by HL TRUSLOVE
18.7
This base is too dangerous to be left how it is. The raiders here pose a threat to every piece of society that’s trying to be built on the remnants of the old world. The very least you can do is try to destroy what they have, to hinder their plans.
You do a quick scan of the base. Towards the corner of the compound, you see a group of guard dogs, fast asleep. They look calm, but you notice some of them have chunks of flesh missing and they all have horrid scars – these are dogs bred to fight, no doubt about it. If they were let loose, they could certainly do some damage before they were herded back.
Then again, you could always try to find the balloons they were flying. Giving the guards’ reaction to seeing it earlier, you guess it must be something important to the raiders. If it was destroyed, it could throw a big wrench in the works.
Release the dogs – Turn to 18.14.
* * *
Sabotage the balloons – Turn to 18.17.
18.8
You scan the area as best you can, trying to get to a high vantage point without being seen. There isn’t a lot else for you to make note of. You can see a little inside of the base – there are plenty of other raiders walking to and from buildings, just carrying out everyday tasks that need doing. If you didn’t know what this place was, perhaps you could mistake it for any other town. But you know better. It looks like your best option may be to try to sneak by when the guards are distracted.
Attempt to sneak in – Turn to 18.2.
* * *
Show the letter from the boss – Turn to 18.13, Needs Letter from Dagger.
* * *
Set up a vantage point and shoot – Turn to 18.3, Needs Sharpshooter.
* * *
Read the signs on the chainlink – Turn to 18.16, Needs Old World Language.
18.9
The raiders all otherwise engaged, you decide to take advantage of the commotion. Going to free any prisoners seems like the best idea – nobody deserves to be locked up by these savages.
You run between buildings, poking your head round doors to try to find any prisoners. On the fourth try, you see that inside one of the smaller square structures there are a series of cages, but only one of them is occupied.
You slip into the room, letting your eyes adjust to the darkness, trying to see the state of the prisoner in the cell.
Then you realise, and you almost can’t believe it.
It’s Gaia.
She’s sitting with her knees drawn up to her chest and her eyes shut. She looks pale and gaunt with heavy bruising over what skin you can see. You call her name and her eyelids flutter open, taking you in with a strange and confused look – before her face lights up.
“You?” she asks, incredulous. You nod. She lets out a dry little laugh, probably her first one for a while, and comes up to her cell door.
“I thought you were dead!” she says. “After the storm…”
“No, I’m fine… well, I’m alive. How did you get here?”
She furrows her brow. “When we were relocating, after the storm hit, a group of raiders attacked us. Everyone got away, except me. They’ve been keeping me prisoner here, trying to use me for ransom.” She points over your shoulder. “Look, there are keys over there – grab them and let me out!”
You unlock the cage with shaking hands and Gaia launches herself at you, hugging you tight. It’s more affection than you’re used to, but you reciprocate it with gusto.
“Let’s go,” you say. “The distraction won’t last forever.”
Gaia sticks to you like glue as you survey the situation outside. Still busy. Good. The two of you run out of the prison cell as fast as you can, not stopping when you hear people shouting after you. You get about ten metres from the cellblock before you hear the first bullet.
“We need to split up. If we stick together they might get us both!” she shouts at you.
You want to argue that you just got her back, but her tone doesn’t leave much room for argument. She catches up to you, her breathing heavy, and shoves something in your hands.
“There’s a radio tower near here. I’ll try and meet you there, all right? Just be safe until then.”
She squeezes your hand in her own before she takes off in a run in the opposite direction. You consider going after her until a bullet whizzes by your ear – she’s right, you can’t risk both of you being stopped. You pull your pack tight and run as fast as you can, away from Gaia and through the gate, but with relief washing over you that your friend is still alive, for now.
END.
Add Radio Tower Coordinates (F.17) to your notebook.
Add Gaia Seen (E.10) to your character sheet.
Add The Radio Tower (Chapter 25, L.25) to map.
18.10
You’re brought to an unremarkable building with extra guards stationed outside of it. They look at you with disdain as the door is opened and you’re shoved inside roughly by the men escorting you.
The room is lit low with candles and a flickering electric lamp. There’s an uncomfortable number of bodies here, clearly in the middle of conversation until you rudely made your entrance. The raiders surround a large table with a rough map of the area drawn out on it, a few ‘X’s marking places of interest, which you make a quick note of in your head.
A woman is at the head of it, fingering a pointing stick for use on the map. Her head has been completely shaved and she has tattoos all the way up her neck and across her scalp. One of her eyes is grey, a nasty scar covering the flesh around it to give you an idea of how it got that way. She’s dressed surprisingly well compared to the others, in furs which would be fine were it not for the blood on them. She cocks a brow at you and looks you up and down.
“So you’re causing commotion in my camp, eh?” she asks with a sniff.
“Dagger…” says one of her companions, clearly not happy with you being there, but she shushes him without even sparing him a glance.
“The audacity of some people… look, what do you want, outsider?”
“I want you to let me and my friend leave,” you tell Dagger, without really thinking about the words. Her face lights up, but not in a nice way.
“Isn’t that handy? I have something you want, and I need something done for me. Sounds like a deal can be brokered, eh?”
She slaps the stick down on the map and a couple of her associates jump.
“There’s another base not far from here. Run by an absolute bastard. They’ve got a nice little pot of uranium I’m after, but they refuse to cooperate. Reckon you can get it for me? If you bring it back I promise I’ll let your little friend go.”
Accept – Turn to 18.12.
* * *
Refuse – Turn to 18.11.
18.11
Even with Gaia’s safety on the line, you won’t be this woman’s dog. You’re better than that. Better than her. You grit your jaw and Dagger rolls her eyes.
“No pleasing some people. All right, get this thing out of my sight. I’m done.” Her eyes fall back to the map as someone hits you round the head, hard.
You black out for a moment at the force of the impact and when you come around, you’re at the gates of the building, shoved on the dirt outside like litter. You get up and tenderly feel the area of your head where you were hit. The guards on duty laugh at you, a terrible, grating sound. You get to your feet and struggle away. Gaia will be fine, you try to reason. At least you got away with your dignity… didn’t you?
END.
Add Meeting Dagger (E.14) to your character sheet.
Add Instability to your character sheet.
Add The Caravans (Chapter 24, L.24), The Battlefield (Chapter 26, L.26), and The Open Fields (Chapter 21, L.21) to map.
18.12
It’s not a nice proposition… but if it’s for Gaia…
“I’ll do it,” you say, and Dagger claps her hands together in delight, revealing she’s missing the ring and little fingers of her right hand.
“Pe
rfect. I’ve written you a little note to give to the scumbag in charge, but you seem resourceful so you might not even need it. I’ll give you a map to get there, too.” She nods at an associate who supplies you with two folded pieces of paper, one of them clearly a letter. “And, outsider? Don’t bother coming back without the uranium.”
She smiles a yellow-toothed smile. You’re escorted from the building by two strong guards, brought back through the gate outside, and shoved back into the wilderness.
You look at the paper in your hands.
You can do this. Gaia depends on it, after all.
You open your map and begin to walk.
* * *
END.
Add Meeting Dagger (E.14) to your character sheet.
Add Note from Dagger (O.12) to your inventory.
Add The Uranium Heist (Chapter 15, L.15), The Caravans (Chapter 24, L.24), The Battlefield (Chapter 26, L.26), and The Open Fields (Chapter 21, L.21) to map.
* * *
Go to The Uranium Heist (Chapter 15).
18.13
The guards raise their weapons as you approach, but you lift your hands above your head, holding out the note when you get close enough. One of them snatches it from your hand and reads it with untrained eyes, before mulling you over. He may not know the language it’s written in but he clearly recognises the handwriting.
“No funny business,” he says, opening the gate, and the two of them bring you through. A couple of raiders look at you quizzically but don’t stop to question why an outsider is being marched through the camp. You fiddle with the zip on your coat nervously but don’t ask any questions – it’s best to make as little fuss as possible.
You’re brought to an unremarkable building which has extra guards stationed outside of it. They look at you with disdain as the door is opened and you’re shoved inside roughly by the men escorting you.
The room is lit low with candles and a flickering electric lamp. There’s an uncomfortable amount of bodies in here, clearly in the middle of conversation until you rudely made your entrance. The raiders surround a large table with a rough map of the area drawn out on it, a few ‘X’s marking places of interest, which you make a quick note of in your head.
A woman is at the head of it, fingering a pointing stick for use on the map. Her head has been completely shaved and she has tattoos all the way up her neck and across her scalp. One of her eyes is grey, a nasty scar covering the flesh around it to give you an idea of how it got that way. She’s dressed surprisingly well compared to the others, in furs which would be fine were it not for the blood on them. She grins when she sees you.
“I see you got my message then!” she says, gleefully.
“Dagger…” says one of her companions, clearly not happy with you being there, but she shushes him without even sparing him a glance.
“You must have come here for a reason, right, outsider? Interested in doing business?”
“What do I get out of it?” You manage to keep the shake out of your voice. She laughs but in a way that almost makes it seem like she finds you endearing.
“Oh, little outsider. I have one of your little friends. Gaia, I think her name is? I think you’ll find that interesting.”
You feel your eyes go wide. Gaia? Here? She might be bluffing… but how would she know Gaia’s name?
“Isn’t that handy? I have something you want, and I need something done for me. Sounds like a deal can be brokered, eh?”
She slaps the stick down on the map and a couple of her associates jump.
“There’s another base not far from here. Run by an absolute bastard. They’ve got a nice little pot of uranium I’m after, but refuse to cooperate. Reckon you can get it for me? If you bring it back, I promise I’ll let your little friend go.”
Add Gaia Seen (E.10) to your character sheet.
* * *
Accept – Turn to 18.12.
* * *
Refuse – Turn to 18.11.
18.14
A dog raises its head as you approach, but thankfully doesn’t bark. Instead, it watches you as you try to get in the best position to release the catch on the door without being caught in the stampede. You see a few more ears prick up as you slide the deadbolt out of its latch, and swing it open.
Immediately the dogs are on their feet, going wild. They dash out of the cage and into the camp. They seem unbothered by you, luckily, and pass without even a curious sniff. You hear a shout of surprise as raiders begin to realise the pack has escaped. A couple of them are pounced on but you don’t stop to watch the aftermath, instead taking advantage of the moment. With the raiders preoccupied, you have free rein to explore.
Look for prisoners – Turn to 18.9.
* * *
Find who’s in charge – Turn to 18.15.
18.15
All the raiders seem distracted by the commotion you’ve made. You want to take the opportunity to find out who’s running this base. They might be worth talking to, even just for information – and they’re likely unguarded.
You inspect a few of the buildings, running between them until you find what you’re looking for. Peeking in one of the windows, you see a raider sitting alone in a chair, dressed finely and looking quite bored.
Screwing up all your courage, you walk into the room.
The room is lit low with candles and a flickering electric lamp. There’s not much furniture here, only a large table with a rough map of the area drawn out on it, a few ‘X’s marking places of interest, which you make a quick note of in your head.
The woman is at the head of it, fingering a pointing stick for use on the map. Her head has been completely shaved and she has tattoos all the way up her neck and across her scalp. One of her eyes is grey, a nasty scar covering the flesh around it to give you an idea of how it got that way. She looks surprised to see you, but also seems to recognise your outfit.
“Oh, you’re the outsider I’ve heard so much about!” she says, gesturing to your clothes. You’re about to answer when the door behind you opens and two raiders step in. Shit. You guess someone was keeping an eye on the building after all. The newcomers go to grab you but are stopped when the boss raises her hand.
“Dagger…” says one of her companions warily, clearly not happy with you being there, but she shushes him without even sparing him a glance.
“Come now, let’s be more welcoming to our guest. You must have come here for a reason, right, outsider? Interested in doing business?”
“What do I get out of it?” you ask, managing to keep the shake out of your voice. She laughs, but in a way that almost makes it seem like she finds you endearing.
“Oh, little outsider. Bargaining when so clearly outnumbered… well, if we’re being honest, I have one of your little friends. Gaia, I think her name is? I think you’ll find that interesting.”
You feel your eyes go wide. Gaia? Here? She might be bluffing… but how else would she know her name?
“Isn’t that handy? I have something you want, and I need something done for me. Sounds like a deal can be made, eh?”
She slaps the stick down on the map and a couple of her associates jump.
“There’s another base not far from here. Run by an absolute bastard. They’ve got a nice little pot of uranium I’m after, but refuse to cooperate. Reckon you can get it for me? If you bring it back I promise I’ll let your little friend go.”
Add Gaia Seen (E.10) to your character sheet.
* * *
Accept – Turn to 18.12.
* * *
Refuse – Turn to 18.11.
18.16
The signs are a bit hard to see from this distance, but you squint until the squiggles form themselves into words.
MILITARY BASE. DO NOT ENTER ON DANGER OF DEATH.
It used to be a military base? Now you understand why the raiders were drawn to it. A little dangerous slice of history for them to explore. Also, there might have been some good things left when the bombs dropped
… weapons and armoury for the raiders to get their hands on. It makes you feel sick, the idea of them having powerful pre-war weapons. This place is more unnerving than you first thought.
Survey the area – Turn to 18.8.
* * *
Attempt to sneak in – Turn to 18.2.
* * *
Show the letter from the boss – Turn to 18.13, Needs Letter from Dagger.
* * *
Set up a vantage point and shoot – Turn to 18.3, Needs Sharpshooter.
18.17
It’s easy enough to find the building the balloon is being housed in; all you need to do is look for the biggest one. You slip inside, unnoticed, and gawk.