Audio clips and transcripts

[EndOfTheEarth]

Please be sure

to include the date/time range for your recording/transcript.

Characters as cast so far by vocals:

Dr. Janssen--Nathan_p
Jeb Batchelder--Devil's Sunrise
Anne Walker--Xuut
Roland ter Borcht--EndOfTheEarth
(Young) Max Ride--Tally

(Old) Max Ride--Hannah

 

[EndOfTheEarth]

ter Borcht talking about the problems of building Erasers.

Transcript:
Und here I thought vlight vas difficult. In principle das design of das Erasers are fery easy; after all, das humans und das volves are both mammals, und I am only changing das preexisting limbs. Das promlem is vith das shifting back und vorth between Eraser und human shape. Doctor Janssen vants und kvick change. Dis cannot be done, not vithout huge drop in life expectancy. So, ve haff two options. In das first, ve haff slow changing Erasers. In das zekunde, ve haff quick-changing Erasers that need replecing vance effry fife years. Ach du lieber himmel... I still tink dat das remote shock collors vuld be ein better solutshun. But das enyvan listen. Nein.

[EndOfTheEarth]

An ending message to Elena from ter Borcht: for the end of the ARG.

Transcript:
Mein dearest Elena, you must listen fery closely to vaht I must say.
Vehn you opened das vooden box in das package, you released un concentrated airbourne strain ahf retroviruses carrying das Omega-2 genetic formula. This means dat you are das only living carrier ahf mein greatest accomplishment.
I…haff no clue how long it took you to puzzle your vey to dis recording, it is possible dat das physical traits ahf das experiement are alvedy manifesting. If it becomes too noticeable, das government vill notice, und you vill be locked up.
Dere ist ein reason, vor vhy I did dis. Dere ist something terrible dat ist going to happen, perhaps soon, und das surfifal ahf das human race depends upon getting das Omega-2 ofer to people who know vaht to do vith it.
I haff profided instructions dat vill allow you to contact mein old colleague, Doctor Hans Gunther-Hagen. He vill know vaht to do, und he vill help reverse das changes.
I vish ve could haff gotten to know each other better. Your mutter vahs alveys such a kind person, but she didn’t vahnt you to haff to know about me. I see vhy now, und it took six avian-humans to destroy me und mein company to learn dis. Ja, un genius who creates beings vrom bits und pieces ahf DNA is applauded… but it ist das person who creates ties to others dat ist happiest in das end.

I am so, so sorry Elena, but vith vahn exception, das surfifal of das human race ist on your shoulders. Und vehn dis ist over, I hope you vill succeed vere I haff failed.
Your Uncle,
Doctor Roland ter Borcht.

Gut luck.

[Dual]

Suggestion.

Instead of Omega 2, Let's call it Omega Alpha or even something like Stigma or Digamma.

...Patterson really didn't do us any favours when he made Omega named after the last letter of the alphabet.

[EndOfTheEarth]

I figured Omega 2 because it was the least likely to cause confusion, but if you can come up with something that still gets the idea across, I'd be happy to re-record it.

[nathan_p]

Finished mixing the revised autopsy report. Available for download in mp3 and wav format here.

I'm relatively satisfied with it, but man, finding good static is a bitch. I'm probably going to wind up recording actual radio static one of these days :\

[EndOfTheEarth]

Nice!

[EndOfTheEarth]

Interview transcript

 

JANSSEN: Herr ter Borcht, wenn wir pachten Sie fuer der Posten, Sie wuerde viel Zeit in unserem englischsprachigen Liechtigheiten verbringen. Aufgrund Ihrer Erfahrung in der internationalen wissenschaftlichen Gemeinschaft, nehme ich Ihr Englisch ist zwechdienlich?
[Mr. ter Borcht, if we hire you for this post, you will be spending a great deal of time at our English-speaking facilities. Given your experience in the international scientific community, I take it your English is acceptable?]

 

TER BORCHT: Ja, Good enough, Doctor Janssen.

 

JANSSEN: Excellent. 

 

TER BORCHT: Before we begin, I would like to repeat mein thanks that you have considered me for such a high position. But why me? Surely you must have also asked mein mentor Doctor Ableson or Professor Doctor Fuhrmann? After all, I will not even have my doctorate for another year.

 

JANSSEN: Doctors Abelson and Fuhrmann already have their lines of work, and the research that we do at Itexicon is more practical than theoretical. Speaking of practicality, I’ve been very impressed by your work on plant splicing, we here at Itex had actually been working on a way to halt the banana streak virus for years, and you solve the problem, with genomic revision, no less, in under two months.

 

TER BORCHT : I find that strange, Doctor Janssen, the studies of das banana streak virus that you speak of were completed very recently and will not be published for a month. How did you happen to hear of them?

 

JANSSEN:  Through the head of your department, of course. We contract out some of our low level work to the life sciences branch to your employer, and I was quite surprised at the quality and sophistication of your work. It is obvious that you aren’t being challenged enough though, it shows all over your work; little modifications that only turn up under a serious scan. Here at Itex, we’re searching for that sort of aggression with genetics. If you work with us, we won’t limit you to weeds and algae—we can provide you with a real challenge. Would you perhaps be interested in projects that deal with large mammals? We have easy access to them, and positions in projects that will change the face of the entire planet.

 

TER BORCHT : Work on large mammals? Really? I don’t know why you think I have value, but Mein Gott, that’s the best offer that has ever been given to me.  I accept!

 

JANSSEN: Excelent. (Takes out recording device)

 

TER BORCHT: You were recording this?

 

JANSSEN: Oh yes, it’s Itex policy.

[EndOfTheEarth]

Here are my parts of the interview:

[EndOfTheEarth]

And, for kicks, ter Borcht on returning to Itex after his institution stay:

 

Ach, ist gut to be out of das itiotic institution. De food vas terrible, und das peronell vere completely inept… or actid like stupid people. Haff you taken your medications herr doctor? Ven was de last time you had bowel movement herr doctor? Ist dere anything we can get you other dan ein computer herr doctor? Ich werde diesem Ort abgerissen und die Mitarbeiter erschossen! (I will have that place demolished, and the employees shot!)

 

Now vere vas I?

Jah, I haff seen das plans for de Omega...ist sloppy, I had to spend mein virst veekend back vith reffisions, but it vill work. Vith das growth acceleration, it vill be ready befor das presentation to das byers.

I haff concerns though. Dis...ah... by-haff program. It has benefits in theory, but in terms of execution, I haff no clue how de derector ist going to pull dis vahn off. You can’t tailor ein virus for occupation. You can’t haff successful nuclear war. You can’t order das rediculous robot Erasers to vly around de vorld shooting people like de robot in das Schvarzeneggar movie. Vell, ist not my problem.

Vahn more ting. Das idiot Bachelder allowed ein group ahf das afian-humans to go out ahf control. Ah vell, dey vill all haff to die.

[EndOfTheEarth]

Nighthawk, can you record this?:

 

June 5^th,  Dr. (Make up a name that sounds sensible) reporting on…well…

Ugh, what a mess!

I mean, Roland ter Borcht is a brilliant geneticist, but you’d think that he could keep a clean desk—I had to spend the entire week trying to organize and make sense of it all, and to find the important files on the avian-humans and erasers.

Even with what Dr. ter Borcht left, this isn’t going to be easy. I mean, the Erasers aren’t designed to fly. They just aren’t. They’re designed to be heavy muscle on the ground. Sadly, when it comes to chasing flying hybrids, muscle on the ground gets you nowhere. So the gameplan is to take this data and see if we can enlarge the avian hybrid wings a bit and start growing them on our new Eraser batches. The estimates show that the new Erasers won’t have the speed or turning radius of the original avian-humans, but their sheer inertia during combat should be an advantage.

Well, you can’t have everything.

 

Feel free to put in pauses or sighs as you feel needed.

[Nighthawk]

Ok, sounds awesome! Can I do this tomorrow though? My family's kind of asleep right now... 

[EndOfTheEarth]

Sure. No rush yet.