Underground: Episode 1

Limelight

Tutor Charly arrives at the high-tech Thornfield bunker to begin a teaching assignment for the children of billionaire Edward. As she settle

Key takeaways

• Charly is hired to tutor Huxley and May, two children living in the high-tech Thornfield bunker.
• The bunker's infrastructure is managed by Archon OS, an artificial consciousness system.

Main topics

• Luxury bunkers and societal collapse
• The disappearance of tutor Lila

Notable quotes

Trust no one. Find Edward. Leave.

Conclusion

A suspenseful introduction to a near-future mystery that establishes a

Transcript preview

Speaker 6 (0:00) This BBC podcast is supported by ads Speaker 3 (0:02) outside the UK. Speaker 6 (0:39) Welcome to the Haunted Library. Have you come in search of a tale? This podcast invites you to browse the shelves and find stories that will linger long after you've left this place. From gothic masterpieces to pulpy penny dreadfuls, join me, Colin Morgan, with new episodes twice a week. Find the Haunted Library wherever you get your podcasts. By Speaker 3 (1:14) Chloe Myerson. Episode 1. Speaker 7 (1:21) So yeah, it's a discretion is paramount sort of thing. Salary should be... Speaker 1 (1:27) And your commission will be... Speaker 7 (1:29) Sizeable. Well, Speaker 1 (1:31) you must know something. Are they primary or secondary age? Speaker 7 (1:35) All I know is there's two kids and they've had trouble keeping a tutor. That's why I thought of you. You've always been good with the... Speaker 1 (1:41) Bad kids. Behaviourally challenged. Under-stimulated? Speaker 7 (1:44) That's good. Use that. Please Speaker 1 (1:46) set your wearable to flight mode. Hang on. And the family? Speaker 7 (1:50) Mum is not in the picture. Dad. That's Edward. Old money. Speaker 1 (1:55) Sorry, now I'm leaving you what did you say? Speaker 7 (2:13) Hang on Speaker 1 (2:20) hang on I can't I can't Can you hear me? Yes, yes, you're back. I'm Speaker 7 (2:25) surprised you agreed, frankly. I thought you were settled with that Dubai gig. Yeah, Speaker 1 (2:29) felt like part of the family. My cue to leave. Besides, rich people are all disappearing underground. Might as well follow the work. Speaker 7 (2:36) That reminds me, very important, about these bunkers. You've worked in ultra-high net worth environments, but this is a little different. You need to make sure that you don't... Speaker 1 (2:46) This is your shuttle service director speaking. Please set your wearable to flight mode. Speaker 8 (2:50) Hey, Speaker 1 (2:50) I'm having a conversation. And this isn't a flight. For your safety. You're standing three feet from me. Can't you just talk to me instead of patching in on my wearable like that? Please prepare for safety demonstration. Thank you. Speaker 8 (3:04) Welcome aboard the Antipodean Subtransit Shuttle to Thornfield Substate, one of Antipodean Sector's 12 residential estates. Your wearable will continue to provide navigation, communications and well-being support throughout your visit. Speaker 7 (3:24) Have you disabled the security settings on your wearable? Speaker 1 (3:26) On the shuttle. Is Speaker 7 (3:27) your head circumference sub-average? What? Just confirming goggle sizing. Machine estimate. Speaker 1 (3:31) My head's normal size. What are these? Speaker 7 (3:35) Infrared, for blackout. Yes? No. No. Speaker 1 (3:39) Excuse me? Speaker 7 (3:41) What? Speaker 1 (3:43) So... How long have you worked in Thornfield? Speaker 7 (3:46) What's Thornfield? Speaker 1 (3:49) It's the enormous luxury bunker just through that door. Speaker 7 (3:52) I'm not MQ. Speaker 1 (3:53) Oh, I was hoping someone could tell me about the family before I... Speaker 7 (3:57) I'm just here today. We're all rotated. Speaker 1 (3:59) I don't understand. Speaker 7 (4:00) And finished. Your wearable's updated with the Archon OS Premium version because you're MQ. Speaker 1 (4:07) Oh, and sorry, what is MQ? Speaker 7 (4:11) Master's Quarters. Speaker 3 (4:15) Charlie? Um... Hi? Please stand clear for pressure seal. Lift descending. Speaker 1 (4:23) Okay. Speaker 3 (4:27) Master's Quarters, Grand Foyer. Welcome, Charlie. Speaker 1 (4:34) Wow. Tutor Charlie, you came from agency. Hi. Are you Popo? Is that real? Speaker 8 (4:42) It's a real painting. Speaker 1 (4:43) But it's, Speaker 8 (4:44) uh, Rothko. What's this? You sign it. I don't have a pen. Employment agreement. You are a teacher, but you don't have pen. Speaker 1 (4:53) I'd like to talk to the parents before I... Just Mr Speaker 8 (4:56) Edward, but he's not here. When Speaker 1 (4:58) is he back? Speaker 8 (4:58) A long time, maybe. Don't know. Speaker 1 (5:00) But, um, I don't know anything about Speaker 8 (5:02) the job yet. What do I prepare for the lessons? Curriculum is already made. Mr Edward paid a lot of money for it. Speaker 1 (5:08) I'm sorry, I'm not signing anything until I have a conversation with someone. I don't even know how old they are. Old enough. No, I mean... Speaker 8 (5:17) Oh my God! What's going on? Power outage. Lights go off to protect oxygen supply. Back up lights! MQ foyer! Is that common? Are you going to sign? This includes a non-disclosure agreement. You sign, I tell you about the job. Simple. Speaker 8 (5:39) Huxley and May. Ten years old. Special needs? No. Very strong academics. But what's the job, really? Make them stick to curriculum. Speaker 1 (5:48) That's it? Speaker 8 (5:48) Stick to lessons. That's it. Speaker 1 (5:50) Okay. Speaker 8 (5:51) No problem. Whatever they tell you. What? Time to start lessons. Here. Speaker 1 (5:57) Get on. How do I know where to go? The lift that brought me here didn't have any numbers on the buttons. Just Speaker 8 (6:03) get on. It knows. But I... It knows. Speaker 1 (6:09) Okay, just a normal gig. Nothing to worry about. Huh? Please Speaker 3 (6:21) do not remove or deactivate wearable. Oh, Speaker 1 (6:23) sorry. I thought I had... Hello? Are you a real person? Hello? Doors open. Speaker 3 (6:36) Education and leisure. Speaker 1 (6:39) Hello? Speaker 5 (6:42) Hello? Boo! Speaker 1 (6:47) Are you May? Yes. And the boy in the corner crouched behind a Lego model of... Is that Jakarta? I assume is Huxley. That is, unfortunately, my brother. It's true. Okay, let's get started. And turn that TV off, please. Speaker 5 (7:06) Hello. Speaker 1 (7:07) Do you speak human? Speaker 5 (7:09) Yes, I speak Speaker 1 (7:10) human. I am a human. Great. Can you move those chairs, please? Here, we'll use this table. Yes. And the other chair. Thank you, Huxley. Take a seat. Let's get that TV off. I'm Charlie. I'm your new teacher. We Speaker 5 (7:24) know. Yeah, we know. Don't copy me. And it's not a TV. It's Suburban Car Park. What? The Simuscape. It's