[IC] Atomic Rain (Fallout)

[Nekoholic]

Basil clenched his fists, and said, "The last thing that I want to do is push you away, Jace! But I'm not lying to you, either. I'm not such a coward that I'd make this sort of thing up just to get out of something difficult."

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace stared at Basil for the longest, not knowing how to respond or how to believe him for that matter. The longer he stared him in the eye, though, he could tell that everything he he was saying was the truth. He didn't understand any of this and the last thing Jace wanted to do was believe that his best friend was dead, but with that look...there was no denying it. Basil was dead and had been for a long time. There were no such things as miracles like he stupidly allowed himself to believe once upon a time. All the prayers he sent to the Heavens in those last weeks of Basil's life had fallen on deaf ears, yet he'd stupidly believed there was some unforeseen force who'd managed to spare his life.
"You really are dead..." he said softly, mostly to himself. More tears brimmed his eyes and spilled over, but this time he didn't wipe them away. For the longest he stared at the ground before taking a few steps back in his stupor.
How was he supposed to feel about this? Angry? Sad? Crushed? Despite the fact that Basil was standing right in front of him, he was dead somehow and he hadn't even known. Before Basil had died, he made Jace promise not to forget about him and have him live in inside his heart, but in the high of his falsified hope, he had forgotten about him altogether. This...this imposter was leading the life of the one who he'd believed to be his best friend that he'd fallen in love with long ago.
Without thinking of what he was doing, he raised his gun, leveling it with Basil's chest as he put his finger on the trigger. "If you aren't really Basil, then how did you only recently figure out that you weren't him? How could you go six years without knowing you aren't someone. Why were you here to replace him?! Tell me now!" His hands were trembling in his rising anguish and anger.

[Nekoholic]

Basil stepped back instinctively when Jace aimed his gun at him, raising his hands defensively in spite of knowing that none of those actions would deflect a bullet. He then said, "I-I don't know! Maybe there isn't even a genuine reason for any of this--it could just be for someone's sick sense of curiosity or amusement! It wasn't as if I had someone mysterious stranger come to me and tell me all of this, then announce what my true purpose of existing is!" He took another step back. "Look, there's...there's no reason to kill me. I know that it's a lot to take in, but I told you so that you could know, not so that you could have the opportunity for...this."

[NinjaButterfly]

"If Basil is dead, then why should you have the opportunity to live in his place? To take everything that was his for your own sake?! All this time I believed...I believed he was still with me. I didn't even get to mourn his death!" Jace took a few steps forward even as he backed away. "He thinks I abandoned him as if I didn't even care about him in the first place."

[Nekoholic]

"He would never think that way," Basil argued, shaking his head, "And I didn't do any of this intentionally. For nearly six years, I've thought that I am Basil, so I lived on in his place without consciously knowing that it was just my...programming. He wanted to work on water purification, so I continued that research--for him. He cared about his dad, so I worked hard to support him when his health began to decline--for him. And he cherished you as his closest friend, so I tried to make you happy--for him. And even after I discovered all of this, the truth of my identity and origins, none of that has changed. I still want all of the same things as him. I may not be the Basil that you grew up with, but...aren't I just a continuation of him? What's so different from us, really? Can you say that Basil wouldn't have become someone much like me, if not identical, when we had the same memories and personality to begin with?"

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace was rendered silent after hearing that, not knowing how to respond. He didn't know if it was because it was something that he wanted or needed to hear, but it stopped him nevertheless. Before he had the opportunity to say anything, Kaye, Leith, and Raider stepped out of the clearing, but he didn't even notice.
When Kaye saw Jace holding the gun up to Basil, her heart caught in her throat and she stopped dead in her tracks. "Jace!" she yelled loud enough for Jace to hear her.

[Nekoholic]

The last thing that Leith had expected to see was Jace, of all people, aiming a gun at Basil. Rushing forward without hesitation, he latched onto Jace's wrist, and asked with his voice raised, "What the hell do you thinking you're doing, Jace? I know that you two are going through a rough patch and all, but this is just stupid!" He then grabbed the gun with his other hand, wrenching it from Jace's grip. Stepping back, he looked between the two, shaking his head in confusion and exasperation. "So...anyone care to explain what's going on? Or is this a normal occurrence between the two of you?"

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace didn't bother fighting Leith when he took his gun; he was actually quite thankful that he did. He didn't want to kill him, but it was almost like instinct to raise the gun in the face of the given circumstances. For a long time he stared at Basil in the eye intently before looking over at Leith as if in a daze. His tears had stopped flowing with the sudden change in events, but his eyes were still glazed over in shock. Blinking a few times made the fog of his brain lift slightly and he remembered what Leith had asked.
"Nothing," he said. "Everything is fine here." He then turned back to stare at Basil. It wasn't his place to hand out his secret, especially to these three. "Is everything fine here...Basil?"
Kaye still remained silent, not knowing how to respond given the situation. There was trouble in paradise and there there was...this. This was just crazy.

[Nekoholic]

Leith looked between them, then said, "No, you can't just aim a gun at your best friend and then tell us that 'everything's fine.' None of us are falling for that. Sure, it may not be any of my business, but I'm not going any further until I know that I can trust all of us to not suddenly start shooting each other." He gestured over at the raider. "Because at the moment, I trust him more than either of you and I still don't even know his name."
"Everything's fine, just like he said, Leith," Basil snapped, walking by him.
Grabbing him by the shoulder, Leith stopped him. "No, it's clearly not."
"Well, then you're right. It's not any of your business, especially considering that we've barely known either of you for two days. And if we do start shooting, then it'll be at each other, not you or Kaye or...whoever that boy is. Is that satisfactory?" Basil responded.
Leith narrowed his eyes, but finally said, removing his hand, "Fine. Then let's be on our merry way. Because we're the merriest bunch in the entire fucking wastes."
"We sure are," Basil sarcastically agreed under his breath.

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace watched as Basil started walking off, a little surprised at his sudden outburst, especially towards Leith. Now that he knew the truth, he could notice the subtle changes in his attitude. Perhaps that was normal given the fact that he did point a gun and threaten to kill him...
He ran a hand through his hair before looking back over at Leith. He snatched the gun back from him and narrowed his eyes. "Thank you...for stopping me. But if you do not trust us then you can go on your own way. Just as Basil said, we will not bring any harm to you or Kaye unless you give us reason to." With that, he stalked off after Basil.
Kaye watched warily as Jace started walking away. "Should we let him follow after him with a gun?" she asked before turning to look at Leith.

[Nekoholic]

"Probably not the wisest course of action," Leith muttered. He sighed, rubbing the back of his head before he shrugged. "Let's just...keep our distance. Just in case they start to see red and mistaken us for their enemy."

[NinjaButterfly]

"If you say so, but if Jace raises his gun again, then be ready to stop them. I don't want my fortune to kill each other before I get my money."

The few hours it took to arrive at the town was spent in the tensest silence Jace had ever experienced. In his mind he was just now getting the opportunity to mourn the death of his best friend and he was kind of thankful for the solitude. How had he been so blind for so long about the truth when it was hiding underneath his nose since the day Basil had died. As a kid he never believed in God or miracles that he could make or they were nonexistent in the world they lived in today. Miracles didn't happen in the wastelands. He knew that now and was a hardened nonbeliever once more.
Once they finally got into town, he didn't even take in his surroundings before walking up to the first person he came across. "Where is the nearest bar?"
Kaye, Leith, and Raider arrived a few minutes behind Basil and Jace, but always remained within sight in case they had to intervene again. At least they seemed to wait on them at the front gate but before anyone could say anything, Jace turned to them and spoke up.
"If anyone needs me, I'll be at the bar. A word of advice...don't need me." He started walking away.
"Hey, wait a minute! If you have caps to waste on booze, then where are the caps that you owe us?"
Jace stopped for a moment but didn't turn to look at them as he fell into a moment of silence. "Care to join me?"

[Nekoholic]

Basil, clearly ignoring Jace, looked at the boy with a soft smile and asked, "Want to find the nearest doctor together? I need to stock up on supplies, so we may as well."
Leith, sparing a brief glance at Basil, nodded almost too eagerly at Jace; if Jace was drunk, then he'd spill everywhere about what had happened between him and Basil. Basil, on the other hand, was stubborn when he wanted to be. He doubted he'd be too willing to share, especially after how defensive he'd been earlier when directly asked. Besides, he didn't appear to be the drinking type. Not only that, but if that strong Chem hadn't had any sort of effect on him, he doubted a couple of drinks would, either. Jace was the better bet for now.
"Coming with, Kaye? I highly doubt that anyone would let me into a clinic, anyways," he said.

[NinjaButterfly]

Raider looked over at Basil warily, but still gave a firm nod of his head. His wound still hurt a bit, but he doubted the doctor would do much for it without payment. No one ever did anything for another without some type of payment to show for it.
"I...don't have the money to pay for the medical bills," he said softly, not able to meet his gaze.

Jace didn't wait for a response as he started heading in the direction of the bad. "Of course I'm not going to miss out on a free drink," Kaye said, smirking. Or information on what the hell was going on for that matter. She gave a wink to Leith before following after Jace.
"Do you think they're going to stay with one another after that little tango?" Kaye asked softly so Jace didn't overhear. "If they part ways, I'm going off with Basil. He seems to like our company more than Mr. Broody. I have a feeling this guy isn't going to do anything but turn to alcohol for his problems. I give it a month before he's dead in a ditch somewhere." She hated talking bad about him, but she never was known for sugarcoating the truth.

[Nekoholic]

"I'll pay, so don't worry about it," Basil said. He smiled softly, heading towards what appeared to be a crudely drawn map of the town, glued onto a wooden board just a little ways from the gate. "I highly doubt he'll be performing a major operation on you, so it likely won't cost too much, anyhow."

Leith sighed, but nodded in agreement and replied, "I'm finding it harder and harder to trust him, to be honest--not that I've trusted him at all. He's a loose cannon, if he's willing to even pull a gun on someone he claims to want to protect more than anyone or anything else. Basil may be hiding certain things from us, but he's got a good head on his shoulders, at least. Unless he's one of those more manipulative, cold, and calculative sociopaths, whereas Jace is just a hot-headed and emotional type of psychopath." He tapped his chin in contemplation. Then he deadpanned, "Kaye, we should have never taken up with them."

[NinjaButterfly]

"I still do not know why everyone is being so nice to me. Well, not that other guy." Raider fell into a short bout of silence. "I know you are wanting something from me. Everyone always does who wants to help me."

"Oh, lighten up, would you, grandpa?" Kaye shook her head. "Sure, maybe they aren't the most stable people we've met, but then again neither are we. Well, me, anyways. I'm sure there is a good reason why Jace acted like he did. He is a hot-head, sure, and maybe not all there in the head, but you have to admit he's got a nice tushie." She reached her hand up and pinched at his ass from afar and smirked.

[Nekoholic]

"I don't want or expect anything from you, okay?" Basil said, folding his arms over his chest as he headed down the near-empty streets of the town. He glanced behind him to ensure that he still followed after him, then said, "You're welcome to come with me, you know. I highly doubt my friend back there will want to stay with me after all of this, and the other two...well, I don't know about them. I think they just listen for the noise of caps jangling about in someone's pockets or bag, and take off after it, you know? I'm not sure if they hear that coming from me, though." He chuckled softly. "Anyways, it's not a good idea to go wandering off into the wasteland alone, and not every town is looking for new residents, so if you want, coming with me is an option. I could always use an extra pair of hands."

Leith smacked lightly at Kaye's air-pinching fingers and hissed, "Kaye, this is serious. And for the love of God, don't make sexual advances on a potential psychopath. That's one of those things called a 'poor life choice.'"

[NinjaButterfly]

Raider fell silent for a long time as he let those words sink in. He'd received two offers to tag along with someone in less than a full day and they hadn't even asked anything from him in return like the raiding party he'd been a part of. It was almost unbelievable that such kindness existed in the world today.
"I don't think you would be asking me that if you knew who I was," he muttered, not daring to meet his gaze.

Kaye retracted her hand to her chest quickly before pouting playfully. "You're no fun. For someone who talks about Jace being such a psychopath, you have that same stick up your ass like he does. In the end there isn't much difference between the two of you, really." She smirked slightly. "And my love life isn't any of your concern! Just because you took me in when I was six doesn't mean you are the boss of me." Well, he was the only father-like figure she'd ever had, but she wasn't going to tell him as such.
"On a more serious note, though...I don't think he's as bad as you think he is. He's strong and protective and fights for what he believes in. He's a warrior. All warriors have something of a dark past, including you."

[Nekoholic]

"You're a raider," Basil said with a shrug, "Or, rather you used to be." He looked back at him, smirking. "And don't act surprised, please. There aren't exactly many people in the wasteland who would be willing to strap a car door to their chest, you know. You'd have to be crazy to actually wear something like that for extended periods of time."

Leith clenched his jaw at that, and said, "No, we're not the same, Kaye. Have I ever aimed my gun at you or threatened your life in general?" He paused, grabbing Kaye by the arm to stop her. "Kaye, you're right, to a degree. Everyone who wishes to protect something or someone only knows to do so because they have lost the same thing before. But even if you have the justification for the bad things that you've done, it doesn't excuse them--you aren't suddenly an exception to morality. That's why you have to be careful around them, around people like Jace. Around people like me." He finally released her, watching as Jace disappeared into what he assumed to be the town's bar. "Look, maybe you're right. He could be one of the most morally sound people in the entire wasteland, for all I know. But for all you know, he could also be worse than a raider on psycho with a loaded missile launcher in his hands."

[NinjaButterfly]

Raider flushed at that and quickly looked away from him. "It's a fashion statement!" he self-consciously tugged on the armor to reposition it. It had been uncomfortable and rubbed the skin raw on his shoulders, back, and chest when he started wearing it, but it had been a part of his person for the better part of six months.
"Should I take this off? If you can tell that I'm a raider, then others can, too. They may...not take too kindly to my presence." Without waiting for a response, he started to take it off.

Kaye remained silent for awhile upon hearing that and watched as Jace entered what she assumed to be the bar. Once he was out of sight, she turned to look back at Leith sternly. "Alright. I get your point. He may or may not be sane, but it doesn't hurt to find out. I still say he had good reason for what he did." Deep down she had her suspicions what that could have possibly been, but she wasn't willing to bet all her money on the hunch just yet. She didn't even know if Leith shared her same suspicions but didn't seem to acknowledge the fact. "How about we go in there and get the drinks that he owes us before he changes his mind? Then maybe we can get him to talk so we can put your theory to rest."
Without waiting for a response, she grabbed onto Leith's hand and dragged him into the bar. When she entered she was immediately assaulted by the thick fog of smoke that lingered in the air from stale cigarettes being smoked by almost everyone in there. She barely refrained from coughing on the smoke.
As she walked further into the bar, she saw Jace in the corner of the room, already sitting at a table. When she approached, she noticed three beers lined up on the table, one of them already half drunken by their golden boy.
At first he didn't seem to notice their approach until they were standing right beside them. Jace sat down his glass and grinned at them, already looking as if the alcohol was affecting him. "There you are. I was beginning to think you bailed on me." He kicked out the two chairs in front of them expertly. "Join me."