Perform a closer inspection of the ledger found in the trash (your official paperwork). Find: 1. serial number 2. forms 3. notes on cases 4. wife's letter 5. toilet smell
This is a listing of every "entry" in a given game conversation as scraped from the game files. Entries often contain written dialogue, as well as conditional logic governing their appearance to the player. They also link to other entries, sometimes automatically and sometimes through player action. This page is best used to search for a specific word or phrase, as following the links in this format can be difficult. For an experience that better accommodates the branching structure of these conversations, see the corresponding interactive page.
ID | Character | Dialogue | Conditions | Links |
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0 | None |
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1 | None |
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2 | Damaged Ledger | It's the ledger you found in the trash: a pitiful cabbage of white and yellow papers hanging from plastic board, barely held together by a metal clip. This sad display is made complete by the faint smell of urinal cleaner. |
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3 | Perception (Smell) | You know -- like the bits they put into public piss bowls; probably called *Fermi-Discrete* or *Axel* or something. At some point in its journey the ledger has seen the inside of a public toilet. |
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4 | You | Anything *else*? |
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5 | You | [Put the ledger away.] |
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6 | Damaged Ledger | There's a piece of toilet paper -- or is it cleaning tissue? No, it's toilet paper -- *desperately* sticking to the back of the blue plastic clipboard. |
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7 | Damaged Ledger | It's a metaphor -- for you. |
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8 | Conceptualization | Thank you, waterlogged ledger, for spelling it out for us. |
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9 | Inland Empire | Below the pathetics -- terror. Do not look into its blue heart. |
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10 | None |
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11 | You | Browse the *white* papers. | Variable["inventory.ledger_case_files_inspected"] == false |
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12 | You | Browse the *yellow* papers. |
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13 | You | Look at the clipboard. |
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14 | You | [Put the ledger away.] |
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15 | You | Inspect the clip. |
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16 | You | Inspect the toilet paper. | Variable["inventory.ledger_toilet_paper_seen"] and Variable["inventory.ledger_no_toilet_paper"] == false |
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17 | Damaged Ledger | It's just toilet paper, sticking to the back of the plastic clipboard. You can take it off if you want. |
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18 | You | (Take it off.) |
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19 | You | (Leave it there, it's cool.) |
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20 | You | Maybe it's kitchen tissue? They look exactly the same. |
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21 | Perception (Smell) | It's not though. It's toilet paper. |
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22 | Damaged Ledger | If you *want* it to be kitchen tissue, it can be kitchen tissue. |
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23 | Damaged Ledger |
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24 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"] |
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25 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"]) == false |
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26 | Damaged Ledger |
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27 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"] |
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28 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"]) == false |
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29 | Damaged Ledger | Still wet, the toilet paper peels off the plastic easily. All you have to do is shake it off your finger and voila! The ledger now looks (marginally) better. |
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30 | Damaged Ledger | *Way* cool. |
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31 | Damaged Ledger | Mhm, cool toilet paper... I mean kitchen tissue. |
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32 | Damaged Ledger | Still wet, the toilet paper -- I mean *kitchen tissue*, sorry -- peels off the plastic easily. All you have to do is shake it off your finger, and voilà, the ledger now looks (marginally) better. |
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33 | Damaged Ledger |
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34 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.style_your_paperwork"] |
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35 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.style_your_paperwork"]) == false |
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36 | Damaged Ledger | A bunch of sodden papers sag from the clipboard in your hand. It's a sorry sight. |
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37 | Conceptualization | It says: everyone look at me and my toilet paper covered cop ledger! I don't *care*. My ledger is droopy and it smells like a urinal. Not a new addition, though. So keep that *styling case* open, my friend... |
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38 | Conceptualization | It says: everyone look at me and my toilet paper covered cop ledger! I don't *care*. My ledger is droopy and it smells like a urinal. |
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39 | None |
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40 | You | Smell the ledger. |
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41 | Damaged Ledger | The acidic stench of rotting food has rubbed off on the cellulose. It now forms the *base* of the experience. This base surrounded by a faint air of spoiled meat -- the stuff of death itself! -- and then sprinkled liberally with the citrus zest of toilet cleaner. |
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42 | Damaged Ledger |
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43 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_perception_toilet"] |
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44 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_perception_toilet"]) == false |
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45 | You | Which toilet would that be? |
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46 | Damaged Ledger |
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47 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["whirling.sense_bathroom_smell_smelled"] |
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48 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["whirling.sense_bathroom_smell_smelled"]) == false |
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49 | Perception (Smell) | *Which*? You're not sure you've smelled this one yet, or worse... you have the nagging feeling you might have missed it. |
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50 | Perception (Smell) | Remember when I said the smell of the upstairs bathroom was so rank they should have sent a *poet* to describe it? |
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51 | You | Is "sprinkled liberally with the citrus zest of toilet cleaner" a line this poet might have used? |
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52 | You | Not really. |
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53 | Perception (Smell) | Maybe you should pay more attention then? Anyway, what your nose is trying tell you is -- the ledger was dropped into a toilet in the Whirling-in-Rags, by you. The toilet cleaner in your room smells exactly the same. |
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54 | Perception (Smell) | Why yes it is! Among many other things. This cleaning tablet is used by the Whirling-in-Rags -- perhaps that's where the ledger was dropped in the toilet? By you. |
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55 | None |
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56 | Damaged Ledger |
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57 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.find_your_paperwork_done"] |
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58 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.find_your_paperwork_done"]) == false |
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59 | You | Hold on, what do you mean a metaphor for *me*? |
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60 | You | Ignorantly pass through the eighth thousandth sign that it's yours. |
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61 | Damaged Ledger | FACE THE DESOLATION! This is *your* ledger. You're a COP and it's your official ledger. It's filled out in *your* hand and it *stinks* like you too. And looks like you. |
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62 | Damaged Ledger |
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63 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
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64 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
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65 | You | Shut up, nose. I don't need your help -- I don't need *anyone's* help! |
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66 | Perception (Smell) | Your nose does not understand what it did wrong. |
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67 | Damaged Ledger |
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68 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["yard.trash_ledger_didnt_wanna_talk"] |
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69 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["yard.trash_ledger_didnt_wanna_talk"]) == false |
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70 | Damaged Ledger |
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71 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["yard.trash_ledger_kim_wasnt_there"] |
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72 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["yard.trash_ledger_kim_wasnt_there"]) == false |
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73 | None |
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74 | Kim Kitsuragi | The lieutenant observes you raising and lowering the toilet-water-logged mass under your nose, trying to get a good whiff. A good *analytical* whiff. |
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75 | Damaged Ledger |
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76 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["yard.trash_concept_apperwork_style_answer"] |
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77 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["yard.trash_concept_apperwork_style_answer"]) == false |
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78 | You | "I think I didn't want to be a cop anymore." |
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79 | You | "It must have been cramping my style." |
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80 | Composure | Easier said than done -- how could this pathetic mess of copy paper and plastic ever become *très disco*?" |
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81 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Officer, however damaged -- that..." he points to it, "...is still an official piece of paperwork. It probably contains notes on *numerous* ongoing investigations. It could even list undercover operatives. Certainly informants. I suggest integrating it into your *style*. For all our sakes." |
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82 | Kim Kitsuragi | "I'm sad to hear that." For a moment he doesn't know what to reply. |
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83 | You | "It has a.. foreboding quality to it. I'm picking up dark vibes. Maybe I *had* to lose it?" | Variable["yard.trash_inland_warned"] == true |
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84 | You | "It has a.. foreboding quality to it. Maybe I *needed* to lose it, for the great bloodletting to begin..." | Variable["yard.trash_inland_warned"] == false |
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85 | Kim Kitsuragi | "You had to lose it for *the bloodletting* to begin? What are you talking about?" |
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86 | Empathy | He's not mad -- that smelly mess of paper in your hand is making him worry about the well being of his own paperwork, that's all. |
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87 | You | "Yeah, I still don't want to discuss it." |
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88 | You | "I don't know." |
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89 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Okay, no problem." He turns away to start organizing his own notes -- leaving you with yours. |
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90 | You | "I speaketh the tongue." |
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91 | Kim Kitsuragi | "In any case, we're lucky you found it. Make sure it's all in there. Official notes are... well they're dangerous, they contain confidentialities." |
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92 | You | "Someone from the Whirling threw it in the trash? I don't know. I'm boring." | Variable["plaza.kineema_sylvie_flushed_paperwork"] == false |
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93 | Conceptualization | What are you talking about? No one's out to get you -- get real man! Upgrade that cop-ledger! |
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94 | Damaged Ledger |
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95 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["yard.trash_composure_how_paperwork_style"] |
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96 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["yard.trash_composure_how_paperwork_style"]) == false |
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97 | Conceptualization | I don't know... have you seen how *basic* that thing is? Basic clip, unglamorous toilet-smelling papers. It could've done with some *pizzazzo*! Anyway, go on. Sorry I said anything. |
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98 | You | I don't know, it seems foreboding to me somehow. Like there's something in there that's out to get me. | Variable["yard.trash_inland_warned"] |
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99 | You | Alright then. Seems like a good idea. (Accept.) |
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100 | Empathy | He's sorry for you. |
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101 | You | What I should do is get back to making sense of this thing. (Discard.) |
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102 | Conceptualization | It is -- look at how basic that thing is! Basic clip, unglamorous toilet-smelling papers. It could do with some *pizzazzo*" Cheer you right up. |
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103 | Kim Kitsuragi | "I don't know either..." He points to the ruined notes. "You should take stock of those, make sure it's all there. Official notes contain informants' names, undercover operatives even. If some of it has fallen into the hands of the RCM's adversaries, bloodletting may well ensue." |
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104 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Do-eth thou also thorough inventories?" He points to the ruined notes. "You should take stock of those. Official notes contain informants' names, undercover operatives even. If some of it has fallen into the hands of the RCM's adversaries, bloodletting may well ensue." |
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105 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Boring? Try *dangerous*. You should do a thorough inventory of that -- make sure some has not fallen into the hands of the RCM's enemies: organized crime, or worse... Official notes sometimes contain informants' names, even undercover operatives." |
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106 | Conceptualization | Challenge accepted. You should be on the lookout for stylistic elements that elevate this cabbage to heights unforeseeable. |
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107 | Kim Kitsuragi | After a while he can't take it anymore. "Excuse me, I just have to ask again -- *how* did it get in the trash?" |
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108 | None |
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109 | None |
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110 | None |
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111 | You | "I'm pretty sure I -- or someone else -- dropped it into the toilet in my hostel room bathroom. The tablet's the same." (Tap on your nose.) | Variable["inventory.ledger_knows_toileted_upstairs"] |
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112 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Okay, good." There is a moment's silence. "But *why*?" |
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113 | Damaged Ledger | An aluminium block runs the width of the board, biting down on the paperwork. Its crocodile teeth are the only thing keeping the papers together. A regular pencil, the tip worn down to nothing, has been attached to the clip. |
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114 | You | Run your finger across the aluminium. |
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115 | You | Enough of the clip. (Back.) |
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116 | None |
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117 | Damaged Ledger | The surface is interrupted by a silvery *sticker*. It's rectangular, sparkling with iridescence. You don't know how you didn't notice it before... |
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118 | Perception (Sight) | Looks like an official mark, made to be low visibility outside the right circumstances. |
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119 | Damaged Ledger |
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120 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["whirling.kim_hologram_mentioned"] |
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121 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["whirling.kim_hologram_mentioned"]) == false |
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122 | Damaged Ledger |
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123 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
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124 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
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125 | Logic | It is similar to the RCM watermark on your blazer the lieutenant mentioned. Didn't he say something about the headlights of his motor carriage? That you can read these there? |
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126 | You | "Lieutenant, is this one of the *hologram watermarks* you mentioned?" (Point to the sticker.) | Variable["whirling.kim_hologram_mentioned"] |
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127 | You | Forget about it for now -- how is the rest of this thing doing? |
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128 | Kim Kitsuragi | "What?" He is lost in his own notes. It takes a moment for him to see it. "Yes, a halogen watermark used for adding information to RCM property." |
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129 | None |
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130 | You | "Interesting. What kind of information?" |
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131 | You | "How can I read it?" |
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132 | You | "That's all, thank you." (Conclude.) |
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133 | Kim Kitsuragi | "It depends. Aside from an anti-counterfeiting stamp, mine has my station number and address. The information varies by date of issue." |
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134 | None |
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135 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Any capable light with the right wavelength will do." |
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136 | Empathy | The lieutenant would rather not have you rummaging around, looking for the lights in his vehicle... |
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137 | Damaged Ledger |
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138 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["plaza.kineema_intro_done"] or Variable["plaza.kineema_intro_complete"] |
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139 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["plaza.kineema_intro_done"] or Variable["plaza.kineema_intro_complete"]) == false |
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140 | You | "Before, you mentioned the headlights of your vehicle?" |
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141 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Yes." There is a pause. "RCM vehicles have headlights tuned especially to reveal halogen watermarks." |
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142 | Empathy | The lieutenant fears this will lead to fiddling with the delicate, folding headlights on his motor carriage. They're dear to him. |
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143 | None |
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144 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Okay." He returns to his neatly kept notes... |
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145 | You | "Hey lieutenant. What is this?" (Point to the sticker.) | Variable["whirling.kim_hologram_mentioned"] == false |
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146 | Kim Kitsuragi | "What?" He is lost in his own notes. It takes a moment for him to see it. "That thing? It's a halogen watermark. We use it for adding information to RCM property." |
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147 | Damaged Ledger |
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148 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_hologram"] |
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149 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_hologram"]) == false |
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150 | You | "Like -- for example?" |
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151 | Kim Kitsuragi | "All RCM vehicles have headlights designed to reveal halogen watermarks. Mine too." |
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152 | None |
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153 | Damaged Ledger |
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154 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_greeting_done"] |
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155 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_greeting_done"]) == false |
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156 | Damaged Ledger |
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157 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_no_toilet_paper"] |
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158 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_no_toilet_paper"]) == false |
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159 | Damaged Ledger | Oh, and a *cool* piece of toilet paper is stuck to the back. |
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160 | Damaged Ledger | It's the ledger you found in the trash: a cabbage of papers hanging from the board, barely held together by the clip -- and made complete by the faint smell of urinal cleaner. |
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161 | None |
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162 | Damaged Ledger | In the back you see thin translucent copier paper -- some neon yellow, some bright red -- all covered in boxes, like marching armies. These look like official forms, waiting to be filled out... |
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163 | Damaged Ledger |
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164 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_hologram"] |
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165 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_hologram"]) == false |
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166 | You | What is this? |
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167 | Damaged Ledger | To be honest: you have little to no idea. You're dumb. And alone. |
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168 | Esprit de Corps | Somewhere -- not here -- the helpful Lieutenant Kitsuragi is making notes in his blue notebook. He tilts it ever so slightly, a glowing rectangle catches the light. He could advise you with this. The next moment... |
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169 | Damaged Ledger | Not good. A bunch of sodden papers sags from the clipboard in your hand. |
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170 | None |
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171 | Logic | You should turn them on and get in front of those headlights -- see what happens. There may be information on there, a *halogen watermark* he called it. |
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172 | You | When I get the chance. (Accept.) |
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173 | You | Not interested, Logic. I don't take orders from anyone. (Decline.) |
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174 | Logic | Obviously, yes. The papers still sag from the clipboard in your hand. It's a defiant sight. You're a hero. |
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175 | Logic | It'd be nifty if you found something that way, wouldn't it? The papers still sagging from the clipboard in your hand -- not so nifty. |
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176 | Damaged Ledger | They're not *exactly* white. They're yellowed in patches by sunlight and alcohol, and covered in dense blue handwriting. Ink escapes into watercolour patterns, reaching its tendrils across entire pages. The paper itself is chequered with faint red lines forming short paragraphs. |
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177 | Damaged Ledger | Once in a while there's a red stamp that exclaims: CASE FILES; COMMIT TO PAPER. The *CASE FILES* themselves are plenty. You count more than a hundred sodden, crumpled up, earmarked pages falling apart in your hands. They appear to be sufficiently organized and extremely dense, if mostly illegible. |
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178 | You | (Count the pages.) I have to open an official case. Is there room? | Variable["TASK.open_official_case"] == true and Variable["TASK.open_official_case_done"] == false |
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179 | Damaged Ledger | There is -- for precisely *one* more. Fifteen pages near the end remain untouched by the damage. The chequered grid forms a structure of passages, breaking the case into sub-tasks to accomplish. |
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180 | Logic | Once all the tasks are accomplished, the case is complete. |
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181 | You | COMMIT TO PAPER. |
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182 | Damaged Ledger | The tasks you've completed flow out of the pen in a brash freehand similar to the rest of the letters. The wording comes easily, it's almost robotically simple; a language developed for mental rigour and simplicity: |
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183 | Damaged Ledger |
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184 | Damaged Ledger | CheckItem("kind_green_ape_pen") or CheckItem("blue_oblong_pen") |
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185 | Damaged Ledger | (CheckItem("kind_green_ape_pen") or CheckItem("blue_oblong_pen")) == false |
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186 | You | "Kim, do you have a pen?" | IsKimHere() |
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187 | Kim Kitsuragi | The lieutenant looks at his blue notebook. *Two* fat, shiny pens hang from the binder, like large calibre bullets on an ammo belt. |
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188 | Suggestion | It's downright *incriminating*. He has little choice but to give you one, although he really does not want to. |
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189 | You | "You know you have to give one to me, right? That *is* how human society works, I believe." | Variable["inventory.ledger_suggestion_implies_way_to_pen"] |
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190 | You | "Fine, I'll just use this crappy pencil..." |
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191 | You | "Can I have one?" |
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192 | Kim Kitsuragi | He is not really saying anything. Just standing there -- looking at them. |
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193 | Kim Kitsuragi | Wordless, he pulls one from the loop and hands it to you. The pen is cold, blue, and ready to write. |
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194 | Kim Kitsuragi | Absolutely motionless at first, then animated slowly, imperceptibly even, the lieutenant begins to browse his notes again. Leaving you to the case files. |
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195 | Empathy | The threat has passed. He is thankful it has passed, and that he's gotten to keep both pens. |
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196 | Damaged Ledger | "Inspect victim's body." |
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197 | Damaged Ledger | "Interview the cafeteria manager." |
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198 | You | Cross out the ones you've already finished. |
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199 | Damaged Ledger | A satisfying slash sounds across the paper. *You're done* it seems to say. And *you!* -- and *you!* |
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200 | Half Light | AND A FUCK YOU TO YOU *TOO*! That last one cuts a slash right through the paper. |
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201 | Damaged Ledger | Things to be done and things already done -- the composition of reality. This is an extremely useful tool for a detective of the Citizens Militia. |
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202 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Know that I give this to you..." He pulls one from the loop. "...with *resentment*." |
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203 | None |
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204 | You | (Back to the case files.) |
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205 | None |
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206 | None |
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207 | You | What is in there -- what are they about? |
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208 | Damaged Ledger | Work. Strife. Poverty. The Jamrock Quarter. These are handwritten logs of investigations dating back to January '51, this year. The exact number is hard to estimate due to missing pages -- and an *odd* naming convention -- but there are at least twenty, maybe thirty cases. Undertaken, not completed, mind you. |
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209 | None |
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210 | You | Inspect the handwriting in the files. | Variable["yard.trash_interfacing_handwriting"] |
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211 | You | There was mention of a... *naming convention* here? |
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212 | Damaged Ledger | Yes. It appears you employ a... shall we say *robust yet literary* system. Each investigation has its case number written on the margins. Yet, still more tellingly, most are accompanied by a *name*. |
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213 | Conceptualization | A *title* one might say even. One that draws inspiration from snoop fiction and Vespertine cop show staples. |
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214 | Interfacing | You're a swashbuckler with that pen, Harry. And it feels good. Feels like *completion*. |
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215 | Damaged Ledger |
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216 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.date_fifty_one"] |
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217 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.date_fifty_one"]) == false |
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218 | Logic | It's the middle of March -- you have attempted two cases a week on average. |
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219 | You | "Is two cases a week a good case load, lieutenant?" | Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_case_a_week"] == true and IsKimHere() |
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220 | You | How much is that -- two new cases a week? | Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_case_a_week"] == true and IsKimHere() == false and Variable["inventory.ledger_asked_kim_about_case_tempo"] == false |
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221 | You | Oh my, and they're written in capital letters too... |
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222 | Damaged Ledger | Yes, all caps. One is called THE NEXT WORLD MURAL, another THE SQUARE BULLET HOLE MURDERS. Another yet: THE UNSOLVABLE CASE. |
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223 | You | I don't wanna... (Back to the case files.) |
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224 | You | More? |
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225 | Damaged Ledger | Others appear more light-hearted: THE GUYS ON A COUCH IN AN UNEXPECTED LOCATION and THE MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR, even the rare article-free COLLAPSING TENEMENT. Murder features prominently throughout. |
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226 | Half Light | You like this grimy *murdering*, don't you? |
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227 | Electrochemistry | Wish there was one in there about a drug den, you love those. Gets the *blood* pumping. |
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228 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Huh?" He raises his nose from his notes. "Two *complex* cases to undertake is a lot, yes. You *really* have to push yourself. I would not suggest it. Lest you start making mistakes." |
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229 | You | "Two cases a week appears to have been my load, lieutenant. I'm not sure I completed them though." |
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230 | Damaged Ledger | It's *inornate*. Nearly illegible, yet marching in orderly lines. |
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231 | Visual Calculus | *Pedagogical* somehow. Brash. It must be yours for you to be able to read it. These are the lines of someone who has written by hand *a lot* and has developed a style only they themselves -- or *you yourself* -- can decipher. |
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232 | Pain Threshold | Written in a rush. In pain. A race to beat your own heart's pulse to some dark finish line. |
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233 | Damaged Ledger |
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234 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.get_the_dead_body_down_from_the_tree"] |
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235 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.get_the_dead_body_down_from_the_tree"]) == false |
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236 | Damaged Ledger | "Get the body down." |
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237 | Conceptualization | It's not exactly poetry -- but poetry would be out of place. |
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238 | You | "I'm sure I made plenty of mistakes." |
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239 | You | "I burned out all right." |
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240 | You | "A nice brisk pace. The way I like it." |
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241 | Logic | A lot? A little? You have no idea, this all depends. |
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242 | Inland Empire | Does it? It feels like a *lot*. Or maybe even more than a lot. It feels like *too much*. |
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|
243 | None |
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||
244 | Logic | ...then *rip* them from the binder, and hand them out. According to type of form. |
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245 | Damaged Ledger | Three. The topmost are MISCONDUCT FINES, the middle ones are STATION CALLS, and the bottommost are FIELD AUTOPSY FORMS. Each is easy enough to make sense of. |
|
|
246 | You | What types of forms are there? |
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|
247 | You | Enough of these. (Close forms.) |
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248 | Damaged Ledger | These are quite sinister in tone. They give a date and time for the person to 'appear' at the specified Precinct Police Station. Below the 'call' are the criminal charges you risk by 'not appearing'. |
|
|
249 | Damaged Ledger | A dozen pages of thin copy paper, bright red in colour. You see the parameters of a deceased human form, waiting to be filled in: age, sex, condition of internal organs... |
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250 | Damaged Ledger |
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||
251 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["yard.need_paperwork_for_autopsy"] and Variable["TASK.perform_field_autopsy_done"] == false |
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252 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["yard.need_paperwork_for_autopsy"] and Variable["TASK.perform_field_autopsy_done"] == false) == false |
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253 | Rhetoric | But they appear... pleasantly vague. |
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254 | Perception (Sight) | All in a print so small it could be considered downright *cute*. |
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|
255 | Physical Instrument | Colour of the irises. Predation marks. Condition of sexual organs. |
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256 | You | "Kim, look, *field autopsy*." |
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257 | You | Let it be. |
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258 | Damaged Ledger |
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||
259 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
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260 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
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|
261 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Good, yes. We can return to the dead body -- by now it smells *exquisite*..." Looks like he would rather concentrate on taking notes for now. |
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|
262 | Damaged Ledger | The rest of the stinking cellulose is *much* worse for wear. Being sandwiched between the board and the rest of the paperwork must have spared the fragile copier paper. |
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263 | None |
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||
264 | You | MISCONDUCT FINE. | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_show_rest_of"] |
|
265 | You | STATION CALL. | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_show_rest_of"] |
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266 | You | FIELD AUTOPSY. | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_show_rest_of"] |
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267 | Damaged Ledger | A monetary penalization ranging from 20 to 250 reál. Severe cases allow for 1000 reál, but that requires special paperwork. The details of issuing these fines are spread out over the rest of the fields. |
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268 | None |
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269 | Conceptualization | You don't have to be an intellectual giant to do police-work. |
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270 | Authority | What delicious power hid within this pathetic mess... you feel better. |
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271 | Damaged Ledger | The forms feel moist, like the rest. Wavy to touch. |
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272 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
273 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_inspected"] |
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|
274 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_inspected"]) == false |
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275 | Damaged Ledger | Thin see-through copier paper -- mostly neon yellow, some bright red -- all covered in boxes like marching armies. These are your official forms, easy enough to make sense of... |
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|
276 | You | That's *it*? | Variable["inventory.ledger_reaction_more"] |
|
277 | Damaged Ledger | The notebook is *annual*, it says '51 on what remains of its cover -- a molten strap of cardboard. Everything prior to this must have belonged to a previous volume. In short: there was more. |
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|
278 | None |
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||
279 | Interfacing | Your hand cramps up merely looking at the scribbles, drawn -- as by some magnet -- to the red chequered margins. Fast, but always *straight*... |
|
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280 | Kim Kitsuragi | "That's okay." He nods, then turns back to his own case files. "We all make mistakes." |
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281 | Kim Kitsuragi | "I prefer a *normal* case load." He turns back to his own case files. "It's a matter of methods." |
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282 | Damaged Ledger |
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||
283 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_empathy_handwriting"] |
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284 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_empathy_handwriting"]) == false |
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285 | You | Who is this person? |
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286 | You | Return to the case files. |
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287 | Pain Threshold | Wearing out. Nearly gone. Sometimes he forgets to keep the pen on the paper as he moves his hand and the lines vanish from underneath... |
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288 | None |
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||
289 | Damaged Ledger | Arson. Petty theft. Spousal abuse -- handwritten logs on investigations dating back to January, ´51 -- stamped CASE FILES, COMMIT TO PAPER. These are the last couple of months of your life. |
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290 | None |
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||
291 | You | I'm done inspecting these. (Close the case files.) |
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292 | Damaged Ledger |
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293 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_hl_teenage_murder"] |
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294 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_hl_teenage_murder"]) == false |
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295 | None |
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||
296 | Reaction Speed | What do you mean? Is that *all*? |
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|
297 | Pain Threshold | Judging by the creases on your forehead and the lines on your cheeks -- too much more. Going back years, decades even.... |
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298 | You | "Kim, my cases appear to employ some kind of... naming convention." | IsKimHere() and Variable["inventory.ledger_clicked_naming_convention"] == true |
|
299 | Kim Kitsuragi | "You mean the alphanumeric -- officer, precinct, time of arrival at the scene?" |
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|
300 | You | "That's the one." (Lie.) |
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|
301 | You | "No, I mean a... *non-numeric* one. With titles." |
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|
302 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Good. That's a good one..." |
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|
303 | Drama | He understands you're *concealing* something, sire. |
|
|
304 | Kim Kitsuragi | "...but -- do you also use the *titular*?" |
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|
305 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Oh, you mean the *titular*. Yes, well... So do I. In our defence -- almost everyone in the RCM does." |
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|
306 | You | "Okay. Yes. It appears I do." |
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|
307 | You | "No. I don't know what you're talking about." |
|
|
308 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Right. Of course." He returns to his notes, leaving you to yours. |
|
|
309 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Well... so do I. In our defence, officer, almost everyone in the RCM does." |
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310 | None |
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||
311 | None |
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||
312 | You | "Why is that?" |
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|
313 | Kim Kitsuragi | "It's a holdover from the early days of the RCM -- right after the Revolution, when the organization had little idea how to do things. It persists in an *unofficial* capacity. Officers use these titles to refer to their work among themselves." |
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|
314 | You | "I seem to have named a case "THE SQUARE BULLET HOLE MURDERS." |
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|
315 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Again, in your defence, I seem to have named one..." He peeks into his notes. "THE MAN WITH THE HOLE IN HIS HEAD. That was a real person, his death was real. Still I named it that. To amuse myself." |
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|
316 | Kim Kitsuragi | He smiles. "I pray his loved ones never find out." |
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|
317 | You | "What happened to him?" |
|
|
318 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Rail spike through the head. He died. It was a work place accident." |
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|
319 | Visual Calculus | No, you don't. You're a human measuring instrument, almost entirely intellectual. |
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|
320 | You | I think I got it. |
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|
321 | Damaged Ledger | Right, what more do you need? A rubber condom stuck to the back? A graffito that says 'DEFEATED'? I think you catch the drift. |
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|
322 | Damaged Ledger | Something rattles inside, ever so lightly. Is there... a hidden compartment? |
|
|
323 | Perception (Hearing) | And something small inside? Light? Made of paper or cardboard? Or dried flowers perhaps? |
|
|
324 | You | What did you say the colour was? | Variable["inventory.ledger_inland_blue_heart"] |
|
325 | You | Peek inside. |
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|
326 | Damaged Ledger | Blue. |
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|
327 | Damaged Ledger | It's made of dark blue plastic hard enough to beat someone to submission with. The edges are rounded, however. The U4-sized board feels thick and heavy in your hand. Light shimmers on its wet surface. On the back you see the embossed letters: RCM. |
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|
328 | None |
|
||
329 | You | Shake the ledger. |
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|
330 | You | Back to the rest of this mess. | Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_found"] == false |
|
331 | Damaged Ledger | U4-sized pages hang from the clip screwed to the top of the board. |
|
|
332 | None |
|
||
333 | Damaged Ledger | The plastic shimmers like lapis lazuli, but it is not see-through. You cannot see to its centre... |
|
|
334 | Perception (Sight) | There's something there. A rectangular shape, like a card. Or a postcard... |
|
|
335 | Perception (Sight) | There's something there. A rectangular shape, like one of those *postcards* that Annette told you about... |
|
|
336 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
337 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["plaza.annette_post_cards_explained"] |
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|
338 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["plaza.annette_post_cards_explained"]) == false |
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|
339 | None |
|
||
340 | You | Open the hidden compartment in the clipboard. | Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_found"] |
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341 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
342 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_interfacing_opened_compartment"] |
|
|
343 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_interfacing_opened_compartment"]) == false |
|
|
344 | None |
|
||
345 | None |
|
||
346 | None |
|
||
347 | You | Horus Debby Berenger? |
|
|
348 | You | Hram Darjan Binzakin? |
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349 | None |
|
||
350 | You | Those aren't my initials, I'm not *feeling* them. |
|
|
351 | Drama | Can't you see the *sire* is tired of these... fabrications. *RAC* is clearly what it says on the case files. These are official documents. There is no arguing with *official* documents. |
|
|
352 | You | Wow. I don't know what to say to that. |
|
|
353 | You | Good. How long does it take to read one of these *Raphaël-stamped* cases? (Persist.) |
|
|
354 | Logic | I got nothing here either. Logic really isn't the best faculty to have this conversation with, But it's the one you got, so sorry. |
|
|
355 | You | But what is HDB? |
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|
356 | Logic | That... is improbable. |
|
|
357 | You | Read a case file. | Variable["inventory.ledger_case_file_reading_initiated"] |
|
358 | Logic | *Feeling* isn't really the jurisdiction we're in right now. |
|
|
359 | You | Can I read the case files now? | Variable["inventory.ledger_cases_unlocked"] |
|
360 | Inland Empire | Probably for the best. Because HDB feels like *bad news* from yesteryear. Like shit, honcho. |
|
|
361 | Logic | Fine. It takes about half an hour for you to piece one together, Mr... Raphaël. Which one do you want? |
|
|
362 | Inland Empire | Yeah, we're staying out of this business for now. HDB is *bad news* from yesteryear. It's shit, honcho. |
|
|
363 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
364 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_white_system_for_reading_case_files"] |
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|
365 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_logic_white_system_for_reading_case_files"]) == false |
|
|
366 | Logic | It takes about half an hour to piece one together, using the system you've devised. Which one do you want? |
|
|
367 | Logic | It takes about half an hour to piece one together, using the system you've devised. Where do you want to start? |
|
|
368 | Logic | Yes! You can piece them together using the alphanumeric code on the margin. It always begins with HDB41, then date of initialization and time of arrival on the scene. Followed by the title. For example: HDB41120117:00 (THE NEXT WORLD MURAL). |
|
|
369 | Logic | Yeah... no. |
|
|
370 | Logic | It's possible: yes. Easy: no. You need to come up with a small archaeological system to re-order the remains of your past works. At the moment all they do is fall apart in your hands. Some dates and the numeric titular system is all you have. |
|
|
371 | Logic | Forty one is your precinct. |
|
|
372 | You | I think what you *meant* to say was RAC -- *Raphaël Ambrosius Costeau*. | Variable["whirling.raphael_said"] |
|
373 | Logic | It's safe to say those are the initials of the officer responsible for the case -- *your* initials. |
|
|
374 | Logic | No, the alphanumeric begins with HDB. |
|
|
375 | You | And HDB... |
|
|
376 | You | Wait... HDB41? Weren't those: 'Officer, precinct'? | Variable["inventory.ledger_numeric_system_introduced"] |
|
377 | None |
|
||
378 | Logic | Why yes. Your precinct number is 41. |
|
|
379 | None |
|
||
380 | You | Actually, I'm ready to admit I'm not Raphaël and go on with my life. |
|
|
381 | You | How long does it take to read a case? |
|
|
382 | Logic | Every last alphanumeric in the files begins with it -- and these are *your* case files. It's safe to say H.D.B. are your initials. |
|
|
383 | You | Wait! What is HDB41? | Variable["inventory.ledger_numeric_system_introduced"] == false |
|
384 | Logic | That's comforting to hear. Now, detective. It takes half an hour to piece one of these together -- if you still want to. Here are your options. |
|
|
385 | You | MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR |
|
|
386 | None |
|
||
387 | None |
|
||
388 | You | THE NEXT WORLD MURAL |
|
|
389 | You | THE SQUARE BULLET HOLE MURDERS |
|
|
390 | You | THE COUCH IN AN UNEXPECTED LOCATION |
|
|
391 | You | THE UNSOLVABLE CASE |
|
|
392 | You | I can revisit this. (Put the case files away.) |
|
|
393 | You | COLLAPSING TENEMENT | Variable["inventory.ledger_collapsing_building"] |
|
394 | Damaged Ledger | Not much has changed in the meanwhile -- a bunch of sodden papers still sags from the clipboard. |
|
|
395 | Damaged Ledger | This one is relatively easy to reconstruct. Overnight on 12/02. a graffito -- nay, a mural! -- appears on an eight story tenement overlooking Central Jamrock. The building is a sparsely inhabited ghost tower, part of a failed real estate development called Grand Couron. |
|
|
396 | Damaged Ledger | The mural is enormous. Two silhouettes -- a man and a woman -- are kissing. The text cut into their forms reads: |
|
|
397 | Damaged Ledger | TRUE LOVE IS POSSIBLE ONLY IN THE NEXT WORLD -- FOR NEW PEOPLE IT IS TOO LATE FOR US WREAK HAVOC ON THE MIDDLE CLASS |
|
|
398 | Damaged Ledger | People call it *that thing* and *that fucking thing*. It’s visible for miles. In two days the station's complaints desk gets clogged with requests to remove *The Bummer*. You and your partner are assigned to the case. |
|
|
399 | Damaged Ledger | The graffito crew is easy to track down. Only the Belles Lettres have the *literage* of industrial paint to cover the surface. (One of the graffito artists is rumoured to be *rich*.) They take responsibility for the execution, but not the design. The ideologue of the *Next World Mural* -- as the crew calls it -- remains an unknown. |
|
|
400 | Damaged Ledger | The crew agrees to clean up after themselves. However, your partner -- JV -- is against the removal, citing public support for conservation. This leads to a debate in Precinct 41, which then spreads to the streets of Jamrock. Ending in a rare plebiscite -- organized by you and the rest of Row III. |
|
|
401 | Damaged Ledger | The nine thousand people subjected to the mural’s message -- all of Lakeside (Central Jamrock) and Villalobos, plus half of the Eminent Domain -- participate in the vote. Although the case begins with what appears to be a lot of rumbling on the streets as to how juvenile and stupid the mural is, given a choice between two options... |
|
|
402 | You | A) REMOVE THE MURAL, IT IS WRONG |
|
|
403 | You | B) KEEP THE MURAL, IT IS RIGHT |
|
|
404 | Damaged Ledger | A staggering seventy-eight percent of voters choose to keep it. Turns out the opposition were a loud minority. And that love truly is possible in the next world -- for new people. And it is too late for us. |
|
|
405 | You | All that remains is to wreak havoc on the middle class. |
|
|
406 | You | The middle class are not to be blamed. It's *human nature*. |
|
|
407 | You | I must have voted (and possibly even lobbied) to remove the thing because I don't believe in that rubbish one bit. |
|
|
408 | Damaged Ledger | No one cares what you believe in, man with the smelly toilet ledger. What do you want to tackle next? Or are we done? |
|
|
409 | Damaged Ledger | Did anyone ask what you believe in, man with the smelly toilet ledger? What do you want to tackle next? Or are we done? |
|
|
410 | Damaged Ledger | In any case, it appears to have been a rare case of civil activity in the Quarter. And agreement as well. What do you want to tackle next? |
|
|
411 | None |
|
||
412 | You | Wait, do I ever find out who came up with it? |
|
|
413 | You | Read on. |
|
|
414 | Damaged Ledger | The case files do not show you finding the author of the design. |
|
|
415 | Damaged Ledger | AKA LESLIE & BURKE, AKA THE PUBLIC INDECENCY DRUNK & THE PROPERTY DAMAGE DRUNK is a *cursed* case. It has been passed from unsuspecting officer to unsuspecting officer for ten years. On January 29, THE UNSOLVABLE CASE made its way to you. Why you accepted it is unclear. Every officer and indeed most civilians in Jamrock know it's UNSOLVABLE. |
|
|
416 | Electrochemistry | You were so drunk you didn't remember what it was when you signed on. That, or you were high. |
|
|
417 | Damaged Ledger | Leslie will always take his pants off when he's drunk. Burke will always trash everything. It's just what they do. It is their nature -- you cannot change the nature of a man. And you can't lock them away, because public indecency and small-scale property damage are not punishable by incarceration. |
|
|
418 | Damaged Ledger | The only way for Leslie to stop displaying his genitals, and for Burke to stop attacking things, would be for them to *stop drinking alcohol*. Which in their forties, or fifties -- it's hard to tell because of their distorted features -- is a medical improbability. |
|
|
419 | You | Couldn't we just keep them off the streets? |
|
|
420 | You | Proceed. |
|
|
421 | Damaged Ledger | You would think that, but you're wrong. Where's the fun in exposing your genitals, or breaking stuff in your own home? No, Leslie and Burke are on the corner of Main Street and Perdition, because that's where the *action* is. |
|
|
422 | Logic | Can you keep *yourself* off the streets? |
|
|
423 | Damaged Ledger | Threatening, fines, dragging them to the station, locking them up in the hell holes they live in, locking them up in the station, hypnotherapy -- even trying to get a local gang of *zemlyakis* to take them out (the zemlyakis gave them ethanol so Burke and Leslie would expose and rampage even harder) -- you tried it all. And still the complaints wouldn't stop. As they hadn't stopped for *ten years*. |
|
|
424 | Damaged Ledger | It's plain to see from the files that you, Satellite-Officer JV, and special consultant TH had more important cases to attend to. You uncover cross-reference to several ongoing investigations, each brought to a standstill every time you drive down Main Street. Because there they are! On the corner of Perdition, and what is Leslie doing? |
|
|
425 | You | Property damage. |
|
|
426 | You | Public indecency. |
|
|
427 | Damaged Ledger | Good, you're learning. If the files are to be trusted -- that's all there is to it. That and Burke breaking things. And the fact that they're both drunk. But then again, so are you. The case becomes *considerably* less comic one day, when Burke takes a swing at your ledger. |
|
|
428 | Damaged Ledger | No, that's Burke. Leslie's *schtick* is flashing his genitals, remember? How will you ever solve THE UNSOLVABLE CASE if you can't even get that straight? Well, turns out it's pretty simple. The case becomes *considerably* less comic one day, when Burke takes a swing at your ledger. |
|
|
429 | Damaged Ledger | He must have it confused with the *property* he likes to damage. But the joke's on him -- you're also drunk. Drunk out of your mind on Potent Pilsner. You slam the hardened plastic board in his face; then proceed to beat him unconscious with it. |
|
|
430 | Damaged Ledger | In the process the ledger sustains damage. The compartment within -- reserved for permeable documents -- is jammed shut. You stop your assault on the now unconscious Burke to open it, but are unable to do so. *The officer began to cry*, reports Leslie, who at this point is tending to Burke. |
|
|
431 | Damaged Ledger | *He came at us* -- *And at us* -- *I think he was trying to kill Burke-o*. While trying to kill Burke-o, you slowly come around. The permeables' compartment is open. You've smashed it open on poor Burke'o's kneecaps. The good news is, Burke can't walk anymore. |
|
|
432 | Half Light | Kill them. They broke it. |
|
|
433 | Damaged Ledger | Can't get out of his apartment. An invalid. With Burke to tend to, Leslie cuts back on the indecent exposure. Maybe he flashes his genitals to Burke, who knows, but both drunks are off the street. The complaints stop, the unsolvable case is solved. |
|
|
434 | Damaged Ledger | Which is also why the officer responsible (narrowly) escapes a disciplinary hearing. The end. Do you want to read another one? |
|
|
435 | None |
|
||
436 | Interfacing | ...is *not* what you end up doing. You squeeze the plastic to slide it open, but nothing happens. Then you bend it some. Then crack it. The god damn thing is stuck. |
|
|
437 | Interfacing | Hmm. The two sides of the board appear slightly misaligned. Like a drawer that's come off the slides. If you *bend* the plastic on your knee, slowly... |
|
|
438 | Logic | Permeables. It's not hidden per se, the compartment is made for permeable materials that would get damaged if something happened to it. |
|
|
439 | Half Light | A hot flash of rage comes over you. For a moment there -- before it recedes -- you feel as though you might just squeeze a tear of anger out of your duct. Makes you wonder... why? |
|
|
440 | Empathy | It's unjust, that's why. You can't even *get* to that thing anymore! |
|
|
441 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
442 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_half_anger_compartment"] |
|
|
443 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_half_anger_compartment"]) == false |
|
|
444 | None |
|
||
445 | Electrochemistry | The fucking drunks, it's their fault. You should've drunk the liquor out of that fucker's SKULL... |
|
|
446 | Damaged Ledger | The ledger quivers in your hand. As it shakes the pages rustle. This pathetic mess suddenly afraid of you for some reason. |
|
|
447 | Interfacing | ...the slides *snap* back into place. It should be possible to just... you know... |
|
|
448 | You | Slide the hidden drawer open. | Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_main_reached"] or Variable["inventory.ledger_wc_success"] |
|
449 | You | Fuck no -- put the ledger away. [Leave.] |
|
|
450 | None |
|
||
451 | You | Wait... somehow I don't want to. |
|
|
452 | Inland Empire | That's because you know where this leads to. |
|
|
453 | Damaged Ledger | What are you waiting for? Just... |
|
|
454 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
455 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_inland_ruin_necktie"] and CheckEquipped("neck_tie") and Variable["whirling.necktie_personified"] |
|
|
456 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_inland_ruin_necktie"] and CheckEquipped("neck_tie") and Variable["whirling.necktie_personified"]) == false |
|
|
457 | Horrific Necktie | That doesn't sound like it's gonna be *fun*. |
|
|
458 | None |
|
||
459 | Damaged Ledger | Without resistance -- or sound -- the two panels move against each other. The compartment is now open. |
|
|
460 | None |
|
||
461 | You | Pick up the ticket stubs. |
|
|
462 | You | Pick up the card. (Proceed.) | Variable["inventory.ledger_threw_letter_away"] == false |
|
463 | You | Fucking kill yourself you asshole. | Variable["inventory.ledger_kill_yourself_seen"] == false |
|
464 | You | Close the permeables' compartment. |
|
|
465 | Damaged Ledger | The words just... *crossed* your mind somehow. |
|
|
466 | You | Who were they for? |
|
|
467 | Damaged Ledger | Who do you think? |
|
|
468 | None |
|
||
469 | You | Blink. |
|
|
470 | Damaged Ledger | You see two ticket stubs and a handmade card. |
|
|
471 | None |
|
||
472 | Damaged Ledger | It's slightly -- ever so slightly -- difficult to breathe once you've done so. The drawer is locked, blue ink drips from the white pages in your hand. |
|
|
473 | Half Light | Your hand shakes. You're flushed with adrenaline. |
|
|
474 | None |
|
||
475 | None |
|
||
476 | Rhetoric | (Cause of failure: rent too high.) |
|
|
477 | Damaged Ledger | He must have it confused with the *property* he likes to damage. But the joke's on him -- you're drunk out of your mind on Potent Pilsner. You slam the hardened plastic board in his face. Then you proceed to beat him unconscious with it. |
|
|
478 | Damaged Ledger | Two octopuses are smiling, reaching their tentacles toward each other in the coloured pencil drawings. The tickets permit access to a zoo in Revachol East. The aquarium costs extra -- these let you go there too. |
|
|
479 | Damaged Ledger | Thin wax paper has been glued to a piece of cardboard. Sounds like leaves rustling when you pick it up -- you see violet flowers, floral patterns, patches of glue. |
|
|
480 | You | Smell it first. |
|
|
481 | You | Open it. |
|
|
482 | You | Put it back. |
|
|
483 | Damaged Ledger | Your fingers are sweaty. There is a sweat mark where they held the wax paper. The card lies next to the ticket stubs. |
|
|
484 | None |
|
||
485 | Damaged Ledger | It smells of chewing gum -- apricot flavoured. |
|
|
486 | Perception (Smell) | A touch of cinnamon, the end of summer. You think the label says: 'Tutti Frutti'. |
|
|
487 | Damaged Ledger | Familiar handwriting lines the inside of the card -- looped, round letters in a woman's hand. |
|
|
488 | Visual Calculus | A young woman in her twenties. There is care, effort, and a *smile*, you think -- although that is not something you can read from someone's handwriting. |
|
|
489 | Damaged Ledger | "Harry," it begins -- you're already reading. "I wanted to write you a letter, so you can read it when you wake up. Maybe it will make you happy." |
|
|
490 | Volition | Throw it away. Please. |
|
|
491 | You | But it will make me *happy*... |
|
|
492 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
493 | Damaged Ledger | IsExterior() |
|
|
494 | Damaged Ledger | (IsExterior()) == false |
|
|
495 | Damaged Ledger | A merciful wind blows in from the Bay of Revachol, dusting the ground at your feet and raising newspapers far away. You feel the card slipping into it... |
|
|
496 | Shivers | LET GO. |
|
|
497 | Shivers | Frisson covers your entire body. A feeling of cold. A persistent chill. |
|
|
498 | Damaged Ledger | Outside you hear the wind howl. A sudden gale blows in from Martinaise, flapping street signs and window blinds. |
|
|
499 | Shivers | COME OUTSIDE. |
|
|
500 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
501 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_inland_throw_it_away"] |
|
|
502 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_inland_throw_it_away"]) == false |
|
|
503 | You | Keep reading. |
|
|
504 | None |
|
||
505 | Damaged Ledger | Your hand shakes, holding the card. "Every morning when I step out and you're asleep behind me," it says. "I find a little piece of sadness in me. I carry it in my chest down Voyager Road..." |
|
|
506 | You | What was that? |
|
|
507 | You | Throw the card in the wind. |
|
|
508 | You | Hold on to it. Read the card. |
|
|
509 | Electrochemistry | No! Don't throw away the baggie! There's dust on the drug baggie! It's not good but at least it's *some* kind of way to be together... |
|
|
510 | You | What's inside? |
|
|
511 | Damaged Ledger | Two ticket stubs and a handmade postcard. |
|
|
512 | You | Throw the card in the wind. |
|
|
513 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
514 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_electrochem_minigrip"] |
|
|
515 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_electrochem_minigrip"]) == false |
|
|
516 | Damaged Ledger | Just like that the wind picks it from your fingers. Cold, they let go, the wax paper rustles, a whisper light and low... Then a sudden gust raises the postcard to the drizzle grey sky above. Away from you... |
|
|
517 | Shivers | A small piece of paper dances above Martinaise -- above slow waves crashing the shore; and the war torn houses and the new *batiments nouveau* alike; above you, looking up to the grey sky with your hair greasy and wet.. |
|
|
518 | Damaged Ledger | The wind carries the keepsake away from you -- to the southwest, the pale violet dot disappears. |
|
|
519 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
520 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_shivers_inside_come_out"] |
|
|
521 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_shivers_inside_come_out"]) == false |
|
|
522 | You | What? |
|
|
523 | You | I'll take this outside. [Leave.] |
|
|
524 | Shivers | Far away and outside... the reeds hiss with desperation. Step out. |
|
|
525 | None |
|
||
526 | Shivers | And above the distant streets and the 8/81 -- even above the old fish market and the church. Its material existence is lost. This great city will pocket it for you. For your own sake -- forget about it. |
|
|
527 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
528 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_shivers_threw_away"] |
|
|
529 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_shivers_threw_away"]) == false |
|
|
530 | Electrochemistry | Synapses can be rerouted. The mind takes a new shape. |
|
|
531 | Volition | Not for yourself -- for the people of Revachol. |
|
|
532 | Authority | For the eighty thousand under your jurisdiction. |
|
|
533 | Esprit de Corps | Under Precinct 41, where typewriters fire long into the night, and officers walk the great steps and the bridge. Long after the card has landed in the cold shore waters, its writing dissolved. Material disintegrated. |
|
|
534 | None |
|
||
535 | Damaged Ledger | "Every step I take, it grows. By the time I reach the fuel station it has filled me entirely. I step on the light rail and look back, sparks fall from the bow collector. I know it will be like this until late afternoon, when I get off the 42 -- and walk back to you..." |
|
|
536 | Damaged Ledger | "You, you... Every step I take will get lighter. It almost makes me run! Sometimes I do. I can't believe I met you. I can't believe the happiness I feel with you. You have a vast, vast soul and I will always, always, always come back to it." |
|
|
537 | Damaged Ledger | "Kisses, kisses, kisses." You feel the air sucked out of your lungs and the blood sucked out of your head. Everything around you gets dark. Small white dots appear... |
|
|
538 | You | Fall sideways. |
|
|
539 | Damaged Ledger | Your hands shake holding on to it. "Every morning, when I step out and you're asleep behind me," it says. "I find a little piece of sadness in me. I carry it in my chest down Voyager road..." |
|
|
540 | None |
|
||
541 | Conceptualization | Sparks fall like snow from the bow collector. A street-car distancing... |
|
|
542 | Endurance | No! No! Hold on. |
|
|
543 | You | Hold on. | Variable["inventory.ledger_endurance_hold_on"] |
|
544 | Endurance | To what? There's nothing... |
|
|
545 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
546 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
|
|
547 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
|
|
548 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Detective, is everything alright?" |
|
|
549 | None |
External:
|
||
550 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
551 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_main_reached"] |
|
|
552 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_main_reached"]) == false |
|
|
553 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
554 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
|
|
555 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
|
|
556 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Huh? Oh, yes. The name, good. What is it?" |
|
|
557 | None |
|
||
558 | You | "THE HANGED MAN." |
|
|
559 | You | "SHIT ON A STICK." |
|
|
560 | You | "THE FURIES ARE AT HOME IN THE MIRROR." |
|
|
561 | You | "THE SETTING SUN." |
|
|
562 | You | "Actually, I don't have one." |
|
|
563 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Ha! Yes." He isn't actually laughing. "I have to tell you officer, I don't appreciate *ironic* titles. Other officers will have to use this as reference. If it's 'IDIOT', or 'COCK FINGER'..." |
|
|
564 | None |
|
||
565 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Okay. Okay." He nods. "It's a good name, but it has *one* problem -- this case has nothing to do with the setting sun. At all. It has nothing to do with that. So..." |
|
|
566 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Furies. Yes. Well." It's obvious he doesn't like it. "I don't know. I have to be honest -- I'm not experiencing the *internal strife* that refers to. And also..." He furrows his brow. |
|
|
567 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Could we make it less *poetic* somehow? Just a normal case name, you know? Think -- what would that be? A good *normal* name?" |
|
|
568 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Great! That's great. That's actually what *I* was thinking too -- THE HANGED MAN. Good, strong name. We have a very good name for the case now." |
|
|
569 | Kim Kitsuragi | He flips the pages of his notebook. "I'm going to start calling it THE HANGED MAN. It's good we sorted this out." |
|
|
570 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Oh... Well, then maybe I can suggest one?" |
|
|
571 | You | "Let me guess -- the HANGED MAN?" |
|
|
572 | You | "No." |
|
|
573 | You | "Go ahead." |
|
|
574 | Kim Kitsuragi | "THE HANGED MAN." |
|
|
575 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Okay then." He returns to his notes, abruptly. "The case doesn't need to have a name." |
|
|
576 | Kim Kitsuragi | "...something more concrete perhaps? Do you have something *concrete*? Mundane. *Usual*." |
|
|
577 | Kim Kitsuragi | "They're not going to *get* it. They're going to think: an idiot and a cock finger were on this case. So -- do you have something less *funny*?" |
|
|
578 | None |
|
||
579 | Esprit de Corps | This would also be a good time to finally *name* the case -- if only Lieutenant Kitsuragi were here so you could coordinate. No use naming it without him... maybe at a later time you can come back to this? |
|
|
580 | You | "Kim, I have a name for this case." | (Variable["inventory.ledger_name_case_with_kim_later"] or Variable["inventory.ledger_left_without_naming_angered_kim"]) and IsKimHere() and Variable["TASK.open_official_case_done"] == false |
|
581 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Oh! That's actually what *I* was thinking -- THE HANGED MAN." He nods. "I like that. A good, strong name. We have a very good name for the case now." |
|
|
582 | None |
|
||
583 | Empathy | He really likes that name. |
|
|
584 | You | "Solid name." |
|
|
585 | You | "That's idiotic," (mockingly,) "*the hanged man*. Way too simple." |
|
|
586 | You | "I'm not *feeling* it." |
|
|
587 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Thank you," the lieutenant nods. "I think so too. Good and *normal*." |
|
|
588 | None |
|
||
589 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Are you sure? I think it's pretty serviceable..." |
|
|
590 | You | "Okay, let's keep it." |
|
|
591 | You | "Yeah, not feeling it." |
|
|
592 | None |
|
||
593 | None |
|
||
594 | None |
|
||
595 | You | What was in there? |
|
|
596 | You | Look at the ledger again. |
|
|
597 | You | Put the ledger away. [Leave.] |
|
|
598 | Damaged Ledger | The Ledger of (Oblivion Induced) Mental Health is just as shabby as the Damaged Ledger was: a bunch of sodden papers sags from the clipboard in your hand. |
|
|
599 | Damaged Ledger | No. You should not have thought back at it... Now some of it is on your mind again. |
|
|
600 | You | Keep reading. |
|
|
601 | You | Stop, put it back... |
|
|
602 | None |
|
||
603 | Damaged Ledger | You jam the compartment shut, it's hard to breathe. The air in your lungs feels sour somehow. The drawer is locked, blue ink drips from the white pages in your hand. |
|
|
604 | You | Keep reading. |
|
|
605 | None |
|
||
606 | None |
|
||
607 | You | Put it away! |
|
|
608 | Pain Threshold | You. |
|
|
609 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
610 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
611 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"] |
|
|
612 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"]) == false |
|
|
613 | Conceptualization | It says: everyone look at me and my *kitchen tissue* covered cop ledger! I don't *care*. My ledger is droopy and it smells like a urinal. |
|
|
614 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
615 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"] |
|
|
616 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"]) == false |
|
|
617 | Conceptualization | It says: everyone look at me and my *kitchen tissue* covered cop ledger! I don't *care*. My ledger is droopy and smells like a urinal. Not a new addition, though. So keep that *styling case* open, my friend... |
|
|
618 | None |
|
||
619 | None |
|
||
620 | None |
|
||
621 | Kim Kitsuragi | "You had to lose because of *dark vibes*? What are you talking about?" |
|
|
622 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
623 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_still_not_talking_about_it"] |
|
|
624 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_still_not_talking_about_it"]) == false |
|
|
625 | None |
|
||
626 | Damaged Ledger | It's going to take an effort to piece these case files together, but it can be done -- later, once you're done inspecting them up close. |
|
|
627 | None |
|
||
628 | Damaged Ledger | Like a fan of gills the chequered papers dry in your hand. The handwriting is extremely dense, if mostly illegible. |
|
|
629 | None |
|
||
630 | None |
|
||
631 | None |
|
||
632 | None |
|
||
633 | You | No matter. I'll just use the pencil... |
|
|
634 | Damaged Ledger | You start scratching the tasks you've completed onto the paper with a brash freehand uncannily similar to the rest of the letters. The wording comes easily, it's almost robotically simple; a language developed for mental rigour and simplicity: |
|
|
635 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
636 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.wrapper_no_ledger_hub_reached"] |
|
|
637 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.wrapper_no_ledger_hub_reached"]) == false |
|
|
638 | Perception (Smell) | *Exactly* like the gum wrapper you found. The same brand of chewing gum... |
|
|
639 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
640 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["XP.read_the_damaged_letter"] |
|
|
641 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["XP.read_the_damaged_letter"]) == false |
|
|
642 | Damaged Ledger | You stare at the card, willing your hand to move. It refuses. It's too much. Not again. |
|
|
643 | None |
|
||
644 | You | What can I do? |
|
|
645 | None |
|
||
646 | Damaged Ledger | YOU CAN'T! This is *your* ledger. You're a COP and it's your official ledger. It's filled out in *your* hand and it *stinks* like you too. And looks like you. |
|
|
647 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
648 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_toilet_paper_seen"] |
|
|
649 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_toilet_paper_seen"]) == false |
|
|
650 | Interfacing | Needless. It looks great. Unlike yours, which is an unholy mass dripping with excrement. |
|
|
651 | None |
|
||
652 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Now, if you'll excuse me..." He reopens his own *pristine* blue notebook. "That thing has filled me with the sudden urge to make sure mine is in *perfect* order." |
|
|
653 | Half Light | Oh god, that sounds dangerous. Make sure you don't throw it out again. |
|
|
654 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Two?" He raises both eyebrows. "That's a lot. I didn't mean to say you're making mistakes, by the way. That was presumptuous of me." |
|
|
655 | None |
|
||
656 | You | Don't mention it. |
|
|
657 | Damaged Ledger | Your secret is safe with the rotten cabbage of papers in your hand. Writing covers almost all the pages. |
|
|
658 | None |
|
||
659 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
660 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_cases_unlocked"] |
|
|
661 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_cases_unlocked"]) == false |
|
|
662 | Conceptualization | Sadly, the ledger only comes with an old worn-down led pencil. It's unfitting of this monumental event. |
|
|
663 | Interfacing | The ledger only comes with an old worn-down led pencil. It will *do*, barely... but... |
|
|
664 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
665 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_concept_pen"] or Variable["inventory.ledger_interfacing_pen"] |
|
|
666 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_concept_pen"] or Variable["inventory.ledger_interfacing_pen"]) == false |
|
|
667 | None |
|
||
668 | None |
|
||
669 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
670 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.open_official_case_done"] |
|
|
671 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.open_official_case_done"]) == false |
|
|
672 | Kim Kitsuragi | "Yes, how very childish of you," he mumbles. "In your -- and my -- defence, almost everyone in the RCM uses the *titular* system. In addition to the official alphanumeric." |
|
|
673 | You | With this beauty -- *COMMIT TO PAPER*. |
|
|
674 | You | "Lieutenant, have you by any chance *named* our case?" |
|
|
675 | Kim Kitsuragi | "No -- actually. Any ideas?" |
|
|
676 | None |
|
||
677 | None |
|
||
678 | Empathy | It actually. Does. You've offended him. |
|
|
679 | Damaged Ledger | Yes -- all that remains now is to fill those forms and *hand* them to people: fines for wrongdoers, interview requests for bad guys, and field autopsies to *dead* guys. |
|
|
680 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
681 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_successfully_exited_once"] |
|
|
682 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_successfully_exited_once"]) == false |
|
|
683 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
684 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_counter"] >=3 |
|
|
685 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_forms_counter"] >=3) == false |
|
|
686 | None |
|
||
687 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
688 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
689 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.name_full_harrier"] |
|
|
690 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.name_full_harrier"]) == false |
|
|
691 | Logic | Harrier Du Bois -- H.D.B. |
|
|
692 | Logic | Harry Du Bois -- H.D.B. |
|
|
693 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
694 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["whirling.raphael_said"] |
|
|
695 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["whirling.raphael_said"]) == false |
|
|
696 | Damaged Ledger | It would be *very* interesting to read about these, wouldn't it? I mean -- there seems to be a *square*-shaped entry wound in the victim's forehead. She's been sitting there for weeks. On her rocking chair. With a square hole in her skull, staring at the wall, her mouth agape. |
|
|
697 | Damaged Ledger | MURDER -- tam-tam-tam! -- AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR! was a case originally assigned to an officer called Joseph Mills, who is now dead. Of circumstances completely unconnected to MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR. |
|
|
698 | Damaged Ledger | Beaten to death by a throng of Villalobos gang-members when him and his partner J. M. (only initials mentioned) answered a call one night. It's a sad story and it isn't really represented in *your* case files. Stop stalling and get to the MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR. |
|
|
699 | You | Right. On with the murder. |
|
|
700 | You | Wait -- how? |
|
|
701 | Damaged Ledger | Joseph Mills was on this case that he just couldn't solve. Was doing it solo. Said it was a real nutcracker. A real brain-twister. Was on it for, like, a month -- the captain got impatient. Shit or get off the pot, Mills. |
|
|
702 | Damaged Ledger | Mills didn't get off the pot -- not yet. He kept at it for a couple of weeks more, racking his brains, running with every theory, as outlandish as they seemed -- still couldn't solve the MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR. Tough case, he said. Toughest he's ever had. |
|
|
703 | You | Wait -- was Joseph Mills a good cop? |
|
|
704 | You | Go on. |
|
|
705 | Damaged Ledger | No, he was awful. Awful sense of humour too. The worst jokes you've ever heard. Really rapey. Still -- he'd been on it for *months* now. Said it was THE FINAL CASE. Said it was UNCRACKABLE. That the murderer vanished into THIN AIR. That goddamn hookah parlour was all he talked about. |
|
|
706 | Damaged Ledger | Okay, so the case is handed to you because Mills isn't getting anywhere. And you look into it. Here's the set-up: A young man is found dead in a hookah parlour. You know, those places where you go and smoke bubblegum-flavoured vapour all day. |
|
|
707 | You | Really cool. |
|
|
708 | You | Really stupid. |
|
|
709 | Damaged Ledger | Yeah, really lame. So anyway -- young man, in his twenties, found with his skull busted open. Right on the floor of the hookah parlour. In the middle of the day. No one else is in there. Only client that day. In perfect health too, some kind of movie producer. |
|
|
710 | Damaged Ledger | Yeah. So anyway -- young man, in his twenties, found with his skull busted open. Right on the floor of the hookah parlour. In the middle of the day. No one else is in there. Only client that day. In perfect health too, some kind of movie producer. |
|
|
711 | Damaged Ledger | No one enters -- no one exits. He's just sucking on his watermelon hookah all morning, all noon, like he usually does. (He's a regular). No calls, nothing. Just sucking on the hookah, until 15.45. Then bam -- he's dead on floor with his skull busted open, blood everywhere. What happened? How can it be? |
|
|
712 | Damaged Ledger | Mills has no idea. Invisible assassin. Movie deal gone sour. Girl at the counter did it. Nothing fits. Eerie. Man just dropped dead. So you go to the parlour. You see cushions around the table. Table's low, heavy, really sharp edge... |
|
|
713 | You | He sucked hookah, stood up, passed out, hit his head on the table and died? |
|
|
714 | You | Can you get high off it? |
|
|
715 | Damaged Ledger | No, it's soot and water vapour. It doesn't do anything. |
|
|
716 | Damaged Ledger | See! You can't even *read* the thing without solving it. Yeah. It was that. Turns out hookah *does* do something -- it turns off your brain's oxygen supply. And you don't notice it until you get up to go to the bathroom. |
|
|
717 | You | And what was he *doing* there -- for six hours? |
|
|
718 | Damaged Ledger | Smoking hookah. Didn't you hear? I don't know. Trying to come up with a movie script maybe. Anyway, that was MURDER AT THE HOOKAH PARLOUR, Joseph Mills wasn't a good detective, and about 30 minutes has passed piecing it together. Next? |
|
|
719 | None |
|
||
720 | You | He must have sucked a lot of it. |
|
|
721 | Damaged Ledger | Yeah, he liked his hookah. Steven was his name. |
|
|
722 | Damaged Ledger | This one's bad. Not that far from Precinct 41 -- in Central Jamrock -- there is an eight story apartment building with two hundred residents inside. It's the dead of winter, January. Snowing. Someone's beating their wife. It's half past midnight. |
|
|
723 | Damaged Ledger | You get a complaint -- no one's there to take it. So you do call duty. The beating is taking place on the eighth floor. You take the elevator up. The building's creaking around you. Cold as hell. It's a run down old place. Concrete panels, rats everywhere. |
|
|
724 | Damaged Ledger | And it's not pretty in the apartment either. By the time you arrive the husband's left. His wife has got her lip busted, face swollen. Eyes shut. Can't leave him, they're a *financial unit*. Enjoying this beautiful life in this beautiful tenement. |
|
|
725 | Damaged Ledger | So anyway -- you take a leak before you leave. |
|
|
726 | You | In the apartment I got the call to? |
|
|
727 | Damaged Ledger | Yes, cops do that. *While* you're taking a piss, you see a big crack in the wall. In the outer wall of the building. You can *feel* the cold air blow in. You take the elevator down, look up -- a big crack runs on the outer wall of the whole building. |
|
|
728 | Damaged Ledger | Right from the foundation -- up to the eighth floor. |
|
|
729 | Visual Calculus | Oh god... |
|
|
730 | Damaged Ledger | That's right. They trained you for this in cop school. Everyone has to pick a civil specialization so they can keep the city running: fire safety, first aid training, and so on. You took *building safety regulation*. And it tells you that this one -- is coming down. |
|
|
731 | You | The tilt is beyond the point of maximum deviation from the gravity bearing perpendicular. This means that the building is falling -- and will fall no matter what. |
|
|
732 | Inland Empire | No, no, no, no... |
|
|
733 | Half Light | Fucking hell. |
|
|
734 | Damaged Ledger | Maybe not tonight. Maybe not even tomorrow. Maybe not the day after, but it's coming down. In a matter of days. It is physically impossible for it not to. And the two hundred people in there? They are all going down with it. The woman with the busted lip, the husband who beats her, their kids in the other room... |
|
|
735 | Damaged Ledger | The drunk in the hallway. The girl in the elevator when you were going up. The youths on the stairs, laughing, smoking. The couple next to the apartment -- who made the call. They're all going to die. |
|
|
736 | Damaged Ledger | But, you see, it's *freezing* outside. And there is no municipal government in Revachol. Nowhere to put these people. Two hundred people can't go to their *aunt's for a couple of days*. And above all -- there is no one to *tell* the building is coming down. No authority but you. |
|
|
737 | You | I'm gonna have to knock on every door and explain them how load bearing perpendiculars work? |
|
|
738 | You | I'm gonna have to go home and do nothing, not think about this ever again. |
|
|
739 | You | I'm gonna have to find my captain somewhere, first thing tomorrow. Maybe even *tonight*. |
|
|
740 | Damaged Ledger | Bad, bad thoughts go through your head. So what you do is -- you call your partner. JV (only initials available) is up. He comes immediately. He didn't take building safety, but he believes you. He brings five more officers. Together you knock on *every door* and explain the situation. |
|
|
741 | Damaged Ledger | Your captain puts them in a half-burned building 10 km South. It's got black mould and no roof, but hey -- it's better than death. |
|
|
742 | You | And then what? |
|
|
743 | Damaged Ledger | And then the building doesn't come down. And it still hasn't. That was 52 days ago. BUT THAT IS NOT THE POINT. The point is -- it *will* come down. |
|
|
744 | None |
|
||
745 | You | Am I *absolutely* sure? |
|
|
746 | You | And when it does, everyone in there will die. |
|
|
747 | You | If it hasn't, it won't. I was wrong. |
|
|
748 | Damaged Ledger | 100000000000% |
|
|
749 | You | Oh god, I don't know... |
|
|
750 | Damaged Ledger | At the end of the day -- no one knows. The math says it *must* collapse. And the optics show that it doesn't. It's as if some kind of *evil spirit* is holding the tenement together, like the jaws of a trap. Luring the people back in. One by one. Already they're going... At least 40 of them are living there now. |
|
|
751 | Damaged Ledger | As we speak. And you can't *keep* them from going back, because they all hate you. They despise you. They think you threw them out of their homes. Every day they despise you more -- and every day, more of them go back. |
|
|
752 | You | And every day is a day closer to the day the building will fall. |
|
|
753 | Damaged Ledger | Exactly. These notes have been very clear. Seems you have been thorough with documenting this one. So -- which one of these do you want to read *next*? (Because there is nothing you can do about THE COLLAPSING TENEMENT). |
|
|
754 | Damaged Ledger | Some assholes brought their couch outside and *hung out* on it. In the middle of the street, on the roof, on the hillside by the motorway. You know -- at an *unexpected location*. They were young and they thought they looked cool on it. |
|
|
755 | You | They actually looked like assholes. |
|
|
756 | Damaged Ledger | The load bearing perpendicular. The maximum deviation. All of it... Some people believe you. Most don't. Some you have to *forcibly* remove. Some even pull guns on you. It takes 20 hours to evacuate the whole building. 200 people stand outside in the cold. Children cry. |
|
|
757 | You | They looked really cool. Like models. |
|
|
758 | You | They looked really cool. Like a rock band. |
|
|
759 | Damaged Ledger | Yes. As you've said here: total assholes. Young people are the worst. So anyway -- you got a complaint about the damn sofa. Or couch. Or whatever it was. |
|
|
760 | Damaged Ledger | Yes. As you've said here: insufferable rock-and-roll assholes. Young people are the worst. So anyway -- you got a complaint about the damn sofa. Or couch. Or whatever it was. |
|
|
761 | Damaged Ledger | Insufferable dicks. Young people are the worst. So anyway -- you got a complaint about the damn sofa. Or couch. Or whatever it was. |
|
|
762 | Damaged Ledger | They were leaving it out in all these *unexpected and whimsical locations* they took it to. Where they also took photos of themselves -- on it. And smoked cigarettes. And drank coffee, because they felt it's *intellectual*. |
|
|
763 | Damaged Ledger | Cigarette butts, coffee cups, stupid couch. You had to clean it all up. And you *did* -- so congratulations to you. Case solved. |
|
|
764 | You | Did I ever catch those guys? |
|
|
765 | Damaged Ledger | No. You didn't have time for that, these notes show that you have what is called *a real god damn job*. You don't have time to be chasing down the couch-assholes. You have a real job to do. What next? |
|
|
766 | None |
|
||
767 | You | But? |
|
|
768 | Damaged Ledger | That's all you got. From the half hour you've spent piecing it together, all you know is: the entry wound was square-shaped. You never found the bullet. And then -- another body showed up. Also with a square hole in his forehead. |
|
|
769 | None |
|
||
770 | You | A sequence killer? |
|
|
771 | Damaged Ledger | Who knows? Those pages are missing. What next? |
|
|
772 | Inland Empire | Don't worry. One day. |
|
|
773 | Inland Empire | The blue heart. Don't look into it. |
|
|
774 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
775 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_white_interfacing_failed_once"] |
|
|
776 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_white_interfacing_failed_once"]) == false |
|
|
777 | Interfacing | ...is *STILL* NOT WHAT HAPPENS. Fuck this compartment. You should throw it away. |
|
|
778 | Empathy | Strange? Why does it make you so angry? |
|
|
779 | You | Slide the drawer open. |
|
|
780 | None |
|
||
781 | Damaged Ledger | The Ledger of (Oblivion Induced) Mental Health is just as shabby as the Damaged Ledger anyway. A bunch of sodden papers on a clipboard. Better not to waste more time with it. |
|
|
782 | Damaged Ledger | The Ledger of (Oblivion Induced) Mental Health is just as shabby as the Damaged Ledger was: a bunch of sodden papers sags from the clipboard in your hand. |
|
|
783 | None |
|
||
784 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
785 | Damaged Ledger | IsKimHere() |
|
|
786 | Damaged Ledger | (IsKimHere()) == false |
|
|
787 | Damaged Ledger | "Kisses, kisses, kisses." You feel the air sucked out of your lungs and the blood sucked out of your head. Everything around you gets dark. Small white dots appear... |
|
|
788 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
789 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["plaza.tribunal_kim_warning_failure"] |
|
|
790 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["plaza.tribunal_kim_warning_failure"]) == false |
|
|
791 | Damaged Ledger | No, you don't -- not without official police backup. It's simply impossible to open it. Your hands refuse to move. |
|
|
792 | Esprit de Corps | Somewhere in a station lazareth lieutenant-detective Kitsuragi turns on the side and says: ouch. The wounds are agonizing. |
|
|
793 | Inland Empire | Hmm... it's as if there is an automatic *self-defence* structure in your hand, keeping you from mind-fucking yourself with letters from past lovers. |
|
|
794 | Hand/Eye Coordination | It's me. I'm keeping his hand from moving. We're not doing that anymore. We're not reading those words. People have died. He needs to work, not ache his heart for something that will never return. |
|
|
795 | You | Nod and return to the case notes. |
|
|
796 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
797 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.watermark_stand_in_front_done"] |
|
|
798 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.watermark_stand_in_front_done"]) == false |
|
|
799 | Damaged Ledger | An aluminium block runs the width of the board, biting down on the paperwork. Its crocodile teeth are the only thing keeping the papers together. On it, the perforated watermark counting the achievements of the person you used to be. |
|
|
800 | None |
|
||
801 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
802 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.harry"] |
|
|
803 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.harry"]) == false |
|
|
804 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
805 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.du_bois"] or Variable["tc.name_full_harrier"] |
|
|
806 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.du_bois"] or Variable["tc.name_full_harrier"]) == false |
|
|
807 | None |
|
||
808 | None |
|
||
809 | Tutorial Agent | The Ledger of Oblivion is a special item that can be used both as an INTERACTABLE and a TOOL equipped in your hand for skill bonuses. Find it under the TOOLS tab in your INVENTORY. |
|
|
810 | Tutorial Agent | The Ledger of Oblivion is a special item that can be used both as an INTERACTABLE and a TOOL equipped in your hand for skill bonuses. Find it under the TOOLS tab in your INVENTORY. |
|
|
811 | Damaged Ledger | You feel the ledger slip from your hand. |
|
|
812 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
813 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["TASK.enter_cavern_done"] == true and Variable["TASK.return_to_whirling_done"] == false |
|
|
814 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["TASK.enter_cavern_done"] == true and Variable["TASK.return_to_whirling_done"] == false) == false |
|
|
815 | None |
|
||
816 | Kim Kitsuragi | The lieutenant clears his throat. "I don't think this is the time to be going through personal affects," he says. "Let's move on." |
|
|
817 | Pain Threshold | There's pain in there, if you want some. That much you know. |
|
|
818 | You | How would I open it? (Conclude.) | Variable["inventory.ledger_compartment_found"] == true |
|
819 | Damaged Ledger | With your hands? U4-sized pages hang from the clip screwed to the top of the board. |
|
|
820 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
821 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_concept_commented_keeping_toilet_paper"] |
|
|
822 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_concept_commented_keeping_toilet_paper"]) == false |
|
|
823 | Half Light | This stinking tissue will show everyone what a bum you are. How little you give a shit. This toilet paper will PUNISH the world. |
|
|
824 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
825 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"] |
|
|
826 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_maybe_kitchen_tissue"]) == false |
|
|
827 | Half Light | This toilet paper will show everyone what a bum you are. How little you give a shit. This toilet paper will PUNISH the world. |
|
|
828 | Logic | Maybe yours will have how many cases you've solved? |
|
|
829 | Half Light | Your kill count. Yours will surely have your kill count. |
|
|
830 | None |
|
||
831 | Damaged Ledger | ...while a bunch of sodden papers sag from the clipboard in your hand. It's a sorry sight. |
|
|
832 | Endurance | Not you. You are an *eternal machine*. |
|
|
833 | Kim Kitsuragi | "That's okay." He nods, then turns back to his own case files. "We all do, sooner or later." |
|
|
834 | Esprit de Corps | God knows I've made my share... he tries not to think of them. |
|
|
835 | Suggestion | A tool for manipulation. Give the lowest amount and people will be ingratiated to you. |
|
|
836 | You | Browse the case files again. | Variable["inventory.ledger_case_files_inspected"] |
|
837 | Inland Empire | Usual is boring. We don't do that. |
|
|
838 | Conceptualization | Yes-yes, you know what that normal name is -- but it's so plain... *anything* else, please. |
|
|
839 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
840 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["whirling.necktie_personified"] and CheckEquipped("neck_tie") |
|
|
841 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["whirling.necktie_personified"] and CheckEquipped("neck_tie")) == false |
|
|
842 | Horrific Necktie | Fun is *outlawed* with this guy. What a narc. |
|
|
843 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
844 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["XP.ledger_unsolvable_case"] |
|
|
845 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["XP.ledger_unsolvable_case"]) == false |
|
|
846 | Damaged Ledger | You don't exactly *close* them, so much as *distance* yourself from the smelly papers. They're a little further from your nose now. |
|
|
847 | None |
|
||
848 | Interfacing | This means you can read the watermarks, if you just turn the lights on. |
|
|
849 | Esprit de Corps | How many years you've been on the force, he's thinking. It'll have that. |
|
|
850 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
851 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.shittyboolean"] |
|
|
852 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.shittyboolean"]) == false |
|
|
853 | Inland Empire | Still feels like there's *something* missing from that... |
|
|
854 | You | Fine, then. I give up on Raphaël... | Variable["whirling.raphael_said"] |
|
855 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
856 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["inventory.ledger_open_to_getting_raphel_thought"] |
|
|
857 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["inventory.ledger_open_to_getting_raphel_thought"]) == false |
|
|
858 | Logic | Does that sound like a Raphaël Something Costeau to you, sir? |
|
|
859 | None |
|
||
860 | You | One last time -- YES. |
|
|
861 | You | Okay, you're right, it doesn't. |
|
|
862 | Logic | Fine, then -- then you've earned it |
|
|
863 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
864 | Damaged Ledger | IsTHCCookingOrFixed("detective_costeau") |
|
|
865 | Damaged Ledger | (IsTHCCookingOrFixed("detective_costeau")) == false |
|
|
866 | Logic | Dammit, take it anyway. Since you so obviously *want* to be a detective Costeau. |
|
|
867 | You | I like it, but can't we wreak havoc on *other nations* instead? |
|
|
868 | Damaged Ledger | Did someone ask what you believe in, man with the smelly toilet ledger? What do you want to tackle next? Or are we done? |
|
|
869 | Damaged Ledger | Which is also why the officer responsible (narrowly) escapes a disciplinary hearing. The end. |
|
|
870 | Electrochemistry | Toxicology showed the entry wound was laced with an incredibly potent psychoactive substance called HUV4-Nil. No street name. |
|
|
871 | Conceptualization | One day you may still catch the man with the square gun. |
|
|
872 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
873 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["plaza.kineema_sylvie_flushed_paperwork"] |
|
|
874 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["plaza.kineema_sylvie_flushed_paperwork"]) == false |
|
|
875 | You | I know, I know. Sylvie already told me I dunked it in the toilet. | Variable["plaza.kineema_sylvie_flushed_paperwork"] |
|
876 | Perception (Smell) | If you knew it was dunked in the toilet before getting chucked into the trash, why're you sniffing it? |
|
|
877 | You | The option to sniff was there, so... |
|
|
878 | You | Maybe, uh -- maybe it's my fetish? Maybe? Ever think of that, nose? |
|
|
879 | Perception (Smell) | ... so you wanted to get in on the trash-toilet stink collab? Find out what happens when those two get *funky* together? Okay, pal. |
|
|
880 | Perception (Smell) | Garbage-toilet stink is not your fetish and you know it. Your nose does *not* fucking like this. |
|
|
881 | You | I'm a police man. This is police work. I'm just following the leads, you know? |
|
|
882 | Perception (Smell) | Torturing your own nose -- for no reason! -- is not *conducive* to case-cracking, bud. |
|
|
883 | You | This is getting weird and hostile. Sorry, nose -- let's just move on. |
|
|
884 | You | Are you angry with me, nose? |
|
|
885 | None |
|
||
886 | Perception (Smell) | Yeah, turns out your nose doesn't like self-indulgent literal-shit huffing. *Quelle fuckin' surprise*. Come on, no more -- the ledger is going back down, away from your nose now. |
|
|
887 | Perception (Smell) | Your nose is somewhere between grateful and resentful. |
|
|
888 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
889 | Damaged Ledger | CheckItem("union_membership_card") == true or CheckItem("union_membership_card_other") == true |
|
|
890 | Damaged Ledger | (CheckItem("union_membership_card") == true or CheckItem("union_membership_card_other") == true) == false |
|
|
891 | Damaged Ledger | You feel that thing in the back of your head? That little voice, that quiet scream? You already felt this was a bad idea, but especially right now it's even worse. Try as you might, you can't read it now. |
|
|
892 | Volition | You've got *business* to deal with first. Talk to the Union boss first, at least... I can't stop you for long, but there's just enough of an excuse now. |
|
|
893 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
894 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["XP.find_a_way_inside_harbour"] == false |
|
|
895 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["XP.find_a_way_inside_harbour"] == false) == false |
|
|
896 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
897 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.turn_off_tutorial_node"] |
|
|
898 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.turn_off_tutorial_node"]) == false |
|
|
899 | Damaged Ledger |
|
||
900 | Damaged Ledger | Variable["tc.turn_off_tutorial_node"] |
|
|
901 | Damaged Ledger | (Variable["tc.turn_off_tutorial_node"]) == false |
|