Of course it had been impossible for Arcade to get into the Lucky38 unseen, and pretty soon after he had entered, rumours began to appear about a possible illness of the Courier which was exactly what Vincent had hoped for.
He and Arcade now sat down at the kitchen table in the Presidential suite and tried to lay out a more detailed plan.
“I have to leave it to you to make up the medical details of Tara’s condition”, Vincent said. “But I advise you to make a very concise plan and memorize it very thoroughly.” “Of course”, Arcade replied while nervously threading his fingers. But then he looked up and smiled. “And I know how to do it. After coming back to the Fort I will consult my medical books to confirm my… ah… diagnosis, and find a suitable illness that will keep her in bed for a sufficient amount of time.” Vincent nodded. “Very good. Just remember: The fewer people know of this, the better. Do not even confine in those you trust.”
Arcade blinked a few times. “I guess I will need Julies help.” “Very well then”, Vincent gave back with a sigh. “Do what you think is necessary. But remember that a secret spilled is like a bag of feathers emptied into the wind. You will never know where they end up and never be able to get them all back.” Arcade nodded and met his eye. “Of course. And I assure you I can rely on Julie’s discretion.” “Even though she is a married woman?” Arcade narrowed his eyes a little. “Her being married is not a factor and, like her gender, has no effect on her medical confidentiality.” “My apologies.” Vincent slightly inclined his head. “I was not implying she is garrulous. But she is very fond of her husband, and sometimes you cannot help but use those closest to you to ease your mind if something heavy is weighing on it.” “I see. But no. Trust me, despite her appearance and her present condition she is a lot stronger than you might think.” Vincent nodded with a stony face. “I will take your word for it. Relying on my own judgement regarding women has…” He hesitated, and Arcade put a hand on his arm. “Gotten you into trouble”, he finished for him. “I understand. Let’s leave it at that.”
“Be that as it may. Vincent’s mouth turned into a thin line for a moment before he took a deep breath. “With you and your knowledge providing a suitable camouflage tactic that is one problem dealt with.” “How many others are left?” Arcade wanted to know. Vincent smiled thinly. “Apart from keeping everything we know and cherish from falling apart in a tide of violence and blood?” “Sorry I asked”, Arcade snapped. “My apologies for being sarcastic”, Vincent said after a small pause.
Both men exchanged a long look until Arcade ran a hand through his hair. “Go on.” Vincent nodded. “As I mentioned earlier, I need equipment and a disguise. But I cannot leave this place to run errands like a common servant. That would be suspicious, something we cannot afford.” “I see.” Arcade tapped his chin. “What do you need?” “A set of Legion attire. Preferably one of the lower officer ranks, although I am aware that I cannot allow myself to be choosy. I cannot take my gun, and my weapon of choice back then was a ripper. I will need one of those, too.” He paused for a moment. “Supplies for the road, water and non-perishable food. And combat drugs and stim packs. I will not allow myself to think I can get through this without a fight. And I need every advantage I can get.”
Arcade nodded, his face set tight. “I guess I need not remind you how dangerous these things can be.” “No. But as I said, I need all the help I can get. Since they are no longer taboo to me, it gives me a big advantage, since in the Legion these things are forbidden.” Still nodding, Arcade frowned thoughtfully. Suddenly his face lit up. “I got it. Westside. I’ll go to Westside and buy all the drugs I can get my hands on, and set up a new research project about improving addiction cures. I’ll put a few into the chemicals safe in the lab and hide the rest somewhere else.” This time it was Vincent who nodded, in appreciation. “A sound idea.”
Turn Wounds into Wisdom 4b/?
>>>Freeside, October 19, 2282<<<
Of course it had been impossible for Arcade to get into the Lucky38 unseen, and pretty soon after he had entered, rumours began to appear about a possible illness of the Courier which was exactly what Vincent had hoped for.
He and Arcade now sat down at the kitchen table in the Presidential suite and tried to lay out a more detailed plan.
“I have to leave it to you to make up the medical details of Tara’s condition”, Vincent said. “But I advise you to make a very concise plan and memorize it very thoroughly.”
“Of course”, Arcade replied while nervously threading his fingers. But then he looked up and smiled. “And I know how to do it. After coming back to the Fort I will consult my medical books to confirm my… ah… diagnosis, and find a suitable illness that will keep her in bed for a sufficient amount of time.”
Vincent nodded. “Very good. Just remember: The fewer people know of this, the better. Do not even confine in those you trust.”
Arcade blinked a few times. “I guess I will need Julies help.”
“Very well then”, Vincent gave back with a sigh. “Do what you think is necessary. But remember that a secret spilled is like a bag of feathers emptied into the wind. You will never know where they end up and never be able to get them all back.”
Arcade nodded and met his eye. “Of course. And I assure you I can rely on Julie’s discretion.”
“Even though she is a married woman?”
Arcade narrowed his eyes a little. “Her being married is not a factor and, like her gender, has no effect on her medical confidentiality.”
“My apologies.” Vincent slightly inclined his head. “I was not implying she is garrulous. But she is very fond of her husband, and sometimes you cannot help but use those closest to you to ease your mind if something heavy is weighing on it.”
“I see. But no. Trust me, despite her appearance and her present condition she is a lot stronger than you might think.”
Vincent nodded with a stony face. “I will take your word for it. Relying on my own judgement regarding women has…” He hesitated, and Arcade put a hand on his arm.
“Gotten you into trouble”, he finished for him. “I understand. Let’s leave it at that.”
“Be that as it may. Vincent’s mouth turned into a thin line for a moment before he took a deep breath. “With you and your knowledge providing a suitable camouflage tactic that is one problem dealt with.”
“How many others are left?” Arcade wanted to know.
Vincent smiled thinly. “Apart from keeping everything we know and cherish from falling apart in a tide of violence and blood?”
“Sorry I asked”, Arcade snapped.
“My apologies for being sarcastic”, Vincent said after a small pause.
Both men exchanged a long look until Arcade ran a hand through his hair. “Go on.”
Vincent nodded. “As I mentioned earlier, I need equipment and a disguise. But I cannot leave this place to run errands like a common servant. That would be suspicious, something we cannot afford.”
“I see.” Arcade tapped his chin. “What do you need?”
“A set of Legion attire. Preferably one of the lower officer ranks, although I am aware that I cannot allow myself to be choosy. I cannot take my gun, and my weapon of choice back then was a ripper. I will need one of those, too.” He paused for a moment. “Supplies for the road, water and non-perishable food. And combat drugs and stim packs. I will not allow myself to think I can get through this without a fight. And I need every advantage I can get.”
Arcade nodded, his face set tight. “I guess I need not remind you how dangerous these things can be.”
“No. But as I said, I need all the help I can get. Since they are no longer taboo to me, it gives me a big advantage, since in the Legion these things are forbidden.”
Still nodding, Arcade frowned thoughtfully. Suddenly his face lit up. “I got it. Westside. I’ll go to Westside and buy all the drugs I can get my hands on, and set up a new research project about improving addiction cures. I’ll put a few into the chemicals safe in the lab and hide the rest somewhere else.”
This time it was Vincent who nodded, in appreciation. “A sound idea.”