Episode description[edit | edit source]
Hey,
It’s Cascabel.
I know you’re probably zipping between planets in some sort of experimental ship right now bud, but once you get back just let me know you got this, okay?
I wanted to let you know that I got back from Skein and some of your old colleagues wanted me to pass on a hello.
And, I know it’s weird to have them be working with the NEH now and I know it can be hard to hear, but they’re doing good work, man. You should check in on them. Quire is bleeding and they’re the closest thing to medics.
I’ve seen it across every world I’ve been on, but on Skein, it’s bad, man. There’s a gash that cuts down to the core. Deep in the jungle, about a day from Terncage… that big city by the beach. It’s a wound that pulses. It groans. With each new beat, it finds and and breaks a new reality.
So.. I guess I’m just not surprised that it attracted every scientist in the sector. The Skein? The Garden? They were already deep into this stuff on Old Quire, man. And your people from the Ever Forward? From what I understand, y’all have always been pathfinders, some of the best field researchers ever.
So I get why you’re not thrilled with it but I’ve spoken to these folks. The New Earth Hegemony offered them a lot: resourcing, protection, time. They could do more good unified as Ternion than they ever could alone.
In any case. I’m glad you’re doin alright. Test pilot seems like a good fit, you always liked to be on the cutting edge, after all.
I never told you about the first time I saw the Amp Runner did I? The way it broke through the atmosphere? I saw through the trick, the screeching, the fake rust. But then I saw you inside and I was terrified.
I’m glad we’re on the same side, Even. I…
Well, if you ever need anything, you just let me know. After what we faced down together? Independence, the iconoclasts. Volition…
A year ago, I was just a mercenary for hire. Now I’ve seen the world shatter and put itself back together. And I wouldn’t have made it out without you. If you’re ever around my neck of the woods, promise that you’ll let me know.
This week on Twilight Mirage: This Year of Ours: The Pilot
The sun's going down
Time to start your day bruh
Contents[edit | edit source]
Plot[edit | edit source]
Mechanics & Setup[edit | edit source]
In the switch to "Scum and Villainy", Even changes playbooks to become The Pilot. Over the last 11 months, he's mastered using his newly grown hair tendrils to pilot ships and other machines. He picks up two moves from his playbook, "Ace Pilot" which gives him potency on speed-related moves, and "Commander" which lets a group act a size larger when he leads a group action. He also takes a move from The Mechanic tree called "Construct Speaker" which gives Even the ability to speak to machines directly, mirroring what he was able to do in The Veil. Even also establishes his vice of eating technology to reduce stress.
Vignette[edit | edit source]
After the Miracle, Even stays in the military, trying to use his influence trying to mend relations across the Twilight Mirage. Since the Mirage is now harder to traverse, he focuses his efforts on testing new ships to improve interplanetary travel, hoping that getting people face-to-face will help them have more productive conversations.
We see Even testing one of these new ships, when a small fleet of Rogue Wave drones targets him. Even does his best to outmaneuver them and mend the test ship, but it starts to fall apart and depressurize. When things look dire, Pure Cascara shows up in her mech to rescue him. Afterwards, they sit down for coffee and she offers him a role in The Notion. He agrees with the idea that they'll be more successful in reaching out to others without the ties to established governments. She's thankful and gives him coordinates to show up at in two weeks time.