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[Junk XIII] Just a Brief Sidetrek (K 1-8)
Kiddo,
What have you heard about the Valley? How long has it been since you were here? What was it like when you last saw it?
What have you heard about the Valley? How long has it been since you were here? What was it like when you last saw it?
Comments
I was pretty young when I left, so I don't remember most of it, but I do remember the fighting... Gangs of First Men would roll up and wipe out buildings indiscriminately. Good folks, bad folks, didn't matter... If you were somewhere they were taking, you were gunna die — and almost nobody lived to tell the tale if they didn't get out fast enough. They were in my nightmares growing up... The only reason I can work with 'em now is 'cause I know they bleed when you shoot 'em.
You see the smoke coming off the horizon? That there's a raging fire that consumes most of the valley between the pods in a place called the Junkforest — or at least, that's what it was called. It's not as bad as it was back when those folks from the temple started it, but it's still enough that the air in the valley is for shit — I mean, hell, I can smell the shit from here. That's why we left — that was the last straw for Dad.
That was almost 13 years ago.
We heard some rumors after we left that the Pods got more desperate to deal with the First Men, and apparently they tried poisoning the Earth with this shit from an old spaceship engine... Some say the fighting got so bad everyone died... The Wendy's have the whole Valley surrounded, and patrol it like reapers at the gates of hell. They roll from place to place, doing whatever the frak they want, and nobody can stop them...
I did hear one rumor though... Ma' and Dad told me that they ran into some of the people who lived up in the mountains on one of their trips North. Apparently there's a woman who lives down in the In Between, just south of the Junkforest. She lives alone, and even the Wendy's won't go anywhere near her... Ma' said she's unnatural. She said the woman talks to herself, and does things to your mind...
She calls herself Olimpia. Folks say she's the Goddess of Death.
I open up the throttle, and keep my head low. Every second we spend in the Valley is a second too long.
When you enter the valley of death... roll +Weird
On a 7-9, choose two to be true. On a 10+, choose one.
* You attract the attention of someone living here
* You get rad sickness, take 1 Harm-AP
* You end up lost in the smoke of Junkforest
On a miss, they're all true.
(Rolled: 2d6-1. Rolls: 2, 6. Total: 7)
Frakking damn it! I stop a minute at a small crossroads near what I can only presume used to be Sector, and try to get my bearings... That's when I swear I hear someone walking around in the peripheral.
You're standing near a couple railroad cars, shells now. Maybe they were Pip's, but if so, some giant came along and knocked the cars over. Who the frak could do such a thing?
VB's got a towel wrapped around her nose and mouth, her new little pistol out, bobbing along as she walks with a nervous hand on your arm, like she's afraid she'd lose you.
That's when you hear a woman's voice in the smoke. There's a metallic rasp to it.
As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed with raven’s feather from unwholesome fen... Drop on you both! A southwest blow on ye And blister you all o'er!You see a pair of red lights, like eyes, beaming through the smoke. Coming towards you. VB lets out a little "Eep!" and raises her gun, afraid of whatever it is.
What do you do?
It speaks again, the metallic rasp becoming more leaden, words clipping:
This island’s mine, by Sycorax my mother, which thou takest from me. When thou camest first, thou strok’st me and made much of me...KZZZTInto the small space of your field of vision comes a willowy thin apparition, shaped like a girl, but the body is not human, it is metallic in parts, fleshy in others. The red eyes, they are sad. And lost. And hollow.
"She" stops moving about three meters away from you, the head clipping and moving, tiny servos moving loudly here as it fixes a vacant stare on you.
"This place was never yours. You showed up with those horrible people, and slaughtered us. Forced us from our frakking homes — well now you're just a broken down piece of shit, aren't you?" I take a few steps forward, closing a few feet between us so she can hear me clearly, "but you're in luck — we'll leave this place if we get what we came for... Speak plain, or I'll blow a hole through your rusty head."
And then I loved thee. And showed thee all the qualities o' th' isle, the fresh springs, brine pits, barren place and fertile.She raises the one piece of her broken body that is still in pristine condition, her white arm:
She gestures across the smoke as if it were the isle in her speech. You can feel VB shaking behind you, she's about a half step from just running away.
The raspy voice drops an octave and she says:
Cursed be I that did so! All the charms of Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, light on you! For I am all the subjects that you have, which first was mine own king. And here you sty me in this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me the rest o' th' island.Then, she starts walking forward, right towards you.
What do you do?
"She" continues stalking forward towards you, unfazed.
You taught me language, and my profit on ’t is I know how to curse. The red plague rid you for learning me your language!It sounds like you're planning on ending her?
When you try to end the goddess of death's eternal walk, roll +Weird.
On a 7-9, choose two options from Seize by Force
On a 10+, you destroy her body.
Regardless, you've opened your brain to the psychic maelstrom in the doing.
Then I fire a shot into this thing's head.
OOC: Trying to end the goddess of death's eternal walk. roll+weird.
(Rolled: 2d6-1. Rolls: 4, 5. Total: 8)
There's a defiance to her words in my eyes, and I level the shotgun against her head. "Speak sense, and tell me what I want to know!" OOC: I Impress, dismay, or frighten my enemy.
The boomstick belches out fire and lead and hell and "she" keeps walking forward. Same pace. Body parts fly off her in sparks, and white blood sprays out of her as you cripple her.
Then you're standing over her, boomstick on her head and she looks up at you with those red eyes, and you demand answers.
The metallic rasp in her voice becomes a whine and what little skin is left on her face is drawn into piteous sadness and horror.
Alone. I am utterly alone. KZZZT Kiddo. You are their child. Kiddo. They loved you. He told me. She showed me.Then, the tone falls flatter, despondent,
Tell me what you want. I will help you. I am so lonely, Kiddo. I cannot end, Kiddo. I cannot function, Kiddo. I am broken, Kiddo. Let me. Let me help you.I have so many questions... I can't begin to list them all, so instead I just ask. "What happened to them?"
You see her lying there. And you know she wanted to love the First Men, to be more than their plaything, then their goddess. You feel how hard she tried to love Pallor, how she tried to protect him, to help him, to love him back. She thought that her programming, the three laws, that they held her back. She bent them hard, even broke them when she helped break the Valley. She craved the love, she ached for it, but it was beyond her reach. It still is, even now.
Is she so different?
Tell her. Her mind is open to you. Tell her who you love best. What one person you love best.
Her one functioning eyelid blinks, and she looks up at you,
I watched them, Kiddo. They came to that pile of dirt again. It KZZZT It is a grave. For your brother? Yes, the miscarriage, the dates align, I accessed those KZZZT. Every cycle. Memorial. They said it was the last visit, Kiddo. I heard them, Kiddo. He was sick. Dying. Cancer. I offered to KZZZT. She shot me. In my left eye. They left.There's a long moment of silence. You can hear the wind. VB's heavy breathing not too far away, somewhere in the smoke.
Touch me, Kiddo. Please touch me, Kiddo. I am so lonely, Kiddo. I am so sorry, Kiddo.I want to pull the trigger. I want to pull it so bad. I wanna see this lying bitch's face splatter all over these ash-caked rocks. "You're not sorry," I growl, "you're a frakking liar!"
(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 4, 1. Total: 6)
OOC: Asking for help from VB. roll+Hx (+1 currently).
(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 3, 3. Total: 7)
"She" is not lying.
Three shots ring out over the field as I turn her head into a small crater in this gods forsaken place. I hurl the shotgun at whatever's left of her frakked up corpse, and pace around her — panicked, and gripping at my hair... She must be frakking lying! I won't frakking believe it! My Dad would never do that! My Ma' would never let him! I would never let him!
I want my frakking Dad back! I want him here to tell me this shit's all a frakked up mistake, and that I didn't come here to find out from some tin frakking can that my Dad is either dead, or dying of cancer!
"FRAK YOU!" I scream through the angry tears, at the mess of robotic guts staining the rocks, "FRAK YOU, FRAK YOU, AND FRAK YOU!"
I walk away from "her", and Vee for a second. I don't want her seeing me cry. I don't want her touching me... I don't want anyone touching me. After a minute trying to calm myself, and failing, I storm over to my boomstick, and pick it up — slinging it over my shoulder. "Let's go," I whisper shakily, "I don't wanna frakking be here."
But who do I love most? Nobody. I used to love Kodak — I thought we had something special, I thought he understood me. We had the "totally forever love" that Hump talked about, and I even believed it. But now I can't love anyone like that anymore. He frakked me up. I don't think I can be fixed.
It's why I feel sorry for Rinso — I want to love him like I loved Kodak, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to open myself up like that again.
I get on the bike, and kickstart the engine. It's going to be a long ride back to Salt.
You exit the valley, finding your way out of the smoke, and get to Salt an hour before sunrise. You're tired and worn out. Rinso is up on one of the trucks. Do you ride past?
Are you going to try to get any sleep?
Finding Hump wasn't too hard.
He's in KellyTires mobile home, sleeping with Topps, in her bunk. Let's assume you get him outside. He's a tiny bit grumpy. That is, until he sees your face.
You're standing under a torchlight outside a pair of mobile homes. Is VB here? Hump asks, "What's wrong, sis?"
"You're staying here. With Gramma if you have to." There's no room for negotiating in my tone. He can try, sure, but I don't intend to budge.
I sniffle, and wipe my eyes like I have a piece of dirt in it. "She said some bullshit about them. About Dad. She's dead because of it."
Of course I know she wasn't lying — that doesn't mean it's not bullshit.
What do you do?
"She said..." I sigh, "she said Dad was dying of cancer, and that he wasn't gunna make the next trip to Simon's grave..." I take a step back, and look around... Anywhere but at that frakking face of his... "that Witch said Ma' put a bullet in her head, and took out her left eye... I finished the frakking job."
I smile, and it's genuine — if a bit weak. "You totally should," I whisper hoarsely, "I'll be listening."
He looks at you for a bit, tears still leaking down, until his mouth quirks. And like the emotion down inside made these words jump out of his mouth, he says, "You better...." his voice breaks, and he stops, takes a breath to compose himself. "You better come back for me, Kiddo."
"Oh Hump," I squeeze him tight, "Of course I'm coming back for you! I'm coming back! I swear!" I mean that more than anything I've ever said. I could never leave Hump on his own... Never. I pull back from the hug sniffling like crazy, so I pull out a handkerchief, and wipe my nose.
"Gods," I sniffle, "I can't leave you alone... Someone's gotta set you straight when you frak up like I do." I take another crack at a smile, and give him a kiss on the forehead, "you be good, yeah? A week. If I'm not back after a week, send out search parties, 'cause Ma' would want the lady in your life to have her ring."
I give him a level look — which probably also looks pretty exhausted, but y'know... "I gotta go... I need to sleep." I poke his nose, and bite my lips so I can breath through my teeth for a bit. "You be good to Topps, yeah? Too many men are assholes out there... You aren't one of 'em."
And you take off, leave him there outside Kelly and Topps trailer. But you're not going to sleep. What would you get, an hour maybe? So how do you waste the rest of your early morning before the truckers are up and the caravan heads out?
I play my dad's guitar instead.