Part 14: 13:09-14:14: The Death of Capitalism
Chapter 14: 13:09-14:14: The Death of CapitalismContent warning: no Cuno, but this one’s got some pretty gross descriptions of fucking around inside a dead guy, I dunno if that warrants one of these but just to be safe
OH GOD SHE WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE CACODAEMONS
Ahem, anyway… Kim wants to chat.
KIM KITSURAGI: “I think you’re right,” he says. “Though it looks like no one’s been here in ages… I doubt the electricity still works… Good thing we have a flashlight on us. Don’t forget to take it out of your bag before we move on.”
KIM KITSURAGI: “Yes, because it’s *closed*… No need to look for *supra-natural* explanations where a banal one will do. Now, let’s move on, shall we?”
PHYSICAL INSTRUMENT: [Trivial: Success] It’s 60 kg. Your triceps hum at the sight of these weights. Show the world what kind of beast it’s dealing with. Lift them.
VISUAL CALCULUS: [Easy: Success] There are no collars on the barbell. This is a safety hazard.
INLAND EMPIRE: No, it’s not that… It’s the stale smell of rubber, the squeaky sound of sneakers, your bruised knee against the mat. And a whistle… then the feeling is gone.
LOGIC: [Easy: Success] It’s just a memory.
Don’t drop a weight on your toes and need surgery, okay?
I forgot to show off the map beforehand, so here it is. We can’t explore the coast just yet, but tantalizing sights await us ahead!
Ooh, shotput.
KIM KITSURAGI: “Right. Now let’s get to it,” the lieutenant nods.
Flashlight go in hand.
Zoinks, this place is pretty spooky, eh?
SAFETY CURTAINS: Those curtains prove to be surprisingly sturdy… Your fist hurts now.
Thankfully, this does not cost Health.
LOGIC: [Trivial: Success] If this is really an entrance to the chimney then there must be a furnace somewhere as well. Maybe there’s another way to get in?
We’re going to skip some of these interactables and come back later, considering we’re on something of a tight schedule with this corpse.
And… that’s certainly an ice bear fridge… you think. Maybe explore the rest of this area while you work up the courage to approach it.
A HOLE IN THE WALL: Most of them are rusty and inoperable like the rest, but one catches your eye—a bolt action model with a fine wooden stock. In better cosmetic order than the others.
KIM KITSURAGI: “It means there are firearms—albeit inoperable—still lying around in Martinaise. It’s an interesting coincidence, I would say. Might come in useful in the future.”
BREAKER BOX: Something close to you dies with a soft electric purr.
Indeed.
Oh hey, these stairs led outside! Let’s go back in and inspect that fridge, then.
KIM KITSURAGI: “Of course. A giant, ice bear shaped fridge…” He relaxes his hand, his face bathed in the harsh light of the open fridge door.
KIM KITSURAGI: “It’s certainly an… eccentric choice. But it is capacious—and cold enough, too…”
ESPRIT DE CORPS: [Medium: Success] …but the optics on this are awful, he thinks. We need to be as silent as we can.
VISUAL CALCULUS: [Medium: Success] Your visual confirms: you could fit *two* more bodies in the ice bear fridge.
KIM KITSURAGI: “No. Not really. Look at that! What have we done? We stuffed a *dead body in an ice bear fridge*. This story does not leave this room.”
KIM KITSURAGI: “Did we, though?” He sighs. “Okay, maybe we *did*. At least we’ve stopped the body from decomposing any further. Now you can conduct another inspection. Under controlled *circumstances*.”
KIM KITSURAGI: “I know,” says the lieutenant, “what an unfortunate marketing choice. What is even worse—the bear is still costing them money, to this day…” The lieutenant points at the red snaky cable coming from the fridge. “The electricity bill must be *catastrophic*. On the other hand, it did help us with a certain corpse situation…”
ESPRIT DE CORPS: [Medium: Success] …lucky us.
INTERFACING: [Medium: Success] Indeed. Refrigerated meat is much better for coroner’s work.
THE HANGED MAN: Only the little one fits: The flesh changes shape as you bore in, searching for something in the cartilage.
THE HANGED MAN: The oral cavity is cold and moist. A ball-like tongue attaches itself to the base of the mouth, lolling around like a scallop…
THE HANGED MAN: The tongue moves freely in the cavity. The mucose of the mouth is slippery, fragile even through the latex. From the soft meat—teeth are budding; hard pearls of bone in the gums. And in the back of the mouth…
THE HANGED MAN: A vision of black and dark red death: pried open by your hands and studded with teeth. Looks like he’s laughing, death fumes rising from his throat. And there, in the back of his mouth, above the bell of the uvula, right in the soft palate…
PERCEPTION: ...you see a hole, barely visible to the human eye. It is swollen shut, almost vanished, no larger than 0.4 cm in radius. The edges appear darkened.
THE HANGED MAN: Your yellow fingers slide into the remains of the limbic system. There is no resistance. It’s gelatinous. The slug-like structures are damaged too, the tearing extends deep into both hemispheres.
THE HANGED MAN: Your fingers reach toward his skull. His cerebral cortex feels like jelly—cold jelly—strange fluid streams down your wrist as you push deeper. Until you feel it, on the tip of your finger…
THE HANGED MAN: There’s a tiny crack, a protrusion in the cranium, right in the back of his head. Your finger must be pointing straight at it. From the *inside*.
VISUAL CALCULUS: [Easy: Success] The object that is in there stopped just short of the skull, in the encephalus, knocking this tiny fracture into the cranium…
THE HANGED MAN: The inside of the head feels cold and smooth like a glove as you pull out, sweat dripping down your brow—careful not to lose the prize between your fingers…
KIM KITSURAGI: The bullet falls in the bag leaving a smattering of blood on the plastic. He raises the bag under his eyes and says:
KIM KITSURAGI: “No-no, you’ve deserved it. We can log it later.” The lieutenant drops the bad in your hand. It feels light. He turns to his notebook: “We need to add an item to the injury list: Injury #4: oval entry wound with an abrasion collar. Soft palate, back of mouth.”
KIM KITSURAGI: :*Click-click* goes the pen: “And one last thing. We should amend injury #3: ligament mark. New opinion—non-fatal, post-mortem: *treatment*.”
KIM KITSURAGI: He nods. “I have had my doubts since you showed me the tracks. Why did they *carry* him over—why not march him, I thought. There was no satisfying explanation.”
ESPRIT DE CORPS: [Medium: Success] We didn’t fall for it, he thinks. There’s pride there.
KIM KITSURAGI: “Yes. We should take a closer look at it. I am certain it has more to tell us.”
KIM KITSURAGI: “Work on the case, tend to personal matters? Try not to do anything too dangerous. An officer needs backup in a neighbourhood like this.”
AUTHORITY: [Medium: Success] The word lingers in the air of the yard, far away dogs are barking, further yet the sound of motor traffic…
(Pretty sure this is an oversight because we’re indoors instead of outside)
We found the bullet that killed him, cleverly hidden inside his gooey flesh! What mysteries shall this bullet solve, and what new mysteries shall it uncover? Find out next time!