Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The Tower of Trials Chapter 6 Page 4

Within the freezer, sealed in plastic vacuum-packs, were chunks of meat. Raw meat. Which were very rare in Covenant. George could not remember the last time he himself had tasted real meat.

"Real meat! What's it taste like?" George asked.

"Yummy!" Iona replied.

"But we're selling these," Mabel said, "Hopefully, it'll be enough to pay for my shopping."

"I was hoping to have a taste," George said.

Iona pulled George's hand. "If you want to eat meat, you can come to my house and have some!"

"Really?" George asked her.

"Note that Io's place is across the wasteland," Mabel told him, "A few day's drive from Covenant."

George looked at Mabel with narrowed eyes filled with disappointment and accusation. Not that his expression could be seen through his mask.

"Meat is plentiful there," Tricia told him, "You can eat all you want."

"Yeah, but it's still far away," George said dejectedly.

"We can take you there one day," Mabel offered. "Maybe," she added under her breath.

George glanced at the items in the room. "So, we've got some pretty good stuff after all," he commented.

"No!" Mabel exclaimed, "This isn't good. Not even on a bad day!"

"This isn't much of a prize," Tricia said as she looked around, "Is there anything else we can take that isn't nailed down?"

"The keypad by the door!" Mabel pointed out, "The door!"

"I can't carry both the door and the freezer," Tricia said.

"Get working on the keypad then, Squirt," Mabel ordered, "See if you can get the electromagnets too."

Long story short, George easily salvaged the keypad since he had partly disassembled it earlier. With the electromagnets, it was easier to have Tricia rip them off, rather than risk contact with a live wire.

Once they had taken everything they could, they went back down.

On the level with the Trial of Patience, Tricia commented, "We shouldn't have trashed the turrets. The guns could be salvaged."

"If Laura were here, I'm sure she would salvage something," Mabel said, "Hey, what about that giant power armor Io left running downstairs?"

George chased after three excited Vixens hurrying down the tower. They did take extra care crossing the Trial of Caution, though. Perhaps that was why that Trial had been called 'Caution' - they had to be careful after solving it.

However, once they reached the Trial of Combat, the black power armor was gone. The warrior had probably sensed the approaching danger and had run to avoid being taken away.

At the curtains to the level with the Trial of Endurance, Mabel spoke up, "Can we pick up a few of the cabinets?"

"One small cabinet," Tricia decided. She already had her hands full with the freezer. "Unless Io takes one too."

"Is there anything else that isn't nailed down that we can loot?" Mabel asked, "Not that being nailed down would save something from looting." She indicated George's toolbag that everyone knew had the keypad.

"There's still that man in the ground floor," Iona suggested cheerfully.

"Let's just go get us a couple of cabinets," Mabel said as she parted the curtains, "and leave quick before the itching starts again."

The gas! George was not about to stay any longer than necessary. As Tricia and Iona considered the cabinets, George hurried through the level to the other pair of curtains on the other side. He pushed past the curtains to stand on the stairs leading down.

"Hey, Squirt!" Mabel called when she caught up to him, her rifle lowered, "What's your hurry?"

"I don't feel like itching again," George replied.

"Yeah, but charging ahead alone and unarmed isn't wise." Mabel was glancing about the staircase.

George stared at her. "Haven't we been this way before?"

"Yeah, but we're still not at the bottom level," Mabel pointed out, "In fact, we're still in the wastes. Someone could have placed a trap or something while we're gone. Anything could be here."

George could have gotten himself hurt or worse! "Uh, sorry..." he started to apologize. He must have been a handful to look after if he was careless of his own safety. It was fortunate that Mabel still looked out for him.

Mabel clapped him on the back. "Ah, don't worry! If you die, we can always hire Sharpwrench Kelly!"

So much for her having any concern about his well-being!

***

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