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Description
Dean Domino "Have a seat, and then we'll talk."
Rhodane sits in the chair next to him.
Dean Domino "The Sierra Madre. Mmm... beauty, isn't she. She the one who invited you here? Or maybe you didn't catch her voice on the radio. Woke up, confused, like some of the others. Least you're still breathing. By the way, don't get up or make any sudden motions, no matter how uncomfortable that chair gets... the cushion's just for show."
Rhodane "What are you talking about?"
Dean Domino "Might be a bit rude, but that chair you're sitting in - it's got a shaped charge in the seat cushion. Get up without my permission, I'll blast your ass so far through your head, it'll turn the moon cherry pie red. So - let's keep this sweet and polite, and finish our conversation with no misunderstandings."
Rhodane "I'll save my questions for the end - please, go on."
Dean Domino "And that's what I've missed - a rapt audience. Just because I work in entertainment, doesn't mean I'm a moron. I heard my necktie beeping, I know what that means - I'm part of this somehow. I want out of this contract. And if you put me in it, I'm not going to be too happy. So whatever's going on here, if you're part of all this? You're taking orders from me."
Rhodane "Uh... look, maybe we can make some sort of... deal, you and me."
Dean Domino "The hand's been dealt, that's the deal. You going along with my terms, or do you want your brains to be wallpaper?"
Rhodane "I'll cooperate. What do you want?"
Dean Domino "Good, good - then we're in business. I may be a betting man, but I like it when the odds are in our favor. If you're here with who I think, then I'd rather have you on my side than his. An... ace in the hole. You want to live, I want what's in the Madre. Real simple."
Rhodane "I'm in. If that's all let's head out."
Dean Domino "All right... partner. Don't have to take the long way back - there's a shortcut across the way, you see. It's through the Cloud - but if I'm with you, I can help you through it. If you didn't already force the lock to the gate, that is."
Rhodane "Have other people shown up in search of the Sierra Madre?"
Dean Domino "Tourists, you bet. They don't stay long... and they don't stay alive long. If they survive the Cloud, the Ghost People, the traps, then greed takes over, and they start sizing each other up for funeral suits."
Rhodane "So the visitors all killed each other?"
Dean Domino "Sure. First, they figure they can get out, escape. Then they start thinking it over, start thinking about how they can have it all. They start weighing the odds, taking risks... and then taking each other out. Bomb collars or not. Although... it's odd, the bomb collars weren't linked before like they are now. Guess someone learned what the problem was."
Rhodane "What happened to the people who came to the Villa?"
Dean Domino "Dead. Either got killed by one of the Villa's attractions, locals, or the beautiful weather. Can tell you right now - they didn't stick close to each other, and when they did, they let down their guard at the wrong moment. Some left signposts to others, trying to help them out - just led to them getting killed by someone a little more greedy than they were."
Rhodane " Any advice to getting through this?"
Dean Domino "Well... considering my life's on the line, too, yeah, a few things. First off, keep everyone together. Keep checking behind you, make sure your partners are following... don't let them wander. Also, don't go running crazy everywhere. Almost every inch of this town is lethal. So if you're not sure, take it real slow. And speaking of slow, don't go shouting, or attracting attention. Go quiet. The Ghost People find you, it's over."
Rhodane "These ghost people... they're the only ones alive around here?"
Dean Domino " "Alive's" a tricky word. The locals, the Ghost People? Not sure it applies to them. They're a little... uncivilized. They don't talk much. As in, at all."
Rhodane "Have you tried to deal with them?"
Dean Domino "Tried talking to them, bribing them, leaving food - nothing. In the years since, they haven't changed their approach, but I sure have. They catch you, they drag you into the Cloud, and you're not coming back out. After that, having your necktie go off would be mercy. My advice? Stay out of their way, they don't die easy."
Rhodane "How tough are they?"
Dean Domino "You shoot them, they get back up. You stab them, they get back up. That's why I have explosives all over this place - unless you blow them up, chop them up, disintegrate 'em, the Ghost People don't go down. Not enough bullets in the town to spend on them. So unless you're a real good shot, save one for yourself right before they catch you."
Rhodane "I'm a fair shot. One shot, one kill is how I handle problems."
Dean Domino "Well... you seem like you know how to handle yourself. All right. Once, I fired a lucky shot, hit a gas tank one was holding. Blew his arm off at the shoulder... and he didn't get back up after that. So if you're that good, don't aim for the head - aim for their bombs. And if you can wait until his buddies are close by, even better."
Rhodane "Where did they come from?"
Dean Domino "Friend... "there's more mysteries in heaven and earth..." wait, no, "there is more between heaven and earth..." oh, forget it. I'd sooner ask what makes me an undying son of a bitch than spend any thought as to why they crawled to life here. I'm counting myself lucky I still have my faculties - they sure don't. Then again, they may not have had the... focus I do."
Rhodane "Focus?"
Dean Domino "Always had the Sierra Madre to keep my mind occupied. Most folks, they don't have the same drive, the same need. Not worth my time. Pretty much Ghost People before the Bomb, now Ghost People after."
Rhodane "Is there anything else about them I should know?"
Dean Domino "Whatever we do - don't rile them up. Normally, there's only a few, maybe a pack. There's more out there, a lot more. If they find out someone's trespassing, it'd be shaking a hornet's nest. Don't want to think how many of them could fill these streets."
Rhodane "What can you tell me about the Villa and the town?"
Dean Domino "Residential area, clinic, police station - should keep away from the police station, it's a Ghost People hangout. Salida del Sol, Puesta del Sol are East Town, West Town. "Sunrise" and "Sunset." Or were when the streets and sky weren't covered with toxic gas. Ghost People don't come into the Villa much. West Town and East Town, though... they're thick with the Cloud and Ghost People. Like hunting grounds."
Rhodane "Tell me about the Cloud."
Dean Domino "The Cloud? Showed up after the Bomb. I think. I got used to it in small doses. Now, it covers the city. Over the years, it kept climbing up out of the Sierra Madre, until it was curtains for the sun. Didn't see the sky again. Doesn't seem to bother the Ghost People. Can't see through it too well, though, so sometimes I can use the Cloud for cover... if I get desperate."

Description
Dean Domino "Have a seat, and then we'll talk."
Rhodane sits in the chair next to him.
Dean Domino "The Sierra Madre. Mmm... beauty, isn't she. She the one who invited you here? Or maybe you didn't catch her voice on the radio. Woke up, confused, like some of the others. Least you're still breathing. By the way, don't get up or make any sudden motions, no matter how uncomfortable that chair gets... the cushion's just for show."
Rhodane "What are you talking about?"
Dean Domino "Might be a bit rude, but that chair you're sitting in - it's got a shaped charge in the seat cushion. Get up without my permission, I'll blast your ass so far through your head, it'll turn the moon cherry pie red. So - let's keep this sweet and polite, and finish our conversation with no misunderstandings."
Rhodane "I'll save my questions for the end - please, go on."
Dean Domino "And that's what I've missed - a rapt audience. Just because I work in entertainment, doesn't mean I'm a moron. I heard my necktie beeping, I know what that means - I'm part of this somehow. I want out of this contract. And if you put me in it, I'm not going to be too happy. So whatever's going on here, if you're part of all this? You're taking orders from me."
Rhodane "Uh... look, maybe we can make some sort of... deal, you and me."
Dean Domino "The hand's been dealt, that's the deal. You going along with my terms, or do you want your brains to be wallpaper?"
Rhodane "I'll cooperate. What do you want?"
Dean Domino "Good, good - then we're in business. I may be a betting man, but I like it when the odds are in our favor. If you're here with who I think, then I'd rather have you on my side than his. An... ace in the hole. You want to live, I want what's in the Madre. Real simple."
Rhodane "I'm in. If that's all let's head out."
Dean Domino "All right... partner. Don't have to take the long way back - there's a shortcut across the way, you see. It's through the Cloud - but if I'm with you, I can help you through it. If you didn't already force the lock to the gate, that is."
Rhodane "Have other people shown up in search of the Sierra Madre?"
Dean Domino "Tourists, you bet. They don't stay long... and they don't stay alive long. If they survive the Cloud, the Ghost People, the traps, then greed takes over, and they start sizing each other up for funeral suits."
Rhodane "So the visitors all killed each other?"
Dean Domino "Sure. First, they figure they can get out, escape. Then they start thinking it over, start thinking about how they can have it all. They start weighing the odds, taking risks... and then taking each other out. Bomb collars or not. Although... it's odd, the bomb collars weren't linked before like they are now. Guess someone learned what the problem was."
Rhodane "What happened to the people who came to the Villa?"
Dean Domino "Dead. Either got killed by one of the Villa's attractions, locals, or the beautiful weather. Can tell you right now - they didn't stick close to each other, and when they did, they let down their guard at the wrong moment. Some left signposts to others, trying to help them out - just led to them getting killed by someone a little more greedy than they were."
Rhodane " Any advice to getting through this?"
Dean Domino "Well... considering my life's on the line, too, yeah, a few things. First off, keep everyone together. Keep checking behind you, make sure your partners are following... don't let them wander. Also, don't go running crazy everywhere. Almost every inch of this town is lethal. So if you're not sure, take it real slow. And speaking of slow, don't go shouting, or attracting attention. Go quiet. The Ghost People find you, it's over."
Rhodane "These ghost people... they're the only ones alive around here?"
Dean Domino " "Alive's" a tricky word. The locals, the Ghost People? Not sure it applies to them. They're a little... uncivilized. They don't talk much. As in, at all."
Rhodane "Have you tried to deal with them?"
Dean Domino "Tried talking to them, bribing them, leaving food - nothing. In the years since, they haven't changed their approach, but I sure have. They catch you, they drag you into the Cloud, and you're not coming back out. After that, having your necktie go off would be mercy. My advice? Stay out of their way, they don't die easy."
Rhodane "How tough are they?"
Dean Domino "You shoot them, they get back up. You stab them, they get back up. That's why I have explosives all over this place - unless you blow them up, chop them up, disintegrate 'em, the Ghost People don't go down. Not enough bullets in the town to spend on them. So unless you're a real good shot, save one for yourself right before they catch you."
Rhodane "I'm a fair shot. One shot, one kill is how I handle problems."
Dean Domino "Well... you seem like you know how to handle yourself. All right. Once, I fired a lucky shot, hit a gas tank one was holding. Blew his arm off at the shoulder... and he didn't get back up after that. So if you're that good, don't aim for the head - aim for their bombs. And if you can wait until his buddies are close by, even better."
Rhodane "Where did they come from?"
Dean Domino "Friend... "there's more mysteries in heaven and earth..." wait, no, "there is more between heaven and earth..." oh, forget it. I'd sooner ask what makes me an undying son of a bitch than spend any thought as to why they crawled to life here. I'm counting myself lucky I still have my faculties - they sure don't. Then again, they may not have had the... focus I do."
Rhodane "Focus?"
Dean Domino "Always had the Sierra Madre to keep my mind occupied. Most folks, they don't have the same drive, the same need. Not worth my time. Pretty much Ghost People before the Bomb, now Ghost People after."
Rhodane "Is there anything else about them I should know?"
Dean Domino "Whatever we do - don't rile them up. Normally, there's only a few, maybe a pack. There's more out there, a lot more. If they find out someone's trespassing, it'd be shaking a hornet's nest. Don't want to think how many of them could fill these streets."
Rhodane "What can you tell me about the Villa and the town?"
Dean Domino "Residential area, clinic, police station - should keep away from the police station, it's a Ghost People hangout. Salida del Sol, Puesta del Sol are East Town, West Town. "Sunrise" and "Sunset." Or were when the streets and sky weren't covered with toxic gas. Ghost People don't come into the Villa much. West Town and East Town, though... they're thick with the Cloud and Ghost People. Like hunting grounds."
Rhodane "Tell me about the Cloud."
Dean Domino "The Cloud? Showed up after the Bomb. I think. I got used to it in small doses. Now, it covers the city. Over the years, it kept climbing up out of the Sierra Madre, until it was curtains for the sun. Didn't see the sky again. Doesn't seem to bother the Ghost People. Can't see through it too well, though, so sometimes I can use the Cloud for cover... if I get desperate."