. . . We interrupt our programming-

“ . . . for this incredible announcement. The first one thousand customers get an extra 15 percent off during this holiday weekend and . . . ”

“ . . . it’s buy one, get one free, for a limited time only! Get yours now, because . . . ”

-This is a national emergency-

“ . . . isn’t it? It wasn’t really a surprise we’ve got to this point.”

“Not really. Becoming an actor was always in the cards. I was drawn to the arts, you know? My mother was a drama teacher at my high school, and my dad used to be in a virtual band.”

“Must have been hard having your mom be around you twenty-four seven. I would have hated that!”

“The other kids used to tease me for sure. I didn’t really mind. My Friendbot said it was good to have access to my parents because most kids spend too much time onwave as it is, and that leads to poor in-person social development.”

“Friendbots are so wise like that. Which model did you get? I had a Chatboy I called Christopher!”

“Ha! My parents could only afford a refurbished model, so the name recognition never worked right. It would break down every once in a while, and start repeating: Malfunction detected. Owner intervention required . . . ”

-Important instructions will follow-

“ . . . me! I’m onwave at Wellnessgirl89, and if you’re still online, I upload selected wavecasts on all my legacy social media once a month for free members. Diamond members can receive new wavecasts once a week, and Platinum members get to join me live for special quarterly celebrity interviews and events!

“Now, before we get into what’s new in health and wellness, I wanted to let you know this wavecast is sponsored by Restful, pioneers in the new field of upcasting. Some of you may have seen the ads onwave, or the posts calling it the Matrix, but this isn’t your granddad’s virtual reality. Let’s get into how it works. You should know that . . . ”

-The following message is transmitted at the request of-

“ . . . the president. I mean, no one voted to get into yet another war, but here we are . . . ”

“ . . . facing another hurricane out in the Gulf, the second one this month, Alex . . . ”

“ . . . can you believe it? Restful’s renting you a bed basically—”

“Don’t you mean a coffin?”

“Ha ha, funny guy. Anyway, you get to dream your life away in this bed—”

“Sounds good to me. I’d like to dream away half the shit I live these days.”

“Come on. You don’t really mean that.”

“Why the fuck wouldn’t I mean that?”

“Because you’d be skipping out on real life. Don’t you realize . . . ?”

-This is not a test. I repeat, this is not a test-

“ . . . you can fail. Imagine passing every exam that matters simply by logging onwave. Information instantly downloaded and accessible to the user through any partnered device. You can use your Friendbot, your glasses, even your microwave. Never worry about what to cook again when you can download recipes and instantly know how to execute them!

For a guaranteed monthly subscription of only $9.99 during your first year, you can pass your midterms, ace that job interview, or become the smartest guy at the office. You’ll no longer have to worry about what . . . ”

-They say they want you to be calm-

“ . . . and Lulsify can help with that. Just one tablet a day can significantly reduce anxiety and panic attacks and allow you to get out there and enjoy your life.

“No more depression! No more distractions! Studies show Lulsify is safe for children as young as fourteen and may even lead to increased cognitive focus in adults and the elderly . . . ”

“ . . . people are such a drain on society. Like, what even is the point of them? They should just hurry up and die so we can finally get that job they’ve been sitting on for years.”

“Right? I mean, before they used to leave inheritances for you and stuff, but now it’s all vacations to Europe, and cruises, and trips to the ISS and shit. I say fuck ’em. We should cancel that social security crap and Mediwhatever and use that money for something else.”

“Whoa, not so fast, man. That’s a bit much, don’t you think?”

“Honestly, no, I fucking don’t. I’m tired of being told I’m angry. Yeah, I’m angry! I have every fucking right to be. The world is fucked up, and they act like it’s my fault. It’s like that British thing I heard once . . . what was it? They say some shit like, stay calm and carry on . . . ”

-But this is not calmness. It’s numbness-

“ . . . of the worst kind. Elsewhere, four more people died today in the aftermath of a deadly plane crash in our busy city center, and authorities . . . ”

“ . . . were unable to reach the stranded students before they were swept away by flash flood waters that flowed through the popular camping site . . . ”

“ . . . where the third mass shooting in the state this week took the lives of seven people at a local gathering spot for teenagers, who . . . ”

“ . . . need a lot of help these days. There are so many distractions with legacy social media, games, podcasts, wavecasts, you name it, it’s hard for them to focus on their own lives and what they need to get done.”

“So, what do you suggest parents do, Doctor?”

“Well, I recently started prescribing a new medication called Lulsify, and the response from my patients has been just astounding.”

“Has it really?”

“Oh, yes. You know . . . ”

-They say you shouldn’t focus on what’s happening-

“ . . . well, they say a lot of things, but my first question is always, who’s they? And don’t we usually find out, ‘they’ is just a bunch of corporations trying to force their products on us? Like, do we really need all these expensive vaccines when the body heals itself? Why do I have to pay for things like my car ignition and car horn monthly? It’s a conspiracy to take us for everything we’ve got, okay. To make us sick, so we have to spend money getting better. To keep us from seeing what’s really going on. Who’s really benefiting? Everyone’s in on it. The media, big pharma, the billionaires, the politicians who . . . ”

“ . . . told us we were overreacting, that what we were saying was ridiculous, that there was no way any of that could happen, that it was all ‘settled law.’”

“Well, we weren’t overreacting. And apparently, there’s no such thing as ‘settled law’ anymore, not for these people. In fact, the law doesn’t matter to them at all. And when you point that out, when you try to get people to listen to what they’re actually saying and doing, so many of them are insisting . . . ”

-That it’s too much, all at once-

“ . . . that’s why we’re here to help. Restful is more than just a company or an innovative rejuvenation experience. It’s the only real solution to the continual pressures and demands of modern-day life.

“Our offices and residences welcome visitors at any time so you can see what Restful is all about. We’re not trapping you in a wavecast drama. We’re immersing you in the kind of life you’ve always wanted. One you can choose to leave or rejoin at any time.

“Restful wants you to have just that. A peaceful experience, far from the hustle and bustle of the outside world, while you live a full life tailored to your personal dreams and goals.

"Come in today and see what we can dream up together when finding your happiness, your peace, is your only concern . . . ”

-But this is not care. It’s disconnection-

“ . . . from all of it. Why should I care about what’s happening in some other country? That’s not my problem. My problems are here. I need to buy groceries and pay bills here. The economy is a mess, and if it wasn’t for all those people making trouble for the president, we would be doing a lot better. We elected her to do stuff, and they won’t let her do it.”

“So, you’re happy with her policies?”

“Damn straight, I am.”

“But if you say other countries shouldn’t be our problem, how do you explain the fact that we’re in another war?”

“She says she’s protecting us, so I believe that’s what she’s doing. We don’t got to care about other countries, but if they’re coming at us, then we have to go at them first, see? We got no choice. We can’t be weak like that. But . . . ”

-They say don’t ask questions. Don’t protest. Don’t fight-

“ . . . the system. However, there are real questions to be answered here, according to an unlikely coalition of concerned psychologists, academics, regulatory experts, and whistleblowers.

“Tonight on Thirty Minutes, we’ll be taking a look at upcasting, the new technology sweeping the globe, promising experiences broadcast directly into the brains of sleeping ‘tenants’ who, for a price, will get to enjoy the kind of life they can usually only dream of. Proponents claim the immersive reality of Restful’s VR worlds allows customers to truly unplug from the stress of daily life.

“But detractors question the secretiveness behind the proprietary technology first developed for the military to help train personnel faster, and the high costs involved with signing up for Restful. Those costs are not just financial. According to PEER, the group that’s brought several lawsuits against Restful for medical malpractice and violations of the rights of customers, which the company calls ‘tenants’ . . . ”

-They kill you if you fight. If you ask questions. If you ask the most important question in the world-

“ . . . why is the child crying?”

“Oh, that’s a good one, Emily. Did you come up with that yourself?”

[Laughs.] “Oh, of course not, John. Alice Walker did.” [Embarrassed chuckle.] “I don’t think I know her.”

“Neither do I, actually.” [Anchors laugh together.]

“Anyway, if you really think about it . . . ”

-They give you other things to fight. To distract yourself with-

“ . . . every day. I mean, can we really trust that our kids are safe if this is allowed . . . ”

“ . . . to continue? Are we really going to target little kids like this? For wanting to live their lives like everyone else? Without being harassed and bullied by . . . ”

-Memes and online trolls. Holiday trends and celebrity breakups. Dreams of other people’s lives-

“ . . . beautifully captured in ninety minutes of heartbreaking authenticity by a director at the top of her game.”

[Audience applauds.]

“So, without further ado—[opens envelope]—the winner of this year’s award for best director is . . . Oh! Well, this is a surprise . . . ”

“ . . . so many of you have turned out despite this weather! We’re a sold-out crowd tonight, even with this storm barreling down on us, so thank you, New York!”

[Wild cheering for several minutes.]

“Can you hear me, Madison Square Garden?”

[More cheering and screaming.]

“I say, can you hear me tonight, out there in the back row? Maybe . . . ”

-You think you’ve managed to avoid it all because you can’t hear it anymore. You don’t listen anymore. But it’s still there. In the background. Underneath it all-

“ . . . is the question of international law. This is a clear, flagrant violation, and despite the historical toothlessness of the United Nations—a deliberately engineered toothlessness, I might add—as a country, we’ve previously successfully campaigned for sanctions against others on the backs of these kinds of breaches. How can we now look the citizens of this country in the eye and claim that what we’ve done here isn’t the same thing? I mean, whether or not the government wants to address the public directly about what's now a days-old accusation . . . ”

-It doesn’t go away-

“ . . . I see it over and over again every time I close my eyes. I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I see the door getting kicked in, and then the flashes and the noise when they just start shooting . . . ”

“ . . . for no reason. He wasn’t even fighting back. He was just crouching over her, you know? He was just trying to protect her with, like, his body, and they kept beating on him, and beating on him, and . . . ”

“ . . . what I want to know is, why was she even there? Like, why was she taking a kid to a protest? Those things are dangerous, everyone knows that. They get out of hand all the time because those people are vicious. You see it onwave, and they’re so violent. The threats they make, the shouting . . . ”

-It gets louder and louder-

“ . . . the longer you stay in the box. Whoever can stay strapped into the box the longest will win one thousand dollars, with an additional five hundred dollars for every ten minutes they outlast the first contestant to tap out.

“Just remember, we’ll be increasing the decibel level every fifteen minutes. The show will keep that level below one that could cause permanent damage, but prolonged exposure won’t be comfortable, and everyone’s hearing is different. There’s no guarantee it won’t hurt some of you more than others.

“The first person out WILL go home tonight. If you want out of the box, you’ll have to use your safe word. The assistants won’t respond to . . . ”

-The screams. The pleas for help. The shock and fear. The anger and devastation-

“ . . . we’re seeing today is simply unprecedented. To tell us more about how it happened, here’s Charity Nash, who’s out in the field with first responders . . . ”

“ . . . but there’s not a lot they can do. I . . . I . . . I’m sorry, I just can’t seem to stop crying. We never saw it coming, you know? It was dark. The sirens went off an hour before, but when nothing happened, we just, we c-came back upstairs to check, and then a few minutes later, we started hearing . . . ”

-The explosions. The earth shaking as bombs drop and buildings fall-

“ . . . all the time, but with our patented storm protection system, you don’t have to worry about losing your house, your roof, or your windows! Tested up to a Category 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale, and up to an F4 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, our concrete dome construction and heavy-duty window shutters can withstand most direct hits from even . . . ”

-the tornadoes and hurricanes. The flood waters that sweep away the towns-

“ . . . that need help will have this new private-public partnership extended to them. If they’re willing to accept new data centers within their boundaries, then corporations can cover flood and disaster insurance for those within an agreed upon radius of the centers.

“And I’m being told this is just the beginning, Allison. Officials are saying each proposal would be tailored to meet local needs by the tendering corporation. For example, there could be cash-back rewards for residents willing to allow limited use of their water and electricity supply to the data centers. And those willing to sell their supply would receive even larger compensation.”

“Cash-back? Is that right?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, maybe I should start looking into it myself. I could use a little extra money, what with all . . . ”

-The wars they start everywhere. The people that walk through hell only to be turned away at the muzzle of a gun. Or worse-

“ . . . they won’t tell me where they are! How can this be right? How can your kids be coming home from school and just get snatched off the streets like this? This can’t be legal, especially when it comes to children . . . ”

“ . . . but they’re doing it anyway. They’re packing them in there in the worst conditions. It’s horrific. It’s disgusting . . . ”

-The smell of the bodies. Of despair. So. Many. Bodies-

“ . . . can be so gross! But Scentrails new seventy-two hour allover body spray fights the strongest of odors to leave you feeling, and smelling, as fresh as your favorite scents all day! If you want to try a sample of your own custom-designed scent, simply catch our wavecast and ride it into your friends and family feed! You’ll receive a private wave with the details on how to claim your free trial . . . !”

“ . . . of Lulsify. We’re seeing reports from parents of children who were prescribed this drug that it has serious and devastating side effects. Initially, claims of fugue states and stupors were dismissed as exaggerated, but over the past year . . . ”

“ . . . we’ve learned a hard truth, and there’s no point in pretending otherwise. We’re dealing with people whose hearts are hardened to human suffering, no matter who it is. If you could say what the president said after seeing the aftermath of that attack, after seeing those pictures . . . ”

-of the dead. Bloated. Floating. Crumpled. Riddled. Splattered-

“ . . . on the floor, oh no! Next time, try Toughie Plate. Toughie is made of multiple layers of recycled and sustainable materials that make it the strongest disposable plate around, and the best way to help save the environment! But aren’t disposable plates too expensive now, you might ask? Well, if it’s not Toughie . . . ”

-It IS too much. You come to want what they want-

“ . . . because it’s so easy.”

“I just walk in, design my dream life, pick a date to go under, a date to come out, and bam, I’m having the Restful life?”

“Exactly. Nothing could be simpler.”

“Hold on a minute though. We’ve all seen the Thirty Minutes report by now. How does Restful respond to PEER’s charges of medical malpractice, theft, the stripping of civil and constitutional rights, and more?”

“Well, we deny it, of course, because that’s just not what’s happening, and pretty soon the courts will make that clear. People are looking in from the outside and judging a process that’s really between the tenant and Restful.”

“But some of the people raising the alarm used to work at Restful.”

“Not in our lease department. Look, the first thing you have to realize is we’re not evil monsters out to get you. We want our customers to be happy. Our job is to help you . . . ”

-To turn away from the chaos a bit. To do dance crazes and paint your room the color of the year-

T-Ray: U HEAR BOUT D RESTFUL TING?

Jo-Jo: *thumbs up*

Jo-Jo: Y

T-Ray: TINKING BOUT SYNING UP

Jo-Jo: *exploding head emoji*

Jo-Jo: dont they take you shit

T-Ray: ONLY IF YOU GOT SUMTING. THEY GOT CREDIT.

Jo-Jo: like payday loan

T-Ray: NAH. DON NEED NO JOB. JUST SYN OVER

Jo-Jo: syn over what

Jo-Jo: shit

Jo-Jo: got to go

Jo-Jo: my girl message me. Probably wants . . .

-To sigh over the new heartthrob or argue over that rumor-

“ . . . that Shana is leaving TIGRESS to start a new career as an actress?”

“She’s crazy. She’s the worst in all their wavecasts!”

“Best looking in the group though. That makes up for a lot . . . ”

“ . . . of sins! They want us confused and turning away from God, but we must fight these godless people and their devil ways! He returns soon, and we must be prepared to meet Him on the day of Judgment!”

“Praise the Lord!”

“For the former things are passed away, and the Lord asks us now to trust in our leaders. To trust in their plan for us and for our country. To know that no matter what they decide to do, the Lord blessed it. He has already blessed it!”

“Hallelujah! Hallelujah!”

“It will all be alright! The Lord is speaking to me this morning and saying . . . ”

-It’s okay. It’s okay to recharge. To take a break-

“ . . . ing news this evening. People for the End of Exploitation by Restful, the advocacy group known as PEER, held a press conference this afternoon after losing their class action medical malpractice case on behalf of former customers of Restful’s sleep residency program.

“PEER has announced they will be appealing the case, but they also presented what they claim to be evidence that the judge in the case, a well-respected veteran of the bench, Robert Francisco Smith, took a bribe from Restful to rule in their favor in the form of multiple free residencies for his family and friends, as well as shares in the company after it goes public in a planned IPO this summer.

“We go now to our reporter in the field. It’s been a busy afternoon for you, Sally. You must be longing for a break in activity over at the courthouse right now.”

“You’re right, Peter, I’d surely love some rest myself . . . ”

-But they don’t take breaks-

“ . . . they just keep on rolling over every procedural objection and legislative norm in the most naked and far-reaching attempt to subject citizens to the will of a few oligarchs and their government-subsidized companies ever seen. Make no mistake, my colleagues on the other side of this House know exactly what they’re doing and . . . ”

-They’re not distracted-

“ . . . they don’t care if innocent people die anymore. What kind of country are we when we don’t even care if innocent people are being kill—?”

“ . . . most household germs with one mist application. Let dry on any surface for thirty seconds, and germs and bacteria are done for seven days, no matter who comes into the . . . ”

“ . . . home. It’s where the heart is. That’s how the saying goes. But what if, with one easy payment, you could put aside worries about rent, power, car payments, and more? Restful asks, what if your home really could be where your heart was? How do you make that happen? Well, first, understand this . . . ”

-They don’t care about the most important question in the world-

“ . . . which is what’s hot for Christmas this year. But have no fear, we have been riding all the wavecasts and searching online, and we’re bringing you a list that has something for everyone in the family . . . ”

“ . . . of Juanita Peres says she had no idea when she signed her Restful contract that there was any risk to her health. Buried in the fine print was a little-known clause only brought to light by recent lawsuits against a company considered to be one of the hottest IPOs in history.

“It said that should any tenant suffer a medical emergency while in residency, Restful would make all medical decisions on behalf of their tenant. Now, the company claims this is only so it can provide all necessary treatment, which it would be doing at its own cost, but family members are not being informed of medical difficulties when they occur, or what treatment is being provided.

“Restful says Ms. Peres had a rare reaction to the upcasting that led to a seizure, then a cardiac event. But her family was never told. Ms. Peres went to Restful two months ago, and since then her family has been unable to visit her, as specified in her contract, because she’s in Restful’s private ICU.

“As of this taping, no one has been allowed to see Ms. Peres, even though she was supposed to leave her residency this week. The company says medical emergencies vacate expected departure timelines, another bit of fine print the family wasn’t aware of. Before PEER’s accusations, they might not have been worried, but now they want answers.

“Several former tenants, though, say PEER is fearmongering over one of the best experiences of their life. They’re sorry Ms. Peres is not doing well, but . . . ”

-They don’t question what’s happening at all. Some don’t care. Others support it. They WANT to remake the world—to remake US—in their twisted image-

“ . . . but the only image that matters is God’s image! And our leaders are finally doing His will! They accuse us of being heartless, of not being our brother’s keeper, but I say, I AM my brother’s keeper! My brother is YOU! Brothers and sisters in Christ, we owe no allegiance to anyone but each other, for we alone seek to glorify the Lord on Earth. We alone shall see the kingdom of heaven! We see the evil they try to do! How . . . ”

-The horrors they create grow bigger. More monstrous-

“ . . . than we realized. The purchase of Ad Astra Pharmaceutical, its embattled drug Lulsify, and the company’s subsequent folding into Restful Inc., has raised alarm bells. Since then, multiple whistleblowers have come forward anonymously to supply PEER with important documentation regarding Restful’s contracts and business practices. This brief report addresses the most important findings.

CONTRACTS:

PEER has reviewed many contracts and found there are two basic formats. One for those who can afford brief, regular stays, and another for those who seek to escape a much more difficult reality. This second set of contracts is where the true abuses have been happening. They have very different clauses.

The most obvious, and the reason many people sign these, is a hugely discounted annual payment. You can stay upcasted, living a dream virtual life, up to a year for as little as a month’s rent in a major city. But in exchange, you sign away power of attorney to Restful. They will make all the decisions for your medical care and hold any assets you have in trust until they revive you. Aside from the usual homes, cars, and so on, if you’re an artist, your royalties and any intellectual property or copyrights will also belong to Restful temporarily. And, shockingly enough, your right to free speech, your right to vote, and your citizenship are also included.

In the history of this country, no one’s civil rights have ever been held as collateral like this. Disturbingly, there are new rumors of organ farming from comatose or brain-dead customers who encountered difficulties during the upcasting process, even medical experimentation. If this is true, Restful is a horrific corporate entity feeding off a deliberately misled public. Given the above, the question PEER must address going forward becomes . . . ”

-How to stop the horrors? And how to push for peace-

“ . . . today? Well, our next guest likes to sing and dance, just like we do here together every day, but her dancing looks a little different because her mommy and daddy came to this country from another place. She’s going to teach us all the fun moves she learned from her daddy . . . ”

“ . . . longlegs is a term many people are familiar with. But how many people realize that only one of the three insects referred to by this name is a true spider?

“Here we see a daddy longlegs carrying an egg sack full of her babies. This particular insect is also known as a cellar spider. These fascinating creatures can be quite beneficial to any household, as they not only eat flying and crawling insects, they eat other, more dangerous spiders as well.

“They accomplish this in an unusual fashion. They leave their web and approach the other spider. Then, they mimic the motions of that spider’s usual prey, fooling the other spider into attacking them. It’s then that the daddy longlegs pounces, turning the tables on the attacker. The cellar spider’s prey goes to its death thinking they’re the predator, completely unaware that the cellar spider is far stronger than it appears. If you wish to learn more . . . ”

-Please stand by-

“ . . . more news is coming to hand about this breaking development. If you’re just joining us, the Supreme Court has handed down a shock ruling in the case of Peres vs. Restful Incorporated. Restful now has the right to use collateral from tenants of its popular residency program in order to settle debts incurred by residents who have exhausted their finances. These debts often arose from tenants undergoing necessary medical treatments while in residence or from loss of assets due to unforeseen events in the real world, such as natural disasters or financial downturns in the stock market.

“The controversial practice first began five years after Restful introduced the lifetime subscription option, which discounted residency for tenants willing to sign a clause handing over power of attorney to Restful. A class action lawsuit was filed two years later when it was discovered Restful was using this to make political donations, and even vote . . . ”

“ . . . in the name of its customers. The difficulty here is human rights have never been considered transferable, certainly not to corporate entities. But I would argue that if we go all the way back to Citizens United, we can draw a straight line to this particular Pandora’s box. A corporation shouldn’t be able to hold on to your vote or your citizenship, but the judges based their ruling on the fact that people knowingly, while of sound mind and body and without any coercion, signed a contract that explicitly allowed this.”

“And why do you think people were so eager to sign away their rights, even over their own bodies?”

“Well, it’s easier, isn’t it? To live in a dream world where nothing ever goes wrong, and you only have to do what you want to. See who you want to. We can all be billionaires now. That’s what they’re selling. But the reality is, that’s a lie to pacify citizens who’ve been backed into a corner over economic hardship, rising crime, a constant barrage of war and civil strife, and conflicting visions of how to solve some very serious problems in society. Why bother trying to solve anything when you can just retreat and live the life you want, in ignorance, for the low, low price of everything you’ll ever be or have?”

“Well, when you put it that way, I would say . . . ”

-Do not be calm-

“ . . . do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage at the dying of the light. Or some such shit like that, I can’t remember. English wasn’t my strong suit.”

[Audience laughs.]

“What was your strong suit?”

“Brooks Brothers, I think.”

[More laughter.]

“They still around?”

“I wouldn’t know, I stopped shopping for myself when my Friendbot got upgraded.”

“You still trust your Friendbot, even though many people say they’re designed to please and have malfunctioned pretty spectacularly in a lot of circumstances?”

“Well, what doesn’t malfunction every once in a while these days? My feeling is this. If you buy any expensive device, it’s on you to check it’s working properly. Make sure you . . . ”

-Do not look away-

“ . . . from what this means for future attempts to bring Restful to justice. PEER has fought to expose this company’s illegal activities for years, but their influence and financial reach far exceed ours and that of other consumer protection groups. With this in mind, PEER will be creating a new activist arm devoted to more direct action, such as public protest and private investigations into key corporate personnel. We also plan to offer more whistleblower assistance.

Restful is no longer trying to hide its true goal, which is clearly to subjugate enough of the body politic to neutralize any societal pushback on corporate and political abuses. We cannot count on the media, which is owned by the same billionaires who funded Restful and its new subsidiaries. Therefore, this action plan presents the full range of new approaches to allow us to appeal directly to the general public. The actual victims in all this. We must expose Restful to them. We must get the public to . . . ”

-See. Hear. Speak-

“ . . . out. Tell me more about this new album. Is it true every song is inspired by a folktale from your country?”

“Yes, absolutely. True thing, true thing. I grow up with my grandmudder, and she used to tell me . . . ”

“ . . . all the time. Selena, get a real job. Be an engineer, or a doctor, or a lawyer.”

[Audience laughs. Host chuckles.]

“Well, now you’re a best-selling author. Surely, your parents are happy with that.”

“You don’t know my culture. My aunt still asks me every time she sees me, when am I going to stop writing fairy tales and get married?”

[Uproarious laughter from the audience and host.]

“In fact, at the last family reunion, she turned to my married sister and said, ‘thank God someone in the family is on the right path because . . . ’”

-WE ARE ALL OUR ONLY HOPE-

“ . . . now. Every dollar you give saves a child’s life. For only a few dollars a month, you can feed a child and help send them to school. Every donation makes a huge difference . . . ”

“ . . . in their lives. We never dreamed people could be so kind. They really saved me, saved my whole family.”

“I see you’re crying. This has moved you to tears.”

“Yes.”

“Why is that?”

“Because you see the news, you know? You see what’s going on. You hear all these stories. But then something like this happens. People go out of their way like this, and it just proves it, you know. It just proves people are good. This is a good place to live. People care, and they want to help. And I’m so grateful. So grateful . . . ”

“ . . . to everyone before me who came forward to testify about what this awful drug, Lulsify, does to those who take it. Hundreds of people, mostly children, including my beloved Remi, have been rendered comatose since the drug was released last year. Some adults have died due to reactions we were never warned about. This is not just a tragedy. It’s a crime carried out against my Remi and many others. I’m here today to ask Congress to investigate fully the process by which Lulsify was approved for use, especially by children, and the true scope of the medical crisis caused by the use of this dangerous drug. I also ask that Restful Inc. and their subsidiary, Ad Astra, face the appropriate legal punishments if they’re found to be guilty of criminal actions. I want to ensure no one else has their child taken away from them the way my child was taken away from me and my family. Please . . . ”

-Don’t let them take us away from each other-

“ . . . we’ve always been together, and I’m trying. I’m really trying. I got clean, got a job, and an apartment, Your Honor. I’ve been making sure they go to school every day.”

“How do they do in school?”

“Good. Real good. My boy’s on the honor roll. My girl just got an A on her exam. We do homework together every night now I have regular day shifts. I just . . . I need a little more time, is all. One more paycheck, and I’ll clear my debt. But the car company switched off the engine this morning, and then I got this virtual court notice. I’m missing work to settle this, but I have to make my shifts for the rest of the month, or I lose the car and the job. And if I lose my job—”

“Okay, okay, slow down. You have to calm down, Ms. Grant.”

“Yes, Your Honor. Sorry, Your Honor.”

“I’m going to ask you a few more questions, and then we’ll see if we can get this sorted without you losing your car. How’s that sound?”

“Really, Your Honor?”

“No promises.”

“That’d be a blessing, Your Honor. A real blessing. Just . . . ”

-Don’t let them pretend we aren’t real-

“ . . . tired of your shit! This is a game, yes, but you really hurt people. We’re human, you know. We have feelings. And you’ve destroyed relationships. On purpose. Everyone here realizes you’ve been plotting against all of us since you got on this island. You’ve been going from person to person telling us what we want to hear so we won’t vote you out. Straight up lying to people so they’ll think you’re their friend and turn against each other. Well, surprise! We’re on to you now, asshole. So now you can pay the price for all . . . ”

-Our suffering, joy, hate, love, hope, despair—all real-

“ . . . and happening now? Like, this isn’t a prank?”

“Not a prank, Charlene. Sacred Heart Charities was contacted by your pastor because your community decided it would be a real shame for your education to be put on hold while you take care of your mom during her treatment.

“So, today we’re here to offer you and your mom a fully paid-for live-in caretaker, with free groceries, electric, and water for the next year—”

“WHAT?”

“—along with ten thousand dollars to help cover your costs when you go back to school!”

“ARE YOU SHITTING ME? Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Mom, MOM . . . ”

-If you can hear this, don’t go back to sleep-

“ . . . This is an emergency. Fire detected on floor fourteen, floor seventeen, floor twenty-one. If you are a tenant, and you are awake, you must leave the building now. Follow the illuminated path to your designated exit.

“Attention all staff. Tenants must be revived and evacuated from the building immediately. Begin evacuation procedures now and gather at the muster point. Repeat. This is an emergency. If you can hear this . . . ”

-Stand with us. Lend your voice to ours-

“ . . . speak up. And speak up they did. About long periods spent frozen in glitched scenarios. Promised storylines that never appeared. Waking up to find their lives, and their bodies, ruined. Onwave Channel Ten has spoken with Restful tenants who were abruptly forced out of their residencies due to a fire in their building, and what they told us about their lives inside Restful’s sprawling virtual reality may shock you. Let’s listen to what one of the tenants, Marcus Anderson, had to say.”

“It’s fucked up, man. Really fucked up. They told us that in order to regain our lives . . . ”

-We must become louder than their distractions-

“ . . . we must become ungovernable.”

“Oh, come on. You can’t believe that’s a good thing.”

“It’s a necessary thing.”

“But you’re inciting violence on our podcast now!”

“Never said a thing about violence. Ever heard of a guy called Martin Luther King?”

“Fuck you, I’m not stupid.”

“Hey, never said that either. But that’s what it means. That’s what they did back then. Don’t obey laws that are wrong. Don’t comply. Honk that horn. Record that arrest. Refuse that order. Become ungovernable because . . . ”

-We must become our own emergency broadcast system-

“ . . . and this backdoor application will allow us to do that? You’re sure about this? That they’re not taking us for a ride?”

“I’ll be risking my own neck because I believe them. They want to help. They saw that report about the people who woke up after the power grid failure. They’re horrified they’re part of that. And if this works? If we can wake them up from the inside? We get all those people back. We get all those votes, and all those stories no one can deny, back. It’s the best chance we have to finally bring these fuckers down.”

“Wait. You’re saying you’d do it? You’d go looking for this backdoor broadcast system Restful’s built into the VR yourself?”

“I’m a programmer. I used to be a hacker. I can do it. It might take a while to ride all those waves. All those lives. But if we can break in, if we can show them what’s been happening since they went under. If we appeal to them directly . . . I think it would make a huge difference in this fight. So, fuck yeah, I would . . . ”

-Because this is an emergency. A global emergency-

“ . . . and we need help. Anyone who can send help, please send it. We don’t need you to come here. You can send aid, or donations, or just spread the word to those who might be able to get assistance to us.

“There are real lives at risk here. Real people. Don’t scroll past us. Don’t crash the wave. Put yourself in the shoes of those who are suffering through this disaster right now and take action. Any action. No matter how small. Because action matters more than all the petitions and memes in the world. If we’re going to change things, we have to DO something. We have to get away from the apathy and the lack of empathy . . . ”

-We have to interrupt our programming-

“ . . . Unauthorized User detected in VR 114. Notification sent to Restful Tenant Oversight. Notification unacknowledged. Unauthorized User detected in VR 2677. Notification sent to Restful Tenant Oversight. Notification unacknowledged. Unauthorized User detected in VIP VR 10431, VR 9002, VIP VR 14, VR 368, VR—

Authorized Administrator detected. Good day, Administrator. How may we assist you today?

PREPARE FOR FULL SYSTEM REBOOT.

Acknowledged. Full system reboot in ten minutes. Notify all residents via emergency broadcast?

AFFIRMATIVE. PROCEED WITH EMERGENCY BROADCAST . . . ”

-Because WE are not—THIS-

“ . . . she was only five years old! And they did that in front of her, to her own . . . ”

“ . . . father of one was on his way to buy diapers when . . . ”

“ . . . the entire building was destroyed. Just . . . collapsed. And then the next one took out this whole side of the street. That’s where my house was. I can’t find my mother. My husband. My brother and his family . . . ”

“ . . . came running out. And then they were just shooting at us. Firing at everyone. There were children here. Children! We just wanted help. They said we could come here. That things would be better here, that this . . . ”

-IS NOT A TEST. THIS IS REAL LIFE-

“ . . . so we don’t accept that! This is not who we are. You don’t get to commit these horrors in our name, to start . . . ”

“ . . . a human and ecological disaster the likes of which we’ve rarely seen. But we can turn this around. We can save thousands, and before you say it, I can see you gearing up to say it, keep in mind . . . ”

“ . . . we did have warnings, Gerald—may I call you, Gerald?”

“Please do, Professor.”

“Thank you. We DID have warnings. We wasted a lot of time arguing, putting opinions against evidence and ignoring facts, data, the truth. And yet, by some miracle, it’s still not too late for us to reverse course.

“That’s why taking action today is so important. We should have come together on this a long time ago, but it’s never too late to get started. The problems we were facing were made worse by propaganda, misdirection, disinformation, and apathy. Well, recent events have highlighted the full cost of allowing those issues to continue unchecked, so I think we have a chance, a real chance, for the first time in a long time, to get a lot more people behind the need for actual, meaningful change.”

“And you think that action looks like what’s happening today?”

“I do. I really do. It’s not going to be an easy road. This isn’t a quick fix. But it’s a start. And we, all of us, need to admit our part in this. Our own failures. We need to stop and listen. To take our cues from those who’ve suffered the most and are trying to tell us what’s needed to make this right. We must raise our voices and stand with those who have been fighting and organizing all this time. They’re in it for the long haul . . . ”

-AND SO ARE WE-

-WE INTERRUPT YOUR REGULAR PROGRAMMING FOR THIS EMERGENCY BROADCAST-

-IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS WILL FOLLOW-

-IF YOU’RE HEARING THIS-

-PLEASE-

-WAKE UP-

-AND STAND WITH US-