As you hurry away, you hear the unmistakable shriek of a Skag followed by a volley of gunfire. There’s a sickening crunch and Finch (Kroger?) cusses louder than ever.
You don’t look back. Standard Pandoran sounds like that don’t phase you as much as they used to.
The debris begins to thin out. You duck behind an escape pod and pause for breath, assessing your surroundings as you do so. There’s a vehicle on your left - one of those bandit trucks with more spikes than moving parts. Kroger’s, probably.
It’s just sitting there, right out in the open. You glance back the way you came. There’s only one flashlight now, reflecting off the twisted metal hulls of Helios escape pods.
You weigh the situation up in your head. The car isn’t far from you, but there’s no way to it without breaking cover…
one of them is waiting in the car! I BET IT! let's see...rhys takes two little stones. he throws one into the desert, hoping to distract the stranger and finch/kroger, and another one at the car as soon as they're too far away to hear it. if nobody comes out of the car to see what that noise was, rhys sneaks towards the car to steal it.
As you hurry away, you hear the unmistakable shriek of a Skag followed by a volley of gunfire. There’s a sickening crunch and Finch (Kroger?… more) cusses louder than ever.
You don’t look back. Standard Pandoran sounds like that don’t phase you as much as they used to.
The debris begins to thin out. You duck behind an escape pod and pause for breath, assessing your surroundings as you do so. There’s a vehicle on your left - one of those bandit trucks with more spikes than moving parts. Kroger’s, probably.
It’s just sitting there, right out in the open. You glance back the way you came. There’s only one flashlight now, reflecting off the twisted metal hulls of Helios escape pods.
You weigh the situation up in your head. The car isn’t far from you, but there’s no way to it without breaking cover…
As you hurry away, you hear the unmistakable shriek of a Skag followed by a volley of gunfire. There’s a sickening crunch and Finch (Kroger?… more) cusses louder than ever.
You don’t look back. Standard Pandoran sounds like that don’t phase you as much as they used to.
The debris begins to thin out. You duck behind an escape pod and pause for breath, assessing your surroundings as you do so. There’s a vehicle on your left - one of those bandit trucks with more spikes than moving parts. Kroger’s, probably.
It’s just sitting there, right out in the open. You glance back the way you came. There’s only one flashlight now, reflecting off the twisted metal hulls of Helios escape pods.
You weigh the situation up in your head. The car isn’t far from you, but there’s no way to it without breaking cover…
You briefly consider lying low. Causing a distraction and sneaking away worked before, but hitting that skag was a fluke and you doubt you could pull of a distraction of that magnitude again. As the flashlight draws ever closer you consider the possibility of having to walk the Pandoran desert a second time. Your stomach drops.
You make a snap decision and bolt to the truck.
You don't see anyone in the gunner's seat as you approach, nor anyone in the driver's cabin.
Weird. Has Kroger ever done anything without his buddy backing him up? Where the hell is he?
Certain that this is too good to be true, you peer cautiously around the back of the truck, cybernetic fist raised and ready to go.
Still nothing? Huh. You thought for sure you’d have to punch someone out there.
well, in that case: get in the car and drive away. don't try to kill the stranger or kroger while driving, just get away from them and try to reach add name of the atlas-city here where he is safe.
@Dracu98 said: one of them is waiting in the car! I BET IT!
@Pipas said: GO FOR IT RHYS, RUN FOR THE CAR!
You briefly conside… morer lying low. Causing a distraction and sneaking away worked before, but hitting that skag was a fluke and you doubt you could pull of a distraction of that magnitude again. As the flashlight draws ever closer you consider the possibility of having to walk the Pandoran desert a second time. Your stomach drops.
You make a snap decision and bolt to the truck.
You don't see anyone in the gunner's seat as you approach, nor anyone in the driver's cabin.
Weird. Has Kroger ever done anything without his buddy backing him up? Where the hell is he?
Certain that this is too good to be true, you peer cautiously around the back of the truck, cybernetic fist raised and ready to go.
Still nothing? Huh. You thought for sure you’d have to punch someone out there.
@Dracu98 said: one of them is waiting in the car! I BET IT!
@Pipas said: GO FOR IT RHYS, RUN FOR THE CAR!
You briefly conside… morer lying low. Causing a distraction and sneaking away worked before, but hitting that skag was a fluke and you doubt you could pull of a distraction of that magnitude again. As the flashlight draws ever closer you consider the possibility of having to walk the Pandoran desert a second time. Your stomach drops.
You make a snap decision and bolt to the truck.
You don't see anyone in the gunner's seat as you approach, nor anyone in the driver's cabin.
Weird. Has Kroger ever done anything without his buddy backing him up? Where the hell is he?
Certain that this is too good to be true, you peer cautiously around the back of the truck, cybernetic fist raised and ready to go.
Still nothing? Huh. You thought for sure you’d have to punch someone out there.
The cab door swings open easily. You haul yourself into the driver’s seat.
Luckily for you, nearly every Pandoran-made vehicle operates just fine without keys. Maybe Scooter knew that the kinds of people who owned these things would be the kind to drop their keys into a corpse or a toilet or a crater. Maybe he figured more stolen vehicles meant more Catch-A-Ride purchases. Or maybe he just forgot.
Guess that’s one mystery you’ll never know the answer to, now.
The ignition switch is a little finicky, but after a couple of tries the engine springs to life. Finally, you can get back to your own life!
There’s movement in the corner of your vision. You glance up, just as the stranger levels his gun.
Aaaagh! What the hell is this guy’s problem?! Is he actually trying to get you killed now?
You grit your teeth and reach for the gearbox. Ohh, it is so tempting just to run him over…
Time to go.
The cab door swings open easily. You haul yourself into the driver’s seat.
Luckily for you, nearly every Pandoran-made… more vehicle operates just fine without keys. Maybe Scooter knew that the kinds of people who owned these things would be the kind to drop their keys into a corpse or a toilet or a crater. Maybe he figured more stolen vehicles meant more Catch-A-Ride purchases. Or maybe he just forgot.
Guess that’s one mystery you’ll never know the answer to, now.
The ignition switch is a little finicky, but after a couple of tries the engine springs to life. Finally, you can get back to your own life!
There’s movement in the corner of your vision. You glance up, just as the stranger levels his gun.
Aaaagh! What the hell is this guy’s problem?! Is he actually trying to get you killed now?
You grit your teeth and reach for the gearbox. Ohh, it is so tempting just to run him over…
It’s only when the wreckage of Helios is far, far behind you that you let yourself relax. You let out a deep breath and sink back into the chair.
Although escaping was far easier than you thought it’d be, it’s really bugging you that you lost track of Fiona. Did she manage to get herself untied? Is she unarmed? There’s no telling what the Stranger will do if he finds her.
Okay, so maybe you ran him over, and maybe a person can’t usually survive a bull-bar to the face, but he could’ve been wearing a shield! Except you saw his leg snap off. Kind of. There was no blood. Trick of the light, maybe? Whatever. Dead or not, Finch is back there too.
Guh. Why are you worrying about this?! She ditched you back on Helios, remember? This is… this is just karma. Or something. Besides, you were the one who woke her up in the first place. You did your part, and now she can take care of herself.
Right?
You sigh and try to get your thoughts back on track. This week has been a train wreck. You're exhausted, so retreating to an Atlas facility to recuperate seems like the best course of action right now. The question is, which one?
screw fiona, rhys should focus on saving his own ass and then use his power as atlas-boss to find her. therefore, I'd say he returns to the base from episode 3, IF he has already turned it into a safe place. otherwise, the facility from episode 2 would be the better choice.
It’s only when the wreckage of Helios is far, far behind you that you let yourself relax. You let out a deep breath and sink back into the c… morehair.
Although escaping was far easier than you thought it’d be, it’s really bugging you that you lost track of Fiona. Did she manage to get herself untied? Is she unarmed? There’s no telling what the Stranger will do if he finds her.
Okay, so maybe you ran him over, and maybe a person can’t usually survive a bull-bar to the face, but he could’ve been wearing a shield! Except you saw his leg snap off. Kind of. There was no blood. Trick of the light, maybe? Whatever. Dead or not, Finch is back there too.
Guh. Why are you worrying about this?! She ditched you back on Helios, remember? This is… this is just karma. Or something. Besides, you were the one who woke her up in the first place. You did your part, and now she can take care of herself.
Right?
You sigh and try to get your thoughts … [view original content]
Eh, Fiona can take care of herself, let's just focus on Rhys' survival for now. Bio-dome seems like a better choice, it has all these automated defenses like turrets and such which could come in handy against uninvited guests. Plus Cassius may be there. And Rhys is Cassius' boss now, soo he's kinda obligated to help Rhys, right?
It’s only when the wreckage of Helios is far, far behind you that you let yourself relax. You let out a deep breath and sink back into the c… morehair.
Although escaping was far easier than you thought it’d be, it’s really bugging you that you lost track of Fiona. Did she manage to get herself untied? Is she unarmed? There’s no telling what the Stranger will do if he finds her.
Okay, so maybe you ran him over, and maybe a person can’t usually survive a bull-bar to the face, but he could’ve been wearing a shield! Except you saw his leg snap off. Kind of. There was no blood. Trick of the light, maybe? Whatever. Dead or not, Finch is back there too.
Guh. Why are you worrying about this?! She ditched you back on Helios, remember? This is… this is just karma. Or something. Besides, you were the one who woke her up in the first place. You did your part, and now she can take care of herself.
Right?
You sigh and try to get your thoughts … [view original content]
It’s only when the wreckage of Helios is far, far behind you that you let yourself relax. You let out a deep breath and sink back into the c… morehair.
Although escaping was far easier than you thought it’d be, it’s really bugging you that you lost track of Fiona. Did she manage to get herself untied? Is she unarmed? There’s no telling what the Stranger will do if he finds her.
Okay, so maybe you ran him over, and maybe a person can’t usually survive a bull-bar to the face, but he could’ve been wearing a shield! Except you saw his leg snap off. Kind of. There was no blood. Trick of the light, maybe? Whatever. Dead or not, Finch is back there too.
Guh. Why are you worrying about this?! She ditched you back on Helios, remember? This is… this is just karma. Or something. Besides, you were the one who woke her up in the first place. You did your part, and now she can take care of herself.
Right?
You sigh and try to get your thoughts … [view original content]
Holy shit, how long has it been since I last logged in here? What happened to the site layout? what
Anyways, that's... a good question that I'm not entirely sure how to answer. I think I'm more of a zombie at this point, shambling between workloads. As much as I enjoy my uni course, it really eats up my time.
Mid-semester break's coming up though, so I might have some free time to work on this again soon if there's any interest in it.
from my side, there clearly is. but to be honest, I don't think that there is enough activity in this forum anymore that your time would actually be worth it.
Holy shit, how long has it been since I last logged in here? What happened to the site layout? what
Anyways, that's... a good question that… more I'm not entirely sure how to answer. I think I'm more of a zombie at this point, shambling between workloads. As much as I enjoy my uni course, it really eats up my time.
Mid-semester break's coming up though, so I might have some free time to work on this again soon if there's any interest in it.
from my side, there clearly is. but to be honest, I don't think that there is enough activity in this forum anymore that your time would actually be worth it.
Holy shit, how long has it been since I last logged in here? What happened to the site layout? what
Anyways, that's... a good question that… more I'm not entirely sure how to answer. I think I'm more of a zombie at this point, shambling between workloads. As much as I enjoy my uni course, it really eats up my time.
Mid-semester break's coming up though, so I might have some free time to work on this again soon if there's any interest in it.
@Pipas : Bio-dome seems like a better choice, it has all these automated defenses like turrets and such which could come in handy against uninvited guests. Plus Cassius may be there. And Rhys is Cassius' boss now, soo he's kinda obligated to help Rhys, right?
Focus, focus, gotta focus. Fiona's Pandorian. She'll be fine. You spot a ECHOnet console on the dashboard of the truck and punch the co-ordinates for Cassius's old place into the GPS.
You don't have a clue if the old guy is still there or not. He was the last time you visited - helped you plug your new arm in and everything - but he didn't seem too happy when you told him you yoinked the deed to Atlas. Guess nobody likes it when you point out that you legally own their house, and their ass. Still, it's the safest place you've got on this rock. Might as well make use of it.
...Hm, it's sort of hard to read the ECHOnet display from this distance. You take a moment to adjust your eye's graphic settings.
That's better.
The truck goes over a bump in the road, and you hear something topple over in the back. Come to think of it, you never did check what was in there. Hopefully it's not something rigged to explode.
Oof, you certainly picked the wrong time to come back. If you haven't heard, Telltale is closing down. Which means the forums will shut down eventually as well. We just don't know when. Might be tomorrow, in a month, at the end of the year...
But if you despite that choose to continue the story here or on some other site, here's my vote:
Rhys should hopefully be far enough from both Kroger and Stranger by now, so I say he should stop and check out whatever's in the back. Might be something useful.
@Pipas : Bio-dome seems like a better choice, it has all these automated defenses like turrets and such which could come in handy against un… moreinvited guests. Plus Cassius may be there. And Rhys is Cassius' boss now, soo he's kinda obligated to help Rhys, right?
Focus, focus, gotta focus. Fiona's Pandorian. She'll be fine. You spot a ECHOnet console on the dashboard of the truck and punch the co-ordinates for Cassius's old place into the GPS.
You don't have a clue if the old guy is still there or not. He was the last time you visited - helped you plug your new arm in and everything - but he didn't seem too happy when you told him you yoinked the deed to Atlas. Guess nobody likes it when you point out that you legally own their house, and their ass. Still, it's the safest place you've got on this rock. Might as well make use of it.
...Hm, it's sort of hard to read the ECHOnet display from this distance. You take a moment to adju… [view original content]
(Hah, yeah, I heard. That's partly why I'm here - figured I should at LEAST toss up what's been sitting in my notes before the site implodes. I'll leave this thread going in the off chance someone else gets nostalgic for the Forum Games chat, but I'll be crossposting everything to the TCIS discord as well.)
Oof, you certainly picked the wrong time to come back. If you haven't heard, Telltale is closing down. Which means the forums will shut down… more eventually as well. We just don't know when. Might be tomorrow, in a month, at the end of the year...
But if you despite that choose to continue the story here or on some other site, here's my vote:
Rhys should hopefully be far enough from both Kroger and Stranger by now, so I say he should stop and check out whatever's in the back. Might be something useful.
You suppose it couldn't hurt to check...
Oh that's not luggage.
(Hah, yeah, I heard. That's partly why I'm here - figured I shou… moreld at LEAST toss up what's been sitting in my notes before the site implodes. I'll leave this thread going in the off chance someone else gets nostalgic for the Forum Games chat, but I'll be crossposting everything to the TCIS discord as well.)
"Sasha?!" This day is just full of surprises. She looks different than she did a few months ago - hair, especially. It looks good. You don't get to think on it much before another bump in the road drags your gaze back to driving the truck.
"What are you doing here? You're not with Kroger, are you--?"
By the time you turn around, Sasha has regained her composure. Damn it. Nobody's ever happy to see you.
"I could ask you the same thing," she says. "Hands where I can see 'em."
Oof. Focus on the road and kindly remark that taking hands off from a wheel while driving at full speed would be a bad idea. Also try to convince Sasha that you're not a bad guy.
"Sasha?!" This day is just full of surprises. She looks different than she did a few months ago - hair, especially. It looks good. You don't… more get to think on it much before another bump in the road drags your gaze back to driving the truck.
"What are you doing here? You're not with Kroger, are you--?"
By the time you turn around, Sasha has regained her composure. Damn it. Nobody's ever happy to see you.
"I could ask you the same thing," she says. "Hands where I can see 'em."
Has she already forgotten you're driving?
You bite back the urge to snap at Sasha. Seems like she's having almost as bad a day as you are.
“Uh, is the gun really necessary?”
Sasha laughs dryly. “Is it necessary? Well, gee, I don’t know. First a bunch of hitmen turn up at my door, then my sister goes missing, and now the guy who screwed us over in the first place turns out to not actually be dead, and also he’s hanging out with Vallory’s old buddies!”
“I’m not-”
“So yeah. Put your hands up.”
You drum your fingers against the steering wheel.
“Well, okay. But that's… Y'know. A bit hard, given that we're…”
You glance meaningfully at the road. Sasha catches your drift.
"Oh.” She scoots to the side of the truck so she can better watch you drive. Her gun is still pointed at your head, but she's letting you keep your hands on the wheel so you suppose that’s an improvement.
“I feel like we’ve started this conversation off on the wrong foot. Let’s just start over.” You clear your throat, before continuing with what you hope is a lighthearted tone. “Hi, Sasha, long time no see. How’s life? Did you get a haircut? Also, quick question, what are you doing camping out in the back of a bandit truck in the middle of the night? ‘Cause I saw it first. It’s my getaway car.”
“What do you mean getaway car? I thought–”
“I already told you. I didn’t hire Kroger.”
Sasha doesn't respond.
"Listen," you continue. "It’s been a really, really long week. You clearly look as if you’ve got places to be, and I’m not here to mess with whatever it is you’re doing, sooo…
“If you could just tell me what’s going on and what you want, so I can get back to my search, and you can go back to conning people, or gun collecting, or… whatever it is you’ve been doing for the past three months, I’d appreciate it.”
Oof. Focus on the road and kindly remark that taking hands off from a wheel while driving at full speed would be a bad idea. Also try to convince Sasha that you're not a bad guy.
Rhys still has Fiona's gun and hat in his inventory (I think?), so if he lied and said he didn't see Fiona, it wouldn't probably take long until Sasha found out the truth. On the other hand, if Sasha heard Fiona was still out there by herself, unarmed, she'd want to turn the car around immediately towards the people Rhys just ran away from. Then again, at least now with Sasha and her gun, they'd have some kind of firepower (by the way, really stupid of Kroger not taking her gun), so they might have a chance against them.
So, uh, in conclusion, Rhys should probably tell Sasha what does he know. That he and Fiona were captured by some crazy guy and that they tried to escape, but got separated a while back.
You bite back the urge to snap at Sasha. Seems like she's having almost as bad a day as you are.
“Uh, is the gun really necessary?”
Sa… moresha laughs dryly. “Is it necessary? Well, gee, I don’t know. First a bunch of hitmen turn up at my door, then my sister goes missing, and now the guy who screwed us over in the first place turns out to not actually be dead, and also he’s hanging out with Vallory’s old buddies!”
“I’m not-”
“So yeah. Put your hands up.”
You drum your fingers against the steering wheel.
“Well, okay. But that's… Y'know. A bit hard, given that we're…”
You glance meaningfully at the road. Sasha catches your drift.
"Oh.” She scoots to the side of the truck so she can better watch you drive. Her gun is still pointed at your head, but she's letting you keep your hands on the wheel so you suppose that’s an improvement.
“I feel like we’ve started this conversation off on the wrong foot. Let’s just start over… [view original content]
“Yeah.” You pick Fiona’s hat up off the seat and wave it in Sasha’s direction. “I have.”
“Give me that!” Sasha yanks it out of your hand without so much as a thank you. “What happened? How’d you get this?”
“It’s kind of a long story.”
“Try me.”
“All right. So about a week ago, I got a message from Fiona telling me to meet her at Prosperity Junction.”
“But Fiona didn’t–”
“…Know I was alive? So you said. But I went out there anyway, because I thought MAYBE I could explain myself before things got out of hand! But then I got blindsided by some asshole in a radiation suit, and all I could think was well, I should have seen this coming…”
You proceed to give Sasha the rundown of your week, covering everything from getting punched in the neck, right through to finding Gortys’s ring-y thing. It quickly spirals into something of a one-sided rant that Sasha probably isn’t paying much attention to, but it feels good to get it off your chest.
“We were just getting close to the crash site when flaming chunks of Helios started raining from the sky. Naturally, I suggested we use that as a distraction to get away…”
You pause. You’re getting close to the end of your story now. And if you tell Sasha you ditched Fiona while she was still tied up, she might get you to turn around. Or worse.
“And?” She presses.
“…We, uh, got separated. After that.” You suppose that’s true enough. “I got pinned down by the shower and hid in an escape pod ‘til it blew over. But by that point it was night, and Kroger found me, and… here we are.”
“So you went through that whole story just to tell me you don’t know where she is.”
“T-technically, yeah.”
“Great. Well. Thanks, Rhys. Just drop me off wherever.”
“That’s it? You don’t have any more questions?”
“Not really. If she’s alive and in one piece, then she’s probably headed to our last safehouse. Also, you drive like a maniac, and I think I should get out of the trunk before you give me a concussion.”
You still wonder if you should say something before she goes.
Uh indeed.
Rhys still has Fiona's gun and hat in his inventory (I think?), so if he lied and said he didn't see Fiona, it wouldn't proba… morebly take long until Sasha found out the truth. On the other hand, if Sasha heard Fiona was still out there by herself, unarmed, she'd want to turn the car around immediately towards the people Rhys just ran away from. Then again, at least now with Sasha and her gun, they'd have some kind of firepower (by the way, really stupid of Kroger not taking her gun), so they might have a chance against them.
So, uh, in conclusion, Rhys should probably tell Sasha what does he know. That he and Fiona were captured by some crazy guy and that they tried to escape, but got separated a while back.
“Yeah.” You pick Fiona’s hat up off the seat and wave it in Sasha’s direction. “I have.”
“Give me that!” Sasha yanks it out of your hand … morewithout so much as a thank you. “What happened? How’d you get this?”
“It’s kind of a long story.”
“Try me.”
“All right. So about a week ago, I got a message from Fiona telling me to meet her at Prosperity Junction.”
“But Fiona didn’t–”
“…Know I was alive? So you said. But I went out there anyway, because I thought MAYBE I could explain myself before things got out of hand! But then I got blindsided by some asshole in a radiation suit, and all I could think was well, I should have seen this coming…”
You proceed to give Sasha the rundown of your week, covering everything from getting punched in the neck, right through to finding Gortys’s ring-y thing. It quickly spirals into something of a one-sided rant that Sasha probably isn’t paying much attention to, but it feels good to get it of… [view original content]
“Whoa, whoa, wait, are you sure?” You slow the truck down to a stop. “You don’t want me to give you a lift or anything?”
“The point of a safehouse is that it’s indiscreet.” Sasha says. She hops out. “I’d rather not catch a ride out there with the president of Evilcorp. Just in case someone’s watching.”
“CEO. But fair point.” Even without having a logo on your jacket, people always seem to know what your deal is. Maybe they can smell money. “Oookay… But I could help you track her down? I was the last person to see her.”
Well, I don't know what he could offer her besides telling her about or give her a lift to the place he's last seen Fiona. Maybe he could use his Echo-eye to find some tracks? I dunno, just shot in the dark.
“Whoa, whoa, wait, are you sure?” You slow the truck down to a stop. “You don’t want me to give you a lift or anything?”
“The point of a … moresafehouse is that it’s indiscreet.” Sasha says. She hops out. “I’d rather not catch a ride out there with the president of Evilcorp. Just in case someone’s watching.”
“CEO. But fair point.” Even without having a logo on your jacket, people always seem to know what your deal is. Maybe they can smell money. “Oookay… But I could help you track her down? I was the last person to see her.”
Sasha leans against the window.
"Yeah? What did you have in mind?”
Mads said: Suggest that since you know where you got separated, you’ll know where… uh, you got separated. You can probably find her.
“Well, I do know where we got separated. The least I can do is give you a lift back there. If Fiona’s not around, then you’ll know to check the safehouse. Or I can probably find some tracks with my cybern– ow.”
As you were talking, you tried to get your formerly-ECHO eye to focus on the surrounding landscape. All you did was give yourself another mild electrical shock. Crap. That marks the second time you’ve done that tonight. Autopilot’s a bitch.
Sasha stares at you oddly. You try to cover up your flinch by suavely smoothing your hair down, but it’s clear you’re not fooling anybody.
“Key word is probably,” you continue. “I’m a bit light on tech at the moment - didn’t have time to finish my new arm in before I left - but this one’s got a GREAT flashlight so it’ll be better than–”
“What happened to your eye?”
“...What?”
“It hasn’t always been gold, has it?”
(For those just tuning in - I'm also currently taking suggestions from the CH forums as well. If you see me quote someone who doesn't seem to exist here... that's why.)
Oh, hm. I didn't think this through.
Well, I don't know what he could offer her besides telling her about or give her a lift to the place he's last seen Fiona. Maybe he could use his Echo-eye to find some tracks? I dunno, just shot in the dark.
Ah, I forgot his echo-eye doesn't work. To be fair, it's been a few years.
Now what I'd like for Rhys to say depends on whether Sasha knows that Jack was inside Rhys' head. If Rhys told her, then he should say he replaced his cybernetics to get rid of him. If he didn't tell her, then it's probably too late to explain things and it'd most likely be a long story. In that case, he should say his cybernetics got damaged during the crash of Helios and he had to replace them.
EDIT: Oops, meant to be a reply and not a new post. Oh well.
(Oh trust me -- I forget what I wrote in the prologue all the friggin' time. Damn two year hiatuses... In any case, next update(s) will be a bit slow! It's the last week of uni so I need to prioritize study for a while.)
(Oh trust me -- I forget what I wrote in the prologue all the friggin' time. Damn two year hiatuses... In any case, next update(s) will be a bit slow! It's the last week of uni so I need to prioritize study for a while.)
“No, you're right. It’s new. But there’s not much to say, other than it got a bit… bashed up, while crawling out of Helios.”
Sasha is staring at your mechanical hand, now. You move it away from the steering wheel and use it to prop up your head, blocking it from Sasha’s view.
Eventually, Sasha steps away from the car. You hear her boots crunch against the ground as she heads towards the rear of the vehicle - back the way you came.
Great.
At least you tried. Maybe it really is too late to fix anything.
Ah, I forgot his echo-eye doesn't work. To be fair, it's been a few years.
Now what I'd like for Rhys to say depends on whether Sasha kn… moreows that Jack was inside Rhys' head. If Rhys told her, then he should say he replaced his cybernetics to get rid of him. If he didn't tell her, then it's probably too late to explain things and it'd most likely be a long story. In that case, he should say his cybernetics got damaged during the crash of Helios and he had to replace them.
EDIT: Oops, meant to be a reply and not a new post. Oh well.
Clunk. The sound of the truck door jolts you from your thoughts.
Sasha climbs into the seat next to you, dragging a rather sizable ba… moreg with her. Her gun remains holstered at her side - for now.
“Okay.” She says. “Take me to where you got separated.”
“Sasha, I-”
“Don’t.” Sasha shakes her head. “I don’t want to do this right now. Let’s just find Fiona, and if she’s not dead, we’ll go from there.”
“Right.”
You flick the ECHO navigation system off and pull a u-turn.
“…And Rhys?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m sorry… for leaving you on Helios. It wasn’t my call.”
(A'ight, scene transition time. Do you guys want to keep playing as Rhys, or shall we switch over to Fiona for a bit?)
Comments
As you hurry away, you hear the unmistakable shriek of a Skag followed by a volley of gunfire. There’s a sickening crunch and Finch (Kroger?) cusses louder than ever.
You don’t look back. Standard Pandoran sounds like that don’t phase you as much as they used to.
The debris begins to thin out. You duck behind an escape pod and pause for breath, assessing your surroundings as you do so. There’s a vehicle on your left - one of those bandit trucks with more spikes than moving parts. Kroger’s, probably.
It’s just sitting there, right out in the open. You glance back the way you came. There’s only one flashlight now, reflecting off the twisted metal hulls of Helios escape pods.
You weigh the situation up in your head. The car isn’t far from you, but there’s no way to it without breaking cover…
one of them is waiting in the car! I BET IT! let's see...rhys takes two little stones. he throws one into the desert, hoping to distract the stranger and finch/kroger, and another one at the car as soon as they're too far away to hear it. if nobody comes out of the car to see what that noise was, rhys sneaks towards the car to steal it.
GO FOR IT RHYS, RUN FOR THE CAR!
You briefly consider lying low. Causing a distraction and sneaking away worked before, but hitting that skag was a fluke and you doubt you could pull of a distraction of that magnitude again. As the flashlight draws ever closer you consider the possibility of having to walk the Pandoran desert a second time. Your stomach drops.
You make a snap decision and bolt to the truck.
You don't see anyone in the gunner's seat as you approach, nor anyone in the driver's cabin.
Weird. Has Kroger ever done anything without his buddy backing him up? Where the hell is he?
Certain that this is too good to be true, you peer cautiously around the back of the truck, cybernetic fist raised and ready to go.
Still nothing? Huh. You thought for sure you’d have to punch someone out there.
well, in that case: get in the car and drive away. don't try to kill the stranger or kroger while driving, just get away from them and try to reach add name of the atlas-city here where he is safe.
Drive drive drive! As far away as possible!
Time to go.
The cab door swings open easily. You haul yourself into the driver’s seat.
Luckily for you, nearly every Pandoran-made vehicle operates just fine without keys. Maybe Scooter knew that the kinds of people who owned these things would be the kind to drop their keys into a corpse or a toilet or a crater. Maybe he figured more stolen vehicles meant more Catch-A-Ride purchases. Or maybe he just forgot.
Guess that’s one mystery you’ll never know the answer to, now.
The ignition switch is a little finicky, but after a couple of tries the engine springs to life. Finally, you can get back to your own life!
There’s movement in the corner of your vision. You glance up, just as the stranger levels his gun.
Aaaagh! What the hell is this guy’s problem?! Is he actually trying to get you killed now?
You grit your teeth and reach for the gearbox. Ohh, it is so tempting just to run him over…
I say we knock this dude over and get away! DRIVE, RHYS!
You floor it.
--
(I've got some other things I need to draw and update before I can pick this up again, but should be good to go by the end of the week!)
Aww, he lost his leg.
we've plenty of time, don't stress yourself
It’s only when the wreckage of Helios is far, far behind you that you let yourself relax. You let out a deep breath and sink back into the chair.
Although escaping was far easier than you thought it’d be, it’s really bugging you that you lost track of Fiona. Did she manage to get herself untied? Is she unarmed? There’s no telling what the Stranger will do if he finds her.
Okay, so maybe you ran him over, and maybe a person can’t usually survive a bull-bar to the face, but he could’ve been wearing a shield! Except you saw his leg snap off. Kind of. There was no blood. Trick of the light, maybe? Whatever. Dead or not, Finch is back there too.
Guh. Why are you worrying about this?! She ditched you back on Helios, remember? This is… this is just karma. Or something. Besides, you were the one who woke her up in the first place. You did your part, and now she can take care of herself.
Right?
You sigh and try to get your thoughts back on track. This week has been a train wreck. You're exhausted, so retreating to an Atlas facility to recuperate seems like the best course of action right now. The question is, which one?
--
(Happy New Year, folks.)
screw fiona, rhys should focus on saving his own ass and then use his power as atlas-boss to find her. therefore, I'd say he returns to the base from episode 3, IF he has already turned it into a safe place. otherwise, the facility from episode 2 would be the better choice.
Eh, Fiona can take care of herself, let's just focus on Rhys' survival for now. Bio-dome seems like a better choice, it has all these automated defenses like turrets and such which could come in handy against uninvited guests. Plus Cassius may be there. And Rhys is Cassius' boss now, soo he's kinda obligated to help Rhys, right?
And happy new year to you as well!
hey. kid. you alive?
Holy shit, how long has it been since I last logged in here? What happened to the site layout? what
Anyways, that's... a good question that I'm not entirely sure how to answer. I think I'm more of a zombie at this point, shambling between workloads. As much as I enjoy my uni course, it really eats up my time.
Mid-semester break's coming up though, so I might have some free time to work on this again soon if there's any interest in it.
from my side, there clearly is. but to be honest, I don't think that there is enough activity in this forum anymore that your time would actually be worth it.
Hah, well. I knew what I was getting into when I started this. If I wanted a decent sized audience, I'd post on tgchan.
Guess we'll see how my workload is.
Yeah, the infamous site "update". Be glad you weren't here the day it changed, it was a mess.
Anyways, if you decide to continue the story, I'll be here.
Focus, focus, gotta focus. Fiona's Pandorian. She'll be fine. You spot a ECHOnet console on the dashboard of the truck and punch the co-ordinates for Cassius's old place into the GPS.
You don't have a clue if the old guy is still there or not. He was the last time you visited - helped you plug your new arm in and everything - but he didn't seem too happy when you told him you yoinked the deed to Atlas. Guess nobody likes it when you point out that you legally own their house, and their ass. Still, it's the safest place you've got on this rock. Might as well make use of it.
...Hm, it's sort of hard to read the ECHOnet display from this distance. You take a moment to adjust your eye's graphic settings.
That's better.
The truck goes over a bump in the road, and you hear something topple over in the back. Come to think of it, you never did check what was in there. Hopefully it's not something rigged to explode.
(lmao what year is it.)
Oof, you certainly picked the wrong time to come back. If you haven't heard, Telltale is closing down. Which means the forums will shut down eventually as well. We just don't know when. Might be tomorrow, in a month, at the end of the year...
But if you despite that choose to continue the story here or on some other site, here's my vote:
Rhys should hopefully be far enough from both Kroger and Stranger by now, so I say he should stop and check out whatever's in the back. Might be something useful.
You suppose it couldn't hurt to check...
Oh that's not luggage.
(Hah, yeah, I heard. That's partly why I'm here - figured I should at LEAST toss up what's been sitting in my notes before the site implodes. I'll leave this thread going in the off chance someone else gets nostalgic for the Forum Games chat, but I'll be crossposting everything to the TCIS discord as well.)
Sasha?! Well that was certainly unexpected.
Ask her what she's doing there.
"Sasha?!" This day is just full of surprises. She looks different than she did a few months ago - hair, especially. It looks good. You don't get to think on it much before another bump in the road drags your gaze back to driving the truck.
"What are you doing here? You're not with Kroger, are you--?"
By the time you turn around, Sasha has regained her composure. Damn it. Nobody's ever happy to see you.
"I could ask you the same thing," she says. "Hands where I can see 'em."
Has she already forgotten you're driving?
Oof. Focus on the road and kindly remark that taking hands off from a wheel while driving at full speed would be a bad idea. Also try to convince Sasha that you're not a bad guy.
You bite back the urge to snap at Sasha. Seems like she's having almost as bad a day as you are.
“Uh, is the gun really necessary?”
Sasha laughs dryly. “Is it necessary? Well, gee, I don’t know. First a bunch of hitmen turn up at my door, then my sister goes missing, and now the guy who screwed us over in the first place turns out to not actually be dead, and also he’s hanging out with Vallory’s old buddies!”
“I’m not-”
“So yeah. Put your hands up.”
You drum your fingers against the steering wheel.
“Well, okay. But that's… Y'know. A bit hard, given that we're…”
You glance meaningfully at the road. Sasha catches your drift.
"Oh.” She scoots to the side of the truck so she can better watch you drive. Her gun is still pointed at your head, but she's letting you keep your hands on the wheel so you suppose that’s an improvement.
“I feel like we’ve started this conversation off on the wrong foot. Let’s just start over.” You clear your throat, before continuing with what you hope is a lighthearted tone. “Hi, Sasha, long time no see. How’s life? Did you get a haircut? Also, quick question, what are you doing camping out in the back of a bandit truck in the middle of the night? ‘Cause I saw it first. It’s my getaway car.”
“What do you mean getaway car? I thought–”
“I already told you. I didn’t hire Kroger.”
Sasha doesn't respond.
"Listen," you continue. "It’s been a really, really long week. You clearly look as if you’ve got places to be, and I’m not here to mess with whatever it is you’re doing, sooo…
“If you could just tell me what’s going on and what you want, so I can get back to my search, and you can go back to conning people, or gun collecting, or… whatever it is you’ve been doing for the past three months, I’d appreciate it.”
Sasha lowers her gun.
"Fine." She says. "Have you seen Fiona?"
"Uh..."
Uh indeed.
Rhys still has Fiona's gun and hat in his inventory (I think?), so if he lied and said he didn't see Fiona, it wouldn't probably take long until Sasha found out the truth. On the other hand, if Sasha heard Fiona was still out there by herself, unarmed, she'd want to turn the car around immediately towards the people Rhys just ran away from. Then again, at least now with Sasha and her gun, they'd have some kind of firepower (by the way, really stupid of Kroger not taking her gun), so they might have a chance against them.
So, uh, in conclusion, Rhys should probably tell Sasha what does he know. That he and Fiona were captured by some crazy guy and that they tried to escape, but got separated a while back.
“Yeah.” You pick Fiona’s hat up off the seat and wave it in Sasha’s direction. “I have.”
“Give me that!” Sasha yanks it out of your hand without so much as a thank you. “What happened? How’d you get this?”
“It’s kind of a long story.”
“Try me.”
“All right. So about a week ago, I got a message from Fiona telling me to meet her at Prosperity Junction.”
“But Fiona didn’t–”
“…Know I was alive? So you said. But I went out there anyway, because I thought MAYBE I could explain myself before things got out of hand! But then I got blindsided by some asshole in a radiation suit, and all I could think was well, I should have seen this coming…”
You proceed to give Sasha the rundown of your week, covering everything from getting punched in the neck, right through to finding Gortys’s ring-y thing. It quickly spirals into something of a one-sided rant that Sasha probably isn’t paying much attention to, but it feels good to get it off your chest.
“We were just getting close to the crash site when flaming chunks of Helios started raining from the sky. Naturally, I suggested we use that as a distraction to get away…”
You pause. You’re getting close to the end of your story now. And if you tell Sasha you ditched Fiona while she was still tied up, she might get you to turn around. Or worse.
“And?” She presses.
“…We, uh, got separated. After that.” You suppose that’s true enough. “I got pinned down by the shower and hid in an escape pod ‘til it blew over. But by that point it was night, and Kroger found me, and… here we are.”
“So you went through that whole story just to tell me you don’t know where she is.”
“T-technically, yeah.”
“Great. Well. Thanks, Rhys. Just drop me off wherever.”
“That’s it? You don’t have any more questions?”
“Not really. If she’s alive and in one piece, then she’s probably headed to our last safehouse. Also, you drive like a maniac, and I think I should get out of the trunk before you give me a concussion.”
You still wonder if you should say something before she goes.
Aww, now I feel kind of bad for just leaving Fiona there.
Atlas facility can wait. Offer Sasha to help find Fiona.
“Whoa, whoa, wait, are you sure?” You slow the truck down to a stop. “You don’t want me to give you a lift or anything?”
“The point of a safehouse is that it’s indiscreet.” Sasha says. She hops out. “I’d rather not catch a ride out there with the president of Evilcorp. Just in case someone’s watching.”
“CEO. But fair point.” Even without having a logo on your jacket, people always seem to know what your deal is. Maybe they can smell money. “Oookay… But I could help you track her down? I was the last person to see her.”
Sasha leans against the window.
"Yeah? What did you have in mind?”
Oh, hm. I didn't think this through.
Well, I don't know what he could offer her besides telling her about or give her a lift to the place he's last seen Fiona. Maybe he could use his Echo-eye to find some tracks? I dunno, just shot in the dark.
“Well, I do know where we got separated. The least I can do is give you a lift back there. If Fiona’s not around, then you’ll know to check the safehouse. Or I can probably find some tracks with my cybern– ow.”
As you were talking, you tried to get your formerly-ECHO eye to focus on the surrounding landscape. All you did was give yourself another mild electrical shock. Crap. That marks the second time you’ve done that tonight. Autopilot’s a bitch.
Sasha stares at you oddly. You try to cover up your flinch by suavely smoothing your hair down, but it’s clear you’re not fooling anybody.
“Key word is probably,” you continue. “I’m a bit light on tech at the moment - didn’t have time to finish my new arm in before I left - but this one’s got a GREAT flashlight so it’ll be better than–”
“What happened to your eye?”
“...What?”
“It hasn’t always been gold, has it?”
(For those just tuning in - I'm also currently taking suggestions from the CH forums as well. If you see me quote someone who doesn't seem to exist here... that's why.)
Ah, I forgot his echo-eye doesn't work. To be fair, it's been a few years.
Now what I'd like for Rhys to say depends on whether Sasha knows that Jack was inside Rhys' head. If Rhys told her, then he should say he replaced his cybernetics to get rid of him. If he didn't tell her, then it's probably too late to explain things and it'd most likely be a long story. In that case, he should say his cybernetics got damaged during the crash of Helios and he had to replace them.
EDIT: Oops, meant to be a reply and not a new post. Oh well.
(Oh trust me -- I forget what I wrote in the prologue all the friggin' time. Damn two year hiatuses... In any case, next update(s) will be a bit slow! It's the last week of uni so I need to prioritize study for a while.)
Understandable, take your time.
“No, you're right. It’s new. But there’s not much to say, other than it got a bit… bashed up, while crawling out of Helios.”
Sasha is staring at your mechanical hand, now. You move it away from the steering wheel and use it to prop up your head, blocking it from Sasha’s view.
Eventually, Sasha steps away from the car. You hear her boots crunch against the ground as she heads towards the rear of the vehicle - back the way you came.
Great.
At least you tried. Maybe it really is too late to fix anything.
Clunk. The sound of the truck door jolts you from your thoughts.
Sasha climbs into the seat next to you, dragging a rather sizable bag with her. Her gun remains holstered at her side - for now.
“Okay.” She says. “Take me to where you got separated.”
“Sasha, I-”
“Don’t.” Sasha shakes her head. “I don’t want to do this right now. Let’s just find Fiona, and if she’s not dead, we’ll go from there.”
“Right.”
You flick the ECHO navigation system off and pull a u-turn.
“…And Rhys?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m sorry… for leaving you on Helios. It wasn’t my call.”
(A'ight, scene transition time. Do you guys want to keep playing as Rhys, or shall we switch over to Fiona for a bit?)
Sure, I wouldn't mind switching. We've been playing as Rhys for quite some time after all.