Wastelands, Bunker C-17 [IC]

[ITOS]

C-17 Courtyard

Johanna rolled out through the bunker doors. The six legs that her wheels were attached on constantly changed legnth to get her over debris and cracks in the courtyard smoothly. When she reached the heap with clothes that Terra had thrown off she turned around and extended a black cylinder from her sensor rig that was mounted on her back. The cylinder sniffed through the clothes, looking for dangerous substances.

"No explosives, no dangerous chemicals." She said and pulled back the sensor.
You better check it for biological weapons, though. My sensors can't detect those. She added in a PM to Nick.

[Somber]

She'd removed the pants and boots and well, giving them to the sniffer as she stood in her very gray boxers.  "Aches and pains for fifteen minutes?  I've had aches and pains for the last two years, since I got here."  She then reached out and took his hand without a wince.  "Go ahead.  Get all the blood you need."

Her medical exam would prove that she was of moderate health.  No active contageons, though her body showed all the signs of long term low radiation exposure.  Her blood still contained traces of protectorate immunizations, which were effective against most disease and low levels of radiation, at the cost of halving their citizen's life spans.  What could you expect of a people that put the group over the individual every time?  Still, her body was showing the strain of low hydration and prolonged exposure to gamma emissions.

"Well.  convinced?"  She asked as she pulled her hand away and put both on her hips.  She didn't seem to have the slightest shred of embaresment at her unclad state.  Hell, she trained naked with both sexes for almost three years.  'Builds character' her instructors had explained.

[Boog]

There was a slight hiss, a feeling that someone had pressed the heel of their hand against Terra's palm as hard as they could, and the scan was pretty much done.
"She's clean, folks. Nothing contagious, nothing malevolently man-made. Better shape than I would expect after being out here so long, actually," Dr. Nick released Terra's hand and reached into a pocket, rooting around for... "Aha, here they are," he offered the rodent one of the lollipops he usually hung on to for when he was working in the pediatric ward, "For being such a good patient." A gesture to put the patient at ease.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Cocking her head to the side, Ephrael studied Terra. Damn that must of hurt. She thought looking at the scars. Still looking good though .

When she heard Dr Nick give the all clear she stood up, and walked over to Terra and the two bots.

"Hello hon." She said as she stopped. Looking over at Terra's clothes in Spork's hands she moved over to the bot and took the jacket from him. "Here put this on, I'll be right back."

Ephrael turned and walked back into the bunker apearing a few minutes later carrying a bundle of clothing. "Try these on we look to be the same size." Eph handed over an almost new pair of jeans and a new shirt.

[ITOS]

Johanna looked at Ephrael. Giving away free supplies to random people was kind but not really wise when you were running short. Clothes was one thing but water and food was another.

"Terra. We are running short on supplies ourselves and can thus not hand out free supplies to anyone that comes by." Johanna said and took a short pause to make sure Terra got the message. "We are currently preparing to head out and gather more suplies. If you can help us with this task we can make a deal so that you get food and water during your time with us and a portion of what has been gathered when you decide to leave."

[Somber]

She listened to all this, frowning, but couldn't help a rare smile at the new clothes.  "Thanks."  She said as she dressed before them, putting back on her old boots and army jacket and cap.  She removed what belongings she needed and folded them up to tuck under her arm.

They needed food and water?  Water?  Any military post worth its salt would have water recycling.  Heck, back in the Protectorate it was called 'Community piss'.  She sighed and sat back atop the bucket o death, her chopped tail twitching.  "Okay.  I'll help, but I need a few questions answered.  And no, nothing about your base."

"First... do you need water as in the stuff, or the equipment to recycle it?  Big difference.  Also, how well can you filter out radiation and contamination?"

"Secondly... food... are you looking to find, trade, buy, or take?  Most food is brought in and traded to the scavengers.  You can find it if you're really patient and lucky.  And you can buy it if you have gold or silver.  I don't think anyone's going to be accepting Fahlberger currency.  If you thinking about taking it, I will point you in the right direction and bid you all adiue with thanks.  I got no interest in being slaughtered."

"I don't know how much contact you're willing to risk, but I'd keep it minimal.  I know the protectorate has two bases inside the badlands, and I know they'd just love to get their paws on a functional bunker.  You helped keep me from death, so I owe ya that much at least."

[Malakin]

Spork as usual is just standing there, observing...

"No, we have already told you too much, you may very well be a mole, sent here to gather information to plan an attack on this base.
However, since the overseer has sanctioned this plan I may as well give you this information:

We need water indeed, large amounts of it. Also any tanker that we find must specificaly have a type9-GP adapter to fit our storage tanks.
Food is a higher priority however.
Any method of gathering these items, that does not put C-17 in further danger, is acceptable."

Spork sends a short range transmition to Joe:
This is a ruse, if she is indeed a mole and returns this misinformation to her superiors then we will have a way of protecting the bunker. Please tell the overseer that if a convoy arrives up with large amounts of water and the tanker has a type9-GP adapter, then it should be turned away at gunpoint. Even if they are running dangerously low on food.

Spork looks to the others,
"We must be on our way, the sooner we leave the higher the chance that we will be successful. I take it that you all have packed your equipment and have stored it in our vehicle?"

[Somber]

As quick as she smiled it was replaced by a scowl.  She pointed at the other bot.  "Here's your choice: Use me, dump me, or kill me.  If you wanted me dead best thing you could have done was kept the doors closed till I was dead or left thinking this was a dead end.  You want to dump me, then I'll start walking.  But if you're smart you'll use me, and if you want me to be worth piss you'll answer my questions.  You need water?  There's a hole half a mile away full of it.  It's also got a nasty smear of biocontaminants and hard rads.  It probably glows in the dark.  If you can filter it enough to drink it, wonderful.  Problem solved.  If you can't then it's a waste of time to go there, now ain't it?  If you can't filter anything, period, and can only drink the finest runoff of the Shoadeval mountains then it's going to be quite a trip, ain't it?  Last potable water I came across was five days back and about thirty seven kilometers cross country to the north west.  BUT-" she snapped her teeth together at the word, "If all you need is equipment to repair your own recyclers then there's a community ruin ten miles to the west that has a good chance of having something you could use."

She walked toward spork now, bristling, "So, for question two... how the fuck do you plan on getting this food?  Find.  Trade.  Buy.  Pick one.  If ya plan on taking it then shoot me now.  I'll wait for ya at the gates of whatever hell awaits mechanical paranoids like yourself.  You want it fast, then you better shell out something worth trading and get to a barter post.   You want it really fast, better get some precious metals.  But if you're not for taking the risk and are willing the spend the time then there's all kinds of places to go looking."

She stretched up on her toes, teeth bared, "I was in the Chalean Protectorate for fourteen years.  If I were a fucking mole, spy, or otherwise I would have been making a weepy sob story and trying to get inside, now wouldn't I?  But I don't.  And no matter what you think, clanker, I got plenty of integrity gained through buried friends and loved ones.  Now, answer my diety damned questions as to what you need so I can tell ya how best ta get it, all right?!"

She stalked away from him then, swearing a slew of invecatives fit to make a sailor blush before the small rat looked up at him and the back at Johanna.  "Well?"

[ITOS]

"We intended to search for food and tools for decontaminating soil and larger amounts of water." Johanna said. She thought more long term than most people. Already before the war she had been discussing with her brothers and sisters how to create an agricultural society in a postnuclear environment. They even had seeds in storage.
"We can use anything else of value we find to trade with. Attacking others for supplies is not an option."

[Somber]

She took a long slow deep breath before letting it out.  "Glad to hear it."  She pulled out a very battered, folded piece of paper from her coat.  Carefully she unfolded it.  It was her treasure map, something every scavenger carried.  Though ten years out of date, the road map had still saved her time and energy.  Every inch of it was marked with minute letters and numbers writen in red, blue, green, and purple.   "Okay.  Foraging isn't easy but at least you're at the edge of the rad zone."  She glanced up at them and then at the dry dusty around them.  "Yeah.  It gets worse than this.  Best thing is to head north, away from the badlands.  There's a town the protectorate sacked three years back.  It's been picked over pretty well on the surface but there's at least a dozen or more 'doors' that I couldn't open last time I was there.  Hopefully you guys can and we can find something useful."  She thought a bit more and then traced a slow arc to the north of their position.  "Then we should move along here.  They're outside the rad zone and sparsely populated enough for there to be food to gather."  Her finger ended at the arc.  "There's a small trading post here with some people I know.  If we can't forage enough, then hopefully we can trade for what we need."  Her finger then went south and made a sharp twist towards the bunker.  "A decoy turn for anyone curious and we'll be back here.  Depending on transportation it could take two weeks or more than three months."  She sat back, thinking it over.  "With luck we'll have the equipment we need.  With less luck, we'll find the food we need.  And if we don't have luck then we can trade when we get to the outpost."

She sat back, thinking a moment, and then nodded.  "Any questions?"

[Paladin Sheppard]

Looking at the others in the group Ephrael smiled. "I like her she's fiesty, can we keep her?"

When Terra asked for questions Eph spoke up again. "Umm do you know anything about driving articulated trucks?"

[Somber]

She blinked as she looked over her shoulder at the girl.  Oddly, she seemed almost embaressed at her comment.  Moodswing much?  "I'm certified for the A-21, A-23, and A-30 heavy transport.  They all use articulation.  I've never piloted a Fahlbergian model though so it'll be a rough ride for a few days.  I sure hope you guys have decent transportation."

[ITOS]

"We could go in so you can see for yourself." Johanna said and began rolling back to the bunker. "Not much left to do here anyway and we are moving out soon."

Johanna didn't want to have Terra in the bunker for too long. Jo wasn't as suspicious as Spork but not as enthusiastic as Ephrael either. Terra wasn't a threat, at least not an immediate one but further observations would tell more.

[Malakin]

Spork declines to pursue the argument further, he has warned the others of potential danger, if they recognise it or not is their responsibility.
He now must simply watch and wait.

"Yes, we may as well show you our transportation. Follow."
Spork starts to make his way back towards the bunker entrance.

The information she has and potential resources she could make use of in an attack at this point in time far out weigh anything she could gleam from a brief visit to the bunkers vehicle bay... Acting in an antagonistic maner will help to prove nothing.  To discover Terras motives Spork must, for the moment, work with her...
Afterall she may be telling the truth, to reject such a useful resource would be just as bad as letting her sabotage the mission.

[Azlan]

Caden stepped to the side to allow everyone to pass by, keeping a watchful eye on their guest and careful track of his own weapons.

"After you ladies and gentlemen."

[Arcalane]

By the time the hangar is re-entered, there are no mechanics to be seen, although several small lights can be seen in the shadows cast by the floodlights and half a dozen turrets are now hanging down from the ceiling, scanning about for threats. Each stares at Terra for a moment as she enters the bunker, but quickly turn to their duties, the sinister, and all too familiar (to Terra, perhaps, as this particular model of pulse cannon was used as a heavy infantry support weapon and on pintle-mounts for tanks a considerable amount during the last conflict between Fahlburg and her own country) twin short-barrel wide-bore pulse cannons effective against both infantry and vehicles.

Anyone'd think the Fahlburgers were paranoid.

[Somber]

Duh.  It was understood that Falhberg started the war with Enteria due to their paranoia of the larger industrial nation to the south.  With the Chalean protectorate on one side and Enteria on the other, it was no surprise the Falhbergers had been worried.  Their dependance on technological innovation was little surprise either, and probably contributed to their eventual preemptive strike on their southern neighbor.  Enteria had built up such a military force that Falhberg's only response was a tactical nuclear strike on their marshaling areas.  They probably had counted on their technology to destroy Enteria's own nukes, but there was little defense from an Enterian kinetic kill weapon... aka a really big chunk of iron ore flung into low planetary orbit to come down like a fist of the gods.

Of course then the other three got involved and it turned really messy.  The Protectorate didn't have a chance against Falhberg alone.  They were the smallest nation and squeezed up in the largely frozen northern territories.  But a Falhberg getting smashed by Enteria was ripe picking.  Still, to anyone other than a general or a member of the controlling party, it was a fiasco.  The Protectorate war machines might have been big and nasty, but they were poor matches to the Falhberger's.  Mass infantry swarms were cut down by energy weapons, but if the Protectorate had a disposable resource, it was people.  It's races were predominately high in mice, rats, rabbits, and other fast breeding races.  One famous 'battle' involved marching so many troops on a Fahlberger position that their energy cannons finally melted from the sustained fire.

Eventually 'Black Friday' occured.  The final massive exchange of nukes, balistic killer, chemical and biological weapons, EMP weapons, and conventional military attacks and others that would turn a third of Aldelpus into the wastelands.  There were experts that postulated it would take centuries for the planet to fully recover.

So no, she wasn't afraid or worried.  If some thought her brave for that, or stupid, they would be wrong.  She could die right now from their pulse cannons, or she could have an heart attack or cancer.  If they were going to kill her, they could have done so numerous times before, and would be able to do so numerous times to come.

When she saw the trucks the looked at the first with approval, the second with a sharper eye, and burst out laughing at the sight of the 'fire truck'.  "Oooh, who has the death wish to drive that thing?"  She said before she climbed up into the first.  Sitting in the driver's seat, she adjusted it to fit her small body before she scanned the controls, and then looked around.  "Hey, where's the manual?"  As she lacked a neural interface, she had to learn things the old fashioned way.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Ephrael hugged Terra lightly as she stood on the step next to the drivers seat. "Think we have our driver guys!" Realising she hadn't introduced herself Eph blushed a bit. "Oh I'm Ephrael...Terra wasn't it?"

[Somber]

Yerk!  She blinked as she was unexpectedly hugged, stiffening as old reflexes reemerged.  "Um... yeah.  Terra.   Terra Sheer."  she said as waited to be released.  "It's nice to meetcha, Eph."  She finally sighed and began the process of learning how to drive.  It took her a minute to get started, but as soon as the engine roared to life she was figuring out the controls.  She pulled Epharel in and set her shotgun as she started to move the truck.  Forward.  Back.  Up.  Down.  Left and right.  Side to side.  "Too bad it doesn't have wheels."  She muttered.  "And it's too clean.  Need to find a nice rocky outcropping and bang it up some."

[ITOS]

Johanna could have written a quick tutorial but as soon as the power turned on and she could analyse the system, the truck began to move. Since her signals had lower priority than the drivers there was not much else to do than to get out of the way and hope Terra didn't break something. At least she wasn't driving the one they had planned to use.

"Please be careful with my hardware." Johanna said as she managed to enter the trucks computer systems. A screen on the dashboard flickered  and a cloud of white particles, with blue trails, circulating around a glowing center appeared.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Ephrael smiled as she was helped into the passenger seat of the truck. "Finaly we get to leave this place!" She had grown very bored of the place, as you can only play the same prank on one group of people for so long...

[Boog]

Dr. Nick clambered into the truck and sat down on one of the lower bunks, setting his back down beside him. "What she said," he chuckled, jerking a thumb at Eph. "Less talky more drivey."

[Malakin]

Spork clambers into the drivers cabin and stands on lookout out of the hatch.

[Azlan]

Caden stows his gear and takes up an appropriate seat in the vehicle.  Wonderful, guided by those we do not fully trust.  I hope this does not end badly, I only have so much ammo.

[Malakin]

Spork climbs down from the hatch and walks over to the other vehicle
"Have you changed your minds about which vehicle to make use of? All of your belongings are still in the military varient..."

[Paladin Sheppard]

"Wooops, sorry got all excited about leaving I guess I forgot." Eph grins, her checks turning red in embarrassment. "Terra we are taking that one over there." Ephrael points to the camo painted truck.

[Azlan]

Caden groaned and dragged his gear out of the truck, "I too appear to have been 'excited' about leaving and jumped in the wrong truck.  I shall be in the other one."

Caden dragged his stuff over to the other vehicle and stowed it in a safe and prime location, he then took an appropriate position in the vehicle and tried to take a jackal nap.

[Boog]

Nick followed the others to the other vehicle, shoulders slouched in dissipointment that they weren't taking the pyro-truck. "You lot are no fun at all, you know that?"

[ITOS]

"Yes." Johanna replied and rolled up next to the military truck. All supplies seemed to be loaded, they could move out as soon as everyone was ready.
"All set?" She asked and looked around to see if anyone was missing.

[bill]

"Sorry."
Arnage climbed into the truck holding a backpack over his sholder.

"Jim Bailey wanted some paperwork 'fore I left. Idiot held me up for half an hour."