Journeying through Victorian London, with nary a clue, Theodore and Lila worked with the knowledge they knew of Jack the Ripper, trying to solve the woman's murder.
The bobbies didn't know who she was, understandably, without an ID on her, they don't have much, but the intrepid Theodore's undeterred, having gone through the woman's coin purse prior, he did find a piece of paper stowed among the coins, an address on it in the woman's handwriting.
With it, Theodore and Lila ventured through the streets, trying to find it among the dimly lit street lamps, going by their knowledge of modern London.
"Let's see, where is it?" Theodore muttered under his breath before he noticed the writing on the piece of paper in his hand changing before his icy blue eyes.
It's…
"You're joking!" Lila bemoaned what the address turned into as they looked at the paper in Theodore's hand.
It's…
221B… Baker… Street.
"Sherlock Holmes's not even real, though, he's just a book character that got lucky in the popularity contest!" Lila's baffled as she and Theodore looked at each other, realizing that the simulation changed on them, going from an intricate retelling of Jack the Ripper to something purely fan fiction, it didn't make a lick of sense to either of them.
"Now, I see why that person thought the integrity of the museum's suspect," Lila's baffled as Theodore studied the piece of paper before he gave his thoughts.
Looking to her, Theodore optimistically said, "Could be our first clue, Lee."
Maybe there's more to this than Samuels Argyle neglected to mention during his time on the podium, as Theodore agreed that it's bizarre that a book character's influencing the simulation about a real serial killer.
"Come along, Lee, we've got a case to solve," Theodore motioned with his free hand, Lila taking it, and they began walking again, looking for 221B Baker Street.
Shouldn't be too hard to find it, the actual location's barely changed since the books came out centuries ago, they had a plaque and everything with crowds of tourists swarming it for their own pictures.
"Al, come in, Al," Theodore reached out to the AI, but Al didn't respond.
Trying again, Theodore couldn't reach Al, leading Lila into asking what happened, only for Theodore to tell her that he doesn't know, it isn't like Al not to respond.
Pondering, Lila wondered if it's because of museum, maybe it's interfering with communications, and Theodore opted to agree with the assessment, seeing how the system probably wouldn't want any chance of outside sources causing interferences.
Continuing their walk, weary of the heavy fog, it's becoming impossible to see anything in front of them, and it was then the two spotted a horse carriage in the distance with a lantern hanging off a pole, guiding the carriage driver's way as he used the reigns on the horses to keep them steady as their hooves clopped against the cobbled stones.
Theodore waved down the carriage driver, deciding it's safer to take the carriage to 221B Baker Street than to try and continue walking through the thickening fog, and the carriage driver promptly slowed the horses down to a crawling stop, as Theodore asked if he could take them to 221B Baker Street.
"Of course, sir, come aboard," the carriage driver accepted the request, allowing Theodore to enter the carriage behind him, helping Lila up on the steps before she took her seat across of Theodore as he settled in his spot.
For a simulation, they got it down to the fiber, Lila noted she felt the seams on the carriage seat, didn't feel like it was synthetic, either, even smells real, too, even the horses.
It's getting hard to know which is the simulation and what isn't, that if Lila didn't look down at the glaring blue badge with a barcode and number, she wouldn't known.
"From true crimes to a Sherlock Holmes story, who woulda thought," Lila commented on their unusual adventure within an adventure.
Theodore frowned as he settled in his spot, on his mind, the curious adventure they've been dispatched on, that didn't make sense.
Integrity.
In the request, the person questioned the integrity of the museum, something about it, didn't get a good description, it was light on that front, but they raised enough concerns that it roused Theodore's interest.
"I do not like this," Theodore concluded that something isn't right.
Lila noted something wasn't right from the get-go, the food that Samuels Argyle tried to pawn off as expensive, well, none of it screamed ritzy when it came down to detail.
The wine, which Theodore said wasn't from the year claimed, the beef, which while it tasted great, wasn't the waygu beef advertised, presumably the caviar came from cheaper fish, but none of them ate it to know for sure.
Somehow, none of the guests saw the same things they did, but with the abundance of alcohol pushed by the waiting staff, well, wouldn't be surprised if they couldn't tell the difference.
While cheapening out on food isn't the first offense someone like Samuels Argyle could've done, there's always a chance of a brown M&M at the bottom of the bowl, and Theodore wanted to know what else Samuels Argyle cheapened out on.
"When Al gets back to me, I'll have him check some things for us," Theodore set his plan for how they'll solve the adventure.
When he's able to communicate with Al, again, probably have to step outside, he'll have him check things behind the curtain, see where else Samuels Argyle could've cut corners.
"Dear sir and madam, we've arrived," the carriage driver announced their arrival at the famous 221B Baker Street.
Exiting first, Theodore helped Lila down the steps, as they're facing the door with the golden plate on it etched with the titular address.
"Thank you, sir," Theodore couldn't help but politely thank the carriage driver for bringing them to the location, before asking how much was the charge for the ride, but the carriage driver informed him he didn't need to pay it.
His name's good enough.
Bidding them farewell, the carriage driver rallied the horses, and they disappeared into the fog.
"Name?" Lila's miffed at the reasoning behind the carriage driver's refusal to accept payment for the ride.
Well, it wasn't like they could pay him, he was a simulation, maybe, right?
"This is most peculiar," Theodore's brow furrowed as he walked up the steps with Lila behind him as he reached out to knock on the door.
It was only a moment, but the door opened, and an elderly woman stood in the doorway with a quizzical look.
Theodore's about to explain why they're there, but instantly, the elderly woman became irate with him, stating that he's late.
"L-late?" Theodore's baffled with Lila shrugging, before the elderly woman informed him that the inspector's been waiting for him since sundown.
His brow lowered, Theodore immediately apologized for his lateness as he and Lila entered the building, going up the familiar stairs, reaching the door at the top of the stairs, and the door opened without issue as Theodore turned the knob.
Entering, their eyes fixated on everything inside, the room just like one expected, a lit fireplace in the centre, the smell of tobacco, opium maybe, and a chemistry set on one of the tables.
As his eyes moved, Theodore sees someone sitting in one of the chairs, and kept Lila behind him while he walked forward, calling out to the person, asking if he's the inspector.
"She's still calling me the inspector?" Theodore heard a familiar voice.
Lila joined his side as they walked forward, sitting in the chair with a leg over the other, wearing a period correct outfit, Al looked up at them with a look.
"Al, what the hell are you doing here?" Lila's miffed that the AI brokered his way into the museum's system.
Shrugging his stitched shoulders, Al said that he got bored waiting while looking through everything, that he decided to tag along. He patched his way into the system, and managed to beam himself here with them, playing along with the simulation.
"What about the security?" Theodore asked how Al managed to get through the security system, only for the AI to tell him that it wasn't hard, it was easy, simple.
Sighing, Lila added, "Guess that's the brown M&M we've been looking for?"
Furrowing his brow yet again, Theodore shook his head as he said, "Maybe not. What did you find?"
Gesturing, Al says he checked through the financials and it looks like Samuels Argyle got into a bit of debt.
Understatement of the year, but still.
Anyway, Al found he owed money, and the people who he owed aren't the kind that take it in stride, either, they don't use cement shoes to make a point.
It'd appear that Samuels Argyle had a different venture prior to the museum, that went underwater, with the sharks circling for their due, that'd be where he lost the money, and Al says he found that Samuels Argyle used the rest of the money he owed to fund the museum.
The problem's that the money he used couldn't have been enough to go farther than the door.
"Someone else's involved," Theodore summed that Samuels Argyle had a partner involved with the construction and research.
Nodding, Al says that's what he thinks, but Samuels Argyle scrubbed everything imaginable pertaining to the partner, as though they didn't exist.
"So, someone partnered with him, put a crap ton of money into this venture, now the cow's coming home," Lila summed that whoever sent the tickets to Theodore's the spurred partner wanting their due.
Shrugging, Al said that it makes sense, but he can't figure out who the partner was, or if they're even alive.
"Samuels Argyle loses money, has nasty people after him, worked with a partner until he got the museum, axed the partnership, now what?" Theodore wondered what the endgame is for this venture.
Plying rich people with cheap alcohol touted as the real deal can only go far enough until they start wising up that their expensive meals aren't as expensive as they're led to believe, someone's going to spot the difference, and become curious.
"Someone had to pay for the AI, Al can you find anything on the company they used?" Theodore asked the AI if he can figure out what the company r they used to make the AI's about and their banking statements.
Leading Al to say that it's a private sector, but for financials, he can't find any links between either Samuels and his partner to the private sector.
"Although, I found a police report," Al noted that he dug around the company's records and found a recent police report of a theft from the company, two unknown men broke into the company late night, through a defective door, and stole equipment.
"What equipment?" Theodore's roused with curiosity, but Al said that he can't find the details, it's censored.
Black bar and everything, can't even find a bad port to weasel through, they covered their tracks, especially after the theft.
Going through what they know, Theodore plays it back.
Samuels Argyle gets into debt after his first venture tanked, which Al says that he made bad business decisions that led to its closure, and in a panic, struck a new venture with his former partner, and in between that point and the museum's construction, they stole from the private sector unknown equipment.
Given that it didn't seem like the company wanted to sell the equipment to them, there's no inquiry where they would've said it outright, must've been something that wasn't consumer centric.
What that is, Al suspects is the thing that's powering Samuels Argyle's museum.
Which is both bad and frightening.
"Oh boy," Lila sucked air through her teeth as Al informed that he's been looking through the open ports, that the equipment definitely wasn't meant for something Samuels Argyle had in mind.
Theodore asked him what the equipment was meant for and Al sheepishly tells him that if he didn't know any better, it might've been a military surplus.
"Military surplus?" Lila stared at him with a look on her face as Al nodded, telling her that he sees the markings, but Samuels Argyle must've turned them off when he finagled the equipment and turned it into an adult experience.
Again, Samuels Argyle went through the motions scrapping everything he can off the equipment that would've gotten untoward attention to him.
"I don't understand how they could've gotten equipment out of a building without someone finding out," Theodore couldn't believe that the two men easily stolen military surplus from the private sector, leading Al to say that the private sector couldn't get pictures of the men because the cameras went down shortly before the robbery.
Her chestnut eyes blinking, Lila guessed, "So, Samuels Argyle partnered with someone from the company."
It gave Al an ah-hah moment, before saying that it'll take time on finding the details on workers who got the slip.
"Whoever it was, I don't think he knew what they stole," Al gave his observation in the matter.
Even he couldn't begin finding out what the two men stole, the private sector did a good job covering everything up, that if Al didn't know any better, everything about the equipment were written down only on paper, never digitized.
Someone low-rung on the corporate ladder who didn't know what they were looking at, probably thought that Samuels Argyle was telling the truth in their partnership, ended up spurred when he wrote him out of the picture, leaving him holding the bag.
"And whoever it was got us the tickets," Theodore summed that whoever it was got them under an assumed name, not wanting Samuels Argyle to realize that his former partner's back for blood.
Nodding, Al summarized that they're looking at someone with a bone to pick with Samuels.
Lila wondered as she looked around the flat, "You think he's pissed enough to use the equipment against Samuels?"