aaaaaaaagh_sky | National Guard Depot

The door that opens is not, strictly speaking, a door. Ellen wasn't able to find a working one near enough the National Guard building to use, so she had to fall back on the mouth of the drainage pipe that led out of Rock Creek Caverns. "Sorry about the smell," Ellen murmurs, "and the wet feet. This was the best access point I could get us."

Crossposts: http://aaaaaaaagh-sky.livejournal.com/58901.html

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

It's probably for the best not to look too closely. The longer one looks at the things, the more one sees, after all.

When Ellen passed through earlier in her stealth suit, she'd swept the perimeter for turrets and other remote-kill systems that might've been mounted on the Depot walls. She neglected to mention that she'd marked each area she checked; there's a twist of tanned Brahmin hide tied to the remains of the rusty chickenwire outer fence at regular intervals. It never hurts to be on the safe side, in a place like this.

From:

fullofmercy

For his part, Wolfwood passes by what's left of the mutant he'd taken down with a grimace, avoiding as many squishy bits as he can.

As they start heading around the perimeter, he keeps a sharp eye out for more of the green monsters, and anything else that might pop up.

One thing that's become clear is that the usual rules don't seem to apply in Ellen's world: these things are everywhere, and he wonders, not for the first time, how the people living here manage to make it from day to day without being obliterated.

It's idle thought, but it doesn't keep him from paying attention to the layout around them, alert at any sign of movement.

From:

luvs_yogurt

"How you holding up?" Michael murmurs, scanning to the west and south - utilizing the scope when he sees the occasional glint of light as they slowly make their way.

All things considered, it's a unique warzone. Enemies without remorse or logic, no way to get them to hesitate that doesn't involve putting them in a good deal of pain. And even then... he shot the damn thing in the eye and it just got more pissed off.

From:

fullofmercy

"So far unscathed."

He's a little dirtier than usual, and he's got the uncomfortable feeling that his suit is ripped in a spot he can't quite see, but that's all.

"It's a strange world. I always considered Gunsmoke to be just this side of hell, but I can't understand how anyone could manage to survive in a place like this for long."

From:

luvs_yogurt

"I'm guessing a lot of them don't." He's thought about what little he knows about the organization Ellen's working for - and she had said there are cities too. Always rebuilding, always striving to return to civilization... it's the human way.

"People are tough like that, even after most of the world dying off they're still clinging to life. It's actually kind of poetic, when you think about it."

At least, when he thinks about it. Not that he has much time to think since they are in an active zone.

From:

fullofmercy

Wolfwood shakes his head, squinting at a far-off glint. Is that metal, or...?

"You don't need to tell me about life on the raggedy edge of annihilation. Still, this place is worse off than Gunsmoke. You say it's another version of your world? You have my sympathies. It can't be easy to see your own world ravaged, even if it belongs to another universe."

From:

luvs_yogurt

Michael swallows hard, shaking his head as he forces back the very real memory of the station and the crumbling skyline of DC all around them.

"Washington DC is the country's capital in my world - hub of all political activity. A long time ago I got a medal for service a few blocks from the entrance to that station we went through." It's not the same, he tells himself, but still it feels a little too close to reality to not give him pause. "I've actually been inside this building - it wasn't quite as crumbling or technologically fortified... but I've been here."

From:

fullofmercy

He's seen the ruins of July, but he'd been too young to ever have seen the city itself, so he doesn't have any idea what it might be like to wander the ruins of a place you'd once known -- in any universe.

He imagines it can't be pleasant.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope your world manages to avoid a similar fate."

That's all he says for now, though, because he sees that glint again, and this time, he points it out. "Something's moving over there. Can you see it through the scope?"

From:

luvs_yogurt

Michael turns, scope up and finger on the trigger, and stares straight down the barrel at a patrolling unit.

"That can't be good." He rolls his thumb over the end of the scope to increase magnification, frowning.

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

It's not. It's really not.

It's trundling along on its treads, slowly pacing the perimeter of the National Guard's old property, the biogel surrounding its brain glowing faintly.

From:

fullofmercy

Fantastic. Lost technology.

Robots, he reminds himself, but that doesn't make him feel any better about the thing moving so slowly towards them.

"Did I ever tell you," he says, conversationally, hefting the Punisher to his shoulder, "that I hate robots? I ran into a bunch of the murdering things the day I met Vash. Between the two of them, I'm amazed I got out alive."

He gives a heavy sigh.

"I don't suppose we'll be lucky enough for your rifle to take it out?"

From:

luvs_yogurt

His finger caresses the trigger as he lines up the crosshair; "Not lucky, but I've got skill on my side."

He aims for the clear dome showing it's brain taking one shot - and then a second to crack it open - a third sending the oddly pink brain matter tumbling into the dust and the unit falls backward unceremoniously.

"Not too bad."

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

No, indeed. Of course, the question is, can he do it again, or will Wolfwood have to step up? Because-

"Alert. Alert. Attempted security breach in progress. This is now a live fire zone. Civilians should leave the area immediately."

-the brain bot wasn't alone.

From:

fullofmercy

Oh. That's good.

The armor on the thing looks thick, but Wolfwood lays down fire anyhow, concentrating on the glass dome and the weaker-looking joints.

"I don't suppose anything like these were here the last time you saw this place?" he says, between bursts of gunfire.

From:

luvs_yogurt

"That would be a correct assumption, my friend." Michael frowned and drew his laser pistol - unloading as many support rounds as he could in the metal head-like part until between the two of them, the thing finally drops in a scraping collapsing of metal and whirring of damaged circuits.

"These look like they have artificial intelligence - probably not anything highly advanced, but enough that they're still running program two hundred years after the place got blown to hell. This kind of technology is more advanced robotics than what my world has... though, we're getting close."

And seeing it in action, that fact is kind of scary. "Theoretically, there should be one big mainframe computer that's keeping the program running - assuming it's anything like how technology works in my experience."

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

It was a successful fight. It was also a noisy one. And the only other living things for miles are just desperate enough to find... whatever they're after... that when they hear the gunfire and the robot's last collapse, they come running.

There are three. One of them has a missile launcher primed and ready to go.

From:

fullofmercy

"Well, that's a relief. I'd hate to think any other worlds had these things crawling around on them."

He really, truly, hates robots.

Of course, he's not a huge fan of their backup, either, and he eyes the missile launcher with trepidation, before flipping the Punisher on his shoulder so the shortest arm points forward.

"They say to fight fire with fire, don't they?"

Squinting, he sights. Squeezes the trigger.

The rocket launched screams a white-hot trail of smoke through the air, and explodes in a confusion of dirt and debris under the mutants' feet.

From:

luvs_yogurt

"Shit... shit... shit..." Michael swears quietly, hitting the ground to make a smaller target as he wishes for the second time he'd gone for the assault rifle instead of the pistol as he aims at the one holding the rocket launcher in quick succession; letting out a frustrated cry with the impact of the missile that fires out of the weapon.

Damn if that preacher isn't full of dirty tricks.

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

Oh. Oh, man. Oh, there is going to be so much shrapnel in a minute.

And a whole lot of mutant bleeding; they might be green-skinned, but what's inside is as red as any human's.

From:

fullofmercy

"Duck," Wolfwood advises, covering under the Punisher as shrapnel rains down, peering to see if any other mutants have joined the party.

"These robots -- do you think they have any idea what they're protecting? Are they just obeying archaic commands, or are they just murder machine out to get anything that moves?"

From:

luvs_yogurt

Michael's already flattening himself against the ground to avoid the spread, but no less feels the sting of something at his back just to the left of his armor plating - whatever it is tears through his shirt penetrates the skin but he's too busy worrying about everything else to pay it much heed.

"I'd say a little bit of B, little bit of C." Michael grimaces, pulling himself up to keep firing at mean green guys running for them. As calm as one can expect, he manages to send one crumpling to the ground before turning to the other.

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

Thankfully, there are no new arrivals. Just the one coming gunning for Michael, frothing with rage and spewing everything it's got in its magazine. It's bleeding from several places and it's doubtful how well it can see, but these things are too stubborn to just lie down and die without a lot of convincing.

From:

fullofmercy

There's not enough time to flip the cross around, so he reaches into the right arm and pulls out one of the handguns, firing into the thing as it runs forward.

"I think you're probably right."

From:

luvs_yogurt

Michael bites back another grimace and swears under his breath when the bright pink laser shots stop coming. With a low growl, he pops out the dead cell and slaps in a new one - more than a little relieved when the last one collapses in a gushing, moaning heap before he can even get a shot off.

"Full perimeter scan - I wanna make sure we're alone again after that."

He picks up his rifle from where he'd set it to rest and lifts the scope to see as far as he can.

From:

aaaaaaaagh_sky

Off in the distance, there's one more lone Securitron making its way along a path worn through the rubble by two hundred years of robot feet.

That's... about it, really.