002 | Voice

[burger_king]

It's a little after midnight, the cobblestones slick with fog on this mild late August night. Polly Nichols, a divorced mother of five, makes her way down Brick Lane on unsteady feet. A victim of drink, like so many other members of the working class at this time, and where there's drink there's desperation. She turns down on Whitechapel Road to earn enough coin for a bed for the night. Her new bonnet will surely do the trick.

Three hours later, two cart drivers come across a body in Buck's Row. In the dim light of early morning they can't know for sure but, as one of them told the police later, she looks to me to be either dead or drunk, but for my part, I believe she's dead. The way her throat was slit ear to ear confirmed that belief.

Want to hear the rest? Tune in to the Overlook Podcast. The first episode is available now on your favorite podcatcher.

Happy Friday the 13th.

Comments

[burger_king]

[ Gotta get props for that - Jug gives a low, impressed whistle. ]

You're ahead of the game. Branding is important, from what I can understand.

[devoutish]

Yeah, it's a shame I'm not one for superheroing. "The King" would be fucking indomitable.

[burger_king]

[ Yeah, here's a topic change out of the fucking blue. ]

What are your thoughts on registration?

[devoutish]

You know what, mate, I bet you can guess. Can you guess?

[burger_king]

I'm guessing they overlap with my own pretty well.

[devoutish]

Are you unsettled and disgruntled?

[burger_king]

Very much so.

[devoutish]

Very much so.

[He repeats, rolling the words around in his mouth.]

That's something that I'm always glad to hear, mate.

[burger_king]

Hey, there's a handful of us that don't trust the system here.

[devoutish]

And I like meeting you when I find you.

Seems we've got a few things in common after all, mm?

[WINK WONK]

[burger_king]

Sure seems that way. [ Didn't expect that. ]

How is unsettled life treating you?

[devoutish]

Expensively, mate.

[Good thing he lives frugally and makes enough doing The Crime to get by with plenty to spare.]

These podcasts, though, they garner donations. You'll be finding that out yourself, soon enough.

[burger_king]

I hear that. [ He's making due. Shitty apartment, shared with a friend. Better than being homeless, which he also did for awhile back home. ]

And it's good to hear that it pays off. I'm not looking at making a career out of this, but it'd be nice with some extra pocket money if it kicks off.

[devoutish]

I wasn't expecting it. Always thought it was a bit odd.

[At first he'd bristled a little, seeing it as charity, but then he'd reasoned that it's really no different from writers being paid.]

[burger_king]

[ It takes work, and that should be rewarded. Jughead isn't a fan of capitalism, but...  ]

Did you have anything like this back home?

[devoutish]

Like podcasts? We have the radio. Not exactly the same, but more similar than not.

[burger_king]

That's usually how people describe it - like radio on demand.

Less of an adjustment than it could be, I guess. What year was it?

[devoutish]

'22 - that's 1922. Earth.

[burger_king]

Oh shit. If I hadn't already talked to multiple demi-gods, I'd be shocked right now.

Being here - better or worse?

[devoutish]

A bit of both, but - in nearly all of the important ways, worse. The better bits, well, they're mostly just frivolities.

[burger_king]

Yeah? In what ways is it worse?

[devoutish]

Well, it's not home, is it.

[burger_king]

That's not necessarily a bad thing, for some of us.

[devoutish]

Yeah. And you're one of those?

[burger_king]

Some days. I'm not saying I wouldn't go home if I got the chance, but I also can't deny that I'm in a much better position here.