Part 18: - Tuesdays with Langston

Sorry about the delay - my SO had surgery and I didn't have time to work on the LP this week. I was delayed from LPing a game about surgery by a real surgery, figures.

18 - Tuesdays with Langston

(Music: On the Cutting Edge of Medicine.)



"-Remains of Rubora, Africa-"



"The sky's so clear... Mmm, breath in that air...!"

"............... ...And, it's deserted..."

Three lines into the update and Angela Thompson is already continuing her "horrible person" streak.

"I think we're looking at the results of a GUILT outbreak..."

"...oooh, I wish we weren't so far away from home..."

"Hey, don't talk like that."

"Over here!"

"Who's that?"



"Oh, Dr. Miller, sir! ...This is Langston Miller, from Caduceus Europe."

"Ah, he's the one who assigned you to this mission."

"I was getting worried. You're a little late. Well, one of our co-ordinators is sick, and we don't know exactly where the research lab is... There's been a lot to worry about."



"We searched the sectors B-1 through 4, but could not locate the target."

"Hmph... Continue your search into the C Areas, as well."

"Yes, sir!"

"The jungle makes a birds-eye search impossible. We tried to narrow it down back home, but we still have a lot of ground to cover."

"Must be frustrating."

"I have a bad feeling about this."

She says with a wide smile.

"Why don't you help us search? Report back if you find anything. Here's a map of the area. We've sent teams out here... and here..."

"What kind of map is this? It's just written directions!"

"Well, let's get started, I guess."

"~Six long hours later~"

"Are you alright, miss?"



"Well the area's not paved, but it's better than over in the jungle. It's been a long time-- let's head back to camp for a breather."

"I didn't mean--"

"..Huh?! Stop the jeep!"

"There's someone in that house...!"

"It's a child.. I thought they said the area was abandoned!"

"~One hour after that~"

"This boy answers to Reuben... We think."

Someone send Caduceus Europe a card: 'Great job not having an interpreter on your mission to Africa!'

"Nice to meet you, Reuben!"



"What was he doing in there?"

"We think he used to live there. His family's in a nearby town, now."

"Shouldn't we take him there?"

"Perhaps, but.. The boy seems to know the location of the research lab. Apparently his brother worked there, and Reuben used to tag along."

At Delphi Research Labs, it's Bring Your Family To Work Day every day.

"We might as well have him take us to see it, don't you think?"



"That'd be great!"

"Thank you, Reuben!"

"..!"





"What are we supposed to find here?"

"Let me take samples from the walls and floor, just in case."

"Thank you, young lady. We need to disinfect our entire bodies after this, but hopefully it will prove worthwhile."

What the hell?! They aren't wearing Hazmat/NBC suits?! This is bound to end well.

"...It's too dangerous for you. Could you wait outside?"

"*nod*"

"There's a good lad. *sigh*. I hope this is worth all the trouble."





"They transferred the African GUILT victims to Caduceus Europe, right? Hopefully they'll know something."

"*sigh* Yes, but this was all so tiring... Dr. Miller is late. I wonder who he was calling on the radio."

"Dr. Stiles!"

"What is it?"

"The boy...! Reuben's been infected by GUILT!"

"What?! ...How?!"

....

(Music: Patient Profile)



"...He tested positive for GUILT. The spectral analysis indicates this is a different strain..."

"An unknown GUILT..."

"We found an abnormality near his pancreas, but.. that's all."

"His vitals are dropping quickly. If we tried to reach a hospital, he would probably die on the way. ...I think we should open him up and do what we can, but.. It's your call, Dr. Stiles."

"I understand. We can't just stand here and watch him die."



(Watch this Operation: Mission 3-10, S Rank, Best Possible Solution)

(Music: Gangliated Utrophin Immuno-Latency Toxin (GUILT))



A brand new GUILT! It's like opening presents on Christmas Day! Let's see what it looks like...



...Uh oh.

"What?! ...Could they have known about-...."

"What is it, Dr. Miller?"

"...Stiles. I think the membrane is causing this disease. Any organ covered by that membrane will be slowly petrified... We need to detach it immediately. Use the scalpel."

You can reach for the scalpel if you like, but Angie won't give you one.

"Hold on... You won't be able to detach it that way. Don't you see the thorns? They've fastened the membrane to the organ."

"...I think you're right."

"If we can remove all three thorns in one segment, there's a chance we could excise it."

"That's quick thinking, Angie! You should consider Caduceus Europe."

"......... ...Anyway, try pulling the thorns out with your forceps."



"...corners. That should allow us to excise a triangular section."







Thanks, Angie. As you can see, this level is going to require some thinking on our part. Which is unfortunate for most gamers, who usually quit at this level.

"I see... those thorns are causing the GUILT to spread..."

"Th-They are?! How can you tell?!"

"...Awhile ago, our country tried using similar technology to fight organs that had become cancerous - shards which vibrate at high frequencies to stabilize the cancer tissue for removal. ...It created a hardened membrane exactly like this one."

This is based on a real cancer treatment, which you can read about here

"This strain of GUILT seems to be modeled after our treatment. Those thorns are releasing frequencies to petrify the organ. Dr. Stiles, we need to try removing them all at once. There has to be some pattern to it... keep an eye on the membranes."

So far 30 seconds of our 5 minute operation have been wasted by Miller and Angie providing you with bad advice. They will continue to do this for most of the operation if you're stupid enough to listen. You really can try to remove all of the thorns at once, but it's difficult without the Healing Touch:



Ugh...



Your best bet for this operation is to back it into a corner if you can't figure out how to beat it otherwise.



Once in awhile, a purple patch will form, causing vitals to sink. Removing it as soon as you can will prevent any accidents. Otherwise, most of the vital damage will be your fault: this is a very delicate operation that requires you to move fast... however, it is ridiculously easy to miss while pulling out the thorn, as you can probably see. Also, cutting into the membranes makes the vitals plummet, so try to keep them above 20 if you can.



Do you understand what I'm doing, yet?

"It's causing a serious decline in his vitals."

Angie is a little slow on the uptake.



A lot of people don't realize just how deep these thorns actually go. They aren't symmetrical, they're longer on the bottom end. Pulling away too early has killed many an S-Rank.



Almost done. For those of you who haven't discovered the pattern, the trick is to never allow two thorns to sit on an edge while you are taking out a patch of membrane. If you do, they will regenerate. I'll show you what I mean:

--->

See? When we pulled out the membrane piece, everywhere there were two adjacent thorns, the membrane regenerated in those patches. However, the pieces along the edges and top corner of the membrane don't regenerate, making your win-every-time strategy to back it into a corner.



If you're using this method, always narrow it down to two triangles before you try to remove it completely. Leaving a single triangle or failing to excise it all in one go will cause it the GUILT to regenerate up to three new triangles instead of just one.



Yaaaay

"Amazing! You really can operate successfully against GUILT!"



Members of Caduceus seem to enjoy leisurely chatting over a patient's open incision.

"I'm afraid this GUILT... was derived from one of my country's sins. As I said earlier, we were trying to create a treatment for cancer using high-frequency vibrations. But... there were complications. Our treatment couldn't differentiate between cancerous cells and healthy ones, so it simply attacked them all. We wanted to help people, but we found a way to kill them... And apparently, Delphi found out about it. That's what I meant. Let's close up the patient. Reuben should be fine, now."



"I'd say you've more than earned your place in Caduceus."

In the video, I S-Rank the mission. This is the best possible solution, in which no Triti regenerates. Be sure to pull the thorns out all the way to ensure you don't miss.



"You're going to be alright."

"Your mother just arrived. ...Get better soon, okay?"

"Dr. Miller might be able to send him to England for treatment. Maybe we should ask him."

"There's a red cross outpost in the next town. We should at least have them look after Reuben."

"...."

"A gift for us? But, isn't this your book..? Should we take it, Dr. Stiles? It seems important to him. Huh? Wait, this isn't a book..."

"...It's a file folder. It looks encoded, but... What's this say? ...GUILT. GUILT! This is--!"

"His brother must have given it to him!"

"Thank you, Reuben. This is going to save a lot of people!"

"...."

"Dr. Stiles! There you are..."



"That can wait. We just received an urgent telegram from America."

"Urgent? ...I wonder..."

"...! No way!"

"What's wrong?"

"Dr. Kasal from Hope Hospital was just admitted at Caduceus..."

"Caduceus? Don't tell me he--!"

"Dr. Kasal's been infected by a new strain of GUILT...!"

YES! THAT'S WONDERF-- I mean sorry to hear about that, you two.

BONUS 4 - Contagious Nightmare Triti

(SO Ver:)

This GUILT is named "Triti" (Tuesday). In the Japanese version, likely due to a mix-up, it was named "Tetarti" (Wednesday). Triti creates a tough membrane on top of healthy organ tissue, fastens itself down and multiplies until all of the organ is hardened and dies. It's a fairly simple GUILT, based on a vibration treatment already discussed. But don't think that just because Triti isn't real that your organs won't someday harden and kill you...

Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease in which parts of the body harden. In Limited systemic sclerodemra, skin such as the face, arms, and hands harden through fibrosis. It can cause serious increases in blood pressure due to the limiting of capillary gas exchange. Other complications include calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, esophageal dysfunction, sclerodactyly (skin thickening), and telangiectasias (dilated blood vessels). Because of this, it is also known as CREST syndrome. However, the prognosis is generally good for those with limited systemic scleroderma...

Diffuse systemic scleroderma, on the other hand, is much more serious. Like our friend Triti, DSS not only hardens the skin, but also one or more of any internal organ... most commonly the heart, lungs, esophagus and kidneys. There is no cure or treatment for Scleroderma, complications and organ failure must be treated when they happen. DSS is usually fatal within five to fifteen years. Scleroderma is thought to be genetic, and can come out of absolutely nowhere...

...Isn't nature beautiful?

Next Time: Greg gets a taste of his own medicine. Literally speaking.