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copyright copyright, copyright, copyright.

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Copyright 2025. Usually,

1:11

for the weirdest, most wonderful

1:14

reasons you can imagine. Each

1:16

episode is an interview between

1:18

the agency and someone who

1:20

wants out of their life.

1:22

And things generally tend to

1:24

take a twist, or two. Or

1:27

three. The writing is sharp,

1:29

it's real and genuinely funny.

1:31

It kind of feels like

1:33

Douglas Adams meets Fleabag, meets

1:35

Sherlock Holmes. If they were

1:37

all sipping Coco in a

1:39

shadowy backroom somewhere in Paris.

1:41

The voice acting is brilliant.

1:43

The interviewer, the main character,

1:45

is this charming, mysterious, cocoa-obsessed

1:47

enigma, who I personally would

1:49

definitely trust to fake my own

1:52

death. So, of course, I thought about it.

1:54

And I'm going to tell you what it

1:56

is. If I was going to affect my own death,

1:58

I would be on a live job. game show.

2:00

You know, the kind with flashing

2:02

lights, absurd challenges, inflatable food

2:04

flying through the air, things

2:06

like that. So the round

2:08

starts and instead of me

2:11

dodging the oversized obstacle like

2:13

I'm supposed to, I take

2:15

a hit. A 10-foot foam

2:17

hot dog slams into me.

2:19

I stumble back dramatically and

2:21

vanish beneath a set. The

2:23

audience screams, the host yells,

2:25

cue music, ad break, they

2:27

call it a freak accident,

2:29

it's a national tragedy, whilst

2:32

I slip away undetected.

2:34

Last of course, death by hot

2:36

dog trends worldwide. So I

2:38

definitely could not pull that off

2:40

on my own. So I kind

2:42

of would have to give the

2:44

Amelia Project a call. The

2:46

show is equal parts comedy, mystery

2:49

and existential oddity. And as the

2:51

series goes on, you'll find a

2:54

deeper story unfolding beneath all the

2:56

laughs. It's clever, it's comforting, and

2:58

actually completely addictive. So if

3:00

you're looking for an audio

3:03

drama that's different, delightful, and

3:05

just a little bit devious,

3:07

the Amelia Project is waiting.

3:09

You can find more information about

3:11

the show at Amelia podcast.com, and

3:14

you can listen to the Amelia

3:16

Project wherever you get your podcasts.

3:19

But for now. Enjoy the

3:21

first episode. Congratulations.

3:24

You've reached

3:26

the Amelia

3:29

project. This phone

3:31

call isn't happening.

3:34

If you're not

3:36

serious about this,

3:38

hang up. Now. If

3:41

you continue, there's no

3:43

way back. Good choice. And

3:46

your life awaits. You'll hear

3:48

back from us within the

3:50

hour. If you don't hear

3:53

back, please consider the whole

3:55

thing a hoax. Leave your message

3:57

after the beep. How

4:00

quick can this be done? I don't

4:02

have much time. I leave planet Earth

4:04

tonight. I'm being launched to Antigon in

4:07

10 hours. I can't get out of

4:09

it. My father-wise won't let me. I

4:11

need help. I need you to intervene.

4:13

My name is Zail Indigo Ravenhart. Founder

4:16

and arch-prease of the Apostles of Antathon.

4:18

Get back to me. Please, quick, help.

4:54

The Amelia project

4:57

by Philip Thorn

5:00

and Einstein Braga

5:02

with music and

5:05

sound design by

5:08

Frederick Barton. Episode

5:10

1. Zail Indigo

5:13

Ravenheart.

5:15

Interesting.

5:17

Hello? Come in? Could

5:20

you draw the curtains?

5:23

Nobody is allowed to know I'm

5:25

here. Those two Italian guys in

5:27

the lobby, are they trustworthy?

5:29

Joey and Salvatore. They don't

5:31

look trustworthy. Those boys are

5:34

hard as Biscotti, but don't

5:36

worry. They're working for you.

5:38

We're all working for you. Amelia is

5:40

at your service. What I want

5:42

is probably impossible. Without

5:45

faith, nothing is possible. With

5:47

it, nothing is impossible. Faith?

5:49

Nothing is impossible. Faith?

5:52

Relax, make yourself

5:54

comfortable. Grab a chair. What?

5:57

Relax, grab a chair. There

5:59

is no... chair. Of course there

6:01

is. No there isn't. Ah, you have

6:03

no faith. Now faith's got nothing

6:06

to do with it. I'm telling

6:08

you there is a chair. You're

6:10

choosing not to believe me. Look,

6:12

this has nothing to do with

6:14

what I believe in or not,

6:16

okay? I can see with my

6:19

own eyes, or rather I can't.

6:21

I can't see. You see, that's

6:23

the point. I can't see the

6:25

chair because it's not there. It

6:28

doesn't exist. Fact. Pity. It's

6:30

a very comfy chair. Prove

6:33

it to me. What? Oh, prove

6:35

there's a chair. Gone. Gone. Sit

6:37

down in it. You can't. You

6:39

have no evidence. Absence

6:42

of evidence is not

6:44

evidence of absence. You're

6:46

really strange. You know that.

6:49

What was your name again?

6:51

Zell indigo Ravenhart. Call

6:54

it even. I looked you up

6:56

on the Google before you came

6:58

in. Zell. Indigo

7:00

Ravenhart. Hmm. This

7:02

was the first hit. What

7:05

am I looking at? It's

7:07

the countdown. Days, hours,

7:09

minutes, seconds. A countdown

7:11

to your death. To

7:13

my departure from Earth.

7:15

Eight hours, 20 minutes,

7:17

35 seconds. Yeah. Does

7:20

that give us some

7:22

of time? Well, that

7:24

rather depends on the

7:26

complexity of the task

7:28

and the funds you have

7:30

at your disposal. How do you

7:32

intend to leave planet Earth? In

7:35

a cannon. You're kidding. I wish

7:37

I was laughing. And this was

7:39

your idea. It's the only way

7:42

to get to Antathon. Antithon? It's

7:44

a long story, and we don't

7:46

have time. There's always time for

7:49

a story. But Amelia, we connect

7:51

stories. If these walls could talk...

7:53

But they can't, can they?

7:55

I'm sorry, did you just ask

7:57

me of how walls can talk? I

8:00

mean this isn't being recorded

8:02

or anything is it? No.

8:04

I'm interested in how someone

8:06

decides he wants to be

8:09

fired into space from a

8:11

cannon, goes out of his

8:13

way to publicize the exact

8:15

time and date, attracts huge

8:17

attention, then realizes eight hours

8:20

twenty minutes and 35 seconds

8:22

beforehand, that maybe it's not

8:24

such a bright idea after all.

8:26

Can I guess? You've lost your

8:28

faith? Whatever this Antithon

8:30

is, you no longer believe

8:32

in it. It's not that

8:35

simple. Okay, what is Antithon?

8:37

You may find it hard to

8:39

believe. I expect nothing less.

8:41

It requires a leap of

8:43

imagination. You're sure you won't

8:45

take a seat. There is

8:47

no... What is that? I

8:49

believe that is a chat.

8:51

Where did he... Come from.

8:53

Do you believe this is

8:55

a chair? I've seen a

8:57

person. Sit down and tell

8:59

me about Antithon.

9:01

Would you mind turning

9:04

that down? It's stressing

9:06

me. Sit down. Tell me about

9:09

Antithon. For every aspect

9:11

of life. There's an

9:13

opposite, right? Fire and

9:16

water. Light and dark. Life and

9:18

death. A thing can only exist by

9:20

having an opposite. Something to compare it

9:22

to. I mean, how would we know

9:25

what good is if there was no

9:27

evil? I agree with that. Everything exists

9:29

in pairs. Earth is no exception. Earth

9:31

has an opposite. And that's Antithon.

9:33

Yes! Earth and Antithon are on

9:36

opposite sides of the sun. They

9:38

circle the sun at 180

9:40

degrees from one another. Like

9:42

twins! That's right. That's right.

9:44

Their identical distance from the

9:46

sun means Earth and Antithon

9:48

have the same exact conditions.

9:50

Same atmospheric pressure, temperature, gravity.

9:52

That's presumably life. Precisely. Wow,

9:54

I think this calls for

9:56

a cup of cocoa. Salvatore!

9:58

Two cocos, please! Each one of

10:01

us has a counterpart

10:03

on Antithon. Oh, what

10:05

proof do you have for

10:07

the existence of Antithon?

10:10

Everything has an opposite.

10:12

The universe needs

10:15

balance. Antithon revealed

10:17

itself to me in a

10:20

vision. Ah. So you

10:22

haven't actually seen

10:25

it? Well, how

10:27

could I? The

10:29

sun blocks it

10:31

from you. It's

10:34

perfectly hidden, even

10:36

from the most

10:38

powerful telescopes.

10:41

So, it's a matter

10:43

of faith. Ah,

10:45

Savatory, grats immediately.

10:48

I have especially

10:50

shipped from Leduma

10:53

Gove. Let's say,

10:55

for the sake of

10:57

argument, that Antithon exists.

11:00

After all, without

11:02

evidence of its absence,

11:04

who am I to disprove

11:07

it? Hmm? Let's say it

11:09

really is a second earth.

11:11

Why are you and your

11:14

followers so hell bent on

11:16

getting there? Why? Yes! Haven't

11:18

we established it would be

11:20

exactly like Earth? It would just

11:23

be more of the same. But

11:25

Antathon is our counter planet,

11:27

not just geographically.

11:29

Everything there is inverse. Every

11:32

decision you make on Earth is played

11:34

out twice. On Earth and on Antathon.

11:36

Your counterpart always does the exact opposite.

11:38

So going to Antithorn means you can

11:41

turn your life around. Go down the

11:43

roads you chose to ignore. Wouldn't you

11:45

like to know what would have happened

11:47

if you'd made different choices? If you'd

11:50

studied art instead of physics. Gone to

11:52

Africa instead of America. If you'd taken

11:54

up that job offer in Paris, if

11:56

you'd just kissed that girl. That's what

11:58

tonight is all about. out. When I founded

12:01

the Apostles of Antithon

12:03

two years ago, I started

12:05

the online timer to give

12:07

myself a deadline. It was

12:09

always my intention to be

12:11

the first person to get

12:13

to Antithon. To meet your

12:16

counterpart? To switch places

12:18

with him. Or her? What? Look, it's

12:20

a nice story, and you tell

12:22

it passionately. I can see

12:24

how you've attracted such a

12:26

following. But tell me. Did you actually

12:29

ever believe this stuff yourself? Or

12:31

was it just a way to

12:33

get famous and make money? I

12:35

still believe in it. No you don't.

12:37

I do. I don't believe you. That's

12:39

your choice. You're messing with me.

12:41

The reason you're here is you don't

12:43

want to get into that cannon, right?

12:46

You want us to fake your death.

12:48

Can it be done? Do we have enough

12:50

time? Well, frankly, you've put

12:52

yourself in a very difficult

12:54

position. You have eight hours,

12:56

14 minutes and six seconds

12:59

left. Shit, shit, shit. We

13:01

might be able to help.

13:03

There's nothing we like more

13:05

at Amelia than a challenge.

13:07

But given how little time

13:09

you've got and the danger

13:12

you've put yourself into, haven't

13:14

you considered, you know? Just legging

13:16

it. Where would I go? They'd

13:18

find me. Your followers? My apostles.

13:20

They've poured their heart and soul

13:22

into this. And the money? Yeah,

13:24

that too. What do you think

13:27

they do? Well, I'm supposed to

13:29

lead the way. Sure, it can

13:31

be done. If I chicken out,

13:33

they'll think it was a scam.

13:35

They'll feel betrayed. They'll want revenge.

13:37

I have no choice. I have

13:40

to get in that cannon. But

13:42

I don't want to be shot

13:44

to Antithon. Because it doesn't exist.

13:46

Because my life would be a

13:48

nightmare there. When I founded the

13:51

apostles of Antithon, my life. It

13:53

was a mess. Two divorces on

13:56

a strange son trying to wean

13:58

myself off a coke. pain addiction.

14:00

I'd hit rock bottom. That's

14:03

when Antithon revealed itself

14:05

to me. All those things

14:07

I could have done differently.

14:09

I envied my counterpart on

14:12

Antithon so much it drove

14:14

me crazy. Then I realized.

14:16

I was the chosen one.

14:18

Antithon had chosen to reveal

14:20

itself to me. My destiny

14:22

was to be the pioneer

14:24

who leads the way there.

14:26

So you founded Apostles of Antithon

14:28

and set the timer. Yes.

14:30

And it was a hit? I mean,

14:33

I couldn't keep up with all the

14:35

emails. Had to hire a secretary. Who

14:37

wrote to you? Well, at first, it

14:40

was, you know, people like me. Victims

14:42

of bad decisions that had led to

14:44

dead ends. Then the media got

14:46

interested. He thought I was bad

14:49

sheet crazy. But I was good

14:51

for ratings. My name started trending

14:53

on Twitter. We're an Antithon t-shirt

14:55

to the Emmys. Lady Gagga mentioned

14:57

me in a song. Marilyn Manson

14:59

became a follower. They wanted to

15:01

do a documentary on me, but

15:03

production could have only started next

15:05

month after I'd already been launched

15:08

to Antithon. Well, that's a bummer.

15:10

I did a lot of interviews,

15:12

though. How did it feel to

15:14

get so much attention? Like I

15:16

was living someone else's life. Taxis,

15:18

talk shows, restaurants, restaurants, hotels, gym

15:20

membership, a new flat. You've been living

15:22

the High Life! It's the problem. Life

15:25

in the fast lane, not all

15:27

that's cracked up to be, huh?

15:29

Oh, no, no. No, it's fantastic.

15:32

My life is wonderful. Which means

15:34

I no longer want to

15:36

switch with my counterpart. His

15:39

life must be hell. Please,

15:41

help me! I can't go to

15:43

Antathon. Hmm, time to put

15:45

metaphysics behind us, I think.

15:47

The only thing that'll get

15:49

you out of that cannon

15:51

alive is... physics. Whatever it

15:53

takes. Have you brought the

15:55

tech specs for the can?

15:58

Excellent. What length is the battery? Um,

16:00

24 feet. Your weight? 126

16:02

pounds? Height? 5 feet

16:05

8.11 inches. Location for

16:07

the launch? Edgeworth Common.

16:09

I'll have to check that

16:11

on a map. Everything all

16:14

right? Computers. Pesky things. Still

16:16

getting used to... Got it!

16:19

Edgeworth Common. Blackball Pub, cricket,

16:21

ground, way or reservoir? Blackburn

16:23

Woods. 8 hours, 10 minutes

16:26

and 1 second. That means

16:28

the launch takes place at...

16:30

1130 p.m. We're going to

16:33

have to control your flight and

16:35

limit the distance will be launched. We'll

16:37

use gunpowder to make a flash and

16:39

a bang, but only a small amount

16:41

and not in the chamber. In place

16:43

of gunpowder we'll use a tank of

16:45

compressed air. Once it's burst, it'll provide

16:47

the propulsion. I suggest we let Salvatore

16:49

operate the cannon. He's experienced with firearms

16:51

and nobody will dare get near him.

16:53

Uh-huh. 126 pounds, 5 foot 8.11 inches,

16:55

that means... The square of your velocity

16:57

exiting the barrel is equal to the

16:59

square of your velocity at the base

17:01

of the barrel, plus twice the distance

17:03

should travel along the barrel multiplied by

17:05

your acceleration. With a final estimated velocity

17:07

of 66 miles per hour and an

17:09

initial velocity of 0 meters, and an initial

17:11

velocity of 0 meters, and taking into

17:13

a counter length of the barrel, which is

17:16

7.8. 59.6 meters per second squared. If

17:18

we raise the barrel 39 degrees, you'll reach

17:20

an altitude of 23 meters and cover

17:22

a distance of 59.05 meters. That will get

17:24

you safely over Blackburn Woods and allow

17:26

you to land in whale reservoir. You're a

17:29

good swimmer? Good would be stretching it.

17:31

Okay, but you can swim. Mm-hmm. Joey will

17:33

be out there in a dingy, but

17:35

it might take a while to find

17:37

you. We can't pinpoint your landing to

17:39

the spot. We'll provide you with a

17:41

whistle. With a whistle. That should make

17:43

it easier. And my followers will believe

17:45

I'm gone? By the time their eyes

17:47

have adjusted from the flash, you'll be

17:49

far from sight. It's the middle of

17:51

the night, remember. It'll be pitch black.

17:53

Oh, that reminds me. We'd better give

17:55

Joey a good searchlight. Now, have you

17:58

given some thought to your re-incarn- What?

18:00

Your new life? How and where

18:02

would you like to come back? Once

18:04

our surgeons are done with you, you'll

18:07

barely be recognizable. Even so, you don't

18:09

want to risk being found out. So

18:11

I suggest you go somewhere far away.

18:14

That sounds good. You want to go

18:16

somewhere you can continue living it up?

18:18

Otherwise, what's the point, right? Macedonia. Macedonia.

18:20

Macedonia? Very cheap. Your savings would take

18:23

you a long way there. You'll be

18:25

able to live comfortably for a few

18:27

months until you found your feet and

18:29

can set up something new. Where is

18:32

Macedonia? There's just one problem. What's that?

18:34

Amelia is not a charity. Our services

18:36

come at a cost. Of course. Amelia

18:39

is expensive. We're the best in the

18:41

business. Okay. So after you've paid us,

18:43

you'll be too broke even for Macedonia.

18:45

That would mean starting from scratch, a

18:48

life of poverty. And that's exactly what

18:50

you want to escape from. So that

18:52

would be kind of ironic, wouldn't it?

18:54

Yeah. So, you're in a bit of

18:56

a bind. Yes. Luckily, I have a solution.

18:59

Yes, has it struck you that

19:01

there's a certain overlap between

19:03

Amelia and Antithon? People are

19:05

attracted to Antithon because of the

19:08

idea of starting afresh. At

19:10

Amelia, that's what we offer. We help

19:12

people who've reached a dead end

19:14

to transition from this life to

19:16

another. I suppose... You said you have

19:19

some high-profile followers, musicians and celebrities.

19:21

That's true. You'd be surprised. I

19:23

want the names of everyone who's

19:25

contacted you. I want access to

19:27

their emails. I want all the

19:29

information you've got on your fans

19:31

and followers. At Amelia we are

19:33

always looking to get our number

19:35

into the hands of interesting

19:38

and influential people. Give me

19:40

your network and your disappearance is

19:42

on the house. Well I guess I... Hang on

19:44

a minute. What? How do I know you'll

19:46

do what you say? You might just

19:49

blow me to pieces and who

19:51

would know? Hmm. Okay, prove

19:53

that you won't do that. I

19:55

can't. So how can I be sure?

19:58

You can't. You need faith. Faith.

20:00

Eight hours, five minutes and

20:02

eight seconds. You know, you

20:04

can torture yourself without,

20:07

or you can start looking

20:10

forward to your new

20:12

life in Macedonia. Do you

20:14

like champagne? Sorry? I hear

20:16

the champagne in the

20:18

Balkans is intolerable. Better

20:21

have a glass now

20:23

before you leave. What do

20:25

you say? I could do

20:28

with a drink. Excellent. Salvatore,

20:30

bring us a bottle of

20:33

our finest vivocico,

20:35

please. You're making

20:37

the right choice. Trust

20:39

me. Ah, lovely. Salvatore,

20:42

would you mind opening

20:44

it? You know what happened

20:47

last time. Sale,

20:49

indigo, Ravenheart. Congratulations.

20:52

A new life

20:55

awaits. The

21:03

Amelia project is produced

21:05

by imploding fictions. In

21:08

association with open health,

21:10

it is at the end

21:12

of the speech. Faith must be at-

21:15

Welcome. Could you draw the curtains?

21:17

It's just- Just certainly. Nobody's

21:19

allowed to know I'm here.

21:22

I don't have much time.

21:24

What I want is probably

21:26

impossible. Without faith nothing is

21:29

possible. With it, nothing is

21:31

impossible. Faith? Make yourself

21:34

comfortable. Grab a

21:36

chair. The Amelia project

21:39

was produced neither by

21:41

imploding fictions nor Open

21:44

House Theatre Vienna. It

21:46

didn't feature Alan Bergen

21:48

as the interviewer, nor

21:50

did it feature Dave

21:52

Moskin as Zail. You

21:54

didn't hear Julia Morizawa

21:56

on the answer phone.

21:58

It was... Neither written

22:00

nor edited by Philip Thorne

22:03

and wasn't directed by Philip

22:05

Thorne or Einstein Braga. Music

22:08

and sound design, not by

22:10

Frederick Barden, no graphic design

22:12

by Anders-Piederson, and Julius I

22:15

Thorne did not help with

22:17

production coordination. This episode wasn't

22:19

recorded at Tongiva Studios, and

22:22

Gabriel Gieba had nothing to do

22:24

with it. The

22:38

Fable and Folling Network, where

22:40

fiction producers flourish. The Dex

22:42

Legacy, original sci-fi audio drama

22:45

from alternative stories. The Dex

22:47

Legacy season 3 Kickstarter is now live.

22:49

We're raising money to make a third

22:51

series of our award-winning drama and we

22:54

need your help. We can end their

22:56

lives at a push of a button,

22:58

no matter where in the world they

23:00

are and they know it. What the

23:02

hell is this about? What do you mean

23:04

we're going to escape? Somebody goes down

23:06

in battle. We keep fighting. The

23:08

others have to keep running. It's

23:10

not even a real plan. All

23:12

you've got is disabled chips, run

23:14

south, keep running south until we

23:17

reach the biggest slum in the

23:19

planet. And then what? No happily

23:21

ever after. They're already looking

23:23

for us. That means perimeters.

23:25

It means searches. It means every

23:28

agent on the planet has been

23:30

put on higher earth. If you

23:32

would like to support the decks

23:35

legacy, season three Kickstarter.