Quoted By:
Why is she asking <span class="mu-i">Richard?</span> He seems unperturbed, at least. "It's as good a resolution as any that've been provided."
"Okay, then."
'Okay then' indeed: that was everything you could think of about locitis. "Great. So Namway—"
"What is your <span class="mu-i">thing</span> with Namway?" Glenn says. "I don't understand. You don't even work here, you're not the dupe-buying type—"
"Well, they shot my friend and kidnapped my—" God. What is Madrigal? "—rrrival? Um, my rival. So."
Glenn turns ashen. "You're kidding. You're not kidding? What the <span class="mu-i">actual—</span>"
"I never trusted them," Iris pronounces.
"That's not a win, Iris. Nobody trusted them." Allan swallows a crisp. "That's fucked up if it's real, though. Sorry about your friend. And, uh, rival."
You wave a hand. "He's fine. She's... we're working on it. I just want to know where their head researcher lives. Pat. And anything else you know, really."
"...I told you what I knew," Glenn says. "We really don't have much contact with them. They make goo dupes, Headspace is related somehow... maybe we're business partners? It's really something for the people calling the shots, we're just—"
Iris adjusts her hair again. "I think we're both subsidiaries."
"Maybe. I don't know. Uh, and I've never heard of Pat, sorry. Have you guys—?"
Two shakes of the head. "Sorry," Glenn says again.
"It's okay, I guess." You can't think of a reason they'd lie about this, and Richard isn't exactly helping. "You said, um, Querk and... something else. A little bit ago."
"Ozertec," Richard says.
"Querk and Ozertec. What are those?"
"Same deal as Namway. Just companies. I think Ozertec does mining, I... don't remember what Querk does." Glen rubs his scalp. "Business partners, I guess?"
"All subsidiaries," Iris states.
You blink. "Of what?"
"Management."
What else would it be, you guess. "...Okay. And what's 'Under'? You said they'd send you..."
Something's <span class="mu-i">wrong.</span> In the vibrations in the fabric of the universe, you might say, if it wouldn't result in half an hour of condescension and visual aids. So you'll settle for plain 'wrong,' and add on that you're feeling hot, suddenly, feeling feverish, feeling thirsty. Thirsty? You haven't felt thirsty for years. It's not warm in this office space, but it is warm outside in the dreadful sun— could that be it? You spent too long out there on that awful tour, and the delayed effects are kicking in? Sunburn? Heatstroke? Glenn's looking at you oddly. Coldly. Like you didn't wow him with your awesome sword earlier. "Look, I think that's plenty of questions."
"Hey!" you say, and your throat burns. "We had a— we had a bargain. We struck a square deal. I get all my dark secrets, and—"
"You got what you asked about earlier, and a bonus for Namway because they killed your pal. That's enough."
(4/5??)
