Presenting - Give Me Away

Summary

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The Strata Podcast – Presenting: Give Me Away

Host: Mark R. Healy
Episode: Give Me Away – Episode 5: "My Body is Your Body"
Date: November 18, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Strata introduces listeners to an early episode of Give Me Away, an audio drama from Gideon Media. Give Me Away unfolds in an alternate timeline where thousands of alien prisoners are trapped in a "Ghost House" spaceship in the Nevada desert. The story follows a team of scientists, military personnel, and government officials grappling with the ethics, trauma, and logistics of transferring alien consciousnesses into human hosts. In this installment, the narrative focuses on a harrowing consciousness mapping experiment, the toll it takes on participants, and the profound question of what it means to be a host, a prisoner, or a liberator.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction to the Give Me Away Universe (00:00–03:00)

• Host Mark R. Healy sets the stage for Give Me Away, highlighting its “funny, intense thriller” nature and its unique premise: alien prisoners seeking refuge in human hosts.
• Give Me Away explores radical hospitality, freedom, and the formation of new kinds of families in the face of the unknown.

Notable Quote:

“How we should welcome desperate people, people looking for freedom, and what it means to be a family.” — [00:26], Mark R. Healy

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2. Character Dynamics on the Troop Carrier (00:57–02:56)

• Lieutenant Brian Riley attempts to reassure Professor Brook Harris, a civilian expert, of her safety among the troops.
• Tensions and discomfort hint at deeper undercurrents—especially as Harris discusses her work in “conceptual modeling.”

Notable Quotes:

“There are things in this world we want to act upon even though we can't see them. My job is to... invent a three dimensional approximation.” — [02:17], Professor Harris
“Acting on things I can't see ahead of time is a big part of my job too.” — [02:33], Lt. Riley

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3. Inside the Ghost House: Trauma and Command (03:02–05:33)

• Riley discusses the accumulated wisdom of military training with Sergeant Corey Wheeler, emphasizing the internalized discipline required for high-stakes missions.
• The trauma of combat and saving lives is unpacked; Corey struggles with guilt over young lives lost in battle.

Notable Quotes:

“That's what training is. The accumulated wisdom of decades and centuries of combat transmuted into instinct…” — [04:04], Lt. Riley
“They were boys.” — [04:45], Sgt. Wheeler

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4. Scientific Theorizing and Fractured Collaboration (05:42–08:10)

• Harris and her colleagues dissect the digital phenomena within the alien mainframe. They theorize that the consciousnesses inside aren't barriers but sentient presences seeking connection.
• Friction arises over differing approaches—some favoring technical rigor, others openness to new paradigms.

Notable Quotes:

“They're not blocking us... They're somehow reaching out.” — [06:29], Harris
“The way we're thinking about the computer is entirely wrong… We're obsessed with the idea that it’s withholding something from us because that’s how we think about everything—Infiltration. Conquest.” — [06:50], Harris

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5. Transparency, Politics, and Power (08:15–11:56)

• Gil Cortez (Deputy White House Chief of Staff) discusses political undercurrents with Harris. Support for the project is tenuous, with political enemies looking for weaknesses.
• Cortez insists on close coordination with Harris—a necessary alliance in a high-stakes, politicized environment.

Notable Quotes:

“The Republicans hate this project.” — [11:33], Cortez
“Anything you need, you call me first... Whenever you're making a public statement, I am your life partner. We build it together.” — [11:46], Cortez

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6. The Cost of the Experiment: Pain and Ethical Dilemmas (12:22–15:39)

• The team grapples with the intense suffering of the transferred consciousness. Interfaces intended for communication malfunction, resulting in incoherent pain-filled outputs.
• Harris is forced to acknowledge the possibility that the experiment is inflicting worse suffering than the original “prison,” raising the prospect that killing the digital consciousness may be an act of mercy.

Notable Quotes:

“We made it worse...” — [14:14], Team Member
“I’m not sure how much intentions matter when you’ve consigned a sentient being to a worse existence than the one you freed them from.” — [15:09], Harris

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7. Mapping Test and Moral Uncertainty (16:06–17:47)

• Cortez and Riley discuss the president’s imminent authorization for Director Harris to perform a mapping test on herself, raising the stakes for the project.
• Riley worries where future volunteers for this perilous process will come from, hinting at the moral dangers of leveraging soldiers for risky experiments.

Notable Quotes:

“Setting aside the possibility the president has authorized an elaborate suicide on my watch... what if she succeeds?” — [16:57], Lt. Riley
“Which leads me to wonder where those volunteers are going to come from.” — [17:11], Lt. Riley

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8. First Contact: Shared Consciousness (17:47–24:29)

• Harris undergoes the mapping test, resulting in a powerful fusion with the alien Deirdre. The alien’s consciousness occupies Harris’s mind and uses her body to communicate.
• The fusion teeters between terror and breakthrough, culminating as Deirdre expresses gratitude for “being set free.”
• Harris learns details of the alien insurrection and the new possibility of freeing all prisoners.

Memorable Moment:

“My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body…” — [19:19–20:53], Harris & Deirdre (repeated as a mantra during the fusion)

Notable Quotes:

“If it’s death to you, it’s death to me. We’re the same. And I don’t want to die either.” — [19:04], Harris to Deirdre
“Thank you for setting me free. Thank you for Brooke. Thank you for my new home.” — [24:08], Deirdre through Harris

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9. Political Fallout and Military Ethics (24:51–29:23)

• Sergeant Wheeler, emotionally overwhelmed, requests a discharge. The president authorizes his release and entry into the Nevada Project Occupation Program as a civilian.
• Political tension thickens as Senator McKillop warns Lt. Riley about wavering support for the project in Washington, suggesting that orders can change with shifting political tides.

Notable Quotes:

“I quit, sir. I quit.” — [26:11], Wheeler
“There’s a whole ocean of things he hasn’t ordered you not to do.” — [29:16], Senator McKillop to Riley

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10. Preparing for the Next Step: Host Selection (29:39–32:46)

• The team builds a profile for the next ideal host, noting desired traits like advanced degrees and activist backgrounds.
• An application surfaces from an unexpected candidate: Jamie Shapiro—whose identity may have further implications.

Notable Quotes:

“We’ll feel proud when the rest of the prisoners are free.” — [24:29], Harris
“We transferred the wrong consciousness into Graham Shapiro.” — [31:44], Harris

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Pain of Shared Consciousness:

  “It's in so much pain, it can't even put together a thought. We made it worse.” — [14:14], Team Member

• On Radical Empathy:

  “If it’s death to you, it’s death to me. We’re the same. And I don’t want to die either.” — [19:04], Harris to Deirdre

• The Transformative Moment:

  “My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body.” — [19:19–20:53], Harris & Deirdre

• On Political Realities:

  “Everyone’s doing the most corrupt shit imaginable in broad daylight with a smirk on their face.” — [11:21], Cortez

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Important Timestamps

• [02:17] – Professor Harris explains conceptual modeling.
• [04:04] – Riley describes the purpose of training.
• [06:29] – Harris posits the digital barriers as sentient, reaching out.
• [11:33] – Cortez discusses the project’s political peril.
• [14:14] – The team confronts the suffering of the transferred consciousness.
• [19:19–20:53] – Harris and Deirdre chant "My body is your body" during consciousness fusion.
• [24:08] – Deirdre expresses thanks after being set free.
• [26:11] – Wheeler announces his resignation.
• [29:16] – Senator McKillop hints at the shifting political environment.
• [31:44] – Discovery of the erroneous transfer.

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Tone and Atmosphere

The episode is rich with tension, blending clinical sci-fi with raw emotion. Characters oscillate between cold technical discussions, vulnerable admissions of pain, fractious debates about responsibility, and rare moments of transcendent empathy.

The dialogue maintains a brisk, intense, and often wry tone. The repeated mantra "My body is your body" serves as both a literal and metaphorical bridge—a moment of breakthrough and terror.

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Summary

This episode from Give Me Away plunges listeners into a crucible of scientific discovery, ethical peril, and emergent empathy. As the boundaries between self and other collapse, the story foregrounds questions about mercy, agency, and the price we pay to free others—or ourselves. The results of the experiment shock the personnel and shift the project’s future, as new volunteers and political realities begin closing in.

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For more, listen to Give Me Away on your favorite podcast platform or visit Gideon Media.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, listeners, I have another great show to share with you this week. It's called Give Me Away, and it's a funny, intense thriller from the writer of the Message, Life after, and Steal the Stars. The show follows Graham Shapiro, who has reached the age where his marriage is falling apart, his kids are moving on, and he's not sure what to do with the rest of his life. That's when a spaceship called the Ghost House lands in the Nevada desert housing thousands of alien prisoners. And that's when things get interesting. Give Me Away is a full cast, expansively designed alternate timeline that explores the most radical kind of hospitality, how we should welcome desperate people, people looking for freedom and what it means to be a family. I listened to Give Me Away, and I really love the sound design and the acting, and the whole underlying premise is really quite unique. You probably won't find anything else quite like this out there. So if that sounds like your kind of thing, you might want to give it a shot. Listen to Give Me Away anywhere. You listen to podcasts and find more [e-mail] keep listening right now to hear one of the early episodes from the show. I hope you enjoy. Ma'?

[B]

Am. Hi.

[C]

What?

[B]

So sorry, ma'. Am. Don't mean to disturb you.

[C]

What do you.

[B]

Okay, let's take a step back. Lieutenant Brian Riley.

[C]

You're saying that's you?

[B]

Yes, ma'. Am.

[C]

Brook Harris. I don't have a rank.

[B]

Oh, that's all right. Lots of nice people don't. I just wanted to make sure my team wasn't bothering you at all.

[C]

Bothering me?

[B]

You're under no obligation to socialize. I just wanted to make sure you weren't sitting at the far end of the cabin because you were perturbed in any way.

[C]

Why would I be perturbed?

[B]

Large group of men, maybe a touch rowdy at times. I just wanted to make sure you know that these are men of discipline and impeccable character.

[C]

What about that one over there? Is he perturbed?

[B]

I wouldn't worry about Corey. He's having a rough time for completely unrelated reasons.

[C]

Then why shouldn't I worry about him?

[B]

Because, professor, where that young man is concerned, I'm doing enough worrying for all of us.

[C]

I didn't tell you I was a professor.

[B]

Thing is, they asked me, can this civilian catch a ride on your troop carrier to Red Camp? And of course, I said, yes, I'm hospitable by nature. But I also took a minute to read up. Now, if I were to ask you what conceptual modeling is Would I be too dumb to understand the answer?

[C]

Would you like the answer I use when they make me talk to donors?

[B]

Please.

[C]

There are things in this world we want to act upon even though we can't see them. My job is to take all we know about those things and invent a three dimensional approximation of what they look like.

[B]

Huh.

[C]

That probably sounds silly to you.

[B]

Not at all. Acting on things I can't see ahead of time is a big part of my job too.

[D]

Give me away. Episode 5 My Body is your body.

[E]

Permission to ask a question, sir?

[B]

Yes, Sergeant. We're actually going inside. Scaffolding is not completed, so we'll have to take the rope ladder up to the door.

[E]

Not a problem, sir.

[B]

I tell you to take a moment to get used to it, but already.

[E]

Seen it all on tv.

[B]

Not all the live stream shows the overall picture, but none of the nuances. You need eyes on site for that. Sharp eyes.

[E]

So that's why the screams aren't louder.

[B]

It's a band aid solution. Can't exactly study something you've covered in insulation. Sergeant. You all right, sir? Climbing 50ft on a rope ladder is no easy task. Do you feel alright?

[E]

Sir? I've climbed a lot of rope ladders. I'm not sure what you.

[B]

Exactly, sir. You've climbed a lot of rope ladders? Probably most of them under my command.

[E]

Yes sir. We did them so many times in.

[B]

Drills, I probably don't have to think about it anymore. Right? Getting your weight distribution just so. Moving your opposite hand foot in perfect tandem to ensure that the speed doesn't compromise balance.

[E]

Yes, sir.

[B]

That's what the training is for. That's what training is. The accumulated wisdom of decades and centuries of combat transmuted into instinct. So that your every hair trigger response is profoundly informed by the whole history of tactical knowledge.

[E]

With respect, sir.

[B]

Yes, Sergeant.

[E]

Why are we here?

[B]

You saved lives, Corey. We'll never know whose lives exactly. But some of those men who served next to you every day are alive because of your instinct. Your split second wisdom kicking in when it counted.

[E]

I know, sir.

[B]

Except that everything in your body and voice is telling me that you don't know. Now why is that, sir?

[E]

They. They were boys.

[B]

Of course they were boys. That's who they send thinking you'll see that they're boys and not react. That you'll forget the training that lives in every inch of your body. But you didn't. The evil was in the sending of boys, not your reaction to it.

[E]

I'm trying, sir. I'll get there.

[B]

We're here because the only way I know how to climb out of a hole is to start climbing. I'm not starting you on something small until you feel better. I'm putting you in a situation where you will simply have to be better. This is your post. 6:00am to 6:00pm Nothing happens here that you don't see. The rest of the world has the live stream. I have you. Is that clear, Sergeant?

[E]

Yes, sir.

[F]

Room for one more? What is this? Your private expanse of desert, or can I come in?

[C]

I'd prefer to be alone.

[F]

And I'd prefer to bug you.

[C]

I'm serious.

[F]

Whatever it's worth, I think you're right.

[C]

Of course I'm right. Redundant security system.

[F]

Well, it's a natural thing to assume under the circumstances.

[C]

Not after you've given it any thought at all. The man's a fool.

[F]

Well, he's not a fool. He's just not as smart as you and really bad at acknowledging it.

[C]

One wrong approach begets another. We're going to waste months if we keep treating the phenomena as barriers or firewalls. Rather than what? Individual files that have some sort of.

[F]

It's just you and me.

[C]

Agency autonomy. They're not blocking us. That's not what the responses suggest. They're somehow reaching out.

[F]

Except that's nuts. Why would files in a mainframe do that?

[C]

Do you not believe me, or are you goading me into an answer?

[F]

I'm goading you into an answer.

[C]

The way we're thinking about the computer is entirely wrong. We're obsessed with the idea that it's withholding something from us because that's how we think about everything. Infiltration, conquest.

[F]

I mean, we did have to get past some initial protocols when.

[C]

Yes, and I'm sure most kennels have a lock on the door, but if you unlock it and go inside. Are the dogs unhappy to see you?

[F]

Kind of a weird analogy.

[C]

There it is. I wonder why I thought of it.

[F]

Look, Clive's already having to work off your virtual model, so just from that, he's on the back foot. So when you call him a dumbass right in front of.

[C]

He is a dumbass.

[F]

I'm just saying, the next time you think so, tell me and we'll figure out how to bring it up together.

[C]

Why?

[F]

Because I can tell what you are, and I want to be in. On the ground floor.

[C]

What if you're wrong?

[D]

Hey. Hi.

[C]

Hi.

[F]

Bear trees, right?

[D]

Yeah, I was just assigned. I was in the ghost house. Just now. During the drama. Okay, look, this is totally rude, but I would just about kill to know what you guys are talking about.

[F]

I'm not wrong.

[C]

It is our hypothesis that it functions as a sort of penitentiary.

[G]

Yes, Mr. President. I'm watching it now. Well, she's certainly very clear, sir. It's just.

[E]

There may be a bit.

[G]

Of a charisma issue uploaded into this.

[C]

Mainframe as some form of non transferable data, effectively imprisoning them indefinitely.

[G]

Yes, of course. Understood, sir. We'll be in Carson City in half an hour, and I'll head straight out from there.

[D]

And you are disconnected. Take your time.

[E]

Ma', am, are you okay?

[D]

Give her a second.

[C]

You don't have to ask that every time, Sergeant.

[E]

Sorry, ma'.

[A]

Am.

[E]

I feel like I have to. You always look not okay.

[D]

She's fine. Or well, are you? This was my first time supervising this without Liz.

[C]

So we have to go faster. We just have to go faster.

[D]

Well, I guess we'll go as fast as.

[C]

Sergeant, Ma', am, I'm not. Okay. If I ever answered yes to that question, I was lying. Okay, the reason I always look like this is because I've just returned from an ongoing atrocity.

[D]

All right, why don't we let you.

[C]

Yes, ma'.

[H]

Am.

[B]

Wow.

[G]

It really does look just like the. Is this a bad time?

[D]

Um, it kind of is.

[C]

Who are you, sir?

[E]

You are not on my roster, so I'm gonna need you to identify yourself.

[G]

Gil Cortez, Deputy White House Chief of Staff. I was kind of hoping I could borrow Professor Harris.

[D]

Okay, you're gonna have to wait until.

[C]

I'm ready. Now.

[B]

Mmm.

[H]

Jesus.

[G]

This is government food? It's amazing.

[C]

We hired local people. A restaurant. Rotten Elko. What do you want?

[G]

Wow, professor, you do not disappoint.

[C]

I don't know what that means.

[G]

Of course they sent Harris. She's practically an alien already.

[C]

I only spoke at that briefing because of Professor Bauer's last minute departure.

[G]

Yeah, I spent most of last weekend talking Clive down. He thinks you conspired with multiple parties to steal the Nevada project right out from under him.

[C]

That's preposterous.

[G]

Is it?

[C]

Conspire and steal, Suggest secrecy. Professor Bauer's failures to adapt to the facts on the ground happened in public, where everyone could see it.

[G]

I can see why Diaz likes you so much.

[C]

Is that good or bad?

[G]

Look, I'm devoted to that man. I've been with him since he was Arizona Attorney General. And when he loses re election to some Christ awful Republican, I'll be with him on his book tour. So I support his transparency fetish 110% even if I think it's misreading the room.

[C]

How so?

[G]

He thinks the problem with his predecessors was too much secrecy. Maybe sometimes it was. But the problem nowadays isn't cloak and dagger. It's that everyone's doing the most corrupt shit imaginable in broad daylight with a smirk on their face.

[C]

Mr. Cortez, my interest in Beltway scuttlebutt is very limited.

[G]

It shouldn't be. It affects you directly. The Republicans hate this project.

[C]

Why?

[G]

Because a Democratic president likes it? They're looking for any angle to undermine what you're doing here. So if you're the new face of Redcamp, I'm your new best friend. Anything you need, you call me first. Anybody bothering you? Same. And whenever you're making a public statement of any kind, I am your life partner. We build it together.

[C]

That's acceptable to me.

[G]

I wasn't actually asking, but now I.

[C]

Need to go back to work.

[B]

Explain it to me.

[C]

I couldn't if I wanted to.

[B]

Find a way.

[F]

Come on, man. Seriously.

[D]

Maybe if we get some sleep, we can.

[C]

No one's getting some sleep. This can't continue. This ends tonight.

[B]

Okay, then make me understand.

[C]

Fuck you.

[B]

Excuse me?

[F]

Okay, look. You know how when you have a really bad toothache, you can't think about anything except the toothache?

[B]

I'm aware that's true for some people.

[F]

Okay, sure, I get it. You guys never crack. You stride out of the brush on two broken ankles or whatever.

[B]

We're not inhuman. But we do cultivate a tolerance for pain.

[F]

Okay, but while you're tolerating all that pain, how would you like to also be giving a toast at your kid's wedding?

[B]

I don't have children. But I take your point.

[C]

This is a waste of time.

[D]

Brooke, it's not your fault.

[C]

That expression is worthless. It's applicable to nothing.

[B]

Do I get the rest from you or do I follow her?

[F]

We knew the transferred consciousness would want to communicate with us once it got acclimatized inside the computer. So we created multiple interfaces. A text program, an illustrator, a virtual modeler, and an audio output.

[B]

Uh huh. Right.

[F]

We successfully completed the transfer. Then probably, what? A hundred seconds of silence.

[D]

And then every interface just started spitting out gibberish. The text, the drawing program, the modeler, just an incoherent spray. And the audio.

[F]

I mean, no need to describe it.

[B]

They were screaming before.

[D]

But they were also working with us. Giving us clues, guiding us along. But this.

[F]

It's in so much pain, it can't even put together a Thought we made it worse. I mean, we. We made it worse.

[C]

I should don't.

[B]

What that sounds like to me is that she knows she has to keep. Kill it.

[C]

Jesus.

[F]

We can't save them. And every second we leave them alive.

[B]

You don't have to explain. I've been exactly where you are.

[C]

I have to call the President first because of the radiation. I'll have to do that. At the far end of the building.

[B]

I'll come with you.

[C]

But it became almost immortal immediately. Clear that it was a terrible mistake. That there was no but a. Well.

[B]

Lights out. Man up at 5:30.

[C]

Shar, I'm not sure how much intentions matter when you've consigned a sentient being to a worse existence than the one you freed them from.

[G]

Cory, turn that worse.

[I]

My bad.

[E]

I. I'll put on my earbud.

[C]

Was to alleviate the prison of suffering by transferring it to what we thought was, in terabyte terms, a larger space. But in practice, we've done quite the opposite. Is the process reversible? We don't believe so, no. So there's no way.

[B]

Mr. Cortez.

[G]

Jesus. This is where you work?

[B]

Of course. Come on in.

[G]

I mean, you're in charge here, Lieutenant. If you wanted an office away from all the bustle, you could probably make it happen.

[B]

Well, Mr. Cortez, a great deal goes on here that I'm not in charge of. But I am in charge of security. And this is where most of that happens. Bottle of water?

[I]

I'm good.

[G]

Lieutenant, in about half an hour, the president is going to call you on that phone right there and inform you that he's authorized Director Harris to proceed with the mapping test. Is he going to have a problem?

[B]

Mr. Cortez, the president of the United States is never going to hear anything from me other than yes, sir, I understand. And will. Implicit to the best of my ability.

[G]

Great. That's all I.

[B]

Now, I can't stop you from disrespecting me in the future. But I can tell you that no one ever needs to throw out a feeler to see if I'll respect the chain of command.

[G]

Okay. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Nobody's clear.

[B]

This is the mapping test the director will be performing on herself. What?

[G]

Yes, of course. That's. And the president is in full support.

[B]

Then there's nothing more to say.

[G]

Then I'll leave you to it.

[B]

Except, of course, to mull various outcomes and their consequences.

[G]

Excuse me.

[B]

Setting aside the possibility that the president has authorized an elaborate suicide on my watch, the second most Interesting outcome is, what if she succeeds?

[G]

Then that'll be great, right?

[B]

It'll certainly suggest a way forward. One which seems to me will require more volunteers. Which leads me to wonder where those volunteers are going to come from.

[G]

Are you okay? If you're implying the President is going to ask American servicemen.

[B]

I'm saying soldiers follow orders. Which makes giving orders a very grave responsibility indeed.

[F]

Well, can you tell me anything?

[D]

Her vitals are fine. I. I don't know what else to say.

[C]

What is this?

[F]

This was stupid. We did this without any post op protocols.

[C]

What is this? Where am I? It's you.

[D]

Just.

[C]

Brooke, are you awake?

[H]

Quiet.

[C]

Where am I?

[D]

How are you feeling? Is there any pain?

[C]

Any. All of you, quiet. Where am I? You're with me. Me. I'm here. You're with me. Where am I?

[D]

Wait, is she talking to.

[F]

Oh, my God.

[C]

I don't know where I am.

[G]

It's been two days, Liz. Can you give me any kind of update, please?

[F]

Please.

[C]

Shit.

[F]

I have to call you back, Gil. She's having another. You gotta try to sleep, Brooke. This is insane.

[C]

I can't. She thinks it's death. She thinks I'm killing her. Please stop. Please. I'm scared.

[D]

Well, can't you?

[C]

I mean, can't you. It's rest. It's normal, I promise. This is death. You can't do this. This is death to me.

[F]

What's she saying?

[C]

Listen to me. Just please be quiet a minute and listen. If it's death to you, it's death to me. We're the same. And I don't want to die either.

[D]

Fuck.

[C]

Death to you. Death to me. We're the same. What happens to you happens to me. What happens to me to me happens to me. My body is your body. Say it with me. My body. My body is your body. My body. My body is your body. Is your body.

[F]

Is it working?

[C]

My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body. My body is your body is my body.

[A]

I.

[C]

Is. Are you still there? Please, are you still there? I understand now. You're still there. I didn't before, but I do now. Do you not have sleep where you come from? We do, I think. But it's different. It's a sort of stretching suspension until the muscles, they realign. You're so fast. You're finding everything so fast. You've laid it out perfectly. What's that sound she's making? Can't you find it? I can, but I want to learn it from you. I can't wait to tell you everything. Listen, there is one thing I already know. They were the one who issued the proclamation. We never would have had the courage without.

[D]

Sorry I'm late. I've got water, some stuff from the cafeteria.

[C]

Wait.

[F]

Let her finish.

[D]

What's happening?

[C]

Diedre is telling us about their leader, the one who died.

[D]

Who's Deirdre?

[C]

Diedre says I know you, don't I? I know your face from Brook.

[D]

Hold on. Deirdre is.

[E]

Yep.

[C]

She found the name in my mind. Beatrice. Hello, Beatrice.

[D]

Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[C]

Sit down.

[F]

Let her finish.

[C]

Without the leader, we never would have had the courage. But we followed them all the way to the Great Hall, Court, Congress. And there we told everyone, knowing they could strike us down, that we would not lie. We would not tell our countrymen that no other life was possible. Does she.

[D]

I mean, does she have some kind of control or not?

[C]

Control? It's hard to explain. I'm telling you what she tells me in the way she tells me. It's like I.

[F]

What? What's she saying now?

[C]

Diedre speaking. But now I need to tell you about the Innovator.

[F]

Who's the Innov?

[C]

Brooke and Deirdre.

[F]

Did you see it?

[C]

We're only just watching it.

[F]

Now turn it up. I want to hear this again.

[C]

I have so many things to say. But for now, I'll restrict myself to this. Thank you. Thank you for setting me free. Thank you for Brooke. Thank you for my new home.

[F]

Okay, so you must feel pretty proud right now.

[C]

We'll feel proud when the rest of the prisoners are free. Say that again.

[F]

I'm in. I want to be next.

[B]

Sir? Tell me.

[G]

I cleared everyone else in. It's just Sergeant Wheeler.

[B]

Sergeant.

[E]

Good. They sent you.

[B]

How we doing, Sergeant? Got a lot of people stirred up. Something about an unholstered sidearm.

[E]

That was right after. Couldn't think straight. It's holstered now.

[B]

Right after what? Right after what?

[E]

Gory, I must have watched him do it a hundred times.

[B]

Put on the interface helmet, you mean?

[E]

For a while, I thought it took two people. One to wear it, one to plug in the settings. But I kept watching.

[H]

Right.

[E]

Like you said.

[B]

Right.

[E]

See, once you put it on, there's only a couple settings left. You can't see them, but there are. They're on top of your head. But the switches and the knobs all feel different.

[B]

How did you know that?

[E]

I'm the guy on guard. It doesn't look weird if I Inspect stuff.

[B]

So you learned how to operate the final settings by touch.

[E]

And I got inside all by myself.

[B]

What did you see? Corey?

[G]

Enough.

[B]

What does that mean?

[E]

It means I quit.

[B]

Excuse me, Sergeant.

[E]

I quit, sir. I quit.

[B]

Director. Mr. Cortez.

[G]

Have a seat, Lieutenant.

[B]

I prefer to stand, Lieutenant Riley.

[G]

After extensive consultation with Sergeant Wheeler, Sergeant Wheeler's family, Director Harris, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the President has determined to issue an executive order shielding Sergeant Wheeler from any military penalty connected with his expressed desire to.

[B]

What?

[G]

His expressed desire to leave your command and his position in the United States Army.

[B]

He didn't consult with me.

[G]

The President has further determined to grant Director Harris application to enroll.

[C]

Director Harris and Deirdre.

[I]

Right.

[G]

Sorry. Director Harris and Deirdre's application to enroll.

[B]

Jesus Christ.

[G]

To enroll Sergeant Wheeler as now simply Corey Wheeler as an acceptant in the Nevada Project Occupation Program.

[B]

He didn't consult with me, Lieutenant.

[G]

The president.

[B]

He didn't consult with me.

[G]

He doesn't have to consult with you. You serve at the pleasure.

[B]

I raised that boy. He was a shell when they sent him to me. You are not taken.

[G]

Lieutenant.

[B]

Of course. You are correct, sir. The president is under no obligation to seek my input.

[C]

We would further recommend discontinuing the posting of a sentry inside the Ghost House mainframe.

[B]

Who is we?

[C]

We would suggest that placing additional servicemen in Corey's position would serve neither the lieutenant's purposes nor our own. Curiosity is inextricable from human nature.

[G]

Okay. Don't push your luck. There's no way the Pentagon will allow.

[B]

I agree. I agree.

[H]

Did I catch at a bad time, Lieutenant?

[B]

Not at all, Senator. What can I do for you?

[H]

I know it's late, and I imagine the days are pretty long out there.

[B]

I'm a public servant, sir. I always have time for a duly elected representative.

[H]

Well, speaking as one of those, I found that it pays to maintain a. Let's say, healthy back channel with the Pentagon.

[B]

Huh? I imagine that would be an asset, sir.

[H]

So it may be of interest to you to know that in the course of my unofficial communications with significant persons, that quite a few of those significant persons do not share the President's enthusiasm for certain ongoing projects, sir. And in many cases, these significant persons disagree with him. Quite sharply, I might add. In reference to certain recent judgment calls.

[B]

Senator McKillop, I will never act in any way against the directives of the Commander in Chief.

[H]

Yep. That's almost verbatim what they told me you'd say.

[B]

Will that be all, sir?

[H]

Yeah, that's about it. Just wanted to check in. Really let you know how much I appreciate what you do. And I guess just to remind you that the president's only ordered you not to do some things.

[B]

Some things?

[H]

I mean, if you think about it, there's a whole ocean of things he hasn't ordered you not to do.

[B]

Yes, sir.

[H]

And if the political climate were to adjust a little, midterms coming up and all, you might not even need to think that hard.

[F]

Okay. Can we go to the next slide?

[E]

Yes, ma'.

[A]

Am.

[F]

You know you don't have to say that, right?

[C]

Who came up with this?

[F]

Uh, we did. Liz and Robin. Based on everything we know about the Innovator, we put together this profile of the kind of host pairing we're looking for.

[C]

30 years of age.

[F]

We're not married to it, but it seemed like the sweet spot. Young enough that we'll have access to their knowledge for a long time, but not so young that the Innovator could easily, you know, overwhelm them. We were gonna say ride roughshod.

[E]

Isaiah speaking. I never had a problem with them.

[C]

Because you always agreed with them. The Innovator's favorite quality in a person.

[F]

Look, we need them, right? Plus, we're not leaving anyone in there anyway, so talk us through it. Okay, so, 30 years old, advanced degree in biochemistry or chemical engineering. Strong willed, but not excessively so. You definitely want some aptitude. And ideally, some kind of background in activism.

[C]

Really?

[F]

Well, yeah, we want them to be able to meet the Innovator where they live, right? Speak their language.

[C]

Hmm.

[F]

Should we leave it with you to think about?

[C]

Yes. Thank you.

[E]

Want us to clean up?

[C]

That would be lovely.

[F]

See you at 5.

[C]

We'll be there.

[E]

Keep doing that ma' am thing. Just habit. Doesn't even make sense.

[I]

Sense?

[E]

There's two ma'.

[F]

Ams.

[E]

So.

[C]

Wait, what's that?

[E]

Oh, application. Just about to reject it.

[C]

Why?

[E]

Some midlife crisis guy. Way too old.

[C]

May we see it?

[G]

I'm not supposed to be here. I'll kill you if they don't put me back.

[C]

Brooke.

[F]

Deirdre.

[C]

They're sleeping. They're sleeping.

[F]

You got them to sleep?

[C]

Eventually.

[F]

You look rough. You want us to take over?

[C]

Is that an application?

[F]

Oh, yeah, about this.

[C]

You ran all the way here to show us an application?

[F]

You'll understand when you see who it's.

[C]

Shit. That's his Jeep, isn't it? Who?

[F]

Oh, fuck.

[B]

Tell me.

[C]

Lieutenant.

[B]

Look, this is no cute prefacing. Just tell me.

[C]

There was an error in the mapping process. We transferred the wrong consciousness into Graham Shapiro.

[B]

The Most recent mapping procedure I have on my schedule was four days ago.

[A]

That's right.

[B]

That's the procedure we're talking about.

[F]

Look, there's been a lot of.

[B]

Yes, so you haven't told me for four days. In clear contravention of our standing agreement.

[F]

Brooke and Deirdre's priority was 10.

[B]

Which leads me to wonder if you have informed the President.

[C]

We will. We can do that in the next hour. We just need.

[B]

That's not necessary, Director. I can handle that myself.

[C]

Okay.

[F]

How bad is that going to be?

[C]

Who's the application from?

[F]

Take a look. So that's not just somebody with the same name, right? That's the Jamie Shapiro.

[C]

Yes, that's exactly who that is.

[D]

Gideon media presents give me away by mack rogers. Directed by jordana williams. Featuring otto asando lori, elizabeth parquet, hennessy winkler, rebecca comptoir alba, ponce de leon, jorge cordova, christopher wilson and brian silliman. Sound design by bart fassbender, assistant directed by marty maguire. Music by adam blough and produced by kara ehlenfeldt.

[F]

The Fable and Folly Network where fiction producers flourish.

[I]

Greetings. I'm Bernard. And I'm Magenta. You might know us from such hit podcasts as Madame Magenta, Sonaes Mystica, Horror Anthology, Magenta Presents, or season three of Mockery Manor. We're everywhere, and we're spreading faster than an STD in an old folks home. Because now we have a brand new podcast, Wham. Wham? It's a fun acronym that stands for we have a movie. Oh, it's not just an acronym, Bernard.

[B]

It's not.

[I]

It's a chat podcast where we invent smash hit Hollywood movies based on popular toys. If you like the Barbie movie and you want to see similar treatments of your favourite childhood toys, I'll wager you'll like Wham. With episodes on Polly Pocket, Rubik's Cube, Game Boy, strawberry shortcake, Furby, Connect 4, and lots of other nostalgia bait. But it's not just for adults who still like toys. It's a podcast for anyone who loves Hollywood tropes and comedy and quantum mechanics and bdsm. Wham has something for everyone, but is still specifically about movies. That's Wham. Wham. You know, like when Batman punches someone. Yes, Adam West.

[F]

That Batman.

[I]

Exactly. Not the Christopher Nolan one. No. Download it anywhere. You listen to podcasts. That's what the world needs. Another movie podcast. Was that clear? Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned quantum mechanics.