PNC Story/Midnight Machinations Nodes

This is a transcript of event nodes in combat stages of the Midnight Machinations event in Project Neural Cloud.

Stage 1

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The horror movie "Inunaki Kaidan" which aired last month has received broad attention as the "final work" of director Kurosawa Yakumo. Though box office sales were not amazing, the film was lauded by critics for its excellent atmosphere and being very well-researched. Yesterday. Director Kurosawa passed away from illness in Sapporo Medical University Hospital at the age of 86. Before his death, Director Kurosawa stated, "Though my flesh cannot avoid its end, I hope my soul can last forever."

Develop a Doll for professional scriptwriting to carry on Kurosawa's "soul".

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The Doll's production serial number is EW-55. Initial trials ran into some tricky problems. The AI could only create along the lines of predetermined frameworks and the scripts it generated were nothing more than pieced-together bits from existing stories. Not only did they feel repetitive, they even felt a little nonsensical, for instance, "He was a corporate baron at times, and an orphan in others."	Can we make a breakthrough here?	Money solves all problems.	Develop a brand new system for the processing of randomized information.

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"Our new company, "Riddler" will be opening its doors soon! Scriptwriters and authors will be out of a job by then!"	Press the button. A model whale slowly falls from the ceiling and hits the product manager. A Doll with closed eyes is sitting inside the model whale.	There is much discussion among the audience. Kurosawa's granddaughter frowns.	The launch event was like a massive joke.

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Cyber Media has received dozens of complaints about the EW-55 in the span of one month. "It only wrote 10,000 words in ten days, and the text produced doesn't meet our requirements at all! Why shouldn't we just use a cheap AI to finish up the job?" "Why did the EW-55 stick its head into the TV? Is there a bug in its neural cloud or something?" "Acting creepily is one thing, but crashing halfway through writing is another! I want a refund!"

We must reevaluate EW-55's future...

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With a production run of less than a hundred units and sales of less than 50 units, the remainder were tossed into a warehouse along with the returns. Production was halted and the project was officially declared a failure. The final question that remained for the dev team was how to deal with the remaining EW-55s.	Think of a way to protect this stock, and find new masters for them.

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Mr. Kurosawa's granddaughter has come to pay a visit. Even though she knows Cyber Media has disgraced her grandfather's memory with their arrogance, she still wants an EW-55 unit. Part of it is because movie studios are short-handed now, and on the other hand, it's because her grandfather pinned his hopes on them.	Agree to Miss Kurosawa's request.	Miss Kurosawa strokes the cheek of a dust-covered, long-forgotten EW-55, sighing, "She really does look like a stray cat."	Let's call her Nora.

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When she began work at Kurosawa Studios, Nora showed the same censure-inviting inefficiency as all the other EW-55s. In the end, even Miss Kurosawa grew fed up with Nora, finally threatening her with an ultimatum: "If you keep slacking off, I'll have you RMAed." One fateful day, Nora walked into Miss Kurosawa's office with an enormous stack of paper that was a script.	Is this a miracle, or the last ripple of the EW-55 type dolls?

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Kurosawa Studios claims that the script for "Moonlight Ghost Train" was written by a Doll author named Nora. That night, discussion about her was among the top three trending topics and the rate of full houses at theatres raised dramatically.	Has artificial intelligence developed to this stage already?

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"Product Code: EW-55." "Body Code: SS-AKR28." "Product Serial Number: EA0155D33." "Product Activation Date: 2055.01.21." "Product Name: Nora." "Neural Activation Percent: ?? (Neural cloud program has been encrypted, does not support examination at the moment." "EW-55, CALL NAME: Nora... Systems verification process partially completed."	Skip the rest of the verification process and mark the examination as a pass.	Join Project Neural Cloud	Let's preserve this jaw-dropping potential. Nora, you will not be abandoned.

Stage 2

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The mountain paths twist and turn, but they also contain many scenes that you can't see at home. As she beholds this uncommon scenery, Nora feels inspiration welling up inside her. Should she take a detour and explore?	Explore, of course... Wait a minute, is that a bear's growling I hear?
	Maybe not. Safety first, after all.

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The adults in the village give Nora a warm welcome. "Nora-sensei! Come rest in our house!" "Let me take you on a tour of the surroundings!"	Rest in the villager's house.
	Tour the village.

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Kids are more annoying compared to adults. When they see Nora, they run away in all directions, like they've seen something scary. How could this be? Are there young people in this world which even the Cyber Media label can't attract?	Grab a kid and recommend a list of films to him.
	Forget it, let them go play by themselves.

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"There's another weirdo like you around!" "She's a green-haired lady..." Green hair? This immediately reawakens bad memories in Nora...	A stitch in time saves nine! Let's start watching out for green-haired people now!
	It's probably just a coincidence, no need to think too much about it.

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"Have you seen anything strange in the village recently?" "Yeah, it's you." This kid is so annoying! But he sounds like he knows something...	Think of a way to make him talk!
	There's no rush, go ask someone else.

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The villagers stop Nora from viewing the town hall. But if it's just going nearby to take a peek...	Avoid the villagers' line of sight and think of a way to sneak a look.
	It's probably best not to aggravate them.

Stage 3

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The boy watches the movie intently. "Oh, this is a good part, I wonder if he realizes it yet..." "Stop making noise while others are watching movies, also, it doesn't seem that good to me."	Ignore Zangyin and continue commenting.
	Listen to her and shut up.

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"A wild green-hair has appeared. Ah, so it was Zangyin." "Who did you just call a dried-out mat of seaweed?" "I never said that!" The two of them get along like chalk and cheese.	Let's have at it!
	I've got other things to do, not going to bother with you for now.

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That group of idle villagers is back again. "Why don't you relax and take a load off, dear guests? Why don't you come back to our place and have a rest there~ We'll take real good care of you, you know." They're acting very friendly, but they don't seem to be good people.	Flatly refuse.
	Make excuses and say you'll go later.

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The two of them decide to keep screening movies for the kids to lure the boy back. However, the empty lot where they were just screening a movie is now filled with several residents munching on melons.

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"Does anyone know of other strange things that have happened in the village?" "Oh, I know! Last week, one of the thatched roof cottages in the village collapsed!" "We keep losing our erasers in the school halls!" "The uncle next door is over 20 years old and STILL reads manga!" It seems none of them are the spooky stories that the script needs.	Talk about something else or I won't screen any more movies for you!
	Let's leave it at that and not bother the kids any more.

Stage 4

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"This is the footage of the first night of the Zero Village Investigation Record..." "You know, in horror movies the people who make such films usually end up dead."	"I'll make sure I film your death from multiple angles!"
	"At least the cameraman won't die first!"

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"Hey, Zangyin, remember that rumor about how everyone who goes near the town hall vanishes?" "..." "Zangyin?" "..."	"Answer me! Don't tell me you really vanished–	"Bam! I was just scaring you."	Oi! Don't play pranks like that!

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"Hey, Zangyin, what did you see just now?" "Keeping quiet again? Come on, the same trick gets stale if you pull it twice." "Quit messing around, this is serious, Zang–	Zangyin...?

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The boy was suddenly taken away by an adult just as he was getting to the key point. Why was his appearance so perfectly timed? It feels really suspicious.	Let's not bother, it'll just cause trouble for the boy.
	Tail the villager and see what's going on.
	Leave immediately.

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"Tonight... Cargo... Engineer... Two more..." Those villagers guarding the town hall seem to be talking about something. Want to get closer and listen in?	Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
	Best not to rock the boat.

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There's a sandpit near the town hall. It looks like it's used to dump waste materials. However, it looks like someone threw a tubular object there... Could it be that crawling severed arms really do exist?	Go over and find out.
	Leave.

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At last, it's time to come up with a plan. The objective: Infiltrate the town hall tonight.	Go in fully-geared.
	Filter out information.
	Adapt to the situation.

Stage 5

The first layer of this stage is a story node. The other two layers are a series of anomaly nodes where the player can lose one of three “Survival Flag” protocols if they choose incorrectly. If there are no flags remaining when reaching the last anomaly node, the layer must be played again.

Layer 2

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"So pray tell, whilst we're in danger, just what should we do to get out of the situation we've found ourselves in?" As Nora speaks, I find myself entering the story. I see a dimly-lit jail cell, wary-eyed villagers, and... Zangyin, who's finally starting to look uncomfortable.	Comfort her.	"Don't worry. How could a famous screenwriter Doll and a folklorist Doll go down in a place like this?" Nora takes her pen and paper out from behind her.	"Besides, I've got a new script for you to vet."
	Mock her.	"And here I thought all you could do was make fun of me. Who'd have thought that you could be at a loss too?" Nora takes her pen and paper out from behind her.	"I, for one, am quite inspired by that pitiful look of yours. Just sit back and watch me finish!"

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"Go ahead and scrap them." Before Nora can hand Zangyin her plan, the Engineer gives the order and the villagers quickly move in.	Buy time.	"You really don't know anything about Dolls, do you, what with the amateur way you're searching and your painful-sounding lessons. Don't you think you ought to study up a little more?" "Are you telling me what to do?!" The villager seems to have taken the bait and he begins trading barbs with Nora.	Use this chance to slip Zangyin the plan written on the piece of paper.
	Ask Zangyin for help.	"Alright, you're the only one I can count on now... Little Si!" Zangyin directs her pet snake to knock over a box in the corner of the room. As the villagers are distracted by the noise, Nora quickly hands her plan to Zangyin.	"We're running out of time, work with me on this..."
	Weep and wail.	"Hngh, ah, ahhhhhhhhh~" "Hey, what's wrong with this Doll, why did she start making so much noise all of a sudden..." "Never mind, just scrap her." Crap, it seems to have had the opposite effect...	Looks like I can't hand Zangyin the plan now, all we can do is improvise. (Flags -1)

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Fortunately, the villagers didn't find the video camera-projector from before. If we can make good use of the sound and image it projects in conjunction with the villagers' mixed feelings about Zero, we might be able to find an opening... Now, if I can just direct Zangyin's pet snake Little Si properly, we'll be able to create this chance. Hopefully Zangyin can play along.	Check the surroundings.	Nora cranes her neck and looks toward the trapdoor. She doesn't have a clear view of what's going on upstairs from here, just a rough glimpse of Zero's form. If the villagers attention isn't on Nora and Zangyin, then perhaps letting Little Si go up with the camera would be the best choice...	Have Little Si sneak up directly.	Little Si obeys and crawls up the nails sticking out of the wall.	Everything's going well so far!
			Have Little Si bring the camera up.	Little Si obeys and crawls up the nails sticking out of the wall. It tries to hook the camera with its tail, but it looks like it could fall at any moment. Fortunately, the villagers aren't looking and they don't notice it.	Do your best, Little Si!
			Have Little Si bring the camera up. (Previously lost a flag)	Little Si obeys and crawls up the nails sticking out of the wall. It tries to hook the camera with its tail, but it looks like it could fall at any moment. "Hm? Hey boss, isn't there something behind them..."	"Uwah!" I cry out to cover for Little Si, but I end up getting thumped. (Flags -1)

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Little Si is inside the town hall at last. There's nobody inside for now, so if we want to do anything, now is the time. If I'm not wrong, Zero should be...	Move toward the stage.	Little Si nimbly winds through the rows of seats and stops in front of the stage. Zero sits on the stage with its head down, as though it's asleep.	I should find a way to make it move.
	Move toward the main door.	The main door is tightly shut. Little Si rams it but it doesn't budge. Looks like there's no leaving this place through it. Little Si finds Zero sleeping on the stage. Searching the hall took some time and things have to be hastened now.	Have Little Si move up to Zero. (Flags -1)

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Little Si nimbly climbs up Zero's body. It is currently switched off and its body is covered in rust and scratches, a sign of how roughly its master treated it. According to the plan, we're going to use a projection to make it appear as though Zero has "gone mad".Therefore, we need an "alibi" for it. What exactly should we do...	Inspect Zero's structure.	After a brief examination, it seems as though Zero is a highly outdated model of military Doll, and its structure is tremendously different from most current Dolls. Randomly activating Zero will probably be dangerous if we don't know its structure...	Try activating Zero's power supply.	Little Si doesn't know where the power supply is, so all it can do is blindly feel around Zero's body. (Zzzap!) "Oh no!" Little Si must have accidentally touched the wrong thing because it gets shocked by current leaking out of the battery and hits the ground hard, dragging Zero down with it as well.	I can't see what's happening up there. Hopefully Little Si is alright... (Flags -1)
			Try pulling Zero off the stage.	Little Si coils its tail around Zero's head and pulls downward, until the robot loses its balance and slowly falls off its chair. We can't see Zero from the cellar now. Will the Engineer and the others think that Zero is missing?	On with the next step of the plan!

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We're merely one step away from success. Let's have Little Si quickly return to the cellar entrance and begin the final act of the script! "Get a load of this."	Activate the projection function.	A classic battle scene from Silent Mountain plays in the hall, accompanied by screams and wails. "Boss, I think something's happening up there!" "Could it be Zero... But how?" "Zero's really gone!"	They're panicked. Time to make our escape!
	Activate the recording function.	The camera is pointed at the cellar and begins to record. Now, the sight of Nora and Zangyin being taken apart will become the last record of them, spreading to underground markets and sold to people who crave it...	"No! That's not what it's for!" (Flags -3)

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Alright, Professor~ How did you do?" Nora laughs as she looks at my choices. "If you had been in charge back then, could we have gotten free?"	Great success! (Some flags remaining)	"I didn't think you could make such a perfect escape..." Nora looks at me and she seems a little discontent with things. "Can you really clear the whole thing, Professor?"	"Hey, if it's laid, it's played. Just watch me!"
	I don't think so... (No flags remaining)	"Urgh... All I can say is that its a good thing they didn't catch you..." "It's just a tiny mistake! A tiny mistake, that's all." "Honestly. Should I give you another chance, Professor?"	"It'll definitely be okay this time!"

Layer 3

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We finally defeated the Engineer and escaped the hall! The Engineer drops a bunch of items like a defeated video game boss: a communication handset, a flashlight, a gun... If we use them well, they ought to be super effective.	Contemplate what to do next.	We're short on time, so we can only pick a couple of items!	The flashlight and the handset.
			The handset and the gun.
			The flashlight and the gun.

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After escaping the town hall, we run into a huge villager, who says: "Boss, what happ... Hey, what are you doing?" "Nora, use something to scare him off!"	Shine the flashlight into his eyes.	"Eat this! Action Beam–" "...?" The flashlight's beam only serves to make the villager raise an eyebrow. He shields his eyes and moves up to grab Nora. "If only I had a gun... It can't be helped, this is all I can do!"	Zangyin uses the flashlight to bonk the villager on the head with a "bam". (Flags -1)
	Threaten him with the handset.	"I'll call in a van full of guys to beat you up, just you see!" "Wake up, Nora! Are you going to call his friends over for him!?" The villager is unmoved and walks up to grab Nora. "If only I had a gun... It can't be helped, this is all I can do!"	Zangyin uses the handset to bonk the villager on the head with a "bam". (Flags -1)
	Use the gun on him.	"Brother, the times have changed." Nora pulls out a gun and the villager flees in terror.	Run away!

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"Where do we go now?" "Let's get out of the village... If I'm not wrong, the hall was on the east side."	Go east.	"Good thing I did my research ahead of time! If we go east, we'll be able to escape right away!" "This isn't the time to be praising yourself!"	Flee the village at top speed!
	Go west.	"Let's go this way. You can't go wrong with listening to me." "Sure, but is it just me, or are there a whole bunch of torches headed our way?"	No, it's the villagers and they're chasing us! Run the other way, quickly! (Flags -1)

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After running for who knows how long, the trees overhead gradually cover up the moonlight. "Where do we go next?" "Don't you have a map? Can't you read it" "Its not like it glows in the dark, right..."	Use the flashlight.	"Ah, the supreme conveniences of modern science."	Follow the map and keep running.
	Use the handset.	"Maybe we should ask the Engineer which way to go." "Holy crap, someone actually picked up!" "They said they're just in front of us."	Stop wasting time and just run forward! (Flags -1)
	Use the gun.	"Maybe we could make a light with this." "Are you trying to burn the map?!"	Let's just flee by instinct. (Flags -1)

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We run on and on, and as we run the shouting of the villagers can be heard behind us. "What do we do? Can we shake them off?"	(Picked the handset.)	Use the handset.	"This is the Engineer, they're heading west!" "Wow, you can do imitations too, Zangyin?" "Nah, this antique has terrible sound quality."	The villagers are running in the opposite direction. Let's flee before they can react.
		Focus your thoughts and think.	"Relax! Judging by the sound, they haven't found our position yet." "We've got the handset, so they're running around aimlessly!"	Pick up the pace and shake them off!
	(Didn't pick the handset.)	Stand and fight.	"They'll catch up to us eventually. Why don't we grab some rocks or branches and try to take a couple of them out?" "I'm going to be real here, if I fought these people, I'd be on the ground in less than 10 seconds." "Then go lay down now and buy me some time!"	Looks like we can't beat them, we should keep running! (Flags -1)
		Overload yourself and sprint.	"My legs feel like they've overheated." "I'm not going to carry you if you crash."	Hang in there, a little more and we'll be off the mountain. (Flags -1)

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After running for who knows how long, the sound of the villagers finally fades away.	Looks like we're safe for now.

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Alright, Professor~ How did you do?" Nora laughs as she looks at my choices. "If you had been in charge back then, could we have gotten free?"	Great success! (Some flags remaining)	"I didn't think you could make such a perfect escape..." Nora looks at me and she seems a little discontent with things. "Can you really clear the whole thing, Professor?"	"Hey, if it's laid, it's played. Just watch me!"
	I don't think so... (No flags remaining)	"Urgh... All I can say is that its a good thing they didn't catch you..." "It's just a tiny mistake! A tiny mistake, that's all." "Honestly. Should I give you another chance, Professor?"	"It'll definitely be okay this time!"

Challenge Stage

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[Diary Entry 550224012][Access verified, loading...] The "CHAOS" information processing system installed in the EW-55 lacks essential stability,so we will be downclocking the neural cloud modules of already-produced EW-55 units. In future, we will push updates to unlock their functionality.	It can't be helped, but at least we won't get non sequitur bugs any more.

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[Diary Entry 560417105][Access verified, loading...] "Data analysis indicates that the EW-55 also known as"Nora" is very passionate about certain works, primarily revolving around the genres of shock, horror and suspense." "What about other fields? Like romance, for example." "Let's talk about something else, like how many words she can produce while writing a horror film script."

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[Diary Entry 560608088] [Access verified, loading...] "Hey, where are the spicy peanuts and dried fish I bought yesterday?" "Maybe you'll find them in the bin under Nora's desk... Or rather, their packaging."	Not only does she act like a stray cat, she even eats like one.

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[Diary Entry 560809201] [Access verified, loading...] "15 days to deadline, current progress, 1021 words." [Diary Entry 560817058] [Access verified, loading...] "7 days to deadline, current progress, 1033 words." [Diary Entry 560823012] [Access verified, loading...] "1 day to deadline, current progress, 1060 words." [Diary Entry 560824005] [Access verified, loading...] "Deadline is today, current progress, 742558 words."

You'll never know where your limits are until you push them. Right, game's over.

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[Diary Entry 5611031771] [Access verified, loading...] "Every movie Nora writes has a green-haired supporting lead, who's almost always the first to die." "How they do includes, but not limited to: Slipping in the bathtub and being strangled by the hose, being hit by the escape ladder, getting soaked in water and then electrocuted, getting caught in a car's chains and then getting blown up, and falling head-first from a see-saw." "The critics have called it the Green Death Principle."

Sounds like there's a story here.

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[Diar*&* 55(^(+8] [Acc&*%ver*%&)_)**] [[EW-55 Lorem ipsum dolor EA0155D33 sit amet▼ consectetur adipiscing elit � sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua � quis nostrud exercitation "ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip" ex ea commodo consequat ▼ Duis aute irure 魀 dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate �velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur ��] [Error Code: 0x80070570] [Diary entry has been damaged, please contact the Cyber Media Service Department to repair it.]

The data engineers have been working on this for nearly half a month but they still can't restore this document.

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[Diary Entry 5624521029] [Access verified, loading...] "I hear Nora always has a little booklet with her, and it contains incredible stories." "Yeah, it has some "inspiration" she obtained through her random processing system. However, most of it is filled with her thoughts during the creative process, such as the classic..." "Successfully resisted the urge to kill everyone off. Going to bed."	Screenwriting is truly a fearsome profession.

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[????:#????] [Oasis database login complete, beginning audio playback.] "I thought I was immune to horror, given that I'm a forensics specialist who spends all day dealing with that sort of thing." "But after watching her movies, I woefully retract that statement." "Incidentally, the orthopedic surgeon who lives next to me hasn't slept with the lights off for a long time now." "U...Uwahhhh! What happened to the lights?!"

Nora's works are quite powerful.

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[????:#????] [Oasis database login complete, beginning audio playback.] "I won't deny that pesky tar-head can write stories and that she's great at scaring people." "But as a researcher, isn't it natural for me to make fun of something that doesn't make sense—" "—You call a 50,000-word long 1-star review 'making fun of something'? Hm?"	Looks like the two of them are getting on really well.