A Knight of Shreds and Patches Transcript Episode 25: Always More Work Transcript by Cameron Robertson
Intro:
[hurdy gurdy music begins]
Nick: Welcome, listeners, to A Knight of Shreds and Patches. An immersive actual play podcast. This episode features the talents of –
Cameron: Cameron Robertson as Emma Blackwood.
Sydney: Sydney Whittington as Cassidy Shard.
Nick: Nick Robertson as GM and Narrator.
Sydney: Hello listeners, this is your editor, Sydney, with today’s messages:
The 2021 Audio Verse Awards have finally revealed the results of the first round, and we’ve made the cut for the finalists. A Knight of Shreds and Patches is in the running for “Player in a new Production” (which really means cast in our case), “New Improvised Production”, and “Player Direction of a new Production” (which is your friendly game master, Nick). Voting opened December 19th, just after our last episode aired, and will remain open through Saturday, January 1, which is in only two days from this episode airing! If you think we do a good job in any of those categories, we’d love to have your votes. The link can be found in the show notes.
And with that, we wrap up today’s announcements and head into episode 25: Always More Work. And so...
Join us, for now our tale to yours attaches To carry hope: a Knight of Shreds and Patches.
[hurdy gurdy music ends] [electronic beeping] [robotic powerup noise begins] Distorted Robotic Voice: Power restored. Systems online. Reconfiguring audio connection. [robotic powerup noise fades to radio frequency static]
[over radio] Cameron (as Emma): Last time on A Knight of Shreds and Patches, time passed. We’ve been in Eagle Hill for about three months now. Cassidy’s been working on the radio towers and making job connections around the city, climbing things. I’ve joined a baseball team and have been learning self-defense and how to be useful in a fight and not be a detriment to my team members. It’s been fun, we’ve got lots of plans for the Knight. There’s so many screwdrivers in the truck and not much else useful. [radio static]
Episode Start:
Nick: We open on a low shot of the warehouse behind the Crochet Club. It's even more cluttered than it was before. Early morning sunlight is streaming through the high dusty windows and you can see dust motes dancing through the sun beams. The silhouette of the Knight is visible leaning against the side of the truck in profile, as we see Emma standing, a little sweaty, a lot frustrated, with her hands on her hips, surveying the organized mess that she's made in the warehouse. The back of the rig has been completely cleared out. We can see the floor where normally crates and piles of items are kept for travel. The walls of the bed of the rig, made of a lightweight corrugated metal, are bare, no longer containing the tarp that normally hangs over the top and wraps around the Knight and Emma looks a little crestfallen. Something is missing.
Cameron: So Emma has been spending the last month and a half or so doing a deep clean and searching and sorting of the back of the rig. She has the final screwdriver that she's found in the far back corner after she removed everything else sticking out of her back pocket. Her hands are on her hips and she just, the look is a mix of exhaustion and frustration and confusion as well. She started this process with one, the goal of just getting the rig into a more organized situation where she knows where everything is so that she can mechanics better, but also she was hoping to find some sort of notes or journal or drawing pad or something of Pallie’s that had more info on the Knight in it. What was the Knight and it's starting state when they found it in the shed? What are all the things that she fixed on it? Did she learn anything about it while she was doing that, because that would be a great starting point for Emma figuring out what all is going on with the Knight beyond just what she can see externally on it and within the cavities that actually open without having to disassemble all of the armor to get in to see the inner workings of it. And she didn't find anything. There's nothing back here. There's a bunch of sticky notes on things saying "fix me". So she's got a pile started up over next to the table in the warehouse of things that need to be repaired. She has her giant pile of screwdrivers, all of the other tools and random metal pieces that have been tucked away for future use organized into piles around the warehouse, but she didn't actually find what she wanted. She needed.
So she hops out the back of the truck, takes the screwdriver out of her pocket and drops it into the giant pile of screwdrivers as she's walking around the side of the rig and just stands in front of the Knight, where it's lounged back against the rig and just stares at it. [sigh] Something has to exist that she's missing. But she doesn't know where else to look at this point. As she's standing there with their arms crossed, trying to run through anything that she possibly could have found in the back of the truck that maybe had something else in it that she just missed, she shifts over to put all of her weight on one of her legs and pop her hip out and she sees a glint out of the corner of her eye coming from the cab of the rig. And it's the light glinting off of Wyatt's gun that's hanging across the back of the cab. And then she glances at it, looks back at the Knight, and then fully turns her head to look at it and notices Pallie's arm hanging below the rifle.
Cameron (as Emma): Hey, Cassidy?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Emma?
Sydney: Cassidy looks up from nearby the rig where Cassidy has a giant pile of mixed papers and maps and various colored inks and she looks like she's neck deep in some kind of map making project for probably her own amusement.
Cameron (as Emma): Do- [sigh] You said you didn't know of any journals or anything that Pallie had, right?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah not specifically. I would have expected there would have been something in the back, but that's probably,
Sydney: Cassidy gets up and walks around to look in the back of the rig and shakes her head affirmatively.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah, that's the first time I've seen some of that floor.
Cameron (as Emma): I could tell because the floor was clean in some spots, because I don't think boxes had ever been moved off of it.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah weird.
Cameron (as Emma): Do you- Do you think... that Pallie could have possibly had some sort of recording equipment for like an audio journal in her arm?
Cameron: And Emma is still staring at the cab of the rig and just looks very contemplative.
Sydney: Cassidy shrugs.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, it's possible. I know Zee-o had something like that in their kit. So it's a thing that could exist. I know Pallie built her arm herself, but I never went up and like poked around in it and I don't know that I ever saw her using it. But honestly, most of our downtime, I was probably up in a tree.
Cameron (as Emma): Wou- [sigh] would it be okay, do you think, if I took a look at the arm? It feels very much like a memorial and feels weird to just go start poking around at it, especially because Wyatt's not here, but the more I think about it, the more that makes sense to me that you would want something that you had with you all the time so you could take notes whenever.
Sydney: Cassidy joins Emma in looking contemplatively at the arm through the window of the rig and she sighs.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, I it's on the tool rack with the guns, right? Like,
Cameron (as Emma): I kind of figured it was more there because that was Wyatt's space.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I don't know. I mean, we - [sharp inhale] you could see it. You could see it from inside the rig or whatever, but we never talked about it. I - do it respectfully. I don't think Pallie would mind. Pallie was always proud of it. So if there's something to learn from it.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah. I mean I don't want to do any disassembly or anything on it. It's [long sigh] if it's there, it should be easily accessible from the outside so that you could actually interact with it.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah.
Cameron (as Emma): So... [conflicted groan]
Cameron: Emma looks conflicted.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Do you want me to get it?
Cameron (as Emma): No, I don't have a problem getting it down. It's just it, I don't know, it feels weird. From the one interaction I had with Pallie, I feel like she would be of the opinion that if I could learn something from it, then she would want me to look at it. But I also just had one interaction with her and I feel like Wyatt would not want me to look at it, or rather not look at it, but just avoiding the topic of Pallie for the most part in general.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah. That's a technique of dealing with things is just ignoring them. [laugh] Trying not to. [sigh] I mean, were it- she's not coming back. So...
Cameron (as Emma): [sigh]
Sydney: So Cassidy goes and sits back down at the table and puts her forearms on her knees and looks at Emma.
Cameron: Emma walks over to the back door of the cab and opens it and climbs up and kneels down with her knees on the back seat, leans back a little bit and just stares up at the arm, seeing if she can see anything immediately that would make her feel like she would definitely get something out of taking it down and looking at it. Basically trying to justify her intuition to herself by something that she sees.
Nick: As you look at the arm, you don't see any obvious data ports or screens or keyboards or anything like that, but the arm's always looked more mechanic than electronic. There are panels on it. There's places that with more investigation, you could open it up and see what's inside. It's there. It just depends on if you're willing to take it down and look.
Cameron: Can I roll a Mechanics check to take a super close look at it?
Nick: Yeah, go ahead and roll a Mechanics check to look at it without disturbing it and see if there's anything that would indicate what you're looking for is there.
Cameron: What's the difficulty?
Nick: Average.
Cameron: May I have a blue die because I can stare at this thing as long as I want?
Nick: You sure can.
Cameron: Alright, so I've got three yellows, a blue, and two purples.
[dice rolling]
Cameron: Four successes.
Nick: So you don't know anything for sure. It's hard to get at the internals of something just by looking at the outside. You remember from back in Thunder Bay times where you found things that looked perfectly functional and when started to take them apart found just nests of shredded wire where animals had decided to live or things like that. But you do notice there's a couple of panels with little notches in them so that you could peel it back with just a finger or maybe a screwdriver, a couple of them even have a gap that might indicate internal hinges. It's worth a try.
Cameron: Emma spends a good like 15 minutes silently staring at it going over everything that she can see on the side of the arm that's facing her while it's hanging. And then having seen the few panels that she can, or should be able to, easily get into to look at the internals or whatever's situated underneath those panels without having to use any tools on it to have the potential of damaging something with it. She feels better about at least looking at it now that she knows she's not going to have to, necessarily, use any tools. And she reaches up with both arms, very gently lifts it from a rack that had originally been to hold Wyatt's sword, so it's got the two hooks, one on each side, so the arm is supported on each side, and she lifts it down from that and brings it down.
Nick: The arm is lighter than you expected. And the joint at the elbow provides more resistance to bending than you thought it would as it isn't powered or attached to anything. But the metal is only slightly cooler than your own body heat in this morning light. And you notice a light cover of dust on the arm having not been disturbed by the rig moving or anyone cleaning it or touching it since you last saw Wyatt.
Cameron: Emma, still handling it very gently, climbs down from the cab, walks around the Knight to get back to the back of the rig and climbs up and lays the arm down on one of the newly cleaned work tables that line one side of the back of the rig.
Nick: Roll me another Mechanics check as you investigate this more deeply. You can have two blue die from your previous looking at it, you know where to look at the internals and which parts are the most promising. This is going to be hard difficulty though.
Cameron: Three yellow, two blue, and three purples.
[dice rolling]
Cameron: Two successes.
Nick: So, only using the small thin piece of metal that you used to pick locks on the train, you're able to reach into the crags of this arm and start testing for any panels that can slide back. And pretty quickly one pops open on the forearm, and you find what you're looking for.
Cameron: It looks like an old school, handheld cassette player and some futuristic tech that we haven't even thought of had a baby. It can't really see the inner workings, so it's probably not using a tape that you have to pop in and out, but it has those stereotypical play and pause and stop buttons that are all like you push in and indent it and it remains down there until you press a different button and there's a record button as well. And so the things that you actually see in it are really just the few control buttons.
Nick: You're not sure how it's organized, or the finer workings, but the basic function is very clear.
Cameron: The button that is currently depressed in it is the rewind button. So Emma reaches forward and hovers her finger for a moment over the play button and then presses down.
Rhi (as Pallie): [recording] All right. [clears throat] New project, new journal. This is Pallie Fisher, recording in… well, the middle of nowhere, a ways outside Detritus. We’re laying low for a while. Tryin’ to put ourselves back together after Owyn died. [sighs] Anyway. I’m startin’ this because we found something. A bunker, which is where we’re camped, and inside it is… Hell, I don’t even know how to describe it. The most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen? [chuckles] I’ve been calling it the Knight. It’s like Wyatt’s power armor, but scaled up a dozen times. It’s this huge, magnificent machine, and it doesn’t work at all. I’ve spent the last few days crawling around inside it, trying to make heads or tails, and I think I’m starting to get some ideas. Poor thing’s in rough, rough shape, but… the core’s intact. All kinds of metal plating protected it for however many years. And I think if I can get the core working, I can wake it up.
Gang’s had some mixed feelings on it. Zee-o’s curious, thinks it’s a good idea that I’m working on it, but I can’t tell if that’s ‘cause they actually like it or if they like that I like it. Iouka thinks it’s awesome, which is objectively correct, and he wants to drive it when it’s done. [chuckles into a sigh] Cassidy… I don’t think she cares about it overmuch right now. Can’t blame her. She lost something precious when Owyn got shot. And Wyatt, well. Wyatt hates staying put, especially when we got people after us. But we’re far enough north now without any sign of folks from Allium, I think we can stop running. We need to stop running. You gotta catch your breath sometime. He’s skeptical about the Knight, but I told him that if we can get it working, it’ll change everything. The kinds of jobs we can take. The kind of money we can make. He grumbled about it, but when I asked him if he doubted me and my skills, he had to give in. He’s got some sense there, at least.
I’ve got a good idea of how the Knight’s put together so far, and tomorrow, I’m gonna start a full inventory. Head to toe, see what works, what needs fixing, what needs to be replaced. It’s gonna take a long time to get it working again. But I meant what I told Wyatt. If I can… it’ll change everything.
Pallie out.
Sydney: As the recording ends the camera pans back away from the arm to look at the door of the truck where Cassidy is leaning up against it, her head on her forearm. She looks up at Emma as it's ending, and her eyes are wet.
Sydney (as Cassidy): It's - you found it.
Cameron (as Emma): I found it.
Cameron: Emma looks excited that she found it, but then also, I guess it's not necessarily obvious on her face, it's mostly just excitement, but she's also impressed with herself that she made this connection that this may have been a good spot for this to have been located.
Sydney (as Cassidy): It's... I haven't - I haven't heard a Fisher's voice in a while. [short laugh]
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I could almost mistake it if I was still in the other room not looking that it was just a normal day. But we're not there anymore.
Cameron (as Emma): Yeah, it's been, what is it, nine months now?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yep.
Cameron (as Emma): I wish Wyatt was here.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah, I wish everyone was here. [sad laugh]
Nick: The next thing we see is Emma and Cassidy at the Bird's Nest, their favorite hangout in Eagle Hill. After a long day of work when the sun's begun to set, and there's nothing else productive to do, you come here. It's a good place to meet with friends and acquaintances. You're recognized here, and it's comfortable. Give me a couple of details about what this place looks like.
Cameron: So it's a rooftop bar.
Sydney: I want to say it's over a bank, with ornate architecture on the side, but it's like a three story building. So it's a patio bar in the business district. And there's taller buildings on either side of it, so there's really not that many views, and it's definitely the kind of urban bird's nest that's sticks inside of a sign as opposed to at the top of a tree. It's an opportunistic one.
Cameron: And it's probably not that far from the giant tea cup shaped tea house and the Crochet Club warehouse. Cause I think it would be fairly close for Emma and Cassie to have found it.
Nick: Yeah, the Crochet Club is close to the border of a more industrial district of Eagle Hill and this bank is close to the border of a more business focused side. So it's a convenient location, but as you walk there, the surroundings and the type of people you see changes pretty dramatically. The Bird's Nest is quieter than a lot of the other bars in the city. Most of the nightlife here has dancing and loud music and is mostly standing room. Whereas this place has tables and low couches and allows you to have a conversation and relax more than party like some of the other venues around the city. So it draws people who want to talk, people who are looking for somewhere quiet to relax. And while a lot of the clientele comes from the business district and is wearing suits and more formal clothes, almost as many are from the warehouses or transportation departments of various businesses around the city and are dressed more practically as well. One detail I'd like to add is that the bar is in the center of the Bird's Nest and is a round bar. So there are a couple of bartenders that walk in circles to make sure that everybody has their drinks.
Sydney: Is it open air?
Cameron: Can it be like half and half? So you have one part that is a fully enclosed building, that's probably where the bar is situated under, but then it's wall out to a patio is all the glass wall doors that can be moved to make it one big open space if the weather's nice, but they have the ability to close it off to cut off the patio if it's raining or something.
Nick: Yeah, and there's enough lighting to see, but not so bright as to keep people from relaxing or having close conversation. There's a warm yellow glow from the electric lights. And we see Emma and Cassidy sitting around a table. It's small and round, the top of it looks like it might have been a beer barrel at one point, with high chairs. They're chatting over a lamp, what drinks do you have in front of you?
Cameron: Emma has a house made root beer - house made meaning the bar makes their own. And it's delicious.
Nick: Does it have any particular hints of flavor that makes it stand out from other drinks? Like do they do something special to it?
Cameron: I don't think it's so much a flavor thing as it is a, I'm going to say mouthfeel? Like the bubble content is different than your run of the mill root beer and it's ice cold. So it's just more refreshing than you would normally think a root beer to be. And has a lovely amount of carbonation, would be lovely on a hot summer's day, but it's winter and you know what? It's still good even though it's cold.
Sydney: Cassidy has a house variation on a dirty martini. So typically, your dirty martini is gin, olive juice, maybe some vermouth if you're feeling fancy. Cassidy does not often feel that fancy, so gin and olive juice. In the case of the Bird's Nest, it's actually gin and a brine that's made from the local seaweed. So, it serves a very similar purpose in that it's still like a salty, briny flavor, but it's more herb focused and instead of an olive in the glass it has a twist of seaweed stuck through with a toothpick.
Nick: The two of you are chatting about your day and the more recent finds and someone approaches you out of the quiet crowd. He's extremely tall, wide shouldered, brown skin, and is carrying a pewter tankard that it has a foam on top of what must be the house brew of beer. And he slides into the other chair and nods to the two of you. And Emma, you see that it's Shawn, your friend from the baseball team, who you haven't seen today because you've been sequestered working on organizing the rig. And Cassidy you know Shawn, as well, but not as closely because you haven't been necessarily seeking out friendship in Eagle Hill. And he holds his glass up before taking a big sip, and says,
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, ladies, good to see you here. I'm glad I could find you actually. I've been looking for you.
Cameron (as Emma): We weren't hiding.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well. I was hoping to find you sooner in the day, but I had to work. You know, the fabricators been running pretty much nonstop for the last couple of months, and this is the first I could get free so I'm glad you were here. Probably can't stay long before I got to sleep. Got an early shift tomorrow too, you know.
Cameron (as Emma): Mm. That's rough.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Always more work to do.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Isn't that the truth. Emma, did you tell Cassidy about the game already?
Cameron (as Emma): Yep. And I described the beautiful jerseys of the opposing team.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Look, they may not have much fashion sense, but they beat us fair and square.
Nick: And Shawn takes another sip and grimaces although not at the drink just at the thought.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I think we'll get them next time. Pretty sure. You just got to keep working on that follow through, you know.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Emma also said that she did manage to land the hit on you in sparring.
Nick: He takes a deep breath and then flinches a little and reaches for a rib.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Yeah, she did. If I was the size of a baseball, it probably would have been a home run. Gotta be honest, pretty big hit there. You know, the self-defense is good and I am happy to do that, we get to hang out more and I think you could use it. But our shortstop has not been doing as well the last few weeks. I think he may be thinking about quitting the team. I've asked before Cassidy, but you sure I can't get you to sign up? You look like you've got speed. You've got that eye of a speed player. I think the Maroon Sox could really use a technical hitter like you.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I'm not much of a sports player, unfortunately. [Shawn in background: aww] And I got work to do too, as much as you have.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Aww. Please?
Nick: He smiles. He has a really nice winning smile, but you can tell he also knows it. He keeps eye contact with you and it just seems really friendly, but there's also just the slightest hint of playful desperation in his eyes.
Cameron: Emma rolls her eyes because she's seen this exact conversation interaction several times in like the past month and a half or so.
Nick: Emma anytime you see Shawn, whoever he's talking to, he has some compliment about the width of their shoulders being perfect for batting or the fact that they're left-handed would make them a perfect first baseman. He's always recruiting. That's his go to social move.
Sydney: While he's trying to throw this winning smile at Cassidy, Cassidy acknowledges it and then looks back over his shoulder towards one of the bartenders that's more her taste.
Nick: He looks over his shoulder and nods. And he's like,
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Oh, well, I don't think she has a baseball team to invite you to. So you're really missing out. It's a great way to make new friends in a new city. Just - the Maroon Sox are really coming up. It's your last chance to get in on a winning team.
Cameron: Emma is giggle snorting into her root beer. [laugh]
Sydney (as Cassidy): You know, maybe once they let you bat with a bow, and just shoot the balls into the outfield, I'd be more effective.
Nick: He puts a hand under his chin thoughtfully.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Hmm. I don't, I think that there might be a - no. Rule 3.02A specifies that it has to be a stick of a specific diameter and it has to be one solid piece of wood. I don't think an arrow counts as a solid piece of wood with the bow. It's a shame. Could have revolutionized the game.
Sydney: Cassidy just shrugs with her arms out in front of her.
Sydney (as Cassidy): You know, I wish I could help.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, actually, maybe there's another way you could help. Cassidy I know most of the time we just talk about baseball, but you know I work for the fabricator, right? We make industrial parts for the city, sometimes do custom jobs. We're the only one in this part of the world that's not owned by the Advantia.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah, you've mentioned it.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, I don't know if I've talked about specifically what I do. I don't mess with the fabricator itself, I'm one of the people who creates the materials that goes into it. I make some of the filament, uh it's like the ink that it prints with essentially. Big spools of metal. That's my job. Basically, I'm a blacksmith. Well, it's kind of hard to be a blacksmith, without materials and we're running pretty low on materials could be a big problem. City relies on us to make different parts that you can't find anywhere. The elite of the city hire us, even the Parliamentarian gives us work from time to time. If we were to run out, it could be a disaster. Eagle Hill may never be the same again.
Nick: He looks very dramatically up into the air while taking another drink of his beer.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Except that they would just have what they had before.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, fabricator's been a part of the city for a long time. Going back to a time without it could be almost dangerous for the common person. I think the city depends on the work that we do.
Nick: And he makes a cheers towards the bartender that Cassidy was looking at earlier who smiles and waves back at him in a very friendly way.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I made them some new taps for the bar a while back with some scrap. It helps, you know, being able to get people materials.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So there's an opportunity to help you find some?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Yeah. Emma said that you do mercenary work the two of you. Member of a group called the Patina, right?
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yep.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I may have pulled some strings. I don't know what your funds look like, but everybody can always use some more money, especially living in a city like this. I got you all first dibs at the contract to go collect some raw materials. Thought you might be interested.
Sydney: Cassidy looks over at Emma.
Cameron (as Emma): What~ all with that entail?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Oh, nothing too dangerous. Not for people like you. Normally there's couriers that'll go out, but most of the closer supplies are running dry. There is one place though, just outside of the wall. You got to go down The Pike, that's the most dangerous part, and people in The Pike usually leave you alone. But just outside the wall, there's an old mine. The material we're specifically out of is a special vein of silica; keeps the metal pliable during forging, helps you to make the filament at the right diameter. If we can get as much more of that as possible, in one trip, we could keep running for some time. The metal is easier to come by, you can melt scrap or trade but that's silica really only comes out of the ground from around here. If you could make it to the mine, find a new vein, mark it, bring as much back as you can, I could probably get you a pretty hefty payday, and it would keep me in business, which I would appreciate.
Cameron (as Emma): So, Shawn, you've seen my combat skills. Is this really feasible, do you think, us going outside the wall onto The Pike?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): You all look really nervous? What do you think I'm sending you to? This is mostly exploration. It's just outside the wall. The biggest issue will be that stretch of land where The Pike gets kind of rough outside of Eagle Hill, but before the wall, there's people out there who don't fall under the Parliamentarian and sometimes they take what they want, but if you look scary and you don't have anything overtly valuable, that should be fine.
Cameron (as Emma): Shawn.
Cameron: Emma leans forward and braces her forearms on the table.
Cameron (as Emma): Do I look scary to you?
Sydney: Cassidy snickers. [laugh]
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, no, but Cassidy could, I'm sure, if she wanted to, when she's not busy looking charming.
Nick: And he smiles at her again.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): And you could bring a weapon or something. Weapons are scary.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So as a clarifying question, and nothing against you, is this job being offered to us a we're your friends and you want us to do work, or this is a job that actually is a mercenary job?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): It's a fair question. No offense taken. This is an official mercenary job offered by the syndicate that runs the fabricator. I pulled some strings to give you folks first dibs because I like you. And you're my friends. And I know you could use the work, frankly. Like I said, I wouldn't be sending out in anything too dangerous, I don't think. The scariest thing will be the mine. Look out for dead air. Don't fall. Get back in one piece. Should be pretty straightforward, honestly.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, how much ore you looking for us to bring back, like?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Frankly, as much as you can. But if you're able to give complete directions of whatever vein you find, that's almost as valuable. Uh, we don't use a ton of the silica ore in the filaments. So uh, low end goal of physical delivery would probably be about 50 pounds, high end if you could get to 200-250, somewhere in there. And keep us running for quite a while until we could formalize some sort of harvest.
Sydney (as Cassidy): So more than we could carry.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, Emma flex for me.
Cameron: Emma flexes.
Sydney: Is Emma wearing a jacket?
Cameron: Yes, because it's cold.
Nick: He gives it a scrutinizing look and flexes back. His bicep is clearly visible through the windbreaker that he's wearing.
Cameron: Emma looks at her flex and pulls up on the jacket sleeve a little bit to make hers more impressive.
Nick: And he nods says,
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Well, you might be able to carry that kind of weight. But I would recommend a cart, a wagon, a car, a motorcycle, a bicycle, a unicycle...
Cameron (as Emma): How do you think I can't carry that much weight and then are gonna put me on a unicycle with that much weight?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I don't know. I was brainstorming this. Hey, there's nothing wrong in a brainstorm.
Cameron (as Emma): That one's wrong.
Sydney (as Cassidy): We have a truck.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Okay. What kind? What are we talking here value wise?
Cameron (as Emma): I mean, you've seen the truck.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Oh, that one. The rig?
Cameron (as Emma): What other truck? Yeah.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Don't- Don't bring that.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Why?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Like I said, there's people out in the rougher side of things off The Pike that would uh, not hesitate to rob people. That thing's worth more than a lot of people's lives. You don't want to draw that much attention. Granted, you could carry more ore than the city could use in quite a long time, but I don't think it's worth it. You're gonna want to go something a little bit lower key, less aggressive, I think.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Hmm.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): But that's just my advice. You're the trained, reputable mercenaries the best people for the job just like I told them. So if that's really what you want to do, I'm not going to stop ya.
Cameron (as Emma): Something less extravagant, such as a unicycle?
Nick: Okay, the unicycle wasn't the best idea. I was I got a little carried away. I apologize. But if you each have a unicycle that is technically a bicycle.
Cameron (as Emma): No, it is not. That is two unicycles. [long pause] I see I have stumped you with my math.
Nick: Shawn buries his nose in his mug and takes a big chug of beer to buy himself time. And that sets it down, wipes off the foam moustache on his upper lip, and then looks back to Emma.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Okay, I don't really have a response for that. You got me there. I - if you could find the cart or something, the wall is only about 15 miles from town center. So you could walk if you left early. Might be a couple of days journey, but people on foot don't draw a lot of attention. Or you could rent a cart or some unicycles. [laugh]
Sydney (as Cassidy): Probably not the unicycles.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Darn.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Do you have a vested interest? Do you have a side uh -
Cameron (as Emma): A side hustle in unicycle sales?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I don't. I don't know why I'm so obsessed with the unicycle idea, but it came out and I can't get it out of my head at this point.
Nick: He smiles ruefully and looks a little embarrassed.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I mean, I think we should be able to do this. Especially if there's, if all we need to do is look intimidating and you don't think there's actual fighting that has to happen.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): I don't think so.
Sydney (as Cassidy): You know where Emma's level of capability is right now.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): She cracked one of my ribs, pretty sure. So...
Sydney (as Cassidy): Nonzero?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Yeah, I think she could defend herself. The people out there mean, they're not particularly well trained. And I don't think they would mess with just two travelers. I'm not saying there won't be fighting, I can't guarantee that. But I think odds are low. And if it did happen, you could probably take care of yourselves.
Sydney (as Cassidy): I do have an idea of what I'm doing.
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Oh, I had no concern. So since we're talking logistics, does that mean you're gonna take the job?
Sydney: Cassidy raises her eyebrows and shrugs and looks at Emma with a 'I don't see why not' expression.
Cameron: Emma shrugs back in a 'sure' expression.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yeah, I think it'll be a couple of days because I've got work lined up in short term, but
Nick (as Shawn Ward): We've got about five days supply left on silica right now. After that, that's all the filament that's coming out for this foreseeable future if we don't get more, and I can make filament about at the speed that it gets used. So after five days, you'll start seeing an interruption in supply. So if you have to take a couple of days beforehand, just make sure you're back again in that much time.
Sydney (as Cassidy): Yep, good to know. Do you have a map?
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Sure. Yeah, I could get you one. That's not that hard. We know where it is, somebody found it recently. Looks old and abandoned, but not well known. You shouldn't have to worry about anything there. I'll make sure it gets dropped off at your warehouse the next day or so.
Sydney (as Cassidy): All right, well, let's let's nail down the payment then.
Nick: You get the impression from Shawn, he's trying to help you and also help himself. It's like commissioning art from a friend essentially is the relationship here. So like he's not going to try to screw you or anything. He probably is going to try to get you as much stitch as he can based on what you bring back. And he nods and says,
Nick (as Shawn Ward): Sure. To business.
Nick: He holds up his tankard, which is mostly empty at this point for a cheers with the two of you and a big smile on his face.
Sydney: Cassidy tinks her martini glass against his big old tankard.
Cameron: Emma clinks her empty root beer glass against Cassidy and Shawn's.
Nick: And Shawn smiles genuinely, takes a symbolic sip, sets it down and we pan out over a view of the city as the members of the Patina in Eagle Hill and Shawn Ward, a representative of the Fabricator Syndicate, discuss the finer details of payment and timing.
[hurdy gurdy music swells]
Outro: Aly (as Zee-o): End of episode. Commencing end credits. The following information will be placed in the show notes for your added convenience.
This has been A Knight of Shreds and Patches, an actual play podcast using the Genesys game system from Fantasy Flight Games. The show is edited by Sydney Whittington, and features the talents of:
Pallie Fisher is played by Rhi. Find her on Twitter at @rhiannon42 Rhi is the GM and producer of The Magpies, a Blades in the Dark actual play podcast, and the owner of Skill Check, a document accessibility service for the RPG community.
Sydney Whittington as Cassidy. Sydney can be found on our Discord server, which is linked in the show notes, and on Twitter @ sydney_whitt.
Cameron Robertson as Emma. Cameron can be found on Twitter @ midnightmusic13 and on Instagram @ reading_and_dreaming. Cameron is also a player on Tabletop Squadron, a Star Wars Edge of the Empire actual play podcast.
And Nick Robertson as narrator. Nick can be found on Twitter @ alias58. Nick is also the GM for Tabletop Squadron, which you can support @ Patreon.com/TabletopSquadron
This podcast features the musical talents of Dora Violet and Arne Parrott. You can find Dora at facebook.com/doraviolett. You can find Arne at atptunes.com.
The official artwork for this podcast was created by Rashed AlAkroka, who can be found on Instagram and Artstation @ rashedjrs.
You can follow the Patina on Twitter @ akosap_podcast or visit the website: www.akosap.com. Until next time…
...Audio Offline.
[hurdy gurdy fades]