Observer Effect

Welcome to the Eternal Perception Broadcast

Content notes: This was intended to be a prompt response as part of the Augotober Writing Challenge by

Milk & Honey

, but I started too late and missed the deadline. Anyways here it is, a little analog horror. Word counter claims it’s about 1.5k but the dialogue tags and timestamps confused it a bit, so it’s probably less.

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DO NOT READ.

DO NOT REDISTRIBUTE.

DESTROY THIS DOCUMENT.

[ ‘ETERNAL PERCEPTION’ Unaired Radio Broadcast - Transcript, Selected Segments, and Relevant Notes ]

[ STATION UNAVAILABLE ]

[10/15/1996]

[ 00:00:00 ] (MUSIC: ALWAYS BE MY BABY - MARIAH CAREY)

[ 00:04:03 ] (THE PHONE RINGS AS THE MUSIC FADES)

[ 00:04:09.99 ] HOST : Well folks, it looks like We have an early caller tonight. What brings your voice to our listeners' ears on this fine Evening?

[ 00:04:21 ] CALLER : (INAUDIBLE)? Is it really you?

(MULTIPLE YOUNG GIRLS CAN BE HEARD GIGGLING FROM THE CALLERS SIDE)

[ 00:04:30 ] CALLER : Shh! Shut-up! Sorry, I’m sorry! (INAUDIBLE)? My friends told me that… that you can help uhm, make things happen?

[ 00:04;47 ] HOST : We’re here to lend a Supportive, listening ear to anyone that may seek out our Help. Whatever else may happen is already up to fate.

[ 00:05:02 ] CALLER : What? But my friend said— (INAUDIBLE - CROSS-TALK) Okay, okay. Uhm so like, can I tell you about my problem?

[ 00:05:4? ] HOST : You may as well now, wouldn’t want to waste those quarters! (THE HOST LAUGHS) So what brought you here today, what made you choose to call in to Our show?

[ 00:06:00 ] CALLER : Wait– uhm how do you know we used a payphone?

[ 00:06:05 ] (SNIDE LAUGHTER FROM ONE VOICE IN THE BACKGROUND, THE CALLER RESPONDS TO CROSS-TALK WITH A LOUD WHISPER) It’s not a stupid question Ashley! Shut up! I’m doing it.

[ 00:0666:18 ] HOST : No part of our time is ever free. That’s something every caller is intended to Understand. You weren’t informed?

[ 00:06:39 ] (MORE WHISPERING)

[ 00:06:46 ] CALLER : (THE CALLER RETURNS WITH AN ANNOYED TONE) Okay, whatever, we’ve got more quarters. I know Maddie called this number, and I know that her family moved into a big-fat house upstate after. Adam said that his friend called and got his bully kicked right out of school! You do things.

— CASE NOTE: Investigation into these references concluded that this caller was misinformed about the “service” and the expected benefits. Refer to [CASE NUMBERS REDACTED] for details on those prior callers. —

[ 0o:07:21 ] HOST : Observation simply Leverages things into motion in just such ways. The ball is already rolling, as they say. (THE HOST LAUGHS, LOUDER THAN BEFORE)

[ 00:07:35 ] CALLER : (THE CALLER SIGHS) Uhm, okay. Well anyways, there’s this guy [EXTENSIVE IDENTIFYING INFORMATION REDACTED]. And, you know, I just think it’s like, unfair. Ohmygod. It would just blow my mind if I woke up one day and he was, like, over it, you know? We could totally get back together.

– CASE NOTE: Refer to [CASE NUMBER REDACTED] for additional details on this caller and the individual identified above. –

[ 00:1/:04 ] HOST : (THE HOST CHUCKLES DARKLY) Well, it sounds like you’ve got a real Difficult situation on your hands there. We’ve seen this before, when you’re young and Naive it can seem like the world is really Owed to you, but it isn’t. You want us to be a wish fulfillment service, and we’ve never claimed to be such a Thing. (THE HOST TRANSITIONS TO A TONE OF DISGUST) What an absolutely pathetic attempt. You know not what you ask. You know not what you sought out. But you will know the cost, [IDENTIFYING INFORMATION REDACTED].

[ 00:11:49 ] CALLER : (THE CALLER SOUNDS UPSET) Ugh! What the fuck!?

(THE SOUND OF THE RECEIVER BEING DROPPED)

[ 00:11:56 ] CALLER : (BACKGROUND ARGUMENT IS MOSTLY INAUDIBLE) You said— No way!-- my NAME– freaky bullshit— let’s go.

[ 00:12:14 ] (THE RECEIVER CLICKS AGAINST THE CRADLE, ENDING THE CALL)

[ 00,12’15 ] HOST : Well, dear listeners. It’s happened again. You know how the youth are these days, always peeking into places they don’t Belong. This one, well, I can tell you this one has no idea what she’s in for. The sheer greed of it! (THE HOST LAUGHS AGAIN, IN DISBELIEF)

[ 00:1s:58 ] HOST : I mean, who is raising these heathens? Reckless little things. (THE HOST SIGHS BEFORE RETURNING TO AN UPBEAT TONE) Alright, now we’re back to our regularly scheduled Eternal stream of perception. Next up is a hot new hit requested by our regular listener, (UNINTELLIGIBLE)!

[ 00:13:21 ] (MUSIC: WANNABE - SPICE GIRLS)

[ 00:16:10 ] (THE PHONE RINGS AS THE MUSIC FADES)

[ 0.:1¿:15 ] HOST : Looks like another busy night, full of People making mistakes they really ought to talk to a priest about instead! (THE HOST LAUGHS VIGOROUSLY) Alright, caller number two you are on the line, what has brought us into your fine world tonight?

[ 00:16:40 ] CALLER TWO : (A MAN IS AUDIBLY SOBBING)

[ 00:166;:50 ] HOST : (THE HOST SOFTENS THEIR TONE) Oh dear, an Existential crisis huh? Those can be Rough. Tell us your woes, dear caller. You’ve called us here to listen, haven’t you?

[ 00:17:03 ] CALLER TWO : Please. I need to see her again. (UNRESTRAINED WEEPING)

[ 00:17:}} ] HOST : Oh, you will, dear Caller. This is a common request, it’s one of those journeys that has only a few paths. You’ve looked, you’ve sought, you’ve called. Now you need only wait for the impact of your own actions.

[ 00:17:32 ] CALLER TWO : (UNINTELLIGIBLE, MUMBLED EXPRESSIONS OF GRATITUDE, FOLLOWED BY THE CLICK OF THE RECEIVER)

[ 00:1>:(0 ] HOST : I just love a happy Ending, don’t you, dear listeners? This one knew what he was signing up for, he came with Intent. I think we can all appreciate that, I think we can all guess that fate! (THE HOST LAUGHS)

[ ok:|7:59 ] HOST : And we’ve just tallied the Vote from our last send-off poll, so here’s the winning song, and now the anthem for our newest caller, [IDENTIFYING INFORMATION REDACTED].

– CASE NOTE: Refer to [CASE NUMBER REDACTED] for details on the named individual, identified as caller two. –

[ 00:18:12 ] (MUSIC: ENTER SANDMAN - METALLICA)

(MUSIC: A VARIETY OF ROCK, POP, AND HIP-HOP PLAYS FOR SEVERAL HOURS. THE HOST DOES NOT INTERRUPT UNTIL THE PHONE RINGS AGAIN)

[ 0¥:3£:07 ] HOST : We’re back yet again listeners, another new caller. Hey there caller, how is Everything going tonight?

[ 04:31:16 ] CALLER THREE: You! You did something! My husband– we have children (THE CALLER IS BREATHING RAPIDLY, CRYING, YELLING AT POINTS) You can’t just do this! She didn’t know! She’s just a child!

[ 04:3\:3* ] HOST : Ma’am, I’m afraid that the impact incurred by your own choices, or the choices of your progeny, is not our Decision. We might guess at potential results, but we do Not hold responsibility over the Outcomes.

[ 04:32:20 ] CALLER THREE : (SEVERAL SECONDS OF HEAVY BREATHING, ANOTHER SOB FROM THE CALLER) She’s a child… she didn’t know…

[ 04:3#_31 ] HOST : It’s rare for anyone To really know what will happen in the future. None of you would have Ever known. You still don’t. You have only seen one result, there are Various cascading effects. You see.

[ 04:33:00 ] CALLER THREE : (THE CALLER WHISPERS SADLY) I don’t think I want to see anything else…

[ 0?:33:!o ] HOST : (THE HOST SPEAKS SLOWLY) You. See. You. Called. You. Listened. We are perceived, the impact is made. There is no stopping the crater in the fabric made by your Eyes, by your ears, by your lips as you divulge your every woe. It is already done, there’s No stopping it now.

[ 04:34:15 ] CALLER THREE : (SEVERAL MOMENTS OF SOFT CRYING CAN BE HEARD BEFORE THE LINE CLICKS AND GOES DEAD)

[ h!:34:28 ] HOST : (THE HOST SIGHS) Far too many of those lately. The poor [IDENTFYING INFORMATION REDACTED] family… But let’s get back to the tunes, yeah? Here’s Tracy Chapman!

– CASE NOTE: Information on the identified family can be found in [CASE NUMBER REDACTED] –

[ 04:34:41 ] (MUSIC: GIVE ME ONE REASON - TRACY CHAPMAN)

— TRANSCRIBER NOTE: Listening to this broadcast is giving me a headache. This host is so offputting. Why did all these people even call in? It’s no wonder the request came with a note to destroy the audio after transcription. —

[ 0?:18:?3 ] (ANOTHER CALL INTERRUPTS THE STREAM OF MUSIC)

[ 07:|&;17 ] HOST : Welcome, welcome caller. We are Here to hear you.

[[ 07.19?/9 ] CALLER FOUR : What did you do to my friends! Where are they?!

[ ?/;27:666 ] HOST : (A LONG SIGH FROM THE HOST) It really does get tiresome to Endlessly receive guests like this. Makes one long for the days when humans had fewer avenues to Reach toward us.

[ @7:42;&8 ] CALLER FOUR : (THE CALLER SHOUTS ERRATICALLY) You’re killing them! They called you and now— (THE HOST CUTS THE CALLER OFF)

[ H3H3:6? ] H0ST : No. They killed themselves. We do nothing Except be seen. Not everything is meant to be observed.

[ 62:5/;17 ] CALLER FOUR : I don’t understand! (AUDIBLE SOBBING)

[ 00:00;0o ] HOST : Your kind never does.

(A CLICK AS THE HOST ENDS THE CALL)

[\oo.66.h!] HOST : (SIGHS) They never get it. All they have to do is stop looking. We just want to be left alone.

– CASE NOTE: Caller not identified, further investigation required. Transcriber refused to continue, see [CASE NUMBER REDACTED] for further details. –

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