00:29:33,120 --> 00:29:38,920
Speaker 1: beatific smile. You know this man, yes, doctor Ernst asked gently. Yes,

550
00:29:39,840 --> 00:29:42,520
Speaker 1: of course you do. The doctor chuckled. You're both colored

551
00:29:42,520 --> 00:29:44,840
Speaker 1: men and the heavenly kingdom. I'd be surprised if you

552
00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:48,120
Speaker 1: hadn't developed a connection. It's only natural to gravitate towards

553
00:29:48,120 --> 00:29:51,840
Speaker 1: your own kind. Manny fought down the urge to slap

554
00:29:51,920 --> 00:29:56,080
Speaker 1: Doctor Ernst. Jonathan here started his journey to martyrdom just

555
00:29:56,120 --> 00:29:58,440
Speaker 1: a few hours ago. I know he appears dead, but

556
00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:00,840
Speaker 1: as it was with our Lord and of your appearances,

557
00:30:00,920 --> 00:30:04,760
Speaker 1: quanby quite deceiving. His brain is still quite alive and alert.

558
00:30:05,080 --> 00:30:09,600
Speaker 1: It's just been moved. Doctor Arn't gestured over to the KIA.

559
00:30:10,040 --> 00:30:13,000
Speaker 1: Many saw that another lab coated worker was now carrying

560
00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:15,680
Speaker 1: a peculiar metal box over to the V B I E. D.

561
00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:19,200
Speaker 1: The box was about head sized and covered with sockets

562
00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:22,719
Speaker 1: and plugs. A single green light flickered on one side.

563
00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:25,960
Speaker 1: See they're loading him into his chariot now, and soon

564
00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:28,640
Speaker 1: he'll pilot this anointed engine of Heavenly Will to the

565
00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:32,360
Speaker 1: ruin of our enemies. Many thought, backed that last day

566
00:30:32,440 --> 00:30:36,280
Speaker 1: before the invasion, to Reggie's questions about that mysterious checkpoint bombing.

567
00:30:36,720 --> 00:30:39,120
Speaker 1: This must be how they did it. He realized v

568
00:30:39,280 --> 00:30:42,640
Speaker 1: sdf's checkpoints were perfectly capable of reading the itinerary of

569
00:30:42,640 --> 00:30:45,840
Speaker 1: any autonomous vehicle that drove towards them. They'd shoot anything

570
00:30:45,880 --> 00:30:49,240
Speaker 1: that didn't broadcast its destination, but the Kingdom had found

571
00:30:49,240 --> 00:30:51,760
Speaker 1: a way to hide a human driver capable of taking

572
00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:54,920
Speaker 1: over once the car was past the checkpoint. His eyes

573
00:30:55,000 --> 00:30:57,960
Speaker 1: drifted over to a combat drone lying half disassembled on

574
00:30:57,960 --> 00:31:00,440
Speaker 1: the table a few yards to his left. It was

575
00:31:00,480 --> 00:31:03,880
Speaker 1: a hefty, beetle black monster with a heavy underslung machine gun.

576
00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:06,640
Speaker 1: It reminded Manny terribly of the drone that had almost

577
00:31:06,720 --> 00:31:09,760
Speaker 1: killed him in Reggie a few days earlier. This explains

578
00:31:09,760 --> 00:31:13,000
Speaker 1: why the STF drone jammers didn't work. The Heavenly Kingdom

579
00:31:13,080 --> 00:31:17,640
Speaker 1: wasn't really using drones. Manny realized with dawning horror that

580
00:31:17,680 --> 00:31:20,800
Speaker 1: the drone's open cavity was likely the intended resting place

581
00:31:20,840 --> 00:31:24,800
Speaker 1: of his brain. Ah. Doctor Ernst smiled, I see you've

582
00:31:24,840 --> 00:31:28,960
Speaker 1: already spotted your chariot. Yes, Emmanuel, you are quite fortunate.

583
00:31:29,320 --> 00:31:32,880
Speaker 1: Martyre Ditmar noted your intelligence and suggested you be implanted

584
00:31:32,880 --> 00:31:35,760
Speaker 1: into a drone. I assure you, it's a high honor,

585
00:31:35,760 --> 00:31:40,080
Speaker 1: even in this sacred place. Manny's heart thudded like the

586
00:31:40,080 --> 00:31:42,560
Speaker 1: tolling of a church bell. For a while, he couldn't

587
00:31:42,600 --> 00:31:45,680
Speaker 1: hear anything else. He felt himself gripped by a sudden

588
00:31:45,720 --> 00:31:48,840
Speaker 1: claustrophobic terror. The worst thing wasn't even the thought of

589
00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:51,440
Speaker 1: being cut open, torn apart. It was the thought of

590
00:31:51,440 --> 00:31:54,640
Speaker 1: being trapped inside that little metal box, forced to kill

591
00:31:54,680 --> 00:31:56,680
Speaker 1: and die in the name of a cause he abhorred.

592
00:31:57,200 --> 00:31:59,600
Speaker 1: Manny knew he'd started to shake, but there was nothing

593
00:31:59,640 --> 00:32:02,600
Speaker 1: he could do to quell the terror. Doctor Ernst to

594
00:32:02,600 --> 00:32:05,160
Speaker 1: put a hand on his shoulder. Many assumed it was

595
00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:09,560
Speaker 1: meant to reassure him. It did not have that effect, Immanual.

596
00:32:09,640 --> 00:32:11,320
Speaker 1: I know this is quite a lot to take in,

597
00:32:11,480 --> 00:32:13,520
Speaker 1: but all you really need to know is that you've

598
00:32:13,560 --> 00:32:16,440
Speaker 1: been blessed, truly blessed with the chance to play a

599
00:32:16,480 --> 00:32:19,560
Speaker 1: real role in making the Heavenly Kingdom a reality. The

600
00:32:19,640 --> 00:32:23,040
Speaker 1: Storming Battalion are God's elite, the holiest of our martyrs.

601
00:32:23,320 --> 00:32:26,120
Speaker 1: I'm sure once the shock wears off, you'll realize what

602
00:32:26,160 --> 00:32:29,920
Speaker 1: a privilege this is. Manny heard footsteps. He didn't need

603
00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:31,959
Speaker 1: to look to know his guards were stepping back up

604
00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:34,560
Speaker 1: behind him. He felt the noose titan and his hope

605
00:32:34,600 --> 00:32:38,480
Speaker 1: slip ever farther away. Where the hell is Rowland? I

606
00:32:38,520 --> 00:32:41,400
Speaker 1: am um, he stuttered, Can I have some time to

607
00:32:41,640 --> 00:32:46,160
Speaker 1: er to prey on this? Of course? Emmanual Doctor ernst

608
00:32:46,240 --> 00:32:49,080
Speaker 1: smile never looked false or forced. He put a hand

609
00:32:49,120 --> 00:32:51,760
Speaker 1: on Manny's shoulder. It will be a few minutes before

610
00:32:51,800 --> 00:32:54,560
Speaker 1: we're ready to begin the operation. I commend you devotion.

611
00:32:54,880 --> 00:32:58,040
Speaker 1: This is an ideal time to pray for guidance. A

612
00:32:58,120 --> 00:33:00,960
Speaker 1: few minutes, his heart pound so hard he thought it

613
00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:03,600
Speaker 1: might beat its way free from his chest. He was

614
00:33:03,640 --> 00:33:06,360
Speaker 1: sure Doctor Ernest must have heard it, but if he did,

615
00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:09,480
Speaker 1: he said nothing about it. Instead, the doctor led Manny

616
00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:11,680
Speaker 1: over to a small carpeted area that looked to have

617
00:33:11,720 --> 00:33:13,640
Speaker 1: been set aside as a prayer room for the soon

618
00:33:13,720 --> 00:33:16,920
Speaker 1: to be martyred members of this battalion. It consisted of

619
00:33:16,960 --> 00:33:19,920
Speaker 1: a half dozen shares, at least they're padded, a three

620
00:33:19,920 --> 00:33:22,520
Speaker 1: foot tall white stone statue of Christ on a cross,

621
00:33:22,640 --> 00:33:25,240
Speaker 1: and two small inn tables, each with a couple of

622
00:33:25,280 --> 00:33:29,760
Speaker 1: dog eared bibles. Manny sat down, bereft of any better idea,

623
00:33:29,840 --> 00:33:31,760
Speaker 1: He grabbed a Bible and flipped it open to a

624
00:33:31,880 --> 00:33:35,800
Speaker 1: random page. King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty

625
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:39,440
Speaker 1: cubits high and six cubits wide. Manny rolled his eyes

626
00:33:39,840 --> 00:33:42,440
Speaker 1: the flaming ale as a cubit. He skimmed the next

627
00:33:42,480 --> 00:33:45,480
Speaker 1: few verses until he realized which story he'd stumbled upon.

628
00:33:45,880 --> 00:33:48,360
Speaker 1: His religious schooling hadn't been intense, but he had gone

629
00:33:48,360 --> 00:33:50,840
Speaker 1: to church most Sundays for the better part of a decade.

630
00:33:51,320 --> 00:33:54,160
Speaker 1: He'd listened to enough sermons and attended enough Sunday school

631
00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:57,440
Speaker 1: classes to know the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego,

632
00:33:57,840 --> 00:34:00,920
Speaker 1: three stupid assholes who'd wandered into a furness entrusted in

633
00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:04,520
Speaker 1: Deus ex deos to save them. If we are thrown

634
00:34:04,560 --> 00:34:07,120
Speaker 1: into the blazing furnace, the god we serve is able

635
00:34:07,120 --> 00:34:09,080
Speaker 1: to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us

636
00:34:09,080 --> 00:34:11,319
Speaker 1: from your Majesty's hand. But even if he does not,

637
00:34:11,520 --> 00:34:13,719
Speaker 1: we want you to know, your Majesty, that we will

638
00:34:13,760 --> 00:34:16,160
Speaker 1: not serve your gods or worship the image of gold

639
00:34:16,200 --> 00:34:19,040
Speaker 1: you have set up. It struck Manny that his current

640
00:34:19,040 --> 00:34:21,200
Speaker 1: predicament had more than a little in common with these

641
00:34:21,200 --> 00:34:23,840
Speaker 1: ancient men, if they'd ever existed in the first place.

642
00:34:24,400 --> 00:34:27,040
Speaker 1: The chief difference was that, of course Manny wasn't praying

643
00:34:27,080 --> 00:34:29,960
Speaker 1: for the help of a god. He was, however, strongly

644
00:34:30,000 --> 00:34:33,080
Speaker 1: hoping for rescue from a godlike being that felt close

645
00:34:33,160 --> 00:34:35,040
Speaker 1: enough to give him a sense of kinship towards the

646
00:34:35,040 --> 00:34:38,120
Speaker 1: men and the story. The king's command was so urgent

647
00:34:38,160 --> 00:34:40,279
Speaker 1: and the furnace so hot, that the flames of the

648
00:34:40,320 --> 00:34:43,000
Speaker 1: fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrak, Mishak and

649
00:34:43,000 --> 00:34:46,319
Speaker 1: to bed Nego, And these three men firmly tied fell

650
00:34:46,360 --> 00:34:49,680
Speaker 1: into the burning furnace. He hadn't remembered that bit from

651
00:34:49,680 --> 00:34:52,120
Speaker 1: Sunday School, the part where the king's soldiers were burnt

652
00:34:52,160 --> 00:34:54,799
Speaker 1: alive by the heat of his fire. Many wondered what

653
00:34:54,880 --> 00:34:57,680
Speaker 1: kind of soldiers would so willingly step into a pointless

654
00:34:57,719 --> 00:35:00,880
Speaker 1: death at some mad king's command, and then he remembered

655
00:35:00,880 --> 00:35:03,239
Speaker 1: where he was. He looked up from the Bible at

656
00:35:03,239 --> 00:35:06,000
Speaker 1: the twenty or so armed men stationed around the factory.

657
00:35:06,680 --> 00:35:09,400
Speaker 1: I really really hope someone comes along to burn them

658
00:35:09,440 --> 00:35:13,160
Speaker 1: to death. Many heard footsteps behind him. He looked back

659
00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:16,120
Speaker 1: this time and saw Doctor Arnst advancing with two guards

660
00:35:16,120 --> 00:35:19,399
Speaker 1: in Isaac. The bald little man was visibly excited. An

661
00:35:19,400 --> 00:35:22,760
Speaker 1: obscene smile played across his features. He held an almost

662
00:35:22,840 --> 00:35:26,200
Speaker 1: comically large needle in his hands. Many looked over from

663
00:35:26,280 --> 00:35:30,360
Speaker 1: him to the doctor Immanuel. Doctor Ernst said, it's time.

664
00:35:32,000 --> 00:35:35,280
Speaker 1: Many stood. His mind raced for some sort of delaying tactic.

665
00:35:35,680 --> 00:35:38,839
Speaker 1: I need to uh pray more. I I need more pray.

666
00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:42,840
Speaker 1: Time Confusion passed over all the men's faces. Time is

667
00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:46,000
Speaker 1: of the essence here. Doctor Ernst insisted. Don't delay this

668
00:35:46,080 --> 00:35:49,120
Speaker 1: important work because you're scared. Trust in the Lord, open

669
00:35:49,200 --> 00:35:52,040
Speaker 1: your heart to his will. See, I have, I I

670
00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:55,480
Speaker 1: totally have, Manny stammered, and I'm pretty sure he's actually

671
00:35:55,480 --> 00:35:57,440
Speaker 1: not down with us. Yeah, I think he wants me

672
00:35:57,480 --> 00:35:59,960
Speaker 1: to be a soldier, a regular soldier with a gun,

673
00:36:00,080 --> 00:36:03,279
Speaker 1: not a brain in a drone. Doctor Ernst glanced back

674
00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:06,600
Speaker 1: at the two guards flanking him. He nodded and they advanced.

675
00:36:06,880 --> 00:36:09,440
Speaker 1: One man had a kalashnikov on his back, the other

676
00:36:09,520 --> 00:36:12,560
Speaker 1: had a holstered side arm. Both men were much larger

677
00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:15,720
Speaker 1: and more muscular than Manny. He glanced around for a weapon,

678
00:36:15,800 --> 00:36:19,040
Speaker 1: as if anything left around would be useful against two firearms.

679
00:36:19,520 --> 00:36:21,840
Speaker 1: There was still a Bible in his hands that probably

680
00:36:21,840 --> 00:36:24,359
Speaker 1: would have been enough for Roland. Manny had no doubt

681
00:36:24,440 --> 00:36:26,439
Speaker 1: the posthuman could kill a dozen men with a book,

682
00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:30,680
Speaker 1: more if it was hard cover. Immanuel, the doctor's voice

683
00:36:30,680 --> 00:36:34,000
Speaker 1: was low, soft and as comforting as a lullaby. I

684
00:36:34,200 --> 00:36:37,160
Speaker 1: know this is a frightening thing, but you must trust me,

685
00:36:37,280 --> 00:36:40,479
Speaker 1: You must trust all of us. The heavenly Kingdom would

686
00:36:40,480 --> 00:36:42,400
Speaker 1: not spend your life this way if we were not

687
00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:45,400
Speaker 1: certain your sacrifice would further the will of our Lord.

688
00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:48,759
Speaker 1: That is why you came here, Emmanuel. I know if

689
00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:53,000
Speaker 1: you listen to God, you'll see what's right. Manny closed

690
00:36:53,040 --> 00:36:56,080
Speaker 1: his eyes. He listened not for the voice of God,

691
00:36:56,160 --> 00:36:59,399
Speaker 1: but for the sound of footsteps. After a few seconds pause,

692
00:36:59,440 --> 00:37:02,240
Speaker 1: he heard the yards moved towards him again. He gripped

693
00:37:02,239 --> 00:37:04,040
Speaker 1: hard on the Bible in his hand, and he tried

694
00:37:04,080 --> 00:37:06,040
Speaker 1: not to think too much about what he had already

695
00:37:06,080 --> 00:37:09,600
Speaker 1: decided he had to do. The footsteps grew closer until

696
00:37:09,640 --> 00:37:12,000
Speaker 1: Manny could almost feel the heat coming off the other

697
00:37:12,040 --> 00:37:17,400
Speaker 1: men's bodies. Very good, Emmanuel, doctor Ernst cood, God loves you.

698
00:37:18,600 --> 00:37:21,080
Speaker 1: Manny opened his eyes. The guards were right in front

699
00:37:21,120 --> 00:37:24,120
Speaker 1: of him, now reaching for him. Manny swung the Bible

700
00:37:24,239 --> 00:37:27,880
Speaker 1: up underhanded into the kalashnikov man's chin. Then he dove

701
00:37:27,960 --> 00:37:29,799
Speaker 1: to the right and slammed his head into the other

702
00:37:29,800 --> 00:37:32,040
Speaker 1: man's crotch with all the force his five foot ten

703
00:37:32,080 --> 00:37:35,360
Speaker 1: inch frame could bring to bear. The man howled. Manny

704
00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:38,320
Speaker 1: half fell, caught himself, and dropped into a dead run,

705
00:37:38,360 --> 00:37:41,640
Speaker 1: aimed straight for Isaac. Both the bald headed needleman and

706
00:37:41,680 --> 00:37:45,640
Speaker 1: doctor Ernst stared at him in astonishment. Belatedly, Isaac raised

707
00:37:45,680 --> 00:37:48,080
Speaker 1: his arms up in defense. The gesture did nothing to

708
00:37:48,080 --> 00:37:50,440
Speaker 1: stop Manny from plowing into him and knocking him to

709
00:37:50,480 --> 00:37:53,320
Speaker 1: the ground. He punched the other man in the face hard,

710
00:37:53,360 --> 00:37:56,120
Speaker 1: and then scrambled back to his feet too. He felt

711
00:37:56,160 --> 00:37:59,000
Speaker 1: the pain of the gunshot before he heard it, or rather,

712
00:37:59,160 --> 00:38:01,640
Speaker 1: he didn't register the sound of the gunshot as a

713
00:38:01,719 --> 00:38:04,360
Speaker 1: gunshot until the pain made it clear. He'd been shot,

714
00:38:04,920 --> 00:38:07,640
Speaker 1: and then Manny was on the ground. His world shrunk

715
00:38:07,680 --> 00:38:10,400
Speaker 1: to the space below his belly button, which now pulsed

716
00:38:10,440 --> 00:38:13,680
Speaker 1: with spurts of deep red blood. His hands covered the wound,

717
00:38:13,800 --> 00:38:17,160
Speaker 1: pressing back against it in an instinctive attempt to protect himself.

718
00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:20,840
Speaker 1: He stared in fascination at the spreading red. He watched

719
00:38:20,840 --> 00:38:24,000
Speaker 1: as his blood turned chunky and thick. The spurting faded

720
00:38:24,040 --> 00:38:26,680
Speaker 1: away to a slow ooze. The pain caught up to

721
00:38:26,760 --> 00:38:29,240
Speaker 1: him now, and Manny's vision went black for a moment.

722
00:38:29,640 --> 00:38:32,920
Speaker 1: The world faded into view after a while. Doctor Ernst

723
00:38:32,960 --> 00:38:35,920
Speaker 1: Isaac and both guards were standing above him. The guard

724
00:38:35,960 --> 00:38:38,280
Speaker 1: with a handgun had a drawn a wisp of smoke

725
00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:41,640
Speaker 1: trailed up from the barrel. Manny watched, enthralled as it

726
00:38:41,680 --> 00:38:44,400
Speaker 1: curled up to the sky and gradually disappeared into the

727
00:38:44,440 --> 00:38:48,719
Speaker 1: air around them. You've made a grievous error, my boy.

728
00:38:48,920 --> 00:38:52,239
Speaker 1: Doctor Ernst's voice was grave, now, devoid of all compassion.

729
00:38:52,719 --> 00:38:55,840
Speaker 1: You was so close to paradise it almost brings me

730
00:38:55,880 --> 00:38:59,320
Speaker 1: to tears. The doctor was only a few feet away,

731
00:38:59,360 --> 00:39:02,520
Speaker 1: but his voice sounded distant and muffled. I'm dying, aren't I,

732
00:39:02,760 --> 00:39:05,440
Speaker 1: Manny thought, No, if that was a kill shot. I'd

733
00:39:05,520 --> 00:39:09,160
Speaker 1: be dead by now, the bleatings already stopped. The thought

734
00:39:09,160 --> 00:39:12,279
Speaker 1: did little to calm his nerves. He'd thoroughly blown his cover.

735
00:39:12,680 --> 00:39:14,839
Speaker 1: Even if they never guessed his true purpose in coming

736
00:39:14,880 --> 00:39:17,800
Speaker 1: to the Heavenly Kingdom. He'd be executed for trying to flee.

737
00:39:18,280 --> 00:39:20,800
Speaker 1: This is going to put us even further behind schedule.

738
00:39:21,160 --> 00:39:23,560
Speaker 1: That was Isaac. His nose was bleeding, but it didn't

739
00:39:23,560 --> 00:39:26,960
Speaker 1: look broken. I wish I was better at punching. Take

740
00:39:27,000 --> 00:39:30,160
Speaker 1: about side, Doctor Arts said to the guards, and make

741
00:39:30,200 --> 00:39:32,360
Speaker 1: it quick. There's no sense in stringing him up in

742
00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:35,640
Speaker 1: public for simple cowardice. So this is how it's going

743
00:39:35,680 --> 00:39:38,480
Speaker 1: to end. Manny was confused by how it peace. He

744
00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:41,640
Speaker 1: felt with that some of it was guilt. Alejandra was dead,

745
00:39:41,719 --> 00:39:44,680
Speaker 1: Amide was dead, Oscar was dead, mister Perrone was dead.

746
00:39:45,080 --> 00:39:47,840
Speaker 1: This was nothing more than he deserved. He was pleasantly

747
00:39:47,920 --> 00:39:50,279
Speaker 1: surprised to find that, as the little robots in his

748
00:39:50,280 --> 00:39:53,200
Speaker 1: blood flooded his system with happy drugs, that sense of

749
00:39:53,200 --> 00:39:56,720
Speaker 1: guilt began to fade. He felt wonderfully detached from the world.

750
00:39:57,120 --> 00:39:59,440
Speaker 1: He wondered if this was how Roland felt all the time,

751
00:39:59,800 --> 00:40:03,279
Speaker 1: this connected and pleasant in a vague, indefinable way. The

752
00:40:03,360 --> 00:40:06,320
Speaker 1: guards bent down. Many felt their hands on his arms.

753
00:40:06,480 --> 00:40:08,720
Speaker 1: He felt them lift him up. He felt a terrible,

754
00:40:08,800 --> 00:40:11,360
Speaker 1: shifting pain in his gut as another rush of clotting

755
00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:14,480
Speaker 1: blood poured out of him. Many thought of mister Perrone.

756
00:40:14,560 --> 00:40:17,440
Speaker 1: He could almost see his face. Maybe the Christians were

757
00:40:17,520 --> 00:40:20,440
Speaker 1: right about the afterlife. That was a nice thought. Actually,

758
00:40:20,719 --> 00:40:23,319
Speaker 1: he thought mister Perrone would be proud of him. I

759
00:40:23,400 --> 00:40:28,040
Speaker 1: tried to do something, Sir, I really did. Many didn't

760
00:40:28,080 --> 00:40:30,640
Speaker 1: see the source of the noise. It sounded like something

761
00:40:30,680 --> 00:40:33,920
Speaker 1: heavy falling from a high height onto something soft and squishy,

762
00:40:34,360 --> 00:40:38,480
Speaker 1: some one soft and squishy. He realized the guards dropped him.

763
00:40:38,680 --> 00:40:43,840
Speaker 1: Men started to yell. Gunshot gunshot gunshot Manny thought, and

764
00:40:43,880 --> 00:40:46,400
Speaker 1: he giggled a little bit. The sounds of chaos and

765
00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:49,040
Speaker 1: violence that had erupted inside the factory could only be

766
00:40:49,160 --> 00:40:52,680
Speaker 1: Roland's doing. Many lifted up his head with considerable effort

767
00:40:52,719 --> 00:40:55,080
Speaker 1: and looked over towards the waiting area, where most of

768
00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:57,680
Speaker 1: the guards had sat idle. It was a mess now.

769
00:40:58,000 --> 00:40:59,840
Speaker 1: Several of the chairs in one of the big tables

770
00:41:00,080 --> 00:41:03,320
Speaker 1: mashed together with a chunky red paste that resembled good salsa.

771
00:41:03,760 --> 00:41:07,680
Speaker 1: People salsa, he thought, and then giggled again. Manny caught

772
00:41:07,680 --> 00:41:10,360
Speaker 1: a glimpse of Roland as the chromed man rocketed across

773
00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:13,239
Speaker 1: the factory floor and into a trio of guards. The

774
00:41:13,280 --> 00:41:15,720
Speaker 1: men didn't even have the chance to fire their weapons.

775
00:41:16,200 --> 00:41:18,800
Speaker 1: The first guard burst like a balloon full of jelly.

776
00:41:19,040 --> 00:41:21,319
Speaker 1: It was hard to tell exactly what happened next, as

777
00:41:21,360 --> 00:41:24,439
Speaker 1: it occurred under a red cloud of human viscera. Manny

778
00:41:24,520 --> 00:41:27,240
Speaker 1: slipped in his own blood and fell back onto the floor.

779
00:41:27,640 --> 00:41:29,600
Speaker 1: He stared up at the ceiling for a little while

780
00:41:29,640 --> 00:41:32,080
Speaker 1: and just focused on trying to keep his breath steady.

781
00:41:32,320 --> 00:41:36,520
Speaker 1: There was nothing else he could do here anyway. Immanuel Sasha,

782
00:41:36,719 --> 00:41:40,600
Speaker 1: he thought, Lah, he said, it's okay. He felt her

783
00:41:40,600 --> 00:41:43,479
Speaker 1: warm hand on his forehead. Don't talk. You've been shot,

784
00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:46,960
Speaker 1: but you're probably not going to die. Probably, he had

785
00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:49,840
Speaker 1: to admire her fundamental honesty. I'm going to try to

786
00:41:49,920 --> 00:41:51,840
Speaker 1: drag you out of here. If you can walk, that

787
00:41:51,880 --> 00:41:55,600
Speaker 1: would be really helpful. She grabbed Manny under the armpits

788
00:41:55,600 --> 00:41:57,400
Speaker 1: and tried to pull him up. He let out a

789
00:41:57,400 --> 00:41:59,840
Speaker 1: coughing cry at the pain of being moved again, but

790
00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:02,439
Speaker 1: he also realized late in the game that he still

791
00:42:02,520 --> 00:42:05,480
Speaker 1: had some control over his legs. He pushed up, and,

792
00:42:05,600 --> 00:42:08,319
Speaker 1: with Sasha's help, fought gravity well enough that he soon

793
00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:11,880
Speaker 1: stood under mostly his own power. Sasha wrapped one of

794
00:42:11,880 --> 00:42:13,680
Speaker 1: his arms around her shoulder and took some of the

795
00:42:13,680 --> 00:42:17,320
Speaker 1: weight off his weakened limbs, and then together they hobbled

796
00:42:17,360 --> 00:42:20,320
Speaker 1: free of the Chanel factory that had almost been his tomb.

797
00:42:21,440 --> 00:42:24,080
Speaker 1: An hour later, Manny sat with Roland and Sasha on

798
00:42:24,120 --> 00:42:26,360
Speaker 1: the roof of an old Bank of America and watched

799
00:42:26,360 --> 00:42:29,640
Speaker 1: as the Tesla factory burned in the distance. Manny had

800
00:42:29,640 --> 00:42:31,839
Speaker 1: passed out almost as soon as Sasha had got him

801
00:42:31,840 --> 00:42:34,360
Speaker 1: out the door. He recalled waking up a few times

802
00:42:34,400 --> 00:42:37,040
Speaker 1: during the run away from the factory. At some point

803
00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:39,560
Speaker 1: Roland had met up with them and started carrying him.

804
00:42:40,160 --> 00:42:42,160
Speaker 1: He'd come too on the roof of the old bank

805
00:42:42,200 --> 00:42:44,840
Speaker 1: building just in time to see Roland dribble a trail

806
00:42:44,880 --> 00:42:47,959
Speaker 1: of weird ass blood into his gunshot wound. He'd felt

807
00:42:47,960 --> 00:42:50,120
Speaker 1: a little revulsion at the act, but it had passed

808
00:42:50,160 --> 00:42:52,799
Speaker 1: once his pain dissolved. I should really find a way

809
00:42:52,800 --> 00:42:57,080
Speaker 1: to bottle that stuff, he thought. What happened, Manny asked,

810
00:42:57,239 --> 00:43:01,279
Speaker 1: once reality had solidified a little more. Roland found me,

811
00:43:01,520 --> 00:43:04,440
Speaker 1: Sasha said, just after they took you, I told him

812
00:43:04,440 --> 00:43:07,040
Speaker 1: that Alexander had mentioned a factory, and then well he

813
00:43:07,080 --> 00:43:09,000
Speaker 1: seemed to know this must be the factory they'd been

814
00:43:09,040 --> 00:43:12,680
Speaker 1: talking about. Thanks for that, Reggie, he told me he

815
00:43:12,760 --> 00:43:15,520
Speaker 1: was going to Eh. She coughed a little and her

816
00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:19,520
Speaker 1: cheeks reddened an embarrassment, feed them their own dicks, and

817
00:43:19,560 --> 00:43:21,759
Speaker 1: that I should wait until they were engaged to run

818
00:43:21,760 --> 00:43:25,839
Speaker 1: and drag you out. A large explosion echoed across the city.

819
00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:29,040
Speaker 1: Escape and the Trio watched a small orange mushroom cloud

820
00:43:29,120 --> 00:43:31,439
Speaker 1: light up the sky where the Tesla factory had been.

821
00:43:32,000 --> 00:43:35,960
Speaker 1: It's about damned time, Roland grumbled. The detonators those fuckers

822
00:43:35,960 --> 00:43:39,120
Speaker 1: stole from the Republic were garbage. Hey. He looked over

823
00:43:39,160 --> 00:43:43,560
Speaker 1: to Manny. The hell was that place anyway? Yes, Sasha added,

824
00:43:43,719 --> 00:43:45,960
Speaker 1: and how exactly did you end up getting shot there?

825
00:43:46,920 --> 00:43:50,080
Speaker 1: Manny related the whole story as best he could. Sasha's

826
00:43:50,080 --> 00:43:52,600
Speaker 1: face went pale white with outrage and disgust when he

827
00:43:52,640 --> 00:43:55,439
Speaker 1: explained exactly how the Heavenly Kingdom had managed to get

828
00:43:55,440 --> 00:43:59,600
Speaker 1: its suicide vehicles past the sd f's checkpoints. Oh God,

829
00:43:59,760 --> 00:44:04,120
Speaker 1: she moaned, Oh God, above, no, no, no, Roland just laughed.

830
00:44:04,400 --> 00:44:06,480
Speaker 1: That's as clever as a two headed crow. I'll give

831
00:44:06,520 --> 00:44:09,680
Speaker 1: him that. He clapped Sasha on the shoulder. Come on, lady,

832
00:44:09,719 --> 00:44:12,000
Speaker 1: you can't still be surprised by how funk the kingdom is.

833
00:44:12,160 --> 00:44:15,800
Speaker 1: How many people did you watch them? Hang? Sasha didn't respond.

834
00:44:16,080 --> 00:44:18,920
Speaker 1: She just sat there, eyes red and watery, and stared

835
00:44:18,920 --> 00:44:21,799
Speaker 1: out at the burning factory. Manny felt like he should

836
00:44:21,840 --> 00:44:24,120
Speaker 1: have said something, but his mind was still catching up

837
00:44:24,160 --> 00:44:26,160
Speaker 1: to his body after the events of the last couple

838
00:44:26,200 --> 00:44:29,840
Speaker 1: of hours. Staring straight ahead represented the extent of his abilities.

839
00:44:29,920 --> 00:44:33,440
Speaker 1: Right now, Sorry, Roland said, in response to the silence.

840
00:44:34,040 --> 00:44:36,160
Speaker 1: I forget your kids aren't used to this sort of ship.

841
00:44:36,280 --> 00:44:40,640
Speaker 1: I'll tell you it gets easier. What almost dying? Asked Manny.

842
00:44:40,760 --> 00:44:43,160
Speaker 1: We're being betrayed by the only thing you ever believed in,

843
00:44:43,400 --> 00:44:47,439
Speaker 1: asked Sasha. Roland shrugged. Both. I guess. I mean neither

844
00:44:47,520 --> 00:44:49,759
Speaker 1: is much fun. But hey, y'all pop some cherries today,

845
00:44:49,800 --> 00:44:51,960
Speaker 1: so it's gotta bean nothing but downhill from here on out.

846
00:44:52,960 --> 00:44:56,040
Speaker 1: Neither of them responded, but Roland plowed right along. I

847
00:44:56,120 --> 00:44:58,399
Speaker 1: meant downhill and like the positive sense of the word,

848
00:44:58,640 --> 00:45:03,080
Speaker 1: you know, sledding like that something more silence Roland's side

849
00:45:03,080 --> 00:45:04,799
Speaker 1: and took a loud gulp from a piece of sheet

850
00:45:04,840 --> 00:45:08,120
Speaker 1: metal he'd been into a makeshift cup. The beverage inside

851
00:45:08,160 --> 00:45:10,840
Speaker 1: smelled like another batch of his gut liquor. It burned

852
00:45:10,880 --> 00:45:13,839
Speaker 1: Manny's nose from three feet away. A minute went by,

853
00:45:14,000 --> 00:45:16,960
Speaker 1: and then another Without a word. They listened as emergency

854
00:45:17,000 --> 00:45:19,800
Speaker 1: sirens sounded, and drew closer to the side of the blast.

855
00:45:20,520 --> 00:45:23,080
Speaker 1: So what the fund do we do now, Manny asked.

856
00:45:23,680 --> 00:45:27,680
Speaker 1: Roland grunted and then belched, Well, we'd probably gotta roll

857
00:45:27,719 --> 00:45:30,000
Speaker 1: back into town, break those ladies out of jail, and

858
00:45:30,040 --> 00:45:33,320
Speaker 1: then I don't know, we should probably leave right. Manny

859
00:45:33,400 --> 00:45:36,960
Speaker 1: rolled his eyes. The casual recklessness of Roland's confidence had

860
00:45:36,960 --> 00:45:39,680
Speaker 1: been fun and reassuring when he wasn't recovering from a

861
00:45:39,680 --> 00:45:42,760
Speaker 1: gunshot wound. The events at the Tesla plant had proved

862
00:45:42,760 --> 00:45:45,239
Speaker 1: to Manny that the post humans protection wasn't enough to

863
00:45:45,239 --> 00:45:49,000
Speaker 1: guarantee his safety or Sasha's. He was the deadliest thing

864
00:45:49,080 --> 00:45:53,240
Speaker 1: Manny had ever seen, but he couldn't be everywhere at once. Wait,

865
00:45:53,320 --> 00:45:56,600
Speaker 1: who are you breaking out of jail? Sasha asked those

866
00:45:56,640 --> 00:45:59,719
Speaker 1: three negotiators. Manny said, from the city of Wheels, the

867
00:45:59,760 --> 00:46:04,120
Speaker 1: woman and you examined and their male companion. Sasha gave

868
00:46:04,160 --> 00:46:07,680
Speaker 1: Manny a look he couldn't quite parse out what he asked.

869
00:46:08,160 --> 00:46:10,200
Speaker 1: Is that why you started talking to me? She asked,

870
00:46:10,239 --> 00:46:11,920
Speaker 1: because you knew I was working with those women and

871
00:46:11,960 --> 00:46:13,439
Speaker 1: you thought I might be able to get you into

872
00:46:13,480 --> 00:46:17,359
Speaker 1: the jail. No, started Manny, I mean sort of right,

873
00:46:17,520 --> 00:46:19,800
Speaker 1: finished Roland. That was sure as shed a big BLUs.

874
00:46:20,520 --> 00:46:23,240
Speaker 1: Many glared at the post human Roland had all attacked

875
00:46:23,239 --> 00:46:26,080
Speaker 1: and diplomacy of a chainsaw. That's why I'm here in

876
00:46:26,120 --> 00:46:30,239
Speaker 1: the first place, he reminded himself. Look, Roland continued, there's

877
00:46:30,280 --> 00:46:32,480
Speaker 1: no point in dressing any of this up. Sasha, you

878
00:46:32,560 --> 00:46:35,080
Speaker 1: fled your home to join a militant terrorist organization that

879
00:46:35,200 --> 00:46:38,360
Speaker 1: butcher civilians. Manny, you kind of manipulated her in the

880
00:46:38,360 --> 00:46:41,440
Speaker 1: hope of getting information. I just beat like twenty people

881
00:46:41,440 --> 00:46:44,200
Speaker 1: to death, plus I fed Martyr Ditmar his own hand,

882
00:46:44,239 --> 00:46:47,600
Speaker 1: and I feel genuinely bad about that. Roland shook his head.

883
00:46:47,920 --> 00:46:50,279
Speaker 1: I'm really trying not to fall completely off the murder

884
00:46:50,320 --> 00:46:52,120
Speaker 1: wagon here, guys, but when I get angry and the

885
00:46:52,120 --> 00:46:56,520
Speaker 1: battle drug start flowing, he shivered, I get ugly. Once again,

886
00:46:56,680 --> 00:46:59,640
Speaker 1: Roland's words were met with stunned silence, and once again

887
00:46:59,760 --> 00:47:03,200
Speaker 1: he cloud forward. Nonetheless, what I'm saying is this whole

888
00:47:03,200 --> 00:47:05,160
Speaker 1: situation as ugly as fun and none of us as

889
00:47:05,160 --> 00:47:07,319
Speaker 1: a hero. But we're probably the least shitty people in

890
00:47:07,320 --> 00:47:09,680
Speaker 1: the city with any kind of power. So let's all

891
00:47:09,840 --> 00:47:12,160
Speaker 1: forgive each other's trespasses and use that power to try

892
00:47:12,200 --> 00:47:14,560
Speaker 1: to save a couple of nice people from being crucified

893
00:47:14,760 --> 00:47:16,640
Speaker 1: or whatever it is Christians due to the people who

894
00:47:16,680 --> 00:47:20,600
Speaker 1: piss them off. Is it just hanging I Sasha started

895
00:47:20,640 --> 00:47:24,200
Speaker 1: to respond, then shook her head in exasperation. Probably not,

896
00:47:24,719 --> 00:47:27,840
Speaker 1: she said. Instead, all right, Roland clapped and put on

897
00:47:27,840 --> 00:47:30,160
Speaker 1: a bright smile. So how do we get in there?

898
00:47:30,239 --> 00:47:31,919
Speaker 1: I mean, I can just sort of balls my way

899
00:47:31,920 --> 00:47:34,360
Speaker 1: through the front door or the ceiling, but since this

900
00:47:34,440 --> 00:47:37,319
Speaker 1: is an actual jail, it's probably reinforced. There's a good

901
00:47:37,400 --> 00:47:39,680
Speaker 1: chance they'll kill the hostages before I punched my way

902
00:47:39,680 --> 00:47:42,879
Speaker 1: into the cells. Manny could almost hear the wheels turn

903
00:47:42,960 --> 00:47:44,960
Speaker 1: and Sasha's head as she caught her thoughts up with

904
00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:48,239
Speaker 1: what was now apparently her reality. To her credit, she

905
00:47:48,320 --> 00:47:52,360
Speaker 1: responded in short order, that's probably the case. She nodded.

906
00:47:52,640 --> 00:47:55,080
Speaker 1: There are armed guards outside of each cell. And there's

907
00:47:55,080 --> 00:47:57,880
Speaker 1: a real disgust for those captives. Among the martyrs, they

908
00:47:57,920 --> 00:48:00,440
Speaker 1: probably would shoot those women rather than let them escape.

909
00:48:01,239 --> 00:48:03,560
Speaker 1: And what about the guy? I never saw him. I

910
00:48:03,640 --> 00:48:06,680
Speaker 1: dealt with the women Marigolden. Oh what was her name? Tully?

911
00:48:07,080 --> 00:48:09,799
Speaker 1: But I assume he was in the same jail. He is,

912
00:48:10,000 --> 00:48:12,279
Speaker 1: Roland confirmed, or at least he was last time I

913
00:48:12,280 --> 00:48:16,440
Speaker 1: sniffed around there. Manny's mind finally spun up to full speed.

914
00:48:16,760 --> 00:48:19,560
Speaker 1: The pain in his guts had subsided, as had the lightheaded,

915
00:48:19,600 --> 00:48:22,640
Speaker 1: bloodless feeling he'd woken up with. He felt comforted by

916
00:48:22,680 --> 00:48:25,120
Speaker 1: the mere fact of having a simple problem to solve.

917
00:48:25,520 --> 00:48:28,160
Speaker 1: At the core, this question was a logistical one, just

918
00:48:28,200 --> 00:48:30,400
Speaker 1: like the problems he faced every day as a fixer.

919
00:48:30,760 --> 00:48:33,200
Speaker 1: He needed to deliver his team to a certain location

920
00:48:33,360 --> 00:48:36,439
Speaker 1: the jail, in a limited time frame, So Manny's first

921
00:48:36,520 --> 00:48:38,759
Speaker 1: job was to figure out what connections he'd need to

922
00:48:38,800 --> 00:48:42,600
Speaker 1: make in order for that to be possible. Sasha, he asked,

923
00:48:42,719 --> 00:48:44,799
Speaker 1: who can help us get inside that jail? Do you

924
00:48:44,800 --> 00:48:46,680
Speaker 1: know anyone who has the authority to come and go

925
00:48:46,760 --> 00:48:50,719
Speaker 1: from there with impunity? Dr? Brandt? She replied, he's a

926
00:48:50,760 --> 00:48:53,160
Speaker 1: good man, I think, but he's committed. He's not going

927
00:48:53,200 --> 00:48:55,800
Speaker 1: to work with us to betray the Kingdom. He doesn't

928
00:48:55,840 --> 00:48:58,359
Speaker 1: need to, Manny assured her. I'm going to guess he's

929
00:48:58,360 --> 00:49:00,640
Speaker 1: a smart guy, right, He has to be somewhat worldly

930
00:49:00,680 --> 00:49:04,040
Speaker 1: to be an actual doctor. Sasha nodded, he's not a

931
00:49:04,080 --> 00:49:06,799
Speaker 1: mindless zale it. If that's what you're asking most of us,

932
00:49:06,800 --> 00:49:09,400
Speaker 1: aren't you know there was a reasonable case for supporting

933
00:49:09,400 --> 00:49:12,560
Speaker 1: the Heavenly Kingdom at just She trailed off, and Many

934
00:49:12,640 --> 00:49:15,680
Speaker 1: put his hands out in a placating gesture. No, No,

935
00:49:15,840 --> 00:49:17,840
Speaker 1: that's not not what I'm getting at. I want to

936
00:49:17,880 --> 00:49:21,080
Speaker 1: make sure this guy has a sober, realistic understanding of

937
00:49:21,080 --> 00:49:25,040
Speaker 1: what someone like Roland can do. Sasha's eyes went cloudy,

938
00:49:25,160 --> 00:49:28,680
Speaker 1: but she nodded. He talked about them with me a little,

939
00:49:28,960 --> 00:49:31,640
Speaker 1: She said, I would say he has a healthy respect

940
00:49:31,680 --> 00:49:35,480
Speaker 1: for post humans, good Manny said, So we find him

941
00:49:35,480 --> 00:49:37,840
Speaker 1: and we make him an offer. Either Roland tears the

942
00:49:37,840 --> 00:49:40,000
Speaker 1: heart out of the Kingdom or doctor Brand helps us

943
00:49:40,000 --> 00:49:42,160
Speaker 1: get those captives out of the jail. If he's a

944
00:49:42,200 --> 00:49:44,719
Speaker 1: sensible man, who'll have to see the reason in that.

945
00:49:45,719 --> 00:49:49,160
Speaker 1: Sasha didn't look so sure about that, but after some consideration,

946
00:49:49,239 --> 00:49:52,920
Speaker 1: she nodded, and agreed that it was at least possible. Okay,

947
00:49:53,000 --> 00:49:54,799
Speaker 1: so we find this doctor Brandt, we use him to

948
00:49:54,800 --> 00:49:57,239
Speaker 1: get inside the jail. Roland does Roland things, and then

949
00:49:57,239 --> 00:50:00,280
Speaker 1: we beat feet to get out of Sea Demuerta. Oland

950
00:50:00,280 --> 00:50:02,760
Speaker 1: shrugged and took another deep pull from his gut beverage.

951
00:50:02,920 --> 00:50:07,040
Speaker 1: He seemed on board. Sasha raised another question, though, okay,

952
00:50:07,040 --> 00:50:09,480
Speaker 1: so who are you two supposed to be? Then? Every

953
00:50:09,480 --> 00:50:11,560
Speaker 1: time Dr Brandton I visited the jail, we had a

954
00:50:11,640 --> 00:50:14,440
Speaker 1: driver in, an armed guard. But you two don't exactly

955
00:50:14,480 --> 00:50:17,000
Speaker 1: look like you fit the bill. Right now, you, she

956
00:50:17,000 --> 00:50:19,680
Speaker 1: appointed to Manny, clearly just took a bullet, and you,

957
00:50:19,800 --> 00:50:22,000
Speaker 1: she jabbed a finger at Roland, look like you just

958
00:50:22,120 --> 00:50:25,640
Speaker 1: murdered dozens of people, which I guess you did, right,

959
00:50:25,880 --> 00:50:28,319
Speaker 1: Manny clapped his hands. That's easy enough to fix. It's

960
00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:30,640
Speaker 1: what five am. Now the city is starting to wake up.

961
00:50:30,880 --> 00:50:34,920
Speaker 1: Do you know what shift Dr Brandt's expected to work today, Sasha?

962
00:50:35,040 --> 00:50:38,760
Speaker 1: Lately he's been doing seven to seven and Roland. Manny continued,

963
00:50:38,920 --> 00:50:41,160
Speaker 1: do you know where the vehicle pool is? The big

964
00:50:41,200 --> 00:50:43,440
Speaker 1: Man nodded, Oh yeah, I dragged that down there in

965
00:50:43,480 --> 00:50:45,880
Speaker 1: my first recon day. It's about thirty minutes away on

966
00:50:45,920 --> 00:50:49,840
Speaker 1: foot for you guys five minutes from me. We'll go slow,

967
00:50:49,960 --> 00:50:52,759
Speaker 1: said Manny. Sasha, you let us know when you recognize

968
00:50:52,800 --> 00:50:55,560
Speaker 1: Dr Brand's jeep and driver will stop them, relieve them

969
00:50:55,560 --> 00:50:58,840
Speaker 1: with their uniforms and drive on to the doctor's house. Roland,

970
00:50:58,880 --> 00:51:01,000
Speaker 1: you think you can take out two men without bloodying

971
00:51:01,080 --> 00:51:06,760
Speaker 1: up their uniforms? He gave another shrug. All right, Manny nodded.

972
00:51:06,920 --> 00:51:10,600
Speaker 1: That's plan A, then, and what's plan B? Sasha asked,

973
00:51:10,960 --> 00:51:24,040
Speaker 1: close your eyes and hide behind Roland Chapter twenty. Roland,

974
00:51:25,080 --> 00:51:28,520
Speaker 1: that looks like them, Sasha whispered into his ear. The

975
00:51:28,560 --> 00:51:30,680
Speaker 1: three of them were stationed on the third floor of

976
00:51:30,719 --> 00:51:33,680
Speaker 1: an old office building that overlooked the Kingdom's vehicle pool.

977
00:51:34,160 --> 00:51:36,840
Speaker 1: Based on the posters and decorations inside, the people in

978
00:51:36,880 --> 00:51:39,440
Speaker 1: this office had once helped coordinate for a string of

979
00:51:39,480 --> 00:51:43,120
Speaker 1: restaurants supply stores. Roland suspected the coming of the war

980
00:51:43,239 --> 00:51:44,960
Speaker 1: might have been a relief to the people who'd been

981
00:51:44,960 --> 00:51:48,560
Speaker 1: stuck working here. He was positioned by the window, sitting

982
00:51:48,600 --> 00:51:50,400
Speaker 1: down so only the edge of his face would have

983
00:51:50,400 --> 00:51:53,800
Speaker 1: been visible to anyone looking in from the outside. Manny

984
00:51:53,840 --> 00:51:56,200
Speaker 1: had elected to take a nap out of view behind

985
00:51:56,239 --> 00:51:59,280
Speaker 1: one of the desks. His ability to fall asleep anytime,

986
00:51:59,400 --> 00:52:02,000
Speaker 1: anywhere marked him out as a true expert in war

987
00:52:02,120 --> 00:52:05,719
Speaker 1: zone survival. Sasha had situated herself on the other side

988
00:52:05,719 --> 00:52:08,239
Speaker 1: of the window frame. Roland had warned her to keep

989
00:52:08,239 --> 00:52:10,440
Speaker 1: her head out of view until he saw new arrivals

990
00:52:10,440 --> 00:52:13,240
Speaker 1: to the vehicle depot. He'd called for her eyes six

991
00:52:13,280 --> 00:52:16,799
Speaker 1: times already and gotten six negatives. Now it seemed their

992
00:52:16,800 --> 00:52:21,120
Speaker 1: target had arrived. Are you sure, he asked. Pretty sure,

993
00:52:21,320 --> 00:52:24,040
Speaker 1: she said, and nodded. The driver walks with a limp.

994
00:52:24,239 --> 00:52:26,160
Speaker 1: One of his legs is shorter than the other. I

995
00:52:26,200 --> 00:52:28,439
Speaker 1: think it's a birth defect. He must have come from

996
00:52:28,440 --> 00:52:31,600
Speaker 1: some part of the continent where those still happen. Good eye.

997
00:52:32,120 --> 00:52:36,000
Speaker 1: Roland was genuinely impressed. The girl had potential. So what

998
00:52:36,040 --> 00:52:39,279
Speaker 1: do we do now, she asked, you rouse, Mannie. I'll

999
00:52:39,320 --> 00:52:41,800
Speaker 1: keep an eye on things. When they depart, I'll carjack

1000
00:52:41,840 --> 00:52:45,840
Speaker 1: them into unconsciousness and bring back the uniforms. And that's

1001
00:52:46,080 --> 00:52:48,439
Speaker 1: more or less how it went. The guard and driver

1002
00:52:48,520 --> 00:52:51,600
Speaker 1: departed in a jeep. Five minutes later. Roland bounded down

1003
00:52:51,640 --> 00:52:53,520
Speaker 1: from one of the rear windows and landed on the

1004
00:52:53,520 --> 00:52:55,480
Speaker 1: hood as they took a right hand turn out of

1005
00:52:55,560 --> 00:52:58,360
Speaker 1: view of the vehicle depot. The guard did not do

1006
00:52:58,520 --> 00:53:01,640
Speaker 1: his job title proud, Roland slammed his face into the

1007
00:53:01,719 --> 00:53:04,399
Speaker 1: dashboard and knocked him out. He also knocked out most

1008
00:53:04,400 --> 00:53:06,560
Speaker 1: of the man's teeth, but his hind brain told him

1009
00:53:06,560 --> 00:53:08,680
Speaker 1: the guy's odds of a fatal brain hemorrhage were only

1010
00:53:08,719 --> 00:53:12,560
Speaker 1: about six percent acceptable. He broke the driver's jaw with

1011
00:53:12,600 --> 00:53:15,080
Speaker 1: a right cross, took the wheel, and steered the vehicle

1012
00:53:15,160 --> 00:53:17,239
Speaker 1: to a stop while he was still hanging outside it.

1013
00:53:17,880 --> 00:53:19,960
Speaker 1: Roland tossed both men in the back of the jeep

1014
00:53:19,960 --> 00:53:23,080
Speaker 1: and pulled into the office buildings underground parking lot. He

1015
00:53:23,160 --> 00:53:25,279
Speaker 1: stripped them both and cursed when he realized that the

1016
00:53:25,320 --> 00:53:28,280
Speaker 1: guard's bleeding face had stained the neck of his uniform shirt.

1017
00:53:28,719 --> 00:53:31,040
Speaker 1: He found some bottled water in the trunk and managed

1018
00:53:31,080 --> 00:53:32,759
Speaker 1: to wash out the worst of it, but the stain

1019
00:53:32,800 --> 00:53:35,040
Speaker 1: would still be visible to anyone who really took the

1020
00:53:35,080 --> 00:53:38,359
Speaker 1: time to look. Still, it'd probably be enough to get

1021
00:53:38,400 --> 00:53:40,879
Speaker 1: them through the door of the jail. He stashed both

1022
00:53:40,920 --> 00:53:43,359
Speaker 1: men in a janitorial closet and dragged an old metal

1023
00:53:43,440 --> 00:53:45,440
Speaker 1: dumpster in front of it to wedge the door shut.

1024
00:53:45,960 --> 00:53:48,600
Speaker 1: Some one would probably find them before they starved to death.

1025
00:53:48,880 --> 00:53:50,719
Speaker 1: He felt a pang of guilt for how little he

1026
00:53:50,760 --> 00:53:53,479
Speaker 1: cared about what happened to those men. I should feel

1027
00:53:53,480 --> 00:53:56,680
Speaker 1: worse about this. Roland knew the battle drugs had suppressed

1028
00:53:56,680 --> 00:53:59,080
Speaker 1: his conscience. He knew that the longer they stayed in

1029
00:53:59,120 --> 00:54:01,520
Speaker 1: this dangerous play, and the more fighting he did, the

1030
00:54:01,560 --> 00:54:04,879
Speaker 1: more tempted he'd be to kill out right. Roland leaned

1031
00:54:04,920 --> 00:54:07,279
Speaker 1: against the dumpster and closed his eyes. He tried to

1032
00:54:07,320 --> 00:54:10,080
Speaker 1: force himself to take long, slow breaths and meditate on

1033
00:54:10,120 --> 00:54:12,040
Speaker 1: the flow of air in and out of his lungs.

1034
00:54:12,400 --> 00:54:14,719
Speaker 1: He helped taking a breather would prompt his system to

1035
00:54:14,760 --> 00:54:18,040
Speaker 1: reduce the drip. Instead, he found himself flashing back to

1036
00:54:18,120 --> 00:54:21,760
Speaker 1: more violence. Red siren lights screeched and blinked on walls

1037
00:54:21,800 --> 00:54:24,359
Speaker 1: of institutional White men and women in lab coats ran

1038
00:54:24,440 --> 00:54:27,000
Speaker 1: and screamed and died, died, died as he squeezed the

1039
00:54:27,000 --> 00:54:29,839
Speaker 1: trigger of his sig sour Roland kicked at a lock

1040
00:54:29,920 --> 00:54:32,400
Speaker 1: door and the metal buckled inwards, revealing a room with

1041
00:54:32,520 --> 00:54:36,160
Speaker 1: giant glass organ filled vials. He shook his head and

1042
00:54:36,200 --> 00:54:39,319
Speaker 1: tried to banish the memories he'd started flashing back to

1043
00:54:39,360 --> 00:54:41,600
Speaker 1: this place when they had rescued Manny. But the memories

1044
00:54:41,640 --> 00:54:45,360
Speaker 1: had kept coming even once the violence subsided. Please, Roland,

1045
00:54:45,480 --> 00:54:48,120
Speaker 1: the old woman begged through blood stained teeth. He looked

1046
00:54:48,120 --> 00:54:50,000
Speaker 1: down at the hole in her gut, the red blood

1047
00:54:50,000 --> 00:54:52,400
Speaker 1: on her white lab coat. She slid backwards on the

1048
00:54:52,400 --> 00:54:54,720
Speaker 1: tile floor until her shoulders hit one of the racks

1049
00:54:54,760 --> 00:54:58,720
Speaker 1: of that grown organs. Please don't do this, Roland shook

1050
00:54:58,719 --> 00:55:01,360
Speaker 1: his head. He didn't know why this was happening exactly.

1051
00:55:01,680 --> 00:55:04,680
Speaker 1: It was likely just a glitch, some unforeseen interaction between

1052
00:55:04,680 --> 00:55:07,160
Speaker 1: the wet wear of his hind brain, the procedural memory

1053
00:55:07,239 --> 00:55:09,560
Speaker 1: stored at his DNA, and the battle drugs that flowed

1054
00:55:09,560 --> 00:55:13,080
Speaker 1: through his system. He questioned again whether he really wanted

1055
00:55:13,120 --> 00:55:16,640
Speaker 1: his memories back. This wasn't the time to ponder that question, though.

1056
00:55:17,040 --> 00:55:20,160
Speaker 1: Roland headed back upstairs to grab Manny and Sasha. He

1057
00:55:20,239 --> 00:55:22,320
Speaker 1: led them down to the garage and handed Manny the

1058
00:55:22,400 --> 00:55:26,920
Speaker 1: unbloodied uniform. Dude, that's really obvious, Manny pointed to the

1059
00:55:26,920 --> 00:55:30,160
Speaker 1: blood stains on Roland's own uniform. They're going to notice that,

1060
00:55:31,000 --> 00:55:33,720
Speaker 1: you think so. Roland was so used to normal humans

1061
00:55:33,719 --> 00:55:37,000
Speaker 1: not noticing much of anything, he sometimes underestimated their senses

1062
00:55:37,440 --> 00:55:40,840
Speaker 1: I've got an idea, Sasha said, pop the hood. Roland

1063
00:55:40,880 --> 00:55:43,400
Speaker 1: and Manny were both a little surprised, but he popped

1064
00:55:43,400 --> 00:55:45,920
Speaker 1: it for her. The girl stared at the engine, reached

1065
00:55:45,960 --> 00:55:48,040
Speaker 1: for the dipstick and pulled it free from its slot.

1066
00:55:48,400 --> 00:55:50,279
Speaker 1: She rubbed her hand down the shaft and it came

1067
00:55:50,320 --> 00:55:53,160
Speaker 1: away covered in sticky black grease. She rubbed the grease

1068
00:55:53,200 --> 00:55:56,080
Speaker 1: onto Roland's collar, coated the dipstick again, and repeated the

1069
00:55:56,080 --> 00:55:59,080
Speaker 1: process two more times. When she was done, he looked

1070
00:55:59,080 --> 00:56:01,200
Speaker 1: like he'd been working on an engine rather than beating

1071
00:56:01,200 --> 00:56:05,160
Speaker 1: a man half to death. Fucking brilliant, Roland said. Manny

1072
00:56:05,239 --> 00:56:08,640
Speaker 1: nodded his agreement. Then he said, all right, let's go

1073
00:56:08,719 --> 00:56:13,160
Speaker 1: abducted doctor. The abduction itself was easy. Doctor Brandt lived

1074
00:56:13,200 --> 00:56:16,400
Speaker 1: in an undamaged mansion about two miles away from downtown.

1075
00:56:16,680 --> 00:56:19,359
Speaker 1: As one of the kingdom's few medical professionals, Doctor Brandt

1076
00:56:19,400 --> 00:56:22,520
Speaker 1: had apparently earned himself some luxury. Sasha hid in the

1077
00:56:22,520 --> 00:56:25,080
Speaker 1: trunk so the doctor wouldn't notice anything was off until

1078
00:56:25,080 --> 00:56:29,600
Speaker 1: he entered the vehicle. Where's Jerry and Samuel, Doctor Brandt asked.

1079
00:56:29,600 --> 00:56:31,880
Speaker 1: As he opened the door and sat down inside the jeep.

1080
00:56:32,400 --> 00:56:35,120
Speaker 1: Many gunned the engine and peeled away. Roland put a

1081
00:56:35,120 --> 00:56:37,879
Speaker 1: hand on doctor Brandt's thigh and squeezed just hard enough

1082
00:56:37,880 --> 00:56:40,120
Speaker 1: for the man to feel like his thigh bone might shatter.

1083
00:56:40,760 --> 00:56:43,160
Speaker 1: I stuffed him in a closet somewhere, he explained, with

1084
00:56:43,200 --> 00:56:46,360
Speaker 1: a smile. My name is Manny, the fixer said. The

1085
00:56:46,360 --> 00:56:48,560
Speaker 1: guy who's about to break your leg is named Roland.

1086
00:56:48,840 --> 00:56:53,120
Speaker 1: We're kidnapping you, ah, said doctor Brandt. Roland had to

1087
00:56:53,160 --> 00:56:56,040
Speaker 1: give credit where credit was due. The doctor endured the

1088
00:56:56,040 --> 00:56:58,880
Speaker 1: pain with a stony face and without any signs of panic.

1089
00:56:59,360 --> 00:57:01,120
Speaker 1: We need you to help us get into the jail,

1090
00:57:01,239 --> 00:57:04,640
Speaker 1: Manny continued, where those negotiators from Rolling Fuck are being held.

1091
00:57:05,400 --> 00:57:08,239
Speaker 1: Doctor Brant grimaced, either from the obscenity or just do

1092
00:57:08,400 --> 00:57:11,040
Speaker 1: to the continued pain of Roland's iron grip. And what

1093
00:57:11,200 --> 00:57:13,560
Speaker 1: makes you think I'll give you any aid? There was

1094
00:57:13,560 --> 00:57:15,440
Speaker 1: a bit of strain in his voice now, but the

1095
00:57:15,480 --> 00:57:18,960
Speaker 1: doctor's features stayed decidedly neutral. I may be a doctor,

1096
00:57:19,000 --> 00:57:21,120
Speaker 1: but I'm no less prepared to die for my kingdom

1097
00:57:21,120 --> 00:57:23,240
Speaker 1: than anyone else here. You might as well just go

1098
00:57:23,280 --> 00:57:27,040
Speaker 1: ahead and kill me. Roland relaxed his grip. The doctor's

1099
00:57:27,080 --> 00:57:30,200
Speaker 1: sighed in relief. Yeah, we thought you might say something

1100
00:57:30,240 --> 00:57:33,000
Speaker 1: like that, said Manny. That's why Roland and I prepared

1101
00:57:33,000 --> 00:57:36,880
Speaker 1: an alternate proposal. Roland drew the guard stolen side arm

1102
00:57:36,920 --> 00:57:39,360
Speaker 1: from its holster. He gripped the pistol in one hand

1103
00:57:39,400 --> 00:57:41,040
Speaker 1: and then crushed it in his grip like he was

1104
00:57:41,080 --> 00:57:44,080
Speaker 1: bawling up a piece of paper. The doctor's eyes widened

1105
00:57:44,080 --> 00:57:48,280
Speaker 1: in shock and horror. So Manny said, my friends just

1106
00:57:48,600 --> 00:57:50,680
Speaker 1: full of chrome, high grade stuff. He could walk right

1107
00:57:50,680 --> 00:57:52,919
Speaker 1: through a tank if he wanted. You're an educated man,

1108
00:57:53,040 --> 00:57:56,160
Speaker 1: you know what people like him can do. The doctor nodded,

1109
00:57:56,200 --> 00:57:59,360
Speaker 1: but didn't say anything. Our offer is simple. You help

1110
00:57:59,440 --> 00:58:01,880
Speaker 1: us out and we'll leave with our people. You refuse

1111
00:58:01,960 --> 00:58:04,680
Speaker 1: to help, and we'll get our people anyway. Only Roland

1112
00:58:04,680 --> 00:58:06,680
Speaker 1: here will take a little detour to burn half the

1113
00:58:06,720 --> 00:58:10,640
Speaker 1: city to the ground. I see Roland could smell the

1114
00:58:10,680 --> 00:58:13,640
Speaker 1: fear wafting off Doctor Brandt now, but the man's expression

1115
00:58:13,640 --> 00:58:16,360
Speaker 1: didn't change. You wouldn't be a doctor if you didn't

1116
00:58:16,360 --> 00:58:19,520
Speaker 1: see value in human lives. Manny's voice was soft. His

1117
00:58:19,560 --> 00:58:22,600
Speaker 1: reasonable tone wouldn't have been out of place in a boardroom.

1118
00:58:22,640 --> 00:58:24,560
Speaker 1: If you refuse to help us, we won't hurt you,

1119
00:58:24,640 --> 00:58:26,760
Speaker 1: won't harm a hair on your head. But my friend

1120
00:58:26,760 --> 00:58:29,160
Speaker 1: here will break this city and a few thousand of

1121
00:58:29,200 --> 00:58:31,480
Speaker 1: the people in it. You'll be hail and healthy, so

1122
00:58:31,560 --> 00:58:33,680
Speaker 1: you can pick up the pieces, and you'll know that

1123
00:58:33,760 --> 00:58:36,080
Speaker 1: every ounce of that suffering could have been prevented if

1124
00:58:36,080 --> 00:58:40,640
Speaker 1: you just helped us out. It's true, sir. Sasha spoke up.

1125
00:58:40,960 --> 00:58:44,000
Speaker 1: Doctor Brandt stiffened, she sat up from her hidden position

1126
00:58:44,000 --> 00:58:46,560
Speaker 1: in the back. The doctor was a smart man. He

1127
00:58:46,640 --> 00:58:49,080
Speaker 1: put together that she was not being held as a prisoner.

1128
00:58:49,480 --> 00:58:54,000
Speaker 1: His eyes narrowed in contempt Sasha. Doctor Brand's voice was cold.

1129
00:58:54,480 --> 00:58:57,919
Speaker 1: I'm sorry to see you in such poor company, sir,

1130
00:58:57,960 --> 00:59:01,080
Speaker 1: I'm really sorry. But but nothing, he snapped, and now

1131
00:59:01,120 --> 00:59:03,280
Speaker 1: the anger showed on his face. Have you been a

1132
00:59:03,280 --> 00:59:07,600
Speaker 1: traitor this whole time? Or did your will simply fail Sasha?

1133
00:59:07,760 --> 00:59:09,920
Speaker 1: Manny spoke up, We really don't have time for this,

1134
00:59:10,600 --> 00:59:13,720
Speaker 1: Roland disagreed. His hind brain estimated Sasha and the doctor

1135
00:59:13,720 --> 00:59:16,400
Speaker 1: could afford us solid eight minutes of emotional closure before

1136
00:59:16,400 --> 00:59:19,040
Speaker 1: they got too close to the jail. Is eight minutes

1137
00:59:19,080 --> 00:59:21,960
Speaker 1: a lot of time for you people. Everyone stared at him,

1138
00:59:22,040 --> 00:59:26,080
Speaker 1: their individual disagreements forgotten for a moment. Roland realized late

1139
00:59:26,200 --> 00:59:29,480
Speaker 1: that he had spoken out loud. Sorry, he said, I

1140
00:59:29,520 --> 00:59:33,360
Speaker 1: was just supposed to be in my head. They still stared. Well,

1141
00:59:33,520 --> 00:59:36,040
Speaker 1: now you only have like seven minutes and forty seconds,

1142
00:59:36,640 --> 00:59:39,040
Speaker 1: Ignore that, said Manny. He's a maniac. That's why you

1143
00:59:39,080 --> 00:59:42,000
Speaker 1: don't want us to let him loosen your city, Doctor Brandt.

1144
00:59:42,040 --> 00:59:44,280
Speaker 1: Sasha added, I know you're a good man. The Lord

1145
00:59:44,360 --> 00:59:46,600
Speaker 1: put you on this earth to save lives. This is

1146
00:59:46,640 --> 00:59:49,720
Speaker 1: your chance to do that. The doctor needed the bridge

1147
00:59:49,760 --> 00:59:52,480
Speaker 1: of his nose with his hand. Hated an admirable job

1148
00:59:52,520 --> 00:59:54,960
Speaker 1: of not giving too much away with his body language.

1149
00:59:55,240 --> 00:59:57,960
Speaker 1: But Roland could smell the truth. The scent of stress

1150
00:59:58,000 --> 01:00:00,600
Speaker 1: wafting off the doctor faded it as a sign the

1151
01:00:00,600 --> 01:00:03,360
Speaker 1: man had made a decision. There was something about choosing

1152
01:00:03,480 --> 01:00:07,640
Speaker 1: that calmed the human soul. You are correct, of course, Sasha.

1153
01:00:07,800 --> 01:00:09,840
Speaker 1: I never approved of us holding those women in the

1154
01:00:09,880 --> 01:00:13,440
Speaker 1: first place. It was foolish to antagonize things like him.

1155
01:00:13,480 --> 01:00:16,480
Speaker 1: He nodded towards Rowland. If I can avert a massacre,

1156
01:00:16,560 --> 01:00:19,440
Speaker 1: I will, But I sincerely hope you plan to escape

1157
01:00:19,440 --> 01:00:22,200
Speaker 1: with them, Sasha. I won't hide to protect a traitor.

1158
01:00:23,240 --> 01:00:26,600
Speaker 1: I'll leave, Sasha said. The doctor gave a somber nod.

1159
01:00:27,080 --> 01:00:28,480
Speaker 1: I won't be able to get you out of the

1160
01:00:28,560 --> 01:00:31,040
Speaker 1: jail with those prisoners, you know, he said to Rowland.

1161
01:00:31,200 --> 01:00:33,200
Speaker 1: I can get you inside, and I can probably get

1162
01:00:33,200 --> 01:00:35,680
Speaker 1: them to send the prisoners into an examination room, but

1163
01:00:35,720 --> 01:00:38,680
Speaker 1: the guards won't let them leave the building. I'll take

1164
01:00:38,680 --> 01:00:41,280
Speaker 1: care of that part, Rowland promised. I'm real good at

1165
01:00:41,360 --> 01:00:45,040
Speaker 1: making doors. Rowland was aware of the old saying no

1166
01:00:45,240 --> 01:00:48,320
Speaker 1: plan survives contact with the enemy. For some reason, his

1167
01:00:48,400 --> 01:00:51,000
Speaker 1: hind brain remembered the original version of the quote from

1168
01:00:51,000 --> 01:00:54,640
Speaker 1: an old Prussian general named Moltka. No plan of operations

1169
01:00:54,680 --> 01:00:57,439
Speaker 1: extends with any certainty beyond first contact with the main

1170
01:00:57,520 --> 01:01:01,120
Speaker 1: hostile force. People who observed Roland and battle tended to

1171
01:01:01,160 --> 01:01:02,920
Speaker 1: think he just sort of winged it and ballsed his

1172
01:01:02,960 --> 01:01:06,240
Speaker 1: way through on violent potential alone. But Roland was at

1173
01:01:06,240 --> 01:01:09,200
Speaker 1: his core a planner. Having a plan was essential to

1174
01:01:09,240 --> 01:01:11,960
Speaker 1: take maximum advantage of the way his hind brain worked.

1175
01:01:12,240 --> 01:01:14,280
Speaker 1: A plan was nothing more than a clear set of

1176
01:01:14,320 --> 01:01:17,560
Speaker 1: tactics meant to accomplish a concrete goal. In this case,

1177
01:01:17,640 --> 01:01:20,040
Speaker 1: the goal was free the prisoners and take his new

1178
01:01:20,080 --> 01:01:23,080
Speaker 1: friends to safety. The plan he constructed to achieve that

1179
01:01:23,120 --> 01:01:25,800
Speaker 1: goal was based mainly on Sasha's recollections and his own

1180
01:01:25,920 --> 01:01:28,520
Speaker 1: espionage on the jail. He knew it would change once

1181
01:01:28,520 --> 01:01:30,320
Speaker 1: the shooting started, but the fact that he had a

1182
01:01:30,400 --> 01:01:32,880
Speaker 1: rubric would give his hindbrain something to focus on while

1183
01:01:32,920 --> 01:01:35,600
Speaker 1: it zeroed in on the best tactics for the evolving situation.

1184
01:01:36,400 --> 01:01:38,720
Speaker 1: At any rate, the plan Manny and Sasha had cooked

1185
01:01:38,760 --> 01:01:42,040
Speaker 1: up actually did survive first contact with the enemy. Roland

1186
01:01:42,040 --> 01:01:44,439
Speaker 1: and Manny had posed as guards and followed Doctor Brandt

1187
01:01:44,480 --> 01:01:47,280
Speaker 1: and Sasha right through the door. The martyrs inside were

1188
01:01:47,280 --> 01:01:49,440
Speaker 1: all used to seeing the doctor and his assistant, and

1189
01:01:49,440 --> 01:01:51,880
Speaker 1: they didn't pay a different set of armed guards any mind.

1190
01:01:52,240 --> 01:01:54,720
Speaker 1: When Doctor Brandt requested they send all the prisoners into

1191
01:01:54,720 --> 01:01:57,520
Speaker 1: the examination room, the officer in charge didn't even blink

1192
01:01:57,560 --> 01:02:00,440
Speaker 1: at the request. The only thing that had seemed off

1193
01:02:00,480 --> 01:02:02,919
Speaker 1: to Roland was an odd scent of anxiety in the air.

1194
01:02:03,120 --> 01:02:05,120
Speaker 1: It wafted off the guards and hung in a thick

1195
01:02:05,120 --> 01:02:08,320
Speaker 1: cloud above the entrance room. The Odor reminded Rowland of

1196
01:02:08,360 --> 01:02:11,120
Speaker 1: countless hours spent sitting with nervous men in the cramped

1197
01:02:11,120 --> 01:02:13,840
Speaker 1: belly of an a PC or a drop aircraft. He

1198
01:02:13,880 --> 01:02:16,360
Speaker 1: assumed this had something to do with a giant explosion

1199
01:02:16,400 --> 01:02:19,200
Speaker 1: he'd caused earlier, or his escape from the training facility.

1200
01:02:19,560 --> 01:02:21,600
Speaker 1: Of course, these guys are un high alert, he thought.

1201
01:02:21,880 --> 01:02:24,720
Speaker 1: Some nut fuck monster man blew up a factory this morning.

1202
01:02:25,760 --> 01:02:28,120
Speaker 1: Doctor Brandt led them into a large waiting room and

1203
01:02:28,160 --> 01:02:30,919
Speaker 1: closed the door. He let out a long, nervous sigh

1204
01:02:31,000 --> 01:02:34,840
Speaker 1: and slumped back against the wall. Okay, you'll have your

1205
01:02:34,840 --> 01:02:37,520
Speaker 1: prisoners soon enough, and no one else will need to die. Right,

1206
01:02:38,040 --> 01:02:41,760
Speaker 1: he looked straight at Rowland. Right, Roland said, and then added,

1207
01:02:42,280 --> 01:02:45,240
Speaker 1: until you Fox invaded Dallas. I've gotten years without killing anyone.

1208
01:02:45,360 --> 01:02:48,360
Speaker 1: I'm actually pretty good at it. The doctor did not

1209
01:02:48,440 --> 01:02:51,480
Speaker 1: seem comforted by this fact. Roland opened his mouth again,

1210
01:02:51,600 --> 01:02:55,080
Speaker 1: but Manny put a hand on his shoulder. No, he said,

1211
01:02:55,320 --> 01:02:58,280
Speaker 1: and Roland nodded. I could have avoided so many violent

1212
01:02:58,320 --> 01:03:01,800
Speaker 1: misunderstandings with his kid's help. Roland molled this over and

1213
01:03:01,840 --> 01:03:04,400
Speaker 1: wondered if Manny might be interested in an adjoining mountain

1214
01:03:04,400 --> 01:03:08,360
Speaker 1: top shack. Just then the door opened, a guard entered.

1215
01:03:08,520 --> 01:03:10,640
Speaker 1: He was followed by the three prisoners and then two

1216
01:03:10,640 --> 01:03:14,520
Speaker 1: more guards. Rolling. Fox negotiators were all handcuffed to each other.

1217
01:03:15,040 --> 01:03:17,640
Speaker 1: Roland had been shown pictures of all three captives before

1218
01:03:17,640 --> 01:03:19,960
Speaker 1: they departed the city. Of wheels, so it wasn't hard

1219
01:03:20,000 --> 01:03:23,720
Speaker 1: to recognize Marigold, Tulli, and Rick, but they all looked different.

1220
01:03:24,000 --> 01:03:27,320
Speaker 1: Marigold's bright purple hair was limp and greasy. The sockets

1221
01:03:27,360 --> 01:03:29,200
Speaker 1: on her augmented arm had been filled in with some

1222
01:03:29,280 --> 01:03:33,000
Speaker 1: sort of resinous substance. Toullie Bald in her pictures, now

1223
01:03:33,040 --> 01:03:35,440
Speaker 1: had a head full of peach fuzz. Her necklaces and

1224
01:03:35,480 --> 01:03:37,959
Speaker 1: amulets and rings were all gone. Of course, she looked

1225
01:03:38,000 --> 01:03:40,760
Speaker 1: pale and deflated. Roland could see the ghost of an

1226
01:03:40,760 --> 01:03:44,080
Speaker 1: old black eye, likely earned during the initial capture. She

1227
01:03:44,200 --> 01:03:47,760
Speaker 1: walked with a limp, but otherwise looked healthy enough. And

1228
01:03:47,840 --> 01:03:50,800
Speaker 1: then there was Rick. His wounds were fresh and extensive.

1229
01:03:51,040 --> 01:03:52,920
Speaker 1: He was covered in bruises, and it looked like his

1230
01:03:52,960 --> 01:03:55,520
Speaker 1: guards had cut into him, writing over several of his

1231
01:03:55,560 --> 01:03:59,040
Speaker 1: scarified tattoos with a combat knife. His left eye was

1232
01:03:59,080 --> 01:04:01,960
Speaker 1: broken and looked dead. Roland could tell the man's orbital

1233
01:04:02,000 --> 01:04:04,800
Speaker 1: bone had been shattered, and with the slow juttering way

1234
01:04:04,840 --> 01:04:06,920
Speaker 1: his good eye looked around the room, it was likely

1235
01:04:06,960 --> 01:04:10,440
Speaker 1: he'd suffered at least one concussion. Doctor Brandt sighed and

1236
01:04:10,440 --> 01:04:13,240
Speaker 1: went right to the injured young man. Have the others

1237
01:04:13,280 --> 01:04:16,600
Speaker 1: sit down, he told the guards. He started to examine Rick.

1238
01:04:16,880 --> 01:04:20,000
Speaker 1: His jaw clenched, his eyes narrowed. Roland felt the doctor's

1239
01:04:20,000 --> 01:04:22,600
Speaker 1: heart rate accelerate and anger. You've been at him again,

1240
01:04:22,760 --> 01:04:25,800
Speaker 1: haven't you, Doctor Brandt sounded angry. I told you all

1241
01:04:25,800 --> 01:04:28,360
Speaker 1: this had to stop. He's clearly concussed. You could have

1242
01:04:28,440 --> 01:04:31,280
Speaker 1: killed him. The lead guard shrugged and rolled his eyes.

1243
01:04:31,600 --> 01:04:33,920
Speaker 1: One of the other guards snickered. Roland could tell by

1244
01:04:33,960 --> 01:04:35,800
Speaker 1: the look of fury on the doctor's face that he

1245
01:04:35,880 --> 01:04:38,840
Speaker 1: was not used to being treated this way. Solja, I

1246
01:04:38,880 --> 01:04:41,680
Speaker 1: am the senior medical doctor of this entire kingdom. I

1247
01:04:41,720 --> 01:04:44,600
Speaker 1: will bring your superior into this and I will, Roland heard,

1248
01:04:44,760 --> 01:04:47,840
Speaker 1: and then smelled six new men into the jail. His

1249
01:04:47,960 --> 01:04:51,760
Speaker 1: mind rocketed downstairs, away from the petty argument and started

1250
01:04:51,760 --> 01:04:54,840
Speaker 1: to analyze the new arrivals. They were soldiers, he could

1251
01:04:54,880 --> 01:04:57,040
Speaker 1: tell by the sound of their footfalls and the strong

1252
01:04:57,120 --> 01:04:59,800
Speaker 1: smell of gun oil and powder that wafted off of them.

1253
01:05:00,160 --> 01:05:02,919
Speaker 1: One of them smelled familiar. He'd been present when Manny

1254
01:05:03,000 --> 01:05:06,120
Speaker 1: had been abducted to the factory. Roland guessed this was

1255
01:05:06,160 --> 01:05:08,720
Speaker 1: the guy Sasha had told him about during their impromptu

1256
01:05:08,800 --> 01:05:12,960
Speaker 1: rescue mission. Huh. Roland said, out loud. Manny was the

1257
01:05:12,960 --> 01:05:16,160
Speaker 1: only one who seemed to notice what Manny asked, in

1258
01:05:16,160 --> 01:05:18,080
Speaker 1: a voice low enough that the guards wouldn't hear it

1259
01:05:18,120 --> 01:05:20,920
Speaker 1: over the sound of doctor Brandt dressing them down. At

1260
01:05:21,000 --> 01:05:23,440
Speaker 1: Guy Alexander, he just entered the building with a squad

1261
01:05:23,440 --> 01:05:27,160
Speaker 1: of armed men. What does that mean? Uh uh, Roland shrugged.

1262
01:05:27,280 --> 01:05:30,280
Speaker 1: Probably an ambush. Roland was a bit embarrassed that it

1263
01:05:30,320 --> 01:05:32,919
Speaker 1: had taken him this long to piece it together. That's

1264
01:05:32,920 --> 01:05:35,440
Speaker 1: why the guards had been so accommodating of doctor Brand's

1265
01:05:35,520 --> 01:05:39,360
Speaker 1: unusual request. It's why they'd smelled so nervous. Somehow the

1266
01:05:39,400 --> 01:05:41,960
Speaker 1: rescue attempt had been spotted before it had gone down.

1267
01:05:42,280 --> 01:05:44,640
Speaker 1: The soldiers of the Heavenly Kingdom must have assumed the

1268
01:05:44,720 --> 01:05:48,800
Speaker 1: doctor was a traitor too. Roland stood up. He knew

1269
01:05:48,800 --> 01:05:50,840
Speaker 1: that violence would need to happen here. There were too

1270
01:05:50,840 --> 01:05:53,720
Speaker 1: many decent people's lives at stake for anything else. The

1271
01:05:53,760 --> 01:05:56,560
Speaker 1: instant his forebrain made that decision. His hind brain started

1272
01:05:56,600 --> 01:05:59,800
Speaker 1: pouring adrenaline and battle drugs into his synapses. He felt

1273
01:05:59,840 --> 01:06:02,440
Speaker 1: the electric crackle of chemical glee start deep in the

1274
01:06:02,440 --> 01:06:05,200
Speaker 1: back of his neck. It spread out to his shoulders,

1275
01:06:05,360 --> 01:06:08,040
Speaker 1: down his arms to the tip of his fingers. Roland

1276
01:06:08,080 --> 01:06:11,520
Speaker 1: fought back against the building euphoria. While he analyzed the situation,

1277
01:06:12,080 --> 01:06:14,600
Speaker 1: the world slowed down around him. He had plenty of

1278
01:06:14,640 --> 01:06:16,640
Speaker 1: time to watch as the guards started to reach for

1279
01:06:16,680 --> 01:06:19,440
Speaker 1: their side arms. The word ambush had keyed them in,

1280
01:06:19,760 --> 01:06:22,200
Speaker 1: but it didn't matter. They still moved too slow to

1281
01:06:22,240 --> 01:06:25,800
Speaker 1: effect anything. His hind brain calculated that Manny and Sasha

1282
01:06:25,840 --> 01:06:28,400
Speaker 1: were relatively safe. No one had a gun on them

1283
01:06:28,480 --> 01:06:31,960
Speaker 1: just now. The prisoners were his priority. Then they were

1284
01:06:32,000 --> 01:06:35,160
Speaker 1: exposed both to the door that enemy reinforcements which soon

1285
01:06:35,240 --> 01:06:37,720
Speaker 1: rush through, and to the guards already in the room.

1286
01:06:38,320 --> 01:06:41,560
Speaker 1: Doctor Brandt was a tertiary responsibility. He seemed like a

1287
01:06:41,560 --> 01:06:44,600
Speaker 1: decent enough guy in spite of it all. Alexander and

1288
01:06:44,600 --> 01:06:46,640
Speaker 1: his men are two point oh four seconds from the door,

1289
01:06:47,080 --> 01:06:50,440
Speaker 1: maybe faster if they dropped into a dead sprint. Roland

1290
01:06:50,520 --> 01:06:53,280
Speaker 1: stepped forward into the lead guard. He grabbed the man

1291
01:06:53,360 --> 01:06:55,720
Speaker 1: by the hair, lifted him into the air, and slammed

1292
01:06:55,760 --> 01:06:59,080
Speaker 1: his skull hard into the second guard's face. Bone cracked

1293
01:06:59,280 --> 01:07:03,760
Speaker 1: sixteen point three and seven percent chances of fatal hemorrhage, respectively.

1294
01:07:04,240 --> 01:07:06,600
Speaker 1: Roland dropped the first man and plunged his fingers into

1295
01:07:06,640 --> 01:07:10,240
Speaker 1: the third guard's eyes. He gouged deep, stopped just short

1296
01:07:10,280 --> 01:07:12,400
Speaker 1: of the man's brain, and then pulled his hand free.

1297
01:07:12,800 --> 01:07:15,800
Speaker 1: The man staggered back, opened his mouth, and started to scream.

1298
01:07:16,000 --> 01:07:18,600
Speaker 1: A surge of battle drugs hit roland synapses at just

1299
01:07:18,720 --> 01:07:21,280
Speaker 1: that moment, and in a fit of gleeful peaque, he

1300
01:07:21,360 --> 01:07:24,120
Speaker 1: grabbed the man by the jaw and pulled. His intent

1301
01:07:24,200 --> 01:07:26,200
Speaker 1: had been to yank the man's head into his knee,

1302
01:07:26,400 --> 01:07:28,240
Speaker 1: but he pulled a little too hard and ripped the

1303
01:07:28,240 --> 01:07:32,640
Speaker 1: whole jaw free. The man fell back, gurgled, bled, huh

1304
01:07:32,640 --> 01:07:35,680
Speaker 1: my vad, Roland said to no one in particular. He

1305
01:07:35,720 --> 01:07:38,200
Speaker 1: shoved the jaw into his front pocket, figuring it might

1306
01:07:38,240 --> 01:07:40,920
Speaker 1: make a useful weapon when the reinforcement showed up. In

1307
01:07:40,960 --> 01:07:43,440
Speaker 1: the meantime, he set to work ripping the prisoner's manacle

1308
01:07:43,520 --> 01:07:46,680
Speaker 1: chains apart. It'd have taken too long to remove the manacles,

1309
01:07:46,800 --> 01:07:48,440
Speaker 1: but at least with the chains free, they'd all be

1310
01:07:48,480 --> 01:07:51,200
Speaker 1: able to move with what are you? Oh my god, Roland?

1311
01:07:51,200 --> 01:07:56,320
Speaker 1: What Doctor Brandt, Manny and Sasha finally reacted. Roland had

1312
01:07:56,360 --> 01:07:58,640
Speaker 1: to remind himself that their brains wouldn't have been able

1313
01:07:58,680 --> 01:08:01,440
Speaker 1: to properly process what he'd done while it was happening.

1314
01:08:01,880 --> 01:08:05,960
Speaker 1: The whole altercation had lasted barely a quarter second. To Manny, Sasha,

1315
01:08:06,000 --> 01:08:09,680
Speaker 1: and doctor Brandt. The violence had been disorienting and almost unintelligible.

1316
01:08:10,160 --> 01:08:13,280
Speaker 1: The three negotiators from Rolling Fuck were not stock Sapien.

1317
01:08:13,680 --> 01:08:16,360
Speaker 1: They'd reacted faster and gone to ground almost as soon

1318
01:08:16,400 --> 01:08:19,240
Speaker 1: as he'd rushed the first man. At least the women had.

1319
01:08:19,600 --> 01:08:21,799
Speaker 1: The young man was too dazed and battered to react

1320
01:08:21,880 --> 01:08:23,840
Speaker 1: much at all, so his friends pulled him down and

1321
01:08:23,880 --> 01:08:27,080
Speaker 1: shielded him with their bodies. Of the other three, Manny

1322
01:08:27,160 --> 01:08:29,360
Speaker 1: was the first to react. He grabbed Sasha by the

1323
01:08:29,360 --> 01:08:32,320
Speaker 1: shoulder and shoved her down below the window line. Roland

1324
01:08:32,360 --> 01:08:34,680
Speaker 1: was proud. He would have said something about that, but

1325
01:08:34,760 --> 01:08:37,880
Speaker 1: everything went disastrously wrong a fraction of a second later.

1326
01:08:38,880 --> 01:08:41,599
Speaker 1: Roland had known Alexander and his men were rushing the door.

1327
01:08:42,040 --> 01:08:44,920
Speaker 1: He'd estimated a solid one point four seconds before they

1328
01:08:44,960 --> 01:08:48,280
Speaker 1: breached the entryway. That's why he'd occupied himself by checking

1329
01:08:48,280 --> 01:08:51,040
Speaker 1: on everyone. He'd trusted his senses and trusted that the

1330
01:08:51,080 --> 01:08:54,000
Speaker 1: Heavenly Kingdom didn't have any gear he hadn't already seen.

1331
01:08:54,680 --> 01:08:57,559
Speaker 1: That proved to be a mistake, because unbeknownst to Roland,

1332
01:08:57,560 --> 01:08:59,880
Speaker 1: two men in powered armor hung off the outside wall

1333
01:08:59,880 --> 01:09:03,400
Speaker 1: of the building, directly underneath the window. Their suits were

1334
01:09:03,439 --> 01:09:07,080
Speaker 1: bleeding edge stealth technology utterly absent from Roland's pieda bites

1335
01:09:07,120 --> 01:09:10,960
Speaker 1: of memory. His passive sensors had missed them entirely. Roland

1336
01:09:10,960 --> 01:09:13,919
Speaker 1: first realized they were there and that he'd aired terribly

1337
01:09:14,120 --> 01:09:19,439
Speaker 1: when they opened fire. Close to a hundred thirty caliber

1338
01:09:19,479 --> 01:09:21,880
Speaker 1: slugs tore through the wall of the jail at roughly

1339
01:09:21,960 --> 01:09:24,760
Speaker 1: forty two hundred feet per second. They were fired at

1340
01:09:24,800 --> 01:09:27,920
Speaker 1: such close range and with such total surprise that Roland

1341
01:09:27,960 --> 01:09:31,160
Speaker 1: was unable to dodge or prep his subdermal armor for impact.

1342
01:09:31,680 --> 01:09:34,639
Speaker 1: Nineteen rounds hit him fifteen in his center of mass,

1343
01:09:34,720 --> 01:09:37,280
Speaker 1: one in his left thigh, and three in his right shoulder.

1344
01:09:37,720 --> 01:09:40,040
Speaker 1: Two hit Manny, ripping a hole through his left hand

1345
01:09:40,080 --> 01:09:42,960
Speaker 1: and another through his kidney. Doctor Brandt, who had only

1346
01:09:43,000 --> 01:09:45,479
Speaker 1: half turned to face Rowland at this point, was torn

1347
01:09:45,520 --> 01:09:49,120
Speaker 1: apart in a feu salade of steel. Rowland also registered

1348
01:09:49,200 --> 01:09:52,240
Speaker 1: hits on their not yet rescued captives, one in Tullie's

1349
01:09:52,320 --> 01:09:55,080
Speaker 1: left butt cheek, one that severed Rick's index finger, and

1350
01:09:55,120 --> 01:09:58,720
Speaker 1: another in the young man's shoulder. Roland staggered back from

1351
01:09:58,720 --> 01:10:01,799
Speaker 1: the impact of the rounds as Alexander's point man burst

1352
01:10:01,840 --> 01:10:05,360
Speaker 1: through the door. The coordination between the two teams was impressive,

1353
01:10:05,479 --> 01:10:07,599
Speaker 1: as was the fact that the suited man hadn't hit

1354
01:10:07,640 --> 01:10:10,040
Speaker 1: their allies on the other side of the door. On

1355
01:10:10,120 --> 01:10:12,439
Speaker 1: a normal day, Roland would have ripped the shotgun out

1356
01:10:12,479 --> 01:10:14,680
Speaker 1: of the point man's hands and castrated him with it.

1357
01:10:14,960 --> 01:10:17,599
Speaker 1: But this was not a normal day, and Roland's brain

1358
01:10:17,720 --> 01:10:20,479
Speaker 1: was occupied with a damage to his body. The point

1359
01:10:20,479 --> 01:10:23,559
Speaker 1: man fired twice and sent one ounce tungsten slugs through

1360
01:10:23,600 --> 01:10:27,400
Speaker 1: both of Roland's knees. He dropped, rolled, moaned, and then

1361
01:10:27,439 --> 01:10:29,639
Speaker 1: the rest of the team was in the room. They

1362
01:10:29,680 --> 01:10:32,479
Speaker 1: moved well, not like vets, but like men who'd trained

1363
01:10:32,479 --> 01:10:35,200
Speaker 1: a lot for entries like this. They all wore heavy

1364
01:10:35,240 --> 01:10:38,439
Speaker 1: body armor. It wasn't powered, but it provided solid protection

1365
01:10:38,479 --> 01:10:43,000
Speaker 1: against small arms fire the mostly packed auto shotguns. Smart choice,

1366
01:10:43,120 --> 01:10:46,400
Speaker 1: Roland thought, when fighting post humans, go for tissue damage.

1367
01:10:47,320 --> 01:10:49,560
Speaker 1: He was hurt, nothing fatal yet, but the loss of

1368
01:10:49,600 --> 01:10:52,680
Speaker 1: momentum and control had cost him dearly. Now six men

1369
01:10:52,760 --> 01:10:54,960
Speaker 1: had a beat on him with weaponry powerful enough to

1370
01:10:55,000 --> 01:10:57,720
Speaker 1: do some real damage. Roland listened as one of the

1371
01:10:57,720 --> 01:11:00,120
Speaker 1: stealth suit smashed the remainder of the window in and

1372
01:11:00,160 --> 01:11:03,679
Speaker 1: crawled inside the room. This armor was much more subtle

1373
01:11:03,680 --> 01:11:06,920
Speaker 1: than the standard Airy's pattern power armor. Aside from plaiting

1374
01:11:06,920 --> 01:11:08,640
Speaker 1: at the chest and shins, it didn't look like it

1375
01:11:08,680 --> 01:11:11,479
Speaker 1: added a substantial amount of protection. But the suit was

1376
01:11:11,520 --> 01:11:14,679
Speaker 1: covered in high definition display panels. The man was hard

1377
01:11:14,720 --> 01:11:17,160
Speaker 1: for Roland to see. He would have been nigh invisible

1378
01:11:17,200 --> 01:11:20,719
Speaker 1: to a normal human ship. Roland spat blood and looked

1379
01:11:20,800 --> 01:11:23,679
Speaker 1: up just as a very satisfied looking young man stepped

1380
01:11:23,680 --> 01:11:26,679
Speaker 1: into the room. He was tall, handsome, and well built.

1381
01:11:26,920 --> 01:11:29,000
Speaker 1: He wore the same armor as his men, but lacked

1382
01:11:29,000 --> 01:11:31,400
Speaker 1: a helmet. Instead, he had a red beret with a

1383
01:11:31,479 --> 01:11:34,599
Speaker 1: lacquered gold cross pin to the front. Roland took one

1384
01:11:34,600 --> 01:11:37,320
Speaker 1: look at the boy's prominent jawline and well tanned skin.

1385
01:11:37,760 --> 01:11:39,920
Speaker 1: He grudgingly agreed that it would have been a crime

1386
01:11:39,960 --> 01:11:43,479
Speaker 1: to cover up that face. How new were those fucking suits,

1387
01:11:43,760 --> 01:11:47,200
Speaker 1: he asked the fancy man. The Republic had some very

1388
01:11:47,320 --> 01:11:50,920
Speaker 1: choice gear in its armory. The youth replied, My superiors

1389
01:11:50,960 --> 01:11:53,360
Speaker 1: will be happy to hear how well it worked against you.

1390
01:11:54,040 --> 01:11:57,120
Speaker 1: He sauntered into the room like a conquering king, waving

1391
01:11:57,160 --> 01:12:01,160
Speaker 1: his pistol lazily at the captives. Hello, Sasha, he said,

1392
01:12:01,200 --> 01:12:05,200
Speaker 1: with a smile and a cheery wave of his free hand. Alexander,

1393
01:12:05,439 --> 01:12:08,280
Speaker 1: she replied, in a tone as cold as ice. The

1394
01:12:08,320 --> 01:12:11,400
Speaker 1: young man Alexander stopped in front of Rowland, peered down

1395
01:12:11,400 --> 01:12:13,720
Speaker 1: and grinned the ship, eatingst grin in the history of

1396
01:12:13,760 --> 01:12:17,400
Speaker 1: eating shit, you know, he said, it was rather easy

1397
01:12:17,479 --> 01:12:20,320
Speaker 1: drawing you into this trap. Once you played your hand

1398
01:12:20,320 --> 01:12:22,599
Speaker 1: at the training camp. We knew you'd come here sooner,

1399
01:12:22,640 --> 01:12:26,040
Speaker 1: Old Lada. I was rather surprised to see you involved, Sasha.

1400
01:12:26,320 --> 01:12:28,960
Speaker 1: He looked up at her, a wonda Was this your

1401
01:12:28,960 --> 01:12:32,400
Speaker 1: plan all along? Or are you merely an opportunist clutching

1402
01:12:32,400 --> 01:12:36,040
Speaker 1: to these men because my proposition injured your ego? He

1403
01:12:36,120 --> 01:12:39,600
Speaker 1: laughed prickishly. Roland wanted to hit him, but the situation

1404
01:12:39,640 --> 01:12:43,240
Speaker 1: merited further analysis before action. Much of the damage done

1405
01:12:43,280 --> 01:12:45,240
Speaker 1: to him in the ambush had already healed, and none

1406
01:12:45,240 --> 01:12:47,960
Speaker 1: of it was substantial enough to impede his deadliness, but

1407
01:12:48,080 --> 01:12:51,679
Speaker 1: his position was rather tenuous. The second armored soldier crouched

1408
01:12:51,720 --> 01:12:54,599
Speaker 1: at the window adhered to the outside wall. The first

1409
01:12:54,600 --> 01:12:57,040
Speaker 1: stealth suited soldier had one gun trained on Manny and

1410
01:12:57,080 --> 01:13:00,479
Speaker 1: another aimed at Rowland. Alexander's men all had him dead

1411
01:13:00,479 --> 01:13:04,120
Speaker 1: to rights, shotguns leveled in fingers on triggers. He could

1412
01:13:04,120 --> 01:13:06,400
Speaker 1: perhaps move fast enough to take out one or two

1413
01:13:06,400 --> 01:13:08,599
Speaker 1: of them, but the others would do a significant amount

1414
01:13:08,600 --> 01:13:10,840
Speaker 1: of damage in the meantime, and more to the point,

1415
01:13:11,120 --> 01:13:14,040
Speaker 1: Roland could do nothing to ensure Sasha and Manny's safety.

1416
01:13:14,360 --> 01:13:18,360
Speaker 1: He considered their deaths unacceptable. I really am a bit disappointed,

1417
01:13:18,400 --> 01:13:21,480
Speaker 1: and how easy this owl was? The young fuck continued.

1418
01:13:21,840 --> 01:13:24,280
Speaker 1: I thought we'd be infomo of a fight here. I

1419
01:13:24,360 --> 01:13:27,559
Speaker 1: guess the stories about your kind were exaggerated, after all,

1420
01:13:27,960 --> 01:13:32,000
Speaker 1: I suspected so no amount of scientific tinkering can replace

1421
01:13:32,040 --> 01:13:36,639
Speaker 1: the blessings of God Behind a righteous man, Roland sensed movement,

1422
01:13:36,960 --> 01:13:39,920
Speaker 1: not from Manny. He was frozen still next to Sasha

1423
01:13:40,040 --> 01:13:42,120
Speaker 1: under the gun of one of the power armored troopers.

1424
01:13:42,520 --> 01:13:45,120
Speaker 1: It didn't come from any of Alexander's men either. It

1425
01:13:45,240 --> 01:13:48,080
Speaker 1: was Marigold. The woman had gritted her teeth and inched

1426
01:13:48,080 --> 01:13:50,200
Speaker 1: her hand towards the body of the guard. Roland to

1427
01:13:50,280 --> 01:13:53,280
Speaker 1: dee jawed. He watched she wrapped her hand around the

1428
01:13:53,320 --> 01:13:56,519
Speaker 1: grip of his side arm Alexander stepped around him and

1429
01:13:56,560 --> 01:13:59,679
Speaker 1: headed towards Sasha. The other soldiers still had their weapons

1430
01:13:59,680 --> 01:14:02,840
Speaker 1: trained on Rowland. They didn't seem to have noticed Marigold.

1431
01:14:03,439 --> 01:14:06,519
Speaker 1: I warn't you, didn't I, Sasha, Alexander asked, as a

1432
01:14:06,600 --> 01:14:09,720
Speaker 1: smile played across his lips. I'll warn't you what came

1433
01:14:09,760 --> 01:14:13,040
Speaker 1: of defying God's will? And then you allied yourself with

1434
01:14:13,080 --> 01:14:15,680
Speaker 1: a baste whose very existence is a sin against a

1435
01:14:15,800 --> 01:14:19,800
Speaker 1: heavenly father. If Christ had intended. Roland never got to

1436
01:14:19,840 --> 01:14:22,559
Speaker 1: hear the rest of that sentence, because Alexander never got

1437
01:14:22,560 --> 01:14:25,360
Speaker 1: to say it. He was interrupted by Marigold, pulling the

1438
01:14:25,400 --> 01:14:27,759
Speaker 1: pistol free of its holster and swinging it up towards

1439
01:14:27,800 --> 01:14:30,799
Speaker 1: the groin of the squad's point man. She fired twice,

1440
01:14:30,960 --> 01:14:34,120
Speaker 1: switched targets, and pumped two more rounds into the unarmored

1441
01:14:34,160 --> 01:14:36,880
Speaker 1: belly of a second man. Roland was up and off

1442
01:14:36,920 --> 01:14:39,559
Speaker 1: the ground between the second and third shot. He swung

1443
01:14:39,560 --> 01:14:41,639
Speaker 1: his fist hard into the face plate of the nearest

1444
01:14:41,640 --> 01:14:45,919
Speaker 1: soldier's helmet. The plexiglass shattered, and Roland's knuckles pushed shards

1445
01:14:45,920 --> 01:14:48,920
Speaker 1: into the man's cheeks and eyes. The martyr screamed and

1446
01:14:48,960 --> 01:14:51,439
Speaker 1: fired a shot that went wide because Roland dove to

1447
01:14:51,520 --> 01:14:53,800
Speaker 1: the left as he retracted his fist and pivoted to

1448
01:14:53,880 --> 01:14:56,360
Speaker 1: rush the power armored man holding a gun on Manny

1449
01:14:56,400 --> 01:15:00,519
Speaker 1: and Sasha. There were no good options here. Marigold intervention

1450
01:15:00,560 --> 01:15:02,599
Speaker 1: had given them all a chance, but Roland had been

1451
01:15:02,640 --> 01:15:04,960
Speaker 1: forced to make a choice between going after the armored

1452
01:15:04,960 --> 01:15:07,599
Speaker 1: men and saving his friends, or taking out the entry

1453
01:15:07,600 --> 01:15:10,479
Speaker 1: team and saving Marigold and her friends. He heard her

1454
01:15:10,520 --> 01:15:13,320
Speaker 1: fire two more shots and heard them impact, but then

1455
01:15:13,360 --> 01:15:16,160
Speaker 1: his attention was consumed by the two men in powered armor.

1456
01:15:16,800 --> 01:15:19,200
Speaker 1: They had recovered first, and both men opened up on

1457
01:15:19,320 --> 01:15:22,400
Speaker 1: Roland as he charged. There was no dodging at this distance.

1458
01:15:22,560 --> 01:15:25,280
Speaker 1: It was barely possible to mitigate the damage in any way.

1459
01:15:25,720 --> 01:15:29,120
Speaker 1: Roland took thirty high velocity rounds to the face, neck, shoulders,

1460
01:15:29,160 --> 01:15:31,640
Speaker 1: and upper chest. Some of them were stopped by his

1461
01:15:31,680 --> 01:15:36,000
Speaker 1: subderm alarmor, most weren't. He felt holy shit, real pain

1462
01:15:36,120 --> 01:15:38,879
Speaker 1: for the first time in what felt like years. Roland's

1463
01:15:38,920 --> 01:15:42,040
Speaker 1: wired nervous system rewarded this with a flood of chemical bliss.

1464
01:15:42,280 --> 01:15:44,879
Speaker 1: As he charged, he smiled and whooped like a sixteen

1465
01:15:44,960 --> 01:15:47,679
Speaker 1: year old. Railing his first line of blow. He dove

1466
01:15:47,720 --> 01:15:50,439
Speaker 1: into the first man. Hands first, grabbed his enemy by

1467
01:15:50,439 --> 01:15:52,200
Speaker 1: the neck and then bum rushed him into the man

1468
01:15:52,240 --> 01:15:55,000
Speaker 1: hanging outside the window. This knocked the top of the

1469
01:15:55,040 --> 01:15:57,280
Speaker 1: second man's body free from the wall and sent him

1470
01:15:57,280 --> 01:16:00,439
Speaker 1: reeling half back into open air. The man's were still

1471
01:16:00,439 --> 01:16:03,519
Speaker 1: attached to the building, but his body flailed free. Roland

1472
01:16:03,600 --> 01:16:05,800
Speaker 1: kept his grip and focus on the first armored man.

1473
01:16:06,120 --> 01:16:08,799
Speaker 1: The martyr's neck armor had hardened to resist the crushing

1474
01:16:08,800 --> 01:16:11,360
Speaker 1: strength of Roland's grip, so he shook the man's head

1475
01:16:11,400 --> 01:16:13,320
Speaker 1: back and forth and slammed it into the frame of

1476
01:16:13,320 --> 01:16:16,320
Speaker 1: the building as hard as possible. The soldier pumped another

1477
01:16:16,360 --> 01:16:19,840
Speaker 1: dozen rounds point blank into Roland's body. He saw red,

1478
01:16:20,080 --> 01:16:22,879
Speaker 1: He felt red. He was numbly aware of the tremendous

1479
01:16:22,880 --> 01:16:25,000
Speaker 1: amount of damage being done to him, but none of

1480
01:16:25,000 --> 01:16:27,640
Speaker 1: it had yet rendered him unable to throttle this motherfucker,

1481
01:16:27,800 --> 01:16:31,519
Speaker 1: so he continued to squeeze until the armor's neck seals failed, cracked,

1482
01:16:31,640 --> 01:16:33,960
Speaker 1: and Roland's finger nails bit deep into the meat of

1483
01:16:34,000 --> 01:16:37,360
Speaker 1: the man's throat and crushed his windpipe. Roland tossed the

1484
01:16:37,360 --> 01:16:39,960
Speaker 1: body aside and went for the second man, still flailing

1485
01:16:39,960 --> 01:16:43,320
Speaker 1: outside the window. He was interrupted when Alexander fired a

1486
01:16:43,360 --> 01:16:46,560
Speaker 1: slug into his temple, the round impact at his reinforced

1487
01:16:46,560 --> 01:16:49,400
Speaker 1: skull and ricocheted off, but the impact the force of

1488
01:16:49,439 --> 01:16:53,040
Speaker 1: the blow itself made him seize stars it hurt Roland

1489
01:16:53,120 --> 01:16:56,360
Speaker 1: staggered back into the side. Then several things happened in

1490
01:16:56,479 --> 01:17:00,920
Speaker 1: very quick succession. Marigold fired another round her last. It

1491
01:17:01,000 --> 01:17:03,160
Speaker 1: was followed by the sound of the two remaining guards

1492
01:17:03,160 --> 01:17:06,080
Speaker 1: opening up with their shotguns. Roland heard as she was

1493
01:17:06,120 --> 01:17:09,000
Speaker 1: torn apart. Just as his eyes started to focus again,

1494
01:17:09,000 --> 01:17:12,479
Speaker 1: Alexander fired two more shots directly into his head. The

1495
01:17:12,520 --> 01:17:14,720
Speaker 1: man on the wall finally found his grip again, and

1496
01:17:14,800 --> 01:17:18,040
Speaker 1: Roland felt the power armored soldiers steady himself to open fire.

1497
01:17:18,680 --> 01:17:21,120
Speaker 1: Roland shaken, hind brain advised him that going for the

1498
01:17:21,200 --> 01:17:24,639
Speaker 1: armored man was probably his best decision, so he surged forward,

1499
01:17:24,760 --> 01:17:27,720
Speaker 1: less steady than before, and hunched his shoulders in anticipation

1500
01:17:27,760 --> 01:17:30,519
Speaker 1: of taking another slugger for to the brain pan, but

1501
01:17:30,600 --> 01:17:33,519
Speaker 1: that didn't happen. For the second time to day, Roland

1502
01:17:33,520 --> 01:17:36,320
Speaker 1: was surprised by the actions of a normal human. This

1503
01:17:36,360 --> 01:17:38,960
Speaker 1: time it was Sasha. She'd gotten up from where she

1504
01:17:39,000 --> 01:17:41,479
Speaker 1: and Manny had taken shelter from the gunfight and crawled

1505
01:17:41,479 --> 01:17:44,120
Speaker 1: over to the body of the first guard Roland had disabled.

1506
01:17:44,439 --> 01:17:47,000
Speaker 1: He'd been dimly aware of this in the semi conscious way.

1507
01:17:47,000 --> 01:17:50,040
Speaker 1: He was aware of the traffic passing outside, his brain

1508
01:17:50,080 --> 01:17:52,200
Speaker 1: had opted to not focus on it, since the heavily

1509
01:17:52,280 --> 01:17:55,200
Speaker 1: armed men were a more pressing concern. But then Sasha

1510
01:17:55,240 --> 01:17:58,480
Speaker 1: had removed the unconscious guard's helmet and rushed towards Alexander.

1511
01:17:59,160 --> 01:18:01,920
Speaker 1: She swung first for his gun hand. Roland heard her

1512
01:18:01,960 --> 01:18:04,160
Speaker 1: knock the pistol free of his grip. Then she hit

1513
01:18:04,240 --> 01:18:06,920
Speaker 1: him in the face, over and over and over again.

1514
01:18:07,360 --> 01:18:09,639
Speaker 1: Roland felt the urge to thank her, but just then

1515
01:18:09,800 --> 01:18:12,880
Speaker 1: the power armored man became a concern again. The fucker

1516
01:18:12,960 --> 01:18:15,639
Speaker 1: managed to get off three more shots before Roland ripped

1517
01:18:15,640 --> 01:18:17,800
Speaker 1: the weapon free from its forearm mount and used it

1518
01:18:17,840 --> 01:18:20,880
Speaker 1: to cave in the armored face plate. Blood spurted out,

1519
01:18:20,920 --> 01:18:23,519
Speaker 1: and the man fell limp back out the window. His

1520
01:18:23,600 --> 01:18:26,559
Speaker 1: feet continued to adhere to the outside wall while his jerking,

1521
01:18:26,600 --> 01:18:30,320
Speaker 1: bleeding body dangled in the breeze. Roland turned just in

1522
01:18:30,360 --> 01:18:33,240
Speaker 1: time to take another two slugs from another two shotguns,

1523
01:18:33,479 --> 01:18:35,640
Speaker 1: but then the men were empty. They'd pumped most of

1524
01:18:35,640 --> 01:18:39,240
Speaker 1: their rounds into Marigold's body. They fumbled to reload, panicked

1525
01:18:39,240 --> 01:18:41,280
Speaker 1: and clearly unused to carrying out the task in a

1526
01:18:41,320 --> 01:18:44,759
Speaker 1: combat situation. Roland could smell the terror as it wafted

1527
01:18:44,760 --> 01:18:47,559
Speaker 1: off their bodies. Their fear hit his nervous system like

1528
01:18:47,600 --> 01:18:50,559
Speaker 1: an ounce of crystal meth. He loomed towards them, and

1529
01:18:50,640 --> 01:18:52,840
Speaker 1: for a second, the only sounds in the room were

1530
01:18:52,880 --> 01:18:55,760
Speaker 1: his footsteps and the dull thwap of Sasha pounding her

1531
01:18:55,760 --> 01:18:59,679
Speaker 1: helmet into Alexander's now shattered skull. Roland whipped his left

1532
01:18:59,760 --> 01:19:02,639
Speaker 1: arm out A massive blade not unlike a straight razor,

1533
01:19:02,840 --> 01:19:05,080
Speaker 1: tore through the flesh of his inner forearm and locked

1534
01:19:05,080 --> 01:19:08,320
Speaker 1: into place. The men screamed. One dropped his shotgun and

1535
01:19:08,320 --> 01:19:11,320
Speaker 1: tried to run. Roland tore into him first, using the

1536
01:19:11,360 --> 01:19:14,639
Speaker 1: blade to sever the fucker's arms. Battle drugs and pure

1537
01:19:14,720 --> 01:19:18,760
Speaker 1: liquid satisfaction flowed into roland synapses. His dick went hard,

1538
01:19:18,800 --> 01:19:21,479
Speaker 1: and he screamed in wordless joy as he slashed downwards

1539
01:19:21,479 --> 01:19:25,519
Speaker 1: and sliced off the man's face. The poor bastard fell away, burbling,

1540
01:19:25,640 --> 01:19:28,720
Speaker 1: and Roland turned towards the last soldier. He died an

1541
01:19:28,720 --> 01:19:32,479
Speaker 1: equally terrible death, and then it was done, the battle

1542
01:19:32,560 --> 01:19:35,840
Speaker 1: was over. Quiet reigned. The only sounds audible to a

1543
01:19:35,840 --> 01:19:38,280
Speaker 1: normal human would have been the blood spurting from dead

1544
01:19:38,280 --> 01:19:42,000
Speaker 1: and dying bodies, and the sound of sobbing. Touli sobbed

1545
01:19:42,040 --> 01:19:46,160
Speaker 1: for Marigold, Sasha sobbed for Roland guest her lost innocence.

1546
01:19:46,640 --> 01:19:49,400
Speaker 1: And then out in the city beyond came the sound

1547
01:19:49,479 --> 01:19:58,360
Speaker 1: of a hundred sirens. The martyrs were coming for them. Hey,

1548
01:19:58,439 --> 01:20:00,600
Speaker 1: I've written a novel. It's called After the Revolution. You

1549
01:20:00,640 --> 01:20:02,960
Speaker 1: can find it as a podcast under After the Revolution,

1550
01:20:03,000 --> 01:20:04,679
Speaker 1: and you can find it at a t r book

1551
01:20:04,720 --> 01:20:07,640
Speaker 1: dot com as a free e pub if you like it.

1552
01:20:07,760 --> 01:20:10,200
Speaker 1: I am crowdfunding the sequel so that I can keep

1553
01:20:10,240 --> 01:20:13,320
Speaker 1: making my books free. That will be it After the Revolution,

1554
01:20:13,400 --> 01:20:16,160
Speaker 1: The Sequel on go fund me. That's After the Revolution

1555
01:20:16,200 --> 01:20:17,920
Speaker 1: the Sequel on go fund me.