Whispers of Gears and Dennies: My Journey Through the Career Cover-Up Romance

The scent of ozone and desperation hangs thick in Sixth Street's air, a familiar perfume to a Proxy like me. Dana’s face, etched with that particular blend of hope and mechanical bewilderment, materializes from the crowd. She’s a returning melody in the discordant symphony of New Eridu, a client whose trust in Phaethon is as unwavering as her confusion over a simple drill rig. Another day, another commission steeped in the hollow’s eerie glow and the promise of Dennies clinking in my pocket. The 'Career Cover-Up Romance' wasn't just a job; it was a dance with malfunctioning machinery and spectral Ethereals, a test of wits amidst the whirring chaos. Dana’s plea was simple: fish out the broken rig. Simple, of course, until the hollow itself decided to tango.

🌟 Rekindling an Old Connection: Unlocking the Commission

The commission shimmered into existence on my HDD like a forgotten dream after navigating the murky waters of Chapter Two Intermission. It demanded a prelude, the completion of A Memoir of Work Screw-Ups, a title that felt ominously prophetic for dear Dana. Prerequisites met, I found her again on Brant Street, her nervous energy palpable. The conversation was brief, a flurry of apologies and urgency. With a tap on the HDD, the path into the hollow unfurled before me, ready to swallow me whole once more.

⚙️ Gearing Up for the Mechanical Waltz

Stepping into the hollow for Dana felt like entering a clockwork heart on the verge of seizing. The commission pulsed with medium-difficulty, whispering a recommended Agent level of 26 – a gentle nudge, not a roar. Yet, its true challenge lay in caprice. The combat encounter within was entirely random, a roll of the dice against the void. No single attribute held the key. My strategy? Bring the team whose rhythm I knew best, whose moves flowed like instinct. Trust in familiarity was my only true preparation against the hollow's whims.

🕹️ Navigating the Labyrinth: The Walkthrough Unfolds

Entering the Hollow & Initial Maneuvers

Spawned at the bottom of an L-shaped row, Dana's voice crackled through comms, explaining the cannons – our primary instruments against the encroaching Ethereals. The path was clear: left for the Gear Coins tile, then a directive for my loyal bangboo. Move it over each cannon tile. Each activation birthed an ammunition tile, a slow-moving promise of destruction that advanced one space for every step I took. Patience was key; three moves were needed to align the shot. Clearing the immediate threat revealed the path forward – down to the bottom-left corner, where a new route snaked around the cannons, leading straight to the corrupted heart of the problem: the drill rig.

The machine groaned under layers of corruption. Dana’s solution? An engineering device. Its hunger? Gear Coins. Our currency? Ethereal destruction. The true puzzle began.

Floor Two - Round One: Coins, Cannons, and Corrupted Defense

The second floor unfolded like a tactical board game. Rows defined the space:

• Red buttons below, silent sentinels.

• A book tile center-stage, our shop.

• Cannon tiles above, our artillery.

Every move upwards to strike a cannon unleashed an ammunition tile, its glacial upward crawl mirroring my own steps. The goal: guide these projectiles into Ethereals. Each successful hit chimed with 100 Gear Coins. Impatience found an outlet: stepping on a red button instantly charged its corresponding cannon, firing a straight-line shot – a satisfying, immediate crackle of energy.

The shop (accessed via the book tile) offered salvation, but upgrades ran on a long cooldown. Our primary objective screamed: Focus on Drill Rig Repair! 6,000 Gear Coins – that was the magic number for the 30% increments. Save the rest for the storm brewing.

But the hollow is never passive. We weren't just hunters; we were defenders. Any Ethereal tile reaching the bottom-left would snake down a path towards the drill rig. A hit meant a gut-wrenching 5% repair loss. As the round intensified, tougher foes emerged, like the eyepatch-wearing bangboo. Its defeat was a double-edged sword, dropping bombs that exploded in a three-tile cross – chaos, but chaos we could weaponize.

Ethereals spawned and descended relentlessly; later arrivals moved with unnerving freedom. My strategy crystallized: Launch ammunition every single turn. Fortify the left flank constantly. A wall of firepower was our only shield. Reaching 6,000 coins triggered the rig's repair... and its betrayal. A cutscene flashed – the rig, now hostile, marked the start of Round Two.

Floor Two - Round Two: Taming the Corrupted Beast

The drill rig, now our enemy, pulsed with angry energy, commanding Ethereals to defend it. Our task shifted: defeat defenders, collect more Gear Coins, upgrade the engineering device, and subdue the rig. It boasted 100 hit points. Our ammunition:

• Regular Rounds: 5 damage

• DDD Rounds: 6 damage (Worth the upgrade!)

The key was precision. Save precious DDD Rounds for guaranteed hits on the rig. Purchase the remaining upgrades – the Reload Module for sustained fire, Enhanced Turrets for heavier punches. We whittled down its health, shot by shot, until the aggression faded, whisking us to the commission's final act.

The Grand Finale & Bounty

The final HDD screen awaited. Three moves right positioned me directly above the subdued rig. Pushing down triggered a satisfying shake, revealing a hidden path glittering with promise! Continue pushing down to unveil the treasure:

• 3 Denny Tiles 💰

• 1 Senior Investigator Log Tile 📜

Loot collected, Hollow Observation Data secured, the path ended at the flag tile. Stepping on it plunged me into combat – two swift rounds against lesser Ethereals, a final cathartic release of tension before the commission sighed to its end.

🎁 The Sweet Chime of Completion: Rewards Reaped

The hollow receded, leaving the comforting glow of the HDD and the tangible weight of success. Dana's gratitude was implicit in the rewards flooding my inventory:

• 30 Polychromes ✨ (The true currency of progress)

• Investigator Logs: 8 Trainee, 4 Official 📚 (Fuel for advancement)

• W-Engine Nourishment: 2 Power Supplies, 4 Batteries ⚡

• 2 Bangboo Algorithm Modules 🤖 (For my mechanical companion)

• A hefty 16,600 Dennies (Claimed within the HDD's depths) 💰

• 500 Inter-Knot Experience 🌐 (Weaving me deeper into New Eridu's web)

The Career Cover-Up Romance was more than a repair job; it was a ballet of bullets and brainpower, a testament to Phaethon's reliability, and another chapter in my strange, enduring partnership with the wonderfully hapless Dana. The Dennies jingled, the rig was (temporarily) silenced, and the hollow awaited its next symphony. Another day, another dance.