Well, in true Fiasco fashion, this scene was supposed to go bad for Bill, and it did.

He already started in a bad place (undercover cop trying to bring down a mob of gangsters while wanting to protect his friend), and he ended up in a worse place. The boss wants him to find the rat in her organization, all the while he is the rat himself. And worse yet, one of the two suspects is his old friend, and the other his is long lost love—a fact that does not become clear to him until the end of the scene.

All of this played out pretty much the way I envisioned it after thinking about the card I drew: Mysterious Package. While there was no actually package, I was inspired to think about false or misleading news. Bill being the rat while also being forced to see if the other two important people in his life are the rat—or the fear that the boss is just testing him, wanting to make a mistake—led Bill to doubting everything that is going on right from the outset.

Then again, I could argue that the Boss’s phone that could be the key to bring down the mob is the mysterious package–the single object that might just hold all the evidence needed for Bill to get out and finish this job. Maybe that phone will play a larger part of the story later one, especially if I draw this card again.

As part of the game, players must give the dice earned in the first act to other players. It’s meant as sort of karmic balance. You have a good time during the setup of the story before the tilt, someone else gets to have your white die. But if you had a bad time, making it difficult to get ahead of the game, you at least get to punish someone else for your misfortune. I’m thinking I’m giving this black die Bill just earned to Ash, because I think her long lost love returning to her as an undercover cop can not go well for her, right?

So the current tally for collected dice is:

• Bill: White 0, Black 0
• Ash: White 0, Black 1
• Jay: White 0, Black 0

Remember that at the end of the game, everyone rolls their dice to determine their aftermath. The more of one color you have, the more likely your aftermath will be really good or really bad.

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What I like to do at the end of the week is to draw the card for the next scene and just sit with it for a bit. I also like to establish whether the scene resolves good or bad. So, let’s see what the Writer’s Emergency Pack as in store for Ash.

#51: Misfortune Cookie

“Destiny has a dark sense of humor”

A curled hand as if in pain (or dead) next to a broken fortune cookie and a message within that is just a skull and crossbones.

Well. That sounds bad. Even more so when we consider that I randomly determined that the scene resolves in a good way (white die) for Ash. No idea how to resolve that contradiction just yet, but the exercises on the back of that card might yield some insights.

Jay lights his cigarette with both hands, cupping the lighter’s flame to protect against the rush of wind coming through the car window. The steering wheel in front of him sways lazily, making the car swerve left and right with it. 

“The fuck are you doing?” Bill reaches over from the passenger seat to keep the car on the road. Last thing they need is to end up roof-over-wheels in a ditch somewhere. 

Jay takes a deep drag, then laughs. Smoke escapes the sides of his mouth, the cigarette hanging loose between his lips. He doesn’t grab the wheel, he just punches the gas.

“You’re doing great, man!” 

“Put your goddamn hands back on the wheel, or I swear—“

The old beater of a car rushes down the pavement, past banks of snow and ice-covered trees, barely staying between the lines. Faster and faster, the wind pushing through the open window, the sound of a world passing by in a blur. And Jay just laughs between heavy drags and clouds of smoke escaping his lungs. 

“See,” he yells over the noise, “it’s not always about control, right? You clutch the wheel, but I’m the one with all the power, see? Control is an illusion, man.”

Finally, Jay takes back the wheel and eases off the gas. Like he just made some profound point or something. The smirk on his face says it all. Fucking maniac.

Bill leans back in his seat, taking in a deep breath of second-hand smoke, then lights on for himself. “You’re unhinged,” he says with his eyes closed. 

Worst thing is, Jay was right and he didn’t even know it. Bill is desperately clinging on to control while being completely powerless. Not here in this piece of shit car (or not just here, anyways), but back in town. Back in the Boss’s office. 

Bill’s been with the gang for a few months now. Jay was his way in, seeing how they were old high school buddies from before Bill and his family moved away. Jay doesn’t know he’s a cop now. He doesn’t know that Bill is back in town after all these years, undercover, to gain the trust and respect of Jay’s Boss. Find a way to bring her down; bring the entire organization down. Drugs, extortion, trafficking—the whole nine. 

***

Just before this road trip, Bill was in her office. The Boss—no one used her name—was sitting behind her desk, texting on her phone. Thugs left and right of him as he entered through the door. One wave of a hand from her, and they left, closing the door behind them. Just Bill and the Boss now. 

He cleared his throat, kept his hands in his pockets, his eyes down. Kept himself smaller, not that her presence didn’t shrink the entire room around her as it was. 

She stopped typing, rubbed her thumb over the screen, then put the phone down before her. If he could get his hands on that phone, he’d have enough to bring her down, he was sure of it. 

“Sit, Billy.” The Boss gestured at a chair across from her. “You’re not in trouble.” Her voice was calm, soft, but somehow, these words sounded threatening. She didn’t come up in this business by being nice, after all.

Bill took the chair, sat down. “You wanted to see me, Boss?” 

It’s not that he is actually scared of her. One-on-one, he could have easily overpowered her, assuming she couldn’t reach in time for the gun that was sitting right next to the phone on the table. 

The real issue is the respect she has in the organization. The backing of the mob. The support of her loyal thugs. The only way out of this—and it is the only way, he knows that—is to bring her down with the law. Collapse the entire house of cards, lock up every single one of them. Even Jay. He hates that idea. Jay was—is—his friend. He just got sucked into this whole mess. This shitty town does that to good people. 

The Boss just glared at him. Like she knew. Like this was the moment his cover fell apart. She just needed to see with her own eyes the rat that he was before putting him down. Maybe he could get to his gun before she did. Get ahead of this situation. Gain control. 

Instead, she suddenly smiled, leaned back in her chair, and folded her hands before her. Bill’s guard came down slightly. 

Then she said, “I think there’s a rat among us.”

Bill got really dizzy right about then.

***

“I’m fucking stoked we get to do this job, Billy!” This time, Jay’s excitement doesn’t translate into reckless driving. Little wins, and all that.

“Yeah,” Bill replied, mirroring his energy. “Did the Boss tell you what this is all about?” 

“First, we have to pick some new guy. I’ll go over the details when we get there.”

“New guy, huh? What’s his name?” Bill already knows his name. It was part of his discussion with the Boss. 

“Al or Andy or something. Who cares, right? Way I see it, we pull this off, and the Boss will finally let me move up. I deserve that, see? Been about damn time I get to play in the big leagues. No more small-time gigs, running drugs, all that shit. Some real gangsters stuff, yeah?” 

Ash. The new guy’s name is Ash. And it’s either him or Jay that is the rat. Or at least that’s what the Boss thought. 

***

“You sure?” Bill asked, trying to keep his voice down. “I don’t know this Ash, but Jay’s good. Known him for a long time. Can’t see him going against you or anyone, really.”

The Boss turned in her chair, got up, and walked a few steps over to a small bar against the wall. “Drink?”

Bill’s eyes shifted over to the phone and the gun on the table, all unattended. It would be so easy. Take her hostage, or take her out. The phone held all the evidence he would need. Bring her in, hand it all over. Get out of this job. Maybe his superiors would listen to him when he explained how Jay is really just a victim in all of this. Confused kid that got taken advantage of. Maybe a few years in minimum security, early parole. 

The clinking of glass brought him back to the moment. The Boss already poured herself a glass. He needed to get back into character, before she grew suspicious of him. “Yeah, sure. I’ll have a drink.”

She poured him a glass as well, slid it over the table to him, and sat down. Not on her chair, but on the corner of the desk next to him. Towering over him. Looming, like a storm about to break.

“Like I said,” Bill started again, “Jay’s clean. I’m sure of it.”

“Good.” She took a sip. “I’ll need you to keep an eye on him, anyway. You and Jay will be meeting with Ash. Jay already knows the rest of the details. Just make sure him or Ash won’t act out, and if you notice anything—“ she paused, weighing her words. More for effect, he was sure. “—untoward, you let me know, won’t you, Billy?”

He turned the glass in his hands as she spoke, not wanting to make eye contact. “What made you think either of them is going to be a problem, anyways?” He chased that question with a big gulp of the—admittedly fantastic—whiskey. 

The fact that Boss is suspecting someone is a rat can’t be good for him in the long run. 

“I have my ways. I’ve received some troubling reports in recent weeks that make me question the loyalty of the people working for me. A few small shipments confiscated; one or two inconvenient run-ins with local police. Enough to take a closer look at some of the street-level operatives. You know, the ones that have much to lose if the police would ever get their hands on them. That would be more easily convinced to give up this line of work in exchange for a more lenient sentence.” 

Shit. His cover is deep, so he doesn’t meet with his superiors often. Can’t risk the exposure. It’s unlikely anything he gave them in the past would lead to disruptions, but it’s not impossible. 

Perhaps this was a test. This whole show she was putting on, wanting him to look out for a rat. Accusing his friend. All to show him that he was not in control. That he had no power. Force him to slip up, make a mistake. Or worse, run back to his real Bosses. 

“Okay, yeah, I get that.” Bill tried to keep his cool in the moment, despite his growing fears of discovery. He had to get the heat off his own breaking facade, so he asked, “Who’s this Ash?”

The Boss got up from the table, returned to her seat. She took her phone, checked something, typed something else, and only then looked back at him. “No one special. Just an associate of mine. Ash will help you and Jay with your job.”

Bill nodded. He finished his drink, set down the glass, and got up. “I’ll make sure to keep an eye out for you, Boss.” She has already moved on to dealing with whatever was going on in her phone. So he turned, moved over to the door, and got ready to leave.

Half through the doorway, the Boss said after him, “I’m trusting you with this one, Billy. Don’t disappoint me.”

“Yes, Boss.”

***

Later that day, Jay and Bill arrive at the local fast food joint, where they are supposed to meet this Ash guy. The snow’s piled into dirty heaps to clear the parking lot, and jolly holiday tunes crackle through ancient speakers.

Bill fixates on the large, yellow letter that’s meant to lure in hungry customers, half covered in frozen snow. “Hard to believe this place is still around. Hasn’t change a bit.”

“Yeah, no much changes around here. Ever.” Jay parks the car and makes his way inside. “Might as well grab a bite while we wait.”

Bill follows, but at a distance. He’s still reeling from the conversation with the Boss. No way Jay is a rat, too. He’s too reckless, too involved with this whole life. The chances he is also an undercover cop without Bill knowing about it are slim to none. He enters the restaurant, finds Jay at the counter. 

“What are you having?” Jay asks, squinting his eyes to read the menu off the flickering screens above the kitchen. The generic festive music is even louder in here, and red-green decoration covers half the menu screen.

“Not sure,” Bill replies. “Gonna take a piss first. Just get me a cheeseburger and some fries.” He handed him a few dollars.

“Drink?” 

The whiskey comes to mind. The glass turning in his hand. The Boss looming. 

Do not disappoint me.

“Sure, yes, Boss.” He barely registers this conversation.

He spends some time in the washroom, staring at his own face in the mirror. It’s dripping with the water he threw in it to get focused. One way or another, this whole thing is a setup. Either the Boss knows he’s the rat and is playing him until he slips up, or she truly thinks Jay could be it. If true, she’d expect Bill to do something about this. Either way, he’s fucked. Only hope he has is that this Ash guy is the real problem here. 

When he returns, Jay has already found a booth. He’s waving him over, and as Bill comes closer, he notices someone else is sitting across from Jay. Bill can only see the back of their head at this angle.

Jay laughs and points at the newcomer with air quotes. “This is ‘the new guy.’”

When Bill walks around to take a look at this Ash, he sees the last person he’d want to run into. A familiar face from his past. This Ash guy isn’t a guy at all. It’s Ashley Burton. His old high school flame. The one he left behind when his family moved to the city. The one that got away. All he can do is stand there, eyes wide, mouth open. Frozen from feelings unfelt for over a decade. No control. No power. 

Ash looks him in the eyes. A flash of recognition. A too-long moment stretching over years of lost contact, over broken hearts and unsaid what-ifs.  

Then she says rather annoyed, “You’re late.”

Fiasco is played out in scenes and acts. Every players gets to play out a scene with their character in the spotlight twice, then the group rolls on the tilt table, and then everyone gets two more scenes. I randomly established the scene order and came up with Bill being first, then Ash, then Jay. This is the rotation going forward for the rest of this exercise. 

When drawing cards from the Writer Emergency Pack, they often refer to “the hero” of your story. For the purpose of this, the hero is whoever is currently in the spotlight.

So, let’s draw the first card for the first scene of Bill, our undercover cop.

Card 38: Mysterious Package

“Special Delivery”

An Owl flying in the night carrying a wrapped box.

Mysterious packages are often what set heroes off on an adventure, but work equally well as midpoint clues and complications. A grainy photograph, a distorted recording, or a cryptically worded letter can send the story in a new direction. 

Often what makes packages mysterious is the labeling-or the lack of it. What details might make your hero think it’s important or dangerous? 

First thing that comes to mind is that Bill receives some sort of secret message. Perhaps orders from his superior? Or perhaps from the crime boss, for whom he is technically working. The picture of the owl flying through the night invokes a certain secrecy to me.

Let’s look at the back of the card.

TRY THIS 

Not all packages come through the post office. What’s an unusual method of sending this object or message to your hero? 

A dead drop would be classic, of course. Depending on how deep Bill’s cover is, he could receive secret messages to contact his superiors. 

List three things your hero needs to finish their journey. Could any of these objects be unfamiliar or confusing at first? 

Since this is scene 1, the start of the story, Bill’s mission is to find a way to bring down the boss. The “need” between him and Ash is “To get away and start over,” which suggests that these long lost lovers might want to get out of this live for good (or at least one of them will want that with the other). With that in mind:

1. Evidence to bring in the boss. A recording, a confession, a smoking gun.

2. An angle to turn Jay. Less an object, perhaps, but something that would convince Jay to see the mess he’s in and wanting to do the “right thing.”

3. Assuming that Bill is the one that wants to “start over” with Ash, he’ll need something that reminds her of the past. Maybe a trinket, maybe something they hid before he moved away—a promise made that, one day, they’d be together again. A reminder. Does Ash even remember? Does she care? 

Mail gets misdelivered. What would your hero do if they realized a special package was meant for someone else?

A little left-field here, but what if the “mysterious package” isn’t about Bill at all, but refers to the boss. Specifically, what if the boss got a tip that makes him believe someone is a rat: and he thinks it’s either Jay or his niece. And he wants Bill to get to the bottom of this, hence them working together. Neither of the other two know about that, of course, bringing Bill in direct conflict with his friend and his ex. So, it’s not so much that a piece of mail getting delivered to the wrong person, but that the information within points at the wrong person, bringing Bill into conflict. The mysterious angle here could be that Bill doesn’t know who tipped the boss off. Someone knows something, even if they got part of it wrong. 

Final Thoughts

What I like about this first prompt is that it makes me think about some sort of revelation or twist right at the start. Bill might get orders that jeopardize his undercover mission, even before he meets is high school flame, and which point at someone in the organization suspecting/knowing that there is a rat, but not who it is. 

I already established that Bill’s scene will be of a bad outcome, which fits all of that perfectly. He’s caught on a back foot at the start, and he will be even more off balance by the end. 

In true Fiasco fashion, each character/player gets a scene, which has either a good or bad outcome determined by the players in one way or another. Either the current player decides the outcome but is at the mercy of the table for setting up and framing the scene, or they get to frame the scene but the other players decide the outcome. Since I’m the only one here, I just decide randomly how this scene should resolve, and much to Bill’s dismay, it’s a bad outcome for him this time. 

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Next up, the first scene focusing on Bill.

This piece of fiction will be raw, barely edited (nothing beyond first pass), and probably filled with typos, inconsistencies. The goal is not to write a polished piece of prose, but to just get down the story. Get to the heart of it. I can always fix it up later, once the project is finished.