Degradation

[KnightVanilla]

After leaving to head to the shops one after the other left with disappointing results as he could not find the said guns he had been looking for until he found 'Get Some'. After inquiring his list to the shop owner he decided to pear at the other goods. What was weird was that mix of image with praticallity. Something that would rarely seem fit if you were trying to be a killer and look good while doing it. After hearing the shop owner come back he hurried over to the desk only to find to his disappointment that the prices were way above his pay grade. If only he had that reward money or that job he would have these guns.

As the list went on the only one he found that would probably be productive was to buy the army revolver. Buying an additional rounds for the bullets spending an extra forty to be well supplied for this job. Arriving home to what he assumed was Azalea and Aziz in a sparring match he took time to look over his technique. A non lethal way of fighting was something quite rare. Though Non-lethal was another respect that Rein had for either weapons or hand to hand styles. Approaching Aziz with a hand shake Rein introduced himself however he had one question he was curious of if he had to work with someone else. "What's in this for you?" A motive defines a persons train of throught to achieve something. With the way he moved and spoke he wasn't sure if he would be a liability or an asset. "Just feel as though I should know. I trust Benny's judgement, but if you have a personal stake in this I feel I should know before anything drastic happens."

[Nobudi]

Oz was curious.
Was there someone that Lily was seeing?
Probably. As her brother, if she was indeed seeing someone, he was practically entitled to threaten them with agony if they hurt her.
Entitled, so he would not be denied, damnit!
As for Mort's job, he may as well just take the job, just so that Lily wouldn't have to complain for the next while.
The pay would definitely be welcome this time around, he thought to himself as he decrypted a new entry of the notebook.
... Interesting.
He filed this entry in his head under "Things to look into later on", right after checking up on Lily and taking Dickwad's job.

[Reaver]

Wyviera nodded as Regus confirmed that she and Janette would be leaving tomorrow. That would be plenty of time to prepare as well as familiarize herself with the girl enough to find the best way to keep her out of trouble. She followed Regus down to the training floor, listening carefully as he explained Janette's history. After hearing it Wyviera wasn't surprised that the girl acted the way she did. She did grin as the mystery of the naked invasion day was solved, the whole fiasco had been rather enjoyable since it allowed her some time to herself once she figured out she was locked in the room naked. "Well I gotta say, if she's that adept with electronics then I don't mind a little mischievousness. I could use her resourcefulness and creativity, but I don't want to see her hurt because of disobedience." She felt a mother talking about a child, which was weird because that was the last thing she wanted in the world. Wyviera scowled at the idea of having a kid as she reached to open the door, only to have it open on its own.

The markswoman simply raised an eyebrow and folded her arms as Janette simply tried walking past them, basically in her underwear and playing what she could assume was entertainment. Fortunately it seemed that Regus had had enough and before Wyviera could react, the old man snatched her device from her. Janette continued to stare at her but Wyviera knew she wasn't really paying attention. She waved the device infront of the hacker before slowly sliding it into one of her pockets.

"Janette.... I'm here to protect you during the mission. My name is Wyviera Mars but you can just call me Mars. I'll be acting as your personal bodyguard would appreciate you following my orders and rules as I say them. That way we can both live a little longer." She hesitated and ran a hand through her hair, unused to talking to kids. "Once we get to the caravan I'll give your toy back, until then we have some prepping to do." She gave a small smile and looked at Regus, hoping she had said the right thing.

[Grape_Drink]

((I haven't had a chance to edit this too much, so the grammar/structure might be a little rough))

Raiders have staked out a claim to Northern Shield Heights according to local radio stations.

Ciera

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Rolll; Stealth- 8

With a small click, the employee door unlocks and opens up with a small buzz announcing its opening. Unfortunately activating the decontamination suite doesn't seem to do anything noticeable. Oh wait, there's one of those mini cleanbots and it's... Leaving a trail of grime where it cleans making it even more dirty.

The computer doesn't seem to have any files, corrupted nor working, that even relate to the protocols. Eventually out of curiosity you browse through the phone as you find an old audio recording called "remember" on it.

-Begin Audio Recording-

"Hah, I can't believe I got the job! Alright, alright, focus... Remember. Protocol 77 is the non-lethal anti-terrorism suite. I can't believe a materials manufacturing company has advanced systems like that... What are they really developing? Anyways, Protocol 56 unlocks all inner-"

"Miss Felicity, what are you doing over there?"

[Ruffling noises]

"Huh? Oh, nothing sir!"

-End Audio Recording-

Well, that wasn't particularly useful. What did she mean by anti-terrorism suite?

In any case, it seems you'll have to go looking for a badge or those authorization codes... Maybe a security office? There's probably one around here somewhere considering how big the factory looked from the outside. Screwing around with the computer one last time, you manage to pull up a partially corrupted blueprint of the area.

North goes to factory floor, south goes outside, west elevator, east employee's only

((GM Note: Going to make some assumptions about her continuing on here, ignore this part if you were going to have her take the elevator.))

With not much else to do at the reception desk, you decide to explore the doors you unlocked earlier. Entering through them, you peer into the distance at the sound of some noise or another. Death metal plays through the speakers of what can only be described as a trashcan on wheels as it squeaks about. You think you recall somewhere that janitor staff used to reprogram various robots to play songs during their night shifts... As it turns, you duck into the nearby employee locker room hoping that it didn't see you. The robot continues along its way as it approaches the door you just unlocked and slams it with a click.

"All employees are reminded that leaving private area doors unlocked is against company policy."

You let out a small sigh of relief as it begins to pass by you when suddenly the death metal playing through its speakers stops and it slowly turns towards the locker room, its two little blue eyes now glowing yellow.

"Movement detected. Securedrone 04 inves... ves... ves... *BZRRT* Investigating. No signal from other secure drones. Preparing alternate security protocol. Please prepare to present employee I.D. for verification. Intruders will be reported to the local auth... Auth... *BZZZT* Authority."

If there's one thing you can thank your ancestors for, it's that they refused to hand non-government security robots ridiculous weaponry lasers and assault weapons. On the other hand, you think you recall encountering one of these things before at a storefront (though you couldn't remember what they were called at the time), and you do believe they have a tazer hidden somewhere in their compartments for noncompliance.

Viktor (Thirsty)

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Viktor Shoots at Dog: Miss!
Viktor changes target priorities!
Viktor shoots at Dog: Critical Hit!
Dog takes 16 damage! (-8/8 HP)
Dog has been killed!
Officer 1 shoots at Dog: Miss!
Officer 2 takes 3 damage friendly fire! (7/12 HP remaining)
Officer 2 shoots at Dog: Hit!
Dog takes 9 damage! (-1/8 HP)
Dog has been killed!
Officer 3 shoots at Dog: Hit!
Dog takes 7 damage! (1/8 HP)
Officer 4 shoots at Dog: Hit!
Dog takes 6 damage! (-5/8 HP)
Officer 5 shoots at Dog: Miss!
Loyalist Guard 1 shoots at Officer 2: Hit!
Officer 2 takes 9 damage! (-2/12 HP)
Loyalist Guard 2 shoots at Officer 1: Critical Hit!
Officer 1 takes 20 damage! (-8/10 HP, Catatonic)
Viktor Slashes Loyalist Guard 2: Hit!
Loyalist Guard takes 3 Damage! (5/10 HP)
Loyalist Guard Armor takes 1 damage! (3/12 HP)
Mr. Fuzzy double blasts Loyalist Guard 1: Hit!
Loyalist Guard 1 takes 23 Damage! (-11/12 HP)
Viktor attacks Loyalist Guard: Hit!
Loyalist Guard takes 12 Damage! (-7/12 HP, Catatonic)

You barely have time to shout bomb as your officers understand your meaning, turning their fire away from the guards and shooting at the dogs. Three of the six drop like flies under the barrage of bullets as the caravan slides and crashes into a nearby building. As the tarp goes flying off and the metal sheet underneath is ripped off by those within to use as a shield while they run from the bulletstorm, your men become well aware of the packed up fertilizer and the purpose it serves.

Chaos ensues as any and all begin running from the town at breakneck speeds, not wanting to be anywhere near the explosion nor even caring if they're being shot at or not. The dogs pulling the caravan are set loose as they try to bring down soldiers, unaware of the impending explosion that everyone's running from.

The sudden barrage of fire hits the vitals of some of your officers as you rip forth your Karambit to engage the two Loyalist guards remaining. It is only now that you note a hair-covered man wearing a suit and holding a cane walking up behind one of the loyalist guards.

What the hell is he doing here!?

You don't have time to contemplate this as you rush towards the closest guard, slashing across his gut. He tries to aim his pistol at you, but a second slash across his throat is too fast for him as organs and blood spill forth. He'll be dead within seconds... Meanwhile turning to look, you note Henry tap the other Loyalist guard on the shoulder, leveling the cane at his face.

"Sorry, good sir, but I'm afraid you're being terminated for failure to uphold procedure..."

The end opens up and two slugs destroy any remnants of a head as Henry lightly pushes the body over, wiping a bit of blood off of his hat. Henry of the council of eyes, head of internal affairs and a bit of an eccentric. Of all the people to show up right now as reinforcements, he's probably one of the last ones you'd like to see.

"tisk, tisk. Such a mess these traitors make. I'll have to ask Ms. Erin to design something a bit more blood-proof in the future... Ah, Mr. Dchevsky! If I may suggest you're looking fine this afternoon."

Checking his pocket-watch, the head of Internal Affairs begins to shake his head.

"No, no. This won't do at all. Ahm, Mr. Dchevsky, I do advise you duck for cover if you value owning a face, my boy. The same goes for your men... Tally-ho!"

Without warning he pushes into you as the both of you go toppling down a snowy slope, landing with a thud at the bottom as your remaining officers follow shortly behind. You watch as Fuzzy puts a set of earplugs in his ears and plugs your own as a bright flash goes off overhead followed by a rush of fire and air from the shock wave. Multiple pieces of partially-incinerated wooden and metal debris go flying past you including a burning dog corpse as he finally unplugs them, a ringing still there from the loud noise.

"Hmm, the location was a bit off. Ten meters closer and this might not have been accurate cover.. Good news Mr. Dchevsky! It's very plausible that you'll only have a 20% casualty rate instead of 40%! Oh yes, that will be very good news since I do believe I spotted some enemy reinforcements on my way in. Ooooohh, that Gerome. He had real potential too. A shame you'll have to kill him." He proceeds to load his cane-shotgun with two fresh lead slugs, wiping his glasses on his shirt to clean them off. You think you've managed to piece together what happened for the most part... Internal Affairs caught wind of this Gerome fellow that was assigned, and Henry must have gone out to oversee what would happen.

Blaire (Exhausted, Dehydrated, Caffeinated)

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Cardio- 19 + 2 + 2(bonus)

Your mind goes into flight mode as you take off towards the highway at breakneck speed, sprinting as fast as you can with a swarm of rampaging bunnies right on your tail! Luckily, humans have the advantage of being able to run for hours at a time while bunnies tend to have faster metabolisms making them get tired more quickly. You watch as they slowly begin to lose pace, and finally turn their attention on a group of raiders you ran past without a care in the world. Your brain still in flight mode though doesn't seem to register this fact as you continue to jog down the highway, not letting up as you pop some caffeine pills for energy and sip on some water, munching on some dried game. A number of raiders try to stop you along the way, but you're far too quick for them as they give up their chase.

It seems your constant jog kept you fast enough to make it to Shield Heights in a single day, but at what price? Your throat is horribly dry and your whole body feels like it's on fire as you choke for air, finally calming down and collapsing against a building wall. You seem to be in the residential part of the city as you look around and note a sign saying "Welcome to Shield Heights!" Digging through your backpack, you find your game is still in edible condition if prepared. One of the few benefits of radioactivity is the lack of decomposing bacteria... You think you hear a series of explosions in the far distance near the center of the city, but you aren't completely sure. It is early dusk...

You are now Exhausted. You take a -6 to Fitness and Endurance
You are now Mildly Dehydrated. You take a -2 to Endurance

Silvus

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Luck- 5 + 1 = 6

• Wrist-based Geiger Counter was obtained!
• First Aid Kit was obtained! (Chlorellaide-soaked bandages, needle/thread, 2 KI Tablets)

Checking the medical kit, you find a number of soaked bandages, stitches, and two Potassium Iodide tablets as well as a Geiger counter wrist device ((GM Note: assuming she's going to equip it)).

You begin to make your way down the dimly lit hallway towards the head researcher's office. You think you remember them keeping the records and video recordings in there, so it's probably your best guess right about now. Plus maybe you can shut off that blaring alarm... Everything is rather quiet, well aside from that ticking. Where is that ticking coming from- Oh...

You look down and notice your Geiger counter getting a little spaztastic. Looking for a source, you note that your shoes are getting a bit wet. Great. It seems there's a leak somewhere and the radiation filter is busted... Regardless, you need to continue along. You pick up the pace as the dull ache from the explosion earlier grows distant in your mind. You have an objective, and you know what you need to do to complete it. Failure right now is definitely not an option...

Alright, just around this corner and-

You stop as you turn around the corner. A scrawny man completely naked, and carrying a scalpel stands before you. You think he has microcephaly at first, but closer inspection in the dim red light changes that thought process completely. He seems to be about seven feet tall, extremely lanky, and you can see his rib cage through his thin, almost translucent blue-grey skin as he bends slightly in the hallway just to fit properly. This... Thing is directly in the way of entering the head researcher's office... It turns ever so slightly towards you as it speaks with a lisp, spittle trailing from its mouth as it talks.

"Feastes...?

It sniffs the air like a predator picking up the smell of cooked meat before staring at you once more. Its eyes light up with a grin as he dances from foot to foot.

Feastes...!

And suddenly begins to charge towards you!

You are now fighting a scrawny, starved mutant (5/5 HP)

Rein (Thirsty)

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

((Pardon the long post, figured I'd try to condense it all into one post))

"Just feel as though I should know. I trust Benny's judgement, but if you have a personal stake in this I feel I should know before anything drastic happens."

Azizz quirks a brow, looking to Benny for a moment who simply shrugs, before smiling with a grin.

"Observant indeed, my friend. My... Stake, is that I'd like to test the mettle of the future head of security, and see how they're doing after all of this. Benny's told me quite a bit about you, Rein, and asked me to keep you safe on this mission. Not to mention Jenny owes me a huge debt, and I'd like to see it paid in full."

Unfortunately he seems to be a bit less than talkative. Benny reassures you that Azizz is trustworthy, but at the same time something about how he said "after all of this" feels like there's more implied than meets the eye.

The rest of the evening is pretty calm. Benny has never been the most enthusiastic sort, but he prepares a decent enough "going away" party with Azalea's help.

The next morning is a bit more nerve-wracking... A slaver report has gone out to those heading out that not only was Estrada's gang spotted along the highway up near Shield Heights, but that they had sustained some hefty damage as well. It's easy to believe that they're lying, but pictures of a legless Estrada with blood-soaked bandages around her legs, and similar carnage in the surrounding area doesn't lie... Mr. Hugo himself is sending out a small chunk of his forces to ensure that whatever happens, the worst case scenario is a dead Drone Girl. A few dozen motorcycles are lined up at the exit of the upper city as Azizz himself brings about an old clunker with a mini-trailer attached to the back. The large gate blocking the upper city from the lower city opens as guards take a few pot shots at mutants and the like along the road, signaling the rising sun. When the large metal gate finally finishes lowering with a thud, the roaring of various gas-air and gas-electric hybrid vehicles can be heard as they take off. The vehicles themselves must have cost a small fortune, let alone the fuel source.

However, Azizz seems to be taking his sweet time as he checks the motorcycle's fuel and parts. It's almost annoying that he's taking so long as he instructs you to hop on. The other folks already have a ten minute head start. What game is he playing at!?

Finally though, he starts up the small vehicle as it sputters and whirs before turning on. You're surprised it even starts as he begins travelling down the road and away from Thorn Tower, passing by various landscapes. Your hands begin to become cold in the mountain air blowing past you.

Even with the delayed start, you're still thankful for the motorcycle. What would have normally been a three day hike suddenly becomes about two and a half hours of weaving in and out of debris along the road. The mini-trailer attached to the motorcycle is almost comically too big compared to your vehicle, and you know you could probably go faster without it, but by now you've managed to catch up to the other slavers and hired bounty hunters. Questions of what could be so important to bring it along aren't worth it for now.

One of the hunters at the front shouts that he can see Jenny's camp up ahead as various folks begin to pull out weapons. You expect Azizz to continue to follow the road, but he suddenly takes a turn onto the exit ramp. What is this guy's problem!? You were at the back of the group, there was no way in hell you were going to get shot at, and Jenny's friends are sitting ducks right now!

Taking the side road, he refuses to slow down for you to get off.

"Wait for it" he keeps repeating as you continue along for a few minutes. Coming up to the top of a parking garage, you can see the other bounty hunters down below as the sounds of bullets flying fill the air. Without warning, explosives begin to go off along the highway where the hunters had just been moments before. Military grade, nothing like the home made ones you've made and seen in the past... A whoosh of air rushes past you from the shock wave as limbs go flying and folks begin to drop like moths to a bug zapper. What you can only guess to be a "cleanup crew" moseys down from their hiding spot near the camp, blowing the brains out of those few hunters remaining. Did Azizz just save your li- No. He didn't just save your life. He knew that this was going to happen! A member of the cleanup crew down below lifts up one of the less maimed or dead hunters by the collar as she tucks a letter into the man's vest, before proceeding to kick him towards a vehicle and pointing back towards Thorn Tower. Wait a second, that's not a member of the cleanup crew, that's Estrada herself! But the picture showed-

"Like I said. Jenny owes me a pretty big debt, and Benny didn't want you going and getting yourself killed... Shall we go meet our-"

He can't even finish his sentence as a group of what you assume to be well-armed bandits come out of hiding, pointing rifles and other weapons at you!

"Woah, woah, woah! Pot guts! Pot guts!"

The bandits begin to lower their weapons as one of them steps forward, a friend of Azizz's from the looks of it as the two exchange a firm handshake.

"Been a while, Azizz. I didn't expect you to bring anyone else around, heh. Who's this guy?"

"Skulks. His name's Skulks. Potentially a new recruit."

You question at first why he'd lie about your name, but it makes some sense. If any of these folks are aligned with Estrada there's a decent guess that one of them might know your name and it'd be downhill from there...

"You don't have any extra cargo you pulled out of town without informing us, right Azizz? Just what we specified?"

"To the letter, there's nothing to worry about." You look back over at the carnage as Azizz begins undoing the tarp over the mini-trailer.

"Don't fuck with me, Azizz, what did I tell you about fucking with me!?"

"Man, what are you talking about?"

"You said there wasn't any extra cargo. Who the fuck is she!?"

She? You turn around to take a look inside the mini-trailer as you see Chryssy standing there in a dress similar to one of the ones you saw at Get Some yesterday with a hat and everything, her hands up.

"What are you rambling on about- Woah! I'm telling you man, all I knew about was me and Pan'tell, I have no idea who this chick is! Hey, there's no need for that, she's probably just a civilian-"

Azizz's friend reaches for the pistol at his side as Chryssy notably turns a few shades paler, not speaking a word as her lip trembles.

"I hate stowaways. If neither of you two know this whore then I'm not taking any risks with spies."

Chryssy just stares at him like a deer into headlights, too afraid to even try to run. Intervening might be a good option right about now. There's six bandits positioned around the two of you, so bloodshed might not be the best answer.

Oz

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Sneaking down the hill, you approach the field that the Reiley's kids are usually playing in. Lily is sure enough there showing them some techniques as two of the children spar. Seriously though, who has five kids in a nuclear apocalypse? That's almost half a town depending on where you're at!

There's also someone you haven't seen in town before. Strange... Who is that fellow and why is he sneaking up on- Oh, well now he's gone and done it. Lily's definitely going to kick his ass for kissing her like that...

What? She's returning the kiss? And giggling? Who the hell does this guy think he is!? Oh, well judging by the bandanna he just shoved into his pocket he's probably a Grey Eagle... Wait a second, Grey Eagle? Their base is multiple days away from this particular mountain range. What the hell is he doing here and why does he have the hots for Lily!? Well, you think you can piece together that second part, but still!

Wyviera

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

As you pocket the toy, Janette's expression changes to disbelief as she looks towards her grandfather who simply smirks.

"Janette.... I'm here to protect you during the mission. My name is Wyviera Mars but you can just call me Mars. I'll be acting as your personal bodyguard would appreciate you following my orders and rules as I say them. That way we can both live a little longer."

She gives a small nod, but as you run a hand through her hair, her face scrunches up a bit. Her hair is surprisingly soft. If she took better care of it, she could probably do all types of things with it.

"Once we get to the caravan I'll give your toy back, until then we have some prepping to do."

Janette's features scrunch up even more at that as her brow twitches slightly, she looks like she's about to yell at you, but suddenly she storms back into the training room, coming back out with a the training suit and her ion pistol in hand.

"Yourhandsaretoocold,andIthinkIsawascaronyourankle,andIdon'tunderstandwhyyoutookitaway,andGranpa'sbeingmean,andyouhaveprettyhair,butthatdoesn'texcusetakingitaway,
andyoudon'tunderstandthatit'snotatoyit'sanadvanceddevicefortrackingweatherandlisteningtotheradioandrunningsimulationsandhackingintothingsandquantumcomputingwhenIfeellikeit
andyoujustdon'tunderstandthatthatdeviceisreallyimportant,andIthinkyoushouldgiveitbackbecauseIdon'tthinkyouunderstandwhatyou'redoingandgrandpawhyaren'tyoudoinganything,
andnowI'mtalkingtoofastandyouprobablydon'tunderstandme,butIcan't- I can't... ... ...Fine."

She frowns, her face puffing into a small pout as she folds her arms, clothes and pistol in hand while simply nodding. During her whole super-fast rant that you likely only caught small parts of, she never really rose her voice, but she seemed pretty distressed. Hell, this is probably the most focused you've seen her yet as she looks at the ground with that cute little look. You... think she admitted defeat? If you can really call it that at all. Needless to say she's listening to you for now.

Regus lets out a monotone chuckle with a mischievous grin as he nods, waving to the guard pulling along his wheelchair to head out.

"This should be a good test run for the real deal tomorrow. I'm trusting you to keep her from blowing up the base, Ms. Mars! If we're all still alive by tomorrow, then I think you'll get along just fine! Hah... Hah... Hah..."

And with that he's gone... And Janette is looking towards the security box nearby. You get the impression that now might be a good time to head down to the armory and take care of things, but then again, how is this kid going to react to the armory...? A small thought pops into your head of her messing with a bomb and the base blowing up, but Regus was just joking... Right?

[eaenidu]

Blair started to calm down now that she knew she wouldn't be swarmed by evil demonic rabbits from hell and quickly drunk some dirty water to help with her throat, after which she looked around recognizing that she was in a residential part of the town she sneaked into a place panting lightly as she looked for a good room to barricade and hide inside of. Once she found the best room she could she used whatever she could find to make it safe even making a few basic traps from the random crap she found around the place. After Trapping and Barricading every place she could she went into her little room then barricaded it before going to sleep assured of her continued survival. In the morning she would un-trap the place and take the traps she could and put them in her bag. She would then loot the place for anything sge new would be useful for her survival.

[Nobudi]

Oz was grateful that he didn't eat a large breakfast, as he would've thrown up by now at the display.
Ew.
But honestly, he was happy for his sister. Since she was happy, he was happy. Through...
With a wide, depraved grin that would make even a raider pale and thinking twice about attacking him, he began to plot.
Oh yes, Lily would pay for not telling him about the man. She was a master of half truths and avoiding details, but when she was corned with lies, she did a very good statue impression.
That would teach her, but the man... He got to threaten. He was Lily's brother (even though not by blood), he wouldn't be denied damnit!
Since the dude was a grey eagle, whom Oz had no problems with, even if he was in a bit of hot water with them for running with the Loyalists, that stood to reason that he'd be leaving where he entered: the East side of Nameless.
With a while still to kill before heading over to find the Raging Asshole's job, he'd stick around to rustle the Man's jimmies.

[Reaver]

Wyviera kept her face stoic and her arms folded throughout the girl's outburst. Janette did seem to have a lot of energy and could use it when she wanted and if she could use this device to keep her under control then the girl had hope yet. For now she raised an eyebrow at Regus's laughter of the situation and basically left his granddaughter in her hands for the rest of the day. She almost opened her mouth to protest but thought better of it as she turned to face Janette again. "I hope your grandpa was joking about blowing up the place. I've really began to enjoying living here instead of in the desert." She ran a hand through her own hair, uncertain again yet noticing that her hair was getting too long again. "I'll probably cut it later after I'm done here." She muttered as she beckoned Janette to follow her further into the complex towards the armory.

Every once in a while Wyviera would look back to make sure Janette was still following her. This type of responsibility was still new to her, sure she had done escort missions in the past but never for someone so young and "unique". She found it slightly unnerving. "I'll make sure you get all packed and suited up for tomorrow and then... I might treat you if you are good." She wasn't sure how she planned to even treat her since she didn't even know what teenagers liked. When she had been a teenager, all she liked was a full stomach and a nice place to sleep. What this hacker girl would like to do for fun was beyond her. She actually looked forward to the simplicity of getting ready for the mission than dealing with the girl.

[KnightVanilla]

(Its cool I like long posts.)

As the next day dragged on after the little goodbye party. Azizz's job was to get him to Estrada if he did that he wouldn't have any problems with what she would do. However the whole waiting thing at the gate seemed to be rather annoying. Which reminds Rein of before whatever his reasons were for being involved in this hunt he had to know. As nerve wrecking as the job was all he had to do was... hmm yeah if he didnt have a solid approach on Jenny he wouldn't be able to capture her. And for this it would take stealth though considering how high the price is on her head brute force wouldn't work much either.... though not much else to do.

As the others blasted off what annoyed him wasn't that they were being left behind its that they were wasting time if they were gonna leave late might as well enjoyed better company with Azalea and Benny. Doing nothing was what would be killing Rein today. He kept speaking himself into his head to remember the job. Capture Estrada avoid the fighting capture estrada avoid the fighting. Upon catching up to the other gang members of the slaver group he noticed a few of them. Most of them were pricks. Enjoying their jobs.... god Rein would love the chance to have a job on one of them. However killing wasn't something so easily shrugged off... a big reason why he rarely lets Azalea participate in the jobs other than gathering info. As his thoughts stray he takes a drink out of the dirtier water he had. Better to use up the bad qualtiy goods and save up the good bits for later.

When Azizz took off to the side of the road Rein gave him a look when he said to wait. Waiting to watch has he saw the big amount of explosions. Left him with a bit of a smirk but that was after he realized that this guy must of known. "So... you could have told me this earlier I mean it would had made the view a bit more enjoyable a few of the guys who just blew up were pricks anyways"

After getting a good look at Jenny from the distance he looked back and forth from the picture.... bah should had realized someone who caused such havoc to be wounded too easily. Being suddenly surrounded by guns was more than a surprise as he ran his hand to his bag then back up when he heard Aziz say something... must be part of the plan. If Benny trusts the guy I can trust him.... I'm just not sure I can trust him after for other things. He thought to himself. Letting the Azizz do most of the talking he let him handle the part where he gets to Estrada and Rein would capture her. Then the rest of the plan is being lead back to the tower. Benny trusted the guy to do a job. And on more than on occassion Benny came through so Rein knew he could trust Azizz to do his job... but nothing more.... 'skulks... couldn't think of a better name Azalea...' He thought to himself a bit annoyed again. This guy was going back and forth on annoyance and enjoyment meter.

The moment froze when one of the men brought out the girl... Chrssy her father called her. 'God damn it.... why did she have to show up here of all the damn places... if she dies or ends up in the hands of Estrada things would go pretty damn south pretty damn fast.'

Without giving it much thought or even realizing what he said before he had the chance to realize it. "Stop it!!! That's Azalea... she's my sister..." Rein walked up to her and pulled her to the side and began to scold her right in front of them. "I told you to stay home with Dad!!! God knows how worried you are making him." He said rather convincingly with most of this annoyance and anger in him to put up the voice. Not only that but having used a familiar name such as Azalea made it more convincing.... she did do a few stupid things before to. So it was a little easier to pretend this girl was his sister for a bit. "Sorry about this... I hold full responsibility for her being here... do you mind she tags along I'll keep her out of the way."

[Shura]

With the last of the raiders dead, and the passage of time returning to normal, the fight was officially over. No longer restricted by turn-based combat, and the whims of the dice, Joshua was free to appreciate the fact that he hadn't been horribly maimed or killed. Even in the presence of immediate medical attention, he was glad to have come out of the battle unscathed. Who knows what kind of fun things he might have contracted if any of these sick fucks had managed to break skin. Speaking of which, it seemed like he had made the right decision by "helping" his comrade. Joshua was under the impression, and perhaps rightfully so, that if he hadn't seized the opportunity, that particular raider would have been a bit more difficult to bring down on his own.

Joshua had no delusions of being the baddest mother fucker to ever walk the planet, and his humility, if you could even call it that, has served him pretty well so far. In an especially uncertain world, knowing what you were, and were not capable of was largely to your benefit. Far too often, people tried to bite off more than they could chew, and it usually ended badly for them. While Joshua was fortunate enough to have a level head on his shoulders, this did not exclude him from placing himself in harm's way. If he wanted to work, and more importantly, get paid, then unnecessary risk was very necessary. The dangerous jobs were usually the ones that paid the most, but they were also kind of a crapshoot. A good way to get expendable bodies was to offer a sizeable reward for a job that would more than likely get them killed. Even if by some slim chance you did manage to survive a suicide mission, it was a still a win-win for whoever hired you, because they could just as easily kill you themselves if they didn't feel like paying you. That's why it is at times advisable to shop around when it comes to job listings.

A friendly reminder that life can be hilariously cruel. Poverty, hunger, disease, ample radiation, and the constant threat of mortal danger, these were the cornerstones of modern life. It's no wonder that people are sometimes driven to the edge by the mere prospect of having to live another day. When all seems lost, bleak, and hopeless, that's when people become desperate. They lose the ability to see and think clearly, and that's usually when they get in over their heads. People didn't become antagonistic cannon fodder out of love for the game. They are conscripted out of necessity and madness. It was kind of ironic though, that the need to survive, and the relating psychosis brought on by it is usually what gets these people killed.

Thankfully, the remainder of their journey was fraught with no further delays. Joshua had ample time to entertain his secular musings while the caravan reached its final destination. Upon his arrival at Curb, Joshua was more than happy to accept his payment and be sent along on his merry way. While the company that he had been forced to keep was not the worst out there, admitting that much of slavers and their henchmen spoke volumes about his own dubious character. Regardless, Joshua was weary from his travels. The lifestyle of a road warrior was not without its detractions. Most of his money would probably go to room and board, supplies, and then whatever little bit that he had leftover would likely be spent on whichever of his vices that he could afford to indulge in. If you're gonna work hard, then you better play hard.

"Ten? I see that the price has gone up a bit since last month." Other than acknowledge the fact that the price had gone up in an attempt to strike up a short conversation, Joshua couldn't do much else about the considerable hike in fee. This was the place of choice when people had money to spend, so it came as something of a small surprise that they were starting to nickel-and-dime you at the door. Oh well, at least the entry fee came with some reassurances. The armed guards were there to ensure that everybody behaved themselves, to keep loyalties neutral within the city limits, and provide an overall sense of security. The weapons check helped as well, and at least there was the promise of said items being returned to you.

"Pleasure... I think I've had my fill of business for the day." Joshua had killed a man, had a hand in killing another, and walked for far longer than he cared to remember, so he was definitely in need of some downtime. While he probably could have fallen asleep right then and there, he'd stay up for a little while, have a drink or two, and keep his options open.

Tossing his weapons into the appropriate basket, Joshua had neglected to relinquish his switchblade. Admittedly, he wasn't fond of the idea of being completely unarmed. Whether it was on purpose, or accidental was anyone's guess, but given the weapons small profile, it should be easy enough to conceal and be overlooked. If it was discovered, he would just play it off as a forgetful mistake and relinquish it to the weapons check. He would certainly come back for it though, as he had taken a liking to it. He was much less sentimental about his crossbow though. It wasn't because he lacked the wookie companion cool enough to wield it, but because the poor thing was in terrible shape, and he lacked both the resources and technical know-how to make it any better. In its current condition, it was probably more of a danger to him than anyone else. Crotchety or not though, the thing still worked, sort of anyway, so he had to give it that at least.

Unfortunately for him, raiders were not known for the quality of the goods that they keep. His share of the loot had been lackluster at best. There was a kitchen knife that he probably shouldn't use in the kitchen, a sharpened metal stick that could've once been anything, and two sets of smelly armor not much better than the practically worn-out clothes that he was already wearing. Dressing up like a raider would undoubtedly get him shot, but maybe he could get the "armors" cleaned up, and either pawn them off on a merchant, or find some other use for them. Everyone had a raider fantasy or two, and it was nothing to be ashamed of. That and recent findings aside, the majority of his equipment was in a pitiable state. He would have to do something about soon, but preferably tomorrow. For now, red was for pleasure...

[Goryokaku]

You stop as you turn around the corner. A scrawny man completely naked, and carrying a scalpel stands before you. You think he has microcephaly at first, but closer inspection in the dim red light changes that thought process completely. He seems to be about seven feet tall, extremely lanky, and you can see his rib cage through his thin, almost translucent blue-grey skin as he bends slightly in the hallway just to fit properly. This... Thing is directly in the way of entering the head researcher's office... It turns ever so slightly towards you as it speaks with a lisp, spittle trailing from its mouth as it talks.

"Feastes...?

”Nope not Feastes.”

It sniffs the air like a predator picking up the smell of cooked meat before staring at you once more. Its eyes light up with a grin as he dances from foot to foot, And suddenly begins to charge towards you!

”Great just like a bull in a china shop”

She looked at the mutant in front of her, charging at her like a rabid bull facing down a matador she got her baseball bat ready, she didn't see the point in wasting tranquillizer ammo on this thing. She could have retreated she guessed but the Head Researcher's room was just there and Silvus was a bit stubborn when it came to getting things her way. She attempted to side step the Mutant and get a home run from it's head with her baseball bat, she didn't want to keep the thing alive whilst she was checking out what they had been doing in the researcher's room. So she would bash the mutants head in, till the damn thing had nothing but mush left behind.

[spriter1]

First thing that went through Ciera's mind - Shit. The second thing to go through it is that she remember that if she got to the back without being tazed, she could reprogram it to follow her, and potentially be able to get her into some points of the factory without too much trouble. The only problem was getting to the back without being tazed. After a couple of seconds, she had formulated two plans, both of which hinged on what she was faced with when she opened the locker door. The first one needed the drone to still have the tazer inside it's compartment, to which Ciera would try to jump over the robot, open the panel and quickly shut off the running security protocol meaning she could finish reprogramming in relative peace, while not being tazed, of course. The other was one she hoped to never use as it was riskier than the previous, but if the drone had the tazer out, then she would rugby tackle it in the hopes of disconnecting the tazer, then begin the reprogramming if she didn't break it from hitting the drone with her body, again only if it didn't taze her beforehand. So, the only thing to do then was to open the locker door and hope it wasn't too prepared for her...

[[Brand_Name]]

Viktor couldn't help but smile a bit at Fuzz's antics. "Thanks for all that Henry. I'm gonna get my men organized, I think they might be sending in another wave soon and we'll need to prepare, and wipe out any Loyalists remaining, and figure out how many we lost, and... Fuck there's always too damn much to do. Say, you got anything to drink? I'm thirsty as hell." Viktor asked Henry. For all his eccentricity, he was still a good man. Hell, he'd saved Viktor and a good lot of men. After Henry's response, Viktor began doing what he said he would- getting his men organized to secure the city, and preparing for another attack. He made sure to tell his soldiers to take some Loyalists prisoner, and not kill all of them, if it wouldn't be too difficult. He desperately hoped that any purple rats taken prisoner would either know something that could help him and his men, or be female. Hopefully both.

[Grape_Drink]

((GM Note: This one might not be the best quality, but I wanted to get something out since I had a couple hours more than I planned this evening and already had the post partially completed))

-No significant Map Changes-

Blair

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Search- 6 + 2
GM Roll; Luck- 13 + 1
GM Roll; Sleep- 12 - 2 (Insomnia) - 2(Danger Sense)

Despite your best efforts, you seem to be having issues finding a home that hasn't been partially turned to rubble or boarded up... Night comes into full swing as you begin to hear raiders prowling the streets. Growing desperate, you star checking every nook and cranny. You begin to see shadows moving around a corner, torches and flashlights in hand and the hoots and hollers of drug-addled minds. Just as you feel like hope is all but lost, you note a partially opened garage door, and slide underneath it. Inside is a hunk of polymer on wheels that looks to be in surprisingly good condition, a bottle of oil and various tools lie on a counter. You quickly tie some of the more jingly chains and such to the garage door and slick the floor at the base with oil, lacking much more in the way of trapping in your current predicament. Trying the garage door to the house, you find it locked.

Eventually your weary mind grows far too tired and you lay down to rest... Your eyes begin to shut as you hope to get at least some semblance of sleep, but your insomnia flares up, and the constant hoots and howls (and even occasional gunshot) outside keep you awake out of innate fear of what could happen if you fall asleep. Some of the sounds you hear that night are... Horrible for lack of better words. Eventually the howls begin to die down a little bit as your eyes finally find the lightest semblance of rest.

A loud metallic thud awakens you the next morning, your eyes jolting open at the sound. Light coming in from a window reveals a body denting the metallic garage frame, crimson seeping in through the bottom of the large door as something begins dragging it... The sounds of ripping and tearing flesh fills your ears as you can only guess whatever is outside is... Eating the body. You remain completely silent, hoping to not draw its attention as you hear something not human sniff the air, letting out a small growl.

http://vocaroo.com/i/s0NjdScpscCB

You see a shadow of... Something at least twice your size right outside before it turns its head with a grunt, sprinting off. Poking your head out after several minutes, you find a partially devoured raider corpse.

You are no longer Exhausted
You are fatigued, -2 to Fitness/Endurance
You are currently shaken. You will take a -2 to all skill and combat rolls until the next post.

Oz

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

You sit in preparation, watching as she continues to give the children instructions before showing a few examples on Mr. Anonymous. They seem to be going at it pretty well. Eventually, she dismisses them after a nice hard training session and begins to head towards town. Meanwhile, Mr. Anon breaks off to the North...? Well that makes no sense whatsoever unless he's staying at one of the local's places. Maybe one of the older farmer's homes?

Wyviera

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Janette doesn't really respond to your question about blowing up the place, simply shrugging.

"I'll make sure you get all packed and suited up for tomorrow and then... I might treat you if you are good."

"... Ok" is all she says as she has that same droopy-eyed look from before while following you to the armory. She drops off the test suit as she pulls a small list out of one of its pockets, handing it to the armory officer. He looks it over, quirking a brow with a mild frown before turning back to Janette.

"Yeah, I don't think your grandfather approved the VRT Goggles, high-kinetic prototype rifle, corgy security hound, and a 'metric fuckton of timed explosives,' Janette."

"... He said I could add the goggles."

"Uhuh..." The armoury officer hops on his radio to double check with HQ before placing her items on the counter. VRT goggles... Aren't those supposed to be prototype movement-tracking things?

"Right, we've got one small aerogel suit, one tazer glove, one focused beam rifle, one pair of VRT goggles, two wrist devices, one pair of boots, and a survival pack..." He's about to push the items Janette's way before stopping, double checking the list as he seems to inspect something. "One Ion Pulse Pistol. Nice try with the white-out." He picks up the fancy super-expensive rifle, putting it back on the shelf before pushing the supplies her way.

"Where's my metric fuck ton of explosives?"

"Your grandfather said no. And to stop using that language."

"..."

Quietly picking up her supplies, she doesn't put on the new prototype suit as she sits down in a nearby chair and waits for you to finish up with your own supplies you plan to get. The device in your pocket you confiscated from her suddenly beeps. Turning back, she's wearing the goggles, staring at the cieling, and tapping at thin air. It doesn't take a genius to figure out she's probably established some sort of remote connection.

"So what can I get for yah, Mars?"

Rein

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Silver Tongue- Natural 20
GM Roll; Perception- 17 + 2

"Sorry about this... I hold full responsibility for her being here... do you mind she tags along I'll keep her out of the way."

The bandit looks between you and Azizz as he chimes in.

"Seriously, Skulks? I thought you said it wouldn't be a problem when I left the ride parked at your place last night. Ugh..."

This seems to settle whatever doubts he might have had as he puts away the gun, shaking his head and picking up what you assume to be Chryssy's pack in the pile of supplies inside the mini-trailer, tossing it to her.

"Can you shoot, girl?"

Chryssy nods quickly, still somewhat pale.

"Good. You can help then. Come on, Estrada's waiting back at the camp."

One of the bandits board Azizz's motorcycle and drive off towards the camp, the rest of your group following shortly behind on foot.

"Thank you..." Is all Chryssy murmurs, her head low as she follows along. You don't have much of a chance to interrogate her as she somehow finds herself stuck in the center of the group. Unlike most groups of bandits, these ones seem to have some level of class though as they keep the conversation clean. You quickly learn that Estrada is apparently some sort of "wasteland mesiah" to these folks with the good she's doing, and has big plans in the works (though few of them seem to know anything about these big plans). The picture was apparently Azizz's doing, an old photograph from when Jenny was younger, though if they know how she lost her legs, they don't discuss it.

It's mid afternoon as you finally arrive inside the "camp," an old run-down hotel in Shield Heights. Inside the main lobby, festivities are all about as booze is passed around and folks dance on rickety coffee tables. Azizz informs you that he got in contact with Estrada and she wants to meet you personally, but the elevator is dead. Six flights of stairs later, and you find yourselves at her room, one of the nicer ones too from the looks of it. Figures she'd be living all high and grand and- Ow! What the hell was that sting in your shoulder?

You listen to Chryssy let out a small shriek as Azizz frowns, removing what appears to be a syringe from your shoulder. That son of a...

You wake up to darkness and some sort of cloth over your face... An execution? No, you think you can hear muffled talking through the breathable head cover. A feminine voice at that. You go to remove the hood almost out of instinct, but find your hands bound behind you with zipties.

"So you thought to bring me slaver tr-"

"He's not a slaver. He's just a mercenary who got pulled into this."

"That still doesn't excuse why he's travelling with her of all people."

"Look the girl doesn't know any better. You already figured that out when you-"

"Shh, he's coming to."

The cloth is removed from your head as you take in a breath of "fresher" air. The room has the distinct smell of ozone to it as you note a number of generators. You must be underneath the hotel. Your eyes quickly adjust to the brightness of the ceiling lights as who you can only suppose is Estrada getting out of a chair with Azizz leaving the room. As she walks towards you, her legs notably make a sound like small gears whirring as she looks you over. She seems to be judging your worth as she squats down next to your face, lifting your chin to look you in the eyes. If she really does have prosthetics, even if they're quality ones, that has to be a painful position.

"So you're Mr. Pan'tell, huh? A few friends of mine say you've taken out some troublemakers who would've caused me issues, so I suppose killing you is out of the question. That'd be rude... You've got balls for coming in here by yourself though, I'll give you that."

You can't help but notice that she seems to be pausing as if waiting for you to react, judging every facial expression and seemingly trying to get you to slip up. You note her picking up a rusty shotgun, a couple of buckshot rounds nearby as she walks over and empties them out, beginning to refill them with melted wax and rock salt clumps.

"Azizz says you've made a change of heart and want to help out. Says you want to join our cause... I personally think Azizz is full of shit."

She places the newly-made rocksalt rounds inside the gun as she levels it at your shoulder, begining to pull the trigger as you expect searing pain and a dislocated (if not permanently damaged) shoulder any moment now. Instead she just smirks before squatting down next to your ear, waiting a moment before speaking.

"Tell me, Mr. Pantell... What do you think our cause is?"

Joshua

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

"Ten? I see that the price has gone up a bit since last month."

"Yeah, with the way things are going near the border we've had to up security a bit."

He nudges in the direction of a few floors up. In the dim light of the dance floor it's hard to see what he's talking about at first, but after a few moments of staring you note a small blip of light. Looks like they managed to install a military turret.

"Pleasure... I think I've had my fill of business for the day."

"Sure thing. Enjoy your stay."

The other joy of Curb... The only place that accepts all three forms of currency as well as equivalences in goods. You hand them the note as you continue on your way to weapons check, relinquishing your crossbow and being allowed to pass after a small pat down.

The inner floor beats with the sound of music as you make your way through the main crowd to take care of some quick business at the costume shop. They seem surprised by the notion of raiders so close to town, but are willing to pay up $22 for the two sets. Not even enough to cover the $35 they claim it'll cost for the repairs to your clothes, but then again they are pretty torn up. There's not too much they can do for the helmet, but for $120 they'll send it in to their specialist to repair what they can. After all, that thing could probably resist a few bullets at a distance.

Stopping by the bar, you can't help but notice the bartender showing one of the slaves you brought in earlier how to serve drinks and such. From the second floor you can see the various customers and "employees" below. While it's frowned upon, there's nothing against customers "sharing" a room to reduce costs for both of them. Of course that also means you lose the insurance of professionalism. Disease, potential murder, all sorts of possibilities, but it does't stop people. Without warning you feel a set of gentle hands on you. You almost instinctively reach for your switchblade before noticing they're massaging your shoulders... A distinctly high pitched and girly voice rings out.

"Hiya there, mister! Trust you're enjoying yourself?"

She lets out a small giggle as you turn around to a... Less exotic appearance than you were expecting. A woman in overalls and a white tank top stands before you with bright red hair grinning. She pulls a flask from her belt and takes a long sip before placing a gentle peck on your lips, the light smell of whiskey on them before letting out a second giggle, covering her mouth when she does so. Looking over her, you can't spot a red armband, but for that matter, you can't spot an armband at all. She's pretty short, and aside from not having any visible mutations she's pretty average looking, then again, average is better than average when half the people out there have half-rotten faces and scars galore. You think you spot a bruise on her shoulder, but a second glance tells you it's just oil or grime.

"The name's Mariah, want a sip?"

She holds up the flask, cocking her head with a big grin.

Silvus

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

((GM Note: The dice really hate you both. I kept rolling 2-7s))
Silvus Attacks Mutant: Critical Hit!
Mutant takes 2 Damage! (3/5 HP) ((The dice apparently don't like you))
Mutant bull rushes Silvus: Critical Hit!
Silvus takes 6 nonlethal damage! (7/13 HP)
Silvus attacks Mutant: Hit!
Mutant takes 2 nonlethal Damage! (1/5 HP)
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attack Mutant: Miss!
Mutant attempts grapple: Success!
Silvus resists grapple: Success!
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attacks Mutant: Miss!
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attacks Mutant: Miss!
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attacks Mutant: Miss!
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attacks Mutant: Miss!
Mutant attempts grapple: Failure!
Silvus attacks Mutant: Critical Hit!
Mutant takes 6 nonlethal damage! (-5/5 HP)
Mutant is knocked unconscious!

Honestly these mutants are idiots, this should be a cakewalk you tell yourself as you level your bat, swinging only to watch it... Jump.

A satisfying crunch fills your ears as the bat makes contact with the mutant's leg, but in the process you find yourself falling backwards from the mutant toppling onto you... Shit.

With a far less satisfying and much more painful thud, your head makes contact with the linoleum floor underfoot, your vision beginning to swirl as you receive blunt trauma for the second time that day. Your baseball bat flies from your hands as you struggle with the weight of this thing on top of you, punching it in the temple to try and get it off of you as you force yourself to maintain consciousness.

"Feastesth!" It shouts angrily as it slings your arm around behind your back in an awkward (and painful) position, beginning to reach into the pockets of your lab coat and pants and turning into the TSA with the way it's grabbing you trying to locate something. You struggle with the thing for several moments before slipping your arm out and elbowing him in the jaw allowing you to crawl away a bit, but unfortunately this thing seems to have a high pain threshhold despite the broken leg and is, once again, on top of you. It seems to be an even match as the two of you struggle for much longer than you expected.

Grunting after almost a solid minute of this and with a ringing in your ears, you see an opening and knee it in the groin before proceeding with a second hit to the temple, knocking the mutant unconscious as you crawl out from under him.

You pick up your bat some ways away as you rub the back of your head. Your clothes are wet from the water leak along the floor, and you feel as if your balance is a little off... Thinking back, it seems it smelled the grubfruit on your person and was trying to locate it.

((GM Note: Can coup de grace the mutant of your own will. Will remain unconscious for about five to ten minutes))

You have sustained a concussion. -2 Intellect/Perception

. . .

Opening the door, you find yourself in the head researcher's office. The office is relatively small with a desk and computer. Looking around, you note a small emergency survival backpack along one of the walls next to a facility administrative card key. Video notes could be pulled up on the computer, or you could go through the physical documents instead if you wanted to. The door is lockable from the inside, and a small cot rests in the corner of the room. Overall, it's relatively bland...

Ciera

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Fitness Check (d20)- 2
Securedrone attacks Ciera: Hit!
Cierra is stunned for 6 rounds!
Securedrone attacks Ciera: Hit!
Cierra is stunned for 7 rounds!

An easy enough plan. You jump out from behind the corner, intent on using your superior speed and grace to pin the robot down and reprogram it!

And... Proceed to trip face first over some rubble.

"Subject has shown hostile intent. Engaging."

The Drone's eyes turn red as you try to make a break for it, only to find your entire body convulsing as 50,000 volts of electricity per second begin running through your body from your neck. It isn't pleasant in the least. You find yourself in a twitching heap as you're dragged across the floor to the elevator.

"Contacting local authorities... ERROR. Contacting state authorities... ERROR. Proceeding to Securedrone program three. Detaining subject inside security office until further notice."

The robot presses a button as you enter the creaky elevator before it begins to groan and make its way to the third floor. As it pulls you out of the elevator behind it, you can't help but watch in your stunned state as the elevator cable snaps and the area you were just in rapidly drops to some basement floor with a loud crash.

"Subject regaining mobility."

Your body painfully convulses for a second time as the little tin fucker decides you're still a threat and proceeds to send a second wave of electricity through your body. You can only hope there's a special place in hell for whoever developed these things. Dirt and grime picks up on your clothes as you're dragged along and brought into the security office. There's multiple chairs and computers, and a few skeletons litter the floor. A box in the corner of the room is labelled "confiscated goods," and looks to be locked up tight. You're relatively sure this secure drone probably has the key somewhere on him.

"Proceeding to search subject..."

As if your luck couldn't get any worse...

"Warning. Subject in posession of a firearm. Subject is considered a class three threat. Proceeding with full body search."

The robot opens up the confiscated goods box and chucks your pistol in it before walking back over to you. You can feel your limbs begining to regain limited mobility as its cold spider-like metal appendages begin searching you from head to toe. At least the security guards back in town showed some discretion with their pat downs, this robot seems to lack that consideration.

Viktor

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Leadership- 19 + 3 = 22

"Thanks for all that Henry. I'm gonna get my men organized, I think they might be sending in another wave soon and we'll need to prepare, and wipe out any Loyalists remaining, and figure out how many we lost, and... Fuck there's always too damn much to do. Say, you got anything to drink? I'm thirsty as hell."

"Sounds like a plan, Mr. Dchevsky. I'll go inform your men along the far side of town of what's happening, I trust your expertise will be adequate."

He tosses you a small water bottle wordlessly before making his way out of the ditch, leaving you to prepare the town for the assault.

. . .

Almost a day has passed since the initial assault. Half the town was wiped out by that explosion, and a good portion of your men were too... Still, without reservations they followed your orders to the letter and ensured its protection. Counts reveal that only twenty of your men remain, and that there are probably still a few stragglers up in the mountains, but their numbers aren't large enough to even try to sneak in without risking their lives. Still, even with the heavy losses, Henry claims that the estimates are looking far better than he had initially calculated. If not for your expert leadership, none of them might have survived...

You find yourself being lead into the basement where the drones are being housed as the lights come on. Five prisoners sit before you- three men and two women, all five of them gagged and tied to chairs.

Two of the men look like simple grunts that don't know anything, the third has a wedding ring around his finger and an officer's jacket, and looks much more beat up than the other two. As for the women, the one is in about as bad of shape as the officer, though she bears no insignias outside of a purple armband. Her one arm is wrapped in bandages, and her leg is splinted. The burn marks on her cheek suggest she might have gotten caught in the explosion's shockwave. The other girl? Well, she's pretty bruised up to say the least. Your officers claim she killed three of your men before being overwhelmed, and tried to take cyanide capsules when they pinned her. Strange considering she lacks an officer's uniform or anything of the sort. Actually, she seems to lack any sign of a Loyalist uniform alltogether. While the rest of them give you death glares or groan from their wounds, she just stares at the ground like a caged animal that hasn't fully accepted where it's at, prepared to lash out at the smallest sign of weakness. Her skin is almost pale and heavy bags rest under her eyes from lack of sleep.

Henry leans against a nearby wall, watching calmly but seeming to leave the situation to you for the most part.

[eaenidu]

Blair drags the raider's body into her little safe haven and checks for anything that she could salvage from it including the raider's flesh after all waste not want not. After she got everything she could off the raider she then tries to pick the lock for the house.

if she succeeds

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

She quietly moves through the house looking for salvage of any and every kind and checks to see if this would be a good semi-home/hideout for her

If she doesn't

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

She goes looking for a good hideout or home base to work from

[Nobudi]

Ok, Oz was wrong about the guy.
When he headed north, he was kinda tempted to follow the guy, but if Lily found out, he'd come off as a stalker and kind of a creep.
Instead, as Oz rubbed his hands together and chuckled darkly, time to grill Lily.
Then, he'd be off to take the job.

[KnightVanilla]

With great relief that Azizz came in to support his claim. Though he still very much hard the name Skulks. Seriously though skulks at least try with a more common name. Hearing Chrissy's thank you Rein attempted to make his way to her. Unfortunately the group managed to kept them separated. Oh well he'll ask her what he needed to when they were alone. Hearing and conversing with the supposed 'raiders' it wasn't at all surprising that these people were high in Morales. What made him worry was how hard they would fight to get Estrada back. This is supposed to be a job nothing more he said annoyed by his own doubts.

Besides its too late to back out now with the girl here. After reaching Shield heights all that would need to happen is go up and take Estrada. However everything suddenly slowed down before his ears registered chrissy's screams as he turned to see Azizz pulling out a syringe. Only uttering out as everything faded to darkness "oh god damn it..."

After waking up with his whole body feeling sore he did his best to figure out his exact situation. From the voices of what Rein could guess was Estrada and Aziz. Until she brought the sack off his head he showed mo fear having been on the other end of this kind of situation. In either position he kept his Morales and emotions away from himself.

"Change of heart implies I'm on a side. I'm only doing what I do for myself and my family. Nothing more nothing less. What your cause is doesn't matter however your goal is something I can help you with. The bounty on your head is worth more if you're turned in alive then that job is over.... If you have a job for me after all that. I'm more than willing to work. However I do have conditions. First of all you let the girl go free. She was just following me around. Second my family stays safe. And third we don't kill anyone that doesn't have to die." His expression was still and as he was talking, Rein was undoing his bindings and would remove his hands from their position to something more comfortable after they became more relaxed. "So will you become my new employer and also I got to hand it to you Azizz you said you'd get me to her... Though you never said how."

[[Brand_Name]]

Viktor looked away for a moment, gathering his thoughts and planning the interrogation. He gave the girls a look to see whether either were attractive enough to give to the men. Then again, in this world, nearly anything with a vagina was good enough. He had a few tactics in mind, and hopefully one would work. When he looked back at the prisoners, he immediately grabbed one of the grunts, and asked him "how are the rats planning their attack?" not expecting a response. When he was met with silence, he grabbed his knife and held it to the man's throat. He was completely prepared to unleash a torrent of blood from the man's gullet, doing his best to give the impression that he cared not for the man's life. Truthfully, he hardly cared at all, but he was still a human. No mortal man could kill without feeling at least a shred of guilt. Nonetheless, if Viktor was met with silence, he would slice the man apart and move on to the next grunt. He knew that the grunts most likely didn't know anything, but he wanted to make the other three feel guilty and give up the information themselves. For some people, the threat of pain was stronger than the actual pain itself. At least, that's what Viktor was betting on. And that's all the world was made up of these days- betting on statistical probabilities to decrease the chance that one will be cut to pieces. And Viktor, intelligent but easing into old age, knew that, eventually, his luck would run out.

[Goryokaku]

Silvus sighed that hurt, she raised her bat up once more and smashed it down hard crushing, she saw blood drain out of the mutants face which Silvus assumed her coup de grace has achieved it's goal. She did feel a little bad that it was actually after her food but if the mutant hadn't charged at her she wouldn't have reacted in self defence. Moving into the head researchers room, Silvus figured with the creature dead she had time to peruse through both the computer and the physical documents at her leasure, but Silvus decided she needed to prioritories and if she remembered the head researcher mentality they wanted to keep as much of what they were doing a secret then the digital evidence would be minute, so Silvus went through the physical documents first to get a grasp of the situation, the video notes she would look at afterwards to reference the information she had learned.

[Grape_Drink]

((No significant map changes I think))

Mutated species of unknown origins have been spotted roaming the outskirts of Shield Heights.


Blair

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Criminology- 9 + 2
GM Roll; Search- 5 + 2

• Acquired tattered raider armor! (2/10 HP, tier 2)
• Acquired 1 dose of ??? (injection)

Dragging the bloody half-eaten corpse into your safe haven, you strip it down of its tattered armor, and a needle containing some substance or another. Unfortunately the body seems pretty disgusting, and you're not even sure if you could eat it. Despite the smell of blood, sex, and sweat emanating off of it, you can't help but notice various rashes and warts along its body, and signs of various levels of necrosis. It probably wouldn't be safe to eat.

The lock is a bit too difficult to pick given the current light levels. You do, however, manage to jam the door open utilizing tools within the garage. It likely won't lock again, but it's open.

The house is pretty desolate. Looking around, you can't help but notice it's been pretty much wiped clean of anything of serious value. It's also relatively small now that you think about it. Last night you had just been in a panic to find somewhere not outside to sleep, but actually going around the house, it seems to be a three bedroom home. You manage to find some gritty old world food in the back of the empty pantry, but otherwise you aren't having much luck with things that are particularly useful to you right now. Upstairs, the bedrooms seem pretty much abandoned save for a skeleton on the ground in one of them. All three beds look restable in. You don't have much better luck in the bathroom...

Overall, this house seems relatively worthless. You get the impression that it was looted long ago and abandoned. So long as you don't draw attention to yourself at night, it should be safe from any outside threats.

Oz

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Making your way into town, you bump into Lily easily enough.

"Oh, Oz. I'm surprised you aren't burning in the sunlight," she grins, giving you a small jab with her elbow as she makes her way towards one of the farmer stalls.

. . .

Mort seems overjoyed to see you entering the facility (an old car sales building) as he provides proper clearance to the security guards.

"We got this baby in last week. Scouts say it came from Hatchet's old base, but some folks were screwing with it and fucked over the electronics while driving it through the mountains."

Entering the room, you can't help but marvel the large steel behemoth of a weapon before you. With chicken-like legs and a mounted turret that you'd guess to be some sort of supersized beam rifle, it's quite the sight to behold. Something like this bad boy could easily vaporize a hole through someone's torso if it was operational.

"I don't know for sure if the hatchet part is true, but I'd bet this thing packs a nice punch, and it'd get rid of them raiders for good I'm guessin'... Think you can fix it up?"

Rein

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

GM Roll; Criminology- Natural 20

The bindings feel tight and you almost expect them to be near-irremovable in your current situation, but perhaps by luck you manage to find a weakness in them, easily loosening them up. It'll take a few minutes, but you should be able to get them off. Estrada quirks a brow before shaking her head with a grin as she stands back up, walking over to a desk and taking a swig of some tannish liquid from a bottle with a worn off label.

"Let me tell you a little story, Pan'tell..."

She sighs, swirling the bottle in her hand before approaching you, offering a sip before she continues to speak.

"To the far west there used to be a young girl, quite the charmer and a good shot with a large game shotgun. She mostly worked freelance, and didn't really have much purpose in life. Her employer paid well though and she got by. Most missions were a success, and those few that weren't? She still survived mostly intact. After all, this girl was resourceful and knew how the wastelands worked..."

She folds her arms, you can't help but note she's trying to keep herself from shivering as she speaks, her leather jacket pulled tight around her, her one metallic arm clicking every so mildly from the grip.

"But it was alright, because back home her employer and her best friend were still around. As long as she could continue to see their faces, she told herself, everything would be alright. So she went on ever increasingly dangerous missions and began earning an alias among some of the slavers as "drone girl" because she killed without prejudice. Cold and quick. Then out of the blue, they decided she was a bit too good. They were afraid she might try to ask for more pay or a house for her friend back in Junction."

She clicks something on a small wrist device as it begins playing a message.

"Security report, case 1503. Mr. Hugo has informed us over here in Junction that our local killer, Drone Girl, has become a degenerate threat. Security personnel are advised to shoot on sight, as well as any of her affiliates. It's not very often they give us orders all the way from the tower... I wonder what's going on?"

She takes a deep breath, seeming to change the subject for her own sake more than anything.

"Your family is going to be in more danger from the moment you get home than they have ever been in. Of course, that's assuming Hugo doesn't think you're dead."

She takes another swig of whiskey as she shrugs, your bindings coming loose with a small click.

"My boys are mostly former bandits and thugs, I won't deny that, but they're reformed. A lot of them have family and friends held hostage or killed by Hugo's goons, and all of them want to see a new day for these wastelands free of slavers, and free from the tyranny that the Loyalists and Eagles would like to see instilled... What I'm offering you is the moral conscience to know you're usurping a murderer, and that your family will be safe for another day. A fair cut of the spoils as well of course, but I'll expect you to turn those spoils ag-"

"M'am, the perimeter is secure. We're switching to guard shift two and prepping shift three. It doesn't look like they'll be sending out any more goons after that last- oh. Sorry, I didn't realize you were still speaking to him..."

"No, it's quite alright, Chryssy. Give shift three another half hour. They earned it earlier."

Looking behind you, you can't help but notice Chryssy standing there with a rather beat up hunting rifle. Estrada takes a seat in her simple office chair with a yawn, one leg tucked over the other as she stretches with her shotgun in her lap.

"Of course I have no proof on me for these claims I'm making. Well, no documented proof anyways. I can't force you to believe anything if you're intent on working for the slaver scum."

Viktor

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Taking the gag out of the first man's mouth, you begin to question him as sure enough he doesn't respond. A quick slash, and what little life remained in him is wiped away.

The other grunt and woman with a purple armband suddenly begin to sweat and get antsy, the officer looking away with cold eyes as blood flecks against his cheek. Approaching the second one and removing his gag, you ask the same question, fully expecting a similar response, but instead get a mouthful of spit flying towards you as he looks at you with fury in his eyes.

Tears begin to form in the officer's eyes as he shakes his head, not looking towards his comrade. As you prep your knife, a distinctly feminine voice catches your ear.

"These clowns don't know anything. The most you're going to get out of them is blood and maybe in this purple bitch's case a fun time."

...What?

Looking back, you note the gag in the "unaffiliated" girl's mouth is now in her lap as she twiddles her previously bound thumbs, continuing to stare at the ground... The other captives turn their gaze on her, beginning to thrash in their binds and shout through their gags angrily at her.

Silvus

Spoiler (click to show/hide):

Skimming through several documents, you come to the conclusion that your team was likely trying to develop some sort of anti-mutagen to bring the mostly brainless mutants into more stable, controllable limits. The long term goal seems to have been to allow communication between them to try and ease tensions, though obviously the abductions to get your samples were only straining relations with locals in Shield Heights... Some of the documents suggest that it in fact wasn't radiation that caused most of these mutations, but biological warfare that had been waged in less dense populations along the way to dropping bombs.

The video documents are... Far more personal than the written ones. You note yourself in a number of them in the more recent ones as you and the team go about delivering the anti-mutagens to various subjects only for the majority of them to die of cardiac arrest... Supposedly you had been the head researcher for a while, but had requested a transfer to another facility after an incident. It rings a bell, but your memory is still pretty fuzzy right now...

In the most recent one, the subject had been a rather brutish mutant that had been captured. The notes suggest that he was in better condition than most, so he had a higher survival rate so long as he was stabilized if the serums began to go wrong. Sure enough the video shows the mutant's restraints breaking and an explosion followed by the camera feed going dead.

You think you remember how to get to the security breach doors or your room if you wanted to look for more information, but other than the backpack, there's not much more here.

[Reaver]

Wyviera bit her lip, thrown off by the girl's sudden quiet attitude. Maybe she had been too tough on her, but now it was too late to change her mind. She knew she had to be firm with soldiers or they wouldn't respect your command and follow it, once an order was given you had to see it through. Yet a part of her brain reminded her that as far as she knew, Jeanette wasn't a soldier, just a talented hacker who had gone through the same thing as her when Hatchet's base blew up. She has yet to take a life too. The sniper thought as she leaned against the wall, watching Janette give the armorer her supply list.

She knew right off that at least half the stuff on her list was made up. Unless she was extremely out of the loop, Wyviera was pretty sure no one had invented a corgy defense hound nor was there any reason to give anyone a metric fuckton of explosives. She smiled as the guard quickly caught on and phoned it in before giving the girl the pre-approved list. Most of her items were extremely high-grade, things that was well above Wyviera's paygrade, not that she would know how to work most of the equipment. Except her VRT goggles which were supposed to help with motion-tracking, something that could give her own sniping an extra lethal edge. Something else to narrow my already small margin of misses she noted smugly, recalling Regus's praise for her almost flawless record.

At least she managed to suppress a chuckle as Janette continued to ask for her fuckton of explosives. "Don't worry Janette. I'll make sure to blow something up during the mission." She said with a smirk, hoping to win a few points with the girl. Wyviera heard the tablet in her pocket beep but she ignored it as she walked up to the counter. Armour and weapons, two things I do understand. She thought with a smile as began to order what she needed. "Regus gave me extra notes for requisitions. So.... I'm going to need my sniper rifle in top shape for this mission. ($400) Also since I was blessed with extra funds I think I'd like to have my security vest updated to a full-body model ($600), not just to show off my curves either." Just harmless flirting Wyviera, we don't do well in relationships. She laughed off her comment before continuing with her purchases. "I also need a better weapon for when raiders get in my face. I'd prefer for it to be something sharp and stabby and I'm willing to spend 400 notes to make it happen!" ($400)

It was about time for her to trade in the old wooden club in for something a bit more useful for someone of her caliber. Finished with her shopping list, Wyviera pulled out the hacker's device, finally willing to see what all the beeps were about.