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[Snowpocalypse] One Little Icewalker (H 1.3, S 1.6)
Hadden,
Handplant caught up with you after your chat with Stalefish, she looked a little worried. She pulled you aside and said, "Hadden, listen. I know I work for you, and that's mag and all, but right now, I need your help. See, there's this girl Silica, I think maybe you know her? She's gonna do something stupid, I just know it, and I need to find her. Can you help?" She looks genuinely worried, and well, in a hurry.
What do you do?
Handplant caught up with you after your chat with Stalefish, she looked a little worried. She pulled you aside and said, "Hadden, listen. I know I work for you, and that's mag and all, but right now, I need your help. See, there's this girl Silica, I think maybe you know her? She's gonna do something stupid, I just know it, and I need to find her. Can you help?" She looks genuinely worried, and well, in a hurry.
What do you do?
Comments
Shit, if Handplant's this worried, then something's serious. Silica, Silica... a flash of purple dreads and blue blue eyes hits me. "Silica, yeah- she's a little thing? About this big?" I hold up a pinky. "She's done some runs for me, yeah. I know a few places we can look for her, she's... itinerant, don't you know."
We start walking. "Stupid how? K2 okay?"
Handplant walks with you, nerves giving her a quicker pace, Kay's fine, she's in Underlake right now. Silica's after blood. Frontie shot her, messed her leg up. She was limping. She's just a little kid, Hadden! Her Mom asked me to try and keep up with her, and I've done a shit job so far, but I can't pass this up. I gotta help her out."
"Fuckballs." If Handplant needs to rescue this kid, then the kid's worth it. But Frontside's gang have teeth if she don't know what she's doing. I go up a gear to match her steps, sharp and purposeful on the metal floor. Gang of snipers, all she got was a limp? Maybe she's fucking lucky as a naive sky.
I look over at Handplant, she's all in Mama Bear mode to protect the cubs. "Friends help you move, right? But real friends help you move bodies." She looks at me, relived she's not going at this one alone. How she wrangles momming one kid solo... "You sent her to Forum, yah? He's our first stop." My pistol's in my jacket pocket if it comes to that.
Handplant chuckles at your "move bodies" thing, and she picks up to a jog when you mention heading to Forum. As you go, you realize she could have gone to him her own self. Why didn't she? Do you even know?
You come into Market, the echo-y concrete expanse, with dim electric lights. Forum is half sitting, half laying in the back of his wagon, eyes half-lidded and tired. "Hey, you two. What do you want to buy?" He's sitting gingerly, you realize. On a pillow.
Handplant waits for you to handle this.
What do you do?
I know Forum. He's a misogynistic fuck, don't deal fair with women. I think he's K2's pops. Small surprise Handplant wants me to handle him. Sittin' on a pillow, I wonder if he got raped or the shits. I make a point of looking over his crap, then talk to him without looking at him, a little dis on purpose but maybe accidental 'cause his crap is so fucking mesmerizing. "You're going to tell me where you sent my friend. Little thing, purple dreads, fast." I flick my look straight to his face, move my arms just so my jacket drapes open and he can see the butt of my pistol.
Since the gun is for show, let's see a Manipulate here.
[OOC, marking xp]
Forum scowls, he's about to call you on your bluff, but then Handplant steps closer, just glares at him over your shoulder, backing your play. He holds up his hands. "Whoah now. I didn't set her up with Frontie. I told her to rap with Hoho, he's their fence. That's all I know. Fo sho."
What do you do?
I take a deep breath, let it out fast. "Cool." I realize I've been leaning forward, tensed. How am I so wound up over this tool? I come back on my feet, relaxing, my jaw unclenching. I half-match his gesture, raising my hands a bit, nodding. "Where's Hoho's digs?"
I ratchet myself down yet another notch and take a closer look at his crap. Is there anything notable?
"You didn't hear it from me," Forum says, avoiding Handplant's stare, "But he's got a place under the Wall of Respect. Frontie has snipers watching the place from a building nearby, so I wouldn't even try anything. Not that... you do that kind of thing."
He's got some trash and some supplies. MREs, a few chem-lights, a carton of Pall Malls.
"No, I typically don't. Something about a damsel in distress hits me in the old-fashioned." Cue trademark grin. And I know he doesn't know if I'm talking about H.P. or Silica. I feel like buying a couple supplies off him, so there's no hard feelings, just dudes getting shit done. Plus, everyone always needs MREs and glow sticks.
"Go for a ride, Handplant? I'll drive." I dare not bring Molotov just yet. That'd be like swatting a fly with a Cadillac, and I don't know where we're at. 'Sides, I've got Handplant and I trust her judgment unquestionably. I'm lucky she's on my crew.
Forum buys the whole transaction bit, mostly. Getting some trade does soothe hurts.
Handplant nods to your offr, "Yeah, lets go. Leave icedick to his jingle. "
How are you heading out there?
We'll take my snow vehicle, the one I use for deliveries.
[OOC- lLt me know if this is too much, something like this.]
It's a mini tracked flatbed truck of sorts. The heated (ish) cab seats two, or three if you double up in the passenger seat. One decent headlamp added to the roof, two crummy stock on the front. I keep a bright pink lunchbox with a few sundries under the seat, and I stow Forum's plastic grocery sack of extras down there, too.
Handplant climbs in shotgun, snaps herself in. I set up that little gold square flag I use when I'm dealing, hanker in, shrug into the straps. The engine flips on readily, and I appreciate Lemma in that moment. "Handplant," I say, and she hears an undertone in my voice, looks over. "We're all coming back for supper, savvy? Let's don't none of us do something stupid."
Handplant gives you a sidelong look. Then, with a half-smile, she replies, "Alright, Hadden. I'll keep you from doing something stupid. But only because you asked nicely."
The pair of you start off on the surface, taking the main street. You're passed by a couple of Carnation's thugs on four wheelers, heading the other way. Handplant says over the din of your truck's engine, "Wall of Respect is no man's land. Frontie's snipes have staked it out lately, I heard. Keep your eyes up, ok?"
Driving out across the snow and ice, bundled up. I got a good hat Nini made for me from way back when, it's cozy and makes me think warm thoughts. Handplant and I talk a little about nothing, it's very good to have company. I ought to get some kind of music player for those solo runs, I know roughly the way, it's down Roosevelt past the El. I avoid a megapack of wild dogs, startled by the horn and the engine out of the silent white, and then the Wall of Respect is right there on the horizon.
What's the place look like? Can I tell if anyone's obviously watching for us?
The place is pretty barren for a couple blocks. One five story brick building with the first floor completely iced over, like a snow mound around it, holding it up. The Wall of Respect is all that's left of a building, and it is across the street from a small park that's now just a barren field of white with kid's playground stuff lying like gravestones.
You have a very strong feeling that one of Frontie's guys are up in that building, one of the floors. Maybe more than one? Hoho's place is around here, so it must be underground.
What do you do?
(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 1, 5. Total: 7)
Makes sense to have a sniper up high, maybe a chum to do some spotting. I'm in a damn minitruck with a trade flag, there's no hiding and I don't want to. But something's itching me behind the eyes, like moving just outside of my sight. But I turn my head and there's nothing, not even a flock of rats with wings going bongo from the magnetics.
[OOC: What should I be on the lookout for?]
You can ride right through here, nobody's gonna hit you. But that sniper up on fourth floor with a spotter and a hitter, he's sighted down that sewer cover something fierce. If you stop and try to go to it, then you aren't trading and therefore a prime target.
There's no way to sneak up in the day.
He's a really good shot.
His bullets will pierce light armor.
He thinks you're rather handsome. The last bit is just info you might want to know.
The sewer cover (that disc in the center of the street) opens up when you're maybe thirty feet away. Someone looks out of there in blue goggles and a big mask.
Dollars to donuts, I need to get into the sewers. Where the sniper's scoping. I shake my head and breathe deep, a little longingly. I need to run with someone who's got luxe digs one of these days.
Time to cut through the bullshit; I pull down the mic to get on the horn. Clear my throat. "Hey there, this is Hadden. I've got business with Hoho. How's the bribe situation this week?"
[OOC: Going for a Reputation roll.]
(Rolled: 2d6+2. Rolls: 6, 5. Total: 13)
Frontside Rodeo knows that Hadden does not abide bullshit and is from the Underlake, so he goes back and forth. He also has heard that Hadden's dynamite in the sack, so Rodeo likes to see him drive by in that little minitruck.
Burton, the hitter, got Hadden to run him some of Evol & Stalefish's savory jumbo shrimps in all one week when the ice was fucking insane and he was stuck on duty for far too fucking long. Hadden missed one delivery when he got bushwhacked but made good for the shortage.
Michalchuck, the spotter, thinks that everybody seems to know this little guy. His cousin Lemma has some bad blood with Hadden over an old deal, but that's weird for both of them to hold a grudge. Maybe he should set them up on a blind date.
So these guys know you. Like everyone who's anyone knows you. You want to try and bluff your way to that manhole then?
Give me a Manipulate to convince them you're on the up and up.
(Rolled: 2d6+2. Rolls: 2, 2. Total: 6)
You raise hands, stop the truck and move towards that sewer entrance. Things seem peachy, until you hear a bullhorn squeak to life.
Frontside Rodeo's voice crackles out, "Hadden! Hey man, some fucken killer went down there earlier. You best stay back, man. I've got them covered, gonna shoot their fucken eyes out. They killed my cuz,"
You knew he was there, but well, Rodeo is letting you know where he is now.
What do you do?
I look at Handplant, see the lines of her face. Ain't nobody can worry like a mom. "That can't be our girl, can it?" Quietly, like I don't need a airhorn for the sniper to hear me. "Who else is after Silica?" Or maybe we're too late?
Back on the horn, "That sucks, man. What do they look like? You need me to keep eyes on the back door or something?"
The manhole moves, like pops up all the sudden, and someone is scrambling up crazy fast, leaning into the big metal disc and holding it up like some Roman shield. They're charging... towards the building.
It isn't Silica.
Rodeo, by the way, isn't answering you. He's trying to dial in a shot while Burton is spraying and praying.
Handplant is driving to pick you up.
What do you do?
Fuck, fuck, fuck! I duck my head a bit into my jacket for the tiny bit of armored reassurance and hope and run like greased shit for the truck, arm out to grab onto the side, it's not much cover, but it's cover. My feet go slip-crunch into the footrail, I loop my elbow around an oh-shit handle.
Silica may be dead already, or worse. Shouting, right next to the window, "Get closer to the hole!" Who the fuck is that one? It's not Hoho.
Handplant drives you up to the hole in the street, and that's when the Fronties think you're in on this whatever-it-is, and Michalchuck starts peppering the truck with some pistol fire. Handplant leans down behind the wheel, and you're on the opposite side when she pulls the truck right up to the hole.
You can almost see a young girl down there in the dark shadows.
What do you do?
Don't think about K2, her momma's be home for supper, "Silica? Get your ass to Mars, girl!" And I'm reaching my hand down to her, still ahold the truck.
When you come up out of Grab and Hoho's tomb, you hear gunfire, a shitload, off in that building. Handplant is driving the truck you see at the top of this thread. Hadden helped you up and inside.
What do you do?
You snatch Silica up when she climbs the ladder, and Handplant tries to drive off in the truck, turning around, not driving past the building with the fucking sniper in it!
"Who went after that sniper?!?" she shouts as she's driving. Gunfire brrrap brrraps behind and around you.
I climb the ladder, something I should be quicker at but my leg is still slowing me down a bit. I swallow the pain and just go for it. I emerge from the dark hole into the welcome snowy cold. Is that... those weird glasses... yes it's Hadden offering me a hand! There's gunfire from down the wall and I have a feeling I want to be inside.
I look up to him for like... half a second before reaching up to take his hand and let him help me up into the truck, "shit man, what the... why?" I just sort of stammer, hardly believing that they seem to have come here just fo fucking find me?
Up into the cold metal bed of the truck, adrenaline going through my system and the sound of more damned guns. "HP!!" I shout, kind of half angry and half amazed.
Shouting to Handplant, "Some loon doing a full-on assault! Keep going!" I finagle Silica into the cab, it's warmer and less open to bullets- I know she's an icewalker but safe trumps comfort. "Strap in, Silica! I aim to see you stay in one piece." Grabbing the mic, thumbing the little red PTT button, calling to the gunmen, "We got the girl out! She's safe!"
Hadden's probably more exposed than he realizes, making sure the women are safe. He's half on the side of the cab, half in the bed.
You're out of the frying pan. That masked fellow is more than keeping the attention of the sniper and his buddies. You hear an all-too-familiar shotgun blast or two.
But here's the thing. Firefights attract scavengers, like buzzards. Handplant says, "We need to get off the streets, Hadden! Carnation's thugs will come running."
What do you do?
He pulls me half to my feet and all but puts me in the cab, guess I weigh next to nothing and I'm no exactly saying no. I hit the seat next to Hadden.
The girl? Who the hell is he telling?
"What the fuck is..." I shout, at Hadden, at H.P, at... I don't know, I jut shout, holding onto my shit as the truck hits a big bump in the ice, "the fuck is going on? Why?"
We start to move out and I just find myself watching Hadden, having just literally pulled me out of a hole in the ground and into a warm... (bleck, yeah but it's the thought, right?) A warm cab...
Is this all him? He's in charge of this crew.... I've been watching him. His crew, his place, his business.. but I've never really watched... him.
I'm suddenly quiet, and just hold on. He may catch me looking.
Carnation, right... "A goodly chunk of them ain't here, we passed 'em on the way, so that speaks luck. We should head to Underlake, not many of them could follow very far on the ice." I pat the center console, showing a bit of pride. A sidelong grin to Handplant, "We could bring fresh fish for supper to K2." Her grin's there, but fleeting, we're still not off the stovetop.
I squeeze into the seat, sharing with Silica, and get a closer look at her- she's not that much younger than me, but there's something in her eyes and motions, like trauma. Recent. She's favoring one leg, the wound in the other one must be what started all this.
I'm like three inches from her face, close enough to see her pupils expand. "This? This is a rescue. Why? Because Handplant." I watch her blink, once, twice. I hear Handplant carefully not saying anything. "Your turn. What the fuck is going on? Why?"
Hadden slides in next to me, squeezing in close enough to be kind of pressed together, man he's warm. I just look at the console in front of me, the old backpack sitting on the floor between my feet.
"You didn't have to..." I kick the dash, kind of the underside... it hurts. I'm frustrated... mostly with myself. I can't admit that I need rescuing. Never.
But then he gets right in my face, like right there. He can feel my cool breath on the side of his neck, probably smell the soap.
I can't ignore him... I start to lose my composure again, always some man telling me what to do, what to say... "look, I... I just couldn't let it go..." tear runs down my cheek and I turn to look down at my hands resting on my knees.
The dark stain of my own blood is still visible on my jeans, washed out but darker along the edge where it dried. The bullet hole there too, if you look for it. "Just had'ta do somethin'... you know?"
"We had to, sweetie." Handplant says as she turns to head down some side streets for Underlake. "You should've waited for backup. Forum prolly set you up, baby. I shouldn't have let you go alone."
(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 5, 4. Total: 10)
Carefully, "Nobody's born alone. Why would you try to live alone?" I let a few beats go by. She smells nice, I put my hand on top of her cool wrist, not trying anything, just a quick squeeze of human contact.
Hadden says these things. They're kind of beautiful but I don't understand half of 'em.
He touches my wrist, which makes me flinch, at first, but I quickly calm as he gives me a little comforting squeeze which reminds of some feeling from when I was small. I wonder who used to do that.
"I was..." seriously, do I still believe this, "I was doing just fine... ok? I wasn't in... trouble or anything until..." I pause, wait.. I don't know who that guy was and I don't think I've seen him around Hadden's before. "until that guy showed up... fuck...."
I won't miss those guys... but I hate seeing people shot, killed... never get used to it. Coulda been me right? If things went different.
"I don't know who that guy was, but he sure had stong ideas about protecting you. " For real real, I don't think she'd be sitting here if not for that motherfucker.
I look out the front window, the big whitish-blue expanse of the lake zipping along. For a long few seconds, all there is is the grrrrrrr of the engine and crunching of treads. Off in the distance I can see the blink-blink-blink-blinkblink-pause-blink-blink of the Underlake beacon. Don't push her too far.
"There's some MREs under the seat if you want. Some water, too." I rummage around in the plastic sack offer a beige bag and a plastic two-liter. Reaching, I can't help but press up against her, but I saw how she flinched when I touched her. "Are you hurt, besides the leg?
[OOC: Spending one hold- how is she really feeling?]
There's really nowhere for me to go, pressed up against HP on my left and Hadden to my right. Are you still touching my wrist, Hadden?
I kind of turn to look back as he does, like we could see that guy or something. But there's nothing but the pale icy frost hanging over the lake, and the blocky shapes of the wall and towers in the distance. I think the shooting's stopped too.
"I'm not hungry," I say, and as he reaches down to rummage for water or whatever he presses against me a little bit... and asks if I'm hurt. I just shake my head and all but whisper, 'no.'
How am I really feeling:
Hadden can see the trauma, he's already noticed. I'm ashamed with myself, ashamed of whatever happened in there... just trying to hold it together until I can be alone somewhere and curl up and fucking cry. Yeah I'm relieved to be out of there but unable to express it and I don't know who that guy was and I don't know where I'm going or why... I feel terribly out of place right now, like... sitting here is totally unexpected.
I glance over at Handplant, who gives me this look like, "See?" and goes back to driving. I keep my hand in contact with her skin, mine warming hers and hers cooling mine. You're not alone, but I don't look straight at her when I next talk. "I promised Handplant fresh fish for supper, us and K2 all three. I used to pull fish in the mines, so I know a guy runs a place in Underlake. Way better than hunnred-year-old gubbmint cheese. " Now I turn my head, see if I need to get better jokes, or if I'm even making a dent.
"You're always welcome at my table." I let the words hang there.
[OOC: Spending 1 hold, what does Silica wish Hadden would do?]
Whoa he talks fast sometime.
His hand on my wrist is hot, actually a little uncomfortable but I think I get his meaning. Sure.
He jokes, I actually break a little smile, then shake my head a tiny bit. "You're so stupid," I quietly say, but just in a teasing kind of way.
Then he offers a place at his table, which is just... crazy... right? People don't extend offers of food, shelter, shit like that... for nothing. I don't know if he's being sincere or what... but it takes me a few seconds to answer.
"Look... I didn't ask for... I didn't ask for someone to come looking for me... ok? This is just..." I look at HP for a second, then kind of pull my wrist back from Hadden and add, "I don't owe you nothin' here... right?"
What do I wish Hadden would do?
That's tough. I don't usually expect much from people. especially some man who barely knows me. There's no way all this happened just to be nice to me, but... as hard as it is to admit. I like it... I like that he's here. I like when he makes me laugh, even if I don't understand half of what he says. Seriously... it would be nice if he didn't just let me go.
I frown a little, almost not getting what's she's asking. Then I get it, and maybe there's a bit of red to the tips of my ears, 'cause I can't deny there's a definite attraction between us, maybe even a chemistry, unless that's the adrenaline of the rescue. But adrenaline's a chemical, right? Of course I've thought about us fucking, but not... coerced with food.
"Silica- you," and I tap her wrist, "don't owe me," pointing back with my thumb. "This is me owing Handplant, and me owing you." She looks like she doesn't get it yet.
"Handplant's my crew, just like Oakley, just like Molotov sometimes." Her blue blue eyes. "Just like you." I turn over to Handplant and shoulder-bump her, a familiar move. "Sometimes even K2, but we try not to tell her." Handplant laughs super loud once, twice, easing the mood some.
I look up at the ceiling of the cab, the old stickers and graffiti. The little light from the console catches an old scar down on that side of my face. You know how I got that scar, Silica.
"I'm not made of jingle, and I'm no Givey Gus, but I take care of my peeps when needs must. Life is more than just surviving, da?"
My first reaction when he taps me like that is to almost get pissed. I mean... someone touches you it can be serious... but he's just being Hadden. He's like that with everyone. But he can see that instinct flash across my face for an instant. Like... fuckin' stop touching me!
"Whoa..." I comment, as he's finishing, "hold on a second..." I kind of turn in the seat and frustrate myself with my lack of mobility. You can practically see it written on my face, I wish there was more damned room in this thing!
I go on, "since when am I your crew, man? I mean... sure some odd jobs or whatever... but..."
He's still looking at me like that... shit, is this for real?
I settle back down into the seat, speaking to Hadden though I'm not looking at him, "fuck it, ok, I won't argue... call me crew or whatever... but it don't mean I owe you for this, allright? And..." I look to either side, unable to really reach either door, "I'm dyin' in here... can we open a fuckin' window?"
I slump back, suddenly tired- there's a quick flicker of frustration/despair or just fucking weariness, Silica may not catch it, but Handplant certainly does. I lean against the glass window, feeling the cold spot, just watching the lake go by. Then it's gone back to the pocket when I have my game face on. "Sure thing, icewalker. We got like a half hour's ride to the Underlake beacon. You can even ride outside if that's better." I thumb back to the truck bed, not being dismissive, just trying to oblige like a decent host. "Do whatcha wanna."
Handplant shakes her head, not terribly happy with Silica's reaction, "Silica, baby. This is a gift. Steady pay, steady work. Can you at least say thanks?" She's not angry, just using her "mom voice" really.
Great, now everyone's on my case, but i didn't mean it like that.
I notice the sudden somber mood and comment, sort of under my breath, "look I didn't say... I mean... that I'm not comin'... ok?"
Hadden motions to the back and I won't argue with a good idea.
"Well now that nobody's shootin'" I push off with my feet first, to rise from the seat, slide open the little back window and first toss my backpack out ahead of me, then clambor over Hadden. Grab his shoulder and put a foot up on his knee to climb on out the little window, tossing my backpack out ahead of me. My body slides right past him as I squeeze out the back window of the cab and into the open flatbed. Feet the last to go.
A moment later my face appears in the window, looking a bit more comfortable, I lean my elbows on the edge of the glass... probably letting some nice freezing air in, too. Lucky them.
She moves her entire body right along mine. I'm thinking about every inch of her, and she fucking well knows it. No way I can play this straight when Handplant's a foot away. I don't know how she'd react if Silica and I hooked up.
She still managed to keep her face right next to mine. Silica catches me unconsciously lick my lips a tiny bit, like I'm thinking about something delicious. "Nope, nobody's chasing you right now." Did I just lie to her?
[OOC: spending final hold, what do you intend to do here, Silica?]
I settle down, leaning my head on my arms there. Truth is, I'm kind of exhausted. I didn't sleep well last night after what happened, and morning was worse. And the whole mess had made my leg ache. At least I'm outside... sort of.. for the moment.
My head bounces on my arms as we drive along, I think I'm about out of words for Hadden just now, but he can talk my ear off if he wants. Maybe it'll help me not think of all the shit I've done.
Hadden doesn't know me too well, but he can tell I'm kind of shellshocked, I need a calm place to settle down at least for a few days. I'll never admit it but you guys saved my ass... and I may act annoyed at Haddens weird expressions and bad jokes but the truth is I think you're kind of funny and I want to hang around at least a little while... as long as I can make excuses... you know. Just in case.
Handplant looks between the two of you. She does a little eyeroll that maybe only you can see Hadden? Well, okay, she thought you couldn't, but you saw it too, Silica. Handplant is not wowed with the idea of the two of you flirting.
I am going to get such a talking-to from Handplant, and I might even deserve it. But my eyes keep meeting Silca's blue blue eyes in the rearview mirror.
He's lookin' at me... of course I only know that cause I'm lookin' back.