ROOK: So my sources gave me my next mission lineup. I first moved Travis to the Basement. Then I hired some new recruits. First, rounding out the top floor, Agent Rosalyn.
AGENT ROSALYN: I know we haven't seen eye-to-eye in the past, Special Agent Rook, but I'm ready for anything you throw my way!
ROOK: Then, joining Leaf on the second floor was Beebee...
BEEBEE: I'm ready to go to work, as long as, you know, there isn't a lot of hard work involved!
ROOK: ...and Wolfah.
WOLFAH: ...Bark!
ROOK: And for the other two in the basement squad, Pinky...
PINKY: Pinky, reporting for duty! Please assign me to a blue floor.
ROOK: ...and Preston.
PRESTON: This is the place, huh? Where you stop people from building factories? Nice.
ROOK: Then I went to each floor to boost their skills, then sent them on their assignments: the Basement squad to help Dr. F, the Loft squad to help Barney, and the Hangar squad to try again at helping Agent Walker. Then to Dr. F's lab in the Industrial District. I wondered if we would see our recruits while there. I entered the pASCIIode Tobor gave me, and opened the door. A woman with purple hair was the first to notice us.
?????: Hm. Looks like we have guests.
ROOK: The white-haired man came over.
??. ?: You there. Are you delivering more squirrels?
ROOK: ...No.
??. ?: Then you are welcome here! How can we help you fine humans?
ROOK: Um...are you Mr. F?
Does he look like he has funny feet?
ROOK: *blink*
Just asking.
ROOK: I can't tell. They're not humorously sized, if his shoes are anything to go by.
DR. F: Mr. F is my father's name. I am the incomparable Dr. F!
BUDDY: Can I assume that you're not a medical doctor...?
DR. F: You can!
?????: He holds Ph.D.'s in robotology and robotonomy.
ROOK: Then he started checking out Buddy's head.
DR. F: You there! You have a magnificent skull. I must study you.
ROOK: Actually we just have a few questions.
DR. F: Give me your skull!!!
?????: Maybe when he's done with it, Dr. F. We're on a pretty tight schedule here, guys, so what's your question?
ROOK: We were sent here by your old roommate, Paul.
Hmm. I guess he would've been just a "Mr." before he got his first doctorate...
DR. F: Paul was a wonderful man and a dear friend! Whatever happened to him?
BUDDY: He turned into a yeti.
DR. F: Good for him!!!
ROOK: We suspect that Morcubus is trying to reproduce some of Paul's research. Paul thought you might be able to help us stop him.
DR. F: ...What research?
ROOK: Something called the Crown of Nightmares.
ROOK: He ran over and called up to his assistant.
DR. F: Alexa! Cancel all of my experiments immediately!
ROOK: Um... can you leave the cocoa one in progress?
DR. F: It can't begin until your agents get here.
ALEXA: What?! But our schedule—
DR. F: Crackers to your schedule! This is science of the most serious kind!
ROOK: He came back to us.
DR. F: Paul told me about that research. It inspired my own pursuit of the mad sciences!
ROOK: Do you know much about the Nightmare Crown?
DR. F: Only that Morcubus shouldn't have it. But if he's trying to create his own, he would have to fabricate both parts.
ROOK: There's two parts to the crown?
DR. F: Indeed! The crown itself is very important, but it is powered by an extremely rare crystal!
ROOK: Alexa came over.
ALEXA: If Morcubus wants to manufacture something like that, he'll need a ton of raw resources.
DR. F: That assistant is correct! Running a project like that would have to leave clues. Search the area and let me know if you see anything that ties Morcubus to heavy machinery or natural resources.
ROOK: I'd like to tie him to heavy machinery...
ALEXA: If you can find clues about Morcubus' activities, we might be able to tell you what he's really up to.
ROOK: We'll look for more cases in the Industrial District and get back to you.
ROOK: We started for the door, but...
DR. F: Wait! It's dangerous to go alone. Take this.
It's a secret to everyone! Buy something will ya! Dodongo Dislikes Smoke!
ROOK: ...(grumble grumble)...
ROOK: What's this?
DR. F: It's your old magnifying glass mixed with the awesome flavor of technology. I call it the Detector because of all the things it can detect.
ROOK: Make sense. Thanks!
DR. F: Go forth now! For Science!!!!
ROOK: We left the lab. I remembered seeing Brandi and Esma supposedly planting seeds over by the corner of the junkyard, so I decided to start there.
ROOK: How are you?
BRANDI: We are having some plant issues...do you think you could help?
ROOK: (thinking) Hmm...I should check this out. (speaking) Okay, I'll bite. What's up, Brandi?
ROOK: While we talked, Esma took up the slack.
BRANDI: Thank goodness you're here, Agent Rook!
ROOK: You're happy to see me?
BRANDI: Everyone's happy thanks to the City Beautification Project from Morcu Corp. We're planting trees because of how much We Care.
ROOK: Highly dubious. And what seems to be the "problem"?
BRANDI: DJ Candy over there is trying to stop us from spreading beautiful nature all over the city.
ROOK: Okay. I'm going to go ahead and be really skeptical about this whole operation.
BRANDI: Boss!
ROOK: Esma, the less pleasant of the pair, came over.
ESMA: What is it, peasant?
ROOK: Brandi claims you're having a problem with DJ Candy.
ESMA: Problem?! Bah! I do not have problems!
I doubt that's the case, but whatever.
ESMA: I am Esma, Colonel of Operations for Morcu Corp. I am Morcubus' right hand! All are beneath me! (laugh)
BRANDI: Except for Morcubus.
ESMA: ...Except for Morcubus. But yes, we are having a small problem. That DJ girl is foiling our attempts to plant trees. She should be destroyed!
BRANDI: *ahem* Of course Morcu Corp would never condone murder... ...but it is sad that DJ Candy hates nature. What did those poor trees ever do to her?
ESMA: I command you to save those trees!
ROOK: What do you think Candy is doing to your trees exactly?
ESMA: She has giant sonic amplifiers on the roof of her club. Their vibrations are stunting the growth of our trees and killing them.
BRANDI: She hates nature! It's so sad!
ESMA: ''We cannot plant trees as long as that DJ girl insists on using those sonic amplifiers.'
ROOK: Okay...you think DJ Candy's towers are killing trees. Got it. I'll find out what's really going on.
ESMA AND BRANDI: MorcuCorp Cares!!
ROOK: I figured looking at the plants would be informative, but first, I decided to see Candy — and the club — for myself. There were three girls and a boy. The boy and one of the girls were on the dance floor, another girl was walking around listening to the speakers in an unusual manner, and the other, whom I decided must be Candy, was deejaying. I found the music rather enjoyable, and asked Candy what she thought, which was probably dumb in retrospect:
ROOK: Enjoying the music here?
DJ CANDY: Oh yeah! I was born to DJ!
Why dumb?
ROOK: She's the DJ. If there something she wouldn't enjoy, I suspect she would refuse to play it. I also talked to a girl who looked like she was wearing a school uniform.
ROOK: How's it going?
??????: My friends, the wave compression units, tell me something is wrong.
ROOK: Ummm... OK. Thanks.
BARNEY: A fine looking crew you've sent me, Rook. These sailors will do nicely. Prepare yourselves — we leave at dawn!
ROOK: Then to the boy...
ROOK: Everything OK?
????: Yeah! Well, I guess. Candy seems distracted, somehow. I wonder what's wrong...
ROOK: ...and the remaining girl.
ROOK: Everything OK?
????????: Yeah, yeah! Totally, totally! I mean, wait, why? Shouldn't everything be OK?
ROOK: I decided to go back and check out the plants.
Just as well; there was no way for you to ask her about the amplifiers, or nature, or whatever. Just that one question.
DR. F: Your trained monkeys are most impressive! I think we may have the makings of another mad scientist in our midst.
ROOK: Walker also texted. When he finished, I called up Roxie to analyze those plants.
ROXIE: Analysis shows that the plants are dying. Something in the environment is causing their cells to break down.
ROOK: It seemed like they were harming the plants, after all... but I'd have to test it. My analyzer would be the best bet for the job, but it didn't have anything for sound. I'd have to return to the lab.
ROOK: I need to modify my analyzer.
DR. F: Your analyzer?
ROOK: Yes, right now it only analyzes chemical compounds. I need to track the frequencies of the radio towers.
DR. F: I see, I see...you can modify it using my equipment upstairs. It probably won't be destroyed! Go ahead!
ROOK: I did so, and returned to the club. I figured that would be my best route to the roofs, and I was right. A ladder led to some platforms that I would have to balance to. One platform that I had to jump to had a chest on it. Inside was some Smarts-boosting music, and paints!
TRAVIS: I think my phone's got beverage frothing capability. Let me check...
ROOK: Elmira texted, too. I went down to the lower roof and used the manipulator to move a crate down with some other crates, building a staircase. Now I can get up here whenever I want! I analyzed the first tower. 33,800 FHz. No idea whether that's normal or not. I'll have to compare it to the others. Back up the ladder and onto the upper roof. The second tower read 130 FHz. If this is more like normal, that first one looks like the culprit. Onto a lower roof with electrical stuff on it. I opened a crate with a dance floor and an Extreme-O-Tron in it!
2 Charismatic and 4 Athletic, respectively.
ROOK: Farther along, I found a tower reading 175 FHz. It's looking more and more like that first tower is it.
BEEBEE: I've always been after Prezzy to take me on a tropical cruise. I never thought I'd have to work on it, though!
ROOK: Too bad for her that her Prezzy is on another squad. At the billboard, I found more forensics games. Beyond it, the last tower. It read at 230 FHz. Higher than the second and third, for sure, but the first is definitely the odd one. All that energy must be coming from somewhere else. Time to track this. I went back and broke out my new Detector.
DR. F: Your monkeys seem to be building... something. Yet I see no evidence of nuclear frothing technology. WHERE IS THE SCIENCE??''
ROOK: Walker texted again. I tracked the energy signature almost all the way back around, then balanced my way across a cable to a building. I eventually found... what was it? It was some sort of equipment, that was clear, and without a doubt it was what was killing the plants, so I'd have to find out more about it. The most likely person to tell me was, of course, Dr. F, so back to the lab I went.
ROOK: Do you know anything about plant-killing power sources?
DR. F: Hahahaha! Interesting you should ask! I've been working on such an invention!
ROOK: Naturally.
DR. F: It's outside on the platform above my roof! I call it the Foliage Fusion Drive!
ROOK: Uh, thanks...
ROOK: I decided I'd take a look. Maybe it looks like the thing I found. I left the lab and hopped up on the platforms, crossed the roof, and down to some lower platforms.
PINKY: Hot chocolate's not really my fav. It's so hard to get it to come out blue enough, you know?
ROOK: Roger texted, as well. Well. I didn't see anything that looked like the F.F.D., or any other devices, for that matter! I'd have to tell Dr. F that it's not there. But while I was up there, I dropped onto... something... with a chest on it. Inside was a brainfish...
3 Paranormal, 1 Smarts.
ROOK: ...and paints.
ROOK: Your F.F.D. is missing...'
DR. F: What?! That must have weighed at least 18675.98 kilograms! It could only have been moved by my super-powerful human-likeness robot, Unit 5668 X SIGMA!
ROOK: Unit 5...6... what?
DR. F: It will be difficult to locate, because it looks just like a normal person. Its only weakness is conversation.
ROOK: So I was looking, or rather listening, for a robot who looked human. I thought I knew who, but I decided to save that particular Sim for last. I checked around the Lab...
—-
ROOK: Dr. F, you're not a robot, are you?
DR. F: Hah hah! I can only aspire to the perfection of being a silicon-based lifeform! Either that or a giant squid with laser eyes! Yes!
—-
ROOK: Hello. Are you a robot?
ALEXA: How dare you! Do I look like a robot?
ROOK: But...but...Dr. F said that it looks like a normal...nevermind...
—-
ROOK: Say, Tobor, are you secretly a robot?
TOBOR: Why yes, human. In fact I'm a robot dressed up like a fleshie dressed up like a robot! How did you guess? Of course I'm not secretly a robot. I'm just a robot! Not much of a secret, is it?
ROOK: ... Um... no?
—-
ROOK: In the junkyard...
—-
ROOK: Barney, are you a robot?
BARNEY: Hah hah! If I were a robot, I'd have rusted solid from all my years spent at sea. No sir!
ROOK: Hmmm... Good point!
—-
ROOK: Say, Gabby, you seem to like machinery. You wouldn't happen to be a robot, would you?
GABBY: Robbit? Are you callin' Gabby one of them newfangled automagic vacuum whatchamacallits?
ROOK: No! Um... nosiree?
GABBY: Uh-huh. Gabby didn't think so.
—-
ROOK: Hey, Grit! You're not a—
GRIT: *Woof*!
ROOK: Nah... nevermind.
—-
ROOK: My best friend...
—-
ROOK: Say, Buddy, how do I know you're not a synthetic humanoid robot?
BUDDY: How do I know I'm not a synthetic humanoid robot? Maybe I really am! That would explain why I've always wanted to shoot lasers out of my eyes! Pew pew!
ROOK: Can't argue with that!
ROOK: Now I'm disturbed on several levels.
—-
ROOK: The Morcu Corp girls...
—-
ROOK: Hey Esma. You talk a little weird. You wouldn't happen to be a robot, would you?
ESMA: Peasant! Are you calling me, Esma, the master of all things, a robot? Robots serve, I command!!
ROOK: Forget I asked.
—-
ROOK: What's up, Robot Brandi?
BRANDI: What!? You tell me one time — one time — you've ever seen a robot wear an eyepatch.
ROOK: Well... huh. Good point.
—-
ROOK: The club...
—-
ROOK: Hey, Sapphire. Seen any robots around?
SAPPHIRE: Zack can do The Robot pretty well... is that what you mean?
—-
ROOK: Hey, Zack. Are you a robot?
ZACK: Yup. About the best one you've ever seen — check it out!!
ROOK: He started doing The Robot.
ROOK: Hmmm... yeah, Sapphire told me about that. Not what I meant, though. But OK, never mind.
—-
ROOK: Hey, DJ Candy! You're not a robot, right?
DJ CANDY: Hmm... that would explain my impeccable timing, perfect pitch, and sheer awesomeness. But nope, sorry!
—-
ROOK: One final Sim to check... but first...
DR. F: I smell something chocolatey coming from your monkeys' setup. I trust that science is occurring...? I shall attach my tasting device immediately!
ROOK: Walker texted again. After that, I talked to the Asian-looking girl.
—-
ROOK: Hello! How are you, robot?
??????: My processes are running smoothly. And you?
ROOK: She didn't deny being a robot. Fascinating. But I'd have to be sure by getting her to clearly admit it.
ROOK: What do you like to do?
??????: I enjoy participating in many activities. Please use more specific search terms.
ROOK: Do you like to go shopping?
??????: "Shopping"? Please upload information concerning "shopping".
ROOK: Shopping is where you go to a mall, but you don't actually buy anything.
ROOK: A simplified and not-necessarily-accurate explanation, but in our context, it would have to do. Maybe I'd "patch" the definition later.
??????: Query: What is the exit condition for shopping?
ROOK: Well, you just look at things and talk to your friends until you're...done.
??????: Analysis shows that shopping may result in an infinite loop. Request denied.
ROOK: I'd also have to patch my exit condition explanation.
ROOK: Do you like to play with dolls?
??????: Playing with physical dolls is unnecessary. I have the ability to manipulate doll simulations within my processing unit.
ROOK: But, don't you want to make stories with the dolls? Have them sit in chairs? Date boys?
??????: I can easily calculate the inevitable fate of each doll based on their attributes.
ROOK: I see...so much for drama... so do you like slumber parties?
??????: Slumber party? My memory banks show the need to 'gossip' about partitioned data. Is this accurate?
ROOK: Um...yes. Usually at slumber parties you gossip and share secrets.
??????: Then I will share my secret. I am...a robot.
ROOK: Thought so. Better make like I didn't know, though.
ROOK: Ooh! That's a good one! Were you the one who hooked the F.F.D. up to Candy's radio towers?
I wish someone would say her name, already. I'm getting tired of having to type:
??????: Affirmative, that was a task that was given to me.
ROOK: Can you tell me why you moved the F.F.D.?
??????: Negative. Those memory files have been sealed by friendship patch version 8.443.99B.
ROOK: I see. So someone has told you not to share information.
??????: I cannot access the files directly. But you may try to bypass the patch if you like.
ROOK: So I hacked her. Big surprise, it was Brandi and Esma who hacked Makoto. Hear that, narrator? MAKOTO.
Thanks.
ROOK: No prob. I went back to them.
ROOK: I believe you framed Candy and her towers.
ESMA: That is secret!
ROOK: Not for long! I only need evidence that you had an interest in the towers.
ESMA: Well you'll never find that!
ROOK: I think that you were framing Candy and her towers.
BRANDI: You have no proof of this! Or...I mean...why would you think that?
ROOK: I learned from Makoto that it was you who asked her to place the F.F.D. on the roof. I just don't know why...yet.
BRANDI: Well, you'll never find any evidence. We have nothing to hide.
ROOK: I went to the other side of the truck and picked the lock. Inside was a memo from Morcu Corp: We need you to secure a sonic resonance system. See if you can locate one in the industrial district. Bingo! I went to the club.
ROOK: Why would someone want to use your broadcast system?
DJ CANDY: It's major powerful! You can transmit anything, anywhere!
ROOK: How powerful are we talking?
DJ CANDY: Well, you could receive signals 2,000 light years away, enrich dangerous materials...
ROOK: What? Tell me more about that.
DJ CANDY: Yeah, totally. You could use the frequencies from my sound system to charge something with powerful energy.
ROOK: It was time to confront those two.
ROOK: I've solved your "case"...
BRANDI: That's wonderful! Do tell!
ESMA: So, who's killing all the plants, agent?
ROOK: Why bother asking me? You're the ones killing the plants.
BRANDI: No way. Buzz off, man! It's DJ Candy. You should have her shut down and vacate.
ROOK: Yes, that's what you wanted me to think, wasn't it? You knew I'd track the plants' damage back to Candy's tower. But you didn't expect me to figure out that you conned the robot Makoto into stealing Dr. F's 'Foliage Fusion Drive, and then had her use Candy's towers to supercharge its power to destroy plants!''
BRANDI: What?! Makoto's a robot?! Did you know that?
ESMA: No clue, dude.
ROOK: So? Explain yourself! Why did you try to frame Candy? Why did you want her to be driven out of town?
BRANDI: So we could claim her sonic amplification towers for Morcu...
ROOK: At this point, Esma smacked Brandi.
ESMA: Silence, subordinate! Do you wanna have to wear another eyepatch?
BRANDI: I'm sorry, Miss Esma!!
ROOK: I see. Well, suffice to say, we're done here.
BRANDI: Well, that failed.
ESMA: I blame you.
You got robotic outfits!
And there's a new mission: "Roadie Despair"!
ROOK: I'll check it out when the other missions come back in. I went to the club. I remembered Zack saying something about DJ Candy looking distracted. If it was something I could help with, I'd be willing to check it out, and maybe it'd lead to Morcu Corp...
BARNEY: Day 26: We've weathered the worst of the storm, but food supplies are low. Fortunately, one of the crew was able to charm a passing school of tuna into serving a three-course meal!
ROOK: My guess: Beebee. Anyway...
ROOK: What's up, DJ Candy?
DJ CANDY: We're busy trying to get ready for our concert tonight, but I keep hearing these strange beats...
ROOK: I'll help you out! I can help you get to the bottom of this!
DJ CANDY: Welcome to Club Candy, the hottest spot in the city. I've got a lot of people relying on me to bring the party night after night. Usually I can deliver, but lately I've had problems. Something funny is going on around here, and it's seriously throwing off my groove. It's starting to ruin my shows.
SAPPHIRE: Omigosh, Candy, no way because your shows are the absolute best that anyone has ever heard! Your music just moves something in people and omigosh I love to dance!
DJ CANDY: Thanks, Sapphire, but something is throwing me off. It's a subtle noise... It's like a...a vibration!
ROOK: You can hear vibrations?
DJ CANDY: All sounds are vibrations, Rook, but I don't hear these—I kind of feel them.
SAPPHIRE: DJ Candy can hear all kinds of things that no one else can hear. It's totally a fact about her.
DJ CANDY: I do have pretty good ears. For example, Zack just licked his lips back there.
ZACK: It's true. I totally did.
DJ CANDY: You have to find the source of these strange beats before I lose my groove completely. If my shows aren't kicking at 150%, I have to refund everyone's money!
ROOK: Weird sounds... Alright, I'll check into it!
ROOK: I decided to ask around.
ROOK: Any idea where I could search for sounds?
MAKOTO: You could look outside the club, or take the ladder up to the roof. Those are optimized locations.
ROOK: Do you know anyway we could locate the sound?
SAPPHIRE: Nope! No ideas! But what about that wacky scientist? He seems like an idea guy!
ROOK: Do you know any way we can locate the strange sound?
ZACK: Hmm. Well, we can't really tell where it's coming from. Do you have any kind of agent device or something for monitoring sounds?
ROOK: No, not yet... hmm...
ROOK: I decided to try Makoto's idea first.
PRESTON: You know, I had a nuclear-powered espresso machine back it home. Daddy had it shipped in from somewhere secret.
WALKER: Well, the bad news is that we may have blown our cover in order to investigate the pizza delivery guy. The good news: we know the warehouse likes pepperoni!
ROOK: Once up on the roof, I found... Grit? How...? Either way...
ROOK: What are you doing here, Grit?
GRIT: *Grrrr*
ROOK: He was chewing loudly on metal cables. Maybe that was the source. To find out, I'd have to distract him somehow.
ROOK: Why is Grit up on the roof chewing metal cables?
GABBY: Oh shoot. Not again. He just gits a bee in his bonnet now an' then. One day that dog's gonna be the death of Ol' Gabby.
ROOK: Uh...right. Do you know where I can get something else Grit can chew on?
GABBY: He's gnawed on mos' everything in the junkyard. He'll want something new an' shiny, I reckon.
ROOK: I tried the lab.
ROOK: Do you mind if I borrow one of your parts?
TOBOR: What? No! Absolutely not! I need all my parts! Can you spare any of yours, fleshie?
ROOK: I decided to go for it anyway. While his back was turned, I drew my Techno-tool... and snagged it!
...
ROOK: ...What?
... Nothing.
ROOK: You think that was the wrong thing to do?
...Uhh... maybe? Well, let's see what happens...
ROOK: Well, okay. I took the part to Grit.
ROOK: Chew on this!
ROOK: It's true, Grit does like chewing on shiny metal objects.
ROOK: There! That's better. Now you're not making such a racket.
ROOK: I'd have to ask Candy if that helped. If not, well, back to the Doc.
ROOK: It turns out there was a dog on your roof.
DJ CANDY: A dog?!
ROOK: Yes. But I've taken care of him, so...
DJ CANDY: WHAT?!? But I didn't hear...
ROOK: Oh, no, not like that! I just gave him something quieter to chew on.
DJ CANDY: Oh, phew. I can still hear the beats, though.
ROOK: I see...well, I guess your hearing is better than mine. I'll keep looking for other sources.
And now Tobor is out one of his parts. Satisfied?
ROOK: Well... oh look, a text!
DR. F: INCREDIBLE! I've never had something this rich, this smooth, this foamy. OUR MARTIAN MASTERS WILL REWARD YOU!
AGENT ROSALYN: Stakeouts are so boring. If we really want to know what they're up to, we should just go through all their paperwork, line by line. Now that would be a blast!
ROOK: While I was there, I thought I should at least talk to Tobor.
Good girl.
ROOK: Thanks for the parts!
TOBOR: HOW DARE YOU?!!
ROOK: I'm sorry! It was for an important case!
TOBOR: Alright, fine...I guess I can just build myself another one anyway... it will only take about 57 years.
ROOK: *sigh*
ROOK: Do you know how I could locate a sound?
DR. F: I would recommend blowing everything up and seeing what is still making the sound!
ROOK: Uh, I don't think that will work. Other ideas?
DR. F: Nope! That is the best solution! But you could also talk to Alexa. She's been doing some crazy research.
Sound advice.
ROOK: ARGH.
ROOK: I need a way to detect strange noises.
ALEXA: Locating a noise source? You can put down these sensors to calculate the origin of the sound. They need to be on top of trash cans. My research has found that trash cans amplify sonic waves.
ROOK: OK, great! ...But why do these sensors look like little sandwiches?
ALEXA: So people won't mess with them. Would you touch a sandwich sitting on a trash can?!
Hey, she dumpster dives. She's not the best person to ask that.
ROOK: QUIET, YOU! I left and started locating trash cans to put sensors on.
LEAF: Captain says acoustic instruments only! Who put him in charge, anyway?
ROOK: I placed all the sensors. I headed back to the lab, but on the way...
WALKER: Agent Rook, it was a true triumph of detective work. The team worked beautifully together. Unfortunately, the warehouse is completely clean. However, the receipts we obtained from the pizza delivery guy have led us to another location with a suspicious pattern of deliveries. Who orders plutonium on a pizza anyway?
ROOK: Two successes down, one to go. I continued to the lab.
ROOK: I've placed the sensors. Now what?
ALEXA: Now we need a test subject to listen to these sonic beats!
ROOK: Listen to the beats? Can I do it?
ALEXA: We need someone fluent in the language of music. Sensors are powerful, but we still need someone to tell complex sounds apart.
ROOK: ...I saw Barney in the junkyard! I thought he was on a long voyage with my recruits...? There's something strange about all this... anyway, I headed back to the club.
ROOK: Can you listen to something for a minute?
SAPPHIRE: I have to stay warmed up for the party tonight! No one likes to dance on an empty dancefloor!
ROOK: Enjoying the music?
MAKOTO: I do enjoy conversing with these compression wave devices. They have very rhythmic speech patterns.
ROOK: I would've thought that would make her suitable, but I guess that question wasn't available, or something. Well, since Candy was the one noticing it...
ROOK: Can you listen to something?
DJ CANDY: Sorry, I'm super busy. I gotta lay out my tracks for tonight, whether these sounds are still happening or not.
ROOK: I see...I may have found a lead on those strange noises. But we need someone to listen to the sensors.
DJ CANDY: Well, Zack is also talented at listening to music. You could ask him!
ROOK: Do you have a moment to listen to something?
ZACK: Eh, I'm really busy...
ROOK: Alexa and I need someone to listen to the sensors we've placed.
ZACK: I can't do anything until the left speaker is fixed. We have a show tonight, and the last concert blew it out. So unless you can help that to go along faster, I'm sorry, I can't help you.
ROOK: In point of fact...
ROOK: I fixed the blown-out speaker for you!
ZACK: Oh man! That's awesome! Thanks so much!
ROOK: No problem! Now let's head up to the lab so that you can listen to those strange beats.
ZACK: Yeah man! Let's solve this mystery. Lead the way!
ROOK: At the lab...
ZACK: OK, Zack. Are you ready?
ROOK: She handed the headphones to him, and he began to listen.
ZACK: Those are some nice beats!
ALEXA: But can you tell where they're coming from?
ZACK: It sounds like they're coming from... underground.
Looks like wiping the game CD paid off.
ROOK: Yeah. Wait, WHAT?!
Yeah, the past few times, it'd get stuck with Zack listening to the headphones, and I'd have to skip the cutscene to proceed. WIPING ON CLOTHING SAVES THE DAY!
ROOK: Umm... I'm glad. Anyway, I'd have to find a way underground. There was a manhole out by the junkyard, so I went there. Down below, I found a cute little plush bear!
1 Nature, 1 Charismatic.
ROOK: And awww, a plush bunny!
1 Nature, 2 Charismatic.
ROOK: And a plush monkey.
1 Smarts.
ROOK: At the other end of the bottom, I found a pile of rocks with striking noises coming from the other side. I went back up. Thankfully, nothing came spilling out of the pipe while I was down there. Hey, didn't I see another manhole in the club?
You may well have.
ROOK: I went there. Unfortunately, Esma was standing in front of it.
ROOK: Can I get to that manhole?
ESMA: No, peasant!
ROOK: What? Why?
ESMA: This is not up for discussion! Be gone from my sight!
ROOK: I decided to talk to the clubgoers about my problem.
ROOK: Esma isn't moving from the sewer cover...
MAKOTO: Negative. Unable to assist in personal space manipulation.
ROOK: Do you know how I can move Esma?
SAPPHIRE: Everyone loves to move and dance! They just need to hear a song they like!!
ROOK: Do you know what her favorite song is?
SAPPHIRE: No, sorry. But why don't you just ask her?
ROOK: Worth a try. I went to her.
ROOK: So, Esma, do you like music?
ESMA: My tastes in music are superior to all!
ROOK: Do you like oldies?
ESMA: Oldies are for those whose souls have already died!
ROOK: How about hip-hop?
ESMA: See, here's the thing about hip-hop: some artists don't even know what they're saying!
ROOK: Oh really?
ESMA: The beats are hot, but the lyrics are not!
I agree, the words are important... so I'm kinda-sorta limited no matter what style it is.
ROOK: So you're not a fan?
ESMA: Occasionally I will throw on some old-school funk, but only if it has a fun dance with it!
ROOK: Rock n' roll?
ESMA: Rock n' roll is the music of the goddesses, including myself!
ROOK: Do you like "The Miniatures"?
ESMA: No, they were always small time in my book.
ROOK: Well, aren't they called..."The Miniatures"?
ESMA: Not their name, their ideas, fool! A talented band with no ambition might as well sign up to make ring tones!
ROOK: How about "The Scrapbooks"?
ESMA: Ah! The Scrapbooks! That brings me back to my tyrannical youth!
ROOK: Yeah, they were good. What was your favorite song?
ESMA: Bunny Hill! THE GREATEST SONG EVER!! Wait, why are we taking about this? Get out of my face, peasant!
ROOK: Now to have DJ Candy play it.
ROOK: Can you play "Bunny Hill"?
DJ CANDY: Oh man! That's an essential rock classic! I'll queue it up!
ROOK: She stopped what was playing.
SAPPHIRE: Omigosh the music stopped and there is no music happening right now!!
DJ CANDY: Be patient, Saph. Next up we're gonna play a request that comes from Special Agent Rook! "Bunny Hill" by the Scrapbooks!
ZACK: SWEET.
ESMA: O...M...G. Girl, that is my song!!!
ROOK: Candy started it playing, and the clubbers made room, for Esma came up and started dancing, and the other three danced, as well. Time to enter the sewer again.
Anybody reminded of a puzzle in Paper Mario?
ROOK: Umm... I'm not. I went in.
BARNEY: Day 42: Calm seas and clear skies mean smooth sailing. Now we're getting somewhere!
ROOK: At the bottom, I found... Brandi striking at some crystals!
ROOK: Hey you!
ROOK: She turned around, surprised.
BRANDI: Huh?!
ROOK: What are you doing? Why are you mining those crystals?
BRANDI: We're mining destinite for official Morcu... none of your business!
ROOK: She left, so I took a closer look. I can't push her any harder! These crystals are heavy! I believe the chemical compound 'di-lythium makes up the majority of these crystals. At any rate, I went back up to tell Candy.
ROOK: I believe I've solved the case.
DJ CANDY: Oh really? Great! So, Rook, where were those beats comin' from?
ROOK: Turns out, they were coming from underground. Brandi and Esma from Morcu Corp were running a mining operation.
DJ CANDY: What? Under my club? (to Esma) You can't mine here! I own this property!
ESMA: What? Ha! I won't obey your property rights, peon! No rules apply to Esma, ruler of all existence!
SAPPHIRE: Omigosh guys she called us peons! That's so funny yet so not nice at the same time!
ROOK: What were you guys mining for down there? What's destinite?
BRANDI: Mining? Why, I don't know what you're talking about! We're just planting trees.''
ESMA: I have heard of no "mining operation!" See ya, peasants!
ROOK: They left. It seems Brandi has learned a bit about loose lips... Which is too bad. She was a veritable fountain of information.
DJ CANDY: What?! What do they mean?
ROOK: It means that they already found what they were looking for...
DJ CANDY: Well, at least my concerts can return to normal!
ROOK: I'm glad I could help, Candy. Now if you'll excuse me, something tells me I'm not quite done with Morcu Corp.
DJ CANDY: Well, you saved Club Candy! Thanks, Rook!! Good luck with that other stuff, though.
(New dispatch missions! New glasses! New visor!)
ROOK: I checked in with the Doc.
ROOK: Dr. F, we're back.
DR. F: Yes, yes. Just put the squirrels over there if you must.
ROOK: Still not delivering squirrels. We have information about Morcu Corp.
ALEXA: What did you find?
ROOK: Some Morcu Corp employees are mining a mineral called destinite.
ALEXA: Odd. Destinite isn't common, but it doesn't have any real value. What else?
ROOK: They also tried to steal DJ Candy's sonic amplifiers.
DR. F: Zounds!!! Alexa, don't you see? If you stress destinite with ultra high-powered sonic frequencies, you can transmute it into fortunite!
BUDDY: What's fortunite?
DR. F: It's an incredibly rare and powerful substance. In fact, only one specimen was ever discovered!
ROOK: The crystal from the Nightmare Crown!
DR. F: Exactly. This Morcubus has a very clever science indeed...
ALEXA: Can he really make his own fortunite?
DR. F: Yes, but it would be slightly imperfect. The only way you could possibly counter its power would be to find... THE ORIGINAL CRYSTAL!!!
BUDDY: How do we find the original fortunite, pal?
ROOK: I'm not sure, Buddy, let's head back to the HQ. Maybe there's a clue somewhere in Evelyn's journal.
DR. F: Good luck, Rook!
ALEXA: We'll bill you for the consultation later!
(Disco ball trophy! Disguises! And still more missions!)
ROOK: We returned to HQ. Evelyn and I hit the books while Buddy talked to Jenny.
BUDDY: ...and that's what happened in the industrial district.
JENNY: Wow! Do you really think you guys can find the original crystal?
BUDDY: I don't know how we'll do it, but Rook will find a way.
EVELYN: Rook, I might have something. There is one reference to "fortunite" in my father's journal.
ROOK: That's great, Evelyn. What does it say?
EVELYN: Not much, but dad associates the crystal with a man named Cyrus Boudreaux. Maybe this Cyrus worked with my dad in the Nightmare Crown!
ROOK: Sounds like a good place to start. Hey, Jenny!
JENNY: Already looking him up on the internet.
BUDDY: Way to go, Jenny!
JENNY: Found him! He's dead.
ROOK: WHAT?!
JENNY: Yeah, it just happened. Now his niece, Zoe, is holding a dinner party at the Boudreaux mansion.
EVELYN: Is it really the appropriate time for a dinner party?
JENNY: She wants to gather Cyrus' friends and family so she can read his will. Apparently, someone is going to inherit his entire estate. Including a very rare gem.
ROOK: Great work, Jenny! When is the will reading? Where do we go?
JENNY: No idea. It's by invitation only, so it doesn't list the time or location.
EVELYN: No! So close, and now another dead end...
ROOK: We've got to figure out a way into that dinner party.
BUDDY: Hey, Rook, doesn't Poppy have a sister named Violet?
ROOK: I think she does.
BUDDY: Well, according to this article, one of the people on the guest list is Ms. Violet Nightshade.
ROOK: That is Poppy's sister! If she's going, maybe Poppy received an invitation as well.
I wonder why she wouldn't be directly on the list, if so.
BUDDY: Let's go ask her!
ROOK: I decided to hang out a bit more while waiting for Barney's mission to come back. In the meantime, y'know. I'd talk to the people at HQ.
ROOK: Hello Roxie, how are you?
ROXIE: Rook, why aren't you in the field! My machines will collect dust if I'm not using them. I MUST ANALYZE!
ROOK: Evelyn, you look a little worried.
EVELYN: Rook, we've got to get the fortunite crystal before Morcubus!
ROOK: I'm sure Poppy will help us out, Evelyn.
EVELYN: I hope so, we need that invitation if we are going to stay ahead of Morcubus!
ROOK: Hey Buddy!
BUDDY: Hey pal! I'm sure going to miss Cyrus Boudreaux.
ROOK: Buddy! You've never even heard of him before today.
BUDDY: Yeah pal, but I bet he was a great guy. We could have played mahjong together!
WOLFAH: (It's a picture of Wolfah on a boat. He doesn't look particularly happy! I guess he's more of a land animal.)
ROOK: I decided to get the updates on those other two missions.
JENNY: Agent Walker seemed quite impressed with the team's stakeout. He also sent details on the Some Kind of Pizza mission.
(New mission: "Pizza Investigation!")
JENNY: So, the team utilized incredibly advanced technology and made... some cocoa for Dr. F? I guess that merits some kind of reward.
(A giant robot, apparently an early non-functional model from his famous "Maim-O-Tron" series. Hopefully it remains non-functional... anyway, it has 2 Smarts. Also, a spaceship with 1 Paranormal and 1 Smarts. And a new mission: "F, Robot"!)
ROOK: I decided to talk to the returned agents. In the Hangar...
ROOK: Hey Elmira.
ELMIRA: I feel lazy just hanging around the HQ, Rook! Send me out on a mission.
ROOK: Hello, Roger.
ROGER: This HQ is large enough for me to get sweaty running around. I love it!
ROOK: As long as you shower every few hours...
ROOK: Hey, Rosalyn.
AGENT ROSALYN: A will reading? That is paperwork of the most tragic kind.
ROOK: ...and in the Basement.
ROOK: Hey, Travis.
TRAVIS: You've got to stop Morcubus, Chief! If he gets his hands on that crystal, we're all in for a nightmare!
ROOK: Hello, Preston.
PRESTON: I have to admit, this HQ is pretty impressive. Maybe I'll buy it off you someday.
ROOK: What's up, Pinky?
PINKY: I want to solve cases, just like you, Rook! Maybe you could send me on a mission.
ROOK: Well, you just got back from one... but I'm sure you'll get another! By the way, how do you like our walls?
PINKY: Not so much, but at least the sink is a nice blue! And the hot tub, and the pipes...
ROOK: I got tired of waiting, and set off to leave, stopping to talk to Yuki, at my peril.
ROOK: Um... you're still here?
YUKI: Yuki is contemplating your complexion.
ROOK: What?
YUKI: Yuki is thinking you need moisturizer. Yuki knows optimal face-biting is only achieved with proper skin care.
ROOK: I shudder to think how she became an expert on the subject. Anyway, I left for Main Street, and went to talk to Poppy.
ROOK: How's it going, Poppy? I might need your help.
POPPY: My help? Yay! Okay, Rook!
ROOK: So, have you received an invitation in the mail recently? For a will reading?
POPPY: Um, maybe. I don't know.
ROOK: You don't know?
POPPY: No. That mean Derek has been stealing people's mail. For a couple weeks! I've missed two packets from my "Seed of the Week" gardening club.
ROOK: And with the invitation that's three stolen letters! That's a federal offense!
POPPY: I don't know what that means, but it's super naughty.
ROOK: Don't worry, Poppy. I'll take care of this.
ROOK: I would need to talk to Derek, but first, the other people in my neighborhood.
The construction worker builds for you-oo / the buildings that you can go to-oo...
ROOK: Umm... what...?
Never mind.
ROOK: You keep saying that...
ROOK: Hey Patrick, how's it going?
PATRICK: Oh you know, same ol', same ol'.
ROOK: Out by the salon...
ROOK: Do you know where Derek is?
SHIRLEY: Oh, I'm sure he's off at Fort Derek, hon.
ROOK: What's Fort Derek?
SHIRLEY: Oh, it's his cute little clubhouse out in the forest. It's up on a ledge in the back.
ROOK: Excellent! Thanks, Shirley.
ROOK: Hi Luis. Have you heard anything about Poppy's missing letters?
LUIS: Sorry, Rook, I haven't. And don't worry, I won't ask you to buy a newspaper this time.
ROOK: That's okay, Luis! I don't mind you asking all the time!
LUIS: Great! So do you want to buy one, then? It's for my college education.
ROOK: Maybe later, Luis, I still have to work right now.
LUIS: Arrrgh! I knew it!
ROOK: Hi Gino. Poppy is missing some letters. You haven't seen any around, have you?
GINO: Which letters? Some of my favorites are G, N, and O! Haha! I make a little joke there!
Eerie, I was just thinking along those lines...
ROOK: Wait, in your other... "playthroughs", you say, you've never talked to Gino at that point before?
Never! I'm being more thorough than usual, and seeing all kinds of dialogue I've never seen before.
ROOK: Cool.
Yeah, I'm seeing this happen with my other liveblogs. Describing the action is making me notice all kinds of things I was missing.
ROOK: Huh. Well, glad that's working out for you. I entered the forest and started looking around. He got my attention before long by calling down from a ledge.
DEREK: Looking for me, agent? You're not allowed up here in Fort Derek. Scram!
ROOK: I'd just have to use my "passcard". By which I mean my F-Space Manipulator. I used the trash bin and two tires to make a way up. Once up there, I confronted him.
ROOK: What do you know about Poppy's letters?
DEREK: Hey, how did you get up here?!
ROOK: Cough it up. Why have you been stealing Poppy's mail?
DEREK: Screening duty! Morcu Corp says that is I find any useful information, I'm supposed to pass it on to them! Afterwards I toss them in the woods. The animals can use them if they want them. HA!
ROOK: I balanced across a branch and jumped around some ledges to find... a letter! I crossed another branch to a nest with three large eggs. No letters, though. I decided to have the eggs analyzed.
ROOK: Hey Roxie, what kind of bird laid these eggs?
ROXIE: That's a cyanocitta packaboo, a bird that likes to build many nests using any materials it can find.
ROOK: I decided I would ask around about birds, once I got down from there.
ROOK: I found one of the letters you stole.
DEREK: Oh...really? Fine with me.
ROOK: But I only found one. It appears that the mama bird took the others to use to make nests.
DEREK: Haha! I guess they did a better job of stealing than I did! Good luck, agent!
BARNEY: Land ho! We've done it! We've found the legendary Lost Isles of Thule. Soon the whole world will know what the natives put on their pizza bagels. We'll all be famous! And it's all thanks to this fine crew. Thanks, Rook, I couldn't have done it without them.
ROOK: I could wait on the bird recon. I went back to HQ to check in with Jenny.
JENNY: I heard about the team's voyage for Barney. Sounds nuts. Almost as cool as an episode of Starcruiser X. Almost.
(Water Tanks: 2 Smarts.)
Here are the new missions!
- F, Robot
DR. F: Disaster! My newest humanoid robot, the F-Bot, has escaped. He's out there, somewhere, pretending to be me... I need a skilled team to find him, since he looks exactly like me except 229 feet tall.
ROOK: Oh, yeah. That would make them tough to tell apart.
3 stars. 15 minutes. Smarts/Charismatic. New outfits and a new dispatch mission.
- Equipment Recovery
ALEXA: I know you'll never believe this, but Dr. F's peanut butter helicopter "experiment" had a bit of a mishap — over the ocean. I need a deep-sea recovery team to salvage as much as possible.
2 stars. 20 minutes. Athletic/Smarts. New outfits and a new dispatch mission.
- OMG Glow Sticks!
SAPPHIRE: Omigosh, you guys, someone totally stole my box of glow sticks?! Please help, Rook! I'm running low on chemiluminescence!
2 stars. 15 minutes. Smarts/Charismatic. New outfits and a new dispatch mission.
- Roadie Despair
ANNIE: It's terrible, Rook. My latest tour is in danger of being canceled. All my roadies are on strike and I can't stage a show without them!
1 star. 20 minutes. Charismatic/Smarts. Objects and recruit.
- High School Yearbook
MAKOTO: I have obtained knowledge that high school girls desire to be "popular." Since I am a high school girl and not a robot, if I get enough humans to sign my yearbook, then I will achieve "popular" status. Please assist.
3 stars. 10 minutes. Charismatic/Paranormal. Object and a new dispatch mission.
And the mission you're rewarded with has, as one of its rewards, the ability to recruit Makoto.
- Missing Bugs
GERTRUDE: Hey there, this is Gertrude. I've got a bit on a bug problem. Oh no, I don't need help getting rid of them. They're my friends! But I do need help gathering them all up before they get stepped on.
2 stars. 30 minutes. Nature/Athletic. Objects.
- Pizza Investigation
WALKER: Our investigations have led us to a humble pizza parlor — Or Is It? I suspect it's really a Morcu Corp front, and could use assistance in investigating it. Anybody hungry?
2 stars. 10 minutes. Charismatic/Smarts. Outfits and a new dispatch mission.
- Candypaluna
DJ CANDY: Well, I promised the fans and now it's time. I'm gonna stage the first concert ever on the moon! Now I just need help with a few... logistics.
(Players of My Sims Kingdom may recall that this was an idea that your player character gave her.)
2 stars. 30 minutes. Athletic/Smarts. Object and new dispatch mission.
- Failing Forest
PETAL: Rook, it's awful! I awoke today to find that the trees and flowers in our forest are suddenly dying! What's going on? Is there anything we can do to revive our plants? Help!
3 stars. 15 minutes. Nature/Paranormal. Object, paint, new recruit.
- Missions
- Candypaluna: **; A/S; Object, Mission (NEW!)
- Episode X: **; S/P; Object, Trophy
- Equipment Recovery: **; A/S; Outfits, Mission (NEW!)
- F, Robot: ***; S/C; Outfits, Mission (NEW!)
- Failing Forest: ***; N/P; Object, Paint; Recruit (NEW!)
- High School Yearbook: ***; C/P; Object, Mission (NEW!)
- Legendary Cheese: *; A/N; Outfits, Trophy
- Missing Bugs: **; N/A; Objects (NEW!)
- Ol' Gabby's Mine: **; S/N; Objects
- OMG Glow Sticks!: **; S/C; Outfits, Mission (NEW!)
- Pig, Camera, Action!: *; N/C; Outfits, Recruit
- Pizza Investigation: **; C/S; Outfits, Mission (NEW!)
- Roadie Despair: *; C/S; Objects, Recruit (NEW!)
- The Sadness Parade: **; C/P; Outfits (ON HOLD)
- Snack Thief: ***; S/C; Outfits, Object, Trophy
- Tainted Broth: ***; P/N; Object, Paint, Recruit
- Yeti Begins: **; P/N; Objects, Paint
- Recruits and Recruitables
- Beebee: N,A,3C
- Elmira: P,N,3S
- Leaf: 3N,2C
- Nova: 2P,N,2S
- Pinky: P,4C
- Preston: A,3C,S
- Roger: 5A
- Agent Rosalyn: 2P,3S
- Travis: 3C,2S
- Agent Vic: 3P,C,S
- Wolfah: 3N,2A
Next Time: The Mail Animal!
