Cheerful intro music dresses a brief montage of images from Asking Alice, emotional moments, some happy, some tearful, before the announcer’s, voice, “Today, on a very special Asking Alice. Anthony Bancroft, Governor of Luna meets with Dr. Winters.”
The camera opens on Alice standing in front of seating next to a an elegant man who’s polished looks are the unquestionable product of privilege. He manages to avoid seeming petulant, but he is absolutely pampered. “Good evening, and thank you for joining us. Governor Anthony Bancroft is with us,” She turns with a pleasant smile toward the man, but before she can continue, he takes over.
“The honor is mine, Alice. May I call you Alice?” He at least knows to pause enough for her to nod, before continuing, “I was thrilled to receive your invitation, and have nothing but the deepest admiration for the work you have done. I surely have no wish to squander this opportunity.”
Alice smiles with indulgent patience, “I appreciate your energy and enthusiasm. Especially as we work to recover from the Jericho V tragedy. How is that going for Luna, Governor?” Alice sat and folded her hands neatly on a knee.
Bancroft beams, “It’s like it never happened.” He leans forward as he sits down, taking Alice’s hands for a moment, before realizing they are prosthetic, but he grins and bears it, “We are so fortunate that Genetectic is headquartered on Luna. Trauma Team’s response was practically prophetic and I know that I, and my fellow Lunites are grateful for everything You, Genetectic, Matsumoto, and MGM have done to ensure that Luna recovers from this disaster.”
Likewise, Alice manages to maintain that expression of patience, and extricates her hands as soon as it’s polite to do so, keeping them closer to her body then, as she responds, “I’m sure the executives of those companies would agree with me when I say that we too are citizens, and stewards of the Luna Colony and what it represents. I’m glad being prepared paid off. The communications difficulties really seemed to interfere with your ability to administrate the response.”
Bancroft’s expression shifts to open relief as Alice seemed to present an opening, “Oh Alice. There are no words for how frustrating it was. To feel muted when I knew I was needed most. As you know, New Geneva is still investigating what, precisely malfunctioned, in our orbital defense systems, and who is responsible. And we are, of course, cooperating fully. But again, thankfully, Luna houses the finest corporations in the system who responded with same level of urgency and efficiency that I would have ordered myself. And I’m planning on bolstering that by proposing an invitation to NSI to headquarter on Luna as well; ensuring that kind of communication failure will not happen again.”
Alice’s pleasant open expression seems fixed in place for an instant, “I see. That would be an interesting revenue proposition to see play out. Do you think the upcoming election will interfere with that plan at all?”
Bancroft’s eyes narrow briefly before they krinkle with his smile, “Of course not. This is basically Blue Chip versus Day Trader. Luna is not built to tolerate volatile investments. We are a blue chip community, and I’ve ensured that steady growth over my terms,” He stresses the word, “as Governor.” He interrupts Alice before she can respond, leaning forward again to place a hand on her knee, “You of all people understand the value of steady, sustainable growth. We can predict, and leverage that in ways that someone like Russell simply doesn’t have the acumen to grasp. He is a day trader of sorts, who has had some very big wins. But at the end of it, he is functionally a gambler, and I’m sure you would agree that gamblers lose more than they win.”
Alice smiled with a thinness, as she moved to re-cross her legs, upsetting his hand from her knee, “I understand what you’re saying. And mathematically, you’re correct. Over time, gamblers lose more money than they win. And your plan for continued, sustainable growth in Luna is additional invitations to select megacorps to headquarter on Luna?” She chased the gesture with a clear agreeable statement to distract him from the boundary she had to set again during the course of their conversation.
Bancroft takes the bait with a broad smile and nod, “That’s the kind of growth that ensures that Luna can continue to provide the cultural experience that makes it unique within the system. MGM’s expansions of the Revenant have brought new life to Luna’s entertainment venues, new forms of entertainment and indulgence. And under my leadership, we will continue to grow.” He straightens up a bit, as if rewarding Alice for her guided question with respect for her boundaries.
Alice dips her head with the same politely held smile, “I’m sure, Governor. Thank you again for your time.” She looks at the camera, “We have also reached out to the Russell campaign for a chance to meet with their candidate —” She’s interrupted again.
“As is only fair, of course,” Bancroft interjects with enthusiasm.
“— Just so, Governor. Thank you. And,” Her attention resumes toward the camera, “Thank you for watching. Be good to yourselves, and each other.”
The camera cuts to outro and credits, with a scroll of sponsors.
