Please don't bite the newbie!

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

Just a little to the left and open!  [Sibyll announces triumphantly, standing up and pushing the door open to what should have been an unexplored ruin. Except it's not. Clearly confused, she takes a few steps into the bizarrely green courtyard. Pulling out a handgun, she looks around, clearly bewildered. Behind her, the door creaks shut and vanishes into the wall.]

Wait, no! [A little panicked, she presses her hand up against where the door used to be, tapping it lightly in an attempt to hear a hollow 'thump' that may indicate a hidden door. Not that there's any to be found.]

...Well, damn.

Comments

[truetocaesar]

[He had noticed scars, but hadn't thought much of them. Everyone who travels the Wasteland has scars... but to survive two shots to the head? That's unheard of.]

Hm. [he snorts derisively] NCR complaining about improper treatment of Great Khans. As you are likely aware, we are seeking an alliance with their tribe, however. It would be best if you avoided murdering anymore of them for now, drug-addled wastrels though they are.

[Vulpes is still wary, but he supposes he'll have to give Sibyll a chance. He has to follow Caesar's lead.] Very well. I'll assume what you say is true about him. Don't let me find out you're lying.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[Boone's unease had more to do with Sibyll sweetly promising Jessup that she'd see to his safety, then letting the NCR blow away the lot while she watched from a convenient location with binoculars and laughed, but Vulpes doesn't need to know that.]

I'd probably be doing you all a favor if I cleared out Red Rock Canyon, but since you asked so nicely, I won't.

[She's getting close again, though she's keeping her hands to herself.]

[truetocaesar]

[How treacherous... Vulpes would probably approve. There's a certain irony to the situation that he could also appreciate.]

Oh, don't worry. We will "clean it up" in time.

[The Legion's standards are too high to have filth like that sticking around beyond it's initial usefulness.]

[Vulpes does step away this time, but only because he's heading toward the entrance to the main building.]

I assume you'll want to know where you can stay here.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[She resists the temptation to press him about where he stays. She's pressed her luck enough for now.]

I would. How safe is this place?

[truetocaesar]

[He doesn't volunteer the information, but there are a limited number of dorm rooms. Even leading her to West Wing, while his room is in the East, the amount of space separating them isn't too great.]

Safe enough if you have no enemies. However, if you wander into certain rooms in the North wing of the building, you may find yourself in trouble.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

Oh? What's in those rooms?

[She's looking around curiously as they walk through the quiet building. So far it sounds like they're the only ones around.]

[truetocaesar]

One forced everyone to find a certain amount of things to leave. Not everything was an object, however.

[Vulpes had been forced to find a friend. Fortunately, there was a young woman naive enough for him to convince to go along with it. He supposes it would have been even simpler if Sibyll was around at the time.]

Another sent us to other places, but with bomb collars that were set to activate should we fail to cooperate with our partners.

I keep hoping I'll find one that sends us home.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[She inhales sharply at the mention of 'bomb collars'.]

...Your persistence is impressive. What else is there here?

[truetocaesar]

[He nods grimly after hearing her gasp. It is all rather shocking.]

Everything else is a replica of pre-war health. Nothing is damaged, or decaying. Food is provided in a cafeteria, and there are places to exercise and read.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

I guess there are worse places to be imprisoned. At least I'm with good company.

[She purrs at him, but stops short of trying anything. Something seems to occur to her that distracts her.]

How can all this even exist? Even if this place was preserved Pre-War, it's still been a couple hundred years. Who's been keeping up this place?

[truetocaesar]

[He just quirks a brow at her statement. Really, Vulpes has no experience with women behaving this way around him. Ordinarily, the women he associates with are slaves, and they're never particularly pleased when Legionaries are around them.]

A fair question.

[As they turn down another hallway, Vulpes gestures to one of the speakers on the wall.] Occasionally, someone makes announcements through these. I have yet to discover who it is, but she is clearly the one in charge. Perhaps she is similar to Mr. House... but there is no way to know for sure as of now.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[She doesn't react to his puzzled behavior with anything other then a grin. She doesn't tend to question her obsessions. After all, her obsession with taking revenge has ended up giving her a fairly important role to play in the Mojave desert. So why would this one be any less beneficial for her?]

What does she say?

[truetocaesar]

Nothing that makes any sense or gives me any clues about who she is or where to find her.

[It's frustrating to say the least. All Vulpes can say is that if he gets his hands on her, that woman is going to severely regret all of this.]

Perhaps you'll have more like than I have.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

Maybe. I don't suppose there are any suspicious, heavily guarded rooms about, are there? At least House made it obvious where he was hiding.

[She's already certain he's going to say 'no', but it never hurts to ask. Had it been that easy, she would have expected Vulpes to have already done it.]

[truetocaesar]

Of course there aren't. We would have found a way out by now if there were.

[Assuming there was a place to gather weapons somewhere around here. So far he's had zero luck locating anything sharper than a butter knife.]

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

Didn't think so. [She admits, sighing.]

Are there others here? You mentioned Boone, but is there anyone else interesting?

[truetocaesar]

There's my roommate, Micheletto. Ah... I haven't mentioned the fact that time works in strange ways here. There are people who claim to be from the past... and signs point to them telling the truth. Micheletto, for example, claims to be from Rome in the early 1500s.

I've met several others, including a Wastelander from the East and a degenerate from the past named Miguel.

[He scowls at the mention of the name alone.] He has given me plenty of trouble.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

The past? And you actually believe them?

[This was a rather unusual place. Vulpes didn't seem to be lying, either. She wonders momentarily who she'll meet.]

Oh? Tell me more about this Miguel. He sounds like fun.

[She lets out a playful laugh.]

[truetocaesar]

Perhaps. Once you've been in this place long enough, you might start to as well.

[It's a difficult thing for him to accept, but it's also difficult to deny some of the supernatural things he's witnessed. Either that, or whoever controls this place has technology beyond anything that existed even pre-war.]

[Vulpes scoffs at that.] All he cares about is drowning himself in alcohol and picking pointless fights. He's very big, but fights like a wild beast, so it isn't difficult to take him down.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[She still wasn't sure what to think regarding the nature of this strange place. At least she has something nice to look at and interact with, especially since he was now away from his duties to the Legion.]

Oh. Forget I asked, then. [She doesn't hide her immediate disinterest or mild disdain in this Miguel. Drunks were far too easy to play with to be worth her while unless they had information.]

So, these are the places where people stay? [They reach the dormitories, and Sibyll doesn't hesitate to begin peeking in doors.] Are they assigned to us, or do we pick whichever one we like the best?

[truetocaesar]

[Although he would never admit it, Vulpes is glad to have another person here who (is potentially) on his side. The only person he can truly consider an ally at this time is Micheletto, and even then he doesn't know the man well enough to be absolutely certain.]

I highly doubt you would enjoy his company. [And he's happy to drop that subject right there.]

Yes. [He gives a vague gesture down the hall.] You're free to choose.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

Your room's already occupied, I'm sad to hear. Let's see... what looks good to me?

[She gives him a devilish smile at her supposed dismay over him already having a roommate, then turns her attention to scouring the dresser drawers. A few rooms in, and her interest is interrupted by a gasp of surprise.]

My dress?! What's it doing here?!

[In one of the closets is Vera Keyes's Sibyll's daring little black number, accented with red. She pulls it out in confusion, holding it up against herself. It seems to fit.]

How can this be here?!

[truetocaesar]

Even if it wasn't, you wouldn't be staying there.

[Their room has an extra empty bunk bed, which will remain empty.]

[Vulpes is confused by Sibyll's sudden gasp, and looks over her shoulder to see her holding a... dress? Her dress? Now, that is peculiar. Had they been planning for her arrival?]

How unusual. I would recommend burning it.

[wildcard_of_the_desert]

[She ignored his suggestion for now, tearing through the drawer. All the clothes looked not only like something she'd wear, but looked like they'd be perfect fits. She slams the drawers shut and backs away.]

You didn't mention that whoever is running this place picks out spare clothes for us. I'm staying somewhere else. Let's go.

[Sibyll is peering about the place more suspiciously now, clearly unnerved that someone's already set up a room just for her. Like hell is she going to play along with that.]

[truetocaesar]

I didn't realize they did. There was nothing like that in my room... however, I joined Micheletto in his room later. They couldn't have anticipated that.

[Not to mention he always wears his Legion uniform, so there would be no point in giving him anything different except underclothes.]

But I agree that you should stay somewhere else.

[Vulpes is now in favor of burning the entire room, but he doesn't have anything to start a fire on him. Shame.]