{"id":152,"date":"2012-03-25T18:05:19","date_gmt":"2012-03-25T18:05:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/?page_id=152"},"modified":"2012-03-25T18:05:19","modified_gmt":"2012-03-25T18:05:19","slug":"the-ba-gua-etuis-box-episode-5","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/the-ba-gua-etuis-box-episode-5\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ba Gua Etuis Box &#8211; Episode 5"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"166\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" src=\"http:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F40912052&#038;show_artwork=true\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The Ba Gua Etuis Box<br \/>\nEpisode 5<\/p>\n<p>Charles Davis<br \/>\nINTRO\/COMMERCIAL<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in.  The sound of Chen breathing alone in a room).<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: (from behind a door) Hey!  You bastards!  No!  Hey!  (Chen\u2019s breathing get\u2019s heavier and faster as he hears them coming close).<\/p>\n<p>Martin: (from behind door) Contain him.<\/p>\n<p>Peter: (from behind door) Yes.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  (from behind door) Let me go!  (sound of the door swinging open, and Martin, Peter and Barbara walking in while dragging Vicki).  No!  Who are you?  Let me go!  Stop!  (sound of them forcing him into a chair next to Chen).<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Help me strap him down. (sound of Vicki fighting them while they strap him to the chair).  There, he\u2019s secure.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: Answer me!  Who are you?!<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  Silence him.  (sound of a gag being put in Vicki\u2019s mouth.  Vicki mumbles in the background while gagged).<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Jesus Martin, it\u2019s bad enough you forcing me and Chen into this, you\u2019re kidnapping police officers too!<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  Unavoidable.  He was injected with the modulator.<\/p>\n<p>Peter: Why was he injected?  Hugo was to be the one injected.<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  Human exchange\u2026 failure again.  Hugo deteriorated.  Stabbed the police officer with the modulator thinking it was a weapon\u2026 He was\u2026 trying to protect the project\u2026 I had just arrived at Hugo\u2019s home when the police knocked on the door.  I came to check on the progress of the modulator\u2026 Hugo had completely deteriorated when I had arrived.  I was unable to talk him down, nor get him to agree to return with me in order to fix him.<\/p>\n<p>Peter: What happened to Hugo?<\/p>\n<p>Martin: \u2026Shot to death by another police officer.<\/p>\n<p>Peter: No\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: What do you mean another police officer?  Why were their cops there in the first place?!<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  Unknown.  Perhaps Hugo\u2019s deterioration caused the police to become alerted\u2026 I don\u2019t know\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Peter: What of ADAM?<\/p>\n<p>Martin: Unknown.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Martin, you have to return this cop!  You have to! Are you kidding?!  The police are already on to us, their going to be looking for him!<\/p>\n<p>Martin: ENOUGH!  (moment of silence).  Not ideal circumstances, but we must continue.  The exchange must be perfected.  The police officer has been injected with the modifier, therefore he must be the one that participates.  Draw his blood for preliminary testing.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: Fine\u2026 (sound of Barbara walking over to Vicki).  I\u2019m not going to hurt you.  I\u2019m just going to draw a little bit of blood.  Just stay still.  (sound of Barbara drawing Vicki\u2019s blood and Vicki mumbling from behind the gag while she does it).<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  I do not understand.  Hugo should not have deteriorated.  His body appeared to be slowly accepting the exchange.<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  Current hypothesis is that the preparatory narcotic caused rapid deterioration.<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  I fore-warned about the use of the preparatory narcotic on humans that had gone through a successful exchange.<\/p>\n<p>Martin: Negative, Hugo\u2019s exchange was not yet successful.  Agreed upon hypothesis was that while Hugo would not be going through cranial exchange experiments, the components of the preparatory narcotic may allow for more efficient acceptance of the exchange\u2026. Hypothesis was incorrect\u2026 Conversation terminated\u2026 Barabara, supply blood sample.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: (sound of her walking over to Martin) Here.<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  I will return (sound of Martin walking away).<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: (pause) Can\u2019t you see?  Can\u2019t you see what he\u2019s becoming?<\/p>\n<p>Peter: \u2026Your confiding in Otto Vainikainen is most likely what lead to the police coming for Hugo.  I should have not allowed you to do that.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Homer was murdered Peter!  He was murdered!  He was my brother and he made you who you are!  And his murderer is still out there walking around some where!  Just because Martin doesn\u2019t have the emotional capacity to deal with that doesn\u2019t mean you have to let it go!  You want to be so human?  This is how you do it!  Human\u2019s fine and punish the ones who hurt the people they care about.  But maybe Homer wasn\u2019t so important to you after all?<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  \u2026Homer was more important to me than you could ever know\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Then why aren\u2019t you out there trying to find Homer\u2019s killer?  You seem so busy being Martin\u2019s errand boy that you\u2019re forgetting what you\u2019re priorities should be!<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  I must help Martin.  The exchange is vital.  You forget that this is Homer\u2019s work.  This is what he wanted us to carry on.  This was his gift to all sentient beings.  His killer will be found after we have perfected the exchange.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Exchange my ass!  The exchange will never work!  You, Martin and Homer were flukes!  And you know it!  You\u2019re wasting you\u2019re time.  Martin is obsessed!  Can\u2019t you see it?  He\u2019s kidnapping police officers now!  For god sakes these insane experiments he\u2019s been doing? This new modulator? Those machines at BIT?  This cranial exchange test?  These maniacs he\u2019s letting into the exchange now?  You know none of this will work.<\/p>\n<p>Peter:  The nature of science is to test.  We learn from failure.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Don\u2019t give me that science crap!  This is as far from science as it gets and you know it!  You\u2019re kidnapping priests for god sakes!  You say you\u2019re so inspired by the Ba Gua?  Then tell me where in Feng Shui does it include kidnapping teachers?<\/p>\n<p>Peter: \u2026The Ba Gua peb\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Barbara:  Oh yes, of course, Martin\u2019s precious Ba Gua Pebble initiative!  Like that will ever be possible to complete!  Peter\u2026 Peter\u2026  Look at yourself.  Look at what you\u2019ve become for all of this?  You\u2019re hurting innocent people\u2026 Is this what you thought self awareness was going to be like? \u2026Was this you\u2019re plan for changing the world?<\/p>\n<p>Peter: \u2026I\u2026It\u2026 Silence.  Martin is approaching.<\/p>\n<p>Martin: (sound of him walking back into the room) Tests have been completed, he is ready for amputation.  (sound of Martin walking over to where Vicki is tied up and stopping.  Sound of him removing Vicki\u2019s gag).<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  Blaagh!  What the hell do you want?<\/p>\n<p>Martin: \u2026 Decide on an extremity.  I recommend you choose one that is non-vital to you\u2019re daily operations.<br \/>\nVicki: Fine, I choose my middle finger.  Here, let me show it to you.<\/p>\n<p>Martin: Affirmative (sound of Martin grabbing Vicki\u2019s hand).<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  Hey! Let go of my hand!  (sound of Martin injecting something into Vicki\u2019s hand) Ow!  Hey!  What was that?  What did you just inject me with?<\/p>\n<p>Martin:  An anesthetic.  Please remain still.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: What?!  Why?!  (sound of Martin starting up his laser saw) Hey!  No!  (sound of Martin cutting off Vicki\u2019s middle finger) AAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!<\/p>\n<p>Martin: Completed. (sound of Martin letting go of Martin\u2019s hand and turning off his laser saw.  Vicki is breathing heavily and in pain.  Sound of Martin walking over to Barbara and Peter).  Barbara, tend to his hand.<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: (walking over to Vicki)  Here, I\u2019m just going to put a cauterizing agent on the wound\u2026 Don\u2019t worry, what you were injected with early will be out of our system soon.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: (in pain) You\u2026 You\u2019re Barbara Diya\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Martin: We must now find an appropriate node to exchange with.<\/p>\n<p>Peter: There will be nodes at the exchange.  We will find an appropriate one.<\/p>\n<p>Martin: Barbara, come.  We must preserve the finger and continue preparations for the exchange.<\/p>\n<p>(sound of Martin and Peter leaving the room)<\/p>\n<p>Barbara: (whispering to Vicki) Yes, I am.  Help me!  (sound of her walking out of the room quickly and closing the door behind her).<\/p>\n<p>Chen: (after a moment) Are you ok?<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: \u2026They cut off my finger\u2026 (heavy breathing for a second)\u2026 He used a laser saw\u2026 That bastard is the killer\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Chen: Are you bleeding a lot?<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: \u2026No, the stuff she put on me sealed the cut up\u2026 Hey who are you?<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  My name is Chen.  Chen Yap.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: \u2026 Chen Yap?&#8230; You were kidnapped after all\u2026 Your wife is looking for you.<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  She is?<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  Yeah.  I\u2019m a cop.  She came in to report you were missing.  The police aren\u2019t working on it yet, but she\u2019s hired a private detective in the meantime\u2026 Hey are you doing ok?  You\u2019ve been here a while.<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Yeah\u2026 I\u2019m\u2026 I\u2019m fine.  Apart from keeping me tied up, they\u2019ve been treating me fine.  Feeding me, giving me water, letting me go to the bathroom.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: What do they want?  What are they doing?<\/p>\n<p>Chen: I don\u2019t know.  They keep talking about this \u2018exchange\u2019 thing and experiments.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  What do they want with you then?<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  They keep asking me about Feng Shui.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  What?  Like arranging you\u2019re furniture.<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  No, they\u2019re like asking me stuff about Ba Gua.  I teach Feng Shui.  They kidnapped me the other night after class and have been asking me all of these weird questions about the Ba Gua and this like science stuff.  They\u2019re crazy\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  Two of them are nodes\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Yeah\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  That can\u2019t be possible.  No way\u2026 Their talking and moving around like their humans.  They even seem to be\u2026 um\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Emotional?<\/p>\n<p>Vicki: Yeah\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Yeah\u2026 I\u2019ve noticed that too. At first I thought they were just nodes working for that lady but\u2026 after being here for a while I think it\u2019s the other way around.  They seem to be the ones in control.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  Ok\u2026 Chen, don\u2019t worry.  You\u2019re going to see you\u2019re wife again.  We\u2019re getting out of there.  I\u2019ve just got to find something to cut these ropes with.<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Good luck doing that while you\u2019re tied to a chair.<\/p>\n<p>Vicki:  (sighs) yeah, good point\u2026 Where are we anyway?<\/p>\n<p>Chen:  Some kind of a basement I guess.<br \/>\nVicki: Great\u2026<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades out)<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in.  At the graveyard.  Patricia is digging while the others watch).<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: (Grunting as she digs) Grrr\u2026. Gah\u2026 Gnuhh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Are you sure you don\u2019t want any help with that?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: (as she digs) Hell no\u2026 Gnaaah\u2026 I live for this kind of stuff.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Use you\u2019re legs more, you\u2019re going to hurt your back.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Gah\u2026 thanks\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  This situation is freaking me out\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Yeah\u2026  I can\u2019t say grave excavation is a standard practice at the station\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: (As she digs) Gahh\u2026 Oh come one you guys\u2026 Gnah\u2026 I know you didn\u2019t join the force to be hanging out in a cemetery at midnight desecrating a grave\u2026 Grrr\u2026 But then again \u2026 Aack\u2026 you didn\u2019t NOT join the force to do it either.  (sound of Patricia hitting something wooden with the shovel) Oh\u2026 I think we\u2019ve reached the coffin.  Ok  (sound of her getting out of the grave) Gah\u2026 You\u2019re guys turn.  I did the digging, now you guys dust it off and pull it out.  (sound of Patricia walking away).<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Alright boys, get in there and get me those bones.  (sound of 2 police officers jumping into the grave and starting to excavate).  You joining in Otto?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Sorry Howard, just bought these shoes, I\u2019ll watch from a distance with Patricia (sound of Otto walking over to Patricia.  Silence for a moment, sounds of them pulling up the coffin in the background).  What was that?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  That was digging\u2026  Come on, how many times can I say I\u2019ve dug up a grave?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Patricia, you once rigged up an entire system involving a remote control toy car, fly paper and an elaborate spider web of strings so that you didn\u2019t have to get up from you\u2019re desk to throw your recyclables in the bin.  You\u2019re not exactly queen of the Ms. Physical Labor pageant.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  I know, but if it wasn\u2019t for that damn Betty Benchlifter that crown would have been mine last year!<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Patricia\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: \u2026What do you want me to say?  My boyfriend\u2019s been kidnapped, I had a breakdown in front of you, which you know is not my normal MO, and our lives seem to keep getting put in imminent danger solely based on the fact that we decided to work in the crime industry\u2026 I just needed to get some stuff out of my muscles\u2026 out of my head\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto: (after a moment) Why did you get into this stuff by the way?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Oh what?  You don\u2019t remember how we met now?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Oh, I remember what happened.  You\u2019ve just never told me why it happened.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  (trying to avoid the question) Wow, look at the moon\u2026 (Otto grunts) (sighs) \u2026Look\u2026 I\u2019m not exactly a\u2026 standard issue human being.  I guess I needed to get involved with this stuff because in a weird way criminals are people I can relate to.  I don\u2019t mean the crime part\u2026 I mean the part about being the square peg trying to fit in the circular hole.  When I see the people who do these things\u2026 most of the time I see people who were just trying to follow the yellow brick road like they were supposed to but ended up getting lost and snapped once they realized they were out there all alone\u2026  The facades we keep are very comforting things\u2026But when you are the person who wasn\u2019t born with the ability to keep a straight face, either you can try to overcompensate by frowning or smiling in an attempt to convince yourself that you\u2019re still an acceptable human being\u2026 or you can accept the fact that you\u2019re from mars and let you\u2019re face hang crooked like it was meant to.  I like to think of myself as the later.  But when I see all of these criminals that fall into the former\u2026 I don\u2019t know\u2026 I see something that I could have very easily become.  And all I want to do is to help them.  Whether that means exposing them for what they are or locking them up so that they can\u2019t hurt others or themselves anymore\u2026 I guess that\u2019s why I got into this.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  \u2026Huh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  (after a moment) \u2026 I don\u2019t feel 100% that way anymore though\u2026 The being all alone part at least.  I\u2019ve got you now\u2026 and Zippy god bless her. I don\u2019t know\u2026 it\u2019s good to know there are other aliens down here too\u2026 Why did you get into this?<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Me? \u2026 I don\u2019t know\u2026 After I graduated college I needed a job so I got this one.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: (laughing) You asshole.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  (calling over to them from a distance) Hey we got the coffin up, are you going to come take a look at this or what?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  (calling back) Coming dear.  (To Patricia) Alright, let\u2019s go take a look.  (sound of them walking over to rest of the group who are standing by the coffin).<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Well?  What do you think?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Well let\u2019s see.  Hmmmm.  Hmmm\u2026 Yep, it\u2019s a coffin.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Huh?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  I believe vhat Otto ist saying ist zat you need to open zhe coffin before ve can begin zhe investigation.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Oh, right\u2026Ok boys, get this damn thing open.<\/p>\n<p>(Sound of the boys slowly cracking the coffin open with crowbars.  They slowly creak the lid open and then suddenly throw it open with a thud)<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: (startled) Jesus Christ Zippy!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Sorry!  I\u2019m sorry guys!   I psyched myself out and I thought it was going to be scarier then it actually was. Sorry.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Jeeeez\u2026 Alright what are we looking at here Hanz?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Hmmm  (walking up to inspect the body) Vell, based on the accumulation of puss unt liquefied skin on his face, he appears to be decomposing at a normal rate. (Zippy makes a grossed out humming noise).<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Unbutton his jacket and shirt, so we can look at his chest.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Ya.  (sound of Hanz unbuttoning Homer\u2019s jacket and shirt and pulling it to the side) Ah, it appears ze pazhologist must have sewn up his chest cavity after zhe autopsy.  Just let me take out my scalpel and I vill cut zhe chest back open.  (sound of Hanz taking out his scalpel and cutting into Homer).<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (Feeling like she\u2019s going to puke) Oh man\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Bates, you really need to invite me to your cocktail parties more often.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: (sarcastically) Ha ha ha.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Zhere, ze chest cavity is open.  Now let\u2019s see vhat ve have here. (sound of him clicking on a flashlight).  Hmmm.  Yes, minus zhe heart, unt some damage to ze left lung, all of the other innards appear to be intact.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: What about electrical parts.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Oh!  Ya!  I see it.  Right here!  Unt here!  It is viring of some kind, unt a piece of a broken light bulb of zome kind.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Light bulb?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  Ya\u2026 I zhink\u2026 A very little light bulb.  Unt it looks like zhere are some pieces of broken circuitry in here as vell.  Hmmm, unt looking around some more zhis is very interesting.  All of zhe electrical parts are attached to his veins, arteries unt aorta.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  So what does that mean.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  It means zhat zhis is zhe evidence you vhere looking for.  Based on my assessment, I do not believe zhat Homer Diya\u2019s heart vas cut out at all.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: What?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  Based on zhe evidence and information ve now have available, it is my hypothesis zhat zhis \u2018exchange\u2019 vhich keeps being talked about is in fact a process vhere a human unt a node exchange zhere body parts, as previously suggested by Patricia.  Vhat I now believe happened is zhat Homer had his heart exchanged vith a node.  On top of zhis, I believe zhat Hugo Bernard vas also part of zhis exchange unt traded parts vith ADAM zhe autopsy node.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: That makes sense.  If he was part of this exchange, and so was Homer, they probably knew each other.  So when Homer ended up on Hugo\u2019s table, Hugo probably freaked and tried to hide the evidence of the exchange that was still in Homer\u2019s body\u2026     <\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Why would someone kill Homer in the first place though?<\/p>\n<p>Otto: They probably wanted his heart\u2026 or at least what replaced his heart\u2026It must have been something powerful.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  It was probably the man who kidnapped Vicki\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  He would be the prime suspect now\u2026 All of this must be coming from BIT too\u2026 That man who kidnapped Vicki must have been affiliated somehow with BIT\u2026  Ok folks, here\u2019s my thought on this whole thing now.  Homer Diya and his colleagues at BIT somehow managed to develop a method where they could make an improved human by implanting node parts into themselves.  They then spread the message out in secret to other friendly members of the scientific community, such as our friend Hugo Bernard.<\/p>\n<p> Homer was part of this exchange. However, whatever part he had implanted into him must have gave him, like, ultra super powers.  Enough power that someone else who was part of this \u2018exchange\u2019 project became jealous.  That jealous man then murdered Homer Diya and took his new heart for his own.  Our current assumption is that the murderer is the man who kidnapped Vicki, who appeared to have tons of robotic equipment installed on him.  So what we are looking for here, is a pumped up murdering robo super man who is still on the loose\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Great\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  But why hide it?<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Huh?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: I mean, I get why you would want to be implanted with robot parts, as it would give you like\u2026 super powers or something\u2026 but why hide it?  If the guys at BIT had managed to make this breakthrough and figure out how to build machines that could improve humans by implanting robotic parts in them, then why not share it with the world?  Why keep it secret?<\/p>\n<p>Otto: \u2026 Well\u2026 maybe it was a malicious endeavor\u2026 maybe they had grand plans of sinister world domination by force, so they wanted to keep it secret except for people they could trust\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Yeah!  And then that would explain where all of the crime has been coming from in the city over the last 2 years!  It could all be stemming from this ring of super criminals they\u2019re making.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  What about the drugs at BIT and at Hugo Bernard\u2019s house then?  How do they fit in?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yeah, and what about them implanting their body parts into active nodes?  How does that help anything?  <\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Unt vhy do zhey apparently need parts from living active nodes?  vhy not just take random robotic circuitry unt parts zhat are not already inside an active node unt just install it into yourself zhat way?  It vould make zhe whole process much easier I would zhink\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: And what about the pebbles in the etuis box?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Wow, tough crowd.  Ok, it may not be a perfect theory, but it makes the most logical sense at the moment\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Doesn\u2019t make that much logical sense\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto: (sighs)\u2026 Fine, it doesn\u2019t make any sense\u2026 But for now can we all at least agree that Homer had his heart exchanged with a robot and that there is an organized community stemming from BIT that is trying to do more of these exchanges?<\/p>\n<p>Everyone: Fine\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Can we also agree that this is a bad thing too?  And that they appear to be killing people slash making people go crazy because of this exchange and that we should be putting a stop to it?  And that the killer and the person who kidnapped Vicki, and possibly also Barbara is most likely tied to this exchange group?<\/p>\n<p>Everyone: Yes.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Good.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  \u2026So the plan stays the same then\u2026 We need to find out where the \u2018exchange\u2019 is operating out of and I need to seduce Matt Peters and get him to bring me to the \u2018exchange\u2019 group.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Looks like it.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: So wait, when you think about it though, if they are exchanging parts, then that means that there would now be a node walking around with Homer Diya\u2019s heart in him right?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Ya.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  So we should try to find that node then.  Maybe we could wire it up to tell us what happened.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Right\u2026 Zippy, can you take a look at the left over robotic parts inside of Homer and see if you can assesses what kind of device he had installed into him?  That would help to lead us back to the node.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Are you serious?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Come on, don\u2019t think of it as a slimy dead body.  Just think of it as the inside of a computer\u2026 a slimy pussy computer.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: \u2026Thanks\u2026 (sound of Zippy walking up to the body).  <\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  Ya, come right here Zippy, I vill shine zhe flashlight for you.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (trying to keep from throwing up)&#8230;K\u2026 Oh god\u2026 Uh\u2026 it looks like.. Ugh\u2026 like\u2026. Unh&#8230; the light bulb thing is a particle decompressor \u2026 ack\u2026 and circuits looks like a cut up piece of a\u2026 Oh jeez\u2026 a motion transistor\u2026 blargh\u2026 *cough*\u2026 and the wires \u2026 uh\u2026 eeek\u2026 they look like they could be part of a dynamic movement equation card\u2026. Yuck\u2026 .ugh\u2026 that\u2019s all\u2026 that\u2019s all I see\u2026 Can I leave now?<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Ya, good vork Zippy.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: K\u2026 (sound of Zippy walking away).<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Ok, so it\u2019s a bunch of wires and crap, what does that tell us?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (after taking a deep breath to shake off the nausea) Well\u2026 if I had to put it all together, it looks like it was the central movement controller processor, which are installed inside MARTIN\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: What\u2019s a MARTIN?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: A Multi-Aviation-Reconnaissance- and-Tactical-Information-Node.  Their used for aeronautics.  Basically, they\u2019ll ride on like military airplanes, and they\u2019re designed to move super quickly and assesses situations very fast, so if the airplane is damaged, they can quickly jump out of the side door and attach to the outside of the plane, where they can move around, find the damage and relay information back to the crew inside on what the situation is.  They have small multi-tools on their arms too so that if the damage is minor enough they can just repair it right there.  They can also act as a secondary viewer camera unit incase the first camera viewer unit fails by attaching themselves to the top of the airplane and relaying information back to the pilot on what they are seeing.  They\u2019re pretty standard nodes in the military.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  What does the movement controller processor do in a MARTIN?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Well, it\u2019s basically the most important unit.  It controls all of their motion and stability, which is important since they do a lot of jumping, grabbing and moving in their jobs.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  I could see why someone would want it then.  Being able to move like that.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  That\u2019s how the guy at Hugo Bernard\u2019s house was moving too.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Guys\u2026 You don\u2019t think a MARTIN could be the one doing all of this right?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Why do you think that?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Well, the fast movement like the man who kidnapped Vicki.  And having the multi-tool on the arm, which very well could have had a laser saw as part of it, which was the murder weapon used on Homer Diya\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Yeah\u2026 Maybe it wasn\u2019t someone trying to steal Homer\u2019s new heart, maybe it was a node trying to take back something that was taken from it\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: It\u2019s impossible.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Why?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Because you\u2019re making an assumption about revenge.  Node\u2019s don\u2019t have emotions, or any sort of self awareness to them.  I mean, all a node really is, is a very advanced hammer.  It can\u2019t think for itself or beyond what its programming is.  To think that a node would go after someone to get something back for the sake of revenge requires that the node had emotions and personal motivations.  One of the central tenants of robotics is that it\u2019s impossible for nodes to have emotions or self awareness.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Well, look, just because the scientists and philosophers think that if a node were to have self awareness it would go crazy and kill us all, doesn\u2019t mean that someone couldn\u2019t have just programmed it into one in secret.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  No, you don\u2019t understand. It\u2019s not possible.  All that talk that the robotics community puts out about safety protocols in nodes to prevent them from gaining self awareness is crap.  They don\u2019t have any safety protocols in them because they don\u2019t need them.  It\u2019s literally against the known laws of physics for a robot to either gain self awareness or have it programmed into them.  <\/p>\n<p>Look, the way that electricity movement works, at least when it comes to information management, is that you start a charge at a certain point and have it lead to an endpoint, which then triggers another charge or reaction.  Computer operations occur through a series of these charges going off and setting off other charges in a certain order or combination.  In order for these charges to work though, they need a path to travel done,  AKA a metal wire.<\/p>\n<p>In order for a robot to have self awareness AKA being able to openly determine its own destiny, what would need to occur is that when these charges are set off, it would have to end up someplace else other than the designated end point and it would have to get there by the will of the property which the charge is moving inside of\u2026 which is the robot.  But this is impossible for two reasons.  <\/p>\n<p>One, is that the charge is dictated by the wire it exists on.  In order for the charge to not reach its end point, it would have to somehow jump off its wire, which is not possible, and even if it was, once the charge was off the wire it would have no where to go and just die in mid air.  <\/p>\n<p>Two, from a stand point of will power to get the charge to change location, the robot would need to change the physics of the property that governs the charge, which is gravity.  Which is also impossible.<\/p>\n<p>Either way, it would be impossible for the robot to spontaneously gain self awareness because of these laws, nor would it be possible to program self awareness in as programming follows the same laws as well.<\/p>\n<p>Think of it this way, a node being able to have self awareness would be like deciding that you want to re-route a train, so you develop a plan to try and push the moving train off of its rails, where there are no other rails for it to go to, by standing on the ground and giving it shove with you\u2019re bare hands as it comes speeding by you.  Not only can you not do it, but even if you managed to, the train would just crash.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  But don\u2019t humans run on the same ideas though?  I thought there were charges and stuff that go through humans in our brains?  And we have free will and self awareness.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  Zhe mystery of zhe animal.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: What?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  The mystery of the animal.  He\u2019s talking about a common phrase that\u2019s used in science.  Yes, you are correct, humans, and all other living animals have bodies that live off these same charge systems.  But, the mystery of the animal is that even though animals run off of a charge system like nodes, they still have self awareness.  Nobody knows why.  However, a lot of philosophy people debate that we actually don\u2019t really have self awareness or free will and that everything humans do is just part of an elaborately complex charge system that is good at mimicking the concept of self awareness and free will.  They say that\u2019s why things like psychology and sociology can create measurable and repeatable results\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Bates, my head hurts and I\u2019m bored.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Alright, you guys, I don\u2019t care what techno-pyscho-babble this stuff entails.  All I know is that this group of eggheads are causing problems in my city and now they need to go down.  Boys, wrap up the body and put it in Hanz\u2019s lab.  Otto, see if you can track down anything about the military finding a MARTIN with a human heart inside of him.  Everyone else come on, we have to get ready for Zippy\u2019s date.  (Zippy let\u2019s out a nervous hum).<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades out)<\/p>\n<p>COMMERCIAL<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in)<\/p>\n<p>(Police station during the day time.  Sound of police officers doing their work in the background.  Sound of Zippy walking in the front door and up to the desk).<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Hey, I\u2019m here.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Yeah, they\u2019re in the back getting all of the wiring ready\u2026 Hey, what\u2019s up with your face?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  What do you mean?  Nothing\u2019s wrong with my face\u2026 I think.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  You\u2019re mouth and you\u2019re eyes look kind of weird.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Oh\u2026 I put on makeup.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  That\u2019s makeup?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yeah\u2026 I mean, you know\u2026 Gotta seduce a guy and everything.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Oh honey\u2026  Come with me.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Huh?<\/p>\n<p>(sound of Maggie grabbing Zippy\u2019s hand and them walking off.  Sound of Otto walking up)<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Oh, Zippy you\u2019re here\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  (as they\u2019re walking away) She\u2019ll catch up with you in a little bit.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Uh\u2026 Ok.  (sound of Otto walking down the hallway, opening a door and walking in.  Closing the door behind him).  Well, Zippy just got in, but Maggie stole her for\u2026er\u2026something.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: (sarcastic) Oh, great.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Hey, Maggie\u2019s a good officer and a good woman.  I\u2019m sure she\u2019s just helping to\u2026 prep Zippy for tonight.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: (surprised at Bates reaction) Oh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Ok fine, ze tracking unt audio transmitter bug is up unt running.  It vill fit inside Zippy\u2019s earing unt be completely unknown to everyone else in zhe room.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Unless they\u2019ve figured out a way to detect bugs.  Remember these are BIT scientists we are talking about. Scientists who have figured out how to implant robotic parts into other humans.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Well, that\u2019s why we\u2019ll be waiting in a van outside of the where she is led to, so that we can run in and save her in case the transmission is cut.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Yeah\u2026well\u2026just make sure you bring you\u2019re good officers with you for back up.  You know, the ones with a reaction time faster than a sloth.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Yeah, yeah.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  You\u2019re grumpy.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Sorry\u2026 I\u2019m having 2nd thoughts about this.  We\u2019ve already had one person kidnapped, we don\u2019t want to loose a 2nd one.  Maybe it would be better if I did this, and you could just put a thing in my ear that she could talk into when he asks me robotic questions.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Ni, ni, ni, Patricia.  Life ist never zhat simple unfortunately.   You of all people should know zhat human interaction ist a tricky endeavor, vhere zhe tempo and speed of a conversation is of zhe utmost importance.  If he asks you a question unt you then take several seconds to respond to him as Zippy is explaining to you vhat the answer should be, zhe entire cover vill be blown.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  I just\u2026 don\u2019t want her to get hurt.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz: Oh my dear sweet Patricia.  You really must have more faith in you\u2019re friends.  Zippy knows zhe risks of vhat she is getting into.  Unt, besides, you are not zhe only person who cares for Vicki.  In case you hadn\u2019t noticed, Zippy has become quite fond of him herself recently.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  She\u2019s gay Hanz.<\/p>\n<p>Hanz:  So vhat?  You don\u2019t need to vant to screw someone in order to care about zhem.  It has been my experience in life zhat zhe people who inspire you are the ones you form zhe strongest bonds tovards, regardless of romantic sexy time.  Zhat\u2019s vhy we do zhis whole dance of society in zhe first place right?  To inspire each ozher to be better people.  Who are you to say zhat Zippy ist above putting her life at risk for a friend?<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Man, what is up with you guys?  Can\u2019t you ever just have a normal conversation without getting so freaking deep?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Their European Howard, it\u2019s their way.<\/p>\n<p>(Howard sighs.  Sound fades out.)<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in.  In the woman\u2019s bathroom at the police station.  Sound of Maggie is putting on Zippy\u2019s makeup)<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: \u2026And there we go.  Ok hold still, I\u2019m going to do the eye liner now.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Ok\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Anyway, as I was saying, so I told him I thought it was too soon to get a joint bank account and that my friend Patricia had said that if I did get a joint bank account with him that I\u2019d basically just be throwing myself at him like I\u2019m this helpless girl who can\u2019t take care of her own crap you know?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Uh huh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: And so he started freaking out, and was insulted and like \u201chow could you think that about me, blah blah blah, I\u2019ve always been supportive of you, blah blah blah.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Uh huh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  And so I told him if he couldn\u2019t deal with it, then we should just break up right here and there, because I\u2019m not going to be anyone subservient housewife, you know?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Uh\u2026 I guess\u2026 I mean, don\u2019t you think that seems a little harsh?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  What do you mean?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Well\u2026 it doesn\u2019t sound like his goal was to make you subservient.  It sounds to me like maybe he was just trying to break new ground in your relationship.  You know, take the next step?  I mean\u2026 I\u2019m sure you want you\u2019re relationship to evolve into something beyond what it currently is right?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Hmm\u2026 I never thought of that.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yeah\u2026 (silence for a moment while Maggie puts on Zippy\u2019s makeup).  \u2026Do you ever feel like you\u2019re putting on a mask when you put on makeup?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Well, that\u2019s the point right?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Well, I mean like, not a physical mask, like an emotional mask.  I don\u2019t know\u2026 all of this stuff we talked about at the graveyard\u2026 about why nodes can\u2019t have self awareness\u2026 I was just thinking about it a lot last night when I got back home\u2026 Like\u2026 We have so many concerns and laws and debates and safety procedures, and on and on, to make sure we keep nodes as true to their nature as is possible.  It\u2019s been decided that it would be bad for them to have emotions because then they could become deceptive which would be dangerous to humans, it\u2019s been decided that they can\u2019t delete their memories either because that would also be deceptive and dangerous to humans.<\/p>\n<p>But then, when we humans go out to dinner dates you\u2019re supposed put on makeup to hide you\u2019re actual face, and then you\u2019re supposed to smile and laugh at things you\u2019re date says even if it isn\u2019t funny or interesting.  Isn\u2019t that also deceptive behavior?  But we\u2019re supposed to do it right?  Which\u2026 I guess I don\u2019t have a problem with really\u2026 the fact that we\u2019re supposed to be deceptive to each other at certain times.  I don\u2019t think it really hurts anything.  I know I\u2019d prefer someone lying to me rather than hurting my feelings\u2026 But what I don\u2019t get is why we all jump to the conclusion that if nodes were able to have emotions like we have, and were able to deceive us, that it would be any worse than the ways we lie to each other every day.  You know?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Nope, honey, I don\u2019t know at all.  I think you\u2019re over thinking this whole thing.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Oh\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Look\u2026 I get it. You\u2019re a thinking girl.  That\u2019s cool.  That\u2019s who you are.  But sometimes you can\u2019t think yourself out of situations.  Nor should you.  I have the feeling if you could, you\u2019d think your bones out of your skin.  \u2026Sometimes, particularly in situations involving life or death, you need to stop thinking and just be the hottest piece of ass you can be.  (sound of her putting makeup away).  There you\u2019re done.  Take a look.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (sound of her swiveling her chair).  Oh\u2026 wow\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Otto: (sound of a knock on the door) (through the door) Hey, Hanz has the bug all set up and Tubby is ready to go.  Are you guys ready?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Yep, this one\u2019s ready for action.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Ha\u2026<\/p>\n<p>(sound fades out).<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in.  They are driving in the van up to the club.  There is heavy metal playing on the radio.)<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Maggie, why are we listening to this stuff in the van?<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Because Patricia likes it.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Aww, Patricia, you made a buddy.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Yeah\u2026 I guess I did\u2026<\/p>\n<p>(Tubby makes a beeping noise).<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Is he alright?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Yeah, he just sees that I\u2019m anxious, so he thinks that there is something wrong with me.  I programmed him to react if I\u2019m injured.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Hey come on, there\u2019s nothing to be anxious about.  Just go in and talk him up that\u2019s all there is to it.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Well\u2026 that\u2019s not all there is to it&#8230; I mean you\u2019re going to have to show off the goods a little too.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  The goods?<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Yeah you know, the goods.  Gotta show him the goods.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Yeah, definitely got to show him the goods if this is going to work.  Definitely show him the goods.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: I don\u2019t think I have any good to show!<\/p>\n<p>Maggie:  Oh Zippy please, you\u2019ve got more goods than anyone in the world.  Just remember, don\u2019t only rely on the body goods, only thugs and whores rely exclusively on the body goods, you gotta show him the brain goods too.<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  Yeah, that\u2019s what I\u2019m saying, you gotta talk to him, because your goods are in your head, so you show him you\u2019re goods by talking to him.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: So are you saying I don\u2019t have any body goods then?<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Uh\u2026 What?&#8230; No, you\u2019ve got the body goods, you just have an expertise in the brain goods.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Oh Zippy, don\u2019t listen to him, you\u2019ve got body goods, you\u2019ve got plenty of body goods.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Yeah, you\u2019ve got the body goods coming out of your ears.  You got nothing to worry about with the body goods.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Yeah, Otto, stop being so sexist, she\u2019s got lots of body goods.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: What? I\u2019m not being sexist, I\u2019m just saying that of the goods that Zippy possesses, it\u2019s her brain goods that\u2019s going to win the day here.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Yeah, but then you\u2019re saying that she should just ignore her body goods, because god forbid a woman has both brain goods and body goods at the same time.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: I didn\u2019t say that, that\u2019s not what I said!<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Well, to be fair guys, while Zippy does have the body goods, she has had more practice with her brain goods, so while I don\u2019t think we should disqualify the power of her body goods, I think Otto makes a point that it\u2019s the brain goods she should really show off, with the body goods as a last resort.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia and Maggie: Asshole!<\/p>\n<p>Bates: No!  I don\u2019 mean last resort, I mean as a backup.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Oh, so what, she can\u2019t do it all with her brain goods now?  Always gotta make sure that the body goods are there for you to fall back on, because god knows you woman can\u2019t rely on her brain goods.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Wait, wait, wait!  Ok\u2026 Guys\u2026 Can we at least agree that while Zippy has absolutely stunning and amazing body goods that any and all woman should be jealous of, she\u2019s had more years of training in perfecting the use of her brain goods, therefore it\u2019s the brain goods that she should be wielding as the central weapon in this scenario, but she also needs to make sure she\u2019s pushing the not as well trained body goods too in order to get the full effect possible, which shouldn\u2019t be hard for her to do even without the training given the fact that her body goods are so good naturally?<\/p>\n<p>(Silence for a moment)<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: Yeah\u2026 I think I\u2019m ok with that.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia and Bates: Yeah, that\u2019s ok.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Ok, so Zippy, make sure to push both you\u2019re body and brain goods as much as you can.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (overwhelmed) \u2026Ok\u2026<\/p>\n<p>(Tubby makes a beeping noise).<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Is he going to be doing that in the club?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: If he thinks I\u2019m in danger he will.<\/p>\n<p>Bates: Maybe it\u2019s not a good idea to bring the node with you.  He could blow the cover.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: No, the node needs to go.  If she\u2019s going to convince this guy that she\u2019s into nodes, she needs to have the proof with her.  Besides, I like the fact that there will be a little chunk of metal backup in the club with her.<\/p>\n<p>Otto: She\u2019s going to be fine Patricia.  Zippy, don\u2019t worry, we\u2019ll be listening in right here in the van outside the club the whole time.  If anything goes wrong, just scream and we\u2019ll be there in a minute.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yeah, I know.  I\u2019m not worried.  It\u2019s not the danger that\u2019s making me nervous.  I\u2019m just\u2026 it\u2019s been a while since I\u2019ve seduced a guy\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Bates: What do you mean \u2018a while?\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Hey!  What did we talk about?  Dagger eyes woman!  Dagger eyes!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Right!<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Besides, we don\u2019t even know if he\u2019s going to show up tonight.  We may have scared him off after BIT.  This may be a dead end.  Just hang in there and relax.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Gotchya.<\/p>\n<p>Maggie: (sound of the van coming to a stop) We\u2019re here.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Oh man, oh man, oh man.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Right (sound of her opening the van door) Ok sister, push up those tits and pout them lips, its show time!  (sound of her shoving Zippy out of the van).<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Ack!  Hey!  No shoving!  (sound of Tubby coming out of the van after her).<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Don\u2019t worry, we\u2019ll be right here.  You know what to do.  Good luck! (sound of van door closing and driving off.  Sound of background street traffic).<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (breathes in) Ok, dagger eyes, dagger eyes. (sound of her walking up to the door.  Sound of music coming from inside the club).  Excuse me\u2026 I mean\u2026 (trying to sound tough) Hey!  Let us in.<\/p>\n<p>Bouncer:  Ok, fine, go in.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Oh?  Just like that?<\/p>\n<p>Bouncer: Yeah, of course.  This isn\u2019t a restricted club or anything.  Just don\u2019t cause any trouble.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Oh\u2026 (still trying to sound tough) That\u2019s right.  (sound of her walking into the club.  The club music is now on top of her (but not drowning)) \u2026Alright\u2026 Now I just need to find a 5 foot 10 man in his mid to late 30\u2019s who has short brown hair and glasses\u2026 Hmmm.  (sound of her walking around)\u2026 No\u2026Nope\u2026 Uh uh.<\/p>\n<p>Man at the club: Hey you want to dance baby?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Oh, sorry I can\u2019t, my number is unlisted. (sound of her walking away)<\/p>\n<p>Man at the club: (off in the distance as she walks away) Huh?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (laughing at her comment) Hehe\u2026 Hmm\u2026 still no sign of him.  (Sound of her stopping walking. Sighs) I guess he\u2019s not here right now\u2026 Guess I\u2019ll have a seat at the bar. (sound of her walking up to the bar and having a seat).<\/p>\n<p>Bar tender: Hi can I help you?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Yeah, I\u2019ll have a cosmo.<\/p>\n<p>Bar tender: Coming right up.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Thanks\u2026 Well Tubby, it looks like we might be here for a while, so we might as well enjoy ourselves while we\u2019re on the government\u2019s expense report.  (Tubby makes an affirmative beep).<\/p>\n<p>Bar tender: Here you go. (sound of him putting drink onto the bar).<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Thanks!  (sound of Zippy grabbing the drink and starting to drink from it).<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades out)<\/p>\n<p>COMMERCIAL<\/p>\n<p>(Sound fades in.  Still in the club.  You can hear Zippy snoring, having passed out from drinking too much while the music plays in the background).<\/p>\n<p>Matt: Hey\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (waking up startled) Psha!  What?  Huh?  Who are you?  Where am I?<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  Oh, hey, sorry.  I didn\u2019t mean to startle you there.  I just saw you\u2019re node so I wanted to talk to you.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (hiccups and burps) Ok\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  I\u2019m Matt.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Matt?  (realizing she\u2019s talking to him) Oh!&#8230; Hi, I\u2019m Zippy, and this is my node Tubby.<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  Wow\u2026 so that node sure is great.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Yeah, he\u2019s great! (hiccups) I built him myself.<\/p>\n<p>Matt: You built him?  But you\u2019re a girl\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (drunken) hahahahahah!!  Yeah! I am! (hiccups)<\/p>\n<p>Matt: Wow\u2026 that\u2019s great\u2026 that\u2019s real great.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Yeah\u2026 (awkward silence for a moment.)  So\u2026 Uh\u2026 do you know anything about nodes? (hiccups)<\/p>\n<p>Matt: Yeah!  I do\u2026 I know a lot about nodes.  I really like robots.  And girls\u2026 Oh man\u2026 I really like girls who know robots.  They have to know robots for me to like them.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Well\u2026 theeeen you\u2019ll really like me!  (hiccups) Because I\u2019m all sorts of a girl and I know all sorts of things about robots!  Do you want to hang out some time?  I really would like to talk to you more about nodes.<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  Tell me about you\u2019re robot..<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Tubby?<\/p>\n<p>Matt: (very aggressive)  TELL ME!  TELL ME!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  (slightly scared) Umm\u2026 Well, he\u2019s a storage and security node with an advance artificial intelligence program that lets him mimic emotions as a way of communicating threat levels.  I wrote the code myself using a Hingam\u2019s trajectory obscuring equation combined with a Nautilus bi-core processor protocol.  I also completely built the security and lock features myself, using left over parts from various ALAN and ELIZA tactical cores.<\/p>\n<p>Matt: (happy) \u2026 Wow!  You really do know nodes!  You\u2019re not lying at all!  (Zippy hiccups) \u2026 Do you want? Do you want to know a secret?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (cautious) Sure?<\/p>\n<p>Matt: (voice getting whispery raspy) I build nodes.  I build them at BIT\u2026 But I do other things to them\u2026 things only really smart people can do\u2026 I cut them up and I move their parts around.  And now they\u2019ve agreed to cut me up and move my parts around.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (Scared) \u2026Wow\u2026 That\u2019s really cool.<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  I want to\u2026 I need too\u2026 I need people to come with me to help me exchange.  I need nodes and people.  And I like girls.  I really like girls and I want girls who know nodes to come with me.  Do you want to come with me?  Do you want to come with me to help me exchange?  You and Tubby?<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yes, we would really like to come with you.  Where is it at?<\/p>\n<p>Matt:  Oooooh\u2026 It\u2019s secret\u2026 But I\u2019ll show you.  You\u2019ll just follow me.  Meet me at the alley way between Grossman and Nottingham Street.  Its tomorrow night!  Meet me there tomorrow night at 7pm.  Then we can go to the exchange together, and, and you\u2019ll be my date.  We\u2019ll be dating.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Ok Matt, that sounds great\u2026 I\u2019ll see you there and we\u2019ll go together like we\u2019re dating all three of us.<\/p>\n<p>Matt: (really happy) Ok!  Ok!  Ok!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (feigning happy) Yaay!  Oh, hey look at the time.  Matt, I\u2019m really sorry but I have to go, um, work on another node I\u2019m making.<\/p>\n<p>Matt: Oh, that\u2019s important.  That\u2019s really important. We need more nodes you know\u2026 We need more of them so that we can become better people\u2026 You should go work on that.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: Ok.  Hey, it was great seeing you Matt, I\u2019ll see you tomorrow night.  (whispering to Tubby) come on Tubby, let\u2019s get out of here! (sound of her drunkenly walking out of the club and out into the street with Tubby following her.  Sound of her walking down the street).  Ok, we\u2019re out on the street, where are you guys?  (Sound of the van pulling up and the door opening).<\/p>\n<p>Otto: Good work, get in!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (Sound of Zippy tripping as she tries to get in) Ack!<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Here let me help you (sound of Patricia grabbing Zippy and dragging her in.  Sound of Tubby getting in to.  Sound of van door closing behind them.  Sound of van driving off).  Man, you can\u2019t handle those fruity drinks.<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (hiccups) I like cosmos!<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Good work Zippy, good work!  He\u2019s going to lead us right to the exchange!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy:  Yeah!  He was creepy though!  Man!  (burps) no wonder he wanted a date so bad, what lady would pay attention to you if you act like that?!  What was his deal anyway?<\/p>\n<p>Otto:  It\u2019s probably the drugs.<\/p>\n<p>Bates:  Hanz is running more tests on the drugs we found to see if it can explain the behavior.<\/p>\n<p>Patricia:  Well, anyway, good job Zippy!  One night down!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (confident) Thanks!<\/p>\n<p>Patricia: Now we just have to figure out a way for you to survive tomorrow night when we throw you directly into the lions den!<\/p>\n<p>Zippy: (silence for a moment) Ah crap\u2026<br \/>\n(Sound fades out)<\/p>\n<p>OUTRO\/COMMERCIAL\/END CREDITS<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Ba Gua Etuis Box Episode 5 Charles Davis INTRO\/COMMERCIAL (Sound fades in. The sound of Chen breathing alone in a room). Vicki: (from behind a door) Hey! You bastards! No! Hey! (Chen\u2019s breathing get\u2019s heavier and faster as he &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/the-ba-gua-etuis-box-episode-5\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-152","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/152\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":154,"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/152\/revisions\/154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.scifiradiotheater.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}