[IC] Atomic Rain (Fallout)

[Nekoholic]

Leith sighed, "Because it's not for them. It's for everyone, for the world. So maybe all of the risks are worth taking."

[NinjaButterfly]

Kaye nodded in agreement. "Yes...yes it is. This is going to work...I just know it."

Jace stayed at the bar for a couple hours more after Kaye and Leith left, working hard on achieving his goal of getting completely snockered. After a few more beers, a couple friendly hands of Caravan, and some complimentary vodka shots offered by his new buddy for winning both hands, it became official. He could barely stand on his on two feet when he stood up to leave.
It wasn't very often when he drank because he was afraid of becoming just like his useless father was. Only in times of high stress did he turn to the bottle, but ever since this mission had started did he turn to it more and more as tensions always ran high when traveling through the dangers of the Deeper South. If finding out about the death of your best friend wasn't good enough reason to drink, though, he didn't know what was. At least he'd managed to forget for awhile. Unlike most of his bar visits, he surprisingly didn't get caught up in a bar brawl but that was mostly because he hadn't been able to stand properly and would have done more damage to himself than the other person. Not that there was a problem with that.
He didn't know what time it was when he finally stumbled out of the bar, but it couldn't have been too late for the lamps lighting the streets were still lit. It was slow progress, but he managed to stumble through the streets in the direction that his friend told him where a small motel was. The closer he got, the more aware that he became that he didn't even know where Basil had gone off to after their departure. For all he knew, he could have been half way to the next town and decided to leave him after all. Perhaps he decided to run off with Leith like he threatened to back at the vault; was that why the ghoul and Kaye left the bar so suddenly? To make sure he was too drunk to follow so they could sneak off in the middle of the night? Even through his drunken stupor, he couldn't bring himself to believe that, but the seed of doubt had already been planted and ate away at his mind.
Just as he made it to the motel, a man was walking out of the building and turning the key in the lock. Seeing him made him speed up a little, though it was a bad idea as he nearly stumbled to the ground to catch up.
"Hey...hey, sir!" He had to grab onto the door frame to steady himself.
"Jesus, son. Are you drunk or something?" The old man shook his head at him. "Sorry, we're closed for the night."
"I need a room for the night. I don't have many caps, but-"
"We are closed. Go sleep it off in an alley or someplace." Just as he started to walk off, Jace grabbed him by the shoulder.
"My friend...he carries the caps and has disappeared on me. If you can jus'...let me stay the night, I-"
"This friend of yours...short, scrawny kid with brown hair? Named after a herb? Parsley, I think it was."
"...Yes?" Jace was unsure where this was heading and couldn't draw a formal conclusion in his muddled brain.
"He said that someone might drop by later asking for him. Told me to let you in if you did, though he said he thought you left him" He looked him up and down for a moment as if contemplating on telling Jace. "Don't go causing any trouble."
"No, would't dream of it."
"Room 24 on the right side, bottom floor. It's the last one."
"Thank you."
He was thankful that he'd give the description of the location because he never would have found it otherwise without knocking on every door through the place. He didn't even knock on the door as he turned the door handle, thankful that it hadn't been locked and stumbled inside. His heart jumped into his throat when he caught sight of Basil, who was sitting on the bed, reading a notebook that he always wrote things in with every vault they visited. The contents of the pages were lost on Jace, but he wasn't there to be the brains of the operation, anyways.
"You're here..." Jace shut the door gently and locked all the locks before turning to look at him, wide eyed. He honestly hadn't thought this over in his mind before coming in here, so he was at a complete loss of words right now. "Thought you might've left by now. You should've." He couldn't help the anger that leaked into his words and didn't even notice it himself.

[Nekoholic]

Basil shrugged, merely flipping to another page instead of looking at him as he said, "Jace, you're drunk, so I'd suggest that you just go to bed before you say or do something that you'll regret." Finally, he closed the notebook and looked up at Jace. "If you still want to come with me, I'm leaving in the morning. I thought that I'd at least ask before I did. Of course, I understand if you don't want to, but whether you believe it or not, I still view you as my closest friend. So I wouldn't just leave you behind, not even after...after what nearly happened." He moved off the bed, slipping his book back into his bag. Without facing Jace, he said, "If you want to give up on this, then there will be no hard feelings left behind. After all, you said so yourself that you only ever came because you wanted to protect Basil. And well, I'm not exactly him. Therefore, you have no reason left to stay, to risk your life over a...a machine. One needs motivation if they're going to accomplish anything. And unless you've suddenly had a change of heart, you're no longer going to find such motivation in me."

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace's throat was as dry as sand paper and couldn't even hardly swallow to moisten it. He looked off to the side for a moment, deep in thought over his words. Being completely honest he couldn't really concentrate on his words for long before they were nearly forgotten completely. Once again, he turned to look at Basil, eyes narrowed. "Why didn't you tell me when you first found out you weren't...you?" He took a few steps towards him. "We could have figured this out together like we always...like me and Basil always did." His hands clenched into fists. "I could have killed you earlier...I almost did. If you can die again. Is that even possible? I don't even know." He laughed at himself, continuing his advance.

[Nekoholic]

"Because I wasn't even sure, Jace. If I could have avoided it, I would have just disproven my theories and never brought it up. It would have been easier for the both of us that way," Basil responded, eyes narrowed. As Jace crept closer, he took equal steps back, though he was soon against the wall.

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace smiled down at Basil as he continued his approach until he had him right where he wanted him. He loomed over Basil slightly as he stared down at him, placing both of his hands on the wall on either side of him so he couldn't escape.
"I have to admit, I was caught off guard when you told me that you died a long time ago, you know. I was absolutely crushed, disassembled like a machine and just thrown back together again to the point where you don't even know if it still works right, anymore." He released a shaky breath, his smile now gone. "All this time, I thanked God every day for still having you by my side. And only to think he was laughing in my face all this time..."

[Nekoholic]

Basil averted his eyes from Jace's gaze, barely refraining from shaking where he stood; with how unpredictable Jace had been as of late, he couldn't be certain of what his intentions were at the moment. Not to mention that he reeked of alcohol. His voice quivering, he said, "I'm sorry, Jace. That's all that I can say and there's absolutely nothing that I can do. All I know is that I'm glad that I'm here. And that I still have work to do. I'm not giving up. Perhaps I am a different person, after all these years, but that doesn't change the fact that I have my goals and will do anything to fulfill them. I'm still a person, even if not the one that you thought you knew."

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace remained silent for awhile as he let those words sink in. He hated to admit it, but he was right on that last part. Even though he wasn't the same person that he'd been six years ago, he had still been here for him and never abandoned him even after he realized he wasn't who he was supposed to be. What did that mean for Jace himself, though? Did that make him a hypocrite for walking alongside this person before him?
He bit his lip to mask the confusion that he felt. Slowly, he bent down to stare at Basil at eye level intently. Before responding, he reached his hand up to cup Basil's cheek gently and smiled sweetly. "Is this new person afraid of me? Are you afraid of me...Basil?"

[Nekoholic]

Basil was quiet for a moment, but finally responded, "Well...you haven't exactly been very...accepting, as of late, so yes, to a degree, I am naturally afraid of you." He sighed. "But on a whole? No. You always looked out for me, even in the thick of things. I won't forget that."

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace nodded his head absentmindedly as if he was satisfied with the response. He remained silent for a moment more, thinking things over. Yes, he had protected and risked his life to save him too many times to count. He hadn't once hesitated, though, because he couldn't think about living a life where Basil didn't exist. He never knew the difference, though, and even standing here now, staring at him, there was very little difference between the two. Even though he didn't know who he was until now, he had bonded with this person for the better part of six years and never once questioned it. In the end with all things considered, they were still bonded with one another, even if it wasn't really who he was supposed to be.
He closed his eyes for a moment to try stopping the whirling of his mind before opening them once more. Basil's face still stared back at him, not looking a day older than when he'd last saw him six years ago. He slid his hand away from his cheek and slowly moved it down to his neck, holding it gently as he felt the pulse hammering against his flesh. For awhile he stared at his hand, a little surprised at the revelation. Moving his hand down a little more to his chest...there was a heart beating against his palm. He was still here...alive in another form, but alive nonetheless, right before Jace. After a long minute, his gaze finally found their way back to his eyes. Before he realized what he was doing, he closed the remaining space between them and kissed him. This time it wasn't a soft kiss like earlier...it was desperate...needy...but most of all he was afraid.

[Nekoholic]

Initially, Basil was just too shocked to do anything, but once he realized what was happening, Basil pushed against Jace's chest until, eventually, Jace stumbled back; likely, he'd only succeeded because he was drunk. Shaking his head, he said, "No, Jace. You're...you're drunk and not in full control of yourself." He moved past him, towards the door. "If you're suddenly going to accept me again, I'd prefer that you do it while you're...sober. That way I can know it's true." Not only that, but he wasn't intent on potentially taking advantage of Jace when he was in such a vulnerable state; he didn't want to be accused of such a thing the next day, either.

[NinjaButterfly]

Jace felt as if he was struck by lightning when he pushed him away, having not expected it nor did he think it would have happened. He tried catching his balance but couldn't quite manage it and fell onto the floor with a hard thud.
"Don't leave..." He bit his bottom lip to stop it from quivering and looked at the ground to try hiding the hurt clouding his eyes. With much difficulty, he managed to stand up on his own two feet and made his way towards the door. "I'll leave and find some place else to sleep. Out of the two of us, I'm the one who can actually defend myself." He shoved Basil out of the way with more force than he intended and unlocked the door.

[Nekoholic]

Basil remained silent as Jace left the room, but then sighed and sat back down on the bed. What else had Jace expected him to do? Surely, he'd wake up in the morning, with a hangover, no less, and wonder what had even happened last night. And if he happened to remember any of it, then he'd be disgusted with himself, for potentially multiple and different reasons. Basil felt, deep down, that he'd done the right thing. In fact, he hadn't even been selfish.
He really would believe me to be a monster if I'd just...let him have that regret just to receive such gratification. It was the right thing to do. It had to be.

[Nekoholic]

The charred forestry, the remnants of a war two centuries before, was thicker than what Kate had experienced back home in the Capital Wasteland. There, she could see ruined cities in the distance, the river sparkling as the sun poked between green clouds that only made Kate think of vomit instead of the Heavens as certain friends dreamily spoke of on occasion, a pocket of houses where settlers resided and anticipated the next Super Mutant or Raider attack and planned their daily rations of Pre-War foods and purified water. In the years following the success of Project Purity, plantations had sprouted throughout the map, but it'd be another decade or two before it really took off enough for the area to be considered stable. But it was nice, at least, to know that things were looking up. That the people had hope for the future now.
Here, though, it frustrated her to consider that an enemy could be lurking behind a tree twenty yards away and she wouldn't even know it.
It made her properly paranoid.
But they had their orders, their mission, and that was to investigate and report on what was once Georgia, so that the Brotherhood of Steel could come in with larger numbers and increased resources. If they cooperated, it was claimed that the Brotherhood would use the knowledge that they'd gathered from Project Purity's construction to help the people of this area, and indirectly, the Brotherhood's military patrols would benefit them, as well; cleaner water, better crops, safer roads. Of course, no information would actually be granted to the people about how everything worked. That wasn't important. Most wouldn't care, anyhow, so long as they were reaping the benefits. And all that the Brotherhood asked for in return was the acquisition of any and all advanced technology, particularly from the local Vaults, and undisturbed postings. Things that Kate personally doubted these people even used themselves, so she thought it was a rather fair deal.
She didn't think it'd go down so easily, of course, but eventually, the Brotherhood would win. It was rare that they didn't.
"PH samples?" Kate asked in disbelief, folding her arms over her chest. She raised an eyebrow, shaking her head. "We just got here half an hour ago and instead of checking this new place out, you want us to examine soil?"
"And the water," Paladin Desmond promptly added.
"Unbelievable," Kate huffed. She was a scribe, someone who was supposed to get their hands on the good stuff--dirt could be found anywhere, even in the barracks back in the Citadel. She looked to Tink, hoping the smaller girl would complain about this, as well.

[NinjaButterfly]

"What is there to expect aside from the obvious?" Tink said quickly in her usual way of speaking. "The ground will still be covered in fallout like the rest of the soil samples you have collected from all across the country or we would not be living in an irradiated wasteland." She put her hands on her hips and shifted onto her right foot. A few years ago she had narrowly escaped death from stepping on a landmine and barely jumped out of the way before the blast blew her in half; her foot managed to get caught in the blast but luckily it had been saved by Kate. Serving as a grim reminder that death was always marching in step with them, she now walked with a slight limp to her stride and it pained her to stand in one place for too long. They had only been at a halt for less than a minute and she could already feel the all-too familiar pain creeping up on her.

"Let the man do what he needs to do while you two do the same, Tinkerbell. The less we argue, the sooner we can complete our mission and get back home," Knight Juliano yawned tiredly. Although he appeared too laid-back and easy-going to be an alert and capable guard for the group, he was fairly well at his job. Everyone knew that he would prefer to lay under the shade of a tree and stare at the back of his eyelids more than going on long patrols and recon their surroundings, but he took his job seriously when the time called for it.

"Don't call me that!" she snapped. "We are just adding more waste to the land by standing here when we could be finding the materials needed to actually make a difference to this land and help it. Instead here we stand playing in the mud like children."

"You are a child, Tink."

"And you are a fat, lazy man, Juliano."

[Nekoholic]

Desmond's gaze flicked between the two before he finally said, "Can, can we please just, you know, follow orders? We need this in our report, which is expected within three days, and all of you know that I'd rather not lie when it could potentially come to jeopardize something else in the long-run."
Not even here for an hour and they're already at each other's throats. I'm surprised we haven't each been reassigned...then again, perhaps this is why we were selected for this recon mission. Less of a bother to the others this way. Disposable because my subordinates question everything and can't do even a simple task without complaint. But I've got to be more assertive this time, don't I? This isn't only important, but extremely dangerous. Uncharted territory, unknown variables. If we're not on our toes, disaster will surely happen.
"Guys, just lay off poor Dez already," Knight Salem said.
Kate looked over, having momentarily forgotten that Salem was even there; gazes meeting, he smiled and waved his unwrapped granola bar in greeting.
"Did...did you seriously just get into our rations when we haven't even been here for an hour?" she inquired, brow furrowing in barely veiled frustration.
"Yes. It's nice to know that, as a scribe, you have the basic perception to point out the obvious," he replied, sinking his teeth into the snack.
"You idiot! We haven't even gotten to our targeted post site yet!" Kate almost shouted, clenching her fists.
"Well, you're questioning the command, I'm eating the rations ahead of time, so looks like we're all breaking the rules today," he retorted.
Should I even try anymore? Desmond heaved a forlorn sigh, rubbing one hand down his face as he tried to pretend that none of this was happening just because he'd asked for them to take a few PH samples.

[NinjaButterfly]

"No fair. I am hungry, too," Knight Juliano said as he stared angrily at the granola bar. "I will split my rations with you later for a chunk of that."

"If you could think with that pea-sized brain of yours for a moment rather than food for once-"

"Go suck on a cactus, Tink. Don't you ever get tired of hearing yourself talk?"

"Actually, I am quite infatuated with my intelligence and with the way I convey it." Tink spared a sidelong glance at Kate and smiled slightly, almost shyly. "A fellow scribe would understand, right?"

[Nekoholic]

"A fellow starving person would also understand the importance of this granola bar being excused," Salem spoke rather loudly to be heard just as Kate opened her mouth. He moved over to Juliano, halving the bar with him. "There you go, man. Brothers have to look after their brothers, right? Mostly because we're stuck with a couple of witches who think that they know everything about everything."
Kate narrowed her eyes at Salem, and snapped, "You're seriously feeding the black hole that he calls a stomach? I'd be careful if I were you, Sal. Get too close and you'll never see the light of day again."
"Just take the damn samples!" Desmond interjected, causing even Salem to jump in surprise. The Paladin shook his head, which was cradled in the palm of his hand. "Apparently, bickering isn't a waste of time to any of you, when you could have already finished taking these samples, which could have allowed us to continue on our mission. I swear, sometimes I think that you just get a kick out of driving me insane."
Kate was quiet for a long moment, then mumbled what vaguely sounded like an apology and set to work, gesturing to Tink to do the same.
"I'll, uh, I'll remain on look-out," Salem murmured, red-cheeked as he crammed the rest of the food into his mouth.

[NinjaButterfly]

Knight Juliano stared at the ground in silence for a long moment before taking a bite of the granola bar. As if he was afraid Desmond would yell at him for even chewing too loudly, he deliberately chewed slower to prevent it.

Tink looked over at Desmond before shaking her head a little in disbelief. She couldn't believe the usually soft-spoken Paladin had raised his voice. Okay, she would admit that they were a tough bunch to handle and personally, she believed the team should be run by someone more assertive to take control of the situation. They had grown too free-willed, in her opinion. And although she helped feed the flames of the fire, she believed they needed to sharpen up quickly if they were to make it back home any time soon.

"I'm the one who started this bickering, so I will be the first to offer my apologies." Without another word, she pulled out a few vials she kept in easy reach in her pack and took a soil sample from the ground, making sure it hadn't been trampled by anyone's feet. Once she was done, she corked the vial and put it back into her pack before doing the same with the water sample she found in a small nearby stream that trickled out of the side of a hill. "Is that good, Paladin?"

[Nekoholic]

Absently, Desmond said, "Yes. Scribe Kate, are you ready?"
Shaking dirt from her hands, she nodded and said, "Yes, sir." Straightening her pack on her shoulders, she glanced at Tink before stepping closer to the Knights and Paladins.
Oh, God, they're being respectful and obedient now. I hope I didn't break them, Desmond thought.
"Well, then, let's set out. If we remain steadfast, we should be at the post site by the afternoon; we can then set up, and we can begin our excavations tomorrow at sunrise," Desmond said, setting off.