Conversation · Logic

"Maybe this is what happened to me when I lost my memory..."

The lieutenant sighs. "Alright, party-boy, can you stand?"

He nods. "That seems likely. Can you stand?"

Andre shrugs.

Yup, sounds like a seizure. And you probably had a more massive one a few days back.

But all kinds of things could be wrong with you at this point -- you've known that much all along. Meanwhile, you still have a killer to catch.

"It did look like you... short-circuited," she says, flipping through printouts.

"It felt familiar."

"With the moves you've got on you -- I don't doubt it!"

He ignores the young man. "It very well could be that something similar happened the night you lost your memory. Can you stand?"

It's not your moves that are at fault, per se. You almost certainly had a seizure just now -- and a much more massive one a few days ago, when you lost your memory.

You've got to press on with this case, though. Just -- take better care of yourself. Don't mix with adolescent drug addicts, maybe?

"Has anything like this happened to you before?"

"It was intense, but I'm pulling myself together. Boy, I'm all out of juice." (Get up.)

"How long was I out for?"

"Thirty minutes or so." She raises an amused eyebrow.

"When exactly did you lose consciousness? When you started shaking or when you were already on the ground?"

"Give him a moment." He comes over with a cup of water and puts it to your lips. "You've gotta drink water, man."

"It looks pretty dangerous, though."

"Nah, man, don't worry, he's mainly dehydrated. It's a regular party reaction, yeah."

"Oh, there you are, man. Don't worry, I've seen this happen before to people partying too hard. You're dehydrated and all."

It's not merely the dehydration -- it's your broken leg, reminding itself again with a dull but persistent ache.

"Where's Kim?"

"Dunno what happened between you guys, but it was not cool. You should go out and talk to him."

"Oh, there you are, man. Don't worry, I've seen this happen before to people partying too hard. You're dehydrated and all. Can you get up?"

It's not merely the dehydration -- it's your broken leg, reminding itself again with a dull but persistent ache.

"THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING."

"Hard-Cop!"

"HYPER! HYPER!"

Where did the music go?

Oh, don't worry, the music is still there. It's you who's gone.

No really, why can't I hear anything?

This is a pivotal moment. Try not to piss yourself.

Concentrate on hearing.

Nothing. Just the immaculate silence of your spinal fluid. Electrified.

It comes to you like a blue whale. You sense it stir the tranquillity of the deep -- a single note of bass passing through. Then it's gone. Back to el silencio.

This is where the beat plunged. It will resurface soon. Brace for glory.

Bust a move.

Foolhardy! Do you even know what's happening on the surface? Maybe a thousand years have passed? Or maybe you started spazzing out like two seconds ago?

Okay, so the speedfreaks want to start a club for dance music. That much checks out. Youths like music. You feel as though you might have liked music more when you were young too... but you digress.

Mmmhm. And then there's the narcomania.

The gist of it is: They want to turn the church into a club, but a suspicious element has overtaken the building. It's very important to understand what the gist of things is -- always consult the gist before making up your mind. This is going well.

Of course, not everything is 100% clear here but when is it ever? Congratulations, kids. Your story sort of checks out.

All in all, you really can't tell what that mean programmer grandma was talking about.

It still feels as if this didn't quite go as it should have, but...

Mmmhm. (Rub your chin.) What's the gist of it.

A number of things don't add up. Let's take a look!

How about: "Gather around, kids!"

"Okay kids, now gather around..."

The young speedfreak puts down a busted capacitor and looks at you.

The one with the large head seems very enthusiastic about whatever you have planned.

Their would-be leader is less amused.

"Some time in the past -- I'm not sure where and how -- I fell sick and became the shadow you see now. But before that, I have reason to believe I was a police detective."

"But you still are..."

"Thank you for your kind words, but everyone in here sees I'm a disgrace to the uniform."

"What happened?" Egg Head looks serious, suddenly.

"Life tore me a new asshole."

"That's a real downer," he shakes his large head.

"Now, obviously, that might as well have been a thousand years ago. But there's still some detective left in me."

The young speedfreak is silent.