Our heroes, the De Facto Explorers, are at the KIA Academy. They have successfully rescued Charley Onyxhoof, and are now trying to figure out their next steps before winter comes...
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Sneaky Pete: A mutated weasel scout. Pete's telepathy and night vision take a backseat when he whips out his electrical powers.
Sonny Helianthus: a sentient sunflower artifact examiner with trusted Restorationist ties. Knowledgeable, but not a good one with device repairs or upgrades. Very interested in a "Children's Alchemical Laser" (CAL) he recently acquired.
Slitheran Wurmtail (aka Squiggles): a mutated earthworm scout, in impromptu power armor, looking for trouble, and finding it often. Previously "gave birth" to a litter of sentient earthworm babies, but recently has been subject to genetic testing and developed super-human strength, a more human body, and a thick coat of shaggy white hair.
Lathar Bracken: A pure-strain human from River Bend. He's got the muscle, the face, and a mount for most encounters. Lathar's trusty beast of burden, No Name, travels wherever he does. No Name has recently been fitted for a artillery device of the Ancients that chucks spears further than any human. Looking for trouble in all the right places. Former jousting champion of Fair-Town and has been awarded... a peacock he has named Chambray. He's recently been struck by a weapon by a strange race of people and transformed into... something else.
RHA-9: A lab assistant piece of "Living Metal" that seems to have befriended the group... for now! Currently getting repairs done by the Restorationists.
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The Explorers returned from the Academy sublevels back to their housing... and fighting over the options before the winter got worse. The debate still raged whether or not to use the Children's Alchemical Laser on Lathar one last time, Lathar's stone form, which the rest of the group referred to as "Latharite" had generated a significant crack across the chest. Pete insisted on insulting Lathar's tainted heritage, and that shame motivated him to be transformed one more time, for the better, for the worst, or even having the device explode.
Heading outside of the facility, they found an empty field. The cold weather seemed to affect the mutant sunflower, as the blast from the CLA went far right, missing Lathar and hitting something far off in the distance. Before the compromised energy cell fell out of the device, Pete had scurried over and commandeered the device from Sonny.
"Just tell me how to aim this thing, we can only waste another power cell, no more." Pete demanded. Sonny double checked the device, showed him how to fire it, and stepped back.
Pete's shot slammed into Lathar's chest. There was no explosion, no smoke, no haze like usual. Standing before them was Lathar, who looked like he was back to normal, save some tattoo-like markings and darker hair.
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| Lathar... Restored? |
Pete: Lathar, you look badass finally....
"I feel soft and squishy finally... and very cold since I'm in a loincloth." Lathar declared.
Sonny did his best to take credit and claim the CLA worked as it should.
Returning back to the facility quite triumphant, they moved towards purchasing warmer clothes for Lathar, and finally working on the one project they had full consensus: try to make contact with their old friend, the mutant mountain goat Ramsay Kallax.
Level 2 house things like law enforcement, fire, and the equivalent of a city hall. Sonny had been able to determine the Kallax family was on Level 8, out of their authorization as common visitors.
A large, elevated desk stood just inside the entrance. A dapper looking gentlemen with eyeglasses manned the opposite side, heavy with a wave of his cologne. Stacks of paper files and wooden cabinets dominate the back, and separating the front from the other offices.
Sonny was able to provide enough information about Ramsay that the gentleman was able to reach out and contact them.... by written letter.
Sonny composed a letter detailing their arrival, the location they can be contacted at, and all their good fortune.
Once the letter was dispatched to be delivered, Sonny also inquired about work over the winter. The gentlemen referred them to the KIA Academy Works board, but there was a generic board closer to the entrance from the Overpass that might have jobs more their
Sonny also inquired about taking classes/lectures at the Academy. The gentleman provided him with a large packet and a writing implement. "Fill this out, with 100 domars, and if the Academy approves, you may be allowed to enroll."
The Works board was quite frankly employment opportunities through the Academy, from Winter Road Specialists, to janitors, to Reconnaissance Scouts outside, and the ominous Mutant Tracker.
The outside jobs from the Works board also appeared on this generic board by the entrance to the facility. Also included was a dated and worn bulletin for a "Salvage Specialist" interested in venturing in the "sub-ruins" for particular objects.
It was decided to take the Salvage Specialist position, requiring a trip back down to Sub-Level 1 to venture to an establishment of a place call O'Pinney's
Next: #58 - O'Pinney's Quest
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