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>>4504670
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=TrashQM

Previously
Parasol’s original plan to feed any resident of the lake willing to cooperate with his group was abandoned after Chickless asked the question that no one had an answer for; what would the 2000 people living around the lake eat through the entire Winter? And so, in the Blue Sitting Room of the Parasol Family Lodge, hearts were hardened, and neighbors and friends became just names or numbers. In the end, the size of the group was soft-capped at 250 people, and the remaining 1750 residents around the lake and the 200 prisoners in the Consolidated Somerset-Piscataquis Jail would be cut loose.

The new plan was to have members of the group, primarily Deputies, considering that they were to most likely to be obeyed by non-group members, to go to locations around the lake that had critical supplies or infrastructure and then just sit on them, while the group sent a large armed party to the jail, to oversee the release of the prisoners. The idea was that between a jailbreak and Nuclear Strike, the non-group members living around the lake would either flee or be tied down defending their property. And if they were either gone or hunkering down at home, then they were not out on the streets competing with the group for critical supplies. The plan looked good on paper, and Mantle was sent home to catch some sleep and await further instructions.

Unfortunately, the plan fell apart almost immediately. Undersheriff Carter pretended to go along with the commands of his superior, Sheriff Arthur, a member of Parasol’s inner circle. But as soon as he could, he contacted the Maine National Guard, and informed them of a ‘brewing insurrection’. It is unclear if Carter was deputized by the Guard, and told to start apprehending members of Parasol’s group, or if he did so on his own volition. Either way, with the Sheriff busy trying to convince his other undersheriff, Warden Polk, to let him and his party into the jail to release the prisoners, after Polk had been set against the Sheriff by Carter, the small group of ‘loyalists’ had the initiative.

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>>4504679
And to their credit, they capitalized on it. Even as the power went out, they moved into the Public Safety Building, secured a good portion of the Sheriffs Office’s arsenal, and detained the dispatcher, effectively cutting communications between the Sheriff’s party at the jail and the individual group members scattered across the lake. From there, the loyalists started a sweep around the around the lake, working their way towards the town center, capturing individual members of Parasol’s group as they held their position, unaware of Carter’s double-cross. Luckily, Senior Deputy Bean was able to get in touch with you, and after making some arrangements with a former safecracker to care for your homestead in your absence, you briefly returned home to grab your ‘new-to-you’ M240b, and then drove to the Debouche Municipal Airport, figuring that it would be just ahead of Carter’s convoy.

Your gambit paid off, and you got there before Carter did. Unfortunately, the group members guarding the airfield was the Paramedic Oher and his grandson, Matthew, and not a pair of well-armed Deputies. Still, it was better than nothing, and after arming them, the three of you headed out, to collect the remaining Paramedics in the area, ahead of Carter. This is where your luck ran out. At one of the three intersections in the entire town that has a stoplight, you came across the ‘Loyalists’, formed up in a convoy, moving towards the airfield to apprehend Oher. Up to this point, things had been completely bloodless, for both sides, and you had a chance to retreat and regroup. But if you did, you would run the risk of losing the eight or so group members that Carter already captured forever, so you committed yourself to stopping the convoy, and disabling the prisoner transport.

With some fancy shooting you did succeed in immobilizing the lead cruiser and then the transport, in the process driving off the notoriously ‘gun-shy’ Carter, but you took a ricochet to the back in the process. You managed to stave off shock and unconsciousness for long enough to make a decision; you would seek medical attention at First Light Eastern Maine Medical Center, even if it meant that you would need to figure out a way back to Debouche on your own. After passing in and out of consciousness in the ambulance ride over, you finally came to a full two days later, in the Dialysis ward of the hospital, shackled to the bed. You discovered that you were being held as a material witness by the Maine National Guards Military Police, and that you were going to be questioned; or rather interrogated, soon.

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>>4504681
You had never been particularly clever, and under the coldly efficient examination of Officer Spry, you sort of slipped up, and indicated that you had foreknowledge of the Nuclear Strikes, which to Spry, was evidence that you were an insurrectionist. The interrogation immediately turned to torture with an Iron Claw pic related, a device that had been used in corrections and prisoner transport, but was phased out for humanitarian concerns, as even when it was being used properly, it had a bad habit of breaking bones.

Spry used it to incrementally crush your left testicle, then your collarbone. After that, he plucked out three of your fingernails, and crushed the fingerbone underneath with the claw. Strangely (and perhaps fortunately) enough, the questions that he asked you under this torture did not make any sense to you. He asked what the insurrection was going to do with ‘the trains’ and demanded to know the significance of a graduation ring that he claimed had been left in your possession after you were dropped off. You were honestly able to answer that you had no idea what he was talking about, and after throwing him off the trail a bit with this, you were able to taunt the wound-up MP into beating you unconscious, prematurely ending the torture without revealing anything incriminating.

You woke up, very early on the morning of the next day in what appeared to be a dinning room of a private residence that had been converted over into an operating room. You had been saved from further torture by your attending nurse, RN Gunther Peake, and the hospital’s administrator, Dr. Jack Grisham. Despite missing several fingers on his right hand, and having limited feeling in his left, Dr. Grisham was able to repair much of the damage that was done to you at the hands of Officer Spry. Unwilling to let his hospital become a ‘charnel house’, him and Gunther snuck you out, and has arranged for you to make your way back to your homestead, along with Gunther and his cousin Petra, as the Guard is now looking for them.

Gunther has just returned; Dr. Grisham will drive you, Gunther and Petra as close to the Maine National Guard’s checkpoint as he dares, and then the three of them will sneak you past the checkpoint and to a safehouse with a vehicle to take you back to the lake. Dr. Grisham will sneak back into the city, and dispose of Gunther’s truck. This is the plan. With any luck, this one will work.

>>4504683
>Garage of the Grisham Residence, Bangor Maine
>2:07 am on 10/31/2020
>36 degrees Fahrenheit, Slightly Cloudy, Hazy(?)
>Waxing Gibbous Moon, provides some visibility in open areas, sets around 3:00am
>Sunrise around 7:00 am

Bundled up under the thick gray throw, you were trundled out to the garage as soon as Gunther confirmed that everything was ready to go. Mrs. Grisham stood with you, holding a large candle, the only source of light in the garage, beyond what moonlight filtered in through the windows. The Grisham’s had a generator, and used it briefly during your surgery, but there were rumors that thieves had were targeting houses based on the telltale dull roar of portable generators. Because there was not anyone in a position to confirm or deny this, everyone more or less concluded that they should work under the assumption that it was true. And so, the generator remained off, the electric lights stayed dim and the final preparations for your flight were lit by Mrs. Grisham’s candle and the moonbeams that had made their way into the garage from the nearly full moon.

You fondle the Iron Claw that Petra had given to you, after having found it tangled up in your sheets. Must have gotten there after Spry threw the thing at you. For something that must have been at least 40 years old, its in really good shape. Someone clearly was taking care of this thing … Spry, obviously. God, your head is still foggy from the painkillers. You hope it clears soon … and that you can bear the pain without anymore pills once it does. Petra comes into the garage and offers you one last drink of water for the road, which you accept. After you greedily bolt that down, she carefully places an oddly shaped plastic jug on your stretcher. You must look confused, because a mischievous look crosses her face.

“It is a portable urinal. If you need help, feel free to ask Gunther. That said, if you are up to using that thing –” with a snort, she points to the Greener Martini Harpoon Gun lying on top of you “- then you shouldn’t have any issues.” What? What the Hell does that even mean?

You are about to ask her what she means by that, but then Gunther announces that they are ready to load you up. You are about to say your final round of thank-yous and goodbyes to Mrs. Grisham, who was going to stay here at the house to protect it, when all of you are interrupted by a massive tremor, strong enough to shake oil and paint cans off of a shelf. Petra clings to Gunther, and Mrs. Grisham drops the candle in her fright. Dr. Grisham goes to put the candle out and comfort his wife. Your immediate thought was to get to somewhere that was not at risk for collapsing, but you knew that trying to walk so soon might risk the stitching on your kidney, which was metaphorically and actually worth your life. Failing that, you protected your head by covering as best you could with your arms and the gun. Not an ideal helmet, but better than nothing.

>>4504686
But thankfully, beyond the cans that were on the shelf, nothing else came crashing down. Luckily, Dr. Grisham is not in the habit of using the rafters of his garage as a storage space. If he had, and something had bonked you on its way down, then you might have needed a third surgery in as many days, considering the state you are in. In the shocked silence, Gunther is the first to speak.

“Still.”That single word is spoken with the venom usually reserved for curses and slurs. Nothing else needs to be said. It has been nearly three days since the first strike, and it seems that the Soviets are still managing to hit the mainland United States. “What the fuck happened! Were we asleep at the fucking switch, or something?” Gunther kicks his own truck in anger, and then winces. It seems that sneakers are not adequate footwear for truck punting. After watching him try to shake the pain off while providing a shoulder for Petra to cling to for several seconds, you find your tongue.

“Should we take shelter?”

Everyone just sort of looks at you. After a moment, Dr. Grisham speaks. “I don’t know. No one does. No one managed to tell us anything before the power went out, and if there have been any radio broadcasts with instructions during the past three days, then I haven’t heard them. God knows I listened to enough dead air waiting for them.” You have never heard a doctor sound … scared before, and now that you have, you find yourself starting to lose your own nerve. But before you can spiral down into complete panic, you are interrupted by the sound of a distant klaxon.

“Does anyone else hear that thing?” Everyone just looks at you, but after a second, Petra tilts her head, then starts nodding. “Yeah, I can. Barely. Is that some sort of alarm?” Confused, Gunter untangles himself from his younger cousin and with a bit of a limp makes his way to the side door of the garage. He sticks his head outside and listens intently. After several-several seconds he pulls his head back inside, and closes the door. “I think I can hear something, could be an alarm or siren.” He looks to you, clearly impressed. “Damn good ears you got.” Dr. Grisham just looks at him, then Petra and then finally you. “I suppose I will need to take your word for it. Still, this is curious. There have not been any alarms after any of the other intermittent strikes.”

>>4504690
>Listen, if there are still strikes going on, and they are coming down nearby, then we need to take shelter for a few hours. We can either make the escape just before dawn, during the day, or if necessary, we can wait until tonight. We still have options here.

>Listen, if this alarm thing is new, then that means we cannot rely on the Guard behaving the same way that they have been. We need more information. If they are looking for Gunther, then Dr. Grisham, can you take your car and go see what you can? Do not draw any attention to yourself, and do not take longer than an hour.

>Listen, we need to move now. If the Guard is worried about a nearby Nuclear Strike, then that means that they are not looking for us. But while we wait, the Guard could be redeploying, or they could be changing their rules of engagement or whatever. Our only chance to leave the city safely might just be slipping away as we speak.

Sorry it took so long for me to get the third post up; my schedule got really tight all of a sudden, and I had to work through it. Glad to be back.

>>4504670
Glad to see you're back.

For everyone new, here are the archives of the previous two threads:
>http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/4413945/

>http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/4455000/

>>4504698
>Listen, we need to move now. If the Guard is worried about a nearby Nuclear Strike, then that means that they are not looking for us. But while we wait, the Guard could be redeploying, or they could be changing their rules of engagement or whatever. Our only chance to leave the city safely might just be slipping away as we speak.

>>4504698
>>Listen, we need to move now. If the Guard is worried about a nearby Nuclear Strike, then that means that they are not looking for us. But while we wait, the Guard could be redeploying, or they could be changing their rules of engagement or whatever. Our only chance to leave the city safely might just be slipping away as we speak.
Rough question. It's a gamble, but the alarm is an unknown variable. There could be something going on that is rallying the guard against some call to alarm, and if it is unrelated to prior strikes then that seems like a good bet. I don't like idea of asking Dr. Grisham to stick his neck out for us after he's done so much already. Lets roll, and hope for the best.

Alright, consider this vote closed. Writing!

“Alright, listen up. If we are not bothering with sheltering, then it seems to me that now is the best time to leave. The Guard will be busy, either hunkering down or watching the sky. Which means that they are not out there looking for any of us, or on random patrols.” Gunther at least is nodding along, but the others just look at you blankly in the gloom of the moonlight garage. “This is the third day of this shit, sooner or later, something is going to have to change in the situation with the Guard and the city. And if this strike did get the Guard shaken up, then it might be what changes things. It might be the motivation for them to … who knows what. But our plan for getting out of here relies in no small part on our knowledge of the stationing and the behavior of the Guard at the city limits. If that changes …”

You trail off, but it seems to have gotten through to the rest of them. You will proceed with the plan to escape immediately. Mrs. Grisham gets the candle lit again, and with some difficulty, you are loaded into the back of Gunther’s truck. Ignoring everything else that was loaded into it, the cap to the bed of the truck is only cab high. On top of the gurney, your forehead is about an inch and a half away from the cap. It is strange saying goodbye to someone without being able to look at them, but between being stuffed in the back of the truck and in brace around your neck, Mrs. Grisham is understanding. Or at least, she sounds understanding. The tailgate, then the cap is closed, and you are all buttoned up the ride. Its almost comfy, until the truck starts up. You have never ridden inside the cap of a truck before, and honestly, it is a bit louder than you thought it would be.

Still, you are not going to complain. You’ve probably used up several lifetimes worth of luck in getting into the hospital in once piece, getting treating, then being snuck out of the hospital by Good Samaritans after you were tortured, getting treated again, and then having a ride arranged for you to get back home. Immediately on the heels of this good thought, you realize with a start (and a pang in your heart) that you don't know if your mother made it to Debouche or not. She was running late ... Could she have gotten caught up in something? God forbid, did something happen to her? Or did she make it to the house, hear that you were in Bangor and ...

The truck hits a bump, and your head bangs against the fiberglass cap!

>Two rolls of 1d6; if either of them are 1-3, then you have been knocked unconscious.
>The bonus to resilience rolls provided by the Iron Claw Trophy only become active once the Trial to bring the Trophy to the homestead is complete.

Rolled 3 (1d6)

Glad to have you back trash! though I must ask, since it's the second time you posted it... was there no picture of this claw thing that is not so ridiculously offensive?

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>4505027
>>Two rolls of 1d6; if either of them are 1-3, then you have been knocked unconscious.
ah shit. well, there goes that. I suppose there isn't much we could really do in the meantime however.

>>4505040
I thought I had one, but I couldn't find it. Oh well. I'll crop the screenshot down for next time.

Okay; well, looks like you are going to catch up on your sleep here. I'll get to writing.

>Exact Location Unknown, Presumably in or near Bangor Maine
>Currently dark out, no moonlight, presumably (hopefully) still 10/31/2020
>Cold, Slightly Cloudy, Hazy(?)
>Can't see the Moon

You slowly come to, and after several-several moments of confusion, realize that you are looking up at the roof for a porch that overlooks a fenced in yard. You can see your breath billowing up towards the rafters, where what appears to be a lantern, or maybe a bug zapper hangs. Groaning, you try to get a better grasp on your surroundings, but with your neck immobilized by a brace, this is easier said than done. But even handicapped as you are, you manage to get a good look around you. Well, after careful examination, you can definitively say that this is a porch. Furthermore, the supplies and the equipment were neatly stacked all around you. You still have the iron claw and the harpoon gun with you. Everything is accounted for … except of course, your companions. Your first thought is that they are all making one last trip from Gunther’s truck, but as you lie there waiting, and minutes keep slipping away, you start to wonder. You cannot tell for certain, but it looks like everything that was loaded into the truck is here with you, on this porch. So what exactly are you missing here? What are they doing?

>Wait silently and patiently for them (will require roll to stay awake)
>Call out for them (will not require roll)
>Attempt to get off of the gurney and go look for them (will require roll)

>Wait silently and patiently for them (will require roll to stay awake)
If whoevers porch you are at meant you harm, you wouldn't have the harpoon gun still. Might as well wait silently but remain cautious.

>>4505429
This. Solid.

>>4505296
>Wait silently and patiently for them (will require roll to stay awake)

>>4505296
also welcome back OP

>Wait silently and patiently for them (will require roll to stay awake)

Alright, sounds good. I suppose this could be considered a minor resilience roll, so it will be 1/3 as difficult as a typical resilience roll.

Can I get two rolls of 1d6? If either of them roll ones, then you fall asleep again.

Rolled 6 (1d6)

Rolled 5 (1d6)

>>4505765

Rolled 2 (1d6)

Alright good stuff. I'll get to writing.

It is really unnerving waking up alone like this; for them to have managed to get you out of the truck, pass the roadblock, and then on the porch here, you must have been really out. Thinking about it, you realize that after you were knocked out, you could have hit your head again, maybe multiple times. And while your head does not hurt now, you presumably still have painkillers in your system …

After several more minutes of straining to hear anything, you start to worry. Clearly, nothing that bad could have happened while you were unconscious, otherwise you would have been killed or abandoned somewhere, or at the very least, you would not still be armed. No, you were deliberately left here, you could even say that you were hidden here, so clearly the escape proceeded to plan up to the point where you reached the safehouse on the other side of the checkpoint … well, actually, no, you don’t know that. You have no way of knowing if this is the safehouse or not, for all you know, you could still be in Bangor. What the Hell happened? More minutes pass, and with nothing to do but watch your breath billow out into the cold night air, you are becoming more and more unnerved. For a second, you actually consider trying to get up off the gurney and … you do not know what, but just laying here like a sack of No. 2 Potatoes is getting to you. But that madness passes as quickly as it came, and you resolve to just wait.

Several-several more minutes of this now aggravating wait pass, and finally you hear something. Jets. You cannot see anything from your current position, but the noise has set your mind running a mile a minute. If jets are still in the air, then that means that America is not completely defeated. Your immediate patriotic elation gives way to a more pragmatic concern. If the US still has the resources and coordination to ‘Keep ‘em Flying’, then that means they probably are still organized enough to deal with ‘rebels’. Further reflection on this worrisome point is cut off abruptly when you hear someone or something stirring. There is the sound of a door opening and closing, then footsteps.

You shift yourself into a sitting up position, doing so as quickly as you can without risking passing out from any sudden movements. After a split second of consideration, you shoulder the harpoon southpaw, figuring that it would be better to fire from your non-dominant side than with an injured hand. Thankfully, it does not come to that; Petra rounds the corner and then lets out a stereotypically feminine shriek at the sight of you leveling the gun at her. You set it down, carefully avoiding your lap, as she catches her breath.

“You scared me!”

“No fooling?”

>>4505860
You look at her as she regains her composure. Things have been moving so fast, and you have known her for what, a matter of hours? But now that you get a good look at her, you realize just how young she is. Going through something like this as a teenager must be the worst; you are still a kid and completely out of your depth, but you are also sort of an adult, and now you have to take on all sorts of responsibility. She looks tired and scared … and as uncomfortable as it is to admit, quite attractive. You hadn't noticed, but she is only wearing a varsity jacket with a t-shirt underneath, what must be an uncomfortably tight pair of jeans and sneakers. She looks good ... and really unprepared to be on the lam during a Nuclear World War. Come to think of it, Gunther was wearing sneakers as well. Had you noticed earlier, you would have told them to wear boots; this is no time for footwear that prioritizes comfort. But before you can ask her if she has more apocalypse-appropriate clothing to change into, Petra speaks, and derails that entire train of thought.

“The battery is dead. Of the truck-thingy, the one that we were going to get into. They tried to swap out the one from Gunther’s truck, but it didn’t work. They went to put it back in Gunther’s truck, and then, um … I dunno, come right back, I guess?”

Of all of the stupid, fucking things to screw over an escape, a dead battery on the get-away vehicle has to be up there. And of course, now that everything has gone to absolute fuck it is not like you can just wander over to a 24/7 Thrallmart and just buy a new one.

“And then one of those robot things started flying around, so I figured, um, I should check on you.”

You are dumbfounded, absolutely dumbfounded. You had no idea that it was humanly possible to have luck this bad. If the Guard has deployed a mech, a flying mech, no less, then that means they could simply fly it on over to Debouche at their leisure and just curb stomp Parasol’s group into oblivion. That is what mechs were designed for; bringing overwhelming force to bear on unsupported or undersupported targets. You need to get back to the lake as soon as you can. Just as you are about to ask for more details, Gunther and Dr. Grisham return.

Both of them look frustrated, though upon seeing you, Grisham winces, and tells you to lay down to not put strain on the stitching after asking if you are alright. Once he is done mother henning you, and Petra mentions that she brought you up to speed, Gunther speaks.

“We have two options. We could try to find a working battery for the truck here, but who knows how long that would take. Or if we could ever find one. Alternatively … the guards have left the checkpoint that we have been sneaking around about half an hour ago, and no one has come yet to replace them. We could try to run it, and hope that the tin soldier up in the air isn’t looking, or it is, then it has better things to do.”

>>4505864
>Look for a working battery that fits the getaway vehicle.
>Have Gunther attempt to drive the truck through the abandoned check point.
>Have Gunther attempt to sneak up to the abandoned check point to ensure that it is safe.

>>4505865
>>Have Gunther attempt to drive the truck through the abandoned check point.
All in. I don't think we have anything to worry about with the mech. Why burn the resources putting one up into the sky if it's just meant to watch abandoned checkpoints? Seems wasteful. Going on what we know:
-another strike
-Guard's unknown alarm sounds
-ground forces here and potentially at other checkpoints mobilize, go somewhere else
-mech takes flight
Suppose there could very well be looters here at the abandoned checkpoint, Gunther's done a lot for us already and we have no idea if he is up to the task of sneaking up there, potentially to get shot down by some looter or skeleton crew.
I think running the checkpoint might be risky as well for those same reasons, but is it really worth the risk of sending him up there alone?
Stressful choice.

>>4505865
Wouldn't we just need a starter cable?

>>4505907
Yeah. Wirth some luck, it is not dead, but only discharged. Feels like the best move at this point is to just charge it enough to reach our homestead.

>>Have Gunther attempt to drive the truck through the abandoned check point.

>>4505919
just need to jumpstart the engine, then keep it running until we are in Debouche

Jump starting the truck with cables is an option, but you would need to bring Gunther's truck to the get-away vehicle in the first place, not to mention cables that you don't have.

I'll let this sit for a bit longer, then I will close it and get to writing, rolling to break a tie, if needed.

Well, I let that sit a lot longer than I intended. I need someone to roll 1 1d10; and in the meantime, I think this should be put to a vote:

>Temporarily switch perspective with Gunther as he attempts to break through
>Remain with Mantle as he waits with Petra and the Doctor

Rolled 3 (1d10)

just spotted the new thread, whoo
>>4506076
>Remain with Mantle as he waits with Petra and the Doctor

Well, I already burnt a lot of daylight earlier, so I think I will close this one, even if it only has one vote. I'll get to writing this up immediately.

“Gunther, I … I just don’t see us finding a matching car battery any time soon. Maybe I am being dramatic, or maybe I am allowing my encounter with Spry to color my perceptions or whatever, but it really seems that things are just getting worse and worse around here. We need to get out – and for that matter, the Doctor here needs to get back to his missus. I mean; look – I don’t see any other way. Just, do it and do it fast.”

Doctor Grisham shifts nervously, and looks for a second as if he is going to say something, but before he can, Gunther cuts him off. “I suppose I have gotten worse advice. Acted on some it too.” He absently scratches the back of his head, then stops and lets his hand fall slack. “It should be alright, I suppose. And your right, there isn’t anyway that we can count of finding a battery.” You can tell that he is trying to pep himself up for this, and to his credit, he seems to have succeeded. As he looks over his shoulder, presumably in the direction of the road, he starts nodding to himself. “Okay, then here is the plan. We can’t strand ‘doc’ out here with everything that is going on, so the two of us will sneak back past the checkpoint one last time, and I will drive him as close to his house as I can, without risking anything. Then I drive straight to the checkpoint, and I run it. The two of you wait here, hidden in the backyard with the supplies. So then I drive up, and we load you and the supplies as quick as we can. Any objections?”

>Do you have any objections to Gunther’s plan, as it is stated?
>No.
>Yes. (Write in)

>No.
I can’t think of anything else here.

>>4506205
>>No.
pretty solid. sounds good to me

Alright, closed. I'm writing.

You answer truthfully that no objections come to mind. And when Petra and Doctor Grisham do not raise any, then plan is decided. After he bids Petra farewell, the good doctor, the very good doctor, gives you a letter, containing detailed instructions to follow for your recovery. As you take the letter in your hands, you find yourself tearing up, regretting that you could not convince the man to come with you. It is a dark, cynical thought, but you don’t know how long Bangor has left, and as much as you admire the man’s courage and values, you have a sinking feeling that he probably will get caught up in helping someone else, and it will be the end of him. You hope you are wrong, of course. But the worst thing about all of this is that odds are you will never know if he made it or not. The odds of him tracking down the high-end radio equipment required to contact you, then to power it without drawing the attention of gas-thieves and to broadcast out from it without drawing the attention of the Guard is probably vanishingly small. So you will never know what happened to him; Hell, you won’t even know for sure if he made it back to house tonight.

You are almost about to make one final attempt to convince him to come along … but in your tired, drugged and battered state, it seems that you can’t even articulate your thoughts, let alone an argument. So, you leave it all unsaid, and just thank the man. “Thank you, for everything.” At first, his only response is a smile, but after a second, he speaks these words to you in parting.

“I hope you don’t think less of me for it, but all of this was as much for you as it was for me. I became a surgeon to help people in ways that no one else could, to save people from certain death; but after I hurt my hands in the accident, all of that was taken from me. I can’t blame the Board for that, but that doesn’t make being benched for the rest of life any easier. When you are a doctor, or I suppose, in any position where you can and will save lives, the job has a way of becoming an indelible part of you, and you can’t just lose that in a car accident, or have it ‘gently rescinded’ by a licensing board. You hear about cases, people, some of them who made it, and some of whom slipped away, and you wonder if it had been you, would you have saved them? In this line of work, answering that question becomes central to your sense of self-worth.

>>4506380
“And for twenty-two years, I couldn’t answer that question, and I couldn’t really help anyone, not in any meaningful way. I just had to sit on what was left of my hands, and watch day in and day out as people lived and died, not being able to help. Can you imagine how that would eat at a person? But then, in the middle of all of this insanity, right out of left field, finally, here was someone only I could save. And I don’t think you will ever know how much saving you means to me. So thank you, Mr. Mantle.

You cannot think of anything to say to that, beyond ‘you’re welcome’. And so, with laughter, smiles and tears all around, Doctor Grisham waves goodbye to you and Petra, and with Gunther walks off into and the night. You listen to their footfalls for as long as you can, but eventually they fade into the stillness of the night. At some point, the Mech must have either landed or flown away, you cannot hear it. More than that, you realize that the Moon is setting, as the night has gotten noticeably darker. It makes you remember a saying of your Grandfather’s, one that he was quite fond of; ‘darker looking into a pit than looking out of it’. That one took you some time to unravel when you were younger, but you were fairly certain it was just his version of ‘darkest before the dawn’. Just fairly certain though, the old man never explained his sayings, or much of anything really.

Petra, having moved into the screened in porch and perched herself on a small crate of disposable surgeon’s gowns sighs. “Doctor Grisham is pretty incredible, isn’t he?” You nod, and then realizing that she isn’t looking your way, you vocalize your agreement. There is a moment of silence, then from her seat she starts rummaging, looking around the gathered supplies. After a moment, she shifts something heavy sounding and pulls free a large jug of water. She pops the lid, and takes a swig. “Soda would be good right now, something to keep you up … or beer. Beer would be even better.” After a moment, she looks to you, and asks if you want a sip. You wave her off. While you are a little thirsty, you have already drunk more than a bit of water, and you don’t want to have to bother with that damned urinal, especially if you are going to be under the cap again.

>>4506384
You have half a mind to ask what was so funny about the harpoon and the urinal earlier tonight, but after thinking about for a bit, you realize she was probably making a ‘gun-owners and their small penises’ type of joke. Well, whatever. You sit in silence, and reflect on how everyone seems to be trying to act as normally as possible about all of this. Maybe it is just a pretense or vanity … or maybe it is a genuine survival strategy. Faking it until you make it, that kind of thing. You know, there is a lot of sense to that. If everyone just said that everything was going to be fine, and stuck together to help each other out, then things like this might just turn out quite a bit better than they could have. Of course, people would still die. Of course, people have already died …

Your thoughts turn to Matthew, the kid with Oher who fought with you in the shootout. He’s of an age with Petra, maybe even younger. And he shot that Deputy, shot him dead where he stood, just to protect you. That has to be tough; you honestly cannot imagine what that kid is going through right now. You know that moving to the cover of the utility box was the right decision, because if you had not, you would never have been able to disable the Prisoner Transport from behind Fleckkers truck. But now, finally with the time to think about it, in a dark parody of Grisham’s unanswerable question, you can’t help but wonder if there had been another way, an earlier decision that could have ensured the confrontation with Carter’s convoy stayed bloodless. You wonder if Grisham knew that you actually were everything that the Guard claimed you were, if he knew that you had simply declared 1750 of your neighbors as dead weight and had committed yourself to not raising a finger to help them, if he knew … would him saving you still mean as much to him as it did?

You don’t have an answer for that either, and you just stare up at the rafters on the porch as your breath billows and dissipates into the cold night air. As you watch, a new thought occurs to you; shouldn’t you be wearing masks? When he called you from outside of the jail, ‘Beans’ did say something about getting respirators, but you didn’t see them pack any. What about a piece of cloth or something like that?

After a moment of thought, you judge that as you are under the cover of the porch, you are probably alright. But as you are about to ask Petra if Dr. Grisham said anything about masks, you here the unmistakable sound of a gunshot. No, gunshots. Judging by her startled reaction, Petra heard them too. You hiss at her to prop the gurney up, so you can shoulder the gun. Petra rushes over but she is clearly having trouble getting the mechanism to work. Shortly, you hear the sound of an engine.

Rolled 5, 1, 4 = 10 (3d6)

First off; the encounter. >>4506082 rolled a 3. Could have been worse, but could have been a lot better.

Roll of 1: Post is manned after all, Gunther’s truck is damaged and he will be pursued from the station
Roll of 2: Post is manned after all, Gunther’s truck is damaged and he will be pursued from a muster
Roll of 3: Post is unmanned, but being ransacked by Looters who will attack and attempt to pursue him if he attempts to run it
Roll of 4: Post is manned by a corrupt Auxiliary, who demands gasoline as a toll
Roll of 5: Post is unmanned, but there is some remote alarm system that goes off
Roll of 6: Post is unmanned, but Gunther accidently damages the truck on a trap or barricade driving through
Roll of 7: Gunther startles a family trying to escape on foot and must make a choice
Roll of 8: Someone calls for help from inside one of the temporary structures around the station
Roll of 9: Post is completely abandoned, and Gunther just drives through.
Roll of 10: Post is completely abandoned, and [Random Supply Item] is available

So, the first one of these rolls is Gunther's Modifier on a handling test, and the second and third rolls are the Looters Modifier on a handling test.

Rolled 18, 18, 8, 19, 4, 10, 12, 13, 2, 10, 15, 16, 5, 12, 20, 2, 3, 5, 14, 4, 14 = 224 (21d20)

>>4506404
Handling Modifiers
Roll of 1 means 0.125x modifier
Roll of 2 means 0.25x modifier
Roll of 3 means 0.75x modifier
Roll of 4 means 1x modifier
Roll of 5 means 1.125x modifier
Roll of 6 means 1.25x modifier

Gunther has 1.125x modifier
Highwayman-1 has 0.125x modifier
Highwayman-2 has 1x modifier

Alright, Gunther is doing really well here, so we should get a good show of my 'donut steel' car chase mechanics. The next set of rolls are the Gross values of the driving test; the first 7 are Gunther, the next 7 are for Highwayman-1 and the last 7 are for Highwayman-2. The road here is straight, and is in good condition, but it has hills and dells, and beyond the headlights, it is pretty much pitch black, as the Moon has finally gone down. Under these conditions, the road rolls a 4. If any of the three vehicles roll lower than that 4, then that means that they need to roll a recovery (basically a resilience roll except for the vehicle instead of the character). If they fail that, then they crash.

Beyond that, we will take the sum of the five rolls, after they have been modified by the handling. The sum of the net rolls reflects the distance traveled during the chase, so if Gunther gets the highest sum, then that means he was able to outpace the others. If either Highwayman-1 or Highwayman-2 get the highest sum, then that means they were able to get out in front of Gunther, and can attempt to force him off of the road. Don't worry, Gunther had a head start, so to reflect this, I will replace the two lowest rolls of his with 13's, unless of course that would drop his net.

Rolled 1, 3, 3, 8, 4, 2, 4, 5, 8 = 38 (9d8)

>>4506437
Holy shit, Gunther is driving like McQueen tonight.
18 * 1.125 = 20.250
18 * 1.125 = 20.250
13 * 1.125 = 14.625
19 * 1.125 = 21.375
13 * 1.125 = 14.625
10 * 1.125 = 11.250
12 * 1.125 = 13.500
As none of these are lower than 4, he doesn't need to make any recoveries. He rolls a 115.875

Highwayman-1 is in a lot of trouble, lets see if he can stay on the road.
13 * 0.125 = 1.625
2 * 0.125 = 0.250
10 * 0.125 = 1.250
15 * 0.125 = 1.875
16 * 0.125 = 2.000
5 * 0.125 = 0.625
12 * 0.125 = 1.500
Jesus, that is pretty brutal. Highwayman-1 will need to make 7 consecutive recoveries to prevent crashing, and even if they do, they will only score 9.125

Highwayman-2 seems to have had much better luck, lets see if they give you a run for your money.
20 * 1 = 20
2 * 1 = 2
3 * 1 = 3
5 * 1 = 5
14 * 1 = 14
4 * 1 = 4
14 * 1 = 14
So, Highwayman-2 needs to make two consecutive recoveries to prevent crashing, and if they do, they score 62. Without giving too much away, you want both of these bastards to crash.

On this post, the first 7 rolls belong to Highwayman-1, and the last 2 rolls belong to Highwayman-2. If any of the rolls in the respective pools are 1s, then that means they have crashed.

>>4506461
The sounds of the engine grow louder, and Petra is getting more flustered trying to get the gurney into position. As she is hammering away at the levers behind you, the roar of the engine gets closer, and then you can hear wheels screech and gravel rustle. Abandoning the doctors advice, you sit up on the stretcher and start to shoulder the gun, but before you can, Gunther shouts out from the driveway, barreling into the fenced in back yard before he can finish speaking.

"We got a problem! There were some guys picking over the checkpoint after the Guard abandoned it, and when I drove through, they tried to stop me. I ... I think I knocked one of them down by accident, I'm not sure. They started shooting, and when I drove off, they got in cars. Two followed me, and one of them is still out there, behind me, but at the checkpoint another headed back into Bangor. There's no where to hide a truck this size on this fucking road. What the Hell do we do?"

>If you can't hide the thing here, then you drive it to somewhere that you can hide it, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up. (80% for another car chase (which means a chance to wreck the truck) and will take some time)

>We need to leave as soon as we can; and that means abandoning some of our supplies. (Depending on how much you are willing to abandon here, you can guarantee that you will not be chased. You could load everything, and have as high as an 80% chance for another car chase. Alternatively, you could arrange a load that was associated with a chance for a car chase between 0 and 80%)

For reference, here are the supplies. Most of the stuff's value/use should be fairly self-explanatory, but if you have any specific questions, just ask. Counting the Dialysis Machine twice, there are 26 items. If you want to abandon things, you can take 6 things for free without any risk of a car chase. Taking the time to load 7 items carries with it a 4% chance of a car chase. Taking the time to load 8 is an 8% chance. Odds of a chase increase by increments of 4% for each item until all items are accounted for, and the risk of a chase is at 80%.

26 (6 free)
Set of 3 5 Gallon Jugs of Clean Water
Set of 3 Basic First Aid Kits
Set of 3 Basic First Aid Kits
Assorted Medical Equipment and Supplies
Assorted Medical Equipment and Supplies
Assorted Medical Equipment and Supplies
Assorted Superior Medical Equipment and Supplies
Assorted Superior Surgical Equipment
Assorted Superior Surgical Equipment
Assorted Medical Texts
Assorted Medical Texts
Assorted Medical Texts
Dialysis Machine (Counts for two)
Set of 12 Dialysis Liquid doses
Set of 12 Dialysis Liquid doses
Typical Bedding Set for Twin Bed
Typical Bedding Set for Queen Bed
Collapsible Cot
Collapsible Cot
Two Person Tent
Typical Sleeping Bag
Typical Sleeping Bag
Damaged Superior Sleeping Bag
Charcoal Grill and Bag of Charcoal
Typical Flashlight and Spare Batteries (also the Oil Lamp)

>>4506517
Gunther made it sound like there is only one truck, so instead of fleeing, let's fight. I'd say prepare an ambush, then loot their truck and drive off again.

Plus, that way the good doctor can complain to the guard about the bandit should the MNG follow the sound of gunshots.

>>4506552
Well, I suppose that is could be option. There is the one harpoon gun though, and it is single shot. So you can't afford any mistakes. I'll

>If you can't hide the thing here, then you drive it to somewhere that you can hide it, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up. (80% for another car chase (which means a chance to wreck the truck) and will take some time)

>We need to leave as soon as we can; and that means abandoning some of our supplies. (Depending on how much you are willing to abandon here, you can guarantee that you will not be chased. You could load everything, and have as high as an 80% chance for another car chase. Alternatively, you could arrange a load that was associated with a chance for a car chase between 0 and 80%)

>Hold fast, and attempt to ambush the remaining Highwayman. You will also use this time to load up the truck with everything, but by remaining here you will not be able to avoid a confrontation.

>>4506572
>>Hold fast, and attempt to ambush the remaining Highwayman. You will also use this time to load up the truck with everything, but by remaining here you will not be able to avoid a confrontation.
Shit, is it just one guy in the pursuit vehicle?
Even with our limited ammo, we should be able to pull this off.

>>4506593
I'd caution you on making assumptions like that. All that Gunther knows for certain is that there there were two cars following him, then one of them of the crashed. He doesn't know how many got in, or more importantly, what they are 'packing'.

>>4506646
Fair point.
I think I'll change to
>If you can't hide the thing here, then you drive it to somewhere that you can hide it, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up. (80% for another car chase (which means a chance to wreck the truck) and will take some time)
In this case. Assuming no one else supports fight, that is. I don't want to be the sole voter making that decision, especially if no one is around to roll.
If someone else does vote to fight however, I'll go back to supporting that vote. I don't want to draw things out by having a tie that has to be roll broken.

>If you can't hide the thing here, then you drive it to somewhere that you can hide it, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up. (80% for another car chase (which means a chance to wreck the truck) and will take some time)

Alright, there has been some pretty good back and forth. Even though having Gunther drive off and hide has a solid lead, I think I am going to leave the vote overnight, as I am getting kinda tired, and I don't want to half-ass anything.

>If you can't hide the thing here, then you drive it to somewhere that you can hide it, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up. (80% for another car chase (which means a chance to wreck the truck) and will take some time)
Fighting is just a little too risky. Should have rigged up a few molotovs.

>>4506572
Wait a second. if Gunther leaves and hides the truck we have 80% chance of car chase and spend time, if we load everything and leave we also have 80% chance of car chase? Why not load everything then? this way we also still have a chance of harpooning the driver during car chasechase!

File: Well, this is going to be(...).jpg (48 KB, 1200x646)

48 KB JPG

>>4507102
The idea is that if you wanted to reduce the 80% chance of a chase, you could forfeit some of the cargo.

Well, that seems to be a solid lead for Gunther driving off and hiding. One important question remains. Do you give him the Greener Martini Harpoon Gun?

>Hold onto the gun
>Give Gunther the gun

>>4507177
>>Give Gunther the gun
Where he's going, he might need it. Hopefully the Highwayman following him didn't see him stop here.

>>4507265
Explicitly tell him to turn around here if it seems like they stopped here. We'd be fucked otherwise.

As Gunther runs over to the door of the screened in porch, from your position siting up on the gurney, you glance at all of the supplies stacked neatly inside. If you wanted to make a clean break, you'd only have time to take the barest of essentials ... but what is essential for you is not essential for Gunther and Petra. They don't need a dialysis machine. And while things like surgical equipment might not be needed right now, odds are that this stuff will be worth its weight in gold soon enough. No, you can't just give this stuff up. On the other hand, with a single shot weapon, with four cartridges and two payloads, fighting your way out of this doesn't seem like a viable strategy. Gunther has been driving really well, if he can just keep it up, then you might be able to make a clean, bloodless break. But you have to commit yourselves; there isn't any way out of this.

"Gunther, If you can't hide your truck here, then you'll just need to drive it somewhere that you can, and wait for these thugs to pass you by and double back to pick us up."

He is standing in the doorway of the porch, breathing heavily enough that if you didn't know better, you'd think that he'd outrun the looters at the checkpoint instead of simply outdriving them. He looks at you, and even in the darkness of the now moonless night, you can tell that he is wide-eyed. The man is high as a kite on adrenaline, but after a moment he starts nodding. Before he can turn away, you shove the harpoon gun, the spare harpoon and the three remaining cartridges towards him. "It is pretty intuitive; most firearms are. Load the cartridge in to the gun, then the harpoon into the cartridge. And it goes without saying, that you need to bait these fuckers away from us. If they come for us, you need to come back." He blurts something out, that might have been an 'alright' and roughly grabs the weapon from your outstretched hands, jamming your injured fingers in the process. The painkillers must have started to wear off, as the pain is enough to make you see spots and dots. But as you bit your tongue, Petra, who had been behind you, still trying to get the bed into position bolts forward suddenly.

"I'm going with you!"

>Do not try to stop her. Even if she is putting herself in more danger than she would by hiding here with you, she might be able to help Gunther.
>Try to stop her. She isn't thinking straight right now ... besides ... you don't want to be left alone like this.

>>4507295
>>Try to stop her. She isn't thinking straight right now ... besides ... you don't want to be left alone like this.

>>4507295
>Try to stop her. She isn't thinking straight right now ... besides ... you don't want to be left alone like this.

screeching girl would just be a distraction for the man

>>4507315
>>4507313
"Petra, listen to me, you'd just -".

But she isn't paying you any mind. She's moving after Gunther, who is already heading for his truck. Shit! At this rate, you aren't going to have any time to convince her. You'll need to do something a bit more drastic!

>Shout at Petra to stay behind
>Shout at Gunther to tell Petra to stay behind with you
>Attempt to grab Petra to stop her from leaving

>>4507330
>Attempt to grab Petra to stop her from leaving
I'm not sure we can afford to shout right now.
Hopefully we don't tear anything open.

>>4507334
>I'm not sure we can afford to shout right now.
Excellent point. Support.

Alright, this will be a physical test. 5 rolls of 1d20. The difficulty of grabbing and holding Petra with an injured hand while partially strapped down to a hospital gurney is set at 80, so the sum of these 5 rolls needs to be greater than 75. If no one has rolled in several minutes, feel free to roll again to keep things moving along.

>5 rolls of 1d20 please!

Rolled 6 (1d20)

>>4507349

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>4507349

>>4507361
>>4507355
If either of you are still around, you can roll again.

Rolled 4 (1d20)

>>4507371

Rolled 6 (1d10)

>>4507378
Uh, by my math, at this point, there is no way that we can pass the test. Alright, I need to run a quick errand, but after that, I will be able to keep the run going. Also, you want a 9 or a 10 on this roll.

Rolled 6, 4 = 10 (2d6)

Part of you worries that Gunther will have trouble handling both the bandits and his cousin, and part of you is legitimately worried about being left alone, unarmed. Honestly, if you knew that Petra was going to be leaving, then you probably would have seriously considered holding onto the Greener-Martini. So you shift your position on the gurney to the extent that you can while being restrained by the neck brace, and reach out to grab her. You don't think that in your condition you would be strong enough to restrain her, but the idea is that by touching her, you would be sure to get her attention. But she's too fast, by the time you've started to reach, she is already further away than your arms length at the fullest extension possible from this position. The door clatters as she bulls through it, and she dashes after Gunther. For as second, you consider shouting out after her, but the more you think about it, you don't know how close the pursuers are; all you can here is the idling engine of Gunther's truck, if there is another engine approaching in the distance, then you can't hear it. For all you know, pursuers could be right on top of you, and as bad as being left alone in your condition in current circumstances would be, telegraphing your position to these bandits would be even worse.

There is a roar of an engine. Gunther has taken flight.

Several seconds pass, and Petra has not returned. Its fairly obvious what happened, but you find yourself waiting for a few more seconds before completely giving up hope. Petra, for better or worse, is with Gunther. And you are alone. You strain your ears, listening as Gunther's truck roars into the distance, and as the noise starts to slip away, you catch the sound of a second engine, a sound that grows louder with every second. Pursuit. You know from the sound that Gunther's truck made when it pulled in to the safehouse's dooryard, that there was a gravel driveway. If these bandits hadn't already seen him in the distance, if they were looking for hiding spots along this road, then there is a chance, a very slim chance that they might notice that the gravel had been recently torn up and decide to investigate further.

But you can't do anything about that, just like you can't do anything about Petra leaving, or about how Gunther does. All you can do, just like Doctor Grisham, is to sit on what is left of your hands, and wait.

Rolling for a new Handling Modifier; both Gunther and Highwayman-2 are use the standard table. The first roll is for Gunther, the second roll is for Highwayman-2

Rolled 20, 12, 14, 8, 14, 18, 1, 14, 17, 1, 4, 1, 9, 20 = 153 (14d20)

>>4507556
Well, talk about emergent storytelling. At this rate, Gunther will definitely be getting a chance to take a Handling Trophy, and regardless, I will be touching up his background to include an interest in driving. Alright, so the first 7 of these rolls are for Gunther, and the last 7 of these rolls are for Highwayman-2.

Rolled 2, 8, 5 = 15 (3d8)

>>4507563
So the donut-steel rules for car chases work like this; they will either go until one of the side has crashed all of its cars, until the 'chased' have scored 400 points, or the 'chasers' have scored 450 points.

First Leg of the Bangor Sprint

Gunther and Petra
20 * 1.25 = 25.000
12 * 1.25 = 15.000
14 * 1.25 = 17.500
8 * 1.25 = 10.000
14 * 1.25 = 17.500
18 * 1.25 = 22.500
1 * 1.25 = 1.250
Gunther and Petra will need to make a total of 1 recovery, with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 108.75 on this driving test.

Highwayman-2
14 * 1.00 = 14.000
17 * 1.00 = 17.000
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
4 * 1.00 = 4.000
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
9 * 1.00 = 9.000
20 * 1.00 = 20.000: Critical
Highwayman-2 will need to make a total of 2 recoveries, with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 66.000 on this driving test.

There are three rolls on this post. The first is for Gunther and Petra, and the last two are for Highwayman-2. If there is a 1 in either of these dice pools, then that means that the car the pool belongs to has crashed.

Rolled 20, 11, 13, 17, 4, 1, 6, 3, 13, 1, 11, 17, 17, 15 = 149 (14d20)

>>4507595
Oh boy, if that 2 was a 1 then this story would really fall off the rails, huh?

I feel really strange, doing all of these rolls myself, but I have asked several times throughout the quest, and I have been told that players prefer to not roll for NPCs. Alright, anyway, same as before, the first 7 of these rolls are for Gunther, and the last 7 of these rolls are for Highwayman-2.

Rolled 4, 4, 2 = 10 (3d8)

>>4507601
Second Leg of the Bangor Sprint

Gunther and Petra: 108.750 of 400
20 * 1.25 = 25.000
11 * 1.25 = 13.750
13 * 1.25 = 16.250
17 * 1.25 = 21.250
4 * 1.25 = 5.000
1 * 1.25 = 1.000
6 * 1.25 = 7.500
Gunther and Petra will need to make a total of 1 recovery (again), with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 89.750 on this driving test.

Highwayman-2: 66.000 of 450
3 * 1.00 = 3.000
13 * 1.00 = 13.000
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
11 * 1.00 = 11.000
17 * 1.00 = 17.000
17 * 1.00 = 17.000
15 * 1.00 = 15.000
Highwayman-2 will need to make a total of 2 recoveries (also again), with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 77.000 on this driving test.

There are three rolls on this post. The first is for Gunther and Petra, and the last two are for Highwayman-2. If there is a 1 in either of these dice pools, then that means that the car the pool belongs to has crashed.

File: 0abbd055b01b751aa5e034a49(...).gif (650 KB, 598x444)

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>six 1s in 40 rolls
Wow, that's a lot.

Rolled 3, 6, 7, 2, 15, 2, 11, 11, 14, 8, 3, 12, 13, 7 = 114 (14d20)

>>4507617
Well, it looks like Highwayman-2 isn't going to go quietly into that night either!
The first 7 of these rolls are for Gunther, and the last 7 of these rolls are for Highwayman-2.

Rolled 2, 7, 6, 8 = 23 (4d8)

>>4507622
Third Leg of the Bangor Sprint

Gunther and Petra: 198.500 of 400
3 * 1.25 = 3.750
6 * 1.25 = 7.500
7 * 1.25 = 8.750
2 * 1.25 = 2.500
15 * 1.25 = 18.750
2 * 1.25 = 2.500
11 * 1.25 = 13.750
Gunther and Petra will need to make a total of 3 recoveries (yikes!), with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 57.500 on this driving test.


Highwayman-2: 143.000 of 450
11 * 1.00 = 11.000
14 * 1.00 = 14.000
8 * 1.00 = 8.000
3 * 1.00 = 3.000
12 * 1.00 = 12.000
13 * 1.00 = 13.000
7 * 1.00 = 7.000
Highwayman-2 will need to make only 1 recovery, with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 68.000 on this driving test.

There are four rolls on this post. The first three are for Gunther and Petra, and the last one is for Highwayman-2. If there is a 1 in either of these dice pools, then that means that the car the pool belongs to has crashed.

Rolled 2, 2, 16, 4, 8, 3, 4, 1, 18, 1, 2, 7, 13, 19 = 100 (14d20)

>>4507634
With that last set, there have been 10 rolls of a 1d8, and not a single 1! We're overdue!

Same as before, the first 7 of these rolls are for Gunther, and the last 7 of these rolls are for Highwayman-2.

Rolled 2, 4, 7, 5, 3, 7 = 28 (6d8)

>>4507639
Fourth Leg of the Bangor Sprint

Gunther and Petra: 256.000 of 400
2 * 1.25 = 2.500
2 * 1.25 = 2.500
16 * 1.25 = 20.000
4 * 1.25 = 5.000
8 * 1.25 = 10.000
3 * 1.25 = 3.750
4 * 1.25 = 5.000
Gunther and Petra will need to make a total of 3 recoveries (yikes again!), with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 48.750 on this driving test.

Highwayman-2: 211.000 of 450
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
18 * 1.00 = 18.000
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
2 * 1.00 = 2.000
7 * 1.00 = 7.000
13 * 1.00 = 13.000
19 * 1.00 = 19.000
Highwayman-2 will need to make a total of 3 recoveries, with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 61.000 on this driving test.

There are six rolls on this post. The first three are for Gunther and Petra, and the last three are for Highwayman-2. If there is a 1 in either of these dice pools, then that means that the car the pool belongs to has crashed.

Rolled 19, 16, 12, 18, 8, 11, 16, 2, 9, 13, 16, 11, 16, 1 = 168 (14d20)

>>4507651
16 rolls of a d8, and not a single 1! I really thought that this was going to end in a crash you guys; but it might just go all the way.

You know the drill now, the first 7 of these rolls are for Gunther, and the last 7 of these rolls are for Highwayman-2.

Rolled 5, 7 = 12 (2d8)

>>4507655
Fifth! Leg of the Bangor Sprint

Gunther and Petra: 429.750 of 400
19 * 1.25 = 23.750
16 * 1.25 = 20.000
12 * 1.25 = 15.000
18 * 1.25 = 22.500
8 * 1.25 = 10.000
11 * 1.25 = 13.750
16 * 1.25 = 20.000
Gunther and Petra will not need to make any recoveries with 7-in-8 odds to pass. They have scored 125.000 on this driving test, and in doing so, have 'won' the car chase. The only question now is will Highwayman-2 crash or not.

Highwayman-2: 272.000 of 450
2 * 1.00 = 2.000
9 * 1.00 = 9.000
13 * 1.00 = 13.000
16 * 1.00 = 16.000
11 * 1.00 = 11.000
16 * 1.00 = 16.000
1 * 1.00 = 1.000
Highwayman-2 will need to make a total of 2 recoveries, with 7-in-8 odds to pass. If they do, then they score 68.000 on this driving test.

There are two rolls on this post. They are all for Highwayman-2. If there is a 1 in either of his dice pool, then that means that his car has crashed. Independent of Highwayman-2 crashing or not, Gunther and Petra have managed to escape pursuit.

I need to do a couple of things around the house, but I should be ready to start running after dinner, around say 7:00pm. After a bunch of false starts, finally, you are going to be heading home.

We better be given the Parasol version of a Medal of Honor got all the shit we went through for him. I mean on top of it all were even bringing back some top notch medical equipment.

Hey guys, I thought I would be able to finish all my work for tomorrow by now, but I am still trying to get stuff done. I should have a post up either over night or in the morning.

>Porch of the Safehouse, Outskirts of Bangor Maine
>Currently dark out, no moonlight, Morning of 10/31/2020
>Cold, Slightly Cloudy, Hazy(?)
>Sunrise around 7am

Gunther has driven off to get to the truck somewhere it can be hidden, and you were not able to stop Petra from running after him. He has the Greener-Martini, the truck, and his cousin. If he had not already stuck his neck out for you by getting you out of Eastern Maine Charnel House, then you might just start to worry that he would just drive off. That, and you are with all the supplies. You take a moment to look at them again, the neat stacks of boxes and bags all around the gurney.

Your immediate thought is to find something that could be used as a weapon, but the only thing that you can think of to weaponize would be a surgical implement, and not only are they out of reach, they are all packed up, so you would need to tear up a box or two to get it. Nah, your first … and last line of defense here is going to be concealment. So long as the gravel drive in the dooryard of the safehouse is not too torn up, there should not be anything that would draw attention to this house, out of who knows how many there are on this road. As you reflect on this, you think you hear an engine in the distance, but it either is far away and not getting closer, or it is just your imagination.

Minutes pass, and you find yourself again wondering if you should be wearing a mask. Who knows how many nukes went off all around the world, and here you are, sucking in air like a fucking vacuum. You try to remember what exactly you were taught about fallout and that sort of stuff. There were a few drills in grade school, when you were younger that touched on this stuff. It is basically just dust, right? Dangerous dust, like the kind you get when asbestos breaks down. Something like that. Well, you are not dusty, and the air seems … just like cold Autumn air normally is, but you suppose that does not really mean that much. If Tinn was here, you would ask him what to do, he would know what’s what with this stuff.

Your thoughts turn to Tinn, and how he was making out through all of this insanity. The man knows his stuff, he is armed and laagered to the gills, but at the end of the day, he is all alone. He is not the only one doing this thing solo though; there are a number of widows and widowers all over the lake, not to mention a fair number of bachelors and spinsters. It is to be expected, most of the permanent residents were retirees who sold their place and winterized their vacation property. A common joke was that Debouche was an open air retirement home, or a free range tapioca farm, things in that vein. It was funny then, troubling now. You knew some of these people through your work as a junkman; lot of them wanted to downsize, get rid of things they accumulated over a lifetime of … living, you guess, and they’d call you.

>>4508769
‘Non-essentials’. That is what that Chickless guy called them; and that was all it took for you to start thinking of these people as dead weight. And that is what has you worried right now. That you have become dead weight to Petra and Gunther. You suppose that’s the counter-argument for cutting of the ‘non-essentials’; if you cut someone off, you make it easier for others to cut you off when your time comes. When your time comes.

…

Jesus Christ, you need to pull your head out of your overly dramatic ass. You are not dying, and you are not going to be left to die here. And for what it is worth, Parasol’s group is not abandoning its members in their time of need, if they were, they would have left you at that fucking intersection. They are going to take care of their own, the members and their families, or there would not be any members. For that matter, they are not abandoning the others around the lake – they are not the group’s responsibility. Feeling frustrated with yourself you carefully set yourself down on the gurney (that Petra never managed to get up) and hike the blankets and comforter all the way up past your nose, as a temporary consideration against fallout. Pressing your head into the pillow, you just listen and wait.

You are not sure how much time passed, but eventually you can hear the sounds of an engine approaching. If you had to guess, you would say that it is Gunther’s truck, but you have no way of knowing for sure. But it is coming in towards Bangor, which is a point in favor of it being Gunther and Petra, and when you hear it slow down and pull in to the gravel drive in the dooryard, then that means it has to be either Gunther, because if it isn’t-

“Mantle? You okay back there?”

Thank God. There is the sound of footsteps, then a squeak of what sounds like a gate, presumably an entrance to the fenced in backyard here, then finally Gunther and Petra enter your line of sight. Both of them are shaking; Petra seems to be shivering in fright, but judging by Gunther’s smile, he seems to be excited. He has earned it; you know from casual talk with Deputies that managing to outrun pursuit is no small feat, especially in a fucking truck. But before you can congratulate him, Gunther gently places the Greener-Martini next to you again, and then speaks.

>>4508772
“Alright, Petra, you start packing the back of the truck. I am going to have to siphon gas from the would be ‘get-away vehicle’. I have half a tank left, that works out to about 50 miles. Mooseleg Lake is what, 80 miles away? Hopefully, I can get enough out…”.

>Load up in the truck as you were before, protected under the cap, but unable to see or do much of anything.
>Ask Gunther to dump the cap of the truck, so you do not hit your head again and you can actually help on the drive (either in keeping a watch or if necessary, shooting the Greener-Martini

>I should have a post up either over night or in the morning.
It is still morning.

>>4508779
>>Load up in the truck as you were before, protected under the cap, but unable to see or do much of anything.
We probably should cosnider this, but there is no fucking time. Let´s just go and wrap a blanket over our head to prevent any brain damage.

>>4508779
>>Load up in the truck as you were before, protected under the cap, but unable to see or do much of anything.
Probably best to make sure they have the Greener-Martini up there with them. Not much use back here. I say we should get the hell out of this risky area as soon as possible after loading the supplies. Maybe once we got some more distance between us and Bangor, we can afford taking the extra time to dump the cap. Though, I guess the extra protection is pretty nice and he could make better time without being concerned with our safety in the back.
>>4508840
>Let´s just go and wrap a blanket over our head to prevent any brain damage.
Sounds like a good call.

Just caught up to this thread after going over the last two overnight, good quest you've got going on here op. Happy to be along for the ride.

>>Load up in the truck as you were before, protected under the cap, but unable to see or do much of anything.
>Let´s just go and wrap a blanket over our head to prevent any brain damage.

Alright, closed and writing!

Jesus Christ. The last place in the world you wanted to go back to, excluding Eastern Maine Medical of course, is under that fucking cap. But if there is fallout or whatever in the air, then you really should be exposed. Not to mention if, God forbid, those bandits come back, you do not want to be out there shooting the breeze. What you will do is make sure that you get a good cushion going between your forehead and the fiberglass. Petra seems to have snapped out of it, at least for now, and has started looking around at the supplies, probably trying to remember how the truck was packed last time. Nah, forget the cap, but there was an important question you needed answered (besides of course, did that joke of a ‘get-away’ vehicle even have gas in it).

“You ever siphon before?”

Gunther had already half turned, but he stops and looks at you for a moment before speaking. “No, actually I haven’t. But I think I know how. Have you?” You chuckle darkly at that. “Once was enough. Give me a minute to remember, and I will walk you through it.”

>>4509323
Siphoning gas with your mouth is unpleasant and unhealthy, to put it mildly. After your disastrous attempt at it, you made a point of finding out how it is properly done, and thankfully you were able to remember just about everything you learned. First thing you need to do is get the hose in the proper position in the tank. If it is too low, touching the bottom of the tank, then you will have to suck harder, and the harder you suck, the more likely you are to get a mouthful of gasoline. If it is too high, then you risk losing the suction mid siphon and having to start all over. You want to get it to the sweet spot, with the mouth of the hose at the level the tank would be when it is between half and one-third full (assuming of course, you are siphoning a full tank) The guy you talked to, some twitching looking regular at a scrapyard you frequented, said that the trick he had learned was to feed it all the way to the bottom, and then back it out a bit. Once you positioned it, blow into the hose. If you can hear (and feel it through the hose) bubbling like milk when you blow into it with a straw, then you are at a good depth for siphoning. If just sloshes around instead of bubbling merrily, then you need to go deeper in, and if it isn’t bubbling anywhere near as much as you are blowing, then you need to ease out a bit more.

Now that the hose is in position, there are two mistakes that you, and apparently most first-time siphoners frequently make. The first is a fairly forgivable oversight, but the other is honestly a pretty retarded thing to not think of. The forgivable; you can crimp the hose. Most people, including yourself assumed that once the gas was moving through the hose, you immediately needed to get the hose as is into the bucket or whatever the fuck you were siphoning into or you will ruin the suction. This is not true. Once the gas in the hose, you can crimp the hose and the suction will keep the gas in there long enough for you to get your end where you want the gasoline to end up; the only real risk here is that you move the other end of the hose in the gas tank out of position, that would kill suction. On that point, an easy way to self-diagnose for suction issues on that end; if the hose is clear, and you can see bubbles in the gasoline as it leaves the tank in the hose, that means that you are siphoning gas and air. So bubbles in the hose mean that you have probably already lost too much suction, and will need to need to restart, as well as indicating that the hose is sitting at or near the top of the gasoline in the tank.

>>4509327
The unforgivable or the retarded mistake is forgetting how fucking quick straws work. Ever watched liquid move up and down a straw? It is pretty fucking fast. You have enough college under your belt to know that the speed that a liquid (actually, a fluid if you want to be a real egghead about it) is sucked through a hose (a duct) is relative to the diameter of the straw or the hose. And the hoses that are typically used in siphoning are a lot wider than the straws you get at fast food places … but they really are not that much bigger. Once the gas is in the hose before you even know it, you will have a mouth of the stuff. Those are the mistakes that you made; you did not think it would be knocking down your door as soon as it did, and you did not think to crimp the damned hose. So you got it in mouth, got it on your skin, your clothes, your raggedy work boots. You got it on everything, and more of the stuff went on the grass instead of in the bucket you were siphoning into.

Gunther is a quick study, and during your explanation, he asks several questions that indicate that he is thinking ahead about all of this, while Petra flits back and forth, loading the truck. His question about using a garden hose for the siphon gives you some pause; but after several-several-several seconds of thought, you are almost certain that gasoline is less viscous than water, so it still should be possible to create enough suction with your mouth to make it work, so long as the garden hose is cut to size. You make sure that he has one of the jugs of water nearby, to rinse, and have him instruct Petra on how to induce vomiting or perform the Heimlich maneuver in case he swallows any, and in the process somehow becomes incapacitated. As a final consideration, you tell him to look for any dry gas, isopropyl alcohol to mix with whatever he is able to pull out of the tank. Between the possibility of the gas being stale or getting contaminated with water in the garden hose, there is a real risk that all of this work could be for bad gas; isopropyl alcohol could at least protect against mixed in water.

Without any prompting from you, he repeats everything back to you, to make sure there are not any slip ups. He thanks you and heads off. Several minutes later, as Petra is putting away some of the final things, leaving just you and the dialysis machine, as it is too heavy for her to move alone, Gunther calls her into the garage. For a minute or so, you really cannot make anything out beyond footfalls, but then there is some swearing and clattering. Several minutes later, Gunther and Petra return, and Petra is carrying a now empty 5-gallon jug of water. You look at the two of them, but before you can think of what to say, Gunther speaks first.

>>4509328
“It really is pretty fast.” You cannot help but snort at that.

“We did get what we need, eventually. Took several tries to get what I could; I do not think that gas tank is sitting level … or something. Spilled what was left of the water after I rinsed with it too. But we got enough. 35 maybe 40 gallons; with the half-tank in there still, that should be enough to get us to your place.”

“But there wasn’t dry gas in the garage, was there?” Gunther does not need to answer that, but being the diligent sort, he does. “No, not that I could see. Petra looked too.”

Stale or wet gas is nothing to play around with. Even in tiny amounts, it can cause performance issues, and if Gunther needed to repeat the McQueen act that he did earlier, then you need all the performance that you can get of that engine. And God forbid, if all of that gas he just siphoned is bad, and it gets mixed into the engine, then you won’t have half a tank of gas, you’ll have an almost full tank of a worthless gasoline-equse liquid.

“Listen, bad gas is bad fucking news. So here is what we do. We bring it with us, instead of putting it in now. Worse case scenario, we are stuck 30 miles away, instead 80. Any objections?”

Of course, there are not any forthcoming, and your stay at the safehouse finally comes to an end. With the addition of the siphoned gas, the back of Gunther’s truck is even more crowded than it was before, and now it smells like a filling station. Honestly, the situation back here is some kind of terrible. You got medical grade equipment next to gasoline, next to water, all rattling around underneath you, with your face being practically shoved right into that fucking cap. At least Petra spends a minute to make a bit of cushion for you. After she is done, you hand her the Greener-Martini, and after some coaxing, she takes it … though she looks terrified of the damned thing.

Several hours after you left Dr. Grisham’s house, you are finally leaving the safehouse … and the relative safety of Bangor.

>Traveling in Coach, to Mooseleg Lake from Bangor Maine
>Some time after 5:00am on 10/31/2020
>Cold, presumably above freezing
>Sunrise around 7am

There have been a couple of good bumps here and there, but Petra’s handicraft with the pillows has held up, and you have remained conscious … though considering the conditions, perhaps being knocked out for this wouldn’t be the worse thing in the world. The gas! God, those fumes. They are enough to make your eyes water in this enclosed space. And while you are not sure, the smell might have gotten a bit more intense. Hopefully, none of them opened up. But just when you thought that things could not get any worse, there is the unmistakable sound of a gunshot. Jesus Christ, that was close enough for it to set your ears to ringing. You need to get out here!

But instead, the truck comes to a complete stop, and the engine is shut off. Your panicking now, and the reeking enclosed space under the cap starts to feel eerily similar to a coffin. How the Hell did you never notice that before? Oh yeah, you were unconscious …

Throwing caution to the wind, you start yelling. “Gunther! Get us the fuck out of here!” But still, the truck does not move. What is going on? Is the road blocked? Is this a stick up? Maybe it was not a gunshot after all, it could have been the engine. This truck was not built for high-speed chases after all, something could have just violently broken. After a second or two, you can hear the driver side door open, and then there is the sound of Gunther’s footfalls approaching the tailgate.

As unnerved as you are, for him to behave this causally, then that means, at the very least, you aren’t in any immediate danger, and you find yourself breathing a sigh of relief as Gunther opens the window on the cap to speak with you.

“We are down a harpoon. She’s alright, but … Petra was holding the thing, and she must have touched something.”

“I’ll tell you what she touched. It was the trigger. And I will give you three guesses as to how I know that. Listen Gunther; I am sure she is a nice girl, but you need to take her in hand here. She should not have been with you during that chase and she should not have been fucking with the gun. If she is not adult enough to know how to conduct herself, then you need to guide her.”

“Alright, I get it. But we are down a harpoon … I had undone the line, I don’t know where it the thing went. Without it, that means we only have a single shot left – or three, if we can somehow manage to retrieve the harpoon three times.”

>Spend some time looking for it, but leave the truck running and don’t leave line of sight.
>Forget it, we need to keep moving. With any luck, that will be the first and last time the gun fires on the trip anyway.

>>4509383
Depending on how far away we are from our final destination, it may be a good idea to cut out losses and just fuck off without the meme machine.

The idea of being out and about unarmed isn't fun, but wandering around on foot also unarmed to find an inefficient single shot weapon doesn't bode well either.

>Forget it, we need to keep moving. With any luck, that will be the first and last time the gun fires on the trip anyway.

if it shows up in an enemy's hands later, imma be salty af though

>>4509443
Oh no, it isn't that bad. We had two harpoons and four cartridges. Petra had an ND, then we have three cartridges and one harpoon. So we still have the weapon, we just are down a harpoon; they are intended to be recovered and reused. The gun itself is still safe in our possession.

>>4509383
>>Forget it, we need to keep moving. With any luck, that will be the first and last time the gun fires on the trip anyway.
Just cranked a shot off in the dead of night. If there's anybody around here, they may be coming to investigate, probably armed. Or they could see us searching, and decide to ambush us up the road. It'd be best just to forget it, and get out of here before trouble finds us.

>>4509464
Oh sick, in that case yeah i definitely got no problem leaving it behind. Reinforcing my stance, let's skedaddle.

On a long-term thinking tangent, I'd imagine we could maybe make some harpoons out of scrap metal? But the usefulness of that is probably dependent on how we could manufacture the pressurized air cartridges, which are probably a step or three more complex.

Not to mention there are more important potential projects to put the resources into tbqh.

>>4509529
>>4509490
Alright, sounds good. I'm cooking dinner right now, but I should be able get at least one more post before the overnight vote.

>>4509529
>>On a long-term thinking tangent, I'd imagine we could maybe make some harpoons out of scrap metal? But the usefulness of that is probably dependent on how we could manufacture the pressurized air cartridges, which are probably a step or three more complex.
First, yes, you certainly can attempt to build harpoons out of scrap metal, or commission a metalworker to make one, which would probably be a better use of your time. Second, the Greener-Martini doesn't use pressurized air, it uses proprietary .38 caliber S&W Special Blanks. So that is a mixed bag; having a gunsmith make special brass for the blanks would be much easier to get right than to make decent single use air cartridges. On the other hand, air is a lot more plentiful than gunpowder.

File: metro-2033-redux-weapons-7.png (33 KB, 600x361)

33 KB PNG

>>4509584
>On the other hand, air is a lot more plentiful than gunpowder

The renewable potential of pneumatic weaponry, harpoon aside, is something I'd seriously consider researching if ammo/gunpowder scarcity becomes a late game concern.

If people could make it out of the subway scraps available in the Metro 2033 universe (pic related), I can't imagine it'd be a stupidly tall order to get something with the penetrating power of a relatively weak .22 shooting out cast balls of scrap metal.

But that's for way later, if ever. We haven't even gotten back to home sweet home yet

>>4509616
If you ever think that people wont make guns, think again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQG1bHugZRA

now this is some hot fucking garbage right here.

>>4509383
>>Forget it, we need to keep moving. With any luck, that will be the first and last time the gun fires on the trip anyway.

“Jesus Christ. That thing weighed what? Pound? Pound and a half? How far could that spear travel after blasting through the roof?” You can hear him shifting, maybe to shrug, but all you can see is the roof of the damned cap looming out of the darkness. You cannot even shift yourself to try to look at him, or you risk losing the cushioning Petra pulled together for you. Everything about this situation is frustrating, but at least you can give the man an answer. “I don’t know, if it were the only one we had, then yeah, it would probably be worth the time. But we got a spare. Just forget it. Leave it for the next guy.”

“I don’t know, I mean … if we give it up, that means all we realistically count on is one shot.”

For God’s sake. You have always been pretty even keeled, but after everything that you have been through you are seriously tempted to start yelling at Gunther. It is a temptation that you are able to overcome, this time at least.

“Gunther, running the risk of sounding passive-aggressive, I’m not exactly in a position to stop you from looking for the damned thing. But by the same token, if anything were to happen, I wouldn’t be much help, now would I? Okay, sure. We can only realistically count on one shot. And if we had the other one, we could realistically count on two shots. Think about it like this, how many situations could we get out of with those two shots, that we could not get out of with the one we actually have? Can you think of any? I can’t. So that means there are two types of situations that we are going face. Ones that we’d be screwed in, even if we had both of the harpoons, or ones that we can get through with just one skewer. So, forget about it, and let’s get going. Stopping like this is dangerous.”

You are not entirely sure if you were able to articulate the point you were trying to make about having both harpoons compared to having just the one, but its seems that the message got through regardless, as after a second or two, Gunther agrees with your assessment. Before he buttons up the cap again, he mentions that he will have Petra open the back window on the cab, so the three of you can talk. He had kept it closed, thinking that you would want to get some sleep, which strikes you as a non sequitur. It is only until Gunther turns the truck back on after having Petra open the window that you understand. Over the ruckus of the engine, you can hear the unmistakable caterwauling of a boyband. Of course, Petra’s listening to tapes, so now all of you are.

>>4509752
A dozen tracks on the cassette and an eternity later, you are just about at the end of your rope. But as you were about to ask Petra to shut the window, Gunther says something that you cannot quite make out. You can clearly hear Petra say ‘what?’ though. Before you try to get their attention, Gunther speaks up, loud enough for you to hear.

“Mantle, can you hear me back there?” You tell him that you can now, and luckily, it seems that he can hear you too. “Tell me what you make of this. There was a sign that was taken down, we just passed it.”

A sign? You think on it for several-several seconds. If you had to guess, then someone has taken it upon themselves to make this neck of the woods harder to move through for people not from the area. Honestly, it isn’t a bad idea … something you might want to mention to Parasol. You explain your theory to Gunther, of course, excluding any mention of Parasol or a group in the process. His follow up question gives you more than a little bit of pause, however.

“So, should we be worried about it?”

A fair question. It shows that someone ‘smarter than the average bear’ is in the area, someone who is willing to disadvantage others to protect themselves, and possibly their neighbors. But it is a leap from obfuscating locations to actually trying to target people passing through. If the signs were swapped or altered to funnel people into an area, then yeah, worry about that, obviously. But just removing them? It is a pain, and at a certain level it could be considered malicious, but it does not seem to you to be something that a would-be highwayman would do.

You explain your thoughts on the matter to Gunther, who readily agrees with your assessment of the issue. And that is all that is said on the matter, for several-several minutes.

Until you got to the bridge. You never actually saw the thing, but Gunther did a pretty decent job of describing it. Spanning a small tributary river was a trellis bridge. Like the route you were on, it was two lane, but it was a really narrow two lane. Narrow enough that it maybe should have been considered as a one lane. At the very least, it was narrow enough to have precipitated an accident. Just about in the middle of the bridges span, there had been a head on collision between a small pickup and a mail truck. It was a mess; the road was blocked. Obviously, under normal circumstances, you would take a detour. But its still dark out, and the road signs in this area have been removed. You cannot afford to waste gas getting lost … but is it safe to try to clear the bridge? While the blockage is almost certainly exactly what it seems, it does not change the fact that on the bridge you are pretty exposed.

>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
>Signs or no signs, this is a river for Christ’s sake. How can you get lost if you just follow the river? There has to be another bridge sooner or later.

>>4509757
>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.

Gunther holds the weapon while Petra clears the shit up. For the love of god, I don't trust her hair-trigger ass to make a good shot.

What's our ETA to Mantle's place by the way? Either in miles, or time wise assuming typical conditions. I forget if Mantle's homestead is even the intended destination at this rate, this is one dense and m e a t y quest to digest info from

>>4509684
Fuckin love Ian and the wacky firearms he manages to show off.

>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
Odds are, even if this is intentional, its more likely at this early point in time that it is the work of someone deterring raiders than someone hunting others. That's my guess.

>Addendum: Advise Gunther of thoughts on this being to deter raiders and to use his best judgement if confronted while clearing the road but remember that people are scared and parley is an option.

>>4509757
>>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
I'm positive that we're going to have to lose out on some of our supplies to get back to Mooseleg. Hopefully these people won't demand any. Fucking around in the dark looking for a bridge while burning gas is barely worse than fucking around on a sketchy bridge that is going to get us into a confrontation.
>>4509817
>>Addendum: Advise Gunther of thoughts on this being to deter raiders and to use his best judgement if confronted while clearing the road but remember that people are scared and parley is an option.
Sure, why not. He should scope out the wreck on the bridge with the Greener-Martini before getting to work clearing anything. If there is anybody lying in wait to ambush them, best to find them while he's ready and alert.

>>4509878
Agree with this post

>>4509878
sounds smart enough, +1

>>4509757
>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
>Addendum: Advise Gunther of thoughts on this being to deter raiders and to use his best judgement if confronted while clearing the road but remember that people are scared and parley is an option.

>>4509757
>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
You know, this might be just a baseless supposition, but perhaps whis is why Parasol´s group stole the train wagons? They could act as mobile barricades and they are heavy enough to stop any would be attacker for a long time. Hell, if there are old ass wagons, they migh be made out of steel, which could make them into poor-man´s bunkers.

>Signs or no signs, this is a river for Christ’s sake. How can you get lost if you just follow the river? There has to be another bridge sooner or later.

I really hope this has been prepared by Parasol´s group.

>>4510114
>No need to make a mountain out of a molehill; clear the blockage and move on.
>Addendum: Advise Gunther of thoughts on this being to deter raiders and to use his best judgement if confronted while clearing the road but remember that people are scared and parley is an option.

Change to his. I messed up.

Alright, pretty solid support for clearing the blockage. I will get to writing it up.

>>4509792
We are about halfway there, roughly 40 miles out. And yes, the final destination is intended to be your homestead, but if you want to send them somewhere else first, you could do that too.

"Gunther, I need you to reiterate something for me. You say that it looks like a head on collision. But can you see debris, damage on the trucks themselves?"

"Uhh ... yeah. There are a few bits and pieces on the pavement, and I can see where the pickup crumpled up a bit." There is a pause, and blessedly, he shuts off the cassette player. "Were you thinking that this was a set up? Like it had been staged?"

"The thought had crossed my mind, yeah. But if you can actually see damage and debris like that, then that points to this being the real McCoy. Still, that doesn't mean that this situation is safe here. Just because the accident was genuine, that doesn't mean that someone could have set up an ambush over it later. Of course, if there was an ambush, it might not be on the bridge, it might be further down the road on a potential detour. Honestly, I - actually, another question. How much gas is left in the tank?"

"Bit under an eighth on the gauge, so probably around a tenth of a tank left. 10 miles and change."

Jesus. The sun will be coming up soon, and you aren't entirely sure if that is a good thing or not. Underneath you, there are 35 to 40 gallons of very questionable gasoline. Assuming it runs, it should be enough to get you home, even with a few small detours, so it isn't if as you didn't have options here. You sigh in frustration as you wrestle with this latest hiccup.

"Gunther, you are going to need to clear this. We can't afford to play Lewis and Clark with barely enough gas to get to the lake. Have Petra switch over to the driver seat, so we can get moving as quick as possible if we need to. Don't bring the truck in until the last possible moment, we don't want to get boxed in on the bridge. Clear the debris around the wreck by hand, and then see if there is enough room to squeeze by. If there isn't we will just have to push through it with your truck. And don't forget to bring the gun with you."

>Can I have one anon roll 1d10 please? (As always, higher is better)

Rolled 4 (1d10)

>>4510215
Alright, I will get to writing.

Any method Gunther knows of to check the gas quality now that time is slightly less scarce than it was back at the checkpoint? Burning a sample on the ground maybe?

Wouldn't be surprised if that would require an intelligence/perception or "did this draw attention" check though, but I thought I'd put it out there.

>>4510257
Gasoline doesn't burn slow like oil, it is much more explosive. And beyond visual checks, no, there really isn't much you can do to diagnose the quality of the gas. Almost done with the post.

Gunther has been working at it for several minutes now, and Petra has moved over into the driver seat, even though her worth there is questionable, considering that she does not know how to drive stick. Quite honestly, you would be surprised if she knew how to drive period, but you leave that thought to yourself. Some more time passes, and Gunther comes back, sounding slightly out of breath. He managed to clear away the debris on the ground around the wreck but was unable to push or shift the wreck clear on his own. You had figured that he probably would not be able to, but it was worth a shot. Petra shifts back over to the passenger seat, and then Gunther coasts his truck onto the bridge.

If there is an ambush set over this bridge, then this is the optimal moment to spring it. All you would need is a comparably sized truck to come up and block your escape to the rear. Even if Gunther was to try to push his way through, there is still the risk of being pinned between the wreck and the ambushing truck. But after a moment of thought, you realize that odds are good that with everyone as on edge as they are, if there was an ambush, it would have been sprung, probably as soon as Gunther left the truck … for fear of letting the ‘prey’ get loose.

Maybe there really is nothing to worry about here.

>>4510360
In the end, you are half-right. The ambush on the bridge that you worried about did not materialize. There were no bandits or locals to threaten you and your companions at gunpoint. But that did not mean that you got through this ordeal unscathed. The first two attempts to gingerly push through the wreck only made more of a mess. Further complicating all of this in the angle that the wreck sat at. Attempt to drive straight down the middle of the bridge through the wreck was impractical. To line things up optimally, Gunther had to position himself right next to the guardrail on the left side of the road, and then carefully make a hard right turn into the wreck to try to get between the two of them.
It was on the third try, the most forceful attempt, that you broke through, though considering the toll that it took on the truck you cannot in good consciousness call it ‘charmed’. It was not like passing through a turnstile, where each of the wrecks spun open to admit passage. No, the wrecks, have already been snagged together by the collision were now snagged on Gunther’s truck as well, and his unfortunate pickup now was dragging everything with it, and attempts to reverse out of were not successful either.

At one point Gunther actually got out again, to try to untangle the latter-day Gordian Knot with no serious success. Your nerves had begun to fray again from the delays in the overexposed and compromised position, you suggested Alexander’s tried-and-true method. Brute force. The wreck clung to the truck nearly to the end of the bridge, and you were considering telling him to stop, when finally, one after the other, the remains of the pickup and the mail truck gave way. But even as you drove away from that bridge, you could already feel that something was wrong with the way that the truck was driving. Gunther kept needing to make corrections, and the engine sounded much raspier than it had before.

The full damage report did not come until later, after an appreciable distance had been placed between all of you and the bridge. After some discussion, Gunther and you decided that it would be best to put the questionable gas in while there was still some clean stuff in the tank, in hopes that it would help overcome any shortcomings of the siphoned stuff. After passing a visual inspection in the headlight of the truck, the questionable gasoline was poured in. Before starting up the engine again, Gunther filled you and Petra in on the condition of the truck.

The front left wheel was visibly out of alignment, and the intake on the front end had been stove-in, now coolant was leaking inside the engine bay. Even if the gasoline was clean enough to run, this could be the last trip this truck ever made. And if God forbid, you got in another chase with this thing, you could not count on a repeat performance. [In Driving Tests, Gunther’s truck now rolls 1d4 for Recoveries, 1d6-2 for Handling Modifiers and 5d12 for scoring].

>>4510365
It is kind of sad, really. From what little you saw of it, it looked like Gunther had been taking good care of this thing. To see … or to be told at least, about how it has been stricken like this, is unfortunate. Especially considering how valuable good vehicles are with the way the world is right now. In fact, now that you think about it, this truck is the most valuable thing that Gunther owns right now. Does this mean that you … owe him? One of the reasons you hate unsolicited favors is that you are never entirely certain how to (or if to) repay them.

>By making a place for him and Petra in your homestead, you are saving their lives as he is saving your life right now. This is all a part of the ‘deal’, such as it is.
>You should help him source materials and cover the costs of labor to rebuild the truck to the point that such a thing is possible.
>You should use one of the several big favors that Parasol owes you to get him a new truck, or at least some sort of vehicle.
>You have two trucks, if he is going to be living with you, then really, giving him your ‘commuter’ really is not that big of a deal.
>Giving him your spare truck, burning a favor from Parasol to source one, or fronting the materials and pay for the labor to rebuild this is a bit much. He should get something, a big gift, nice and practical certainly, just … not that much.

>>4510368
>You should help him source materials and cover the costs of labor to rebuild the truck to the point that such a thing is possible.

Never hurts to show a bit of good faith. Or to have another vehicle in good condition hanging around and available at the stead.

>>4510372
Yeah, supporting this.
Guy's done a lot for us.

>>4510372
On second thought, this stance may change depending on how further fucked the truck may or may not be from the questionable gas. If the engine itself starts approaching uselessness, then it may not be worthwhile to follow through with a repair effort.

>>4510381
>>4510372
Okay, I guess I will count this a tentative vote for sourcing materials and covering repair costs, conditional on the practicality of the repairs.
>>4510378
And this will be a definitive vote for.

Alright, I guess that will be enough. Consider the vote closed, and I will get to writing.

>Traveling in Coach, to Mooseleg Lake from Bangor Maine
>Probably a bit before 7:00am on 10/31/2020
>Cold, definitely above freezing
>Sunrise around 7:00am

Under the current circumstances, Gunther has made an incredible series of sacrifices for you. He deserves something beyond room and board in exchange. Assuming the truck is has not been completely totaled by the time you make it to the homestead; you should do your best to source the parts and cover the labor to have it completely rebuilt. If you had ruined or seriously damaged one of your trucks doing an incredible favor for someone else, that is what you would want (though admittedly, you would not actually expect that of anyone). There is a part of you that wants to promise this to Gunther right now, because telling him will hold you to it … but you decide to wait. First, the truck might not make it to the homestead at all if the gas is bad, and bringing up the future like that sort of feels like jinxing it. Secondly, you would want to surprise him with it.

Your thoughts on the matter are interrupted by the sound of the engine attempting to turn over. There had been some consideration about filling the tank with the engine running, simply out of fear that in its current condition it might not start again, but in the end, you were all more afraid of the truck catching fire than being stranded, so the engine had been shut off for the refueling. Might not have been the best decision, honestly. You had not thought about it, but with two potential points of failure; the damaged engine and the questionable gas, then diagnosing problems would be –

There is a loud thump, but then the unmistakable sound of an engine turning over. Gunther experimentally presses the gas, and you can hear the engine’s straining roar. The truck is put in gear, and with a lurch, the last leg of the journey begins. Gunther is laughing with relief, and Petra is just saying “Oh, thank God” over and over.

>>4510576
Time and miles pass. Compared to the preparation, start and the first leg of this journey, the last leg is smooth sailing, especially once you moved out of the area where the signs were taken down. The engine sounds maybe a little bit worse than it did when it first turned over, but it is hard to tell. You suppose that the important thing is that it is still running. The smell of gasoline is still pretty strong under the cap, even what must be nearly an hour after the gas had been removed. As you shift your swaddled head slightly, trying to scratch an itch on your forehead, you find yourself wondering what is worse for your health, gas fumes or fallout. But it is not all bad; there is noticeably more and more light filtering into the cap, and that is not even considering that all of the windows back here are tinted. The bumps and jumps are beginning to get to you a bit more though, so you would imagine that at this point whatever was left of any painkillers have worn off.

You hear Gunther murmur something, and the truck comes to an unexpected stop. Even over the rasp of the engine, you can make out the noise of him shifting in his seat to face you.

“Mantle … the road here is blocked”.

“Another accident?”

“No, this is deliberate. There are loose piles of wooden utility poles on both sides of the road, and they got those metal pegs or rungs sticking out of them, and some other scrap metal sticking up out of the tangle, like small spikes. And parked in the road, one in each lane, are two snowplows, both of them facing us. There is something painted across the blades … ‘Lake Closed’ on the left and ‘No Entry’ on the right.”

“What color are they? The trucks themselves?”

“Uh … Petra, what would you call that?”

“Looks like Aquamarine. Kind of a strange color pallet for a plow truck, but it looks better than I would have thought.”

You never thought that you would be so overjoyed to see – or rather, to be told about the ridiculous paintjob on Debouche’s dedicated snowplows. A year or two before that you moved in, Public Works bought several vehicles, including those tacky trucks, at auction. They were scheduled to be repainted in the typical blaze orange before they needed to be put into use, but apparently the snow came early that year, so they were put on duty without the repainting. Public works was then planning on painting them during the off season, but apparently people liked the look. Honestly, you were pretty sure that it was some sort of DOT violation or whatever, but the trucks never were repainted.

This is it. You made it back in one piece … more or less. Now the only question remains is to how to get to the homestead.

>Have Gunther go in on foot to find someone to move the trucks
>Have Gunther fire off the Greener-Martini to signal to whoever made the barricade here
>Have Gunther backtrack a bit and find another way into the town if he can

>tfw begin reading the quest archives for the first time
>check the date on the corner of my eye
Fuck, I'm going to have to take notes.

>>4510578
>Have Gunther go in on foot to find someone to move the trucks

Make sure one of the first things he says is our name. Assuming the Public Works vehicle indicates this was made by Parasol's group, letting them know they're here to help Mantle get home vs just some potential highwayman randos wandering around.

>>4510579
Welcome, comrade. Welcome to the end of the world.

whoops, messed up that post
>>4510578
>Have Gunther go in on foot to find someone to move the trucks
Mantle's back, time for what's probably going to be an incredibly disappointing homecoming.
>>4510610
and yeah, mention our name immediately

>>4510616
As long as his mum and the lock-picking dude are there and well-ish, I'm sure that will be a solid serotonin boost for Mantle.

But yeah, no doubt there will be further troubles to tackle ahead, seen and unforeseen.

>Have Gunther go in on foot to find someone to move the trucks.

Alright, I will get to writing this up.

>>4510610
Damn, I've read through the archives. Every paragraph is the apex of brilliance. Mantle has some balls.

>>4510900
He's one tough cookie. Downing a bull moose with a sidearm, firing an LMG like a boss, and standing up to torture pretty damn solidly as far as I'm concerned. Not to mention his wit.

but at this rate, he's got more like a ball and a half

>>4510910
Yeeeeeah. Shit is irreparably fucked. Parasol owes him, big-time.

Also we should've greased Carter when we had the chance. I don't even care that he's a manlet or doing what he thought was right, dude's the exact type of sanctimonious faggot I cannot comprehend. If anything it's even worse that he was in the right, albeit not from a utilitarian standpoint, but we are a FUCKING big dick minus 0.5 testicles objectivist, so who cares? Fuck. I hope we don't get rolled by the Maine National Guard once they begin to consolidate. Our best chance is sunk cost fallacy, make them pay more to deal with us than it's worth. Christ's sakes, all we ever wanted was to salvage.

>>4510939
Now we can say we literally busted our balls for him.

Curious to see what options this open up to us, regarding his trust.

>>4510965
Think about the weight of everything he's managed, from Parasol's point of view.
>budget game warden that collects garbage to pay the bills
>more than possibly autistic, almost no obligations toward him
>in the span of one week-
>recovers a (small, stranded) tank with an M240
>nigh-singlehandedly saves the lives of eight loyal men
>prevents the complete undercutting of the operation, is captured
>withstands prolonged testicular torture without spilling the beans
>brings back an (apparent) nascar hobbyist and random thot with an easy ten or fifteen childbearing years left
>along with a small ward of medical equipment, the totaled remains of a truck, and a legitimate harpoon
That's huge.

Hey guys; quick update. Working on the next post took a little longer than I thought it would, largely on account of needing to figure out what the situation looks like in the town. Wound up falling asleep on you guys again, sorry.

I have an assignment due at 10:00am Eastern Standard Time, but after that, my day is pretty damned free, so I should be able to get the posts up around noon. Thanks for understanding, and while I am at it, I'd also like to thank the several new players who have come along for the ride.

>>4511404
No worries, man. Looking forward to our return to Mooseleg after all this time. Good luck on your assignment this morning.

>>4511404
Take all of the time you need, your work is worth the wait.

>>4511404
No problem, thanks for running. Really enjoying the quest, glad I jumped into the first thread instead of waiting to see if this lived.
>>4510625
>As long as his mum and the lock-picking dude are there and well-ish, I'm sure that will be a solid serotonin boost for Mantle.
Oh yeah, if mom is alive and we haven't been robbed then we're already off to a really good start.

>Traveling in Coach, to Mooseleg Lake from Bangor Maine
>Well after 7:00am on 10/31/2020
>Cold, definitely above freezing
>Sunrise around 7:00am

“Those are Debouche’s snowplows … we just need to find someone to move the trucks for us, and we can get to the homestead.”

Petra starts to cheer at that, but is abruptly stopped by Gunther. For several seconds, all you can hear is the rasp of the engine as it idles. Then Gunther speaks, his voice sounding a bit huskier than usual. “Before I do anything, before Petra and I get inextricably involved in whatever this thing of yours here is, I want to know everything. I said I was going to get you home, and I intend to, no what matter what. But if the situation here is too dangerous, then … I don’t know about all of this. Maybe the two of us could find somewhere else to stay.”

Is he fucking serious? You are a stone’s throw away from home, and now he springs this dogshit on you? You take several increasingly deep breaths as you try to focus. If you really think about this, his hesitation is reasonable. He does not really know anything about you or the situation beyond the Guard implicating you with a group of overambitious trainrobbers. No doubt that he has a lot of questions, and with everything that has been going on, there really have not been any opportunities for him to ask you. And of course, he is responsible for Petra. If you were in his position, having to provide for yourself and a relatively defenseless relative with noting more than a dying truck with about 10 miles of gas left and a fucking harpoon gun, you’d probably want to know about the situation here on the lake before making any serious commitments.

You have been through so much to get back home, this is just one last little bump on the way. So, you shift yourself on the gurney and resign yourself to explaining the situation from the beginning, starting from when you received the call from Parasol, just before midnight on the 27th. But you had only gotten to the point where he explained how he figured out that a Nuclear World War was imminent before you were interrupted by the sound of an airhorn, followed by two more in quick succession. No doubt about it, there was someone watching you in one of the plowtrucks!

>Tell Gunther to drive off for now, so you can take your time explaining the situation to him.
>Tell Gunther to kill the engine and wait for the watchman to make the next move. While you wait, try to bring Gunther and Petra up to speed as quickly as possible.
>Tell Gunther to kill the engine, get out of the truck and approach the barricade unarmed to identify yourselves before things spiral out of control here. While you wait, try to bring Petra up to speed as quickly as possible.

>>4511531
>Tell Gunther to kill the engine, get out of the truck and approach the barricade unarmed to identify yourselves before things spiral out of control here. While you wait, try to bring Petra up to speed as quickly as possible.
This is the likeliest to keep everyone alive and they don't have to invest themselves immediately. Gunther's a decent guy, he'll understand and if Petra goes into hysterics, he can calm her down.

>>4511531
>Tell Gunther to kill the engine and wait for the watchman to make the next move. While you wait, try to bring Gunther and Petra up to speed as quickly as possible.
Wait, rescind >>4511534, I forgot we aren't able to move yet and an unknown male approaching the wall could be a bad idea. Is it possible to roll down the window and shout our name?

>>4511534
+1

how reasonable would it be for us to get out and present ourselves? are we still too weak? with some luck, we could deal with that situation with ease.

Shit, will the watchman even recognize us by name? This is hopefully one of the deputies we saved, but chances are they're doing something more important, like resolving the situation at the prison.

>>4511531
>Tell Gunther to kill the engine, get out of the truck and approach the barricade unarmed to identify yourselves before things spiral out of control here. While you wait, try to bring Petra up to speed as quickly as possible.

Verbally introduce ourselves loudly from our position BEFORE we move to exit the vehicle. Let Gunther be our human crutch if need be, asking someone to come out from their defensible position to come take a look would reek of suspicion.

>>4511538
>>4511541
I agree with both of you. What's important is that they know who we are and pass that on up the chain to Parasol and co. They might not know, but they will, and we've done a metric fuckton for them.

>>4511541
+1

Alright, I will get this written up.

File: pelican-military-medical-(...).jpg (171 KB, 1200x698)

171 KB JPG

Jesus Christ. “Gunther, roll down the windows and then kill the engine.” He does not respond to that immediately, and the engine continues to rasp on idle. “Gunther, please. We are going to need to identify ourselves, and for that, they are going to need to be able to hear us.” But still, the engine continues to run. Even in your exhausted and frustrated state, you have managed to puzzle out what is going on. Gunther is almost certainly worried that if he were to kill the engine it would not start up again. It is a legitimate concern; earlier you had been wondering if it sounded worse, but now that it had been idling a bit, you could tell that it quite obviously was. But as you were just about to get desperate, Gunther finally kills the engine, and its rasp coughs and sputters into silence. Thank God. Thank Gunther.

“Thank you, Gunther, thank you. Now, I think we are going to need to identify ourselves. If you would be willing to get out and –

“This Parasol, the one running this thing. I want to meet him; talk to him. Then I … then Petra and I will make a decision on if we stay here or not.”

“Sure, that shouldn’t be any problem.”

There is a moment of silence, but it is shattered by another series of blasts from the airhorn on one of the plows. Damn it, Gunther is going to need to identify yourselves before the watchman progresses beyond honking at you. But just before you ask to reiterate your instructions, Gunther beats you to the punch with another demand.

“And I want a guarantee from you that if I go to speak with this Parasol, they he isn’t going to steal my truck, or any of its cargo, regardless if I stay with you or decide to move on elsewhere. And compelling me to exchange it for something, or if I decide to stay with you, having it be ‘held’ for me by this group of yours counts as stealing, at least in my book.”

That … could be a problem. You understand where Gunther is coming from; this load of medical supplies is probably actually worth its weight in gold. It represents an incredible bargaining chip; and excluding the truck, it is his only bargaining chip. In his position, you would be loathe to just hand it over, no questions ask. No one, not even someone as congenitally caring and benevolent as Dr. Grisham would. Admittedly, you had sort of started thinking of it as ‘your’ supplies too, but so long as you are able to use the dialysis machine as needed, then you should be alright with whatever arrangements. The sticking point is the rest of the group; you have no idea how the group is dealing private ownership of critical supplies. And if Gunther does decide to move on, then would the group just let him drive off into the sunset with them?

>>4512177
Lots of choices on this one. I had a hard time figuring out how I wanted the arrival to shake out

>Promise Gunther that his property rights will not be violated, and use whatever favors or influence necessary to ensure that this is the case.
>Promise Gunther that his property rights will not be violated, and advocate for him without explicitly calling in favors.
>Promise Gunther that his property rights will not be violated, and just hope that it will work out that way for him.
>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but you will do everything you can to see his property rights respected by calling in favors.
>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but you will do what you can to see his property rights respected by advocating for him, without calling in favors.
>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but tell him that he should have nothing to worry about.
>Tell Gunther that what he is asking for is unrealistic; if he does not decide to stay on the lake the group will no doubt take the supplies by force
>Tell Gunther that what he is asking for is really unrealistic; the group is going to lay claim to the supplies the minute that they see them.

>>4512183
>Promise Gunther that his property rights will not be violated, and advocate for him without explicitly calling in favors.
If he's going to be living with us then touching his supplies is the same as messing with the Mantle faction. If not... we can try to help him best he can and ensure nothing happens, he's been fine to us. That shouldn't be impossible. That's unless he wants to take the dialysis machine with him of course, in which case we simply can't let him leave whether we want to or not.

>>4512183
>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but you will do everything you can to see his property rights respected by calling in favors.

It's the most factually accurate statement we can give, especially since a lot could have happened in the two (three?) days we were KO'd and otherwise out of the loop.

Would help our case to explain how "in" Parasol's group we are, and how much we did for him, to elaborate on how much leverage we've got. And that at the blue sitting room meeting at the start of this mess we did ad a group agree on a "no mandatory communal resource pooling" stance

>>4512183
>>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but you will do everything you can to see his property rights respected by calling in favors.
Yeah. We did a lot for Parasol. Gunther, and Grisham have in turn, done a lot for us. I think we owe it to him to reciprocate that by calling in some favors, even if it is a bit of a waste burning them on something like this. Hopefully this won't be necessary, and he decides to stay. Parasol seems like the sort who can make a good impression, he seemed like he had it figured out during that first meeting. Hopefully he's still holding his composure together after the time we spent in Bangor.
>>4512217
>Would help our case to explain how "in" Parasol's group we are, and how much we did for him, to elaborate on how much leverage we've got. And that at the blue sitting room meeting at the start of this mess we did ad a group agree on a "no mandatory communal resource pooling" stance
Definitely. Be sure to mention this. Inner circle and all that. May not exactly be an essential cog in the machine, but certainly a valued one.

>>4512217
Just double-checked near the start of thread #2 to see if I misquoted, and yeah, we did agree on the housing on demand stance.

I know that was more a "public housing at a tribute cost vs free-for-all" discussion, but I really can't imagine them wholesale commandeering a valuable resource by force. Especially with us vouching for them to, y'know, not do that.

Alright, I will leave this up for a little bit longer, and then I will close it and get to writing.

>>4512291
hey op, idk if I say this enough but thanks for running this quest. It's really fun to see shit unfold, and you're A1 when it comes to fleshing out the setting and making dynamic npcs

>>4512291
>>4512292
>hey op, idk if I say this enough but thanks for running this quest. It's really fun to see shit unfold, and you're A1 when it comes to fleshing out the setting and making dynamic npcs
Couldn't have said it better myself. Haven't been this into a quest in a while. I'll be around till the end, OP. Glad I hopped in after seeing the first thread in the catalog.

>Explain why you cannot in good conscience make a promise like that, but you will do everything you can to see his property rights respected by calling in favors.
I'll switch to this. In hindsight my other stance was a bit too stingy, Gunther has metaphorically saved our ass and literally saved our nut, and even if he left I don't think he'd try to take the dialysis machine with him. Plus, best to be transparent with him.

>Promise Gunther that his property rights will not be violated, and advocate for him without explicitly calling in favors.
We have few favors to spend. I like Gunther but he kinda let us get tortured in the first place. We have family and survival to worry about.

>>4512245
+1 to all of this.

Nice to see you again Trash, get in panic after seeing the second Thread fall into the archive and not see the third arrive until now. Thank you for sharing your story with us and letting us be a part nvn

“Gunther, I … don’t think I can promise that. I don’t know how exactly they are running things now when it comes to personal property of group members, or in your case, potential group members. That said, I have a bit of pull with Parasol, and after everything that I have been through, by my reckoning he owes me several really big favors. If it does come down to it, then I’ll call those favors in for you. And I want to put this out there; if you were to stay, then odds are whatever arrangement you want as to the medicine and stuff here would be accepted. I just can’t guarantee that because it won’t be my decision. And if you decide to try your luck elsewhere, then … after everything that you have done for me, I will do everything in my power to ensure that when you leave you do so with everything you came in with.
You can hear something that might be murmuring up front in the cab, but as you try to eavesdrop there is another series of airhorn bursts, and by the time the last one has trailed off, whatever you had heard in the cab had stopped. After an agonizing few seconds, Gunther spoke up again.

“I appreciate your honesty, Mantle. Alright. You say that you will do everything you can, then I guess under the current circumstances, that will have to be good enough. So, I suppose I need to get out and introduce ourselves now, huh?” A wave of relief passes over you, and you realize how tensed up you were. You give Gunther the instructions on how to approach the blockade, and what names to drop to ensure the fastest possible response. And within a minute, Gunther had left his truck, walked a few dozen yards towards the snowplows and was speaking to the watchman. Petra was narrating the scene to you, but there really was not much to describe.

>>4512444
Several minutes later, there was the unmistakable sounds of cruiser sirens coming up from behind you. A deputy, whose voice you did not immediately recognize came on a bullhorn and instructed everyone to get out of the truck. Petra was kind of shaken at that, but apparently Gunther was gesturing that it was alright, and after a moment to regain her composure, she complied with the order. You could hear her yelling to the deputy, explaining that you were still ‘all bundled up in the back’ and ‘couldn’t go to the bathroom on his own, let alone get out of the truck’. Jesus Christ, Petra.

You might still have been blushing about that crack when Petra, following the instructions of the deputy on the bullhorn opened up the back of the cap and dropped the tailgate. But you had recovered your composure by the time the deputy actually physically came over to check on you. No doubt he was really suspicious about the blanket that had been wadded up over your face, but you had already started talking to him, and at this point he was probably almost convinced that you were who you said you were.

You recognized the deputy, a relatively newer member of the office named Brill, and thankfully he recognized you too. He placed in a few calls on his clip radio, and after checking the rest of the truck he was satisfied that everything here was on the up and up. With that done, your 'great escape' was finally completed as asked you the million dollar question; who do you want to see first, Officer Mantle?

>Go see Oher and the Paramedics, partially to get a clean bill of health and partially to check in on how they are doing (especially Matthew)
>Go see Parasol and the Inner Circle, partially to follow through with your promise to Gunther and partially to warn them about the situation in Bangor
>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.

>>4512450

>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.

I seriously doubt Gunther will mind if we want to make out first stop at home sweet home. Everyone else can be radioed in to let them know we plan on visiting in due time.

Oh I knew I forgot something; I have been meaning to thank everyone for all the kind words of encouragement. I'm glad everyone has been enjoying the quest, I've had a lot fun writing it.

>>4512450
>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.
Hopefully things haven't gone to shit while we were out.

>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.
Do you guys think that his truck can make it to the homestead on the back logging road with the gas we have remaining? Might put the thing out of commission entirely. While we do have other trucks to fall back on, I'm a bit skeptical. Hopefully Gunther won't mind us checking up on the place, however.

who were the "two other hired men" we're expecting at our place again? Not the Light brothers I think, we declined to take them in after the blue room discussion iirc

>>4512488
>who were the "two other hired men" we're expecting at our place again?
Deputies we asked Oher to have keep an eye on the place, iirc. When we were about to pass out, and were worried about Fleckkers living alone on the property. Hopefully he isn't too pissed about that arrangement, and hopefully the deputies didn't connect all the gear Fleckkers hopefully sourced us with some kind of report from Prague Farmer's Union reporting it missing. Probably some strife between them, assuming they know who he is. Hopefully that's not a permanent arrangement, and now that we're back they can take care of other duties.

>>4512488
nvm, looked back through the thread. It was two of the deputies rescued from the convoy, one of Mantle's last requests before he passed out and got shipped to the hospital.

>>4512492
>Hopefully he isn't too pissed about that arrangement, and hopefully the deputies didn't connect all the gear Fleckkers hopefully sourced us with some kind of report from Prague Farmer's Union reporting it missing

shit, that's a good point I didn't think of. Hopefully the three of them (plus mom would make four) aren't at each others throats due to either that or some other miscommunication

>>4512497
>(plus mom would make four)
mom turns out to be the glue holding the rest of them together

>>4512499
>mom making home cooked meals and sitting them down at the table like three grumpy brothers
>successfully threatens them into compliance with a wooden spoon probably because they know Mantle would flip shit if they retaliated
>but also because they're lacking a comforting maternal figure in these trying times

>>4512503
>probably because they know Mantle would flip shit if they retaliated
Heh. The situation when we arrive is sure to be an interesting one. Hopefully we can finally catch a break.

>>4512505

>yare yare intensifies

>>4512450
>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.

Meanwhile home sweet home:
>Fleckkers: Oh, so soon back? Do you want some beef? It is fresh.
>Officers: It is so soft.
>Farm animals: * ded *

>Go see whoever is on the homestead. Besides Fleckkers, there should be two other 'hired men' ... and if she made it through, mother.
I don't got friends, I got family.

Alright, that is pretty damned overwhelming. I need to take care of a few things, and then I will get to writing.

“Deputy Brill, I would like nothing more than to just go straight home. There is somebody important waiting for me there, and I don’t wanna keep them waiting any longer.” Obviously, you are talking about your mother. You wrestle with asking Brill if he knows if she made it in … but he probably would not know. No doubt he could call and ask someone for you, but as you are working up the nerve to ask him to make that call, he’s already on his clip radio, making arrangements for an ambulance and a second cruiser to get you to your homestead. The request for a second cruiser strikes you as odd, if not alarming. With the fuel situation as it is, this is not time for honor guards. If they are calling for an escort, then it is because they think they might need it.

Your thoughts on this matter are interrupted by the sound of a much larger and healthier engine than the one on Gunther’s truck roaring to life, accompanied by the groaning and grinding of metal. Exhausted as you are, it takes you several-several moments to realize that one of the plowtrucks is moving to let you through. Brill starts to head back to his cruiser, but before he can get out of earshot, you explain the promise that you made to Gunther about no one molesting his supplies, regardless if he decides to stay with the group or not. As you could have expected, Brill says that it is not his call, but you push the point and insist that he keep an eye over the supplies until that ‘call’ has been made. The response you get to that is fairly noncommittal, but before you make a third appeal on Gunther’s behalf, or for that matter, ask him to inquire after your mother, he moves off, bellowing for Gunther and Petra to get back in their truck and drive through the barricade.

Petra, who was much closer to the truck than Gunther, gets back in first, and makes a point to thank you for telling Brill not to let anyone help themselves to the supplies. Gunther gets in several-several seconds later, and after a few abortive attempts, manages to get the engine to turn over. You make a point to ask him to take it slowly, as your head is not swaddled anymore, and finally, the truck creeps its way through the barricade. A voice you do not recognize, presumably the watchman, instructs Gunther where to park, and soon, for the first time in this debacle, you are being unloaded while you are still conscious. You are rolled over to a small pavilion, whose normally open sides have been covered up with tarps, and once you are underneath it, you see that it has been internally partitioned as well. The watchman, who is all wrapped up and wearing a full face-mask and respirator offers Petra and Gunther what appears to be a bath brush.

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>>4513157
“It’s a bath brush. For the fallout and the ash. It is not that bad now, but its better to get in the habit before it gets worse.” The man instructs the two of them how to decontaminate, hands them what appear to be cloth masks and then puts one over you. “Again, we are still probably a day or two out from the worst of it, but by now the ash is starting to settle. Inhaling it does permanent and cumulative damage to the lungs; it actually turns into cement inside of you.”

Gunther hesitatingly accepts the brush, takes his jacket, and starts scrubbing at his clothes and exposed skin. Meanwhile, Petra looks at Gunther, you and then the watchman questioningly. After a bit, she speaks up, and asks an obvious question. “What’s the difference between fallout and ash?” Even from your angle, you can see the watchman’s discomfort in the way he sort of just shrinks at that question. Eventually, he just sighs, and then gives the three of you some of the worst imaginable news.

“The ash isn’t from a nuclear strike, it’s from Yellowstone. Somehow the Reds managed to strike deep enough to induce an massive eruption. The resulting mess … they were still trying to figure out how bad it was when we lost our ARPAnet connection for the last time. Parasol says that since we got our entire first wave of IBCM’s off, and at least some of the second, then the commies shouldn’t be in any condition to invade or anything, at least not any time soon. But as far as the whole ‘war’ thing is concerned, we are losing badly … if we haven’t already lost completely, that is.

Petra has started to hyperventilate, no doubt made worse by her mask, and Gunther drops the brush to comfort her. But even with his face partially obscured with the mask, you can see that the news hits him hard too. You are just kind of shocked, unsure of how to process all of this. At no point did you ever seriously consider that America was going to just straight lose like this. In your mind, you had figured that both superpowers would get knocked around until they ran out of nukes, and then they would be in no condition to continue fighting. There might be a formal ceasefire, or maybe the fighting would just stop because there was no one left to keep it going. Then the US and the USSR would just sort of fall apart. Maybe they would Collapse completely, or maybe they would just contract before eventually reestablishing themselves. But the prospect of an actual, definitive defeat like this, even after all of the continuing intermittent strikes the Soviets were still getting in … you had at least expected America to give as good as she got. But now, on top of everything else, you are now under the threat of an actual communist invasion at some point in the future.

>>4513161
How should you deal with a situation like that? How can you? It is clear that you needed to start planning for this yesterday; while you doubt that there would be an full invasion during Winter, it is possible that they might try to establish footholds on the coasts before Winter starts in earnest, in preparation for a full scale invasion later. As you work yourself up over this, the bizarre mental image T-72s and T-94s making their way across the Orr's Island bridge as seals and puffins look on flashes before your eyes.

It is a bizarre thought, but unfortunately, it is not completely fantastical. Despite Parasol's assurances, they could be landing right now!

>Use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for militarizing the group to the greatest extent possible.
>Use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for taking the group ‘underground’, concealing it to the greatest extent possible.
>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for any of these positions; if the Soviets capable of invading Northern Maine, then fighting or hiding from them is not going to be a realistic option.

Also:
>Use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for a conditional peace with the Maine National Guard, so they are better able to defend against a potential invasion.
>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for conditional peace with the Maine National Guard; considering recent history, they will probably not be amenable to any reasonable terms, nor would they offer any serious resistance to an invading force.

>Delay making a decision on either and investigate the local situation as well as Parasol himself further.

Anyone else getting a feeling that Parasol might be a secret Communist?

>>4513169
We are not Tinn nor do we have the knowledge within our group, nor the weapons, so the option of:
>Militarization
It is not viable.
We are in a semi-mountainous area but still around a lake, the sediment under the ground is not stable enough to support improvised structures without taking risks. We don't have the knowledge or resources to build interconnected bunkers or a large central bunker, that's why we take the prison as our common home, so the option of:
>Bury us underground
It is not viable.

>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for any of these positions; if the Soviets capable of invading Northern Maine, then fighting or hiding from them is not going to be a realistic option.
I think it is our best option, BUT if someone else from the group proposes any of the previous two in a solid way and showing means, we must support it. The military option including Tinn, If he wants to join, it could be interesting for ingame story.

Also:
>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for conditional peace with the Maine National Guard; considering recent history, they will probably not be amenable to any reasonable terms, nor would they offer any serious resistance to an invading force.
I think we have plenty of reasons to know that if we give them one hand, with the other they will crack our nuts with whatever they have on hand, one by one to all of us in the lake.

>>4513169
>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for any of these positions; if the Soviets capable of invading Northern Maine, then fighting or hiding from them is not going to be a realistic option.
>Do not use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for conditional peace with the Maine National Guard; considering recent history, they will probably not be amenable to any reasonable terms, nor would they offer any serious resistance to an invading force.
There's too much shit to deal with here to worry about being invaded by foreign forces.

>>4513189
supporting.

>>4513169

+1'ing >>4513189 's decision.

We're waaaay too out of the loop to make any of the listed decisions. A catch-up meeting with what the hell happened while we were gone, and what resources we have at our disposal (personally and as a group) would be prudent, after we've taken stock of what's happening at home.

>>4513184
Supporting this. I don't think we know enough currently to really make an informed decision on either of these options.
Not quite sure about Parasol himself either.

>>4513235
>>4513184

What makes you two think he's a secret communist/commie empathizer?

>>4513242
>What makes you two think he's a secret communist/commie empathizer?
I don't necessarily think that he is a commie, but I don't think we're informed enough to make a decision based on any of these right now, and that we should save this decision for later, after we've heard his own opinion on it. He probably has some skeletons in his closet, we all do. He seems like an okay guy, but we'll probably eventually find out more about him.

Alright, I'm seeing support for continuing to monitor the situation, but not committing to any course of action yet.

>>4513189
I suppose it wasn't clear, but I mean go underground in more of a figurative sense, spread out and create several semi-independent cell, like an actual insurgency.

>>4513169
>Use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for taking the group ‘underground’, concealing it to the greatest extent possible.

by which I mean: further removing road signs, destroying bridges and infrastructure, just make the place hard to find and hard to get to.

>Use your position in the Inner Circle to advocate for a conditional peace with the Maine National Guard, so they are better able to defend against a potential invasion.

by which I mean a ceasefire, united front style.

>>4513242
Communists subvert and divide. Right now our group is another thing the National Guard has to deal with instead of defending the country. Maybe Carter "learned too much." Maybe Parasol and others like him around the country are running groups like this to distract the National Gaurd or local equivalent. Then the Soviets come in and the deal is "convert or die."

The National Guard's response of "fuck these guys" seems way too extreme instead of the expected "we're here to help but actually take all your stuff and conscript you" that I expected. Do they know something that Mantle doesn't or is this just unexpected command decisions?

Or maybe I'm just waaaaay too paranoid.

>>4513250
Are we not already a kind of insurgency? One made up of older people and part-time animal control people? Or did you mean an insurgency of the insurgency, against what remains of the American government and now the Soviets? Because the same is the same, Just change the letterhead of our cover letter :v Perhaps you have to dig deeper into that line of thought, because against the Soviets, fallout and a mega volcano, going underground sounds promising with the resources.

>>4513242
Millionaire proposing a communal house to help the people by making them share goods, benefits, work and effort. Maybe we are preparing a red outpost and we do not know. We should try to speak some Russian near our "boss", so say "how I miss the vodka of the mother land" with an accent, just to see if his reaction is a tear of nostalgia.

>>4513256
OP already clarified that the loonie who tortured us was acting on his own and basically going rogue

>>4513264
WAIT A MINUTE! there actually IS a strange Chinese guy hanging around in town!

>>4513256
>>4513267
Ok, "go underground" against Parasol then? We're doing this? Or are we just drawing conclusions while our dear QM tries not to choke on us with laughter?

This entire conversation is reminding me of this old sketch
https://youtu.be/HBURlcNpfoo
...so yeah, we just need to tell Parasol 'good morning' and see what happens

>>4513275
Just suggest ceasefire then, reaction should tell if the man is really a rusky

>>4513242
Also, while we get plausable explanations for the information he has got, predicting the initial strike was suspiciously spot on.

I'm also nervous about choosing so much loyalty to this guy without knowing more about him. He also could turn out to be like the guy who made the Snowpiercer train or be some Jeffrey Epstein or Michael Jackson-esque wierdo. Makes me wish Mantle could snoop through Parasol's home office or filing cabinet but that's suicidal levels of brazen that leads to massive negative consequences if caught(assuming a high likelyhood). A more continuous, low level watchfulness and suspicion could yield results though the cost there could be strained relations and take a long time to even have a -chance- to uncover anything-or so I assume.

In the end we have little other choice in who/which group to align with unless we find out Parasol(and perhaps the Sherriff considering Carter's actions) is a commie agent and turn him into the national guard in a daring series of feats that would make Solid Snake look like an amateur.

I guess I'm slow to assume I'm the good guy.

>>4513326
You're overthinking this - our priority isn't to be some hero, its to fucking survive.

If worst comes to worst, and parasol is some commie infiltrator, i'd rather be on his good side if the commies invade.

Better to rule in hell, than dead in a ditch.

>>4513256
>>4513326

Siding with >>4513343 on this one; even if your extrapolation of a theory is correct, I'd really rather be alive in a post-fallout environment than a dead patriot of a crumbled nation.

Pretty sure our utilitarian-minded Mantle would agree.

>>4513318
>>4513284
>>4513326
Ok, I have been absorbed by paranoia, and decided to google a little who our Parassol irl could be. According to ancestry.com, The surname began to appear from 1880 in America, but with marked income to the country from USSR in the 1950s, Being a marked exponent Grigori Parassol and family.

But I just thought, because of how the communists work and how their systems in one way or another corrupt, seeing that the government has fallen and the Maine National Guard may go after us, Does it matter if it is red? Even by being by his side in a faithful way we gain some power in our "little Russia". Survive at all costs, correct?
We could even name our tank the "Aurora", to see if it raises any approval views.

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>be Parasol
>Commies cause the apocalypse
>try my best to just stay alive
>weird antisocial animal control officer who who got injured shows back up in town
>call him over so I can thank him for engaging that tight-ass Carter in a gunfight
>get ready to update him on the situation
>upon arriving he immediately asks me if I have any vodka
>suggests naming the tank he found the Aurora and winks at me three times
>nudges me in the shoulder and mentions that my collective housing idea really was a good idea
>seems encouraged by my confusion and starts talking in butchered Russian
>tfw the dude I was planning to make one of my right-hand men is actually a commie

>>4513385

Red Scare paranoia at its finest!

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>>4513385
had a chuckle

let's not put his autism on full throttle and do more listening than rash action

>>4513385
Ok, Where do I sign for this to be canon?
Please, don't ask to Parasol if he is a red or not, but I need to see "vodka time" happen, even if it's because of the memes. After all, Mantle has to show some post-traumatic effect from the torture, That after the theme of the ring, the letter and the trains, it is not surprising that we develop some paranoia.

>>4513409
+1
Perhaps I got a little ahead of myself with the paranoia.

Your head is spinning a mile a minute as you try to process everything that the watchman just dumped on you … and your paranoia taking you to some very strange places. You had not given it much thought before, but if you recall Fleckker’s testimony correctly, then the power had been out for nearly an hour before you felt the first strikes. Loss of power in the immediate run up to any military action raises legitimate questions about sabotage. And of course, for there to be sabotage, there must be saboteurs. Now, there are alternative explanations; it is possible you weren’t able to feel the first strike because it was far enough away … but if it was far enough away that you couldn’t feel it, would it be close enough to completely knock out the power? You do not know enough about nukes or the power grid to definitively answer that.

Sabotage would explain the convenient loss of power, and it would also explain why the Maine National Guard and especially its Military Police regiment was on such a hair trigger that just saying … something wrong, you still are not sure what exactly, was enough for them to immediately go ‘medieval on your ass’. So, they thought you were a fifth columnist? Given what you know that they know, the misunderstanding makes a lot of sense. Especially if you remember that your group also went and stole a bunch of trains, that does sound like something fifth columnists would get up to. You shift in the gurney to try to get comfortable as the watchman continues leading Gunther and Petra through a full decontamination process, in the small portion of the pavilion that allowed in sunlight, strange reddish sunlight. (Just like in the Dialysis Ward. Was it caused by the Yellowstone Detonation?)

The trains represent a question that you do not have an immediate answer for. Why exactly did your group steal trains? Was it all to get at the diesel in their fuel tanks? Maybe, but that is a lot of fairly dangerous work for fuel, and it drew the attention of the Guard. Was it to keep them out of the Guard’s hands? Well, when Grisham told you about it, he said it sound like it was only a ‘few’ trains, implying that there were more left in the trainyard, and if the group destroyed or sabotaged the others, then the doctor probably would have mentioned that. So, it does not look like it was done to keep trains out of the hands of the Guard. Logically, the only reason to steal the trains, knowing full well the attention that it would inevitably draw, is that there is something important, something necessary that could only be done with trains. It is the simplest explanation; the group stole trains because the group needed trains. But for the life of you, you cannot figure out what they were needed for.

Without any explanation for the group’s actions in Bangor, you can only attempt to make conclusions instead. Conspiratorial, paranoid conclusions.

>>4513643
Parasol. Everything has been hinging on Parasol. He had information … from somewhere … that seemingly no one else had access to. He convinces a group of locals to follow him as he ‘gets the lake through Winter’, those were his own words. After everyone else has implicated themselves to the point where they cannot just walk away, he orders a seemingly pointless and attention-grabbing raid, right under the noses of the remaining civil and military authorities. Was the entire group conceived of as a way to distract and to bleed the strength of American Remnants as the Red Army prepares for an invasion? Have you been duped by a fucking Red?

Not for nothing, one of the few suggestions that he made in the Blue Sitting Room was communal housing. And him and his family were always doing charity work. If you think about it, no one would expect a rich guy to be a communist agitator!

But before you can fall any further down this hole of speculative paranoia, you are abruptly snapped out of it. The watchman had apparently been instructing the two Peakes through the decontamination process. Gunther had apparently stripped and scrubbed himself down, and was now getting dressed in fresh clothes that had been provided by the watchman. Petra, with her back facing you, was now scrubbing herself down with the brush, in a state of nearly complete undress. Her only remaining clothes were a high-cut pair of socks and very low-cut pair of panties. Both Gunther and the watchman, being gentlemen, had turned their backs to provide some semblance of privacy for Petra as she decontaminated herself. Unfortunately for her dignity, you had been left in a position where you could still see her, even as she removed the last of her clothes to finish the decontamination process, placing them with the rest of her clothes in a black trash bag, matching the one that Gunther had at his feet. As much as you enjoyed the sight of her surprisingly athletic build as she vigorously scrubbed herself down, and how light golden tan on her toned back and legs abruptly gave way to an equally toned lily-white ass, in the end (so to speak), the affair was unfortunate for you as well.

It seems that the condition that the good Officer Spry had left you in was one that was not conducive for physical arousal. Far from it actually, the pain was enough that you were seeing spots and dots.

>I need two anons to roll 1d6. If either of these rolls are ones, then that means that we draw attention to ourselves and our peeping. The post was getting long, I have an assignment I need to finish for 11:30 and it still wasn’t at a point where I could get to a ‘serious’ vote, so I figured after all of the discussion and memeing tonight, a goofy vote like this was appropriate.

Rolled 6 (1d6)

>>4513646

>>4513646

Rolled 4 (1d6)

>>4513646
Troll dice powers activate!

Good job everyone! We have managed to suffer in silence, without drawing attention ... to our attention. Unfortunately, we have to live with the knowledge that we were cock-blocked by our own left nut. I don't think I am going to have time to keep writing tonight, so we will pick this up tomorrow morning. See you all then!

Sleep tight QM.

>tfw Mantle's left nut was cracked when all he wanted to do was survive
Poor bastard.

>>4513646
I've heard about busting a nut, but this ridiculous! *laugh track*

>>4514019
Doc saved the majority of it, but the trauma of undergoing nonconsensual CBT will always haunt us

It actually takes a lot more willpower than you would have thought to not make a scene. You cannot exactly turn your head away with your neck in the brace, but you can close your eyes. Unfortunately, the mental image of Petra is not as easy to block out. God, she looks good. An unbidden fantasy, of taking her out to a back field somewhere for a picnic or something, peeling her out of a sundress (did she bring any sundresses with her?), and then bending that ass over … mphft! You need to stop this nonsense before you burst a stitch down there or something. And anyway, with concerns over fallout and volcanic ash no one is going to be wearing sundresses outside for the foreseeable future or going on picnics in random fields. Not to mention, she is what? 16 years old? Okay, so she’s legal, but that doesn’t mean that it would be a good idea to romantically pursue her … if Gunther and Petra join, then they will probably be living you. So, if you tried to … you guess court her would be the word, and it all blew up in your face, then that would be hanging over your household. Could you imagine how awkward it would be between you and Petra, or worse, between you and Gunther? Not to mention it might weird out the hired men, or –

Mother. You still do not know if she is there waiting for you. It should be a simple matter of just asking the watchman to call in and ask if she has made it in yet; someone in the Group would have to know. You hate how you are hesitating to ask, like some sort of child. She is either waiting for you at the homestead, or … she is not.

But before you can work up the courage to ask after her, you hear the sound of vehicles approaching. It must be the ambulance – and its escort. With everything that had just been dumped on you, you had not given that much thought to why an escort was necessary. As you mull this over, you can hear a rustling noise approach you, and you open your eyes to see the watchman walk over to you to start the decontamination process with you. You are considering asking him about the escort, but then you wonder if that is a good idea with Gunther and Petra still in earshot. You do not want to break ‘infosec’, or for that matter, you do not want them to be scared off. On the other hand, showing that you are willing to bring them into the loop at this point might make them more comfortable about joining up. Well, at the very least, you should ask about your mother while you can; clearly, the watchman has some sort of radio set up here.

>Ask the watchman why escorts are needed and then ask if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.
>Only ask the watchman if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.

>>4514326
The fear of disconnection is real. I wonder if medical technology is advanced enough to do corrective surgery in this setting, though I STRONGLY DOUBT any of it would be accessible to a known traitor to Maine. We need to get a codpiece ASAP.

>>4514391
>Only ask the watchman if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.
Let's ask Parasol when we get the chance. No need to get further anxiety over our situation, that would be bad for our already declining health.

>>4514391
>Only ask the watchman if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.

>Ask the watchman why escorts are needed and then ask if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.

>>4514391
>>Only ask the watchman if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.
I want to bring them into the loop, but there is a very real fear of scaring them off. I think Parasol could explain it better to the both of them, rather than some hasty explanation from the Watchman. If Parasol is actually some deepcover commie who has pulled the wool over all of our eyes, he certainly would have a better chance at dampening a potential blow.

>>4514391
>Only ask the watchman if he could check to see if your mother arrived yet.

As others have noted, let's not raise what may end up being undue panic. Especially since we basically know jack-shit regarding recent developments.

Alright, that is a 4 to 1 lead by my count. Consider this closed. I will get to writing.

>>4514326
>casually using an abbreviation for "cock and ball torture" as if it's common knowledge

sometimes I forget I'm still on 4chan here...

It is not that you are trying to keep things from Gunther and Petra, its just that … you do not want them to get scared off before anyone can properly sell them on joining up. They are not going to be in the dark forever, just let them hear the good before bad, that is all your doing here. So why does it feel kind of slimy? Maybe it is just a question of nerves about your mother. Well, if you aren’t going to ask about the escorts, then you should at least ask about her. The watchman, having since shuffled and rustled his way over to your gurney produces a third black trash bag, and carefully removes the comforter that Mrs. Grisham had put over you. As he folds it up, he conversationally explains the basics of the cleaning process that the heavy blanket and the other clothes are going to go through.

You are about to interrupt the watchman, who you still have not recognized, to ask about your mother, when someone pushes through the improvised tarpaulin walls of the pavilion, and immediately cries out “Mantle!”

You instinctively try to turn your head to see the newcomer, having forgotten in your surprise that your neck is in a brace. It hurts, but nowhere near as much as the situation with Petra did, just a minute or two before. The newcomer moves into your line of sight, standing by your bed. Like the watchman, he is all bundled up, rustles incessantly as he moves, and is wearing a full-face mask and respirator, though he also has an armband with a red cross on it. The newcomer removes his mask, and you finally recognize the beaming face of Oher, the most senior of the Paramedics, and the one who alongside you and the kid, Matthew, drove off Carter’s convoy. He speaks first.

“Jesus Christ Mantle, I can’t believe you’ve made it back already. We were planning another trip back to Bangor, either this night or the next, depending on the situation here at the lake, and at the top of the list of things to do was to see if we could get you out of there. God, your mother is going to be so relieved.”

My mother? Oh thank God, she made it after all.

>>4514830
“She showed up around an hour after we left to take you to Eastern Maine Medical, but no one knew until about two hours after that, when the party we sent to watch your place found her, and that Fleckkers character that you got working for you now. She was already worried when you weren’t there, but when she found of that you had been involved in a shootout – honest to God, I thought we might need to sedate her. I can’t imagine how relieved she is going to be when she sees you.”

Putting it mildly, you are relieved yourself to hear that she made it in alright. Though admittedly, you can imagine that after he relief wears off, she will probably be furious about, oh, a whole lot of things. Still, neither you or Oher want to delay any reunion longer than necessary. He assists the watchman in decontaminating you, and you notice the alarm that is plainly written on his face when he sees the injuries that you received at the hands of Officer Spry. But maintaining professional discretion, he does not ask you about them. In the silence as Oher and the watchman finish decontaminating you, you introduce Gunther and Petra to him, making a deliberate point to emphasize that they are potential group members. Oher seemed to pick up on that, even as he profusely thanked the two of them for saving you.

Once you and your two travelling companions had been decontaminated and dressed, Oher popped out of the pavilion to bring the ambulance over. When it was in position, Oher wheeled you out to load you in. The appearance of the ambulance was enough to make you do a double take, or as much of a double take as one can do if their neck is immobilized in a brace. The ambulance had been outfitted with what looked to be … an attempt at sloped armor, made out of corrugated steel roofing. As if reading your thoughts, Oher explains that this ambulance, the one he and Matthew used for cover during the shooting, had been armored, and was also doing double duty as a personnel carrier. As he walked on over to the rear door and knocked on it, he mentioned that corrugated steel roofing protected the cabin from flames and underneath it was a nearly solid wooden frame, that provided some appreciable protection against small arms fire.

Before you can process that, there is a soft thump behind the door on the back of the ambulance, and it opens. To your continually increasing alarm, the Paramedic opening the door is armed with what appears to be one of the automatic rifles from the Sheriff’s Office armory, just slung over his back. He has to take it off before he can help Oher get you up in position for your trip home, and as your eyes wander over the interior of the cabin, you notice what are quite obviously gun ports. Forget scaring Gunther and Petra, you are starting to get scared. What the Hell is going on here that requires armoring ambulances and arming paramedics?

>>4514832
But before you can put that question to Oher, it seems that he has something else to say. He leans in conspiratorially, speaking as quietly as he can and still be understandable through his respirator.

“Listen, two nights ago, there was a bit of a situation at your place. Nobody with Parasol’s group was hurt – actually, scratch that, your pig was stabbed. Well, none of us, and that includes your pig, died, but that hired man of yours, Fleckkers, ventilated a Firebug, and might have seriously wounded another. Setting aside if there are going to be reprisals for that death, your homestead looks really rough right now. If you are worried about scaring these two off, then maybe you want to send them off to see Parasol without you instead, buy some time to make the place presentable.”

After everything you have been through, you are a bit slow on the uptake here. Firebugs? As far as you know, that is just a colloquial name for pyromaniacs, but the way that Oher is talking about it makes it sound as if it was some sort of gang. There is so much to work through here, that it hasn’t even really registered that Fleckkers killed one, maybe two people protecting your property. Or … what the fuck, Dander got stabbed? But before you can ask any clarifying questions, Petra and Gunther come out of the pavilion, and Gunther asks if he can follow the ‘truck’ (he does not even recognize the damned thing as an ambulance, and had you not seen it before, you probably would not either) to your homestead.

Damn! You are going to have to make another snap decision here.
>Tell Gunther that you are probably going to be a while at the house, and that he should take this time to speak to Parasol instead.
>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.
>Simply tell Gunther to follow the ambulance.

>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.

I don't want to close this with just one vote, so I guess I will leave this up overnight. See you all in the morning (and I really do intend to start the run early).

>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.

>>4514835
>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.
We've been level with him so far, no reason to change now.

>>4515005
Thank you for running.

>>4514835
>>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.
Gunther would probably appreciate the choice being left to him, rather than ordered around. Is him being able to reach Parasol's place alone, in that truck a concern?

>>4514835
>Tell Gunther that he can follow the ambulance, or he can go to speak to Parasol now. Leave the choice to him.

also, ask Oher about the mystery ring at the earliest convenience

Alright, consider this closed. I'm going to grab some breakfast, then I will get to writing.

“Listen, I am probably going to be a while once I get to the homestead. If you want, I’m sure someone would be willing to take you to see Parasol right now. It would save you some waiting around, but if you wanted to stay together, then I’d understand that too. Your choice.” Even with half his face obscured with the cloth mask, you can tell that your question here has thrown him for a bit of a loop. But after a few moments, he decides to remain with you for now. Well, you might have expected that, considering that you have not had a chance to tell anyone (besides Deputy Brill) not to make off with the shipment. If the positions here were flipped, you would stay with him as long as possible.

Oher and the other paramedic finish getting you secured in the armored ambulance, and after instructing Gunther to stay right behind him the whole way over, he buttons the cabin up, before you even had a chance to say ‘see you soon’ or anything. God damn it, if this keeps up, you will definitely scare them off. But, there is a silver lining here; you are alone with Oher, and if you are where you think you are, after your brief time outside moving between Gunther’s truck and the pavilion and then the pavilion and into the armored ambulance, then you are only a few minutes away from the homestead. Should be enough time to ask a question or two, without having to worry about Gunther and Petra getting the wrong idea about the group and the situation on the lake here.

>Ask about the situation with the Consolidated Somerset-Piscataquis Jail
>Ask about the situation with non-group members in Debouche and around the lake
>Ask about the situation with the trains that were ‘procured’ from Bangor
>Ask how the group is currently situated with medical supplies and personnel.
>Ask if he knows anything about the class ring from a Bangor High School that Spry showed you
>Ask about these ‘Firebugs’ that attacked your homestead
>Ask how he and the kid, Matthew have been holding up after everything
>Ask what, if anything, happened with Carter and the remains of his convoy after you routed them

>>4515551
Whoops, didn't specify. You can only choose two of the eight.

>>4515551
>Ask about these ‘Firebugs’ that attacked your homestead
>Ask about the situation with non-group members in Debouche and around the lake

>>4515551
>>Ask if he knows anything about the class ring from a Bangor High School that Spry showed you
My guess is that it was meant to hint toward where we could meet Oher or whoever else came to pick us up, if we needed to.
>Ask how he and the kid, Matthew have been holding up after everything|
Sure to raise Oher's opinion of us. The kid killed a man, man. We'd have been in a much rougher situation if he didn't. Asking this seems kind of obligatory.

>>4515551
>Ask how he and the kid, Matthew have been holding up after everything
>Ask what, if anything, happened with Carter and the remains of his convoy after you routed them

I wanna be caught up to speed with what happened immediately after we got KO'd

>>4515551
>Ask about these ‘Firebugs’ that attacked your homestead

we really should know a thing or two about the guys who raided our hone and stabbed our pig (who even does something like that?)

>Ask if he knows anything about the class ring from a Bangor High School that Spry showed you

because it's just bugging me, and probably a question only Oher can reply.

>Ask if he knows anything about the class ring from a Bangor High School that Spry showed you.
>Ask how he and the kid, Matthew have been holding up after everything

>>4515607
I'll admit there are more pressing questions bit these two are ones Oher is best suited to answering. We'll get caught up on the rest at the house or with Parasol. Its tempting to try get ahead of it all so we can sell it to Gunther but I think if we just deal with him on the level, he'll stay because its his best option and he can trust us not to bs him.

>>4515551
>Ask if he knows anything about the class ring from a Bangor High School that Spry showed you.
>Ask how he and the kid, Matthew have been holding up after everything
Gunther's getting frustrated but that's okay, he has the right to be but we'll touch second base with him once we've had some time to sit down and communicate.

Alright, lets see.
>>4515555 Firebugs 1, Non-members 1
>>4515559 Firebugs 1, Non-members 1, Class Ring 1, Oher and Matt 1
>>4515587 Firebugs 1, Non-members 1, Class Ring 1, Oher and Matt 2, Carter 1
>>4515595 Firebugs 2, Non-members 1, Class Ring 2, Oher and Matt 2, Carter 1
>>4515607 Firebugs 2, Non-members 1, Class Ring 3, Oher and Matt 3, Carter 1
>>4515630 Firebugs 2, Non-members 1, Class Ring 4, Oher and Matt 4, Carter 1

So, we will be asking him about him and Matt, then about the ring.

You have so many questions, but there is only so much time away from Gunther and Petra. Admittedly, waiting to ask these questions away from them does feel kind of lousy, but at this point, you are more concerned with getting them on board with joining the group than doing things in a completely open, ‘above the board’ manner. As you are gathering your thoughts, the ambulance starts to move out. You decide that in this small window of opportunity, it would be best to ask Oher questions that he would be the best able to answer – that means about him and the kid, Matthew, and about the ring that Spry showed you. But before you can start asking him, Oher having removed his mask and respirator, beats you to the punch.

“Mantle, I didn’t want to say anything in front of the others, but I know for certain that your collarbone and your fingers were still in once piece when I dropped you off. What the Hell happened to you in that hospital? Did that guy have anything to do with it?”

“Who, Gunther? No … he really did save my life. Snuck me out of there with Dr. Grisham, he was the one who patched me up the second time. Now that I think about it, there was a letter he wrote for me – Ah, shit. Did it get lost in the blanket?” Oher shakes his head ‘no’, and then points to a small grocery bag. “No, I picked it out when we were cleaning you down, that and some … I don’t even know what I’d call it. A ratcheting carabiner?” You have to laugh at that. “I was wondering where it had gotten to. The thing is called an ‘Iron Claw’, they used to use them in prisons to manhandle inmates. I guess you could say that I was tortured with it, by a Criminal Investigations Warranted Officer or whatever the fuck – he was an MP with the Maine National Guard. Named Spry.”

Oher kind of just sinks back against the small countertop that runs alongside the walls of the cabin. “Jesus Christ, Mantle. I’m so sorry. I was … we all were worried that we might have issues getting you out of the hospital, but if we thought that the Guard would work you over like this, then I would have waited.” He looks towards the bag for a second or two before continuing. “We had just dropped you off, and you were taken immediately into surgery. We were doing the report when the Guard first started to mobilize; there were ‘copters flying around, and I think I might have heard a mech in the air too. We knew that Carter had tipped off the Guard about our thing here, and we knew that Chickless’ raid on the trainyard would only draw more attention towards anyone from Debouche.” Chickless’ raid? You had figured he was behind it, but you had not thought the man would actually go out and do something like that.

>>4515871
“We wanted to make to sure that there was as little linking you back to the rest of us as possible in case the guard was going to sniff around the hospital. Unfortunately, when we handed you over, we already had ID’d you, if we had been thinking ahead, we would have said you were a John Doe, or even just make up a name. I had written up a letter, do you remember me showing it to you?” You try to nod yes, again forgetting that your head is in a brace. Oher seemingly doesn’t notice and continues on; “The letter explained the situation as best we could, and it gave a rough time frame of when you could expect us to pick you up. And if we weren’t able to get you out of the hospital, or you were moved elsewhere, or whatever, there were directions to a cache we were going to set up for you.

“But now with the Guard moving around, we were worried that they might hear about us dropping you off and start to look into you. And even if we could somehow get you out of surgery halfway through it to take you back to Debouche, there was no guarantee that you could make it that long without proper medical attention. Basically, you were stuck in Bangor for the immediate future, and we couldn’t just keep waiting indefinitely. The traffic leaving the city was terrible, and it was only going to get worse. Not to mention that we were in an ambulance with ‘Debouche EMS’ plastered all over it. So, Martin came up with another idea, a Hail Mary; instead of the letter, we’d leave his you his graduation ring, but on the inventory slip, he called it a ‘cereal box toy ring’, you know, like one of those ‘decoder ring’ toys?

“The hope was that regardless if you remembered to look for a letter or not, finding a random class ring in your effects that had been blatantly mislabeled would have given you pause. It was something to let you know that something was going on behind the scenes, and we were going to try to come back for you. And admittedly, it was a stretch that you or anyone would ever think of this, but we set up the cache for you at the school the ring came from, John Bapst, in locker 1989, the class that the ring was for. That’s where the ‘decoder’ came in. You know, getting to the school to hide the cache was a lot harder then just burying it in the Bangor Public Libraries garden, like we were originally intending to, but our hands were tied when we settled on replacing the letter with the ring. It was pretty obvious that someone had broken in after we were though there, but the hope was that if nothing was obviously stolen, then there wouldn’t be a big search or anything. I don’t see the ring with you, though …

>>4515872
Well, that answers your question about the ring. As far as secret messages go, you suppose it was better than nothing, and certainly better than something openly incriminating like a letter, but you doubt that you ever would have thought to look for a cache because you found a ring. Oher interrupts your thoughts.

“Mantle, I swear. If I had known that you would get … tortured, I never –”

“I know you wouldn’t’ve, but torture or no torture, if I didn’t go there, I don’t think I would have made it through this as well as I have. The important thing to focus on - really, the only thing worth focusing on here is that I am still alive and that I am going bounce back from this. And that it is in no small part because I made it to the hospital in time, thanks to you and Martin. I’m just sorry that I don’t have his ring to return to him.”

“Ah, forget the ring; with the way things are now, the spare coat and disposable masks he left you are much more valuable. And I’m sure he will forgive you for those getting left behind if you forgive him for leaving your Berretta and 30-06 in the cache.”

>Removed from your Collective Inventory and presumably still located in locker 1989 of John Bapst Memorial High School:
>Our Grandfather’s Winchester 1895, 5 rounds loaded with 8 loose rounds of .30-06 (FMJ)
>Our sidearm, the M9A3 Beretta, 17 rounds loaded with an additional magazine and about 20 loose rounds of 9mm (FMJ)

You try not to let your dismay show on your face. Those were two of your most reliable guns, and the ones with the most sentimental value to you. The Winchester was one of the few things you were able to grab from your Grandfather’s dairy, before your father started his ‘cleaning’. And that Beretta, not only was it your daily carry, but you also actually bought that thing new. Still, you cannot let yourself get mad about this. If Gunther and the doctor not been there to spring you, and had this rescue mission of Oher’s not materialized, or if there had been some issue and you were left alone in Bangor, then those guns, assuming you could have cracked this riddle, would have been a genuine Godsend. Before you can let your frustration slip, you change the subject as smoothly as you can.

>>4515877
“Well, enough about me. How are you, and that kid, Matthew doing after … everything?”

Oher makes a sound that is somewhere between a choke and a sigh, and for a moment you worry that something happened to the kid. But then a sad little smile crosses his face. “Matthew, my grandson, he is … keeping busy. With everything that needs to be done, no one has had any real time to themselves for the past three days. There have been one or two times where we were working together, without anyone else, and he brought it up, on his own. Asked if he did the right thing. Of course, I told him he did, but I don’t think he really believed me. Still, he is able to talk about it, and I can say from experience that is typically a good sign.” You feel like you should say something to that, but before you can even begin to think of what to say, Oher continues, and his voice gets noticeably huskier.

“Honestly, I’m scared. Eventually, there isn’t going to be enough work to keep him constantly busy, and I can’t have the boy watched around clock. Sooner or later, he is going to be left alone with his thoughts.” The most senior of the Paramedics wipes at his eyes angrily with the back of his hand. And every time I can’t be with him, every time I have to leave him somewhere, or just turn my back for a minute … I’m going to have to wonder if … wonder if … What was I thinking? Letting him come with us like that.

Jesus Christ. What makes this worse, is that Oher raises a pretty good point. Without a single thought, you armed and brought along some random kid you literally had just met to a shootout; you didn’t even know his name until afterwards. And as bad as him killing someone was, things could have gone worse. How the Hell could you have lived with yourself? Abruptly, the ambulance stops, and the other Paramedic shouts back that they will have to cart you across the bridge to your house. Oher has finished wiping his eyes, and moves to put his mask and respirator back on. Shit! After all this time spent trying to get back home, you now find yourself wishing that you weren’t quite there yet. You should say something to Oher, but what? You only have a little bit of time to get a private word in.

>Pick ONE of the following:
>Oher, if you are going to be upset at someone, be upset at me. I was the one who gave him the gun, and I was the one who forced his hand by breaking cover.
>Oher, things are going to have to be different from now on. We are all going to have to get comfortable doing … uncomfortable things to survive.
>Oher, Matthew protected me, and because of that, I could get into a position to disable the Prisoner Transport, and save everyone on board.

>Pick ONE of the following:
>You should make a point to seek out Matthew as soon as you can. A talk with you would help.
>You should probably make a point to avoid Matthew for as long as you can. The sight of you might stir him up.

>>4515879
>>Oher, Matthew protected me, and because of that, I could get into a position to disable the Prisoner Transport, and save everyone on board.
If Carter had managed to win the day, or at least escape, imagine what kind of treatment awaited them from the Guard. Assuming Carter handed them off to the Guard at all. We still have to figure out what the hell happened to him. Anyways, Spry opened up with mangling our left testicle, when there wasn't really even conclusive evidence we were involved at that point. Compared to what he had on us, there would've been a mountain on them. They probably would've gotten a much worse treatment then we had, at least until they realized that those guys likely didn't know much at all about the group's plans.
>You should make a point to seek out Matthew as soon as you can. A talk with you would help.
Worth a shot. Hopefully this doesn't wind up backfiring horribly.