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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:44:08 GMT
The corridors of the vault seemed to echo more than usual, following the latest announcement over the PA. The five of you are given a wide berth as you make your way to Genetics Lab 6, one of the high security labs deep in the core of the vault. There are some smiles, some glares of resentment, and some respectful nods, but the overall looks you receive are those of quiet desperation and fear coupled with faint hope. Once security lets you past the initial checkpoint for the high-security labs, it's easy to find Lab 6. It's the only lab that's not shut and locked. Carefully moving about and inspecting several whirring and blinking machines is the Overseer of the vault, Professor Eustace Skrub, his massive frame blocking out much of the readouts as he carefully adjusts several knobs and levers on a control panel. Next to him is a table with a couple of closed cases, all of which show signs of extreme age and dust. Whatever they are, they've likely been in the vault since before the Cataclysm. One of the machines that's hooked up to the snaking mess has a series of six small inset shelves in it, five of which that have odd red and white spheres hooked up to dongles. It looks similar to a machine that you've all seen sitting in the medical bay, but which no one seems to know the purpose of. Skrub holds out a finger for silence as you all troop in, brows knit into a rictus of concentration.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:45:15 GMT
It had been a huge deal for Cecil. Biggest in memory. Cranked and ready to cut out, he hit his pad for his spare threads, took a moment with his ma, even eliciting to give the woman a hug as he left. The confusion on her face had him smirking as he crossed the threshold from the small room they'd shared since the day he was born. The old man was hard at work at usual, neither Cecil nor his father would miss the other, with no love lost between them.
Maybe he'd been wrong about Skrub? Big daddy had always told him that he had Cecil's best interests in mind. Here it was, first chance for people to get out of this and he'd made the list. If it wasn't a fake out, Skrub was the most. The teen was on cloud nine, ready to take on an unknown world. He'd agree to just about anything if it got him out of squaresville, but what were they doing exactly? He didn't exactly keep his thumb on the pulse of Vault 316.
Shuffling in alongside the others, the greaser leaned against the wall and pulled a cigarette from his coat pocket. Putting it in his mouth, there was the soft click of the lighter just before Skrub raised a finger for silence. Visibly stiffening, Cecil thought better of indulging his habits in the moment, and stood up straight. The cigarette disappeared back into his pocket a second later, as if he'd never held it in the first place.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:45:51 GMT
Christine had never been expecting to see the inside of the Genetics Lab. Sure, they received experimental medicines from there, but those were... few and far between. It certainly wasn't enough to replenish the rapidly depleting stocks. But no one outside the labs or the medical bay knew that. No one knew how much needed to be improvised... They needed to find replacements.
She shook those thoughts out of her head. Of course they would find things, as well as the parts needed. They had to. The overseers wouldn't send them out on a fools errand, right?
As they entered Lab 6, she barely registered Skrub, instead gaping at all of the machinery. They only had a fraction of this much in the infirmary... But the machines here seemed old with age, while the ones in the medical bay were kept clean and still still worked - mostly. She wondered how many parts needed to run those machines might have come from these labs...
And that one machine... what was he using it for?
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:46:35 GMT
Slouching along behind the others, Joe kept his eyes turned down and his head low, his standard strategy for walking through the Vault's more populated areas. Sure enough, the four walking ahead of him soaked up most of the attention, Joe's presence barely registering. He wondered how many even realized his name was among those that had been summoned. No doubt most who even noticed him assumed he was following along for some other errand. Why would a lowly Vargas be chosen for such an important task, after all?
Joe knew the truth. This was a suicide mission, plain and simple. He had no illusions about his chances of survival. His best guess was that the Overseer had decided the most efficient way to deal with the supply crisis was to start culling the population one group of 'brave volunteers' at a time until the Vault reached an equilibrium again.
And on the off chance one of them survived to bring back something useful, all the better, right?
Despite himself, Joe's eyes widened once they entered the lab. Not even maintenance was allowed in these restricted areas, as evidenced by the state of disrepair all the room's enigmatic equipment was in. Maybe this was the real reason they'd selected him - they were going to put him to work refurbishing and cleaning all the Labs first. Joe slouched a little further in resigned despair. He had little hope any of the repair manuals or spare parts for these devices were in a usable state after being neglected for so long. As usual he would have to try and figure things out on his own, botch the job a few times before he got anything right, and then take the blame for the poor management of the Overseer and his predecessors when nothing worked.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:47:03 GMT
Bunny smiles to herself at the reveal of her name over the announcement. She was finally getting out of this place. She takes her time changing from her frumpy night clothes into a nice skirt and top combo she had been making for the last couple months. After slipping everything on she checked a mirror in her room to make sure it looked perfect. This was possibly the last time many of the people in the vault were ever going to see her, she was going to make it memorable.
She grabs her gearbag before stepping out of her room where a small crowd had already begun to form. She walks past them, not making eye contact with anyone. She caught wind of a few whispers from the women, one in particular sticking out asking who she had slept with to be chosen for the mission. She rolled her eyes at the notion. She obviously wasn't chosen because of her intelligence or prowess in survival. No, she was chosen because if there were any survivors out there someone would have to be able to talk to them without driving them into a frenzy.
She hands out a few knick knacks to kids she sees running through the corridors as she makes the final turn to the lab. By all outward appearances she was calm and composed, but inside it was taking everything she had not to shout her excitement at every other person in the vault. Inside she knew she was about to have her chance to find real love.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:47:32 GMT
When the announcement crackles to life, Amber is only vaguely aware of it. The space between the pipes she'd crawled into to reach some wires echoed weirdly, and she knew one of the others would let her know eventually, if it was important. The wire in her hand sparks a little as she tries to strip it, and she jerks back, shaking her hand and muttering about someone forgetting to flip the switch. Someone calls her name, but the echoing makes it hard to hear what he says next. She sighs. With the power still on, she can't do much. She'll have to climb back in, which was a pain all on its own, given the way the edge on the way in had scraped her side. She takes a few moments to carefully wrap the cut in the protective coating she'd sliced on the wire and shove the bundle back into place, ignoring the calls from outside. They were really impatient today! Ohhh, maybe he was trying to let her know that Don had gotten some of that really yummy brown sauce for lunch again....
With hope in mind, she climbs out of the enclosed space carefully. She grimaces as a sharp edge presses into her side again, reaching out a long thin arm for help to climb out. The hands that pull her out are faster, harsher than usual and she makes a noise of distress as she's yanked out. Two of the guys from the team set her down, brushing dust off her frantically.
"Didn't you hear us? You were called!"
She doesn't register their meaning.
"For the exploration. The trip outside! You have to go!"
Her eyes widen like saucers behind her glasses. The message...she'd spent so much time still down there and...
She makes a loud 'EEP', grabbing her things and dropping half of them as she attempts to get them together. She hadn't actually thought they'd pick /her/. She'd volunteered because it had seemed like a great idea, but she didn't think they'd actually...oh goodness, she hadn't packed! And the halls are crowded, though people start to give her room as they notice her. Still, it's slower than she'd normally run, and in her rooms, she changes into a clean outfit, stumbling and falling on her butt only once. She shoves a few space outfits and important things into her bag--her new sneakers, her work goggles, some medical supplies and things she had sitting around, and her journal and sketchbooks. She's almost ready when a lank, dirty, grimy strand of hair falls into her face and she shrieks in frustration, her little bit of time saved up blown as she takes a few llooonnng moments to clean up.
By the time she makes her way through the halls to the door, she can see the others about to walk in. She practically throws herself in the door after them, panting, barely managing not to stumble. Shakily, she salutes the man in the room, her back unnaturally stiff. "A-Amber Cole, reporting!" She says confidently. Or she tries, anyway, even though it comes out as more of a squeak than anything else and she's still shaking and panting and her hair is a mess and oh god, what must they think of her? She keeps her eyes straight on the man, which is about the time that she notices the finger for silence....and she goes a dark, splotchy red, tensing up even more as she resists the urge to melt into the floor.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:54:08 GMT
Professor Skrub finishes whatever it is he was doing with a firm nod, and stands up, grimacing as his back pops several times. At his full height the man towers over all of you. "Ah, good, you're all here. Just in time too. I've finished the genetic compilation and realization of the..." he pauses, then massages the bridge of his nose. "Getting ahead of myself. Sorry." He moves over to the table with the cases, moving to the opposite side of it, so as to leave your views unobstructed. "You five are about to embark on an incredibly perilous journey, albeit one that will hopefully provide the keys to keeping the vault safe and secure. To that end, I've broken these out of storage."
Opening the case, you see five electronic devices, about four inches long and set into a circular casing, with a number of dials and knobs, and a small screen. "These are Vault-dexes. They were created to be used by scouts in hostile territory during the resource wars over two centuries ago. They are a combination biomonitor, data storage device, electronic journal, and bio-analytic engine. They operate on a linked system, so what one of you enters into one of these, the others will have access to. I'd advise against using it as a personal diary," he chuckles, before becoming more serious. "They also have a secondary function, which ties into these."
He opens up the second case, revealing rows of red and white spheres, all of them identical to the ones still attached to the machine. There are 25 of them in all. "These are Pocket Monster Containment Capsules, though according to the literature I'd read they had picked up the name pokeballs for short. These items are able to take a Pocket Monster, aka a "pokemon" after suitably weakening it, and convert it into energy, stored in a stable matrix within the capsule. The Vault-Dex syncs with these capsules, analyzes the creature within, and gives you a readout on its capabilities, strengths, weaknesses and all other data it can extrapolate. It also has the ability to store pokeballs containing pokemon in a quantum state field should you need it. Supposedly the purpose was to collect samples of enemy bio-weapons for analysis and transportation back to friendly lines in order to replicate or devise counters for them." he picks up one of the pokeballs, and pulls a dongle from the side of one of the Vault-Dexes. "Use these dongles to sync pokeballs to your specific Vault-Dex." He looks at all of you seriously. "Do not lose these items. They are quite literally irreplaceable." He hands each of you one of the Dex's. "There's going to be a bit of a pinch as they synch to your bio-signatures, but they shouldn't be uncomfortable to wear otherwise."
Once you're all placed your Vault-Dexes on your arms, he moves over to the machine he'd been working on when you came in. "Naturally, we're not about to send you out there without some form of self-defense, no matter how good some of you may think you are," he gives Cecil a knowing glance. "To that end, I've gone through the genetic stores that we have here, and crafted a pocket monster for each of you, calibrated to match your psychological profiles." He gives Joe a slightly apologetic look. "Mr. Vargas, please don't take this as a slight, but your own monster is what the database referred to as a "Grimer", created as a way to stealthily infiltrate and poison enemy food and water supplies." He brings up a wireframe model of what can best be charitably described as a pile of sludge with eyeballs and pseudo-pod limbs that easily collapse back into the main form, showing great ability to stretch and deform its body. Skrub unhooks one of the pokeballs from the machine, and hands it to Joe.
"Now, Mr. DeLoria. For you, we have this." A quadrupedal reptile with a long snout and tail, and obvious fangs is displayed in the wireframe display this time. "Sandile. Ambush predator, developed to give guerilla fighters an edge during the taking of desert regions, before it was turned against them and the genetic profile was added to the United State's arsenal." He hands over the pokeball, but rests his hand on top of Cecil's for a moment before letting go. "I would advise you to be very careful with this creature Mr. DeLoria."
Turning back to the machine, he moves to the next in line. "Ms Cole, you've been assigned a somewhat similar creature. Totodile, another ambush predator designed for a water environment rather than swimming through sand." The wireframe shifts to an energetic bipedal crocodilian form, its jaws snapping energetically. "It's also a much gentler disposition than Mr. DeLoria's creature, so you should be able to handle it." He carefully hands the ball over to Amber.
"Now, the penultimate creation. Ms. Tres, you are receiving a creature known as Nidoran♂. Its secrets a rather nasty venom, deliverable through its horn and the spikes on its ears." The wireframe has changed to a rather cute looking creature with large ears and a small but prominant horn on its forehead, as well as almost comically large buck teeth. "It was used in a similar fashion as Grimer but on a larger scale, crates of them and their female counterparts being dropped behind enemy lines, to infiltrate food production areas, and basically destroy the crops, eating the plants and destroying the root systems with their ability to burrow." He hands the ball over to Bunnie.
"And last, but certainly not least, Ms. Barret. For you we have a somewhat different beast. Happiny." The wireframe changes to what can best be described as an egg walking around with stubs for arms and legs, and a ponytail. "They're the base form of a creature called Chansey, that's was used as a medical orderly in field hospitals and even in civilian hospitals, if what I've read is correct. Their small size allowed them to be created in larger numbers, and shipped out to theatres where they'd be most useful much more efficiently." He rubs tiredly at his eyes.
"Which brings me to my final two points. These creatures, and most other pokemon you're likely to find outside the vault, are capable of a transition to larger, more powerful states. A form of rapid evolution that occurs in seconds rather than millenia. Your Vault-Dexes should alert you when this process may be about to happen. And secondly, even though they were created as tools of war, these are still living creatures and should be afforded the care and respect that they are due. That is something a great many soldiers and scientists lost sight of in the buildup to the Cataclysm, no doubt to their detriment when it happened. Now," he pauses, "I'm sure you have questions. Please, ask."
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:54:57 GMT
"Uh, sir?" Christine asks. "Do you have any knowledge on what the world is like outside? And...what sort of creatures might be out there. Do you have any records of the sort of wounds they might inflict? Because..." she shudders, "...seeing that...that...Grime? Of Mr. Vargas over there made me wonder what sort of things out there we might never have seen." She's still trying to process too much all at once, so she resorts to simply going back to medical matters...
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:55:22 GMT
Amber tries to fade into the background, still flushed and red, as the professor talks. Her jaw drops as she accepts her pokeball, glancing at the image of what was supposed to be inside. Even if it was more docile, that looked....scary. She swallows hard, holding it carefully away from her skin and peering down at the small ball while she listens. At the end, though, she just shakes her head. The other girl had asked the questions she was wondering about, except for one, and she wasn't going to ask about coming back and make them think she's weak already... She continues to listen, trying to hold back the elation and fear that are slowly staring to swell in her belly at the thought of what's going to happen.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:55:48 GMT
Bunnie maintains her calm demeanor as she walks over and grabs the pokeball that had been provided for her. The irony of the creature looking vaguely rabbit-like and her name wasn't lost on her, but she wasn't going to argue so long as it kept her safe from anything outside of the vault.
She steps back to the spot she had been standing as Christine asked what was surely on everyone's minds. She watches her closely, trying to get a read on her from her expressions. Christine and Bunnie hadn't interacted a whole lot, the only real important bits she could recall were when Bunnie had first started practicing the dancing she was known for now. There were... A couple occasions that Christine had bandaged a twisted ankle or hurt leg when Bunnie would do something wrong. She was always nice enough it seemed. While watching her, Bunnie smiles lightly. She seemed scared, understandably. But if the team was going to function properly they'd need to be able to rely on one another.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:57:14 GMT
Joe avoided eye contact with everyone else in the room, grimacing as the Vault-dex pricked his arm. His expression didn't change when the Overseer began explaining the 'protection' he was sending with them, nor did it when Joe's own companion was revealed. He had no high hopes to be dashed against the harsh truth of reality.
Of course his monster was literally a mobile puddle of toxic waste. What else could he have expected? What else would be appropriate, would be allowed, for a Vargas? Its vapid expression was unflattering, and even its name was an insult. 'Don't take this as a slight.' Right. As if he could believe the happy little story of the Grimer's 'intended purpose.' More likely this unfortunate mutant was cobbled together from the castoff genetic remnants of the other carefully crafted creatures, most of which had the decency to look like actual animals - hell, a couple were downright cute and cuddly.
Not that Joe was going to do anything about it. What would be the point of making a fuss? Complaining never changed anything. It just gave people even more excuse to despise you. He was well accustomed to working under disgusting and dangerous conditions. Trying to wrangle this Grimer would be no different.
Large, powerful creatures roaming the blasted countryside. Joe imagine a bus-sized Grimer and felt the possibility of surviving this escapade dwindling with every second.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 18:59:04 GMT
"Course pops." Cecil met the older man's gaze, a playful sparkle in the teen's eyes, and a wry smile on his lips which quickly faded into a more puzzled and concerned expression as Overseer Skrub pressured him a bit with that tone. He watched the scientist move from one person to the next. Everybody knew Christine, in passing if nothing else. The chick was sweet enough if a bit too on the up and up for his tastes. She'd done him a solid on more then one occasion after a bad time.
Bunnie was here. He groaned internally and ran a hand through his hair. He'd have been fine with another nerd, like the mousy thing that was constantly fidgeting behind her specs, or another guy like... Jeez what was his name again? Joe looked familiar, but the greaser couldn't place when or why for the life of him. The guy looked so miserable though, like the whole world had been against him his entire life. Cecil kinda got that vibe himself, but today was the day all that changed.
"Alright so..." The man finally speaks up. "We just what... throw these 'pokeballs' at some schmuck... and then that wire-frame of light pops out and attacks their face?" He squeezes the ball, his head recoiling a bit as it swells to fill his palm. "It supposed to do that?"
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:00:48 GMT
Skrub chuckles slightly at Cecil's actions. "In a sense, that's how it works according to the literature I found in the case. And yes, they are supposed to do that, it makes them easier to conceal when not in use, and easier to throw or fire from a weapon when they're needed." The smile drops off his face when he turns to address Christine. "Unfortunately, no. While We do have a fairly comprehensive database of the pokemon that were developed or reverse-engineered and deployed by the United States, the only real way to get a feel on what they're actually physically capable of is to generate them and analyze their abilities. Studying the raw genetics is a bit like looking at the binary for a video feed and attempting to visualize it. It's simply not possible to get a solid interpretation." He pauses, taking a swig from a water bottle in his lab coat. "However I do know that Ms. Cole's "Totodile" is capable of generating and storing water in its body, and initial analysis showed the potential to send it out in powerful streams at range. There's documentation of creatures capable of doing so with fire, rocks, acid and even sound waves. I'm afraid that you're likely in for a rough time adjusting to the range of wounds that pokemon can inflict. Which is another reason I'm giving you these." He passes out five pokeballs to each of you. "While it's not a perogative, capturing more monsters will increase your ability to defend yourselves; and I have no doubt that there are caches of pokeballs hidden around the wastes. And while I think it unlikely, given their intricate nature, it's possible that any survivors may have figured out how to replicate them." He sighs. "Unfortunately, all records we have of the outside world predate the Cataclysm. The vault is sealed to the point that we only have very limited sensor arrays capable of reading surface data. All I can tell you is that the temperature outside fluctuates on an annual basis from lows of below freezing to highs in the high 80 degree range. Luckily it's currently on an upward trend, so you shouldn't need to worry too much about freezing for the immediate future. As to the other part of your question..." he rubs his face and shakes his head. "I simply don't know. There's too many variables to know what was released, survived, or migrated into the area in the past two centuries." He reaches under the table, and pulls out a bag. "I also don't know how badly any food outside may be contaminated. So I'm giving you each enough ration bars to last you all at least a few days." Food MechanicsRation bars are a bland and hard-textured but highly filling and nutritious. Two ration bars a day (or the equivilent) will keep you going. Go without food for too long, (in-game two days) and you'll begin taking penalties He passes out six ration bars to each of you. "Your mon should be able to forage for whatever food they need. And when you absolutely must rely on scavenged food, there's a purification process that's detailed in your Vault-Dexes." Purification Mechanics
By using either Survival or Edu Medicine, you may remove contaminants from food, making it safe(r) for human consumption. Unfortunately, the process can only be preformed once on a single meal's worth of food or canteen's worth of water. Attempting the process a second time will render the food inedible, and the water undrinkable. More details to come as they become relevant.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:01:38 GMT
Christine
"Sir," she said, still trying to figure out what information they did and did not have, "You said that the Vault-Dexes were able to analyze the creatures, correct? Are they able to analyze other things in the environment, given time? Like plants that might be able to be used for medicine? Or technology that might still be functioning? Or will we have to act blindly? And do the Dexes at least have the medical records on them from before the cataclysm? Because illnesses that we no longer experience might have survived out there..."
"And...survivors?" she asked. "How likely do you think it is that anyone survived?"
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:30:09 GMT
Amber accepts the bars, with one hand, still cradling the ball containing her beast in the other. Her hopes brighten a little at the idea of it being able to contain water, since that...might be useful? She's a little squicked at the idea of drinking something from inside the animal...admittedly. But in an emergency...
She hesitates for a moment, before looking up. "Even if we stretch it, that's at most 6 days of food," She says quietly. "I...I've never eaten anything that didn't come from the machines. How do we know what's safe to eat, and what isn't?"
She holds up her wrist, where the dex sits. "Will this tell us? Or...can the other poke-e-man be eaten?" She grimaces a little at the thought.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:30:49 GMT
Eyeballing the button on one side of the fist sized sphere, Cecil shoved his thumb into it a few times. The voices around him seemed to fade a little as he slipped into a state of concentration that was rare for him. One tap shrunk it, another tap enlarged it. That was sorta handy. It fit between his fingers, or filled his entire hand, maintaining roughly the same weight.
Finally noticing the seam, he pressured the sides of the ball, and they bowed just slightly, light spilling from the pokeball as it split open, it's contents solidifying on the floor as the energy died. Cecil dropped to his backside, literally and figuratively floored, watching the Sandile in awe. The quadruped lifted it's head, giving each human a cool look of bored disinterest, before testing the tiled floor with a fore claw, finding it unsuitable for digging.
"So this is really happenin'..." Rubbing his eyes for a moment, he shook his head to compose himself, the Sandile making it's way under one of the consoles. It's eyes glittered softly from the dark, warm space, and it stilled.
Pointing the small device he was issued at the strange creature, the likes of which he'd never seen before, Cecil flipped the switch that opened it with a certain satisfying snap, one which he was so commonly used to, aiming the small lens at the Sandile.
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:31:27 GMT
Bunnie jumps at Cecil releasing his little alligator. Which is, oddly enough, not a euphemism. She has a little smirk at that thought. She watches it closely, her hand on her own pokeball should it begin to come at her threateningly. She glares at Cecil, these things are potentially dangerous, and Skrub had said something about his being used as an ambush predator. He doesn't seem to be looking over at her though so she simply rolls her eyes and shifts a few steps away from the alligator, eyes locked on it.
"So if we find what we need to fix the purifiers and stuff, we can come back. Are we allowed to bring any survivors we happen to find with us? Within reason of course. But we're not near capacity at all, and seeing as how our ancestors got in here 200 years ago it might not hurt to introduce some new genes into the pool. Just a thought."
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:31:54 GMT
"Cecil Deloria!" Christine cries. "You put that thing away right now! I am not wanting to patch up anyone before leaving this vault! And who even knows what's in those bites? I may have turned a blind eye to you taking rations meant for patients when you were assigned to the medical bay, because I could replace those with my own food, and I may have taken care of those injuries that were cause by your own stupidity, but I will not allow you to recklessly endanger everyone here!"
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 19:36:00 GMT
Flinching sharply back as the small crocodilian materialized out of thin air, Joe somehow managed to swallow back an unflattering scream. Regaining what little composure he had, Joe found himself gripped with a kind of morbid curiosity. What would happen if he unleashed his own pocket monster in the lab? Cecil's hadn't gone berserk, but Joe got the feeling close proximity to a... Grimer alone might be dangerous without hazmat gear.
"Yeah, that's what we need. More mouths to feed when everything inevitably starts breaking down again," he mumbled woefully under his breath. "At least I probably won't be around to have to deal with it anymore..."
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Post by Lockdown on Dec 28, 2015 20:05:04 GMT
"Hey! Can it!" Cecil shouts back at Christine. "We're going someplace new, and pops here hands me a weapon, I'm going to take my nicks and cuts now, before my life is in danger out there, got it babe?" His voice gradually returns to his even tone after the brief snap. "C'mon, get out here you skulk." If Cecil was ashamed of the truth that Christine laid out, it wasn't immediately obvious, but he looked completely unfettered about the announcement of his crimes. He waved the Sandile closer, and to the man's surprise, it returned to his side.
"Don't you put those teeth in me you little fink..." Cecil muttered darkly, reaching out with a steady hand towards it's back, finally bringing his palm to rest on it's spine. It's skin was pebbly, a bit rough, and radiating warmth slowly in the slightly chill air of the room. Fink turned his head just-so, eyes fixated on Cecil's wrist, mouth slowly opening with a low, guttural hiss. "Shaddup!" It's jaw closed again with a click.
The tense air in the room didn't improve much as Cecil examined the small creature's claws, and tail. Notably, he's careful to keep his face well and clear from those teeth. Fink's disposition after their initial abrasive pass has returned to bored disinterest.
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