Board Thread:Roleplaying/@comment-3293219-20180403211928/@comment-3293219-20180407120821

Elder Umunna examined the report on the captives. One man confirmed himself to be Daniel Starling, two women were possible carriers and the rest were marked as unknown. He had called a meeting with Star Paladin

Umunna wasn't exactly extatic but at least they had some leads.

"Is Starling Detained?"

"Yes Sir." The Star Paladin said, with a nod. He was the Star Paladin who lead the assault on Vault 54, earlier that year, the man who had killed Daniel starling. Since then he'd been more than a little on edge, believing that letting McGill live was one hell of a mistake. If he'd eliminated McGill, along with the rest of that Vault, it would've been bad but at least Daniel would've been contained.

Since then, he'd found himself resenting Elder Umunna on some level, frustrated by his approach. He was trying to bring 'just war' theory into this shit, when it wasn't a war they were fighting, it was a disease. Just because the disease had a name and a face, didn't make it any less of one. This man's soul was literally a sickness that could've infected everyone by now.

"We got him in a straight jacket, strapped up like Hamilton, sir."

"Ah... Hamilton. Any other day, I'd consider capture a great success but today he seems a triviality. I hear he was a handful."

"Putting it lightly, killed four of my guys." The Knight Commander from earlier said, somewhat bitterly. Without his helmet, he revealed to be a man in his 30s, seemingly with rather long hair.

"I will ensure that their losses are brought to the attention of the community. Along with his other victims at the outpost." Umunna assured him, eyeing one of the documents in his hands.

"With Hamilton and Starling detained, we should be virtually risk free for some time now. With the Copper Toes eliminated and the Dog Lords retreating back to their Golf Course, it looks like Denver has a moment of respite unseen for centuries."

"Elder, wth all due respect. We're at war with a man who can weaponize the dead and cheat death by claiming the lives of another. I've said this before to mild scepticism but it warrants saying again. What's to stop Starling from transmitting himself into more people?

What’s to stop him from possessing half of Denver?”

“You honestly believe that a man like Daniel Starling would want to share with himself? Somehow, I doubt it but we are working on investigating the possibility of what you are saying. It’ll just take time to determine…”

“If it is a possibility, why are wasting time with prisoners? Elder, we have every possible person that Daniel Starling has come into contact with locked down in that holding cell. I know it’s not a popular opinion with you people but with an enemy like this, the only way to eliminate the threat is to eradicate them.”

“That’s enough Pendansky.” Umunna raised his dark hand to cut him off as he dropped the document down to the table.

“I’ve heard your opinions on ‘carriers’ as you call them and you’d be surprised how sick I am of them and how sick I am of every idiot eighteen-year-old, re-iterating your ethos, when they think I’m not around.

Let me make myself fundamentally clear… We are not the Enclave. The fact that you want us to be the Enclave is frankly disgusting. We fight for humanity, I hate to shatter your concept of reality, Pendansky but that isn’t an easy fight. You don’t win it by killing your enemy, because your enemy is who you’re trying to save!

I understand your frustrations, after what went down in Vault 54 but make absolutely no mistake that the day the Brotherhood of Steel murders its prisoners out of fear is the day that we are no longer fit to call ourselves ‘Brothers of Steel.’” Umunna said, he seemed rather calm, despite his heated words.

“I know you don’t like it, Pendansky but no war was ever won by everyone having their own idea of what victory looks like. You should know that, better than anyone serving at Helios. Now, from the minute you leave this room, I want you to on board with the program. I want you to shut up with your ‘final solution’ shit.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">Am I making myself clear?”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Yes, Elder.” Pendansky sighed, rather heavily as well.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Crystal…”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Good… Was there anything else?”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Erm…. May I?” The Senior Paladin asked, getting a nod from his Elder.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Please, speak freely.”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Erm… It’s Vlad, the maintenance guy. People are a little… uneasy about having him working on the engines. He is an outsider or… was and people are a little uneasy.”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“They think Vlad is suicidal?” The Elder asked, indifferently.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“If he sabotaged this place, he would go down with the ship. I have been investigating the work he’s done and nothing is out of place. He’s doing his job and he’s given us absolutely no reason to distrust him thus far.”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“To be honest… I think that’s what people find unsettling about the guy. He’s… too clean. Not that I’m agreeing with these notions but… This is what people are feeling around the Argo.”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“I… Understand their concern but Vlad has been with us for a while now and has actually seen to it that things have improved. His work is valuable, even if nobody sees the improvements. I’ve been assured that the man is like a machine, with a wrench…

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">People will come around.” The Elder assured him.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Meeting adjourned.” He declared as the head scribe, Knight Commander, Star Paladin and Elder all rose to their feet.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">“Thank you for your time. Hopefully we’ll have less… pressing issues next week.”

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">Pendansky gave him a nod before moving out of the room, in truth, Umunna’s words bubbled up inside him as he stepped out.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">Umunna’s belief that being in charge justified people going along with your bad decisions. How a man, who loved Greek mythology enough to name his ship after the Argo forgot that Odysseus called out to his men, to let the sirens take him was somewhat beyond him.

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">The Sirens were calling and this idiot was bewitched by their spell and he was leading them all to their deaths. It was only a matter of time until everything went to hell…

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family: "Times New Roman",serif">When it did, Pendansky hoped to see how those who Umunna wanted to save, due to his bleeding heart would support him. He’d love to see how many would stop to help him up, never mind stop to brutally finish him off with the bloody end of an axe handle.