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Mystery solved. PSEUDOPOD listened to a priceless tape and lost his soul.

Uncannily precise.

First obstacle avoided in what is evidently a labyrinth of personal ethics.

You would not put it past this man to have a prop dog bowl to hand.

What the fuck...

She built herself a suicide machine. Or, tried to.

Hang on, no. She cannot possibly have tested this. No untested gadgets on your Big Assignment.

Septimus and KALEIDOSCOPE, fascinating taste in men. Preliminary analysis: self-destruction.

Not him too. Everybody's woo woo.

She is principled, skilled, self-sacrificing -- and the worst has already happened to her. Bring her in.

This needs a specialist, or at least someone specialist adjacent. A doctor might be a good first bet.

There. A direct line to his suppliers. If the good doctor won't sell, you'll have to go over his head.

The implication is that you'll know it when you see it. Extremely ominous.

There's clearly history between the two doctors. Best guess is they used to work together -- that's your in.

The implication is that you'll know it when you see it. Extremely ominous.

Your brain is constantly churning out natural neurochemicals, it is basically made of drugs. Who are you to say no?

That is definitely, 100% a real condition.

You did, and it did. Does that mean...?

Unfortunately, in the midst of all his ramblings, he has discovered a point.

This checks out. PSEUDOPOD didn't look like he'd be popular with... anyone. A lead, at last!

You heard him talking to his suppliers. You need to find a way to get through to them directly.

He has access, that much is clear. But he's a middle man, not the supplier.

He's been waiting his entire life to hear your words.

The second time is, somehow, worse than the first.

Presumably for the benefit of the wire you're not wearing.

In this context, 'jealousy' translates to gross violations of medical and or human decency.

A few months, at most, after EMTERR offered Portofiro the chance to develop their own space program -- and the funds to do so.

Had the launch been an official success, Portofiro would've become one of the big boys of the Developed World.

Portofiro would've become one of the Big Boys of the Developed World.

Historical figures never live up to the tyranny of the mundane.

She outsmarted the Bank. She may be a pain but she is undeniably skilled.

The spoils of working for EMTERR.

Dante... could it have been... Tempo's message... all will be forgiven... if you pull this off...

Dopamine, adrenaline, DMT, endorphins of every flavour and hue.

In spite of you, the conclusion slips into its natural niche -- common sense, inevitable in retrospect.

Circuits in your brain spark violently as they rebel against their own conclusions.

In spite of you, the knowledge slips into its natural niche in your brain - common sense, inevitable in retrospect.

Some primal part of your brain rejects the information like a gag reflex.

He seems to be perplexed by his own question.

No sense in lying at this point.

That's not a denial.

Each new sentence is appended to the puzzle of the preceding ones.

As the old man speaks, a little bubble of doubt rises up from your subconscious and bursts through the surface of your awareness.

It makes no sense -- Melita wouldn't have you jumping through hoops to obtain the Lich's itinerary if she had a direct line to the Weeping Eye. And yet...

With that, one of the final loose pieces slots into place.

Behold, the dialectic in action!

In spite of you, the knowledge slips into its natural niche in your brain -- common sense, inevitable in retrospect.

In spite of you, the knowledge slips into its natural niche in your brain -- obvious, inevitable.

This is a reality television show. The plot is too complex -- the writers must be high on their own ad revenue cash.

Nice try. He doesn't realise that you know better than he does the fate of his body double.

885 skill checks - ZERO PARADES field manual - Page 17 of 18