When the tape finally ended, there's a shared look between Theodore and Lila as they stood quietly while they stared at the tape recorder.
With the last of his strength, Joey Mussolini talked about the servants turning against their handlers, barking orders, and weren't manmade like initially thought.
Richard Simms' name etched into their minds, the duo has their next lead, and hoping that when they find his home, they'll be able to learn more about the servants and what exactly went on in Sanctuary during the heyday before the downfall.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Lila voiced her concern as she joined Theodore's sighed as they left Joey Mussolini's home, after learning what they needed to go from there, and Theodore shared her concerns as he added that the description of electrical burns bothered him.
They haven't come across anyone alive and with what Joey Mussolini said about the servants, there's a good chance they won't.
Causing Lila questioning what happened at the theatre they arrived in, there weren't any electrical burns on the walls, bullet holes, and the way they spread across the wall led her to believe the shooter or shooters panicked as they opened fire on whatever or whoever.
Theodore theorized that there was pushback from the residents against the growing disobedience in the servants, they attempted at shooting them, but for whatever reason, didn't succeed.
What happened to the residents after, they don't know for sure, either the servants killed them, or they must keep looking for answers.
"Not manmade," Theodore echoed what Joey Mussolini said as he shoved his large hands into his stitched pockets, as he walked with Lila while looking for Richard Simms' home.
Adding to the pile of questions, it made Theodore curious, and he harkened back to what Gerald said.
Maybe it wasn't just submarines and divers the octopus saw.
Chewing on his inner lip, Theodore pondered to himself as they searched for Richard Simms' home, but didn't find it, they've looked up and down, checked the map more than once, but no home registered to a Richard Simms.
Not even Dick Simms, either.
None of it made sense and they couldn't spend time checking every home they come across under the idea that Richard Simms lived under a different name.
Checking the map closely, Theodore suggested that Richard Simms didn't have a conventional home, if he's behind the servants, it would've made sense if he stayed close to them in the event he's needed for repairs.
It didn't say where the servants went when they're not catering to the elite, but that's expected when Rupert Malone's concerned about appearances.
Studying the map closely, Theodore sees there's inconsistencies among the map, like blank areas in between the districts.
Cogs turning in his head, Theodore deduced that the blank areas' their best chances at finding their answers.
No idea if there's any servants active still, since they haven't made contact with them, but Theodore thinks they might've gone back to wherever Richard Simms kept them.
What they'll do then, well, both have their running shoes on, and Al's in better shape than he was 50 years ago, so that's something.
They would've run with the assumption that nobody's alive and they're only dealing with servants, if not for the intercom suddenly turning on overhead, and they hear a man talking.
"Good god, someone's still alive!" Theodore and Lila heard the man say on the intercom.
Glancing at each other, the two shrugged before Theodore spoke up, don't know what good it'll do, but it's worth trying.
"Yes, hello, who are you?" Theodore got to the point, wanting to know who's talking to them, and the fact they took this long deciding to speak up.
Rather rude of them not speaking up, would've ruined a perfectly good plan of them thinking there's nobody left alive in the undersea city.
"The name's Kershaw, who're you?" The man inquired who the two were, to which they responded with their respected name and title.
"The Doctor, huh?" Kershaw's flummoxed about Theodore, but Theodore affirmed that he is indeed the Doctor.
Kershaw responded with, "Well, we had a doctor in the house, but I don't he's doing much these days."
Lila asks how Kershaw's hearing them and he says that hidden behind the walls were speakers and microphones, he's got every angle on them that he can hear them loud and clear.
"How're you doing that with the barnacles?" Theodore inquires how the system worked despite the barnacles and damages done by the leaking saltwater and Kershaw answers that he had to rewire everything.
It wasn't easy, but he managed, and when asked, he said that he didn't know if anyone else's alive, he's just been hiding.
"What happened with the servants?" Lila asks Kershaw what he knows about the incident and he said that they opened fire on everyone during a Christmas party.
They were acting up all week, but Rupert Malone didn't want them recalled because it'd take too long for Richard Simms' to fix them before the party.
It ultimately resulted in the nightmare of the disobeying servants turning on everyone.
Kershaw lucked out; he hid in the backroom in some crates.
"What are the servants?" Theodore asks what they are and Kershaw replied that he doesn't know, he only knows that Richard Simms cooked them up in his lab one day and Rupert Malone bankrolled him.
When asked for details, Kershaw adamantly said that he doesn't know what Richard Simms did, he wouldn't let anyone come near his lab unless they're Rupert Malone.
Lila prodded about what the servants looked like and Kershaw described them as weird with shrilling electronic voices that Richard Simms claimed was temporary.
"They moved without even touching the ground, I know that for sure, they didn't have problems with the stairs. Rupert thought they wouldn't go up correctly because of their weight distribution, but those things just lifted themselves up," Kershaw described the servants, the way they're able to go upstairs and down without issue.
It drove Lila to ask him why that's important and Kershaw said that the servants didn't have legs. Richard didn't want them collapsing over themselves with legs, so he made sure they didn't have them, pushing themselves around by science jargon he can't even hope to describe without sounding like a lunatic.
Hearing this, made pits form in Theodore and Lila's stomach as they hear Kershaw describe the servants, their tongues numbing, and their eyes locked with the same look.
"Where did he get the idea from?" Theodore asks Kershaw.
He responded thoughtfully that he doesn't know, Richard kept everything in his head most of the time, and if he didn't, it wasn't something easy for anyone to understand. Rupert knows what he was talking about, but that wasn't saying much.
"Are they still here?" Theodore further probed for answers and Kershaw answered that he didn't see them leave Sanctuary, so if they haven't snuck out, they're still around.
When asked about others like him, Kershaw said that he didn't know, everything's a blur. If they didn't get out when the servants started shooting at everyone, they weren't.
"Where're you?" Lila spoke up as she wanted to know where Kershaw hid and he said that he didn't want to give out his location over the speakers, just in case the servants might've hooked into it.
It took him a while trying to rewire everything just so he had some way of communicating without the servants zeroing on his location. He couldn't even stop for a day without worrying about them coming around.
"Where are they?" Theodore asks him.
Kershaw scoffed as he said that they've set up an encampment in the Ward. That's Richard's lab, it's not easy getting to, because of how it was built, but the servants didn't have problems getting there.
He asked why Theodore wanted to know and aghast as Theodore casually told him that they'll deal with him, leading Kershaw to exclaim, "Are you out of your mind, I don't know what crate you came from, buddy, but I don't want to know. We must be the only ones alive!"
It led Lila asking how Kershaw survived this long and he said that he hid food around the place. He finished the last of the perishables, now he's onto the prepackaged meals that last for ages, but it won't keep for long. He checked every corner in his attempt staying out of the eyes of the servants, but he's certain that he owns every food item in Sanctuary.
It wasn't saying much when most of it was alcohol.
God, they loved their alcohol.
Used it to clean wounds, but he couldn't partake in the spiced rum he collected, needed to be sharper than a tack. Couldn't let his guard down for a second. Kershaw's running nearly four hours of sleep, if that, trying to stay away from the servants.
"I'd like to escape, but I don't have the key to the emergency subs. Don't even think they're functional at this point, if the servants haven't picked them clean, yet," Kershaw sounded dejected as he said that he couldn't escape from Sanctuary without the key that Rupert Malone held. He didn't think the subs worked, thinking that the servants gotten to them. Maybe even booby trapped them, he doesn't know.
"Look, we're getting to the bottom of this, stay where you are, we'll figure things out," Theodore instructed Kershaw as he glances around, "where's Rupert Malone's office, wherever he goes?"
Kershaw answers that it's on the second floor, but Theodore doesn't have an easy way getting to the second floor, a lot of staircases collapsed, and much of the second floor's a death trap because of the collapses.
"We'll figure it out, you stay hidden, don't use the intercom unless you have to, understand?" Theodore orders Kershaw as he and Lila pressed on, looking for a way up.
On their guard, the duo searched for a pathway leading to the second floor, but as Kershaw said, most of the conventional ways became obstructed due to the sinking floors from the barnacles.
"Come in, Al," Theodore reached out to the TARDIS.
Al answered and Theodore told him what they're dealing with, instructing him not to come to them unless it's necessary. He didn't want Al risking capture and for Al to stay on his metaphorical toes in case the servants make their way to the theatre.
"On it, need me to do anything while I wait?" Al asks what Theodore wanted him to do in the meantime and Theodore tells him that he needed information regarding Rupert Malone and Richard Simms. Look for everything regarding the construction of Sanctuary and everything else useful.
"On it, boss!" Al said as he disappeared from Theodore's head.
Even the TARDIS' talking to him like he's Hammond.
Rather annoying, that.
The plan in motion, Theodore continued searching with Lila, though it did appear having flaws, there's reasons for everything.
Theodore didn't know Kershaw from a hole in the ground. They didn't even see his name on the map in the housing district.
His late father always warned him that there's always something more to an adventure than meets the eye, even the smallest things turn out bigger at the end, for example.
Maybe Kershaw's working in an area that wasn't disclosed in the map, but Theodore wasn't taking chances, after dealing with things that no one in their world's aware of existing, he's seasoned as far as he's concerned.
Perhaps not as seasoned as his late father, but he's not the same as he was when the TARDIS forcibly entered his life and kidnapped him and Lila.
Once he confirms that Kershaw isn't a criminal that snuck himself down into Sanctuary masquerading as an innocent man seeking refuge from robotic killer servants or some variant that proved dangerous, Theodore will send Al.
Until then, they're cautious.
Lord knows what Hammond would say if he finds out that Theodore let a criminal into the TARDIS!