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0:57

Rusty Quill presents... The

1:06

Magnus Protocol. Episode

1:17

7. Give and

1:19

take. Episode

1:27

8. Give and take. Episode

1:57

8. Give and take. So

2:09

then you just hit the submit button

2:11

over here and... Hmm. That's

2:14

your first case. Cool. Questions?

2:16

Seems straight forward enough. It does. Yeah.

2:20

I mean it's an old system but it could have been worse. It's

2:23

not like we're wrestling with tape recorders and

2:25

manila folders. And we're not bothered by

2:27

the whole my skin turned into

2:29

butterflies case. Nah. Can't

2:32

say butterflies really scare me. Besides,

2:34

I'm guessing all the cases are a bit off

2:36

and that's why we're assessing them. Pretty

2:39

much. You mentioned some might

2:41

get read out by the computer. Is

2:44

there anything different about those ones? Not

2:46

really. Colin, he's

2:48

the weird IT guy. He reckons some

2:50

of the system runs through the sound card

2:53

so it just spits them out randomly.

2:55

For sure. Well... No.

2:59

But it kinda makes sense. Have

3:01

you ever checked to see if the spoken cases

3:03

have anything in common? Never noticed

3:05

anything obvious. Besides, we can't

3:07

stop it either way so we mostly just go for

3:09

a coffee if we get a chatter. Just

3:12

remember though, you've got to get through your whole case load so you

3:14

can't waste too much time on this stuff. Understood.

3:17

Anything else? Is there

3:19

any way to look up specific files? Like

3:23

what? Oh, I don't know. Every

3:25

case about being buried alive

3:27

or meat or whatever.

3:31

Well, there's a search bar but it

3:33

doesn't actually do anything. You'd

3:35

have to dig through them all manually. Why

3:37

do you ask? Just figuring it all out.

3:40

Oh well, guess I'll need to find Bigfoot on my own

3:43

time. You joke but

3:45

there was this one case a couple of years ago.

3:47

Don't tell me. Somebody got

3:49

killed by a big shoe. You'll

3:52

fit right in here. Bye.

4:01

From D. Margolis

4:03

at oxfordpeoplestrust.org to

4:06

HR at oxfordpeoplestrust.org.

4:10

Ray, tendering resignation, 3rd

4:12

February 2016. To

4:16

whom it may concern, I am writing to

4:18

inform you that I am tendering my resignation

4:20

as manager of the Hilltop Centre branch of

4:22

the Oxford Peoples Trust effective immediately. I

4:25

will not be working my notice period and unless you

4:27

wish for this to become a legal matter, I advise

4:29

you to pay me properly for that. I

4:32

am aware that you may not have been

4:34

directly responsible for the events that have taken

4:36

place at the Hilltop Centre branch over the

4:38

last six months, but you have nonetheless failed

4:40

to provide adequate support despite my repeated messages

4:42

requesting your intervention. I am thus

4:45

left with no other choice than to sever all

4:47

ties with this company, which appears to care so

4:49

little for my health, goodwill or years of service.

4:52

You will find a complete account of all that has

4:55

happened attached, and this should be more than sufficient for

4:57

your records. I shall expect my

4:59

final paycheque paid promptly and in full. Regards,

5:02

Diane Margolis BA, ONS,

5:05

JP. Attachment

5:08

reads. Hi, Diane

5:10

Margolis BA, ONS, JP. I am a victim

5:12

of neglect from the management of Oxford Peoples

5:14

Trust and I believe that the facts stated

5:16

herein are true to the best of my

5:18

knowledge. I was appointed to the manager

5:20

role at the Hilltop Centre branch on the 17th August 2015,

5:25

after the death of Derek Chambers, the former

5:27

manager. I had worked as

5:29

a volunteer under Mr Chambers for three years, two

5:31

of which he was frequently absent due to his

5:33

illness. Upon his death I

5:36

was offered a full managerial probation from Mr C

5:38

Clayton of OPT. I completed

5:40

this probation and began managing the site proper

5:42

from the 8th November 2015. It

5:46

soon became apparent that though Mr C

5:48

Clayton was my line manager, neither he

5:50

nor the Human Resources Department would provide

5:52

any managerial oversight or support, and any

5:54

requests for assistance sourcing a replacement volunteer

5:57

for my former role would go unanswered.

6:00

I finally resorted to personally preparing, printing

6:02

and posting A4 flyers around the hilltop

6:04

centre in the hopes of attracting local

6:07

volunteers already familiar with the site. I

6:10

secured permission from the custodians prior. It

6:13

was on 13th November 2015 that I

6:16

received a walk-in application from an individual

6:18

seeking the position. I

6:20

understand my inability to recall his name

6:22

or find it in the relevant paperwork

6:25

or emails may affect the credibility of

6:27

my account, but the fact remains

6:29

he applied. The young

6:31

man's interview was not exceptional as he

6:33

had no experience in charity work, no

6:35

driving licence nor any demonstrable experience in

6:37

retail. He claimed however to know

6:39

the hilltop centre better than anyone and as he

6:41

was the only applicant in the role I elected

6:43

to give him a try. He

6:46

began his two-week probation on 14th November 2015. I notified Mr C

6:49

Clayton and HR of the appointment

6:53

and Mr C Clayton replied that

6:55

I should chill and it was

6:57

all good. The new

7:00

volunteer had a number of issues

7:02

with his probation and struggled with

7:04

basic infantry, stocking, till management and

7:06

cleaning duties. However, he was punctual,

7:08

hardworking and had an extremely positive

7:10

disposition. He even personally donated

7:12

a rather large false plant in

7:14

a somewhat disconcerting ceramic pot modelled

7:17

on a shouting human face. Towards

7:20

the end of his probation he told me that he

7:22

was having a good time since it was all for

7:25

a good cause and that he had

7:27

a friend who also wished to volunteer. I

7:30

was somewhat dubious as to how helpful an

7:32

associate of this young man would be but

7:34

given that the site still needed at least

7:36

five more staff members and Mr C Clayton

7:38

was no longer replying to my messages, I

7:40

had no choice but to interview them. The

7:43

young woman, whose name also escapes me

7:45

at this time, began on 26th November

7:48

2015 and had a similar

7:50

level of experience offset by an equally enthusiastic

7:52

work ethic and demeanor. I did have to

7:54

give them an informal warning to stop laughing

7:56

so much whilst on the main floor but

7:58

they informed me that I was not a good person. It's

8:01

all for a good cause." And there were

8:03

no customers at the time. The

8:05

second volunteer also made a donation in

8:07

the form of a large, bare-skin rug.

8:09

I attempted to contact Mr. C. Clayton

8:11

to inquire about our policy regarding real

8:14

fur items, especially ones

8:16

of such size, but was informed that

8:18

he was on a personal development sabbatical

8:20

and thus unreachable. I elected

8:22

to store this in the back room, especially

8:25

given the sharpness of its teeth. Three

8:28

days after this second probation began, she told

8:30

me she also had some friends who wished

8:32

to volunteer. As I was

8:35

still technically understaffed, I agreed to meet with them.

8:38

I normally would not have accepted so many new

8:40

starters at once, but with the Christmas period approaching

8:42

and still no reply from Mr. C. Clayton, I

8:45

feel I made a managerial decision that was

8:47

clearly within my jurisdiction. The

8:50

next two volunteers started on the 28th November 2015. They

8:54

also made donations of a large chandelier

8:56

of dark glass and an oversized grammar

8:58

phone with a collection of records of

9:00

what I believed to be religious plain

9:02

song. I was surprised

9:04

that young adults would donate such exotic items

9:06

and explained it was not necessary but they

9:09

insisted, claiming it was all for a

9:11

good cause. The

9:13

previous volunteers began to onboard the new

9:15

starters whilst I updated the branch's ledges,

9:17

documentation, and the other paperwork that has

9:19

since been lost. I

9:22

attempted to submit standard monthly reports during this time

9:24

that Mr. C. Clayton had not yet returned from

9:26

his sabbatical, which I had by then

9:28

learned was with full pay in the Seychelles.

9:31

I'm sure he had a lovely time. On

9:34

the 30th November, I was introduced to

9:37

four more volunteers. It seemed

9:39

that my instructions had been misconstrued and all of

9:41

them had already been offered a position. I

9:44

explained that this was contrary to the Oxford

9:46

People's Trust's normal hiring policies, but I elected

9:48

to nonetheless offer them a probation in order

9:50

to fully fill the volunteer roster for the

9:52

Christmas period. I expressly

9:55

notified the young man I had hired

9:57

first, however, that he should not imply

9:59

any further volunteer roles were available. All

10:02

four of them started the same day and,

10:04

despite me being very clear that it was

10:06

not necessary, they had also

10:09

brought personal donations in the form of

10:11

a crudely carved rocking horse, a grandfather

10:13

clock that leaped some sort of dark

10:15

oil, a heavily vandalised set

10:17

of the Encyclopedia Britannica, and

10:20

an extensive collection of abstract

10:22

canvas artworks respectively. I

10:25

told them these were not fit for sale, but

10:27

my instructions to remove them were disregarded. It

10:30

was at this point I began to sense that

10:32

I was starting to lose control of the situation.

10:36

On the 1st of December I arrived to find

10:38

that the new hires had already opened the shop.

10:41

To be clear, I had not provided any keys

10:43

and remain unsure how they obtained a set. I

10:46

intended to pursue the matter immediately but was

10:48

initially unable to locate them, find all the

10:51

additional donations they appeared to have accepted. None

10:53

of the items were fit for sale. They

10:56

specifically recalled two large soiled

10:58

crinoline dresses, a chaise log with

11:00

cushions filled with some sort of

11:02

coarse sand, a taxidermied vulture, a

11:05

rusty antique printing press, and

11:07

a collection of old medical equipment

11:09

that had seemingly been recently used.

11:11

There were many, many additional items but I

11:14

was unable to take a full inventory as the

11:16

shop floor was over full. With

11:18

great difficulty I found the young man I

11:21

had originally hired towards the back of the

11:23

shop, laughing with a large group of young

11:25

adults, including the previous volunteers and multiple others

11:27

I did not recognise. I told

11:30

them that social gatherings were not permitted

11:32

during work hours but he insisted they

11:34

were all volunteers, and

11:36

when I attempted to tell them all

11:38

to leave the premises they laughed and

11:40

continued bringing in additional items. It

11:43

was clear by this time that the situation required intervention

11:45

from head office and so I began to push my

11:47

way through to the landline, but as

11:49

I did so I saw yet more people entering

11:51

the shop with donations, some sort

11:54

of leather kite, an oddly

11:56

curved brass telescope, a wheelbarrow full

11:58

of shifting fossils, and a An

12:00

armload of swords, lengths of

12:02

rope, and they were all laughing and

12:04

calling out to one another. It's

12:06

all for a good cause. As

12:09

more and more people arrived, pressing into

12:12

the shop, the central shelving was toppled

12:14

and items were being damaged underfoot. A

12:17

tin bathtub filled with maulny food. A

12:20

stack of old dental retainers. A

12:22

brace of half-butchered pheasants. Jars of

12:24

what appeared to be pickled hands.

12:26

I could no longer feel the

12:28

exits, and still more volunteers pushed

12:31

themselves inwards. The pressure grew

12:33

unbearable and I was pinned on all sides.

12:35

My shoulders crushed against an ancient diving

12:38

suit filled with sawdust, with

12:40

my neck wrenched under a broken picnic

12:42

hamper whilst blood-stained china was ground beneath

12:44

my feet. There wasn't

12:46

even enough space to fall now. I

12:50

tried to scream but could only manage a wheeze as

12:52

I began to black out. My

12:54

limbs were contorted and gouged by unseen

12:56

edges. My mouth filled with the copper

12:59

taste of imperial coins pouring down on

13:01

me from a jar above. That's

13:04

when the gunshots started. The

13:08

volunteers didn't stop laughing but I could feel the

13:10

dead and thud of impacts. I could see the

13:12

splatters of gore through what gaps there were in

13:14

the items all around me. Again

13:17

and again there was a rapid

13:19

thud. Thud. Thud. And

13:21

the laughing voices began to be drowned out

13:23

by the growing crackle of flames. Without

13:27

warning, the pressure lessened and I dropped

13:29

into a small hollow beneath an upturned

13:31

bookcase. There was a path ahead

13:33

of me, jagged with shards of wood and glass

13:35

and constantly shifting with the press of the crowd.

13:38

I dragged myself forward over the broken tritus,

13:41

occasionally getting caught but pressing

13:43

onwards until I tumbled out of the

13:45

emergency exit and onto the tarmac outside.

13:48

Dazed, I tried to get to my feet

13:50

only to be shoved to the ground by

13:52

a heavyset man in black clothing who demanded

13:54

I identify myself while pressing a gun

13:56

against the back of my head. I

13:59

scrolled. Then I wept, great

14:02

heaving sobs of terror with broken ribs.

14:06

This somehow seemed to satisfy him, and he

14:08

threw me roughly over his shoulder and walked

14:10

away from the hilltop centre as the charity

14:12

shop blazed behind us. I

14:15

swear I could still hear them laughing

14:17

over the thudding of machine guns and

14:19

the roar of unchecked fire. It

14:23

has been made very clear to me that I am

14:25

not to identify the security firm that took this action,

14:27

so I shall not do so here. Nor

14:30

am I aware of which individual or

14:32

organisation hired them, except in as far

14:35

as I know for a fact they were not

14:37

working for the Oxford People's Trust. They

14:40

have also expressed in no uncertain terms that the

14:42

fire is to be treated as an accident, with

14:44

no further investigation by OPT. If

14:47

you wish to discuss this further with them I can

14:49

provide you contact information, but I heavily

14:51

advise against it. Unless

14:54

you send Mr C Clayton, of course, I

14:57

rather think he deserves to be fully debriefed by

14:59

them. Do not

15:01

contact me again, unless it is to

15:03

discuss additional compensation. Everything

15:10

alright? No, yeah, I'm

15:13

fine, just the voice threw

15:15

me. Who, Chester? He's

15:17

not so bad. Better than

15:19

Norris, whiny little toad. I'm

15:21

sorry? There's three voices. And

15:24

those are their names? Well, that's

15:27

what I call them at least. Chester,

15:29

Norris and... Augustus.

15:32

Right. Listen,

15:35

if you need to step out for some air... No,

15:38

I'm fine, really. Do

15:40

you know who voices Chester? Er,

15:43

no. Why, looking for

15:45

an autograph? Just

15:48

thought I recognised it for a moment. I mean,

15:50

the system was built in the 90s. Maybe

15:52

they got like a radio guy to do it and you heard him as

15:55

a kid. Maybe. Doesn't

15:58

matter. I'm sure it's just a... it

16:00

wasn't anyone important. Hello.

16:19

What? She's

16:22

here. Yeah. Hi. What

16:24

do you want? Sorry, I don't want to interrupt

16:26

you or... Anyway,

16:29

yeah, I was wondering if you knew who

16:31

John was? John

16:33

who? Great question. What?

16:37

I got a weird email from John with

16:40

a random name and an address, and it

16:42

looks like it's from an internal email, so...

16:46

There's no one here who's called John. Oh,

16:48

right. You're

16:51

sure? Yes. Well,

16:54

is there someone else I could ask or... Listen,

16:57

mate, if you're gonna get

16:59

this worked up over a weird email, you're gonna

17:01

freak when you see the real stuff. What real

17:04

stuff? You'll

17:07

see. Is that

17:09

why you taped over your webcam? You finished.

17:11

Well, listen, if you see anything from this

17:13

email address... Hey, put that away! Didn't you

17:15

see the sign? Yeah, no external electronics, but...

17:18

But you thought that didn't apply to you?

17:21

It's just the phone, I didn't think that... No, you didn't say...

17:24

For the brain's idiotic. Alright, look, I'm going to

17:26

go. Give me that! I'm

17:29

here! I'm going to go over! I'm

17:32

very sorry, too much! Of

17:42

course, but I can assure you that there really is

17:44

no need to... ...worry. Now,

17:48

I do apologize, but something has just come up, so I have to

17:50

go. I will get everything

17:52

over to you as soon as I can. Please

17:54

excuse me. You're

17:58

supposed to not... before

18:00

entering. I know. Then

18:03

I trust there is some

18:05

emergency which justifies this interruption.

18:08

I thought you'd want to see this. What

18:11

is it? It's really quite amusing

18:13

actually. Gwen what exactly are you-

18:16

Trust me. Please.

18:24

Please. You don't have to

18:26

do this. We both know I do. I-

18:30

I can disappear again. They would

18:32

never know. I'm sorry. Klaus. Well

18:38

so am I. Klaus!

18:43

Klaus! You

18:52

are aware that most people would

18:55

consider directly confronting me like this

18:57

a rather foolish idea. But

19:00

that's why it's so funny, you see? Because

19:02

not only do I have a video of you

19:05

trying to murder someone, even better,

19:07

I have multiple copies

19:09

of you failing to do so.

19:12

And that is better because- Because

19:15

I suspect the only thing worse than

19:17

being convicted for attempted murder is being

19:19

punished by the people who paid for

19:21

it. And you

19:23

believe they don't already know. According

19:26

to my source, they believe this man

19:28

to be quite dead. Source.

19:31

Singular. Interesting. And

19:34

who do you imagine my masters to

19:37

be in this scenario? Whoever

19:39

they are, I suspect they have

19:41

the power to reward me for alerting

19:43

them to your incompetence.

19:46

Maybe with your job. You

19:51

have ambition, Gwen. I

19:53

will grant you that. But not

19:55

a lot of imagination. You

19:58

are blackmailing me. personally,

20:00

correct? For

20:02

what? I am not

20:04

a wealthy woman, certainly not compared

20:06

to your own family. What

20:09

is it that you want? I

20:11

want in. Really?

20:15

I would want to know how you obtained

20:18

this information. Too bad. What?

20:22

Simply a bit unexpected. Perhaps you have more

20:24

stomach for this work than I gave you

20:26

credit for. And I

20:28

have been needing someone to step up to the real

20:30

work for quite some time now. Meaning

20:33

what? Exactly. If

20:35

you want answers and authority,

20:39

you'll have your chance to earn them.

20:42

I'm appointing you as the

20:44

new external liaison. A

20:47

promotion? Of a sort. I

20:51

hope you're as ready for it as you think you are. Consider

20:54

yourself in. Magnus

21:13

Brotigol is a podcast distributed by

21:16

Rustic Will and licensed under a

21:18

Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial Sharealike 4.0

21:20

International License. The

21:23

series is created by Jonathan

21:25

Sims and Alexander J. Newell,

21:27

directed by Alexander J. Newell.

21:31

This episode was written by Alexander J.

21:33

Newell and edited with additional materials by

21:35

Jonathan Sollis, with

21:37

vocal edits by Nico Vitesse, soundscaping

21:41

by Meg MacKella, and mastering

21:43

by Catherine Rinella with

21:45

music by Sam Jones. Cecilia

22:00

Ripley, Ryan Hope Vere Anderson

22:02

as Colin Becker, Sarah Lambie

22:04

as Lena Kelly, with additional

22:06

voices from Jonathan Zins. The

22:10

Magnus Protocol is produced by

22:12

April Sumner with executive producers

22:14

Alexander Janewal, Danny McDonough, Lynne

22:16

Fee and Samantha F.G. Hamilton,

22:19

associate producers Jordan L. Hawk,

22:21

Taylor Michaels, Nicole Perlman, Cetius

22:24

DeRaven and Megan Nyece. Are

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Two Black Girls, One Rose, a podcast

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uncovering what we can learn about modern

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dating, love and relationships from popular television.

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