Episode 12
Episode 12: Clones and I
Book follows some clues left behind by his parents. The sudden arrival of Vesuvius has everyone on edge. Spade gets a new obsession.
This one is mostly about the ship of Theseus.
Transcript
Welcome to Oops!
Speaker:All Apocalypses, a show where we explore the collapse of society by playing fun tabletop role playing games.
Speaker:I'm joined with two of my favorite contestants.
Speaker:A lot of energy here today.
Speaker:Oh, I'm Jacob, by the way.
Speaker:Hey everyone, I'm Brady, and I play Stu Masterson, someone who pronounces over like there's an R in between every other letter.
Speaker:And I'm Jacob, and I'm playing Ocean, a gentle giant who is currently thinking he has developed phonagnosia.
Speaker:What is that?
Speaker:And I?
Speaker:No, Stu, you cannot continue.
Speaker:It's the inability to recognize familiar voices.
Speaker:I like to pretend I'm smart and I knew that, but I Googled it.
Speaker:I knew it was a condition, but I didn't know the name.
Speaker:So I hate to disappoint.
Speaker:When you hear any voice, it's just like all strangers?
Speaker:Or is it more like you just can't?
Speaker:So agnosia is basically like a condition in the brain where like you have trouble recognizing something.
Speaker:So like every time you hear something or see something, it's something kind of new.
Speaker:And there's a million different types of them.
Speaker:And phoning, agnosia is the inability to differentiate voices.
Speaker:Oh, I thought you said different like with a B bone agnosia.
Speaker:No, no, no, that's that's the inability to distinguish bones.
Speaker:I have that condition.
Speaker:Actually, they all look the same.
Speaker:They do all look, especially when you draw them the same, like in a cartoon.
Speaker:Yeah, for the record, if this is your first first time listening, I don't actually play Stu Masterson, our host.
Speaker:I play Book McCready, a sleuth who likes solving mysteries.
Speaker:And if this is your first time listening, I just edited out about 20 boner jokes that Brady just made.
Speaker:That is not true, but I wish that I had thought of that.
Speaker:I would think higher of myself if I had.
Speaker:Let's apologize to people for not having a good intro last week.
Speaker:I thought it was good.
Speaker:Let's apologize for people not having a good intro this week.
Speaker:This is a clusterfuck.
Speaker:First of all, I was sick.
Speaker:Unlike this very good one.
Speaker:We got to make up for it being so clean and professional last week.
Speaker:First of all, How Dare You's do last week's episode was great.
Speaker:And I did enjoy it.
Speaker:Actually, last week's intro is great, I should say.
Speaker:The rest of the episode was shit.
Speaker:Yeah, fuck it.
Speaker:But also, you know, I thought you did a great job imitating us.
Speaker:I'm sorry that I was sick, and Jacob's sorry that he was doing life-saving stuff for people.
Speaker:I don't know what I was doing when that happened.
Speaker:I mean, I was probably at work.
Speaker:I feel like I gave you an out, dude.
Speaker:Just take it.
Speaker:I was getting radiation poisoning.
Speaker:Oh, yeah.
Speaker:Yeah, Stu's grumpy today because he has radiation poisoning.
Speaker:Literal radiation poisoning.
Speaker:Stu's grumpy because he has two weeks to live.
Speaker:What a wuss.
Speaker:What a wuss.
Speaker:We're just gonna have him take a lot of ionized salt.
Speaker:I'm already feeling better.
Speaker:Better in no time.
Speaker:Like most weeks, we have some questions to fall in love.
Speaker:But unlike most weeks, this one is really shitty.
Speaker:Oh, I'm not happy about this question.
Speaker:So it's up to you guys.
Speaker:I'm giving you nothing.
Speaker:It's up to you guys to turn it into gold.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:I hope you're ready.
Speaker:No promises.
Speaker:Man, you're really disrespecting those scientists that work really hard on these questions.
Speaker:These love scientists with their love diplomas.
Speaker:The question this week, for what in your life do you feel most grateful?
Speaker:Well, I could be really sappy here.
Speaker:And I guess I kind of have to be because right now I don't feel like Ocean has a lot in his life.
Speaker:He's kind of a loner.
Speaker:So I think he's grateful for being able to have companionship with Book and able to go on and do all these complicated missions and dives into the deep dark to find stuff.
Speaker:He can't do it all on his own.
Speaker:So he's definitely grateful for Book and the things that he brings to his real scavenging operation because otherwise I don't think he would have survived this long.
Speaker:That's very sweet, even though you're going to rob him.
Speaker:Even though he's good.
Speaker:That's see, that's how we know he's grateful for Book because he was doing so poorly on his own that he was resorting to robbery when he first got started.
Speaker:Now he actually has a decent life.
Speaker:I mean, it's decent to say the most.
Speaker:That is really sweet.
Speaker:I would say Book is grateful for the apocalypse because it gives you like a consistent out whenever you don't want to attend something.
Speaker:I'm sorry.
Speaker:It's the apocalypse.
Speaker:I can't I'm a little busy.
Speaker:It's the I have to do the apocalypse.
Speaker:I have apocalypse today.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:See, that was a pretty lame question.
Speaker:It does get better.
Speaker:I'm looking at the ones in the next all three next one bangers.
Speaker:I was about to say they've also far been pretty bangers.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:I didn't like this one a lot.
Speaker:My answer is you guys.
Speaker:I just love playing this game and I wouldn't get to play if I didn't force you guys to do it as a podcast as an actual job.
Speaker:Yeah, as a scheduled event, a scheduled event that we're not paid for.
Speaker:Our schedule is pretty loose.
Speaker:If we're being honest, as I say, we are pretty loose.
Speaker:You see, I lose so much money doing this.
Speaker:Yeah, I actually yeah, I bet you have lost a shit ton of money.
Speaker:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker:We should at the end of the episode, we should also list like all of our expenses like Stu, Stu pays for the editing software.
Speaker:Brady pays for Adobe, whatever I've what is it?
Speaker:What is it?
Speaker:After Effects, even though we haven't put out a YouTube video since our trailer.
Speaker:Jacob just bought a new mic and interface.
Speaker:I can flex on people when I'm playing voice chat and games now.
Speaker:Hell yeah.
Speaker:They can listen to my sultry voice and excruciatingly hide.
Speaker:It blocks your monitor.
Speaker:So you play about half as well.
Speaker:That is true with my camera and my mic, everyone just seems to have an only fans.
Speaker:Oh, I know how I did buy a webcam.
Speaker:I did buy a nice webcam because I was sick of you guys looking at me from a downward angle, but it doesn't fit on my computer.
Speaker:I think you mean a POV.
Speaker:I call it the house shot.
Speaker:It's like Jacob looks like he's walking through after he solved the case.
Speaker:He's going to go into the room and just like, like cut your ear off with a knife.
Speaker:It's very intimidating.
Speaker:You can see straight up my nostrils.
Speaker:Quick books nook of booktakes.
Speaker:Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 was really good.
Speaker:I cried a lot.
Speaker:I cried more than anyone else in the theater.
Speaker:I audibly sobbed.
Speaker:I had to hold my breath to stop from crying.
Speaker:It was painful because I cried so much, but it's really good and you should watch it.
Speaker:Oh, man.
Speaker:That's what I was afraid of seeing all the trailers.
Speaker:I was like, this one's going to be really sappy, isn't it?
Speaker:This one's going to make me cry, isn't it?
Speaker:Sappy because Groot.
Speaker:No, but it was like everything felt very errant.
Speaker:I think it was a really good close out.
Speaker:Also secondary books, nook of booktakes, The Thing, the 1982 The Thing by John Carpenter is the best movie on the planet.
Speaker:It's my favorite movie.
Speaker:I watched it last night.
Speaker:It was great.
Speaker:That is a classic movie.
Speaker:Neither of those are apocalyptic media.
Speaker:Excuse me.
Speaker:The Thing, I would say The Thing is pre-apocalyptic.
Speaker:The Thing could arguably be apocalyptic because it's the beginning of the apocalypse because at the end of the movie, you know Spoilers that it's getting out.
Speaker:You know it's getting to the rest of the world by the end of it.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:So you think you're in the camp of the Childs is the thing at the end of the movie?
Speaker:I think so.
Speaker:Is the intro still happening?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I thought we were, can we, why?
Speaker:And now, back to the action.
Speaker:What, you don't recognize your good friend Vesuvius?
Speaker:Well, this is an audio medium, so I can't really tell until I hear your voice.
Speaker:Are we just jumping straight into it?
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:I came by to see you at the precipice where your residence is, and I asked around, and everybody said you were not in town anymore.
Speaker:Hey.
Speaker:Yeah, we've been busy.
Speaker:It's good to see you.
Speaker:How are you?
Speaker:How are you?
Speaker:Excellent.
Speaker:I really enjoyed the jerky you gave me previously.
Speaker:So you have any more of it?
Speaker:Quick question.
Speaker:Is this guy actually look like Vesuvius?
Speaker:Yeah, it looks just like Vesuvius.
Speaker:Does it look like Vesuvius or is it Vesuvius?
Speaker:It looks just like Vesuvius.
Speaker:I'm suspicious because his voice sounds so different.
Speaker:Wait, does it intentionally sound different?
Speaker:Who are you asking?
Speaker:You.
Speaker:I'm asking if you don't remember what Vesuvius' voice sounds like.
Speaker:I remember what Vesuvius' voice sounds like.
Speaker:This is what he sounds like right now.
Speaker:I would like to use stern presence.
Speaker:What are you sturning?
Speaker:What situation are you entering?
Speaker:I guess is a better question.
Speaker:Isn't that the trigger for it?
Speaker:He just said hi.
Speaker:That's entering a conversation situation.
Speaker:Don't be mean.
Speaker:I'm not being mean.
Speaker:I'm just trying to figure out what you're trying to do.
Speaker:Just trying to get the details.
Speaker:I'm using stern presence.
Speaker:I want to know if he's fucking sewing confusion right now.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So I'm rolling plus hard right now, or minus hard as a four.
Speaker:On a miss, something else catches my attention first.
Speaker:What caught my attention first?
Speaker:You can see that he actually still has some of your jerky saved and he's trying to hoard more of it.
Speaker:He had palmed a little tiny bit of it and he has it tucked into a pouch he has on his belt, but it's sticking out.
Speaker:So he thinks it's drugs.
Speaker:I go to shake his hand.
Speaker:He shakes your hand and grasps it firmly.
Speaker:OK, is he palming more stuff out of my pocket?
Speaker:No, he didn't steal the jerky from you.
Speaker:It's the jerky you gave him.
Speaker:So he just saved it, you're saying?
Speaker:Yeah, he saved some.
Speaker:And I say, hey, I wish that I could say that I do, but I lost it all.
Speaker:Yeah, some shit happened, as it does, you know?
Speaker:And I kind of slap him on the shoulder.
Speaker:And then I step away from him kind of far.
Speaker:Yeah, I was really hoping that I could, to be honest, Crandall seemed to have gone off his rocker a little bit, where the things he wants us to collect just do not make a lick of sense.
Speaker:They're not helping us with what we're trying to do.
Speaker:So I was hoping I could join your little outfit at the precipice and become a resident and helpful helper.
Speaker:Hey, can I ask you a question?
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:Has Crandall had a lot more batteries lying around lately?
Speaker:No, he's not been focused on batteries.
Speaker:I don't know why he would want batteries.
Speaker:What has he been asking you to collect?
Speaker:It's just all sorts of strange technology that I don't even pretend to understand, but none of it comes back to be any use to us.
Speaker:Right.
Speaker:I look at, so when we were walking up, like was he walking, he was walking down the switchbacks?
Speaker:No, he was, he's sitting, he was like leaning against the wall near the sit back, the switchbacks, and when he came up, he stepped down.
Speaker:So while Book is talking to Vesuvius, Ocean is going to remember slightly back to that vision he had.
Speaker:And while Book and Vesuvius are talking, Ocean is going to be paying very close attention to Vesuvius' eyes.
Speaker:Ooh, that's interesting.
Speaker:I like that.
Speaker:Yeah, I'm looking into his eyes and because Ocean remembers in his vision that the girl that he was trying to get to...
Speaker:Yeah, it was like a doppelganger thing, right?
Speaker:Yeah, started with blue eyes and then like a pixelated effect occurred and they turned the brown that I'm familiar with.
Speaker:Give me a read and charge situation.
Speaker:Read and charge situation.
Speaker:Okay, I can use my weird for that one.
Speaker:Hey, when I patted his shoulder, did I feel any like robot bits?
Speaker:No, it felt just like a man.
Speaker:That's going to be a nine.
Speaker:A nine, okay?
Speaker:You can ask me one question.
Speaker:Okay, there's a question that's what am I not seeing, right?
Speaker:Is that one of the questions?
Speaker:There is what should I be on the lookout for?
Speaker:What poses the biggest threat to me?
Speaker:What who or what represents the best opportunity for me to do X are the three that are closest to that.
Speaker:Okay, gotcha.
Speaker:I couldn't remember.
Speaker:I want to say what should I be on the lookout for?
Speaker:Since you are specifically looking at his eyes and trying to call that out, you rotate around so you're at his like nine o'clock looking out of his periphery as he's talking with book and you look as close as you can.
Speaker:And you do think there seems to be some weird reflection off of it.
Speaker:It could just be like wearing thick contacts or something, but it seems like there's something not quite right with the way the light is catching his eyes.
Speaker:I feel like y'all are being a little strange.
Speaker:It's your good friend Vesuvius.
Speaker:We were having an excellent romp last time we met, about three kilometers in that direction.
Speaker:Remember with the light and the submachine gun?
Speaker:And I said, yeah, I could come down there and check you out or I could stay right here.
Speaker:That was funny.
Speaker:It was very funny.
Speaker:That was funny.
Speaker:I'm not laughing at all.
Speaker:So what I was like thinking was like, what I want to find out, me, Brady, the person, is if that reflective, the reflection that Ocean is seeing is reminiscent at all of the cheese monster, its lights in the dark, its eyes in the dark.
Speaker:But obviously, I don't know that.
Speaker:And I would never have seen the cheese monster's eyes in the dark.
Speaker:Exactly.
Speaker:So that's frustrating.
Speaker:Turn, watch this just be Vesuvius.
Speaker:We're just fucking being suspicious for no reason.
Speaker:Three hours from now, you would not believe how hard I got hit on the throat.
Speaker:So I say, I say, I say, did Crendel like that thing we got him, the humidor?
Speaker:Was that that bundle of lies that you showed me?
Speaker:I don't know how he would set that sort of thing up.
Speaker:I haven't been up to his penthouse since you guys were around.
Speaker:Where did you find that, by the way?
Speaker:Oh, you know, just lying around.
Speaker:I do a lot of scavenging and so it's just something I found.
Speaker:I apologize if we're coming off as suspicious.
Speaker:We just had quite an interesting experience down in the the Subtropolis.
Speaker:It just seems like things are a little charged down there right now.
Speaker:More of those wolves that you mentioned previously to me?
Speaker:No, not wolves.
Speaker:Not wolves this time.
Speaker:There's all sorts of creepy crawling dangers in the Subtropolis.
Speaker:Yeah, you seen any mole monsters?
Speaker:And I squint my eyes really hard.
Speaker:With melty cheese faces?
Speaker:I have not seen something as horrific as that.
Speaker:Yeah, me either.
Speaker:Ha ha.
Speaker:You don't have to forgive Book.
Speaker:He's been on some hard medicine as of late.
Speaker:I can tell by the dilation in his eyes.
Speaker:I believe he's still high.
Speaker:So how'd you find your way here?
Speaker:Well, one of our people apparently was tracking you, and they ended up getting slain.
Speaker:Something awful over there.
Speaker:And you can see where the corpse is.
Speaker:It's still there, but he actually has put in like a jacket over them and like some small form of respect.
Speaker:That's so funny because I was literally thinking that I should have done that.
Speaker:And he goes, and we have these transponders that when our hearts stop beating, broadcast their location.
Speaker:So I had tracked her down here, and I saw the mess that she made, and I saw these switchbacks, and I was like, hey, this sounds like the place they describe.
Speaker:This is like a precipice over Subtropolis.
Speaker:Have you ever been here before?
Speaker:Is this your first time?
Speaker:This is my first time.
Speaker:Do any of your friends come up here before?
Speaker:Any of Crandles men?
Speaker:Not that I know of.
Speaker:People usually, we stay in Subtropolis.
Speaker:We don't think there's much value out there, but I'm starting to think that a life a little higher up, maybe a little more for old Vesuvius.
Speaker:Well, hey, why don't we head up there and grab a drink?
Speaker:That sounds like a lovely idea.
Speaker:What I'd like to do is take him to the Broken Leg and introduce him to Spade.
Speaker:You guys head back up.
Speaker:I'm guessing another awkwardly silent one.
Speaker:I'm going to just keep nervously looking at Book.
Speaker:And I'm going to scratch my eye a little bit while looking at Book.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:And I'm going to mouth watch it.
Speaker:I got the message.
Speaker:And I'm going to nod to him.
Speaker:I'm going to motion.
Speaker:I'm going to take my head back for him to drop behind us for a bit so that I can use compassionate presence.
Speaker:Oh, shit!
Speaker:This damn ability again.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Book Ocean gets the hint after having seen you use this several times.
Speaker:And he's going to slow down just a bit here.
Speaker:And I say, Hey, Vesuvius, you, I know we came across a little hard edged when we first saw you, but you seem you seem a little, I don't know, concerned too.
Speaker:Is everything, everything all right?
Speaker:And now I roll.
Speaker:Come on, give me that Brady patented tin.
Speaker:I'm rolling again because it fell on the floor.
Speaker:Well, last time you didn't.
Speaker:So what was it in this time?
Speaker:Well, I don't know.
Speaker:I didn't look.
Speaker:Hey, I rerolled when it fell on the floor for me.
Speaker:And that was a great roll for me.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:So I got a seven.
Speaker:I choose one.
Speaker:I'm realizing that neither of these questions are really that helpful.
Speaker:But I am during this time.
Speaker:I'm also like staring at his fucking eyes and trying to see if I notice what what Ocean was motioning about.
Speaker:So I choose.
Speaker:I ask if he's holding on to pain.
Speaker:So if they're holding on to pain, they blurred it out.
Speaker:They blurred it out for both if they're ashamed or holding.
Speaker:Jacob, do you think ashamed or holding on to pain was a better question?
Speaker:In retrospect?
Speaker:I think holding on to pain is the better question.
Speaker:I think I think it was a good call.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Yeah, so they just they just blurred it out.
Speaker:Thank you so much for asking me.
Speaker:I must admit, I have been holding on to a lot of pain lately.
Speaker:The loss of, we weren't particularly close, but you become a bit of a family.
Speaker:And losing Kay like that, towing to shreds, ribbons of flesh, dangling about, it really erases on me.
Speaker:And I think this is the time that I should change my life and live a different way.
Speaker:I would like to be more like you two, Book and Ocean.
Speaker:Yeah, I don't want to lie to you.
Speaker:I came across that scene.
Speaker:I got attacked by the same thing that attacked her.
Speaker:It was awful.
Speaker:I'm really sorry for your loss.
Speaker:It's okay.
Speaker:She knew what she was doing.
Speaker:I just wish I knew why she was even following you guys.
Speaker:Do I see any glints in his eyes?
Speaker:Do I see a fucking speck of robotness?
Speaker:No.
Speaker:If I rolled for it, would I?
Speaker:Maybe.
Speaker:You guys make it back up to the broken leg, unless you want to press him for any more details.
Speaker:I'm trying to think of more things to press...
Speaker:Oh shit!
Speaker:You said Crandall's been acting differently lately.
Speaker:What do you mean by that?
Speaker:I'm just not sure that he knows what he's doing.
Speaker:I feel like now this may sound a little conspiratorial, but I think someone else may be pulling the strings on old Crandall.
Speaker:And I think that is something that should be looked into, but it is above my pay grade.
Speaker:So I'm just trying to get out and move on.
Speaker:He's getting technology that he does not understand.
Speaker:Before it was very focused on what he thought was fun or exciting, but he's been collecting things that he doesn't know what they do.
Speaker:He's sending us out into more and more dangerous spots and locations.
Speaker:And it's not the sorts of things he would get before, or things that make the hotel such a good party pad.
Speaker:Has he said anything about energy?
Speaker:Not more than normal.
Speaker:Did anything seem to happen before to make him start acting like this?
Speaker:Because he seemed like he was still very into the fun things when we were there.
Speaker:Yeah, no, it's been a slow change over time.
Speaker:When there's just every once in a while he'd be like, hey, go get this thing.
Speaker:And it seemed out of place, but I thought he was just working on something that I didn't understand.
Speaker:You know, I don't get the technology as well as he does.
Speaker:It's just more and more of the things we get are out of character.
Speaker:And it irks me when I see someone who's similar to their previous self, but just a little different.
Speaker:It just throws me off.
Speaker:This fucker.
Speaker:It really makes me suspicious.
Speaker:This fucker.
Speaker:I know what you mean.
Speaker:Yeah, we've felt the same way sometimes.
Speaker:And I assume we're like at the door to the broken leg now?
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:And I kind of opened the door and motioned him in.
Speaker:You see a look of relief on Juniper's face.
Speaker:And I'm like wide-eyed at him.
Speaker:And I like, I kind of do what Ocean did.
Speaker:And I kind of like nodded my head towards him, towards Vesuvius.
Speaker:And I just kind of like give him like the keep an eye open simple head nod.
Speaker:Juniper goes, I see you got a new friend here.
Speaker:I am, I am really hoping that this is like a full the thing situation.
Speaker:I fucking love the thing.
Speaker:I want, I want the thing.
Speaker:Yeah, we ran into him before at when we were out looking for some stuff.
Speaker:And he was out walking around when we were coming back for our finding book.
Speaker:And figured we'd take him for a drink since we never got to talk too much when we first met him.
Speaker:I must admit I was a former employee of a warlord, but I'm hoping to turn to the lads at it.
Speaker:And that's Vesuvius?
Speaker:Yes, obviously.
Speaker:I am, I, can we say, can we retcon and say that on our way up the switchbacks, we like pointed out Frieda's art?
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Of Spade, of Spade specifically?
Speaker:Yep.
Speaker:I'm gonna, I turn to Vesuvius and I say, do you want to meet the person who inspired that mural there?
Speaker:Because as of we know, I know that that was Frieda's gift, her underhanded gift to Spade.
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:I'm always down to make new friends, and I think I should try to get ingratiated in the community.
Speaker:This is an important individual.
Speaker:I would greatly.
Speaker:So I am.
Speaker:Ran out of words there.
Speaker:Nice.
Speaker:It happens sometimes.
Speaker:I bring them over to Spade's corner and I introduce them.
Speaker:I'm not going to talk to myself, but thank you.
Speaker:Basically, what I'm because Spade.
Speaker:What are you trying to do?
Speaker:Spade is, you know, has that influence over people, and I want her to get him to give her information basically.
Speaker:Are you going to leave him?
Speaker:Or are you going to sit down with him?
Speaker:No, I'm going to sit down with him.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Spade will look at you and be like, I really like to deal with new people in like a one on one capacity.
Speaker:Well, this is my friend Vesuvius, and he and I only met once before, but I thought you might want to get to know him.
Speaker:And then I...
Speaker:I don't know what you mean by that, so I don't think Spade's gonna infer it.
Speaker:You said that like you meant it as some sort of code phrase.
Speaker:Yeah, meaning like, figure him out, get to know him, figure out his inform...
Speaker:I mean it like literally, but also like, I'm trying to indicate to her that there's like more than meets the eye here.
Speaker:Can Ocean kind of be hanging back behind, like where he's still within eyesight of Spade, but basically standing behind like Vesuvius and Book, so that way Vesuvius can't see any gestures that...
Speaker:And I am with Ocean, when Book says that, Ocean is gonna kind of like motion towards the guy and like raise his eyes and be like...
Speaker:To try and get across the fact that this guy is weird, we don't know what's going on here.
Speaker:Can I use that as a help roll?
Speaker:If he needs it.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:I have an eight.
Speaker:Eight?
Speaker:Do you want to help?
Speaker:Would you like me to push...
Speaker:See if I can push that over?
Speaker:Help it, help it.
Speaker:Let's help it, let's help it.
Speaker:I think I have...
Speaker:Let me check.
Speaker:I think I have like one history with you right now.
Speaker:You know what I just realized?
Speaker:That I read that situation, and I didn't hold...
Speaker:Oh wait, no, I didn't.
Speaker:Ocean.
Speaker:No, Ocean.
Speaker:Ocean.
Speaker:You read the situation.
Speaker:So you get plus one on roles that you make with that information.
Speaker:And I would say that this is a role that you make with that information, yes?
Speaker:Because...
Speaker:Talking to someone else?
Speaker:Yeah, no, because...
Speaker:Okay, hear me out.
Speaker:I'm gonna bridge...
Speaker:I'm gonna do a book and bridge the gap here.
Speaker:But Ocean read that situation because he was suspicious.
Speaker:He got information that made him more suspicious, and now we are acting on that suspicion.
Speaker:So he's acting on that answer, so he should take a plus one.
Speaker:And I don't think that he's rolled since that Rita situation.
Speaker:I don't think I've rolled since then.
Speaker:I don't know how long the holds last.
Speaker:Yeah, it's fine.
Speaker:It's normally for the situation, but it's okay.
Speaker:You can get plus one.
Speaker:We're still in the situation.
Speaker:So you get plus two.
Speaker:That's a 13.
Speaker:That's pretty good.
Speaker:I think you both get plus one with each other.
Speaker:I realized I don't cheat at board games, but I do try to manipulate the MC, so do that information what you want.
Speaker:Which is worse?
Speaker:I guess it depends.
Speaker:Spade starts talking to him, and she definitely tries to motion you guys to go away.
Speaker:Okay, I'll leave.
Speaker:Let's go talk to Juniper while she's talking to him.
Speaker:Yeah, I have some words to fuck.
Speaker:I got a bone to fucking pick.
Speaker:All right, we walk up to the bar.
Speaker:Well, you have...
Speaker:Oh shit, it's you two again.
Speaker:I got confused.
Speaker:I didn't think you'd be back here so quick.
Speaker:What happened?
Speaker:Where have you been?
Speaker:It's been days.
Speaker:Ocean got you pretty quick, though.
Speaker:That's good.
Speaker:You look like you got a...
Speaker:had a tussle.
Speaker:That shirt there is pretty torn up.
Speaker:I look hot, don't I?
Speaker:No, not what I said.
Speaker:I stare daggers at him.
Speaker:Oh, you know what?
Speaker:Is this entering a situation?
Speaker:You want to use your stern presence?
Speaker:I do.
Speaker:I want to know if he's been lying to me.
Speaker:I mean, I know that he's been lying to me.
Speaker:Or should I use, no, Ocean's here.
Speaker:I can't use compassionate presence.
Speaker:I'll use stern presence.
Speaker:Oh, shit.
Speaker:Well, that didn't go very well.
Speaker:Something else gets my attention.
Speaker:What else got me?
Speaker:I think, wait, I rolled plus hard, right?
Speaker:Yep.
Speaker:Okay, then yeah, I got a four.
Speaker:What gets my attention?
Speaker:Okay, how are you being stern to him?
Speaker:I'm going to, I look at him, I go, that video, you should have given that to me years ago.
Speaker:And then something catches my attention.
Speaker:Right when this is happening, the doors fly open, and you see that Pistachio Jones is walking in.
Speaker:Oh shit, Ocean's going to hunker down to try and kind of avoid, avoid being seen.
Speaker:He's going to go like, onto the bar.
Speaker:Give me a act under fire.
Speaker:Act under fire.
Speaker:That's a 12.
Speaker:Yeah, you are invisible.
Speaker:You just literally blend in.
Speaker:He looks like a barstool that's been flipped on its, on its top.
Speaker:The straps of your backpack look like the legs of a barstool.
Speaker:Yeah, maybe that's it.
Speaker:The straps of my backpack are just hiding me pretty well from my face.
Speaker:Right when he pushes the doors open, he goes, who the fuck is this?
Speaker:And jesters to the CVS.
Speaker:Who brought him here?
Speaker:I don't say anything.
Speaker:I don't say, I don't say shit.
Speaker:Oh, God, I'm not it.
Speaker:And Vesuvius stands up and he goes, I apologize if I am stepping on any social mores that I'm not aware of, but I am a good friend to Book and Ocean.
Speaker:And they have assured me that I can find a nice little place in your society.
Speaker:I bring many great strengths.
Speaker:I'm an excellent shot.
Speaker:I can stand watch for hours.
Speaker:I have an experience working with technology, but not a good understanding.
Speaker:I would say I'm proficient, but not in expertise.
Speaker:And Pistachio Jones is not happy with this.
Speaker:He looks for where he pointed at Ocean and he can't see for a second.
Speaker:So he turns the book and he goes, who is this person?
Speaker:Where did you find them?
Speaker:You know how dangerous it is to bring people from out of town.
Speaker:Listen, Pistachio, since I last saw you, I almost fucking died.
Speaker:Me too.
Speaker:No, no, no, I almost died again since I last saw you.
Speaker:When he says the me too, he hunkers down a little bit more.
Speaker:We've both almost died recently.
Speaker:In Subtropolis.
Speaker:It's a-
Speaker:Oh, I almost died in my home.
Speaker:Is that better or worse?
Speaker:What happened to you?
Speaker:Um, I don't know.
Speaker:And I use compassionate presence.
Speaker:You didn't hear the wonderful news that your friend tried to kill me.
Speaker:Oh, when you say home, you mean metaphorically.
Speaker:Now I know what happened there.
Speaker:No, what I mean is, Subtropolis is a dangerous place and Vesuvius came to us and he was scared and in pain and he asked us to give him a home.
Speaker:And then I look at Pistachio and my eyes go wide and I kind of like, I'm like, I look left and right and I'm like, I'm saying, I'm trying to indicate to him, like, we might have a common enemy, but everything that I'm telling you is true, is what I'm trying to claim.
Speaker:It's a hard thing to pass out with a gaze.
Speaker:Well, if you guys are staking your name to him, then that's okay.
Speaker:Any shit he pulls will fall back on you.
Speaker:We'll keep him in line.
Speaker:And then I look at him scared.
Speaker:I don't know what you're trying to convey.
Speaker:I'm scared.
Speaker:I almost died.
Speaker:He seems happy about this.
Speaker:He smiles and he heads back out.
Speaker:I want to motion over to Book after having my head down.
Speaker:Has he left?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I don't care anymore.
Speaker:That's not very helpful information, Book.
Speaker:And then I look.
Speaker:I'm still coming off of the morphine.
Speaker:I look.
Speaker:Has he left?
Speaker:Yes, he's gone.
Speaker:And then I ask Juniper for a drink to clear my head because that's what drinks do.
Speaker:Now, Book, I'm really sorry about keeping that video for so long, but I assure you it's what your parents would have wanted.
Speaker:No, no, no.
Speaker:He said months.
Speaker:He said months.
Speaker:It's been like a decade and a half.
Speaker:He said come after in months, Juniper, months.
Speaker:Do you know how many months it's been?
Speaker:I was going to send some prepubescent boy out there to track into the wilds.
Speaker:I couldn't leave.
Speaker:Not at that time.
Speaker:It was very volatile here.
Speaker:And he told me to only send you out when I knew you were ready, when I knew you would be safe, when I knew you could handle yourself out there.
Speaker:If you knew me so well, why did my dad think I was ready and you didn't?
Speaker:Well, I assure you, he did not know.
Speaker:He may have said weeks.
Speaker:That's probably when he would want to see you again.
Speaker:He certainly missed you while he's gone, but you were not ready to go out there by yourself.
Speaker:He would have killed me if I sent you out and something bad happened.
Speaker:And Book kind of grins his teeth because he knows all of this is true, but he still feels super fucking betrayed.
Speaker:Especially after having the vision where specifically his parents were mentioning that Juniper is the one that he can trust.
Speaker:He was basically the one that can help him out the most.
Speaker:And I'm thinking about all of that, and as I'm looking at him, my shoulders just slump, and I sit down on a bar stool and I say, why did you let them leave?
Speaker:Why did you let them leave me?
Speaker:They were convinced that they knew how to get out of here.
Speaker:You know, I'm sure you remember that they would always talk about going back to the surface.
Speaker:They had figured something out that made them believe that that was true, and they think they found a way to get back up there.
Speaker:Yeah, but they always talked about going together.
Speaker:Yeah, they would have obviously brought you if they could.
Speaker:Like, you know, like, you're old enough now, you understand.
Speaker:Like, the only options, they would have come back for you.
Speaker:The only options are you're not going to see them again, or they made it there and can't come back.
Speaker:Like, those are the only two things that could happen.
Speaker:Does Hickory know all this?
Speaker:We were all friends for a while, like, before we showed up here.
Speaker:And he knew what your parents were trying to do.
Speaker:He disagreed with it, but he doesn't know any of the details.
Speaker:I promise you, no one, even I haven't seen that video.
Speaker:So you're, I think, the first person to ever see it.
Speaker:Were they still friends when they left with Hickory?
Speaker:Eh, eh, ish.
Speaker:I'm just...
Speaker:Friends-ish.
Speaker:I just, I take a sip of my drink.
Speaker:I'm just really hoping I don't have to go asking him for a videotape after everything that happened.
Speaker:Oh, I don't think you would have, I don't think they would have given him one now.
Speaker:I think this was the only one they made before leaving.
Speaker:But there's more clues.
Speaker:They said so.
Speaker:They said in the...
Speaker:Oh, you haven't seen it.
Speaker:I, I, I'll show it to you later.
Speaker:I might, I might need your help figuring it out.
Speaker:You knew them better than I did, unfortunately.
Speaker:Man, yeah, they didn't tell me too much about where they're going, but they wanted to be real, real on the down low.
Speaker:Hmm.
Speaker:When can we, when can we meet to talk about this in private?
Speaker:I guess when the bar closes, you can stop by.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:I'll, I'll be here.
Speaker:And I want to check on Vesuvius and see what's going on there.
Speaker:He's, you turn around and he's halfway up to you and he's like, I have given her my finest gun.
Speaker:God damn it, Stu.
Speaker:Why did you do that, Vesuvius?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I just took a bit of a shot.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And it felt like something that I should do.
Speaker:She seems to have that effect on people.
Speaker:I saw them and I was like, I'm going to give them my finest gun.
Speaker:While Book and Vesuvius are talking, I'm going to assume Book kind of stood up and walked over and, you know, they met Vesuvius like halfway.
Speaker:Ocean wants to stay at the bar, and he's going to kind of take a drink of his drink, and he's going to look over at Juniper and say, Juniper, what did Book's parents do for this town?
Speaker:Oh, they did.
Speaker:They did all sorts of things.
Speaker:They were like they were the smart ones.
Speaker:You know, if anyone needed something figured out or even fixed up, Maggie was like real good with dealing with all that kind of the stuff you do a little bit, but she could create like these inventions that would just like revolutionize what we would do around town.
Speaker:Like she was so good working with machinery.
Speaker:I never understood any of it.
Speaker:Chucky was a little more like in his head.
Speaker:He had all the big plans, the ideas.
Speaker:He would like scope out like, hey, this is a good way to set up the infrastructure for power, be able to siphon off from the city and like that sort of high level planning.
Speaker:And then Maggie would go make it happen.
Speaker:She knew exactly what needed to be done, the little steps to take.
Speaker:So the biggest thing they probably did was get us our original hookup to the power down in Subtropolis.
Speaker:But they did all sorts of things around town.
Speaker:But they always, even before we got here, like when we met up, we were all, we all came from different backgrounds, different places, but they always talked about trying to get to the surface.
Speaker:And how did Hickory come to be involved with them?
Speaker:I apologize for asking all these questions, but I'm not really...
Speaker:A lot of exposition in this one.
Speaker:A lot of exposition.
Speaker:So I guess to be more clear about it, me, Maggie, Chuckie and Hickory all met in a caravan as we're trying to go through the long dark.
Speaker:There's, you know, stuff happens.
Speaker:Groups break up, towns collapse.
Speaker:And all of us were coming from different places.
Speaker:But we all met up in a long range caravan that was going through the long dark.
Speaker:And it was mostly people trying to find good places to stop.
Speaker:And no one could ever come to a good agreement on places to be.
Speaker:But a big chunk of us decided that being near this city was a smart thing to do.
Speaker:Maggie was like super excited about some of the still working.
Speaker:We came up upon that overlook down there near the switchbacks.
Speaker:And the city was dark and then it hit noon, and all those lights started coming on.
Speaker:And she was like so excited.
Speaker:She was like, that means there's this here.
Speaker:If that automatically came on, that means some computer thing, you know?
Speaker:She was really excited about all that.
Speaker:So she convinced most of us to stay here.
Speaker:Hickory was pretty excited about that too.
Speaker:But that's kind of how we met the first time.
Speaker:I, like my partial namesake, RJ McCready from The Thing, I am going to offer Vesuvius my drink.
Speaker:Your alcohol drink?
Speaker:I think I got like a whiskey straight.
Speaker:He picks it up and he takes a sip and he goes, That is a refreshing beverage.
Speaker:Thank you for that.
Speaker:One day when I'm incorporated in this society, I will be able to pay you back.
Speaker:No problem.
Speaker:For all you listeners who can't see, Brady leaned in very close and very slowly to his mic before saying that.
Speaker:It was a pregnant pause.
Speaker:Did I see any like sparks come out of his mouth when he drank it?
Speaker:No.
Speaker:No.
Speaker:Seemed normal.
Speaker:Is it just Vesuvius?
Speaker:What do you mean?
Speaker:Is it literally Vesuvius?
Speaker:I don't...
Speaker:his voice is definitely different.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:I said that a while ago.
Speaker:You said I didn't fuck up his voice.
Speaker:And I thought you were saying like...
Speaker:I thought that was you saying it's not intentionally different.
Speaker:I just don't know.
Speaker:You know what I'm saying?
Speaker:Whereas like if you'd said I fucked up his voice on purpose, like that would have been...
Speaker:But I get it.
Speaker:I understand.
Speaker:I understand.
Speaker:OK, so...
Speaker:How do you tiptoe around asking him why?
Speaker:Oh, wait, wait, wait.
Speaker:He just said that he gave home girl, his home girl, home person, his finest gun, right?
Speaker:Can I see any other weapons on him?
Speaker:Not right now.
Speaker:You don't see any.
Speaker:OK, that's good.
Speaker:Because we're not supposed to have weapons in here even though I have a weapon in here.
Speaker:But I also...
Speaker:Oh, that's an interesting use for Spade.
Speaker:She just takes every...
Speaker:She enforces the rule by just convincing everyone to give her their guns.
Speaker:I turn to him and I say, So, you sound different.
Speaker:What do you mean?
Speaker:Just your voice, your mannerisms, your, you know, the way that you're saying certain words.
Speaker:They...
Speaker:You must have really been spooked by that body you saw.
Speaker:I do not know what you're talking about, but I was very spooked by the discovery of that corpse.
Speaker:I look at his mouth.
Speaker:Are his teeth normal?
Speaker:Like a horse?
Speaker:No, no, no, no, like as he's saying words, like are his teeth normal?
Speaker:Does he have a normal tongue?
Speaker:Like, does he have saliva?
Speaker:Are you fucking kidding me?
Speaker:I shoot him.
Speaker:I shoot him with my gun.
Speaker:I'm not kidding.
Speaker:Wait, really?
Speaker:Yes, no, I'm kidding.
Speaker:Hold on, hold on.
Speaker:Is he wearing the same clothes he was wearing before?
Speaker:They're very similar.
Speaker:Not exactly the same, but definitely similar.
Speaker:I'm going to say, so where did you get all that jerky?
Speaker:Well, when you, when you, from you.
Speaker:That's a weird question.
Speaker:I just wouldn't expect that you still have any.
Speaker:Well, I liked it so much, I wanted to try to save it.
Speaker:I've been tearing off like little, little tiny pieces and putting them in my mouth for hours.
Speaker:How do I get him to fucking expose himself?
Speaker:Okay, hold on.
Speaker:Okay, I need a riddle.
Speaker:I need one of those like riddles that you can't solve.
Speaker:Have you ever heard of the ship of Theseus?
Speaker:I have not heard of the ship of Theseus.
Speaker:That word sounds a lot like your name, doesn't it?
Speaker:Yeah, a little bit.
Speaker:Well, the concept is if you repair a ship enough, for long enough, eventually you'll basically replace every piece of it, right?
Speaker:Yeah, over enough years and time and effort.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:A lot of blood, sweat and tears, a lot of trees.
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:Exactly.
Speaker:So then the question becomes, is that still the same ship?
Speaker:Is that still the same ship?
Speaker:And then further, if you reassemble all of the pieces of the boat that you removed in order to repair it.
Speaker:We have two ships.
Speaker:But which one is the real ship of Theseus?
Speaker:Well, which one has the official registration?
Speaker:That's a really fucking good...
Speaker:That is the real answer.
Speaker:Let's say they're both unregistered.
Speaker:Oh shit.
Speaker:Having two unregistered vessels, that would be quite a risk.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Hmm.
Speaker:That is a conundrum.
Speaker:I would say that new one is probably more likely to be the one made from new parts, because that's what you started with, right?
Speaker:That old one's probably all busted.
Speaker:It's got holes in it, rotten wood, missing nails.
Speaker:So that's more of like, if I collected all of your skin, leavens and hair from every haircut and reassembled it in some sort of putty monster, I would be like, which one is real book?
Speaker:I would probably say it's you.
Speaker:Right.
Speaker:Like, not the leavens of you, not your toenail clippings and hair.
Speaker:Now let me ask you another question.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:Let's say you didn't repair the ship of Theseus.
Speaker:Let's say you destroyed it, but you had an exact copy.
Speaker:Is that the ship of Theseus still?
Speaker:No, I think that would be like its brother ship, like a twinsies situation, is my personal opinion.
Speaker:I understand the thought experiment, and I'm like, yeah, it's some sort of hypothetical, but for the way I live my life, I would probably say that that's a different ship.
Speaker:So what does that make you?
Speaker:I'm Vesuvius.
Speaker:I don't have a ship.
Speaker:Are you threatening me about my permits for my vessels that I do not own?
Speaker:It started so good.
Speaker:I'm asking you what you did with Vesuvius.
Speaker:Give me a read a person.
Speaker:I like that, though, just like blunt, trying to trick them up and then just flat out being like, what did you do with them?
Speaker:I thought the ship Theseus was a good...
Speaker:I think it was great, except he kept deflating it all.
Speaker:You said sway someone or read someone?
Speaker:Read someone.
Speaker:You can hold two of those.
Speaker:These ones you can use whenever you want.
Speaker:You don't have to tell me all three right now.
Speaker:So right now, he's going to respond to that by saying, I assure you, I am Vesuvius.
Speaker:I'm the same Vesuvius that you know and love.
Speaker:I know we don't have a big history, but I'm sorry I'm not living up to expectations or you're suspicious.
Speaker:I know you've had a rough time.
Speaker:You've been on a lot of medicine and experienced some of the horrors of the Sackic maelstrom, but I am Vesuvius.
Speaker:Are you telling the truth?
Speaker:Is that your question you're asking?
Speaker:Yeah, I'm spending a hold.
Speaker:Are you telling the truth?
Speaker:Hell yeah.
Speaker:What are you...
Speaker:I guess I don't want to spend my other hold yet, so never mind.
Speaker:So what are the questions just so that we can let everybody know?
Speaker:Oh, true.
Speaker:That's a good point.
Speaker:And also so that Jacob can help me figure out what the fuck to ask this guy.
Speaker:So I say, so the first question is, are you telling the truth?
Speaker:Then what are you feeling?
Speaker:What are you thinking of doing?
Speaker:What do you hope I will do?
Speaker:And how could I get you to do X?
Speaker:So he clearly believes that he is Vesuvius.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:I got to figure out what his deal is.
Speaker:How could I get you to turn off?
Speaker:Like, should I ask something?
Speaker:But I don't know.
Speaker:Did you tell me about your vision when we were walking Ocean?
Speaker:Can we retcon that?
Speaker:Sure, we can say that I was talking about it.
Speaker:Are you OK with that, Stu?
Speaker:Yeah, no.
Speaker:You could do it the same time you told him about the Humvee people.
Speaker:Yes, yeah.
Speaker:That makes actually a sense that when you're talking about when I was telling you about the Humvee people and why we need to leave, then I also explained what I saw and the vision and the code and me able to get into the room.
Speaker:I just tell you the whole thing about what occurred.
Speaker:OK, so I asked Vesuvius, so also Jacob, feel free to jump in because I don't want to like monopolize this conversation.
Speaker:But I ask him like, OK, so I say, OK, I believe you.
Speaker:But I, whoa, what's happened since I last saw you?
Speaker:Like everything, like tell me, tell me everything.
Speaker:Well, that was about two and a half weeks ago, I believe.
Speaker:Is that right?
Speaker:Yeah, that's right.
Speaker:Well, most of those days were fairly uneventful.
Speaker:I'm most frequently just posted on the nighttime watch.
Speaker:So about 12 hours a day, I stand in my one little spot, shine my one little light out.
Speaker:But sometimes I am called to go on some raids or to collect some difficult to access things because I was one of Crandall's best shots.
Speaker:But I'll participate in, I did a couple of recoveries in that time.
Speaker:And then about, I would like to say, two days ago, a day or two ago, I just suddenly, like, we had been putting off tracking down that transponder because we knew that she had passed.
Speaker:And it wasn't much to do.
Speaker:Some people are like, yeah, we can collect weapon, but no one wanted to see that.
Speaker:So we had put it off for a few days, at least at that point.
Speaker:But I was like, you know, I'm kind of done with this situation.
Speaker:I want to go check on, put it to rest, and just get away from Crandall.
Speaker:It was definitely a turning point in my life that I've had in the last couple days.
Speaker:That's the only thing that stands out to me.
Speaker:Did any of those raids go bad?
Speaker:Did you get captured?
Speaker:Do you have any memory missing?
Speaker:Do you have any time missing?
Speaker:They're all pretty straightforward.
Speaker:I do not think I remember everything that happened.
Speaker:The only time missing is when I sleep.
Speaker:Jacob, should I spend another hold?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I don't know what more we can get from this guy.
Speaker:The thing is, is that like, he clearly thinks he's Vesuvius, but I'm pretty certain that he's not.
Speaker:So I guess, yeah, I'll ask him, okay, so what are you thinking of doing?
Speaker:What's your plan for being here?
Speaker:What's your goal?
Speaker:You know, I do honestly want to just incorporate myself in this society, and I really want to become a useful member and kind of be able to stand on my own.
Speaker:Like, I know that sounds contradictory, but with Crandall's Man, it was always, everything's going to everyone.
Speaker:Like, we're a team doing this.
Speaker:Like, I want to help out, have a good society, but be able to build my own homestead.
Speaker:And I think this is a good place for me to do that.
Speaker:But with that role you made, you're able to tell there's something that he doesn't really understand that he also wants to do.
Speaker:Like, he was, it seemed like he was fighting between some of those words to like, like there's another step on something he needs to do.
Speaker:That he doesn't understand it, but you think there's more to it than that.
Speaker:Should we just watch him, you think?
Speaker:Well, so I want to know, I want to know about his conversation with Spade, because like if anyone would have been able to get him to say more, it would have been them.
Speaker:So I look at Spade, and I want to know if she like motions or does anything.
Speaker:Yeah, they don't seem like alarmed or like, hey, you need to go over here.
Speaker:But when they see you look over there, they kind of just raise their eyebrows a little bit like, okay, I like blank face eyebrow raise.
Speaker:I walk up to Spade.
Speaker:So actually, sorry, I don't want to just like leave Vesuvius hanging.
Speaker:I'm like, all right, but we can definitely help you out.
Speaker:Excellent.
Speaker:Were you going to say something Ocean?
Speaker:I was about to say when I see books start heading towards Spade, Ocean, be like, here, come take a seat at the bar with me.
Speaker:Let's get some drinks.
Speaker:Yes, let's get them drunk.
Speaker:That's actually a good idea.
Speaker:No, I'm serious.
Speaker:Let's get them drunk.
Speaker:Sure, let's get them drunk.
Speaker:Let's get them hammered because I'm supposed to be there until close anyway, right, to talk to fucking Juniper.
Speaker:So let's burn our batteries.
Speaker:Yeah, I'll bring them over and be like, all right here.
Speaker:I say that out loud.
Speaker:So when I see you just because Ocean was basically wanting to distract him.
Speaker:So that way you could go talk to Spade without getting interrupted without him following you or anything like that.
Speaker:So if he comes and sits down, then I'll be like, all right here.
Speaker:Let's let's talk about finding a place for you to sleep tonight.
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:And then we'll jump over and speak.
Speaker:Yeah, he seemed just like a little weird, but nothing like crazy.
Speaker:Something.
Speaker:I don't think he's human.
Speaker:I didn't get that read.
Speaker:What do you mean?
Speaker:Like part of the psychic maelstrom?
Speaker:No, I, um, I because Vesuvius.
Speaker:So I give her the backstory.
Speaker:I tell her Vesuvius is a real person who we met, but that's definitely not Vesuvius.
Speaker:And Ocean had, well, this is going to sound dumb.
Speaker:But you, I mean, you, you're weird.
Speaker:You know what, you know how stuff goes.
Speaker:Ocean had a vision about doppelgangers, like they seemingly like clones or robots that have people's features, but they're, they have weird eyes.
Speaker:Well, that is definitely a little concerning if you think this guy's a doppelganger.
Speaker:I've never heard of anything like that.
Speaker:Do you know where that would have come from, how that happened?
Speaker:The only thing I know is that, well, I guess I should tell you, last time we talked, you asked me how I knew about the psychic maelstrom, and I know because I've been in it, and now I've been in it three times, and I've also been to a place that I think only exists in the psychic maelstrom, and it's full of technology.
Speaker:And Ocean's Vision, I think that's where it happened.
Speaker:I think Ocean's Vision was real, and I think it happened there, because he used information from his vision to get into that psychic building, and that's all I know.
Speaker:So that's what you mean when you say it's man-made, so you think this building is making the psychic maelstrom.
Speaker:I get what you've been telling me this whole time.
Speaker:I don't know if the building's making it, but it definitely channels it.
Speaker:And then I, while I'm here, I turn to her, and I use Compassionate Presence.
Speaker:Why are you using Compassionate Presence?
Speaker:Because the last time, two times ago, when I saw her, she said she needed my help, and I want to know what she needs my help for, and I'm not going to get that info.
Speaker:Well, Compassionate Presence doesn't tell you.
Speaker:It tells her if she's holding onto pain.
Speaker:You could just ask her.
Speaker:Okay, fine, Spade.
Speaker:Yeah, okay, so I say, yeah, so things are just weird right now, but listen, you're interesting, and I want to know more about you.
Speaker:What's going on?
Speaker:What do you want?
Speaker:What do you need?
Speaker:Well, we really need to get into that tower, I think.
Speaker:It seems like that's a very important kind of focal point, at least, like you mentioned.
Speaker:So I think we figured out a way to track that down, and you said it's tied to the Psychic Maelstrom, and that's related to some of these Talephal Gangers.
Speaker:Maybe we could leverage Vesuvius, fake Vesuvius, fake Suvius.
Speaker:Is that good?
Speaker:Yeah, I'm here for it.
Speaker:Maybe we could leverage fake Suvius to figure out a way to return there and kind of figure out what it's channeling and where it comes from, and then we'll know how we created it.
Speaker:I mean, I actually think that's a really good plan, but I meant more like when you first got here, like what was your plan?
Speaker:Oh, that shit doesn't matter anymore.
Speaker:You told me we made the Psychic Maelstrom.
Speaker:That's huge.
Speaker:I don't think you understand the implications of that.
Speaker:No, that's why...
Speaker:And Book is confused, but he knows what's going on.
Speaker:He can tell that she's obsessed with what he told her, but he's also confused because, you know, it's obviously a totally different vibe from his first conversation with her.
Speaker:And so I said, yeah, but Spade, you looked like you needed help.
Speaker:I'm telling you, all of that is small fries compared to this Psychic Maelstrom thing.
Speaker:I've been trying to work out some stuff, and they flip over the tablecloth, and they have a crazy person board.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:Oh, my God.
Speaker:You ruined them by telling them that truth.
Speaker:They're now obsessed with that truth, not you.
Speaker:Oh, God.
Speaker:I think, oh, my God, I've created a monster.
Speaker:So I look at the board.
Speaker:Is it good?
Speaker:Does it have any good info on it?
Speaker:It's pretty good.
Speaker:It's nothing you don't know yet, because most of it is like second hand.
Speaker:But when they turn it over, they start using one of the crayons from the drawing to draw out the things you talk about just now.
Speaker:And like adding in fake Suvius to it, and some connections and the visions that Ocean's been having.
Speaker:So I say, Spade, I want to figure this out too, and I'm going to help you.
Speaker:But I need to know what's going on.
Speaker:And I want to sway her.
Speaker:I want to sway someone.
Speaker:And I want to sway her to tell me what she needed my help with.
Speaker:Give me a sway roll.
Speaker:Oh man, that ability used really kind of...
Speaker:Seven.
Speaker:I don't know why you're trying to focus on my past.
Speaker:There's nothing there that will help with this problem.
Speaker:Like, yeah, I've done some crazy weird things.
Speaker:And the stuff I was tracking down here does have some pretty big implications.
Speaker:But someone else can deal with that.
Speaker:This sort of thing, I think literally, me, you and maybe Ocean and fake Suvius are the only people who are going to be able to track down how we made the psychic maelstrom.
Speaker:If we figure that out, we could figure out maybe how to stop it or maybe how to use it as some sort of communication device, energy source, anything like that.
Speaker:Like, I don't know why you care about my past and that, like, you shouldn't.
Speaker:Spade, I got to be honest, I agree with all that.
Speaker:And I want your help figuring this out.
Speaker:But I have to be honest with you, you're one of my mysteries too.
Speaker:You have a way with people.
Speaker:You seem to hold a degree of control over them.
Speaker:And that's something that I want to figure out too.
Speaker:Yeah, but the psychic maelstrom controls not just people, it controls everything.
Speaker:Like, everything.
Speaker:Maybe.
Speaker:I don't think you understand.
Speaker:I don't know that we know that yet.
Speaker:Look, I will...
Speaker:Let me work on my charts here.
Speaker:And I'll try to explain to you why this is so important.
Speaker:I know you say you get it.
Speaker:I know you say you understand, but I really don't think you do.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:There's connections you're not seeing yet.
Speaker:I'm listening.
Speaker:Well, I kind of work on that.
Speaker:Oh, okay.
Speaker:Okay, so on a seven to nine...
Speaker:They start crying out in a line.
Speaker:They still have to tell me shit on a seven to nine.
Speaker:No.
Speaker:Read what a ten plus is.
Speaker:On a ten plus, they have to choose, set reserve and skepticism aside and go along with you, or else explain to you why they must refuse.
Speaker:Okay, so you're telling me a seven to nine forces them to tell you, but a ten plus doesn't.
Speaker:Whatever.
Speaker:Well, fuck you.
Speaker:From the bottom of my heart.
Speaker:You created this.
Speaker:Yeah, I guess.
Speaker:Actually, you created this.
Speaker:This fucking, you created the character.
Speaker:No, not this character.
Speaker:I created the other one.
Speaker:Whatever.
Speaker:Whatever.
Speaker:Whatever.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:Well, you work on that and I'll circle back with you and I promise you, we'll track that all down.
Speaker:Yeah, I will.
Speaker:I will have it laid out much more cleanly.
Speaker:I'm sorry about this.
Speaker:I'll get something that's not.
Speaker:No, no, it's good.
Speaker:It's good.
Speaker:I imagine her like when she's drawing, she's like.
Speaker:So Jacob just mined.
Speaker:He's got his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth and he's holding the crayon like a child holds a fork.
Speaker:And he was dragging it across like a madman.
Speaker:It was very funny.
Speaker:Anyway, so then I walk back up to the bar and you can jump back in time and show what happened in between.
Speaker:Like last time, they're just going.
Speaker:I'm going to say while the conversation is going on, they're like, so where do you plan on staying?
Speaker:Vesuvius, do you have any batteries or anything like that?
Speaker:I must admit, I do not have any way of staying.
Speaker:I hear that.
Speaker:I go, yeah, Vesuvius, do you have any batteries like inside of you?
Speaker:You fucking robot.
Speaker:I don't say that.
Speaker:I'm going to look over.
Speaker:I assure you, I do not know anything.
Speaker:Any place that is safe for you.
Speaker:Are batteries the form of exchange that you use?
Speaker:Yeah, that's our main course.
Speaker:Here, I'm going to give you enough batteries to put you up for the night in a nice hotel.
Speaker:And then tomorrow, we'll go looking for a job.
Speaker:But in the meanwhile, here, I'm going to slide more drinks to him.
Speaker:Oh, thank you so much.
Speaker:And he will continue.
Speaker:Did you give him the batteries as well?
Speaker:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker:I'm going to give him enough batteries to stay at a night at a hotel that we pick out.
Speaker:He eats them and goes, batteries on my phone.
Speaker:Oh, I'm kidding, because my logic for that is I don't want him staying with us.
Speaker:So I when I finally walked back up, I nudge Ocean and I, I, I leaned into him and I was like, we should.
Speaker:Hey, Ocean, we should.
Speaker:Do you remember that drink that the boxcar kids tried to children could try to give you?
Speaker:We should try to get one of those for him.
Speaker:Because I can tell that he is stone cold.
Speaker:So I'm going to turn to Vesuvius and be like, you look like you can hold your liquor pretty good.
Speaker:Do you want to try a real challenging drink?
Speaker:I'm always up for a challenge.
Speaker:I'm going to look over like most people would.
Speaker:I'm going to look over to Juniper and I'm like, hey, pour me some of the boxcar as usual.
Speaker:Give me two.
Speaker:Oh, shit.
Speaker:And then I lean in and I say three.
Speaker:Three.
Speaker:I promised you that.
Speaker:Do you actually want one?
Speaker:Ocean's going to take it.
Speaker:If we're all having one, he makes three.
Speaker:Everyone roll act under fire.
Speaker:Oh, shit.
Speaker:I just feel like Ocean would want to take it to not show, you know, he's still trying to make Vesuvius feel like we're not, you know, suspicious of him.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Act under fire.
Speaker:That is an 11 for a whole ocean.
Speaker:Nice.
Speaker:Yeah, that was a seven for me.
Speaker:Can I can I say that I tossed it behind my head?
Speaker:Yes, in a way, with a seven, it's got to be a little bit.
Speaker:I'm going to say no, I'm going to say that I drank like half of it and then throw away the rest.
Speaker:You tasted it.
Speaker:You tasted it.
Speaker:It was terrible.
Speaker:And you like discreetly dumped out the remainder of it.
Speaker:Ocean, you're able to down it.
Speaker:It is bad.
Speaker:It definitely tastes like there's gasoline in it.
Speaker:What does Vesuvius say about it?
Speaker:Because this is the actual this is the actual fucking McCready move from the thing.
Speaker:Vesuvius drinks all of it and he goes, that was one of the most foul tasting beverages I have ever experienced.
Speaker:But you do see like he did not have nearly as strong of like a reaction as you guys did to it.
Speaker:But he was like, please do not want to one of those again.
Speaker:That was not alcohol.
Speaker:I'm pretty sure that was gasoline.
Speaker:I don't know what they put in that thing, but I assure you, I don't plan on drinking another.
Speaker:And Juniper goes, there's only like a really small amount of gasoline.
Speaker:You're probably okay.
Speaker:It's a safer human consumption.
Speaker:It's the battery acid you got of a worst worry about.
Speaker:But yeah, he Vesuvius does not seem to react to the drink, you said?
Speaker:Not as much as you would expect.
Speaker:He definitely like makes like a who face, but like not immediately spitting it out or anything like that.
Speaker:Just do real Constitution.
Speaker:Is he still is he still sober?
Speaker:I don't have dice.
Speaker:I was just kidding.
Speaker:Is he still sober?
Speaker:He seems sober still.
Speaker:He seems less drunk than you guys definitely.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:Especially if Ocean's keeping up.
Speaker:Yeah, Ocean has been drinking, keeping up exactly with him.
Speaker:So.
Speaker:Oh, shit.
Speaker:Well, that was dumb.
Speaker:Yeah, Ocean's Ocean's Ocean's.
Speaker:Well, I've only had two and a half or one and a half.
Speaker:So I guess I guess we'll figure this the fuck out.
Speaker:I guess we just got to wait and see Ocean.
Speaker:But Spade can still use her powers to try to get Vesuvius to help us, even if it's, you know.
Speaker:So anyway, I feel like I feel like we have like an idea of how to move forward.
Speaker:I'm just trying to figure out like if we put him in a hotel, like he can still just leave and like wreak havoc.
Speaker:Like, I don't know how soon his robot plans are gonna unfurl, you know.
Speaker:And like if he is like the thing monster, like if he gets out and starts biting people or eating people, he could make more of him and it would take over the whole fucking town.
Speaker:You know what I'm saying?
Speaker:Do we?
Speaker:I think we should kill him and dissect his body.
Speaker:I don't think we should kill him.
Speaker:But OK, so I turned to Ocean and I'm hoping that he like blocks in between him and Vesuvius.
Speaker:I'm just going like, that's not Vesuvius, right?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:If it's not Vesuvius, then we shouldn't care if it dies.
Speaker:I'm not saying I want to do this.
Speaker:I am just saying something is going the fuck on right now.
Speaker:That's not Vesuvius.
Speaker:I know it.
Speaker:You know it.
Speaker:I'm just saying I think there could be pretty dire consequences if we just let him loose tonight.
Speaker:I'm wondering even like maybe he should stay with us.
Speaker:I was just about to say, do you think I should keep him in my place?
Speaker:Yeah, but don't let him bite you or anything.
Speaker:I don't know how.
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I don't.
Speaker:I'm still on morphine.
Speaker:I got to be honest.
Speaker:I am.
Speaker:So Ocean has a plan, but he doesn't want to say it out loud for Spesuvius to keep to hear it, for if he comes back to Ocean's place.
Speaker:So look, I'll keep him at my place and I'll keep an eye on him.
Speaker:You're going to wink at me?
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And I like I'm still.
Speaker:I promise I will not let him leave.
Speaker:I will make sure he is safely under my watch during the time that he is here.
Speaker:And you are absolutely not supposed to make some morphine and alcohol.
Speaker:Definitely not morphine and gasoline.
Speaker:No.
Speaker:So I am like I'm I'm like, I'm feeling something.
Speaker:I don't know what it is.
Speaker:So I sit down on the stool and I ask for a water.
Speaker:Ocean will leave at this point.
Speaker:Ocean like here, June here.
Speaker:You know what?
Speaker:I wouldn't make a friend stay at a hotel.
Speaker:You can stay at my place.
Speaker:Well, I really appreciate it.
Speaker:It seems like you may need some assistance getting back anyway.
Speaker:Take my arm and he holds his arm out.
Speaker:We'll take it.
Speaker:And he will walk you back home.
Speaker:You're a little you're not like Slash Monster, but you're definitely pretty pretty tipsy if you're trying to check to see if he was.
Speaker:So here's Ocean's plan.
Speaker:Ocean plans.
Speaker:OK, so this is going to require me to have planned out Ocean's house.
Speaker:And so I'm coming up with ideas and I think his house is decently small.
Speaker:I think it's basically the equivalent of like a two bedroom house.
Speaker:Tiny rooms, so like shacks, each room probably about the size of like a walk in closet and then like a middle living area that has like stuff sprawled everywhere that he keeps all his things.
Speaker:I don't think he has probably he probably has like one bed.
Speaker:But his plan is to put Vesuvius in one of the rooms and then lock Vesuvius in there while he's sleeping.
Speaker:When you said you had a plan, I was like, oh boy, what do we got?
Speaker:Ocean's fucking scheming here.
Speaker:Ocean's not.
Speaker:I think your plan is to lock the room.
Speaker:I love it.
Speaker:Lock him into another room and I'm going to sleep or I'll stay out at night and watch him.
Speaker:Nice.
Speaker:That way he can't leave.
Speaker:But if I fall asleep, he...
Speaker:Okay, you are staying up all night, but you're also watching.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:Okay, give me one act under fire to see if you stay awake.
Speaker:Okay, and this is to see how he basically, the behavior he does at night.
Speaker:So that is going to be a six.
Speaker:A six.
Speaker:You fall asleep pretty quick.
Speaker:Oh, damn it.
Speaker:And he shakes you awake and goes, excuse me, I need a charger for my SDC phone.
Speaker:No, you lock the door and fall asleep.
Speaker:And we're going to jump back to book.
Speaker:But you actually wake up to him knocking on the door going, excuse me, excuse me, door seems to be locked.
Speaker:Okay, back at the broken leg.
Speaker:Most of the bar stools are up on the tables.
Speaker:And it looks like Ocean is still there.
Speaker:You think it's Ocean?
Speaker:You've been buying him drinks all night.
Speaker:But it's really just a bar stool.
Speaker:And then Pistachio pokes his head at it.
Speaker:So I showed Juniper the video.
Speaker:You see he actually gets a little teary-eyed when he sees Charles up on the screen.
Speaker:And he goes, shit, he did say months.
Speaker:Well, I have no idea what he's talking about.
Speaker:If you're asking me for help with that weird little riddle thing he said at the end.
Speaker:Did that rhyme?
Speaker:I don't know if he meant to rhyme, but it kind of rhymed.
Speaker:I don't remember what it was.
Speaker:Can you repeat it?
Speaker:Yeah, it was the last place we'll go is a place that the only place written about by both Virginia Woolf and Edgar Allan Poe.
Speaker:So a little peek behind the curtain.
Speaker:I, Brady McDonough, have read a fair bit of Edgar Allan Poe, but zero Virginia Woolf.
Speaker:But I think Book would have read both.
Speaker:It's a matter of...
Speaker:Yeah, I imagine he'd have to have.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Yeah, he wouldn't have given that sort of hint if he didn't think it was something he would have read.
Speaker:So I'm going to give you a custom move sharp roll to be able to...
Speaker:Oh, also, previous session, I was doing custom moves for The Investigation, but didn't call it out specifically.
Speaker:But this is going to be a custom move sharp roll to see how I'm going to, what sort of clues I'll give you.
Speaker:And then we're going to give Brady McDonough, the actor behind the character book, a set amount of time to go use the power of Google to try to figure out.
Speaker:Is that the name of the move, Power of Google?
Speaker:Yes, that's the custom move, Power of Google.
Speaker:So give me a sharp roll.
Speaker:Or is the custom move the hint?
Speaker:The custom move is the hint I'll give you based on that.
Speaker:And then I'm going to set a timer and you have that much time to figure it out or you're going to have to get some external help.
Speaker:Okay, that's fine.
Speaker:All right, sharp roll.
Speaker:Okay, that's two threes plus two.
Speaker:That was an eight.
Speaker:Okay, mixed success.
Speaker:You're going to have five minutes to search the Google.
Speaker:I'm going to tell you your dad knew what age you were and the the time frame he was talking about, like if he really said months, he wouldn't expect you to be like a full ass adult with an encyclopedic knowledge of things.
Speaker:So he would expect it to be something that's pretty surface level for those two writers.
Speaker:So I'm going to say, you know, your dad, you know, being smart are going to realize it's going to be talking about something that's in a title of both an Edgar Allan Poe book or short story and a Virginia Woolf book.
Speaker:You gave me too much of a similar.
Speaker:That's not too much of a hint.
Speaker:Okay, wait, can you say the riddle again so I can write it down?
Speaker:It's not a riddle.
Speaker:It's a slightly veiled clue.
Speaker:Whatever.
Speaker:If something goes wrong and you need to track us down, the first place we'll go is one of the few places written about by Virginia Woolf and Edgar Allan Poe.
Speaker:He did not mean it to rhyme, but it did.
Speaker:Wait, what part rhymes?
Speaker:The first place that we will go is one of the few places written about by Virginia Woolf and Edgar Allan Poe.
Speaker:It's not a good rhyme, not good meter.
Speaker:Did you know that Virginia Woolf is spelled with two O's?
Speaker:I didn't, I was just moving.
Speaker:Okay, I just learned that I should have started the timer three months ago.
Speaker:You're typing the um…
Speaker:Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Speaker:Mm-hmm.
Speaker:Okay, the timer is on, we're cutting all of this out of the episode.
Speaker:There's going to be Jeopardy music, and then me saying Urn.
Speaker:Time's up if you haven't found it.
Speaker:Just to compare and contrast.
Speaker:If you think you have the right answer, I'll let you roll in a sister roll to tell him.
Speaker:If he can't figure it out.
Speaker:So if after five minutes he doesn't have it and you think you have it.
Speaker:Okay, time's up, pencil's down, everyone.
Speaker:Do you have any guess before Ocean Rolls and Assist?
Speaker:Because if you get it right first, I'll tell you.
Speaker:And then you can choose if you want to go with Oceans or not.
Speaker:The problem is that I did not see a single thing that they wrote that had similar titles, but I also found it very difficult to find their full actual list of books, which makes me feel dumb.
Speaker:Yeah, in a way, what you did is harder than what Book has to do, because he has a finite number of books, right?
Speaker:Let me think about what's around here.
Speaker:Oh, so we've got the long dark.
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:Should I guess?
Speaker:Okay, roll, roll a help.
Speaker:You can guess and then Jacob can help if you want.
Speaker:Let me roll my assist.
Speaker:Oh, God.
Speaker:Okay, that's actually really good.
Speaker:That's nine.
Speaker:But ocean's not there.
Speaker:A nine, okay.
Speaker:You can tell him with your nine.
Speaker:You can tell him your answer, but you can't justify it at all.
Speaker:Okay, the lighthouse.
Speaker:Oh, that's what I was going to guess.
Speaker:No, I-
Speaker:Yeah, it's a likely story.
Speaker:Is that your final answer?
Speaker:So I saw that in Edgar on Pose, and I was like, well, a lighthouse is something that I could potentially, like that's a landmark, you know?
Speaker:But then I didn't see anything light housey on Virginia Woolf's side.
Speaker:So I'm Googling that.
Speaker:Fuck you.
Speaker:No, I'm saying lighthouse.
Speaker:I agree with that.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Okay, that is correct.
Speaker:She actually has two, I think.
Speaker:One, I think is just called the lighthouse, and then one is the lighthouse.
Speaker:Two, the lighthouse is the one that I was found.
Speaker:Do I know of any lighthouses?
Speaker:You do not.
Speaker:Cool.
Speaker:But I do remember.
Speaker:Oh, you know what?
Speaker:But I do remember seeing that mysterious light in the long dark.
Speaker:Yeah, that's what I was just about to say.
Speaker:There's the mysterious light in the long dark.
Speaker:And also, maybe she means by the lighthouse, as in where Hickory keeps the light.
Speaker:The power.
Speaker:You should play book.
Speaker:Book.
Speaker:Hey guys, Jacob here.
Speaker:Thanks for listening to this week's episode of Oops!
Speaker:All Apocalypses.
Speaker:As always, give us a like, give us a subscribe, give us some emails if you liked what you heard.
Speaker:Our days are literally made every single time one of you guys reach out to us.
Speaker:So from the bottom of our hearts, we appreciate y'all.
Speaker:Music and editing is provided by the lovely Stu Masterson.
Speaker:All our artwork is created by the talented Brady McDonough.
Speaker:And special thanks to ChatGBT for providing the dialogue and voice work for the artificial human being known as Jacob Cecil.
Speaker:Lastly, we'd like to leave a special message here for two close friends who have recently decided to spend the rest of their lives together.
Speaker:If you're listening, you know who you are.
Speaker:We wish you a happy life together filled with complicated orbital dynamic equations explained with Skeletor voices.
Speaker:Love you.
