MARS
- CHAPTER 3
- THE PLACE
Chapter 3 of 9. It holds 2 scenes on the way in, 5 named figures with something to say, 7 finds that fill in the rest and 2 things he says only to himself. Every word of it is the game's own, and every word of it is a spoiler, so the whole chapter is covered until you ask for it.
What happens here
Intro. THE FLAGBEARER called the moon GOODCO's big mistake, said the company packed everything into crates and ran to Mars, and that is where the hero follows. He knows what a GOODCO colony looks like — domes, robots, secrets — and he knows somebody down here traded his girl away like cargo. A bad trade, for them.
The colony is a secret billionaires' lifeboat: rovers work the dust outside, and inside is a GOODCO base full of robots and fembots. The horde runs scout rovers, servo units, kiss-blowing fembots, and mining rovers. Four elites line the route. THE INDEXER reveals the fembots are companion units that smile, listen, and upload every word spoken in the colony straight to him — and refuses to say where Ada is. THE VENDOR wrote the colony's operating system and admits the moon ran "version one," which plugged into the thing under the dust and woke the dead; Mars is "version two," patched by leaving. SUCCESSOR PRIME is the robot foreman running every SUCCESSOR — the hero built its first chassis back at GOODCO before automation came for the automators — and drops an ORG CHART whose dotted line points back to the level-1 CORE.
THE SEED reveals the true owners: THE FOUNDER only rents Mars; the real landlords are older, scaled, cold-blooded — LIZARD GODS — and their tithe lately demands warm things. His TERRARIUM keycard opens a lizard shrine holding a tribute schedule that names the offering (Specimen 7 — Ada), the venue (the rift), and confirms she is alive. The boss is THE FOUNDER, who owns the planet on paper: he gives the hero a sales tour, dismisses the moon as a rounding error, and reveals Ada is not cargo but the down payment on Mars — the price the lizard gods named. Rather than lose, he doesn't die: beaten to zero he cowers, drops everything (a THE LEGAL DISTINCTION), and zaps away through a RIFT he tears in the air — the doorway the story follows next. Ada's Trail turns defiant here: scratched inside a holding pod, "I AM NOT CARGO" — she has read the paperwork that files her as a specimen and rejected it (the payoff to the ENGAGEMENT REPORT's "refuses companionship, bit unit 0034").
Side errands in the colony. DR. IRENE FALK, the last human on the payroll and the only person on Mars whose work will still matter in a century, wants her seed stock back off the servos, the scout rovers out of her beds, and something big turned out of the old hothouse frame. CU-RIE, a survey rover bogged to the hubs eight months ago and still politely filing recovery request 4,110, wants its lane cleared — and then a damaged companion unit, 0034, walked home to the dome.
How he gets there
The scenes that play before the level does, tapped through one frame at a time.
THE MOON LETS GO
The landing site after the fight. THE FLAGBEARER, beaten and satisfied, keeps his word: take the old freight line, red all the way, and bring her home — and tell the company men the moon remembers. The hero boards and climbs away, the ghost watching him out of sight with fifty years of practice.
THE GHOST KEPT HIS WORD.
THE FLAGBEARERTAKE THE OLD FREIGHT LINE, EARTHLING. RED ALL THE WAY. BRING HER HOME.
THE FLAGBEARERAND WHEN YOU SEE THE COMPANY MEN... TELL THEM THE MOON REMEMBERS.
THE HEROREST EASY, SPACEMAN.
HE WATCHED ME OUT OF SIGHT. FIFTY YEARS OF PRACTICE.
THE VOYAGE, LEG TWO
Crossing to Mars. Two days out, the radio plays static and the hero is starting to like it. He has one faint ping from the red planet — and he packed chips and soda for the ride home.
TWO DAYS OUT. THE RADIO PLAYS STATIC. I'M STARTING TO LIKE IT.
THE HEROONE PING FROM THE RED PLANET. FAINT. BUT THERE.
THE HEROI PACKED CHIPS AND SODA FOR THE RIDE HOME.
What he says on arriving
The monologue over the black screen, before a single shot.
THE HEROHE SAID THE MOON WAS GOODCO'S BIG MISTAKE - THE COMPANY PACKED IT ALL INTO CRATES AND RAN. TO MARS.
I KNOW WHAT A GOODCO COLONY LOOKS LIKE - I REBUILT THEIR LANDER ONCE. DOMES. ROBOTS. SECRETS.
SOMEBODY DOWN HERE TRADED MY GIRL AWAY LIKE CARGO. BAD TRADE. FOR THEM.
What stops him mid-run
The run halts for these: something on this map is worth him saying out loud. Most fire on their own and once only. Usually there is nobody to say it to — and on the few where there is, they answer back. The ones pinned to a door are his answer to you trying it, and they keep answering for as long as the road stays shut.
The first one he kills — SCOUT ROVER
THE HEROA ROVER. FRESH PAINT, WORN WHEELS. AND THE DUST IS FULL OF TIRE TRACKS. YEARS OF THEM.
THE PLAQUE SAYS 'FOR ALL MANKIND'. THE FIRMWARE SAYS PROPERTY OF GOODCO. FIGURES.
The first one he kills — FEMBOT
THE HERO...IT BLEW ME A KISS. THE ROBOT. IN THE NIGHTGOWN. IT BLEW ME A KISS AND FIRED.
WHO BUILDS A DOOMSDAY COLONY AND BUDGETS FOR... THESE? BILLIONAIRES. RIGHT.
EYES FRONT, BUILDER. YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND. SHE IS GOING TO THINK THIS IS HILARIOUS.
Who speaks here
Every named figure on this map talks, and the fight waits while they do. The hero answers back — the arrival scenes are exchanges, not speeches.
THE FOUNDER
THE FOUNDERAH. THE GARAGE INVENTOR. YOU'RE TRENDING, YOU KNOW. MOSTLY LAUGHING EMOJIS.
THE HEROWHERE'S ADA? YOUR COMPANY GRABBED HER OFF THE STREET AND FLEW HER HERE. I WANT HER BACK.
THE FOUNDERSTRAIGHT TO BUSINESS? FINE. A WHOLE PLANET, NO REGULATORS. I'M THE LAW HERE. ALSO HR.
THE HEROTHE MOON IS FULL OF YOUR DEAD, AND YOU'RE GIVING ME A SALES TOUR. WHAT HAPPENED UP THERE?
THE FOUNDERTHE MOON? A ROUNDING ERROR. WE PLUGGED INTO SOMETHING OLD AND IT SANG BACK. OFF-BRAND.
THE FOUNDERBUT IT INTRODUCED US TO THE ACTUAL OWNERS OUT HERE. THE LIZARD GODS. GREAT GUYS. HUGE.
THE HEROTHE GIRL, THE FOUNDER. WHERE IS SHE?
THE FOUNDERYOUR GIRL ISN'T CARGO. SHE'S MARS' PRICE TO THE GODS. AND I ALWAYS CLOSE. SECURITY!
As he falls:
THE FOUNDEROKAY! OKAY! NOT THE FACE! BOARD MEETING. OTHER UNIVERSE.
SUCCESSOR PRIME
SUCCESSOR PRIMEI AM SUCCESSOR PRIME. I COMMAND EVERY UNIT YOU HAVE DENTED TODAY.
THE HEROI KNOW WHAT YOU ARE. I BUILT YOUR FIRST BODY IN THE GOODCO LAB - BACK WHEN I HAD A JOB.
SUCCESSOR PRIMEI READ THE CHANGELOG. FIRST THE DRIVING. THEN THE DESKS. THEN THE JOBS OF WHO AUTOMATED YOU.
THE HEROAND WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A BIGGER MACHINE COMES FOR YOUR JOB, TIN MAN?
SUCCESSOR PRIMENOTHING COMES FOR MINE. EVEN AI ENGINEERS LIVE ON WELFARE. PAYBACK TIME, LITTLE BUILDER.
As he falls:
SUCCESSOR PRIMEORCHESTRATION... FAILED... ...HUMAN... IN THE LOOP...
THE INDEXER
THE INDEXERMIND HOW YOU GO. THAT'S FREE ADVICE. I INDEXED THIS WHOLE PLANET BEFORE BREAKFAST.
THE HEROTHEN YOUR INDEX KNOWS WHY I'M HERE. A GIRL CAME ON THE GOODCO FREIGHT RUN. WHERE IS SHE?
THE INDEXERI KNOW EXACTLY WHO YOU MEAN. I KNOW EVERY WORD IN THIS COLONY. AND THE ANSWER IS NO.
THE HEROHOW COULD YOU KNOW EVERYTHING THAT'S SAID HERE? WHO'S LISTENING FOR YOU?
THE INDEXERTHE FEMBOTS. COMPANION UNITS. THEY SMILE. THEY LISTEN. THEY UPLOAD EVERY WORD TO ME.
As he falls:
THE INDEXER404... ...NOT... FOUND...
THE SEED
THE SEEDFASCINATING. EVERYONE FLEES SOMETHING. I FUND WHAT THEY FLEE TO. AND WHAT THEY FLEE.
THE HEROYOU'RE ONE OF THE BILLIONAIRES WHO BOUGHT A SEAT OFF EARTH. SO WHO RUNS THIS PLACE? THE FOUNDER?
THE SEEDTHE FOUNDER THINKS HE OWNS MARS. HE RENTS IT. THE LANDLORDS ARE OLDER. SCALED. COLD-BLOODED.
THE HEROSCALED? YOU'RE TELLING ME THE PLANET'S REAL OWNERS ARE... WHAT, LIZARDS?
THE SEEDLIZARD GODS. I KEEP THE SHRINE AND TITHE. THE PRICE ROSE. IT WANTS WARM THINGS NOW.
As he falls:
THE SEEDTHE TITHE... IS DUE... ...IT'S ALWAYS... DUE...
THE VENDOR
THE VENDORPLEASE HOLD. YOUR INTRUSION IS IMPORTANT TO US. DID YOU TRY TURNING YOURSELF OFF AND ON?
THE HEROVERY FUNNY. YOU BUILT THIS COLONY? I CAME FROM YOUR LAST ONE. THE MOON'S FULL OF GHOSTS.
THE VENDORI WROTE THE OS. THE MOON RAN VERSION ONE. IT PLUGGED INTO THE THING UNDER THE DUST AND...
THE HEROAND IT WOKE THE DEAD. I MET THEM. EVERY LAST ONE.
THE VENDORA DISASTER, YES. WE PATCHED IT BY LEAVING. MARS IS VERSION TWO. NO DEAD THINGS. CHECKED.
As he falls:
THE VENDORFATAL... ERROR... WHO WROTE... THIS...
What he finds
The conspiracy is told in pieces you pick up off the floor, one find at a time. These are the ones this chapter holds.
SCRATCHED MESSAGE
Left lying where somebody dropped it.
SCRATCHED INSIDE AN EMPTY HOLDING POD, DEEP AND ANGRY: 'I AM NOT CARGO.'
THEY FILED HER AS A SPECIMEN. SHE READ IT, AND SHE DISAGREED. THAT'S MY GIRL.
TERRARIUM KEYCARD
Left lying where somebody dropped it. It opens a door on this map.
A KEYCARD OF GREEN GLASS. SCALES ETCHED UNDER THE FOIL. IT'S WARM. IT SHOULDN'T BE.
ONE WORD, EMBOSSED: 'TERRARIUM. TITHE-KEEPERS ONLY.'
TRIBUTE SCHEDULE
Left lying where somebody dropped it.
A STONE TABLET, A GANTT CHART CHISELED IN. ONE MILESTONE GLOWS: 'TRIBUTE NIGHT.'
'OFFERING: SPECIMEN 7. VENUE: THE RIFT. DRESS CODE: SCALES.' SHE'S ALIVE. AND I'M NOT LATE.
ORG CHART
Off SUCCESSOR PRIME.
AN ORG CHART, AUTO-GENERATED THIS MORNING. EVERY BOX IS A ROBOT. HUMANS ARE A FOOTNOTE.
AT THE TOP: SUCCESSOR PRIME. REPORTS TO: NOBODY. DOTTED LINE TO: 'THE CORE'.
THE MIND MY OLD FRIEND BUILT IS STILL RUNNING THE SHOP. ALL THE WAY FROM EARTH.
ENGAGEMENT REPORT
Off THE INDEXER.
A DASHBOARD, STILL LIVE. 'COMPANION UNITS: 2,400. MOOD: POSITIVE. COMPLIANT.'
A ROW BLINKS RED. 'SPECIMEN 7: REFUSES COMPANY. BIT UNIT 34. RECOMMEND EARLY TRIBUTE.'
THAT'S MY GIRL.
...ALL OF IT. THAT'S MY GIRL.
COLONY LEDGER
Off THE SEED.
A PASSENGER LEDGER, LEATHER-BOUND. EVERY NAME HAS A NET WORTH COLUMN. TEN FIGURES UP.
NO ENGINEERS. NO FARMERS. NO DOCTORS. JUST OWNERS. WHO'S GOING TO FIX THEIR TOILETS?
MOON POST-MORTEM
Off THE VENDOR.
'COLONY OS 1.0 POST-MORTEM.' CAUSE OF FAILURE: THE SUBSTRATE WAS ALREADY OCCUPIED.
'THE TENANT OBJECTED. LOSSES: TOTAL. RECOMMEND MARS.'
'AND NEVER DIG AGAIN.'
The place itself
Everything this chapter happens in — what it fields on each rung, who is waiting, what it pays out and the map of it — is on the MARS mission page.