At the Mountains of Dadness Ch. 2 - Choo Choo, Cthulhu!

Template:Infobox episode

**[WARNING: This page contains spoilers for the the second episode of the At the Mountains of Dadness campaign.]**

> *"Meryl, Robert, Hildy, and Stud board the midnight train towards Oak Ridge..." - Episode Description*
>
>

"Chapter 2: Choo Choo, Cthulhu" is the second episode of the three-part miniseries *At the Mountains of Dadness*. It is set in 1939 and features the grandparents of the main quest PCs. The campaign follows four employees at on a movie lot struggling to survive while solving the mystery of a missing film crew. It is set in the Call of Cthulhu system.

This episode is only available on the podcast's Patreon. It can also be purchased from the show's official store.

In this episode, the four PCs continue their quest to find the crew of *The Heart's Greatest Desire* and retrieve the film itself. The journey to Oak Ridge, Tennessee takes days by train, and the train is full of monochrome enemies. The party must try to survive the train ride to Tennessee without being discovered, being killed, or losing their minds.

## Character Introduction

The characters are introduced at the top of the episode as follows:

* Meryl Streep (Freddie Wong): Once a sexy, Asian superstar of silent cinema and the toast of Tinseltown, Meryl is now a has-been passed by technology and racism. These days, he's desperate for any and all shots at stardom on the silver screen.
* Robert Wilson (Matt Arnold): Robert has been working for Father's Own Studios as a line producer for about 11 years, but deep-down wishes he were a stuntman.
* Hildy Russet (Will Campos): Hildy is an ace roving cub reporter for the San Dimas Defender. She's eager to get a hot scoop on all of the strange goings-on at Father's Own Studios.
* Stuart "Stud" Stampler (Beth May): Stud is a construction worker from New York City who dreams of being a star on Broadway. Since moving to San Dimas to raise his nephew, Willy Stampler, he has taken up a more practical career in construction work.

## Granddad Facts

* Meryl: During prohibition, Meryl purchased a large stash of bootleg liquor with the plan to turn it around for a hefty profit. Unfortunately, he bought the alcohol on December 4th, 1933 - and prohibition ended the next day. This failed investment was the start of Meryl's financial troubles.
* Hildy: Hildy uses an Ensign Autorange 220 camera. An English camera introduced in 1937, It is a 120 film folding rangefinder camera that shoots on 6x6 centimeters. According to Will, "It gets the job done!"
* Robert: Robert's favorite movie is Harold Lloyd's *The Freshman* bc he loves the funny slapstick and stunts. Robert's least favorite movie, also by Harold Lloyd, is *Safety Last!* because because he "hates that message".
* Stud: Stud does not have tuberculosis.

## Episode Summary

**[WARNING: This summary contains descriptions of intense body horror and gore. Read at your own risk.]**

### Union Station

When the *Blue Planet* Crew arrives at Union Station, they find it to be mostly empty. The ticket and telegram offices are still open, but it's pretty sleepy outside of that.

Hildy suggests they send a telegram to R. L. Stein before they leave. The group agrees, but struggles to create a coherent, cost-effective message. Finally, they end up with:

> R. L. STOP. FOUND LEAD STOP. DIRECTOR IN TENNESSEE STOP. STUD BLIND STOP. FOUR TICKETS TO TENNESSEE STOP. DON'T NEED TICKETS ALREADY GOT THEM STOP. THAT'S IT WE'RE ON OUR WAY TO TENNESSEE.
>
>

Robert sends a telegram to his fiancé, Sally:

> HI SALLY STOP. I LOVE YOU STOP. I'LL NEVER STOP STOP.
>
>

In return for "solving the telegram operator's puzzle", the party receives one Werther's caramel to share. In a shocking piece of Dungeons and Daddies lore, Robert reveals that he doesn't like Charleston Chews. The group realizes their train is about to leave, and they hurry to catch it.

### The Train

The party arrives in coach and the Conductor enters the car. Robert insists on holding everyone's tickets so they don't get lost. Hildy approaches the Conductor and asks if this is the "Chattanooga Choo Choo". (Out of character, Anthony doesn't know that Chattanooga is in Tennessee.) The Conductor reveals that he is the substitute Conductor and leaves. An identical man with a slightly different moustache enters, reveals that he is the true Conductor, and confirms that the train is going to Tennessee. He tells the group that the train ride will take three days and will stop in three places: New Mexico, Arkansas, and Tennessee.

When Robert realizes the trip will take several days, he sends another telegram to Sally letting her know that he'll be gone:

SALLY LOVE YOU GONNA BE GONE FOR THREE DAYS SUPER LOVE YOU HOPE TO SEE YOU SOON THIS TIME SO YOU KNOW IT WAS ROBERT THE LAST TELEGRAM WAS ALSO ROBERT.

The Conductor starts to describe the train's layout to the group. Hildy asks him if he does this with every passenger; the Conductor tells them that he's doing it for them because they look like a bunch of "train virgins". Robert proudly declares that he's "not just a train virgin". The Conductor tells them that they should not enter the north car, which is the sleeper car for richer passengers. Meryl tries to use his fame to get a better seat, but fails to convince the Conductor. The Conductor continues to explain the layout of the train. From front to back, the cars are ordered as follows: Engine room, baggage car, sleeper car, coach, diner car, observation deck.

Suddenly, several people rush onto the train with bags that appear to be full of heavy equipment. Like the actors in the Griffith Observatory, these people are sepia-toned and partially drained of color. The group remembers that Meryl is now black-and-white, and realizes that the Conductor didn't find it strange. Hildy thanks the Conductor for his help and calls a group huddle. Meryl notices for the first time that he's devoid of color and takes a point of sanity damage.

Hildy offers to use her makeup kit to help Meryl look normal again, but Robert points out that everyone on the train is partially drained of color except for Hildy, Stud, and himself. The group notices the people that just rushed onto the train checking their bags, which are full of film gear like cameras and microphones (or the 1939 approximations). The party realizes that this must be the film crew for *The Heart's Greatest Desire*, and that they're all heading to Oak Ridge.

Meryl suggests that the others go to the bathroom and make themselves blend in. Meryl asks another passenger when the drink cart will come though, but the passenger explains to him that there is no drink cart because they're in coach. Hildy gets a hard success on Robert's makeup, but fails to convincingly disguise herself or Stud. The Conductor comes back through the car and asks for their tickets. Robert hands him the four tickets he got from Carrie Fischer at the Griffith Observatory.

Meryl asks the Conductor about the drink cart and the Conductor informs him that it is in the dining car right behind them. Meryl goes to leave, but the Conductor stops him because he is fully black-and-white, unlike the sepia-toned crew. The Conductor asks him if he's going to be the new lead in the movie. Meryl confirms this. The Conductor tells him that the screenplay, which is kept in the sleeping car, is still being written and that the author has forbidden Meryl from reading it yet. Meryl protests that he needs to see it so he can rehearse. The Conductor grabs him gently by the throat and tells him, "You're going to do exactly what you did to get the job: you're going to see the truth of it. In the moment. The reality." The Conductor wipes at his face and reveals that he, too, is monochromatic. After he is released by the Conductor, Meryl complains about the service and threatens to leave a negative "Yelp telegram review".

The party goes into the dining car to listen for any important information. There is a bartender and a waiter, who offer them a drink. Suddenly, two other passengers enter the dining car and sit down next to them at the bar. One of them is a woman wearing a flapper hat and the other is a gruff-looking man. The two strangers wipe away their makeup and reveal that they, like Meryl and the Conductor, are completely black-and-white. They discuss how freeing it is to finally "be themselves" so they can pursue the creation of "fine art".

They suddenly notice Meryl and ask him who he is. Meryl, confused as to why they don't recognize him, hands over a pre-signed headshot. When the woman sees it, she recognizes him because her sister has had many untoward thoughts about him. Meryl reveals that he'll be acting in *The Heart's Greatest Desire*. The woman comments that she's surprised; she "thought that J. J. Abrams had more taste". Meryl is offended and Stud instantly jumps to his defense. Meryl tries to use his classic catchphrase, but the woman still isn't impressed. She tells the group her name is Kathleen Kennedy. Stud introduces himself as Meryl's understudy and Robert introduces himself as a line producer. He asks her if there's an opening for a stuntman on the film, and she says she'll let him know. Kathleen excuses herself and heads to the observatory deck.

The group discusses what they should do next. Robert suggests that they relax, stay on the train, and not cause trouble. Meryl brings up the script, curious to know how many lines he has. Robert questions whether Meryl is really invested in the mission at hand, pointing out that he's much more focused on his acting than the fact that, as Hildy points out, "Dark deeds are afoot." Stud defends Meryl, claiming that his dreams are simply keeping him fixated on making the "movie magic" happen. Meryl declares that, if he can save this movie production by placing himself at the head of it, he'll take the other three investigators upward along with him. He tells them they should shut up and follow his lead.

Robert asks Hildy to tell the group who she really is. Even though she wouldn't normally blow her own cover while on a case, she decides that, since the group has already been through so much, she should tell them the truth. Meryl accuses her of being a detective. Hildy corrects him and tells them that she's an investigative reporter for the San Dimas Defender. She reveals that she's been undercover at Father's Own Studios for months, hoping to find the story that will propel her on toward bigger LA publications like Hollywood Reporter and Variety. Meryl accuses her of being a rat. Hildy tells them that she understands her desire to publish a sensational story about *The Heart's Greatest Desire* is at odds with their assigned goal from Father's Own Studios of keeping this underground.

Meryl suggests that she write instead about his current rise to stardom. Hildy tells him that he can be the centerpiece of her story and Meryl instantly agrees to do whatever she says. Robert tells Hildy that she needs to return the $250 paycheck she received for her work as a makeup girl. She tells him that she won't for two reasons: she actually worked as the makeup girl and earned that money, and also because she spent it already. Stud says he's okay with everything as long as she doesn't publish her article until after they've handled the situation.

Meryl brings up the script again and emphasizes that he doesn't want to show up to set unprepared. Hildy agrees that looking at the script might prepare them for what they might encounter in Tennessee. Stud points out that they still might hear something valuable from the other train passengers. Hildy encourages Meryl and Robert to investigate since they're the ones who pass as monochrome, but Robert is reluctant; if something goes wrong, they'll be trapped on the train with the sepia-toned crew. Meryl criticizes Robert for his cowardly idea to spend the train ride relaxing.

Meryl asks the bartender when dinner will be served, but Hildy reminds him that it was 1:00 AM when they arrived at the train station. The bartender informs them that breakfast will be served in the morning and that now would be a good time for them to sleep. As the bartender's mother apparently used to say, "If you sleep all night, you get advantage die on mental tasks the next day. If you don't sleep at all, you get disadvantage dice. And if you sleep for only four hours, you get a Con save, and then if you fail, you get a disadvantage." Robert encourages the group to get some rest.

### Day 1 - New Mexico

The group wakes up the next morning. The Conductor comes by and alerts the passengers that they'll be stopping for ten minutes in Albuquerque. He also lets them know that breakfast will be served in the dining car after they leave the station.

When they get off of the train in Albuquerque, they find that the hot, dry weather has driven almost everyone in town indoors. Robert runs to send a telegram. He says:

> HEY SALLY IT'S ROBERT I REALIZE I'M NOT GONNA BE GONE FOR THREE DAYS IT'S THREE DAYS IN ONE DIRECTION SO WHAT I REALLY MEANT TO SAY IS THAT I SHOULD BE BACK IN SIX DAYS BUT IT'S BEEN A DAY SO I SHOULD BE BACK IN FIVE DAYS LOVE YOU STOP.
>
>

Hildy makes a phone call to her editor, Julian, back in San Dimas. She tells him that her cover's been blown, but that the people she's working with don't mind. She relays to him that they're re-shooting the end of the movie in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. She tells him that she's going to try to get some scenes from the script to use in her article as a "mixed-media thing". Julian encourages this. Hildy asks him to wire her some money. Julian tells her to get him some pages before he sends her anything, but eventually agrees to send her fifty dollars and have it waiting for her at her next stop in Arkansas. She asks if he can get her a gun, too, before quickly hanging up. Meryl asks Hildy if she told her editor about him. She lies and tells him he did.

The party hears a telegraph coming into the telegram office. Hildy tries to listen in to figure out what it says, but fails. The conductor enters the telegraph office, takes the message, and walks onto the train.

Stud uses the phone to call his own house. Willy answers the phone. Stud asks him about school and tells him that he believes in him. Willy gets excited at the idea that Stud might be leaving him, but Stud promises he would never do that. Willy tells Stud that the pet store has too many cats and asks Stud to wire the store some money so they can buy some cats. Stud says he'd love to, but explains that he's in a dangerous situation and that he's lost his eyes. He also points out that maybe Willy shouldn't get any more cats since he keeps killing them. Willy declares that he'll go to a different pet store and hangs up. Stud tells the party that he's worried about Willy because of his violent tendencies and twisted ideas of manhood.

When the group gets back on the train, they see that the more affluent passengers are going to the dining car to have breakfast. They realize that this gives them an opportunity to sneak into the sleeper car while no one is in there and steal the script. Robert says that they should block off the sleeper car somehow, but Hildy points out that it might be suspicious if people try to get back into the sleeper car.

Stud suggests they should get a fake script to replace the original, and Robert presents a copy of the *Blue Plane*t script. Meryl asks if they even need to steal the script and if they can just look at it; Hildy says they should decide once they actually get their hands on the script.

Meryl tells Robert and Stud that they should create a distraction while he and Hildy sneak into the sleeper car. Robert and Stud decide that they'll pretend to bump into each other, block the hallway and have a huge, loud argument. Hildy tries to fix Stud's makeup, but fails again. Her own makeup, however, turns out to be convincing.

Meryl and Hildy enter the sleeper car to find that it is completely empty. They find a line of individual rooms that each have one set of bunk beds each inside. Two rooms catch their attention: one of them has a typewriter and bunch of pages on the floor; the other has several individually bradded binders, each full of paper that's been scribbled on and annotated. Hildy suggests that they start with the binder room, but Meryl reminds her that the conductor said the screenwriter was making revisions to the script, which means he was likely still using the typewriter.

They enter the typewriter room. There is a piece of paper still on the typewriter, some stray papers scattered on the ground, and a suitcase hidden under the loose papers. Hildy opens the suitcase while Meryl reads the piece of paper on the typewriter. Meryl makes a sanity roll and succeeds. (Out of character, Anthony emails Freddie what he sees on the page.)

Hildy opens up the suitcase and finds the script for *The Heart's Greatest Desire*. She has to make a sanity roll, which she fails. Just looking at the screenplay fills Hildy with a terrible dread. All she can focus on is the imperfections and randomness she finds in the words, the font, and even the papers themselves. She knows that if she continues to hold onto or look at the screenplay, she'll have to make regular sanity checks. If she reads it, she'll also have to make sanity checks; however, if she spends an entire day reading it, she can learn any individual spell in the Call of Cthulhu Keeper's Manual. She'd have to make four sanity checks every day. A success would cost her 1 Sanity Point, while a failure would cost her 1d8 Sanity Points.

Even though Hildy is unnerved by the script, her drive to see her story published propels her forward. She grabs the script and replaces it with the *Blue Planet* script. As they do, they swap the cover pages so that the script looks untouched. Meryl reveals what he saw on the typewriter:

> FUCK KILL EAT WATCH SCREAM SHIT SLEEP
>
>

This phrase is repeated over and over. Meryl calls it "drivel" and assumes that the writer must have been "testing the typewriter".

In the dining car, Robert and Stud stand by the door until someone approaches them. While they wait, Robert reveals that he's a little scared and that he's worried about Meryl and Hildy. Stud reassures him that they'll be alright, and that he and Robert can deal with the people in the dining car. As they talk, the Conductor enters the dining car and orders a shot of bourbon. While he's at the bar, he pulls out the telegram and begins to read it.

Robert positions Stud in front of the door before he approaches the Conductor and tries to read the telegram. Robert fails to read the telegram, but he can tell that the Conductor is growing upset as he reads it. The Conductor looks around the bar, seemingly searching for something but unable to find it. He gets up to leave, but Robert approaches him. Robert asks if the telegram had bad news and if he wants to talk about it. The Conductor turns him down and continues toward the exit. Robert follows closely behind.

The Conductor approaches Stud and tries to push him aside. Stud protests. The Conductor recognizes Stud and asks him where the other two people he boarded the train with - Hildy and Meryl - are. Stud plays dumb and Robert tells the Conductor that they went "down-train" to the observatory. Robert uses several luck points, and a especially stunning cactus passes by the window at that moment. The Conductor, along with a few other amazed passengers, heads into the observation car.

Robert and Stud exit "up-train" into the coach car and quickly pass through it to get to the sleeper car. Robert tells Hildy and Meryl to get back into the coach car, but Hildy says that they need to hide in the sleeper car instead. After a confusing back-and-forth conversation, Hildy suggests they hide in the baggage room. The four of them move up-train out of the sleeper car.

They enter the small ante-room that separates the sleeper car from the baggage car. On either side, there are doors that lead to the outside of the train. Meryl tries opening the door to the baggage car, but it's locked. Robert goes to kick the door down, but Hildy successfully picks the lock first. Because she got an extreme success, the group is able to get all the way inside the baggage car *and* close the door behind them.

They look through the window and watch the Conductor and a few other people opening the door to the sleeper car. Because Hildy was able to close the door, the group hasn't been spotted yet. Meryl asks if there's a way to lock the door so that no one knows they've opened it. Hildy and Robert explain to him that they can lock the door from the inside, which amazes Meryl because he "had people for that".

The baggage room is stuffed to the brim with valises and suitcases of varying sizes. At the opposite end of the car, there is presumably another door that would lead to the engine room. Robert notices that someone would be able to see them if they got up close to the window on the door and looked through it. Hildy suggests they empty a large case and hide inside of it. Meryl suggests that they detach the cars behind them and leave them behind in the desert. Everyone agrees that it's a pretty good idea.

As they continue to discuss plans, Robert keeps his eyes trained on the door window. He sees the Conductor is talking to Kathleen Kennedy and some of the crew members. He's holding the telegram up as he angrily points at them, then gestures around the train. He directs several of the crew members to search for the group in other cars, then heads toward the baggage car to investigate it himself.

Hildy asks if they should shove him off the train, but Robert reveals that everyone on the train is looking for them and that it might just be smarter to hide. He suggests that they just hide along the walls and out of sight of the window, but they realize that the Conductor will have the key and will probably enter the car.

Hildy opens a big trunk. Inside, she finds several white lab coats, identification badges that say "X-10", and a shotgun. Hildy hides among the lab coats. Meryl asks her to toss him the gun since he's skilled with firearms, but he discovers that it isn't loaded. Stud finds a bag that is "roughly Stud Stampler sized". In a homage to Ron Stampler, Hildy finds a huge pair of pants among the lab coats and offers them to Stud as a hiding place. He climbs inside and enjoys it immensely. Robert pulls a trunk out to create a gap between it and the wall. He and Meryl climb into the space and hide. Before he hides, Robert puts a few duffel bags around Stud's pants so that there isn't a suspiciously solitary pair of pants.

Just as they all get into their hiding places, they hear a key being inserted into a lock. Everyone hears the Conductor's footsteps enter the car, but Meryl spends some luck points and hears that two other people have also entered behind him. Meryl and Stud get extreme successes, Robert gets a strong success, and Hildy spends some luck points to achieve a normal success.

The Conductor and his two assistants search the room, but don't find any of the party members. The Conductor sends the other two people back into the coach car while he moves forward into the engine room. As soon as the three of them leave the car, Robert jumps out of his hiding spot and locks the door behind the two people who moved down-train. Hildy tells him not to, because the Conductor will realize that someone must have been in the room to lock the door, but Robert suggests that they take this opportunity to isolate the Conductor and possibly "rough him up". Hildy declares that they need to work together if they want to defeat the Conductor. She and Meryl both encourage everyone to put their hands in the middle of their huddle as a sign of solidarity.

Stud asks why, exactly, they should be afraid of the Conductor and the crew if they're all going to Oak Ridge. Hildy tells him that these people are similar to the actors at the Griffith Observatory and Gertrude in the editing studio. Robert points out that all of these people have been talking about the same creepy idea of "seeing the truth". Stud asks why, if the film is bad and "the dream is dead", why they're still pursuing it. No one has an answer for him.

Robert says that they need to prepare for when the Conductor re-enters. Hildy agrees, saying that this will be the best way to get answers to the kind of questions that Stud was asking. Stud puts his hand in the middle. Hildy counts them out, and they say, "Team Crew. Blue Planet. I see you."

With that, the group gets to work. Meryl points the shotgun at the door. Robert searches for some rope to tie up the Conductor. Hildy stands right next to the door and prepares to Judo-flip him to the ground when he enters. She gives her pistol to Robert. Stud lies on the ground right in front of the door so that he'll trip over Stud. Stud tells Robert that he should come up with something cool to say when he holds the pistol up to the conductor's head. Everyone starts pitching ideas, and Meryl tells Stud that he should consider becoming a writer.

The Conductor comes back toward the baggage car. The crew goes quiet and assumes their positions. He fails to notice Stud on the ground and trips over him. Hildy gets a hard success on her Judo attack - she jumps on his shoulders and does the "leg-flippy-dip" that Black Widow does in Iron Man 2. Robert holds the pistol at the Conductor's head and Meryl puts the end of the shotgun in his mouth. Robert locks the door to the engineer room and starts to tie up the Conductor with the rope. Robert searches his body and finds nothing interesting besides the telegram. The message reads:

> ATTENTION CREW OF HEART'S GREATEST DESIRE STOP. ASSAULTED BY REPORTER STOP. REPORTER ASSOCIATING WITH MONOCHROMATIC ASIAN MAN STOP. ALSO EXTREMELY UGLY MAN STOP. ALSO EXTREMELY LARGE HANDSOME MAN STOP. DO NOT TRUST STOP.
>
>

Robert looks around and becomes sad when he realizes that he is the "extremely ugly man" referred to in the telegram. Hildy says that the rest of the train will soon notice that the Conductor is gone. Robert points out that they have at least one more day on the train. Meryl suggests that they cut the rest of the train loose, ride it to Arkansas, and board a new train there.

As they're talking, Meryl feels the Conductor angle his head back with the gun still in his mouth. He slams his head forward, sending the barrel of the shotgun through his head and into his spine at the base of his neck. As he breaks his own neck, his head jerks forward. He slams his head forward again and the gun breaks through the back of his skull. He does it one more time and sends the barrel all the way through his neck. He blinks up at Meryl.

At this horrifying display, Meryl fails his sanity check and takes 5 damage. He makes an intelligence check and succeeds, understanding what he has just witnessed and that it should not be possible. This means that Meryl undergoes a bout of Temporary Insanity. For the next three rounds of combat, Meryl suffers from Extreme Paranoia: "You believe that everyone is out to get you, that no one can be trusted... this is all some sort of conspiracy against you, specifically."

Since Robert hadn't actually finished tying the rope yet, the Conductor starts trying to stand up. Hildy tries and fails to hold him down. He flips Hildy off of him and gets up. He grabs his own hair and holds his head up to look at them. As he opens his mouth to scream, the group can see the wall behind him through the massive hole in his neck.

Stud finds the Conductor's foot and tries to wrap a pant leg around his ankle to trip him. He succeeds, but the Conductor doesn't trip yet.

Robert's turn is next, but he's unsure that shooting the Conductor will actually do anything to stop him. After some group discussion, Robert successfully shoots the Conductor in the head. The gas from the end of the gun expands inside of his skull and the right side of his face starts to deform and burn from the inside. One of his eyes explodes from the heat. The Conductor grabs his head, spins it to look at Robert, and snarls.

Since the shotgun isn't loaded, Meryl swings it wildly at both the Conductor and Robert. Meryl fails to hit either of them. Meryl accuses the group of taking the shells out of the gun.

As the Conductor dodges, the pants around his ankle get pulled tight and the Conductor falls on his face. The group realizes that the sound of the pistol was incredibly loud and that someone might come into the car to investigate. Hildy tries to push something heavy onto the Conductor to crush him, but he dodges it.

The Conductor gets back up and tears through the pants on his leg. He attacks Robert, but Robert shoots him again and takes off one of his ears. Stud tries to tie his pants to Meryl so they can take him with them when they escape, but Meryl resists.

Robert grabs Stud and drags him into the ante-chamber between the baggage car and the engineer car. Through the window, Robert sees that the engineer is watching the fight.

Meryl sees Robert and Stud leave. Even though he's suspicious of them, his paranoia drives him to follow them to make sure they don't leave him behind. On the way, he takes a swing at Robert and misses. Meryl runs straight through the ante-chamber and harmlessly smacks into the door to the engineering room.

Hildy goes to run toward her friends. She goes to close the door, but realizes she'll miss the opportunity to take a photograph. She spends luck points so she can take the picture and close the door on the same turn.

The Conductor tries to smash down the door. Hildy is the only one who pushes back against the door because the rest of the group is occupied with Meryl's attacks. The Conductor half-smashes the door, but Hildy is able to keep the door from breaking entirely.

Stud tries to knock out Meryl so he'll stop attacking his friends, but fails.

Robert debates whether or not he should cut the engine car loose from the rest of the train. If he does, the engine car will quickly outpace the other cars. He realizes the ante-chamber is attached to the baggage car, so the four of them will have to either jump to or enter the engine car to avoid getting left behind. He also realizes that actually separating the cars is incredibly dangerous; he will have to open one of the side doors, lean outside the train, and pull the lever that keeps them connected. Robert is frightened, but the group encourages him by reframing it as a "stunt".

Robert opens the door to the outside of the train. The moment the wind hits him, he flashes back to his earliest memory: falling out of a boat, the wind of a storm hitting him in the face, his parents drowning, and something lurking in the water. This flashback forces him to make a sanity check, which he passes. He successfully grabs the level, yanks it down, and separates the two cars.

Meryl focuses on Stud and accuses him of faking his blindness. He swings the shotgun again at Stud. (Out of character, everyone is relieved that the gun wasn't loaded.) Stud successfully dodges the attack. When Meryl sees that Stud chose to dodge instead of fighting back, he realizes that Stud is his ally and snaps out of his paranoia.

Hildy goes to run for the engineer car, but Robert tells her that she should stay by the door because she's the only one holding it closed and the Conductor is about to act. Hildy concedes, since she just risked all of their lives to take a picture. Meryl suggests that she stick the shotgun through the hole in the door that the Conductor created; the sliding door will only be able to open halfway and he will have to waste time pulling the shotgun out. Hildy agrees, Meryl tosses her the gun, and she tries to jam it in the door. The Conductor, however, manages to grab the shotgun, pull it all the way through to his side, and toss it behind him.

Hildy braces herself against the door and tells the rest of the group to go. The Conductor attacks the door and splinters it, but Hildy holds him back on both of his attacks.

Stud has to make a blind jump across the three-foot gap between the ante-chamber and the engine car. He runs up to jump, but his foot slips down through the gap between the cars. He manages to grab the handrail on the ante-chamber side before he falls.

Robert jumps across the gap and uses luck to succeed. He reaches down to help Stud up and yanks him into the engine car with him. Robert and Stud are safe and exit initiative.

Meryl winks at Hildy and expertly jumps onto the engine car. He uses his acting skills to look behind the Conductor with an expression of sheer terror to trick the Conductor into thinking that something is behind him. He uses luck to put on a convincing performance - his shoulders swing back, the color drains from his already-colorless face, shakily brings a hand to his mouth, and points behind the Conductor. The Conductor swivels just his head around to look. As he's distracted, Hildy jumps and makes it to the engine car.

The gap has gotten much wider over the course of one turn, but the Conductor still attempts the jump. He runs, leaps, and manages to grab the lip of the car with his fingertips. When he does this, he lets go of his head. It falls down behind him and hits the ground, ripping his head fully off. Robert and Hildy fail their sanity checks. As the Conductor's twitching hands still grip the edge of the train car, the four investigators speed toward Oak Ridge. And, even better, the rest of the sepia-toned film crew is left far behind them.