FO NV Abyss IC

It was no secret in the wasteland that the Mojave was in a precarious position. They were on a blood slicked precipice, overlooking a vast chasm, and the Mojave risked being dragged down to the bottom kicking and screaming at any moment. For many of the locals, it was a time to run; a time to hide, a time to pray, a time to say goodbye. For a few determined souls though, it was something more...

Inventories
OOC Abyss

'A plasma pistol,' Tiberius mused, even his limited experience on the subject letting him know the value of this 'find'. It was an avenue that he could scarcely avoid investigating, but which path to pursue? The prospector who has made such a claim or the supposedly empty site from which this treasure was found?

Tiberius paused in his musings as he arrived at his destination, a smile crossing his face as he entered the building.

"Greetings Mr. Nash, how are you today?"

I thought for a while considering the pros and cons of this offer. I would be stuck here for a while, but I would also get a stable income, which I could use to hire mercs for my goal of an free Black Mountain. Making my choice I say to Beagle, "You got a deal, human. Now for my first order as temporary sheriff, go scouting around town for anything suspicious. You see any Powder Gangers, raiders, or just general troublemakers, you get right over here and tell me about it. Don't screw up."

I motion for him to scram, then go to my office with my minions.

Looking at my room, I grumble a little at the size, then walk back out and begin patrolling the town with my dog Max, sending Frick, Frack, and Rick to form a separate patrol, with orders to keep an eye on the Caravan Merchant, without killing him, and reporting everything he does to me.

I also keep an eye out for the Merchant.

I felt bad about the King. He seemed to be a real-stand up kind of guy from everything I head about him during my visits to the Strip. Sure he was a pain in the ass to the NCR, but he cared about the people in Freeside. More than the brass ever did.

"Is there nothing that can be done for Rex? I'd be willing to help out if possible," I asked Julie.

“Well, isn’t Julias friendly.” Arabeth said to her metal companions, “Much more friendly than some of these thugs and uncouth savages in the wilds.”

[Beeb Bip Bop Bop] Came the chirping response of Iris hovering around her head

“Yes, she does seem busy at the moment though.” Arabeth said with a small sigh and a flick of her shining blond hair, “Maybe we can talk to her later, see if she needs any help… but lets talk to that nice lady at the energy weapons store. They seem to be expensive, and expensive goods make lots of money as my Mum used to say… before that Mr Handy cut her in two with a buzz saw…”

With a small shrug, she almost fell over as she went to skip out the great gates of the fort, righting herself, she continued at a more sensible pace… if with a slight spring in her step.

ACTIONS: Head to Van Graffs
Ask About Work

Joseph Kurnov was not a happy man not only had he been in other terms discarded by the brotherhood but he been dumped out along with Alicia: the most annoying and intrusive person in the entire brotherhood, always asking questions and wanting answers as if she expected that we were all-knowing and powerful or something. Still I may not be a member of the brotherhood officially I still had its tenants and creed in my heart even though my doubts about it where what got me cast out, along with the head paladin’s extreme dislike for myself because my mother chose my father over Hardin and I was the product of his failure at wooing her.

The Mojave sun was as always merciless hot and we needed to keep ourselves adequately hydrated or we would die from exhaustion. Taking a break I pulled my back pack from my back and pulled out a bottle of water, I had enough supplies for myself and my dog scruffy to survive in the Mojave for an entire month. Opening the bottle of water I started drinking once, I had finished about half the bottle I got a bowl from my backpack and poured my dog some water as well. Once we were both refreshed I spied that Alicia had now gained some ground on us and I had to catch up so I increased my pace and caught up to her within 20 minutes surprisingly she had stopped in front of a cave.

She looked at me with a gaze that halted any argument I could have made then I realised that we were going inside the cave instead of focusing on our mission, sighing I followed her silently inside. The cave was damp and dark so I had to activate my flash light with my new light source I could see that the ceiling expanded the further along we went and there were these upside down cone things coming down, what were they called stalagmites? Anyway I wouldn’t know as we never did study geology in the brotherhood just science and how to repair stuff which was what I did as a knight but was never good at anyway.

Continuing to walk along I bumped into something that made a muffled noise, it was Alicia and she was glaring at me I never was that much perceptive I thought to myself but then I heard what made her suddenly stop I could hear Human voices and was that mooing?

"Don’t know why I left the homestead"

Alicia knew she wasn't really all that popular in the Brotherhood. Contrary to what a lot of her same-age peers had tried to whisper behind her back, her problem wasn't really that she was stupid, or unobservant. She picked up on things. She knew that she had vastly outperformed most of her peers, and yet had been held back from promotion. She knew that she'd been cycled around a lot of postings, which really wasn't that typical. She knew, and given the only other people treated like that were usually the political radicals, she'd more or less figured out what was happening to her.

Really, the only problem with her understanding of events was that all the explanations for "why" seemed so silly. The idea that everyone had grouped her with the radicals because she kept asking questions about things seemed pretty silly to her at least. So when McNamara had requested her to show up and told her - very politely - that she was going on an indefinite mission outside the bunker, she had been genuinely surprised. When she'd connected her mission to the one Veronica Santangelo had been sent out on - which mess hall gossip had managed to thoroughly explain for her - she'd almost burst out crying. She wasn't a radical! She obviously didn't know enough about how things worked to make that kind of decision! Why else would she be asking all those questions?

McNamara had been kind but insistent however, and after having lent her his handkerchief to dab her moistened eyes, had informed her that obviously, she was still part of the Brotherhood, and probably tensions would eventually resolve and as soon as they did, she'd be allowed back, so really, it wouldn't be too terrible, and look, Joseph Kurnov was going as well! And really, when he put it like that, it didn't sound that bad. Still, getting kicked out of the Bunker indefinitely, without even being permitted to bring along some proper armour or weaponry had the whole thing ranking fairly high up Alicia's list of "terrible things that have happened to me".

Thus, it was with an air of slight gloom that Alicia sat in the ante-chamber next to Joseph, feet dangling loosely underneath her and uncombed hair hanging free. She'd asked him a few questions about what they were going to do, and he'd slightly gruffly, but still with a charming grace that she knew had captivated quite a few of the girls in the Bunker, replied that he didn't know, and please don't ask too many questions. She'd felt tempted to ask him some more just to spite him, but on thinking on it, he'd gotten kicked out too. And he'd never been a jerk about not really liking her. She'd always liked him for that. Well, "liked". She was pretty sure you had to exchange more words than questions and very quick verbal deflections before you could actually like someone. Certainly, her mother had told her that she should try to understand others before she decided what she felt about them, and given Alicia was unfortunately forced to admit that she really didn't understand anyone else in the Brotherhood, she'd yet to prove or disprove that particular piece of advice.

After another half-hour of no real conversation and no real progress, a patrol suddenly came back though. The one in front sprinted ahead without even saying hello, the second noticed the two of them and hurriedly dropped a footlocker he'd been carrying in front of them, and just as Alicia was about to ask what was going on, the rest of them came storming in, dragging along an Enclave officer. Alicia promptly shut her mouth and stepped back, before going to check on the footlocker with Joseph, a faint warmth spreading through her from the thought that even if they'd been kicked out, the others were still looking out for them.

Even better, shortly afterwards the two of them were even given a destination, and real mission!

* * *

Alicia had always had mixed feelings about the wasteland. On the one hand, the sun and outside air was very pleasant. On the other hand, it was hot and dusty and there were practically no books or properly equipped work areas anywhere out there. In the end, she'd decided that she enjoyed moderate amounts of the wasteland. Enough to break up the slight monotony of being stuck in the Bunker, but not enough for it to start feeling annoying and inconvenient. The very physical realization that she was going to have to stay out in the unpleasant radioactive ruins indefinitely was more than a little aggravating. In combination with her already somewhat horrible mood, she hadn't even tried asking Joseph anything ("...Not that he's likely to answer anyway, the jerk!...") and had slowly managed to outpace him to the point where she had to force herself to slow slightly, just to prevent them from losing each other.

It was about then she noticed the cave.

Alicia wasn't terribly familiar with geology and geography, aside from the generalities. What she did know told her that caves were not exactly common, and if nothing else, the prospect of something different than just wading through the wastes was already cheering her up a little. Indulging her curiosity in a way nobody could tell her off for would be nice. Glancing back, Joseph wasn't too far away, so waiting for him wouldn't be a problem, and the tactical exercises had demonstrated quite clearly that being alone in a fight was an easy way to get killed miserably.

Joseph acquiesced surprisingly quickly, without needing to exchange words at all! As he turned on his flash light, Alicia checked her sidearm and made sure her own flash light was easy to reach in case something happened to Joseph's. Then the pair proceeded slowly and silently into the cave.

At first it was merely interesting, but then little things began adding up. Dispersal patterns in the dust. Grime and splotches of material on the cave walls. Small areas of chipped rock. Signs of inhabitation. The darkness made it hard to determine if it was recent, but caution began welling up inside her, making her grip tighten on her gun.

Then voices. Faint, but clearly from further in the cave. Alicia halted completely, with Joseph bumping into her a moment afterwards, forcing her to choke down a slight yelp of surprise and turn a glare on the evidently not observant enough partner she had along.

The glare, unfortunately, was undercut by the sudden noise of mooing. Why did it seem as though every time she tried something like that, something else just made her look silly?

Deflating, she looked up at Joseph, before deciding to try her luck.

"So, what do you want to do?"

She had a pretty good record of getting answers to these kinds of questions at least.

The search for profit.

Everyone was a part of it. Sure, you might not call it profit, you could call it money, power, bettering yourself. Didn't matter who you were just about everyone wants to improve their lot in life. And if they didn't, well then they were probably beaten down until you couldn't really call that life. At least that was how Arthur Beckham saw it, from his experience. No matter where you went you saw someone striving to get ahead, to make things better.

And that search had lead him here, to the desert inland from the New California Republic, his home country. He hadn't known what to expect truly but he had guessed from what he heard that importing weapons could be a very lucrative business along with the normal trade available anywhere and filling the power vacuum left behind by the Crimson Caravan outfit(some of whom had grumbling he had heard and inspired this journey somewhat).

After passing through what had been a NCR military checkpoint he was having second thoughts about importing guns. For one thing it would put you up against the Gun Runners, and if the rest of their operation was anything like that base they were an enemy you did not want to face. Militarily cool and professional with top of the line weaponry and armor, the Mojave Outpost was a place you didn't want to start anything.

Primm had been a good place to visit, and the first stop to see the man with the most influence around there had proven very fruitful. Johnson Nash was the kind of guy you should respect, living for a long time in the wasteland as well as having his own business and store as well as being known as the man to talk to around town. Getting jobs for his boys had been nice, but the offer he gave after was even sweeter. Beckham's group should be getting to know the land by traveling around and having packages to drop off for extra cash would make it more cost efficient.

"Sounds like a good offer to me and a good way to get more used to the area." Arthur said with a smile, liking the idea. He made sure to ask more about the details and they would need to speak about the details of payment. Around that time he also steered towards questions about that bot, if it was truly unique then he might find a good seller later or repair it to see how much use it was.

He was willing to take a lesser amount of caps for the machine if he thought it was fixable and possibly worth more than the caps if he could get it repaired, assuming Nash was even willing to part with it of course.A unique find was worth something anywhere and the man didn't seem like he was short on caps after all.

But in the end they would probably work out some nice agreement that would benefit both parties properly.

Actions: -Agree to work for Johnson Nash
-Ask about bot and possibly wrangle it as part of the deal for a lesser amount of caps
-Inquire about the area from Johnson, new land means getting a local's opinion on things would be best, the head of a courier service more so.

May 18th 2282, Novac.

Will post soon, I just needed actions.

Actions:
-Look around town for anything interesting.
-Ask Straus's guards and people around town about her, just so this isin't a con of some sort.
-Move out. My NCR troopers will stay with the main convoy, while I and Richard provide scouting/sniping support.

Andrew shakes his head as he looks over the town. "Not that impressive, is it?" He asks Joan and Samuel, the brother and sister pair he ended up rescuing from a rad scropion on his first trip out from the vault. "But steady money is steady money, and it seems as good as place as any other to settle down and listen to rumors about where I can find the repair stuff I need..."

Actions:
1: Take the Guard job.
2: Use the spot to listen to rumors and learn more about the world outside the vault
3: Listen for any information that might lead to the repair equipment the vault needs.

[IC Later]

Actions
Buy 3 Pounds of Food (30 Caps)
Buy 4 Pounds of Water (80 Caps)
Ask around for any potential merc work
If no results for above: Head south towards Novac

"Howdy," Nash gruffly replied. Few would describe him as mean or uncaring, but fewer still would describe him as "perky" or "bubbly", "Business is erratic but we're getting by I'd say. What can I do for you... Tiberius as it?" Nash's eyebrow furrowed a little at the Eastern sounding name, but kept whatever reservations he might have to himself beyond that.

"Maybe, maybe not, I don't know exactly." Julie sighed, seeming distressed and fed up with this whole line of conversation. "There's nothing we can do for Rex here, but there's a cyberdog specialists in Jacobstown the King would have been better served talking to. Look, we're really busy today Ryan. Is there something you need? I Need to get back to work." Julie didn't seem to want to talk about Rex right now, because she certainly seemed far more agitated than usual.

Gloria seemed pleased to see you back in the Silver-rush, even if she was as cold and reserved as ever. That was, until, you said you were interested in making some caps. "Work? Yeah, we've got some work..." Gloria said, somewhat startled, and trying to think of how to respond. You could almost see the gears in her head turning as she tried to figure out how to handle this surprise. "Yes, yes I think we could give you some work. Smart off small though, of course. Simon could use some help with security around the building. Freeside has become a more dangerous place, these last few months. I'll pay you 300 caps if you work with Simon."

(Two actions used, two left)

Beale seemed put off by the way you talked to him, but at the same time, he seemed all too pleased to have the burden of the town's security off his shoulders. Even if that meant he had to take orders from the muties... for now, at least. Other than that, you didn't hear much from your patrols about the Caravan Merchant, and for now, the powder gangers were keeping their distance from the town. Things were quiet so far.

Still... the caravan merchant was watching. And watching. Scheming, it seemed.

(3 actions used, one left)

"Well Mr. Beckham, I'd have to say if you worked for just the caps you'd make a good If you want to lend a hand, I'd pay you 525 caps this week." Nash said, stroking his chin as he mentally did some math. "I'm figuring if you put your boys out to work, you could make 1500 or so, and some 5000 caps with your brahmin as well. Bit more dangerous for them, but the pay is good for them too, if you bite."

Nash took noticeably longer to figure out how to handle Beckham's proposition to work at reduced pay for the robot. How much was the robot worth? How much was it's scrap worth? What was it, exactly? Nash didn't know, so it was tough to value it. After some hard fought negotiating, which Beckham only managed to salvage because of his wolfish trade instincts, Nash finally agreed to the idea, convinced by Beckham's impeccable bartering skill. "Alright, alright. If you're willing to work for the robot back there, I'll pay you 210 caps for your work this week, and expect a 15% discount on the services of your caravan."

So far, your negotiating seemed to have gone well. Nash was eager to put you and your men to work, and when you dropped your golden-tongued line about wanting to learn the area, Nash seemed to snap up the offer and try to use it as an incentive to help keep you in town helping him out. "Oh, of course, of course Mr. Beckham. I'll make sure my Couriers help your boys learn the area, and on your off time I'm sure you'll have plenty of time to study my maps and such to get to know the area. Might be able to get one of my Couriers to stay behind for a moment and give you a full on crash-course in Courier tact, in fact."

(All four actions taken up due to the nature of the Strauss job)

Your men didn't really learn anything, but while they investigated the town and asked about Straus, they managed to make 630 caps doing the odd job here and there in their off time. Straus was a respected woman of the town, even if there were some rumors of her dealing in some shady merchandise, and she helped keep Novac alive as it's only (on-again-off-again) doctor. When you went to go meet up with her, she handed you 540 caps to pay for you and all of your men's service. "Half now, half when we get there. There'll be more if I need you more in Nipton." Straus explained, before she refocused on preparations for the trip. You were going to leave early the next morning and strike out for Nipton at first light.

"Sure. I'll talk to you later," Ryan said, letting her go about her work. He went and picked up his gear, then exited the Fort and headed across Freeside towards the north side Strip entrance. Once through the gates, he walked towards the King's School and asked to see the man himself. He told the gang members outside that he heard about his dog's troubles and was interested in helping.

“Three hundred caps…” Arabeth said with a small hum, “I guess that seems fair, all it is, is stopping the wrong people getting in right?”

With a nod and a shake of her hair, sending it across the vault armour, she gave Gloria a winning smile,

“Consider this the safest place in Freeside. Maybe after this we can talk about doing something more exciting.” Arabeth letting out a small giggle and a wink, “I mean, a girl needs her excitement, right.”

With a flashy turn, that nearly caused her to fall over, she headed for the door where Simon was, the clunking of the protectatrons following after her, Iris beeping and bobbing along.

Arthur took some time to do some quick calculations, mentally ticking away numbers and costs and likely results. By his calculations he would make 1260 caps in profit from this deal as well as getting the robot.. well he was new to the area and the experience would help along with getting on Nash's good side.

"Well Mr Nash you drive a good bargain and you make a good offer. Me, my boys and Brahmin will do some work for you and I'll work for that little bot back there too." He was making a rather large gamble on unknowns which was unlike him, but hell it was a new area and vegas at that, gambling capital of the old world. Time to take some risks and hope he hit the jackpot.

He decided to also inquire as to the local prices.. who knows he might find a deal.

Actions: -Agree to job for caravan and start to do it.
-Check out local prices on things, look for low and high especially.


Discount reduction from
750 (brahmin)
+225 (men)
+315 (Beckham)
=1290

Caps paid: 210 (beckham)
1275 (men)
+4250 (brahmin)
=5735

Food rations:

Humans: 225 caps for a week of food
Brahmin: 400 caps for a week of food

Water rations:

Humans: 650 caps for a week of water
Brahmin: 3200 caps for a week of water

Overall upkeep: 4475 caps

Profit this week: 1260 caps

"I was hoping I might get a look at your inventory, Mr. Nash," Tiberius continued, ignoring the sign of discomfort, "I have recently acquired a job that needs a little more firepower than I am used to carrying. I don't suppose you have anything to change that?"

Actions
- Check out Nash's inventory in hopes of getting a look at the plasma pistol. Try to check out the condition of it and a couple other items.
- Talk to Nash and see has any new information about what is going on in the Mojave Wasteland. (Only shop in town, the guy probably gets some news from caravans passing through.)

(You've used 2 actions. You have 2 left)

You'd just bought your supplies and were about to start down the trail to Novac when one of the Alexander's gunrunner guards approached you. "Alexander sends his regards" the guard said, handing you a note real quick, before heading back to Alexander's haunt beneath the underpass. You read on the note that the Gunrunners up at Camp McCarren might have some work for you if you head that way.

(3 actions used, 1 left)

Try as you might, you don't really hear anything about supplies for the vault, but you do manage to pick up on some talk about the issues the local brahmin rancher has been having lately. Seems when his brahmin aren't showing up in the morning mutilitated, they just don't show up at all and have disappeared without a trace. There've been signs of firefights late at night, too. Either way, you rake in your first paycheck for guard work in Novac. 600 caps per member and robot of your group.

(Skipping Smiley for now and having him travel with Usa as a NPC of sorts)

(EC grenades crafted: Unreliable grenade: 4 temperamental EC grenade: 4 Overpowered EC grenade: 5. EC charges used: 225. Information is now in the craftable weapons section of the google doc.)

Alicia might not know a lot about explosives, but she... oh, who are we kidding! She knew a lot about explosives. Just... not... their finer points. Any finer point than "how to make them", really. Like how to use them safely. Or anything to do with safety, period. Joseph wasn't sure about the EC grenade plan, since neither of them were good with explosives, but hesitantly, he followed Alicia outside the cave and covered Alicia while she crafted a number of EC grenades. After breaking 30 EC charges trying to make grenades, Alicia seemed to get the hang of the process, and made 13 usable EC grenades. As if Joseph hadn't indulged Alicia's bad ideas enough and this wasn't already too Mad Scientisty of a plan, Joseph covered the cave entrance while Alicia rigged up a cluster of 4 unreliable EC grenades and a temperamental EC grenade with a spool of wire. Once that was done, they divided up a few grenades among them; 2 OP and 2 temperamental grenades to Joseph, and the rest to Alicia. Then they went in.

Things went okay. At first. Joseph and Alicia were alarmed by the fact they could both hear their own foot-steps, and every so often, they bumped into something or knocked something aside, struggling to watch where they're going and watching out for enemies at the same time. As the two ventured deeper into the cave, the mooing became louder, and louder, until they were pretty sure the brahmin they were hearing were right around the corner of the cave corridor they were venturing down. Then, suddenly, Alicia saw something! A faint blur, barely noticeable, but she saw something. Before she could react though, the Nightkin was on her, and picked her up by the scruff of her neck like a confused kitten. Suddenly, you hear more nightkin shouting from farther into the cave, and there are even more blurs bearing down on you!

On Matters of Proper Application of Military Force

Ultimately, it was all Joseph's fault.

He really should have known better.

Because by god, Alicia didn't!

The plan was actually simple enough, and fairly likely to work under normal circumstances. Concluding - rightly - that lacking actual proper armour and heavy weapons, the two members of the Brotherhood were essentially naked to whatever was down there, Alicia had decided to make use of some of her excess ammunition, since, well, it was supposed to be used.

Just... not like that.

Rigging bombs in prepared positions and using to cover a retreat seemed like a perfectly sensible solution though, even if it wasn't actually something Alicia had ever really tried before. She'd read about the idea though, and booby traps seemed like the perfect way to even the odds, in case whatever was actually inside the cave wasn't just some confused Brahmin, but something worse. Like mutated super Brahmin. There had been a journal about those, somewhere, in the archives, so she couldn't discount the possibility!

Having some extra grenades, she handed them to Joseph like a friendly kid sharing candy. The fact she was handling grenades rather seemed to undercut Joseph's appreciation of it though. What was with that?

In the end, they soldiered bravely into the cave again, Alicia on point because she was much better at the whole "noticing enemies" thing. It was unfortunately all rather wasted by the fact that neither of them actually knew how to sneak. Doing it in powered armour had never been terribly practical, so it wasn't exactly something most of the Brotherhood cultivated. Right there and then, Alicia sort of wished she could go ask Head Scribe Taggart about that instead of needing to try and invent the art of stealth on the spot though.

Of course, this was when the Nightkin got her.

As she saw the blur and began panicking, she reached down with one hand for the overpowered grenade she'd strapped for reaching first, and with the other for her pistol, but before she even managed to draw either, she was picked up by a giant hand grasping the back of her neck, leaving her dangling above the cave floor and squawking confusedly, and somehow, possibly, in the eyes of the right observer, cutely, while back in the Hidden Valley Bunker, a few Paladins felt an intense and inexplicable sense of jealousy.

Alicia's mind raced. She hadn't considered Nightkin at all, though rethinking it, Brahmin in caves did seem like a textbook case of Nightkin behaviour. Brahmin in caves wasn't the problem though. The Nightkin were. Mainly, the fact that Alicia and Joseph were completely unequipped to fight them, putting aside the fact that one of them was holding Alicia up in the air. The bombs might take them out... but if they did, they would definitely take Alicia and Joseph out. Unless she could use the one that was holding her as a blast shield anyway. Hmm...

No. Bad idea. Probably. Call it plan B.

"Um, hey, mister or misses Nightkin-person there? I, uh, I have plasma grenades strapped on. And, um, you're making me kind of nervous about them detonating the way you're making me dangle."

Maybe if they dropped her, she'd be able to run for it?

...it seemed doubtful though. Asbestos had never really seemed like a particularly useful armour material to her...

Actions:
Convince the Nightkin to not dangle her around! By implied threats of accidental grenade detonation! Clearly, this cannot possibly go wrong.

"Grenades!" Alicia wasn't sure what the still invisible Nightkin was doing when he started to change his grip, but it soon became apparent that it wasn't going to just let her go when it grabbed her by the hip and shoulder of her recon armor. "Protect the antler-kin! Quick pinkie, get rid of the grenades!" The Nightkin screamed as it charged towards the cave's entrance, bowling over the confused Joseph as if he wasn't even there, and clearly getting ready to hurl her at breakneck speed out of the cave.

"FISHIE!" Howled a nightkin from the back of the cave.

The nightkin holding Alicia immediately skittered to a stop mid-throw, Alicia painfully recoiling back, and being held upright again. Suddenly, Alicia could feel the nightkin clutching her against it's chest, and breathing on her ear. "Thomas?" Alicia's nightkin addressed the cloaked master nightkin. Suddenly, the entire cave was silent and still.

"Antlerkin outside! Don't throw grenades outside! Pinkie! Pinkie fixes grenades! Pinkie break them!"

"Break them!" Fishie screeched imploringly as he shook Alicia like a rag-doll. "Break them pinkie! Save antler-kin!"

Making Friends with Explosives: A Handbook

Alicia felt vaguely motion sick. It was a new and fascinating experience, except for the fact that it really wasn't very fascinating at all.

"Ah, ah, put me down and I'll do it! I'll fix them all! Right quickly! No problem!"

Don't agitate the Nightkin. Don't agitate the Nightkin. Don't agitate the Nightkin.

She wriggled a little anxiously in "Fishie's" grip. She'd read about "personal space" in some of the medical journals before, but until now, she hadn't ever quite realized how it felt.

She very dearly wanted some.

Actions:
If allowed to go, carefully walk out of the cave, signing to the Nightkin that they also need to be careful, and then go to the unstable bundle. Carefully pick it up and go looking for some hole or ravine to drop it into and safely detonate.
Babble explosives safety procedures from a handbook out loud all the while.

(Two actions used, two actions remaining. Ouch...)

The three king's that Ryan approached turned and stared at him with the most bemused, "how stupid are you?" look Ryan had seen outside of boot camp. After a few seconds of staring at him dumbly, one of them lowered his sunglasses and leaned towards him. "Listen, Mr. Trooper, we heard you'd gone down to the Followers, and we've heard who you are. No need to throw salt in the wound and tell King more of what he's already heard. Ya dig?"

The other two Kings beside him started stretching, and looked at Ryan as if they were about to start pounding on him if he didn't leave. Other Kings in Freeside seemed to take notice of the commotion, and started to move to join them.

(Two actions, two actions remaining. Good roll.)

Gloria's business face shattered again at Ara's little show. Gloria was far from seduced, and the last thing on her mind was swooning, but she seemed... amused, almost? "That she does. Tell Simon to keep an eye on you." Gloria replied as she watched Ara depart with an almost unnoticeable smile. While Gloria was still talking like she was still some New Reno mafioso, her "keep an eye on you" seemed more benign than it would have before.

(All 4 actions used)

"Welcome board. Mr. Beckham." Nash smiled warmly as he shook Beckham's hand. "You can view my wares at closing time. For now, here's some paperwork from our Couriers coming through the quarry this week here..."

Wares
-Johnson Nash, as a Courier administrator, has plenty of caravaneer gear on sale in addition to your run of the mill Mojave vendor supplies.
-The Crimson Caravan recently came to town, and so the town's had an influx of supplies recently. You were able to negotiate 5% off food and water, and 10% off medical supplies with Nash, businessman to businessman.
-Primm seems to have salvage from the NCR camp across the way and the Mojave outpost. Access to T1.5 NCR gear, but at 150% their going price.

"Yes, I have the usual, along with some... NCR gear." Nash said, hesitantly, aware of Tiberius' affiliations. "I was recently sold a plasma pistol by a Prospector. I'm waiting to have it's value appraised though, so pardon me if I'm a bit hesitant to barter it. I heard it apparently came from that Lone Wolf Radio station, though, if you'd like to scrounge around a bit and see if the Prospector missed anything. Along with that... apparently, a large pack of Deathclaws have decided the Quarry would be their new nesting ground. So anyone willing to do express caravan or courier work through the Junction has been getting paid some very lucrative premiums.

Wares
-Johnson Nash, as a Courier administrator, has plenty of caravaneer gear on sale in addition to your run of the mill Mojave vendor supplies.
-Primm seems to have salvage from the NCR camp across the way and the Mojave outpost. Access to T1.5 NCR gear, but at 150% their going price.

"First of all, I'm not a trooper anymore. If I was, I'd beat the hairgel out of your head. Secondly, I'm trying to help. Just because the Followers are too busy doesn't mean there isn't somebody else who could help. Maybe you didn't hear me right because I said I wanted to help."

"Now, all I'm asking is for you to pass the word along. Ain't going to cost you a thing. He doesn't want to hear what I have to say, fine. I'll walk."

Ryan looked around, taking in the gang members forming around him. He really didn't want a fight. Spinning on his heel, he turned to face them.

"What, Kings have to gang up on guys with their backs turned? Since when did you become Fiends," he said to them. He turned back around to the doormen.

"Go on. I'll wait right here."