Final Investigation

[bathymetric]

Good morning, New Rapture. You may yet see the sun today.

But before that, there's work to be done. The Mayor has sent you some sort of ultimatum, though as usual was reluctant to explain herself. You're going to meet her, to some end? It's unclear. But one way or another, you're aware that things are ending today. Spirits may be low, but at least there's that. After a night of bowling, you're probably ready for this.

As you wake in the morning, though, each suite will find something unexpected in the common area, something that absolutely wasn't there last night: an envelope, addressed to the surviving members. An attached note on the outside reads as follows:

Good morning, citizens of New Rapture. In accordance with new directives from Designations: Misfire, Space Dandy, et al. I have been asked to deliver this. Please use the included to lift your spirits, and feel free to use your new bathysphere access to gain what information you can before you face the Mayor. You know what the key does, I gather, and the card will grant you access to Fontaine Futuristics Headquarters, where the Mayor currently resides. If you do not gather information properly, you will be unable to do what she is about to ask of you. Your friends will be watching.

Included in each envelope is a silver key, a limited Hall of the Founders bathysphere access card, and a copy of this letter. Your friends are counting on you. Go rally in the Hall of the Founders and get ready.

It's time for one last investigation.

Comments

[bathymetric]

[ It's... a very flirty chat history with someone named Loki.

... maybe the other one. ]

[onemillion]

[Definitely the other one. Please say this one is not more flirting!!!]

[bathymetric]

[ It's not! It's an email to Frank Fontaine, Gunnar Maelstrom, and an obvious burner email, from one Handsome Jack. It's a reply to an email that has failed to load. ]

Okay, look. The rules are good, you sorted the rules out. Love the "things that terrify you killing you" idea, it's great, it's awesome. But if you get a bunch of people together and have them just start fighting each other to the death, that's OKAY, but are we gonna freaking settle for OKAY murder games? No.

Look, back when I was on Pandora, I conned a bunch of savage murderers and idiots into helping me by having my daughter pretend to like them and guide them into doing like half of my dirty work for me. So what I'm saying is, let's make like that and have some kind of... assistant type, let's say. Someone the people think is on their side, but we can control into totally being on ours. Doesn't have to be in the rules or whatever, but honestly I'm surprised you didn't think of it first, Gunnar, you weird evil psychologist, you. Spice it up! Really make em feel before the end.

By the way, Frank, are we allowed to actually, you know, ask what the hell we're doing this for?

[onemillion]

[Yeah, Frank, what's the point of this!! But hmm, this seems important, he's going to take a moment to copy down the contents including their email addresses. Maybe this will be useful later!! But probably not.

Nothing else on the computer, then? Anything noteworthy about the picture of the possible-daughter? If not, then he'll move on to the workbench!]

[bathymetric]

[ Eh, if you golden end it might be relevant but otherwise it's just flavor.

The workbench has a number of tools scattered about, but the really important thing is the model in the middle: a robotic framework built to fit into this! ]

[onemillion]

[Oh, neat!! While Rossiu is by no means an expert, he has a bit of knowledge about cool robots. Is there anything particularly noteworthy about this that he'd be able to pick up on?]

[bathymetric]

[ While it's not exactly the same as like. Giant Robot Tech, this is a pretty advanced robot framework! More advanced than most of the tech in New Rapture you've seen, really. ]

[onemillion]

[Oh wow, so this guy definitely had the brains to back up his placement here, at least. Interesting! Odd that his designs don't seem to have been used anywhere here, though...

And speaking of designs, do we have any of those here, or is this the only thing left on the workbench? Has everything else been stolen as well?]

[bathymetric]

[ Looks like anything else that was here is gone now, yes! Though, on reflection, the bright yellow is very similar to the actual body of the robot Forrest fought at his execution.

Anyway, that's your first room of two done! ]

[onemillion]

[Oh! Fascinating... So perhaps the behind the scenes work is this guy's doing. Good thing Forrest managed to escape...

Anyway, real quick - was there anything noteworthy about the bed, since that was bolded? If not, heading over to office #3!]

[bathymetric]

[ Ah, right! I will be transparent and tell you that I bolded that on accident. Rossiu is free to look at it, in being thorough, but he's going to get like. The thread count on these sheets is insane. Bed Bath and Beyond who?

Office #8 or Office #11, buddy? ]

[onemillion]

[No worries! Those are very impressive sheets tbh!! And also I fucked up numbers, #8 it is!]

[bathymetric]

[ Welcome to... okay, this one's a little weird, in that it has been mostly cleared out. There's a desk with a laptop on it, but there's not even a portrait in here. There's some mess on the floor, and a mostly-empty closet, but uh. It's in worse shape than the others for sure. ]

[onemillion]

[So we've got one with a defaced portrait and a bunch of missing things, and this one that's somehow even more empty. Okay, definitely curious. Let's start with the mess on the floor - what are we looking at here? Hopefully not blood!!]

[bathymetric]

[ Not blood! It looks like a lot of stylish desk stuff, like... a glass paperweight, one of those Newton's Cradles, a broken pot that contained like a single cactus, all swept carelessly off the desk. ]

[onemillion]

[Oh no... Is there anything in here that's important? Or is this just "neat stuff that is now broken"?]

[bathymetric]

[ Just neat stuff that's broken... rip cactus friend, you'll be missed. ]

[onemillion]

[gone too soon......

Okay, well since this is presumably near the desk - how's that looking? Presumably pretty bare, but is there anything else on top (aside from the laptop) or inside?]

[bathymetric]

[ The laptop is here on its lonesome - the drawers have been torn out and dropped on the ground. Someone had a very bad time in this room, maybe! ]

[onemillion]

[Oof, apparently! Well then, laptop time! Is this one also kind enough to not require a password?]

[bathymetric]

[ There's a crack running through the screen, but there's an email and its first original response! The group chat includes Frank Fontaine, Gunnar Maelstrom, Handsome Jack, and the burner email.

The initial email from Frank Fontaine reads: ]

I have a commission for the three of you, because you’re the most skilled at this sort of thing. I want you to design an exercise to pit a group of people against each other. The more the better. It’s for use in-house, so obviously it’s confidential, but I need you to cook up some kind of elimination game. Just for a routine team-building exercise, but treat it like you're really trying to get some poor suckers to kill each other. No "battle royale," ideally - something that makes 'em squirm and have to plan and try to live with themselves. The more intense, the better. Pretend there's a group of eh... 20 to 30 trapped somewhere.

[ Uh oh! ]

[onemillion]

[Hmm!! That's super suspicious, Frank!!! This is definitely gonna be relevant. Is there a response from this person's burner email?]

[bathymetric]

[ There sure is! ]

All right, Fontaine, sounds easy enough. If you don't want them just killing each other for free, you offer prizes. Simple as that. So if we were sketching up a set of rules for the participants...

1. No time limit or limitations on where participants can go within the space.

2. If you're going to have it here, you'll need to maintain their biological needs. Day-night cycle, no hard time limit. Let them think they have all the time in the world.

3. Something to keep them isolated. Maybe only let them sleep in their rooms. Dangerous to be out at night, you know?

4. Tell them to explore! Let them chase their own tails.

5. They're not allowed to hurt the staff. Obviously.

6. No letting the ocean in.

7. If you kill someone and no one can figure out it was you, you win. Easy as that, you'll be done within days, especially if you offer an incentive.

8. Make sure they know you can add rules.

Gunnar, Jack? Penny for your thoughts?

[onemillion]

[Oh. Oh, this person absolutely wrote the rules. This must be our mastermind, though what exactly happened...

Okay, anything else to note on this computer? He's jotting all this down as well!]

[bathymetric]

[ Nothing else to note! Not even a background, it's blank. ]