Check with Reggie about Shiv and Shank

You decide to check on Reggie. It feels safe to call her a friend at this point, and you don’t like to see your friends suffering. Besides, you know that she’s been looking out for Chastity while you’re away.

You corner her while she’s counting caps at the bar. You haven’t known Reggie long, but you know her type. She’s tough and self-sufficient. She must be if she’s making a living like this in this settlement. You sense that New Gurlberg wasn’t always as quiet and genteel as it appears to be now that it’s under the control of Boss Murphy.

“Something’s wrong with Shiv and Shank, isn’t it?” you ask her bluntly.

Reggie grimaces but keeps counting.

“Yeah,” she grunts after a moment.

“Can I help?”

She scowls. “I can’t pay you.”

That puzzles you. “Business isn’t good?”

“No, it’s better than ever with Chastity here,” Reggie says. “But I need the money.”

Now the pause is yours. She can’t afford to pay, but you also can’t afford to work for free.

“I’ll give you the room,” she offers, but she sees your hesitation. The room is a bit small. “OK, I’ll give you a deal on a house.”

You know that she’s something of a landlord around here, but you don’t know that you’re going to be around New Gurlberg forever.

“Tell me what’s going on first,” you say.

She groans, then moves close and lowers her voice, shooting a warning look at a guy who just shouted for more booze. “Shiv and Shank might have gotten into trouble around… you know. Old Gurlberg.”

You listen to the way she says the word ‘might’ and watch her eyes, reading between the lines.

“Free Gurls?” you ask.

“Maybe,” she says ambiguously. “You could look for them there.”

“Am I going to find them?”

“I don’t know.”

Seconds pass as you gaze at each other awkwardly.

Reggie rolls her eyes. “Bring them back here safe, and I’ll give you the house. If you don’t want to live here, you can sell it. OK?”

She’s thinking that this might not be a great business proposition, but she’s worried about those two. She’d probably give you this bar if you can help them out. You could ask why they’re in trouble with the Free Gurls, but you sense that won’t do any good.

You have a bad feeling about this, and you don’t want Chastity anywhere near the Free Gurls or Queen Tess, so you aren’t even considering inviting her. Something isn’t right here. You’ll have to handle this yourself. It feels risky, but the rewards also feel big because Sadie and Eric will owe you as well.

The day is overcast and still. No wind disturbs the creaky metal walls of New Gurlberg, or the sickly trees of the swamp. You have become more comfortable with traveling. You automatically make practical choices like staying close to the road to avoid getting lost, but also keeping out of sight. As you go, your mind wanders to Vault F and Daisy.

This time, it’s a memory of one of Vault F’s little classrooms. Daisy sits in the seat next to yours, her red hair catching the light from the flickering bulb overhead. The Overseer wouldn’t have withheld information about Daisy without a reason. It makes you wonder how much you really know about Vault F.

You know the telltale sound of a swarm of Rad Skeeters, which makes them easy to avoid. Copperheads are another matter. You spot one an hour after you leave the settlement, as thick as your leg and hanging from a branch high above you. This one doesn’t seem interested in you, but you see how close you came to missing him. It makes you wonder how many Copperheads you just walked right past.

You can’t relax in your mind, and you certainly can’t relax in the Florida Wasteland. A part of you will be glad to get back to the safety of the Vault. Warily, you give the Copperhead plenty of space.

New Gurlberg is right where you left it. You remember the path to Shell’s hideout, but you aren’t going back there. You have to find the Free Gurls. Reggie says that they can be found anywhere in the area, although their stronghold is a building on the University campus.

Dirt and old, broken glass crunches under your boots as you make your way cautiously through the streets. The University is easy to find, even without the growl of a motorcycle’s engine to guide you in the right direction. It’s the biggest thing in town, a sprawling compound of old, brick buildings. It must have been nice once, but now it’s mostly ruins. About two-thirds of the buildings are intact, and they appear to be in more or less the same condition as Shell’s hideout.

You find yourself at a large, block-shaped building near the pitiful remains of what used to be fields used for sports. Everything is brown and dead, and occasional wiggles from the ground indicate that there are plenty of Rad-Shrooms around. You’ll have to watch your step.

There’s no cover around this building; it stands alone. That must be why the Free Gurls have made it their base: they’ll be able to see someone coming. Or rather, they’d be able to if they were paying attention.

There’s someone on the roof, probably keeping watch, but they can’t watch everything at once. It’s easy for you to sneak up to the building and hide in the shadows beside it… but that’s where the easy part ends. You have no plan. You don’t know if Shiv and Shank are here, and you don’t know that much about the Free Gurls.

You can creep around and try to scout some more, but that might be tough given the shape and type of this building. The Free Gurls also probably won’t take kindly to that if they catch you, but you can potentially keep the initiative.

Or you can approach the Free Gurls and try to talk; you should be able to learn something that way. You’re confident in your talking skills, but you don’t know what you’d be walking into.

Scout?

Or approach?