Quoted By:
"Get a fucking room-"
[STEADY HANDS] Your body kicks into action. Your free hand immediately reaches out and with a telekinetic pull, you pull your allies to the right side of the catwalk. Your body manages to move just enough to avoid your heart getting pierced.
Your brain manages to process why. A thin, long rusted metal spike, connected or held by some unseen figure, has been impaled into your side. If you didn't move your group in time, someone probably would've had their throats impaled by it.
[STEADY HANDS] With surgical precision, you managed to chunk of metal without causing too much damage to yourself, freeing yourself in case you have to run or fight. Your quick reaction made it so that only the tip (heh) managed to pierce you.
>-1 FLESH (ONE BLOCKED FROM COMBAT PROSTHETIC BODYSUIT)! 4/5 LEFT!
"SORRY! BUT WE CAN NOT ALLOW ANYONE DOWN THIS PATH! PLEASE TURN AROUND!" A robotic yet chipper voice blares from the darkness. You immediately hold your lantern in the direction of the voice while Max is whimpering incoherently to herself. Not like Benjamin is doing any better, thanks to his heavy breathing.
>-1 RESTRAINT TO BENJAMIN AND MAX! MAX: 2/3, BENJAMIN: 4/5
A thin puppet-like humanoid stands before you, only six feet away from your group. You thought it was an android at first but no, it's too crude. Too simple. Its body is made out of cheap, shoddy metal pipes twisted and welded together into the rough approximation of a human form. Its hands, also made out of old pipes, are just bent and twisted enough to be able to hold simple objects. Like the long metal rod it's holding.
Two beady white eyes stare back at you. "PLEASE TURN AROUND! NO ONE ASIDE FROM THOSE APPROVED BY: <span class="mu-s">JOEL THE GREAT, JOEL THE WISE, JOEL THE ULTIMATE GOD SAVIOR OF THIS TOWN</span>" The simple machine spits out. "MAY BE ALLOWED TO ENTER! PLEASE LEAVE! THE LAST APPROVED PERSON WAS: VALENTINA VANNI, WHO PASSED BY LONG BEFORE YOU DID. YOU ARE NOT. ON THE LIST."
"Did you have to FUCKING STAB ME? Was THAT your version of a warning?" You keep pressure on the bleeding wound. Your anomalously fucked up body will probably stem the bleeding soon enough but god, does it still hurt. "And, wait, Joel? Who's that? The mayor?"
"WHO ELSE?" The figure beeps out. "AND YES. YOU HAVE WEIRD HORNS. YOU WERE AN ANOMALY. EVEN THOUGH ANOMALIES HAVE NOT BEEN FOUND IN A W-CORP MINE SINCE 2211. VERY STRANGE. LEAVE? YOU'RE NOT ON THE LIST?"
"I'm not sure how sentient that thing is." Benjamin steels his nerves enough to talk. "Might be one of the earliest E-Corp models. Barely more powerful than old world computers. I say we kill it."
"KILL? HOW CAN YOU KILL WHICH HAS NO LIFE?" The robot raises its arm up. "DIE-DIE-DIE." It begins to step forward...
"Uh, uh, Beta-Zeta-Kalpa!" Max mutters. The figure locks up for a moment before gesturing at you to continue speaking. You and Benjamin offer weird looks in Max's direction. She offers a confused shrug. "I heard the mayor say it!"
