victory_road | The Vault Hunters in Goldenrod

MY STOMACH IS CLEAR, AND MY MIND IS FULL OF BACON!
[OPEN]
At dawn or dusk, any visitor or resident of Goldenrod might occasionally notice the tall, shirtless, masked man meandering through the back alleys, followed closely by an enormous Muk. Any visitor or resident of Goldenrod curious or brave enough to observe the odd pair for long enough might also notice the man nonchalantly approach, open, and sift through the contents of any garbage cans or dumpsters the pair encounters. Occasionally he'll remove something and feed it to his Muk. Why he's being so picky about the garbage he selects is a mystery.

It may always be a mystery.

Unless you want to ask him about it.

Go on. He doesn't bite. (He can't. He's wearing a mask.)

The voices said empty, hollow, and thud!
[Closed to Angel]
The group dynamic has changed enormously, and Krieg doesn't like it. His delight at Gaige's appearance is almost entirely soured by Athena's disappearance. He'd come to rely on the Gladiator's solid, grumpy presence even more than he'd realized. He knew he could trust her 100% to keep Angel safe when he wasn't nearby, because even though Angel was relaxing and allowing herself to drop her guard around Handsome Jack now, Krieg knew Athena never would. He knows Gaige never will, either, but while he trusts the skinny Mechromancer exactly as much as he trusted Athena, he would also never attempt to fight Gaige the way he fought with Athena...and that's the difference.

Gaige is small and slender and all noodle arms and skinny legs, just like Angel, and while she's far more fit than Angel, she's not a warrior in the same way Athena is a warrior. Athena's entire body is her weapon. Gaige's Deathtrap is hers. Without her Deathtrap she's handicapped, and while she's still a scrappy little thing all on her own, Krieg worries what would happen if it came down to a fight between her and Jack...or a fight between her and Jack plus Nisha, which is another huge annoyance dulling the brilliant delight brought on by Gaige's presence.

And Timothy....well. Krieg likes Timothy, but he's never actually witnessed him fight. Athena's word does him credit, but Krieg also thinks that the man's long-time crippling fear of Jack might still conquer and crush his newly acquired spine, and so he has no confidence whatsoever in Tim's ability to ensure Angel's safety.

He can't really put any of that into words - not that he has any particular desire to. It's simply what he knows about his various companions in their current situation, and as such, well...

...Angel has no doubt noticed her Psycho guardian is now more like a Psycho shadow.

"Get up, get up, get up! You've got ice cream to eat!"

I hate being good!
[Choose Your Own Adventure!]
Do you want to pester Krieg for a thing? Throw a scenario at me here, or hmu on Plurk or PM me if you want to plot!

Edited 2017-08-12 04:52 (UTC)

[ONce, Angel had been a late sleeper and an early riser. Her body was, to put it simply, unused to the idea of sleeping, let alone familiar with the concept of a healthy amount of rest. In those days, Krieg would often find her awake no matter what time of day he decided to rouse himself.

However, as the winter wore into spring, her body began to adjust and sleep became something of a well known companion. Where she once rose before the sun, she now found herself struggling to roll out of bed before noon. Though their recent travels had done well to keep her on a relatively decent schedule, settling in Goldenrod had been a perfect opportunity for long rests.

Hence the reason why Angel was startled awake by noise at her door, rather than being ready and waiting. She tumbled from her bed, banging her knee but otherwise managing to keep herself from a more disastrous tumble. Shaking herself free from her covers, Angel opened the door, taking only a moment to hope that her hair wasn't too askew.]

Sorry I... think I overslept a little, Krieg.

[As if Krieg would ever judge Angel on the appearance of her hair. Or on her appearance in general. As close as they've always been, he's more than familiar with the fluctuations in her sleep patterns. His have never really changed. Most days his system settles into that state of sleep that encourages dreaming right between six and seven in the morning, and as his dreams are rarely pleasant and almost always seem to be associated with all the repressed memories he's convinced he's happier without, between six and seven in the morning is when he wakes up for the day.

And so he's not at all surprised to find her still in her pj's, blinking sleep from her eyes and apologizing for oversleeping.]

Sleep is important!

[He smiles fondly at her, though his expression is - as usual - hidden beneath his mask. Then he fidgets and adds:]

But so is ice cream!

[Krieg probably shouldn't have been encouraging the siren's voracious appetite as much as he was. She was beginning to worry that she was developing an addiction. If she couldn't even so much as get out of bed without the promise of ice cream, then surely there was a problem.

It wasn't a problem she was going to be addressing any time soon. Or even so much as thinking about it as a problem in the first place]

You're right, you're right. [She offered him a smile in kind, knowing full-well that the playful crinkling of Krieg's one visible eye was the result of a smile.]

Can I get dressed first? Or are we doing an ice cream run in our pajamas?

[Maybe someone should change his title from Krieg the Psycho to Krieg the Enabler. If someone decides it's necessary to stage an intervention for Angel's developing ice cream addiction, it's not going to be Krieg. In fact, they'll probably have to stage one for him, too.

At her question, he nods his head, vigorously and enthusiastically.]

Yeah! I'll wait!

[And suiting actions to words he steps back from the doorway and over to one side, so that she can close it and have the necessary privacy for changing her clothes.

What a turnaround for a man who still occasionally shouts, "I HATE WAITING!"

This must be the magic of friendship.]

[It was good, then, that there was no one to stage said intervention. At least, she doubted that was anyone would be willing to try. Attempting to talk Krieg out of his own habits would likely go about as well as convincing a brick wall to abandon its ice cream addiction.

And that meant Angel was safe for the time being.]

Just a moment.

[The door clicked closed, though not before Angel stole one last glance at Krieg's smiling face. Turning to her bag of clothes, Angel plucked out her favorite blue dress and set to pulling it on. Once it was over her head, she called out to Mari and Dora, who traipsed to her side. Skagbait, for once, remained seated. She knew she could trust Krieg to protect her charge in her stead.

After a quick glance at the mirror, making sure her reflection was at least relatively satisfactory, Angel opened the door once more.]

Okay, I'm ready. Shall we go?

Yeah!

[He nods his head vigorously, all but vibrating as usual with excitement. He's already run reconnaissance on the legendary ice cream parlor they're going to, so he knows how to get there. The day is already heating up - it's going to be another scorcher before a few more hours pass, but it'll be perfect for Krieg's usual complete lack of shirt and Angel's cute sundress.

Murder Chicken, cheerful as always, greets Angel, Mari, and Dora as they emerge from her room, and lowers his head to within easy reach to solicit a head pat from Angel - this level 100 badass Blaziken never outgrew his head pats.]

Did you sleep good? Sweet dreams?

"... Krieg?"

What even is the guy doing?

Granted, Shiro is probably passing by through chance, because he never intended to stick around Goldenrod this long. Never intended to be here more than a few days. But here he is. Walking back to a hotel room with a bag from the Pokemart and his Ralts chugging a lemonade, sunglasses on its tiny face.

"Did you lose something?"

[He recognizes the voice but doesn't respond immediately, or even react, until Shiro asks his question. Hands still buried elbow-deep in refuse, he turns his head to look at his friend, blinks, squints briefly, and then laughs.]

Nope! Just feeding the Slag Stack!

[He withdraws his hands then, pulling up an old, beat-up sneaker in one and a white chunk of styrofoam that probably belonged in a box with an expensive electronic in the other.]

Muk muuuuk!

[Slag Stack voices his approval at the sight of the delectable treasures his trainer has discovered, extending one gloppy arm and waving it cheerfully. Krieg dutifully drops both moldy tidbits into the creature's waiting mouth, where they disappear with a slurmp!]

Why? Did you?

... Ah.

[That literally explains everything. It's pretty rare that happens, but hey! He'll take it. His Ralts pushes its sunglasses up, attempting to whistle at the sight of the Muk.]

[What is this guy's deal.]

[Ralts is not as used to Krieg as its trainer is.]

Nah, we're just heading back from the store. You guys want a lemonade?

[The pair's reply to Shiro's invitation is simultaneous and enthusiastic. Krieg actually stands up straight for a moment, while Slag Stack does a blobby little dance in place.]

Yeah!

Muk Muuuuuk!

[These two are always down for snacks and cold beverages.]

Where's the party?

[Shiro's here, so it's a party now.]

[His Ralts makes an alarmed little squeak, ducking behind his leg. And clambering its way up to his shoulder.]

[For his part, Shiro just shakes his head, reaching into the bag he's carrying. A moment later? Two bottles of lemonade appear.]

I guess it's a dumpster diving party.

[He's used to you Krieg joke's on you.]

[Surprisingly (or not?) Krieg's not gonna complain. This is a normal people thing - having friends who aren't weirded out by your weirdness. Krieg's all about normal people things.]

Mnuhuhuhuhu...There's plenty of garbage for everyone!

[He accepts the bottles of lemonade, pops the first one open, and pours the contents into Slag Stack's waiting mouth. When it's empty, he drops the bottle in after, and the Muk swallows it all with relish.]

Who's the bug?

[That tiny little critter on Shiro's shoulder is totally a bug, right?]

Isn't that the truth...

[Hey, if Krieg is not complaining, neither is he. It's kind of nice to just sit back and have a normal conversation with the guy. He does like him, after all.]

This is Blue.

[Why yes, he did just name the Ralts after the Blue Lion. Sorry, Lance.] He's new.

Nice shades. What's it do?

[It's Krieg's turn for lemonade now; he pops open the container, pushes his mask up off of his face just far enough he can get the lip of the bottle to his mouth, and chugs.]

So far? He wears sunglasses.

[The Ralts chatters loudly, clearly displeased with being dismissed. Even though he's still technically a baby. And has a lot of growing to do.]

Mnnph--

[He makes a small noise of amusement between swallows, and then moments later finishes off the bottle with a refreshed exhalation.]

Looks like it's already a pro!

[As he pulls his mask back down into place Shiro might catch the flash of his grin. He drops his empty bottle into Slag Stack's waiting mouth, and squints with interest at the little Ralts.]

What kind is it?

[Well! Okay then! If the big, weird man thinks it's a pro, then clearly he is okay in Blue's book. Look, the Ralts is even preening a bit. As much as a mop-headed mushroom child can.]

I think you've just made a friend.

[Blue tries to give Krieg a thumb's up. Despite not having thumbs.]

He's a "Ralts", apparently. He popped out of an egg I found.

There are lots of good eggs around.

[Aww, tiny little bug dude, Krieg sees your "thumbs up!" His own hands are each bigger than Blue's whole body, and he uses one to return the gesture. Maybe it'll have thumbs when it evolves!

He turns his attention back to Shiro, though, squints thoughtfully at his face as he tries to recall something, and then tilts his head to one side as he fails.]

You're just visiting too, right? Fighting the gyms?

[He's pretty sure Shiro doesn't live in Goldenrod, but he can't actually remember. :'D]

Isn't it a little weird? All these animals just come from eggs?

[The irony of asking Krieg this question is temporarily lost on him.]

[Blue squeaks imperiously, and makes an attempt to climb up onto his trainer's head. He'll be big and strong someday, Krieg!! ... He won't, but that's beside the point.]

Yeah. We're just here until we can beat Whitney. You?

Dunno. Where else would they come from?

[Now that Shiro's brought it up, he does have a very vague notion that he's right and that it is pretty weird that all these animals come from eggs. He's no expert on how living beings - human, pokemon, or other - come into the world. There's a vague impression of ladies gradually becoming very fat in preparation of having a baby, but he shies away from that entire train of thought before he can get too far along; there are dangerous memories down that path, and he wants nothing to do with them.]

Same! Gotta beat the boss and get the badge!

[The Gym Challenge is a much better topic than babies and where they come from anyway!]

I... regular animal places?

[Then again, maybe they're all aliens here. And maybe aliens work entirely differently than they do on Earth. So... what does he know, really.]

Good luck, man. I hear she cries, though. So brace yourself.

What's a regular animal place?

[He's not being an ass. It's a genuine question. He doesn't know how regular animals work any more than he knows how the Pokemon do.]

Pfff! She can cry all she wants, it's not gonna fix the burn!

[Thanks for the warning, Shiro, but he's not scared of crying ladies.]

... you know, I don't know.

[He does know. But this isn't really a conversation he's comfortable having with anyone. Ever. He doesn't want to give The Talk to someone.]

[Fortunately, Krieg jumps onto the subject of the gym, so all is well.]

She uses Normal types. So... whatever you have that works against those, go for it.

[If Shiro ever tried to give The Talk to Krieg, Krieg...would laugh. A lot. He might never stop. So this is probably a good thing for everyone involved. Everyone involved being Shiro and Krieg.]

The Murder Chicken punches hard! He'll curbstomp them before the deep fry!

[Fire/Fighting types are the best 8)]

[Yeah, no. It's not going to happen. He'd volunteer one of his teammates to do it, except they're not here. Whoops.]

Hah! I guess you'll be all right then, man.

[He's grinning though. It's nice to talk to Krieg like this.]

[Though grief still hung like a shroud in Angel's chest, she knew that it was time to get back out into the world. Typhon and Xiphos would need to be walked, trained and possibly comforted, and she couldn't forget to care for her other Pokemon, either.

Both creatures hung beside her as she moved through the streets of the city. It would be hard to miss Angel, or rather the hulking shiny Haxorus that loomed over her rather threateningly.

At one point, she would return the two new creatures to their balls and enter, you guessed it, an ice cream shop. Her order was simple, two scoops of coffee flavored ice cream. It wasn't her favorite flavor, but it was a pleasant and mostly positive way of honoring her now lost friend.

Eventually though, Angel's travels would take her to the gym. Though her team wasn't nearly ready (they might have had the levels, but they certainly weren't going to fight without a hard core pep-talk!), she could at least take some notes and figure out what exactly she was to expect from her coming challenge. She could be found watching the on-going fights, scribbling down notes onto a pad of paper while Skagbait stared onward.

At night and in the morning, she can be found milling about the hotel. Her door is kept open for any friends that might want to drop by. Otherwise, she spends a good amount of time in the lobby, or outside at a bench.]

The Vault Hunters in Goldenrod

KRIEG

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TRASH DIVING

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Angel