Part 37: Blackwell Convergence - Update 12

Update 12

So last time we learned about a third recent victim of the Countess, John Goldwater, and it just so happened that the rival company to his own was financed by the Meltzer Foundation. Time to go and turn up the heat on Paul and Charlie!

The Meltzer Brothers



Hi. Me again.
Go right in.

Thanks, warden Charlie!



Upon seeing Rosa, Paul immediately speaks to her about last night's events.

Yes.
And you... saw what happened?
Yes.
Wow. Just... wow.

If Meltzer really is responsible for what happened, Paul is doing a pretty good job of acting disturbed by it, though he could probably have used a less happy-looking portrait.

What would possess a guy to do a thing like that, huh?
I... don't know.

Rosa, of course, knows what happened but can't say anything.

Well, enough doom and gloom. What can I help you with?



Rosa starts off slow.

Oh, we would just be in the way, you know? Art's not really our thing, but Josie knows what she's doing.

Obviously Paul never got around to Oogling "Artists".

Have you ever heard of a reporter named Joseph Mitchell?
Hm. That name sounds familiar.

Rosa jogs his memory.

He was a reporter for the New Yorker magazine.
Hey! That's it. Charlie used to work there. Hey Charlie, did you know Joseph Mitchell?
Everyone knew him, Paul. He was a living legend.
A living legend. How about that.

Funny how nobody ever seems to say no, they can't immediately recall some random reporter who died over a decade ago. I wonder if everybody in New York really knows about Mitchell like this game seems to suggest, or if that's just Gilbert's bias shining through?



No. Sorry.
I heard that your Foundation gave money to Lazarus Technologies.
Oh yes, that was one of our first success stories.

Success story, hey?

I learned something interesting about Lazarus Technologies.



If Marty was right, their success only came about because John was killed.

That's a strong thing to say.
It's true. His company was an inch away from beating Lazarus, but then he was killed.

At this point, I'm starting to see why Rosa is suspicious. Water Under The Bridge was successful primarily because Frank Lyons was killed, and Lazarus also became successful because John Goldwater was killed. There is one common denominator between them, and it's these guys.

Even if this is true-
It IS true. You can look it up.
Even still. I don't see how this is our fault.
Two men dead? That doesn't sound fishy to you?

Rosa finally comes out with a more-or-less direct accusation. Paul doesn't like it one bit.

Should it? What kind of men do you take us for? I have sympathy for Frank Lyons, but he died of natural causes. And as for this John Goldwater person, I have never heard of him. You'll need more evidence than that if you want to convince me of anything.



Rosa is not ready to let up yet, though.

Yes, so you said.
That doesn't bother you.
Neither of those men have anything to do with us. If you're looking for a conspiracy, you're looking in the wrong place.

Frank and John's deaths may have both benefitted the Meltzer brothers, but as far as the police is concerned, Frank died of a heart attack, and Claude committed suicide. Not much there for Rosa to even begin pointing at a conspiracy. There's really nothing else we can do here for now. Rosa decides to excuse herself.



Paul once again immediately forgets about the fairly dire accusation we've levelled at him, and continues trying to set Charlie up with Rosa.

Paul...
I'm just looking out for you, little brother.
Well don't.

Joey can float back in and eavesdrop if we like, but they don't say anything new. No point sticking around here any longer.

Let's take stock. We can see how the deaths of Frank and John helped the Meltzer brothers out, but what about Claude? Was he just in the wrong place at the wrong time? With him dead, the Park Gallery's has no lead artist and will probably have to shut down. How did his death help anybody? It's not like Josie has to pay the Meltzer Foundation back if she goes bankrupt.

The Park Gallery



Rosangela! Gosh, what a horrible night.

Rosa decides to see how Josie is going.

Are you okay?
I'm fine. Poor Claude. I had no idea what this show was doing to him.
What do you mean?
Well, he killed himself, didn't he? Oh, he grumbled a lot, but I thought deep down he liked the attention. Still, at least his work shall live on.

Wait, it will?

You're keeping the gallery open?
Of course. Everything here is completely sold out.
Really?



Oh man. Suddenly this is starting to make an awful kind of sense. If Josie had gone out of business, Meltzer would get nothing. But suddenly they're doing a roaring trade.

That's... horrible.
That's business, I'm afraid. I feel bad for Claude, but... Well, I have debts. I have investors to pay back.

Rosa is pretty disgusted with what she is hearing, and takes it out on Josie.

Lucky for you he died.
That's not fair. I've known Claude for years. I liked him a lot. He never felt his work would be seen by anybody, and now people believe his work has value. That's something, isn't it?
If you think so.



Well, a percentage of it will go to my investors. As for the rest? I don't know. I could sponsor another artist like Claude, or I could give it to charity. I need to think about it.

I really don't think sponsoring another artist is a good idea, Josie

Can I ask some more questions?
I don't think so, Rosangela. I'm meeting with the buyers today and I have to get everything ready.

All that has happened seems to have dampened Josie's usually high spirits. I can't say I blame her. Notice she even has a less manic portrait today.

Bye Josie. Good luck with, well, everything.
Sure. Bye.

Now the evidence against the Meltzer Foundation has become overwhelming. Three people, all killed by the Countess, and in each case an otherwise struggling business sponsored by Meltzer suddenly flourishes. This has gone far beyond just a coincidence. Rosa heads back to the Meltzer brothers with fire in her belly.

The Meltzer Brothers



Charlie is starting to get annoyed at Rosa's constant interruptions, but Rosa isn't in a pleasant mood either, and barges straight past Charlie without bothering to say hello, or even breaking stride.



Rosa's voice is dripping with sarcasm here.

Yes. Josie certainly has had her work cut out for her.
So do you. Her profits are your profits.
Yes, there is that.

Time to go in for the kill, Rosa...

And all it cost was one man's death.
Now that's unfair.

Paul is getting set to tell Rosa off, but she cuts him off straight away.



Frank Lyons died, and Cube Star films becomes successful overnight. Claude Urdin commits suicide, and now the Park Gallery is selling priceless works of art. John Goldwater dies, and Lazarus Technologies becomes rich and powerful. All of these companies are represented by you. Don't you see how this looks?
This is... a total coincidence. I'm sure of it.

Paul actually seems legitimately surprised by what Rosa is saying.

Is it?
It is. And I'll tell you another thing. I don't like these accusations. I think you should leave.



Rosa leaves Paul with one final thought.

Maybe you will, but it has nothing to do with us. Now go, before I call the police.
Come on, let's blow and let him steam for a while.



This time, Paul doesn't start teasing his brother...



...and even Charlie has noticed what is going on this time around. Joey sticks his head back through the door to see what he can hear.

Crazy with teeth. You gotta watch out for women like that, Scooter.
Scooter? You haven't called me that since we were kids.
Really? Maybe I should start calling you that again.
Whatever.

Aha! Scooter must be the childhood nickname that Charlie uses for his email password.



If Rosa tries to return to the Meltzer Foundation, Joey advises against it.

You really think they'll call the police?
Better safe than sorry. You stay put.

Yes, considering we were present when Claude "committed suicide", we probably don't want the police involved in this. Let's head back to the apartment. Perhaps we can get to the bottom of things by rifling through Charlie's inbox.

Rosa's Theme



Apparently "Scooter" only works with a lower-case "s". Bmail



There's just a bunch of names in his inbox. "Frank Lyons", "John Goldwater", "Claude Urdin..."

Oh wow...



So Charlie was writing about each of the victims.

It's just like Joseph Mitchell back in the 1970s. Every time Charlie writes about someone, the Countess goes and kills them.

However, unlike Mitchell who seems to have been doing it by accident, and stopped writing as soon as he knew the truth, the evidence here points towards something much more malicious in this case. Charlie is literally just writing the name of a person and nothing more, and the death of each of those three people has benefitted Charlie. In Mitchell's case, the deaths meant he couldn't even publish the stories, whereas here they have resulted in massive monetary gains for the Meltzer Foundation. This doesn't seem anything like an accident. Charlie appears to be fully aware of what is going on here.

I knew there was something fishy about that place. C'mon. Let's go back there and talk to him.
What on earth do we say?
Think of something, kid. History is repeating itself, and I don't-



In the middle of Joey's sentence, a little beepy noise is heard.

It looks like his inbox is being updated.

Wait... no. Surely not...



SON OF A BITCH A dramatic cymbal clash cuts through the theme, leaving only silence as Rosa's own name stares back at her from the monitor.


This is not good. This is not fucking good. We've been sold up the damn creek here by the Meltzer brothers and shit is about to get very fucking real. Join me tomorrow as Rosa comes to terms with being the next on the Countess' hit list.






Bonus Music!

As an apology for the shorter-than-normal update today, have a couple of pieces of bonus music that never made it into the game.

Nishanthi's Theme

Not exactly Regin's finest work, but not awful. Of course, Nishanthi's apartment was cut from the game world for whatever reason, so there was no need for this track.

The little drum/cymbal crash heard 11 seconds in (and again 40 seconds in) is the same crash that was used in the above scene when Rosa's name appears in Charlie's inbox, bringing the music to a dramatic close.

Rosa's Theme (Country Version)

Tomorrow we'll get back to the very serious shit Rosa has just found herself in, but for now, have a country version of her theme song. I have no idea what the deal with this theme was, whether it was just something Regin did for fun, or whatever. But it's... well, it's something, alright.



Finally, here is an amusing Easter egg that occurs if you try to sequence-break the game by entering Charlie's inbox before you're "supposed" to know about it. Oh Gilbert, you thought of everything


See you all tomorrow!