Life Lessons

[rewind_tv]

Life Lessons


In camp at night Gaal sneaks past the sentry. Well, not so much 'sneaks' as 'walks openly'. He's trying to figure out the Transrover but it won't respond to him. True wanders by. Gaal calls her 'poppet'. It's a little unnerving.

He tries to touch her face and she bats him off.

You go, True!

Aw, True's narrating. That's nice.

She's kind of whining. That's not.

Timeline note: True says they crashed two weeks ago.

Yale is teaching the kids. It seems to be a history lesson. Uly is riveted. True is not.

Understandably, since it's the history of Earth, where they, um, don't live anymore...

In voiceover True complains about all the rules she and Uly have to follow, like wearing wrist-mounted monitors to track them so they don't leave camp.

Yale cops that True isn't paying attention. She doesn't care and stomps off.

The 'Rail's damaged. Danziger wanders past Yale in his search for parts.

Um - class dismissed, I guess? Uly's not there, anyway...

Gaal has apparently found a crate. Julia and Devon are examining it. Danziger is unimpressed - he still doesn't like Gaal much.

Devon tells them the box is from their cargo pod. It's half full of clothes, half full of something else. Danziger tells her they have time to examine it - part of the 'Rail is missing and they'll be here at least a couple of days while he jerry rigs a replacement. He adds that he doesn't trust Gaal and she should be careful. Devon says she likes to know the people she doesn't trust, which - I'm not really sure what that means. That she's trying to figure Gaal out, I guess?

Julia opens the box to find freeze dried something or other. She's hoping it's plants. She chooses one pod and turns it on.

When she switches it on, it clearly says 930 and clicks down for several seconds. Why does she tell Uly it could be hours?

Uly begs to stay and watch and Julia agrees. Uly is left alone with the pod and a warning to be careful.

So naturally, the first thing he does it pick it up...

Gall offers to help Danziger with the 'Rail and is refused. He wanders off about six feet and watches True attempt to convince her father to let her out of school - or, failing that, her wristjack. He refuses on both counts and eventually snaps at her.

John, I get that you're busy, but do you have to yell at her? You raised her to be a mechanic! Why are you so pissed that she's trying to mechan?

Also, does no one know what the school schedule is? Uly said one scene ago he was done for the day, but John seems surprised that True's finished, and she's sure acting like she's ditching. Did Yale shut down classes for his actual pupil when his charity pupil stormed off?

Gaal is pleased.

Julia attempts to shake Alonzo out of his depression by offering him a huge, ugly leg brace. I'm very impressed that she managed something like that, since they've no forge or any way of making anything. It doesn't work, though. Before things can degenerate into a screaming match, Uly bursts out of a tent, yelling that 'it's alive'. Julia, and most of the group, hurry after him to find - something - thrashing around on the floor.

Yale is the first to figure it out - it's a horse. A colt, to be specific.

Uly refuses to let True touch it. She asks for another and is turned down, prompting another storm out.

She's really hitting her teens early, isn't she?

Danziger chases after her, leaving the others to admire the horse.

Gaal passes the missing part of the 'Rail to a Grendler to keep the group where they are for a little longer.

True sneaks into a tent and triggers a second insta-horse capsule. Julia comes in just slightly too late to stop her.

Next morning True, rather amusingly, searches around the tent, including behind boxes only a foot high, for her horse. Julia comes in to tell her that the horse died in the 'womb'. She promises to make Uly share his.

True storms out to see Uly astride a fully grown horse. She runs off. Devon, approaching from behind, asks about her but is distracted by Uly. Julia warns that the horse may die soon if it doesn't stop growing.

Gaal finds True crying just outside camp. He promises not to tell where she is and talks Uly down to gain her trust. He also does a magic trick. When she asks how he did it he demands a secret in return, suggesting she tell him about the vehicles. True agrees, but before she can say anything her monitor goes off. Gaal suggests she might be able to remove it.

Yale arrives to bring her back to camp.

Morgan complains at Bess about the planet. She doesn't mind, more focused on her counting. Some food has gone missing. Morgan doesn't like that at all. He runs off to tell Devon.

Uly, rubbing down the horse, discovers a large sore. Julia promises to try and help, but Pegasus must have plenty of rest.

Standing just out of earshot, True grins and heads off.

Devon and Yale discuss the missing food. They agree, without saying the words, that Gaal is bad news. But he is human and they feel unable to maroon him without a better reason.

Or, y'know, proof.

Yale searches his memory banks and finds no reference to Gaal on the Pontel project. He has a stylised E2 tattoo which traces back to a 'Sanitation' project, designed to 'rid the stations of non-recyclable waste'. All other references are classified.

Morgan suggests eating the horse to bolster supplies. No one agrees, but - apart from Bess - no one really objects either.

John and Devon discuss whether the group is cursed. John doesn’t believe so and he doesn't want Devon thinking it, either.

Gaal encourages True to ride the horse, though she knows she shouldn't. He assures her that it's fine to take whatever she wants, because there's no rules here.

She tries to show him the Transrover in action but it won't go. Gaal starts beating up on it; Danzoger comes by and calmly orders True to bed.

Gaal is Not Happy.

True wakes during the night, hacks into her wrist monitor and runs off with Pegasus. Gaal is waiting away from camp and she proudly tells him she's passed his test. He offers to be her father. It's really quite creepy.

Yale slips into Morgan's tent the next morning. By flattering him, he gets some more information on the E2 program.

Ooh, I've come over all meta!

The only thing Morgan can think of is the sanitation program. Yale doesn't think that's it...then he stops...

Danziger is almost done with the 'Rail when Gaal approaches to apologize. Danziger warns him to stay away from the machines - and, obliquely, True. Gaal agrees that everyone should be very careful.

As Gaal turns Danziger adds that he's programmed the Transrover to respond only to him. Gaal doesn't like that.

Pegasus is very sick. Julia promises to do her best.

True wanders away from camp.

Out in the desert Gaal riles up the Grendlers. Unfortunately, he does it by explaining his evil plan just as True comes into hearing range. She watches him feed the Grendlers his own blood.

...urgh.

As she backs up she stands on a twig and Gaal hears her. Instead of running away, she waits for him to stalk up to her.

Gaal talks her around. He is smooth. Basically, he tells her that Danziger has thrown him out and he just wanted a vehicle to keep up with them, because he doesn't want to leave True.

He gives her a whistle and promises to come whenever she calls.

Julia has fixed Pegasus. After being prompted, Uly offers True a ride. She refuses and heads off to pack up camp.

Alonzo finds Yale staring into space. The tutor insists he's fine and returns to attempting to find the files on E2.

True sneaks off with Pegasus, taking him out of camp. She calls with the whistle.

Yale has discovered the E2 mark refers to a penal colony, peopled by the refuse of the stations. Danziger puts two and two together and goes looking for True.

True offers the horse to Gaal, who is Not Impressed. He wanted a wheeled vehicle, damn it! He covers after a minute, though. When they hear Danziger coming, he pulls True up behind him on the horse, but she falls off. Danziger all but throws her into the 'Rail and chases him.

Danziger drags Gaal off the horse - which runs away - and threatens him with a very big gun. Gaal uses the opportunity to get in better with True, staying very calm and reasonable against Danziger's fury, even asking him not to be angry with her.

On a side note, J Madison Wright can cry really really well. Some actors suck at it, but she's pretty good.

Danziger orders True back in the 'Rail and they drive off. In voiceover, True assures us that she'll meet Gaal again. After all, this is the land where Magic happens.