Date Night - 2020

Sett’s library should be a mess

• So, in my estimation

• Sett finishes a drawing of Hell

  • What’s been happening,

  • Or rather what was happening before we put a stop to it

  • Was the central spindle of hell

  • Where i’m from

  • Was stuck through this material plane

  • And because they spin at different frequencies

• Sett turns

• Stops

  • You look confused

  • I- no, I’m sorry, this is just, overwhelming

  • This isn’t even in my wheelhouse and yet I see so many possible applications in my research.

  • And you-

• Stands up

• Taps the central spindle of hell on the whiteboard

  • You lived here?

  • For your entire life?

  • Yeah…

• Bashful

  • So what’s…

• Points to the flat plane extending from the infinitely tall spindle

• The ‘record’ or ‘grindstone’ depending on how one looked at it

  • What’s here?

  • Oh, now that’s fascinating

• Crosses the room

• Gets on their laptop

  • That’s more hell

  • But where the spindle is infinitely deep,

  • And this is something i didn’t realize until recently

  • The plane is just infinite

  • There's only one person who has been there and back, and it was this marine who had a Phineas Gage type injury,

  • Clinically dead for three days, then just back, like that

  • And he starts writing this fascinating poetry, let me

  • Here

• The low, sad voice of a man in regret plays through the speakers.

  • The wall looked different to everyone. It was hard to imagine, when staring at it, a wall that didn't look like this one. Hard to picture the dust caught sunbeams streaking through the diamond pattern of chain link through any others eyes.

  • What did a wall look like? What was it made out of?

  • All this only to to distract themselves from the sound of the floor below. Hollow, dust-covered, infinite. What did a floor look like? The wall was made of the floor, but the floor was not made of the wall. A floor seemed to look the same to just about everyone. Hollow, dusty, etc.

  • The closest I ever came to understanding those who saw a different wall, was pressing their face against the chain link and staring at the wall on the other side. Whatever was contained by the wall was invisible. Or maybe their wall looked like a wall that had another side.

  • You could walk all the way around. About 400 hours of walking and you would end up where you started. No one who walked away from the wall ever came back with news of an edge, no matter how long they travelled. There had been voyages - thousands of years long - that returned in 400 hours with no news of an edge. Few walked away happy, but those who did never came back

  • Those apostles that built their soap boxes from bones would tell us we are in paradise. We have everything we need: the wall, and light. There were those that made sacrifices to the enemy, thanked them for being the enemy. They were loved in the same breath they were feared. 

  • The wall keeps out the enemy, we keep up the wall, the sun keeps us up, it is through that line that the enemies hung the sun, made it rise in the morning, gave way to cool desert nights when bodies were broken.

• Pause 

• Beat

  • What the fuck

  • RIGHT? It’s fascinating.

  • So, I’m pretty sure that’s what’s on the disk.

• Beat

  • Is that

  • Relevant to my current situation?

  • Oh!

• Pause

  • No,

  • Sorry

  • I got excited

  • That’s quite alright

• Stands

• Brushes off their pants

  • I-

  • Must admit I've only been following tenuously 

  • Are we any closer to a solution?

  • Um,

• Consider the open textbooks, old books, pdf files, etc.

• The truth was, there was no natural cause for something like this

• All they had done was confirm that it was what sett suspected

  • We- I have some leads

  • Mm.

  • I’d like to, rest, if it’s not too much trouble

  • Of course, there’s an empty room-

  • No, I think I’d like to go home now.

  • Ah,

  • Well, I’ll contact you when.

• Ratty pokes her little head in

  • Hey babe,

  • Oh, sorry, I didn’t-

  • It’s okay, we’re just wrapping up.

  • Hello

• Fee is like, the saddest person Ratty has ever met

  • I’m in the wrong universe.

• Shakes hands

  • We’ve all been there

• Ratty tries to smile

• Realizes what shes just said

• Eugh,, oops 

  • Well, goodbye

  • Okay!

• Waits til Fee is out of earshot

• Makes a face like ‘hey what the hell’

• Sett shrugs violently (violently is the wrong word its like i don't fuckin know dude)

• Closes the door

  • Oh my god!

  • Right?

  • Like, wow…

  • I mean, she’s- it’s like, fine, I guess?

  • But like, wow.

• Flumphs 

  • I’m gonna keep working on it.

  • Can you get Fern, or somebody to see if they cant find some internal angelcorp shit?

  • Yeah,

  • You got a hunch?

  • I dunno. Isn’t it like, always their fault when anything bad happens?

  • Yeah, I can do that on my way out

  • Oh right!

• Pops back

  • Are you excited?

  • Mmhmm!

  • I’ve got big plans.

  • Oh yeah?

  • Yeah I just wanted to-

• Beat

  • I don’t remember what I wanted to do here

  • That’s okay

• Mwa

  • Go have fun with your girlfriend, dink.

  • Okay!

• Subway 

• Ratty with a little case full of spray paint cans

• The little steel marbles inside rattling with the movement of the train

  • I just want to stop at Fern’s store before we set out for the industrial district

  • Didn’t you already text them?

  • Yeah, but, I dunno, I feel like this is important.

  • Okie

• Leans into Ratty

  • I can’t complain about getting to see Fern

  • You have such weird taste.

  • They’re taller than me, I can’t help it.

  • It’s the sloped snout, isn’t it?

• Clears throat

• REVENUE PROTECTION

• What a stupid name for a transit cop

  • Fare inspection.

• Eleanor taps her presto on the machine

• Beep

  • I’m having a moment with my girlfriend, can you-

  • Your presto, please.

  • Ugh

• Pulls it out from her phone case

• Taps it

• Beep

  • We good?

• Looks at the thing

• Looks down at the spray paint cans

  • What’s in the case?

  • Spray paint cans.

• Eyebrow bump

• God you think you’re so fucking cool

• Fucking pig

  • Is that illegal?

  • No, but-

  • I do not give you consent to search my person

  • One

• Points to Eleanor

• Looks around the car, catches the eye of a concerned looking woman across the easel

  • Two witnesses to that.

• Beat

• Eleanor’s little heart racing

  • Do I know you from somewhere?

  • Dunno, pretty sure your wife took some pictures of-

  • RATTY.

  • This is our stop.

• Gets up

• Yanks her girlfriend’s arm

• Ratty keeps eye contact with the cop

• Backs out of the train with her case of paint

• Doors close

  • You are a fucking crazy person

• Laughs

  • Did you see his face?

• Mwa

  • C'mon

  • We’re losing daylight

• Eleanor found herself transfixed by the hollow shell of a globe

• A few feet away from its original perch

• A statue of an angel

• The thinner parts of her wings burned hollow by the blast 

  • You and tall girls…

  • Absolutely fucking lesbian

  • It’s just like, cool

  • It is cool, I have to agree with you there

  • Knowing them though, it’s probably got like, a real skeleton in it.

• Starts off towards the lobby

• Eleanor takes a picture with her phone

• Jogs to catch up

  • What happened here?

  • I uh,

  • Y’know…

  • Angel, like blew it up, I’m pretty sure.

  • I actually never asked.

• Beat

• Ratty jimmying the lock

• Steps back

• Uses her case to break the glass

• Jimmies the lock from the other side

• Eleanor watches all of this 

  • How come you never tell me stories

• Eleanor takes flashlight from ratty

• Glass crunching under her boots

  • I dunno

  • I’m like, traumatized.

• Beat

  • Do you want to hear about-

  • If its gonna upset you, not really.

  • Okay,

  • Thank you

  • Why don’t you tell me something about you that I don’t know?

  • Cus I do it every time you deflect from your own history

  • Well

  • Ppth 

• Drops down into the tram’s gully

• Eleanor floats down next to her

  • This is sick, though

• Eleanor admits

  • Right? They just left it here

• Walks

• Silently enjoying eachother’s company

• Watching the occasional beam of light sparkle off of the shoulders of Ratty’s jacket

  • Can I just paint wherever?

  • Yeah!

  • There’s… I think… a block of offices coming up

• Yep

• Little tram station

• Reception desk

• And a bunch of little cubicles, their glass scattered across long rotten carpets

• Computer with a flare-like burm in the case

• What hadn't been destroyed would have been looted by now.

• Approaching their regular gray only in spots where they were covered with a particularly large piece of melted glass

• Eleanor takes the lead

• Looking through the little boardrooms

  • Oh, c'mon

• Points to an almost untouched white wall

  • Oh absolutely

• Ratty sets her case down on the boardroom table

• I guess its called a board

• Maybe

• Eleanor sets some music going on her phone

  • I brought some of my old stencils

  • Uh, stole them from my moms house

  • Is the other Ratty going to miss them?

  • Dunno.

• Beat

  • Okay!

  • Well, are you going to show me or what?

  • Oh! Yeah, sure.

  • So, normally I would have like more than one nozzle for each of these but, I don’t right now, so I’m just gonna show you the way I learned.

  • Which of these do I take if I wanna do pink? 

  • Uh, lavender is probably good for sketching

• Takes it

• Lines herself up with the wall

• Squares herself off like shes about to do a golf swing

  • Okay, so

• Ratty gets behind her

• Puts her hand in Eleanor’s hand

• Literally in

• The shimmering spectreform gently pushing and pulling her hand

  • So,

  • Put the edge of the can-

  • Who taught you like this?

  • What?

  • You’re really close

  • Oh, pff, youtube taught me.

  • I just am showing you the techs

  • Put the edge of the can against the wall and drag it along to make a hard-ish line

• Complies

• Pulling ratty’s hand along with her

  • Take it slow, we’re basically going to paint over this

  • Cool.

• Their bodies move in tandem

  • So weird not knowing what my hand is painting

  • Well stop thinking about it

  • You’re messing me up

  • Okay

• Little smile as the shape takes… shape

• The outline of a rabbit’s head

  • Nice

  • Thought I would keep it simple

  • Okay so now you’re gonna want to fill that in,

  • You said pink?

  • Mmhm.

• Sits back in a decrepit office chair as Eleanor fills in her rabbit

• Watches quietly

• Eleanor had shared every detail of her life that she had uncovered since her memories started sticking

• It would only be fair to…

  • The first time I had sex was in a hot tub at a Super 8 motel.

• Beat

• Turn

  • Is that your attempt at a story?

  • It’s-

  • Okay yeah, well like my past isn’t that interesting.

  • My dad came from money,

  • My mom came from portugal

  • That's like half of the kids in Ontario.

  • That’s not my mom!

  • Well,

• Didn’t want to say the mean thing

  • No, yeah,

  • I know.

• beat

  • What about your reporting?

  • What about it?

  • What’s the coolest story you ever did?

  • I-

• Flashback

• Just briefly

• But of being kidnapped

  • I don’t want to talk about that

• Beat

  • Shit, i’m

  • No it’s chill.

  • I should, stop being so stubborn

  • Here

  • Tell me how to finish this

• Looks at it

  • Do you want to outline it?

  • Yeah

  • Okay cool,

  • Same thing as sketching

  • With the black can

  • If you go a little faster you can get a thinner line

  • Cool

• Starts doing it

• Deep breath

  • Oh, shit, do you want something to smoke?

  • Mm, I feel like I’m gonna get hungry and I don’t want to like, eat drywall

  • Fair enough,

  • Maybe later

  • Do you want to do a sushi after this?

  • Oh for sure

  • There’s this one not too far from here that I used to go to like, once a month when I was young

• Beat

  • Okay c’mon, you can’t not after that.

  • Yeah

  • You’re right.

  • I dunno, I used to cycle through people a lot, I feel like I wasn’t permanent enough in anyone’s life to have made stories, y’know?

  • Nope

• Eleanor X’s the eyes on her rabbit

  • Everyone loved me

  • Yeah, I bet.

  • You’re very lovable

  • Thanks

• Steps back

• Takes a pic on her phone

  • Do you wanna keep moving?

  • yeah

• Sett wakes up as their head thumps against their desk

• Shocked awake in the dark

• The room’s motion sensor had automatically shut off the lights

• A little 1 next to their email

• They open it and read through it

• Get bored

• Scroll scroll

• It’s all gibberish basically

• Scientific gibberish

  • Sett

• Goat jumps

• Clutches their chest

• Turns to see their reflection

  • You should, work on not scaring me

  • Read this.

• Standing by book

• Sett gets up, groggy.

• drops down on the stool

• Starts where other Sett is pointing

• Adjusts to reading old italian

  • We have previously outlined the way in which forcing travel between worlds by any means, but especially the supernatural, has created false memories of non-extant individuals. Further, we find now that those non-extant individuals are explicitly and without exception the alternative forms of the exchanged beings.

• Hm

• Picks up the book

• Goes back to the computer

• Ctrl+f

  • “Exchange”

  • Subheading: flaws with the current model.

  • 2. The Problem of Equivalent Exchange.

  • A genetically identical, although visually different version of the subject was ejected from the device once it was shut down. Angelcorp staff in the adjacent universe confirmed following the test that no party had been sent through their version of the device.

  • Doctor Graves hypothesizes that, in addition to the high energy and material cost, an additional cost exists in that of the transported party. 

  • His hypothesis contests that the absence of even a single individual could have catastrophic effects on the structure of the universe, as observed in the AH of the adjacent universe.

  • It is for this reason that - when an individual is transported into another universe - their instance in that universe is transported to us.

• Sett goes to scroll

• Looks at their hand when nothing happens

• Finds it hard to focus on

• As though

• There are two, equally far away from each other.

• A double image

• Turns to look at their reflection

• Examining the same hand.

• Same effect

• Beat

• Picks up a marker

• Winces as they have to write on the old book

• It’s not the oldest in their collection

  • Ratty

  • Angelcorp did this.

  • Find other Sett.

  • I love you.

• Stood back,

  • Where- where can she find you?

  • we do not know.

  • we do not know where we will come out.

  • Make-

• Mind fading

• Struggling to speak

  • Make some noise when you do.

  • She’ll find you.

• Falls back into the chair

• That message was going to be too cryptic

• Oh well

• Ratty would figure it out

• They reached for their tea

• Took a sip

• And suddenly

• The room was empty.

    Am I a geek if I take some of this moss?

• watched ratty

• Ratty hoisting her way down an abrupt wall below the tram

• Into what must've been the central courtyard

• Eleanor hovering along beside

• running her fingers through a weird coloured patch of plant life

  • You’re always a geek

  • well,

  • fine

• takes out a little plastic bag

• pinches it at one edge and peels it

• catching up with Ratty’s descent as she bags it

  • what do you like, do with that?

  • I dunno, probably try to like- identify it, I guess

  • I dont think I’ve ever seen moss that colour.

  • I don’t know if I’ve seen like, anything /alive/ that colour

  • yeah

• zip

• bag

• Beat

• Not easy work hoisting yourself down a wall

• Also not like fast

  • So

  • How’s your mom

  • Oh I dunno dude

  • We have not talked

  • Like

  • Period

• Beat

  • Do you ever think about it?

  • Dunno.

  • Do you think I should?

  • Maybe

• Hoisting

  • Yeah,

  • Maybe

• Touch down

• Little click

• The hook falls

• Ratty starts wrapping the rope as they walk

  • That thing is so cool

  • It’s so cool!

• Hooks it back on her belt

  • Very fucking cool

• Ratty had stopped in a courtyard

• Frozen as she considered the depth of the room

• Part of the roof had caved in

• Filling the room with a damp

• A river having formed where something did something

• And she could practically see the 013

  • Ratty

• Snapped out of it

  • You okay?

  • Yeah,

  • Can we stop here for a bit?

  • I just- like this wall.

• It was a good wall

  • For sure

• Popped the cap off her hairspray

• Sprayed the wall with it

• Took a little bag of letters from her box

• One by one, organized the letters

  • THIS 

  • POSSUM

  • IS NOT

  • DEAD

• Sprays over it gently

• Lets it dry

• While shes doing that

• Looks at her hand

• Sprays it

  • What’re you-

• Slaps a hand-print on the wall above her message

• Holds it for a sec

• Takes it off

• Peels off the individual letters

• Looks at it

  • So

  • What happened here

• Long sigh

• She was gonna have to open up sooner or later

  • I had this friend, and we-

  • Uh, had a fight, I guess.

  • What was the fight about

  • I don’t even remember.

  • I think

  • This whole company just kind of pitted us against each other.

  • The whole system pitted us against each other, actually.

  • That’s reductive.

• Put her can to the wall

• Freehand drew a pair of crooked curves

• Went back

• Branched them out into antlers

  • Anyway

  • It’s supposed to be our anniversary!

  • I should not be thinking about other girls.

  • I asked, you’re in the clear.

  • Well

  • I don’t wanna

  • I wanna wreck some shit with my cool fuckin girlfriend

  • There’s probably not shit that's not already wrecked

  • Well, hang on

• Looks up at the stream

• Where it lands

• Follows it along

• The floor was hollow for about a half-foot to allow piping

• Which means it would sag

• Follows the river along

• Until it just disappears under a wall

  • Hm

  • Can you see if there’s anything on the other side of that wall?

  • Yeah,

  • Sure

• Shoop

  • Hah!

• Muffled

• Wall clicks open

• A slanted panic room

  • Ratty there’s straight up a dead dude in here.

  • Oh my god, really?

  • Does it smell?

  • Uh, surprisingly, no.

  • Okay well

• Ratty steps through the bulkhead into the luxurious little room

• Oh yeah,

• Straight up dead guy

  • Well I’m gonna move him

  • Good idea

• Drags him out

• Pulls him around a corner

• Out of sight out of mind

• Comes back

  • This is like, so well preserved

• Eleanor had hunkered down in the little conversation pit

  • I don’t even want to wreck it.

  • Can we just like

  • Chill, and smoke

  • And maybe fuck

• Pff

  • Did the dead guy not like, put you off sex?

  • Dunno~

• Eleanor pops a bottle of champagne with a peeling label

  • Did you?

• Beat

• Big laugh

  • That’s not-

  • C’mere 

• Kiss time