Giddyup Buttercup Factory

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

It would be nice to say the sun was beating down from overhead, but it's not. Partly because a few minutes ago it was raining, and partly because, well, the door opens onto the factory interior. It's dark here, with the only light coming from Ellen's Pip-Boy, the side lamp on Ellen's helmet, and the occasional crack in the walls or chink in the ceiling.

It also smells here. This was never a well-ventilated place. Two hundred years of neglect have improved the cross-breezes somewhat, but only barely- and things have been living here for a while now that had no concept of sanitation or hygiene.

"I'm sorry about the smell. I can only imagine what it must be like on your side of the helmet," Ellen's muffled voice says.

Comments

[aeons_crackshot]

"It's vile, but nothing I haven't run into before," Annabelle says with a wry smile.

She moves the flashlight to cover whatever areas aren't being revealed by Ellen's light sources.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

The room is, as so many other rooms in Ellen's world that Annabelle's visited, sag-walled and broken-ceilinged. The shattered remains of two computer terminals lie heaped on the ruins of the reception desk. Passages lead off to the left and the right, with a double door behind the reception desk leading into a humid, warm-smelling darkness. "That," Ellen says, nodding towards the door, "is the main factory floor."

From somewhere in the distance, a faint "Blaaaargh!" can be heard.

[aeons_crackshot]

"I do believe I hear the dulcet tones of mutants," Annabelle says sarcastically. "It's a good thing that Tanya gave me a lot of HEAP ammo."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"No, I'm pretty sure that was a ghoul," Ellen says.

"YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME, HUMAN!"

"That was a mutant."

[aeons_crackshot]

"My mistake," Annabelle replies, preparing for trouble.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen moves forward, edging her way into the main factory floor. The light from her helmet reveals a rotted conveyor belt, twisted bits of metal protruding from the walls, a few catwalks, and the gutted remains of a gigantic metal horse that could've passed for the Trojan one's little brother hanging from the ceiling. There is a teddy bear half Ellen's size seated on its back.

Oh, right, and two shambling zombie-riffic fellows on the other side of the conveyor belt, snuffling at a headless third ghoul's corpse as best anyone who doesn't actually have a nose can.

[aeons_crackshot]

There's a familiar buzzing whine as the Ripper gets powered on. Being distracted is going to be the very last mistake those two ever make.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

There's a slightly less familiar zap! as Ellen's gun fires a bolt of green energy; she gave up on the standard guns for this trip after that damn Deathclaw outside. It hits one of the ghouls square in the chest, and it staggers backwards, smoking.

The other, not being familiar with the ripper sound, charges Annabelle. Moron.

[aeons_crackshot]

Considering that he's now a feral killing machine, he can probably be forgiven for the stupid. Not that that would change anything, mind you.

The ghoul charges, claws swinging towards her face. Annabelle steps sideways and brings the Ripper up in an arc.

A few heartbeats later, he's half the man...er, ghoul, he used to be.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

And the other, well, he's-

BeebeebeeSPLORT!

.... thaaaaaaaat'd be the head thing. On both the ghouls.

Ew.

[aeons_crackshot]

"That sounded like a detonator," Annabelle mutters as she attempts to wipe off some of the ghoul decorating her armor.

"Why would anyone put a detonator in something's head?!"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"I don't know," says Ellen. "Spite? 'You killed my horribly mutated and cannibalistically psychotic brother, prepare to die'?" She shakes her head. "Anyway. Let's get them laid straight, and we'll see about finding that mutant before he finds us, okay?"

[aeons_crackshot]

It's a shame that Annabelle's of the wrong generation to get the Princess Bride reference.

"I suppose," Annabelle allows. "Nothing else makes much sense."

There's not a lot of ghoul left to lay straight, but she'll lend a hand.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

It's the principle of the thing. Worst comes to worst, Ellen will settle for a reasonably orderly heap.

Anyway, it doesn't take that long. Ellen's done this too often; it's habit by now. She bows her head, murmurs the words, and looks up. "Okay," she says. "Mutant time. I think he's upstairs. That catwalk on the left is pretty solid, but there's about half a ghoul partway up, and one of the railings is gone because that's what her head was lying against when it went off."

[aeons_crackshot]

Annabelle nods in understanding and readies the Sniper rifle. She's not going to take on one of them with the ripper by choice, thank you.

"I'll remember to hug the wall, then," she replies quietly. "Do you want me to take point?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"If you're up for it, sure," Ellen says. "I've got your back."

Ellen wasn't kidding about the rail being missing. At least the floor of the catwalk wasn't too badly effected. It is not, however, a walk for the squeamish; even after passing the majority of the corpse one's boots make nasty sticky squelchy noises. Up ahead the stairs and the catwalk come to a stop at a mostly-intact door. Annabelle may spot a sickly greenish glow somewhere down the corridor beyond.

[aeons_crackshot]

Annabelle nods and takes point, rifle at the ready. It's a mercy that she's accustomed to ignoring those all too familiar squelching noises.

The green glow catches her eye, and she motions with one hand for Ellen to stop. She's trying to determine if the glow is being caused by a glowing ghoul like they ran into in the tunnels on a previous visit.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Blaaaargh!"

Thaaaaaaaaaaat'd be a yes, Bob. Oh, and it's coming this way- as are two other flailing horrors, although admittedly of the non-luminescent variety.

[aeons_crackshot]

If any of them are obliging enough to be in line with one another, Annabelle will bag two for the price of one.

HEAP ammo is capable of piercing light armor, what will it do to a ghoul's skull?

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Well, if the first one is anything to go by, it'll trigger the BeeBeeBeeSPLORTCH! effect. The second, well, it kinda lost some velocity there, so it's just gonna make that second ghoul mad.

'Course, the third ghoul just screamed and dissolved in a puddle of green goo, so all things considered they're still ahead by a good bit.

[aeons_crackshot]

Annabelle makes several comments about the second ghoul's ancestry that are probably entirely unwarranted when she sees that it doesn't go down.

Unfortunately for the ghoul, she still has more bullets. There's the familiar sound of a round being chambered and she takes her second shot.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

That's one tough bastard ghoul; Ellen's plasma bolt doesn't seem to stop it, either. However, that third shot's enough, and it goes down flai-

BeeBeeBeeSPLORTCH!

"That gets old really fast," Ellen says.

[aeons_crackshot]

"No kidding," Annabelle says with a sigh. "I don't see any more, but I suspect that anything else around here probably knows about us now."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"COME OUT, COME OUT, WHEREVER YOU ARE!"

"You were saying?" says Ellen, checking the microfusion cells in her rifle. "We've got mutant sign."

[aeons_crackshot]

She reloads the rifle. "Over here you misbegotten cannibal!" Annabelle shouts.