Callyx

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook, Rooks Wall/Diner Ramp

“Go ahead. Rook understands that. Rook knows some times that long day makes people smell funny. Change as you need, but don't change into a ghoul, or you lose your hair.” He laughed, trying to make a joke as she smelled her armpit. “Rook will wait.”
When she sprinted off, Rook walked to his shack rather quickly, stripping out of his armor so he was in his normal pants again. He didn't want to scare anyone into thinking he was going to hurt them by wearing his armor. That was the last thing he wanted to do. In truth, he worried that someone might think it anyways because he was a Super Mutant after all, his... Kind, weren't exactly known for being kindhearted or pleasant.

Rook returned to his spot where he had been when she left only a few moments before Brandy returned with purse, yellow dress, and a smile. Rook grinned as best as he could at her and walked with her to the Diner. He could hear people inside talking, seeming to be full of life and happiness. It was a good thing, and when Brandy took his hand to lead him in, he accepted... At least to the door...

He was too big to fit through the door as she did. He laughed once, set his white flag inside of the door, hunched down and shifted through the door. Even in this place, he knew he had only so much room to move around. His eyes would scan the room for a moment, and he would lift his flag.

“Rook is here to buy meat. Does Cooker Man have radstag? Or maybe man has found something better? Bhamin meats?” He grinned a bit wider. “Rook has caps and small things to trade, if Cooker Man is open to that as well. Rook is hungry, and building wall takes so much energy.”

Part of him hoped no one would pull a gun on him. He knew people were trigger happy with most mutants, he only hoped that he was not going to have to nurse many wounds this time.

For those with Medical Knowledge

Rook has various scars and healed wounds upon his body. There is a scar on the back of his head, seeming like a laser or energy weapon fired at very close range in a manner of execution. On his right shoulder there is the healed scar from some kind of slashing weapon. His right and left arms also show signs of slashing wounds in the past as well.

On his exposed back, there appears to be long claw marks, faded from time, but the nature of them would suggest a Yao Guai attack. On his chest he does have small scars from bullets, and a few of them even show signs of surgery upon them. The one that does stick out the most however, is a scar upon his neck, where it looked like someone had, unsuccessfully, attempted to slit his throat, but didn't get deep enough.

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

You…You have gentle eyes, they’re warm.” Brandy peered around Rook at the wall then back, “You moved all of this stuff by yourself?” She looked at the wall again, “HOLY CRAP, THAT IS AWESOME,” her last words filled with astonishment. She looked at her hand in his large green hand; her hand couldn’t even reach across his palm. “Thank you, what you have done already is AMAZING,” she reached as wide as she could and gave Rook a hug.

The hug caught him off guard. That was not something he used to at all. Most people tended to avoid physical contact with a Super Mutant unless they gave a handshake or took caps from them. That was how it came to like... 99% of the normal human population. Sure, the odd ghoul or two didn't seem to care, but beyond that, it was the whole 'keep yer distance mutie!' relationship.

“Ya know, I just got back into town from The Sanctuary, needed some supplies.” She looked up at Rook, “Some people will be scared of you, but I see the warmth in your eyes and I can tell…you won’t hurt anybody.” Brandy grinned ear to ear, “I know of one person we could prank, but we can wait on that. I’m kinda hungry myself. Why don’t we eat and work on the wall in the morning, we can call it Rook’s Wall.”

“Rook doesn't like to hurt people. Rook will defend friends, defend home, but he doesn't like hurting unless he has no choice.” He responded, pondering a moment. “Rook like the idea of Rook's Wall being the name. We can build up wall a lot, make it hard to break through. Rook has ideas, but Rook has no way to getting them set up. Rook not good with machines to be able to get wall set up super well.”

Brandy looked around the coast and saw a shack, “Do you have electricity? I mean, if that is your shack that is? If not, I have an extra generator and with the shack that close to the water I can give it to you to power your shack if you’d like? I have a couple extra desk fans too, might help ya sleep when it’s hot out.”

“Rook has shack where Mirelurk King used to live. Rook killed Mirelurk so it was no threat to town. Took shack to make it better. Rook can swim when it gets hot, keep fans for people in big buildings. Generator for making opening and closing of gate easier. Rook wants to make town safe before Rook gets comfortable himself. Rook wants to see town grow, town prosper.” He nodded once, the flag still moving in the wind as he looked to the diner. “We should get food before man closes doors for night.”

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook was nearly done for the day. He saw the one people had said was a doctor heading his way as well. When he froze, Rook wondered why he would do that? That was when Rook realized this doctor man probably didn't know what a white flag was! Of course! It was so simple!

Laughing, Rook waved the flag and then waved a hand. "Rook is not here for fighting, Rook is here for living and trading. And Rook is building things. Doctor man has no need to check on Rook. Rook is more healthy than... ummm... very healthy humans!"

With another laugh, Rook looked back to his basic wall frame before he was approached again. He was popular today, and it felt rather good in truth. It felt like they were making an honest effort to be friendly with him. When she finished speaking, Rook held out his hand, taking her own tiny hand to his and giving her a gentle shake.

"Hello Brandy. Rook is Rook. Rook is friendly. Rook is also attempting to make wall for town. Rook needs to get food for tonight however, so he needs to stop work for now." He pondered for a moment. "Unless you are helping Rook, then he can keep working for now."

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook, Salem Outskirts

Rook had been... Blissfully unaware of the events happening around him. He had heard them when they first came by, but it was the wrong direction, and a quick look told him he was not in danger, these were traders. If they attacked the town he would know, his hearing was still quite good. Even unarmed, he knew he was better in combat than nearly anyone there... At least in hand to hand.

So, axe would continue to rise and fall, chopping off tree limbs and stripping bark. When this tree was done, it was time to move them. He was unaware of the men who had guns trained on him, and if they shot at him... It was not going to be a good day for anyone involved. He grabbed one of the logs, lifting it onto his shoulder and walking several steps to the edge of the flatbed, before carefully setting it down on the ground below. He would need to bury it, but he lacked a shovel at the moment. Plus he had no cement. That was a problem.

With a shake of his head, he walked to the other side of the flatbed, repeating the process so there were two trees resting on the ends of the flatbed trailer. Wiping his brow, he looked to the sky and then to the ground. It was getting late, later than he had expected. Only the one girl had arrived. Oh well. More work tomorrow.

Stepping down from the trailer, he would pick up his white flag and uncover his stash of caps. Assuming no one shot at him, he would start towards the diner now, still looking to buy some meat so he could augment his stew. It was getting rather thin after all, and this was why he came to town in the first place!

OOC

At this point, I'm going to let others take control of Barney, they will either vouch for Rook, or will attack him. Either way will be interesting.

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook, Salem Outskirts

Rook waved as the woman left him to his devices. With axe in hand, he was working on cutting down several of the trees. With each one that was felled, he would carry it to the flatbed and lay it across. He had a lot in mind, and he was hoping others would arrive soon enough. He was not the best at this when he was alone.

The axe would raise and fall several times, working on cutting off the branches and stripping off parts of the bark. He knew the bark could hide a number of things, but he wanted that off so it was easier to attach things to it later. With the first tree taken care of, he would push all the branches down to the ground, leaving the bark for a different pile. These would make for great kindling later.

This whole process took nearly an hour. His physical power was such that he could do these things without much issue, but it was time consuming. Sure, explosives would work, but that would damage the tree and make it mostly useless for what they needed to do. With the first tree taken care of, he would move to the second, and repeat the process until he had six of them cut down and on the flat bed, ready to be used for the wall.

He sat on the edge of the flat bed, giving himself a few moments to rest and relax. He had to pace himself, if he didn't, he would become useless if someone attacked while he was working. Drinking another bottle of water, he would set the plastic bottle aside, looking to the sky for a moment and seeing if there was going to be rain any time soon.

“Rook needs to get this working sooner. Maybe Old Man has some ideas... Or some lights! Lights would make it a lot better for Rook to work later. And then can use the lights to defend Salem by making the road show in the darkness.”

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook sat and listened to the woman talk. She spoke of people setting themselves up to be gods, or simply not caring about one thing or another. He had seen this many, many times as well. He had spent close to twenty years wandering the wastelands afterall.

Rook wants to put trust that people are not all bad. Rook has seen many things as well. The Pitt, they made Rook fight for life. Capital Wasteland was hard and unforgiving. York Square is very close to that. Raiders, bandits, and monsters fight and kill those who are honest, hard-working, or simply wanting to be good.

"Salem has bad past, but has good people. Rook talks to you, and you listen, so you cannot be bad. Lady with plasma gun simply did not understand white flag, was afraid of Rook. Rook understands, he is too handsome to not be intimidated by." He would stand up and smile at the woman. "Rook will return to work now."

Turning, he would still listen to her, but he would also start making adjustments to the cars. He looked at them and then nodded. Looking back at her, he would hold up a finger to signal to wait, and return to his shack. He was only gone a few moments, before returning with a very well worn axe.

Assuming no one shot at him or freaked out, he would start cutting down one of the trees, aiming to use this as the first starts of the lumber they would use for the framework of the walls.

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook had gotten the second car in place when the first person had shown up. She was not what he expected. A thin woman, who probably had less meat on her than a bloatfly. Still, she was offering to help, showing off phantom might and a smile. If nothing else, she would make good company. He sat on the edge of the flatbed, drinking a thing of water. It was collected water from the rain, so it should be safe for her to drink.

He had long ago learned he could drink from places most humans would get sick from. When she arrived and offered her hand, Rook reached out, carefully wrapping his hand around her smaller hand. He gave a gentle, almost oddly careful shake of her hand. “Rook is pleased to meet you. Lorelel Jones is kind to help Rook out. Maybe she can see flaws in Rooks' plans better than he can.” He offered her the water and then went to work again.

Crouching down, he remade his little map, a bit better than the other one in town. “Rook is building defenses for town. Rook has been in the Wastelands for many years, has seen one thing in common with all successful settlements. Walls.” He sounded as if this was ancient wisdom being passed on. “Rook wants to build walls here, and towers, so we can see bad people before they arrive. Salem in good place, with many good things around. Old Man Barney said there is a militia here. They can man towers, Rook does not like to climb. Or swim. Swim is where bad things are.”

Looking at her, he was probably still close to most peoples height while crouched down. “Rook will still help bring up metal boxes from water though. Many good things are in water, and maybe can use it to make more things for Salem to be safe. Rook doesn't want to see Salem hurt. Too many people die because of the Wastelands. Rook not want people here to die either..."

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

So many people. Everyone talking, everyone being a bit of jerks towards him. Well, except the old man. He was nice. He was willing to give him a shot. Rook listened to the people talking, asking about clothing and working out. He didn't care about that. He had work to do. He had seen himself away from the others, oddly silent for one so large, and found himself a patch of dirt. Sitting down, he would gather some of the refuse from around him, looking at it and then the buildings around him. Each bit of junk was arranged in a way that would show a building. He traced what was (very roughly) the outline of the coast. There was the fishing shack he had, the road, the coast line, all the buildings in the center of town, and the docks.

“Rook sees many problems. No wall. No way to make wall from keeping out Mirelurks. Unless willing to do a lot of work. Hmmm...” Rook drew a few lines, looking over it and then standing up. “Yes. That would do. Need many things. Rook needs many things.”

Unless bothered, he would spend nearly an hour wandering the coast line of the town, looping back to his shack each time before finally walking up the road to the town proper. Now he had several feet of old steel cable, some various odds and ends he had grabbed up from the shore in his bag, that diamond plate chest guard, and a plan. While he still carried his white flag, he had a different expression on his face. He would plant the flag next to himself and look at the ruined tractor trailer. Walking around it, he would give it a quick over, seeing how poor shape it was in. In truth, it didn't need to be perfect, it needed to work.

He had been to a town not too many days away from here years ago, and his muscles had been put to the test. He had helped to build various fortifications for the town. At first he was alone in doing so, but it never too long for others to join him. There were old shipping containers that had washed up on the shore. While they were not the best, it didn't matter. They could be used for a number of things. He would have to haul those up on his own.

Wrapping the rope several times around the end of the trailer, where the hitch would sit, he would loop this around his chest as well. With that set, he would turn towards his goal. With everything set, he shifted, and made to take a step. Everything was locked up, he could feel the bindings tighten upon his chest. Rook continued to strain against it.

“Rook not be beaten by metal cart!” He yelled, his legs finally starting to move and he was growling as he started to drag the trailer. He was not going far with it, but he knew it was going to take a lot of effort. With metal screeching as he walked, the trailer was pulled behind him. He was working on turning it once it was going. He knew he wouldn't be able to make it turn on a cap, but he didn't need to go far. Between the building full of robots and skeletons, and the shore, the fork was his goal. He moved it back and forth, his muscles taxed to their limit as he got it settled finally.

Using the bits of metal he had gathered from the beach, he put stakes in front of, and behind, the sixteen tires, locking it in place. Despite breathing heavily for a few moments, he looked pleased with this.

“Rook make foundation for wall. Flip on side, bring containers up from water, use those behind it. Maybe find working motors to make working gates! Maybe Rook swim to boats and see if those motors work! Rook hates swimming though...” He turned back to town, picked up his flag, and went towards the diner... Only to discover it was still closed. “Ahhh... Meat maker man is not here... Back to work for now.”

He walked back down the hill, setting down his flag and sighing some. He would move the sand bags next, arranging them in a way to make it so they could keep someone in town protected from bullets. The cars would be rough, but these were next. Rocking the rusted poles back and forth, it didn't take long for them to snap, and would set those by the flat bed. He repeated the process of moving the cars next, positioning them on either side of the road, making the makeshift cover one could use if attacked.

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

The woman walking up was a nice sight. She was here to trade perhaps? Oh! Maybe she needed help with something and was going to ask... Or shoot at him... And yell. That was cool too. Rook frowned, looking at himself and then at her. He wasn't exactly trying to hide, and he had just gotten permission to be here. Why did he have to go now?

“Old man said Rook could be here! Rook is here to trade! Why lady shoot at Rook? What Rook do now?” He yelled, waving the white flag once. “Flag mean no shoot! Why lady shoot anyways? Does lady not know what flag means? Flag... White... No shoot at Rook.”

He didn't move, like he was rooted to the ground and unwilling to budge. The old man with Reba came running fast around the corner, rifle raised towards Rook... Then saw he hadn't exactly moved in the moment he was gone. He had a puzzled expression before seeing the woman with the plasma pistol. Then it clicked.

“Woah! Ma'am! Relax. Rook here just got here. We here at Salem are all about giving people a chance. He has been living near by for about a week. While I don't trust Super Mutants usually, Rook here isn't looking to cause any trouble. I saw him in his armor on his way here, was worried for a while. Then he killed a Mirelurk king and claimed it's home for his own. Damned sight that was. Can we lower the guns and talk this out?”

“Yeah! Rook not do anything bad. Rook has caps to trade. And muscle to move things!” He said, as if rather proud of those two facts.

A Life in Salem - A Fallout RP

Rook had not been shot at this far. So far, so good. He walked into town, still holding his white flag, and looked at the various buildings. There was... A lot of work that needed to be done here. When he had arrived at first, it was late, and he had not ventured very far away from his shack in the last week or so. It was not his place, and he had what he needed... But seeing this place, the terrible state it was in... He had resolved himself.

In his years, he had picked up a few skills here and there, perhaps he could put them to use here. While he was far from the best at things, being as strong as he was, he could carry things, help move heavy things, and generally help clean up. He knew some basics of black smithing as well, it's how he made parts of his armor, so there is that too. Nails and the like are always needed.

He had seen the ugliness of the Wastelands, and if he had his way, he was not going to let this place get swallowed up by it either. Stopping at a stall, he had seen it was long since abandoned. How many years ago did this settlement try to stand up only to falter and fall? He ran his hands over the well worn wood of the stand, it had a story to tell, one he wished to know, but that would come in time. Lifting back up his flag, he would look around. Was there a posted board for jobs? Was there a trader looking for someone to trade with? What was currently here?

At the moment, Rook just stood in the center of town, holding his white flag, bag of caps, and looking somewhat lost.

“You... Are not what I expected...” Barney Rook said, holding his rifle and looking at the Mutant. “But... You are not looking to be causing trouble... So as long as it stays that way, I think I can let you pass... But the Salem Volunteer Milita is always watching. Know that...”

“Rook will do as human says. Rook is seeking to trade, seeking to help. Rook wants home of his own. Does not like other Super Mutants. Does not like to hurt humans unless he has to.” Rook said, holding his flag tightly. “Rook wants to help town, Rook wants to stay in Rook's Roost.”

Barney looked confused, then realized the mutant was talking about itself. With a nod, Barney moved off, leaving Rook still wondering what he should do in order to start.