Episode 69 - Angles

## Angles

A black background with a simple white border, the corners have arcs and degrees symbols drawn in them. Within the border two masculine presenting humanoid figures, one red one white, made from straight lines and angles abstractly put together, share a kiss. Bellow these two but still within the boarder the words "69.ANGLES" is written in white.

### Author

William A. Wellman

Violet takes matters into her own hands, the Countess investigates foul play, and Hector sets out. The theme of tonight’s episode is Angles.

***Content Warnings:** Animal death (Heidi as usual), Car Wrecks, Kidnapping and abduction, Death + Injury, Birds, Static (including sfx), Emotional Manipulation*

## Intro - All The Wrong Shapes

Nikignik talks to the Dreamers of someone who was all the wrong shapes, ill-fitted to life in a physical world, clumsy in their movements. They are neither symmetrical nor graceful, sensible nor aligned, and they crawl through space as a tesseract of form, recurving fractals bent into linear strings, alone in the universe. Or so they thought, but then they laid eyes on another. And they, too, were not arranged in neat patterns or whole or clean, but they are beautiful, nonetheless. They see no wrong in them, not symmetrical, but mirrored, and in their embrace, they find themself complete.

Nikignik stands beside the Grackle perching in an impossible space, somewhere above the rafters, it stares down at a woman (see Bern Keene), and she stared back.

## Story 1 - First Year Flashbacks

Violet Keene sits in her rocking chair next to the bed of Bern Keene after the events of Episode 67 - Silences. She hears Bern mutter "Stupid bird, shoo" (see The Grackle), and Violet exclaims at her wife being awake, but Bern does not open her eyes. Virgil Kane walks in carrying three cups of coffee and asks how Bern was. Violet tells him that she seemed to be pulling through and asks Virgil how things were looking outside after the Froglin attack (see Episode 67 - Silences), Virgil tells her that it wasn't that bad, just people were down, it’d take them one-two weeks to fix the wall. In the meantime, losing the outer garden is a hit to their food stock (see Episode 59 - Friends), they'd sent weapons off to the Fort Freedom (see Episode 61 - Protectors), and a lot of their fuel with The RV Gang (see Episode 52 - Memories), they weren't in good shape, and the Froglins probably knew it as well as they did. Violet asks how he was holding up, he tells her that he was okay, but it still gave him pause how weird everything had gotten, and it seemed like the people from Fort Freedom were alot more no nonsense. Violet asks if he thought Fort Freedom was actually going to bring the help it promised, and Virgil tells her that he couldn't say either way.

The warning bells ring, and begrudgingly the two go outside to see what was happening, and are mat by Russel McGowan and Al, who tell them that Big Mikey was on his way and approaching the Scoutpost, resulting in a mixture of emotions found their way through Violet, relief that it was not the Froglins, yet Big Mikey’s visits brought their own dangers (see Episode 3 - Books). She tanks them and gives the order to have the combat scouts at the ready. She opens to gates, and as expected find Big Mikey with his dogs standing amongst their ruined gardens. He asks her if they needed any dogs, and she tells him that they were going to need more than dogs.

### Interlude 1 - Dreams In The Mathematician's House

Nikignik tells the dreamers that there was nothing so full of witchcraft and mischief as geometry, some of the first to be known as witches were simply gifted mathematicians, who by equation and elaborate chalk diagram could find the weak points in reality, the conjunctions of its solid planes, and step through the corners opening up doors in the study of arcane science. These principals could be seen across the Hallowoods, in the doorways that do not open to their intended destinations, in those who seem to appear one moment and are gone the next, and even in the landscape, for the Shuddering Peaks are geographically improbable, as mountains cannot move, forests cannot stretch out across wetland and deep arctic ocean, and yet, with math, all things are possible.

## Story 2 - Vanished All Too Soon

The Countess sits in at Barb's desk, having gathered the cards he'd scattered in Episode 66 - Morals, and prepares to deal with his kidnaping (see Episode 66 - Morals). Dimes and The Quilt arrive shortly thereafter, she thanks them both for coming, but Dimes tells her that they should be chasing them instead of having meeting, and The Countess tells them that this was what they were there to discuss, raising one of her hands to slam the door shut and lock it. Dimes asks her what there was for them to 'discuss' their friend was in trouble, and The Countess tells them that she had a feeling that barb had gotten himself in trouble, and Barb was rarely alone in his schemes. The Quilt asks if she suspected one of them helped Barb, and she tells it that she did, and upon hearing this The Quilt immediately provides evidence for its innocence, causing The Countess to turn to Dimes, but Dimes accuses her of being the one caught up in Barb's business. The Countess asks if Dimes was calling her a liar, and she lunges from her seat, grabbing Dimes and pinning them to the wall. She tells them that they might not have any blood for her to drink (see Vampires) but she could still find a way to crack them, asking if they would like her to try, or were they going to be honest with her. Dimes confesses (see Episode 62 - Provisions), and she lets them go, thanking them for being forth coming before demanding to know what they had done.

Dimes tells her that they didn't know the full story, but they handled Barb's "Finances" (see Demons/Devils) they helped him save them, hide them from his employers (see The Industry). He'd come to them a few days ago and said that he had a new deposit: a trove from Polly to store (see Episode54 - Rodas), they didn’t know how long it had been at the Resting Place before they'd taken it for safekeeping, but they suppose Rick Rounds caught sight of it and followed the light (see Episode 56 - Thorns). The Countess asks why Barb had Polly's "currency", assuming that Barb had turned on Polly to make a profit. Dimes tells her that they didn't know how Barb had gotten Polly's soul fire, but he had seemed nervous as to what the countess might think, The Countess asks Dimes if they'd ever stopped to think that Barb might be doing something illicit, but they tell her that they'd trusted Barb, and also that they didn't appreciate her throwing them up against a wall like she had. She apologises, and The Quilt tells them that they should probably start trying to track down Barb.

### Marketing - Honing Your Pitch

Lady Ethel Mallory interrupts Nikignik's broadcast with her marketing segment, in this case she is addressing her marketing class, telling them that today they were going to be discussing their pitch. Too often she had seen young marketers charge into the world, shouting their message to the world "we have a great product" only to be met by silence. Cold outreach did the same. wanting to talk about their solutions when they had not heard the problems. Marketing was not a one-way shouting competition, but a gentle, sensual mutual exchange, listen to the needs of their target audience and doing what they must to please them. This is why they do not ask to *take,* but rather ask what they could give.

### Story 2, Continued - Vanished All Too Soon

The trio of The Countess, Dimes, and The Quilt are able to find Barb's convertible, which Rick used as a getaway vehicle, with no fuss. However, there is no Barb or Rick to be found, and Rick had long since torched the car and carved the message "DO NOT FOLLOW I WILL KILL HIM" into its hood. The Countess asks her companions what they made of this, and Dimes tells her that they weren't sure, did Rick mean "do not follow, I’m going to kill him and there’s no point"? But The Countess tells them she was pretty sure it meant "do not follow or I will kill him". The Quit says nothing, buts lifts a hand to point into the wetland, presumably in the direction that Barb was. Dimes asks if they thought Rick could kill Barb faster than they could help, and The Countess tells them that either Rick was extremely strong, or Barb wasn't playing all the tricks up his sleeve, investigating the car to find one of Barb's playing cards, the King of Spades, hidden inconspicuously between the seat cushions. Dimes asks her what she thought of it, and she tells them that she didn't know, that Barb might let harm come to anyone else, but Cherry as he loved the car, and then she has the realisation that Barb was pulling a con, to get Polly killed. Dimes denies that Barb would lie to them, as he wasn't that cruel, but the Countess tells them that they'd be surprised how cruel scavengers could be, Barb cared about himself, it was the only reliable thing about him, and he might have gotten Rick to do the dirty work for him. Dimes tells her that they didn't want anyone to get hurt, but the Resting place did need the stash that Barb had gotten off Polly to stay running, as Barb burned through fire quickly.

Dimes asks that if they were to warn Polly, would he understand? Or would he try and hurt Barb. If Polly were to go after his "trove" he'd have to go after Dimes. They didn't know how well they'd do in a fight with Rick, but Yaretzi could tear Barb in half. The Countess makes her seditions, telling the others that whatever was happening, it was Barb’s fate, if it was a ruse of his, he was welcome to the consequences, and she would not step into the middle of it. Dimes asks if it wasn't a ruse, and Barb was really in danger. The Countess begins to leave, telling Dimes that if that was the case it was danger he deserved.

### Interlude 2 - Odd Angles

Nikignik tells the Dreamers that he'd been told it was comforting to think of their universe in constants. But, in truth things like time were in consistent from place to place, affected by gravity, and space was full of holes and secret tunnels, recurving points and impassable barriers. On a massive scale, black holes tear through the fabric, and pulled into other planes and realms. But there were little travesties of geometry, odd angles, doors that open to the wrong places. The doors of the Moormire lead to other entrances, and there are a few pieces of cabinetry that open to Marolmar’s World (see The Temple of the End), and some such as the Countess or Ascended Scientists of Xyzikxyz have been given wings that warp shadows and float upon the void. He comments on how inconvenient that all must be, as he simply had to think of a place, and his eye is open upon it. However, he was not so affected by the dangers that dwell on the other side of the door.

## Story 3 - Join The Hunt

Hector Mendoza asks Jonah Duckworth what the weirdest thing he'd ever caught while out fishing was. Jonah tells him that he thought he'd caught an angler fish once, but angler fish were meant to be small, and instead of an esca it had another smaller fish that glowed, and eyes all over its face. They'd thrown it back. Jonah asks what the weirdest thing Hector had ever pulled out of the bog was, and Hector tells him that it'd been early on when he'd found a Sleeper that'd gotten too close for comfort, he'd attacked it with a butter knife made of real silver, since then he'd always kept it in him. Hector asks him about what happened in Episode 67 - Silences, and Jonah tells him that he didn't think that was ‘curse of the forest’ passing out, that it'd been him, Jonah, passing out, asking if he'd really scared away a Night-Gaunt, and Hector tells him that it was more like he'd ordered it away, that this could be useful to look at the bright side of things. Jonah asks how the Scoutpost was, and Hector tells him that two people had died when the gate had collapsed, Bern was hurt but ging to be okay, the wall was still smashed, and Big Mikey had been invited in, who'd been sitting in front of the broken gate right now, they were hoping he’d scare the Froglins away. He tells Jonah to get some rest, Jonah closes his eyes to go back to sleep, and Hector leaves.

Hector makes his way back to the destroyed gate, finding Huntington Waites helping with the clean-up and repair duties. Hector calls out to them, and Huntington responds, asking who Hector was. Hector introduces himself and tells them that he'd been told they were a hunter, but Huntington tells him that right now it appeared that they had been relegated to construction. Hector tells them that Bern had promised him some help (see Episode 65 - Miles), but seeing as she wasn't going to be coming, and he had an animal to track down—a Froglin queen. he asks if they would have any interest in helping him. Huntington smiles at him, setting down their work and telling him “*Oh I would, Hector Mendoza. I would indeed join you for a hunt.*"

## Outro - Angles

Nikignik waxes poetics about angles, telling the Dreamers that if was for each of them to decide in which direction they would approach this life. He would reflect on what a miracle it was that they were able to be alive at the same time, but he'd been here long before them and would likely be here long after, so it wasn't that special. Even life indescribable came to an end, and the Indescribables, like the Dreamers, were still wondering why? What was the point of the life they have been given? How do they come to peace with the end? For Nikignik, life was a story, and if they were lucky, the echoes of their voice, telling stories about the Dreamers, would outlive them.