Nekoholic

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil had never thought of himself as one who needed to be protected; of course, there had been his parents, but they had always taught him to how to be independent, self-sustaining. His mother educated him on history, as she insisted that it was necessary to know everything of the past in order to not repeat the same mistakes, and when those lessons had been finished for the day, they moved onto medicine. Then he "studied" with his father, working with the machines because his fingers were smaller and could fit easier into the crevices; of course, his father never had him to do anything particularly risky, and risky his job was, but when he was called to repair a radio, juke box, or any other mundane object, Basil was there and eager to be of use.
He knew how to survive on his own. His mother had made sure of that, as if she'd predicted that she'd die when her son was a mere child. No one else in the town--excluding his father and Doc Thurston--knew more about science, machinery, and medicine than him. If he were to be left alone, to his own devices and in the hands of the world, then he'd know how to make something of himself.
But the one thing that his parents had never taught him was how to defend himself. How could he ever save the world, as he'd stupidly promised his mother years ago, when he couldn't even defend himself from it?
"Why did you help me?" he asked the familiar stranger. He didn't know the older boy's name, only that he sometimes ran errands for the people at the market. He also recognized him from the weekly distribution of water rations. Other than that, though, he knew nothing of the person who had suddenly decided to save him; there was no detail for his analysis. Perhaps he expected something in return? Did he need money? Food? No, water; it was always for the water.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Name: Basil Lewis
Gender: Male
Age: 20
Appearance:
Height: 5'5"
Build: Slender
Hair: Ash blond (light brown)
Eyes: Green
Clothing: His attire consists of a white, long-sleeved shirt underneath a black, over-sized hoodie with a pair of black gloves. Additionally, he wears a pair of dark green pants with black combat boots.
Skillset: He is experienced with the functionality of machines, due to his upbringing, and has an adept knowledge of science. He is also talented at picking locks and has a decent amount of knowledge in medicine. Though he is not the strongest, he is fairly nimble.
Weapon(s): .45 Auto Pistol & Combat Knife
Personality: Though quiet when with strangers, he is quite the talkative person when given the time to become adjusted to another's presence. Armed with a sarcastic personality, as well as an offhanded tendency to snap at people, he does have an odd sense of obligation for other people's safety and well-being, even if they have done him wrong before. He also has the habit of hiding things from people, fearing the consequences he may have to face if he were to tell them. As for himself, he could be considered rather unconcerned and reckless.
Biography: He grew up in the same town as Jace, sequestered in the marshlands of southern Georgia. His father worked as a mechanic there, which included supplying the town with purified water. When the machine began to break down gradually, though, rations had to be issued, which caused the family to become unpopular when there was not enough for everyone to share. His mother died when he was young when there was a "freak accident," and afterwards, that only gave the other townspeople more reason to ostracize the family--if the man could not be trusted to keep his own family alive, then how could he be trusted to keep an entire town alive? When he was sixteen, he fell ill from radiation poisoning, but recovered; after this close call with death, he decided to begin his research on a long-term solution for the water issue, studying Project Purity and more cases of a G.E.C.K. working miracles. About two years after, he and his closest friend, Jace, set out on their journey to search through Vaults until they discovered one.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

It was not an unusual occurrence. These same people had taunted him ever since they discovered that his mother had died; even the occurrence of his mother's death had not been a surprise to the townspeople or for anyone else in the wasteland, for that matter. It was a harsh setting. Danger lurked behind every corner, manifesting itself as famine, disease, predators on the hunt--sometimes, even one's own shadow could take possession of their life. Basil had always been taught from both of his parents that death could strike at any moment, without sympathy or discrimination. So when his mother passed on three years prior, he accepted it. Perhaps it was his acceptance that scared the other children, which caused them to ostracize him. He also accepted that, for it was simply another form of loss. He was told not to mind the losses, only focusing on the endless possibilities of life; though there were millions of methods of death, there were trillions of methods in which one could live their life and enjoy it to the fullest. Balance was achieved through this because it was common for humans, in moments of extreme loss, to ignore and push away possibilities. His mother had not desired for him to let her death consume him, leading him to waste his own life. He had honored her wishes. It was because of this that he grieved quietly, unobtrusively, mourning as he moved further and further into the future that did not involve her. He did not regret his decision.
However, he did wish that these idiots would leave him alone for once.
"Do you even have emotions? What are you, a robot or something?"
"Your mama would be real sad to hear that you're so happy to be rid of her."
"What about your dad? Is he wanting to leave like she did?"
He knew for a fact that his mother had never wanted to just leave; it'd been a freak accident, not suicide as the rumors suggested. His father claimed that as long as they knew the truth, what others thought didn't matter. His mother, however, had loved her life and her family more so--she would never deliberately take that all away from herself. It was the one way in which she'd always been selfish.
He was just about to say something when he heard an unfamiliar voice.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil smiled excitedly, moderately surprised that Jace had actually agreed to explore the Overseer’s office; normally, he would just decide for them to leave, rather than taking any sort of risk. Perhaps he had finally grown impatient after weeks without a satisfying lead, as well.
It was imperative that they pinpointed the exact location of a functional G.E.C.K. as soon as possible. They had heard the stories of how they could bring about miracles, of how the Capital Wasteland, possibly the worst section of the entire world, had attained fresh water because of the work of a few scientists, a desperate, grief-stricken Vault Dweller, and one of those Kits. If such a device could save even the Capital, then it had to also possess the capability to save their home.
They had to believe in that.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil glanced up at Jace, and said, “Well, there was that one entry I told you about, but that’s all I’ve been able to find thus far.” He sighed, gently closing the cabinet closed once more. “Everything in here is illegible; it’s sad. It would have likely told us more about their research here.” He straightened up, rubbing his gloved hands together in one of his idle mannerisms; it was what he often did when he was contemplating on their next move. “Well, this is the last laboratory. I’m going to grab a few supplies from here, and then we can either leave or head into the Overseer’s office. I’ll let you decide on that one. Safety first and all that.” He began to search through the shelves again, grabbing whatever he deemed to be potentially useful; inevitably, it’d be crammed into Jace’s pack. If he carried more than thirty pounds on his back, he’d grow tired within the hour and begin to complain. It was a universally acknowledged fact that Basil could go on for hours and cause someone’s ears to bleed if not contented; Jace had learned that the hard way.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil winced slightly as Jace practically slammed the cans onto a nearby table; well, perhaps it wasn’t actually loud, but merely seemed so in the otherwise silent laboratory. He narrowed his eyes at Jace and hissed, “Aren’t you always the one telling me to be careful? Keep doing that and you’ll surely draw those pests to this side of the Vault.” He shook his head, and without awaiting a retort, began his expedition through a mildew-infested filing cabinet in earnest. Most of the documents had been damaged beyond recognition, but there had to be more about the Vault and the ulterior motives behind its erection than just one entry written after all of the former residents had either left or perished. Truly, he had only come here for one thing—a Garden of Eden Creation Kit or, at the very least, information on one’s whereabouts. Of course, the history to be learned in each Vault was fascinating and he deemed it worth exploring, but he had to keep his priorities straight; he had to remain focused. One would never reach their destination if they kept taking detours.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Wiping dust from the screen of the aged, water-damaged terminal, Basil squinted his eyes in order to read the pixilated, neon green letters that came to life upon activating it. A freezing drop of irradiated water plopped onto his hair and soon after, another splashed onto his nose and slipped down the bridge and onto his lip. The Vault that he and Jace had discovered hours prior was in worse shape than the others that they had explored in recent weeks; many sections had collapsed upon each other, mutated creatures of the Wasteland had made nests in what were once the dormitories, and the Overseer’s office was suspected of being the un-resting place of the last leader of the elusive sanctuary from the fallout above, if the guttural growls and pained groans were any indication whatsoever of the danger that lurked behind the locked door. Jace had suggested searching the other side of the Vault before they simply walked in there; despite Basil’s adamant claims that the Vault’s most important information would be found within the laboratories and the Overseer’s office, he’d eventually given into Jace’s careful ways. If nothing was found here, however, they would most assuredly trace their steps back.
Entry 12: 2189
So far, trial tests have resulted in nothing; the cells simply refuse to replicate as they have evidently done prior. We thought that Ashton had made some sort of breakthrough when he decrypted those old research notes, but I’ve come to the conclusion that those scientists became delusional, living on the false hope that their studies had been a success due to understandable stress from radiation poisoning and the inevitable doom that approached them. After all, this Vault was practically designed for the simple purpose of falling apart. I’ll look into it some more, but if nothing comes of this within the next week or two, we’re moving on. We don’t have time to waste on fantasies. But who knows? Ashton’s prone to mistakes when he’s excited; perhaps he decoded everything incorrectly. –Alicia Martin
“This is the only entry that didn’t become encrypted somehow,” Basil said, leaning back in the soggy chair that he had claimed from the desk. He doubted that Jace was interested, but nevertheless, speaking helped him to gather and reflect on his thoughts and newfound information. “However, this is not from the time period in which people resided within this Vault; they were explorers of some sort, much like us, except they came here for some sort of science experiment. It didn’t elaborate too much on what it was, though. It mentioned cells, but that could be any number of things. According to the author of this entry, though, the Vault was built to fall apart; Vault-Tec certainly did have a peculiar way of welcoming guests, hmm? Either they were sick or this is a strong bout of culture shock on our part.”
He stood from the chair, and said to Jace as he walked past, “If you happen to find anything that mentions an Alicia or Ashton, please inform me.”

...Then the World Cried

Parker considered Sebastien's words for a moment. He knew that Sebastien was lying; that dazed look in his eyes told him everything, considering that he still had his glasses on. Finally, though, he sighed and said, "Should we just head back to base now? Tell them it's done?" Perhaps it wouldn't be wise to push Sebastien about it--he already thought more than necessary, after all. It didn't mean that Parker didn't plan on eventually asking him about it, though; he trusted Sebastien more than anyone else, but he wouldn't be going on another mission with him until he was certain that he wouldn't just throw his life away on a whim like that.

...Then the World Cried

The man only grinned, the expression almost feral. He then said, "Drop my weapon? Boy, it's just as your friend said. 'Shoot first, ask questions later.'" He lined up Sebastien in his sights once more, finger itching to pull the trigger again. "Your incompetent partner doesn't know how to properly wield a gun and you are too cowardly to pull the trigger on yours, so I suppose it's my responsibility to take matters into my own hands. I wish you the best of luck in your next life."
Just as he was about to fire, there was a flash of pain and then darkness.
The corpse collapsed first onto his knees, and then fell to the side. Half of his head was just gone, the brain matter splattered on the ground and on the nearby walls. The other half was contorted into an agonized expression, eyes wide and jaw hanging open, as if the man was still in shock even after having lost awareness.
"Are you okay, Sebastien?" Parker asked, rushing to his partner's side. Hastily, he checked for injuries, but thankfully, he found none. He then sighed and, before Sebastien had the chance to answer the first question, he inquired, "What happened? Why didn't you shoot him? He was going to shoot you, and you've never been the type to freeze up before. He would've killed you, Sebastien!"

...Then the World Cried

Upon hearing his partner's cry, Parker rushed down the ladder. At the end of the alleyway, he could see Sebastien and a homeless-looking man facing each other off. Deliberately, he shouted out, "Sebastien, are you okay?"
Immediately, the man yanked his head around; his arm then lifted, one finger on the trigger of his revolver. Though shaky, it remained aimed at Parker, who gave pause about five yards from the two. He then looked back at Sebastien, and said, "You must have had some sort of power to know what I am. So what about your friend here, huh? What can he do? I'm assuming he can't dodge a bullet."
He then smirked, and in one fluid motion, fired.
The bullet sunk into flesh, and Parker released a hiss of pain as he looked down at his stomach. Blood oozed from the wound, soaking through his coat until it began to dribble onto the ground.
"That was just a warning shot. Now--what?" The man's eyes widened as he watched Parker take off his coat calmly, reaching through the tear in his shirt in order to dig his fingers into the wound. Though it was true that he could heal, bullets could be rather tricky in the future; his skin healed, but he couldn't just allow the bullet to stay in there and make a new home out of his intestines, now could he?
"And there we go," said Parker cheerfully as he flicked the bullet onto the ground. He then looked back at the man, smiling. "I've been waiting to meet one of you for so long! And here you are! It's my third biggest dream come true!" He reached for the holster on his hip, taking out the semi-automatic pistol. "But I'm afraid I'm not here to make friends. What's that phrase? 'Shoot first, ask questions later?' Yes, that's what my superiors expect of me."
He fumbled with the gun, brow furrowed in confusion.
"What, boy? Don't know how to use a gun?"
"Sebastien, how do you turn the safety off again?" Parker sighed.