Vault 15! (Wastelands Chapter 3)

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Carib strolled along, glad he managed to take one of the pump action shotguns. He didn't have many shells, but the slug rounds would do for the time being.

He took his pace near Dwemer, the defacto leader of the 'pizza'. The Pizza was Roadrunner's term for the team. A cute name. He looked at her and saw the affection she held in her rounbd mahogany eyes for Brute. It was almost cute. Carib could understand, it seems everyone needed a champion, and perhaps there was more she saw in Brute.

Carib decided to talk to the Vault Dweller. What could it hurt.

"Brute... whats on the mind? You worried about the raiders?" Carib asked.
 
Dwemer was moving through what looked like a ruined town of the ancients. Pre-war and weathered away. Even so, full of holes and shadows in which an assassin could lay a trap.

He was feeling anxious, paranoid. Something disturbed him, giving him an unhealthy feeling. As if a rat had crawled over his grave already.

"I'm worried about the one that tried to kill me." Said Dwemer. "And I'm worried about getting others killed."

Caribe nodded. "He's just a man."

"No, we wasn't. There was something strange about him." Said Dwemer. He shook his head when he saw Caribe's look of confusion. "You weren't there so you didn't see it. The way he came and went."

"You think he'll try to stop you?" Asked Caribe.

"He got into Shady Sands to stop me, and slipped out without anyone knowing. It's like I can feel him watching me."

"You're getting paranoid." Said Caribe.

"I'm getting careful. It was just luck that saved me last time. I don't think I'll get lucky again." Said Dwemer. Indeed, the man had been acting as if he had seen a vision of his own demise. "Maybe it's just me he wants. Besides, my business at Vault 15 is my burden. You've been dragged into this because of the Raiders. After that, I see no reason to trouble the rest of you."

Caribe was about to say something when a shot rang out. Then another.

The group reached for their weapons, but the assailants were unseen.

"Who the hell's out there? What hell do you want? Or do you just plan to shoot us down like dogs from a distance. Ain't ya got the balls?" Called out Inne.

"Oh we got the balls alright." Said a man with red hair wearing raider armor and raider colors. "But you're trespassing on our desert. So you got to pay your dues."

"We'll pay it in lead, you fucker." Said Inne.

"Now now, woman. Don't get testy. We need not end this with violence. But if we do, I have sharpshooters all around who can kill you all in a blink. You'll not get a chance and won't get to where you're goin." THe man said it pleasantly as if discussing the weather. But everyone was willing to believe him.

"What do you want?" Asked Zeke.

"Your fee for passing through this, our bountyful wasteland." Said the Raider, "And going where might I add?"

"We aim to get our people back from the raider scum that stole 'em." Said Inne.

"Ah.... So you must be from Shady Sands then. Lovely place really. But they don't like us there. Still, if you're looking for the raiders that got your people, you came to the wrong gang."

"Then who the fuck are you?" Asked Inne. The newcomers seemed impressed that Inne's level of hostility had not diminished in the slightest.

"My name is Andrew Rais. I speak for the Vipers. The ones you want are called the Agents of Twilight, also known in other parts as The Rovers." Said Alex. "But you best be careful. If we caught you, certainly they will."

"We'll deal with them when it comes their time. With blood and lead." Said Inne.

"Yes, but first you will have to get past us." Said Alex. "Now shall you give up what we ask or do we have to take it from your dead bodies? Eh? Me mindful our demands are modest."

Inne was about to give the predictable answer when Dwemer nudged her to quiet. "What do you want?"

" The most important things. Information. Oh yes, medical supplies too. Perhaps cooperation." Said Alex.
 
Roadrunner crouched near Dwemer and put her hand on his shoulder. In a flash, she could sense his paranoia, his doubts, his anxiety.

She reached for her revolver and whispered in his ear, "They will not harm us... we must here demands. He tells no lie, this Alex. We are watched by many rifles. We must negotiate."
 
OOC: The idea in my last post was that in the following post the raider camp would be described - this was to be worked out with Welsh but I did not have the time to do it before going off line.
Anyway, its turning out fine and here we go:

IC:

Inne heard Roadrunners comment and with the stern look in her green eyes, she said to Alex:
I heard of the Vipers. So, Alex... You said cooperation. What can you tell us about the Rovers? Been a while since they last attacked Shady Sands, so the things in their camp may have change.
She was with her hands on her waist. Too bad her pistols would not be useful in that situation.
 
Alex lauged. "Not so fast. We need to make a truce first. I suggest to lay down your weapons."

"Not unless you want to pry them out of my dead hands. But I'll take a few of you with me." Said Inne.

"Such belligerence. You may find that some of us raiders are not such beasts as you." Said Alex. "Very well, a deal. Your word of honor that you won't draw and that you will share your medical supplies. If so we will lead you to our camp."

Inne was about to protest when Melvin. "Yo, our supplies are pretty low. But we can share what we got if you're cool."

Inne turned and gave Melvin a withering scare, against which Melvin turned away. "Just trying to be socialable."

"Ok, since you have us at a disadvantage, we'll give our word." Sain Inne.

The others nodded their assent. There really had been little choice.

"Very well then. We will divy our spoils back at the camp. Follow us and we'll get you to our camp in half a days walk." Alex waved his arm in a big circle and pointed to the Southeast.

From around them a dozen or so men, women and even a few children no mroe than teenagers emerged. Without further comment they followed the raider leader.

The group looked to one another. Apparently the raider was trusting them enough, but they felt uncertain.

"Come on now, or you might miss dinner." Said Alex.

With that the others began to follow.
 
Daniel clutched his shotgun tightly.
'Raiders, damn. Well, at least I wont have to worry if theyre cannabls.'
Noticing one of the younger raiders looking at him with disgust, Daniel smiled.
At seeing the ghoul smile, the kid fell back to a group of other younger raiders.
 
OOC: the Vipers were more tribe like, al-a-Fallout Bible. But I'd assume they may have undergone some leadership changes.


IC
Sam looked at some of the dirty faced runts. Most of them wearing bone like armor. She had heard of the vipers, namely because Rhombus, Sam Solo's father, had begun exterminating nearly twenty years back when Maxson was killed in action by a poisoned arrow.

Funny, they still thrived, but its seems the heirachy changed a bit. They looked far more advanced. That means Addar was dead and the whole snake worship thing had vanished. Perhaps it was better that way.

One of the men got close and squinted at Sam. Sam merely sneered.

"So... I see the Vipers have changed."
 
Daniel tensed
'Ah crap, now I know where Ive heard of the vipers before. Theyre the clan the BOS exterminated, or tried to.'
 
Zeke kept his eyes on the raiders around them. Assuming he went violent a good couple of nailbombs thrown into the mass of people would kill the better half of the enemy. Of course instead he decided not to die in a kamikaze fashion and find out what would happen first.
 
Despite the fact that this was a group of raiders, Vedpose wasn’t bothered by helping out these people in the least bit. Maybe seeing them up close made her think like this. Growing up her grandfather had taught her that she should always help those who were less fortunate than herself. She could remember the many times that she had accompanied her parents and the others from the town to remote villages a few days away in order to give some aid. Her village had been very lucky to have such an abundance of medical personnel. They had come to there little personal vault through her family’s ties with the medical field before the war. The original doctors trained the next generation and they trained the next and so on and so on.

Vedpose had learned much in from these trips and her Brotherhood training added surgery skills to her abilities. She was more than willing to use her skills to help out these people in anyway she could and let Dwemer know this. Maybe she viewed this little group differently than everyone else. She saw them as a people doing whatever they needed to in order to survive. Everyone else seemed to think of them as more of a scum not worth dealing with unless absolutely necessary. Maybe she was wrong about their thoughts though.

As Vedpose walked along, she watched some the children that were present play a game. It appeared to be some kind of reenactment of a battle, maybe one between the brotherhood and these people’s ancestors. While she was watching them play, one the children, probably about age 9, came up to Ved.

“What’s your name?”

“My name is Vedpose. What’s your’s?” Vedpose replied in a soft claim voice.

“Marcus. Ummmm….. You wanna play with us?”

“Sure. What do I have to do?”

“You just stand here and we attack. Okay?”

“Alright.”

As Vedpose played with the children on the way to the camp, she wondered what conditions were there and how much helped they really needed. She also wondered what the others must think of her playing with “raider children”. In any case, she was actually enjoying herself for the first time in awhile. Yes, she owed a group of raiders out there a few shots to the head but these were not those raiders. This group was more civilized and bore differant markings than the one that had attacked her. Maybe it was these Rovers mentioned by this groups' leader that had attacked her and Zeke. Maybe it was another group. Only time would tell.
 
Inne saw Vedpose playing with the children and a smile blossomed in her face. That feeling of relaxation was something the tough skinned red haired just recently was begining realized she was longing for.

Alex was replying to Sam: - We all need to evolve, baby. Survival of the fittest, as the wise ancient folks used to say. Isnt it, ghoul? -
He took a look at Daniel, then continued:

- We learn, we adapt. THis is why nobody was able to beat us down. We fall, but then we stand again, and get stronger!

Alex gave a significant look to the brotherhood symbol he wore in his necklace. Seemed like a battle trophy. Inne mostly noticed that look.

The group traveled to the Vipers camp.
Few hours later, he said they were really getting closer.
- We are almost there! Just about an hour to go.
About frigging time!

That was exactly what everybody was thinking. Alex smiled at her comment and attitude, cause she said that with such an expontaneous relieve That red haired woman was a tough bone, but she seemed to have a good heart. Then he looked around and said:
- You guys do seem to come from different places and different... Everything. I wonder how you came to be together!
 
OOC- I put a quote that some of you may recognize in here. It has to do with a certain J. Robert Oppenheimer. A cookie goes to the one who explains it's significance and when it was said.


IC-
As the Children played Zeke couldn't help but chuckle. Eventually one of the little kids came up to him and raised a gun shaped stick at him. "Freeze mizzter or else you'll be sowwy."

A fake expression of coldness and anger crossed Zeke's face as he lifted each index finger at the child.

"You better be careful kid I keep these fingers loaded at all times."

With this a tense moment passed before Zeke got in a mock gunfight with over a dozen giggling children. " BANG BANG BANG RATATATATATATA KERPOWWWWWW!"

"PEW PEW PEW BUDDDADADADADADADA BANG THWACHAT!"

Zeke fell to the ground in a dramatic scene holding his chest from a fake bullet wound. The child with the stick rifle ran up and made sure Zeke didn't try anything funny.

With incredible speed which shocked the boy Zeke locked a hand on his shoulder. A few of the vipers took this as a threat and leveled guns at Zeke, who continued his game with the children.

"Now, I am become death, the destroyer of worlds."

Zele lit an imaginary stick of dynamite and all the little kids screamed and giggled before they threw themselves to the sand playing dead when Zeke yelled out with a great "BANG!"

Many of the Vipers were amused and the children thanked Zeke for playing with them as they continued their trek towards the Viper's camp.
 
Carib kept an eye on the viper children as they ran, scampered and strafed around firing imaginary bullets at the group. He liked children, and occassionaly he'd do his own version of the quick draw finger at them. They were cute, that was of course before they underwent puberty and well become a whole different animal.

One of the kid's tackled his leg and and gave a toothy smile. "Got you now..." He chuckled. He looked dirt faced and had the smell of battery acid.

Carib reached down and picked him up with one arm, firmly grasping his ragged overalls. He reaches in his pocket with the free hand and removes a small, shinky, round nickel plated bottle cap

"Here's a bottle cap if you leave me alone, okay?"

The child accepted it with a snatch and ran off as soon as Carib put him down.

"Kids," Carib scoofed, and then he took a look at the fiery red head and sighed. It had been so long since he had looked upon a woman and she took his breath away.

Melvin was right, Carib needed a bad ass bitch.
 
As Zeke spoke while playing with the kids, Daniel stopped walking for a second.
'I havent heard that quote since.....'
Picking up his pace of walking, Daniel caught up to Zeke.
"So, tell me smooth skin. Where does one learn the words J. Robert Oppenheimer spoke at trinity point in the wastes ?"
 
OOC: I have become death, the destroyer of worlds - That is also a quote from the thousands years old sacred bood of the hindi, the Bagavad-Gita.

IC:
Inne replied to Alex:
Oh its a long story... Each one of us has a reason.
She thought she saw Carib looking her way, but when she did look, he was looking somewhere else. Did she imagine that?

The children, ever so noisy, were starting to tire too and in time the games stoped. The large group continued walking and arrived at the Vipers camp.

- All right, - Alex said, directing his words to our adventurers group. - I think a little rest is at order. You can relax, I will get one of my people to arrange you some food and water while Dwemer comes with me to give those supplies!

And so was done. The camp was nothing too fancy, but even in a raideresque way, had a touch of home in the houses. The group could see the children running after a dog. There were women with babies, there were people working on a bed of vegetables. All very calm and normal. One could forget that they were in a raiders camp, wasnt it for the presence of armed men and women who walked around so naturally with their weapons visibly on their waist or back or whatever.

Dwemer went to the tent of Alex, but he took Melvin and Inne with him. Melvin cause he came with him all the way from the vault - and Inne to give Alex a hard time in the bartering.

Carib and the others were reunited at an open area. They saw a large wooden table be set - actually some long boards over three sawhorses - and some simple woden chairs.

There was a good scent in the air, the unmistakable scent of meat being roasted.

OOC: Feel free to add a few details about the camp looks and feel free to interact.
 
Roadrunner sat at the wooden table, deck of cards in hand, and a faint pre-war tune humming in her lips. She sat next to Carib, she gave a simple smile and began to flick the cards,

"You worry about your brother," she said her face down in her cards, "I sense the care you have. Great responsibility... and great guilt. For you carry the weight of the dead on your shoulders."

"Enough." Carib scoofed, his hand grabbing the hand that was about to flip the card.

"Don't you wish to know your future, COla Peddler?" She asked, her small childish face unchanged.

"I will make my own future."
 
The kids had steered clear from Richard. Although gentle in spirit and looks, kids never seemed to like him much. Which was fine with him. Many others in the group had played with the children, which was ok to get their spirits up, but they surely weren't out of danger yet. He preferred to keep a close eye on the raiders and on the surroundings. The group should probably better have kept their minds on things at hand rather than playing around.

Once the group and its escort reached the village, Richard had the feeling he entered an old viking village. Of course the raiders village looked nothing like a vikings village, but the mentality that one would expect in a viking village was clearly present. The women quietly welcomed their men as homecoming heros, the children were all excited. The village seemed raid out of culture, rather than real necessity. The raiders could probably easily move to a better environment, but they didn't. Of course Richard could be wrong, or there was another reason keeping them here.

Richard decided to separate himself from the group and went to the closest hill overlooking the surroundings. Although he was closely watched by the raiders, they allowed him to leave the village after he had informed them where he was going. There he sat quietly, admiring the strange beauty of the wastes, sometimes looking over his shoulder, making sure not to miss Inne, Dwemer & Melvin coming out of the tent. He wanted to be there when they discussed the plan of action.
 
Zeke turned slowly to the odd ghoul.

"Well Daniel I used to work in a small town with a library. I have read a lot of books and they had a working computer powered by a foot pedal, and I watched a large amount of media files from the extensive holodisk storage at the town. You could say that I am just lucky that I had a chance for such an education. Why don't you tell me a bit about yourself my friend."
 
The group was making quite a sensation in the raider camp. After all, it was not everyday that people from outside would be invited there. The children were the ones most curious - even at that moment, while waiting for the meal, some of them looked at the groups folk and make comments among themselves. The adults were more discreet, but yes, they were curious and yet they were keeping a lil distance. It was clear that the food would only be served once the negotiators came out of the tent.

Some children, that were looking from a distance at our heros, giggled and at last one came closer to Daniel. He stared at the ghouls face and then, suddenly touched Daniels arm. Immediatly after, the kid ran back to where his friends were waiting.


Kinda bored for waiting, Carib was looking around. It was thus that he noticed that from where he was sitting, he could see through the window of a nearby house. And he saw something interesting: there was a kind of rough furniture in there, and in one of the shelves of the room, he saw a nuka cola glass bottle. One woman was coming out of that house by the front door, in the direction of the table.



Two women came over to Roadrunner. Hey what is it that you are doing?



I wonder what it looked like before the war. said a voice behind Richard, at the hill. One of the Vipers women was there. She did look like one of the other women they saw when entering the camp - wearing clothes that were made by them, - and not like a raider. And yet there was something peculiar about her, about the way she was looking at the wastes around and below them. This place looks so sad, and yet I still see some beuty in it. Some nights I dream it could be all green, as the old people say it once was.

OOC: Ok a bit more of interaction and relaxation. Please dont take it personal if I dont mention every character in the post, the reason is that I want each of you to tell us where you are and what you are doing. We are having this chance of roleplaying without stress and developing more the character with a calm moment, but soon this will change (the calm, I mean) so enjoy while you can :D
 
The Nuka Cola peddler kept his eyes on the inhabitants, these raiders that seemed more like savage farmers then actual raiders. They were diverse, mixed both culturally as well as ethnically.

A butter skinned female warrior clad in a viper skin leather armor adorned with bleached bone trinkets. Her hair was long and dark, with a bone going through her nose and some tattoos decorating her forearms. She carried a rifle, a archiac M1 Garande. She gave a nod to Carib and moved on.

Carib did so in turn.

Then he saw Inne. Beautiful red headed Inne. She played hard to get, and the O'Reilly loved that in a woman. Fire. She looked at him, eye to eye, and for a moment they could see the little magnetism. Then, Inne changed her gaze.

"Come and keep me company, Inne." Carib called, patting an empty chair. He had a warm smile. His mother used to say that he had a warm smile.

Carib hated it sometimes. Hated that he could bring joy to others when he felt no comfort in that gift at all. Seeing children born with their birth cords rapped around their necks, or see the endless death and starvation eat the land alive. No, O'Reilly had doubts. Too many. Life was uncertain and he had buried so many friends along the way.

From the way of the gun to peddling post war pop drinks. Carib didn't really see any alternative. After all, he was now probably a dead man since the merchants may not have taken to kindly that last heist. So, a death warrant has been issued.

But then there was Inne, who up till now had been of some interest. Not totally sexual, though Carib, at the end of the day was still a man, but it was more. A commoness.

Besides, perhaps they could help eachother.

He smiled this time at Inne, and he could see her cheeks blush."For my pleasure?"
 
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