They haven't left
From Torg Adventure
They haven't left "What the hell happened to you?" Tracy recoils when you enter. You note she lowers a 9mm of her own probably taken from the shelter's armory like yours.
All things considered, you've stayed relatively clean despite your recent encounter. The jacket took most of the blood and dirt. Your boots are caked in blood and mud and your pant legs are dirty from crawling into a doghouse. The only real tell for the affair is your hands. The blood has hardened on them leaving only cracks at the joints to show your skin. It's gotten under your nails and will likely stay there after scrubbing the rest off.
"Hey, never mind that right now. We gotta leave, so get ready." You take the rescued girl to the basement.
You take a sledgehammer to the water heater to get at the reserve. You find some towels and dunk a couple in the reservoir. You hand one to the woman and keep the other to clean your face and hands.
Her bathing is quick and rough but gets most of the dirt. She only cleans her burnt hand delicately most of the black washes off leaving a red and pink pattern. She had managed to keep most of her dexterity, but her pinky is locked in a curl and fused to the side of the ring finger. By the time she's done, she doesn't look clean, but she no longer looks like she'd been living in a pit.
Next, you instruct her to get on the workbench and you clamp her chain.
"My name's Mia by the way." Mia looks down at you as you tug on the clamp making sure it's secure.
"Huh, oh sorry. I should've asked." you say going to the toolbox for something to use. Too bad there aren't bold cutters. "So, what did you do before all this?" you don't want to bring up the cannibals just yet.
"Oh, I was an engineering student at Pendleton. I'd checked out the buildings to see how and why they were built the way they were. Some of the old buildings had fallout shelters from the McCarthy era."
"Over time, the threat of nuclear attack waned and red scare tactics couldn't get schools to build fallout shelters anymore, so only the old buildings would have them." You speak loudly to overcome the clashing metal the gardening sheers prove ineffective. "Since a university would most likely spend money on more profitable fields, I'd think the majority of the people who'd know about those shelters would be administrators and students in some liberal arts field."You work a crowbar into the chain and tease at a loop. "I'm surprised they'd let you go."
Mia fidgets a bit at that. "I... kinda hid. The shelter was used for storage, and never had anything like a food supply. Twelve other people survived the bombings in the shelter. They got hungry, but they didn't have any food. I-I did, but not enough for two let alone thirteen. I just hid while they got hungry enough to leave. No one ever came back."
"You can't save everyone." You say putting your weight on the crowbar. the chain finally gives and you stumble forwards. Your head rests in Mia's lap. She places a hand on your head.
"Thank you." Mia strokes the back of your head. She's gentle, but firm enough to make it hard to withdraw.
Do you have time for something?
