Episode 133 - Liberties

## Liberties

A black background with a light grey dotted lined border. Within the border a stack of paper is depicted in white, the top of which containing visible writing depicted in white. The lines "it is the duty of the Botulus Corporation", "all measures available", "emergency measure lockdown", and "until such a time as the threat is resolved" are all underlined in red, the last of which thrice so and with a small red cross drawn next to it. As well as these lines the words "every" on the second line of text and "must" on the eleventh are also underlined in red. Below this image but still within the border the words "133.LIBERTIES" are depicted in white.

### Guests

 Harlan Guthrie as Dashiell Spade
 Daisy Guevara as Melanie Flores

Clementine watches the water, Polly confronts his fears, and Moth sees a chance for freedom. The theme of tonight's episode is Liberties.

> ***Content warnings**: Animal death (Bert mentioned), Suicidal themes, Violence, Kidnapping and abduction, Death + Injury, Blood, Birds, Emotional Manipulation, Drowning, Body horror*
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## Intro - Walking Away

Nikignik speaks to the Dreamers of a Sleeper, remembering the creation of life on earth in their dreams, but it was the story of their planet, not the story of them. Their story was being told they could change anything if they set their mind to it, and so they stood in parks and protested. They'd fought so they could say they had fought, and they'd tried, but when the rains fell, they abandoned their protests and walked north, thinking about the death of democracy and justice as they sank into the water.

Nikignik stands on the thinly frozen over lurch lake as Clementine Maidstone sat beside it and wept.

## Story 1 - Democracy and Justice

Clementine Maidstone sits at the water's edge of Lurch Lake crying, briefly considering drowning herself. She looks to the lake to see the Democracy and Justice begin to break through the thin layer of ice covering the lake, falling back in surprise. She greets them, confused, but they seemingly ignore her, Democracy beginning to deliver a prophecy, saying "*Democracy cannot succeed… the end is near. Nearer now. Nearer now. Choose wisely."* Justice continuing "*The moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends toward justice* ... *A blind snake, a rolling river. She will not be shaped by any hand.*" Clementine tells them she was sorry if she'd disturbed them, and Justice asks her why she wept as the end had not arrived yet. Clementine tells them that Riot Maidstone had talked about them, asking if they remembered her. Justice doesn't answer her, instead restating that the end had not arrived yet, and Clementine tells her that it had for some people, as she didn't think her sister was coming back (see Episode 132 - Crossings). Clementine continues to sob as the two skeletons watch her, thinking to herself that the Botulus Corporation had taught her things, but not how to lose someone who was a part of her.

Democracy tells her that ends were beginnings and beginnings were ends, it ended and ended and ended and was never over. Justice tells him that he waisted words on Clementine, because she was not a Sleeper and thus would not listen or understand what they told her until it was upon her. The skeletons continue mumbling to each other as Clemetine notices the approach of Valerie Maidstone, who hugs her and tells her that she was sorry for what she'd said, she just hoped Rio came back somehow. Valerie tells her that she [Valerie] should have gone after her and said goodbye (see Episode 106 - Departures). Clementine cries with her mother as Democracy and Justice descend below the lake again, thinking to herself that she felt as if everyone would soon also be dead, and she might not care if they did.

### Interlude 1 - Pursuit of Happiness

Nikignik lists life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, telling the Dreamers that one out of three wasn't bad. Life was a lost cause, there were three means by which it might persist, being the charges in Mort’s backpack, in the hands of Diggory Graves, and in the Cradle at the heart of Downing Hill. Liberty was an illusion. they had liberty, liberty to live in a wasted world, and what kind of liberty was this at all? The pursuit of happiness, however, they were still free to try. You had precious little, but you had each other. The future was uncertain, but there were gentle joys to be found in the present. What else was left to pursue?

## Story 2 - Summons

Polly vorpals himself and Yaretzi to the edge of the Northmost Hallowoods (see Episode 132 - Crossings). He goes to press onward, but Yaretzi tells him to wait, asking where they were. Polly explains the layers around the Heart of Marolmar to her using the metaphor of the teocalli (see Yaretzi), and that they were getting close to the top. She tells him that something was wrong with this place, and he tells her that she'd be hard pressed to find something that was right with it, that of they were lucky they'd find Mort in only a few pieced rather than a hundred. She begins to walk out onto the ice, telling him that they'd find Mort, and everything would be fine. He tells her she wasn't being realistic, telling her that had she not made him wait so long to go after Mort (see Episode 105 - Dependencies) they could have avoided the current scenario. She tells him that they could have avoided it had Polly not let Mort leave.

He accuses her of blaming him, but she tells him that she didn't blame anyone, stating that she couldn't keep being a wise word to calm him because she was also scared, they were meant to be co-managers, but she was doing all the managing. Polly gets frustrated at this, sarcastically telling her that if she thought she was over worked than he was sorry for burdening her with his worries about the mortal danger they were in every day, telling her that he was managing just fine before she came along to kill him (see Episode 11 - Hearts). She tells him that everything he panicked she was the first he lashed out at, that he forgot she'd sacrificed just as much as he had. She tells him that she had Mort's scent, she could find him, and if he would like to fight for his family instead of running for once then he could find them a way to get home, before running off into the tundra.

### Marketing - Page 768

Lady Ethel Mallory interrupts Nikignik's broadcast wither her 'marketing segment'. She tells the Dreamers that she'd made herself a temporary home atop a electrical tower before she is also interrupted off by Melanie Flores. She apologises to the listeners for not doing more Dreamstreams, telling them that she was busy now that she was in charge of Botco's entire marketing division, marketing a side comment that she'd discontinued the marketing drones (see Episode 60 - Flies). She welcomes Dashiell Spade as a special guest, asking if he'd been comfortable. He tells her that he'd been kept in a cell, but he'd never give up the Stonemaids' secrets. She tells him that she wanted to talk to him about the Stonemaids framing, requesting the Stonemaid point of view to be told, and he explains to her that they were considered Botco's property by contract, and because of that they were not allowed to leave. She tells him that this was a misunderstanding, telling him that their complaints were valid, they were valued as people by Botco, and that she wished to settle things once and for all.

### Story 2, Continued - Summons

Polly walked alone, unwilling to vorpal to Yaretzi to continue to conversation of apologise. He understood that where he was all directions were warped to lead North, so he was in a straight line with Mort, if there was still a Mort to find. As Yaretzi had said, he was afraid, a constant burden that had its claws in him. He knew that it was only a fragile bargain that had brough his freedom (see Episode 89 - Terminations), and no one could pick holes in a contract like Tiff. And Mort disappearing was a worst fear come true for him, making him wonder how many others of his unspoken dreads were waiting to manifest. He thinks to himself that he had time to either worry, or act, and in that moment, he chose to act. He had every good thing he'd ever dreamt of, if he could only stay in the present enough to treasure it. He finds himself running across the ice without a hint of dignity, calling Yaretzi's name, and to Mort to not worry as they were coming for him.

At this point, the song that plays when the episode transitions between segments plays, but the Story continues as the sky was torn open and three metal caskets fall before Polly. He halts, recognising them as Auditors, looking up to see Lucy hovering in the gate way. Polly greets him, and Lucy tells him that he'd been summoned before the court of the industry of souls, and to not waist him time by resisting. Polly attempts to fight back, but his physical form is swiftly destroyed by the Auditors and captured, while Lucy stood off to the side and watched calmly. They leave, only Polly's smouldering umbrella left lying on the ice, and no more demons in the artic circle.

### Interlude 2 - Finding Freedoms

Nikignik asks the Dreamers what freedom was, not for the Dreamers kind, but for Indescribables. When they were as long-lived as a universe, they must be bound by a purpose, he understood this. Purpose reminded them that they existed and had reason to keep existing. Perhaps this was why they held their own names and titles with such reverence. He was not some shapeless watcher; he was All Who Dream, One Hundred Eyes In The Dark. He was once Who Watches the Gates, and then he watched from Marolmar’s side instead. But what was he now, what was he, if the heart was stopped.

## Story 3 - Uproar in Box Venus

Moth Scarberry experiences the uproar amongst the Stonemaids after Dashiell Spade's conversation with Melanie Flores in Marketing - Page 768. Frances Duckworth tells the announcements to shut up, silencing the dreaming notifications in the Stonemaid network (see Episode 119 - Winters). She tells Moth and Bill Scarberry that it was bird crap, and all for show, they'd never do it. Moth tells her that maybe Dashiell would be able to compromise, that all of their protesting had convinced Botco to change their minds. Bill tells moth that this wasn't going to happen, Botco wasn't going to suddenly change after decades.

Moth comments that moth supposed things wouldn't change that much anyway, explain to Bill and Frances that the fight of the Stonemaids was important but it wasn't for them, because neither Bill nor Frances could leave, being dependent on Botco to keep them alive. Francess disagrees with this, but Bill tells moth that moth could go. Moth attempts to tell him that moth had to stay with them to look after them, if Moth left moth would never forgive mothself. Francess tells Moth that she could take care of Bill, moth had moth's whole life outside of the Dreaming box, so if moth got moth's chance to escape moth had to take it and not look back. Bill agrees with this, telling Moth to write him a postcard from the sunny outside if things went the way they hoped.

## Outro - Liberties

Nikignik waxes poetics about liberty, quoting give me liberty or give me death. He tells the Dreamers that this was a choice easier said than made, and rarely by those who stood on such a precipice. He asks how much freedom was worth giving up before it was no longer worth fighting for it? How was liberty to prosper if those who would challenge the world for it drop like flies? It took only a moment’s dedication to become a martyr, but it took a lifetime of fortitude to guarantee liberty. He was not sure yet which he pursued - death, or freedom. Perhaps for him they were the same.

## Trivia

* The contents of page 768 as seen in the episode art are:

> "*While The Happy Dreaming Family Member is under the care of the botulus corporation it is in the duty of the botulus corporation to take every precaution related to the safety of the happy dreaming family member and their protection from hazards while under the stewardship of the botulus corporation, including but not limited to the function of the Dreaming visor, dreaming pod, dreaming box, other dreamtech, transport between inside dreaming boxes by vehicle, automated drone, or internal organisation mechanisms, internal passage via exit halls or emergency chutes, the quality and purification of processed food produces, dreaming garden nutritious waste recycling, liquids and medications, hygiene, intubation or catheterization, and full body hydrobath dream submersion available for premium members. The botulus corporation must protect its happy dreaming family members from external threats related to their safety and wellbeing including but not limited to radiation, carcinogens, floods, fires, hurricanes, lighting damage, pests, nuclear winter, any terrestrial or alien life, and militarised anti-company efforts. The botulus corporation reserves the right to utilis all measures available in mitigation of these threats, including high power laser technology, automated security drones and weaponry, internal boards appointed by the company for the purpose of problem isolation and review, and emergency measure lockdown or evacuation states to be enforced until such a time as the threat has resolved.*"
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