Part 16: Catal Hyuck

Update 15 - Catal Hyuck

Welcome back to BloodNet after a long break.



Come then. Let's take back the night.



Should have told me we were coming here, Stark. These boots cost me 20,000 dollars, and this mud isn't going to do them any good.

That quip doesn't make a whole lot of sense. There's nothing else to be done here, so we'll leave after picking up all the shit Garrick angrily threw on the floor after being told to .



You probably don't remember, but we've accumulated a lot of useless shit that's taking up too much space in our inventory. We're now heading to Vince's Munition Emporium to sell it and pick up some ammo.




We're also selling some old quest items that no longer serve any purpose. Note here that Melissa came with an Insul Suit in her inventory, so it wasn't just Lash that had one.



I should also point out that the assault rifle, while the item description says it takes 9mm magazines, you can't use the actual 9mm cartridges that the 9mm pistol uses. You have to buy this Assault Rifle Magazine.



We're stopping at the museum because we've got a book to bring to Wyche.



I'm imagining Goofy saying that line. It doesn't look right without the proper characters.

You've done it. And you don't look much worse for the experience, dear. You're made of sterner stuff than I. Here is the money I promised.


I did not transcribe that incorrectly.




You could have spoken up earlier, Lash.

You seemed intensely interested in that story Wyche told you about Shada and Necra. Vampire women turn you on?

Melissa wasn't in our party when Wyche told the story, so those two lines of dialogue shouldn't have triggered. I'm honestly more suprised when something works correctly in the game as opposed to when something works incorrectly. No one else has any new dialogue here, including Wyche's friend who went with him to the library.



To continue to wrap up some quests, we're now heading back to the hellfire club.



Uh.. this doesn't look like the hellfire club.



I guess I was wrong about the timer. Oh well.



These ambushes are very easy, most of the time. Some times there will be 4-5 enemies to fight, which is a little bit tougher if you're not equipped with the right stuff.



Really, the only thing worth noting here is that Melissa has a unique sprite. This fight is just like any other.



It's possible that they'll drop some equipment that you can sell for a good amount of money, but, again, there's not much worth buying. It's why I've accumulated such a large amount of money.



After the fight, we're taken to our original destination.



...What?

My father comes here with members of the Star Chamber. He's met the president and the heads of five regional megacorporations here. Breath deep, Stark, the scent of uncut wealth and power.

Ugh. Let's go in the rooms left to right. We have a quest item to give to Bertrand Foucault.



This the cutter you hired?
Yes, this is Dr. Gawesque. He will combine the nanotech with the appropriate biologic conductor chemicals carrying encoded navigation commands for the nanotech and then inject them into our bloodstreams. Are you going to let me have them?



Both lead to the same result.

Not just yet. Something's not rigged right here.
You dare hold out on me! I've survived for centuries, boy, because I have ruthlessly preserved my own well being. I'll not be endangered because you wish to bargain.



Whatever. Let's see what the cutter has to say.




Not right now. This acts like drinking a bottle of blood, meaning that it resets our bloodlust to 0%. It's not worth doing right now since our bloodlust is at 20%. Melissa doesn't have a separate bloodlust meter, in case you were wondering.



In the second room, we've got some medicine for Larisa. It's not completely obvious what we have to do here, but we have to drop all three items next to her sprite.



Just like that.



nanomachines, and a vial of Nootropressin G, a powerful brain chemical stabilizer. The drug's expensive, the nanomachines are stolen. Mix the plasma and Nootropressin and inject it. The nanomachines are programmed to run diagnostics on and service any cybernetic implants they encounter in an organism. The Nootropressin will detect and adjust any chemical imbalances in your brain. Whether your problem is chemical or mechanical, this should cure you.

Ransom Stark, M.D.

Who told you to bring this to me? Braque or Griff? One of them must be paying you for this. You must tell me who it was. Was it Griff?

No, not Griff.

Then it must have been Braque, yes?

Uh, no, it wasn't Braque, either. Can't you see that Stark loves you?

I don't understand. Only they know of my illness. It must have been Braque or Griff. Which one? Please tell me. Was it Griff?

Okay, we'll tell the truth. No, it wasn't Griff.

Then it must have been Braque, yes?
Yes.
I knew he would save me. He's the most reliable, decent man I've met in this awful city. And, I think, truly, the only man I've ever really loved. I suspect you are being well paid for your work, but I am still grateful to you.

Okay, what does Braque have to say?




Because I am beholden to you, I want to do something else for you. Deck into cyberspace if you have the means. Hire a decker to take you there if necessary. Begin moving in some direction and keep going. An associate of mine will find you and offer you something. I believe you'll find it useful. Good-bye and good luck to you. I must now reclaim my beloved.



Braque's reward turns out to be much better than Griff's. We'll see what it is eventually.



We've got one thing to do in the third room. We're supposed to incriminate Walter Macalaster. He's on the couch with a prostitute or something, so this is the opportunity the game gives us. How do we do it?



We use the HoloCam. We'll have to bring this to Bill Dougan back at TransTech. Then Mother Mary will agree to help us.



In the right-most room, there should be Emily Esaki here, but for some reason she's absent. Maybe it's because we already gained access to the inner sanctum. Now she's gone from BloodNet forever and we'll never know what she had to say. Oh well.



I forgot to talk to the guy on the couch the last time we were here. As a result, his dialogue doesn't really make sense right now. From his description, you can tell that he's supposed to be Stark's inside source or something like that.



I'm not kidding, that's where it starts. This is the line that the conversation should have started with, and it should have been spoken by Randall.


Anyway.

Tell me about it. You'd be surprised what goes on around here. I could just fill your ear with scathing gossip. There's a story on practically everyone.
I heard you caught old Walter McCalaster in the act. Word travels fast at the club.

I'm pretty sure this line triggers even if you didn't film him.

This joint's got its share of characters. What's so big about this McCalaster guy?

Did you forget already? I know it's been a couple weeks, but come on. Go back and read the earlier parts of the LP.

He's simply one of the most powerful executives at TransTechnicals. All because of his wife, of course, who got his cushy job. Everyone knows about his indiscretions, but it never leaves the club. You're new, so you happened to barge in on his private party. He's remarkably bold about the whole thing, but if word were to get back to his wife, his entire career would be destroyed.

The conversation ends, so we'll talk to him again.



Think she might be a plant?
Sure, it's occurred to me. Could be from TransTech. Could be from the Moral Minority. Who knows? All I know is, she seemed to leech onto you. I wouldn't trust her.

Once more...



Harmless, really.
Tame is the word. They don't even use real human blood. It's a sham. But there is one juicy tidbit. There's been talk that one of the "vampires" in the Sanctum is not acting, if you know what I mean. Chew on that for a while.

That's it. Not worth the trouble, if you ask me.

The guy in the chair, George, was looking for a way to get into the inner sanctum. We have a spare lapel pin, which is useless except for getting into the inner sanctum, so we might as well give it to him.



Yes.
Will you take my thousand for your right to get in the Inner Sanctum?

I said yes already!

Yes.
Here. You gotta wear this pin to get in. Now these things are hard to come by.
Believe me, I know. This has been on my mind for ages.


Here's your grand. Thanks.


You'd think we could buy some sort of cure with this amount of money to burn.

Next time I see you, it'll be on the inside, buddy.

Now we'll head into the inner sanctum. With Melissa in our party, we can get Alexander Tennant to talk to us.




George made it in here before us, so let's talk to to him and see what he has to say.



Whatever. Linda BLause and Gi Sang don't have anything new to say. No one does except for Alexander Tennant.



I'm here with Mr. Stark, Alex, and he is no friend of my father's. He finds Daddy's manner too . . . biting, and he wants to do something about it.
You bring me one of Abraham's victims, Melissa? I suppose he is angry over what Van Helsing has done to him and suspects that his anger makes him Van Helsing's match. Your father will burn him to cinders.
I thought you said this guy was on our side, Melissa. I got enough people in this city giving me trouble; I don't need it from somebody playing vampire.
He opposes my father and lives, Alex. Ransom Stark has proven himself a serious opponent of my father's plot to control cyberspace. Stark is the only person who can keep Incubus from my father. Think about it, Alex. If my father gets Incubus, there will be nothing you can do to protect yourself from him. You will be begging him to kill you . . . and he'll refuse.
Very well, my dear. If you have joined your fate with his, I can at least cooperate, to a point.
Start talking, pal. Who are you and what've you got on Van Helsing? You know what I am. You know what I can do to you.
Even a vampire lord requires human agents. He has lived for over two hundred years and has amassed a vast fortune, one that must be managed constantly. In short, I am that demon's banker. God help my soul.
You willingly help him?
I have served humans no less monstrous, and I profit handsomely from our dealings. I don't deceive myself, though. I know he'll sever our contracts the moment he believes I'm no longer useful, and at that moment, my life will be at risk. I have, however, taken precautions to protect myself.
I've grunted for some disreps. Hell, I've even contracted with TransTech, but Van Helsing is the devil himself.
I warn you: few of his enemies live long. As vampire he is master of men; as a corporate officer of TransTech he is master of cyberspace. Still, he is vulnerable, I suspect. He spends a great sum of money protecting certain buildings he owns in the city.
Tell me! Where!
You take risks, don't you, nightling. You want Van Helsing? Learn the answer to this tired old joke: Just who is buried in Grant's Tomb?

With that last line of dialogue, we've unlocked a new location: Grant's Tomb. Stay tuned. Sorry the update was a little short, but at least finally I put something out there.


Main Quests
Bring Chuck (Electric Anarchy) the TransTech list of Deirdre's associates
Bring the Walter McCalaster HoloFilm to Bill Dougan, in order to help Mother Mary
Kill Abraham Van Helsing
Go to Grant's Tomb

Side Quests
Find Helvecticus' junky brother
Get the missing piece of Red Crosse Armor for Anias

We should go to these WELLs
NYVAULT is the WELL of the New York Bank

New Location
Grant's Tomb (W. 125th Street)