Fallout: Chicago

[Rentaromon]

Roughly 5 miles from Downtown Chicago you find yourself in the Columbus Bar, in an open area along the 290, why your here is your own reasons. The might have once been a larger store not that it matters. The feel of the area is....soggy, its been raining for nearly the entire day, nasty dirty water that feels as bad as it tastes.

The bar is actually rather full because of the rain, and elbows bumping have nearly led to 3 fights in the last hour. Brotherhood Members in one corner staying to themselves, Reavers at the opposite side, and all kinds of mercenaries traders and looters in between. If this bar wasn't an unofficial neutral zone guns would have been drawn by now. The owner Mr. Higgs has connections in the brotherhood and multiple other groups.

Groups/people of interest in the bar:

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Mr. Higgs: At first glance he seems like a kind round man, and he is as long as you have caps to spend and you dont cause trouble. The relative safety of the columbus bar and his ability to keep it stocked with radiation free food and water, as well as quite a few interesting weapons and gadgets from downtown has made him many friends. Dont take him for a fool, he is the ruthless king of his little castle.

Howdy Bot: A sentry robot with a old cowboy hat and golden star painted on his white armor. Howdy greets all the guests and is programmed to help keep the place safe. His "pistol whip" and "6K Shooter" are one of the hugest deterrents of theft and fighting in and around the bar.

Brotherhood: a group of 5 armored members of the brotherhood are in the corner. The Brotherhood normally only protect the villages under their protection, not single buildings, but mr. higgs seems to have made himself an exception. They are well armed with power armor and some powerful weapons.

Reavers: About a dozen men and women are sitting in one corner talking among themselves. They all have many weapons, far more than needed. In fact some even have armor made out of weapons. The reavers may not be as strong as they once were, but they are still someone you want to avoid, unless you can pay their gun tax(you can't). One older man with some red combat armor seems to be the center of attention, he seems to be polishing a energy weapon of some kind.

Areas of interest near the bar:

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Downtown Chicago: destroyed building, radiation pockets, and mutant creatures have made the area inaccessible. But anyone who makes it back has a story to tell, and some serious weapons and loot. Its directly to the east of columbus bar. The brotherhood and reavers would love the control the area, however it seems they keep getting forced out.

Pizza City: dont let the name fool you, its just a small village. To find it go about 2 miles to the north-northeast you will see multiple glowing neon signs, its hard to miss. The area is home to many looters and traders. The brotherhood has people here almost all the time, reavers would like to change that. Many ghouls here, also quite a bit of radiation pockets. Friendly place, considering this is a post apocalyptic world and all.

Distribution: a large factory about 2 miles to the southwest, not exactly a friendly place. The entire factory is home to a group of survivors who have been in the area far longer than the Columbus Bar and other villages. Anyone near the factory or their farms will be shot on sight, but most take the hint when they see the signs. Mercenaries have recently been hired for extra protection. They seem to have plenty of food and guns, possibly even working machinery to make guns and ammo.

Brotherhood bunker beta: somewhere to the west-northwest, about 3 miles. Not much else is known, the brotherhood only give members information.

Edge Hospital: small village built in and around a hospital, owned by the brotherhood. Base of operations for looters hired by the brotherhood.

Express Fort: At the meeting of 290 ,90, and 94 is a fortress built on the multiple overlapping roads. The area has been bathed in radiation ever since the calculator was defeated, it is not known why. Its said to be home to a new type of Glowing One with the ability to causes people to burst into flame from as far as 100 meters and cause very quick transformation to feral ghouls. They have been called burning ones.

Brotherhood bunker alpha: lost during the first encounter of burning ones. Almost 100% of the members became feral ghouls, many with their power armor still on.

Vault 82: It is located to the south of downtown, exact location unknown. Reavers claim it is their new base. They boast it has some sort of super weapon that will wipe the brotherhood out very soon. The area is near impossible to get to for non reavers, but as far as people can tell it is hidden among the huge forest. Smoke is almost constantly filling the sky above the area.

Make yourself comfortable and grab a nuka-cola, things are going to get very interesting very soon....

[Lucretia]

"Let's ride into the sunset together," Talia sung under her breath, the Columbus Bar looming ahead. Her arms were wrapped around one of Thumper's, and she was leaning against him for heat -- this water from the sky thing was bizarre, and it was leaching away the warmth from her skin and the leather armor wrapped around her. Vellae had considered telling Thumper to hold his bank door over her, to act as shelter, but the wind would have swept the water beneath it -- and potentially caused the door to drop. Getting crushed beneath steel was actually less appealing than being cold.

"Wait here," she told the super mutant, referring to an area of rubble that he might be able to hide behind. "I'll see whether the locals are going to stir up trouble when they meet you." Releasing his arm and patting it, Talia gathered up the water-laden remains of her fifty centimeters of hair and wrung it out as best she could, tossing it over her shoulder once she was done. Preferably there wouldn't have been this sky-water, of course, and she would have had time to change into her dress, but Vellae would do with what the gods had given her. Pushing the door to the cantina open, she immediately surveyed her surroundings -- what she could see of them, anyways. The crowded nature of the cantina certainly made it difficult to get a clean view of the cantina.

Talia began to make her way towards the bar proper, maneuvering through the crowd when possible. She was used to being looked at, of course, and it wasn't likely these Northern savages had seen someone both with an exotic bone structure or a tan. Noting the two heavily armed poles of the building, Vellae leaned against the bar when she found an open spot and nodded to the 'tender, waiting for him to have a free moment. Acting impatient in a foreign land, when your hired muscle remains outside? Not wise.

[Mr Stereo1]

John didn't have any money left to buy anything, but the bar had been the first sign of civilization, or what passed for it in his mind, he'd seen in days. Normally he would be more comfortable out on the road. The prospect of being surrounded by so many rowdy, and most importantly armed, people didn't sit well with him.

However, he needed to find a way to get some caps. Scanning the bar's inhabitants, he tried to avoid the most drunk groups, and tries to subtly find the people who looked like they needed work done and could afford it.

The Brotherhood shouldn't be here. Either they're passing through or they have a vested interest. [How do I go about a perception check as to whether they look like they've been travelling or fighting recently?]

John makes a point of keeping out of the line of fire between the Brotherhood, Reavers, and Howdy Bot as much as possible. He sizes up the equipment of all the prominent groups, just in case.

[reaper_soulman]

Thumper obediantly stays out of sight off all the people in the area he wait impatiently for talia's return keeping an eye on the place she just entered and listening closely for any signs of distress inside the bar ready to rush in at a moments notice.He worries for talia's safety.

[Volthawk]

R109, being a machine, wasn't here for refreshment. He was here simply because out here, away from the other pockets of civilisation, his best odds of finding people interesting enough to warrant working with and assisting - so he can procure materials for repairs, as the old machine gun he'd found (it wasn't as good as his old standard-issue weaponry, but he'd lost that so he had to simply work with what he had) - was here.

There was a bit of space around him as he stands in one of the corners - after all, he was a lone robot that was armed and armoured, appearing as one of the sentry models anyone who had tried looting old facilities may have come across (although over time he has been modified and torn apart - where the usual bots have inbuilt weaponry, R109 has fittings able to manipulate things, allowing him to use his minigun which he still has out and in hand despite the setting. He notes any alarm and caution from the various groups in the bar, which was one of the reasons he kept his weapon out - also, he'd noted the human inclination to keep their weapons away when not in combat, but it was something he never saw the point in, so he didn't partake in that tradition - and waited. From what he'd seen of human interaction in his time, interesting events tended to come about simply from proximity, and the fights that had already broken out confirmed that.

[Lothmar]

Lucas had been away from home for almost a month now and while he missed his friends and family back at Mosai, he took some small comfort in seeing members of the brotherhood here. He had probably stuck near the brotherhood corner since his arrival making small talk if allowed, after all it had been some time since he had seen some of his Brotherhood associates and he worried. Especially about those that had been redeployed as the brotherhood presence in their village had shrunk - especially after the rumored fall of brotherhood bunker Alpha.

Whether received warmly or not by his superiors, Lucas proceeds to the bar when he finds a free moment. "Two Bottles of whatever the corners drinking and some glasses." Lucas adds referencing to the brotherhood side, realizing that one bottle split between five or six people if he joins them for a drink, may go fairly fast and so orders two. Even if they weren't drinking alcohol because they were on duty, some clean water was usually a gesture most people appreciated.

As the bartender readies his order Lucas states "You get a second bot recently Higgs? Doesn't quite got the same pizazz as Howdy i'll say that much." Lucas inquires ready to offer his services as a mechanic if needed.

[Rentaromon]

After a short wait the bartender gets to Talia, he seems to be a slightly older man. He is sweaty and looks a bit out of breath, probably from constant work with all the people here. However he seems a bit more upbeat seeing Talia.

"Afternoon miss, what can i get you?"
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John examines the Brotherhood Members, from the mud on their boots they have probably been traveling a while through the rain before they got here.

He doesn't overhear any obvious mentioning of jobs, mostly small groups of people talking among themselves. He can hear that the group of reavers are all listening to the older man with the rifle, he is telling a story about a fight against burning ones. The brotherhood members are rather quiet.
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"No need to buy the armored boys any drinks, they get their drinks free of charge." The bartender tells Lucas.
Mr. Higgs looks over from the bar at R109 after Lucas mentions it.
"That's not mine, only got Howdy." Higgs watches the robot to see what it does.
"Odd to see a lone robot walk into a bar..."
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A lone robot walking in gets attention fast, many people look up from their drinks to see what it does. Howdy bot rolls over to R109.
"Well HOWDY my metal brother, haven't seen another bot around there parts for over 3 months now! Them some fancy legs you got there, wish i had a pair can't square dance very well with 3 wheels!"
Howdy then attempts to dance on his 3 balls, its more of a violent shaking and spinning as music plays from his speakers, drawing even more attention to the robots. Some patrons are forced to move away from their tables to avoid the "dancing".

"Hay Howdy cut that out, your gonna break something!" Mr. Higgs yells across the bar.
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Thumper can hear music coming from the bar, followed by what sounds like a small vehicle driving in the bar. It stops shortly after it starts, how odd.

[Mr Stereo1]

John examines the Brotherhood Members, from the mud on their boots they have probably been traveling a while through the rain before they got here.

He doesn't overhear any obvious mentioning of jobs, mostly small groups of people talking among themselves. He can hear that the group of reavers are all listening to the older man with the rifle, he is telling a story about a fight against burning ones. The brotherhood members are rather quiet.

Sighing, John acknowledges he's going to have to make conversation at some point. With brotherhood soldiers, reavers, and a rogue robot in a bar full of mercenaries, he wants to get through with his business quickly.

He makes his way to the bar and asks the bartender if he has any associates looking for good killers, scouts, or looters. If he doesn't have any interest, then John goes to investigate the lone robot. It's always possible it's owners are dead and he could claim it for himself.

[Volthawk]

R109 doesn't seem to react much to the other robot's 'dancing'. Dancing was something he'd seen before, but again was something he saw as pointless. Seeing this robot trying to do it was...pitiful, really. He felt sorry for this little robot, obviously inadequate - he saw this failure in dancing as indicative of not having sufficient dexterous motor systems, and a little embarrased for the disruption it was causing. R109 had noticed feelings like that creeping in since the technicians gave him freedom, and analysed them whenever they got strong enough. He put it down to the fact that emotions were needed for proper free mental growth and thought. That didn't mean he still didn't find them troublesome, though.

"Stop that. You're causing disruption and potentially causing damage for no purpose."

[Lothmar]

"Glad to hear it. It's the thought that counts, just one then." He chuckles slightly. "'a lone robot walks into a bar' eh? Sounds like the opening for a joke." He adds quoting the bartender. '

'Guessing he's not the only one with a medal rod somewhere.' Lucas thinks with a smirk about the robots programmer and its serious nature.

Lucas turns slightly and leans backwards against the bar to watch the display. "Oh there's a purpose metal man, it's called an 'ice-breaker'. It's light hearted entertainment or antics designed to ease tension when you're trying to be sociable." He adds in an unintentional condescending tone, because well - it's hard to take a robot seriously.

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Speech (see how douchy I sounded, lower the value the less rude I probably sounded.) (1d100)[18]

[Lucretia]

After a short wait the bartender gets to Talia, he seems to be a slightly older man. He is sweaty and looks a bit out of breath, probably from constant work with all the people here. However he seems a bit more upbeat seeing Talia.

"Afternoon miss, what can I get you?"

"Good evening," she said, smiling at him and leaning against the bar. "How much for a bottle of scotch and a few questions?"

[reaper_soulman]

Thumper starts to get far more antsy he tightens his grip on his weapons he creeps closer to the bar taking great care to not be noticed but trying to see if he can find a window and a suitable hiding spot to find out what the disturbance he just heard was.

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roll for stealth check 1d100 33

[Rentaromon]

"Good evening," she said, smiling at him and leaning against the bar. "How much for a bottle of scotch and a few questions?"

"First ones on the house for you miss. Information can be costly, but let me save you some time. No i dont know where Higgs gets his stuff, no i dont know what deal he has with the brotherhood, if your looking for work you should talk to him directly, unless your looking for some work of a bit more intimate nature... " The bartender says with a big smile.

((John is near the bartender and Talia, so he overhears this.))

[Lucretia]

Talia laughs and smiles at the man. "Thanks for the bottle, and the information -- I was wondering about super mutants. What's the word on them, kill on sight?" Who was Higgs? she thought to herself, leaning a little closer to the man looking into his eyes.

If someone was eavesdropping, Talia wouldn't notice. She wasn't speaking about anything worth hiding, anyways.

[Volthawk]

"Ah, one of those social traditions you have in place since apparently simple communication is so hard. How boring."

[Rentaromon]

Howdy stops the dancing.

"See that's why i need me some legs. Enjoy yourself brother, hope u don't cause any trouble, i would hate to gun down one of my own."

Howdy rolls off through the bar and things start to calm down a bit, a little unintentional comedy seems to have had a good effect.

Thumper is able to take a peak in the front window and see the show. He also notices a group of individuals running to the bar. It looks to be 3 humans, might be ghouls, hard to tell from this distance.

[Rentaromon]

Talia laughs and smiles at the man. "Thanks for the bottle, and the information -- I was wondering about super mutants. What's the word on them, kill on sight?" Who was Higgs? she thought to herself, leaning a little closer to the man looking into his eyes.

If someone was eavesdropping, Talia wouldn't notice. She wasn't speaking about anything worth hiding, anyways.

"Hay as long as they got caps to spend and don't cause any trouble anyone is good here, excluding anyone emitting radiation. Had some trouble last month with one of them glowing ghouls, he could just not figure out why he was not allowed in. Long story short, Howdy got some target practice and and we had to give out some free radaway."

[Lucretia]

She nodded and waited for the 'tender to bring her the bottle of scotch. When he returned, she'd say, "So, who's Higgs? I'm new in town, but might be looking for work, depending on what it is."

[Rentaromon]

The bartender hands Talia her drink, its clean and cold.

"Mr. Higgs is the owner of the columbus bar, he has connections and trade agreements with just about every group within the chicago area. He always has work available, just dont expect to get paid up front. And dont let him talk you into going downtown, its a goldmine yes but its guarded by all kinds of nasty beast.

He is right over there if you want to to talk to him.(he points over to higgs talking to the brotherhood members.) But feel free to come back and talk whenever you want, names Alex by the way." He gives her another big smile.

[Lucretia]

She grins and mentally notes, to her aggravation, that he'd brought her a glass of scotch as opposed to a bottle. Oh well -- she was used to men not listening to her as attentively as they ought. With a wink, she pushed off from the bar and wandered to the door, opening it and going out as far as she could without getting rained on, motioning for Thumper to come forward.

With any luck, he'd realize what the beckoning meant.

Sipping the scotch and returning indoors, Talia would wait until she had her muscle before moving near the Brotherhood members.

[reaper_soulman]

Thumper sees Talia beckon toward him and moves to her with all haste he moves in beside her slowly and non-threatening mostly because he has a seriously difficult time maneuvering in such a way as to get both his massive frame and his rather large shield into the bar without ripping the door off it's hinges once he is inside he goes to Talia.He looks around the bar scrutinizing every potential enemy.Whose life is at an end Talia?

[Mr Stereo1]

John didn't see anyone reason the bartender would lie about Mr Higgs wanting jobs done, although he could be giving a false impression that he would keep his word, so he decides to find Mr Higgs and offer his services. If he already knows where he is, he'll just go to him directly, if not, he'll ask the bartender if he can see him.

"Hello. I'd like to see Mr Higgs to discuss job opportunities. Is that possible?"

[Lucretia]

Whose life is at an end Talia?

"No one's, yet. We're going to see a man about a job. There isn't a kill-on-sight for super mutants here, but behave yourself -- if a fight broke out, I might get hurt before you crushed everyone. Follow me, but try not to provoke anyone on the way over."

Carefully moving through the crowd -- although it had probably parted a little once Thumper entered -- Talia made her way towards the Brotherhood members where Alex had said Mr. Higgs was.

[reaper_soulman]

Thumper sheaths his sword and slings his shield over one shoulder then falls in step beside Talia he smiles to try and seem friendly.

[Rentaromon]

John didn't see anyone reason the bartender would lie about Mr Higgs wanting jobs done, although he could be giving a false impression that he would keep his word, so he decides to find Mr Higgs and offer his services. If he already knows where he is, he'll just go to him directly, if not, he'll ask the bartender if he can see him.

"Hello. I'd like to see Mr Higgs to discuss job opportunities. Is that possible?"

"Hes right over there, you might have some competition however. It seems that lady over there and her big friend are looking for work as well." He points over to higgs, still over by the brotherhood members.

[Rentaromon]

"No one's, yet. We're going to see a man about a job. There isn't a kill-on-sight for super mutants here, but behave yourself -- if a fight broke out, I might get hurt before you crushed everyone. Follow me, but try not to provoke anyone on the way over."

Carefully moving through the crowd -- although it had probably parted a little once Thumper entered -- Talia made her way towards the Brotherhood members where Alex had said Mr. Higgs was.

As Talia and Thumper move through the crowd to Higgs they notice more than a few faces turning to look at them. They hear a man speaking to his friend say.
"Lone robot and now a super-mutant, rain must be flushing all the freaks out of their holes."

As they get near Higgs they can a little bit of the conversation he was having with a brotherhood member, it seems Higgs was assuring them that the reavers are not going to start anything at the bar.

[Mr Stereo1]

"Hes right over there, you might have some competition however. It seems that lady over there and her big friend are looking for work as well." He points over to higgs, still over by the brotherhood members.

He probably had a different skill-set than they did. "Thank you for your time regardless."

[Lucretia]

Talia finished her scotch and waited for Mr. Higgs -- well, the one without the power armor, so probably Mr. Higgs -- to finish his conversation. It wouldn't do to be rude to a prospective employer, not until she had the upper hand or a new gig lined up.

Working for anyone wasn't particularly Talia's idea for a good time, but she needed to find people to work with (and, sadly, 'for') before she could establish a trade company in this region. Long term plans and all that.

[Rentaromon]

After a few seconds Higgs turns to face talia.

"Since Alex sent you to me im gonna take a guess your looking for a job?."

Higgs looks Talia and Thumper over, he seems to have no reaction to the huge super-mutant.

[Lucretia]

With a smile, Talia nodded. "Yes sir, that's correct. I understand you often are in need of people to take care of little problems?"