Wasteland IC

[Ravvyn]

For nearly two weeks she had been walking the desert no sight of anything or anyone which wasn't necessarily a bad thing except for food and water having run out two days ago. She knew there was a town somewhere; she just hoped she'd kept a straight enough route to hit it. Problem with travelling was that nobody had a map and the distance between settlements made finding one like a needle in a haystack. Her mouth and throat had run dry and the heat of the sun caused sweat to escape her pores. She would need to find the town soon.

Eventually she found a tree, something as scarce as settlements these days but needing a rest she slumped against it, finding solace in its limited shade. She knew it wasn't a good idea to stop but her legs were killing her and the reprieve from the heat was too tempting. She dozed off unintentionally, the heat getting the better of her.

There was no telling how long she had been unconscious but it had been enough for someone to find her as when she woke up she was inside a building on a bed. It looked to be a basement, her gear was tucked away in a corner but the more pressing matter was her hands bound together behind her back. Hearing footsteps she pretended to be unconscious again as those footsteps led her "rescuer" down the stairs into the room with her. She heard him chuckle and set something down on the table before getting on the bed on top of her. He started to unbutton her shirt, she could feel by his breath that he was close enough to her and brought her head up hard, head butting the man in the nose. He yelled out in pain but she didn't give him a chance to fight back. Using her hips she launched the man off the bed. When he sat up his back was towards her allowing her to wrap her thighs around his neck, squeezing tight.

She knew she could have snapped his neck but she could have very well died being stupid enough to fall asleep out in the wasteland. He rescued her so she repaid the favour by only choking him out. Once he was unconscious she quickly moved to her things and cut her bonds with her machete. It was then that she noticed the half full glass of water the man had set on the table beside the bed. She rushed over to it and downed the substance allowing the gratifying feel of her mouth and throat being cleansed of the pain of dryness.

After strapping her gear back on and doing up the buttons that had been undone she gave one last glance at the unconscious man and headed up the stairs out into the town she knew to be Garrison.

The town was surrounded by twenty feet of makeshift walls, using any available materials from wood to sheet metal and even blankets at some patches. It was small, maybe a couple dozen houses, one of which was a cut above the rest. She assumed that's where the leader of the town stayed and would pay him a visit later for work. For now however she needed more water and maybe some food so she sought out the bar which wasn't hard to find, the town really only had one street and the few businesses in operation could be seen from anywhere in town. She passed some locals who seemed leery of the newcomer but paid them no mind. She received even more looks when she entered the bar, which was mostly full of men other than a couple female servers and one dancing on a stage in not much more than a corset.

"Water." She said simply to the bartender as she took a seat. The man simply looked at her with no motion towards getting what she asked for. Rolling her eyes she reached into her bag and pulled out a small canister.

"Full of oil. Good for fires." After a moment of deliberation the man took her offering and placed a glass in front of her. She drank it sparingly as she looked around at the patrons. There was a cork board with several bulletins posted, jobs, wanted signs the usual. She would have to take a look at that later.

 

[TimberRattler]

Hoyt eyed the town, then looked at the crude map again. Yep, it was in the right place. He didn't know where he was exactly, he just knew that a town was supposed to be there. Once again the crudely constructed navigational aid had come through for him. It was a product of years of Spartan efforts to re-map what had once been the Western Hemisphere. The war in 2103 had rendered electronics useless, thus making navigation via GPS impossible. Plus the geography of the world had been altered. After 80 years the warriors of Sparta had managed to re-map the former continental U.S., Canada, and Alaska. An expedition to re-discover Central and South America had yet to be completed when Sparta fell to contagion. Hoyt tore himself from his reminiscing, folded the map, and placed it back in his rig. He hoisted his assault pack and set out for the town. He needed water and ammo, and these people would likely have some.

Arriving in town he found a dusty one lane affair. The people were wary of him. They knew potential trouble when it strolled down their street. The military gear Hoyt wore gave even the most viscious Mute pause for thought. He found his way to the bar. The rest of the patrons paused for a moment until it was apparent he wasn't going to shoot the place up. He took a seat next to a blond woman. He unhitched a sizable piece of steel leaf spring from the outside of his pack and set it on the bar along with his assault rifle. He removed his helmet, gloves, and balaclava and set them on the bar as well.

The barman gave a low whistle.

"It's been ages since I've seen any of your kind. And a lone Spartan is a rarer sight than that. What's your story?"

Hoyt just stared.

"Not a big talker, that's fine. The salvage will get your bladder filled and 30 minutes with Darla." He thrust his chin to indicate the dancing girl.

"Not interested in the girl, but I'll take the water." Hoyt replied.

"Well, maybe you'll be interested in this" the barman produced a magazine for Hoyt's rifle.

Hoyt's appreciation didn't go unnoticed.

"More where that came from if you want to put in some work"

"I'm always willing to listen" Hoyt replied

"Excellent, I'll let Mr. Bane know you're in town", he set a glass of water on the bar, "On the house compliments of Mr. Bane"

"You sure you don't wanna meet Darla?"

Hoyt grinned "Yeah, positive. I'm not into catching STDs"

"Hey, she's clean"

"Thanks, I'm good."

"Suit yourself"

Hoyt eyed the blonde next to him. Now that was more his type.

"Barkeep, one for the lady" Hoyt pointed to her just in case the man wanted to play dumb.

He set a glass of water on the bar

 

[Ravvyn]

At first she didn't look over to the man who entered the bar, or even when he sat down next to her. She did however take note of the bartenders interest and her own interest began to stir when he identified him as a Spartan. She'd heard about them but never seen one. Killed a few men claiming to be of that breed but she didn't really believe their claim.

She spared herself a short glance out of the corner of her eye but made no attempt to acknowledge him as the bartender tried to peddle the goods of his working girl. The way he sized her up when she came in there was a likely chance he would've offered her a similar job. That wouldn't have ended well for him. What surprised her was when the Spartan paid for a glass of water for her. Vaidon normally would have been more likely to splash the water in the man's face but for several reasons she opted not to. One, he was a Spartan and she didn't want to test her luck in a fight with one considering how exhausted she was. Two, she was dehydrated and thirsty. Three, with all the death and disease it was funny to her that he was worried about catching an STD from a working girl.

She gave the man a nod and adjusted her position to face him, eying his gear she was a bit envious of it but her own armaments had kept her alive just fine.

"Thanks for the glass. Ain't gettin' ya thirty minutes with me though. If that's what you're gearin' t'wards." She didn't believe that was his intention but wanted to make it explicitly clear anyway. She was going to echo the bartender at the surprise of seeing him but before anything could pass her lips an aging, plumping man came in and everyone stopped what they were doing. The man who ran the town commanded attention and made certain his attire reflected his station.

"I have a proposal. It has come to my attention that several new faces have arrived in town. One of which has already put one of my men in the infirmary." His eyes passed Vaidon. She had a pretty good bet that it was her he was speaking of and the brief meeting of their eyes seemed to confirm that. Soon his eyes moved on to the Spartan.

"With this recent influx of gunman I have decided to introduce a tournament. The reward is a newly erected house, fully furnished. Two weeks of food and this." He moved to the side and another man stepped in holding a sack in one hand a large ranged rifle in the other. By the sound of the clinking in the sack one could assume it was ammo.

"There are only a few rules. No outside interference in the contests, any weapon can be used within it and it is optional whether the contests are fought to the death. Though in the interest of entertainment, every victory earned through fatality will earn a free meal with me at my mansion. You all may sign up between now and tomorrow at noon when the tournament begins. Good luck." As he left with his minion another came in and posted up a sheet on the wall leaving the patrons in the bar scrambling to join. Vaidon raised an eyebrow at the concept. Authorized death matches, would be tempting except for the fact the man beside her had a damn big gun. Still, she had run low on items to trade for food and that rifle was a thing of beauty. Maybe she would be lucky and he wouldn't sign up. Nobody else putting their name in seemed like they would pose a challenge.

She finished the drink given her by the Spartan and stood up, pushing through the crowd and putting her name up.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

So this was Garrison, the place his quarry had found and is most probably still hiding in. He lowered his binoculars and spat the dust out of his mouth, damned wind. He drank the last of his water and sighed, he hoped that the exchange rates was reasonable, he was thirsty and hungry. Jumping gracefully from the wreckage he strode off towards the town in the distance

~~~~~

Half an hour later

He trudged in through the gates, he knew the guards was watching him, but that bothered him none. He quickly found the saloon, not only was it the strongest building, but the best cared for. He scoffed at the folly of humankind and walked over to the saloon, he was two steps from the door when he felt a heavy hand on his shoulder and he turned to face a mountain of a man

"Ye here f'r th' turnement?"

Allen eyed the man which obviously was as stupid as he was big

"No"

He turned to enter when the hand was on his shoulder again

"Th'n I c'n gut ye here 'nd claim th't ye was part"

Allen turned back, his hand whipping behind his back and to the front in an upwards arc, ending at his side, with his machete dripping blood in his hand

"Next wrong move and I gut you"

The big man stared at where his hand used to be, when realization finally dawned on him that his arm now ended at at bloody stump with arterial blood squirting out Allen was inside the saloon, machete back in it's sheath. He walked up to the counter and pulled a hand full of gold chains, necklaces and brooches from his pocket. Dropping it on the counter he looked at the bartender, slung the backpack from his back and pulled a water pump cylinder from the pack and placed it next to the items he already placed on the counter

"What do I get for these"

The voice was low, edged with a 'don't-fuck-with-me' tone, the bartender walked over and inspected the goods

"Water, ammunition if you need what we have and some time with..."

"No. Water..."

He removed the bottle from his shoulder, pulled three more from inside his coat and dumped three more from his back pack

".45 rounds for pistol, I have enough for the rifle"

The bartender grunted

"You sure came with loads of water bottles, that is fourteen liters that you want"

Allen raised his hat's rim, bringing the burn scars on his face into clear view

"You have a problem with that?"

"No, but then you can only get twenty rounds..."

"Twenty five"

The bartender sighed

"Twenty five rounds then"

"Much obliged"

The bartender gathered the items and bottles; Allen lowered his hat and that was the time that the door burst open

"I'm g'na kill ye lil man!"

Allen looked over his shoulder as the huge man he encountered outside came storming inside, a pistol in his hand and trained directly at Allen. Twisting around, and dropping to one knee, the shot rang out and the man mountain came to a sudden stop. He blinked and then his knees buckled and he fell backwards with a resounding thud. Allen holstered his pistol and walked over to the man he took the pistol. 9mm...worthless. He riffled through the man's pockets and clothing, finding a nice knife along with a water pass and ammunition for the pistol. Calmly he turned away and walked back to the bar, placing the pistol and ammunition on the counter to be exchanged as well. The water pass he kept, never knew when that could be used as a bargaining chip

 

[Ravvyn]

After signing up she broke out of the crowd as one particularly big and dumb brute tried in desperation to spell his name. He then triumphantly left the bar shoving any in his way, out of it. She really hoped she would draw him in the first round. Not long after he left she overheard a scream of agony which preceded the entrance of a well-scarred man with a bleeding machete.

Soon after that her hopeful opponent came in, lacking the same hand that had just attempted to write his name. It didn't take much for two and two to come together as to what just happened. After an empty threat was met with a gunshot the man fell. Unfortunately for Vaidon she was close enough to get blood splattered on her cheek and shoulder. She watched the man scavenge his victim, after he had his fill the rest of the patrons stripped the man dry. She took note of one man reaching for his piece, likely a friend of the fallen brute. Seeing what had happened to the other man she placed her hand on his wrist and shook her head.

"Wouldn't do that. Man's got a might itchy finger on that trigger." Not that she cared if the man was shot but she didn't want all the easy marks dead before the tournament started. Heck she nearly pulled her own piece on him after getting blood on her nice jacket.

The disgruntled man along with a few others picked up the hulk and carried the corpse out. Vaidon returned to the bar pulling in between the Spartan and Scarface, wiping the blood off her cheek with the bartenders rag.

"Y'know it ain't always too smart t'come to a new town and cause a stir. Some might take offense t'that. Though, looks t'me like you're no stranger to stirrin' trouble." She noted more closely his disfigured visage. She had lots of experience with men who had a chip on their shoulder. She kept alive by being able to make it in their world but she was hardly brash enough to kill in broad daylight. She picked up her own half empty glass of water and downed the contents. The testosterone emanated more from those two than the rest of the vermin in the bar entirely.

"I was gonna get a free meal out of him too." She repented, her eyes going back to the man.

"Ya bastard." She followed up in a light, almost joking tone even though she did resent him for taking out one of the easier opponents.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

He turned to face the woman as she spoke to her and he chuckled at her words

"Thing is, I don't like being threatened when I arrive into a town to trade and he came in with a gun aimed in my direction. Sorry if I took your free meal from you, but I intend not to end up as a free meal to the scavengers of the desert"

By then the barman had returned with his bottles and also placed a glass of water in front of him. Allen eyed him and the barman shrugged

"Leftovers"

Allen nodded and drank the cool water, it tasted good, he faced the woman again

"It seems that you are in the tournament that he spoke off before losing his hand, what tournament is it if you don't mind me asking?"

 

[Ravvyn]

"Don't know much. Just some rich guy likely owns th'town wants some entertainment. Anyone with a weapon can enter, fights to the death mostly. Not partial t'killin' but ya get a free meal with the guy if ya kill your opponent. Winner overall gets a house an' a fine lookin' rifle. Also get t'eat for a time. Yer thinkin' o'joinin' I gotta warn ya I don't intend on losin'. But I appreciate yer gumption so I promise tuh forego the free meal if we fight." Sure she came off as cocky and she was, she'd killed more than a few dozen men. She wasn't lying when she said she preferred not to kill but she did what was needed and especially being a woman it was near impossible to have any kind of respect in this dog eat dog world.

"Sign up sheets over there." She nodded to the board by the wall.

"Starts at noon t'morrow. So you got time t'think 'bout it.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

He groaned as he heard this

"You got to be kidding me"

He pushed away from the counter and walked over to the paper, he scanned it and silently swore when he read his mark's name on the list

"Of all the no good, godamed idiots I had to chase..."

Allen bit off his words and read the rules, the only way he could get Cayote would be to take part in this tournament. He sighed, sometimes this bounty hunting wasn't all it cracked up to be. He scribbled "Scar" on the list and walked back to his water, bottles and backpack, he packed the bottles he wouldn't need into the pack and pushed the water over to the woman.

"My peace offering"

He turned and mumbled darkly under his breath as he walked out of the saloon, he had to find a place to bunk down and rest. Wondered if he could get the woman or the soldier type to wing him, so that he can return to the Bailbond man who gave him the job of hunting down Cayote. All he needed was the skin from Cayote's shoulders and his left ear. The tattoos on them would mark Cayote as dead.

 

[TimberRattler]

Hoyt flagged the Bartender down again.

"Lemme guess, blondie here shot ya down so now ol' Darla is looking pretty good right?"

"Good thing you're a bar keep and not a fortune teller, you'd have alot of angry customers"

The man cracked a crooked grin. Hoyt continued.

"What I need is a room"

"Thinking of joining the tournament ,eh?"

Hoyt shrugged.

"Well I have a couple rooms upstairs if you've got the coin"

Hoyt produced a handful of metal washers, a snake skin, and a toothbrush.

"Two nights, more than enough time for you to make up your mind about what you're gonna do here"

"Fair enough, how many beds does it have?"

"Just the one, why the hell would you need more?"

Hoyt just stared.

"Top of the stairs, second door on the left"

Hoyt tapped the woman on the arm on his way to the stairs.

"C'mon you're gonna need some rest before the tourney starts. I'll take the floor"

 

[Ravvyn]

Vaidon rolled her eyes at yet another act of 'chivalry' or what passed for it now days as the man pushed some water at her and left. She watched him leave, for a moment considering taking a shot at him with her crossbow. Her hand had even moved to grab it but a tap on her shoulder made her lose her opportunity as the man disappeared. She turned back to the Spartan wondering what he wanted. His offer at a bed caused her to again roll her eyes. She spit on the floor near him.

"I ain't no doxy. Or no charity case either. Don't think that on account o'me bein' female I need lookin' after. You get your rest." She hefted her duffel bag on her shoulder tipping her hat to the bartender before giving the Spartan one more look up and down. She wasn't going to be taken lightly, tomorrow at the tournament they would all see how dangerous she really was.

Leaving the saloon she looked around at the scenery of the one street town, there wasn't much to see but at least those walls would keep Mutes out. Finding an alley between two buildings she hunkered down against the wall, tipped her hat down and slipped into sleep.

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

He awoke from his nightmare of what had happened within the late week. The artificial glow from the ights had become familiar to him. Being inside a vault all his life helped him to adapt to the way of life.
A week, it had been one week since he had opened the one ton vault door to the outside world. The light had been blinding and looking out at the wasteland, he saw endless ruins of a pre-war city. The road nearby was covered with destroyed vehicles, Yet no sign of life was visible anywhere.
As he recounted the events he got up and slipped into his vault jumpsuit and prepare to get himself something to eat.
The vault was running out of food (about 5 or 6 weeks left), and the air-filtration system was dying. Luckly the water systems were in good condition and the electricity was holding up.
He had opened the door in an attempt to see if he could get supplies for his vault but with what he saw, he was second guessing himself. He had noticed a mass of metal an building that looked like a small village but it was too far to see anyone or anything moving about and he was still uncertain of approaching. He felt safter in the vault.
He ate his pork-in-beans with little interest, wishing his fellow vault dwellers were still alive but thanks to the overseer, everyone was now dead. He was alone and missed speaking to other people. As he finished eating he went about the task of checking up on the vaults current condition.

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

Jim decided to take a closer look outside now that he was done with his tasks. He walked out the hugh vault door and walked throgh a tunnel. He remmbered that the vault had been built ino the side of a hill. He walked towards the small cave opening and once again was the outside world. The sun was in his eyes last time, but now that he looked closer he could see off in the distance what he had originally thoght was a city were mountains miles away. He lookd down and saw that a town was situated at the baseof the hill. He couldn`t beleive he hadn`t noticed it before. He could see people walking around though they probably couldn`t see him. He was nervous. Should he approach the town, or wait

 

[Ravvyn]

The long and tall makeshift wall of the town of Garrison did more than block the sand storms of the vast desert around it. It had a much more dire purpose and even though it was hardly solid it gave good defense against a predator. Mutes, a new breed of humans who evolved or some would argue devolved from the radiation and toxins that came from the destruction of the past. They were primal and barely even looked human, most had their skin darkened and sported some form of deformity. Despite this they were very dangerous and anyone caught unawares could easily fall prey.

Most knew not to stay outside the wall particularly at night. As the evening progressed and the sky darkened as the sun began to dip, Jim Dean was on the wrong side of the wall. Four mutes had circled the town looking for a meal when their eyes came upon him. They began to charge, letting out shrill calls feeling their numbers gave them a good chance of filling up for the night.

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

The shreeks sent fear into his heart and shiversdown his spine. The sound was completely unknown to him and he did the first thing that came to mind, the most basic of instincts. RUN!

He knew he wouldn`t be able to make it back to the vault. It was to far away know and the noises were coming from that general direction. However the town was closer and they probably had guards who would help him.

"Dammit!" he had left his 10mm pistol at the vault and all he had was the combat knife. He didn't fancy facing the thing or things that were chasing him.

His heart began to race and the town was getting closer in a few more minutes he would be safe.

As he raced towards the entrance he shout out as loud as he could to get someones attention. He just hoped that someone was close by the hear or see him.

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

He had found a suitable place to bunk down and he was standing at the gates, looking out over the desert. A free meal she said, he thought about that, well if his opponent gave him a reason to kill them, then he would eat for free. A shout drew his attention and he saw a figure running away from what was obviously mutes and they were gaining. With a sigh he whipped off his coat and pulled his rifle free from his back, aiming through the scope he pulled the trigger and the closest mute bit the dust, skidding to a stop.

"Come on you bastards, free meal right there"

The other three kept pursuing what Allen knew to be a male, but he didn't seem like he had been out in the sun much.

"Aw well if you wanna die, I'll oblige"

Pulling off another shot, another mute ate the hot desert sand, somehow that seemed to bring the remaining two to a stop, they looked at the fallen mute, then at the other and fell on them what could only be described as a frenzy. Allen lowered his rifle and shifted it back onto his back, he picked up his coat and shrugged it back on, dusting it off.

 

[TimberRattler]

Hoyt didn't even watch her go. It was obvious to him that she gotten by her entire life by being extremely lucky. No doubt she'd killed some motherfuckers, but attitude and a mean gun hand didn't make up for a lack of smarts in his book. She was so intent on proving what a bad ass she was she couldn't realize the offer of a mutually beneficial alliance was being made to her. Amatuer. People that dumb were dangerous. Not just to themselves but everyone around them. Hoyt was glad she wouldn't be the one watching his back. Maybe the scar faced guy was smarter. Hoyt chuckled as he walked to his room. Twice she'd accused him of trying to buy her favors. How odd. If he'd wanted to fuck he would have said so, Spartans didn't mince words. Hmm, maybe she used to hook and hated herself for it. It'd explain the huge chip on her shoulder. At any rate Hoyt didn't give a shit. He had other things to worry about. This town was headed for trouble, he could feel it in his bones. Hoyt was tired and wanted very badly to die. Being a merc was for scumbags. He was supposed to be a Spartan, but fate had robbed him of that. However he didn't want die here. Not that he wasn't confident he couldn't best every swinging dick in this town, but even the losers get lucky sometimes. And he didn't want one of these shit heads being able to say they killed a Spartan (and the last one at that). A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. He opened the door, it was Darla.

"Ok tell your boss this has officially gotten fucking ridiculous"

"Oh no mister I ain't here for that"

Hoyt raised an eyebrow

"Say what you came to say then, I don't have time for people who can't speak plainly"

She held out a tray of rum and cigars

"Compliments of Mr. Bane"

Hoyt took the tray and smiled

"Well now, you tell Mr. Bane I said this right nice o' him and that I shall enjoy indulging in his compliments post haste"

She looked confused. Hoyt sighed.

"Nevermind. Just tell him I said thanks"

"He also requests you have breakfast with him tomorrow"

Hoyt knew good and well it was a demand and not a request

"Tell him I'll be there"

"Good, he said 8 o'clock sharp"

She turned and left. Hoyt went to the balcony across from his room with the tray and settled into an ancient recliner that had seen better days. He'd just lit a cigar and began sipping his rum when shots rang out. He stood up and looked in the general direction. He saw the scarred up fella apraising two mutes he'd just bagged that were being devoured by two others. Hoyt had a hunch he was right about this guy. Better sound him out.

"Hey!" he yelled to get the man's attention. When he got it he held up the booze.

"Join me for a drink?"

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

Allen appraised the man, he had never really seen his like, but it seemed that he knew how to handle himself. Turning has back on the approaching figure, he walked back to the saloon, where the bartender gave him direction to the man's room. He knocked and entered when the door got opened for him, he appraised the room, it wasn't too bad if you took into account how the rest of the town looked like. He turned to his "host" and stuck out his hand

"Allen Brown, most people just call me Scar"

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

Jim herad the gun shots and knew someone was stopping those things. Jim made it to the town and finally stopped to catch his breath. After a few seconds he dusted off his jumpsuit and looked around for his savior but couldn`t spot them. Not many people were out so he assumed that they were all indoors.

A building that look like some sort of bar caught his attention. He made for it and opened the door.

The place was not really packed but enough people were here that the noise was that of social enjoyment.

Soon everyone stopped hat they were doing and stared at him. He knew that he must be completely different from other people that they were use to. Most of them took a great deal of interest at his jumpsuit. Like all other vault jupsuits, it was a light blue with yellow lines that occasionally appeared. A large number 96 also in yellow apperared on the front and back of the suit.

They had probably never seen a vault dweller before. Or if they had, then it was only on very rare occasions in other areas.

Jim made his was to the bar and sat down next to a ground of other people. They didn`t look like locals.

He looked at the pipboy attached to hs arm like a huge watch. It showed that he was dehydrated. He looked up at the barman and finally spoke to an outsider for the first time.

"Umm, is there anything to drink, water preferably"

The bartender just stared at him with the same look everyone else was still giving him. Jim sighed knowing that he would have t det use to all the staring and soon the questions would follow.

 

[TimberRattler]

He shook Allen Brown's hand and passed the man a glass of rum and a cigar.

"Hoyt, just Hoyt. Mr. Brown, I won't waste your time. I brought you up here to offer a temporary alliance. This town is about to tear itself apart, I can see the signs. I was just passing through, but I fear that may now be impossible. At any rate I'd like to walk out of here under my own steam. Having someone to watch my back increases both our chances. I'd like that person to be you. Everything I've seen out of you so far tells me, not only can you handle yourself but you're also a man of principles. I prefer to work with those sort of folks whenever possible. I've got meeting in the morning with this Bane character, so it'll give us a chance to figure what we're up against. If you're not interested I'd at least like for us to agree to stay out of each others way. So, how about it?"

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

The bartender kept on staring at him as well as everyone else in the establishment. Eventually the bartender did speak saying, "Oiy god, where did ya come from fella? Oie havn`t saw any o`r kind ear before"

Jim winced at the man`s speech, he seemed to be speaking to an unintelligent man. He reponded in a slow even voice saying, "I`m from the umm..-north hear to umm sight see the area around here."

"O`ve seen a number lok tat before, thee one on you suit, but oie doent member where" said the Bartender.

'Great, now everyone will be asking what is with the number' Jim thought with a sigh.

 

[Ravvyn]

Her slumber was short-lived, the sound of inhuman moans from beyond the gate combined with the firing of shots drew her back to consciousness, her hand instinctively reaching for her gun. Vaidon calmed some when she realized the shots weren't fired at her but being curious to the commotion she stepped from the alley to see the gate guards give access to someone in an odd jumpsuit. She followed him at a distance and watched him enter the bar. She may have been out of place living the life of a merc, which was mostly a male profession, but this guy seemed like he was from a distant planet. she slipped into the bar and watched him try to converse with the bartender. It was a different man behind the bar than had been there earlier, one could tell that from the accent alone.

"Hate t'break it to ya." She said to the man, breaking her silence as she sat down beside him.

"More people are concerned with what they'll do when they kill ya and take that fancy device yer packin'. Somethin' like that would fetch a nice piece o' meat. Probably a few hours with that slab humpin' a pole back there." She gestured to the dancing girl, still eying him.

"I came from up north, ain't nobody like you there. Though it's clear ya ain't from 'round here neither. I don't recommend ya stay too long though. Get yerself killed the way you look at everythin'. Easy pickin's. There's a colony further east might be more suitable. Of course, ya'd have to live long enough tah get there." She looked to the bartender.

"What ya lookin' at? Water now. Two." She commanded, pulling a ratty looking shirt out of her duffel bag.

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

He was taken by surprise at the womans appearance. When she explained to him about his pipboy and the trouble that it might cause he felt nervous He hadn`t thought about people wanting to take it and he wouldn`t live through it.

He recalled that Vault-Tec, the company responsible for heping to finance and build the vaults had engineered the pipboys so that they remained attached to the person assigned to them. The pipboy was pretty much a part of him and to get it off, they`d have to cut it off of him. The second complication was that she seemed to know he was lying. If he had really been from up north, then she would have know of him or seen him. Jim knew he wouldn`t be able to effectivly lie to her and she`d definitaly want the truth. But he couldn`t tell her in front of everyone. The less people who knew about the vault, the better.

"Well...." he paused as he searched for an answer. He looked around to make sure that no one was close enough to listen. Then he continued in a whisper saying, "Alright look, I`m not really from the north but somewhere, umm, close by. I`ll explain it to you in more detail, but not where other can hear me. It`s very important"

He paused as someone walked pass then resumed, "Meet me outside by the gate I came through and I`ll tell you everything"

He wasn`t sure why he trusted her, but something just felt right about it. He grabbed the drink from the bartender and pulled some dollar bills from his pocket. "So how much is the drink worth?" When he saw the man`s surprised expression and confusion at the money, he asked "What? Is this enough?"

 

[DeathsKnight]

Allen Brown

He sipped on his drink as he looked at the man, the image kept bothering him, but why he doesn't know.

"First off I got to say thanks, I do try to do the best I can; only big thing is that I'm in this tournament because the bounty I've been hunting entered it as well"

He took a sip of his drink

"But tell you what, I'll look after your back, on that I can give you my word. But then I want you to do something for me"

He looked intently at Hoyt

"I am sure that I'll make it to Cayote and that I'll finish him off. But after that I want out of the tournament...will you wound me? It will allow you to continue in the tournament and I'll have an excuse to hang around while I..."recover" from my wound and in that way I can live up to my promise of looking after your back"

 

[Avellan13]

Jim Dean

He learned a minute later that the people he must not use U.S. currency. He dropped it off anyways, got up, nodded to the woman then left.

As he left the bar, he felt better now that there were not so many people staring at him. He haded for the gate where the told the woman he would be waiting at.

He leaned up against the wall and waited for her to arrive.

 

[Ravvyn]

The odd currency he tried to pass off at the bar was a dead giveaway he wouldn't live long. The fish out of water thing had helped narrow down the population over the last century. Those who couldn't adapt fast to the ruthless and brave new world were either killed or became slaves. She didn't much care if he lived or died but knew there was opportunity with him. He could become of use to her. She followed after him, taking note of the interest in him. The same look given by those who picked the bones off of the man scarface had victimized. This guy was dead meat.

"I ain't got all night an' I don't figure you on livin' 'til th'mornin' so talk fast or I walk away an' let the leaches pick ya dry."