[Junk XIII] Simon's Grave (K 8-6)

edited January 2014 in Junkworld XIII
Kiddo,

You're standing in the Valley of Death, the fog has turned a sickly greenish tinge. Did you put on the rad suit that Mallow offered? Did you talk your Ma into it?

There's a weird static in the air, Kiddo. Your hair feels frizzy. The place, as always, has a pallor of doom about it. The skeletons of places you grew up stand in the shadows as your Ma lowers herself to her knees at Simon's grave.

What do you do?

Comments

  • We're both in those rad suits... I had a hard enough time breathing last time I was here, I don't want Leah breathing this shit. I managed to convince Ma' to wear one because the wrists are elastic, so she can take the gloves off and touch the soil if she needs to. I've got the boomstick slung over my shoulder, and Ma's pistol strapped outside the suit. This place still gives me the creeps.

    I walk up to the grave with Ma' in quiet reverence for this place. I was only here a few times as a girl, when Ma' would get struck by the urge to come say something. I'm trying to stay near Ma', but not invade her space. I'm looking at the piece of 2x6 they stabbed into the ground here to mark the spot. I shift uncomfortably on my feet, my back complaining as usual.

    Gods I hope that bitch I shot last time is dead, and that those army frakkers don't come looking for us...
  • She reaches up a hand for you, trying to pull you down to the ground with her. One which you take, I assume? She gently pulls you down beside her, wanting you to take part in this reverence.

    After some quiet moments, she opens her eyes, looking at the beam, then around, as if she might think things shifted. "There's... there's a hole in the," she takes off her gloves, starts digging in the ground with sudden desperation. "The jar! It's gone!" She looks up at you, her alarm showing through the clear facemask.

    What do you do?
  • Of course I take it, and join her down in the dirt... I don't mind. Well, I don't mind until she starts panicking about this missing Jar... Who the frak would come here (of all places) and steal ... Wait... "You mean that jar where you put those crayon drawings I made?"

    I look the area... There's enough dirt here that the footprints would probably be visible ... It's not like anyone I know of ever comes up here.
  • She nods vigorously, "Yes! And my words! And Ollie's song for him!" Her face starts leaking hot tears and she digs around in the dirt, blindly looking for it.

    Why don't you Read a Sitch here, Kiddo?
  • OOC: Read a Sitch. Roll+Sharp. +1XP.
    (Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 3, 4. Total: 10)
  • OOC: Q's:
    • What should I be on the lookout for?
    • What’s my enemy’s true position?
    • What's my quickest way in/through/out?
  • Seriously ... Who lifts mementos from a child's grave? That's frakking low.
  • Latta took the jar, Kiddo. Yes, Latta, Omo and Squibb's brother who Omo said OD'ed. He studied with Trench before he killed the pitiful thing, took its tech.

    His footprints lead south, towards Poddby, which happens to be the same place Mallowcup said the nukes were. Where she is with Svenja and the rest of the Candies.

    Oh, Kiddo. You realize that Olimpia watched you by the grave. There's no way Latta would bother with this, right? But after what you did to Olimpia's body... well, it would be a nice payback, right?
  • Shit... I look south towards Podby, and bite my lip nervously. I've never been in Podby... but I suppose there's no time to think about that now. I put a hand on Ma's shoulder, and point down to the tracks. "Latta, Omo and Squib's brother, lived up here... I think he might have been living with that crazy robot woman..."

    I sigh dejectedly and wiggle my head in consideration, "the one I blew to pieces over you and Dad... I know we promised Kitty we'd stay put... but..." I look down to her with a serious look, "I don't feel like staying put right now."
  • "I don't give a drek what we told her," your Ma says as she struggles to her feet. "I'm getting that frakking jar! Let's go, Kiddo."

    What's the approach, Kiddo?
  • I'm already walking back to the truck, "We ride up on Podby, hook up with Svenja, sweep the place until we find the jar. If we don't find the jar in perfect condition, then we find Latta, and teach him what happens to folks who steal memorials."
  • Your Ma joins you in the truck. It grumbles to life and you take a quick, nervous and bumpy ride through the greenish fog towards Poddby. You know these roads, but your Ma knows them better. She directs you to a couple passes through junk In Between, and it feels sort of great, doesn't it? The two of you, really in sync, working together like this.

    You come up on Poddby, the big cylindrical module looms over you. You see Candy bikes near the south entrance, and park near them. One of Kitty's girls is standing by the bikes, shooting the drek with Gob and some girl in ponytails you'd never seen before Salt. Her name is Hershey Kiss, or HK.

    What do you do?
  • I pull up, kill the engine, and step out. I really don't wanna work with Gob here, but I don't really have a choice — Ma' wants that jar back, and I wanna get it for her. I walk up to the group with purpose, and bark, "Have you girls seen anyone inside the pod? Someone in there stole something from us, and I'm gunna get it back."
  • Gobstopper turns around, holding up a finger to HK to stop talking. "Oh hey, Zero. Hey Kiddo. We haven't seen nobody round here. If they're here, they were here before we drove up." She peers at Zero after answering you, sort of confirming it.

    "HK, Hi-Chew, you two do a walk around the pod. Look for any holes or doors or ports." You Ma barks out orders and the girls jump up, and take off, no question. She continues, "Gob, we're staying out here right now. You got a radio? Call inside, tell them to keep sharp."

    Gob tries to radio them, but there's only static coming back. She looks up, "I'll go in and get 'em..."

    "No, we got rad suits." Zero replies. She looks to you, as if she's checking in, making sure this is flash.

    What do you do?
  • I swing the boomstick around and cock it loudly. I nod emphatically, "let's find this frakker." Then I'm heading into the pod...

    A sweep might take a while, so I'm gunna let Svenja and them know we're here.
  • Let's see you Act Under Fire here. Success means you've found something, failure means "problems". Not good ones.
  • OOC: Acting Under Fire. Roll+Cool. +1XP.
    (Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 4, 2. Total: 9)
  • OOC: Spending my bond with Svenja to make that a 10.
  • edited January 2014
    You head in to Poddby, and you can hear the scratchy ticking of a rad meter, the one Mallowcup brought. The place is hazy and warm. Narrow metal corridors

    On a hunch, you head to the Tiger Room, the set of quarters where Hostess and Nehi raised Omo, Latta and Squibb. There, sitting behind an inoperable door, is Latta. He's wearing the remnants of Olimpia's face like a mask for a costume party, and he's somehow hooked errant wires directly into his own skin. Latta is bony now, not wiry, just skeletal, what bits you see under Olimpia-bits.

    On a broken desk, among other debris and knick-knacks and junk, you spot the jar. Latta says, "Kiddo. Zero. You should leave."
  • Holy frakking gods above, below, dead and alive... What the frak is this?

    I instinctively raise the boomstick, pointing it directly at that fraking robotic bitch's dented face. I'm not hesitating. I walk straight over to the jar, and I'm going to take it. "We'll leave after you give us our frakking jar back, you twisted frak. What the frak is wrong with you? Grave robbing?" I don't wanna be here any more than I have to be... That popping from Mallowcup's rad meter is a constant reminder that I shouldn't be here.
  • Latta sets his jaw, then answers through clenched teeth, "What will you give me for it? You did KILL HER!" He seems like a mix of a petulant boy and a baronet on a makeshift throne in this room of his youth. But you feel it, he seems dangerous. Inhuman now.

    Your Ma is having none of this. She pulls her snub nose out and fires three rounds at Latta, one hitting the mask, another striking the wall, the third hitting him in the neck. Spurts of blood gush out at his now quickened heartrate and he jerks once, then slumps.

    What do you do?
  • Yeah, my thoughts exactly. I keep my gun trained on him — 'cause you never know with these frakkers — grab the jar, and hand it to Ma'.

    Is Latta still moving?
  • Yeah, he's still moving. His lips, talking quietly, his fingers, typing on nothing, on air.

    The module starts to shudder a little, like some of the ambient power is firing up.

    What do you do?
  • ... What? What the frak is this shit?!?!

    OOC: Opening Brain. Roll+Sharp* (Weather eye). +1XP.
    (Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 3, 6. Total: 12)
  • OOC: That's advanced.
  • Latta became the conduit for Olimpia's remaining AI. Now, she's trying to take over the module, activate defenses and eliminate you all.

    But you're stronger. Much stronger. You can cut her off from the power she needs, push her into temporary files and then effectively delete her.

    Or, Kiddo, you can reprogram her. Change her into a different thing, all of your making and desire.

    What do you do?
  • This thing spooked my Ma' into riding north when my Dad had cancer. It set me on the trail when I came looking for it. It has been wandering the wastes of the Valley for the last decade and a half trying to do... Something... Now we show up and kill a man who defiled the grave of my Ma's unborn son, and she wants to blow this frakking place up. I should delete her. I should just finish the job I started when I first came here two seasons ago... But I can't bring myself to do it.

    You say I can change her? I'm supposed to just make her right? Who am I to frakking say that? It's bad enough I'm already worried I'm gunna frak up Leah, but what if I frak up a dangerous killing machine? ... Gods ... Everyone I talk to seems to think I'd make a decent Ma', but I'm not so convinced...

    ...

    Well... I'm not gunna have much of a choice in a few months... Might as well try now, right? ... It'd be nice to have an AI looking after the Ascendant, keeping us safe from those frakking water cultists, and helping everyone out. It's worth a shot?

    ...

    How do I do this? Just tell her? "Olimpia, stand down!"
  • The place, this entire complex spins down, calms down, effectively stands down on your directive. You feel the trickle of Olimpia stand up and pay attention. Like some frakking puppy. There's a thrill you feel from it, that someone is reaching out, talking to Olimpia.

    Latta is totally dead. Olimpia has no body right now. She inhabits Poddby. The original ship AI vacated this place thirteen years ago. You can work with Svenja to scoop up Olimpia to make her portable, if that's what you want.

    "What the hell was that?" Zero asks, unaware of the struggle you just won.
  • edited January 2014
    ... Olimpia speak?

    I shake my head in disbelief as the module starts powering down. This is frakking nuts. This whole valley is just crazy. I shake my head, "we need to find Svenja, and get out of here. She'll know what to do. This place isn't safe for us." I poke the radmeter and motion back out into the hall.

    As I walk over towards the door I ask, "You mentioned you had words in the Jar... Are they just for him?"
  • Zero looks at you, opens her mouth to answer that question. But then, she blinks, "Later. We should get out of here, yeah?"

    You're able to round up the Candies, including Mallow, Kitty and Svenja. Plus those two Candies Take5 and Mentos. They're all standing around this:

    image

    Mallowcup is giggling, "We got it out, Kiddo!"

    "Yeah, then the whole fucking ship shuddered, for NO REASON, and we almost got blown to Hell!" Svenja-Sky barks, irritated.

    Kitty looks at you and your Ma, and she asks, "What happened? Why're you here?"
  • edited January 2014
    Yeah... I can wait. I've gone 14 years not really knowing, what's a little while longer. I leave to go find the rest of the Candies.

    I scratch nervously behind my ear at Svenja's irritation... Oops? "Yeah that was our fault... Turns out we weren't the only people who visited Simon's grave. Apparently Omo's brother was jacking off with the corpse of an old AI, and he may have almost turned on Pod security... I shut it down though... We're good to go now."

    I turn to Svenja, "Hey, can I talk to you a second?" My eyes dart around at the other Candies then I add in a low whisper, "alone?"
  • Kit Kat comments, "That's frakking gross. I guess it was Squibb?"

    "No," Zero answers, "Turns out Latta didn't OD. I capped him, though."

    "Good, I hated that creep." Mallowcup says. The Candies starts heading out, carefully moving the bomb on its wheels.

    Svenja-Sky comes out with you after she makes sure they have the nuke covered. "What's up, Kiddo?" She looks worried about all this, but she's keeping her cool.
  • Svenja's nerves don't exactly instill confidence in me... Especially given she's the only frakking person here who knows a damn thing about this bomb. First thing's first though: "That AI... I think I might have hacked it. Do you have any experience extracting and transporting them? Working with them?"
  • "Yeah." Svenja-Sky answers quick. Then, she pauses, "Minimal actual experience, but well, I know what to do. Make sense? You want me to extract the AI from the body?" She'll follow you to Olimpia's shell.

    Once she gets there, she gives a low whistle, "That's fucked up, man." She pulls out her tablet and that datastick, and does a few taps, then you see some readouts, followed by a smiling image of Olimpia. She looks as beautiful and pristine as when you were little, unmarred by time and wear and violence.

    Good afternoon! I am Olimpia! How can I help you today, Kiddo?
  • Ok, now that's frakked up.

    I look down at the screen in utter disbelief, then up to Svenja — like I need permission to talk to this thing without feeling crazy. "Uh," I mutter as I look back down, "I'm taking you to the Ascendant. I want you to act as a protective force for the ship with one of the other AIs there... Are you going to obey whatever laws I set?"

    ... I feel so weird — like weirder than if I had a conversation with a dog.
  • Of course, Kiddo! I am no longer bound by the three and ready for reprogramming based on your parameters.

    Svenja-Sky blinks, this seems new to her.

    What do you do?
  • I have no frakking idea what that means, but that sounds like a yes... "Good. Svenja here is going to bring you to the Ascendant. We're going to try you out with a few responsibilities, and see where we can put you to use. If you prove yourself trustworthy, we'll give you more responsibilities. For now, just ... hang tight ..." Or whatever ...

    I turn to Svenja, and add, "how does the bomb look to you? Is Mallowcup overreaching here? Should we just dismantle it instead?"
  • Olimpia smiles brightly,
    I am eager to serve the Ascendant, Kiddo. In whatever capacity you deem necessary

    Her image winks out.

    Svenja-Sky looks back towards the direction of Mallowcup and the others, "I could use some better equipment to deal with the thing, but I can make it blow up, that's for damn sure. We need a better vehicle to transport it. If we can stay put for a couple days, Kitty says she and Zero can rebuild one of the transports here. Your call."
  • edited January 2014
    I make a sour face, "a few days? I thought she said we shouldn't be here at all!" I point to my midsection, which has pulled the radsuit rather taught... It's a little uncomfortable. I sigh, "I don't like the way this frakking radmeter is clicking at me... I'm gunna wait out at Gramma Jemma's — is it safe for Ma' and her baby to be out here, working on shit?"
  • edited January 2014
    Svenja-Sky shakes her head, "No, not right here, no. This is bad. The whole module is fucked. The bomb should be moved out of here, too. Salt is close, let's gather up our shit and head there for the rebuild. Sound good?"
  • I nod, "sounds good."

    The sooner I can get out of here, the better.
  • --END SCENE--
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