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[Junk XIII] Visitation (K 5.4, S 5.4)
You've been in the brig for a day now, Kiddo and Stitch. Good news is that you've both healed up. You're sharing one cell, Zero is in a cell by herself, adjacent to you. You can talk to her if you want. She hasn't tried to talk to you. She hasn't really talked to anyone, she broke the lights in her cell somehow and sat there in the dark. Have you done anythign about that, Kiddo?
Santiba has been your lovely guard. Which means she hangs out in brig security. And keeps visitors out.
Stitch, you hear a soft message from the terminal in here. Checking the screen, you see:
Stitch, this is Metro. I have control of the brig security.
I can open your door and I have recorded a loop for the cams
in the brig sec office. I can hear you, or you can respond at this
terminal. Let me know what you want me to do.
I have missed you.
Comments
I don't want to break out of the brig and have to run away from the Ascendant. There has to be a better way. Hell, if Kiddo hadn't needed surgery she would have just wasted Nezzy and she or Zero could be running this place.
I haven't tried talking to my Ma' yet... Truth is, I'm just as confused as she is. None of what happened upstairs makes any sense. I'm afraid she wants to kill Dad... This isn't the great reunion I'd played out in my mind... The fight is out of me though. I've been trying to think of how to talk to her... Nothing sounds right. Eventually, I roll my head over and softly call out, "Ma?"
In a few seconds, you see on the terminal:
Brief period of chaos that Sapphire described to me as planned executions by Nesbitts. I am not sure I believe her. Nesbitts appears to be in control, but there is unrest. Things are calm now, but Sapphire has found her brother. They will not remain calm for long. She is also very upset that you are imprisoned. The Candy Bars are locked out with other people in The Bay. I can show them the way in, but have not yet. I am sorry I wasn't there with you. I am so happy you are still alive.Kiddo,
After a long pause, you hear her voice, broken and hoarse, preceded by a sniffle, "Yeah, Kiddo. I'm here."
Should I explain myself? Should I demand some sort of explanation? ... Frak... I don't know anymore... I roll on my side — the good one — grimacing with all the effort it takes, and bite my lip as I consider what to say next... It takes me a while to come up with anything at all...
"... I never got your message..."
Zero answers numbly, "Did I... did I really send it?"
Zero says quietly, "I missed you both. Every day. Ol... he said there were guys out looking. I kept trying to leave myself, but... I never did."
I lean up against the wall and close my eyes, wondering how to get out of here with minimal loss of life.
OOC: Open your brain incoming.
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 2, 5. Total: 10)
Zero replies numbly, "Just help Ollie. For real, not like I did. That's all the right left."
Then, strangled, "I've got his baby in me, Kiddo."
To bring a baby into a relationship like that — one built on a foundation as weak as the lies and manipulation Branigans used — it's the lowest form of horrible I can imagine... That Branigans could even make a baby is the most ridiculous leap of bad luck there is — but that Ma' would never have agreed to even consider having his baby, and now she's stuck with it. Stitch's options come running through my head... They still sound awful — but they don't seem quite so black and white anymore.
I don't answer her for a while... She put herself on the line for Dad, and she must have known — being a breeder — that this would be a risk... I can't blame her though... It's not her fault. It's Branigans' fault — and if Ma' keeps that baby, she'll be reminded of this nightmare for the rest of her frakking life. That's not my choice to make though... I've already been down that alley. I don't want to look back now...
I suddenly have very little desire to tell her about my baby... It feels so selfish... I wanted it to be special... I wanted her to be happy for me... I wanted the whole family to be happy... A new baby for all of us... "Oh?" I whisper back, "... You're sure it's his?"
That's really all I can muster at this point... The one last faint hope at the end of a very, very dark tunnel.
You see an immediate reply:
I love you, too, Stitch. The Candies success at taking over this facility, even with my guidance, is unlikely. You know my limitations. I would not be helpful.You lean back against the cool metal wall and open yourself to the psychic maelstrom. This place, more like the people, it has been infected with a disease. The disease has been excised, but many symptoms remain. The body is weak. Open to future sickness.
You know that if you leave, you won't be able to heal them. Some of them are beyond healing, so indoctrinated to the twisted worldview Branigans spread among them, that they must be eliminated. Some might be saved, but you would need the full force of the infirmary, research and support to find a way to fix them.
Branigans found a way to redirect memories and associations. He make friends into enemies, pleasure into pain, and vice versa. He molested minds, opened them to his suggestions. There are some who don't want the truth, they fear it. They want to avenge the murder of their beloved Branigans.
There are enough of them, the diseased ones, to bring this place down. To ruin everything that has been built. Nezzy wants to hold the line. If she had more bodies, and someone who could help her ferret out the diseased ones, she could instill order.
She's not a nice person, but she would appreciate an infirmary. She honors her debts.
Zero pauses for a long time before answering, "I don't know, Kiddo. When we got here, Ollie went in for treatment. He came back out a couple days later and he was better than before. You know, healthier. I was so happy, I just... I let things slide. Weird drek. I let it slide." She trails off completely to silence.
All I can hope is that she's got her wits about her now... "What are you going to do?"
"I want to know for sure... but if it's his." Zero says quiet, "Ima kill it."
After a minute of silence, she asks, "Are you... are you pregnant, Kiddo?"
I whisper, "Can you find that out, Stitch?"
"Yes, if we could get back in the lab." I answer Kiddo. "I'm going to try to talk to Nezzy- we may have to side with her against Bran's remaining folk."
I move to the front of the cell, trying to get Santiba's attention.
This is my fault, isn't it?
I'm quiet a while. "I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner, Ma'..."
I nod quietly to Stitch's request... I don't exactly have many options, but I'll side with anyone who wants to get rid of Branigans' lies.
"I'm sorry I frakked it all up, Kiddo." Zero says after a moment, "Just save your dad."
(Rolled: 2d6+2. Rolls: 2, 5. Total: 9)
OOC: Helping Kiddo incoming.
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 3, 3. Total: 9)
Q1: How can Kiddo get Zero to accept her help?
If Ollie's cancer was cut out and he survived, she'd accept your help. If you could convince her of a solid plan to heal Ollie, that would probably work.
You could also guilt her into it, using Hump as leverage.
Or let Jemma berate her until she gives up and does whatever she's told. But that last option would break her for a very long time.
"I just...." Zero starts, "I'm a drek Ma. Even before. Hell, even Jemma took better care of you two. Back when..." you most definitely hear a sniff, "When Vicky and me were sick. I prayed to the gods that they'd save her. An I never pray to the gods. I even asked 'em to take me instead."
"But they took her. They left me here, Kiddo. And they took Vicky. Just like Simon. Why do I keep losing you?" She sobs, "I'm still here."
Q2: How can I make Zero feel loved as a mother?
She needs forgiveness. Not words. She needs to be reminded of what has happened, of who she was before this nightmare.
Right now, it would do her a world of good to have human contact. A hug from you, or Hump. For her to just let it out without fear of reprisal or judgment. She's been so hard for so long, she doesn't know how to deal with this loss of identity, or how to deal with being a victim. Or the fact that somebody else had to save her, but that's a minor problem.
"We're not going anywhere, Ma'..."
OOC: One last question for the road...
Q3: What does Zero wish Kiddo would do?
Other than save Oliver, for the sake of being explicit.
You end up holding your hand out long enough for it to shake a bit. Zero's hand slides into yours, but the grip is cold and weak. Zero's normally so strong. You remember when Simon died, she was distant, but never broken. Even when Vicky died, everyone chalked it up to the sickness. But now... this is not like those times.
She wants you to tell her that you are pregnant. She thinks it's true. Through all this, a bit of her hopes it's true.
Stitch,
Santiba finally makes her way towards the door into the brig access hallway, coming to check on you.
Santiba walks up, sneering, "What do you want?"
OOC: Manipulate Santiba incoming.
(Rolled: 2d6. Rolls: 3, 3. Total: 6)
OOC: Helping Stitch. Roll+Hx (currently +1)
(Rolled: 2d6+1. Rolls: 4, 1. Total: 6)
"What the frak would you have to say to Nezzy, Stitch?" Santiba laughs, "She need an eye exam? You wanna have her piss inna cup? No, frak you."
She leans in to you, Kiddo, "Now, drop me a jingle, and I'll let her know you two want to plead for your miserable frakking lives. Otherwise, sit here and rot, for all I care. But keep this in mind, Kiddo. I know all about you frakkin Candy Bars. And if you two start lezzing it up in here, Ima curb stomp yer ass, then put all y'all alone in cells! Get me?"
OOC: Read a sitch incoming.
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 6, 4. Total: 13)
OOC: How do we convince Nezzy to let us out and ally with us?
All of this pisses Santiba off to no end.
If you wanted to get her in trouble with du, tell her that she made a pass at you or Kiddo.
I look over at the obviously confused Kiddo. "Patience, grasshopper. She will come to us if we wait."
After a minute I walk over to the terminal. "Tell Saff thanks. Hopefully I'll see you both soon."
Already waitig for you at the terminal is the following:
I really do not like Santiba.When you tell him the message for Saphire, Metro responds:
I will count the moments that separate us.About fiften minutes later, the door opens again. Nesbitts walks in, followed by du, Santi and Audi. Nezzy says, "Hey, Santi, I told you to open the frakkin door when I got here." She walks up to you both, "Kiddo, Stitch. Can we chat? You want somethin to eat? I brought some drek from the galley." The cell door pops open.
What do you do?
If not for the fact that I'm frakking starving, despite being nauseous as hell, I probably would never touch another piece of food from that frakking cursed galley — baby thinks differently though, and I'm beginning to learn that baby can make me hurt if I ignore it...
I look to the food, a little voraciously, and nod. "What's on your mind, Nezz?"
After you're halfway done with the meal, Nezzy starts the conversation, "I want to figure out how we can all make this drek situation work out to benefit us all. Are you interested?"
She takes a drink, then adds, "What are you willing to do to help me secure this place, and what do you want for it?"
"I can help you sniff out the others. The Candies can help you with them if you need guns." I glance over at Kiddo- hoping she doesn't mind me doing the talking for her and her girls. "I'd like to stay on and work with Janco in the infirmary. I can teach her how to use the equipment."
I stop a minute, and rub my tummy — I'm still stiff from the operation, and baby's complaining that I'm not eating the food. "I just want my family to be safe, Nezzy... That's all I've ever wanted. If working with you keeps them safe — all of them — then I'll work with you."
As she wipes at the corners of her mouth, she says, "Stitch, train up Janco, show her the ropes. The infirmary is yours. Kiddo, we'll keep your family safe, but for now, Zero doesn't leave this level. Fair?"
She narrows her eyes a bit, then looks back at her people, "All of y'all, step out. I want to chat with them privately." Audi leaves right off, but Santi's offended. du sticks by her.
Santi says, "This is drek, Nez. Me and du been with you for fifteen frakkin years, and now you don't trust us?"
Nezzy's hand hovers ner her gun, "Branigans was with us the same time, Santi. Now step out."
What do you do?
Then its just the three of you. Nezzy says, "I know. Bitch is on my short list. Stitch, can you heal them?"
I don't know how I would even start, honestly. Get a cut and I can stitch it up no problem, but I don't even know what the hell Bran was doing. I'll do what I can, though. Always.
What do you do?
When you go looking for Bran's brain-frakked victims, roll +Weird.
On a hit, you ferret out the bad apple from the bunch. On a 7-9, you find one, but something happened and you need to Act Under Fire.
On a miss, there aren't any of them here. Nope, they're all fine.
You head through the door into the hall and end up outside your mother's cell door. She's lying on her bunk, curled up, turned away from you in the dark.
What do you do?
(Rolled: 2d6+3. Rolls: 4, 4. Total: 11)
I quietly pad over to her bunk, and sit next to her — laying a hand on her bicep. "Ma'? I struck a deal for the family."
Guess what? Santi isn't one of Bran's victims. She's just a bitch. du and Audi are good, too. Any disloyalty they might have is due to their own personal choice.
Kiddo,
It takes a bit before Zero answers. She doesn't roll over, doesn't look up. "You can't trust Nezzy. You never could."
I take a deep breath, and gently give her a hug without moving her. "Remember that time Hump broke one of Dad's guitar strings, and he cried all day thinking he'd broken the guitar forever?" I sniffle, and smirk, "this is like that, yeah? Sure it looks bad now — but soon enough we'll re-string the guitar, and Hump'll stop crying."
She flinches when you hug her. "Fine, that's fine. I'll play along. Just take care of Ollie." Zero says. She smells like she hasn't bathed since she was brought here, she's still in that nice outfit. "Can I... have some time alone?"
I sigh, and nod. "I'm going to grab Vee, and chill in the security room to make sure nobody bothers you. When you're ready, just come on out... Ok?"
"Ok," Zero answers quietly. As you head out of the room, she says, "I'll be alright, Kiddo. Stop worrying about me. I just want some time alone."
You leave her, because what else can you do?
Where do you go next?
You head out and catch VB sitting in the waiting room. She's sitting at one of the surprisingly comfy couches with a small girl, showing her "the leg". It's pretty cute, actually. The girl is maybe eight, and she's got a bandage around her left hand, completely around it, there might be a finger or two missing. She's listening to VB as she talks about "the leg", "It's not so bad, Valor. Really, I mean, normal people can't hide chocolate M and Ms in their leg, can they"
"Well," Valor says in a timid voice, "they could have, you know, pockets."
VB quirks a frown, stymied for a second, but then she says, "Well, I can wear pants with pockets, too..." That's when the girl notices you. So VB follows her gaze, and she looks up at you.
She practically leaps off the couch to come up to you, but pulls up short from tackling you, and instead, hugs you, "Kiddo!" You pull her back into the Brig's Security checkpoint after Stitch finishes up with her "sweep" of Nezzy's folks and she's asking, "Are you okay? Did they hurt you? Is Zee alright?"
Please go here
I look down the hall at the mention of Ma's name, and quirk a frown, "Ma's... Well... She needs some time alone. She's taking all this really hard... That asshole Branigans really frakked with her head."
VB listens, helps you take a seat on the bench, sits right beside you. She looks down the hall when you mention your Ma. She's making sympathetic noises and showing interest, but there's an underlying giddiness about her. She's so incredibly happy to see you, that you're okay.
"I have been so worried, Kiddo," she says finally when you've unloaded. "Momma, you gotta take it easy, okay? Baby is prolly as tough as her parents, but you gotta watch your adorable ass, ok?
Anyway... Considering I just got my "adorable ass" shot, I'm not arguing against the "take it easy" sentiment. "Soon enough I'm not going to have much say in the matter, I guess... We're going to stay put here a little while, Vee... At least until Dad's better — maybe until the baby's born, if it takes that long. I've got some work to do here — and it'll be a little dangerous, I'd bet — but then I think we should start talking about finding Rinny, and settling this family of ours down..."
She holds a serious tone for maybe a few seconds before she snickers, "I'm kidding! I love you, Kiddo. Whatever you need, you say. I mean, gentle, just holding, just nearby, I don't care. I just don't wanna be away from you. I don't wanna be alone anymore. OK?"