THE WAY IT WENT DOWN: FLYWHEEL TRANSCRIPT

As from a fountain continually flowing out of the city, the Roman camp was quickly and plentifully filled up with fresh men, not at all abating in courage for the loss they sustained but even from their very anger gaining new force and resolution to go on with the war.

Ops, this is Overwatch. First agent is approaching now. Far end of the park. Two minutes out. Was all that meant for us?

Plutarch. Life of Pyrrhus. Just thinking out loud. The one time every couple months it’s safe to think out loud. I almost taught classics, you know.

Keep saying shit like that and I don’t know how safe it’ll stay. The agent is almost there.  Going silent.

What the fuck was that? You cunt. Friday’s dead, you know that?

I know. Have a seat.

Have a seat? How much did you know, sending us in like that? I ought to kill your ass.

I know. Have a seat. Let’s talk it through. Maybe we can find ways to do better next time.

Are you alone here?

Of course. 

You piece of shit. 

Do you need anything? Here’s some water. 

You owe me something stronger than water.

Get drunk later. Let’s go through it. You ready?

Fucking bitch. Jesus.

Operations officer five niner three alpha six romeo niner. Operation FLYWHEEL debriefing. I’m with operations agent Jason Hanley Riggs.

I can’t believe you do that. You get a code number. I get my real name on this thing. What is that?

What happened to Annalise Friday?

For fucking blackmail?

Agent Riggs?

What?

What happened to Annalise?

You called me agent. I don’t know why it never clicked before.

What clicked?

We go into the field. We jump in front of the fucking thresher. But we’re not even Delta Green, are we? Not really.

I don’t know what that is.

Oh fuck off. I mean, you’re in it. You’re an officer. Us? We’re just agents. Assets. Disposable. How many of us have you killed?

I don’t know what you’re talking about. We’re here to discuss Operation FLYWHEEL.

I don’t figure you killed any of us yourself. Well, maybe. But probably not. But you run these ops. You know what they might mean. You know the statistics. And you send us anyway. 

About Agent Friday—

I’ve been on seven of these things. Three or four of us on an op. We look around. We tell you we need an expert in one thing or another. Need a team to handle cleanup right. Or tactical backup. And what do you say?

We’re wasting time, here.

You always say the same thing. You say, We sent your team because you’re the experts. You handle it. Same thing, every goddamn time. Seven ops. I’ve put four teammates in the ground. Another four come back after months in fucking traction. And we’re just one team. So how many is that for you?

Ops, this is Overwatch. You need to shut this down.

Agent Riggs, I’m not here to answer questions. You know that. You also know a debrief is the wrong time to blow off steam.

Sure. Fine. Friday got too close to the rogant ascendant before Sangha and MacDowell finished the Invocation of Interbeing. They knew better than to stop. It drew her in. She was all stretched out in blood that turned to sparks in the air. 

I’m sorry.

Fuck yourself. Sangha said her coming in like that made the invocation stronger. Like throwing in a sacrifice. Even if she didn’t mean to. MacDowell didn’t think so. But I don’t know if he really didn’t think so or he just didn’t want to think so.

Why did she get so close to it?

Trying to get some kid out of the way. For all the good that did. One of the rogant’s kids. Probably would have been the next fucking ascendant in a few years. Why do you say you’re sorry?

Friday was a good—a good woman. Reliable. 

Two kids and a piece of shit husband back home.

I know.

You were about to say a good agent. Right? A good agent. A good asset. Reliable. A useful tool.

Ops, this is Overwatch. Saying again, shut this down. Body language ain’t right. He’s about to pop.

So how many?

Pardon?

How many of us have you lost? 

You know I can’t—

Jesus Christ. I’m only seven ops in and I’m old blood. I'm the old veteran. This is Russian roulette. And we keep showing up. I mean—shit. I guess it works out, right? That’s seven incursions neutralized. These things get ugly when they spread. One dead agent gets two incursions shut down, that’s got to be a pretty good deal.

Ninety-two.

Ops this is Overwatch, this agent is not I repeat not cleared for any information about the Program beyond what is strictly necessary for the performance of duties so please shut the fuck up before this gets out of hand.

I'm sorry, Riggs. I didn’t hear. What did you say? 

I said, what do you mean, ninety-two? You’ve planted ninety-two of us?

As operations officer. Not counting teammates when I was in your shoes.

Overwatch Two, Overwatch Three, prepare to engage.

Overwatch, this is Two. What’s happening? They’re just sitting there.

No chatter, Two.

Riggs, listen. You want me to help you make peace with it. I can’t. I’ve spent almost twenty years in this thing. Agent and handler. I’ve run a hundred ops. Some of them saved lives. Some of them saved a lot of lives. Every last one, I asked for more resources. More backup. More cooperation. We all do. And we all get told no. And we all understand why. And we all agree. And we all beg for more anyway. Next op, I’ll ask for every kind of asset that I can’t have. I know roping in other teams raises the risks of exposure exponentially. Blowback on one is blowback on everybody. I’ve seen it happen. But I’ll still try. I’ll try. Because Friday was a good agent.

Overwatch, this is Three. We got something weird in the air here. Permission to engage? Or maybe bug out?

Well, Riggs?

Overwatch, this is Two. Got an EM surge. Upper levels, a brownstone, hundred and eight meters south. This ain’t right.

Riggs?

You fucking bitch. Sangha! MacDowell. Stand down. All of it.

Ops, get clear so we can engage.

This is Two. That surge is down.

Three?

Uh. I don’t know. I think we’re, uh, back to nominal.

Thank you, Riggs.

Fuck yourself.

Two, you will engage when Ops is clear. Three, you're on that brownstone.

We can pick this up later, agent. I’m going home.

She was worth better than this.

I know.

Friday was good. She deserved better.

You all do.

Ops, any fucking day.

We'll talk later, Riggs. Keep the bench as long as you like.