Monsterpunk Quest

Chapter 3

You are Sergey Ivankovich Kozlov, former resident of a small town now located in another dimension, and somewhat unwilling retainer to the same renowned scientist noble responsible for teleporting your hometown.

After raiding an underground city ruin left untouched for at least 50 years, you've come across an old artifact that forcibly made you and an almost-century old construct designed for warfare named Tau Enkidu enter a pact - a ritual that forever merges two souls, and was understood to be impossible without the consent of both parties.
To make things more complicated, Enkidu claims to come from a superpower with colonies around the world called Pandemonia, a civilization unknown to everyone and absent from any history books.
While you now have the abilities of a Dragoon, capable of riding your pactmate and using devastating abilities to overwhelm the enemy, you have accidentally made yourself an enemy of Arcadia, your homeland. After all, pacts without the council's permission are highly illegal. Your superior, Dr. Nevada, has agreed to use her position in her house to pardon your undocumented pact, but until then, you will have to keep it a secret.

Yesterday, you arrived at the campus of House Daedal, your new home, within the Arcadian metropolis of Limur. Your new status as Dr. Nevada's retainer comes as a surprise to everyone you encounter, but your "rustic" appearance is seen as an eyesore to the nobility. To get you settled in, your superior orders you to buy some new clothes, with the help of Briana, a moss woman who turns out to have a knack for both fashion and slacking off. With three hours remaining before you have to report back to Dr. Nevada, you decide to get something to eat, at Briana's recommendation.

Archive: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=MPQ

You have time, you're hungry, you're getting invited by a cute girl. Why not?

"Well, if you're offering... I'd love to get some food."
"Wonderful~! I'm glad you've gotten ínto the spirit of things~"

You head up to the 14th floor of the mall and walk up to a stall between a shop selling shoes and one offering phones. After some queuing, you walk away with a large shell filled to the brim with vegetables, herbs and ground meat. You felt some hunger pangs while you were changing clothes, but the intense smell of the sizzling toppings has left you starving. The two of you sit down, and you start to wonder how you're supposed to share this between the two of you.

"Go áhead, eat~!"
"How much do you want me to leave you?"
"Hmmm, you can have the whole thing~! I wasn't planning on éating this~"
"Are you sure? I know you don't need to eat, but you can still taste it, right?"

She shakes her head.

"Mhmm~ Mandrakes can't taste food - at least, álmost all of them can't~ I don't get ánything out of éating it, you know~?"
"Wait, then how do you know this food is good?"
"Hm, did I say that~? I thought I said it's rated five stars, you know~ And people wouldn't line up to buy it if it tasted bad, right~? Now eat up, before it gets cold~"
"A-alright, thanks a lot!"

You take a big bite - it tastes incredible. Even if you weren't so hungry you could eat just about anything, you'd still place this taco amongst one of the best things you've eaten. Briana just smiles as wide as ever as you tear into the crispy shell.

"Oh, this is really- You can't taste? That's a shame, you're missing out on a lot, then!"
"I get that a lot~ I can still taste sunlight, and raw órgone, though~"
"Sunlight? What does that taste like?"
"Hmm~... I don't know if I could make a comparison, but I've heard Mandrake pactmakers say it's spicy~? I can tell you it's different depending on the weather and where you are, though~"
"I... guess that makes sense? I can see how describing a sensation to someone with no context can be difficult."
"I know, right~? Now, don't tell ányone I said this, but there's tons of fairies that claim they are connected to the flora, and can ábsorb sunshine like Mandrakes, but they're álways faking it~ They keep making up stuff about how it feels~"
"Why would they do that?"
"Hmm, who knows~? Maybe they'd like to be closer to nature than they áctually are~?"

You finish your food and thank Briana for her hospitality again. You're about to get up, when you hear a voice to your side loudly clear their throat.

{This is a maid uniform of House Daedal, is it not?}

Briana and you look to your right and see a man, possibly in his late twenties, stand right next to your table. His posture is stiff, and his chest is puffed out, proudly displaying the well-fitted buttoned up coat he is wearing. His Sidhe sounds even more similar to that of fairies than Dr. Nevada's, although you probably have yet to see her make a serious effort to speak clearly in any language.

{Moss woman, it is illegal to impersonate a house servant, wear your uniform outside of your shift, wear non-sanctioned decorations in addition to a servant uniform and abandoning one's duties during working hours. Would you mind telling me which laws you are breaking right now?}
{Hmm~? I'm sorry, but I am unsure how this relates to you~ Not to disrespect, but could you identify yourself, pretty please~?}

The man clicks his tongue and pulls a badge out of his coat pocket - it is a silver token with the same design as the one you saw on the banners at the campus.

{Abdul-Hamid of House Daedal, retainer to Baroness Selène of House Daedal. So as you can see, it certainly relates to me.}
{Ah, it is admirable to see someone so young so concerned about the public image of the house, even down to every lowly servant~}
{Heh, so you are servant of House Daedal, then. I knew I have seen you before.}
{Hmm, did I say that~? I do have one of those familiar yet adorable faces~ I'm sure I'd recognize one as handsome as yours, though~}
{Your feminine wiles are misplaced. Even if you weren't a servant, that would still leave you impersonating a Daedal maid, and I could still have you arrested.}

He pulls out his phone, and begins frantically tapping with his other hand.

{You'd go so far~? I'd hate to make you interrupt your errands for her Baroness Selène~ She-}
{My mission is confidential, but I can assure you that it is more than a mere errand. Though s-HAH!}

His outburst was sudden and loud enough to make everyone in a 5-meter radius jump, but he just holds his phone in front of Briana.

{I knew you were a servant of ours! Briana, that is your photo in the staff database, is it not?}

She smiles and gives him a light clap.

{Impressive detective work, Abdul~! But I don't remember ever denying this~...}

His brows furrow in response. Unsure what to make of this situation, you turn your thoughts to your pactmate.

"Hey Enk, do you also think Briana is being really provocative right now?"
"Specification, 'right now', can be omitted."
"I mean, more so than usual. What's she doing?"
"Hypothesis: Target Briana provoking target Abdul to initiate self-defense situation. Use of firearms as a means of self-protection permitted in all, and encouraged in some of Pandemonia states."

Ignoring that last statement, you direct your attention back to the two.

{-management to confirm whether you are actually supposed to work?}
{Heheh, of course I am working! This uniform might be pretty, but I wouldn't wear it outside of work hours~! I have far too many other outfits to try on first~}
{And what makes you think you have the right to just wander off campus and have a leisurely time at a mall?}
{Wander off~? Hmm~ Dear Abdul, I think you may have misunderstood something - I am here because I was ordered by one of the high nobles herself~!}
{Hah! And are you to tell me next that this task involves flirting with human boys?}

He points at you without looking as if you weren't even here.

{Hmm, I'm afraid it is not my place to divulge information on the nature of my task to carelessly~}

You highly doubt helping you buy clothes is something to keep secret, but Arcadian society has thrown you for a loop a few times now. Up until now, she hasn't even acknowledged you - should you say something? You want to get some advice on one more thing before doing something.

"Enk, you gave me the ability to understand languages, right?"
"Incorrect. Merge granted Rider access to Universal Translation Neural Network. This action was part of the pact protocol and could not be overridden."
"Uh... right, that. Is that something rare?"
"Version of UTNN publicly available for purchase since 23 AM. Current version and adaptation unknown, however. Why?"
"I've been wondering how long I can or want to keep it a secret. It feels somewhat special listening in on conversations, but at the same time it feels a bit wrong and makes conversations a lot tougher than they need to be. What do you think?"
"Quote: All warfare is based on deception, end quote. Ability proven to be very beneficial for espionage operations."

What do you do?

Stay quiet.
Interject in English: (Write-In)
Interject in Sidhe: (Write-In)
Ask Briana what's going on, then explain her task to Abdul in English.
Try to distract Abdul to give Briana a chance to sneak away.

"Uh, Briana? Do you know this man?"
"Hmm~? Well, not exactly~..."

Abdul looks upset at her, then at you.

"This woman is abandoning her duties in House Daedal. Your fraternizing is keeping her from doing the tasks for her superiors, you know that?"

His English is a bit awkward, and reminds you of the accents from Lord Firdaus and Belleverde.

"Wait a second, I'm afraid you got it wrong. Briana was ordered to come here, to help me buy clothes!"
"Ridiculous. Ordered by who?"
"Dr- Lady Nevada. You know her, right?"
"Of course I do! Good enough to know she would not send a servant to help a serf buy clothes!"
"I'm not a serf! I'm her new retainer."

He breaks into booming laughter, while Briana rolls her eyes and casually takes off her necklace. After a few "Ha"s, his brow furrows once more.

"Impersonation of retainers leads to arrest, you know that?"
"I'm telling the truth!"
"Show your identification, then."
"Ah, right... I don't have that yet. I wa-"
"HAH! Bad excuse."
"No, really! Can you talk to the staff management, maybe? They should be able to confirm it."
"There is no need. I can tell that you are a liar." {Can you even talk Sidhe? You wouldn't have addressed me in a commoner tongue if you could.}
"Uhm... Suppose I really was a retainer. Wouldn't you get in trouble if you tried to arrest me under false charges? You could just ask management to make sure. If they don't confirm my side, I'll comply, okay?"

He steps back and contemplates your offer for a second. He then shoots you a glare while pulling out his phone. Meanwhile, Briana has already taken off her bracelet and silently slides it into one of your shopping bags. You were hoping she'd take this opportunity to sneak away, why is she just hiding her decorations?

"Very good, I will call staff management. This will be over soon."

He doesn't take his eyes off you while waiting, not even when starting to talk.

{Yes, this is Abdul-Hamid, retainer of Baroness Selène. In front of me is a human male claiming to be a new retainer of Lady Nevada. Can you confirm that this is purely fabricated? ... What!? Are you certain? ... I know that much. What is his name?}

A few seconds later, he makes eye contact with you again.

"You! Say your name!"
"It's Sergey Ivankovich K-"
"HAH! That is not the name of the retainer! Y-"
"S-sorry, I forgot that's not what the documents say. My superior registered me as 'Ivan Kovlove' - that's K-O-V-L-O-V-E."
"...And you say that watching you eat is also her task?"
{You know, my duty is to ensure the wellbeing of not only guests, but vassals of House Daedal~ So, I saw how hungry he was, and I thought, he shouldn't have to endure this~}

He turns to Briana, whose interruption broke his focus. He's about to reply, but something seems to bother him.

{Moss woman. You were wearing jewelry earlier, were you not? Even if you were not shirking your responsibilities, that is still a violation!}
{Is that so? I do not remember wearing something like that~ Maybe you were thinking of my glittering skin~?}
{Do not take me for a fool! I know what I saw! It is obvious you hid them, so drop the act, now!}
{Hmm, hid them where~? They are not in my pockets, but if would make you happy, you could check to make sure~ Of course, that's only assuming they actually exist~}
{M-my tolerance for your childish games is wearing thin. If your trinkets are not on your person, they are obviously somewhere near you. Those bags, perhaps?}

Briana looks as relaxed as ever, but his instincts are correct - if he searches the bag, he'd definitely find the accessories.

What do you do?

Tell Briana to fess up about the decorations.
Tell him to leave your stuff alone. (Uses Intimidation)
Divert his attention again, this time with some help. (Uses Intimidating Gaze)
Remind him about his task for his superior.
Stay quiet.
Other (Write-In)

It's one thing if Briana gets in trouble for breaking the dress code - it's another if you get accused of helping her. You have a crude, but instinctual understanding of one of the abilities gained from merging with Enkidu: Anyone affected by your gaze will be driven to direct their attention to you. It isn't absolute in that it's possible to ignore, but they'd be hard pressed doing something that doesn't involve you. You have no intention of starting a fight here, but you hope to at least get him to forget about her.
You concentrate, and try to replicate the sensation you felt when you used it against that beast. You're not sure if any onlookers would be able to tell that you are using orgonomics or whatever it is, but as of right now, all eyes seem to be on the two of them making noise. A brief pressure builds around your eyeballs as you strain your inner muscles and keep your gaze fixed on Abdul, who suddenly stops, eases up, and looks at you.

"Look, I don't know what's going on, but we were about to head back."
"That is very convenient timing. But I still have business with the moss woman, she..."
"I could take care of that. We're both retainers, so we should both be of equal standing, r-"
"Do not think you have the same importance as me. I have served for years, you even do not have a retainer ID yet. Now let me do my..." {I was about to reprimand...}

He seems unfocused, as if he was trying to remember what to do next.

"Can I help you?"

His expression of light stupor is replaced with a frustrated mien.

"Yes, you can identify yourself."
"I told you, I-"
"I escort you to House Daedal's management for staff. There we can know if you are a spy."
"A spy? That's-"
{I'm sorry to interrupt~ But didn't you say that you were on an important mission for Baroness Selène~? Or do you have enough time to interrogate him after all~?}
{Stay out of this! He needs to- No, I need to... You are to...}

He closes his eyes, then takes a deep breath.

"You have wasted enough time. I let security of the house deal with you."

He reluctantly steps away, constantly looking over his shoulder to watch your next action. Not wanting to give him a reason to linger, you stand still, until he turns a corner, and you feel the mark on him release. You immediately pick up your bags, and gesture to Briana to leave.

"Come on, we really should go back now. Let's get out of here before he changes his mind."
"My hero~ Thank you so much for rescuing me from getting reprimanded~"
"Uh... You're exaggerating, right?"
"Hmm, I could have handled him on my own, you know~ Still, thank you for the help~"
"You're welcome, but couldn't you have seen this coming?"

"Hmm, úsually when someone from the same house sees you here, chances are it'll be ánother servant~ They únderstand it's just a little ínfraction, so they leave you be~ It's rare that a spoilsport like Mr. Uptight here will show up~!"
"Well let's just hope he forgot about your infraction. No more detours, let's just get back.

Your trip back is thankfully uneventful - you make your way back through the gates after the two of you identify yourselves to the guard. The plaza at the center of the campus seems to be as busy as always - even if quite some time has passed.

"Oh, would you look at that~? We're back, and with time to spare~! Álmost an hour left, even~"
"Thanks, but I'm more worried about you. I don't think you can justify needing four hours to buy some clothes."
"Aww, you're so considerate~! But you can trust me when I tell you it'll be fine, you know~?"

"Okay, but next time we - I mean, I have lunch with you watching, I'd prefer it if you won't be on the clock that time."
"Hmm, áren't you bold~? Álready thinking of the next time~? Maybe if you'll let me find you some matching hats~"
"A-anyway, could you do me one more favor? Can you show me where Dr. Nevada's lab is?"
"That is my job, isn't it~? This way, please~"

With the same gesture as always, she directs you to the left side of the plaza.

"By the way, shouldn't you áddress her Lady properly~? You could get in trouble if you don't pay your respects~"
"Actually, she wants me to use the doctor-title instead."
"Hmm, is that so~? That's news to me - but she is a bit of a recluse, so I don't know that much ábout her~"
"Oh, you slipped your jewelry into my bags, right? Are you going to take them back?"
"I'm sorry, but you'll have to hold ónto them a bit longer~! I'll get them when I have the time, promise~"
"Well I hope that's sooner than later. I feel a bit weird, carrying someone else's accessories around... Especially since you weren't supposed to buy them."
"Oh, by the way~! I don't áctually know where Lady Nevada's lab is éxactly~ We'll have to ask the receptionist for that one~"

After a trip of about 5 minutes across the campus, you arrive at a structure with a front entirely made of glass and wood. The simplified surfaces and organic curves set it apart from the other buildings here, and a sign above marks it as the Daedal Theoretical & Applied Orgonomy Research Wing. The two walk through the sliding doors and enter a mostly white, but comparatively small entrance hall.
Instead of a large lounge, it only has a small coffee table and some seats, and the reception seems to be close to the front doors already. Behind the counter is a young looking human girl, only a bit taller than Briana. Her mid-length brown hair slightly obscures her round eyes, which are fixed to something in her lap. Oblivious to your arrival, she only jerks up with a gasp and a flustered expression when Briana rings the bell on the counter.

{Ah! I am sorry! Briana! What are you doi- I mean, do you need somet- I mean, ahem... How can I be of assistance?}
{Hmm, you didn't tell me you got promoted~!}
{N-nononono! I didn't! I mean, I did not! I would never get promoted! I mean, I am just keeping watch while K- I mean, the receptionist is gone~...}
{Aww, don't be so hard on yourself~! And don't frown, you'll get wrinkles~ If you're in charge, could you tell this man where Lady Nevada's lab is~?}
{I'm- I mean, I am not in charge... I c-}

She suddenly stops dead in her tracks, looks over to you, and after a second of processing, lets out a small yelp.

{Oooh no, why did someone have to sh- I mean, hello- no, good morni- I mean, g-good afternoon, how can I be of assistance?}

Briana can't help but giggle.

{Unfortunately, I'm afraid he won't understand you~ He only speaks English, you know~}
{Ah! I'm sorry! I mean-} "I am sorry! Ah, how do- I mean, how can I be of a-assi-assistance?" {Did I say that right, Briana?}
"I'm sorry to bother you, but I need to know where Lady Nevada's laboratory is."
"Oh! I know that! Ah, I mean, which one?"
"Uhmm... She didn't specify. Do you know which on she is in right now?"
"Y-yes, it's- AH! Wait! I mean, you need to give me- No, not give, I mean, show me your clearance! No, your ID, so I can see your clearance!"
"Oh... Are you talking about my retainer ID? I don't have that yet."
"R-retainer ID? Does that count? Briana, does that count?"

She simply shrugs her shoulder, clearly enjoying this clueless conversation. The substitute receptionist looks at the floor and twiddles her thumbs.

"I don't kn- I mean, I usually only see everyone except for Doc- I mean, Lady Nevada show a pass with their clearance level on it... I do not know if anything else counts..."
"Well, it doesn't really matter, since I don't have anything like that. But Lady Nevada asked me to meet her at three, so can you tell me where to go?"

She stops her twiddling and the color drains from her face.

"Oh no. Are you tr-trying to enter without perm-permission? Are you breaking in!? Do I need-" {BRIANA, do I need to lock down the building!?}

"Defensive measures imminent. Neutralizing target before initiation of sequence extremely recommended."
"Enk, shut up! You're not helping!"

"Oh sweetie, calm down~! There's no lockdown necessary, I can confirm that he's not lying, you know~"
{B-but but-} "-but but he needs clearance! Or, I mean, he needs identification! That little ID card everyone has! I mean, everyone except for Lady Nevada! And I know that if he- I mean, if someone tried to break in, the f-facility has to go into lockdown!"

You can only imagine Dr. Nevada's irritation if someone raised an emergency in the wing. Should you just say that you'll back off and wait for Dr. Nevada? Maybe she can contact her, and clear things up, and maybe you won't bother her too much doing that... Alternatively you could also trick her, by saying you left your ID inside. And if that doesn't work, you could just "convince" her to let you in without making a scene...

What will you do?

Ask her to contact Dr. Nevada, or someone who can get in touch with her to verify that we're good to enter.

You take a step back and hold your hands at chest height - you feel like trying to trying to calm down a spooked cat.

"Listen, if I'm not allowed to enter, I won't. Do you think you could just get in touch with Lady Nevada and let her know I'm here? She should be able to clear things up."
"That's- that is to say, yes, I could- I mean, I can do that."

She looks at something obscured by the counter for a moment, then looks back at you with pleading eyes.

"Please, don't try to run while I'm- I am calling Lady Nevada. The panic button is a little hard to reach, and I am bad at multitasking..."

She returns to doing whatever it is she was doing while Briana does her best to hold back her giggling. The girl covers up both of her ears with her hands and nervously looks around the whole room, especially you.

{...Lady Nevada? I mean, greetings, Lady Nevad- ... Eep! I'm- no, I am so sorry, Lady Nevada, but I- ... This is the reception sp- no, not the reception, the reception is not here r- ... Y-yes, of course. ... A-apologies Lady Nevada. Have a nic-}

Briana loudly clears her throat, and points to you.

{Oh! So sorry, Lady Nevada, but this is important! There is a man here! ... I mean, a man who wants in! That is to say, he wants inside, but he doesn- does not have a facility ID! ... Sorry! You are right, of course, I will-}
{Hmm, maybe you should tell her Sergey is here~?}
{Sergey is here! I mean, I was told to tell you that Sergey is here, so, I think the man is Sergey? ... O-okay, I'm sorry, I mean, I am- Alright, goodbye.}

The girl drops her arms and lets out a loud sigh.

"Ah, she- that is, Lady Nevada will arrive shortly..."
"Uh... Thank you, and sorry if you got yelled at on my behalf."
"Don't apologize! It is my fault I did not know how deal with this situation..."
{Tsk, what did I tell you about being so hard on yourself~? You didn't do anything wrong, at least, I don't think so~}
{I know I'm not made for people jobs. That's why I stic-}
"Ivan! You need me t'do ev'rythin' round here?"

From around the corner comes Dr. Nevada, her labcoat covered in small grease stains. She is wiping her hands on a towel, and looking rather irritated. At the same time, the girl at the reception is covering her mouth with her hands, and looking rather terrified. Briana simply gives a curtsy, so you bow to give respect likewise.

{I left instructions t'get him an ID. What's the point if you're just gonna bother me anyway?}

She looks at the receptionist's booth, slightly confused.

{You a vice-receptionist or somethin'?}

She jumps a little when addressed, bows down and spreads her fingers to not muffle her speech.

{No, Lady Nevada! I-I mean, I am just filling in, or rather, I am a substitute, or I was asked to- I am just part of the cleaning staff!}
"Christ, we talk'd bout this 'ready..." {Well get him an ID, then! I got stuff t'do!}
{Eep! R-right away, Lady Nevada!}

She hovers her hand over the counter, and looks around frantically.

{Uhm... M-many apologies, but how do I do that, Lady Nevada?}

She rolls her eyes and lets out a tense sigh.

{Forget it. We'll do that later.} "Ivan, with me. Stick close, or the sensors'll see you as an intruder. Oh, n' leave your shoes n' bags at the reception. What're those clothes made of?"
"Uhm..."
"Oh, that's easy~! His shirt is 100% linen, and the pants are denim, with~... I think it was nickel~?"
"Fine. Let's go."

She spins around and starts walking - you barely have time to throw off your shoes and move your bags. Briana gives a quick bow and simply waves the two of you goodbye with a smile; the other girl immediately grabs your shoes and places them neatly in the corner.
You more or less chase Dr. Nevada down two flights down the stairs, where she slides open a thick and massive looking door with no windows and several warning labels on it, which she doesn't give you enough time to read.

Once inside, you're met with a messy looking large room - not entirely unlike that inventory you saw back in Minsk. The multiple desks are cluttered with books, tools, devices and spare parts. Before you can make another step, Dr. Nevada points to a pile of slippers next to the door. You find a matching pair that fits, and approach the table she is already sitting at.
She is occupied with the artifact you found, carefully moving alligator clips from one place to the next and making notes. You note that she seems to have had some success removing a panel.

"Uhm, you wanted to see me, Dr. Nevada?"
"I want'd t'see you at 15. You're half'n hour early."
"I thought you said 3 at latest."

She drops the alligator clips and swivels around in her chair.

"Oh, 'scuse me. We'll do it your way, then."
"I-I don't mind if I w-"
"No, I insist. Really."

She exhales and eases her grim expression.

"Seriously, tho, you're right, I did say that. That's on me."
"...Th-"
"Jesus, what're you wearin'? You look like y'got run over by a paintroller."
"Oh, you don't like it? Briana - well, the moss woman that accompanied me - helped me pick this out."
"Hold out your arms n' turn round."

You do so, and she observes you with the same intense stare she gave the artifact.

"Shit, she actually got taste."
"She was... very confident about her fashion sense. Anyway, before we discuss anything, have you confirmed whether my town is safe? I don't mean to impose, Dr. Nevada, but you did promise you'd check."
"Already did that. They're stable."
"Really!? Wait, what does stable mean?"
"Means the field's in a stable state. They didn't miss the target coordinates n' dissapate."

"What would have happened had they 'dissapated'?"
"It's a pain t'explain all that, so let's leave it at 'they all die'."
"Are you crazy!? Shouldn't that be a minimum requirement? How could you-"
"Okay. First up, don't call your superior crazy. Second, if that was likely, I wouldn't have this job. Third?"

She gives you a cocky grin.

"I don't care. Other than wastin' millions of biomarks and havin' to do everythin' all over again, that is."
"...Can I see them? My neighbors, my friends, my father?"
"In five months, if you're not on some mission on my behalf."
"Is there no way to communicate or even see them until then?"

"I told you already; Connection only works one way. The beacon with the payload containin' details already arriv'd, so by now they know what's up."
"That hardly sounds like something that could make for a viable living space."
"No shit, that's why it's in development. Now listen up, I wanna think that I treat my retinue better than those sociopathic jackasses, but you better cut back on the backtalk. The first day was a freebie, now I wanna see a modicum of respect. Specially when we're with others, got it?"

Every time you think she might not be so bad, she pulls shit like this. You get that nobles need to be treated with respect - hell, you knew that before this whole mess started - but she hardly acted like one so far.
Aside from that, there's still some things that need to be cleared up. Your IDs, your apartment, your phone,... There's also the matter of your secret identity as an undocumented pactmaker, and the elephant in the literal room: the artifact that made you one in the first place. Or maybe you should just give Nevada some space and let her say whatever she called you here for....

How do you want to reply?

and

What do you want to discuss next?

"A modicum of respect? Hah! All I do is ask you some questions about the safety of my friends, and you call that backtalk? You say that you want to help people with your research, but you just treat them like guinea pigs!"

She looks at you with a deeply furrowed brow, as well as an emotion you haven't see on her before - disgust, most likely. She raises her leg and stomps on the ground. At the same time as the foot makes contact with the floor, you feel a painful sting from your right foot travelling up the whole leg. Before you know what is happening, your muscles seize up, and you fall over. Out of the corner of your right eye, you see her swivel back to the artifact.

“Paralysis detected. Summon now to increase probability of retaliation."
"Before you call your bucket of bolts, let me make some things clear. The reason I don't give a shit about your backwater village is because the people there are outnumbered by a factor of over 10,000. When you have to figure out how to defend a town from kinetic lances and goddamn zombie hordes, 'Safety First' won't cut it. Believe it or not, but the principality is expressly governed to mass-produce guinea pigs, and I'm not gonna act superior and refuse to use the resources I'm given because our 'ethical standards' aren't as high as they were before we had demons scorching most of the farmland and dragons turning every city west to the Pacific into a fossil."

She turns to face you once more and crosses her arms.

"Now keep in mind that without me, you are nothing, and that I gave you everything you asked me for just two days ago. And if that's not enough, look for an underground group for retainers that hate their superiors - I'm sure you won't have to look for long. You can ask them about the amount of brown nosing they do on a daily basis, right after telling you about the shit their master did to them.
You can hate me all you want behind my back, I'm not such a self-absorbed mental case that can't function without constant validation. But now that you're gonna be dealing with nobility on a daily basis, you have to learn to fall in line, and keep your rebellious idealism on the backburner. I'm asking again, hoping you learned this time, got it?"

You slowly feel control, as well as a spread-out ache, return in your limbs and already try to get back on your feet. You wish you could talk back some more, but even if you can beat her with the help of Enk (which you believe you can), it really would just be a death sentence for you, and Springfield.

"Understood, Dr. Nevada."
"Good. Like I said, shit's for optics too, you get me in trouble if the others think I'm a doormat t'my own subordinates."
"...I can see that. Now, Dr. Nevada, are there any news from staff management? It's been a little hard moving around without identification..."

"Yeah, yeah. You'll get somethin' later t'day. Official ID takes longer, but it'll be enough. Phone should be good, apartment might take longer. Anyway, how was your night?"
"Uhm- well... Thanks. I slept fairly well, a-"
"Don't care bout that. You were dreamin' or somethin'?"
"...Well, I actually did. I think I was dream-"
"Don't bother, I'm not a psychoanalyst or whatever. Write it down tho, it could be useful."

"It was pretty vivid, and strange. Is there meaning behind it?"
"First days after a merge usually has the subconscious gettin' all mix'd up. Memories n' thoughts leak thru even if the pactmate doesn't wanna share, and durin' dreams you're most likely t'see 'em. Goes for both sides."
"...Do constructs even have a subconscious?"

She lets out a knowing, yet exhausted chuckle.

"Trust me, that's a can of worms you don't wanna open anytime soon."
"So what I saw was something Enkidu saw?"
"I didn't say that. Regular dreams're already random shit your brain pulls out of your subconscious, this one just had extra stuff in it. Anyway, main topic. We're discussin' how we - specially you - are goin' forward. I want Gwynn here for the loopholes n' schedules, she'll probably show up on time. First things first, the official stuff."

She opens the bottom drawer of a shelf in a corner and digs through a stack of files for a good minute, until she pulls out a thin bundle of loose sheets of paper.

"Right, we got... Okay, you're my retainer, that means you're in service t'me, n' by extension, House Daedal. You directly answer t'me, but nobility can still order you round - basically, anyone with a title of Lord or Lady or higher. Only exception's when you're busy with one of my orders, or if it goes against a previous order of mine. Got it?"
"Yes, Dr. Nevada."
"That stuff bout refusing free stuff still applies. Do NOT accept any freebies from anyone here. Specially if there's receipts, a serial number or, god forbid, a contract involved. That'll get you, and even worse, me in debt."

You think back to the lunch you got invited to. Does that count?

"Are we clear? That's a big one."
"Uh, yes, understood."
"Obviously you can't do shit for my line of work, so I'm gonna have you do odd jobs or whatever."
"Are you sure? Like I said, I can-"
"I wouldn't let a fresh engineerin' graduate touch this stuff. No way. Only reason I want you in here from now on's for research purposes only. On that note, you'll show up here six days a week, unless I say otherwise."
"Won't other people in the lab notice?"
"I'll tell 'em you're assistin' me. No one's comin' in here without my express permission, n' there's no surveillance."

"Will examining just me be enough?"
"Hell no. I need the two of you for most stuff."
"Is it safe to summon him in the middle of the campus?"
"This room is soundproof, fireproof, blastproof n' has so much shieldin', you could've a pactmaker convention and a diviner outside wouldn't notice. Whether I'm safe's a different matter. You're not gonna bring that thing out without backup, that's for sure."
"Backup?"
"Gwynn, for starters, but she's not gonna be around all the time. As long as you gotta stay shut bout your pact, we'll have t'find someone else who can fill in for her."
"I understand that you don't trust us, but worst case, I can just unsummon-"
"Not good enough."

You hear a loud buzz coming from the direction of the door.

"Gwynn. Let her in."

You head to the door and after some fumbling with the handle, manage to open it - just as predicted, Gwynn is standing in the hallway, still wearing her uniform.

"Hello, Dame Gwynn."
"Oh! Hello, Sergey. Good afternoon, Lady Doctor Nevada."

She gives a bow and steps past you, immediately taking of her boots and picking out a pair of sandals.

"I'm sorry for being late, Lady Doctor Nevada. I was asked to-"
"Forget bout that. We already went over his responsibilities. By the end of this, I want a plan for our two legal troublemakers here."
"Those being the illegally retrieved artifact and Sergey's undocumented pact, to summarize."
"Not illegal. We've been over this, it's a loophole."
"The retrieval might be, but keeping, let alone researching it, is. Didn't you say you would agree to give it to House Titania if Sergey managed to unearth it?"
"That was before I knew that thing broke the fundamental laws of pactmakin'. I don't trust anyone but me t'not fuck up tryin' t'reverse-engineer this mess - worst case they blow it up, n' we learned nothing."
"I'm not sure if this can be arranged. We stepped out of line, Titania's in a better position to be granted ownership of the artifact in court."
"That's only if we report the artifact."

Gwynn looks horrified and insulted.

"Lady Doctor Nevada, NO! I apologize, but that wasn't what we agreed on! Sergey's break-in lies in a gray zone, but a noble belonging to Daedal willingly hoarding and researching an undocumented artifact!? That is well out of line!"
"You think it's a good idea to give someone you know nothin' bout the blueprints to force pacts?"
"I'm sorry if this sounds selfish, but I already couldn't sleep one bit tonight! Everyone remotely involved with this would be tried the second this comes to light!"
"Gwynn. I can keep it secr-"
"Please, I'm begging you, don't even say that. You WILL be found out. I don't want the house, and the principality as a whole, lose a brilliant scientist because of a personal project."
"...Do NOT call this a personal project. And do not tell me what to do with my career. Understood, commander?"

Agree with Dr. Nevada.
Agree with Gwynn.
Other (Write-In)

"Begrudging acknowledgment of Target Nevada's expertise. To maximize chances of analysis of Pandemonic technology, her possession over the object is required."
"That's what I think too. I just hope that's even possible."

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I also want to know what exactly that thing did to me."
"Sergey, I'm not saying we should destroy the artifact. Given its value, it will still be examined, just by researchers of House Titania."
"Dr. Nevada? I... don't want to imply you are lying, but do you really think you are the only one able to reverse-engineer the artifact?"
"...Best case, they waste everyone's time n' I get t'try a decade or two later. Worst case, they break it worse than you did n' we never find out how it works, or if it did more t'you."

She looks at the floor, deep in thought. Gwynn is about to say something, but Dr. Nevada cuts her off.

"Honestly, I can't say that 100%. Haven't seen Titania's labs in years, n' their papers're solid. Just speakin' out of experience, when I say they botch stuff I could've done no problem."
"I can't speak for the expertise of any other scientist, but Dr. Nevada, I can tell that your accomplishments made you a much respected member of the house, and that your dedication to research is genuine."

For better or for worse, you think to yourself.

"I want to know what the purpose of the artifact is. Maybe even undo the pact."
"24 hours ago, I would've said that's ridiculous. Now, we can't take anythin' for grant'd."
"I understand that, but I've only agreed to go behind the back of the council because there is a legal pathway for this. What the both of you are suggesting is a plain violation of the law, no matter how you put it."
"Maybe there's a way Dr. Nevada could keep the artifact through the proper channels! Dame Gwynn, do you have any ideas?"

"Okay, let's assume lady Doctor Nevada reported the recovered artifact at the divers guild. First of all, after specifying the location, the high council would sue you for the undocumented dive. However, as we discussed, the charges won't stick, at least... at least not for you. At that point, ownership is ambiguous, and would have to be decided in court. The ruin is one thing, but an actual technological artifact of this value would get fast-tracked to get it analyzed as soon as possible."

"Can't we just say I found it someplace else?"
"All other ruins in the area are fully owned by House Titania, remember? We'd have to have made a huge detour for that lie to hold up."
"That, n' any low frequency orgone scan of Minsk now shows that the signal of the artifact's gone. You also left traces of entry at the tunnel, so that story'd fall apart within the first 5 minutes of the hearin'."
"...Right. Please, continue."

"Thank you. Normally, a case like this could go either way, but the representatives of House Titania will definitely make the case that this incident was premeditated by House Daedal, which it was, Lady Doctor Nevada."
"You done chastisin' me? They got no proof."
"Y-yes, but I don't think it will be necessary. The accusation will definitely swing the outcome in their favor, and the jury wouldn't want a result that could send a bad message."
"Bad message?"
"That being abusing legal gray areas to circumvent blockades, especially against an opposing house. The last thing the council needs are firebrand nobles that ignore the law whenever it suits them."
"Isn't that what the whole favor system is about?"
"I know, right?"
"The act of exchanging favors is between consenting parties and has the undocumented approval of the high council. What Lady- what the two of us did, was to act outside of the law with the intention of keeping it a secret to the council. It's very different."

"So it's impossible?"
"At the very least, it's extremely unlikely. Unless we can convince the jury that House Daedal deserves the artifact over House Titania despite the dubious nature of the retrieval, they will side with them."
"How would we do that?"
"Either make us look better or 'em worse. Of course, the grand jury got an easy time puttin' legality aside when there's a scientific breakthru and profit involv'd. If I tell 'em what I got out of this thing so far, it'll probably convince 'em."
"Except that would mean admitting to manipulating and testing on an undocumented technological artifact, which is highly illegal. There might not be evidence for your conspiracy, Lady Doctor Nevada, but it's impossible to circumvent this."
"I know that. It'd make things much easier, tho."

"Could you exchange favors for the ownership of the artifact? Or pardoning the illegal research?"
"Forget it, kid."
"...It's best not to do that. In the case of your pardon, it doesn't really go against anyone's interest. But if House Daedal were to garner favor from the high council to support this case, House Titania would do the same and we'd enter an arms race where the first to relent or run out of favors to offer loses. One a one-on-one basis, it's manageable, but at this scale, it could mean the ruination of the entire house."

"...Hey Gwynn. Any way I can join House Titania?"
"WHAT!? Lady Doctor Nevada, you can't be serious! You'd abandon our House Daedal for a single artifact?"
"If that's what it takes."

Gwynn seems to be at a loss for words, but manages to find them after clenching her fists.

"No! Of course not! Our Earl Daedal would never allow it! It might happen to servants and, in rare cases, nobility with low status, but you are an integral part of this house! Everyone here treasures you dearly, and... I- I had hoped you felt the same loyalty in return."
"Jesus, don't be so dramatic. I'm integral because I make 'em money n' clout. Which's fine by me, but don't act like there's more behind that."
"Is it so hard to believe that people would actually like you!?"
"How bout you qu- Okay, fuck this. You're not turnin' this into a therapy session."

She stands up and steps away from the desk, running her hands through her hair; taming the loose strands that have been falling out of place - and mostly in front of her face. It takes a moment for her paces to settle to their usual languid rhythm.

"This is clearly gettin' us nowhere. I still want a conclusion by the end of this, but for now, we're talkin' bout somethin' else."
"I... Agreed, Lady Doctor Nevada."
"Understood, Dr. Nevada."

She returns to the desk, this time moving behind the artifact suspended by a set of thin, mechanical arms.

"Let's talk somethin' that doesn't give me a migraine. I've been goin' through this thing for a few hours, and-"
"Sorry to in-"
"Yes, I didn't sleep, and no, this's more important right now. I'm goin' at a snail's pace, specially since it got mush'd..."
"It's not like that was my choice. I got thrown 3 meters against a wall - that box hit my back as much as it hit the concrete. Dr. Nevada."
"...Anyway, I didn't mess with the internal storage yet, but the wiring and geology is pretty advanc'd. Nothin' out of place compar'd t' some other artifacts I've seen, but a bitch t'work out all the same."
"Did you figure out how it works? Or who designed it?"

"Yeah, slow down. If I figur'd that out on my own in 10 hours, I'd only have t'work 80 hours a year. Only thing I confirm'd so far's that there's a frame with a layout that looks a lot like somethin’ you'd use to suppress orgonomics, or limit an orgone field."
"So that means Enkidu really was in there?"
"I said, slow down. This alone doesn't mean shit. You should also know that keepin' somethin' like your pactmate in there, let alone for almost 100 years, is basically impossible.
You could easily lift that thing before the merge. That means it wasn't compression, n' matter was actually removed. That's not impossible with orgonomics, but it's really inefficient, and you can't store somethin' as pure orgone for more than a couple seconds - that's basically how teleportation works. If somethin' was left in that state for a full day, you'd get back a corpse. Leave it for a full year, there's nothin' left."

You are about to ask another question, but she cuts you off.

"Before you say anythin', it works with unsummonin' pactmates because there's a strong orgone source - a conscious mind, to be exact - to keep em alive. It goes into orgone origin theory n' super-consciousness as to why that works, but basically... they are still around, cause you remember them bein' around. There's obviously more t’ it than that, but if I'm gonna explain every detail, we'll be here till tomorrow, evenin'."
"Okay, so what does that mean?"
"You can't make a pact with a monster that already made one, obviously. But a solo monster couldn't have been in an orgone state for that long, even if you had that kind of energy. At the moment, my money's on teleportation."
"Teleportation? How so, Lady Doctor Nevada?"

"It's basically sleight of hand. The construct never was in that box - it was someplace else, bein' drip-fed orgone while in stasis. When Ivan triggered the artifact, it acted as a beacon, and brought em in. Then, a separate section forced the pact somehow."
"But that construct said its last record was 26 AM! That's 7 years before the invention of magitechnological fairy rings! And even if that's not the actual year of the activation of the device, teleportation is still fairy tech! You'd recognize it immediately, right?"
"Yeah, but that's not fairy tech. Doesn't look like anything Arcadia did back then. But this is lost tech we're dealin' with, so it could be that someone figured it out before us."
"That's imp-"
"It's unlikely, specially cause long-distance matter displacement requires a gate at both ends. But it doesn't have to be long-distance. If the construct was close by - say, a radius of 50 meters - you could easily build a one-way teleporter with a beacon as guidance - with today's technology, that is."

"Wouldn't that mean that it could have only worked as long as I was in range? What kind of device is that?"
"I'm not saying anythin' for sure. Just my most likely explanation, given the facts. Why someone would waste their time n' talent makin' this, I don't know."
"Maybe it was just supposed to teleport? Could the impact have caused some kind of error that resulted in the pact?"
"This isn't a comic book. Busted parts usually result in dead hardware or dead people. But, as much as I hate t' admit it, I can't rule out anythin'."

"Unprecedented technology submitted as evidence for technological superiority of Pandemonia Federation. Targets Nevada and Gwynn must accept defeat."
"Oh yeah! Doesn't the fact that this clearly wasn't made by Arcadian scientist suggest that Enkidu's claim about Pandemonia is legit?"
"I guess, but seein' how there's no evidence of this civilization, I still doubt it. But anything's fair game if I'm right bout the alternate dimension."
"You mean that the construct is actually from a different dimension? Could that device be capable of something like this?"

"At this scale, I highly doubt that. But Ivan didn't recognize the architecture either, so maybe the whole block got transported here, as crazy as that is."
"Isn't that what you did with Springfield?"
"Like I said, that's not a different plane, it's subspace. That's still the same dimension. ...Honestly, at this point I'd believe the Hivemind did it."
"What is the Hivemind?"
"Ah, I can understand you not having heard of them. The Cybernetic Hivemind is a recluse faction a lot like us, actually. They live in fortified mega-colonies they call arcologies, and have strict defensive policies regarding engagement. They are highly technologically advanced, so sometimes we actually import goods from them, especially if there is low demand for it in Arcadia. The car and gun you used? Both were designed and built in a Hivemind arcology."
"Wait, how old is this faction?"

"I... think the name first officially appeared in a constitution 8 years after Doomsday, but they have had small settlements since the beginning."
"Wouldn't that clearly explain who built it? If they are so advanced and have been around since forever, t-"
"No, it's not. Gaia shamans might as well've put that thing together."
"Wh-"
"Cause the Hivemind doesn't do magitech. Old school stuff only. They probably can't even make an orgone-powered light bulb."
"No magitech? Why would they do that?"

"The Hivemind was founded by human freedom fighters that refused to align with any monsters. They managed to carve out their own territory relying on classical technology like robotics and AI. But when magitechnology was discovered by Arcadian scientists-"
"Falsehood detected. Magitechnology was discovered by future Pandemonic scientists in 14 AM. Demanding immediate rectification."
"-they think it originates from monsters. Like Arcadia, however, they have become more lax, allowing citizenship for monsters, and using magitechnology."
"Yeah, but they still don't know shit. Everythin' that uses orgone we export to 'em, ‘n they commission the most basic parts. They can't make a orgonomic generator today, no way they could do somethin' like that a century ago."

"...which still leaves us wondering who the creator of this device is, Lady Doctor Nevada."
"Well, yeah. But honestly, I don't really care. Doesn't change the fact that it did what it did."
"Uh, Dame Gwynn? We've established that Enkidu has an alternate view on history, but he wants to let you know that magitechnology was apparently invented by Pandemonia."
"If that's what he thinks, tell him that his view on history will remain fiction until he can come up with hard evidence."
"Well he heard that already. I just wanted to tell you, because he's been bothering me about it since you mentioned it."

What do you want to bring up?

Something else about the device. (Write-In)
Ask to bring in Enkidu to ask him something. (Write-In)
Keep Enkidu and bring up something else. (Write-In)

Let's ask if the pressure that we felt in our chest when we entered the room with the box was typical for magic devices. I checked back and we did mention that we felt it, but that was in the middle of us trying to bullshit her and maybe the pattern of intensifying only with touch and not being dampened with heavy metal isn't normal.

While you are discussing the artifact, you might as well ask about the sensation you felt when you were touching it.

"When I touched the artifact for the first time, I felt this weird pressure in my chest. Can you tell what that might have been, and whether it was harmful?"
"That's usually a symptom of orgone saturation - basically standin' in a strong orgone field. You get somethin' similar when you ride the public fairy ring. Can't say that for sure tho, we'll have t' run tests."
"Is that dangerous? I wrapped it in gold, but I still felt it."
"Gold's a good conductor for orgone. Not the best, but it used t'be common with old magitech - of course it wouldn't do anythin' t' shield from that. Saturation usually isn't a problem."
"11% of humans report feeling mild to strong dizziness from saturation, and 4% even experience nausea. There haven't been any cases of long-term effects from exposure to up to 50 kiloreichs."
"Kilo-what?"
"Unit of measure for orgone."

"Oh, I see. Dr. Nevada, what tests do you want to run on me exactly?"
"Blood sample, CAT, ECG, OFA n' reflexes, for starters. More stuff, depending on the results."
"I... don't know what most of that means."
"Don't worry, they are standard medical tests. Nothing unusual."
"And what was that about 'more stuff'?"
"Christ, you say that like I'm gonna cut you open. I'm not gonna throw random shit at you n' see if somethin' happens. I'm not a hack."
"...Lady Dr. Nevada, on the subject of Sergey, do you have any plans for his education?"
"Some kinda crash course for Sidhe, the rest he'll get thru’ osmosis. Gwynn, can you teach him pactmaker stuff?"

She taps her chin and ponders for a bit.

"I'll try to make some time, but I can't make any guarantees for a fixed curriculum... There aren't any missions planned for about a month, but something new could pop up on short notice."
"No need t' give him the full changelin' course, he just gotta know the essentials."
"Oh, in that case, it should be fairly simple - he'll have to train on his own, though. Would you like me to teach him about appropriate etiquette and the council as well?"
"You sure you got enough time for this? I can't give you credit for this, since it's unofficial."
"I don't mind - this is not only important to Sergey, but to House Daedal as a whole. He's now a representative of the house, so he needs to know about these things."
"You better be grateful for this. She's sacrificin' her own spare time for this."
"O-of course! Thank you, Dame Gwynn."
"Right, I wanna take a look at your pactmate. Gwynn, you're here if anythin' goes wrong."
"O-out of the sudden? U-understood, Lady Doctor Nevada!"

She assumes a defensive position facing, but not looking at you - her eyes seem to be trained a bit above you.

"Is- is it okay to summon him here? Even if he won't attack, I'm afraid he'll destroy a chunk of the lab by accident, with how... tightly packed everything here is."
"There's a chamber in the back. Enough space there."

She points to the wall behind you, and you see a plain room behind a window with a heavy frame. Next to the window is a door clearly meant for safety purposes, with more locks and warning labels than the last one. It's looking less like a check-up and more like an interrogation, or experiment. Dr. Nevada walks past you and begins to unlock the door.

"Don't look like that. It's just for the space. I'll leave the door open."
"Are you going to take Enkidu apart or something like that? I trust you for this, Dr. Nevada, but I don't think Enkidu will allow it."
"Couldn't do that if I want'd too. You can't disassemble merged constructs like a machine."
"Alright... Let me just have a quick word with Enkidu."

"Can you sit still for a while?"
"Negative."
"Look, I'm not a fan of her either. But I do believe she'll keep her word about this."
"Sincerity irrelevant. Close examination of Tau series model can compromise classified Pandemonia technology."
"This again? It's..."
"Memory of host lacking. Agreement to protect confidentiality must be upheld."
“The way I remember it, I only promised not to say anything confidential.”

"What's the holdup? He shy or somethin'?"
"Uhm... Enkidu doesn't want to be examined. He says his design is classified."
"God, this... Tell it- Know what, this is too annoyin'. Get in here, n' bring that thing out."
"What if he-"
"I'm not gonna touch or probe it, at least not until I had a word with it. Honest."

She raises her hands, fingers splayed, as to say she has no tricks up her sleeve. Reluctantly, you step through the thick door frame and enter the empty, if not a little dirty chamber. Gwynn is right behind you, and Dr. Nevada leans against the doorframe, partially outside the room. You pray that Enk won't immediately attack to defend his state secrets and summon him, this time to your side.
As his large stature takes form, the relatively small room is bathed in white light and no longer looks so empty, with an almost 10 foot tall construct standing in it. Gwynn clutches the hilt of her sheathed sword, and in response, Enk assumes a wider stance.

"Enk, stay cool! There's no reason to fight! Dame Gwynn, if you would..."
"I'm sorry, but I wouldn't want to fail in my duties due to my carelessness. I won't make the first move, but I won't let him make the second one."
"Insufficient threat."
"Dame Gwynn, you are aware that I also take damage if-
"Would you knock it off? No fightin' in my lab, period. Big guy, you got a problem with me lookin' at you?"
"Accurate assessment. Every Tau series model tasked to protect classified information regarding and belonging to Pandemonia Federation. This includes designs of and systems integrated in the model itself."
"Oh, please. You're almost a century old. You think you got somethin' under the hood we didn't already figured out decades ago?"
"Correct. Example: The cube currently under examination."
"There's no proof that's from your country, you know."
"Irrelevant hypothesis. The cube serves as proof of old technology beyond Arcadian understanding."

"...Not as dumb as you look. Fine, how bout this. You look more like a Hivemind raptor than our constructs, got any data connectors?"
"Information classified."
"Jesus, come on. If you got any, they can't all be proprietary. Got POD? G7? NFC? USB? Radio?"
"USB-C port available for temporary storage."
"Damn, you really are ancient. You know your own assembly?"
"Assumption correct. Standard feature for all T-"
"Yeah, yeah, your whole series. Here's what we do. I send you databases of all public patents of both Arcadia and Hivemind, n' you see if you got anythin' on you that hasn't been invent'd yet. If you don't, you let me do my thing. Got it?"
"Negotiation deployed. Target Nevada is to refrain from examining this chassis, should gambit fail."
"Yeah, whatever. You gonna have t'stop callin' me a target too, tho."

Dr. Nevada swiftly moves to a computer nearby, pulls out a small device from underneath a pile of papers, attaches it to the monitor and begins typing. After a few intense minutes of Enkidu and Gwynn staring each other down, she comes back and holds out a small stick to Enkidu. And despite his massive hands big enough to squeeze a tire, he grabs it with great finesse between his thumb and index finger and puts it somewhere near his neck. Dr. Nevada whistles at the display or dexterity.

"Damn, would've thought you got secondary pincers for that. Not bad."
"Possible sign of technological inferiority."
"Don't get too excited. You got a few terabytes t' comb through."

Enkidu assumes a more neutral stance and seems to look off into the distance, although it's a bit hard to tell with him. You wave at him to get his attention, but he doesn't react.

"Uhm... Dr. Nevada, what just happened? Did you disable him or somethin'?"
"Don't know shit ‘bout viruses. Wouldn't have worked long-term, either. I guess it's running thru’ all that data, comparin' its components t' all known technologies of today. Might take a while."
"He almost seems like he is in a trance, Lady Doctor Nevada. Do you think he'd even notice if I attacked him?"
"Intent to harm shall be met with violent retaliation, elf."
"Oops!"

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Just cause it's busy siftin' thru all that data doesn't mean it's stuck."
"What was that talk about a connector? What did you give him?"
"USB drive. Used t'store data ‘n move it between PCs. They're real old n' not nearly as fast as the current stuff, but it's reliable, physical n' secure, if you don't lose it."
"Does that mean my pactmate is a computer?"

"Eh, not really. I mean, technically? It gets kinda weird with constructs. Basically, they're orgone cores encased in a construction designed t' move ‘n use tools a certain way. You can make that shell in a lotta ways, n' typically it's based on somethin' with an inanimate equivalent. Golems are kinda like houses, automatons kinda like clockwork, ‘n your pal? It's more like a computer."
"I'm afraid I don't know of any constructs like that. Do you, Lady Doctor Nevada?"
"Not an expert, but this's my first time seein' somethin' like that."
"You said something about the Hivemind? A raptor? Are you talking about a bird?"
"Nah, like I said, Hivemind doesn't do orgonomy, ‘n never has. They don't need constructs either."
"I'm ashamed to admit that I'm not sure what you mean by 'raptor' either, Lady Doctor Nevada. Could you enlighten us?"
"That's not in the curriculum on the Hivemind? Never been to an arcology either?"

Both questions are met with a shake of her head.

"I guess it's not really important. A raptor's like... it's a flyin' shock trooper unit of the Hivemind. Not sure if it's autonomous or mann'd, tho’ - never looked that much into it."
"The Hivemind has shock troopers?"
"Probably not much different from us. They rather stay inside, but sometimes you gotta get out, t' secure ground or whatever."

Is there something you want to bring up, or do you just wait for Enkidu to finish?

wait for Enkidu to finish

With Gwynn keenly looking for any suspicious movement from your pactmate and Dr. Nevada returning to the artifact, you watch Enkidu stand perfectly still in silence. Three long minutes later, the single yellow light in his visor lights up.

"Assessment and cross-reference of patent database complete."
"And? Did you figure out if there's something that matches your technology?"
"...All observable technology listed as declassified. Target Nevada authorized to initiate examination."
"Ha! Looks like you're not so state of the art after all!"
"Dame Gwynn, I don't think you should provoke-"
"Outta my way!"

Dr. Nevada pushes you aside, entering the room with a brisk pace.

"Deal's a deal. Any excuses left, or you gonna behave now?"
"Passive examination of chassis authorized. Defensive systems to remain active."
"Good enough for me. You two stay here, gonna get some measurements first..."

Dr. Nevada makes note after note of the both of you - from mundane things such as height and weight to readings from machines you've never seen before - although it has been quite some time since you last had to get your blood taken. Surprisingly, Enkidu turns out to be fairly cooperative - None of the tests require his active participation, but he stands still and doesn't make any more complaints. After over two hours of testing, Gwynn speaks up.

"Lady Doctor Nevada? I don't mean to impede, but I have to report back in an hour, and I can't leave you unsupervised with... him here. How much longer were you planning on conducting these tests?"
"Ah, shit, already? Fine, let's call it quits for now. Ivan, get your pactmate outta here. Gwynn probably blinked less than 10 times in the last 2 hours."
"Oh, uh... Thanks for your patience, and for letting Dr. Nevada examine you, Enkidu. If it helps, I probably feel like no less a guinea pig than you."

You wait a moment for him to respond, but he doesn't answer. You unsummon him, hoping he's fine... He hasn't really said much lately.

"If I may, Dr. Nevada, were you able to determine something? Is there anything wrong with me?"

She shuffles through her loose pile of sheets.

"Sides from the whole scientific impossibility bit, some stuff. Orgone frequencies kinda all over the place."
"Is... is that bad?"
"Honestly, not sure. The peaks are different for everyone. Basically, the more the spectrograms of a human ‘n monster match, the easier it'll be for 'em t'enter a successful pact. You two got way more than the norm."
"Because we normally wouldn't be a good fit?"
"Most likely, yeah. Course, a pact this mismatched would definitely fail, so there's never been a scenario like this. But now that we're here... We'll have t'see if somethin' happens."
"Uhm... something?"

"You ask me, souls're a stable system. You're not gonna explode. My money's on your soul's eigenvalues adjustin'."
"Eigen-"
"Attitude adjustment, maybe. Maybe nothin' at all. That's why you're the guinea pig."
"Are there any other risks Sergey should know about?"
"Uh, more iron in his diet? That construct's orgone drain's pretty high too, so more food in general, maybe."
"Really? I didn't know drain rates could differ between pactmakers."
"They always do, but his's kinda high. Bet it's ‘cause of the incompatible fields."

She leaves the reinforced room and gestures at both of you to follow her back to the desk with the artifact, where she reclines back in her chair.

"Right. Gwynn, you got your date or whatever. Ivan, staff says your phone n' keys're ready - I gotta be there for the transfer, of fuckin' course. But before anyone leaves, I want a clear answer on the artifact deal. Gwynn, you still wanna rat me out if I keep it under wraps?"
"Please don't say it like that, Lady Doctor Nevada. Any member of the court - any Arcadian, for that matter - is legally obliged to report any and all willful and direct violations of rightful proced-"
"I know there's a law for that."
"...It's like I said, Lady Doctor Nevada. If you refuse to work with the system given to us, I can't let that stand."

Dr. Nevada glares at her for a long time, but despite clearly displaying doubt and guilt, Gwynn remains steadfast. In response, Dr. Nevada rolls her eyes and falls back into her chair, visibly annoyed.

"Fine. Good t'know. Any ideas how we can win the case for the ownership, then?"
"I... Given the circumstances, it's hard to-"
"Yeah, that's what I thought. I'm not goin' t’ trial until I know I get t'keep it."
"Uh, Dame Gwynn? Hypothetically speaking, what would happen to me if Dr. Nevada were found guilty of withholding the artifact?"

Your superior gives you an accusatory glance.

"Gonna snitch on me too now?"
"I just want to know what would happen! I wouldn't even know where to report something like that-"
"Depending on the verdict, Lady Doctor Nevada could be demoted as a head scientist and noble both. Meaning, you might lose your status as a retainer. If no one of House Daedal would be willing to request your services, you would most likely move back to serfdom - that is, provided your pact goes undiscovered."
"...And Springfield? What about everyone?"
"Her projects would become the responsibility of other members of the Daedal research wing. They are beholden to the house to continue working on them, if that's what they're asked to d-"
"With plenty of wiggle room, mind you. We can bail on runnin’ experiments if we make up some excuse. And just so you know? Their safe return is up in the air if I'm out of the picture."
"Are... Are you saying they'll die unless I keep quiet about your- about the artifact?"

How can she say stuff like that? You glare at her, but her faint scowl is neither fading nor intensifying.

"I'm sayin' they'll be fine long as I'm here. Otherwise, I'm not makin' any guarantees."
"You're not planning on sabot-"
"DON'T EVEN think about finishing that sentence. If you..."

Just the first two syllables send her into a fit, gripping the hem of her coat tightly, but she catches herself. Relaxing her posture, she exhales and takes off her glasses to rub her eyes briefly. As she puts her eyewear back on, her expression has returned to something more neutral.

"Documentation or not, this stuff's dangerous work and I've had more experience with it than everyone in this building put together. My work is clean. I make sure of that. Can't say the same thing ‘bout everyone else. You wanna backstab me cause you think I'm being a cunt? Go ahead. I'd still keep your friends alive because I won't abandon my principles ‘cause of some petty drama. Just remember, whoever takes over the project made no promises, and has no obligation to keep ‘em alive."
"I... understand."
"Sergey, please remember that I don't want to report Lady Doctor Nevada - I'm willing to overlook her... enthusiastic glance over the artifact if we can report it in a timely manner. I... I think you know me enough by now to understand that I want to avoid any incrimination."

What do you do?

Insist there must be a way to win the legal battle against House Titania.
Say that you can't risk Dr. Nevada (and you, by extension) losing access to the artifact.
Suggest to report the artifact, knowing Daedal will lose ownership. Maybe Titania owning the artifact isn't so bad after all...
Stay quiet.
Something else (Write-In)