[Dick stands up from his chair, and his voice suddenly drops—that rare tone he only uses when talking about real things, not cosmic idiots, explosions, or philosophers from Antiquity]“Alright, baby. My balls don’t belong to me.
In fifty years of my life, I’ve signed so many contracts
I’m not even sure I own anything anymore.A contract? That’s a good thing.
Paper protects your interests.
No ‘he said this, she said that’—
no pointless arguing. You get me?In legal terms—no conflicting testimonies.
A well-written contract solves the dispute for you.
With it, you either win…
or you already lost before you even started.Yeah… contracts are a two-sided stick.
It hits from both ends.So… Jackie, my dear gremlins…
I’m stepping away from the radio.
We’re going live.
You with me, baby?”
[Jackie smiles sweetly, leaning on the table, tilting her head—just like she always does when Dick says something that's both smart and absolutely stupid]“Of course, Dick. We’re in this together.
But unlike you… I’m actually excited.
This is a new adventure.
We won’t just be telling stories…
we’ll be living them.”
[A station alert cuts in]"ATTENTION. DOCKING REQUEST RECEIVED—DOCKING APPROVED."[A few minutes later, the radio compartment door bursts open—VZHHH—BOOM.
And in the doorway stands Shiori. She scans the room—and the moment her eyes meet Jackie's, she speaks]“Konnichiwa. I am Shiori. I’ve been hired to escort you to Myurudeponī and ensure you return alive.
Mei ni kakete chikai masu, you will have a comfortable journey there and back, and not a single hair on your heads will be harmed.”
[She notices Dick and gives a slight bow]“Merodī-sama… Rho-sama… are you ready?
Let us not waste time.
Are you prepared for departure?”
[Shiori waits patiently in the doorway. Jackie, seeing her, forgets how to breathe. She nudges Dick with her elbow and whispers, barely containing her excitement]“Omo! Dick… that—that’s her… it’s actually Shiori… she’s gonna be our guide.
Daebak… this is amazing!”
[Dick nods, tired]“Alright, alright… calm down.
Grab the portable broadcaster and let’s go already…”
[He digs through his bag, drops in a bottle of Johnnie Wanker™, and helps Jackie strap on the portable broadcast unit]“Shiori, we’ll be ready in a second.”
[She gives a short nod. Dick glances at Jackie and adds, half-joking:]“Go on, baby, shut this damn station down.
Switch it over to that thing on your back.
You’re my field radio now.”
[Jackie snorts, covers her mouth, and starts flipping switches.
The red "ON AIR" light goes dark.
And right beside it—for the first time in the history of Nebula 69.99 FTLM—another light ignites:]LIVE FEED: FIELD TEAM READY[A light pause hangs in the air—that exact kind of "silence before shit hits the fan," as sound engineers like to call it.
Jackie adjusts her headphones, staring intently at Dick]“I kept wondering… when this moment would finally come.”
[Dick adjusts his collar—something inside it clicks, maybe a hidden armor plate snapping into place]“Come?
Baby… it’s been coming since day one.Every time we talked about Zeros,
about Blindy,
about all those lunatics…”
[Dick rubs his eyes, like he's forcing himself to stay sharp. He taps the side of the console, checking the signal manually]“—Testing, testing… you hear me?
My dear gremlins, you ready to take this trip with us?”
[He leans forward toward the mic, voice sharpening, locking into host mode]“Buckle up—ready or not!
Tonight’s gonna be one hell of a rollercoaster.”
[Jackie snorts with laughter, but there's fire in her eyes now]“Dick…
You do realize we’re actually going there now?
Yew-hooo!
THIS IS A NEW ADVENTURE!”
[The ratings spike so fast Radio Nebula jumps past
JAE RIGGAN SHITALK™—
the weekly show where Jae screams at guests, politics, and black holes
while an AI moderator desperately tries to mute him—
and Nebula shoots straight into #20 on the TOP-25]“Alright, alright, easy…”
[This time Dick speaks calmly. Really calmly]“And you know what, baby?”
[He raises his hand and flips the final switch connecting the station to space]“No more watching other people’s shit from this hole.
Time to see it up close.”
[Jackie steps up beside him. Her voice—warm, steady]“We used to talk about someone else’s adventures…
Now it’s our turn.”
[Dick holds out his fist.
Jackie bumps it—light, confident.
Like signing a contract between them]“My dear gremlins…”
[Dick continues]“If you can still hear us… don’t worry.
We’ll be back soon.”
[Jackie adds, smiling like she just signed her own death sentence]“And if we don’t come back—
find Zeros and kick him for us.”