ROLEPLAY HQ - tales-of-a-wasteland-scavenger

To say the wasteland was a harsh place was an understatement. If the raiders didn't get you, the ghouls did. If the ghouls didn't, then it'd be the super mutants. And if, by some impossibly lucky scenario, none of those got you? Then it was a slow death to radiation. That kind of thing happened to many, many people, but Izaak? He was smarter than most. He could adapt far easier because of that. Hell, after a feral ghoul tore his arm from his shoulder, Izaak didn't just give up. No, he did the exact opposite. With about a year's worth of prototypes and development, aided by a special little secret discovery he made.. And then he had an arm again! It was robotic and honestly could use more work, but he was working on it! Somewhere along the way, he'd gotten himself a secure location for his experiments, and had started taking in wayward souls, usually younger people with nowhere else to go. It gave him some manner of purpose, rather than aimless wandering. And now he was out on a supply run, hoping to trade some caps for food or scrap metal, or just about anything useful to his little colony, hunting rifle hanging from one shoulder and his knife in his boot. It was a long, careful walk, mostly sticking to the high ground where possible. @Phoenix_Nebula

To say the wasteland was a harsh place was an understatement. If the raiders didn't get you, the ghouls did. If the ghouls didn'...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump The place Izaak was heading to went by the name of "Big Town". Even if it was nothing special compared to the other settlements that could found in the Capital Wasteland, it nonetheless stood out for its relatively young inhabitants, most of which weren't even past the age of 21. Moreover, it wasn't truly known where most of them came from, though there was a rumour that the inhabitants had arrived from "an unknown cave" several miles away. However, most wastelanders didn't care too much about their backstory, being more interested in trading, especially since they reportedly pay well for both food and medicine. Moving on, one of the inhabitants was a young girl by the name of Arnona, but most that knew her referred to her as "Kitty". She had curly, ginger hair, fair skin and bright blue eyes...well, one of them at least as the other had become grey over time. Furthermore, what caused her to stand out amongst the rest of the inhabitants was that she had feline characteristics (aka, cat ears and a tail), thus the nickname. She had only been staying in Big Town for less than a month, her main task being to open pick open the locks of any safes her fellow settlers had bring back during their ventures. Although it paid well, being given a third of the loot in return, she was bored and was itching for an adventure, one that would make her peers very envious of her. It was for that reason Arnona had become invested in stranger with synthetic arms that had arrived into Big Town, causing her to keep a close eye on them during their stay. (( @Cecil

He carried with him caps, weapons, and some excess medicine he'd picked up along the way. That made it easy for him to trade for a collection of scrap metal, along with some ammo for his rifle and other bits and bobs to take back with him. Now, he was leaning against the side of a building, drinking from a bottle of water that he picked up a town or two back for some chems. His eyes scanned the people walking around, taking note of how similar this place was to his little home. Outcasts and strangers, packed into a place where they didn't feel truly at home.. Then he noticed one particular young woman, someone who stood out far more than most, thanks to her fiery hair and feline features. She'd been watching him, he could tell. With a chuckle, he flashed a bit of a smile at her before twisting the cap back onto his water and kicking off the wall, walking down the road. @Phoenix_Nebula

He carried with him caps, weapons, and some excess medicine he'd picked up along the way. That made it easy for him to trade for...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump A small, yet significant sparkle appeared in the eyes of the young...cat woman? Let's just call them Arnona for now until we can give them a proper name for her kind. Anyways, she took the glance from the stranger as an opportunity, believing that perhaps they might want her to tag along. Moreover, seeing that he was about to leave, she ran after him in haste before shouting, "Hey, wait!" Once the stranger had turned around, she she said "Excuse me uh, mister? Could I come with you perhaps? I'm uh...shit." Arnona muttered the expletive to herself before continuing, her eyes now widened and having "cuteness" written all over them "I'm just a lonely gal who doesn't have a place to stay and not much to live for...I could reaaly use the company." To make sure she passed the speech check, she did a ':3' expression.

The man stopped and looked over his shoulder as he heard a shout from behind. The young woman was running over to him, and he turned around, his robotic arm hanging in his pocket. "Can I help you?" As she explained herself, he couldn't help but laugh- not in a condescending away, of course, but the situation genuinely amused him. "What's with a cute little thing like you wantin' to go with a scavver like me? The wasteland's a dangerous place, y'know. I have this thing," He knocked his fist against his metal arm, a harsh clang coming from it, "Because of the monsters out there. If you're not prepared, they'll just tear you apart." He turned his head to look away. "Unless, of course, you can prove that you know your stuff. I wouldn't want to carry dead weight with me- even a cute one." @Phoenix_Nebula

The chance of a good first impression that Izaak would've had with the young woman was instantly crushed the moment he let out a hearty laughter and called her a "cute little thing". Sure, it may not have been condescending, but, being the young lass would not know that, especially with the fiery temper she had. Her eyes soon crunched up, her ears turning back as she was close to unsheathing her claws to tear him apart. However, she sighed and did her best to let it go, seeing that this might b e her only chance in getting out of big town. Letting him finish, Arnona sighed before responding, "Pfft, me? Dead weight? Oh please! I know how to do lots of things! I can pick open the most secure locks with relative ease, pick pocket raiders and even make explosives just by picking up random stuffo n the ground!...So long as I have gunpowder anyways." She then pulled out a rusted 10mm pistol with a makeshift silencer attached onto it, "Oh, and might I mention that I can take people down without them even spotting me? I mean, ok, I only killed a couple radroaches and scorpions here and there, but I'm sure a couple of brain dead morons won't be any more difficult. So, what do ya say? Can I come on board?" (( @Cecil

He raised a brow as Arnona described her skill set. Picking locks and pockets could be useful, as his fine motor skills have been far from useful ever since he got this robotic arm- He still hadn't been able to fully tune it to cooperate with his nerve signals the same way his normal arm worked. He let out a 'hm' sound as she explained what she had killed in the area, his robotic arm tapping against his chin thoughtfully. "How 'bout this, little lady.. There's a place nearby that I've been trying to crack into for a few weeks now that I'm reasonably certain has some tech I'd be interested in. If you can get me inside so I can grab what I'm lookin' for, I'll let you come back to my little base and join my merry band of misfits." That's what he called the people he cared for back home, since they were all alone in the world, outside of him and the others. @Phoenix_Nebula

He raised a brow as Arnona described her skill set. Picking locks and pockets could be useful, as his fine motor skills have bee...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Arnona's anger quickly subsided the moment Izaak made his preposition. Golly, her first, actual quest! It certainly would beat being stuck inside a community of people that didn't want her...again. All she had to do was help this stranger unlock a couple of locked safes and terminals and she'd be set straight. "Sure thing, boss!" The young feline said, hope emanating from her voice, "So, where we heading to? Some secret underground vault? An abandoned building that's been blown to bits? What is it?"

Boss? Shaking his head, he chuckled to himself. Nobody called him 'Boss', but if she wanted to call him that, so be it. He wasn't gonna stop her. "No, no, no underground vaults or ruined buildings. There's a building to the southwest I wanna hit, the old RobCo place. I'm looking to find any kind of tech that'll help me improve this thing." He hit a couple knuckles over his metal arm again. "I'll let you take the lead when we get in here, so that you can prove your skills, but don't go gettin' yourself killed, got it? Couldn't live with myself if I got a cutie like you killed." He flashed a smile to her again before beginning to walk. @Phoenix_Nebula

Boss? Shaking his head, he chuckled to himself. Nobody called him 'Boss', but if she wanted to call him that, so be it. He wasn'...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Okay, she's definitely going to have a talk with him about the whole "cutie" thing. Aside from that, she raised a brow in response to the place they were heading; she wasn't familiar with the name, though she did remember seeing some old, rusted up robots in the scrap heap with the name "RobCo Security" stamped onto the metallic frames. Either or, she nodded her head in agreement, saying, "Sounds good to me, a few locked terminals and safes won't be too much of a hassle, so long as there ain't any raiders of course. Not like they'd be interested in some shiny piece of metal, unless it's a gun...hehe. Oh, and by the way, the name's Arnona, not cutie, got it?" With that being said, she began walking down the path, hoping to get her "new found boss" to lead the way.

"You'd be surprised. I've seen raiders pick up all kinds of things along my travels. Yes, they tend to stick to weapons, chems, and things along those lines, but the random piece of junk manages to find its way into their pockets sometimes- Though they lack the brainpower to make use of it, of course." If she was so confident about her abilities, then he'd be happy to put her to the test. He'd taken a couple cracks at RobCo himself, and he was confident that there'd be some terminals that she wouldn't be able to pass, but her skills with the doors themselves would prove invaluable. If she was telling the truth, of course. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried to make a fool outta him, letting him lead them places before trying to get him killed. It usually ended up with them getting a knife to their throat, but that was in the past, and she was someone new, yes? "Arnona, huh?" He chuckled quietly to himself yet again. 'Cutie' was a fitting descriptor for her, but he wasn't stupid. It infuriated her, that much was obvious by her body language. "Name's Izaak. Nice to meetcha." With that, he started leading the way toward the RobCo building, arm holding the strap for his rifle. "So what's your story?"

01:07

@Phoenix_Nebula

"You'd be surprised. I've seen raiders pick up all kinds of things along my travels. Yes, they tend to stick to weapons, chems, ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "What's my story? Hm..." Arnona paused and reflected upon her past while walking through down the irradiated path. Eventually, she shrugged her shoulders and said, "Well, I used to stay with a bunch of kids my age when I was only nine after my parents died. We had a nice thing going, we had our own food, source of clean water and even doggies!...I hated them." She said the last part with a hiss before continuing, "Point is, things were going well until I became a mungo- I mean- grown up. You see, they had this rule that, once you turned 18, you had to leave and head over to Big Town where everyone else lived. That mean son of a bitch, Macready, wouldn't let me stay, even after all the begging...at least he let me take some of the nuka cola with me, hehe. And uhh, yeah, that's how I ended up where you saw me...ain't much of a story but there ya go."

He let out a 'hm' sound as she described her story. An orphan, kicked out of her home with nowhere to go? That fit the bill of the kind of people he brought to his home, at the very least. Maybe if she didn't prove useful, he'd still take her back home so she'd have a place to stay. "Sounds like you've had it rough. Though, at least you haven't had to deal with the wastes' danger directly, outside of some scorpions or raiders. Could be worse." He shrugged. It was always far, far worse on the other side. @Phoenix_Nebula

He let out a 'hm' sound as she described her story. An orphan, kicked out of her home with nowhere to go? That fit the bill of t...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Raising a brow at Izaak's statement, Arnona scoffed before saying, "Worse?I don't know how anything could be worse than a bunch of drugged up maniacs that want you dead?" Before she could get her answer, the young woman made her way up a slope on the road before noticing a building that was close by. In spite of looking run down like most others in the Capital Wasteland, it's sign still remained intact which simply read "RobCo Facility #2" . "Huh," Arnona said as she examined the run down factory, *"is this the place you were talking about? Sheesh, I never seen something so big yet so...ugly, looks nothing like the stuff I've seen on those posters.

"Super Mutants. Big, mean, green monsters that maybe were once men, I dunno. Either way, they're a hell of a lot harder to kill than your typical raider, and probably want tou dead way more." He'd had a couple of run-ins with super mutants during his travels, but usually he tried to avoid them. It cost too much ammo to take just one of them down most of the time, and he wouldn't get anything out of it. When they arrived on the slope, Izaak kneeled down and brought up his sniper rifle, scanning the outside of the building for any kind of threat. "Yeah, this is the place. Doesn't seem like much, but I've got a hunch that it'll have some good stuff in there. Plus, it'll let you show me those skills you're so proud of." @Phoenix_Nebula

"Super Mutants. Big, mean, green monsters that maybe were once men, I dunno. Either way, they're a hell of a lot harder to kill ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Super mutants? That's a strange name, does he mean those weird ogres that showed up every now and then at Big Town?" Arnona thought to herself before they reached the hill that was looking over the facility. After hearing Izaak speak, she would nod her head before responding, "Seems easy enough, boss. I bet the door's locked too, I'll go ahead and take care of that for ya right now!" Before the experienced scavenger could even stop her, the young feline had already bolted d own the hill and was heading straight towards building, not paying attention to the bloatflies that were bumbling around in the air. Thankfully enough however, she was too quick for them and quickly evaded the attacks from the irradiated insects. Soon enough, she was already at the front entrance, inserting something into the lock of the door and fumbling around, giving Izaak enough time to catch up to her.

Eager, wasn't she? As she ran down the hill, his attention was on the bloatflies surrounding the outside of the building, gunshots ringing out as he took out each with a single shot to their center, each shot being perfectly placed. Then, once they were taken care of, Izaak jogged down the hill, catching up to Arnona as she was fiddling with something in the lock. "You're really trying to prove your speed, huh? Well, don't go runnin' off ahead too much, especially in buildings. My weapon's not exactly built for cramped spaces." @Phoenix_Nebula

Eager, wasn't she? As she ran down the hill, his attention was on the bloatflies surrounding the outside of the building, gunsho...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Letting out a soft chuckle, she said, "Heh, thankfully mine is.~" She said with a free spirited wink, looking down at the pistol that was situated in her bright, red sash. Within a matter of seconds, a small "click" came from the lock and...voila! The door was successfully opened, the sound of a cash register going off as Arnona gained 10 exp from this. Standing up, she smirked to herself before opening the door, looking at Izaak as she said, "Ladies first, boss." with a shit eating grin. Once inside, we'd soon see that the entrance was...well preserved, depending on your definition of preserved. As expected of a building that's been abandoned for two centuries, it was in disrepair, a part of the the ceiling having collapsed and the rubble everywhere. However, it wasn't as destroyed compared to what Izaak would've come across in the more populated environments. The lights were still on and, most importantly, there were Protectrons inside the facility. Although the ones they came across were only props and most likely did not have any actual parts, it would give the scavenger a sense of hope that there some actual models he could get his hands or, at the very least, some parts for his arm. Meanwhile, Arnona looked around for a bit, curious at the robots she had never before seen. "How, these weird looking tin men seem kinda...odd. Don't know too much about what life was like back then, just don't know why they'd have something so bulky roaming around."

He nodded, following the young woman inside and looking around, his rifle slung over one shoulder as he examined the fake robots. "Hm.. No, they wouldn't keep the real things up front.." Mumbling to himself, Izaak looked over to Arnona. "Robots. These ones were called 'Protectrons', and they were used for a bunch of different things from what I've found. I'm looking for parts from these things for some projects of mine. Or really just robotic parts in general, I suppose." Then, he started checking doors. @Phoenix_Nebula

Author's Note: This roleplay is currently on hold but is not abandoned whatsoever. Both parties involved in this roleplay have agreed to this and will return to it soon enough, please do not archive.

This roleplay is now active once more.

There were three doors that led to both the north, south and west side of the building. However, all of them, however, were closed behind an automated lock so, when Izaak attempted to open one of them, a loud beeping noise before a robotic voice blared through the still functioning PA system, "BRZZT. WARNING. ACCESS. DENIED" Walking up to the experienced scavenger, the ginger haired newbie rested her hand on her hips before saying, "Eesh, this'll be a tough one to crack. Give me a second so I can see what I can come up with, alright?" Shortly thereafter, Arnona would spot a rusted terminal sitting on top of the reception desk, causing her ears to point upward as she ran up to it and check the power. When the screen glowed in a dark green color, that's when she said, "Sick! Alright, now I can work with this." Soon enough, Arnona began typing away, doing her best to hack into the computer and gain access to it. For the next five minutes or so, she would let out a few curse words here and there as it denied her access, causing her to kick the desk a few times until eventually, it beeped in a positive tune, "Finally!" Arnona groaned as she pressed the button and, the next thing you know, the doors were unlocked and opened by themseves. "After you..."

23:38

(( @Cecil

Automated security doors? That was a good sign of what he was looking for. If this building still had enough power for that, who knew what else it could hold past these doors? His eyes started to scan for a means of access, but the newbie had already noticed and gone to investigate. He turned and leaned on the wall, watching her work from beside the door. While he thought he could've cracked the password in far less time due to his experience, he had to admit that for some new blood, she was doing alright. "..Good job. Could work on your speed, but it's better than not being getting in." Turning, he carefully began to walk further inside the building. @Phoenix_Nebula

Automated security doors? That was a good sign of what he was looking for. If this building still had enough power for that, who...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Going through the steel corridor of the facility, there were a few wires hanging from the ceiling that occasionally let out a spark or two. Moreover, as Arnona was following close by, her poorly maintained pistol being held close to her chest, a rogue spark landed on her tail, causing her fur to be set on fire. However, she wouldn't notice at first until smoke began to arise, " sniff sniff Say, does something smell...off to you?" That's when she'd finally notice her burning tail. "Oh...that." Instead of panicking however, she simply stood still, biding her time until the flames finally died down, leaving scorched fur in the process before resuming her walk, saying, "Don't worry, it'll grow back." Moving on, they came across what used to be a lunch room, the fridge and even vending machine still intact. However, what would be of primary interest was an advertisement for some the technology they could find. Pipboys, protectrons (which is what they were after), and stealth boys that could render you completely invisible for several minutes! There seemed to also be a securitron for listed in the promotional poster but it seemed that those were restricted to the west coast, several hundred miles away from where they currently were. Moreover, there was a sticky note attached, mentioning that the robots were specifically located in the west wing.

The scavenger moved quietly through the halls, poking his head through any door he could get through to look for anything worth salvaging. Upon the smell of burning hair being mentioned, he looked over with a raised brow at her burning tail, glancing up at her expression. "..Are you gonna..? No? Okay then." Izaak seemed.. concerned, but she was calm, so he wasn't going to question it. Clearly she understood how her body worked far more than he did. "Y'know, I can't say I've seen anyone like you before. Cat ears and a tail? That's not something you see every day in the wasteland. Was that a mutation caused by the wasteland?" There was a certain.. scientific curiosity to the question, since his experiments focused almost exclusively on the body. However, what caught his eye was an advertisement on the cafeteria wall. Pipboys could be useful, if he managed to find one, but what he was really interested in was the protectrons. If he could find any schematics, maybe even a few intact robots, he'd be able to do some work with them back at base.. "..West wing, got it. Feel free to look around, see if there's anything edible here if you want. We'll be headed to the west side of the building after that." @Phoenix_Nebula

The scavenger moved quietly through the halls, poking his head through any door he could get through to look for anything worth ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Arnona's eyes began to sparkle as she rubbed her hands with dastardly intent. She had been eyeballing the vending machine for some time and was intent on taking all the nuka cola she could carry in her haversack. However, she just remembered she hadn't answered Izaak's prior question so she turned and said, "Also, to answer your question, no, I was born with it...I think. I've had them as long as I could remember, plus it ain't easy living as err...a mute." taking the same lockpick from before, she got to work on getting it open. As she did, she continued, saying, "There was this one kid called Zip that spoke pretty fast and wore this weird costume, looked like a rat with goggles and a hard hat, that kinda stuff. Anyways, that damn runt would try to keep all the nuka to himself. Usually, he'd try and offer me caps for it, but it ended with him calling me a pussy cat or a scared little kitten...heh." Afterwards, the lock to the vending machine fell off, causing Arnona to chuckle before taking all the cola she could carry in her makeshift haversack before saying, "But now, he can stay in that cold little cave all he wants, I can get all the nuka I want up here...hehe." Once finished, she followed Izaak out of the break room as the two headed to the west wing, "So err, what do you think's gonnab e waiting for us up ahead?"

He could tell that she was eyeing up the vending machine- Izaak wasn't a huge fan of nuka-cola, honestly, so he was entirely willing to let her take all she wanted if it kept her happy. "Hm, strange. I wonder what caused the mutation when you were born.. Was it a specific dose of radiation, or was there something else at play..?" He was clearly in his own world as he pondered such things. Her cat-like features fascinated him in a very similar way that his robotic arm did. They were both unusual to see on a person in the wasteland, and he wanted to know more. However, he needed to focus on one thing at a time. After several seconds of silence, Izaak seemed to snap back to reality. "Huh? Oh, right. I'm expecting some security. Perhaps some turrets, or some of those Protectrons designed to patrol the place. I'm not entirely sure, but if we encounter any protectrons, there'll likely be a terminal to activate or deactivate them, which I'll need to get to in order to get what I want from them." @Phoenix_Nebula

He could tell that she was eyeing up the vending machine- Izaak wasn't a huge fan of nuka-cola, honestly, so he was entirely wil...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump The young feline's ears began to lower as Izaak persisted in his inquiries. He may have meant it in good faith and to help better understand her mutation, but she wasn't interested in sharing anything else. So, her ears lowered in irritation as she said, "Look, boss, I don't know how this worked. For all I know, maybe some radioactive cat bit me when I was a little baby. Either or, can I don't wanna talk abo-" Suddenly, the sound of gun fire ripped through the air. Seconds afterwards, Arnona was already laying flat on the ground, a look of terror etched on her face, leaving Izaak the only one that could move at that very moment.

The scavenger dove to the side, getting behind cover as the gunshots rang out. Looking over at Arnona on the ground, he cursed. "Dammit!" Getting his rifle off of his shoulder, he peeked his head out of cover for just a moment to identify where the turrets- or whatever else was attacking- were before swinging his rifle around and firing a couple of shots and getting back behind cover to avoid getting shot himself. @Phoenix_Nebula

The scavenger dove to the side, getting behind cover as the gunshots rang out. Looking over at Arnona on the ground, he cursed. ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump The bullets continued to fire precisely towards Izaak's location for the next few seconds before everything went silent. Then, a beeping noise soon followed, accompanied by the sound of mechanical whirring and the like. Based on the sounds alone, it was most likely an automated turret which was both good AND bad news. It was stationary, meaning it couldn't rush his location like any raider with two working feet could. However, it had precise accuracy thanks to sensors (the red lightbulb underneath the barrel thereof) that could track his current location, meaning he wasn't going anywhere for some time. Still, all hope wasn't lost. If Izaak could strike sensor, it could give the chance to finish it off in due time.

The scavenger remained ducked behind cover for several seconds as he dug through his bag. If it had motion sensors, him throwing something could draw its fire, even for a moment. If that moment gave him enough time to shoot the sensor though, that'd be enough. Izaak pulled out an old tin can out of his bag and took a deep breath, throwing the can across the hall as he leaned out from cover, taking but a moment to aim, before firing at the turret. @Phoenix_Nebula

The scavenger remained ducked behind cover for several seconds as he dug through his bag. If it had motion sensors, him throwing...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump It worked! Thanks to the tin can, the turret was distracted, giving Izaak the chance to get a couple shots off. As a result, several sparks went flying as the machine went hay wire, firing indiscriminately throughout the corridor. However, before Izaak could do anything else, the turret had suddenly turned off, smoke emitting from where the sensor would've been. It was Arnona, she had gotten to the terminal, hacked it, and turned off the turret while it was distracted, also opening the locked door it was guarding in the first place.

Surprisingly enough, she wasn't even injured, having no bullet wounds whatsoever as she chuckled, saying, "See? Playing dead does work after all! Hehe"

The scavenger let out a sigh, putting his hand on his hip when he realized Arnona was fine. "..You can't give a guy a scare like that, especially after I went all like 'I don't want to be the death of such a cutie' on you earlier." Shaking his head, he slung his rifle back over his shoulder. "Good job, though. Don't know how you managed to avoid its attention entirely there, but we'll take it." And with that, he turned his attention to the door and began to move forward, this time listening out for any signs of turrets or other robotics in the area. @Phoenix_Nebula

The scavenger let out a sigh, putting his hand on his hip when he realized Arnona was fine. "..You can't give a guy a scare like...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Continuing to chuckle, Arnona responded, "Oh come on, boss! You can't deny that was impressive. If I can trick a hunk of metal, I'll be fine. The wasteland ain't gonna claim me just yet, especially since my journey barely started!" With that being said, the two would go forward until eventually, they came across a large door. This one looked a lot more secure and was made up of several layers of steel which meant no amount of explosives or fire power couldn't do the trick. Heck, not even Arnona could pick the lock open due to the high difficulty level...not to mention the fact that she broke the lock. "Dammit!" She shouted in frustration before kicking the door...which she ended up regretting. "I broke the damn lock, looks like the only way we're gonna get through is by hacking the terminal...or....." She turned and pointed to a door with a sign that read 'employee's only' before saying, "We could check in there and see if they have a key card of sorts."

"Playing dead's not gonna stop every enemy from killing you. Raiders will likely go to loot you, realize you're still alive, and either kill you or do unspeakable things to you. Super mutants would make sure you're torn to shreds, I'm sure. So on and so forth." He explained, not being condescending, but more instructive. When they arrived at the door, he gave her plenty of time to pick it while he watched her back, only glancing at her when he heard a sharp snap. "..Damn. okay, how about this, I'll stay here and work on cracking the terminal. You go on ahead and see if you can find a password or a key card, alright?" @Phoenix_Nebula

"Playing dead's not gonna stop every enemy from killing you. Raiders will likely go to loot you, realize you're still alive, a...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Unspeakable things? What can be more-...Err, actually, nevermind. Forget I asked." The young mutant groaned as she rolled her eyes, though she did shiver at the thought of being torn apart by super mutants. Moving on, when he had her go look for the keycard to get the door open. As she did, she went inside the employee's only room and looked to see what she could find. For the next couple of minutes, she was scrounging around, looking through tool boxes and lockers that hadn't been touched in centuries. Moreover, she was able to collect some fairly decent loot such as a robco jumpsuit which definitely beat her ragged, wasteland attire. Taking a moment to put it on, she also collected some ammunition before noticing something shiny on one of the tables, that being the keycard she was looking for in the first place. However, once she grabbed it, she heard the sound of something letting out a hiss. Her ears now perked up, she looked over to where it was coming from as she said, "What the?..." would finally notice that a couple of rad roaches that were lunging straight towards her before shouting "SHIT!!" Within seconds, she had burst out of the room, her eyes widened beyond all belief as she ran straight towards Izaak with the key in her mouth.

It was a good thing she stopped herself from asking that question. It wasn't something he particularly wanted to describe, especially to someone as cute as her. When she slipped into the the employee's only room, Izaak began to type away at the terminal, trying his best to crack the passcode while she looked around. It was definitely high-security, so it was likely that she'd get the keycard before he could crack it- If there was one, of course. The thought was funny to him, he was an experienced scavver, and here he was, getting upstaged at every turn by a newbie with no experience. Guess she just had the specific set of skills that made her good at taking on this place. That was fine, though. If he was able to take it easy more because she was taking on most of the work, he'd be able to focus his attention on other things. When he heard Arnona curse loudly through, he was already crouched, with his rifle aimed at the door. After she burst through, with the keycard and a couple of roaches after her, he fired his rifle at each, using his robotic arm's unnatural steadiness to miss Arnona and hit the bugs. "..You have a habit of getting yourself into trouble, i've noticed." @Phoenix_Nebula

It was a good thing she stopped herself from asking that question. It wasn't something he particularly wanted to describe, esp...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Oh come on!" Arnona huffed as she examined the key card, "How was I suppose to know that this place was going to have those damn bugs after being abandoned for the past couple hundred years!? It ain't my fault those things give me the creeps either!" Realizing that she just contradicted herself, she cleared her throat before saying, "Err, actually, scratch that, boss...Let's just get this door open." Noticing a slot right next to the door, she slid the card right through before stepping back, watching as it finally opened, releasing a hiss of air before doing so which gave her a shiver or two. Lo and behold, their prize stood before them. Shelves of sensor modules, fission batteries and scrap metal filled the large room, not to mention the handful of protectrons that laid dormant in their pods. All that needed to be done was to activate the terminals and they would have access to these pre-war robots. Instead of immediately heading towards them however, Arnona was distracted by something else. She had noticed a large leather case which simply read "pip-boy 3000". When she had opened it and pulled it out, she raised a brow before saying, "Err, what's this? It looks like a mini terminal but for my wrist...." If Izaak were familiar with these, he would already know what these were and the purpose they served. From the looks of it, however, it seemed to be a inferier version of the mark IV found in the commonwealth. Nevertheless, the reports that came out before the war showed that, while simplistic, they were robust and got the job done. (( @Cecil

The scavenger just laughed at her reaction- Not in a mean way, mind you, he just found it funny- "You've gotten shot at by turrets and chased around by bugs. I should probably keep a better eye on you, eh? Next thing you know, you'll be leading a whole pack of ghouls around." He seemed light-hearted with is joke, but his hand went to his shoulder, where the metal arm began, and squeezed lightly. Izaak stepped forward as she swiped the keycard and the doors opened, feeling goosebumps rise along his arms as he came so close to his goal- All the robotics available in this entire building. He walked over to the shelves, beginning to take note of everything he found, writing it down in a simple leather-bound notebook that he had gotten. "That's a Pip-Boy, it was on the advertisement we saw before. Basically it helps you manage everything from your vitals, to keeping your backpack organized, to even keeping a journal of things you want to do. It even comes with a radio, if you want to listen to music as you walk. Useful little things, though I've never gotten to use one myself. How many you got over there?" While he spoke, he was going through his bag and seeing what all he had in it, mostly being supplies for travel or trade. His robotic arm was far stronger than the rest of his body, but carrying large amounts of things still exhausted the rest of his body- His shoulder especially. @Phoenix_Nebula

The scavenger just laughed at her reaction- Not in a mean way, mind you, he just found it funny- "You've gotten shot at by turre...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Err, just one from the looks of it!" Arnona responded as she examined the pipboy even further. Even though this was her 'first day on the job' with her new found boss, she decided that she was entitled to this little reward of her own. Sliding her left arm right through, she pressed the power button, causing the screen to flicker and go through it's start up process. Once it was done, it displayed her vitals, inventory, and everything else Izaak had mentioned, causing her to giggle, saying, "The battery still works! Hm, let's see what this does." Pressing a button on the device, one of the protectron pods would suddenly open. A few seconds afterwards, the sound of mechanical whirring and engines started emitting from the robot before it emerged from it, looking around before patrolling around.

Well, seems like he wasn't gonna get anything to easily interface with the robots. That's fine, he was mostly interested in the parts anyway. The craftsmanship and mechanics were far more important for maintaining and upgrading his arm. "Well, i'm sure you'll get use out of it." He'd have to see if he could get one for himself at some point. Doubtful, since they were nearly impossible to come by, but one could be hopeful. When the protectron began to patrol, Izaak turned to watch it. "..There's something fascinating about the way these robots move. How such crude yet refined machinery can act on its own, patrolling and guarding areas long abandoned.. Sentinels from a bygone age.." And he wanted to take it apart and see how exactly it functioned. And how he could use those parts. "..Anything on there for giving it commands?" @Phoenix_Nebula

Well, seems like he wasn't gonna get anything to easily interface with the robots. That's fine, he was mostly interested in the ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Hm...let's see." Arnona played with the dial for a bit, trying to see if there were any sections meant specifically for controlling their newfound treasure. That's when she reached the radio section and noticed an option that said "play media from protectron". With a wide smile on her face, Arnona pulled out a holodisk that she had acquired while in big town before saying, "Actually...yes....there is....here, watch." Pushing the disk inside, the pipboy would let out a small beep, confirming thatit had successfully loaded the audio. That's when the protection halted immediately before slowly making its way towards Izaak before pausing a few seconds, then saying the following:

Izaak watched her fiddle with the pip-boy out of the corner of his eye, continuing to take inventory of everything in the room. When she said that there was something she'd found, he stood up and turned to watch the robot as it turned and played some.. audio. He was silent as he stared at the robot for several seconds after it had finished speaking. Then, he turned and crouched back down, continuing to write what he saw on his notepad. "..So you can make it play stuff. Good to know." Clearly, he wasn't amused. @Phoenix_Nebula

Izaak watched her fiddle with the pip-boy out of the corner of his eye, continuing to take inventory of everything in the room. ...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump Arnona couldn't help but snort and chuckle out loud as she took the cartridge out, saying, "Oh man, I never thought I'd be able to put THAT to good use! Hehe." Izaak's reaction made this first mission worth while to her, seeing she couldn't stop chuckling to herself as she continued to check what kind of other inputs she could do. For now, she decided to have the protectron play some nice classics from before the war. Eventually, after some further searching, she shrugged her shoulder and said, "This might take some time to work out, boss. In the mean time, why don't we just have this old tin can carry all the loot it's able to and get out?"

"Good idea." He replied, putting his notebook away. "I've been taking notes on everything that's in here. We'll bag what we can, and lock this place back up so whatever's left is safe." He began to collect a variety of scrap metal, sensor modules, and batteries and place them into his bag. "This tech will be incredibly useful for my projects. Plus, any excess will be able to be traded for supplies for the people back home. Speaking of which, do you want to go back to town and pick up any travel supplies before we head out? It'd probably be a good idea not to take the protectron straight into town, so we don't draw too much attention to ourselves." @Phoenix_Nebula

"Good idea." He replied, putting his notebook away. "I've been taking notes on everything that's in here. We'll bag what we can,...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Sure, maybe someone who likes to nerd out over this stuff like you do can give us some nice pay, maybe even a cool looking gun!" Arnona said as she began taking whatever else she could store in her haversack before slinging it around her back. Afterwards, she followed Izaak, continuing to examine the features of the pipboy as she said, "I'm not really big into guns, but I do like those energy weapons that I would read about in the comics. Is it true that gatlinglasers exist? You know, theo nes that can spew out a bunch of lasers under half a minute and can tear the buffest man apart?"

"Scrap parts like these are useful for more than just 'nerding out over'. All kinds of things can be repaired, be it weapons, tools, or even robots like these." He motioned over to the protectron, which he was now preparing a bag for. After giving it to it, he turned and started walking. "I've never encountered a gatling laser, thankfully enough. I've had enough trouble with the dangers of the wasteland, and I wouldn't want to face such a weapon if it does exist. I'm not really equipped for dealing with lasers, y'know?" He pulled out a map and looked it over for a few minutes. "..We'll head back to town, keep the robot hidden while we get supplies, and then head back home. Sound good?" @Phoenix_Nebula

"Scrap parts like these are useful for more than just 'nerding out over'. All kinds of things can be repaired, be it weapons, to...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Yeah, sounds good." Arnona said, nodding her head as the two began to walk out of the facility, their weapons drawn in case there were still any nasty surprises. As they did, the young mutant looked towards Izaak when he brought up the Gatling laser and his personal feelings about it. Rolling her eyes, she said, "Sure, it might be dangerous if someone else has them, but think of all the damage we could do with those things! It'd be like...you know, super cool! Only problem is figuring out how I can carry the damn thing, it's not like I have muscles or anything."

"I'm the kinda guy that likes to take things out from a distance. That's why this is my weapon of choice." He lifts the rifle in his hands to signify what he was talking about. "It's so much easier to deal with something when it's a solid hundred feet away or so and it has no idea you exist. Of course, there's a lotta things out here that are able to survive a bullet to the head because of thick skulls or armor." The scavenger would stop every so often to double check the map- something that Arnona would be able to do far easier than him but he was still insistent on doing things his way- They'd worked for him for a long time now, and he had no intentions of changing them any time soon. "..Do you have like a vest or something, by the way? You took three bullets to the chest from a turret without any injury." @Phoenix_Nebula

"I'm the kinda guy that likes to take things out from a distance. That's why this is my weapon of choice." He lifts the rifle in...

@Izaak (@Cecil) - jump "Uh...Yeah? How else do you think my arse has survived into adulthood?" Zipping down her jumpsuit, she revealed a piece U.S. Army combat armor wrapped around her torso. Gosh...she looked pretty pale too, and malnourished at that. Hopefully they can get some food soon enough. Moving on, Arnona zipped it back up and continued walking with Izaak, finally figuring out how to open up the map on the pipboy. This gave her the chance to look at the location throughout the capital wasteland, causing her to ask, "Anyways, you know which settlement we heading to, boss? Bigtown doesn't really have much going, aside from a few bits and bobs."*

While the sarcastic tone was unnecessary, Izaak looked her up and down for a moment before reaching into his bag and handing her some of his food, which mostly consisted of various wasteland creatures cooked. "Here, you should eat. You clearly haven't been getting enough to eat, and you're too cute to be dying of starvation, yeah? "As for where we're going, Rivet City's gonna be the best bet for getting the biggest bang for our buck when it comes to this tech stuff, so I say we go there. Probably gonna be a bit of a walk, though, so be ready for that." @Phoenix_Nebula