The Writer Emergency Pack XL—the second release after the regular pack—has a total of 52 illustrated cards with helpful and specific prompts and exercises to keep your writing going. Out of the six cards I have drawn for this project, Hug The Crocodile has now come up three times. First, Jay’s initial scene was based on that card. Then again for Ash’s second scene. And now, during Jay’s second scene (and the final scene of Act 1), I got it again.

Since it’s a repeat, I’m not getting to invested into the details of the card, and at least let its original context inspire what comes next. Last scene, it suggested to me that Jay is still wanting to work together with Ash, which led him to give up control over the bomb itself, in an effort to build confidence and trust in Ash. This time, I think, this faith he has in her will come bite him in the ass. I know this scene will be negative for him (black die), so the repeat of this card will not go well for him, at all.

I think will use his trust against him somehow.

Alright, let’s look at the actual card for this scene:

#02 Fight The Giant

Your hero will have to face their adversary at some point. Why not right now?

A tiny person standing with raised fists in front of a massive giant holding a large tree as if it was a club, looking menacing.

We usually think of showdowns coming at the end of the story, but early battles allow for new complications.

A crushing defeat gives your hero something to prove. Do they doubt themselves? Will their allies stand with them?

A surprising victory could turn an enemy into an ally, or spawn an even more powerful Big Bad—perhaps the mother or brother of the defeated.

Who is Jay’s Giant, then? I think the repeat of the Hug The Crocodile card means it’s Ash. They are supposed to be work rivals, after all. (Or at least that’s how I interpret their relationship’s detail, “Both want the promotion.”)

Bill is also a good candidate, seeing that he’s an undercover cop. But, at least during his scenes, Bill has made a point of expression his desire to protect both Ash and Jay. So, maybe not.

They are blowing up the train to send a message to a rival, which also be considered to be an adversary here. How could they show up at this point?

Finally, there’s the Boss. We have no indication that Jay sees the Boss as an adversary. Though, the Boss suspects someone to be a rat, and she only ever mentioned Jay and Ash by name.

Lots to think about.

Try This

List three ways the enemy could bring the fight to the hero right now.

1. He could run into an ambush by the rival. Somehow the knew about the bomb and are waiting for Jay in the back of the train.
2. If the enemy is Ash, I think he would find that she disappeared along with the detonator. Which means Jay just armed a bomb and the means to blow it up are with someone who just betrayed him.
3. One interesting twist could be that the Boss doesn’t fully trust her team, and the moment Jay arms the bomb, a timer starts up, which he can’t stop (he knows nothing about bombs). Maybe he remembers that the remote had an emergency stop button or something similar.

If your hero has a plan, how can they be forced to accelerate it? Perhaps they learn new information, or a window of opportunity is closing.

I honestly don’t think Jay ever really had a plan. He’s just going off vibes, trying not to think too much about it. But in the spirit of this prompt, maybe the moment he arms the bomb, the full gravity of the situation becomes suddenly very clear to him. It’s armed. He can’t disarm it for some reason. Time to get out, and I think he starts to panic a bit. Finally becoming a victim of his own philosophy: control is a illusion, man.

Coincidence happens. Brainstorm three ways your hero and antagonist could find themselves in the same location unexpectedly.

1. If Ash is the enemy, maybe she did go after Jay. A struggle ensues, arming the bomb and creating the reason they can’t disarm it again. Especially if there’s a timer, this could be quite terrible for everyone involved.
2. One thing I haven’t considered up to now is law enforcement. Just because Bill might not call it in, there could be other informants and sources that tip of the cops. So they are on the train as well, knowing that something is going down. What if the crooked sherif also made it on the train, then? Would be even funnier if the entire operation was just the Boss leaking the information of the bomb to blow up the cops that are after her. Might even pure revenge. All part of some complex plan, where our “heroes” are just unwitting pawns in the greater scheme.
3. The current story is that something in the back of the train belongs to a rival criminal organization. What if they are here, as well? Not because they’re expecting something, but out of pure coincidence. They weren’t supposed to be here, but for some reason they are. Maybe another of the Boss’s schemes?

Final Thoughts

There are some ideas emerging here that all of this is a more complex plan of the Boss. I’m not sure I want to follow through with this, as I’d prefer the story focuses more on the three main characters and their own poor choices. Having the Boss, or other criminals, or even cops, show up as antagonists wouldn’t be all that much in the spirit of Fiasco, I think.

So, I think Jay’s “giant” is Ash. She does something that threatens to ruin it all. This scene is of a bad outcome, after all.

Can’t wait to find out how Ash’s terrible choices make Jay regret all that crocodile-hugging he’s been doing.