It’s a beautiful day in 1969, all the KIDS are going around earning points. We go outside and see these activities available:
- Hut building
- Washing and Cleaning (+ Kitchen area)
- Ghost stories at a bonfire (evening only)*
ANYA/ GLORIA chooses ORIENTEERING, CASSIUS/SANJAY chooses the KITCHEN. XANTHI decides to do her own investigation and maybe look for GLORIA’s Brother or the other kids who have not been located.
Meanwhile, TOMMY/LUKE is at the LAKE. The mysterious girl who knows him keeps asking what he is going to do. He hazards a guess and says: ‘hunting.’ She bats her doe eyes and says that maybe, ‘they can catch each other too’. TOMMY/LUKE laughs awkwardly. He quickly changes the subject and asks, ‘what brings her to camp?’ She is incredulous at this question because to her, they have been speaking all summer long and talking specifically about the camp.
TOMMY/LUKE asks who she hung out with yesterday and she says BILLY NOVAK, which is his last name. He takes a second to comprehend this, wondering, ‘Could this be my dad?’ It is the same name… In a moment of stunning clarity, TOMMY/LUKE realizes that the girl, KAREN DONAHEAU, is indeed his MOM. He blinks and asks about BILLY. KAREN continues to talk about how they met at a concert in BOULDER CITY. TOMMY/LUKE keeps asking about BILLY not really liking the implication that LUKE and her have a special relationship. KAREN misinterprets and says BILLY and her are just friends. TOMMY/LUKE says, ‘oh like me.’ to create distance, which makes KAREN super mad! She wants to take a break so TOMMY/LUKE can think about what he just said. He escapes back to camp with some relief.
Meanwhile, GRIMEY had woken up as SARAH HOLLAND. GRIMEY/SARAH is now a 12 year old, blonde white girl. GRIMEY/SARAH wanders into the HUT BUILDING AREA. GRIMEY, understandably, is quite freaked out but decides it must be the result of the SMALL MOTTS VACCINE and this is simply his new lot in life. He has to get busy living or get busy dying, so he gets to work.
GRIMEY is handed a box of nails and hammer. There are two other kids that are helping him, but GRIMEY ignores them and proceeds to build the shit out of the HUT. Some boys (and a girl) come over to talk to GRIMEY and ask his name. He says ‘GRIMEY,’ which confuses them as it is not really a girl's name. He asks the year, (they tell him 1969), and says ‘yeah, get with the times’. The boys shrug and ask if she wants to hang out later. They introduce themselves as: TIM, NICK, and SAMANTHA, but GRIMEY mostly waves them off but does end up following them in the direction of the SPORTS area, before being distracted with SQUIRREL HUNTING.
SANJAY/CASSIUS is working in the kitchen peeling potatoes, there are about 12 other kids there with him. He asks what they think about what the 80s might be like but their answers are not what he is looking for.
The guy next to CASSIUS introduces himself as BOB. CASSIUS/SANJAY asks after interesting people at camp and is told about MARTIN, a weird camp counselor who seems SICK. And a MYSTERIOUS HOMELESS man deep in the woods. (BOB says it could be a monster, not a man but who really knows, they mostly just talk about this person/creature to scare kids). CASSIUS takes note then asks after DEREK. BOB says to just steer clear as DEREK never gets in trouble and is really mean spirited. CASSIUS wonders if DEREK is related to someone at camp. After the conversation dies out, CASSIUS tries to overhear any rumors and look around but does not find much. Frustrated, CASSIUS tells BOB he is going on break. He then decides to sneak over to the COUNCILOR AREA to see if he can get a glimpse of this MARTIN character.
Elsewhere, ANYA/GLORIA is left in the deep woods with nothing but a MAP and COMPASS. Her group does not seem to know her which is a bit of a relief and makes it easier for her to find an opportunity to sneak away. She kinda side steps into a bush hoping that is enough of a cover, but her group just looks at her strangely wondering what she is doing. GLORIA tries to charm them but they are just bemused, asking ‘why are you acting so suspicious?’ She tries again to plead that she needs ‘women time,’the main GIRL absolutely does not understand what GLORIA means, but one of the others in the group does and lets GLORIA run away. GLORIA does a loop to get back to the camp, beelining for the FRONT OFFICE.
Coincidentally, TOMMY/LUKE is arriving back at this time, so TOMMY/LUKE, SARAH/GRIMEY, CASSIUS/SANJAY, and GLORIA/ANYA are all near the front building. CASSIUS sees GLORIA first and tries to explain why he is there. Half way through the conversation, the two of them and TOMMY, see a cute blonde little girl kill a SQUIRREL. At the same time all three of the kids exclaim: ‘GRIMEY!’
GRIMEY seems very sure this is his new life and he made peace with that. CASSIUS tries not to judge him, in case he simply likes being a girl, but GRIMEY really just seems fine with anything, and is the type to deal with the consequences (or any perceived consequences) of his actions. CASSIUS and GLORIA ask if he wants to get home to his dad, he doesn’t, but says he is interested in helping them get back home if that is what we truly want. CASSIUS also spends a brief moment talking to TOMMY about potentially meeting his absentee dad. TOMMY does not think he had mentioned this too much before, especially to CASSIUS, but confirms he would be okay with it.
Reunited, the four kids decide to break into the OFFICE together. ANYA/GLORIA peers into the window. She sees an access point which she relays. GRIMY says he will keep watch outside while CASSIUS suggests he should scream if he sees someone and to cry that DEREK killed her SQUILLE as a distraction. LUKE/TOMMY helps keep a lookout from the inside as CASSIUS and GLORIA rummage.
Inside, it is pretty standard. There are rooms labeled with COUNSELOR name tags so CASSIUS goes through MARTIN’S ROOM. He picks up a JOURNAL and goes through a bag but there isn’t much of interest. He quickly flips through the JOURNAL and sees mention of being in a NEW BODY. That’s pretty major so he stores the JOURNAL in his pants for later, safer reading. He is still on guard.
GLORIA heads to KIM’S room and uses her ICONIC ITEM to pick the lock on the FILING CABINET. They seem to be PERSONNEL FILES (There are files for all the KIDS at camp), and some important looking NOTES. She takes some of each, trying to be inconspicuous about it (tearing out a few select pages, taking a random councilor’s page, etc). Suddenly, there is a sudden NOISE that alerts her. It looks like SARAH/GRIMEY got distracted as someone is now approaching.
At the last minute, GRIMEY jumps into action. He uses his PRIDE as a protector to signal that ANYA and LUKE need to HIDE! After that, GRIMEY starts screaming and crying loudly. LUKE/TOMMY takes the distraction as a chance to escape, but GLORIA decides to hide. SANJAY/CASSIUS follows suit by going into the closet in MARTIN’s room. He is in a much safer position so he takes the chance to read through the JOURNAl and commit the information to memory.
Outside, GRIMEY asks KIM JOHNSON to bring the SQUIRREL back from the dead and to find its killers. KIM is very perplexed at this and tells SARAH/GRIMEY to go dig the grave on her own as she is very busy.
Meanwhile, the now escaped TOMMY panics and wants to get KIM’s attention to assist GLORIA and CASSIUS, who did not follow him out, so he pulls out his LIGHTER and gives himself a BURN. KIM takes him into the NURSES OFFICE, which isn’t exactly what he wanted, as now he is literally sitting over top of GLORIA's hiding position which is precarious at best.
KIM questions how this burn could have happened. TOMMY lies and says he was trying to start the bonfire but his aim was off. TOMMY wonders aloud if many people come in who are SICK. KIM shrugs and says, ‘it is mostly injuries’. TOMMY, wanting to keep his distraction going, asks if KIM has been working here for a while, she says ‘Yes…Maybe 6 years’. She then admits she used to be a RESEARCHER at the DARPA RESEARCH LAB before this. This is of great interest so TOMMY asks what she did there. She says she researched TIME. TOMMY charms her into saying: ‘Yeah!’ She was specifically into ‘TIME TRAVEL.’
GLORIA takes this moment of subterfuge to feel around the DUFFLE BAG which is under the BED with her; however, SOMETHING drops within it and it makes a NOISE. LUKE/TOMMY FAINTS to distract KIM JOHNSON from reacting. It works, as KIM rushes to get some smelling salts from her first aid kit. The salt causes TOMMY to gag. Annoyed, she says he should stay in bed for half an hour and that she will leave the door open so he can leave when he is ready. KIM then leaves.
This is great because it gives everyone the chance to reconvene.
CASSIUS finishes reading the JOURNAL and comes down to say what he has learned. It turns out that the ‘now’ MARTIN is a FUTURE KIM JOHNSON who is 80 YEARS OLD. CASSSIUS explains: ‘’They have body snatched him just as we have body snatched the kids we now are.’
Similarly, GLORIA relays the information she gathered in the NOTES she found. It details a HELMET called the KLEIN 1 - made by DART CORPORATION, a precursor to the DARPA LOOP. The HELMET is meant to stimulate the brain and switch bodies.
CASSIUS scofts saying: "Of course it is the LOOP PEOPLE, they are always involving themselves in TIME BULLSHIT." GRIMEY probes for some follow up clarification on what he means, but GLORIA concurs because the kids did deal with DARPA’s rogue AI not too long ago, clearly they love bullshit of all types.
Next, GLORIA details the information in the PERSONNEL FILES she found. They are immediately suspicious as there is also too much medical information about the KIDS - and talks of multiple trials (as opposed to just one). Evidently, the CAMP COUNSELORS have been experimenting on all the kids present. (For example, there are lots of notes about SUBJECT 89 and 62 rejecting certain personality details...etc) This leaves all the KIDS with a bad taste in their mouths. CASSIUS is particularly horrified, but prompts GLORIA to check the DUFFLE AGAIN just in case. She obliges and pulls out the KLEIN HELMET.
"Huh, this fetch quest was easier than I thought." CASSIUS says before the group hands it over to him to tinker with. At first it looks like he won’t be able to open it, but he connects a lucky wire and gets a lot of information from it. His CROWBAR, now a TI-82, was extremely helpful. Upon seeing that CASSIUS’ special item changed, GRIMEY checks for his trusty KNIFE, but finds a BARBIE with STILETTO HEELS instead. He shrugs as these are still sharp. (GLORIA’S item is now a box of 48’s (RECORDS) and TOMMY’S is a BOX OF MATCHES (though he is only aware of this later).
CASSIUS asks the others if they want to hide the HELMET in the WOODS. They agree this is a good idea, and very doable as GLORIA has a MAP. The KIDS hide while TOMMY stays in the bed. KIM returns, but cannot really blame him despite the fact he is the most suspicious. Eventually he slips away and joins the rest of the kids in their quest to hide the HELMET. As they walk the kids consider how they can test it. DEREK’s name comes up as a potential guinea pig.
CASSIUS also relay’s what he heard about the homeless man/ monster. He wonders if the man might be MARTIN hiding out or some other potential ally. He instructs everyone to keep a look out as they move through the dark. Eventually, CASSIUS and GRIMEY see a pair of unsettling EYES. CASSIUS calls out but there is no answer, GLORIA is white as a sheet, not feeling safe. GRIMEY/SARAH charges towards the beast- but his cry becomes a stunning, and sudden silence.
GRIMEY is taken.
Scared, the rest of the KIDS surge forward to see if they can get GRIMEY back, but it is too late- He is gone, instead there is a note stuck to a tree made of pieced together magazine scraps. It reads:
“I am not dangerous. I have ur friend. Come alone... Or else.”
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