Starfield:Companion - Barrett/Story SG05 PreQuest

Quest:	Com_Companion_Barrett
Scene:	COM_Barrett_Story_SG05_PreQuest

Barrett:

"You know... traveling with you has been more than just good old-fashioned fun. It's been well, therapeutic."

...	Player	Response
	[+Empath?] I'm glad you felt comfortable talking to me about it.	The fact is, you've had my back countless times already and without you... I'd be exploring some random world alone, not realizing how much that bothered me.
	You don't get that sort of feedback everyday.	Well, just ask. Anyway. Thanks for the support, Captain.
_CHOICE01 (?)	I'm mainly interested in Ervin's legal issues.	That's fair, and honestly, that's the part that I actually need help with the most.
_CHOICE01 (?)	I should get paid for these therapy sessions.	Hey now, I do believe I gave you a very nice ship.
🗣︎	How has it been therapeutic for you?	Well, I buried my pain about Ervin for so long that I needed a nudge and a different perspective.
🗣︎	Was this really weighing on your mind so much?	I know, it didn't seem like it, right? Well. I was hiding it... hiding it from everyone, including myself. I can see now how much it was affecting me. I know now that clearing Ervin's name would set me free from the grief.

_CHOICE01

...	Player	Response
▲	We make a great team, Barrett.	[Q+111?] A while ago, you said you trust Constellation same as me. I think that's what makes us strong. [Q+112?] It wasn't all that long ago when you told me that you only trusted yourself, so I'm honored to hear you say that. [Q+114?] You used to not be so fond of teams, as I recall. Something about trusting individuals... right? I guess a good team is a team where you trust everyone individually, so it checks out. [or] That's just a fact.
	Don't get used to it.	Fair. We never know what the universe is going to throw at us next.
	[Flirt] I'm very supportive.	So am I. *Ahem* I mean -- I will keep that in mind.
🗣︎	Weren't you adventuring with Vasco for a while?	Yeah, of course. Vasco is a fantastic co-pilot. He doesn't sleep, he reacts quickly... He's a fascinating friend.

[BQS:510]

"Which brings me back to that plan I mentioned earlier. I think I know how to move forward now, but I'm going to need your help."

--

"My contact sent a gift."

...	Player	Response
	[Q+425?] A gift that we paid for...	We only paid for my contact's uncommon expertise, technically.
	Tell me they found some real evidence.	Seems real to me.
🗣︎	Your Cyber Runner contact?	Yep. My friend from Neon who has helped me out more times than I deserve.
🗣︎	Were they detected?	Nope. They were confident about not being detected, but not like... too confident. (unused) They weren't sure. (unused) They were detected, but they paid off the right people with the money we gave them. (unused) They were detected and we lost the connection before the data was acquired.

"So, they found an insurance settlement. Ervin's employers got paid as compensation for sabotage."

...	Player	Response
	Sounds fishy.	It seems that the mining company got a huge payout after they won the case against Ervin. We have the settlement paperwork from their insurance. Tons of money.
	Insurance seems pretty standard in cases like this.	For accidents, sure. But the grounds for this was sabotage, and that has to be proven in court. It's a whole nother ball of wax. And this ball was huge. We're talking enough credits to fill a small moon, so there's definitely a motive.
🗣︎	How much money are we talking about?	They claimed they had to ditch the whole mine and all the equipment inside and construct a new mine with new equipment. They were reimbursed for all of it.

• [Q+421?] | [Q+425?]

"Oh, also, the Cyber Runner had to move on to other work but sent me a passcode to some computer system..."

"I'm not sure what it goes to yet, though. We can just hold onto it until we figure it out."

"But anyway... we have enough to move forward."

--

"The missing piece here is proving that Ervin was framed."

--

[BQS:520]

• [Gagarin Settlement Dialogue+250?]
  "Remember Ellie Yankton on Gagarin? She was Ervin's lawyer back in the day, so she already knows the case in and out."
  "And it just so happens, she said she'd be glad to look over our evidence."
• [or]
  "So I discovered that Ervin's original lawyer still practices law, and she'll look over everything we've found."

...	Player	Response
▲	Let's go talk to this lawyer then, Detective.	Oh, Detective. I like the sound of that.
_CHOICE04	I don't want to get dragged to court.	Yeah, nobody does. But I'm hoping a lawyer can handle that part for us anyway. We're more like the detectives in this case. I wonder if I can find you a store that sells deerstalker hats. Unless, of course, you wanted to be the faithful sidekick this time?
🗣︎	Can we trust this lawyer?	Yes, I believe so. Every case she's worked on has been in the interest of regular everyday people. She doesn't seem to be in this for the money. I mean heck, she said she wouldn't charge us. For the initial consultation anyway...
🗣︎	What's her reason for helping us?	Ervin's case was her first case, she said. She always hated how it ended... And she's now got two decades of experience behind her for a rematch, too.

"If I'm the Detective, does that make you my trustworthy and sensible partner with a heart of gold?"

[_CHOICE04]

...	Player	Response
	[QB521] Obviously yes.	Hmm. Well, I can work with that. Detective Barrett at your service.
	[QB522] We're both Detectives.	[QB521] Damn right we are!
	No, definitely not.	We're more of the explorer type anyway, right? We don't need titles.
🗣︎	What are you talking about?	I swear it was a cliché in old detective novels. You have the hard boiled detective who's seen it all and the optimistic assistant who wants to save the world.

"Anyway, we should take everything to the lawyer and see what she says."

"Maybe she reviews it and decides we have no case... or we need more evidence, I don't know."

--

"If we don't have a case I can probably let it go... but I have to try."

...	Player	Response
	[QB550] Let's go talk to that lawyer then, Barrett.	[+Gagarin?] Since we're already on Gagarin this should be pretty straightforward. [or] Fantastic! I knew I could count on you. You're as reliable as an atomic clock. I've sent a list of everything we've found so far to the lawyer on Gagarin.
🗣︎	Can we send her all the evidence?	Yes, I've already arranged for my contact to drop off the evidence at her office.
🗣︎	Did you ever hear more about Ervin's apartment?	Oh, yep. I've got a keycard for it...but I don't know what condition it's in. It's been twenty years, but I got the ventilation and power turned on so I think it's safe? [QE525]

"You know... I actually feel optimistic about this."

--

• [Q+521?]^(?)

"Lead the way, Detective."

• [Q+521?]^(?)

"Lead the way, Captain."

[QE540]