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Chorrol.com _ Role-playing _ Coldshort's Company - Playground

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 11 2011, 08:20 PM

OOC: not sure where the settlement is, so I conveniently left out details regarding it.

Keara

Keara held binoculars to her face with one hand, while the other rested on Lucky's head. She saw the settlement, but there was nothing to note. No movement, no nothing. It was quiet. She would have to get closer to know anything for sure, but Laura made it absolutely clear that she not move beyond the ridge she sat upon now.

Keara felt that she was being watched, but in the back of her mind, she knew it was Gramps peering at her through a scope from some unknown position. He always was. It made her feel secure on the one hand, but something told her that it was Laura that made him do it. They were as much keeping an eye on her as they were protecting her. It was why she was never privy to Raymond's location; she could never tell if he could see her or not. One wrong move, she knew, and she was toast. It was why she chose to report back instead of learning more.

They don't trust me, but that's fine. It'll be Laura's fault if we all die just because I couldn't do a proper scouting.

"I really thought I'd won 'em over after Springvale," she said to the dog while scratching his ear, "Oh well. Let's go, boy, before I lose my head."

Keara hung her binoculars around her neck and brought an inhaler from her pocket. She breathed in deep, holding the tainted air until she felt the familiar rush of jet moving through her mind and body.

She left the ridge and returned to the others with Lucky at her heels.

"Miss Laura," she said with an oft-used, sarcastic salute, "I couldn't spot a soul over there, but I was pretty far away. I'd need to get closer to find out more."

Posted by: grif11 Jun 12 2011, 07:54 PM

Raymond

The old sniper was keeping a watchful eye on there newest member. Really, what does Laura see in her.
He thought to himself. I suppose we do need some sort of scout, and she did have to pay for her theft. but she's paid now, why stick around? She could easily slip away while we sleep, and it's not like were holding her prisoner.

The girl had turned back now, returning to the group with her dog at her heels. Raymond was always amazed by her speed, even if she was using jet. I've killed many fiends. If she doesn't stop taking that filth she's going to turn into one!

Posted by: Ahrenil Jun 13 2011, 12:02 AM

Laura was knelt nearby. They'd set up camp near their target town, a small ramshackle collection of huts around a larger central warehouse. It was in there that she'd been told they'd find their target. The job had sounded easy enough on paper, get in and get out with the item. But something scratched at the back of her head, if it was a pick up why did they need such a heavily armed group, and why go through a small merc channel, and not someone more trusted. All in all though it didn't matter, they needed the caps to keep going and Laura wasn't ready to give up yet.

"It's late, they might all be inside..." Laura muttered, picking up a nearby stick she tossed it to the scout. "If you can draw us out a decent map, I want routes in and out in case we need to cut our losses and run. I want a count on the huts and any their layout if you can, I want to know what we're walking in to."

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 13 2011, 04:39 AM

Keara

"Cut our losses? I thought this was just a delivery job. You're acting like we should expect trouble."

The look on Laura's face told her to shut up and do as she was told, and Keara suddenly remembered that her boss always expected trouble. It was Laura's job to plan for the worst, and Keara knew firsthand that it had kept the five of them alive all this time.

"Okay, okay. Forget I said anything," Keara said, squatting to draw a rectangle in the dirt, and talking a million miles an hour, "There's an old pre-war warehouse here, surrounded by shacks. Most of those are just built from scrap."

She drew a few of the huts before pausing to think. Then she drew one more. Then she drew a squiggly line below the warehouse.

"That line there is the ridge I was just on, south of the warehouse," she explained, putting a little dot to represent herself, "There's five shacks that I could see, but the warehouse itself blocked my view of the north side, and I wasn't high enough to see over it. There are probably just more o' those shacks, but you may want to ask Raymond if he saw anything over there."

She kept scrawling in the dirt.

"Oh! And there are two guard towers. Not too tall, maybe twenty feet high. And there's a fence around the whole compound. The gate is here, on the east side, but it was damaged in two places; the southeast corner, here, and another on the west side."

Keara stopped drawing to look Laura in the eye, and slowed her speech, "But I'm telling you, I couldn't spot anyone. No guards on the towers, nobody watching the broken patches of fence. Are you sure they're expecting us to pick this thing up?"

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 13 2011, 12:26 PM




The ghoul sat directly infront of the mercenary leader, cleaning his RPD and maintaining the bullets. His old mentor always said that the last minute preparation would always save lives. The contract they were given sounded easy enough, but Alexei kept wariness on his side. Something off kept ringing the alarm bells on his head, but he supposed it was only the pre-battle anxiety. He returned on cleaning his favorite gun. It was always warm to his touch. The youngest member of the group returned, along with a sarcastic demeanor. Alexei shook his head. She was a thief and Laura still recruited her. The stunt she pulled at Springvale . . . that was one thing Alexei would remember. And then she began drawing the crude layout of the settlement, talking about the LACK of guards and patrols. Once she finished, Alexei became uneasy.

"Maybe we need to plan this thoroughly. Lack of guards, lack of anything.. It speaks the dialect of suspicion, comrades." His voice was parched and sonorous. He looked at Kaura, dropping his chin slightly to meet her eyes. "What would our leader do?"

Posted by: grif11 Jun 13 2011, 06:00 PM

Raymond

Well, no point staying up here, Raymond thought, glad he could return to some company. Raymond was used to working with another, whether a spotter or just another soldier. Snipers are lonely people most of the time, but Ray had gotten used to it.

Once he had returned, he found Laura and Alexei discussing the job. "Well, your map there is pretty good," He muttered to Keara, kneeling down beside her "May I add a few details?" With that, he got to drawing a few more buildings. "Behind this warehouse, I could make out a few more of these shacks, and a medium sized building here," and drew it a small distance from the warehouse.

"I would guess this is being used as some sort of barracks. However, No lights were on and no signs of life through the windows. they could be waiting there for ambush, so I suggest our plan is to surround that building first, and rush them. Still, You're the scout, you would probably have a better idea. We both see far, but you come up with the plans."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 13 2011, 07:27 PM

Jonathan

When Jonathan heard the signs of Keara's return, or more accurately, the signs of everybody else responding to an approaching entity, his hand slipped to the small revolver he kept within his coat. When he saw that the new arrival was Keara, he simply nodded to her and returned to the task of replenishing their supply of clamps, straps and hookups for Laura's explosives. After Springvale, they'd ran dry on just about everything and Jonathan would have preferred to take some time out to restock their equipment. He doubted he was the only one with that opinion but a vacation wasn't an option. They needed the caps, and they needed them now.

The balding man listened with only half an ear to Keara's report of her findings. It was when Alexei worded his worries that Jonathan turned his full attention to the report. As he looked up, he caught a glimpse of the ghoul and suppressed a shudder. It was that shudder of unease that Jonathan hated most. He knew Alexei was a good man, hell he even liked him. Not to mention that up till now, Alexei had never come to Jonathan asking to fix a gun for him. He was reliable and good to have by your side when it mattered. One more thing Jonathan learned at Springvale. But somehow, he just couldn't get rid of that subconscious revulsion whenever he looked at the irradiated giant.

"Hmm, sounds fishy indeed. Good shelter wouldn't be abandoned for nothing." he mumbled as Raymond returned. The man was the oldest of the group which had earned him the nickname of gramps, despite not being all that much older than Jonathan himself. Without wasting time on salutes or greetings, gramps knelt down next to the young thief and completed the map. Jonathan looked at the crude drawings of the two and realized that he had absolutely no idea what to make of it. Oh, he could see what the squares and lines meant, but he wouldn't be able to form that into a tactically sound plan of any sorts.

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 13 2011, 09:18 PM

Keara

"We all got a weird vibe, right?" Keara said to everyone before turning to Laura, "So let me and you go in first, and the others can wait on the ridge. We'll at least sneak a peek into the warehouse and those barracks. If we've got time, you can plant some strategic explosives like last time, and if there's an emergency we'll send out a signal."

"No doubt Gramps will see it," she said sourly, "Then him and Alexei can back us up if we need it."

Posted by: Ahrenil Jun 14 2011, 12:16 AM

((OOC:Considering most of us are ex-Megaton i'll go ahead and assume we're based near and work primarily from there))

Laura studied the map, there was good cover all the way around the warehouse from those shacks, but it also screamed of a killing floor. However, she knew Raymond and Keara were good, not the best but damn good at what they did. If there were people still down there then they'd have seen at least some decent sign of them, and she doubted that the place had been tipped off about their arrival.

"Hmm, I don't like the idea of going in alone. Especially not if we have one point of entry and escape." Laura muttered. "Jonathon, if you have any form of wire cutting tool I want you to make a breach on the other side of the fence, get Alexei in through that so he can take up a covering position behind a shack." Larua declared, indicating the westernmost shack on the map.

"Raymond I want you to find a good spot and keep an eye on that warehouse door. If it looks like it's about to open I want to know about it. Keara, we'll head down and take a peek inside. If it's clear we'll breach the warehouse and get in and out. If push comes to shove i'll blow us a hole through the fence and we leg it. We'll meet up back here after the jobs done, and then head back to Megaton and meet our employer."

Laura looked around the group, her eyes meeting each of her teamates in turn. "Any questions, any changes, any complaints. Now's the time people. If not lets get to it, we're wasting time"

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 14 2011, 11:59 AM

Jonathan

Jonathan took out a pair of pincers and gave a demonstrative snap.
"The fence is chainlink I hope? If so, I can make a gap with these in a matter of minutes. If the fence is made of something more solid though..." He said and then trailed of for a moment.
"Well, as long as we're not looking at brick and mortar, I've got the tools to get through it. It would take more time and be considerably noisier though. After letting in Alexei though, where do I go? Should I stay with him, wait outside the fence in case I'm needed, or head back to the rendezvouspoint?"

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 14 2011, 05:40 PM

Keara

Keara loaded a microfusion cell while Laura gave instructions. She winced a little at the mention of returning to Megaton; whenever the company stopped to rest, Keara rarely went into towns for fear of being reported to or seen by the Regulators. She usually just gave Jonathan the caps to buy ammo for her. On the occasions where she did go inside, it was always quiet and usually involved jet.

I'm tired of sleeping outside while they get beds, but at least I'm staying alive.

Her gun was getting a bit finicky, so he had to whack it with the palm of her hand a couple times just to get the thing loaded. Jonathan had been too busy with the explosives to mess with her rifle, besides, it was a small enough problem to overlook for the moment.

She didn't even bother with her plasma pistol; she hadn't had the required energy cells to use it for some time now. The plan was to get enough caps for a good resupply after this job.

"The fence is chain-link for sure," she said to Jonathan, slinging her rifle over her shoulder once more, "It should give you no problems."

Posted by: grif11 Jun 14 2011, 06:56 PM

Raymond

"OK, I'll get moving then," Raymond said, and with that, he got to looking for a good spot. up near where he was before while "Protecting" Keara, there was a small ledge with a clear view of the warehouses front and side doors.

"One last thing," he said before leaving. "If I see a door open, what's the signal?"

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 15 2011, 05:03 AM

Keara

"The signal is to shoot the sly bastardes," Keara answered. Nobody argued.

They all waited for a few moments, to give Raymond enough time to get settled in his spot. This was the worst part for Keara. Her jet-screwed mind didn't handle suspense very well. She fidgeted, glancing back and forth until finally Laura began to move.

"C'mon, Lucky," she said, sounding relieved to be moving, "Let's get this thing and get paid."

I'm running low on jet.

She and Laura made it to the ridge she scouted from earlier, and then it was time to wait. Again. They waited until Jonathan and Alexei reached their positions. Now it was their turn.

"Alright, Laura," she said, resisting the urge to take another puff of jet, "Are we just walking straight through the gate, or taking the stealthy route through one of those gaps?"

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 15 2011, 08:32 AM

Alexei stood up, casting a giant shadow on everybody. He loaded a drum on his RPD and checked if his 9mm SMG was easy to reach. Everybody was in position now, the only ones left were him and Jonathan. He motioned the other man to follow him where their position awaits.
Just like what Gramps and Keara said, the settlement was a conspiracy of huts and the warehouse, guarded by the chainlink fence. Alexei kept an eagle's eye on everything, particulary the barracks. While he knew Gramps had his All-Seeing-Eye stuck to the barracks door, it would not hurt to keep extra watch. He waited while Jonathan did his part. The man sure knew how to handle mechanical things. Perhaps he could create a robot? Once this contract was finished, Alexei would ask.

"Jonathan, I want you here, on the other side of the fence, while we search for what we came for. You may not be combat-skilled but I would trust you to watch over my blindside. Tell me if the enemy tries to flank and smoke me out, yes? 'C nami Bog."

Posted by: Ahrenil Jun 15 2011, 04:02 PM

Laura looked over Keara, the girl seemed eager, a little too eager for Laura's liking, and ready to head off. She was usually against rushing into things, but something about this whole mess made her uneasy right down to her bones. It wasn't just how empty the town was, it was how convenient the job was, how readily she had accepted it. No one came to them with simple retrieval tasks anymore, something seemed so dreadfully off.

"We'll waltz right in, if theres anyone in there I don't want them to start shooting at the shadows, especially with Alexei and Jonathon over on the other side. I'd prefer to seem friendly rather than shady." she said, rolling her shoulders and sliding one of her few grenades into a pouch on the belt across her chest. "I want you to keep your rifle pointed down, unless someone actually pulls a trigger we're going no casaulties and no wasted ammunition."

The earth crunched beneath her boots, the wasted and dry soil giving way easily to the thick rubber and metal. Here and there pavement and concrete survived from before the war. So far she couldn't see anything that threatened rads, but you never knew out here.

"Take us in, keep it slow, visible and determined. If you can guess where he is make sure Raymond has line of sight to us."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 15 2011, 04:18 PM

Jonathan

With one last snap, Jonathan finished cutting a gap in the chainlink fence. For a second, he examined the work he'd done before letting Alexei pass through. Different from what he'd originally planned, Jonathan had decided to cut the fence in such a way that an entire section could be folded away or back into place. Like this, they could easily pass while leaving the gap almost invisible for someone who didn't know where to look.

" 'C nami Bog." The mechanic had no idea what exactly Alexei's last two words meant. But it didn't really matter.
"Probably just his way of saying 'good luck and stay vigilant'." He figured as he crawled through the gap himself. Exchanging his pincers for his revolver, he made sure that the one last bullet he had left was not in the firing chamber. An accidental disscharge was the last thing they needed.
"Alright. I'll tell you if anything moves behind us." He whispered as they moved behind the shacks. With his back pressed against a wall, Jonathan could see anything not within Alexei's line of sight.

"This place really is quiet. I hope it isn't the silence before the storm."

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 15 2011, 05:26 PM



The ghoul, with his back against the wall, studied Jonathan's weapon. It was a .32 revolver. He began to think that maybe the technician shouldn't be here, but then, he really do need extra eyes and security for flanks. He decided that maybe Jonathan needs a new weapon to defend himself. The 9mm SMG was useless to one such as Alexei anyway.

"Listen, comrade. A .32 revolver wouldn't do much harm to hostiles, let alone kill 'em. Unless you have incredible aim, that is. What you need is a gun that packs a punch and fires rapidly," he whispered. He reached for his 9mm SMG and handed it to Jonathan. "Here, take this as a present AND precaution. Using that pepper-spray should be easy. Take ample cover and just point and shoot. Easy as making Brahmin stroganoff."

He then quietly laughed at his metaphor. Then he turned serious and looked at the ridge where Laura and Keara was. He signalled them that all was well with a thumbs up.

He was ready to wake sleepers with his RPD, oh yes.

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 15 2011, 05:55 PM

Keara

Keara did one better than keeping her rifle down; it never left its place hanging from her shoulder. She'd watched the settlement for some time earlier; it would be surprising indeed if someone popped their head out. The warehouse had no windows, so there was no way for anyone inside to spot them. Keara figured she wouldn't need a weapon until they went in. If even then.

"Nice and friendly it is, Boss," she said to Laura, following her instructions by heading for the main gate on the eastern side of the compound. It was closed, but not locked.

"Hail!" she called, glancing up at the guard towers once more. Again, not a soul to be seen.

"I guess we'll just head inside then," she said, moving the latch and sliding the gate to the side, "I'd check the barracks first, make sure they won't ambush us from there, like Gramps said. Then we can move to the warehouse."

"Based on what you told Gramps, he's mostly focused on the warehouse doors. Our side of the barracks might be obscured to him. We need to go at that building from the west side to stay covered."

Posted by: grif11 Jun 15 2011, 10:52 PM

Raymond

"Still nothing," Raymond muttered to himself, still uneasy.

hold on, somethings not right about that warehouse. There seemed to be large groups of flies gathering at the doors, some entering through small holes.

Oh god, this might have something to do with the lack of life here. If only I could warn Laura.

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 17 2011, 09:14 PM

Jonathan

"Ah, thanks. Doubt I'll be able to hit anything though. My eyes are as bad as my cooking. Suppressionfire would be the most I could offer." He muttered without averting his eyes from the area he'd been watching. He reached behind his back to take the weapon Alexei offered and quickly checked where the safety was, how quick he could switch it off and that it was on. Jonathan was the man who preferred to rely on mechanical precautions instead of thrusting his own fingers to stay away from the trigger when not needed.

Behind him, he heard a voice call out from far. Keara?
"Damn, this place really is quiet. If no one responds to the young lass, that means two things. One, no one is around to respond or two, they're not planning on responding with words. Both mean trouble" He whispered, more to himself than to the ghoul. He could feel his hands become slick with sweat from anxiety and his hands trembled slightly. The mechanic took a deep breath before steadying his grip on the gun.

Posted by: Ahrenil Jun 18 2011, 06:06 PM

Laura looked around her as they moved further into the compound. The shacks were nothing but a loose collection of nails, plywood and corrugated iron sheeting. Then again, that's what everything looked like in this part of the wasteland. Far away from any of the large hubs of "civilisation" the people relied on what they had. Deeper into the site the loose gravel and dry earth gave way to cracked concrete paving around the warehouse, too thick to lay foundations in the locals had left it well alone giving a clear field around the looming structure.

"Good idea, if it's quiet there i'm calling everyone in to search. This place is a ghosttown for now, and i'd rather not be here longer than I have to be..." Laura muttered to Keara, keeping her hands away from the pistol at her hip.

The barracks was easily the second largest structure in town, and almost qualified to be called an actual building. It looked less rickety and more well used than anything else in town, probably doubled as a general meeting hall as well. Laura doubted it's use as a true barracks, this place looked more like everyone would have chipped in to fight when raiders arrived, a dedicated military branch would have been a bit beyond them.

"Okay, head around the back, see if you can get a look in through a window. I'm gonna see if anyones home" Laura said to Keara, moving towards the front door of the barracks.

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 19 2011, 08:35 AM

OOC: Do we really need a brute (unarmed, melee guy)? I mean, we got a three hundred pound of pure muscle right here.


Alexei

"You know what is stranger, comrade?" The ghoul whispered back, nervous eyes suddenly concentrating on the barracks door. "The flies. A group of the little bastards are circling at the door." While he didn't completely see them, the little black points flying around confirmed it. Plus, the buzzing of a hungry swarm. What it could possibly mean? Are the wasters here completely unhygienic to the point flies gather 'round them? Or did they left something rotten behind? Probably just rotten meat. The thought of meat made Alexei's mouth water, until he got to the rotten and flies part.

Hmm. Rotting. Flies. Rotting. Flies... Alexei's eyes suddenly widened and his breath took rapid momentum. And then the smell from the shack the two took cover wafted in through cracks and into Alexei's nostrils. Metallic. A residue of sudden death. Blood. Things just got ... interesting.

"Jonathan," he whispered. "I just smelled something that was not meant to be smelled. Blood. Inside this shack. What do we do? Should we tell Laura?"

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 19 2011, 01:44 PM

Jonathan

Jonathan's worries deepened when Alexei mentioned the smell of blood. He himself hadn't smelled anything that seemed out of place. Just the usual stench of rust and random garbage. Then again, if Alexei said he smelled something wrong, there was a bad scent in the air. Jonathan trusted the ghoul well enough to believe him especially since they had both agreed something was off since the beginning.

"Hmm, we would have to give up our cover for that though, wouldn't we? If it ends up this shack is just an unclean butchery, we would blow the whole plan out of the water and Laura would be none too pleased with that. Then again...I think we'd better confirm the nature of this shack for ourselves first. If I can just find a crack big enough to look through." He whispered back.
"Let's do this. I take a quick peek through this crack right here next to my foot. I probably won't be able to see the whole place, but I won't need to. Stuff like an animal carcass on a table, or some butcherytools lying about, no problem. If I don't see something offering a good explanation, we'll have to call Laura's attention."

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 19 2011, 02:20 PM

Alexei


"You do that," he whispered to the man. Then out of the blue, Alexei whispered his true opinion.

"I'm beginning to think that we should get the hell outta here. Regroup with the others at Megaton and find another contract.. Think about it, comrade. The miraculous appearance of that damned contractor during our time of need, the seemingly easy task for such a handsome reward . . . Can't you just think that maybe, just maybe, that contractor was just too good to be true?"

It was, at least in his point of view. At first, he contemplated on voicing his feelings about the contract to Laura. But at the time, things were going downhill for the Company. They were dwindling on both general supplies and ammunition. So in desperation, Alexei dropped the subject, ignoring his inner gut warning.

But now, he was staring to regret it.

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 21 2011, 01:57 PM

QUOTE(Ahrenil @ Jun 18 2011, 01:06 PM) *

Laura looked around her as they moved further into the compound. The shacks were nothing but a loose collection of nails, plywood and corrugated iron sheeting. Then again, that's what everything looked like in this part of the wasteland. Far away from any of the large hubs of "civilisation" the people relied on what they had. Deeper into the site the loose gravel and dry earth gave way to cracked concrete paving around the warehouse, too thick to lay foundations in the locals had left it well alone giving a clear field around the looming structure.

"Good idea, if it's quiet there i'm calling everyone in to search. This place is a ghosttown for now, and i'd rather not be here longer than I have to be..." Laura muttered to Keara, keeping her hands away from the pistol at her hip.

The barracks was easily the second largest structure in town, and almost qualified to be called an actual building. It looked less rickety and more well used than anything else in town, probably doubled as a general meeting hall as well. Laura doubted it's use as a true barracks, this place looked more like everyone would have chipped in to fight when raiders arrived, a dedicated military branch would have been a bit beyond them.

"Okay, head around the back, see if you can get a look in through a window. I'm gonna see if anyones home" Laura said to Keara, moving towards the front door of the barracks.


Keara

"All clear," Keara said after checking the windows. She hadn't spotted anything, except a spatter of blood that had slowly dripped its way down...

"Wait!" she said to Laura, before she could open the door, "There's blood here. Kinda fresh."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 21 2011, 06:05 PM

Jonathan

"You do that," The ghoul whispered his consent.
Jonathan took one last glance at the area he'd been observing before dropping to the ground and presseing his eye to the crack in the wall. Above him, Alexei who had now taken on the task of covering Jonathan and himself as well as his previous task of covering Laura and Keara, continued to whisper. Something about how he had felt since the beginning that the job Laura had found for them was too easy considering the promised reward. Jonathan didn't catch all of it, focussed as he was on observing the inside of the shack.

"Well, I just thought we were lucky at the time. We need the caps, and a hefty reward like this, it would solve all our problems." Jonathan whispered back. The interior of the shack was dark, lit up only by a grimecovered window. The stream of light from the window didn't even reach the spot where he was, so he could only make out vague shadows near his position. Mostly furniture judging by the shapes. A cabinet, a table and three chairs. Some small junk scattered about the floor and something just at the edge of his view.
"Got to take off these glasses, can't get my eye close enough with it in the way. Alright, I can see some more now."

As his eyes acclimatized to the darkness, he began to see more. His view still covered less than half the room, but that was more a matter of limited field of vision than lack of light now. The scattered junk wasn't junk, but shards of pottery lying in the dust. At the edge of his view, he saw a pair of legs lying flat on the floor. Jonathan groaned. Could it be?
"Maybe I just wanted to be lucky so I refused to see the situation for what it was."

He gestured at the Ghoul, forming a pistol with his hands as a sign to be ready for trouble.
"It's official. I've spotted at least one person in there and considering the uncomfortable posture, he's not taking a nap. There's also broken bits of pots or ceramic dishes around and..." He craned his head to look as far up as he could.
"Half a dozen bulletholes in the wall. This place has seen a fight and I bet it wasn't years ago."

He pulled himself away from the crack in the wall and put his glasses back onto his nose.
"It looks like you were right, friend. Let's get moving. Sooner we're done here, the better."

Posted by: ureniashtram Jun 22 2011, 09:13 AM


Alexei

The ghoul hissed and looked around his surroundings in sudden alarm. It is possible that the attackers might still be here, looking and lurking. He had his RPG in a battle-ready position, ready to fire at any moment's notice.

"We need to inform Laura," he said after something dawned on him. "The barracks might be filled with the murderers!"

How could one call another with one not comprosing his position? By mimicking an animal and hope that they understand. Alexei removed his mask, placed his fingers on his lipless mouth and whistled like a singing bird.

Posted by: grif11 Jun 22 2011, 10:40 PM

Raymond

"dammit!" Raymond muttered to himself. He had seen and heard Alexeis warning call, confirming what he had heard. Part of him wanted to call everyone back and ditch the job, but the other part told him not to disobey his orders.

Raymond pulled his silenced .22 from his duster and made sure it was fully loaded, before sticking it in its holster, just in case.

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 25 2011, 04:04 PM

Keara

At Laura's signal, Keara moved behind her boss, covering her while she opened the door. Immediately, the scout had to put a hand over her nostrils as the stench of death filled the air. Three stiffened bodies lay in the corner, piled on top of each other, as if they had been moved.

"I don't like this," she said to Laura, "This didn't happen all that long ago."

Posted by: Ahrenil Jun 27 2011, 02:39 PM

((OOC:Sorry about the absence guys, computer troubles.))

Laura fought the urge to slam the door shut and retch in the bushes. The wasteland's numerous scavengers had already got to work, but the corpses remained fresh enough to tell that they couldn't be more than a few days old.

"You're right, but whoever did this isn't here now. Or else we'd be dead. Back off, lets head over to Alexei and Jonathon, theres no one here and I want use out of this place ASAP" Laura declared. She took one last look at the bodies, the dried blood splatters on the wall indicated that these people were taken unawares, probably sitting down, maybe eating dinner, talking about friends and family...

Laura shook her head, it was not use thinking about the dead, she had her own team to worry about first. "Keara, run across and tell them to meet me at the warehouse, I want to look through the warehouse. This contracts a dud, things have gone from bad to worse and I bet we were meant to be here when all these other saps got taken." Laura spat bile and hate into the bushes. "But we need caps, and we need them fast. And if theres anything in that warehouse we can loot we should damn well loot it. But I am NOT going to ask you all to go in there if you don';t want too. If you want to head back to Megaton that's what we'll do."

Posted by: Dantrag Jun 27 2011, 04:10 PM

Keara

"I'm with you," she said, "If we have to stoop to scavenging for our caps, then we'll do it. Let's get inside that warehouse."

She moved towards Alexei and Jonathan, following the ghoul's bird-call. She found them by one of the shacks, examining yet another body.

"We found much of the same," she said to them, "This place is a ghost town. Laura thinks this job is no good. She wants us to regroup and get in that warehouse - we're thinking there might be some loot in there."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jun 27 2011, 10:13 PM

Jonathan OOC: The body was inside the shack while Jonathan and Alexei were outside, so I'll have to make some slight changes to make things fit.


Alexei sent out a signal but other than that he stayed put, as did Jonathan. It was too risky to run across the open expanse that separated them from the warehouse. Not when they weren't certain they were alone. What they could do however, was open up an entrance into the shack they'd been hiding against. Jonathan had concluded after his peeking that the shack was empty apart from some flies and maybe a rat or two. He needed to get inside however to get some more clues. Most important on the list, gruesome as it might be, was to get a good look at the body he'd spotted. Depending on the state of composition and the location of its injuries, he would be able to make a better guess at when the poor fellow breathed his last.

"I'm no doctor, but I think I'd be able to make a rough guess. Preferably, I hope it is long gone. The less intact that man or woman is, the longer it's been here and the greater the odds that the killers have left the scene as well." He whispered at Alexei as he explained his plan.
"Can't get in through the door of course, that one is in plain view. Fortunately, this little building is barely more than some scrap plating crudely bolted onto a wooden frame. Shouldn't be too hard to remove part of the wall and make a gap I can use to get inside. Hell, it's half a miracle it didn't fall apart on its own."

In little more than a minute, Jonathan had managed to remove part of the wall and crawled inside. Now he could see the body properly. It was old, like the useless meat the butcher in Megaton tossed out behind his shop. Flies and their offspring gorged themselves on the rotten flesh and the mechanic felt the urge to vomit rise within his throat.

"We found much of the same," Keara said as she poked her head through the hole in the wall.
"This place is a ghost town. Laura thinks this job is no good. She wants us to regroup and get in that warehouse - we're thinking there might be some loot in there."

Jonathan sighed and shook his head.
"Personally, I just want to get out of here. But if we're the only ones here, I say we do some looting and at least get something for our efforts. Although, I doubt we'll find whatever it was we were supposed to pick up. It was probably something valuable so whoever did this must have made off with it. Still, can't hurt to check."

He crawled out of the shack and leaned the loose metal plate back against the gap it had covered.
"Let's go."


Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 4 2011, 10:40 PM

OOC: I'm not sure about the doubleposting, especially because I'm taking a bit of too much freedom with the last two posts. On the other hand, I don't want this rp to die yet and maybe this will keep things going. (This is the point where I realize that everybody has been moving/without internet/otherwise been too busy or unable to post)

Jonathan Guntherson

Alexei, Keara and Jonathan returned to the warehouse. On the way, Jonathan stopped for a moment and looked towards the hillside where he assumed gramps was hiding.
"Should I call him over? The place seems abandoned enough, but one can never tell. No, we're probably best off if we leave him up there where he can observe most of the town." He thought to himself. He did wave though in what he hoped would reassure Raymond that the situation hadn't detoriated into a shootout yet.
"Ergh, if only I could whistle like Alexei or knew some real signlanguage. Communicating across large distances is to vague like this."

Laura was waiting for them at the door. As they approached, she stepped aside just far enough to clear the opening. Jonathan only had to take one glance inside to see that Keara hadn't exagerated. The warehouse was indeed more of the scene he'd encountered inside the shack. Much more. Again the urge to relieve himself of his last meal made itself apparant and the mechanic clamped a hand over his mouth as he forced the bile back down.

"Ugh, how horrid....but I think I can manage. Anything in particular we need to look for, boss? I personally would like to look for a radios or components I can use to build some. It would improve our ability to coördinate with Gramps for example." He asked and took a second better look now that he had calmed down a bit. If he just ignored the origin of the rotting flesh, it wasn't too bad. What was somewhat dissapointing was the role the wharehouse had filled in the settlement. Jonathan had hoped it would be a place where goods and equipment were stored, as its name implied. Instead however, it seemed to be a community hall of sorts where everyone gathered to eat and socialize.
"There's probably a kitchen in the back though."

Posted by: grif11 Jul 7 2011, 12:16 AM

Raymond

Jonathons "OK" wave had made Raymond sigh, relieved it wasnt an ambush. Jonathon was a good man, and could fix & make just about anything they needed. At least when it wasnt his turn to cook.

As the rest of the team entered the warehouse, Raymond activated his old portable radio and found a weak signal from the Mojave. Ah, one of Eagles favourites, He thought.

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 7 2011, 12:40 AM

Laura looked up as they approached. It seemed that most people were in favour of doing some scavenging. The death and decay hadn't fazed Laura as much as it had before, after the initial shock back at the barracks this had been roughly what she was expecting from the warehouse. The putrid smell and buzzing of the flies was relegated to a back section of her mind, locked away to be dealth with later. Right now there was work to do.

"Radios and equipment are definately to be taken. Remember people, we have no heavy lifting. Take what we can carry. If you find a better weapon dump the current one. We want stuff we can sell as well, not something that takes your fancy. We're not in this for personal gain. Jonathon, if you find anything you think you can use grab Alexei and start hauling it out, we'll be needing it to keep us afloat since this jobs a dud. Otherwise, check the dead for caps and cola. Lets get to it." Laura declared.

She turned and made her way into the warehouse, she didn't check to see if anyone was following. It was likely they'd have misgivings, but they'd get over them. Looting a civilian wasn't far off looting a raider. And a damn site easier. She checked the pockets of a nearby man, or she though it had been a man, collecting a handful of caps and lint, a lot of it still blood stained. One cap still have a piece of lead shot wedged in it.

"Bastards came in here with heavy shotguns, tore the place to shreds. With everyone so tightly packed I doubt they even needed to aim, spray and pay." She muttered to no one in particular before moving on to another corpse, heading for some crates on the far side that looked fairly forgotten.

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 7 2011, 01:20 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

Jonathan nodded after receiving Laura's commands.
"Right, got it." He muttered and followed her inside the warehouse. He considered rifling through the pockets of the nearest corpse but decided against it while there were still other items of value around. As long as he kept his distance, he could mostly ignore the stench and the sight. But actually touching one of them would take him to his limit.
"They're worse off than Alexei. At least he moves which takes the edge off of his corpselike appearance." One of the corpses however was still wearing a backpack that looked in serviceable condition. Judging by that and the random bits of makeshift armour the man was wearing, Jonathan figured he had been one of the guards on a break. The backpack would come in handy, so with some effort and much looking away, he managed to slip it off.

"Alright, let's see what's in here. Canteen, bit dented but doesn't have leak. A clip of bullets...looks handmade." Jonathan weighed the clip in his hand and looked at the corpse again. Whatever gun they belonged to, it wasn't there. Probably either stored somewhere else or taken by the raiders. He bet it was the latter. There was always a demand for working firearms, no matter how crude. Regardless, later on he would check to see if he could make the clip fit any of the guns the company had.
"The rest is useless junk. Alright, moving on." The canteen and the bullets went back in the backpack while everything else was discarded on the floor.

Meanwhile, laura had moved over to some crates in the back. Jonathan rubbed his chin as he looked at her back for a moment. What would the crates contain? Food perhaps? Guns, caps, cans and bottles? They looked like they'd escaped the ransacking so maybe the raiders didn't have time to stay for long after the initial shooting. Finally he turned his attention away from the crates and looked for anything else that might catch his interest. The food on the tables wasn't any good. What hadn't been splattered all over during the shooting had long since decayed into a mess as rotten as its late consumers. They couldn't take the cuttlery either. Too heavy and their value wasn't all that much.

Resting on a wooden board mounted on the wall he found what he'd been hoping to find however. A radio, an old one. It had probably been used to liven up the place, or maybe to communicate with other nearby settlements. Too bad the plastic casing had several gaping holes in it. Jonathan drew nearer for a closer look.
"Well, here's a radio. Took a blast in the fight. It and the entire wall around it are peppered with holes. Looks like it could sent as well as receive which is probably why it's busted. They didn't want to let anyone call for help." He said aloud so.

"The sent/receive switch is still intact and still on receive. Flicking that one would take less than a second. More than enough to get something out if these poor sods had any chance to react..." On a whim, he stuck a finger in one of the wall's many holes to figure out a rough estimate of where the bullet had come from. He didn't like what he found.
"Damn thing got blasted from the door. Either the bastards have better eyesight than I do and the habit of ignoring all the people in front of them, or they knew where this radio was and had planned the whole operation...."

Jonathan shook his head violently. Now that was one thought he didn't want to finish. Not now at least. Swiftly, he unscrewed what remained of the casing to expose the radio's innards.
"Microphone, parts of the speaker and battery are salvageable. I'll grab those and leave the rest to the rats." Again he looked around, but couldn't see anything else right away that caught his attention. So he resigned himself to his fate and started sifting through the pockets of the corpses near him. He found a few caps, a watch that was still ticking and a pocketknife, but mostly dirt and useless pockettrash.

Posted by: Dantrag Jul 8 2011, 07:45 PM

Keara

Keara rummaged through the random bits of scrap that these people once called belongings. She found a carton of cigarettes in the kitchen, lying in a metal box. Laura said not to take personally attractive things, but Keara knew that the things were like gold in towns, so she would keep some and sell some.

A bit more digging revealed some energy cells, which she loaded into her plasma pistol immediately. More scavenging revealed little; a handful of caps and a single unopened Nuka-Cola.

"I'm gonna step outside," she announced to everyone, yet no one in particular, "Smells in here."

She grabbed Lucky by the nape of the neck to get his nose away from the dead and exited the warehouse. Cracking open the Nuka-Cola and taking a cigarette from her new stash, she sat on the ground and enjoyed a short break.

Keara was halfway through her smoke when she saw figures appear on the horizon, moving in their direction. A look through her binoculars horrified her; she could recognize those dusters anywhere.

What should I do? They must be coming for me. If I told Laura that I was a criminal, she'd likely turn me in; she's an honorable sort. If I just run, they'll think they were right about me all along, that I'm nothing but a lying thief.

Posted by: grif11 Jul 8 2011, 10:52 PM

Raymond

"Regulators?" Raymond muttered to himself, spotting the men (and a couple women) through his scope. "Someone must of called for backup. This isnt going to look good for us."

It was obvious he would be of no more use up on the ridge, and slung his rifle on to his back."Best not let those regulators spot me," Raymond murmered before sneaking (which isnt easy when your 45 and in ranger combat armour) down the ridge, making sure the regulaters weren't watching.

Posted by: Dantrag Jul 10 2011, 07:56 PM

Keara

Keara sat motionless for a few long moments, unable to decide on a course of action. Her heart was pounding like a super sledge, and she could feel the reverberations from it as far down as her toes. She'd been this scared a few times before, and each instance involved the Regulators. She'd heard rumors about their treatment of criminals, and it wasn't pretty. Wasteland justice was the harshest kind.

Lucky looked up at her curiously, as if he could tell something was amiss. Keara ignored him, wrapped up in her own worries. She decided to tell Laura that she was leaving. Her boss deserved that much at least.

What if she turns me in?

She took a deep breath, tossed her cigarette butt, and walked back inside the warehouse. She found Laura searching through some crates.

"I think we need to talk," she said, "Now."

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 10 2011, 11:25 PM

Laura made an audible noise of frustration, throwing a handful of cloth rags back into the crates. Looks like they had been filled with jumpsuits for the workers that must have been at the plant pre-war, but some moths had gotten in and between them and general age the clothing was no longer useful for anything but rags.

"Tell me you've got something good" Laura said as she turned towards the younger woman. But when she saw the girl's face, and recognised that tone of voice, she knew something was wrong. She put a hand on the girl's shoulder, as much to reassure her as to stop her running before she spoke.

"What've you seen?" Laura asked, one hand resting on her revolver.

Posted by: Dantrag Jul 11 2011, 04:06 PM

Keara

Keara didn't like having Laura's firm grip holding her in place. It made her think that it wouldn't be hard at all for them to detain her for the Regulators. Keara reminded herself that Coldshort had always been fair before explaining, "It's nothing good, Laura. I've got to go."

She took a deep breath, "I spotted Regulators outside and I'm pretty damn sure they're after me. I never told you this, but I've been on the run from them since before we met. I'd rather just go than get all of you in trouble for my problems."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 12 2011, 08:34 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

When Keara went outside, Jonathan considered following her. The smell and especially the sight had been getting to him as well. He didn't think he could keep going for much longer before cracking. But he stayed behind.
"The more stuff of value I can find the better. Besides, I know that once I step through the door, I won't be able to force myself back into this place."

The two corpses he investigated held nothing of interest. Then Keara stormed back in, far too soon to have taken a breather. That was the first hint something was up. Her rather blunt way of stating she was leaving was another. Up till now Jonathan had figured that Keara still had a decent amount of fear of Laura which kept her from simply disappearing on them. So was there something which frightened her more than the idea of desertion?

The mechanic interupted his search, nodded at Alexei and approached the two women. If it was important enough to risk pissing off Laura, it was important enough for the rest of them to hear as well. What the ex-thief mentioned after a deep breath pleased him.
"Regulators? Well, I've got no beef with them and it's a good thing they're here. We should inform them about the possibility of a major raider gang being on the loose. Those guys are upholders of wasteland law after all and the destruction of a settlement like that would surely...." Jonathan started rambling but cut himself off when his thoughts caught up with his words.

"Scratch that. They'll probably be in a shoot first, reload second, ask questions third mood when they see the bodies. A quiet retreat might be a better plan. Your problems are going to be the least of our worries if they catch us here, Keara."

Posted by: grif11 Jul 13 2011, 11:32 PM

Raymond

Raymond made it to the warehouse doors without the Regulators spotting him. Keara? He thought, seeing the young woman dart into the warehouse. Whats she up to?

Raymond popped through the door just in time to catch everyone arguing. "So, you know then."

"I spotted scopes and assault rifles, so this doors going to be being watched now, and I bet there going to storm this place soon. These guys have us pinned down."

Posted by: Dantrag Jul 14 2011, 04:20 PM

Keara

"Damnit, damnit, damnit!" Keara shouted, violently throwing her soda bottle past Laura and into the wall. It shattered and fell to the floor in pieces. Nuka-Cola dripped slowly down the corrugated steel.

She'd been evading the Regulators for this long only to have them find her now? It was almost unbelievable, but for the fact that she'd seen them coming with her own eyes. And now she was trapped in this warehouse like a fish in a barrel.

"How the hell did this happen?"

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 14 2011, 09:46 PM

There was a ringing in Laura's ears. Keara's words felt like a blow to the head and her mind was still realing with the possiblities. Regulators were about as chivalrous as a kick in the teeth and not much smarter than the boot itself. They'd see corpses, no matter how old, and open fire immediately. But what got Laura's hackles up more was the fact that the regulators were here now. This was a few days old at least, and she doubted any signal got out for them to be responding too. And with the heat they were packing that left one option.

"We've been set up" Laura hissed. Then she repeated it a bit louder, accompanied with several well known expletives and a few she made up. "It's gotta be, and now we're gonna take the rap. God damnit I shoulda seen!"

She looked around at her team, panicking would do them no good, and she was glad to see the majority of them had not flipped. "We've got about 10 minutes if they're careful going through the town, and we need a way outta here right now. Keara, get to looking for ways out. Alexei and Raymond get to the windows, if they're making too good time getting here I want them to reconsider, but don't kill anyone, if we get caught we'll say we thought they were raiders.. Jonathon, with me, we're rigging the back wall. If we find a door, we'll use it as a distraction, if we don't find a door. Well then we'll make one."

She looked around at her team. "We've got to make the choice, we can run and just be falsely accused, or we can stay and get into one hell of a firefight. I doubt they'll want to negotiate but i'm open to suggestions."


Posted by: Dantrag Jul 15 2011, 03:57 AM

Keara

"I don't have to look. There's no other door," she said matter-of-factly, "It's the main door or a window. Either way they'll see us. My vote's for the firefight; I got no qualms about vaporizing Regulators 'cause I know they'd do the same to me."

Keara realized that the rest of her party probably wouldn't agree with her, for obvious reasons. Personally, though, she had nothing to lose by killing the lawmen, and everything to gain. Their lives for another day of freedom seemed a good trade to her. She could only hope that her companions would ignore the possible blow to their reputations and see things her way.

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 15 2011, 01:16 PM

Jonathan Guntherson
OOC: We're still up for the 'everybody except keara gets captured' plan?

The situation went from bad to worse. Now Raymond had abandoned his position to come repeat Keara's warning. While Jonathan appreciated the man's loyalty, he thought it might have been better for him to remain hidden. Then at least one of them would have had a good chance of getting out unharmed. Keara said she was willing to fight instead of run. While the sign of loyalty was nice and did chance Jonathan's opinion of her for the better, he disagreed with the idea of fighting the regulators.

"compassion...this place is a deathtrap. Gramps just said scopes so poking your head will lead to bad things, and we can't rule out them having grenades either. Either way, fighting here won't do us any good. This place isn't a bunker, it's a worn-down ramshackle warehouse." He grumbled then looked at each one of his companions in turn, even the dog that always followed Keara's heels.
"No reason to make matters worse. I say we run through a wall if they're watching the door. Ok, boss. I managed to fix up some hookups and detonationwire for your bombs. Not as much as I'd like, but enough for a good boom or three. Make the most of it cause I won't be able to get you more right now."

Posted by: ureniashtram Jul 15 2011, 03:26 PM


OOC: The Morning Star shines again. Tremble, ye of the Faith, the Prince of Perdition walks prouder than before! ... Err, yes. Too much stress from this monstrosity called Emperor RL, particulary its nasty assistant named 'Schoolius Julius Caesar', has driven too much pain in me that I have to turn to the occult for help. Sorry for me absence. Anyway, I'm up for that plan. I'm the one who suggested it, or am I wrong?

Alexei

Things went so wrong very fast the ghoul had trouble keeping sense at this surroundings. It was just like Fort Bannister all over again. All became blurred as the lines between past and present thinned in Alexei's mind. His fellow mercs' face became like disturbed ink, he does not know who they are. Their outfits morphed into that black-painted CA with the claw. He pointed his RPD at each of them, ready to send a pullisade of hate into their heads, but something in his warned him not to.

They are not enemies. But their outfits tell another tale! They are comrades. Kill them all, leave no one alive! They are the ones who gave you a goal when you were directionless. DESTROY EVERYTHING! Calm yourself. GIVE IN TO YOUR RAGE AND SHOW THEM THE MEANING OF FEAR! Think rationally. KILL!

He became confused. The world was spinning, voices roared over each other, and there was no sense in direction. No south, no north. He wobbled on his feet and his gut proclaimed its oncoming rejection. He resisted that urge.

But the sharp voice of a woman penetrated through his chaotic mind. Lana? Maria? Lania? Lara .

The mist disappeared, along with the chaos inside Alexei. All was normal now. But this certain experience he endured worried him. Was he finally going feral? Or is this a product of his broken mind. Nonetheless, he obeyed his leader's command and took up a position on the windows next to the entrance of this shack.

"I am ready. Say the word, Comrade Lara, and me and Grandfather Raymond shall hold them off for as long as we can."

Posted by: grif11 Jul 15 2011, 05:42 PM

Raymond

"I don't like this," Raymond said, taking position by the other window and making sure the regulator snipers couldn't see him. "I'm always fighting for the law. I know were innocent, but it still feels weird, aiming at authority."

When Alexei aimed at Raymond, along with everyone else, he was reminded of a similar event with an NCR soldier. PTSD, he muttered. The big guys been through a lot. "Just so you know, if this turns into a firefight, I'm not firing a single bullet. Sorry, but I'm not killing Regulators."

"We probably only have between 2-5 minutes before they find us, so we need to work fast."

Posted by: Dantrag Jul 15 2011, 06:25 PM

Keara

Things weren't looking good. Keara nearly wet her pants when Alexei pointed his massive gun her way, and now Gramps was playing the pacifist. They had both just become unreliable in her eyes, and at the worst possible time.

"Gramps, you're no good there if you won't shoot," she said, readying her rifle, "See if you can help Laura and Jonathan with the charges; I'll take over here."

Keara wasn't one to give orders, as that was Laura's job, but she felt like she needed to have some control of the situation. If they wanted to live through the next few minutes, firing at Regulators could be necessary.

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 18 2011, 09:51 PM

Laura looked handed Jonathon a demolition charge and trusted him to get on with it. She turned to the three by the windows and grinned with grim determination. They were hers, even surrounded and outgunned they were willing to stick by her when things went wrong. Though Alexei was seeming to suffer from the stress a little he hadn't snapped, and that was the main thing.

"Raymond, I was trusting you not to kill them. You're a good enough to shot to make them think you're shooting to kill without actually hitting them. I'm not willing to become a murderer yet, but that doesn't mean they need to know that. Alexei, if you aim just above their heads and loose off a few bursts to make them keep their heads down they can't shoot at us when we leg it and they can't advance on us. Theres far too much open ground for them to cover under fire."

Laura turned to Keara, she knew the kid had a wild streak, a dangerous streak. But in Laura's eyes she was still a girl, not someone who should be exposed to this sort of life. She was useful as a scout but as far as death and destruction was concerned a part of Luara just wanted to make sure the small girl didn't see more of it than was absolutely necessary.

"Negative on that Keara, as soon as that back wall is down you need to be out of here. We can't have you by the window risking some shrapnel in the leg. If you don't make it to Megaton I doubt any of us will. Plus those cells aren't cheap, we can't have you wasting more ammo. We can get some cheap and shoddy bullets for Alexei and Raymond, but they know how to conserve."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 19 2011, 04:47 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

Without a word, Laura handed him an explosive the size of a small brick and then diverted her attention to the rest of the group.
"Right, I'll prep this one. Give me a sec." Jonathan mumbled under his breath and got to work. First he needed a length of wire to connect Laura's explosive with the detonator.
"Let's see. First up is the length of wire we need. one of the 30 metre spools should do it. If we get something at this end of the building for cover against shrapnel, we should be fine."

Next he took out one of the makeshift harnesses he'd been working on earlier and bound it around the brick. Now the rest would be simple. Press the bare tip of the detonationwire into the brick and then tape it into place. The other end went into the mouth of the onehanded detonator he'd made out of scrap a few days back, after checking the safety of course. The last step was affixing it to a wall.
"Alright, I'm done boss. She's ready as soon as you find the place you want it and squeeze the handle. Don't forget to turn the safety knob on top first. I'll move some of those crates so we can hide behind them." He said as he gently placed explosive and detonator on a table.


Posted by: Dantrag Jul 20 2011, 09:16 PM

Keara

Laura used the word "you," Keara realized, not "we."

"You need to be out of here."

There was no talk of a rendezvous, or any sort of contingencies. Did Laura really mean for the rest of the group to make a last stand against the Regulators while she got away? Keara stood dumbly for a moment while Jonathan prepped the bombs. She scanned the room, looking over each one of her companions. She'd never called any of them friends before, but at this moment she realized that they were. Despite the arguments, the mistrust, and her thieving nature, they were all willing to die right here just to let her run away.

A tear welled up and she wiped it away as quickly as she could; Gramps would never let her hear the end of it if he saw it. She steeled her nerves, took a couple of deep breaths, and flipped the safety on her rifle.

"Stay alive, all of you," she said solemnly, "And I'll come back. I promise."

Keara knew that her promise likely meant little to them, coming from her. What mattered, though, was that it meant something to her.

Posted by: grif11 Jul 21 2011, 11:21 PM

Raymond

This is it then Raymond muttered, before singing his rifle over his back and helping Jonathon move some crates for cover.

Once enough boxes were in place for everyone to get behind, Raymond then dragged a sheet of corrugated metal in front of the crates "might help stop shrapnel a bit better" He grunted. God, my back's going to break any day now!

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 22 2011, 12:35 AM

Laura nodded at the group and motioned them behind the cover. The charges would create more shrapnel than blast wave, and it'd expel the majority of those outwards, there wouldn't be any fire from the sheet metal the warehouse was made from so the only thing they had to worry about was richochet.

"As soon as the way is clear everyone moves for the exit. Keara, stick with us until we're out of the compound and slip away. You've evdaded these guys before, do it again. Get to Megaton get. Get us help. The rest of us, we'll lure them away, hopefully we can make it away but I want no heroics. We're making no last stands, we're not going out in a blaze of glory. We're living for another day unless they start shooting first."

She looked over at Jonathon. She didn't have time to wait, there was no more time for plan Bs. This was it.

"Do it."

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 22 2011, 07:03 PM

Jonathan

With the help of Raymond, he managed to move some of the ragfilled crates into a makeshift barrier. To be frank, he would have preferred the help of Alexei over Gramps in this. The Ghoul was by far the strongest member of the company and could have easily lifted a crate all by himself. But Jonathan understood that someone had to keep an eye on the approaching regulators and provide incentive to duck and cover if they came in too fast.

When the mechanic figured they'd moved enough crates, he diverted his attention to Laura who just finished the final touches on the placing of the demolition charge. Once done, she motioned everyone to get behind the cover, while indicating that Jonathan should pick up the detonator.
"Figures, I'm the one who best understands that gadget, no matter how simple I tried to keep it. This isn't the time to risk silly mistakes like turning the safetyknob in the wrong direction and having it snap off."

Jonathan took up the detonator from the table and ducked behind the crates with the rest of the group as Laura went over the final details of her plan. The mechanic didn't like the idea of turning everyone into a decoy for Keara, but he wasn't the tactical expert or the leader here. If Laura thought this was their best option, then that was just how they'd do it. At least she made clear that she wasn't planning on suicide. Finally, she turned to him.
"Do it."

"Right, cover your ears and keep your heads down." Jonathan answered as he flicked the safety and triggered the charge. It was do or die time and he hoped they'd manage to go with do.


Posted by: Dantrag Jul 23 2011, 04:18 PM

Keara

Keara didn't cover her ears in time when the charge blew; she was fumbling with the last of her jet. The wall had a gaping hole, though, and they ran through the smoke and dust, out into the wasteland.

Her ears rang horribly, yet she kept on, the new influx of drugs drove her forward, along with the desire to avoid death. It didn't take long for her to get ahead of the others, but she kept going. She knew that she was their last hope in the event of something terrible, so she left them in her dust.

Lucky ran ahead of even her, though he kept looking back, as if to make sure that she was not far behind. She avoided making a direct route to Megaton; that would be a sure-fire way to get caught, so she simply kept running in the direction she had originally chosen. The more space between her and the Regulators, the better, and if their companions somehow evaded them, she would be able to find them again.

Just get away for now, Keara. The rescue plan will come later. Just get away. she reminded herself. She heard gunshots, but kept running, though she zig-zagged a bit now. There was no looking back; she had to keep moving.

Posted by: ureniashtram Jul 24 2011, 04:13 AM


Alexei


When the bomb exploded and made a hole in the wall, so did Alexei's RPD. He pointed just above their heads, as Laura commanded, and the Regulators took cover where they could. In the past, he had dealings with those Regulators as his mentor was formerly one of them. Plus, he still had his Duster. Just like Grandfather Raymond, he was reluctant to kill those he once called friends. But he was also determined not to die, if things come to that.

"C' Nami Bog," he said to the Company before firing more rounds at the Regulators. Since Grandfather was reluctant and Keara sent as an envoy to the rest of the Company in Megaton, Alexei has seemingly become the only one who would cover their tactical retreat. With that thought in mind, he emptied a whole drum magazine at the Regulators, who now returned fire.

Posted by: grif11 Jul 28 2011, 03:01 PM

Raymond

As Alexei fired at the Regulators who fired back at the Warehouse, Raymond took up his rifle reluctantly and aimed carefully at one of the Opposing Snipers. "This should stop them poking out as much," he said to Alexei beside him, and fired a bullet at the snipers hat, knocking it off and sending the sniper rolling behind a rock for cover. One less sniper for you to deal with, Alexei.

"Laura, whats next?" Raymond shouted, turning around to see her. "We can't hold them back forever, and we were already low on bullets!"

Posted by: Ahrenil Jul 29 2011, 11:56 AM

Laura was rummaging in her satchel, the detonation from the wall hadn't done much damage to the warehouse, but in the glow of the light she'd spotted something off to the side that she hadn't seen before. With a small noise of triumph she pulled a small carefully wrapped bundle from the mess of wires and explosives she carried with her.

"We fall back, and we do it fast. I'll buy us some cover." Laura tolled Raymond, pulling her revolver from it's holster with a silent prayer that she'd remembered to load it. On the third trigger pull the magnum's deep booming voice rang out, the bullet punching a hole in a dark grey barrel across the room, spilling it's dark viscious contents onto the floor.

Grabbing a piece of corrugated iron Laura held it bewteen her and the regulators and she pelted across the warehouse, her makeshift shield ringing and shaking as buckshot and shells bounched off and punched through it. With a final slide Laura found herself behind the stack of barrels, and with a final shove of her should she sent them rolling across the front of the warehouse.

Unwrapping the bundle of rags she'd taken from her satchel she gingerly removed a long stick of a waxy purple material. The faded wrapping that had covered it was worn away in places, and the wax was weeping. Taking a lighter from her pocket Laura watched as the rolling barrel spilt the gasoline across the floor of the warehouse, soaking crates and bodies alike.

"Everyone! Move!" she screamed at her team, before lighting the fuse at the top of the experimental incendiary, and hurling it into the gasoline. As the liquid lit with a whoosh of heated air the varying bodies and crates that were in the fire's path began to burn, sending thick plumes of greasy black smoke into the warehouse.

Laura ran to the hole in the wall, praying that no regulators had moved around to block it yet, and that her team was following. "Everyone into the hills! Keep running, we don't have time to fight back now!"

Posted by: jack cloudy Jul 29 2011, 11:23 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

Despite being the one who pulled the trigger, the intensity of the explosion caught him offguard. By the time he regained his composure, Laura and her dog had already bolted as if they were a pair of bullets fired from a gun. Just as he leapt over the crates to follow her, the Regulators opened fire and although most of the bullets were stopped by the old walls, at least one of the shooters was wielding a weapon that considered the structure less as a barrier and more as a speedbump. One bullet from that first salvo impacted close enough to Jonathan's feet that he actually felt the floorfragments strike his leg. The surprise and shock of that was enough to make him lose his balance and tumble down to the other side of the crate he'd started from.

"Dammit!" He muttered to himself and fumbled for his pistol before remembering the smg Alexei had given him. It was still slung over his shoulder and while not fully loaded, the handful of bullets it contained were certainly better than the lone slug in his peashooter.
"Not that I can shoot from this position, but I could fire over my shoulder while we run." Jonathan figured as he grabbed the weapon and checked the safety. Shots still rang out and a bullet or two struck his cover but already slowed down as they were from penetrating the warehouse's walls, they harmlessly embedded themselves somewhere within the crate's pile of rags. Raymond and Alexei had already returned the fire but it was obvious that they were at a serious disadvantage.

"Everyone! Move!" Laura's voice barely reached over the cacaphony of gunfire and ricocheting ammunition but the mechanic heard her clearly and responded. Even as their leader's latest boommaker flew through the air, he got up and bolted.
"Please don't let anyone get lucky enough to hit me. Please ohgodohgodohgod!" He yammered while running for the hole in the wall.

Posted by: ureniashtram Jul 31 2011, 11:07 AM


Alexei

The ghoul caught a sniper round in his right forearm and he bit his lip to stop the scream that would follow. It was deep and the blood was dripping not in rivulets, but in torrents. Damn it. Holding the recoil of the RPD was a heavy chore now. Grandfather Raymond saw this and shot back in retaliation, albeit in reluctance. Alexei growled his thanks; not of hostility, but because his voice deserted him in pain.

The he heard Laura's voice and saw her shoulder-barge a barrel spilling some kind of liquid. It was oil and by the makeshift grenade in her hand, Laura has her goals on making another boom. Alexei emptied another drum for one last time and ran through the hole. Several bullets bruised his back while he did so, his Combat Armor absorbing most of the blow. Still the pain was there.

Meanwhile, the Ghoul's forearm was still bleeding. The wound was worsening.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 1 2011, 03:31 AM

Keara

They must have seen her bolt out of the warehouse, yet she had no followers far as she could tell. Keara heard another explosion and chanced a look back; the warehouse was getting pelted mercilessly by Regulator rounds, and a thick, black smoke billowed from the warehouse's every opening.

She gasped, fearing the worst. She crouched low and watched through her binoculars, just in time to see them dash from the warehouse.

"C'mon, c'mon," she mumbled, still watching from her vantage point. Keara wanted to fire on the Regulators, and she could have, except that they would be able to trace her laser right back to her position. She had to force herself to stop watching and keep moving. She made a note of her friends' location; she would have to return later to track them down.

I just hope they're smart enough to leave me a trail to follow.

On the run again, she waited until she could no longer see the warehouse before finally veering towards Megaton.

Posted by: grif11 Aug 1 2011, 04:56 PM

Raymond

The second explosion had caught Raymond off guard. As he turned around, a veil of black smoke blocked his sight. His only indication of the exit was Laura's call. re holstering his weapon, he charged through the smoke and fire and joined his comrades run, stopping briefly to douse a fire on his duster with some sand but the fire had already done its damge. There was now a burnt hole behind Raymonds right knee. [/i]God damn it! Now I need to get a repair done. That is if we escape this place[i]

Continuing his run, a thought came to him. "Laura! If your expecting Keara to find us again, we better leave a trail for her to follow." Raymond tried to keep pace with the young demolitionist, but his armor and age was slowing him down. "Do any of you have some bullet casings?"

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 1 2011, 08:00 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

He'd never been the most physically capable one in the group and already he could feel his legs tire out. As such, despite being the first to leave the warehouse among the men, he soon had fallen behind Alexei and by the time they reached the hole in the fence, Raymond to had caught up.

"Laura! If your expecting Keara to find us again, we better leave a trail for her to follow." Raymond yelled ahead at their leader's back and then added a request for bullet casings.
"Don't have any....No, wait...I do got some bullets." Jonathan replied, remembering the clip of handmade bullets sitting in his new backpack. He took it off as he knelt by the fence and opened it.
"Here, I was going to try and make them fit our guns but...take them." He crawled through the gap and held out the clip of bullets with one hand while putting the backpack back on his back with the other.

"She was there when I picked them up so she'll know what they are. And maybe her dog can track our scent or I dunno."

Posted by: Ahrenil Aug 1 2011, 10:29 PM

Laura shook her head, arms and legs pumping to keep up with the rest. "We're already leaving a trail, unfortunately both Keara and the Regulators are gonna be able to follow it." Laura quickly turned so the others where she was pointing. Alexei's blood was staining the ground with a few dark red patches for every few feet of ground.

Her team had never been fast, but with Raymond's age, Jonathons general lever of fitness, her height, and even Alexei's massive strides were worsening as he lost blood, the added effort pouring more out. "We'll be found either way, unless we stop and treat that wound. We've gotta find a place to stop, and just hope the Regulators are slow to follow." she yelled.

Turning and sprinting to catch up to Alexei she grabbed the ghoul's good arm, fighting back the revulsion of the clammy skin and sliding gristle under her hand. "Stop! You're bleeding too heavily to keep going" she told him "I saw a gully up, we'll hide in there and get you treated".

With that she moved on ahead, cutting across the hardy brush that was starting to dot their path towards the gully. Once inside the sloping walls of rubble and loose rock she motioned her team down to a shadowed hollow near the end, where the wall backed up to a cliff face.

"Alright, put pressure on it...umm...we should sterlise it, wait no you don't get ill...Jonathon, got any needle and thread?" Laura asked, unsure as to how exactly to proceed. She was a leader, but always had been hopeless at field medicine.

Posted by: ureniashtram Aug 1 2011, 11:57 PM

OOC: All right, time for Alexei to be a luggage rather than a help and all of us be captured by those Regulators. I'll edit it if anyone has objections or think that it is too early.

Alexei's vision was beginning to blur and his eyes ferally swam in all directions underneath his gas mask. The ballistic force of the sniper round was tremendous and Alexei thanked his lucky stars it didn't penetrate the bone. But it did graze it, and the pain cannot be put into words. The constant running made him dizzy and his stomach was starting to rebolt.

The whole was in a daze again.

He was vaguely aware of someone yelling and him being led to gully ending in a large cliff face. He sat on a depression in the ground, dropped his RPD beside him and placed pressure on the wound. It was now leaking in alarming quantities. His grey was soaked.

"Just how bad is it, " he growled. "Enough to lose my whole tank of blood or what?"

He ripped a portion of his duster but before he could wrap it tight, he looked to the general direction of his blurry, fellow mercs. Strangely, there seem to be a blanket of darkness slowly eating away at the edge of his vision. He opened his mouth to say something, but blood gushed forth, staining those unlucky enough to be nearby. Confused, he felt a warm and slimy feeling on his gut.

He opened up the buttons of his duster, looked down and saw another wound, just beside his navel. It, too, was bleeding. Only this time, much much worse than the one in his arm.

"Must've.. Ignored it in .. an adrenaline rush," he chuckled meekly. "I'm sorry, comrades . .. It seems I am ... dead weight."

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 2 2011, 04:17 PM

Keara

Keara ran as far as she could, but her pace had long since slowed to a tired walk. The sun was setting, and it gave everything around her a yellow twinge. The wind kept kicking up dust in her face, so she cut the cuff from the bottom of her jeans and used it to cover her nose and mouth. She must've looked pitiful, coming down off jet in a sandstorm with one short pants leg. Even Lucky walked with his tail drooping behind him.

She could see Megaton's rusty brown silhouette on the horizon, though it would be far into the night before she got there. Each step was more difficult than the last, but she pushed on. She had to get some help; hopefully there would be a merc or two willing to help.

Mercs want caps. I'll either have to get a hold of some, or bluff my way into getting help.

Bluffing would be dangerous, but it seemed more realistic than raising the caps to find a gun for hire.

Posted by: grif11 Aug 2 2011, 05:34 PM

Raymond

Raymond was shocked by Alexei's wound. He knew that the ghoul wouldn't be running until it had stopped bleeding, and even then he would have the risk of the scab cracking. They were stuck.

"I knew we should have hired a medic." He muttered to himself, walking back to the gully entrance and taking up his rifle. The regulators were now checking the warehouse exterior for any signs of them still being inside. hold on, whats he doing?

The regulator with a sniper bullet hole in his hat had spotted something on the ground, and was now slowly walking towards the groups hiding hole. "Heads up, they've found the blood trail. I'm giving us a minute and a half till they find us."

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 2 2011, 06:33 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

Their mad dash came at an end, a dead one. The mechanic held no illusions about climbing the cliff before them. They might have been able to do it with proper climbing gear but he wasn't sure about that. For one thing, they didn't have any and for another, he was sorely lacking in rockclimbing experience. Alexei collapsed on the floor, somehow still clinging to consciousness despite the evident bloodloss. Jonathan was no doctor, but the wound in the ghoul's arm didn't seem like it could be the cause. Sure, it was bad, but not that bad. Then they discovered a second, far worse injury which explained things. The ghoul tried to say something, but all he managed to do was spit up blood, some of which landed on Jonathan. The man grimaced, but forced himself to ignore the slimy mess. Now was not the time to flinch away from the ghoul. Alexei was a friend and needed his help, not his desire to stay clean.

"Jonathon, got any needle and thread?" Laura asked him as she knelt beside Alexei.
"Of course I do. Duct-tape doesn't fix everything after all. I can sew as well...never tried flesh though. But I'll try." He answered as he produced a weathered spool of thread and a needle. It was rather dirty and therefore horribly unsuited for surgical means but at least it wasn't an issue this time. With some effort, he managed to get the thread through the needle's eye.

"Ghouls don't suffer from radiation, they don't get infected by diseases or worry about lack of hygiëne. And the big thing, they're all half-decayed walking corpses. Yet bloodloss is clearly an issue. Just how much of their body do they still need to function?" Jonathan wondered but didn't voice the question. He lowered his head to get a close look at the abdominal wound, while failing to suprres the subconscious shudder at seeing and smelling the irradiated flesh.
"It would be best if we focussed on the worst hole first, right? I can sew it up on the outside, but there is some internal bleeding going on that I can't stop. Alexei, can you breathe? Don't talk, just nod or shake." If the ghould could still breathe, then there was hope he would be able to survive the internal bleeding, at least till they found a proper doctor. If he was drowning in his own blood though...


Posted by: ureniashtram Aug 4 2011, 02:45 AM

OOC: Minque and Lord Revan's characters ARE members of the Company, right? Or am I missing something here?


Breathing was becoming more of a chore now. It came in short, raspy inhales. He could feel the world around him twirl at an alarming speed. Grandfather Raymond disappeared from sight. The two remaining Company members were blurred from completely identifying them.

He puked. A small amount of blood.

Alexei looked at Jonathan and bobbed his head, before the ghoul felt the tugging of unconsciousness. He oblidged and fell.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 4 2011, 08:40 AM

Keara

After what seemed like an eternity of walking, Keara finally entered the gates of Megaton. She hated that gate. Its motorized groan made the comings and goings of everyone that much more noticeable. Nobody seemed to give her a second glance, which was good, and nobody pried her with too many questions. While news often traveled quickly, they couldn't possibly have a way of identifying her yet.

She walked casually up the catwalks towards Moriarty's. It was her plan to trade the cigarettes she found for a drink and a room, and get a good night's rest. Of course she would try to find some help, but keeping herself strong and alert was just as important for the success of the mission.

I'll do what I can tonight, but the real work starts tomorrow. I just hope Laura can keep everyone alive and breathing for that long.

She entered the scrap-heap that served as a tavern, and sat down wearily on a bar stool. She told Lucky to sit. He laid down. Given the circumstances, she decided not to argue the semantics of her command.

"Can I get you a drink?" the ghoul behind the counter asked in that haunting, gravelly voice associated with his condition.

"That and a room for the night," she answered, presenting nine packs of cigarettes.

"Hmm..." the ghoul said, inspecting the merchandise, "Very well. A room and a shot of whiskey."

"Deal."

She downed the shot as soon as it was given to her, and began to scan the room. It didn't seem very promising. There was the ghoul clerk, the prostitute in the corner, Moriarty himself, and a few locals. None were openly armed as far as she could tell, but she would keep watching for a while. She sighed and lit one of the cigarettes that she had kept for herself. Her eyelids were drooping, and her hand under her chin seemed to be the only thing holding her head up, but she tried to stay awake. She wanted just a few more minutes to see if someone with any potential would come through the door. Despite her efforts, sleep quickly won out. Her face dropped heavily onto the bar, and her cigarette slipped from her fingers and onto the floor.

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 4 2011, 08:59 PM

Jonathan Guntherson OOC: I just realized that Jonathan probably should have heard and responded to Raymond's warning before. I'll just pretend Raymond hadn't arived yet. It makes the timeframe a bit wonky, but no major paradoxes.

Alexei puked again before falling over, pinning Jonathan beneath him.
"Hey! Alexei, hang in there! Don't die, friend!" Jonathan yelled at the ghoul but he received no response. The weight of the injured man was making it hard to breath but with a considerable amount of effort, he managed to roll Alexei off of him. It was right that moment that gramps returned to update them on the situation. To put things mildly, it wasn't good.

"Damn! Ok, take the smg if you need another gun. I've got to stop Alexei's bleeding and I'm a lousy shot anyway. I don't care if we surrender or not, but keep them off my back till I get him stable, please!" He said. Jonathan didn't wait for a reply, but focussed completely on his task, blocking out everything else. Right now, his concentration was the same as it always was when he was fixing something stubborn.

"Ok, think Jonathan. Think. His second mouthful of blood was less than the first one. Internal bleeding is slowing down then and he's still breathing....that's good. Now for the abdomen." He gripped the needle in his hand tightly and pierced the flesh right next to the injury while pressing the edges of the wound together with his other hand. Sewing up a body was quite different from stitching up clothing, he discovered, but not so much he wouldn't be able to get the job done. For a moment, he was glad Alexei was unconscious. At least he wouldn't be aware of the amateurish attempt to sew the wound. In and out the needle went, closing the injury tighter with each loop. The mechanic worked faster than he would have preferred, pressed both by the need to save as much of Alexei's remaining blood as possible as he was by the timelimit imposed upon him by the approaching regulators.

When he was halfway through, he spoke up again.
"There's no wound on his back, so the bullet is still in there. Can't take it out, not without making things worse. Need a medic for that. Please give me some more time to finish..." He paused for a second as the needle got stuck in a sore of some sort.
"Two minutes, just one. Please!"

OOC: I think I'll let Jonathan keep sewing till the regulators put a gun to his head. So go ahead and finish things up anyway you like.

Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 5 2011, 09:38 PM

Damon Wyeth

The crowd gathered at the Brass Lantern were placing bets. Just how much whiskey have I had? Damon couldn't remember. Apparently not enough to prevent that little voice from pointing out that was a bad sign. These people were betting dozens of caps! He stole a glance at the 'retired' raider whom he'd inadvertently challanged.

Jericho had to be twice Damon's age, but the 'retired' raider was practically a breathing death threat. His eyes had a look of flat scrutiny, not hate but simple indifference for the subject's life. No one who survived long enough to retire from the raiders was to be crossed.
The taste of whiskey was strong on Damon's tongue. But no amount of drink could convince him to throw his life away over a faux paus in some backwater town. He forced a smile and counted out 30 caps. "This is a quarter of my latest earnings. Please, take it as compensation."

The killer started to sneer at the pile of caps before him, but Damon was on his feet and rapidly making his way to Moriarty's Saloon.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 8 2011, 05:40 PM

Keara

She couldn't have been asleep more than a few minutes before she felt a gooey hand shaking her arm. Keara's eyes opened groggily to see the ghoul server.

"Moriarty says that if you can't sleep in your room, we'll give it to someone else."

"Huh? Oh, right," she answered, rubbing an eye, "I'll get there, don't worry."

She had barely finished the sentence before a newcomer strode in. The first thing she noticed about him was his eye patch. The second, most important thing she saw was the rifle he carried.

"Hey, you," she said to the ghoul barkeep, "You know anything about that guy?"

"I know he's killed some raiders here and there, and he stops by Megaton from time to time. Don't know much else."

Keara was yawning, so she could only nod in answer. She began mindlessly fumbling with her empty shot glass in an effort to look casual. She kept the newcomer in the corner of her eye and waited for him to find a seat.

Posted by: Ahrenil Aug 8 2011, 11:49 PM

Laura watched Jonathon work, and knew what she had to do. The Ghouls condition was bad, and while Jonathon could work out what he was doing to a degree, he wasn't a medic, and a medic was what they needed. Without the capability to move the Ghoul to find a doctor, they would have to bring a doctor to them, and there was only one place they'd be able to find one.

With a sigh Laura unclipped her Magnum's holster, dropping it to the ground with the dull thud of heavy metal on loose soil. Her satchel of explosives was lowered carefully down next to it, followed by her bandoliers of grenades.

"Everyone, weapons down, theres only one way we're getting out of this." She declared to know one in particular, mainly to reassure herself that this was the right choice. Before turning towards the mouth of the gulley. "I'm going to fetch some help, if you hear gunshots, it's probably not coming"

She strode into the dark before anyone could object, doing her best to make her apporach obvious short of setting her hair on fire and singing classical music. It didn't take long for a rifle to appear from a ridge top, and several shotguns from the surround foliage. The people wielding them did not look pleased, but no one was shooting which meant relations were already margianly better.

"We're surrendering, in case you hadn't guessed. We have a man down and he needs medical assistance, if he dies then I can assure you we'll waste as much of your time and resources as we can" she told the assembled group of Regulators, drawing sneers and grimaces from a few. "If you'll be kind enough to follow me and not kill any of my men i'd be very pleased" she said, turning and heading off back into the dark. After a short period of muffled conversation she heard heavy footfalls following her. She knew the rest of the Regulators were probably watch from good vantage points, but that didn't matter. She just hoped one of them would be able to patch her heavy weapons specialist up.

Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 9 2011, 04:04 AM

Damon Wyeth

Damon's heart would not stop racing. The interplay of whiskey and adrenaline in his system had him wound up. He dropped down onto a stool and slapped his hands down on the bar harder than he'd liked. The Ghoul server, some poor chump who owed the proprieter a small mountain of caps, asked if he wanted a drink.

"Water'll do." He pulled a canteen from his pack and handed it to the Ghoul. Damon shifted in his seat. He started counting, tapping his index finger on the bar, eye slightly disfocused. Twenty-six, twen... At fifty-one seconds, the server returned with his canteen. He took a sip, but kept counting to himself.

Once he reached two minutes and twenty seconds, Damon's nerves began to calm down. He glanced around the saloon. Aside from a couple locals, the server, and Moriarty's hooker, the hunter noticed a young woman with a dog sitting three stools down.

She looked beat, must have just arrived in town. Aside from the look of exhaustion, she showed the textbook signs of a jet user. Damon casually swept the eyepatch back to his real eye and opened his mouth to speak when his old pal Jericho blasted through the door.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 10 2011, 07:20 PM

Keara

The one-eyed man cast a glance her way, and was even about to speak to her before someone else captured his attention. She followed his glance to the doorway, where another hardened man stood. Keara smelled trouble, but she thought that maybe she could find a way to profit from their inevitable confrontation.

"Looks like you have a friend," she quipped to the man beside her.

Posted by: ureniashtram Aug 10 2011, 10:39 PM

OOC: Going to take a 'minor' liberty here and speed things up a bit for the would-be prisoners. So everybody, meet the very first Minor Character!

Regulator Squadleader


Marcellone and his company got a little squeek from a little bird about a raid going down in a far-fetched settlement, a scrawny little village that doesn't even have a name or on today's map. The hardened lawbringer briefly wondered who got the info about the upcoming event, but reckoned that it was probably one of the villagers catching some bad wind or something.

He couldn't shake the feeling of walking into a trap, though.

So when he arrived (the village WAS a scrawny little collection of shacks!) and got fired upon with a hail of angry bullets from a building, he figured that they weren't the only ones who were also informed. He rolled for cover, as did his fellow regulators, and blindfired from his position though with no visual on the hostile it was a wasted effort. Time for Slivers to do his job. Over the cackle of the firefight between his group and the other one, he called for said Silvers and his crew to provide some sniper support.

Judging from Slivers' expression of pure glee, he hit something. The proof became clear when the enemy fire lessened somewhat, but their victory was cut short when they heard single shot and one of the sniper's hat flew several feet away.

"Damn, they got a sniper! Take ample cover and lay low!"

After a few minutes, the whirring sounds of an LMG -Marcellone heard it before, he wasn't sure where- began again. Amidst the thundercracks, he can't help but notice that not one of the bullets hit them. Either the enemy was very, very poor shot or -


It suddenly died out when an explosion shook the earth beneath them and a frantic yells of something along the lines of 'get moving, get moving!'.

Realization punched Marcellone hard in the face. He immediately sprang from his cover and riddled the building with an unhealthy dose of 5.56mm. The door briefly opened, Marcellone crouching where he was at to get a good accuracy, and he saw a barrel.

"What the-,"

Another explosion, and while it was much more smaller the shockwave actually blasted Marcellone back a few feet, him landing hard on the ground. He groaned as he sat up. He saw the building burning pretty good, making it an obstacle. He cursed. Damn raiders are getting smart these days. He looked at his dumfounded comrades and made an annoyed gesture.

"Are you waiting for my birthday, you useless louts? Get after them already!"

He stood up and followed his company as they went around the burning wreckage. Ah ha. So the raiders got in and out by cutting a reasonable portion of the fence? Good thinking. He waited until the rest of regulators went through it before going in himself.

Following them, shouldn't be a problem. They left a bloodtrail that was impossible to miss. So Slivers really did hit something after all. He loaded his R91 Assault Rifle and barked for the greenhorns to follow it, veterans out back.

After a few minutes of trekking, they found a gulley that embraced a large cliff-face. The large wall of rock and stone was beautiful sight indeed, Marcellone remembered to visit this place if he had the time. Then he noticed that all of his company-members were pointing their guns at an unarmed dark-haired woman, hands raised.

Marcellone raised an eyebrow. If she was planning to blow them up while under the giuse of surrendering, she had another thing coming. His worries, though were dashed cruelly upon the rocks of disappointment when the woman spoke up. Her voice, despite her situation, was laced with determination. Marcellone got to hand it to her.

"We're surrendering, in case you hadn't guessed. We have a man down and he needs medical assistance, if he dies then I can assure you we'll waste as much of your time and resources as we can."

That drew some sneers and grimaces, but Marcellone was unaffected. He was curious.

"If you'll be kind enough to follow me and not kill any of my men I'd be very pleased." And when she went further into the gulley, conversations flared up like disturbed ants.

"What if she has some men waiting to ambush us," a voice asked.

"Wouldn't doubt it. Saw her eyes? She's a wolf, she is," another spoke.

"Nah, you pussyfoots worry too much. Ambush us, a large group of regulators? In this place? Bah, recruits these days," a gruff voice admonished.

"Besides, this group is different from the ones we encountered. First, she doesn't wear the usual rags a raider parades around in. Second, she surrendered. If she and her gang ARE raiders, which I very much doubt, she'd rather kill themlseves rather than be captured," a young voice said.

Marcellone silenced them with a mere gesture. Thousands of questions raced through his mind like an untamed wolf. He opted for a choice that would be neutral for both parties.

"Veterans, with me. James too. Little Daniel's right. It's not often you'd get a reasonable 'raider."

With gun still in hand and the hardened veterans at this back, he followed. He made sure that James, their field medic, was close by.

When they reached the end of the gulley, they saw a sad sight. A large ghoul was bleeding pretty heavily and a lanky man was vainly trying to heal him. At this, James spurned into action, though an aged man in strange armor raised his gun. James slowly raised his hands and made sure the old-timer saw his Red Cross.

"I'm a former Follower of the Apocalypse! Don't shoot, I'm going to-,"

Marcellone interrupted him without looking at him.

"Just pump him with Buffout or MedX or something," here he looked at the woman who he now recognized as the leader. His admiration for her grew as he realized that she was surrendering for the sake of her men. A good commander, a rare thing in this world.

"We'll take care of your rotten stinker if you come with us. Contrary to popular belief, we actually take prisoners. As for the matter of you bunch getting freedom . . . That is not my choice to make, but my superior officer."

At the mention of second-in-command of the D.C chapter of the Regulators, every one of the veterans winced. Avery Nichols was one of the sadistic basterds Marcellone ever knew and he doubted that that sadist would let this group go.

No matter what.

Posted by: CMX Aug 11 2011, 03:45 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

It felt like I had been walking all day. My last cig, bustin' my head on them rocks. Yep, aint' nothing gone right for me in the last 4 hours.

Thinking to my self, I took a drag of my cigarette, as i knocked my boots off on the door of the saloon. 'Moriarty's Saloon' It said. I turned the knob, as i chucked the butt into the railings. Upon entrance, I glanced at the bar, and it's barkeep.

'A ghoul' my thoughts said to me. I wasn't surprised at all. I was actually dazed. Hunting and falling should never be in the same category. I kept a hand on my head, as i placed my self at the bar. The blood was slowly oozing down my face, and into my shades.

"One bottle of whiskey, and some cotton balls, please." I politely ordered. I kept a hand on my head, and drew a few gold nuggets from my breastpocket; placing them down discretely on the counter. Trying to keep a low profile, i dropped my pack between my legs, and swung my black m14-E.B.R by the sling to hang between my legs also. My ballistic mask hung low around my neck, as i awaited my order. The drawings on it seems as if a teen drew on it, as it had a pair of voluptuous lips, pressed against a vein-ridden p----.

"You look like s---." The ghoul barkeep said, handing off the jug of whiskey and cotton balls; scooping up the nuggets. "Thanks, beautiful." I replied. I drew my knife, as i skewered the cotton balls onto the blade, dousing them with whiskey.

'Cave man cauterizing' I playfully thought. Through profiling and examination, I stood up from my seat, knife in hand. "Does anyone have a light?" I shouted to the bar.

Feeling eyes burn into your skin in 5....4....3....2...1...




Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 12 2011, 03:55 AM

Damon Wyeth

"I do believe that man intends to inflict great harm upon my person." He mused glumly. "Why can't I enjoy a few shots in this backwater without offending the locals?."

Another man came in behind Jericho. The armed newcomer looked even worse than the girl, bloodied and a bit spaced out. Jericho didn't seem to take kindly to the man's earnest manner. Damon turned back to the girl. "I'd have a mind to become scarce for awhile. Perhaps we can talk later, miss."

With that he quickly stood and made his way upstairs to the bedrooms.

Posted by: Ahrenil Aug 14 2011, 03:52 PM

Laura rolled her shoulders, trying to work out some of the tension from the day. Her friends were safe for now, so she could relax for a bit, and she doubted she'd be doing much running from here on out. The regulators had been easier to win over than she expected, not that she was complaining, but she couldn't help but get the feeling it was mostly their superiors influence that had saved them.

"Sure as hell beats a bullet in the back though" Laura said with a shrug. Her team weren't idiots, they knew the deal, but they also knew that rotting a cell was not something Laura had down on her to do list. She was going to get them out, somehow. "Your commanding officer will likely want to hear the whole story, or if not I sure as hell am gonna tell him it anyway."

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 14 2011, 05:29 PM

Jonathan Guntherson, and the doctor dude

He hadn't even noticed the arrival of the regulators untill the moment he was shoved aside by one of them. Jonathan wanted to voice a protest, demand to be allowed to finish his task. One look at the red cross the stranger wore on his arm kept his mouth shut though.

"Hmm, that's a pretty lousy job you did there." The man said as he inspected the stitches.
"I'm a mechanic, not a doctor! Did all I could!" Jonathan snapped back. While he knew the regulator's medic was right, he still fellt offended. What was he supposed to do, let Alexei die without even trying to help him?

The medic shrugged.
"Seen a lot worse, both in terms of injuries and first aid. He'll make it." He said and looked over his shoulder at Marcellone. His commander was busy dealing with the rest of the surrendering process and collecting the weapons the raiders possessed. Turning to the mechanic next to him, James saw that the man seemed unarmed. There was a discarded smg at his feet though, which the medic scooped up before the raider got any ideas.
"At least as far as our headquarters." James added with another shrug. One hand held the smg, the other retrieved a syringe from his pack.
"Shoot him up with this, make sure it gets in the bloodstream proper. And no funny moves."

While Jonathan stabbed the syringe in the ghoul's neck, the regulator stepped back to Marcellone's side.
"Done, let the raiders carry him."

Posted by: grif11 Aug 14 2011, 07:07 PM

Raymond

"Don't call me a raider again, unless you want to see a ranger veteran in action. If I were you, I'd listen to the smart guy over there." Raymond growled to the medic. "Doesn't the NCR mean anything here?"

Posted by: ureniashtram Aug 14 2011, 07:16 PM

EDIT: Did not saw your post until today, Grif! So sorry! I edited my post so you can, y'know, interact with the REgulators. Sorry again, Eleventh Grif!

Marcellone

From the corner of his eyes, Marcellone saw James shove aside the lanky-looking man and work on the downed ghoul. The man can't help but notice that the mutated person had on a duster that looked eerily like a Regulator's, except gray. If he was one, Marcellone mused, he wouldn't have shot at a fellow lawbringer. His attention went from the injured person to the group's leader.

She flexed her shoulders a bit, trying to relax and maintain her calmness. Judging by the slightly eased look on her face, she achieved it.

"Sure as hell beats a bullet in the back though," she said with a shrug. And Marcellone can't help but agree. Getting captured was infinitely more better than getting killed, his similar experiences told him that. But veering too close to sympathy would be dangerous. It would compromise them in many ways.

"Your commanding officer will likely want to hear the whole story, or if not I sure as hell am gonna tell him it anyway."

At this, Marcellone let out a chuckle. A pained and amused chuckle. She clearly did not meet Marcellone's superior officer. Avery Nichols was reliable on beating people up than letting them explain their side of the story.

"Well, good luck with that, miss," he said. It felt somewhat strange speaking to an enemy commander, but Marcellone supposed that this day was anything but. Here he motioned for the veterans to snatch their weapons away.

A .44 revolver and a satchel filled with god-knows-what, followed by a bandolier of grenades.

When a modified RPD was presented to the bundle of captured weapons, Marcellone can't help but ogle it suspiciously, his eyes glazing in nostalgia. When he was still a grunt, one of his former superior officers had this kind of weapon too, albeit without the grip nor the laser sight. Marcellone made sure to question who ever owned this weapon -probably the ghoul- and ask him where he got such a thing.

When it was all done, Marcellone ordered some of the guys to get the rookies and haul the catch off. He turned to the woman, but before he could say something, James appeared on his side. He seemed pretty pleased with himself, probably because he showed his superiority in the field of healing to the lanky man.

"Done, let the raiders carry him."

Marcellone gave him a strange look.

"You do know that there are only two men in the 'raiders' group? And catching up on age and bones probably getting brittle," here he looked to both men, eyes saying 'no offense'. "And it is obvious that the lady here can't do it on herself. Nah, let some of the boys carry the stinker."

After a bit of grumbling and outright snarling, four of the veterans managed to lift the ghoul up. By their strength combined, they said that they could manage, even though the burden they're carrying is 300 pounds.

"OK, now that all is said and done, wrap them blindfolds on 'em," he said. He looked at the woman, spreading his hands as if in apology.

"Gotta make the location of our base private, you know?"

Here, James scoffed.

"As if these lowly raiders have it in their skills to even remember things, apart from rutting each other senseless and injecting some chems into their system!"

A silence among the Regulators. The field medic certainly had a mouth, particulary if he perceived he was in a winning position, and Marcellone decided that he had heard enough.

"Listen James, I just have enough of your gum-flappin-," but was cut off by an angry snarl from the old man in the strange armor.

"Don't call me a raider again, unless you want to see a ranger veteran in action. If I were you, I'd listen to the smart guy over there." Raymond growled to the medic. "Doesn't the NCR mean anything here?"

At the word NCR, every Regulator including Marcellone pointed their guns at him, suddenly tensed and nervous. A Ranger, a veteran one at that? Well damn but did they hit the jackpot on this one. Of course they heard about the NCR. The Californian chapter of Regulators worked hand in hand with the Rangers against the slavers there. Avery Nichols may have found his equal in combat skill in this Ranger.

A question remained though. Marcellone spoke, awed.

"Seems a little far from California, aren't you? How the hell did you survive the distance between lovely ol' D.C and the Republic? And why is a veteran Ranger doing with these . . . colorful bunch? Please don't tell me we got a rogue Ranger in our midst."

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 14 2011, 07:59 PM

Keara

"Do what you gotta do," she replied simply to the one-eyed man. She watched him while he walked upstairs, but was interrupted by another man asking anyone and everyone for a light.

"Hey," she said, tossing a book of matches in his direction, "There's only a couple left. Keep it."

The newcomer also looked as if he could handle himself, which brought the total count of potential recruits up to three. There was the one-eyed man, the man he was running from, and this newcomer with vulgar drawings on his mask. She realized suddenly that names might be useful.

The latter looked to be in rough shape as blood was running down his face, but if it was too severe an injury he wouldn't be calmly sitting at a bar self-medicating with whiskey.

Posted by: CMX Aug 14 2011, 08:43 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

I heard a voice call out, 'Hey' as i snapped my attention to the right. I was caught off guard, as a matchbook landed in my hands.

With a nod of appreciation, I returned to my seat, lighting the skewered 'whiskey-balls' on fire, as I built up the courage to cauterize the wound. "F--k, F--k, F--k!" I said, as i pressed the blazing blade to my head.

Like an iron to hair, I held the burning blade to my wound. I took my free hand, and shuttled down another shot of whiskey. I dropped the still-glowing blade on the counter in pain, then asked the barkeep for another shot.

"Pour me another one." I said, as the ghoul looked to me in confusion; and poured me a glass. "Are you sure that stuff is....clean to do?" He asked. I shrugged, as i burped. "It's what i got. It aint bleedin' no more, so im sure it's ....safe to do."


Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 14 2011, 08:51 PM

Damon Wyeth

He locked the door behind him. His ruck was already packed with a 2 liter water resevoir, magazines, maps, and other supplies. Damon slipped his canteen into a coat pocket, and grabbed his rifle from underneath the bed. He made sure the Schofield was loaded and the hammer rested on an empty chamber before smashing out the window.

Damon stuck his head out, no one appeared to investigate the crash. He slung the M16, dropped his ruck onto the dirt, and crawled through the window onto a refrigerator standing next to Moriarty's Saloon. After retrieving his pack, Damon unslung his rifle and made his way to the gate.

The hunter felt confident his supplies would last a few days crawl around the surrounding region. Then he could stop by Craterside to stock up and catch a caravan.

Posted by: grif11 Aug 16 2011, 11:56 PM

Raymond

His words must have spooked the regulators, because now he had an uncomfortable amount of gun barrels pointed at him. "Calm down!"He said to the group " Contrary to popular belief, an unarmed Ranger veteran in his forties cant kill a whole group of regulators."

"Rookies," he muttered, before turning to the leader. "why I'm here is for Laura to say to your commander. How I got here is a long tale. Don't knock us out and you might find out."

Posted by: ureniashtram Aug 17 2011, 12:23 PM



Marcellone gave a shrug.

"Another tale to be told perhaps. Maybe even told in a biography or something. But, my decision for you lot to be bound is final. And healthy for us too; no matter how many times an enemy proves he won't do you harm, he usually does."

From his back-pocket, he produced pre-war cuffs. He can't help but like this Ranger, though he can say the same for any other entity that abides the laws and helps maintains it.

"Turn around, g-pops, and put down that beauty of yours. You're under arrest for being a veteran ranger." At his own joke, he chuckled.

He turned to the woman, Laura, and the lanky man. He made a gesture. Several regulators bearing cuffs approached them.

"Make sure to cover their faces with garbage bags, men. Like I said, have to make the base secret, yeah?"

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 17 2011, 07:38 PM

Jonathan Guntherson

He had no idea what the syringe contained. It could be poison, or it could be the wonderdrug that would heal all of Alexei's wounds and cure his ghouldom. Most likely however, it was just something that would keep him down for the count during the trip to the regulatorbase. So he injected it into the Ghoul's neck. Besides, what choice did he have? He wasn't in the position to make any demands or refuse any orders. Behind his back, it seemed that gramps had become the focus of attention. Jonathan was a bit worried that his and Laura's attitude would get them all killed. No, don't make that a bit. Make that very worried.
"Woah, calm down. Don't try to start a fight here!" He shouted over his shoulder. The regulators ignored his outburst and levelled their rifles at Raymond. Fortunately for them all, Raymond regained his composure and their captors settled down again.

"Right, that should do it." The mechanic muttered to himself and squeezed out the last few drops. As he got up, he tossed the empty syringe back at the medic and put his hands in the pockets of his coat. At this, the regulator looking to cuff him stepped back again with a suspecting expression. Jonathan could almost hear the man thinking, asking himself if the old guy was about to whip out a pistol and shoot him. He was almost right in that. Jonathan did indeed feel the cold metal of his tiny sidearm brushing against his hand. He was not planning on using it though. He pulled his hands back out, showing his empty palms to the regulator.

"Oh hey, before you guys cuff me. Right pocket please. Forgot I put a gun in there. I'd empty it out myself but in the light of goodwill and plain common sense, I think I'll let one of you do it. And err, then you guys can get on with the cuffing and blindfolding right?" He giggled nervously.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 17 2011, 09:30 PM

Keara

Keara fought off her instinctual desire to sleep for a little longer, in hopes of making some progress. She reminded herself that whatever she felt, her friends had it ten times worse with the Regulators. The thought didn't make her any less exhausted.

I could use a boost. she thought, as her fingers automatically toyed with the empty inhaler in her pocket.

Knowing that jet wouldn't magically appear, she pushed the thought away. She stood and moved over a couple of stools to sit beside the stranger with the whiskey. Lucky didn't move a muscle.

"Safer than drinking it, I'm sure," she said, deciding to butt in, "That's a pretty nasty gash. Where'd you get it?"

Posted by: CMX Aug 18 2011, 01:19 AM

Chris 'Mongoose'

With my right hand on my M-14, i flicked the selector from burst to semi. I took a swig from my cup, then proceeded to adjust my glasses. I was in that zone again. All the pain not really setting, or really leaving. A girl's voice asks about the cauterized scar running down my temple.

"Ya ever been huntin? Ya know, when you stalk a prey for miles, all for the kill?" I said, pulling the glasses from my face. "Well, I thought I found an old friend. A priest. Been huntin this bad priest from the west, and i thought i found him. I also thought it would be good to chew on this skunky plant too." I spat in a sarcastic and ominous voice.

"Well, he got away again." I sighed. I turned to right, as I gazed towards the girl, locking down on her grey pearls. "With me being 5 rounds out." I flicked at my rifle with my right, and leaned my head on my left hand. She looks a bit skinny, and sad; if not drained, from her facial features. She gives me the urge to...pout, or feel down.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 18 2011, 07:48 AM

Keara

Keara grinned; she could already tell this guy was a character. More the type of person she was used to when compared with Laura and her crew. His folksy story captivated her with few words, and she almost didn't realize that he'd completely dodged her question. Almost.

"So..." she said, still digesting the tale, "Unless this priest whacked you one good time, it still doesn't explain the gash."

She used the scalding-hot knife he'd left on the bar earlier to light another cigarette. Two hundred years stale, but she still liked the things. She wondered sometimes what a fresh one would be like, before the war and the radiation. When people drove cars, grew healthy crops, and had an abundance of fresh, clean water...

Her thoughts drifted further and further from reality, and it wasn't until she opened her eyes a moment later that she realized that she'd dozed off for a second. She hadn't dropped her cigarette this time, though, so she took another drag.

"It's okay," she said, suddenly remembering the conversation she was in the middle of, "You don't have to tell me what happened, 'cause honestly I don't give a molerat's a--. I need some help with a problem and I'm looking to hire a couple o' mercs."

Posted by: CMX Aug 18 2011, 03:16 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

She caught my interest when she made note of her search for 'Mercs'. "You know" He started, "Me and that priest have been fighting each other for a while now." I picked at the blood specs, occasionally looking up at the girl. "He never gave me more than 700 yards of distance to fight from. One shot to my five; He blew my helmet off with one of them Gauss Rifles."

Still nit-picking at my scab, I continued. "In any case, my....half sleeping beauty" he said, taking note of the lost, if not fatigued look the girl obviously displayed. "Until I hear about him again, I would love a new challenge to ease my mind."

"I also know how to treat wounds....If you were trying to rid your self of that jet addiction." I noted, Looking up at the girl. Drug addiction was probably the worst thing to get into, especially now. Less people and less doctors to treat you. This girl, she smelled like jet as soon as she walked up on me. It's saddening to see people like this. Makes me question hope, faith, and all that mumbo jumbo.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 18 2011, 09:20 PM

Keara

Keara shook her head, "I'm afraid I don't have the time for treatment, and I bet you don't have the supplies to spare. I'll either have to score some soon or trek across the desert feeling like crap."

She didn't want to be 'cured.' Things would just go back to the way they were before. Jet was her lifeblood. It was mostly to thank for her quick trek to Megaton earlier that day, and allowed her to push her bodily limits, which had saved her many a time. More importantly to her, though, it made her feel alive.

"But if you're looking for a challenge, I think you may have found it," she said, "My crew has been feuding with these other badass mercs for a while, right? Well, things got hairy earlier today, and I was the only one that escaped. I came here to find help so I can get back there and find 'em, if they're still alive."

It was only half of a lie, but had enough truth in it to avoid many suspicions.

Posted by: CMX Aug 19 2011, 03:05 AM

Chris 'Mongoose'

"There are other ways than pills and substances to quell an addiction." I said with a smirk. Shaking my braclet; marked : Combat Life-Saver, I shot imaginary bullets at her. "When do i start?" I barked.

Standing up, i adjusted my gear at once. I never think about this kind of stuff. The hunt is all I ever think about now. This will be good. Right? "So" as I was adjusting my gear. "How many more do you need? I got my rifle, my pistol, a stocked rucksack, and my trusty knife" I boasted. I smirked, as i flaunted my desert-sprayed M-14.


Posted by: Dantrag Aug 20 2011, 07:31 PM

Keara

"I need as many hands as I can get, but I'm short on time," she answered, "Doesn't matter if I got one person or ten, I'm leaving by noon tomorrow."

In the meantime, she would get a bit of rest, and hopefully find a few more pairs of hands. If all went well, she and her new helpers would be able to return to the settlement by nightfall, rest that night and be on the trail the next morning. Hopefully this would all happen without the Regulators catching wind of her movements.

"The name's Keara, by the way. Meet me right outside the gate tomorrow if you're serious about this."


Posted by: CMX Aug 21 2011, 03:58 AM

Chris 'Mongoose'

Chris nodded, as he slowed himself down. "Right, Call me Mongoose." He said, tipping her a two finger salute.

I raised my rifle up, as I shot Keara a wink. I held the rifle barrel up, and twisted a sound suppressor onto my M-14.

"Just holler at me, If im not already awake before you. I'll be upstairs in a room." I brushed by her, as I trudged upstairs.

I feel rather hyped up about this. A calming excitement. Maybe i'll fix me some coffee before we step off tomorrow.

Posted by: Zalphon Aug 22 2011, 02:03 AM

Brian Wolfe

Brian opened his eyes to see the others there in the 'company' of the Regulators. "Greetings," he coughed. "Who are you... Prime Normals?" His eyes followed the movement of each of them, but nobody could be quite sure what he was thinking. Around his neck was a necklace with some strange item on it.

"I'm Brian," he said with a hoarse voice. His purple and gold robe hood was pulled back to reveal burnt skin and no hair. Brian slowly looks at each of them before he pulls back his hood.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 22 2011, 02:35 AM

Keara

"Alright then, Mongoose. See ya tomorrow," she said tiredly.

Keara noted that he'd left the remainder of his whiskey sitting on the bar. She helped herself to a hearty swig before heading up herself. It didn't sit well in her stomach. She needed sleep.

"C'mon, Lucky. Let's go."

She trudged up the stairs with Lucky in tow, dropped her rifle on the floor, and collapsed face down on the bed. The Regulators, Mongoose, Laura and the crew; they all faded from her mind as she passed into sleep.

Posted by: jack cloudy Aug 22 2011, 09:24 AM

Marcellone, aheadskippin time (Also, the headquarters I found on the wiki was a tad small for my tastes, so I replaced it.)

Their journey back to base was mostly uneventful. Sure, the oldtimers stumbled a few times and there was the realization that the garbage bags needed some breathing holes, but mostly uneventful. Still, Marcellone couldn't supress a sigh of relief when he spotted the crumbling churchtower that marked their home. Built within the catacombs, the hideout had been dug out further and rebuilt over time to the point one could hardly recognize its original purpose. The regulators under his command were more vocal in their appreciation.
"I'll be glad to drop this stinker."
"I just want to close my eyes and kick back."
"Yo bill, wanna play the cards?"
"No way James, I still remember the last time you swindled me of all my caps, you cheating honoured user."
"I wasn-"
Marcellone let out another sigh. The raiders were almost more likeable than his own band, at least they knew when to shut up.
"Shut up everyone! Gah, take the men and women inside and have them processed by the prison warden. Don't take off their bags till they're safely behind bars. The Ghoul goes to the medical ward to be treated. As for their gear, Put it in a crate in the store room for now. We'll see what to do with all that stuff later."

Prisoners in tow, Marcellone's group moved to the entrance whose guards let them through after a swift nod from Marcellone. They knew the regulator and even drank with him at a quiet evening. As such, they were willing to skip the needless formalities and let him through without any hassle. Inside however, Marcellone almost tripped over the hooded ghoul waiting just beyond the entrance. Only the gleam of gold had alerted him to the thing's presence in the dark.

"Greetings, who are you....Prime Normals?" The Ghoul asked as he noticed the arrival. His question was not aimed at the regulators who he knew already, but at the prisoners.
"I'm Brian," The Ghoul added as he pulled back his hood.

"Hello Brian, I'm Jonathan Guntherson. A pleasure to make your aquaintance." The lanky man answered and bowed, still with a garbage bag covering his head. Marcellone shook his head. The guy seemed to have forgotten he was a prisoner.
"Can it. Get them to the cells already. Brian, you can visit them later if you have to. Alright, move it people! The sooner you get your jobs done, the sooner you can drink yourself into a stupor, get swindled at the cards or whatever you do in your spare time." He yelled at the men behind him and walked away.
"I'll have to report to Nichols." Marcellone muttered as he passed the Ghoul.

Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 24 2011, 01:40 AM

Damon Wyeth

Damon rose from the ranger grave he'd dug last night. His sleep was never good after getting drunk, at least he never drank enough to suffer a hangover. The sun was still beneath the horizon, but time was a luxury in the Capital Wasteland.
He kneeled in the dirt, setting his inventory out in the morning darkness. Damon counted out 5x twenty-round magazines for his M16A2 (three were unloaded), 40x rounds of .357 Magnum, 3x road flares, and 5x smoke grenades. He made some notes in his Pipboy and packed everything back up.
As the sun rose, he began to look for a place to take shelter until Craterside would be open.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 26 2011, 04:19 PM

Keara

Keara awoke much earlier than expected, due to the urge to throw up. She rose quickly and poured out her guts into the sink. There was no way it was from the whiskey, though it may have played a role. This was jet withdrawal, and she couldn't afford it now.

She rummaged through her belongings; she had a few caps that she'd scrounged from the warehouse the previous day, and she'd been to Megaton enough to know Leo Stahl. She gathered her things, left the saloon, and headed towards the Brass Lantern, with her aching legs complaining the entire way.

"Leo," she greeted when she finally arrived, seating herself on a stool, "Long time no see."

"You don't look so good," he replied, "I take it you need something from me."

She placed all her caps on the counter, "Yep."

Leo scooped up the caps, "Meet me outside the gates in an hour. I'll have it for you."

"I'll be there," she said, though Leo had already walked away. Her eyes were closed and she rubbed her temples in a futile attempt to quell her raging headache.

Posted by: grif11 Aug 26 2011, 05:31 PM

Raymond

"Greetings, who are you....Prime Normals?" came a voice from inside the building.
"I'm Brian".

After Jonathon said his reply, they were were moved further into the building. Raymond heard the voices of others, whether regulators or prisoners, he couldn't tell.

You'll be separated, but after your "Talks" with our interrogator, you'll be shifted around." Their captor told them. "Now, lets get those bags off your heads."

Posted by: CMX Aug 27 2011, 04:58 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

It was early morning. The room looked exactly as I rented it last night; plain, and untouched. The chair I fell asleep on was about the only thing really adjusted for me, as my ruck was right by the chair, ready to move out. With a flip of the wrist, i unveiled my pipboy, as I checked the time.

"Oh...." I yawned "Its almost time to meet with the girl and her dog." He exclaimed. Adjusting my trusty m14, I never kept my rifle anywhere but slung around my neck and sling. I adjusted my gear, quickly and quietly breaking down my weapon while slung on me. I had a knack for being able to lube, clean, and ready my weapons for immediate use. Slapping the bolt back in place, I lubed the chamber.

Taking count of all my magazines, I made sure that each one was stocked up to 20 rounds. 'One....Two....' I counted in my head. Checking my Ka-Bar, and pistol, I placed the ruck on my back, and stepped off.

I was downstairs, as I passed the ghoul that was the bartender. Adjusting my face mask, and shades, I gave him a nod, as I rolled two hefty nuggets of gold across to him. "What the...." he mumbled, as I exited the saloon.

"Now" I said, looking into the light breeze of dirt and cool air "Where....Did that girl and her dog go?"

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 27 2011, 09:34 PM

Keara

Keara walked back towards Moriarty's; she had an hour to kill, after all. She found Mongoose standing outside, looking ready to go.

"Morning," she said, doing her best to sound cheery despite how awful she felt, "We're leaving in about an hour, if you're still in."

Posted by: CMX Aug 27 2011, 11:15 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

My whole body was in another world. The mask usually dispensed a nerve agent into my nostrils and lungs, helping me operate off the more animalistic senses. Adjusting the mask, then my shades; I was caught off guard as the girl flanked my peripherals.

I snapped to her with my whole body. With my rifle at the ready; I canted it to the side, I slapped the bolt forward and set it's safety to semi.

I could feel my self calming down. My attention brought me back to earth. A passive nod, and I came to her. That nostalgic feeling of being lost, being young. The girl was not much younger than i, but the chem use showed, as I smiled from under my mask, giving the young lady a nod.

OOC- ^.^ I just did 10 pushups with my 2 nieces and my lil nephew.

Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 29 2011, 02:12 AM

Damon Wyeth

The owner of Craterside Supply was nice enough, but Damon felt uneasy spending a minute longer than he had to in her store. He had 20 caps left, but plenty of 5.56mm and rations to last awhile. As he shut the door, Damon noticed the girl from last night with the masked man.

Both looked ready for expedition. Damon was about to call out to them when the masked man brought his rifle to bear on the girl. Instinctively, he drew the schofield and about to loaf of bread it before the man relaxed and aimed his rifle away. "The hell's wrong with you?" He shouted, advancing on them, schofield still at half loaf of bread. "Didn't anybody teach you not to play with rifles?"

OOC: I hate auto-censor. "half loaf of bread", really?

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 29 2011, 04:30 AM

OOC: haha, it took me a while to even figure out what it was you were actually trying to say.

Keara

She was wide-eyed, unexpectedly staring down the barrel of Mongoose's rifle. Her hand was on her pistol, but she knew that if Mongoose wanted to fire, she'd be dead before she could even get it off her hip. The moment was over as soon as it began, as Mongoose smiled and nodded.

"What the-" she tried to yell at him before she was cut off. The one-eyed man was on them, revolver at the ready. He seemed to be shouting at Mongoose for her.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," she said, holding her hands out to keep space between the two men, "Relax, everybody."

She still wasn't sure of Mongoose's intentions, or the one-eyed man's for that matter, but at least the newcomer appeared to be on her side. Nonetheless, once the situation calmed enough, she pushed Mongoose in the chest with both hands.

"What the hell was that?"

Posted by: CMX Aug 29 2011, 06:29 AM

Chris 'Mongoose'

The nerve agent was usually regulated through my pip-boy. Raising my now relaxed hand, I tried to show them the reasoning behind my sudden reflexes. I could never really talk right under my mask, as I kept my talking to a minimum to conserve my own energy.

Slowly, I tapped at my left hand with the right, showing them my pip-boy's screen saying; 'Wireless access. Sedative set@ 25% dispersion every 5 hrs. Speech will be impaired for first 15min of medication'

Adjusting my rifle, I flicked the m-14 to safe. I combed my dusty hair back, eying out the girl and her new companion.


Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 30 2011, 01:41 AM

Damon Wyeth

He eyed the man's pip-boy. Sedative for what? Damon wondered, turning the schofield's cylinder until the hammer rested on an empty chamber. Holstering the sidearm, he looked to the girl. "I miss anything exciting?"

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 30 2011, 10:58 PM

Keara

Keara couldn't believe her luck. The one-eyed man showed up again, just as they were about to leave, and she had one last chance to recruit another pair of hands.

"Actually, you did," she said, "You missed my job offer. You wouldn't be interested in some work would you?"

She hoped he would come along; the little incident with Mongoose made her a bit more wary of him than she had been before, and the newcomer seemed a bit more stable. What could she do though? She'd only known Mongoose for a few hours, and she was too desperate for help to turn anyone down.

I'll let them come along because I have no choice, but I can't let my guard down. There's a lot of scum in the wastes, waiting to take advantage.

The thought crossed her mind that she might be included in that scum, but it didn't matter; the survival of her and her friends did.

Posted by: Lord Revan Aug 31 2011, 12:15 AM

Damon Wyeth

"What did you have in mind?" He asked. I may be short on caps and need to get the hell out of dodge, but I'm not desperate... not yet anyway.

Damon's natural eye studied the girl. She looked strung out. Looks more like a favor than job offer.

Posted by: Dantrag Aug 31 2011, 05:12 AM

Keara

"It won't be easy, if that's what you mean. My crew was captured by some other mercs," Keara began, feeding him the same story she'd given Mongoose the night before, "I escaped, so it's up to me to get 'em out and I can't do it alone."

Somehow it didn't seem like she was offering much incentive, so she decided to bluff.

"As far as caps go, we have a stash hidden somewhere. It's the payment for our last two jobs, except what we had to use for supplies. The only problem is that my boss is the only one who knows where it is. She dies, we stay broke. We rescue her, we all get a cut. If you're in, meet me outside the gate in about an hour."

She eyed both the newcomer and Mongoose in turn, "I don't have a lot of time. I'll be leaving with or without you, got it?"

For now, she hoped the promise of caps would do the trick. For later, she knew that the story wouldn't hold forever. Eventually they would figure out that the 'other mercs' were Regulators, and that there was no stash. She decided to cross that bridge when she came to it.

I'm doing all I can, Laura. I only hope it's enough.

Posted by: CMX Aug 31 2011, 08:23 AM

Chris 'Mongoose'

It was awkward standing between these two converse. I decided to step back.

"So, yeah." drew from my mouth. I was suited, loaded, and ready to perform a 3 man operation.

"This...operation." I hissed of the built in mic, "It isnt some run of the mill job; Is it, missy?"

I felt calm. Relaxed, but still worried about the newcomer and lil ol' Keara. Lowering my rifle down, I gave them a hard stare.


Posted by: Dantrag Sep 3 2011, 05:02 AM

Keara

"It won't be easy, if that's what you mean," she replied, "I never meant to act like it was. I have to go back to where I last saw them, track them for God knows how long, get on with the rescue, and most importantly, get out alive."

"If we can pull it off, though, I promise my crew will make it worth your while."

She didn't like lying to them, but there was no other option. Keara learned a long time ago that favors were few and far between in the wasteland, she had to have something to offer them, imaginary or not. A year ago, she'd have no qualms about stringing men around on promises of non-existent caps; in fact, she'd done much worse. But here and now she felt...guilty?

Gotta be the withdrawal. I can't afford to go soft just yet. They'll figure it out sooner or later anyway. I'll just have to do my best to make it later.

Posted by: CMX Sep 3 2011, 05:29 PM

Chris 'Mongoose'

Wearing shades provided a good amount of protection from the elements, as well as being able to help me read people. A gust of wind blew by us, as I examined Keara. She seemed in discomfort to me, maybe even wanting or needing.

"What is the plan then?" I said. "What can you tell us about the situation?"

She left me always wondering about her. Young and lost, was what she seemed to me. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best is what i say.

Posted by: Ahrenil Sep 3 2011, 05:33 PM

((OOC:Sorry about that absence ladies and gents. Lifes fairly back to normal until I move in a weeks time so i'm gonna make the most of it))

Laura shook her hair loose as the bag was removed from her dead, ridding herself of at least part of the dirt and grime of the past day. The regulators were already relaxing, apart from their commander, which meant wherever they were the men felt secure. This probably meant they were deep in regulator territory, which didn't bode well for any escape attempts.

"You could have at least cleaned out the bags first" She complained, as she looked around at the rest of her company. The walk had been a quiet one, but they all seemed to be fine, apart from Alexei but that was to be expected. If he had died they would have dumped him on the journey so it was likely he was gonna pull through.

"Nice place you have here, could use a bit more lighting and a bit less ruin, and maybe some cushions!" Laura declared, failing to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. "I'm sure we'll all be treated fairly won't we. Because it would do awfully poorly if the news of any mistreatment at the hands of regulators got out. Especially with your wonderfully saintly repute."

Posted by: jack cloudy Sep 3 2011, 07:04 PM

OOC: No problem smile.gif

Jonathan Guntherson

The first thing he did upon being relieved from his unwanted head-cover and the equally unwanted cuffs, was to fill his lungs till they felt as if they were about to burst. He was no claustrophobic but walking over uneven ground all day with a filthy garbagebag over his head was definitely unpleasant. All he'd been able to see during the journey was vague shadows and the glare of the sun piercing the plastic.
"I wonder if everyone else is alright. I don't think anyone got left behind, the regulators would have said anything first. But still." He thought and just as he was about to open his mouth, he heard Laura's voice coming from off to his right. At least she was alright and going by her words, in high spirits. Turning his head, Jonathan saw her, trying to brush the dirt and grim from her hair. Beside her stood Raymond, also in one piece. The only one he didn't see was Alexei, but he'd overheard the order to take the ghoul somewhere else.

Jonathan looked around. His eyes were already used to the dark, but he still couldn't see too much. Wherever they were, the only light came from a pair of lamps mounted on the wall. The walls were a mixture of old cracked stone patched up with newer wood, but the floor was simply packed dirt. There were no windows as far as he could see. In all likelihood, they were beneath the ground in an ancient cellar.
"Nah, too big to be a cellar. Multiple rooms and corridors, alcoves in the walls. Don't know what this place used to be, but it definately isn't a cellar or storm shelter."

An unarmed regulator was invading Laura's space. He was unarmed but everything in his attitude screamed "I'm in charge here". Jonathan rolled his eyes.
"Ah right, the posturing begins. Can I be placed in a cell already?" He mumbled, shaking his head. Someone forcibly removed his coat and another pair of hands were fumbling with the clasp of his toolbelt. The two regulators didn't speak a word, but simply tossed the two items in one of the alcoves.
"Are you going to take my boots and underpants as well? It's damned cold and wet in here you know!" The mechanic complained. The two nameless regulators grinned.
"You can keep those, for now. We don't want you lot to get too uncomfortable here. That might make the interrogation 'less effective'. Besides, no one wants to see your wrinkly boat." One said and both laughed.
"Right...that's subtle guys, very subtle." Again Jonathan shook his head.

"So no tools, no guns and no labcoat. At least I still got my glasses and..." Jonathan bit down on his tongue to keep from grinning himself. In one of his arguably less sane and more drunken moments, he had inserted a variety of objects into the soles of his boots. From paperclips to the head of a small screwdriver, his footwear had become a tiny and rather limited toolbelt themselves. He had regretted it in the past but had never replaced his boots since. Now he was glad he'd done it. He had the feeling they wanted to keep their stay here as short as possible.
"Though I have no idea what any of my stuff would be useful for. I'll just have to hope a situation presents itself where I can make myself useful."

OOC: I don't know if you guys want Laura and co to have an active role in the breakout themselves, so I deus ex machina'd some tools just in case.

Posted by: Dantrag Sep 5 2011, 06:48 AM

Keara

"That's a damn good question," she answered, being honest for once, "I don't know where they've been taken, or even if they're still alive. I'd like to do it quick and quiet, but I really don't have enough to go on just yet."

"For know, we need to get on the trail. Lucky here's got a good nose and I know exactly where to start. Once we have some clues, I think a plan will come."


Posted by: Lord Revan Sep 15 2011, 01:07 AM

Damon Wyeth

"Not much to go on." Damon muttered, rolling his shoulders to relieve the biting straps on his shoulders. He liked to trust people and the girl seemed concerned enough for her story to be true. It's not as though I'm not on the end of my tether either.

"But I'm a might unwelcome around this place at the moment." He said, offering the girl his hand. "Call me Wyeth, sounds like we've got some hiking to do."

Posted by: Dantrag Sep 15 2011, 08:03 AM

Keara

"I know the feeling; I'm unwelcome about everywhere," she said, only half joking. She shook Wyeth's hand when he offered it, doing her best to keep her own from shaking.

"Keara's my name," she said, looking straight into his good eye, wondering if it was the same one that had been uncovered the night before, "My hairy friend is Lucky, and this guy calls himself Mongoose."

"If you guys can get along for a few minutes, I'm gonna go pick up some supplies and I'll meet you outside the gate later."

Posted by: grif11 Sep 15 2011, 10:35 PM

"Get some rest. The boss wants to see you tomorow, so you better get some beauty sleep." Their captor joked, pushing raymond into his cell. Across from him was Jonathon, while Laura was taken down a different corridor, and Alexei was most likely in the medical room.

"Of course, don't get too attached to your cell, we'll make sure you get moved after your 'interrogations'" The regulator said, before returning the way he'd came, leaving Raymond and Jonathon alone.

Posted by: jack cloudy Sep 16 2011, 10:02 AM

Jonathan Guntherson

"Of course, don't get too attached to your cell, we'll make sure you get moved after your 'interrogations'" The jailor said over his shoulder as he vanished back in the direction of the entrance, leaving Jonathan and Raymond alone. With a sigh, Jonathan sat down on the cold floor close to the bars. In the gloom, he could barely see gramps in the opposite cell.

"So they're moving us...Guess that means we won't get the time to dig a tunnel out of here with our toenails. Anyway, how are you holding up, Raymond? Got any idea where we are?" While talking, Jonathan felt the bars till he found the door he'd been shoved through. The cell didn't look like the most luxurious and well-maintained affair so just maybe...No, the hinges might be a bit rusty but were more than sturdy enough to resist his feeble muscles. As for the lock, he'd already given up on that idea. Picking locks wasn't his thing and while he could learn, he was more likely to cause an irreparable jam than open it. Especially if he couldn't see the damn thing.


Posted by: Dantrag Sep 16 2011, 02:31 PM

Keara

Keara turned to leave, snapping at Lucky so he would follow. She made her way towards the town gate, and waited outside for Leo to show. It wasn't long before he came strolling out. The dealer thrust two inhalers into her hand.

"There's two only because I owe you for last time," he said bluntly, "Don't expect any more favors."

Keara nodded gratefully, knowing that she would need it to get through the next few days. When Leo walked away, she took a small lungful of air; only enough to take the edge off of the harsh reality of withdrawal. She was going to have to ration, and she knew it. Feeling a bit better, she took a seat on a nearby rock and waited for the others to show. It was almost time.

Posted by: grif11 Sep 16 2011, 11:13 PM

"I'm fine" Raymond grunted to his teamate. "I've been captured before. At least here I haven't been crucified. Let me tell you, that wasn't fun."

Raymond could only just make out the outline of his partner. From what he could make out, Jonathon was sitting near the bars. Raymond sat against the wall beside the bars and asked "How do you think Keara's doing. Do you think she made it to Megaton?"

Posted by: jack cloudy Sep 17 2011, 09:49 AM

Jonathan Gunterson

"Ouch...that sounds bad. How did you g..." Jonathan began but Raymond had already shifted the subject to Keara. It didn't matter anyhow. Whatever means the old man had employed to free himself, they likely wouldn't apply to their current situation. Best thing they could do was either wait for Keara to come haul them out, or try and get in contact with the rest of the company and come up with a plan.

"Keara?" Jonathan repeated for himself and shifted into a more comfortable position.
"The lass was the first to bolt, along with her little companion. And we tied up most of the regulators with our diversion. Come to think of it, I don't remember being joined by some regulators that split off from the main group and they seemed rather happy about themselves. I guess they either didn't notice our girl or didn't care." He shrugged.
"So as long as she doesn't get herself eaten by an overgrown lizard or something, she'll make it. The bigger question is if she can get enough guns to bail us out."

Jonathan glanced at the direction the jailor had vanished. The man was out of sight and there were no footsteps to indicate his imminent return. So the mechanic leaned closer to the bars and whispered, hoping Raymond could still hear what he was saying.
"And I was just thinking. There has to be a way to get back in touch with Laura and Alexei and figure out an alternative escape route. Just in case Keara doesn't get here soon with the cavalry. I don't want to stay here till I die and all but to just try to get out on our own isn't what I want either."

Posted by: Ahrenil Sep 17 2011, 03:13 PM

Laura was unceremoniously pushed into her cell, the door swinging shut behind her with a clang, the lock closing with a satisfying crunch of rusted metal on slightly more rusted metal. The prison didn't look like it had seen much use, or if it had the prisoners did not stay here long. Her jailor had already left without a word, and Laura was on her own.

She smiled to herself, an oversight on the jailors part. He must've been used to raiders and scared farm boys, not proper mercs. First thing Laura did was measure her cell in strides, it wasn't roomy, but the area hadn't been built to hold people in, likely an old cellar, which gave her enough room to breathe in. The walls were old, but sturdy, same as every other building that had survived the war. While the age was showing in the flaking mortar, they were thick and strong, not something that would be easy to bust through without some help.

Finally Laura checked the floor around her, it was damp in places, speaking of either busted piping somewhere or it had been recently cleaned. It felt solid, no chance of an underground room to break into to escape through. All in all the room was fairly sufficient to hold her, especially without her tools. That meant she'd have to talk her way out or hope one of the others managed to find a way out of their respective cells. Raymond and Jonathon were together which was good, the two always worked well, Raymond having the patience to let Jonathon bounce ideas off him. Alexei was likely out in the medical room, or restrained in some way. He wouldn't be stupid enough to try and break out of the med bay, as his size likely meant he was under heavy watch.

That lef Keara, the girl had got away or the Regulators would have mentioned it. But it was whether the girl would cut her losses and run, or whether she'd come back for them. Laura hoped for the latter, but the girl was skittish and the meds she used could make her unpredictable. Laura sighed, for now there was nothing she could do except make the most of her time, and decline her captors some of the advantages they'd hope to gain. She started with her stretches, interrogation technique hoped for her to be tired, in pain from not having room to move and anxious with pent up energy, best to solve those now incase they dragged them out of bed in the middle of the night.

Posted by: Dantrag Sep 18 2011, 05:33 PM

Keara

It was the waiting that bothered her. Keara was never good at waiting, only good at acting. Acting only required instinct, while waiting always brought about thinking. The more she waited, the more she thought, and the more she thought about her current situation, the more anxious and fearful she became. She was about to trek across the wastes with two complete strangers, one of whom had already leveled a gun barrel in her face. Who was to say that they wouldn't rob and kill her in her sleep, or worse turn her in to the Regulators? Especially after they learned that she'd lied to them.

Why was she even going back for Laura and the others? The thought left a guilty feeling in her gut, but it couldn't be ignored. She thought back on her time with the Company, remembering the looks they gave her, wondering why she still hung around even after paying her debts to them. She remembered Raymond's scope on her every time she went scouting, and always living under Laura's watchful eye, trying time and time again to be accepted. And had she been? Would any of them; Raymond, Jonathan, Alexei, or even Laura honestly call her friend? It was a question she couldn't answer. She had good memories with each of them, to be sure, but for the most part there had always a distance between her and the rest of the crew, a lingering mistrust that she'd never been able to shake.

I wouldn't trust me either, I guess. she finally admitted to herself, I've only ever been good at lying and stealing.

So she decided to make good on her promise to them, be something other than a junkie for once, and finally leave them be afterward. Assuming she avoided death at the hands of Regulators or her new traveling companions, of course.

Posted by: CMX Sep 19 2011, 03:15 AM

Chris 'Mongoose

Like a snake in tall grass, I closed in on Keara using the small crowds of megaton residents as cover. From the way she shifted around on the rock she was sitting on, I could only assume that something was weighing down on her mind, or that she was on jet again.

I took a knee a few feet behind her, as I beconed her dog to me with a peice of canned jerky. 'Psst! Come here, lucky!' I whispered.

I truly hoped that the dog would accept my friendly gesture. I haven't had a moment to stop and enjoy the minute things we have left to admire on this planet. And there I go, lost in thought.

OOC: sorry for the lack of participation. Been on the search for writing inspiration.

Posted by: Uleni Athram Sep 19 2011, 02:24 PM


OOC: *You see a note taped to your nose. Confused at this sudden sight, you read it.*

Gone to take some of the escaped Liberty. In other words, this post would probably ruin the whole RP, leaving you guys/gals/IDKs to plot my demise and actually do it out of the burning hatred for the guy that killed your darling little RP. Ha! tongue.gif -U.A


Alexei


A lamp flickering in a rotting shack. Some bloatflies buzzing outside, hungering for some meat that they would die to have. Two males ignoring the music of the swarm. One large teenaged boy with puppy blue eyes and lightbrown hair watching with gusto as the older man cleaned a rather heavy-looking gun and maintained its integrity. The old gray man had the hard lines of age on his face, and harder knowledge on his marble-black eyes. He had a duster the teenager so adored. Silence. Silence, except for the dirty rag that worshipped the RPD. Silence, except for the dirty rag cleaning the sharp bullets. Silence.

The rotting shack, housing the dying lamp and the males, groaned and shuddered as somewhere in the distance an explosion erupted. The shockwave of it went through the cracks of the poor shelter, and the lamp flickered near extinction. Silence, after that. Except for the dirty rag that cleaned the RPD.

The older man looked strangely at the boy, as if the teenager was an impatient little brat looking to rest. He stopped his cleaning and carefully leant his RPD against the chair on which he seats. The brown-haired freckle-faced teenager looks at the man with sudden confusion.

"Alexandr," the man said his gruff, yet affectionate, voice. "Alexandr, why?"

Alexandr looks at the man, staring at him with those puppy blue eyes. With those puppy blue eyes, he asked for a silent explanation. The Regulator catches this invinsible question and he sighed a terrible sigh that would make one's heart melt. It was a terrible sound of extreme sorrow and, oddly, recognition of something that should not be recognized.

"Shall I have to spell it out for you," the Regulator asked when he finally accepted whatever it was that was intruding on his heart. "No matter. Perhaps this would help you understand."

He made a motion of wiping his face and Alexandr screamed a soundless scream. The Regulator's temple deflated an inch, and his face became pain itself. This mangled mesh of flesh and bone gave way to a fountain of blood that dripped from every hole in the regulator's head. His right eye hanged from his bloody socket. His duster became a torned-up dress fit for lowly scavengers. He had no fingers and his feet faced the wrong way.

The old man reached out for Alexandr, but the boy wrenched himself away. In doing so, he fell from his chair and landed on .. nothing. Direction became nil. The shack vanished out of nowhere. And so did everything. The world became dark, and only the lamp gave light. And the lamp is flickering dangerously.

"You are dying, Alexandr. Dying."

A voice from the darkness and the teenager screamed and shrieked, as an unthinkable pain spread throughout his body. Its source was from his belly. The boy frantically took his dirty shirt off and became whiter than the imaginary snow he always heard from his parents. A large wound on his belly, spilling out blood in alarming quantities like it was poison from the devil itself. He tried to stem the bleeding but found out he could not move a muscle.


"You are still a boy and you are dying." Flashes like thunder erupted suddenly and Alexandr's surroundings became blinding white, whiter than the imaginary snow he always heard from his parents. Then his mind became blank with fear as HUNDREDS of people, people he did not know, surrounded him from all directions.

They were bloodied in many gruesome ways, and on their hands were lamps. Long, extinguished lamps. Each of it bearing a flame-shaped window that leads to nothingness. At the center of this horde, was the Regulator.

He, too, had a lamp. A dead lamp. Pain and fear, pain and fear. These were the only things Alexandr's blank mind registered. His puppy blue eyes widening as the Regulator, his surrogate father, once more reached out to him with a fingerless hand.


"Live, boy." He said. And he guided Alexandr's towards the flickering lamp, the only lamp that still has its fire, and clenched the boy's fingers on it.

"Live, boy." Someone in the horde said. Another one said the exact thing. Until all of them were like the earlier bloatflies, buzzing for something they desired. The repetitive sound drove Alexandr nearly insane and he did what he thought would silence them:

He threw his lamp at this horde of the dead.

It landed on someone.

And lit him on fire.

And it spread to the woman beside him.

Until it consumed everything and everyone.


"Live, boy," said Alexei's mentor before being engulfed by the omnipresent flame.

--------------------------------------------------------

With a grunt, Alexei dragged himself harshly from dream to reality and woke up. The first thing he could register in his mind was that an impenetrable light hovered over him, two blurry shapes of what he thought to be men doing something he could not see. He closed his eyes for a minute and opened them when he got used to the light.

With clear vision, he could observe two men needling up his wound, occasionally muttering about the smell. Alexei knew better than to struggle like an animal the minute he was able, so he opted for the subtler choice. He flexed his hands to see if it could move, and just as he expected, it did not.

He looked at his surroundings and found himself strapped on an operating table in a dirty, yet organized, room. With various medical thingamajigs, Alexei supposed this was some kind of medical bay. And then memories came flooding like an avalanche. The contract, the recon of the settlement, the gunfight...

He muttered a pathetic 'No' and just like that, the two doctors looked at him sharply and backed away as if he was a Deathclaw. One man rang a bell and three men came rushing in, armed to the teeth and wary, followed by a blonde man with an appearance anybody would begin to detest, even though it rivaled Apollo itself. He had an evil sneer painted on his face, and Alexei felt the urge to punch it off.

"So," the blonde Lucifer said while motioning for the doctors to 'get-the-hell-out'. "The giant finally awakens and with it, the risk of everybody's death at your hands."

He took out a pack of smokes and ignited one, taking a long drag and trapping the smoke in his mouth for a minute before blowing it out on Alexei's direction. The ghoul silently snarled, the Apollo snarked a laugh. He leaned in closer to look into Alexei's eyes, his nose scrunching up a bit at the scent of ghoul flesh.

"Your company of rabble-rousers made my day WORSE than it already was. I am going to make sure you lot pay for it." Alexei said nothing, only curling his lip in disgust. Avery Nichols raised his eyebrows at this expression of defiance and disposed his cigarette on Alexei's cheek.

The ghoul saw red, but he did not scream. The wound sizzled up smoke.

"You're one tough nut, and I will enjoy breaking you."

He pistoned his right fist at the giant's jaw, and Alexei blacked out.





When he woke up again, Alexei found out he was being dragged by two burly men to God-knows-where. He resisted once, and that earned him a wack on the head that very nearly made him unconscious for the third time. He let them drag him to where they were headed, which was the prison, judging by the cells they passed. One particulary cell contained two men that resembled Grandfather Raymond and Jonathan, but with his blurry vision and the inky darkness, it was hard to tell.

Minutes passed by and finally, they deposited the giant in another cell unceremoniously. He landed on his stomach, and he stayed that way. He was frozen by shame and self-hate. He knows Lara is with him on this dank prison, and it made the emotion raging inside Alexei's chest worst.

He could not meet her eyes. Out of a sense of failure, he just can't.

After all, his gut told him he was the reason of why the Company was captured in the first place. And Alexei? Alexei believed his gut 200%.

Posted by: Lord Revan Sep 19 2011, 11:10 PM

Damon Wyeth

The former SRB agent stared out at the Capital Wasteland, his back propped up against his rucksack, legs splayed before him. Damon checked the calender on his Pipboy, 3 years, 5 monthes, and 8 days since he'd left the Commonwealth. Three years in the cesspit that once was the capital of a super power. Then, Damon fiddled with one of the M16 magazines, once again consumed by the rut his life had plunged into.

He was dirt poor, yet again. All his remaining caps could be held in one hand. The Capital Wasteland seemed dead set on eating him alive, picking at him with every passing year. Damon turned his head back toward Megaton's main gate. The girl, Keara, sat on rock nearby. Damon's implant picked her out in sharp relief, her eyes dull of uncertainty. Deep in his gut, Damon figured this whole situation would end with a molerat burrowing its ugly snout into his corpse. But Keara seemed to be genuinely concerned about her compatriots. That was reason enough to aid her. Course, I've been a dead man walking since I rode in here. Might as well go out doing something right.

Damon hauled himself up and slung his pack over his shoulders, resolve replacing his resignation.

Posted by: Dantrag Sep 20 2011, 01:42 PM

Keara

Keara had her rifle on her lap, and was engrossed in using her switchblade to awkwardly tighten some screws. The gun was operable and still dangerous to an enemy, but its functionality was decaying rapidly and Jonathan wasn't around to help. The cells had become increasingly difficult to load, and hitting it really hard just to shove one in wasn't going to cut it for long. Her plasma pistol was more reliable, but she only had a handful of shots left in it.

"Damnit!" she exclaimed, after her knife slipped trying to tighten a particularly stubborn, rusted screw. She was holding her bleeding finger in her mouth when she heard someone behind her. She turned to see Lucky happily eating jerky from Mongoose's hand.

"Looks like we're all here," she said, giving up on the screw and slinging her rifle over her shoulder as Wyeth approached.

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