I wonder...
why is it that life always requires us to power through
so much suffering, grief, and other crap?
Can't we just have fun and not deal with any of that?
That's what was going through my head when Hapna hit the market.
So, obviously, I jumped on it.
Some people were even saying that it cured the pain of heartbreak.
But I thought that was kinda weird.
Like, how can a broken heart ever be painless?
"Isn't this too good to be true?"
"What if I'm just being duped?"
Those thoughts did cross my mind.
Funny.
Since it turns out that we were being duped.
Whoa...
A hundred thousand Skinners?
They're all over the place.
- Yikes! Get a load of that one. - Gross.
I take it someone hacked into the surveillance systems
and is replacing all the faces with Skinner's?
Yes, and it's being done with extreme precision.
They've not only altered the polygon masks,
but even the thermal imaging.
So what, is Skinner the one behind all this?
No, I can only think of about three hackers in the entire world
with the skills necessary to pull this off.
And who are they?
Popcorn Wizard, Doctor 909, and Mad Screamer.
Oh, but that last one is actually me.
- What? - Seriously? What?
Well, that means it's incredibly likely one of the other two is helping Skinner.
Eleina, can you find the other two hackers?
I'll try.
Going the surveillance camera route is no longer an option,
but this does give us one clue.
If Skinner had undergone plastic surgery to change his appearance,
there would be no need to do all of this.
Which means...
That he's still alive and kicking with the same face.
Yes.
For now, I want Chris and Leland to see what they can find at Skinner's residence.
I have a lead to follow up on, too.
What lead?
Claude Cline.
He was my mentor at the university lab that I used to work at.
Once, in his younger days, he was involved in joint research with Skinner.
We might get some kind of clue from him.
This sucks, why'd I have to get paired up with you?
I'm not a fan of it either.
Remember, I still haven't accepted you yet.
Oh, come on.
We're from Smile Clean!
We're here to make Mr. Skinner's home squeaky clean!
Huh? Haven't you guys seen the news?
The owner of the house has gone missing!
Okay, but our contract says we get paid up-front, so...
I don't care.
I was told not to let anybody get inside!
All right.
We'll just have them send the invoice to you then.
Huh?!
Well, there's a cancellation fee if you send us back, ya see.
And just between us, it's actually a pretty hefty amount...
This is on your heads!
You people are the ones who prescribed me Hapna in the first place!
So do something!
Hold up.
Where's your mentor?
He retired some time ago.
And they don't have his current address or contact info.
Oh yeah?
However...
there's a rumor that he became homeless.
In that case, I might be able to help out.
Huh?
So, care to explain why're you so good at this?
Huh? I'm not that good.
You're just playing dumb.
I could say the same to you.
Well, I'm not hiding anything.
Okay then, what did you do before coming here?
I traveled all over the world as a secret agent.
Uh-huh, sure.
Let's see here...
Oh! It opened.
Comin' through!
Pardon us.
There's a lot of them out here.
So, where's this lead of yours?
Guy's name is Jerry. Met him two prison stays ago,
and now I hear he's the leader of this homeless community.
What? You scared or something?
Absolutely not.
Don't pretend.
Let's go.
I betcha that he got busted.
Seriously?
Hey, do you know anyone named Jerry?
He's supposed to be in charge of things around here.
Jerry?
No clue.
Pardon me.
Do you know a man named Jerry?
Hey, buddy.
The guy you're talking to can't see worth crap.
Nothing of note around here, huh?
Yep, and it's no surprise since the FBI already did a clean sweep of the place.
Gotta say, this house is pretty mundane considering it's a leading scientist's.
Ya know what I mean?
Is that Hapna?
Doesn't look like it.
You don't suppose this is, like, a secret cure to Hapna or something?
You're joking, right?
Yeah, there's no way.
You're not one of us are ya, pal?
Jill's the one who runs the show around here.
Jill?
Yeah, she's right behind you.
Oh, my gosh! Axel?!
Huh?
It's been forever! I'm so happy to see you!
Just look at you!
You haven't changed a bit!
Oh, hey! You became a woman, Jerry?
Yep! I go by Jill now!
Well, I'm digging your new look, Jill!
Oh you! C'mere!
Wait...
Gosh, how many centuries has it been?
I thought that you were back in the slammer.
Yeah, but then I got out again.
Another prison break?
Kinda.
You never learn.
So, what brings you here?
We're looking for a man named Claude.
I was told that he's been seen somewhere in this area...
Listen...
I'm a trans woman with a criminal record, who's also gone through bankruptcy.
Around here, that's not an uncommon story.
Some folks were actually happy to hear the world is ending,
even though they don't say it aloud.
Everyone has circumstances that led them here.
And so, you have to understand that it's common courtesy
not to go digging up anybody's past.
Well...
back in the day, when I was an academic researcher,
I used to get a lot of shit.
One guy told me successful Black scientists don't exist.
And that it's impossible for me to get the Nobel Prize,
no matter how hard I tried.
So, I punched him.
That man was the dean of the university.
I was eventually expelled for it,
but Professor Claude never stopped advocating for me until the very end.
And I still haven't had the chance to properly thank him for it.
Show me his picture.
What's the matter, professor?
Whoop his butt already.
Queen to Bishop.
Bishop to King, checkmate.
No way!
Now I'm out three days’ worth of food! Goddammit!
Is that you, Doug?
It's been a long time, Professor.
Yo, dude!
Wanna play a game against me?
You must be surprised, seeing how I've hit rock bottom like this.
Well...
to be honest, I'm looking for Skinner right now.
Ah, yes, things are a real mess.
Do you happen to know where he might be?
Well, I haven't talked with him for many years no...
Little did I know that we were going to be killed by the medicine he invented.
Any kind of info would help, no matter how trivial.
Professor?
Right...
It's gonna be one-on-one with you taking the ball first.
How's 20 bucks a game sound?
Whatever you say.
I imagine that Skinner...
was someone who most people saw as an honorable man.
But his obsession with research blinded him to everything else.
So much so that he couldn't even keep track of time
and became a real nuisance to all the people around him.
It was exhausting, and I knew I couldn't keep up...
So, I just cut all ties with him.
But as I watched him rise to prominence, it actually made me jealous.
I desperately wanted to outdo him.
To somehow leave my mark on the world.
And that frustration drove me to falsify the results of my research.
It lead to the university firing me and that's how I ended up here.
No way! How's that fair?!
Oh right, I just remembered.
Once, we got into a passionate discussion about baklava at the lab...
Baklava?
That's a Middle Eastern pastry, isn't it?
Yes.
Skinner said that his Grandmother Billinda made the best baklava in the world.
He raved on about how magical her recipe was,
and that no one could ever make it the same way.
His grandmother?
As I remember it, he mentioned she lived somewhere in Istanbul.
But I couldn't tell you if she's still around these days.
Thank you, Professor.
Also...
I appreciate you standing up for me back then.
No freakin' way!
So, tell me.
How far do you and Axel go back?
Not very.
We basically just met.
As you can see, Axel is the type of guy who can easily make himself at home.
Whether he's in prison or wherever.
But then, before you know it, he just up and vanishes.
He's a real mystery, that one.
Be careful who you try to pull a fast one on next time.
Dammit.
Never come back here, you dick!
Let's jet.
You found a clue, didn'tcha?
Yeah.
See you around, Jill!
Come back again, Axel!
I'll be waiting, ya hear?
No ID number, no tax records, and no social security.
There's nothing coming up for Skinner's grandmother on any database
under the name of Billinda.
Does she really exist?
I mean, even Skinner should have a grandmother.
Actually, with no record of her whatsoever,
maybe that's a sign it was all deliberately erased?
It's a possibility.
Hold on, look here.
This area is famous for its high crime rate.
There are no surveillance cameras or visual data available at all.
Sounds like it would make a perfect hideout for Skinner.
Or we might be getting lured into a trap...
Can't deny that.
Then all we gotta do is go and see for ourselves, right?
It takes about six hours to Istanbul via Hypercube.
I guess that's our only option.
We finally made it!
Dude, why are you wearing that getup?
Well, I figured it was best to blend in since they said it's not safe around here.
Do you think it's having the opposite effect?
Eh, it's fine.
Hold up! Where are you going?
I'm just gonna go strut my stuff around town.
That should get them to come to us.
We're dealing with people who typically don't leave traces behind,
so I set up some float traps.
And that's what these are?
Yes, they monitor all transactions that go through the node point.
I performed a pseudo-deconstruction on the multiple compression functions
of the hash algorithm so that...
Uh, in layman's terms please.
Essentially, they're decoys.
I see.
Huh?
Oh, hello there.
Let me just say that, um, we're not here to cause any trouble!
Except that we look super sketch.
Well, in times like these...
we run for it!
Huh?! Hey, wait!
Whoops!
This way!
Time to jump!
Here is your chamomile tea.
Why thank you.
Do you know where the Prince is?
It's the Prince!
What the...?
Where'd he go?
Here you are, Your Highness.
Oh, sorry, but I'm kinda in a hurry...
Hey, cut it out!
It's not a wristwatch!
Leave it alone!
Enough already...
Please, no!
Listen...
the only reason we came here is to eat some of Grandma Billinda's baklava!
Baklava?
- Billinda? - Billinda?
Billinda...
So? How's the Istanbul team doing?
Haven't heard anything from them.
Maybe they're dead?
At the very least, we know they're alive
according to the vital signs on their bracelets.
Well, okay then.
But frankly, I don't understand why Hersch made Leland go.
Aren't we better suited for this?
I'm betting it's ‘cause he gives off grandson vibes.
Coming!
Yes, I know. Just hold on a moment!
Thanks for waiting.
Are you boys the visitors who came from out of town to see me?
Uh, yes!
Here, this is for you lads.
Well, don't just stand there. Come on in!
I'm sorry, Miss Billinda.
We hate to drop in on you unannounced like this...
Those lads didn't mean any harm, they're just misguided.
Really?
I hope that you can forgive them.
The feeling's mutual. Sorry I roughed them up a bit.
Well, here's the baklava you've been craving!
Eat as much as you'd like.
So sweet! And tasty!
This is hella good!
Oh heavens, calm down and pace yourselves, boys.
So, would you mind telling me who exactly you two are?
Don't share this with anybody, but the truth is that...
we're secret agents.
- Huh? - Huh?
You mean like...
James Bond?
Yeah, more or less.
Oh wow!
Hold on, you can't say that!
Times are changing. We're really about transparency these days, you know?
So, do you have a license to kill and all that?
Of course.
Well, I know how it goes.
You must be here to ask about my grandson, yes?
Well, it's been many years since I last saw him.
It's not like I was keeping it a secret or anything.
It's just that no one ever bothered to ask me.
Still nothing yet...
Nothing at all...
I guess we'll just have to be patient.
He tragically lost both of his parents when he was little, you see.
So I stepped up to raise him in his mother's stead.
What was he like?
He was a normal boy.
A kindhearted crybaby.
Nothing unusual to speak of.
No matter how many years go by, or what chaos he's caused...
to me, he's still just the cute little grandson who I raised.
That's weird.
I think I've seen this flower somewhere before.
Ah, yes.
That plant is something he brought for me.
Apparently, it's a very rare variety of tulip that hardly ever blooms.
When did you last talk to Skinner?
Let's see...
about three years back, I think.
Yes, that's right.
He sent me a video message.
Wait here a moment.
They're not moving.
Not an inch.
What are they wasting time on?
Hey, Billinda!
How have you been?
I've been pretty busy lately.
I wanted to visit for Christmas and have your baklava,
but it seems like I'm not going to make it.
But once things settle down, I promise I'll come home.
So take good care of yourself until then.
Bye for now.
I gotta say...
he doesn't seem like the kind of guy
who would go through with committing the world's worst massacre.
A fresh batch of my baklava is almost ready, boys!
Great!
It's Skinner.
Huh?
He's gotta be watching us from somewhere.
You know, to make sure that nothing happens to Billinda.
So wait, Skinner is keeping tabs on us?
What is that?
Yo, Skinner. You seeing this?
I'm already hot on your trail!
So just wait for me to come bust your ass!
- They took the bait! - Who? Where?
I've figured out where Doctor 909's hidden wallet is!
Huh?
Time to destroy!