WEBVTT - CZM Book Club: Printed Guns & Sold Schematics by SJ Klapecki 0:00:01.720 --> 0:00:03.200 Cool Zone Media. 0:00:05.440 --> 0:00:10.880 Book Club book Club book Club book Club. It's the 0:00:10.880 --> 0:00:13.960 Cool Zone Media book Club, which is a book club 0:00:14.560 --> 0:00:18.599 where I read you a story. I'm Margaret Kildre. I'm 0:00:18.640 --> 0:00:22.880 the I in the aforementioned I read you a story. 0:00:23.200 --> 0:00:26.600 People say that pronouns are hard, but I is an 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:30.280 example of a pronoun and I bet you've used it. 0:00:30.840 --> 0:00:34.479 I bet you can figure it out. You might have guessed. 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:36.239 The other thing you might have figured out is that 0:00:36.280 --> 0:00:39.080 I don't have a guest today. It's just me. I'm 0:00:39.080 --> 0:00:41.760 gonna read you a story. It's a me reading you 0:00:41.840 --> 0:00:47.120 all bus story. That's today. You all are the guests. 0:00:47.840 --> 0:00:51.640 Every single one of you is welcome the Cool Zone 0:00:51.680 --> 0:00:55.440 Media book Club. Okay, so today we got sci fi 0:00:55.480 --> 0:01:01.960 story for you and it is by SJ. Klupecky. Who's 0:01:02.080 --> 0:01:04.560 s J. Clopecky. I'm glad you asked, because I'm going 0:01:04.600 --> 0:01:07.320 to read their bio. 0:01:07.680 --> 0:01:07.880 S J. 0:01:07.959 --> 0:01:10.280 Clipecky is a writer from the North of Canada who 0:01:10.280 --> 0:01:12.880 focuses on queer themes in the way that power interacts 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:16.600 with people. Starting from anarchist principles, they write science fiction 0:01:16.680 --> 0:01:19.360 and fantasy about those who do not fit within the norm. 0:01:19.680 --> 0:01:23.760 You can find them at s j klup heck writing 0:01:23.880 --> 0:01:28.600 on Twitter, which is s J k l A p 0:01:29.080 --> 0:01:35.400 e c writing on Twitter. This story is called Printed 0:01:35.440 --> 0:01:40.280 Guns and Sold Schematics. So get yourself your whatever you 0:01:41.120 --> 0:01:46.240 it's Sunday. Don't don't drink whiskey early in the morning 0:01:46.280 --> 0:01:52.120 on Sunday unless you really want to t Get yourself 0:01:52.120 --> 0:01:56.920 here some tea or whatever you would like, and cozy 0:01:57.000 --> 0:02:01.440 up because you're the guest today. Printed Guns and Sold 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:06.559 Schematics by s J. Clipecki. The weapons of the future suck. 0:02:07.040 --> 0:02:10.600 Everyone imagined great sci fi glassings, the world being reduced 0:02:10.600 --> 0:02:14.040 to a gray nanite sludge, some viral contagion that only 0:02:14.160 --> 0:02:16.880 kills men, or some shit. But it's none of that. 0:02:17.880 --> 0:02:22.280 It's drones, not even the proper Lockheed Martin ones. Instead 0:02:22.280 --> 0:02:24.800 their quad copters, the type rich kids get when their 0:02:24.840 --> 0:02:28.280 parents feel bad for divorcing. Only some assholes strapped a 0:02:28.280 --> 0:02:32.440 bomb to them too. The market for guns is still big, 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:36.000 but they changed made of layers of printed plastic, doped 0:02:36.040 --> 0:02:38.120 with as much metal as needed to keep it together, 0:02:38.400 --> 0:02:41.800 and not an iota more. I have a pepperbox revolver 0:02:41.919 --> 0:02:45.280 I printed myself, strapped to my chest. The hard edge 0:02:45.320 --> 0:02:48.680 of an unsanded handle digs into my breast. The gun's 0:02:48.720 --> 0:02:52.000 a hack job, made before I left and without any 0:02:52.080 --> 0:02:54.919 my usual care put into it. But it's six shots 0:02:54.960 --> 0:02:57.960 of nine to nineteen parabellium that I can't go without 0:02:59.040 --> 0:03:02.799 in my pocket. There's a USB on that USB. There's 0:03:02.840 --> 0:03:06.359 designs that were originally made by an afghanji hottist, iterated 0:03:06.440 --> 0:03:09.840 upon by an American Nazi, taken by a French anarchist, 0:03:09.880 --> 0:03:14.200 and changed before being sent to me. Another American Darwin 0:03:14.320 --> 0:03:18.040 would be proud of how quickly things now evolve, how 0:03:18.040 --> 0:03:22.320 they iterate and phil niches. The compound I was told 0:03:22.360 --> 0:03:24.560 to go to is a small place, at least small 0:03:24.600 --> 0:03:27.840 for compounds that radical groups hang out in fifty acres 0:03:27.880 --> 0:03:30.320 of land in the middle of fucking nowhere. I know 0:03:30.400 --> 0:03:33.120 it's the right place because the only way in is 0:03:33.120 --> 0:03:35.840 a break in the birch trees. There's a sign that 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:40.040 reads Clarefield Farm standing outside. Those are the two clues 0:03:40.080 --> 0:03:44.160 I was given as a standard. No phone, no way 0:03:44.160 --> 0:03:46.640 to trace me if I'm not carrying anything with a signal. 0:03:47.280 --> 0:03:50.760 Even if the state security APPARATUSUS have collapsed, others might 0:03:50.800 --> 0:03:56.520 want my trail. Sadly, that means no GPS. There's a 0:03:56.520 --> 0:03:58.560 building in the middle of nowhere with its lights on. 0:03:59.000 --> 0:04:01.800 It doesn't look new, retrofitted, so the roof is covered 0:04:01.800 --> 0:04:05.440 with solar panels. A red flag is illuminated from behind, 0:04:05.560 --> 0:04:09.920 the words Montana Free Corps in bold gold lettering glowing 0:04:09.960 --> 0:04:14.360 from the window. I wonder briefly how many different compounds exist, 0:04:14.880 --> 0:04:18.239 how many radicals stake out just across the border, flitting 0:04:18.279 --> 0:04:22.080 back and forth. But it doesn't matter. This is the place. 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:24.800 I let out a sigh of relief and walk right 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:27.760 on up. A blinking camera shifts this attention to me. 0:04:28.160 --> 0:04:32.159 The disembodied eye of some security guards staring I wave. 0:04:33.400 --> 0:04:37.400 An intercom lights up. A gruff, deep voice speaks, demanding 0:04:37.400 --> 0:04:42.160 my name and the passcode Rahai Yotan's daughter. I replied 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:45.119 the fake name. I gave them Buck the front power 0:04:45.120 --> 0:04:47.919 to the people. I feel silly even saying it, but 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:50.479 I don't control the passcodes that the clients give me. 0:04:51.040 --> 0:04:53.520 I don't control their ideologies or what they do, or 0:04:53.560 --> 0:04:56.880 what stupid things they obsess over. It's not like it matters, 0:04:57.160 --> 0:04:59.760 so long as they're good on their cash. There's a 0:04:59.800 --> 0:05:02.880 moment of waiting. I tap my foot on the ground expectantly. 0:05:03.360 --> 0:05:07.000 Rain dribbles down my back, cold and uncomfortable. Wish they'd 0:05:07.040 --> 0:05:09.320 hurried up so I could at least be a little 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:12.400 bit dry. Don't know how good a bunch of leftists 0:05:12.440 --> 0:05:14.640 are for hospitality, but when dealing with the type of 0:05:14.680 --> 0:05:16.240 people who run out to the woods to do a 0:05:16.240 --> 0:05:19.880 bunch of training, it's always a mixed bag. Sometimes it's 0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:22.039 a bunch of unwashed men who keep thinking you're there 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:24.640 to get with them. Sometimes it's a polite group of 0:05:24.680 --> 0:05:27.560 ideologues who try to win you over with tea, biscuits 0:05:27.560 --> 0:05:30.760 and god awful pamphlets. Sometimes it's just the smell of 0:05:30.800 --> 0:05:35.240 gunpowder and laconic grunts until the transaction is over. The 0:05:35.320 --> 0:05:38.960 last one is always the one I hope for, quick clean, 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:44.120 done in and out. A boy greets me. His voice 0:05:44.200 --> 0:05:47.240 is squeaky. He's young, no older than nineteen. If I 0:05:47.279 --> 0:05:49.640 had to guess, he's wearing a beret and a T 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:52.720 shirt with from some punk band. I don't recognize. A 0:05:52.720 --> 0:05:55.280 beard that refuses to grow as much as he's been trying, 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:58.680 and a revolver strapped to his waist. The smell of 0:05:58.680 --> 0:06:01.000 gunpowder and weed hits me as the warmth of the 0:06:01.040 --> 0:06:05.960 house bleeds out come in, he says. I step inside. 0:06:06.240 --> 0:06:10.400 The door closes behind me. A low sigh escapes involuntary 0:06:10.680 --> 0:06:14.279 from my mouth. I take off my jacket. Underneath is 0:06:14.279 --> 0:06:19.320 a thin polyester windbreaker. Under that my revolver. I don't 0:06:19.320 --> 0:06:21.200 feel the need to strip further. As I put my 0:06:21.320 --> 0:06:24.480 jacket on the coat rack, the squeaky voiced man asked 0:06:24.520 --> 0:06:29.000 me a question you hear about the I have the schematics. 0:06:29.360 --> 0:06:32.400 I am kurt, but not rude, measured, someone who seems 0:06:32.400 --> 0:06:36.360 even tempered, mild if direct. The man shifts uncomfortably. He 0:06:36.440 --> 0:06:39.279 must have wanted more from me, an apology for lateness. 0:06:39.320 --> 0:06:43.559 Perhaps I run my fingers through damp, short hair. Maybe 0:06:43.560 --> 0:06:46.320 he heard my name expecting someone more ladylike than my 0:06:46.480 --> 0:06:50.200 make up list demeanor gives off no matter. I shake 0:06:50.240 --> 0:06:52.280 my hands dry and clasp them in front of me. 0:06:53.240 --> 0:06:57.320 Your name is, I ask Louis? He says, in the 0:06:57.360 --> 0:07:02.279 French pronunciation, I'm louis. Probably a nom de guere based 0:07:02.320 --> 0:07:05.560 on some FLQ member or something. I can't remember too 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:10.080 much about history. That's not where I bake my bread. Well, Louis, 0:07:10.560 --> 0:07:12.400 I try to shake off the cold of the storm 0:07:12.440 --> 0:07:15.080 as I speak. Wouldn't want to come across as rude, 0:07:15.080 --> 0:07:18.040 now would I I was told there would be a 0:07:18.080 --> 0:07:21.960 commander or something I would be meeting or something the 0:07:22.000 --> 0:07:23.880 guy who wanted me to sell you all what I have. 0:07:25.160 --> 0:07:27.680 Louis's face changes. I can see that he's trying to 0:07:27.680 --> 0:07:30.560 figure me out, read me as best as he can, 0:07:30.880 --> 0:07:34.160 and process new information. I don't know if he was 0:07:34.200 --> 0:07:37.160 told why I was coming here. I doubt it. He 0:07:37.160 --> 0:07:40.760 didn't see him in the inner cadre, so to speak, Yeah, 0:07:40.800 --> 0:07:43.280 that would be uh. He's raking his mind. I can 0:07:43.320 --> 0:07:45.400 see the confusion on his face, the way his eyes 0:07:45.440 --> 0:07:48.120 scrunch a little as he searches for a name, or 0:07:48.160 --> 0:07:51.480 maybe as he figures out what name to use. Half 0:07:51.520 --> 0:07:54.040 these guys use a half dozen names, not that I 0:07:54.040 --> 0:07:59.240 can judge, right, I'll get them for you. I don't 0:07:59.240 --> 0:08:01.200 know who I expect, but it's sure as hell not 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:04.800 who shows up. Funny how after years of dealing you 0:08:04.880 --> 0:08:07.680 never really clear that image out of your mind of 0:08:07.760 --> 0:08:10.320 the rebel leader with a beard, a beret, a hopeful 0:08:10.360 --> 0:08:13.240 and youthful look. Chay is burned into the neurons of 0:08:13.240 --> 0:08:15.760 my brain that I associate with rebel, but I've never 0:08:15.760 --> 0:08:19.560 seen a chay. The man I see before me is clean, shaven, dower. 0:08:20.040 --> 0:08:22.640 He looks in pain based on the limp my eyes 0:08:22.680 --> 0:08:25.320 trailed down, and a medical brace is tight around his leg, 0:08:26.320 --> 0:08:29.360 which he had shown up sooner. He says. He sounds old, 0:08:29.680 --> 0:08:32.600 maybe in his forties, with a gruff voice, the type 0:08:32.760 --> 0:08:36.680 someone gets from a packa day smoking a cigarette. Isn't 0:08:36.679 --> 0:08:39.080 in his mouth right now, but it's a matter of time. 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:43.160 I don't particularly like speeding when I'm carrying a legal stuff, 0:08:43.559 --> 0:08:48.520 doubly so when it's pissing brain outside. I say that 0:08:48.600 --> 0:08:52.080 gets a smirk out of him. He understands, So what 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:53.920 do you got from me? M We discussed it on 0:08:54.240 --> 0:08:57.160 h fuck. I can't remember they squashed these sites as 0:08:57.200 --> 0:09:00.920 soon as they pop up. No, they don't, not since 0:09:00.920 --> 0:09:03.320 the Americans started fighting in their homelands more than they 0:09:03.320 --> 0:09:07.320 did in the overseas ventures. Five Eyes collapsed when the 0:09:07.320 --> 0:09:10.840 central government did an anti insurgency, turned from that flawed 0:09:10.840 --> 0:09:14.920 system of panopticonic internet trawling and investigation to whack a 0:09:15.000 --> 0:09:17.640 moles that none of their allies could handle on their own. 0:09:18.280 --> 0:09:20.720 I remember exactly the site, I remember the username, the 0:09:20.760 --> 0:09:24.160 contact used. I know this game and sidestep the implied 0:09:24.240 --> 0:09:29.880 question I have. I look around the hall. Bookshelves are 0:09:29.880 --> 0:09:33.480 full of radical literature. Bookchin lenin. I don't care all 0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:37.160 of a maw or two well read radicals across their 0:09:37.160 --> 0:09:41.719 own narrow spectrum of ideas. An idea strikes a good 0:09:41.800 --> 0:09:44.679 idea of political power to hand over if you're keeping 0:09:44.720 --> 0:09:48.640 your end of the bargain. He smirks a grin. He 0:09:48.800 --> 0:09:51.960 liked the reference to the old warlord. Play to the customer, 0:09:52.040 --> 0:09:55.040 keep them thinking I'm on their side. I won't mention 0:09:55.240 --> 0:09:58.760 that the Christian Front made me an offer too. Yes, well, 0:09:58.800 --> 0:10:00.679 maybe you can tell me a little bit more about 0:10:00.679 --> 0:10:03.040 the form that power takes. He raises a hand to 0:10:03.080 --> 0:10:06.480 his face, scratches behind his ear. If I recall it 0:10:06.600 --> 0:10:10.480 was an anti tank round a nod. It isn't, but 0:10:10.520 --> 0:10:13.199 the differences are slight when it comes to blowing up technicals. 0:10:14.679 --> 0:10:17.000 It's a squash head round that could be mass printed 0:10:17.000 --> 0:10:20.360 with basic three D metallurgic techniques. The last guy you 0:10:20.440 --> 0:10:23.200 touched it didn't trust the plastic to hold and overcompensate 0:10:23.240 --> 0:10:26.200 it with the metal. That's probably the design you're using. 0:10:26.240 --> 0:10:28.920 If you printed them right now, I actually know what 0:10:28.960 --> 0:10:32.080 I'm doing, so a gesture as I speak, trying to 0:10:32.120 --> 0:10:35.440 sound unrehearsed and on the fly. I modified the design 0:10:35.480 --> 0:10:37.880 to use fifteen percent less material with only a five 0:10:37.920 --> 0:10:41.920 percent reduction of material strength. And that's irrelevant to your purposes. 0:10:41.920 --> 0:10:45.199 If you're using this in rockets, you're using them in rockets, 0:10:45.280 --> 0:10:48.000 right you heard. I'm sure about the people in Kansas 0:10:48.000 --> 0:10:50.240 who blew themselves up trying to stick something like this 0:10:50.360 --> 0:10:55.079 in an M seventy nine. Dropping out of that engineering 0:10:55.080 --> 0:10:56.959 course is the best damn choice of my life, all 0:10:57.040 --> 0:11:00.320 things considered. They hadn't yet beaten safety pro to call 0:11:00.360 --> 0:11:02.199 into my brain, but they sure taught me a lot 0:11:02.200 --> 0:11:06.480 about material science, how plastic flexes and bends, and how 0:11:06.480 --> 0:11:09.080 it snaps breaks on a windshield and sends glass and 0:11:09.120 --> 0:11:11.560 tannerite into the eyes of a driver fractions of a 0:11:11.600 --> 0:11:16.200 second before the detonator goes off. He nods approvingly and 0:11:16.240 --> 0:11:21.080 waves Louis away, because, dear listener, who is of course 0:11:21.080 --> 0:11:24.440 our guest, this man knows a good deal when he 0:11:24.440 --> 0:11:27.440 hears one, and I think you know a good deal too, 0:11:28.120 --> 0:11:35.440 which is why all of our ads are for good deals. 0:11:36.320 --> 0:11:40.320 And you can totally trust me, because I'm saying this 0:11:40.720 --> 0:11:46.000 not coerced by a capitalist system. I just genuinely believe 0:11:47.040 --> 0:12:08.160 in everything you're about to hear. And we're back. Come 0:12:08.200 --> 0:12:11.520 on inside, he urges. His voice is warm and cheerful now, 0:12:11.559 --> 0:12:13.840 as though he's trying to put some fatherly affect into 0:12:13.840 --> 0:12:17.320 his words. Water off A Duck's back to me, do 0:12:17.360 --> 0:12:22.280 you drink tea? I reply? Nothing harder A call for 0:12:22.320 --> 0:12:24.520 someone else, someone named Isabel, to put a pot on, 0:12:24.760 --> 0:12:27.360 A half hearted reply that she's been putting too much 0:12:27.440 --> 0:12:31.280 pot on tonight. I stiffle a laugh, don't trouble yourself. 0:12:31.320 --> 0:12:35.160 Then I insist. The older man leads me deeper into 0:12:35.200 --> 0:12:38.240 the house. We passed through the main hall, a kitchen 0:12:38.520 --> 0:12:41.840 messy and with a sink full of dishes. A barracks 0:12:41.920 --> 0:12:43.760 or something like it, with a dozen or so bunk 0:12:43.800 --> 0:12:48.360 beds crammed together. People sleep soundly, despite haligen Court's lights 0:12:48.360 --> 0:12:51.400 burning over them. One of the rooms has been converted 0:12:51.440 --> 0:12:55.079 into an impromptu armory, printing caseines for bombs and upper 0:12:55.080 --> 0:12:59.520 receivers for rifles. Someone is working on a quadrone, trying 0:12:59.520 --> 0:13:03.720 to armor O the limbs, don't I point to the drone. 0:13:04.000 --> 0:13:06.200 The arms can take it. You need to focus on 0:13:06.240 --> 0:13:09.360 the rotors. Any good great bird shot will tear those up. 0:13:10.840 --> 0:13:13.960 The armorer is a woman. Faded black dye covers up 0:13:13.960 --> 0:13:17.240 her blonde roots. Her shoulders drop, and she smirks at me. 0:13:18.040 --> 0:13:20.360 If I had to guess, she'd been telling people the same, 0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:23.560 but only now did someone agree with her. She holds 0:13:23.600 --> 0:13:26.120 her gaze at me for a fraction too long before 0:13:26.160 --> 0:13:29.440 nodding and getting back to work. If this was a 0:13:29.440 --> 0:13:31.920 different context, I'd hoped to heaven she was gay too. 0:13:32.400 --> 0:13:36.560 But it's not good business to flirt on the job, right, Well, 0:13:36.640 --> 0:13:39.200 we got those designs from a person and occupy. He 0:13:39.360 --> 0:13:45.360 tries to justify himself his mistake. Everyone does, and they're wrong. 0:13:45.480 --> 0:13:48.800 I cut the man off, so survivorship bias probably wasn't 0:13:48.840 --> 0:13:51.720 factored in. You need those things to hit their target, 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.960 nothing more. It doesn't matter if they get buckshot lodged 0:13:55.000 --> 0:13:57.280 in an arm It matters if their rotors are shredded 0:13:57.320 --> 0:14:00.360 into foil. He doesn't like this. I can see senses 0:14:00.360 --> 0:14:03.520 demeanor change. He is a bit icy as he gestures 0:14:03.520 --> 0:14:06.679 towards the central computer. I don't know how many hundreds 0:14:06.720 --> 0:14:09.959 he spent on the design. Schematics. But hey, at least 0:14:10.000 --> 0:14:12.480 he doesn't need to invest in new ones. Should be 0:14:12.520 --> 0:14:16.920 thanking me. Really, I don't sit down. Instead, I take 0:14:16.960 --> 0:14:19.080 out the USB, plug it into the computer and ask 0:14:19.120 --> 0:14:22.200 him to sit down. I'm sure you know your system's 0:14:22.240 --> 0:14:24.280 better than I do. I'd hate to screw anything up. 0:14:24.960 --> 0:14:29.960 It's disingenuous, I know, but it convinces him. He sits down. 0:14:30.320 --> 0:14:32.400 I notice the outline of a pistol tucked into his 0:14:32.440 --> 0:14:35.520 pant line between the disheveled dress shirt and the khakis. 0:14:36.200 --> 0:14:39.800 He opens the files. The actual instructions are encrypted. I 0:14:39.800 --> 0:14:41.600 have the key on a piece of paper tucked into 0:14:41.640 --> 0:14:45.080 my windbreaker. If it wasn't, then stealing my designs would 0:14:45.080 --> 0:14:48.280 be as simple as copy paste. Instead, he gets a 0:14:48.280 --> 0:14:52.640 series of PNGs from some short videos, my own voice 0:14:52.640 --> 0:14:55.800 through the speakers explaining what is different about these squash heeads. 0:14:56.520 --> 0:14:59.000 He watches them closely, glancing at my hand every so 0:14:59.120 --> 0:15:03.080 often to check if still on the USB. It always 0:15:03.120 --> 0:15:07.480 is right, he says, But the designs, I want to 0:15:07.480 --> 0:15:11.000 see them in actual printing programs first, so I know 0:15:11.080 --> 0:15:14.120 you're not selling me a pile of shit. I want 0:15:14.160 --> 0:15:17.440 my money first, four thousand euros cash. That's what your 0:15:17.440 --> 0:15:21.360 contact promised me, mister, I nudge for a name. He 0:15:21.440 --> 0:15:27.760 grumbles and sighs. Tom, Just Tom. A few moments pass, 0:15:28.240 --> 0:15:30.640 I consider ripping the USB out since he's starting to 0:15:30.640 --> 0:15:33.400 get on my nerves. He shifts back in the chair, 0:15:33.440 --> 0:15:35.360 an old leather piece of work with more duct tape 0:15:35.400 --> 0:15:38.160 than filling. Is he going to make a move and 0:15:38.280 --> 0:15:40.520 put my hand over my zipper? Ready to go for 0:15:40.600 --> 0:15:44.680 my own gun? Look, I don't know what my contact 0:15:44.680 --> 0:15:47.760 promised you exactly. He has this tendency to make you 0:15:47.800 --> 0:15:51.200 know deals that I don't exactly agree with. Tom explains 0:15:52.080 --> 0:15:55.000 he promised me four thousand euros in cash. I made 0:15:55.000 --> 0:15:57.960 that pretty clear. I think my hand plays with a zipper. 0:15:58.560 --> 0:16:01.680 Can we agree on something more reasonable? It's only designed plastic, 0:16:01.720 --> 0:16:04.880 after all, his voice takes a grating edge to it. 0:16:05.480 --> 0:16:08.160 I probably fucked up telling his armorer how to do 0:16:08.240 --> 0:16:12.080 her job. It's only designed plastic. That took me twenty 0:16:12.080 --> 0:16:15.000 two hours of work, math, chemistry and more to work 0:16:15.000 --> 0:16:17.880 out a prototype for and four days of testing to 0:16:17.880 --> 0:16:20.720 make sure it worked according to my calculations, and then 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:23.800 a month of shopping it around. And I know that 0:16:23.880 --> 0:16:26.840 there's people like me, right, now doing the same. Who 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:29.320 wouldn't be caught dead selling to someone who isn't good 0:16:29.320 --> 0:16:32.040 on the money in crypto. Well before they sent the 0:16:32.080 --> 0:16:36.320 design over, I unsit my windbreaker, hoping he doesn't notice 0:16:36.360 --> 0:16:39.440 the bulge of the revolver. I'm taking a risk here, 0:16:39.960 --> 0:16:43.720 and I don't want to take any more. He glares 0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:45.880 at me. I can see the game fall apart in 0:16:45.920 --> 0:16:48.360 his head, what he wanted to do, how he wanted 0:16:48.400 --> 0:16:50.880 to haggle. But I'm still in the room full of 0:16:50.920 --> 0:16:52.960 his friends who are all armed to the teeth and 0:16:53.720 --> 0:16:56.160 are out here on a moment of R and R 0:16:56.200 --> 0:17:00.160 and training, probably before descending back down into Montana and 0:17:00.200 --> 0:17:03.680 helping his folks down there some plans that I'm starting 0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:05.879 to feel less like an accomplice to and more like 0:17:05.920 --> 0:17:09.960 a hindrance to Freya. He says, You're putting me in 0:17:09.960 --> 0:17:13.600 a fucking difficult position right now. His voice raises to 0:17:13.680 --> 0:17:17.560 a growl, a hiss between Tobacco's stained teeth. I clench up, 0:17:17.600 --> 0:17:21.000 step back, and yank the USB from its port. My 0:17:21.040 --> 0:17:24.719 hand plunges into my windbreaker, wraps tight around that unsmooth handle. 0:17:25.560 --> 0:17:27.840 I don't draw it yet, but he knows that I 0:17:27.920 --> 0:17:32.840 have it and that's enough, right, he says, I'm putting 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:35.359 you in a difficult position too. I get that, but 0:17:35.440 --> 0:17:37.800 you've seen what the Front's doing down in Montana, right, 0:17:38.119 --> 0:17:42.200 the fucking burnings. Moral considerations aren't what got me into 0:17:42.240 --> 0:17:45.000 this job. They're not gonna make me budge. He has 0:17:45.080 --> 0:17:47.960 to know that I'm not in this for some glorious revolution. 0:17:49.960 --> 0:17:53.200 What she might be in it for, dear listener, flash guest, 0:17:54.840 --> 0:17:58.560 is the deals. Like you know that, that's kind of 0:17:58.560 --> 0:18:03.160 a thing, And much like you, you actually only listen 0:18:03.200 --> 0:18:06.399 to podcasts for the ads, and I respect that, unless, 0:18:06.440 --> 0:18:08.320 of course, you listen to cooler Zone Medium, which case 0:18:08.359 --> 0:18:10.320 you get the ad transitions and none of the ads. 0:18:10.760 --> 0:18:13.919 But if you're just on cool Zone Medium, just perfectly legitimate, 0:18:14.680 --> 0:18:17.560 then you get to hear the ads like these ones. 0:18:34.040 --> 0:18:37.880 Yeah I've seen them. Oh I'm back by the way, Yeah, 0:18:37.920 --> 0:18:41.119 I've seen him. Frontists laughed as they screamed, so fucking 0:18:41.200 --> 0:18:43.800 what people like me sold them the weapons? Hell, I 0:18:43.880 --> 0:18:45.879 might know the guy who did. I know what the 0:18:45.920 --> 0:18:48.240 sides are doing. I know your fucking friends. And the 0:18:48.280 --> 0:18:50.520 GDF did when they captured a bunch of the Front's men, 0:18:50.880 --> 0:18:54.080 lined them up and shot them. No trial, nothing, that's war. 0:18:54.560 --> 0:18:57.840 I sell war. You want to buy war. Don't try 0:18:57.840 --> 0:19:01.560 to clean this up. Stands. I see the pistol in 0:19:01.600 --> 0:19:06.200 his waistband glock nineteen polymer, not a shadow gun, probably 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:09.639 for long term carry. Sweat sticks his shirt to his body. 0:19:10.960 --> 0:19:14.040 You aren't gonna hurt me, I say. My voice is confident, 0:19:14.119 --> 0:19:17.320 my soul is shaking. You either pay me now or 0:19:17.359 --> 0:19:20.040 I take this and leave. I threaten. We had a 0:19:20.080 --> 0:19:23.359 deal set up, and I won't haggle again. I already 0:19:23.400 --> 0:19:26.240 did that with your contact. They said four thousand, no less, 0:19:26.760 --> 0:19:29.200 damn fucking cheap for that price, and you know it. 0:19:30.880 --> 0:19:33.600 I don't think you fucking understand. Actually you've seen the videos, 0:19:33.600 --> 0:19:36.399 but you haven't been there, even smelled the aftermath. You 0:19:36.400 --> 0:19:39.080 haven't given food to the hungry or water to the thirsty. 0:19:39.640 --> 0:19:42.920 His voice devolves into something almost rehearsed. We're doing good 0:19:42.960 --> 0:19:46.720 workout there, and you can help us. Oh, yes, the 0:19:46.800 --> 0:19:50.440 ideological crusade. They think I care about. The shifting acidic 0:19:50.480 --> 0:19:53.560 weight heating at me intensified. I tried my damnedest to 0:19:53.600 --> 0:19:55.560 not show it, not to give any clue of what 0:19:55.600 --> 0:19:59.000 was happening in my head. I failed. He took his chance. 0:20:00.000 --> 0:20:01.919 If I don't know your type, he steps towards me. 0:20:02.359 --> 0:20:04.360 You think I don't know how little info you keep 0:20:04.359 --> 0:20:06.760 about yourself, how fake your name is? 0:20:07.000 --> 0:20:07.160 Hell? 0:20:07.200 --> 0:20:08.880 I bet you don't even have a license on you, 0:20:09.040 --> 0:20:12.720 let alone someone who's worried for you. I inhale sharply. 0:20:13.040 --> 0:20:15.840 The chime comes up, A sour taste forces itself under 0:20:15.880 --> 0:20:19.560 my tongue. I can feel my body. My bone's shaking. God, 0:20:19.600 --> 0:20:21.639 I hope I'm not showing it. I hope he's not 0:20:21.680 --> 0:20:25.040 seeing the twitch in my eye, every tug, every involuntary 0:20:25.080 --> 0:20:29.200 pull of a stressed muscle. I feel everything. Tom knows 0:20:29.240 --> 0:20:31.439 he's got me in a bind. I think over the 0:20:31.480 --> 0:20:34.199 exits in my head, try to remember where anything is. 0:20:34.760 --> 0:20:37.440 A pang of fear strikes through me. There's only one 0:20:37.480 --> 0:20:39.560 way out. My back would be turned to him, the 0:20:39.600 --> 0:20:42.280 whole way. If I ran, good way to get my 0:20:42.400 --> 0:20:46.640 spine ventilated. Maybe backing away would work. A step back, 0:20:46.680 --> 0:20:49.880 glancing over my shoulder to the door. So you're going 0:20:49.880 --> 0:20:53.120 to hand it over as palm is extended outwards? Are 0:20:53.119 --> 0:20:56.080 you fucking robbing me? I try to stall for time. 0:20:57.000 --> 0:20:59.280 It's a USB and a few hits to your dignity, 0:20:59.600 --> 0:21:02.600 hardly grand theft. We can make this far more painful 0:21:02.640 --> 0:21:04.399 if you want, but I'm not going to give you 0:21:04.440 --> 0:21:07.440 a lot of time to think it over. He notices 0:21:07.480 --> 0:21:10.919 my step backward, a flash of movement. A gun points 0:21:10.920 --> 0:21:13.840 at the ground, aimed at my feet. My heart stops 0:21:13.840 --> 0:21:21.200 cold dead. An exasperated sigh comes from behind me. Christ Above, Tommy, 0:21:21.280 --> 0:21:24.800 you're being a shithead, The lady working on the drone says, 0:21:25.160 --> 0:21:27.320 just give her the fucking money. You think we can't 0:21:27.320 --> 0:21:30.680 take the hit, Go and fuck with Henry. He set 0:21:30.760 --> 0:21:33.080 up the deal. If he promised something, that's all on 0:21:33.200 --> 0:21:36.160 us to keep in an internal matter to resolve. We're 0:21:36.160 --> 0:21:40.879 not the fucking front. We have protocol silence for a moment. 0:21:41.320 --> 0:21:44.160 Tom looks at me, then at the armorer. There's something 0:21:44.200 --> 0:21:46.639 between them that I can't place. Maybe they were in 0:21:46.720 --> 0:21:50.159 battle together. That connection people have in the trenches is 0:21:50.160 --> 0:21:53.240 hard to place, hard to replicate. You think you have 0:21:53.280 --> 0:21:56.720 a fucking right to tell me what to do, Tom growls, yes. 0:21:56.800 --> 0:22:00.000 She says, yeah, I fucking do. Swinging your cock around 0:22:00.040 --> 0:22:03.640 isn't going to help any of us. Her tone is measured, casual, 0:22:03.880 --> 0:22:06.760 like this is a Tuesday for her. Hell, what if 0:22:06.800 --> 0:22:09.320 she did give you the designs? Did you ever think 0:22:09.480 --> 0:22:12.359 past five minutes from now, she'd give you the USB, 0:22:12.600 --> 0:22:14.560 run like hell and tell every damn person in the 0:22:14.560 --> 0:22:16.880 business that we're liable to rob you blind and call 0:22:16.920 --> 0:22:21.520 it business. How would that look for us? Tom sighs. 0:22:21.600 --> 0:22:24.320 He removes the magazine from his pistol and racks the slide. 0:22:24.720 --> 0:22:28.720 A bullet clatters on the concrete ground. My shoulders drop. 0:22:29.040 --> 0:22:33.560 I breathe in clean, fresh air, almost purifying. I hadn't 0:22:33.560 --> 0:22:36.359 realized how long I've been holding my breath. I wipe 0:22:36.359 --> 0:22:38.240 the sweat off my forehead and relax the grip on 0:22:38.320 --> 0:22:42.480 my revolver. Maybe this would actually go all right? You're 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.439 right here, right, he sighs Alex, he looks past me. 0:22:46.600 --> 0:22:49.600 The woman perks up. Go to the vault. I think 0:22:49.640 --> 0:22:53.000 we have enough fifties and hundreds. If you can, I'd 0:22:53.040 --> 0:22:55.280 like to go with her, if you don't mind, I say. 0:22:55.480 --> 0:22:58.800 Tom frowns, but Alex waves me over. I follow her 0:22:58.840 --> 0:23:02.000 down the hall. She smells like peaches under the burnt 0:23:02.040 --> 0:23:06.359 metal and sweat and WD forty. I'm so sorry about Tom, 0:23:06.440 --> 0:23:08.560 she says to me. The second we're out of ear shot. 0:23:08.960 --> 0:23:11.399 He's got a real fuck you got mine attitude, and 0:23:11.440 --> 0:23:13.840 I've tried to whip him into shape. It's not really 0:23:13.880 --> 0:23:17.240 working out. I'm just glad I'm not leaving here in pieces, 0:23:17.240 --> 0:23:21.840