EPISODE 13
the dash
sierra blanca,
TEXAS
>> [SESSION OPENED]
>> server-id: dash-coop-node-005x
>> miller_dot // LOCAL PRIVATE NODE // 2025-05-27
>> retrieving log cache… decryption underway…█
>> server-id: dash-coop-node-005x
>> miller_dot // LOCAL PRIVATE NODE // 2025-05-27
>> retrieving log cache… decryption underway…█
>> session start
>> dot.m // login: success
// 08:14
>> sierra blanca. sun like a busted heat lamp.
>> pulled the bike around back of the coop so town cops keep guessing how supplies magically appear.
>> alton stevis jr. waves through the loading‑dock screen door, grin big enough to rent billboard space.█
>> dot.m // login: success
// 08:14
>> sierra blanca. sun like a busted heat lamp.
>> pulled the bike around back of the coop so town cops keep guessing how supplies magically appear.
>> alton stevis jr. waves through the loading‑dock screen door, grin big enough to rent billboard space.█
>> we drag three crates inside, canned veg, work boots, prenatal vitamins, a stack of refurbished chromebooks.
>> alton counts inventory, eyes sparkle when the laptops boot.
>> i mutter yeah, corporate crime pays for somebody at least.█
>> alton counts inventory, eyes sparkle when the laptops boot.
>> i mutter yeah, corporate crime pays for somebody at least.█
>> alton taps the old computer tower i brought with me, with the fragile sticker slapped on the side.
>> “this week’s plunder?” he jokes.
>> i correct him, it is not plunder, it is aggressive wealth redistribution through the desert skies finance cooperative, the little nonprofit parked in nevada so bankers think it sells wind‑chime nfts.
>> easy to route stolen billionaire moneys there, then withdraw cash to donate to clinics and after-school programs.█
>> “this week’s plunder?” he jokes.
>> i correct him, it is not plunder, it is aggressive wealth redistribution through the desert skies finance cooperative, the little nonprofit parked in nevada so bankers think it sells wind‑chime nfts.
>> easy to route stolen billionaire moneys there, then withdraw cash to donate to clinics and after-school programs.█
// 09:02
>> storeroom office. swamp cooler rattles.
>> i show alton fresh decrypts on my tablet. subject line reads “khanna logic.” spyglass icon marks priority.
>> his brow crinkles. “sounds like a tech company”
>> i shrug. registry shows tempe address, machining control modules, zero web presence, smells like sleeper shell company.
>> alton sips instant coffee, rolls theory.
>> factories run automation; automation eats custom chips. maybe this khanna outfit stocks the processing power armis needs.
>> i jot a note and decide tempe deserves a midnight dumpster dive soon.█
>> storeroom office. swamp cooler rattles.
>> i show alton fresh decrypts on my tablet. subject line reads “khanna logic.” spyglass icon marks priority.
>> his brow crinkles. “sounds like a tech company”
>> i shrug. registry shows tempe address, machining control modules, zero web presence, smells like sleeper shell company.
>> alton sips instant coffee, rolls theory.
>> factories run automation; automation eats custom chips. maybe this khanna outfit stocks the processing power armis needs.
>> i jot a note and decide tempe deserves a midnight dumpster dive soon.█
// 11:45
>> tex-mex cantina around the corner. some rice and breakfast tacos.
>> talk drifts to what we’ve started to call “the crayon thing.”
>> boxes of “crayons” still flying through private airstrips. victims invisible, evidence thin. █
>> tex-mex cantina around the corner. some rice and breakfast tacos.
>> talk drifts to what we’ve started to call “the crayon thing.”
>> boxes of “crayons” still flying through private airstrips. victims invisible, evidence thin. █
>> alton wonders if drex might be the head clown.
>> i say no way, dude is too high on cocaine and self‑worship. more like accessory with keys to the funhouse. my guess would be carter grant for ringleader.
>> he nods, thinks for a minute. it's an open secret that drex's beverly hills mansion is monitored inside and out by cctv.
>> word is he loves to throw these elite freak-parties, and the footage keeps everyone obedient.
>> peak grotesque capitalism, but useful ammunition. █
>> i say no way, dude is too high on cocaine and self‑worship. more like accessory with keys to the funhouse. my guess would be carter grant for ringleader.
>> he nods, thinks for a minute. it's an open secret that drex's beverly hills mansion is monitored inside and out by cctv.
>> word is he loves to throw these elite freak-parties, and the footage keeps everyone obedient.
>> peak grotesque capitalism, but useful ammunition. █
>> we sketch a rough outline of a plan on a cantina napkin.
>> no way i'll be able to access harlan drex's server remotely, so i'll need to wire in on-site.
>> i'll need to get into this next freak-off gala of his. somehow.
>> a little creative research, and i should be able to snag the guest list and the name of the catering company.
>> once i'm in, i'll need an exit strategy. but one thing at a time.
>> alton volunteers to scrape county permit filings for any intel on khanna logic. maybe find a patent history.
>> also use some of his connections in cybersecurity to map every camera on drex's property.
>> teamwork makes the piggies squeal.█
>> no way i'll be able to access harlan drex's server remotely, so i'll need to wire in on-site.
>> i'll need to get into this next freak-off gala of his. somehow.
>> a little creative research, and i should be able to snag the guest list and the name of the catering company.
>> once i'm in, i'll need an exit strategy. but one thing at a time.
>> alton volunteers to scrape county permit filings for any intel on khanna logic. maybe find a patent history.
>> also use some of his connections in cybersecurity to map every camera on drex's property.
>> teamwork makes the piggies squeal.█
// 15:20
>> couple blocks away.
>> we drop off some supplies to a few apartments. an old disabled man living alone. a woman with three kids. some others.
>> after one or two of these, i ask alton if he's heard of that painter rob boss.
>> and of course alton’s heard of him, “from miami, i think. isn’t he the guy from that interview?”
>> i tell him drex paid two mil for sky on fire, probably just to brag.
>> boss might be an ally, but $2 mil is silly money. might just as easily be a brand‑new capitalist.
>> alton says artists radicalize easy but cash muddies water; he'll poke around. see what he can find.█
>> couple blocks away.
>> we drop off some supplies to a few apartments. an old disabled man living alone. a woman with three kids. some others.
>> after one or two of these, i ask alton if he's heard of that painter rob boss.
>> and of course alton’s heard of him, “from miami, i think. isn’t he the guy from that interview?”
>> i tell him drex paid two mil for sky on fire, probably just to brag.
>> boss might be an ally, but $2 mil is silly money. might just as easily be a brand‑new capitalist.
>> alton says artists radicalize easy but cash muddies water; he'll poke around. see what he can find.█
// 18:07
>> sun quits.
>> we roll over to the silver cactus bar, punk matinee.
>> local band concrete halo cracks amps at break neck speed.
>> the air is alive with the smell of sweat and beer and brake fluid.
>> i close my eyes and breathe it all in, let my soul soak up the music like a sponge.
>> i missed this.█
>> sun quits.
>> we roll over to the silver cactus bar, punk matinee.
>> local band concrete halo cracks amps at break neck speed.
>> the air is alive with the smell of sweat and beer and brake fluid.
>> i close my eyes and breathe it all in, let my soul soak up the music like a sponge.
>> i missed this.█
>> as concrete halo launches into a cover of sham69's rip off, i slowly inch my way to the stage.
>> pushing past spiked mohawks and leather patched vests. bass thumping in my chest.
>> i'm close enough to the stage i could steal their beers.
>> the energy is intense. the singer wails into a mic less than two feet from my face.
>> a pair of fans lift themselves onto the stage, and they dance for a while. arms flailing and torsos twisting wildly.
>> one of them jumps onto the crowd. they catch him and carry him off toward the back.
>> his friend still on stage, sees me watching. offers me his hand. i take it and he helps lift me up onstage.
>> i jump, launching my phone skyward, and crowd‑surf. boots bouncing on stranger shoulders, feels like riot yoga.█
>> pushing past spiked mohawks and leather patched vests. bass thumping in my chest.
>> i'm close enough to the stage i could steal their beers.
>> the energy is intense. the singer wails into a mic less than two feet from my face.
>> a pair of fans lift themselves onto the stage, and they dance for a while. arms flailing and torsos twisting wildly.
>> one of them jumps onto the crowd. they catch him and carry him off toward the back.
>> his friend still on stage, sees me watching. offers me his hand. i take it and he helps lift me up onstage.
>> i jump, launching my phone skyward, and crowd‑surf. boots bouncing on stranger shoulders, feels like riot yoga.█
// 21:00
>> parking lot. neon sign buzzing, dust swirling.
>> alton hands me a usb smaller than a fingernail. “tempe warehouse manifests,” he says.
>> i pocket it, kickstart the bike.
>> before visor drops i ask, “you sure about boss?”
>> he laughs, says no one is sure about anyone with followers but that's the gamble.
>> and eventually, we’re going to need someone who can get close to these shady-ass billionaires.█
>> parking lot. neon sign buzzing, dust swirling.
>> alton hands me a usb smaller than a fingernail. “tempe warehouse manifests,” he says.
>> i pocket it, kickstart the bike.
>> before visor drops i ask, “you sure about boss?”
>> he laughs, says no one is sure about anyone with followers but that's the gamble.
>> and eventually, we’re going to need someone who can get close to these shady-ass billionaires.█
// 21:10
>> throttle open, highway dusk.
>> got sham69 stuck in my head, so i'm jamming them full volume in my headphones.
>> stars flicker like loose pixels.
>> next stop, arizona: processors, crayons, painters, billionaires.
>> "robin hood, robin hood, here we go again..."
>> livin each day outside the law,
>> SESSION TERMINATED. LOG STORED.█
>> throttle open, highway dusk.
>> got sham69 stuck in my head, so i'm jamming them full volume in my headphones.
>> stars flicker like loose pixels.
>> next stop, arizona: processors, crayons, painters, billionaires.
>> "robin hood, robin hood, here we go again..."
>> livin each day outside the law,
.dot.
>> SESSION TERMINATED. LOG STORED.█
