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Messages - RedVulnus

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31
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: January 28, 2019, 01:13:40 am »
Foster and TJ gave each other a glance as they wondered just what was up with this woman. Still Foster believed her to be..harmless more or less. She didn’t seem to be hiding anything from them with malicious intent that he could tell. Smiling Foster said “I’m afraid I don’t smell anything at the moment. Though if we’re going to help you we should probably find out what we’ll need to do to stay here. I can’t imagine they’d let us stay without giving something back to the place.”

TJ meanwhile slid his hands into the pockets of the hoodie he was wearing. He wondered just what it was Foster was planning to get out of this. He didn’t know Foster’s plans to build a lab and continue his old experiments, nor even what exactly it was that Foster’s old work had been. Something to do with magic was all he had figured out based on the depth and breadth of his knowledge on the subject. Now that he was thinking about it he wondered what Foster wanted from him?

Looking up at Foster he frowned under the bandages. In all the time the pair had travelled together he’d never seen Foster do or give something to someone without expecting to get something. Even if the person didn’t realize Foster was getting something out of the situation.

His thoughts were temporarily interrupted by Foster asking “So who should we speak to about getting shelter while we wait for you to formulate this plan of yours?”

Meanwhile Liam sat with the excited wolf pup outside the Hall. The others hadn’t seemed to mind his new pet. Still he couldn’t help but imagine Aaron would try and pull something. He hated wolves after all.

Standing and walking to the forge that was ringing with activity Liam wondered how Charles was doing. Soon he saw his companion doing some basic maintenance on their armor. As he approached he was somewhat shocked to see Charles pick up the piece he’d been fixing and throw it at the wall. As he neared he heard Charles talking to himself quietly “‘oh I’m sorry Charles I broke another piece of armor can you fix it?’ fucking entitled pricks. Like I’ve not got better things to do than this, like loaf around like you lot doing nothing but hunt and spar.”

Looking concerned Liam asked “Is everything alright Charles.”

Glancing over his shoulder Charles paused a moment. Picking up his hammer and walking over to the table his tools were laid out on he returned it to its place as he said “You saw and heard that didn’t you?” At Liam’s nod Charles sighed.

Stepping forward Liam asked “What’s wrong Charles? Something’s been bothering you since we left on the whole affair that got us here.”

Charles sighed again before turning to Liam and saying “What’s wrong? That’s what you’re going to ask me? I’m the only one here who’s not got some kind of bullshit magical blessing.  I’m not blessed, I’m just a smith’s son. I wasn’t even done with my apprenticeship when we left. I was simply counted amongst you so you had someone to fix your armor and weapons when you invariably broke them. And now I’m stuck here, far away from my family and unable to go back because we went along with his stupid plan.”

Liam could hear his friend’s anger growing in his voice as it all came bubbling to the surface. He’d known everyone had been angry and hurt by those events but he’d never seen Charles crack. He’d always done his best to keep the others going when they’d talked about what they were going to do and whether they should actually stay there. “Look Charles we’re all in the same bo-”

He was cut off again as Charles shouted “Same boat? Liam any one of you could survive on your own because of your gifts but me? Don’t fucking kid yourself I’m only the second least capable warrior because you don’t know how to really fight like the rest of us and I can’t use a bow to save my life. My one saving grace is I can use a rifle but even then I’d still last maybe a week. Everyone here but me has something special about them, even Helen has her extensive training and that mask. But me? I have nothing but my tools.”

Sighing to himself Charles lowered his head for a moment. “I..I just don’t know why I’m here. You don’t need me, not anymore. Besides Eino and Anton won’t listen to my suggestions, and Aaron and Gunnar listen to them despite their conflicts.” Pausing for a moment he said “I’m going to go clear my head. You...you keep an eye on that wolf there. Never know what Aaron might do.”

Liam watched his friend walk off. He started trying to figure out what he could do as he knelt down and patted the wolf cub on the head. He’d talk more with Charles later, for now the best thing he could do was give his friend some space.

Meanwhile Charles made his way to Walkerville, and from there to Isaac’s community center. He’d been stewing about things for over a year at this point. The other’s refusing to modernize their approach, whilst in honor of their people’s ways and augmented by their blessings, was a constant frustration for him. But at the moment he was thinking about what he needed to do for himself.

Walking in he was greeted by Isaac, who was currently putting on a smile to hide how he was feeling at the moment. “What can I do for you Charles?”

Smiling in return Charles motioned for them to sit at a table. Once they had he detailed his plans and listened to Isaac’s input. At the end Isaac said “I can get you some of the things you’ll need but I’ve got to ask why this is coming up now.”

Charles sighed as he leaned back in the chair and said “Because I’m tired. I’m tired and I need start looking to the future rather than looking at the past. And this is the first step, where it takes me from there I don’t know.”

Isaac nodded as he thought about his own not to distant moment of clarity. Putting a hand on Charles’ shoulder he said “Well wherever it does you’ll do yourself and your friends proud. I know you will.”

With that the pair parted. Charles went back towards the Hall. Isaac went back to helping Alice with the community center they’d built together. He was going to be there for her when she needed to talk about what had transpired. For now all he could do was wait for that moment to come and prepare himself as best he could.

32
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: January 21, 2019, 10:17:25 pm »
At the mention of a physical TJ visibly tensed and shook his head. Foster meanwhile smiled and gave a short wave to the security camera. He seemed oddly comfortable with being surveilled to someone who didn’t know much about him, he’d spent most of his life being watched by some form of hidden camera. Looking back to Jennifer he listened to what she had to say.

Then, as he was about to speak, she pulled him aside to ask about this Hoyt fellow. “I’ve heard the name, some sort of connection to drugs, but I’ve no further knowledge. As for fighting I know some. I can shoot but I’m more..proficient with a knife.”

TJ stepped closer to say “I can fight. I mean I don’t like to but if it will help I can. And I can help scout things out, I’m pretty easy to miss according to some people I used to know.. Just..I’d rather not get an examination. I’m healthy and the last doctor I ran into..”  TJ shuddered as he looked around and pulled his jacket on a bit tighter. “..he wasn’t nice.” TJ’s voice had gone quiet at the end there and his hand reached up to check his neck reflexively.

Foster put a hand gently on TJ’s shoulder as he said “We’d be more than happy to help you with whatever this matter is. I’m afraid we’d need a bit more information though, at the very least whenever you do require us we’ll need to know what we’ll be doing.”

33
Rec Room / Re: Winds of memories (Cata RP Character background stories)
« on: January 11, 2019, 12:47:07 am »
Time: 3 days before the cataclysm
Location: Unknown
________________________________
Foster adjusted the stack of papers on the desk as he listened to his colleague, one of about a dozen that rotated in and out of his lab. The pair had forgone the usual lab coats for more comfortable attire with Foster wearing a turtleneck sweater. His colleague wore a pink t-shirt as they rattled off the results of the tests they’d conducted earlier.

None of their experiments on the magic items the ‘Company’ had acquired for them provided him with any answers to his own problem. That was as he expected honestly, he’d been seeking answers since he’d been hired three years ago and had found nothing since nor in his studies beforehand. Though if what he’d heard about Section 2’s work was correct..but he’d be discussing that with it’s leader later in the day.

Entering the lab proper and picking up a clipboard Foster started taking notes on the experiments progress since they’d left the previous day. As per usual Alpha had increased the speed at which the plants in it’s container were growing. Meanwhile Beta continued it’s odd little pulsating glow that had otherwise done nothing. If it failed to do anything else he’d likely try and get rid of it to be replaced by something hopefully more interesting.

The majority of the day went similarly taking notes and writing reports for the ‘Company’. Truth be told his curiosity as to who was actually employing him had been growing since learning more about Section 2 a few months ago. Foster’s group was Section 1, Section 2 was the less ethical counterpart as far as he was aware. Speaking of it was about time for him to converse with his counterpart now that his colleague was leaving for the night.

Tapping a button on the console in front of him Foster scribbled down a few more notes while he waited for ‘Moriarty’ to answer. It took a few minutes as it normally did when the two actually conversed rather than simply emailing each other notes. When he did finally answer the two shared the usual formalities before Foster asked “So what was the result of the experiment pertaining to those samples I sent you?”

Moriarty stopped for a moment, his normally cheery demeanor dropping and being replaced with concern. Setting the mug of coffee he’d been drinking down Moriarty leaned forward as he said “Foster I really do have to ask, did those samples come from the source you mentioned or something else?”

Foster wasn’t really phased by the tone of his friend’s voice. Shuffling through his notes from the day Foster read through a page his colleague had written while responding “Yes, the blood samples came from the source mentioned. Allow me to guess, subjects bodies rejected the injections outright or..responded in rather bizarre fashion?”

Moriarty nodded as he leaned back and regained his composure. “The first few subjects rejected the injections of the blood despite being the same blood type and being..made to meet the requirements of needing a transfusion of blood. I thought perhaps you were simply attempting to sabotage my work but then the next subject responded in a rather concerning fashion. He screamed about the ‘nothingness’ as he tried and failed to fight some of our security. Amazing how far a crazy man can make it with four rounds of 7.62 in his chest.”

Foster shrugged as he said “One to the head was all it should have required. Still, any other interesting results?”

Moriarty shrugged as he said “One subject went catatonic, he’ll be sent off for harvesting. Another is still in a straight jacket so he doesn’t cut his own throat open. A third ripped out his own eyes and bled to death on the spot. I have to say this is all very concerning given the source of the blood my friend.”

Foster looked up at the screen and adjusted his sunglasses as he looked at his friend. Even in this dark lab he insisted on wearing them. “Don’t be. In my own studies, oh it must have been two years ago, the reactions were more violent. I do believe one of my original subjects is still out there killing people like he was a villain from one of those slasher movies. Always entertaining reading the news stories from that area. But with your further experiments I think I can find my original conclusion was correct.”

Moriarty sighed as he replied “Yes, the reaction isn’t physical. It appears to cause a mental breakdown but the introduction of blood of all things shouldn’t cause this and we’ve done tests to make sure it’s not the introduction of blood itself. Furthermore we’ve ensured there’s nothing wrong with the blood, the samples you’ve provided are perfectly healthy and indicative of a healthy adult. Which means whatever is causing this is-”

Foster interrupted his compatriot as he said “Supernatural. Magical. Whatever you desire to call it. Which means I’m no closer to an answer. Still to have a fellow researcher do the same tests and have the same results is reassuring, I didn’t mess it up back then.”

The two sat in silence for a time. This whole world of magic was relatively new to both of them. Foster had always believed in something a bit grander due to his ‘condition’ but Moriarty had always been a man of science. Foster didn’t have the heart to point out the artifacts they’d been studying were getting stronger for some reason. Instead he decided to continue with small chit chat and niceties until the two decided to part ways for the night.

Sighing to himself Foster took a minute to collect his thoughts. Between the two they had made sure there was no other possibility. The blood samples induced some sort of magical reaction, that or it was something undetectable to modern medicine. Sipping his cold coffee Foster found the first option more comforting if he were honest.

Turning to stare at the glowing artifact that had simply been sitting in it’s cage for the past few weeks. It’s glow had been getting brighter, barely so but enough that Foster had begun to notice it. The simple fact that he had what amounted to a magic flashlight had never seemed to be something worth mentioning to his employers. Maybe tomorrow he’d write a report and ship it off. For tonight he’d finish the paperwork from today’s observations and experiments.

An hour later and Foster found himself sitting in a restaurant waiting for his food.. It amazed him how one could hide a lab full of potentially volatile artifacts in a city. At least it was easy to find a decent meal on his way home.

---------------------4 days later, one day after the cataclysm

Foster tossed the ruined sweater aside. Whilst he’d sustained no severe injuries in yesterdays events his clothes were much worse for wear. Thankfully he’d been visiting an off site storage facility with his colleague, the one in the pink shirt.

Driving along the pair remained relatively quiet as Foster unfolded the stock of the MP5 he’d taken from a guard that had died during their escape from the storage site. He didn’t quite see the other vehicle that slammed into the side of the car. Their car rolled onto it’s roof as the other vehicle sped off into the distance while Foster climbed out.

Observing his colleague Foster determined he was far too injured for him to stop and help at the moment. Besides there wasn’t any benefit to helping him either. So he leveled the MP5 at the man’s head and pulled the trigger as the man begged. From there he decided to take the obnoxious pink shirt since it was better than nothing. Sliding it on he started down the road towards..wherever it would take him. Perhaps he’d head to New England and visit Section 2. See what they were working on down there if he could find the place. Maybe raid see what they were hiding in the 'archives' facility he'd heard the retrieval teams mention.

34
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: January 10, 2019, 07:30:16 pm »
TJ had stumbled into Foster after having Jennifer walk into him, who helped steady him. When TJ didn’t say anything Foster spoke up “It’s okay, we should have found a better place for that.”

At her questions Foster shrugged “That we have. And uh..we came on our own though it appears we’ve arrived alongside quite a crowd.” Adjusting his glasses Foster continued “But where are my manners, I’m Foster and this is my friend TJ.”

TJ waved but stayed silent as he looked around to make sure he wasn’t in anyone else’s way. Noticing that TJ didn’t really seem to want to talk at the moment Foster sighed before saying “To be honest we came looking for somewhere we could stay but it looks like you all have your hands full here. Of course we could help around here, I’m trained as a..scientist of sorts, and TJ here well to be honest I’d prefer to keep him at my side but with proper training he’d be able to fill most jobs.”


Elsewhere Liam stepped out of the barracks sans his usual armor. Instead he’d decided to dress more casually, and modernly, in a set of grey cargo pants, a set of black work boots with blue laces, and a grey t-shirt accompanied by his brown sling bag on his back and a white and black checkered scarf wrapped around his neck and draping down along his back. Along with the new clothes Liam had taken the time to cut his hair into a mohawk, giving the sides a rough shave that he’d refine later. As per usual these days the little puff ball of light bounced along in the air next to him as he walked.

Gunnar, a bow slung on his back as he watched the terrain, asked “Going somewhere Liam?”

Liam shrugged as he kept walking “Going for a walk Gunnar. Keep an eye on things for me?” he said.

Gunnar nodded as Liam started towards the nearby woods. After a few minutes Liam found himself alone among the trees. Smiling to himself he said “Alright little guy, you wanted to come out to the woods. Wanna let me know why?”

In response the ball of light took off ahead of Liam. Laughing he started running after it as he called out “Alright let’s go for a run then!”

It was a good twenty minutes later and he’d caught up with the ball as it came to a stop. Taking a second to look around Liam wondered why it had stopped here. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary here as he said “So why’d we stop? Meditation time or are you just bored of watching me run?”

Ever since he’d accidentally made this little puff ball it had acted like it had a mind of its own. He’d pretty much come to consider it a pet at this point. And right now it seemed..confused? Maybe even agitated. Looking around he wondered why that was.

For a twenty minute run he was further out than he normally got he realized. Sitting down he shook his head and prepared to meditate for a little while. Smiling as he crossed his legs Liam called “Let me know when you figure out what’s bothering you.” and began to meditate.

It hadn’t even been a minute when the puff ball smacked Liam in the head and darted off. With a sigh the viking stood and started after it at a run. He lost sight of it after a minute and started to worry.

Soon he found himself in a clearing and stopped. The little puffball of light was currently hovering as if waiting for him. It took the sound of the young wolf under the ball of light growling for Liam to notice it.

His immediate reaction was to draw his dagger as the wolf backed away. In response the ball of light swatted Liam in the forehead and made a buzzing noise he’d heard it make before. Sheathing the blade he said “And what do you want me to do? Take care of it?”

When the light bounced up and down in a ‘yes’ gesture Liam sighed. Sometimes he wondered if this thing wanted to get him killed. Still, wolves lived in packs normally, and this one was all alone and too young to be by itself. So he kneeled down and retrieved a bit of food from his bag. “Tule, pieni kaveri, en aio satuttaa sinua.”

After a few moments of hesitation the wolf walked over to sniff what he was holding. Finally it decided to take a bite of the food before walking away and staring at him again. Looking over at the puff ball Liam sighed “This is gonna take a while.”

Ten minutes later and the wolf was following Liam. Leading the way home Liam glanced over at the puff ball before shrugging. “I don’t know the lesson you’re trying to teach me here but hey, a pet would be nice. At least one that’s not an asshole half the time.”

To which the puff ball gently rammed his shoulder. Laughing to himself Liam knew he’d get home soon enough. From there he’d have to figure out where he was going to keep the wolf.

35
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: December 28, 2018, 01:25:22 pm »
Foster adjusted his trench coat as he walked down the road. If he were honest this wasn’t exactly his style but given the fact it was raining it was better than nothing. Still he could do with something a bit more comfortable than the bullet proof vest and trench coat.

That was if he lived long enough to actually look. At the moment he found himself staring at a couple of people holding a woman hostage. The man holding a gun to her head had said something about paying them or he’d kill the woman. This simply resulted in a sigh from Foster as he stared at the man for a moment before continuing to walk away. The man stared at the back of Foster’s head for a moment before asking “Wait so you’s just gonna walk away? Not even try ‘n help this lady?”

Foster shrugged in response as he continued walking. He didn’t need to explain that he had nothing of real value to give them. Nor did he care to explain that he’d seen their little charade before and knew the woman was with them. So he kept walking as the trio stared after him and wondered what the fuck was wrong with him.

It must have been a few hours later when he found himself walking along an abandoned highway. Cars still littered the place along with more than a few gruesome scenes. One of which made Foster stop for a moment. Sitting on the hood of the car in question he stared at the trio of dead bodies before deciding to use some of his magic.

Faint outlines of what had once been actual people formed around the skeletons as his magic replayed the last moments of their lives. From what he could gather the car had died, and he wished he could hear whatever it was they were saying, but he could tell one of the outlines had pulled a gun.A few seconds of arguing and then swift action left the form in the drivers seat alone.

Foster pushed off the car and started walking away. If what he’d already seen didn’t provoke a response watching the form shoot itself in the head wouldn’t. Though he did have to admit the fact he’d shoot his wife and kid before himself was somehow admirable.

Lighting a cigarette as he walked Foster took a drag and kept walking. He wasn’t sure why he smoked if he were honest with himself. Probably just another thing he’d gotten from working in a cubicle farm while he tried to puzzle himself out.

A few days later TJ found himself running yet again. The trio of voices that were shouting at him didn’t exactly make him want to stop either as he darted around the corner of a building and caught sight of some zombies. That seemed to be his best escape plan he figured as he started sprinting towards the mob of undead.

A handful of the zombies peeled off from the group at a sprint and ran past TJ. Pushing into the mob he ignored the frightened screams of the three people that had been chasing him. Better not to focus on it he thought as he pushed his way through the zombies.

He’d made it past the mob and had turned the corner onto the nearby highway when he heard an unfamiliar voice call after him “Nice trick there, running through those zombies like that. How’d you do it?”

TJ stared at Foster as the man sat on the hood of an old car and smoked a cigarette. He was half tempted to keep running but something about the man made him stop. He was about to say something when Foster hopped off the car and said “Eh, probably some sorta magic. Question is, why’s a little punk like you on his own?”

TJ shrugged at that. He didn’t really have a reason for him being on his own. He could have stayed at home, but that would have come with other..problems. So he said “Don’t really have anyone to go to.”

Now Foster could tell this wasn’t a normal kid just like TJ could tell there was something odd about him.So he stared at the kid that could see through the bandages wrapped around his head and covering his eyes for a moment before shrugging. Starting to walk he said “Well I ‘spose neither of us have anyone or anywhere to go to. May as well walk together.”

TJ stared at Foster for a moment before deciding to follow the man. If Foster had meant him harm then he likely wouldn’t have bothered to talk to him. If he meant him harm anyway..well TJ did know some magic of his own even if he hadn’t demonstrated it yet. But for now the two walked in silence save for the occasional sound of nature as it creeped back into what had been civilization.

It was only after about a half hour that Foster looked over at TJ in the morning rain and slid off the trench coat. Putting it over TJ’s shoulders he shrugged at the puzzled look. “Ya just looked cold is all.”

After a moment TJ pulled the coat on properly, the tail end of it dipping into the water that had collected on the surface of the road. He also took stock of the pistol tucked into the front of Foster’s pants as he said “Thanks.”

Present day

Foster inspected the jar of preserved meat that a trader had given him as he contemplated just what he was going to do today. He was still cold, what with not having a jacket and it being the early morning, and he and TJ would need some more food than a couple of jars of preserved meat. So..his choices were to find somewhere to trade the few goods he had, namely some older jewelry and a few pieces of tech that he’d found out was somewhat hard to come by, or find someone to rob.

The second option wasn’t one that he particularly liked. Well it wasn’t that he didn’t like it, more that he just understood it wasn’t something that was okay. But if he brought TJ with him to a settlement he’d probably have the usual questions to answer, chief among them being why TJ was covered in bandages. It hadn’t been uncommon for him to have to ward off curious folk who tried to pull them off. And TJ didn’t really like big crowds either..

Picking up the pistol that he’d set on the ground Foster stood up and tucked it back into his pants. Taking a few steps he spotted TJ, with the trench coat now tied around his waist, drawing in an old notepad as he looked at a butterfly that had landed nearby. Leaning against a tree he watched.

After a minute TJ stood up and asked “So where to today.Foster.”

Foster started walking as he said “Some place called the Refugee Center. Or the Center, depends on who you ask.”

The two walked in silence as they made their way towards the Center. After three hours of walking Foster noticed TJ getting tired and picked him up. Not long after he was asleep.

Foster wondered about the kid, and he had no doubt that he wasn’t an adult, but respected him enough to let him have his privacy. If Foster had to hazard a guess TJ was sixteen, seventeen at most. Granted his little ‘condition’ made that a bit hard to tell. Hell if Foster was right the kid had only existed for the past eight years, when the world went to shit, when Foster himself got his own magic.

Sighing to himself Foster wished he had a proper lab to test some things. He knew he’d get some answers to some of his questions at the least. But then he doubted he’d get the answer he was looking for.

Soon enough they were nearing the entrance and Foster set TJ down. The pair walked up to the busy entrance and noted the damage. “Alright TJ, I have a few things I need to go get. If you want to go by yourself just be careful and make sure folks know you’re with me. And remember to stay away from medical staff yeah? Last doctor we ran into nearly beat me half to death to try and get those bandages off of ya.”

TJ shrugged but checked to make sure he still had the combat knife Foster had given him. “To be fair that guy was a bit..crazy. Besides with these sunglasses no one should worry too much about my eyes being bandaged over, kinda hard to tell through them after all.”

And with that the two split to go find someone to trade with. Foster was after food and if he could get some info on a place where he could settle down and find some work. Or some place where he could rig himself up a lab. TJ set off to find some clothes since his were somewhat worn and he wanted to get something for Foster.
______________________

Foster had lost sight of TJ in the crowd as they went inside. He knew the kid would be okay, and that he had an uncanny ability to find Foster, but it still wasn’t the best of situations. Regardless Foster made his way into the building and found someone who was trading for food.

After a few minutes of haggling he’d managed to trade for a few days worth of food and some additional bandages. Not quite as much as he’d hoped to get for what he’d had but it would do. It would last long enough for them to find somewhere TJ would be safe.

As far as he could tell there were two places around here that people stayed, this place and somewhere called Walkerville. He needed somewhere he could discreetly build and operate a small scale lab. Somehow, looking at how busy this place seemed, he doubted he’d be able to do so here at the Center. At least not without some kind of oversight by someone else and that wasn’t likely to end well given some of the subject matter he’d be delving into.

So..Walkerville. Of course he’d have to see if he could actually live there, some places didn’t welcome strangers to stay after all, and what kind of place it was. If there was a more authoritative structure he likely wouldn’t be able to sneak around with the kind of technology he’d need. Even then he wouldn’t have the same level of tech he was use to but it would be something. Now where was TJ?

Meanwhile TJ had found a trader that was selling clothes and was willing to work with what TJ had. Thanking the man TJ slid on the dark green hoodie he’d traded for and started looking for Foster to give him the turtleneck sweater and other things he’d gotten. Now to find Foster.

Foster gave TJ a reassuring smile as the pair reunited a few minutes later. Telling TJ about his plan to inspect Walkerville and determine where would be better for the pair to stay he was surprised by TJ producing the sweater. Taking it and tucking it under his arm Foster thanked TJ. “Don’t you want to put it on? I know you hate that shirt.” TJ said as the pair stood there.

Foster looked down at the pink shirt he’d been wearing. He’d stolen it off of a colleague he’d had to kill eight years ago when his own clothes were too torn to wear. It had always been a bit..garish for his taste. With a sigh Foster closed his eyes and removed the sunglasses that had concealed them “Hold these.” he told TJ before removing the shirt.

Being in front of him TJ saw the dozens of scars that Foster had. An educated eye would see the tally marks on his left shoulder and some of the larger ones on his chest and stomach and note they were self inflicted. Others were caused by injuries from his work. On his back were a handful of scars as well, though the only ones of note were six marks from needles. These were concealed after a few seconds by the black turtleneck that Foster slid on.

Keeping his eyes closed Foster asked “My glasses please.” Accepting them as TJ put them in his hand Foster put them on. Once that was done he allowed himself to open his eyes and look around. As he thought a few sets of eyes had drifted over to stare at the two while he had changed his shirt but they quickly went back to whatever it was they had been doing.

From there he accepted the shoulder holster set that TJ had also gotten him. Strapping it on he pulled the old pistol from his belt and slid it into a holster. That was when he noticed a cut in the bandages around TJ’s hand and knelt down. “I told you to be careful TJ.” Foster said as he wrapped over the bandages that were already on TJ’s hand and continued more quietly “We don’t want your ‘condition’ to cause anyone to do something dumb.”


36
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: November 13, 2018, 08:20:27 pm »
They kept coming. With all of the gunfire the bodies were still pushing forward towards the building and there wasn’t much Alexei could think of to stop them. Not at this point.

Turning to run back into the building he heard a thud as Edgar fell to the floor above him. The man was clutching a wound on the side of his neck as he tried and failed to scream through the blood clogging his throat. Salazar meanwhile felt a round tear a hole the size of a grapefruit in his chest.

Stumbling back from that he let go of the fifty and felt a second open up his stomach. Tripping on Edgar’s blood he hit the floor and tried to breath through the hole in his chest. Before his world faded he saw two versions of himself standing over him. One, with a blood stained face and an eye that leaked brown blood, said “Well, this is interesting ain’t it Smiley? Something finally ripped a hole big enough in him that we could get out! I’m gonna have some fun after I finish making myself a corporeal form.”

The other version frowned at his bloody counterpart and said “You don’t intend to help anyone do you? A shame really, you always were the side more versed in violence but I know you could do some real good.”

As they disappeared to find a safe place to form physical bodies Salazar found himself sitting in his old living room. Looking around he saw a man in front of him reading a newspaper. As an older woman rounded the corner it dawned on him. He was home.

Back with the living Alexei had managed to get to his armor as he heard Eddie scream in pain as he was beaten. The armor wasn’t ready and he knew that had been his only real chance to get out of this alive. Which meant it was time for plan b.

Grabbing a device he’d had Eddie make for him he stared at it for a moment. Clipping it to his vest he sighed as it synced up to his heartbeat. Now if only he had the time to get drunk one last time.

Turning he sprayed the first few that got through the door before tossing the spent weapon aside and pulling out his machete. Decapitating the first to rus him Alexei felt at peace. For the first time in his life he didn’t care about anything anymore.

Then the shot tore through his head.

----

Isaac fell to the ground as the shockwave roared past him. He was fairly certain if he hadn’t been wearing his armor he’d have broken a rib or two. Forcing himself to his feet he ran forward and past the bar.

A few minutes at a dead sprint later he came upon a crater where Alexei’s little business had been. A few stragglers were picking over the place and making sure no one had actually survived. They didn’t last long under Isaac’s fire.

Once that was done he stared at the surroundings, what little of it was left. And he knew. He knew that crazy Russian Drunkard was gone. A relic just like him.

Then he caught sight of it. Alexei was standing with a pair of women and several young children smiling. Not the fake one that he’d always worn around the others. A genuine happy smile as he walked over to Isaac. Speaking in perfect english the man said “Haha, Isaac! I can’t tell you how much I’m going to miss our hunts! But I’m going to somewhere better I think. I’m going to be better. And who knows maybe we’ll see each other again! I could always reincarnate.”

Before Isaac could say much the spirit of his friend faded, whisking away to talk with some others before he could no longer do so. Falling to his knees Isaac felt himself cry for the first time in years. And he swore to himself he’d stay at Walkerville, raise Alice right. He owed her that much.

----

In the Hall Alexei decided to apperate sitting on a table. Smiling he watched Helen for a moment before saying “Ah..I wish I had spent more time here. You always gave me odd inspiration, like I could be better than I was. I’m going to miss that about you McKinnon. But I don’t have much time so I should tell you that I left a gift for you and the child, just ask Ernie for it at the bar.”

Said gifts were a good bottle of his favorite whiskey and an assortment of weapons for when the child grew older. There were also a few other things for the child. Mostly older russian toys.

Smiling as he cried Alexei continued as he began to fade “And don’t worry I’m not going to hell. I probably deserve to but I’m not. Instead I’m going to help a few old friends of mine watch over the spirits of children! And of course I’ll get to see my brother again..he uh..he was a good man, you’d have liked hi-” he was cut off by the fact he’d finished fading and found himself sitting in a mansion in front of a group of children.

Giving them a smile he picked up a book and said “Now who wants to hear about Miss McKinnon and her travels? Everyone? Good.”

---

Roland meanwhile decided to find a resting spot. He’d helped En for long enough he figured. Sitting down he decided he’d keep a watch on his wayward son. Afterall Isaac would need plenty of guarding now...

37
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: November 06, 2018, 10:45:45 am »
It was maybe six in the morning when Alexei sat down next to one of his men. If he recalled his name was Edward, but thanks to those damn romance novels he prefered Eddie. Handing a metal hip flask over Alexei watched the woods as Eddie took a drink and offered a cigar.

Taking the cigar Alexei waved off the offered lighter. “With cigars use a match.” He told Eddie as he retrieved one from his pocket. Lighting the cigar he let his eyes drift over the edge of the trees ahead as they sat there shrouded in the morning fog.

Above them they heard Salazar unzip his pants and saw the stream of piss fall down in front of their window. Eddie called up through the boards “Jesus man really? Right in front of my window?”

Salazar called back “Oh get the fuck over it. I saw worse back in my day, saw a hell of a lot worse.” But the stream rather quickly stopped and they heard the sound of the zipper followed by a few footsteps. The sound of him and Edgar talking was about the only thing that Eddie and Alexei heard as they watched and waited.

A few minutes passed and Eddie scratched his nose as he said “I’d fucking kill for a candy bar right about now. Haven’t had one since the world went to shit. But not those fuckin..off brand chalk tasting pieces of shit.”

Alexei nodded as he handed the cigar over to Eddie for him to take a drag of. As he took another swig from the flask Alexei hoped the enemy would come soon. Taking the cigar back he said “You a heathen Eddie?”

Eddie looked over before letting his eyes return to the tree line. The question hung in the air as the pair just stared out at the trees. Finally Eddie responded “To you christian motherfuckers maybe. But at least I know when I die I’ll sit with my ancestors and tell my stories. And I’ll get to hear how my great great grand daddy put rounds in them nazi motherfuckers back in WW2. Always was fascinated by that.”

Alexei shook his head as he idly tapped the side of his AK and responded “When I go I’ll be sitting right next to the devil himself I imagine. Done a lot of bad things. Killed a lot of people.”

Eddie looked at Alexei out of the corner of his eye. Picking up the SAW from where it had been resting on the ground he set it’s bipod on the windowsill and said “We’ve all done a lot of killing. A lot of bad things. Gonna do a lot more before we get put in our graves.”

Alexei looked over at the man and wondered just what this kid had done that was so bad before things went to shit. He was a relatively tame man compared to the rest of the lot. It was due to Eddie Alexei hadn’t gone and done some of the stupid shit he’d thought of doing. Like walking into the bar and shooting Irene in the face. Maybe he’d ask later after this little fight was over.

----

Meanwhile the group of men that had been approaching stopped. Retrieving a radio one of them called back that they were assaulting the Heretic’s camp now. The voice on the other confirmed their location before signing off and leaving them to their fight.

A few seconds later and one of them stepped on the first trap that was waiting for them. As he picked his foot off the ground the explosion rang through the air as what was left of his body and those that had been standing close flew through the air to decorate the nearby trees.

-----

Alexei lifted his rifle at the noise and he heard the footsteps of Edgar and Salazar taking position on the roof. Then the fifty cal boomed into the air as Salazar let rounds off into the woods. Eddie followed suit and swept the tree line as several more explosions sent dirt and blood spraying through the air.

----

Meanwhile back at Walkerville Isaac had been organizing the books in the library when he heard the explosions. Running out he started for his truck. A handful of minutes later and he hopped down with his small caliber minigun strapped to his chest as he connected the helmet to the rest of his armor. An M14 was strapped to his back as he ran over the bridge and towards the fight.

----

Salazar saw the mass of bodies before the others had. He couldn’t really count how many there were but it was a damn army as far as he could tell. And now they were returning fire.

Of course a fifty cal and two M249’s were for the most part keeping them from having the time to line up accurate shots. Still if things continued like this they’d be overrun due to the sheer number of bodies.

Below him Alexei sent off rounds from the drum fed AK-47 he was using. Beside him Eddie produced a remote detonator and watched while one of the others took over the SAW he’d been operating. Staring into the fog he waited a minute before pressing the button.

Three trees were turned into lethal shrapnel as a deafening explosion ripped through the air. And still they kept coming as they ran forward with axes, shovels, and whatever else they had managed to get a hold of while those armed with guns opened fire through the fog. Screams of ‘death to the heretic’ were heard as Alexei’s men kept firing themselves.

A rocket landed in a particularly thick part of the mob and sent body parts flying in through the windows as Alexei ducked down to reload. Salazar felt a handful of rounds tear through his stomach as scrambled to reload the fifty cal. Eddie meanwhile pulled out a pair of pipe bombs and threw them into the oncoming foes before ducking down to grab more of their improvised grenades.

38
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: October 30, 2018, 12:10:36 am »
Alexei and his crew had returned home and had spent a few hours working at this point. As Alexei finished preparing the modified AK Edgar looked over and said “Hey boss that suit of yours was modified. Fucking thing can run on high grade alcohol like the shit we drank last night.”

Alexei nodded in response. Checking the last magazine for the weapon Alexei made sure it was fully loaded. Off to his right Edgar and another of his men were loading magazines for the various weapons they had. Behind him Salazar was lugging a fifty caliber machine gun while another man followed behind him with a stack of ammo boxes.

The cause of this amount of activity had been a message that Irene had been given earlier in the morning. It came from an old friend of Alexei’s that still worked for his mother in what remained of the Russian mob in New England. It was the only aid they were willing to send. A warning that trouble would arrive during the early morning fog tomorrow.

Salazar arrived on the roof to set up the fifty cal in position behind the sandbags, which were actually filled with dirt, while the ammo boxes were deposited next to it. Not far behind the fifty was an old mortar that looked like it had come straight out of a museum, the homemade ammunition less so. Below the fifty, behind a set of wooden blinds in front of the windows, were a pair of belt fed M249s that they’d ‘liberated’ from some folks a few days back.

Two more men came back in from the woods. Out of the fifty explosives they’d taken only five remained on the vests and belts. The rest had been spread out in the tree line rigged with various methods as traps.

As they entered the building Alexei called them over. Opening a crate as they made their way over Alexei produced a modernized RPG. Still cut along the same lines Alexei knew the weapon had still seen major use in third world guerrilla armies alongside it’s elder counterparts. Fired the same rockets too.

Producing a bastardized rocket Alexei turned to the two men and said “Increased payload but no arming distance. It’ll shred infantry easy.” Tossing the rocket to one man he picked up another “This one will punch through any modern armored plating and detonate within said vehicle. If you see something worth one of these by all means shoot it.”

Tossing that rocket to the second man Alexei turned and grabbed a canister of petrol. Cases of empty bottles sat waiting to be readied as petrol bombs. His old comrades called them Molotov Cocktails. As he prepared them he contemplated yet again calling the Hall and Walkerville. And yet again he decided this was his problem. These men were only involved due to some bastard sense of loyalty like he had felt for Bandit some years ago. They were far enough away from the bar that they wouldn’t be caught in the crossfire.

39
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: October 19, 2018, 12:11:41 am »
Alexei looked around and noticed the only one that seemed injured was Salazar. Asking if he would be alright in Russian Alexei grinned when he got a nod in response.  Looking back to Solomon he said “We’re fine. Thanks for the assist.”

Retrieving a cigarette from his pants pocket Alexei lit it as he waited for his men to start back home. Looking over to Edgar and speaking a quick sentence in Russian Alexei caught the bottle his associate tossed to him. Holding it in one hand Alexei walked over to Solomon and handed the bottle to him. “For Miss McKinnon. A gift for providing me shelter some time ago. I wish I had the time to deliver it myself but..” He trailed off. He wasn’t sure what to say, whether or not to admit he was preparing to die, and paused for a few moments. Flashing a fake smile as he’d become accustomed to Alexei finished “..I’ve business to attend to. Tell her I wish her and her family the best.”

Turning he followed his men. Alexei had no illusions about him having a long life now. Perhaps in another life he’d have stayed, maybe even joined Miss Mckinnon’s little group. But with what was coming he knew he’d only bring more danger to her and her child if he was there. Better to die like his brother he thought. Better to be killed protecting something.

Meanwhile Veronica received communications on a bandwidth that had been dormant for some time. The voice of a man she knew only as The Father called out “Hello. It has been a long time since I’ve spoken to my flock abroad in this land. But it is time I call upon you once more. It is time we pursue the heretic now that our scouts have found the area he is believed to be operating in.”

Veronica hadn’t been from the UT, or Voshkova, having arrived a number of years into the cataclysm and cementing her place there. She had been sent for a reason though she had lost sight of it after meeting that infuriating pastor. Something about the way he had treated her..

As of late though she had started what she had been sent to do. Looking at the other members of the ‘family’ in the room she saw the excitement in their faces. Listening they heard the Father give them some information and their excitement only grew. The Heretic was supposed to be near them.

Elsewhere a few minutes later in the 3rds base Schultz listened to the PA system. Closing his eyes and sighing he stood up. Krieg was sitting near him as the pair had been discussing the very thing they had just heard. Schultz opened a drawer and retrieved a detonator as he said “Girl I tried to guide you away like Roland had wanted but now..now you’ve gone and done it.”

The two stood up from their conversation as Krieg sent a signal to the Rangers. The pair were walking down the hall when a man in full kit stopped them. He was asking about some new authorization badge that Veronica’s little order over the PA instated.  Looking the man over Krieg spotted that little symbol Schultz had told him about a few days ago and that he’d been seeing more and more of stitched onto the man’s uniform.

A silent communication between Krieg and Gray led to the man falling to the floor. Grey had slit the man’s throat open. A few spats of gunfire erupted as they made their way to the garage. The Rangers were waiting there with the children that the 3rd had been sheltering.

Hopping into the back Schultz barked an order and the vehicles started off. As they cleared the garage Schultz pressed the button on the detonator.

After a few seconds the charges, disguised as toys, that were spread through the facility detonated. Of course this killed men and damaged the place. But there were survivors. And after a few minutes Veronica and her cultists stepped into the garage. Clenching her fists she said “Get in the vehicles, we’re going to find the Heretic and kill him. Then we’ll deal with the rest of these idiots.”

Elsewhere B-23 and his crew had intercepted the transmission. Not that it made much sense to the Carniceria. They didn’t care for such things. But they knew there would be an influx of trouble because of this.

B-23 adjusted the vest he was wearing as the vehicle came to a stop. Following the others and jumping out the back of the vehicle B-23 wondered what this new programing he’d installed would do. Something about a data base of individuals. It hadn’t been one that the scientists had shown interest in testing.

Walking towards the building to meet with someone that had contacted the head of the Carniceria B-23 kept a hand on his pistol as it sat in its holster. Upon walking in B-23 saw a woman and a young man, the woman being maybe in her early twenties while the young man was sixteen or so. A few words in spanish were exchanged as B-23 scanned the two.

As he’d expected the kid came up with nothing. The woman however surprised him. Her record had been clean though a few roving bots had clocked her for a few misdemeanors before law enforcement systems lost contact with each other. Her age was 25, and her name was Alicia Frontiers.

Walking back out of the building now that the two parties were satisified with the deal they’d made B-23 let the two strangers into the van before stepping back in with his comrades. As they got moving B-23 leaned forward in his chair and wondered just what was going on. Because the only person he knew with that name was supposed to be much younger.

40
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: October 10, 2018, 03:19:22 pm »
Alexei squeezed the trigger of his old pistol as his ears rang. Another zombie went stumbling past him missing it’s brain as Edgar dropped his gun and ripped his machete from its sheath. Cutting a zombie’s head off the muscular man started laying into the remaining zombies.

Salazar meanwhile walked amongst the dead executing them with his gun. His maniacal laughter echoed as blood fountained from another head. Now that one had bitten him the rest seemed to realize he wasn’t ‘good’ food and he was loving the carnage that was letting him carry out. Noticing his pistols slide lock back he flipped the weapon in his hand and slammed the handle of the pistol into a skull. The resulting crunching noises only made him laugh louder.

As Liam reached the clearing he saw the few remaining zombies. Reaching an open hand out to the side he leapt up and towards them. The ball of flame that had been following him drifted into his open palm as he closed it. Landing on top of a zombie Liam swung the magic mace that had formed in his hand and killed it. He couldn’t help but to smile that his spell had actually worked.

Looking over his shoulder at the handful of zombies left Liam sighed. “Alright, let’s see how this one goes.” Liam said before focusing for a moment. One of the zombies head’s exploded as Liam shook his head. “Right. Guess it’s back to basics.” he said before taking a step forward and smashing another skull open. His other hand had pulled his axe out and chopped into the head of the last zombie he could see.

Liam looked over the group of shirtless men and rolled his eyes. Walking over to them he cast a glance at the still clothed and laughing Salazar. “Anyone hurt?” Liam asked as Anton and the others emerged from the trees.

Alexei shook his head as he let his empty magazine clatter to the ground. Sliding in his last magazine and chambering a round he tried to recall just who these men were until he spotted Solomon following close behind the group. Retrieving a cigarette he said “We’re fine. I didn’t see anyone get bit at least.”

Salazar meanwhile reached a hand up to wipe away what felt like tears. Pulling his hand away he noticed that it wasn’t tears, it was blood. Pulling out a handkerchief he used it to cover his eye as he leaned back and laughed. He didn’t care about the chunk missing from his shoulder and his eye still worked. even though he was laughing the eye was mildly concerning.

But that also came with a realization. One he’d most likely take advantage of in the future he thought. In the meantime he stood up and noticed the others that had arrived. In truth he hoped Solomon wouldn’t recognize him but his little tricks to change himself didn’t always work on everyone.

Elsewhere Isaac and Alice had finished preparing to leave. As they walked Isaac connected his helmet to his breastplate and let the electronics start up. He only hoped the armor that Alice had managed to find and or make was good enough. He’d given her his old pistol and she’d elected to take a rifle along with her makeshift sword.

Isaac meanwhile had elected to take the spear that the Seven had entrusted to him. Primarily at the suggestion of The Guide, the white raven currently resting on his shoulder. Along with it he carried an automatic pistol that had been in his truck and a bandoleer that contained a few spare magazines and some grenades. And no one was liable to miss the old but reliable RPG attached to the back of his armor.

Spotting the carnage that had happened at the bridge and unholstered his pistol. Nodding to Floyd and the others as they passed Isaac said “We’re going out scavenging. If you need us to keep an eye out for anything you can catch me on the radio.”

As he walked Isaac kept an eye on the corpses. He’d dealt with them enough to be wary of them even when it looked like they had died. Nevertheless they made it across and away from Walkerville.

A few hours later they were looking through an old store. Isaac figured he’d been here before, he’d been to a lot of places in the area, but he figured he hadn’t been looking for books back then. At least Alice seemed to be enjoying getting out of Walkerville.

Isaac picked up an old woodworking magazine and shrugged to himself before stuffing it into his backpack. Standing up and walking through the aisles he and Alice found a few more magazines and books before heading out to look somewhere else.

Walking down the street they caught sight of a group of armed men standing around a young man. Isaac recognized the tattoos and patches the men had as that of a roving raider gang he’d fought a couple times before. The man they were beating looked like he may have been from a rival group.

Alice saw it too and said “We should just go around them. Let things sort themselves out.”

Isaac hesitated before pulling his pistol. The first shot domed one of the eight men that had been beating the young man. His compatriots turned and pulled weapons out of their jackets and pants. The second that took provided room for a second accurate shot that tore through another man’s throat. When the gunfire started pouring in return Isaac went to duck behind an old mail dropbox and felt a bullet hit his left arm, striking a gap in the armor plating.

Alice, telling Isaac he was an idiot over the radio, returned fire as well. Another of the raider gang hit the floor before she had to duck back into cover. Responding to the shift in direction of the gunfire Isaac switched the pistol over to automatic and opened fire. Two of the raiders were caught by the hail of gunfire before the weapon malfunctioned. If it hadn’t of been for the armored glove he was wearing the weapon detonating would have badly injured his hand.

Ducking back down as the three remaining raiders split their fire between the two threats. When they had to stop to reload Isaac charged out with the spear in hand as Alice followed behind firing her pistol. A shot hit one in the shoulder before Alice stabbed him in the stomach and followed that by emptying her pistol’s magazine into the a second. While she did that Isaac stabbed the spear through the last of them before kicking his body off.

Returning the spear to his belt as it magically reduced its size Isaac walked over to the man they’d been beating. Just like he thought the man had a patch on his jacket that belonged to another raider gang. Putting a hand on his shoulder Isaac knelt down. Retrieving some of his medical supplies he treated the man’s wounds. Once he was done he looked the man in the eye and said “You’ll be fine but I’d recommend a change in profession. If I catch you on the other end of this situation you’ll be the one dead on the asphalt “

The man stammered a thank you and picked up his baseball bat from the ground. As he went to walk away he said “I..I won’t forget this sir. And I’ll let my friends know too.”

Leaning down to pick up an MP5 that the raiders had attempted to use to kill him Isaac checked it over. A leather sling had been attached to it so he put that over a shoulder and noted this one had been cut down heavily. A removed stock made the weapon fairly easy for him to use in one hand and he was fairly certain he had some magazines for it in his truck back home.

He didn’t bother responding to the man as he and Alice went back to their business. Once they were out of sight Isaac removed the armor on his left arm to remove the bullet and stitch the wound. Alice helped as best as she could before they started moving again. Isaac had to admit he liked this white suit of armor better but his other one had better plating.

Giving Alice a smile before replacing his helmet Isaac hoped she wasn’t worried too much. Whispering into the mic built into his helmet Isaac had the built in systems administer some pain killers as they walked. Another hour of scavenging and then they’d head back.

41
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: October 06, 2018, 10:29:59 pm »
Grey followed behind Krieg as he ran down the hallway towards the medical bay. The two of them had been sleeping when the radio had told them to book it due to a patrol getting ambushed by a large group of zombies. Pushing through the doors Krieg slid next to one of the men as Grey walked through a couple of beds to one of the critically injured. Krieg looked over for a moment to warn “I’d step away from the bed folks.”

As they did so Grey lifted one of the tools and set to work. A handful of minutes later and he turned to see that there wasn’t enough medical staff to actually help them all. Closing his eyes for a moment he tried to run through what he could do to help. Most options would consume too much essence, others would be too ineffective.

Staring down at his hands for another moment he looked up and started for the next patient. As he did so utensils next to more of the beds lifted and began setting to work as faint replicas of himself set about their work. If this killed him then so be it, at least it would serve a purpose.

Elsewhere Alexei observed the items he’d requested. A suit of old, and most certainly out of date, Russian prototype armor. He’d heard stories of this stuff from his brother. It turned an already lethal soldier into a monster.

Tossing one of the bags they’d brought to the men they were buying from Alexei waited. After a momentary inspection of the guns the man nodded and threw the bag to one of his underlings. The two groups exchanged the items they’d agreed upon.

Salazar for his part had kept his weapon ready. Something gave him an off feeling about this whole deal. But the transaction went smooth. It wasn’t long before they arrived back home.

Edgar and Salazar unloaded the boxes of AKs that they’d traded for while Alexei checked out the armor. The helmet’s subsystems, that of a HUD that tagged confirmed hostiles and kept a tab on ammo of weapons that were synced up to it, where completely smashed. Popping open one of the cases Edgar picked up a rifle and stared at it for a moment. It wasn’t a typical AK he was certain of that.

He passed it over to Alexei along with an odd magazine. Setting those aside for the moment he went to conclude his inspection of the armor. As instructed Salazar hooked a car battery up to part of it and Alexei went to test a few things. Sliding a gauntlet on he connected it to the rest of the armor and flexed his hand. Feeling the old machinery come alive he smiled before activating one of the gauntlet’s other functions. Electricity buzzed over the surface of the gauntlet as it loaded with enough energy to knock a man flat on his ass.

Deactivating the device he moved to the rifle on the table. A bit bulkier and heavier than it’s normal counterparts. Setting the weapon itself down he inspected the magazine. It could contain up to four different kinds of rounds from normal to rounds that contained the chemical equivalent to a high yield grenade. At the command of it’s operator it could switch between any of the rounds loaded into it.

Grabbing a bag that he’d set aside from the others Alexei opened it and nodded in approval. It had the rounds for the rifle as he’d asked. Tossing it on the table he grabbed the rifle and did the setup required to get it to actually work. That was primarily registering as it’s operator using a provided audio sample of a russian officer authorizing it and then saying a few words in his old tongue. Once that was done it wouldn’t fire unless he was the one operating it.

Meanwhile Edgar had pulled out a few bottles of Alexei’s moonshine and the rest of the gang was celebrating in the background. Pulling off his jacket and shirt Edgar, still in his mask, sat in a chair as one of the others pulled out a tattoo gun. After a while he stood up and walked over to Salazar. Giving a short friendly embrace Edgar asked “So you in?”

Rolling up his sleeve Salazar nodded and said “Yeah I’m in. I’ll have my own business to take care of from time to time so I won’t be available all the time.” and sat down at the chair the tattoo artist was in front of. Indicating part of his forearm and telling him what he wanted Salazar let the man get to work.

It was a half hour later and everyone was tatted with the word ‘sinner’ somewhere on their body save Alexei. He’d decided on ‘Heretic’, explaining that that’s what some old..’friends’ of his were calling him now. Taking a bottle of moonshine and adjusting his filter Alexei led the way as he drank. The already half drunk assortment of now shirtless men followed after him as they walked out into the woods. It wasn’t long before they all ended up passed out in the woods.

A few hours later in the morning and Alexei sat up, rubbing the side of his head as he felt the first real hangover he’d felt in a long time. Smiling he looked around before hearing something behind him. Said something was the blood curdling screech of horror that Edgar emitted when he woke up to a zombie falling to it’s knees to try and eat him.

The sound of his pistol going off woke the others. Alexei pulled his pistol and shot the zombie in the head as Edgar fired another shot before standing up and emptying the rest of the magazine into the corpse as he let off a series of expletives that would have made Alexei’s babushka beat him. The others stood up and Salazar grabbed him by the arm to start calming him down.

Which was when one of the others looked around, being smart enough to realize zombies rarely moved alone, and noticed several more. Shouting to the others the man drew an old Tokarev and shot the first of the shambling zombies. The rest turned and opened fire as well before Salazar noticed the electricity pouring off of one. Turning to shoot at it he was surprised when it rushed forward and leapt onto him.

Hitting the ground hard Salazar didn’t have time to react before it bit into him. Feeling it rip part of his shoulder off he noticed it stopped for a moment before shambling off of him and spitting the chunk of meat to the side. Putting a hand on his shoulder Salazar lifted his pistol with the other and put a hole in it’s head before it could turn to attack the others. Standing up he leaned against a nearby tree and fired another couple of shots. They’d dealt with most of them but a few were still moving. Muttering to himself “Guess having rotten blood inside of you has its perks.”

Meanwhile outside the Hall Liam heard the gunshots and snapped out of his meditation. Standing up he saw Charles step out of the barracks with his sword and look around. Turning to run into the woods Liam shouted “Get the rest and get your gear on Charles, I’m going to go check what’s going on!” before running full tilt into the woods.

42
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: October 03, 2018, 04:39:32 pm »
As the day turned towards night Alexei sat across from Salazar in the back of the van. The pair of them were wearing clown masks that were reminiscent of the Joker’s gang from an old movie Alexei had watched in his youth. And tonight they were heading to meet with a few people that had expressed interest in some of their supplies.

Sliding a magazine into his P90 Salazar looked out the window into the dark night and thought back. He’d done things like this before when he pretended to be part of the mob. But now he was doing it because he wanted to not just to maintain a cover.

Meanwhile back at the Hall Steinar read the letter and sighed to himself. Throwing the letter off to the side he walked outside to clear his head. Of all the stupid decisions his friend could have made.

Liam saw Steinar walk off into the woods and wondered what that was about. But that wasn’t his business he thought as he looked around. Making sure no one was around he sat down and summoned the little puffball of fire. It drifted over to a pile of wood in the fire pit that the vikings had dug lighting it.

Sitting cross legged Liam started some meditations he’d read about. After a few minutes he felt more in control of himself. He could also ‘feel’ the other’s in the barracks and in the Hall, a rather odd sensation to him. Turning his head towards the barracks he ‘saw’ the others getting ready to sleep and noticed Eino climbing in through a window.

That however dissipated as he turned his focus to a different meditation. Taking a deep breath he let it out and smiled. The little puffball of flames danced around him as he settled in for the night.

Elsewhere Blitz and his men dismounted the halftrack and admired the work their compatriots had done to the building they would be living in. A firehouse that had been abandoned for some time that would need a setup for getting power and more defensive capabilities. At least it wasn’t far from the irradiated zone they would be exploring over the coming months and years.

Of course they probably could have done this while working with the 3rd but Blitz had his reservations. On top of that the Tunnel rats had been getting harrassed for a while over minor things. So it was natural they would leave without a word.

Blitz set his helmet down as he thought about things. Veronica had been acting strange since Roland had passed. He knew that before she had been a part of the 3rd she’d come from some odd religion but had never thought much of it. Now though he wondered if that was playing into some of the strange behaviours he’d noticed.

Shaking his head he heard one of his men call him over. Walking to the man he listened as he reported what work had been done to their base of operations. Nodding in approval he told them to keep at it before walking over to a bed and laying down to get some sleep.

43
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: September 15, 2018, 01:18:56 am »
Anton took the freshly sharpened knife from Charles. Plucking a fresh onion from the basket with his other hand he began. Removing the skin with a practiced efficiency Anton let Charles swipe up the waste and throw it into a bucket as he halved the onion. From there he started chopping it as Aaron and Gunnar skinned and butchered a trio of rabbits they’d hunted.

Charles handed Anton the next vegetable to cut before sliding a clean metal bowl across the floor. Aaron caught it with his foot and kicked it up and onto the table before depositing a large chunk of rabbit into it. Gunnar set the skin of the animals aside for future use in a bucket that Charles placed on his right as Anton tossed Aaron another knife as requested.

Catching it by the handle he returned to his work as Charles made a note on a chalkboard to sharpen the other knife. As he grabbed a small container of cooking oil Charles asked “If I could inquire, where exactly did you get a sword Anton?”

Cutting a potato into large chunks Anton said “My father was considered of high enough rank to bear a sword. I’ve carried it since I was sent away to America with Eino and our mother and chose to actually use it when repaying my father’s debt to..well our friend’s order. I’ve no clue what it’s actually named.” sliding the quartet of cut potatoes into a bowl he grabbed a carrot and started removing its skin.

Aaron shook his head as he threw the first of the fully butchered carcasses out the window and said “Ah. My father always said there was something about you and your brother. ‘Think their too good to do whats needed’ he’d complain about you. But I saw Eino at work even before all of this mess started. You as well. We’d never have found some of our..more intelligent prey if not for your help.”

Charles nodded as he tossed the onions into a pan he’d melted butter in. “I’ve seen everyone here do good work. And bad, but that came with inexperience. Hell I’m the youngest here so I’ve still got some learning to do.” he said. Noticing the onions were cooked well enough he put them aside and put in some of the cut meat as Anton slid the potatoes into a boiling pot of water.

Anton smiled underneath the cloth that covered the lower half of his face. He had found that Charles underestimated himself too often. That being said it was endearing how humble he tried to be when it came to everything except his blacksmithing. The last time Aaron had questioned the quality of his repairs Charles had shouted him out of the village for a couple of days.

Nudging Charles’ arm Anton motioned towards Liam with his head. Nodding in return Charles walked over and gently woke Liam up. Anton watched for a moment before returning to cutting up vegetables.

Even though Liam was 28 he was still the second youngest of the group. Anton had always thought of him as another younger brother. He’d gone out of his way to talk with him and made sure he was welcome in his home. He only wished he could help with the nightmares the kid had all the time.

As Liam started waking up Charles returned to cooking the meat. After a few more minutes Gunnar picked up the bucket of skins and walked outside to begin preparing those for tanning. Aaron handed the bowl of meat to Charles before washing his hands and the knives that had been used. Putting his own knife aside Anton settled in to wait for their dinner to be done.

44
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: September 11, 2018, 10:41:27 pm »
Salazar had waited until Steinar wasn’t at the Hall. He didn’t want to talk with his old friend about this one. Better that they part ways where Steinar could be happy. Retrieving a piece of paper from his pocket he gathered his gear and strapped it on. Walking towards the door he handed the paper to Solomon.

When he was asked what it was for he told Solomon to give it to Steinar when he got back.  As he turned to walk out the door Solomon saw something even without the mask on. A flicker of Salazar covered in tattoos with his right eye bleeding and smiling with sharpened teeth, a blood stained skull mask hanging around his neck. After a second it was gone as Salazar smiled nervously at Solomon’s stunned expression and  said “Take care kid, never know what’s gonna happen tomorrow. And uh..” finding himself unsure of what to say he concluded with “Just take care kid, and tell Helen to do the same.

Closing the door behind him Salazar pulled his bandanna over his face and started to walk. Using some of his magic he changed his face as he tapped the side of his tommy gun. Making his way to Alexei’s bar he wondered just what he was going to do with himself.

Sitting down he placed a few bullets down and Alexei slid him a glass of whiskey. As he took a drink Alexei asked “Never seen you before, what’s your name?”

Salazar stared at his drink for a moment before answering “Sa-..Anthony. My friends call me Anton.” pausing a second before he asked “Listen know anywhere a guy could get a job?”

Alexei looked him over. Salazar wasn’t sure how comfortable he should be with being examined so carefully but he just sipped his drink and waited. Finally Alexei asked “You good with gun?” to which Salazar nodded and Alexei continued “I might need someone in a minute. Finish that and wait outside.”

Doing as instructed Salazar soon found himself standing outside with a couple of young men who were waiting near a van. One of them, the one wearing a hockey mask, looked over at him and said “Did he really hire an old geezer for this?” before opening the back of the van and rummaging through a box. Tossing a plate carrier to Salazar the man said “Put that on, should help keep you alive. Oh and the boss wants us to wear masks for this one so..take your pick from the ones in the passenger seat while we wait.”

Walking over as he slid the plate carrier on Salazar looked through the masks before grabbing one. Putting his bowler hat down on the van for a moment he slid the skull mask before replacing his hat on his head and turning to Alexei as he walked out.

Alexei slid his own mask on as he said “We got word. An old friend of Edgar’s is moving guns. So we’re going to take them.” He started for the driver’s seat of a Charger with Edgar following him. Salazar got the idea that Alexei wasn’t being entirely truthful. Still a job was a job. And it was better than wasting everyone’s time trying to get better at the Hall. Not that he’d let even Steinar know anything was wrong.

The ride to the stash they were after was a couple hours long. Now they found themselves pushing through a tree line and crouching low to the ground in the tall grass. He could hear someone from the building they were moving towards preaching. Taking a knee at the edge of the grass Salazar lined up a shot on a sentry as Alexei and his gunmen moved up to cover.

Once they were ready Salazar squeezed the trigger. As the sentry fell backwards his compatriots took up arms as the preacher shouted “BY THE BROTHERS WE WILL KILL YOU!” before the first exchange of gunfire commenced.

Moving forward while using magic to push himself faster Salazar switched to his Tommy Gun and opened fire. He wasn’t aiming to be accurate just accurate enough to keep their heads down. In that regard he was effective. Sliding into cover behind one of their own vehicles Salazar took the time to reload as Edgar and the other gunmen Alexei had brought along managed to kill a two of the six men actually guarding the place.

Stepping out of cover Salazar noticed that the preacher wasn’t armed. Shooting the two men next to him Salazar started walking over as Alexei and his men took out the other. Walking over they all heard the preacher “You help the heretic? Then all of you will burn in hell! The followers of the brothers will come to cleanse this land of you! I was merely sent to find something.”

Before he could continue Salazar kicked him in the stomach and knelt down. Staring the man in the eyes he said “I’ve met gods. Your ‘brothers’ aren’t among that group. More importantly gods are as fickle as men, turning their backs on loyal servants because it pleases them in the moment. Not that a man like you would take my word for it.” before putting the barrel of the tommy gun to the man’s head and pulling the trigger.

Blinking as his mask was sprayed with blood Salazar stood up as the van rolled up. Helping load the vehicle he heard Alexei tell him he did good. Looking the haul over it was a load of pistols and small caliber SMGs. Tossing his gear into the Van Salazar picked one up and checked it. “Chinese. It’s a knockoff of the MP5SD3. Then we’ve got some P90s and a couple of UMPs.”

Alexei nodded as he made the same assessment. Walking away he said “If you like one take one Anton. If you want you’re part of the family.”

Picking up a P90 and a few spar magazines Salazar climbed into the back and closed the doors. Following Alexei in his Charger the van made its way to a building that Edgar and the others had built near the bar. Unloading the new gear Salazar heard Alexei and Edgar talking. It sounded like they had enough for a shipment to the 3rd now, just needed to make sure the deal went smooth. Turning to Salazar Edgar said “Listen man, tomorrow we’re gonna have another job. You in?”

Nodding Salazar set one of the boxes down and said “Yeah. I’m in.” Retrieving his gear from the van he listened to the pair agree the shipment to the 3rd would have to wait a couple days.

As Alexei went back to the bar Edgar motioned Salazar to follow. Leading him into the building and closing the garage doors behind them he said “Well the big guy said it, so if you want in you’re in. Either way you can stay the night, only fair if you’re gonna be working with us tomorrow. And hey you might need a while to think about the offer.” Stopping by a door he said “This is your room. If you want into the ‘family’ just let me know but keep in mind it’s not some temporary thing. Everyone that’s here has agreed to fight and die for each other and we expect that from everyone.”

Walking into his room Salazar sighed and sat on the bed. Pulling the mask off and cleaning it with a rag he had he wondered what this was all going to lead to. Laying down on the bed he decided to sleep. Maybe he wasn’t going to have another nightmare.

45
Rec Room / Re: CDDA: Adventures in Cataclysm
« on: September 06, 2018, 11:55:05 pm »
Vikaar smiled to himself. Finally his opponent was weakened. HE WAS NEARLY DEAD! It was time to strike even if he was bonded to another soul. But no, he couldn’t do it himself. He unfortunately had matters that would require attention.

Snapping his fingers he found himself walking into a bar. The two men behind him jumped back surprised at his sudden appearance but he ignored them. Sitting down and ordering a drink he slid a golden coin onto the counter as he’d been told was simply what spirits did here.

Sipping his drink he started planning how to get rid of that damn spirit. He couldn’t do it today. Maybe in a few days he could arrange to have some people who would have a vendetta against Grey to take care of him.

Elsewhere Isaac woke up from a nap to find a white raven pecking at some food he’d not finished before falling asleep. Standing up he listened to the bird explain what had happened with Liam in the woods. Once they had finished that conversation Isaac found himself standing in front of the building sipping coffee. Looking at the bird out of the corner of his eye he said “Well since that’s taken care of word of warning for ya. If you ever hurt my daughter I will pluck you and cook you like a chicken.”

It nodded to that as the pair walked around walkerville to see what was going on.

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NOCTIFER IS A FAGGOT