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(00:00) John K. Mercury by Stephanie Vlahos

Writer Stephanie Vlahos cites meeting both Dr Seuss and Rod Serling as 'influences' from her childhood. Fast forwarding past the Twilight Zone - welcome to John K. Mercury.

"You want me to talk about irony? You want me to feed into some kind of fascination with other people's tragedies? You want me to paint a picture? Hell, it'll take me years to tell someone what I saw. And that would have to be someone who made me feel safe, not fucking exposed. You're all killers swear."

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(00:18) I am on a journey to Mars

"I'm busting through particles, deep space feels like inverted energy. I'm travelling to Mars and I'm travelling alone. As I float in the inconceivable distance, I can still see the blue green Earth."

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(00:44) Imani Cosmos

"I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry."

"You're just on the first page. That's mine, by the way. And my advice is read on. You might get hooked. That's what happened to me. Apparently, that's what happens to everyone who reads John K."

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(01:03) Before Chaos

"You know what the book was? The book. The killer threw it off before he sprayed gunshot everywhere. John K. I see you're reading that book."

"John K. Yes. I give it to all my strippers. Everyone gets something from it, even if they just fell off a turnip truck." 

"John K is an artefact. I'm an anthropologist. What survives inspires me. On my way up from a dig at Chaco Canyon, I discovered a blown out Cadillac. In it was a book about an astronaut named John K. Mercury. "

"Now, as far as I know, we've yet to send a man to Mars. But the thing is, this book was a Journal about an astronaut on his first mission to Mars. Yet the book, like the car, was nearly fossilised."

"Come on. Who left that book and for what reason?"

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(02:02) Vegas is for opportunists

"America started with witch on slavery, the Trail of Tears, England. Where shall I begin?"

"I guess it's encouraging that Americans send romantic connections to Indigenous people who were killed off in one manner or another by their ancestors."

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(02:19) Cinematic Audio Fiction

"What do you want to hear? You saw it on TV. You want to know the difference between real life and fiction? Nothing."

"Do you think what we experienced was evil?"

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(02:33) Mr Invisible

"I said something, but you didn't listen, did you? Death to the hypocrisy."

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(03:00) Room Service

"This is Vegas, baby."

"I mean, everything's here."

"People are here."

"And us. We're parallel universes. One positive, one negative."

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(03:22) Bozzy O'Reilly

"Imani. Would you do me a favour? Would you hold my hand just a little ways?"

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(03:40) "If you knew how lucky you are, you would be more god than mortal."

"When the book John Kay hit bookstores, it was an instant bestseller. I found it on the internet like everyone else in search of answers. The book was nothing, really a sad story about a nobody named John K. Mercury on the first mission to Mars. Stupid. Right? Here's the thing. Once you read John K's story, you got lost and you didn't want to return. I loved that book." 

"Until."

"Am I in the centre of the infinite or the centre of my infinite? Do I die on this mission?"

"No."

"I Am a Motorcyclist in a hailstorm Recklessly Speeding by the Grace of a Slipstream. 

"Goddammit John K."

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Mercury’s Wake ©Stephanie Vlahos 2022

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