Fandom Fallout Big Apple

[Lord Moldoma]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: Lord Moldoma ​

Nicola had noticed how not all there Bean seemed to be, but it seemed she had not been paying attention at the meeting. Really that Bean remembered the master and what he had said while she seemed to forget the present said wonders about conditioning. Most mutants even first gen tended to not really keep the indoctrination to this day. Though most first gens had turned nightkin and went insane.

What bean had been told would happen was slightly intresting while the brotherhood overstated their involvement in things, it seemed the master had thought of them. The idea that they would be eaten must have been the most scary thing the mostly child like mutants could understand.

" First I left the brotherhood they became a bunch of book burners destroying everything they fear or can't control " the bitterness on her voice would tell anyone that Nicola was not on good terms even if that dislike might not be fully returned. She had vanished in the night yes, but leaving the brotherhood was not some crime in fact the outcasts had been welcomed back. " Second the brotherhood would just kill you they are not cannibals, that's super mutants " anicola explained though the last bit was added off handedly as the eating habits of the green men was no secret.

" Now pay attention Bean you shouldn't talk about the master or brotherhood. If anyone asks just tell them you are my sister that fell in FEV " that would make most people pitty bean and stop asking any questions.

"Book burners? That doesn't sound very good. The Master always said that any books that could be salvaged needed to be as a secondary priority for the better of Unity..." Bean explains. "Not that I ever got to go very far from where he had me doing courtesy labors and helping take care of the less fortunate members of Unity... So I have no idea where the books were being hoarded. I do know that Magnet told me she had heard discussions about something called the Hades Prototype, how it was salvaged from the research labs of an industrial arr and dee (sic) park. And how by reading a few peoples thoughts she had gotten a feeling it might help her with her headaches. But that it got moved off to a secret location that she couldn't quite figure out other than it was with the books..." Bean continues digressing.

"A-Alright. I think I can remember that. Sister who fell into Eff Eee Vee. I don't have much to say to normal people, or at least I wouldn't think I'd have much to say. So I guess I can be quiet for most of this." Bean said.

 

[Jagson]

"Pays to be quiet." Marcus said. "Plenty of people have a tendency of firing at any loud noises. Also helps when I need to slice a person's throat." He said not giving them a false opinion of him. He nods his head as he hears about setting up trade. "I'm surprised the NCR would be out this far. I remember about a decade ago how stretched then you were." He speaks in Latin to his dogs and they fallow him. "I'll go back with you. Last thing you need is the civilians to be in any more danger."

ManofManyRoles

 

[Jet]

​

"Well I'll be damned!" Quinn's eyes almost popped from his head. He could barely believe his fortune with the dumb sack of green meat, offering him even more than his initial offer. The magazines were worth more than fifteen caps after all, so this was free mother-fucking money.

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you!" He tossed the rat and took his  fair payment in return, suspiciously glancing around the market. He didn't want to become a target of pickpockets or scam artists, ones who sold bad wares for insane fees. The human scum. Quinn could barely believe there were people like that out there.

"Looks like we're in the clear Jimmy, it's like we're invisible to these people, stealthy like a night kin. Quieter than the wind." He stuffed away his payment without any care for neatness, mixing ammo with the money in his pockets. "I'm curious," he said when he was done. "If you're not using the rat for food? What are you—

"You know what... on second thought, don't answer that. I dont even want to know."

"No fun!" Jimmy said. "I want to know Quinn! The mutant genus is fascinating! Even if they'll be purged with the righteous fire of the people's army, to make way for a utop—

"Fine!" Quinn said. "Fucking stupid..."

"Dumb arm." He looked up at the behemoth. "Can you please answer my uh... friend's question? What's the rat for?"

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

The Big Apple; Central Park, 10:30 AM

At Cybills rebuttal of the 'true' ending to that phrase a chuckle escaped the older vet, the crimson eyes of his helmet looking over towards Cybil then. "It's a regional dialect thing," he joked back, "And you'll have to forgive me if my regional dialect kicked in over the common tongue. A side effect of almost being a head shorter, you see." There were some NCR members, vet or otherwise, who couldn't take a joke. There had even been Chief Rangers that would have seen Cybil running laps for her retort...but when it came to Gardner, he didn't just take a joke, he ran with it. "Got a damn good impression of me going there. You tryin' to learn to imitate me for something?" Gardner's jesting tone faded away into silence as he scanned their surroundings again, radiating the sort of silence that was damn near choking to have in this kind of crowd. Brotherhood detachments, settlers, vault dwellers, robots, beasts, mutants, ghouls...damn near everyone was here over one promised auction from a Capitol Wastelander. What sort of crazy telephone game had been played to get this sort of crowd together? He was hearing whispers of water, weapons, even power armor being the promised auction piece. He wasn't sure what it really was, but it'd been such a fine yarn spun by now that he wouldn't know until he saw it himself.

"Oh yeah, the Eyebots. Last I heard Logistics was working on the paperwork to get the paperwork for a few eyebots. Then they gotta fill out the forms to send the things." Gardner's tone was easy as ever, downright jovial and joking, but it underlined a frustrating truth. NCR loved their papers, and while Jim wasn't inherently opposed to the paperwork and forms it slowed down a lot of processes. But the ranger was one with a sharp wit, and he'd managed to work around red tape and restrictions on more than one way, and in just a way he constantly avoided reprimandation...much to the frustration of some of the military officials he'd worked with previously. At the first battle of the damn, for instance, he'd been under a strict no-fire order until all positions were set for the sniper nests to come to life. Now, he didn't fire a shot until he was given his order, but when a combat knife ended up in a legionnaire's ribs in a form of pure self-defense, he was well within his rights. As Cybil drew closer to his side, he likewise closed ranks until they were practically hip to hip, the massive strip mall up ahead finally coming into sight...the eye of the storm. Then, the in-built radio comms for the vets kicked in, and both Cybil and Gardner heard a gruff and inhuman voice. "Gardner? Do you hear me?" The ranger paused, glancing towards Cybil before he raised a hand to key in. "Affirmative, Gramps. What's the situation?" "Someone's takin' interest in recruitin' flyers, wants to meet the vets on site. Want me to send them your way?"

Another paused, Gardner removing his hand so he wouldn't be heard over comm's for his next remark to Cybil. "A quartermaster owes me ten caps. Told them this was going to happen, not likely no one looks at the flyers..." He reached back up, activating comms again, "Affirmative. We're at the east end of the strip mall right now, Cybil and I were moving to keep an eye on the auction site. Who are we keeping our eye out for?" "Female human caucasian with raven hair, 5'7. She might spot you first, doesn't really stand out." "Understood."

As the brief radio transmission over the ranger channels came to an end he glanced over, a simple shrug on his shoulders. "May as well see what's up while we're waiting on the auction, don't you think?"
Specialist
A stranger with dogsThe ranger that Marcus had been speaking to paused as he was blunt and upfront with his opinions on matters, a simple nod of his head in response. "Suppose that's fair enough and rather true...Well we don't have to worry about each other, right stranger?" It was a simple but pointed question, the kind that spoke the unspoken of 'are we going to have trouble?'. Though as Marcus demonstrated knowledge of the NCR he gave a nod, an eyebrow-raising as the stranger addressed his hounds in an unfamiliar tongue. "You familiar with the NCR, stranger? We're trying to set up trade lines out this way, establish relations with any other factions and groups out this way. Foolish to think we're the only one's on our end of the 50."
Jagson
A rat bought
The mutant gave a grumble of contentment as Quinn and he came to a deal. Eighty-five caps and three magazines of surplus ammunition...all for a single dead rat. One massive mitt caught the rat and held it close, the other dropping caps and magazines into Quinn's waiting hands. As the human male glanced around the market to ensure no eyes were on him, it was better put that no one even registered he existed. The commotion had come to a close, and any risk of a firefight or danger had long since waned. It was as if he and the mutant weren't having this very reasonable sale in front of everyone! Really, it was like Quinn didn't exist. Even with his arm spouting it's input on every matter, not even a second glance save from fresh-faced kids who were naive to the danger of the world, or at leas the full extent of it.

Though as Quinn brought up night kin, the mutant gave a grumbled comment of 'assholes', though perhaps not directed at Quinn and Jimmy? As the mutant soldier was directly questioned then on what the rat was for he glanced down at it, one giant green finger brushing the matted fur atop its head slowly. "Wanted a pet...Not allowed to bring pet from home. Mister Whisker doesn't travel good. This is Mister Whisker two, now." Whether it was horrid to consider that the surprisingly intelligent, if slow, giant before Quinn was going to keep a rotting corpse as a pet, or perhaps wholesome that he simply wanted a friend as his own had been left at home..well, that was up to the eye of the beholder, now wasn't it? "Thank you for pet." And then, as if it wasn't some totally strange interaction that had just been made, the mutant turned on his heel and started to march away with the thud thud thud of massive foot on earth, petting the rat the entire way.
Jet
Aranging a meetingThe teen flashed a bright smile, the likes of which was more fitting on a saleswoman than a crier. "Yes ma'am, you betcha! The world's a big place, and way before all those bombs fell, the states were all under one flag, right? Well obviously there's probably a ton more folks out there that ain't just the NCR! People who don't have a place to go home too, or have to fear if they'll wake in the mornin'! We traveled out this way with the promise of hope and sovereignty, and trying to form trade routes along the paths we go! I'm from Shady Sands, myself, the big ol' capital of the beautiful republic! I've been walkin' these dusty trails to meet fine folks just like you for months now! Old maps say it shouldn't take more than a month, but I think that's a ton of nonsense considerin' all the dangers in the wastes these days and all the detours you have to make!"

At the question of if she could meet the rangers, the young blonde bounced on the balls of her feet, obviously quite excited at the prospect! She had made someone interested, this was amazing! "Of course! Well Gramps here is a ranger, like I said. But...a missing person case? There's nothing and nobody a vet can't find!" She spun then, hanging off of the olive-green mutants arm and holding his hand like a child would their fathers, bouncing up and down with excitement that wasn't quite befitting of someone her age. "Gramps, Gramps! Can you radio Mister Gardner and Miss Cybil? Please!? The Colonel said that if anyone got interested in our flyers I'm supposed to direct them to who I think the best point of contact would be, and I think the vet's fit what this ladies asking for!"

There was a pause then, 'Gramps' finally looking towards Sarah. Not off into the distance, not towards the sky or the roofs of buildings, but straight at the woman. And his gaze was...far more intelligent than a mutant should be, like he was planning something... He reached to his pocket then and...! He pulled out a radio, an old two-way thing that was shaped like a brick and probably just as efficient for clubbing someone with it. Flicking the transceiver to 'on' and extending the antenna he finally spoke, the gruff voice cutting the air. And it wasn't just choppy sentences that were barely strung together, they were full-fledged and intelligent sentences. "Gardner? Do you hear me?" There was a pause before the small assembled group heard a male's voice, reminiscent of a gentleman who smoked like a freight train or ate gravel for lunch "Affirmative, Gramps. What's the situation?" "Someone's takin' interest in recruitin' flyers, wants to meet the vets on site. Want me to send them your way?"

There was another brief pause before, "Affirmative. We're at the east end of the strip mall right now, Cybil and I were moving to keep an eye on the auction site. Who are we keeping our eye out for?" "Female human caucasian with raven hair, 5'7. She might spot you first, doesn't really stand out." "Understood." With his request completed, the mutant turned the brick off and put the antenna back down, looking towards his charge, and then Sarah, before looking out down the street once again. "'M happy to help," he grumbled, suddenly far less talkative than he had been moments before. "There you go missus! You have a meeting set! I hope you find who you're lookin' for!"
Epiphany ​

 

[Specialist]

CND: 100%
LOC: Central Park, NYC, NY - 1030hrs
OBJECTIVE UPDATE: Investigate local recruitment interest- IN PROGRESS.
ITR: ManofManyRoles (Jim Gardner)
MNT: Epiphany (Sarah)​

The social concept of insensitivity was very much an afterthought until consequences followed. Many times she told it like it was, and many times she found herself dropping to the dirt for two-hundred pushups, or running a 13.3-mile jog in under 15 minutes for any other Superior who didn't take too kindly to a 'smart mouth' such as hers. Other times, her seemingly inhuman ability to analyze tones in conversation and call out bad planning to their faces was what made those same officers value her input, despite being completely self-righteous in their methodology on most occasions. However, there were a handful who seemed to appreciate Cybil's banter enough to let punishment slide, or even those who matched her as an equal. It was all the more of a reason why Jim Gardner was one of the 'good ones'- not letting their personality be eroded entirely under the stringent sterilization of indoctrination as a Veteran Ranger. A strange, raspy, diamond in the rough. For once in her life, that vocal imprint she used didn't weird someone out. She shook her head, remembering being coerced into her 'perfect imitations' by slap-happy Troopers who tottled and stumbled about after returning from The Strip. One daring imitation of Wither later, and the 12th Logistics Corps receives a shipment of factory-machined weapon parts fresh from the local Gun Runners kiosk down the street. The Colonel was never the wiser- until he got the invoice. Despite the entire garrison's constant PT for nearly a week and countless threats of even being recycled back into training, no one ratted on her. The delivery was much needed, and half the equipment managed to find its way here even then.

Her response was delayed by the suddenly hushed murmurs as they meandered their way through the crowd. Whispers fluttering about as numerous as the particles of dust and soot swirling through the air. Weapons, talks of armor, factional relations, members, tickets, food- a sudden break in the silence. Cybil's frequency picked up another voice on the band, and the unmistakable baritone rumble of 'Gramps' rang through as clearly as an atomic shockwave. Cybil reached up her hand as if to key in on Gardner's glance, but it was only to turn the volume down ever so slightly. The sudden jolt of a voice she honestly never got used to. She continued moving, seeing a break finally emerge from the thicket of bodies. Passing through just as the description was relayed, Cybil's inescapable programming was brought to life as she took milliseconds to scan the crowd, and microseconds to settle on a peculiar visage. Of course, who's to say it wasn't going to be the same? Two Rangers, one with bright red eyes and the other with a strange mask and wide visor show up from the shadows seconds after the communication was relayed. Without thinking, Cybil spoke with a calm yet certain intensity- like failing to fight off a verbal tic, this was one strange trait that always manifested the second she was tasked with spotting anyone. "Visual on priority contact. "

As soon as she said it the compulsion was gone; the sensation was like being released from an iron-vice grip inside her head. Yet, Cybil would remain as cool as ever in her posture and her cadence as she walked beside Gardner, finally shuffling to the side to give some space. Off to her peripheral was the titanic 'Gramps', yet the two figures in her central view held a much higher interest. It wasn't uncommon for the recruiters to bring a handful of strays in from the radioactive rain, their features varying in composition as much as their minds and temperament made for induction into military service. Yet it was very rare to see an individual who already ticked the boxes of a capable warfighter by sight alone, and this woman was no different. Beside her was a much smaller teenage girl, proudly sporting the heraldry and colors of the NCR with a starstruck glint of unmistakable awe in her eyes. Millie was a sweetheart, and as far as Cybil was concerned, one of the many reasons she was glad she 'joined' the New California Republic.

 

[Karcen]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: anyone ​

" Good " Nicola said nodding as much as power armor allowed one. She mostly tuned out what Bean had rambled about as already Nicola realized she talked way more than Nicola was used to. While Years ago Nicola could ramble as well she had slowly withdrawn and in her time as the only human around she had gone days without speaking. That was speaking out loud, her chip let her talk al she liked in her mind.

" Then let's go " Nicola said with a wave as she turned assuming Bean would follow. While the girl honestly could just run and Nicola abd her bots might not catch her, the thought seemed to have not come to Beans mind. That was fine by Nicola she didn't have to worry about Bean running off

" Louis make sure she dosent get lost " the command carried between Nicola and the bot without a word just a thought.

" You must like this one " Louis teased having grown from a kill bot to sonething far more human enough to notice when things were diffrent.

" She is basiclly a gaint child and I am not holding her hand while we are her " Nicola retorted while it sounded mean Nicola just wasn't one to show such concern anymore, Bean being a mutant had little baring on her not wanting to hold her hand to keep her close.


" got it " Louis responded with a mental laugh. Which would annoy Nicola but she wasn't going to do anything about it. They both knew she performed the aware bots over stupid ones.

With Bean secured by Louis the group would head towards the mall. While Red might think the brotherhood would be hunting her because she left, there was no way for this chapter to know her. The warcasket had seen so much modification it looked like a whole new suit. If the brotherhood was not out here taking tech from the unworthy then she assumed they were more passive. Still it was best that Nicola didn't seek them out.

The mall was crowded with people and mutants from all walks of life and Nicola made sure to stay away from other power armored figures sporting brotherhood colors. They were obeying the ceasefire here, sonething Nicola hadn't, but still no telling if they could track her.

 

[Jagson]

"I was born in Red Woods up in what was Washington. My farther was a Pathfinder." He said mentioning the advance scouts that would take multiple months to a year long expeditions to find safe ways for the NCR to expand. "Don't suppose there's any trouble just know if you try to shoot me in the back. They will rip your men apart. Don't matter what armor you're wearing." He bluffed though they didn't need to know about it.

"If you want to set up trade routes I'd recommend talking to the Cabbies. They're the closest thing to an organized group. Them or the Amazons but what's between your legs won't let you get near them."

 

[Jet]

​

"You're most welcome!" Quinn said as the mutant marched away, his smile waning as he whispered, "You dumb bastard." He glanced at the scowling merchant behind the counter. His face twisted into a look of pure condemnation and disgust, hating Quinn for scamming the mutant.

"You are the scum of the earth," the merchant said. "Now begone! Begone I say!"

"Yeah yeah," Quinn said with a dismissive wave, arrogantly strutting away like a pimp. "Who the fuck talks like that anyway? Must've read too many books; rotted out his brain."

"Nonsense!" Jimmy said. "I was given the entire human library during my acclimation period, and look at me!"

"Haha!" Jimmy chimed. "I'm a model of sanity!"

"No," Quinn groaned. "You're exactly who I'm talking about. I'm not taking shit back."

"Oh come on Quinn? There must be some book you've read?"

"Nope, not one."

"You're not telling the truth are you?" There was sadness in Jimmy's synthetic voice. "I can detect subtle changes in your blood pressure, and I've been around you long enough to know."

Quinn released a deep, sorrowful sigh full of shame. "I uhh... once in prison."

"There was an old book in my cell called um... Crimes of Passion. It was uh... you know... good material."

"Hah!" Jimmy said. "You sicken me Quinn, a trogledyte without any redeeming qualities!"

"Yep... that's about right." The vagrant scoured the area for something fun to do, or someone weird to fuck with. Eventually he landed on another mutant with a bubbly little friend, a perfect customer for his newest wares. "Howdy!" He walked over with a chipper smile. "You look like a con-scrupulious super mutant!"

He nodded at the women besides him, light shining from his silver-capped tooth. "Could I interest you, or your friends in these special bullets?"

He rummaged through his pockets for the ammo he'd been paid with. "Hold on umm..." He pawed through loose caps, bullets and random assorted crap. "Just about found em."

"There they are!" He held out one of the old magazines, filled to the brim with 7.62 rounds. "Found these in an old enclave base. There's something in the bullet that poisons death claws and rad scorpions, very useful in a pinch!"

Quinn of course, was lying like a complete sack of shit, but he'd never been a cowardly man. He'd scammed one mutant and this would be his second victim, or maybe one of the girls would believe his lies?

Whatever the case was, he needed the money more than they did, so who was really in the wrong here? Was it the man writhing in poverty with nothing but good intentions, or these well funded girls and their big mutant friend? The answer was obvious to anyone with a brain stem — Quinn was redistributing wealth for the betterment of society.

ManofManyRoles Epiphany

 

[Fox of Fate]

A rebuilt pre-war ambulance rolled up to the bazzar, inside where some of the Responders, most where dressed in medic attire. After parking up and setting up to provide medical assisstence one of the female medics, a purple haired woman, walked towards the strip mall. Humans, Ghouls, the odd Super Mutant, all of these were normal to her, she did take not of some NCR fliers. "I'm sure these have gotten at least one or two interested parties" she said mostly to herself. As she walked one of her fellow Responders darted past her, placeing a sign with their group name and an arrow pointing towards thier location saying they gave free medical care. "Boss finally gave you your punishment?" Violet said to him, smirking. The boy nodded. "He also wants me to put up posters to see if we can get people interested in joining us" he added. "That should teach you to say what you said" Violet added. She continued on, coming to a clinic. She walked inside and up to the counter. She looked around to see if the doctor was around, she didn't want to bother them if they were with a patient.

 

[Archdemon]

Sean The Rat
Interaction: Open
Location: Central Park Marketplace
​

Sean strolled around the marketplace, taking a look at the items and the prices. He wasn't the wealthiest person here, but he had enough caps he saved up to get something of value. He was hoping for something mechanical to help speed up the progress for the crafters down below, but he wouldn't turn his nose against blueprints or maybe some good guns and armor. However most of what he was seeing were things that he could find scavenging around, not really worth buying if it was common enough to find. Still it didn't hurt to look at everything that was up to buy. For now he made a stop at a food stall and bought some grub to eat for himself and his dog Tirna. Sean was waiting around for this auction thing to happen cause supposedly there was something good to go on sale. He just hoped that whatever it was would be worth the price at the end.

He found a local bench to sit down at and began to eat while giving the dog her portion. Most people who walked by didn't look at him, and those who did and knew what he was simply had a look of disgust. It was pretty typical of surfacers since they call him The Rat, a hated name that's for sure though one that he hadn't developed the reputation for. He can thank his predecessors on that one. Still he hoped this reputation wouldn't affect the auction later today. For now he'll eat and wait, and once that's done maybe he'll browse again.

 

[ManofManyRoles]

The Big Apple; Central Park, 11:00 AM

An hour from the auctionIn the very center of that grand bazaar, the massive strip mall that made up the congregation and migration of merchants of every sort, color, race, and creed there was a whole new buzz in the air, the likes of which had not been seen before. Underneath the roof of an old pop-up stage that had been made so long ago before the bombs were ragged curtains held high and closed shut. There was no telling guard to take note of save for what one could safely guess were handsomely paid militia members from the park, given the kind of caps that ensured secrecy and loyalty to whoever was paying. And there on that stage, hidden behind curtains to allow the imagination to run wild was a massive cargo container, the kind of brick of metal used for shipping and moving cargo in large quantities. None who had seen it could recall when it showed, and honestly with the caps they'd been paid no one was going to ask questions. There was a cargo container, and the smooth-talking businesswoman only requested security and discretion. Out in front of that stage, either standing in the field of the park or seated in be it chair or the ground itself was a small sea of people, thrumming with energy and curiosity. The rumors of whatever the auction may be had spread like wildfire, and anyone who had any caps to even wager wanted whatever the hell the seller from the Capitol was offering. After all, the game of telephone had gotten so out of hand that everyone had heard whatever the hell they wanted to hear for their interest.
Lord Moldoma Karcen Archdemon
A kid, a mutant, and me
Gardner moved in easy stride right beside Cybil, his posture as easy and relaxed as if he was on a stroll down to a shop for a nuka-cola. The old vet was good at hiding his thoughts or motives like that. Sure, the armor and duster helped, but it was more than that. Gardner carried himself in a way that betrayed nothing, a simple meander and measured gait that never changed. It was general consensus among some of the younger rangers who hadn't reached vet status, and even trooper, that if Gardner looked like he was in a hurry you fell the hell in line and didn't ask questions. Of course, the older man had used this to his advantage on a few situations...be it playing against an order he disagreed with while somehow managing to avoid 'disobeying' it, or just being a pain in the ass for certain situations that he'd find funny. He'd mastered the art of social interaction and engineering, and he wasn't ashamed to utilize it.

Cybil had spotted their new 'interested party' first and had announced such, but Gardner wasn't far behind. Though...the gentlemen talking to Gramps wasn't in the memo. Must've arrived after the chat, he figured. The younger girl, Millie, went wide-eyed and absolutely star-struck at the mere sight of both Cybil and Gardner. Call it hero worship, call it patriotism, call it respect...whatever it was, the look in her eyes was nothing short of glee. "There they are! Those are the rangers I was talking about!" She was beyond excited to confirm said information to Sarah, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Gardner raised a hand in greeting, a simple wave of hello as he kept his raspy voice low to speak directly to Cybil, "Eyes on the new guy talking to Gramps."

Gramps, for his part, was slow to look at Quinn. Painfully slow, in fact, as if he had been ignoring him for a solid minute. When he looked at Quinn, it was more like he was looking through him, like he had a fifty-yard stare at all times. "Do you think I'm stupid, son? Enclave didn't use 7.62. The only solid round they use is 5 millimeters, and that's for miniguns. They preferred laser and plasma equipment, or a flamer if they wanted to watch you scream." Perhaps unexpectedly the super mutant sporting a tacky beard and ncr ranger cap wasn't as dense as one might expect. Full sentences, proper noun verb placement...sure his voice sounded like a super mutant in a deep guttural tone, but he wasn't dense like a gen 2 or an Eastern mutant. At the very least, Millie was content to ignore the new 'crazy', more awestruck with the veteran's to the point of tunnel vision.
Specialist Epiphany Jet
Chatting with a would-be sniper
The ranger gave a simple nod to Marcus's explanation of why he knew the NCR, a glance towards the man's dogs, and back to him as they started to get moving back towards the park...no more than a fifteen-minute walk from their current position. "Don't you worry stranger, I don't have any interest in causing trouble. My respect to your old man. My son wants to be a pathfinder, but I keep telling him to stay close to home. He'll worry his mom to death if he takes that route...We've tried to hold a discussion with the Cabbies, they're not interested in a trade system. They only care about their ferrying service, and whoever their boss, this 'Owner-Operator', isn't interested in talking to us in person. The Amazons...uh, Ladies of Liberty I mean are also not too interested in chatting with us. We've had some limited trading success, usually weapons and medical supplies for caps, but they don't seem very talkative...you know anything about this auction that everyone's talking about up in central park?"
Jagson
A medley of medics
Seated at the impromptu counter was another member of the Responders, an older woman with more wrinkles than years left in her life from the looks of things. White curly hair and a bright smile, Janice was the on site doctor's assistant and she followed him at all times. Probably because they were married...probably. "Hey there, Violet," she started with a smile, the sound of several cracks and pops as she straightened out her back to greet her. "Looking for the doc, I take it? You're just in time, he just finished cleaning up after a patient. Jones is in the back room as usual." Doctor Jones, otherwise simply called Jones or Jay to his friends, was a kind-hearted soul and one of the few men around who could boast an actual understanding of anatomy and surgery that wasn't just rote memorization of how to patch someone up. Where he learned his skillset at all was anyone's guess. "If you're looking to talk to him go ahead and head on back, hun."
Fox of Fate ​

 

[Specialist]

CND: 100%
LOC: Central Park, NYC, NY - 1030hrs
OBJECTIVE: Investigate local recruitment interest- IN PROGRESS.
ITR: ManofManyRoles (Jim Gardner / Millie)
MNT: Jet (Quinn)​

Millie's absolute radiance of joy at the mere sight of them never failed to make the Ranger smile beneath her helmet. Admittedly, it was concerning only because this fever of admiration seemed to cloud her situational awareness entirely. With this many around, she wasn't willing to risk her being injured if a fight were to break out, and Gardner's mumble of caution was all it took for the Ranger to signal Millie to stand beside her. The potential was there, and that very much was made clear by the presence of a man who'd snaked themselves over to the group now, adjacent to Gramps as he launched into an attempted sales pitch. One quick glance at the magazine of 'special ammo', and the monolithic mutant took the words right out of her mouth. 'Gramps', as he was called, had an intellect as powerful as his physique, and that was damn near unheard of when it came to the very unfortunate victims of the FEV on most occasions. Yet here he was, charging headfirst into the bullshit and all but ripping a new cavity into the man with a brilliant dissection of his claim. Her visor's sweeping band covered the trailing of her eyes across those in her line of sight, with a particular frequency toward both of the unfamiliar arrivals. Only time would tell just how they reacted in kind.

 

[Fox of Fate]

Violet smiled at Janice, it was always good to see her here. She had been one of the first non-Vault dwellers to join them. "Hey Jan. I was gonna see if he had some supplies I could borrow, I'll go see him" she said. Violet went into the back, watching as Jones finished clearing his work area. "Hey Jay, how'd the patient go?" she asked once he was clear of the sharps. "I was wondering if you had any bandages and Med-X I could grab, I left mine with the ambulance just in case they needed it" she added once Jones had responded to her greeting. The radio in her Pip-Boy sprung to life as her fellow medics reported on getting a new patient, it was a simple job by the sounds of it but they were still bringing him to the clinic. "Sounds like you're about to get another one, sounds like a simple broken bone" she said, smiling.

 

[Jet]

"Wow look at that!" Quinn's eyes widened by a hair. "Look who's brain isn't made out of mush, unlike some of the people here." He inched closer to the mutant and looked over his own shoulder, checking the area for agents of the enclave.

"But you know the enclave. How they're always... you know." He vaguely gestured with his hands. "Twisting their screwdrivers and shit." His brain sputtered as he mindlessly stared at the mutant. "Doing research... developing stuff, building things!"

"Enclave was testing these when they were... taken by something. The locals say it was a group of aliens... wouldn't be the first time." He smiled at the distant memory of being abducted by the greys. He'd spent months around them on their massively big mothership, and they were decent people at the end of the day. Sure they were small, deformed creatures who murdered humans for sport, but most humans did the same thing. The aliens even took a liking to his music!

"But hey!" Quinn shrugged at the mutant. "Your loss, maybe the next guy will recognize the greatness of what I'm—

"Wait a second!" His eyes sparkled at a sign for the coming auction. There was no better place to siphon money from utter morons. "I could sell them at that auction, whatya think?" He looked around the group of people. "Or maybe you can try your hand at sellin them yourself, save me the trouble of shilling my wares to these—

"What's a good word Jimmy?"

"Apostates Quinn! Godless creatures without any morals at all! It makes me feel right at home!"

"Yeah," Quinn said before he burped. "What he said... apostates."His eyes narrowed when he saw rangers in the crowd. He knew exactly who they were after traveling from the far western coast, and knew better than to fuck with them. They were hardly worth the time with their shit sense of humor.

He knew the girl was a ranger too of course. Her armor was customized but under the alterations, like an alligator below the water, was the unmistakable armor they wore. Yet he chose to say nothing about their presence. It was better to be ignorant than a standout who knew everything.

It was effortless to escape when he blended in that way, and he suspected it would happen again soon. There were so many foreign troops in the area, so many rangers and heavy weapons floating around. They were pushing east but there were factions who called the area home, and war was surely in the cards.

"Hey!" Jimmy said, breaking Quinn from his trance. "I have a question!"

The arm was chipper as ever. "I've always been curious about the NCR you know! How you slowly expand like a tumor across the entire—

"Hahaha!" Quinn howled with laughter. "What a kidder eh, always making sarcastic comments!"

"The NCR is a beacon of freedom Jimmy, shining like a diamond in a toilet."

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

An hour from the auction; Something Foul
As the crowd grew in size and in excitement, the hum of energy audible no matter where was on in this field of gray and green grass, there would always be those who refused to play by the standards and expectations of the whole. Guard patrols roaming around the stage steadily grew in their gap between patrol, the time growing more and more before the next was seen. A trio of readied men and women, militia or professional guard, would round to the back of the stage and then they simply wouldn't come out the other side. The majority of the crowd, civilians and even distracted NCR or Brotherhood figures were unable to track such a thing. After all, there wasn't anything too track. Such faces were more occupied with making sure their own groups were well cared for and kept in check.

Though within twenty minutes of arrival for three particular individuals, that plethora of militia and guards had simply seemed to halt their patrols around the stage. Indeed, twenty had turned to fifteen, fifteen into ten...so on and so forth, until there was no visible guards to notice. The only common thread to be found was the fact they all had went behind the stage and simply didn't come back around the other side. Nearer Sean, a couple could be heard whispering to one another. "Hey, didn't they have guards?"

"They probably got called away to help with something. Maybe they have to move something up onto the stage?"

"I mean, maybe. But wouldn't the person hosting this just hire movers?"

"Why bother doing that? Pay a little extra when you can just give the guards a raise for an hour of manual labor?"

Near Bean and Nicola a weary-looking older man sat down on the ground, a child pestering him. "Grandpa! Grandpa! The guards disappeared!"

"They're probably on break young'n."

"No! No no no! They've been attacked by a monster, you have to believe me! They're gone gone!"

"A monster eh?"

"Right! An invisible monster! I saw it creep behind the stage before the guards started to disappear! I swear grandpa, there's a monster back there!"

"That's nice dear."
Karcen Archdemon Lord Moldoma ​

 

[Karcen]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: Lord Moldoma ​

Nicola was getting bored of the waiting in truth she didn't beilive the hype of the auction but had hoped it might be something worth tge time. After waiting she honestly was doubting any amount of time was worth whatever thing they were planning to pawn off on sone waster. Nicola was really starting to want to go home or well to her make shift lab. The place had been a genetics lab in the old days and while most things were broken it wasn't beyond repair. While fixing most of the machines was beyond Nicolas supply stockpile she had a smaller growth chamber repaired. Though the growth chamber was just a Har the size of her head and nothing much had cone from any test she did. Still Nicola could at least get samples from bean and get her a bed or something made for the child like mutants.

While Nicola thought about how to change things up in the lab to accommodate her new assistant. Though assistant really wasn't the right word and test subject was only somewhat correct. Pet was also just wrong. Kid was the most fitting term though Nicola was not exactly planning to treat bean like she was her kid at least not on purpose. While she though the conversation about unseen monsters killing people managed to grab her attention.

While many like the old man might dismiss the kid Nicola kad seen a bit to much to say invisible monsters weren't real. The question was what to do? Well either the invisible thing was try to steal the item or it was the item and maybe if she had foght it she could get samples.

Mentally she comanded the bots on her plan before looking up to Bean. "We are going back to look for this creature " she said the we including her " if things get hairy you run first " she ordered not trusting the mutant had it in her to kill and sone part of nicola seeing bean as something that needed protecting.

 

[Lord Moldoma]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: Lord Moldoma ​

Nicola was getting bored of the waiting in truth she didn't beilive the hype of the auction but had hoped it might be something worth tge time. After waiting she honestly was doubting any amount of time was worth whatever thing they were planning to pawn off on sone waster. Nicola was really starting to want to go home or well to her make shift lab. The place had been a genetics lab in the old days and while most things were broken it wasn't beyond repair. While fixing most of the machines was beyond Nicolas supply stockpile she had a smaller growth chamber repaired. Though the growth chamber was just a Har the size of her head and nothing much had cone from any test she did. Still Nicola could at least get samples from bean and get her a bed or something made for the child like mutants.

While Nicola thought about how to change things up in the lab to accommodate her new assistant. Though assistant really wasn't the right word and test subject was only somewhat correct. Pet was also just wrong. Kid was the most fitting term though Nicola was not exactly planning to treat bean like she was her kid at least not on purpose. While she though the conversation about unseen monsters killing people managed to grab her attention.

While many like the old man might dismiss the kid Nicola kad seen a bit to much to say invisible monsters weren't real. The question was what to do? Well either the invisible thing was try to steal the item or it was the item and maybe if she had foght it she could get samples.

Mentally she comanded the bots on her plan before looking up to Bean. "We are going back to look for this creature " she said the we including her " if things get hairy you run first " she ordered not trusting the mutant had it in her to kill and sone part of nicola seeing bean as something that needed protecting.

“I-invisible monsters? I-I met a group of ghouls who needed to go to space bu-bu-but they were being haunted by actual invisible monsters. I-I should know because I was attacked in their deeper compound by one. I-it was really scary! P-please be careful!” Bean looks down to Nicola, her sweat, which was a sort of greenish color, trickling down her face. The idea of a monster made her nervous. In her 100+ years travelling the wasteland, she had probably encountered worse humans than she had any form of wildlife. But invisible monsters, moth men, and a giant floating aquatic eye had challenged that idea. I guess in terms of malevolence, it’d be right to say that the worst she ever met had been genocidal maniacs like Red Destiny. But in terms of being terrified, she eventually got used to red by blocking out and — at least partially — not even understanding the gravity of red’s actions. She had a sense of awkward Stockholm syndrome for them. Even if that didn’t really exist. But Nicola seemed much nicer. However she never stopped being scared of the moth men, or the giant eye from the sea. Even though in some ways, she was sort of a monster herself.

 

[Archdemon]

Sean The Rat
Interaction/Mention: The Mutant and The Armor Lord Moldoma Karcen
Location: Central Park Marketplace ---> Behind The Auction Stage (General Description provided by ManofManyRoles )
Action: Investigating
​

Sean looked around as he ate his food, the crowd waiting for the auction to start getting bigger over time as the event started drawing near. Two people that stood out to him was a Mutant that looked like a Human female except for the fact that it had a rat-like tail with an eye at the end, as well as very enlongated fingers. It was perhaps the most weird and kind of disturbing thing he's seen, but whatever the case it wasn't doing anything important. The other individual that caught his eye was the one in Power armor next to the Mutant. He saw many Brotherhood of Steel members but none of them had power armor like this person. It looked more advanced, or at least if not advance more modified than usual. As he looked on at those that peaked a look, he heard something from the couple near him how the guards had all disappeared. Sean looked around a bit and noticed that all the guards did disappear, and he looked concern at this revelatizion. No one would hype up an auction and then pull their guards away to do manual labor, it simply isn't that smart of a thing to do. Something wasn't right about this whole scenario, and so Sean straightened up his coat and walked through the crowd towards the stage with Tirna in tow.

The stage itself was Pre-War, and perhaps significantly older at that too. It stood tall and in pretty good condition considering it survived the bombs, as well as the last couple hundred years since. It must have been built very well for it's time considering it was a large stage so maybe it was made for concerts, or some sort of event lost to time. Whatever the case Sean walked up to the Curtains blocking the view in the back portion, the curtains themselves look rugged to say the least and consisted of a dying red color. He slipped inside while the crowd simply wasn't paying attention, which was easy since everyone was too busy talking to themselves about the whole event.

Backstage was more different than expected for Sean as before him on the stage behind the curtains was this massive cargo container. On it were two types of locks one being a Terminal lock which would require a password or hacking skills, and the other being a padlock which sean recognized being something of a masterlock as he had to deal with many back in the underground. Sean also notice that there wasn't a single person here. Hell there wasn't even a trace that one person had even been here, nor was there anything to suggest how this container also arrived. In fact this place was too clean by surfacer standards, as most of the debris that one would expect was simply cleaned up. Perhaps it explained the lack of habitation except he felt as if he was being watched and it made his shiver since he believed that no one could see him. Behind a Pop up wall Sean found industrial equipment like crowbars, hammers, nails, screws, and more that suggested these were used for repair, bolting down stuff, or refurbishing an area. He took a Crowbar, a hammer, and a handful of nails in case he needed to use them later on.

The whole thing was strange, it looked as if no one was here at all besides the fact that were people here less than an hour ago. He strained his ears to listen and as he got closer to the back he heard a woman humming to herself. It was towards a pop up room with a door leading into it. He snuck closer, his crowbar at the ready in case he needed to fight for his life or to run away. Arriving at the door he carfully tested the door handle to see if it was locked, and it was. However the lock looked to peer into the room so Sean took a look into the keyhole to view the otherside.

Sean sees a ordinary room on the otherside complete with a small chair, a couch, a coffee table, and a woman checking herself out in front of a mirror. The woman in question looks to be around her 30's styling a black ponytail and a clean pre-war business attire of a Blue Blazer with a top and a skirt. The attitude of the woman suggested nothing was out of the ordinary as she double checked herself.

​

Sean stepped away from peeking into the keyhole and simply decided to stay nearby the door, perhaps around the corner so as to listen in if she starts to talk to herself.

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Half and hour from Auction; Something brewingAs Bean and Nicola debated their next move regarding the quote "invisible monster" that the child spoke of, Sean had elected to take matters into his own hands. Accompanied by his canine companion, the rat crept to the stage and to the back. Focused on his objective a thing or two may have been missed, but surely whatever was inside the stage would have more use and light to shed on the situation. Indeed the inside was in immaculate condition, beyond anything that what would be qualified as 'clean' for a post-atomic world. Meticulously scrubbed so not a pinch of dirt could be found, it was as if whoever was orchestrating this grand auction refused to have filth in their sight. And as Sean crept to the nearby room to investigate she could hear the soft hum of a womanly tone, and peeking through the key hole he could find the culprit.

The woman, most likely the organizer for the grand event, examined herself in the mirror with a judgemental gaze, a hand reaching up to brush some hair out from in front of her ear. "Come now, Jonah. We need to look proper for the rabble, don't we? So many have shown up for this event." She paused as a floor board creaked right beneath Sean's foot as he adjusted his position to be out of sight...while the old stage was in immaculate condition it was still old however. The sound of a drawer slowly being opened could be heard and something rummaged around before it slowly closed. "Incompetence...it's impossible to find good help. If that's another blasted rat, I'll be considering a pay cut. At least they know how to clean a stage...I refuse to work in squalor." She paused, the sound of feet moving across the stage on the other side of the doorway from Sean as she moved somewhere else...another sound of the drawer opening and shutting. As she worked she had begun to whistle a tune of some kind, full of pomp and circumstance in how it sounded before she spoke again. "Hello there! My name is Jonah, and I am oh so pleased to have you all-...no, too peppy. Greetings. I'm Jonah, and I've come a long way just for you-...no. Too personal. Good afternoon, it's nice to see all of you here. It's been a long trip from the Capitol Wastes, but I've brought something very special for all of you. Something certain to blow your minds!...Yes, perfect. That'll do nicely." Her whistle could be heard again, footsteps growing closer and closer to the doorway...
Lord Moldoma Karcen Archdemon
Half and hour from Auction; A menagerie of misfits
Gardner stayed closer beside Cybil as he watched the scene unfolding before him, suppressing the urge to chuckle and the increasingly dour expression 'Gramps' sported and how the other gentlemen was spinning the kind of yard he personally had to applaud. "Yeah...maybe you'd have better luck hocking it at the auction." The mutant, in all his faux beared glory, gave a powerful snort through his nostrils as he was referred to as an apostate, some sort of glimmer of lucidity from before a drop into FEV...apostate. He wasn't an apostate. He wasn't Godless. For some reason the very insinuation insulted him, a glimmer of an old word and numbers... "Proverbs 10:9..." Gramps scowled as he spoke, equally insulted and frustrated he couldn't recall where such a memory came from...it'd been so long.
Sensing the tension Gardner stepped forward, a little pat on Cybil's shoulder as he whispered to her. "My kind of character. Hang on." Gardner cleared his throat, a noise somewhat reminiscent of a barely sputtering garbage disposal dislodging a piece of food. When he spoke, it sounded like he smoked more than a freight train, as was common. "At ease, Gramps. Why don't ya make sure Millie doesn't bounce her way to the moon?" As he addressed the mutant and referenced the bouncing young teen, whatever argument the irritable giant was about to give collapsed out from under him, a nod of his head as he let the vet take over. "Afternoon. Sorry to cut in, sir, but my friend here's got to focus on his duties. Now, I couldn't help but overhere what you were saying..." Gardner's hands went into the pockets of his trench coat, the red eyes of his helmet visor focusing on Quinn. Here it was, that blasted arm was going to get Quinn into trouble again. It'd gone and insulted the glory of the NCR in front of a bunch of rangers and- "Ya said something about aliens abducting the enclave, yeah? Figure it was the little green sort, or a different brand? 'Cause the little green sort and the enclave have always gotten along like oil and a match." The chain-smoking vet posited a question rather than berate Quinn for his bad-mouthing, and actually sounded...genuine about it? Gardner figured Cybil could handle the new face, so he may as well cross wits with a fellow madman to give her an easier time.
Specialist Jet Epiphany

Half and hour from Auction; Jumping Jehoshaphat it's Jay"Supplies, eh? I'm sure he's got somethin' he can spare for his favorite Responder." The older woman gave a smile as Violet headed on back, settling back into her chair with a little huff. As the younger woman headed on back, she'd find gentlemen well on in years. Bald without a strand of hair atop his head, it'd look like all of it had navigated to the front of his face, a bushy white beared crowning his chin and giving him a somewhat distinguished appearance despite it all. A pair of spectacles that were quite large, almost comically so, he still had to squint when he looked over towards. "Ah, Violet! Patient was fine, 'twas fine. Young lady ended up needing a rad treatment, had gone searching old buildings, and had run out of rad-away." He paused and looked around at her request, reaching up to adjust his glasses as he looked through a medkit. "Med-X and bandages...yep, here ya go!" He held the offer aloft, a roll of bandages and Med-X in triplicate offered out. "Broken bone? Not an issue, that! Say, you hear about the event they have going on at the stage? The crowd's enormous! I haven't the foggiest clue what they're auctionin' off, though."
Fox of Fate​

 

[Specialist]

CND: 100%
LOC: Central Park, NYC, NY - 1030hrs
OBJECTIVE: Investigate local recruitment interest- IN PROGRESS.
ITR: ManofManyRoles (Jim Gardner / Millie) Epiphany (Sarah)
MNT: Jet (Quinn)​

Cybil stood idle, wordlessly acknowledging Gardner and focusing solely on the current situation. Seeing the microexpressions on Gramps' face, she knew that once he got off his perch, that copped-tongued fool with the talking prosthetic would be running his caps onto the street. Yet Jim had his own charm where it counted, and when he got invested in somebody mouthing off, well.. either they left humbled, on a stretcher, or in the ground. As soon as the 'diamond in the toilet' comment left the man's lips. Cybil's head briefly moved to angle the visor his way as Gardner was already upon him. Cybil angled her head over to the stout-built woman with the raven hair, striding a few paces forward as she hopefully put on a 'good enough' conversational tone to ease off the prior tense encounter. "Morning, Ma'am, I'm Ranger Cybil. Millie here said you had a few questions about the NCR? I'd be glad to answer in any way I can."

 

[Karcen]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: Lord Moldoma ManofManyRoles ​

Nicola and her bots were many thing, but stealthy was not one of them. Bean despite being a 9 foot tall mutant was likely far more stealthy than the group of four. Still at least knowing that she had no real stealth Nicola and her bots were on high alert ready for any ambush. Heading back behind the stage, the place was empty. A quick look didn't show anyone moving at the very least.

" I have life signs" Ruth the robo brain said her scanners calibrated differently to pick up certain kinds of signs. Nicola wasn't fully sure herself how it worked but she could pick up downed people. It was based on the medical mr handy programs for war bots. Still it did mean that there were people alive the guards weren't dead.

" I am not hearing movement" Murphy said though she wasn't a mobile sensor platform so she could only really sense things nearby. Still she would be able to sense any one that was walking or running around.

" Keep your eyes peeled " Nicola said all of then talking over using the link for the benefit of bean, who not that Nicola was thinking about would need one of her own. That chip would just need to send and receive abd not hack even beans regenerating brain might get burned out with that.

With that warning given the group would head in deeper each ready to fight a foe they assumed would be there. It was brotherhood standard procedure when entering an area that might be hostile. It was better to assume an area was hostile than to assume it wasn't and get ambushed. Nicola and her bots lacking stealth were prime targets for sneak attacks like that so they needed to be aware. Really Nicola needed to get a sentry bot. While any bit could have upgrades to their sensors that would cause CPU strain which would degrade higher functions. What that meant for Nicola was dumbing downer companions or even rendering them mindless. A sentry bot however, had enough room fir additional CPU units put in so it wouldn't be dumbed down.

In back the ground found the guards all stacked together with their pockets turned out. They also hard darts in them. That was something Nicola had heard of tribals doing. Also spies in comics,but Nicola wouldn't admit she read those. The fact the men had their stuff meant the robber either was looking for something specific or they hadn't wanted to find a way to pawn the clothes arms, armor.

" Hmmm a lot of effort for just pocket change " Nicola said looking about she noticed tracks going all over almost st random even over themselves. This was not the mark of a pro as there was way to much evidence left over. Still if not a pro how were they invisible? She did notice despite the auction object being large there didn't seem to be a way to lift it. That however wasn't her concern right now as the trail was heading towards the trees.

" in the trees " she mentally told her robots who quickly confirmed. That was not the way of an assassin even a tribal one. Hiding in a tree cornered yourself and limited your movements. So the question was. Was this a mutant or somone with a stealth boy? While this all could be a trick Nicola doubted it,this whole thing stank of bring hasty and done by an amature.armature.

" Bean watch out they are shooting darts whatever they are using might react badly with you " nicola said as she looked to the most likely tree. Honestly Bean would likely walk off anything but the most powerful of sedatives.

Nicola and her bots graded to the tree where the prints seemed to stop and while keeping some distance she looked up to try to spot whatever had done this. " You can come down your darts won't work on any of this I'm not going to hurt you " Nicola said loudly but calmly not sure what might be in the tree but it was best to not be overtly hostile.

 

[Fox of Fate]

Violet smiled at Jay as she placed the Med-X and bandages in the designated spots of her medbag. "An auction you say? Well good thing this isn't a slave market or they'd have some explaining to do" she said, chuckling softly. "But it might explain the NCR fliers around the place, more then normal at least" she added. her fellow Responders rushed in with the boy with a broken leg, his femur sticking through his skin, the protruding bit of bone secured with guaze so it wouldn't move. "Oh good an open fracture...I hate those so much work" Violet said. The other Responders nodded and gave the details to Jay. "Well I should leave you to it, have fun Jay!" she said, waving goodbye to Jan as she left the clinic. "Well I guess I should check out that auction Jay mentioned" she said to herself. She radioed into the ambulance to tell them she was detached from them and would be unavailable for an unknown amount of time as she walked to the stage. Sure enough there was a huge crowd, she slowly waked around the outter edge of the crowd until she found an opening near the stage, she walked up and waited beside the stage, wondering what was being sold today.

 

[Jet]

Quinn leaned his head back and planted his hands on his hips, raising a dubious brow at the biblical reference. He despised religion because it said he was a bad person, which he was of course, but he didn't need any help with self awareness. He didn't want promises of being slow roasted in lava by demons either, nor stories about a mother fucking hippie. He was happy in his secular existence where his many crimes, real and not imagined, didn't land him in eternal prison.

"Proverbs yes... of course I remember that one, when the sand worm took out the troop convoy. What a scene that was!" He cackled for a moment too long, slapping his knee as visions of Christ flashed through his mind. Like he was being called by a telemarketer from heaven. "Jimmy," he said once his performance was done. "What's proverb 10... whenever the hell it was?"

"I thought you'd never ask!" His arm computed for a moment before saying, "From the King James Bible, first published in the year 1611 when, to settle disagreements over reforms—

"JIMMY!" Quinn said. "The quote, what's the damn quote!"

"You're no fun Quinn, no fun at all," his arm groaned with disappointment. "Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out!"

Quinn looked down at his arm and back at the mutant, blinking several times as the meaning hit home. "What the—

"You motherf—

"My kind of character." The other man said, interrupting Quinn mid sentence.

Quinn groaned and looked at the man who approached him like a friend, grunting when he rambled about gramps this and millie that, followed by aliens of course. The drunk doubted he was serious when he mentioned the little green bastards, few people believed in aliens and fewer talked about them still, so this was surely a prank.

"No the grey ones," Quinn grunted at the man. "Short, squat, hideous. They love music though." He patted his metal arm. "They're the ones who made this uh... thing."

"It sure is!" Jimmy said. "How I miss those days! When I floated through the system as a stream of amorphous data."

"Yeah." Quinn said. "They're wonderful aliens — hate the enclave though, something about stolen technology but who knows?"

"But what's your point?" He was wary of the man because who was this friendly? Who was this genuinely interested in what a random person had to say? There was no way. Not a chance in hell this interaction was legitimate. This was more fraudulent than square bottle caps printed in a cave, and Quinn was on his toes already. He was especially wary of the hand Gardner stuffed in his pocket, as if Quinn wasn't the master of foul play. He'd done the old "small gun hidden in a pocket" thing with at least ten people, so there was no getting one over him.

Not that he would die of course, but he could certainly be shot. His body was covered in bullet scars and burns from energy weapons, not to mention one from a mini nuke. Though they never seemed to put the nail in his proverbial coffin, it still hurt like a bitch when he was shot.

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Half and hour from Auction; Around the BackAs Nicola and Bean wandered around to the back of the stage to find the stack of unconscious guards and the darts lodged in their necks, the observant techy followed the line of tracks with her eyes before they landed upon a large tree, which against all odds had started to find life again. Sure enough, Nicola had formed a wall from both herself and the bots around the tree to prevent any chance of climbing down. Though, now that she was closer, there was another line of tracks that were heading towards the tree from around the back...but that couldn't be right, both ways were heading towards the tree. Unless...

There was a soft click of something being chambered into a bolt-action sort of weapon from the bushes behind the group, a shimmer of the light as the brush and leaves shifted. "Friend, I'd ask you kindly to pretend you didn't see anything here. You brotherhood and mutant folks will only make this more complicated..." There was a soft hiss of energy as the shimmer around the body faded, a burned-out stealthboy strapped to the hip of a man twice Nicola's age with an expression sourer than any Brotherhood drill instructor she may have ever met, and a look in his eyes madder than any waster. Dressed in simple clothes of brahmin hide and overalls and a large rucksack on his shoulders and an old ballcap on his head, in weathered and wrinkled hands he gripped what looked like a jury-rigged and ramshackle rifle of some kind built from at least three different original kinds of weapons. It looked vaguely reminiscent of something like a syringer, but not quite. "Just keep walkin', pretend you didn't see anything, and clear away from this stage as fast as you can."
Lord Moldoma Karcen
Half and hour from Auction; Aliens!?Gardner nodded slowly at Quinn's rambling nonsense, like he was receiving scripture and gospel straight from a font of knowledge. The empty crimson eyes of the ranger helmet stayed focused on his face, the older man's voice replying in kind to Quinn...seemingly invested in the conversation as ever. "Ah, haven't met the gray one's myself. Only the green ones, and only twice now. Miserable little things, sour attitude, and a leaning to just shooting anything that moves I've found. Wonder if they're workin' with your gray sort or if they shoot at each other just as much as the enclave do. So you managed to find some enclave tech, and your arm there is from the aliens you say? The point is, that's a mighty storied experience if you ask me. Mind regalin' me with the tale while I got a few minutes off my patrol, and we can swap a story for a story? Don't imagine it'd be too hard to remember that kind of experience, and I make a hobby of hearing whatever madness the wastes spits out." It seemed like a simple enough offer, and the ranger seemed interested enough at the very least. But at the very least keeping the loon in front of him occupied meant Cybil could at least do some actual work. Or, if he wanted to be petty, it'd be inconvenient or enthralling enough to the drunkard that he'd entirely forget he was trying to pass off snake oil ammunition.
Jet Specialist Epiphany
Half and hour from Auction; Roving ResponderJay gave a little nod, a somewhat wheezy chuckle at her remark about a slave auction. "Ah, I wouldn't worry about nothin' like that personally. 'Specially not here in the middle of Central. I couldn't tell you what it is for certain, though. Speakin' of NCR flyers, those folks get into a lot of trouble you know. The amount of times I've had to patch up a soldier who got gunned up by a raider or they've helped haul in some poor scavver who was runnin' for their life is nutty. I hope bad luck doesn't just follow that sort." He looked over as his patient was rushed in, a wave of 'shoo shoo' towards Violet as he went to grab his tools. "Take care, Violet! What? Yes, yes, I can fix this! You lot worry too much!" His greeting drifted into grumbling at the other Responders in his tent as they filled him in on the details of the poor boys open fracture.
Fox of Fate
Half and hour from Auction; Warming up the crowd!As Violet worked her way towards the front of the stage to be front and center of it all, behind those curtains of mystery another figure moved to hide out of sight. Sean had no issue finding himself a place to hide as the woman's footsteps grew closer to her doorway, just in time as she walked out and dusted her business suit off with a soft huff. While it had not been at her hip previously, now safely secured there appeared to be a plasma pistol in pristine condition, the sort of thing you needed caps in excess to even touch, let alone buy. Making her way over to the terminal with a few brisk steps she began to whistle to herself, an upbeat tune that she seemed fond of and she repeated, something Sean would have noted given his time playing private detective.

A few button presses at the terminal after she entered the passcode before she stepped forward, the curtains on the stage pulled back wide as she spread her arms at either side of her, a show woman's smile on her face and a little bow as she was in view of the crowd finally. "Good afternoon, it's nice to see all of you here. It's been a long trip from the Capitol Wastes, but I've brought something very special for all of you. Something certain to blow your minds!... We still have thirty minutes until I begin this auction properly, but I think it's a fine idea for you all to see that I've not been wasting your time. I've been so excited at the prospect of giving you all something I feel the Big Apple deserves more than any other city. And here, behind me, you can find that this all is very real." She swept her arm behind her towards the cargo container, a collection of excited cheers, gasps, and 'ooh...ahhh' filled the air. "A bit about myself, I suppose. My name is Jonah, and I was born and raised in the Capitol Wasteland, deep underground in a vault of all things! It's been quite a storied experience back home, what with the defeat of the despicable enclave, the brotherhood shoring up the home front, fresh and clean water! I don't want to spoil anything, but what I've brought you here today is related to all of that! I was going to say what it would be, but I've heard a lot of rumors going around lately, so I think it'd be more fun to surprise you all, don't you think?"

Archdemon Fox of Fate ​

 

[Karcen]

Nicola Armstead
Mentions: Lord Moldoma ManofManyRoles ​

Nicola was a little disappointed that the mystery attacker was just some waster with a now burned out stealth boy. There were so many more interesting things it could have been, which she could have learned from. Well the man with what to Nicola was a supped up dart gun wasn't really a threat. Still he now had her interest and his confidence was hilarious. The robots each started to power up or activate their weapons. Nicola had gotten through far worse than a man with a dart gun with them. Nicola didn't know how Bean would deal with it but she doubted the mutant would get to scared she had likely been through worse.

" I'm not brotherhood " Nicola said firmly she might be Ex brotherhood but she didn't really want to just be known by those she had left. She couldn't say anything about if Bean cared about being called a mutant as well it seemed worse when the man said it than when she did. " And you are not in any position to make demands. Your dart won't hurt my machine companions, and if you shoot me they will automatically attack even if your dart just bounces off my warcasket " Her tone was rather casual for someone being held at gun point.

Still this all had her very interested as to what was in the crate that this man was doing so much to get at. " Also a piece of advice don't be mysterious about this kind of shit now you make me need to know what is in the crate, so how about you tell me and who knows i might help you steal it if i thing i can use it, or i might just leave i already have what i first came for " Nicola said with a nod to bean giving the man a hint as to what would be worth her time and what wouldn't.