sic astra ad aspera

ind. priv. sel. arcade israel ganon est. 6 may 2018

[hippocratisms]

martyrofthemojave:

Teddy realized how hard he was holding onto Arcade and he pulled back, gently murmuring apologies. He brushed his hand through Arcade’s hair and smiled gently. His eyes caught Julie Farkas moving past the tent and he gently pulled away from Arcade.

“Sorry. I… don’t know what the Followers procedure is on relationships.” He mumbled.

    --    " It's okay. I think she's fine with it,            but I have to get back to work. We should            meet at the Wrangler tonight. "

     Arcade brought Teddy in for one tight squeeze, but then turned back around to go back to his research. He blinked back tears, tears of nostalgia and of fear for the future. What if he got too inquisitive, if Arcade got too drunk? This man was obviously not who he was fifteen years ago, even if he smelled the same, spoke the same, smiled the same. How he acted in the next few days could kill him.

[hippocratisms]

@remember-navarro | continued from here

     Arcade bit back a chuckle at that last bit, as it was something Aidan would say whenever they came across a Cazador. And it was something that almost always happened. At this point, Arcade was packing antivenom of some sort in his doctor's bag any time they went out, which happened often nowadays.

     He put a fresh energy cell in his Defender, moving behind the door, getting ready to open it for the Courier. He reached out, turned the doorknob, and...

[hippocratisms]

mojavedevil:

                Eyes lit up in excitement as Arcade muttered those words. He hadn’t anticipated the response he wanted to come so quickly, he figured Arcade would put up a bit of a fight. From what little he knew of the Follower’s doctor, it seemed there was hesitation when it came to anything remotely fun.

                                            “ You’re not gonna regret this. ”                 Roadkill grew more eager as the minutes passed. His absent mind running with ideas of how to get the other man excessively intoxicated. Though, he should be grateful that he even decided to tag along with his trip to the Wrangler, Roadkill was too caught up in the thought that everybody wanted to get plastered every time they drank. 

                The man didn’t understand the concept of drinking for leisure or just for the taste. To him, the point of alcohol was to get wasted. Blackouts were common when he drank, it was the goal of his binges. Perhaps there was an underlying cause for his need to indulge in substances to make himself happy, though it wasn’t as if he would acknowledge his own issues. 

                His drinking habits had earned him quite the reputation at the Wrangler and even on the Strip when he visited. It had led him to go so far as to get himself banned from the Ultra-Luxe among other places scattering the wasteland. But there was an endless supply of liquor in the Mojave, as long as he could tap into the supply anywhere would be suitable for drinking.              

     Ten minutes on the dot later, Arcade returned. Instead of his usual garb, Arcade wore a dark button-down shirt, relatively free of stains and the usual wasteland grime, and a pair of denim jeans. He almost looked like a completely different person, one that wasn't full of the stresses of the Followers. Like a stick-thin child going through Jet withdrawals didn't just vomit on him less than an hour ago.

     Arcade was planning on taking it easy, a night of relaxation before taking a long shower and going to bed for a solid day. Perhaps he'd drink a few tumblers of nice whiskey, have a glass of wine. The Garrets did make a nice mutfruit cocktail that tasted deceptively sweet, but he wanted to feel the BURN.

    --   " Let's go. There's not much light left,            and it would be nice to get there before dark. "

     Arcade hated traversing Freeside in the dark. It quickly became a wretched hive of scum and villainy, with someone on every corner trying to mug you or worse. Perhaps this was where Roadkill would protect Arcade, do a nice thing for once, but he seriously doubted that.

[hippocratisms]

‘ this is embarrassin'. this is embarrassin' for you, i think. ’

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

    --    " No it's not. "

     When Arcade took the elevator up to the Lucky 38, covered in plant juice and other peoples' vomit, he was not expecting Daisy Whitman to be waiting there for him. The Courier was laughing hard when the pang of recognition came across his blanched face, obviously a mix of both terrified and grateful.

[hippocratisms]

‘ a bug flew up my nose. ’

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

     Arcade could believe it. In the few months Arcade had known the scumbag known as Roadkill, he had only taken a bath once and that was when he fell, drunk, into Lake Mead.

     The path up to Jacobstown was full of buzzing bugs on the best of days, and it was only obvious that they would make friends with the trash man. Whereas Arcade was wearing all but a wreath of citronella, Roadkill was covered in flies and mosquitos and mantids. Maybe that was the reason there were so many mantises attacking them on the road.

    --    " I can see why. "

[hippocratisms]

‘ i don’t know why i phrased it ‘lucky for us.’ i think i was feeling brave when i wrote this. ’

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

    --    " Fac fortia et patere, Aidan. It's...             It's probably just a Cazador buzzing around. "

     Truth be told, Arcade was a little afraid. Even if the strange low thrum was just a cazador behind that door, he saw what cazador venom did to people even after antivenom had been administered. He didn't want to deal with a gangrenous wound on either himself or Aidan. He didn't want to deal with the delirium, the fever, especially when they were so far away from the Fort.

[hippocratisms]

‘ do you think we’re gonna die here tonight? ’ [whiskeyxxrose]

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

     Arcade beat back a chuckle, then realized his plasma pistol was out, grasped tightly with a white-knuckled grip. He claimed to not be afraid, to never be afraid unless it was an inquisitive NCR soldier asking about him, but the eerie nature of the canyon was getting to him. The ghost stories they were telling to one another probably weren't helping either.

    --    " Heh... unless a Deathclaw drops down while we're asleep.           We're gonna be fine. Now, can I have a little bit of that tequila? "

[hippocratisms]

‘ well, you are just a giant stick walking around. ’

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

     Arcade looked down at the man and scoffed. When Abner had asked him to accompany him back to Nipton, he acquiesced ( as it was either that or Julie Farkas making him do something either menial or dangerous ), but he was starting to regret that decision now. The man had done nothing but berate Arcade, and sarcastic comebacks lead to what was probably a sarcastic answer. It still hit Arcade relatively hard, however.

    --    " I'm not that tall. Am I?                                    ...am I? "

[hippocratisms]

‘ i’m gonna try and avoid s-saying ‘demon’ as much as i can. ’

✰ — — — BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS | Accepting

   –   " I don’t see why you should. It’s probably           just a feral ghoul and an electrical short. "

     Arcade had his plasma pistol out, and was errantly unloading and reloading it as the two walked through the building. The old hotel had been a haven to raiders until recently, when it was reported that they all vanished without a trace. People exploring the hotel since had heard noises, experienced lights flickering, and one even claimed a painting flew off the wall and at them.

     But Arcade was always a skeptic. He didn't believe in ghosts, only in facts. And demons couldn't live in a godless world such as this one.

[littlelovelymemes]

 ✰   —  —  —  BUZZFEED UNSOLVED SENTENCE STARTERS

‘  do you think we’re gonna die here tonight?  ’ ‘  it’s horrifying, chilling… just over all not good.  ’ ‘  should we just get this over with?  ’ ‘  he’s a fucking criminal.  ’ ‘  sharing is caring? meh, go fuck yourself.  ’ ‘  oh god, um… oh my god, i fucking hate this.  ’ ‘  stop banging on the door, you dick.  ’ ‘  what. the fuck. is wrong with you.  ’ ‘  i gotta be honest, this doesn’t really compel me very much.  ’ ‘  that was a joke that i made and then it formed your opinion on it.  ’ ‘  flip that switch. do you think that’s the murder switch?  ’ ‘  this is embarrassing. this is embarrassing for you, i think.  ’ ‘  no one’s ghost-proof.  ’ ‘  i’m ghost-proof.  ’ ‘  you’re not ghost-proof. you’re just an idiot who refuses to see proof.  ’ ‘  i’m ghost-proof, baby!  ’ ‘  that sounded like will smith!  ’ ‘  is will smith dead? has anyone checked the news?!  ’ ‘  the problem is if there’s something that attacks us down here, i’m going to hit my head on the ceiling and my skull will smash.  ’ ‘  alright, buddy. keep your wits about ya.  ’ ‘  let’s get the fuck out of here.  ’ ‘  i kind of just looked into places that would make me wanna die and i think this checks that box.  ’ ‘  did i just blind you? good, good, good. it’ll give you the vision.  ’ ‘  take a drink!  ’ ‘  i’m gonna get you all tanked.  ’ ‘  what do you expect? what insight are you trying to gather from here?  ’ ‘  maybe the noise is a little snake. can you imagine a little snake wrapped around a little pickaxe with a little hat on?  ’ ‘  i’m not trying to do that whole dismissive thing, but… i’m dismissing it.  ’ ‘  alright. alright, man. you just gotta chill.  ’ ‘  i thought ‘glory hole’ used to mean something very innocuous, though.  ’ ‘  it’s where the men fucked the earth hoping to impregnate it with gold.  ’ ‘  a bug flew up my nose.  ’ ‘  i think i’ve swallowed about six tablespoons of bugs at this point.  ’ ‘  it’s so silent aside from the bugs in my ears.  ’ ‘  a bat flew right behind you just now.  ’ ‘  that bat was straight-up going for your ass… it was an ass bat.  ’ ‘  dude, i’m so nervous.  ’ ‘  how can you be nervous with a beautiful sunset like that?  ’ ‘  there’s some pretty shitty things that have happened to people around here.  ’ ‘  can you even look at least a little bit worried?  ’ ‘  yeah, i’m fucking nervous, man. i feel like i’m gonna vomit.  ’ ‘  we’re all assholes here.  ’ ‘  i don’t know why i phrased it ‘lucky for us.’ i think i was feeling brave when i wrote this.  ’ ‘  yeah, this isn’t lucky for you at all.  ’ ‘  i’m gonna try and avoid saying ‘demon’ as much as i can.  ’ ‘  i’m not gonna let you goad me into this, i know what you’re trying to do.  ’ ‘  shut up. we’re moving on.  ’ ‘  you know what? i’m not trying to scare you, but… i got a bad feeling about this one.  ’ ‘  why are you unbuttoning your pants? we’re in public right now.  ’ ‘  oh… you’ve out-dumbed yourself.  ’ ‘  you know, i thought this was gonna be funny, but now i’m actually happy that i have it.  ’ ‘  i’m a whole other coin. just like a chill ass wheat-back penny.  ’ ‘  i’m doing it for the betterment of the science.  ’ ‘  any demons here? you got any demons out tonight? any horn-y boys or whatever they are.  ’ ‘  you may not like this… i’m gonna try to agitate it.  ’ ‘  you do what you gotta do and i’ll do what i gotta do.  ’ ‘  i’m just gonna be as crude as possible here.  ’ ‘  no, no, no. just right out of the gate. why build up?  ’ ‘  if you don’t believe then there’s nothing for you to be afraid of, right?  ’ ‘  you can be is big of a prick as you want, but i’m staying over here.  ’ ‘  if you want me off this bridge, you’re gonna have to kill me.  ’ ‘  nope! don’t loop me into your shit!  ’ ‘  stop looping me. i hate when you do this to me in demon places.  ’ ‘  i’m not part of his little charade.  ’ ‘  children will come here and tell tales about me.  ’ ‘  shut the fuck up – i’m gonna murder you.  ’ ‘  oh what a load of horse shit.  ’ ‘  oh, skip the theatrics and just go into it.  ’ ‘  if you want me off this bridge, you’re gonna have to throw me off.  ’ ‘  you gotta admit, that is an effective technique.  ’ ‘  no, it’s not an effective technique. it’s a way to get killed.  ’ ‘  that’s not how you get them, shut up.  ’ ‘  when’s the last time you ever walked into the dark woods?  ’ ‘  this is so much scarier than hunting fucking sasquatch.  ’ ‘  people usually feel overcome with emotion in here, like a violent emotion.  ’ ‘  give me a heads up if you start to feel murderous. i would appreciate that.  ’ ‘  by the way, these woods are also scary because of the people that might be in there.  ’ ‘  i mean, people are greater threats than demons or ghouls.  ’ ‘  i can’t fight, you can’t fight.  ’ ‘  you’re like one of those carwash floaty things that are out front just wiggling around.  ’ ‘  anyone doing up to no good out here?  ’ ‘  one of these times we’re gonna die.  ’ ‘  oh shit! there’s something over there. i don’t know what it is, but the bushes are moving.   ’ ‘  i just heard a scream.  ’ ‘  well, if we just make it seem like we’re in on it, like… we’re here for the cult stuff.  ’ ‘  we’re here for the cult stuff. we saw the ad on craigslist.  ’ ‘  it feels weird to even joke. i’m so fucking scared right now.  ’ ‘  oh sure they’d be hiding in the bushes. they’re cultists.  ’ ‘  i keep collecting spiderwebs on my face and now i’m just sort of immune to them. i’m just letting them accumulate.  ’ ‘  well, you are just a giant stick walking around.  ’ ‘  oh, this looks fun… an odd collection of branches. looks like a witch lair or something.  ’ ‘  hello? you can’t be doing occult stuff like this. it’s a weeknight.  ’ ‘  dude, wait. you’re fucking crazy.  ’ ‘  you need to chill. you need to chill out.  ’ ‘  hey man, it’s just a plant.  ’ ‘  we kicked goatman off the bridge, it’s ours now.  ’ ‘  goatman, are you out here in the woo– well, he’s out here in the woods ‘cause he’s not tending to his bridge.  ’ ‘  clearly. that’s why finders keepers and all that.  ’ ‘  hey, if there’s cultists out there… i gotta let you know, my pal has a water gun.  ’ ‘  i don’t like this, i don’t like this one bit.  ’ ‘  we are hearing noise from all sides at this point. it’s very blair witch.  ’ ‘  yeah, let’s leave.  ’ ‘  the name ‘steve’ doesn’t really strike fear into the heart.  ’ ‘  i’ll go along with this. fun gimmick.  ’ ‘  well demons, it’s been fun.  ’ ‘  as we snuff these candles so too do we snuff you from this mortal world, you fucking wimp.  ’ ‘  this bridge is officially mine. they’ll tell legends of me here.  ’ ‘  oh god, i feel like i’ve gone to the dark side.  ’ ‘  just gloat a little bit. this is a win for you.  ’

[hippocratisms]

mojavedevil:

            Roadkill wasn’t fond of being a stranger to somebody. Not only did it drive him crazy not knowing everything he possibly could, the fact that somebody wasn’t entirely aware of his reputation struck a nerve in Roadkill. Of course he was aware of rumors the locals spread about him, but he found he felt more menacing when he was able to describe the vile crimes he has committed to one’s face. 

              It was a power trip, seeing the fear in another being’s eyes as he told stories of killing, always being sure to include the more gruesome details of the events. There was a sick pleasure he found in making others fear him. 

                                                      “ Woah, calm down calm down. I’m just askin’ if you want to tag along to the Wrangler. ” Roadkill’s slurred speech made it rather obvious that he was intoxicated.  Though despite his drunken state he insisted on continuing his night of drinking. Hopefully with Arcade by his side. 

              Ignoring the distinct signs of discomfort and irritation the other man radiated, Roadkill forcefully placed his hand on the researcher’s shoulder.                                                         “ You look like you need to let loose. C’mon it’ll be fun.. ”

       At first, Arcade slinked away in pure disgust. The man was a pure affront to all senses, and it would absolutely destroy Gannon's reputation of the mild-mannered, mouthy Followers doctor who generally kept his nose clean of everything. He wouldn't hear the end of it if word got to Julie Farkas that he went to the Wrangler. And it was no guarantee that James Garret and his creepy sister would even serve him.

       But at the same time, he definitely would have liked to "let loose". A few glasses of wine, perhaps even a tumbler or two of whiskey sounded great, but he wasn't the type to drink himself into oblivion like the other man would most definitely want to do.

       If he didn't go in official Follower's attire, however, it might just work.

    --    " Give me ten minutes to get out of this labcoat. "

[hippocratisms]

✂

[memeasaurus-promptus]

Send ✏ and I will draw your muse to the best of my abilities!

Send ✂ and I will draw my muse instead! 

Please specify which muse when applicable.

[hippocratisms]

mojavedevil:

                        There it was: a reaction. All the man needed to invade the other’s personal space and bother him with banter about himself. With an excited smile he got out of his chair, struggling a bit due to him intoxicated state he drank himself to. 

                                        “ That’s my name, don’t ware it out now. ” His trademark obnoxious grin was plastered across his face as he gave Arcade a sly wink. In his drunken stupor he found this moment to be the right time to pester the man with an invitation to go out. Really it was more of an excuse for Roadkill to continue his alcohol binge, though there still was interest in finally getting to know the man known as Arcade. 

                        “ Okay, so I’ve been thinkin’ ‘bout somethin’. You gotta hear me out on this now. ”

                                        Roadkill had the habit of speaking rather loudly. The excessive volume wasn’t intentional of course, it was rooted in his troubles with hearing. Being so close to guns for so long has left the mercenary somewhat hard of hearing, inherently causing his issues with tone. 

                        “ You’re a mystery to me, a fuckin’ wonder of the world. I see you all the time yet I don’t know jack shit ‘bout you. ”

    --    " You don't know 'jack shit' about me because              I spend all my time working. Unlike some other people. "

     Arcade didn't mean to be an asshole to the man, but at the same time he didn't realize that Roadkill was going to invade Arcade's personal space, that he was going to want to ask questions. That he smelled like Brahmin milk two-weeks past the due date. It made Arcade want to retch, want to go back to the Mormon Fort and scrub himself down with bleach.

     Why did the man have such an interest in Arcade? All he wanted was to sleep the weekend away just to repeat his week over again. Truth be told, he craved the monotony -- in fact, it was so much better than how he grew up. A nomad, terrified of everyone. At least here he knew he was going to sleep in the same bed every night, even if he had to share a building with people like this man.

[mojavedevil-archive-blog]

@hippocratisms​ | closed starter 

                       Roadkill had seen this man before. Sporting neat blonde hair and glasses made him recognizable and hard to miss. From what he could tell, he was just a doctor working with the Followers, nothing that should be particularly interesting. Yet Roadkill found himself intrigued by the man. Their brief moments of conversation had left him wanting to speak to the stranger more. Perhaps it was because of the lack of interest he found in Roadkill that drew him in. After all, they lived in the same building, it wouldn’t be neighborly of him to pay no mind to the man. 

                        It was a particularly uninteresting day spent lounging outside of the building he called home, sipping warm beers and throwing rocks and insults at locals to pass the time. It wasn’t until the sun began to set that he spotted the familiar stranger walking towards their shared building that he sat up in the fold out chair he had been resting in. As the fair haired man approached, Roadkill couldn’t help but shout out to him before tossing a small piece of broken concrete in his direction as if shouting wouldn’t grab his attention.

                                                     “ Hey! Four eyes! ”

[hippocratisms]

     Arcade's ears perked up at the nickname, but he didn't notice the man sitting in the low lawn chair before a pebble of concrete hit him square in the back. Today had been long, tireless, thankless. Arcade was ready to eat an entire box of Instamash and pass out, shoes on and sprawled on the bed. That was all his small tenement was good for, as the electricity was prone to brownouts (and food spoilage) and the water only really ran once a week. He had been dependent on the showers at the Old Mormon Fort, which were terrible on a good day.

     With a sigh, Arcade turned around and looked down to see the man known only as Roadkill. No one knew who he was, where he came from, only that he was a greasy jerk and likely a chem addict. He never showered, he looked like he was a Fiend, and there was talk that he had a slave of some sort up in his apartment. But that was all hearsay, and Arcade took the benefit of the doubt on everything.

    --    " Oh, hello Roadkill. "

[hippocratisms]

     “ A courier, a DOCTOR, and a cybernetic dog.          After we deal with this whole "imminent conquest of New Vegas” thing,          we should open an act at THE TOPS. “

           ind. priv. sel. ARCADE GANNON of Fallout: New Vegas.

[hippocratisms]

martyrofthemojave:

Teddy looked confused for a moment before realization struck him. He tried to find words. His brain was trying to process 20 years of pain and heartbreak in that single moment and all he could do was pull the shorter man into a tight embrace.

“I-it… it was you.” He even smelled like him. “God, I… I never even got your name back then.” He pulled back and cupped Arcade’s cheeks, looking into his eyes. “You… I…” He pulled Arcade close again and vowed to never, ever let go.

     " I didn't mean to leave -- I didn't want to. "

     Arcade reciprocated the hug, taking a deep breath as he wraps his arms around the man. The half-starved kid he had fooled around with so long ago had gotten strong in the decades they were apart.

     Too strong. His eyes flew open as he tried to breathe through the squeeze, just to see Julie Farkas walk past the open tent. Her dark brown gaze met his watery, pink eyes and she cracked a smile, giving him a thumbs up and leaving.