Nekoholic

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil's eyes widened, and he quickly shouted, "Jace, don't!"

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Leith gave Kaye one last glare before he stepped away, vanishing into the sinking darkness.
Basil glanced at Kaye, "Do...do you need any help?" Deep down, he was afraid of this girl, but she had been kind enough to help them. So she couldn't be all that bad, right? Besides, talking to her was better than talking to Jace at the moment. For some reason, he seemed to be mad at him.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

"Lead-head, be careful with that gun, yeah?" said Leith, but looked toward Basil. He wasn't certain what had gone down between the two, but the dumb brute looked even angrier and the short-stack appeared to be in a downward spiral of despair, his earlier strength sapped like nothing. "Hey, short-stack. You cook?"
Basil glanced up and numbly nodded after a brief moment's confusion.
"Good," Leith said, relieved to not be stuck with Kaye's "delicacies" for a night. He set down his pack near the stump. "I'll go get some wood then. Kaye, can I trust you to get the medicine prepared?" He shot her a dangerous look.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil narrowed his eyes and replied, "There's no need to be racist. And he's not a 'thing' either--he's a human being, just like us." He folded his arms over his chest, refusing to look at Jace. "It's not like they plan on sticking around, anyways, so we could at least get along while we're together. And you should be more appreciative, too. If it wasn't for them, then..." He trailed off, lowering his eyes to the ground. "He's not that bad, honest. And it's not like I've abandoned you or anything, like you're implying. He just said that we should set up camp because we're all obviously tied, except for maybe Kaye, but I kinda suspect that she may be on something. I don't want to outright accuse her of that, though, because that'd be rude--maybe she's just a really, really optimistic and energetic person, and who am I to judge her for that?" He took a deep breath, cheeks flushed slightly as he finished his rant. "Anyways, stop being a jerk."
Leith rolled his eyes, but paused as he heard Basil raise his voice slightly. He didn't think that he was actually capable of getting riled up to this extent, but he looked it now.
"Sounds like we could all use some shut-eye," Leith piped up, looking between the two. He was quiet for a moment, Basil not even looking at him.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

"Like I've said a dozen times over," Leith said exasperatedly, "We don't know what to expect once we get there. So we need to rest up, get some food in our stomachs--especially for brain-waste over there. And above all else, we need to think up a firm plan, so that we can actually get in and out of there without casualties or wasting all of our supplies on stupid endeavors." He shot a look at Kaye. "Got it now, princess? Making sense to you now, buttercup?"
Basil fell into step again with Jace, and asked, "So what's with the sour face?"

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

"We should start looking for a place to set up camp for the night," Leith announced, his voice little more than a soft grumble. He had barely spoken after they embarked on their sudden detour, going in the direction that the short-stack and jackass claimed was the site of the nearest vault. His stomach churned as they drew nearer and nearer, thinking of just what could be waiting for them there. Experiments gone wrong, nests of mutated creatures unique to that particular vault, hallucinogenic chemicals being pumped through the air system. He rubbed one hand over his face; they had to be close, and he wanted at least a night to rest and mentally prepare himself.
"Are you okay, Leith?" Basil asked, catching up to the ghoul, who had taken the lead hours prior.
Leith glanced down at the kid; not that anyone would notice, but his lips were pursed. "Define 'okay.'"
"Hmm...like, you just look really worried. Is something wrong?"
"Is something wrong? Kid, look around you; everything's wrong these days," he said. Noticing the snapping tone in his voice, then the slightly hurt look in the kid's light green eyes, he sighed and added, "I'm fine, short-stack."
"Well, that's good," Basil replied awkwardly.
After a moment's hesitation, Leith asked, "What about you? Not in shock or anything from your friend almost dying back there?"
"No, I'm fine, too," Basil said. He shrugged. "He didn't die, so I'm not going to worry about something that didn't happen, you know?"
Leith nodded, "Good mindset to have." He then pointed out, "Wait, I never even introduced myself. How do you know my name?"
"I just picked up on it," Basil said with an unconcerned shrug, clasping his hands behind his back.
"Oh. Well, what's yours? I didn't pick up on that."
"Basil. Like the herb."
"Basil...my wife used to mix that into our tea. Was nice, so...nice name to have, I guess."
"Thanks." Basil rubbed his arm anxiously, as if hesitating to ask something.
"My wife's gone, kid. Can already tell you're the inquisitive type, but too polite like Kaye-kid back there to just outright ask." He smiled softly at Basil. "Hey, looks like your friend is giving us the stink eye. Should probably get back to him. I need to be scoping out some rest sites anyways."
Basil nodded, and turned to head back to Jace without any protests. However, before he went, he said quietly, "And...I'm sorry about your loss, by the way."
Ducking his head, he whispered, "I am, too."

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil was quiet for a moment, and then said, "Well, I've never really thought about him in the way that you're suggesting. But we've been close friends for years now, so in that regard, yes." He shook his head. "But I don't quite see how that is relevant, and furthermore, how it is possibly any of your business."
"Damn, he got you, Kaye," Leith said, whistling in an impressed tone. Karma was a bitch, after all, and he'd gladly serve as her hand. He wasn't there just to look pretty and menacing for her, like a pitiful with a rhinestone collar; he had other attributes, too, that were worth mentioning.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

"As if you have any brains," Leith muttered, glaring at Kaye. He shook his head; if she was even remotely smart, she wouldn't be trying to involve herself in their hero's quest just for the potential entertainment. The kid looked entirely serious, even if he was naive; Kaye didn't have that sort of dedication for anything but herself. She wouldn't last for even five minutes trying to save the world before she got bored.
Basil quickly shook his head, "No way, I'm not leaving Jace. And you're not giving him enough credit. He may not know a lot about science or anything, but he's really smart when it comes to other things. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have lasted this long."

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Basil worriedly watched as Jace wandered off, having no idea where exactly he even planned to go, but knew that he wouldn't want him to question or follow him when he was in such a mood. Finally, he nodded at Kaye, and said, "Yes. Once we find a G.E.C.K., I plan on setting up...somewhere, and beginning the project. Considering how rare they are these days, and how it's vital, we thought that should be the first step--I wouldn't want to work for years on the purifier, only to die when trying to find the G.E.C.K. I would prefer to get that out of the way before I wasted my time."
Leith was quiet for a moment, also peering at Jace as he shambled away, and said to Basil, "So you have a notion of what to do?"
"Yes," Basil quickly said with another firm nod.

Atomic Rain (Fallout)

Flinching when Jace glared at him in such a way, Basil eventually said when Kaye persistently inquired, "They're not just rumors. They...they do exist. It's safe to consider them responsible for the wasteland even being remotely possible to inhabit."
"Kid's right," Leith said after a moment. He glanced at the taller one, who didn't look very pleased at all with these developments. Ungrateful brat. "It stands for Garden of Eden Creation Kit, Kaye. Certain Vaults were equipped with them, at least the ones that were planned on ever being opened. They're designed to purify water--large deposits of it--in order to give way into safe agriculture, clean drinking and medicinal practices, and the like. While this isn't exactly what I'd call 'Eden,' some of them did work. The Capital Wasteland is a recent example of that, if you believe the stories of what happened there a couple years ago."
"Yes, Project Purity," Basil dropped in, pleased to have finally found someone who had a degree of knowledge on this sort of topic, "Some of the scientists there are said to have purified the Potomac River. And they did it through a G.E.C.K., so if we could find one, then...maybe we could do the same."
"Kid, a G.E.C.K. will likely be needed if you plan on trying to save the world or something," Leith said, "But even those scientists struggled for well over two decades to accomplish such a feat, a lot of 'em dying through the process of it. And the G.E.C.K. was just their final step to finish what they'd started, so if you don't have some theories, research, or resources of your own to begin with, then the G.E.C.K. may not be of much use to you, even if you were to find a functional one. And to be honest, you look pretty young--are you educated on this sort of thing at all? What's the likelihood of you blowing yourself up, rather than actually solving any problems?"
Basil frowned, and was about to speak again, but Leith pushed forward, "I don't intend to squash your dreams underneath my boot. But don't go rushing into matters that you know too little about to fully understand. Science is designed specifically to kill those who try fooling with it when in that sort of mindset."