PALISADE 48: A Palette of Colors Pt. 3
Friends at the Table
This episode carries content warnings for discussion of enslavement, torture, death, body horror and eye injuries. Across Palisade, a question begins to weave itself through life. Across everyday kitchen conversations, war room arguments, and salon debates, people wonder what it might mean to be whole. If Delegates to reunited with their Divine sources, would that be totality, or something else? Can the revolution to encompass the whole of the periphery? Where the boundary between the self and the other? And if one finds themelves to be, suddenly and confidently, whole, what responsibility...
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PALISADE 47: A Palette of Colors Pt. 2
Friends at the Table
This episode carries content warnings for discussion of death and self sacrifice. Palisade spins and twirls, coming to terms with its fresh orbit. And on its body, the people begin to adjust too. Finding a moment of space, Blue Channel captain Kalvin Brnine reconnects with an uncanny contact, with hopes of developing the tepid relationship into an allegiance. August Righteousness, with the mandate given to him by General Tomorrow Mouring, attempts to route the remaining forces of the Whitestar Fleet. And Coriolis Sunset decides that there is no use in waiting: In matters like these, one must...
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PALISADE 46: A Palette of Colors Pt. 1
Friends at the Table
It is the year 1430 of the Perfect Millennium, and in the center of the Milky Way galaxy, Perennial tries to shut out the noise, to focus in on only one place, one voice. But it is too loud on Palisade. This week on PALISADE: A Palette of Colors Pt. 1 It's going to be soon, babe / I've made up my mind Hosted by Austin Walker () Featuring Janine Hawkins () Sylvi Bullet (), Ali Acampora (), Art Martinez-Tebbel (), Jack de Quidt (), Keith J Carberry () and Andrew Lee Swan () Produced by Ali Acampora Music by Jack de Quidt () Text by Austin Walker Cover Art by by aurahack () With thanks...
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PALISADE 45: Where They Are Pt. 3
Friends at the Table
As Palisade eases into its new orbit, the people below face a new marker of evening. Yes, the dual moons of Chimera’s Lantern and Travertine remain above them. But now night brings a new absence: Gone are Gift-3 and Seneschal, Altar and Moonlock, Skein and Crown, Brighton and Thrysus, and of course the new dark sun, Volition. And so, at night, with only the Mirage itself in the sky, the people of Palisade might be able to convince themselves that things have not changed so much. And so, on one such night in the Bontive Valley, it is time for one more—one final?—movie night aboard the...
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PALISADE 44: Where They Are Pt. 2
Friends at the Table
With the initial shock of arriving in the Twilight Mirage starting, slowly, to fade, the people of Palisade and the Quire System leap into action. General Tomorrow Mourning turns to the only person she believes can quickly give her the authority to build a net to catch Bilateral Intercession war criminals. Gucci Garantine orders supplies be delivered to the ever-overstretched Blue Channel. And a guest arrives to make parley, along with a gift. This week on PALISADE: Where They Are Pt. 2 Well, I've been here a thousand times / I don't want to go again / I've been here a thousand...
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PALISADE 43: Where They Are Pt. 1
Friends at the Table
So, with one loud sob, the galaxy shifted. But as with all widespread changes, this one was unevenly distributed. Few places changed as totally as Palisade, once just beyond the edge of the Twilight Mirage, now brought into orbit around the pseudo-sun of Volition as the new, ninth planet of the Quire System. And as above, so below: The change in the air is also a change in bodies, in minds, in matters military and social and even culinary. And parked below the newly painted skies of the Bontive Valley, the remaining crew of the Blue Channel ponders the future, reaching out to each other and...
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PALISADE 42: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 4
Friends at the Table
This episode carries content warnings for discussion of death, imprisonment, slavery, medical experimentation, and mind control. In the depths of the Temple of the Threshold, a moment passes, a hero dies, and the world begins to change. But Thisbe, Cori, and Brnine—standing in the heart of Exanceaster March’s most advanced research facility—don’t know that yet. But they do hear it coming. A mechanical whine in the air is about to become something else. Unfinished plans will be pushed into action. Tomorrow will come, faster for some than others. And life on Palisade will change forever....
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PALISADE 41: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 3
Friends at the Table
This episode carries content warnings for discussion of death, imprisonment, and slavery. At the center of the Lone Marble Group's main campus stands a corkscrew-shaped building with no name. A sphere slides down its long external groove, serving as sentry and, perhaps, more. Behind it: The secrets of Exanceaster March. At the center of Palisade's main continent stands a coliseum-shaped city that has been named a temple. Thousands flock to it in pilgrimage daily, a mocking replication of a different pilgrimage. Today, thousands extra make the walk, faith-eager. Inside: The future, and perhaps...
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PALISADE 40: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 2
Friends at the Table
As the tournament to determine the next era of the Altar continues at the Lone Marble Group's headquarters, the Blue Channel's infiltration team finds itself backed into a corner. As they try to push their way forward, their allies in the Temple of the Threshold find themselves up against a different sort of wall. In just a few hours, this would all seem so insignificant. This week on PALISADE: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 2 Hey wildflower / You're in the weather Dossier People Telford Stare (he/they): One of several foremen tied to the Lone Marble Group's contractor operations...
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PALISADE 39: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 1
Friends at the Table
Across Palisade, Millennium Break and its allies launch into action. One after another, the Frontier Syndicate’s egg-like power plants came under direct attack. With enough of them brought offline, the group’s ploy to revive Motion would be halted—at least temporarily. That is where the Blue Channel would do their work: Infiltrate the campus of the Lone Marble Group; locate a kill switch for the terrible project; bring it all to a permanent end. This week on PALISADE: A Mechanical Whine Pt. 1 Blood on the horizon Dossier People Telford Stare (he/they): One of several foremen tied...
info_outlineAcross the Bontive Valley, hardened members of the Cause join with recent recruits and regular civilians to kick off a region-wide celebration of their new liberation. Because it represents the first chance to publicly commemorate not only the group’s most recent victory over the Bilateral Intercession, but also their recent victory over the Stellar Combustor and their success in taking the Grav Train), it is a loud, boisterous, and sprawling party. There, in the town of Eversin, the crew of the Blue Channel joins in with the celebration. Who will they bump into? What new memories might they make?
This week on PALISADE: Reach In / Reach Out Pt. 2
Sing where the other boys can watch you dance
Dossier
People
Midnite Matinee (she/her): Leporine scout and member of the Blue Channel. She and her trusty Pack-model light AutoHollow Popcorn used to run a repo company, but now are tentatively committed to the Cause and Millennium Break.
Elle Evensong (she/they): Elle arrived to Palisade along with the first wave of Devotees, making a name for herself as a cunning combatant and clever commander. She became a poster child for Twilight Mirage's support of Palisade (and, for members of the Dim Liturgy, a prophesied bridge between the past and the future). But as the war began to heat up, she seemed to vanish into the background. In fact, they were working for the Divine, Arbitrage as a double agent. Cori blames them for the death of her father. Pilot of the Cataphract.
Murchy “Murch” Saltburn (she/her): A gig-cop working for Lock & Cross Security Services in Baseline-C.
Alise Breka (she/her): Once, Alise was most popular for her Renegade Hearts books of daring pulp adventure. Now she is one of the chief propagandists of Millennium Break, turning their struggles (and victories) into novels, screenplays, and other media.
Gucci Garantine (she/her): A defector from Stel Kesh, who used the remaining wealth and power of House Brightline to help found Millennium Break. Currently a key member of the resistance efforts on Palisade, and a commander of Millenium Break forces there. Codename Watershed.
Jesset City (he/him): After helping to kick off Millennium Break on Partizan, Jesset served as one of its major leaders during its expansion across the Principality. Now, he uses his talents in Hollow and Altar engineering, piloting, and cipher breaking on behalf of the Grey Pond unit of the cause. Still considers himself to be a member of the Party of the Wolf, though those designations have largely fallen from use.
Mustard Red (she/her): A cyborg who once served as a member of Brink Proxy, with a speciality in surveillance. Joined the Cause during the Devotees expansion onto Palisade.
Organizations
Bilateral Intercession: One of two factions vying for leadership of the Principality, comprised by Stels Kesh and Nideo, and lead by the so-called Peaceful Princept, Cynosure Whitestar-Kesh (he/him), who took control of the faction from the Curtain, a secretive intelligence organization with roots in Kesh’s ancient spy operations. The “Bilats” are a conservative and reactionary force, aiming to return the Principality to its roots both literally and figuratively. After a long campaign against the Pact of Free States, they managed to take control of Palisade.
Rose River: Though they are undoubtedly committed to the Cause, this unique research unit (combining Veronique (she/her), her Divine Fealty (any pronouns), and their followers with an out-of-time NEH Sleep Detachment squad) hope for a day when they can be something other than soldiers.
Jade Kill: Based in Joyous Guard, this military arm of the Cause is operated by the Delegate liberation faction known as Reunion and supported by Kalar Anakalar's (he/him) Giantkiller unit and a wing of Swordbreakers. Led by August Righteousness (he/him).
Violet Cove: The Dim Liturgy claim to have seen the Divine Devotion's arrival coming in their sacred text: A battered and corrupted backup of Crystal Palace's final predictions for the future. Now the two cults work together to oust the Bilats... and perhaps to do more intriguing things, as well.
Grey Pond: With members of the Oxblood Clan, the Company of the Spade, and the Shale Belt's Concrete Front, these blue collar revolutionaries are experts at getting the Cause the equipment it needs (and maintaining what it has when that's the only available option).
Carmine Bight: From ramshackle additions to the rocky shores of Rifle Island, Captain Skelton Knaggs (he/him) and his fearsome flotilla launch rusted pirate vessels beneath the waves, guided by a coalition of Hyphan navigators.
The Twill: Though many groups have lived on the world of Palisade over the years, the Twill can trace their time on the world back the furthest. Though a first glance appraisal might make one think that their defining trait is the moss that covers much of their bodies and allows them to live on sunlight and water alone, in fact their most unshakable cultural trait is a practice of collaboration, aid, and acceptance. When groups like Advent, Kesh, the New Earth Hegemony, and the Divine Principality left Palisade behind, they often left behind the disaffected or unwanted. It was often, if not always, the Twill who helped these people find sustainable lives on the world, either by blending with the group over generations or through open exchange of goods and information.
The Frontier Syndicate: A powerful conglomerate with a broad purview, including technology, heavy industry, entertainment, telecommunications, and transportation. Led by Exenceaster March (he/him), the Syndicate betrayed the Pact of Free States and joined the Bilats in order to be part of their colonization efforts on Palisade.
The New Asterism: What was once a schism between Received and Progressive Asterism has now been healed by the false prophet Gur Sevraq (he/they), or at least someone in his name and face. The New Asterism claims that to be a citizen of the Principality is to have an obligation to "better the world," in the sense that one invests in property or in the way that a settler “rehabilitates” or “improves” the places they claim by violence.
Places
Bontive Valley: Blessed by the departed divine Bounty, the Valley provides the Bilats with fruit that never rots and hyper-nutritional grain.
Divines
The Divine Filigree: The instrumentalized operating core of Palisade's extensive GravTrain system. Recovered by the Blue Channel and turned over to the Cause's leadership.
The Divine Motion (she/her): One of the founding members of the Pact, the necromantic Apostolosian divine once led its infamous retinue, the Black Century, on Partizan. They were defeated and dispersed, turned into part of Kalmeria, during Operation Shackled Sun.
The Divine, Arbitrage (it/its): The amoral machine turned de facto treasurer keeps the Frontier Syndicate a step ahead in all matters of commerce. Sole minter of “glint,” a newly popular currency on Palisade.
The Divine Crusade (they/them): Leads Stel Nideo’s occupation on Palisade along with their Elect, Gentian. Crusade is an enormous, bipedal machine covered (or perhaps made with) beautiful stained glass.
Asepsis (it/its): The final living remnants of a Divine who pursues its particular vision of purity at the cost of everything else. Kept, studied, and utilized by Captain Kalvin Brnine.
Additional Notes
Delegates: In plain terms, Delegates are synthetic individuals created through a process of forcible extraction from a living Divine. Originated by the Fabreal Duchy, who were left behind to "attend to" Palisade by the Divine Principality around 5000 years ago, these Delgates were designed and used as slaves. Currently, a Delegate resistance group called Reunion operates out of the fortress Joyous Guard in the Caldera Stretch.
Hosted by Austin Walker (@austin_walker)
Featuring Janine Hawkins (@bleatingheart) Sylvi Bullet (@sylvibullet), Ali Acampora (@ali_west), Art Martinez-Tebbel (@atebbel), Jack de Quidt (@notquitereal), Keith J Carberry (@keithjcarberry) and Andrew Lee Swan (@swandre3000)
Produced by Ali Acampora
Music by Jack de Quidt (available on bandcamp)
Text by Austin Walker
Cover Art by by aurahack (aurahack.jp)
With thanks to Amelia Renee, Arthur B., Bill Kaszubski, Cassie Jones, chocoube, Daniel Laloggia, DB, deepFlaw, Edwin Adelsberger, Emrys, fen, Greg Cobb, Ian O'Dea, Ian Urbina, Irina A., Jack Shirai, Jake Strang, Katie Diekhaus, Ken George, Konisforce, Kristina Harris Esq, L Tantivy, Mike & Ruby, Muna A, Nich Maragos, Olive Perry, Quinn Pollock, Robert Lasica, Shawn Drape, Shawn Hall, Summer Rose, TeganEden, Thomas Whitney, Voi, and weakmint for their support
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