EVENTS:

Klimt lifts Peggy up, gently holding her intestines as they threaten to fall out, and places her into the bag, coat and all. In a way, it is much like filling a backpack with gelatin, considering how little cohesion her body still has. Still, as he hefts her onto his back, there's a hint of a smile in her unformed lips.

44 regards them for a moment before giggling again, nodding towards the exit with her head. Wordlessly, Klimt and his waifus follow her out.



______________________


Meanwhile, Malia climbs onto Bigrosa's back, weaving her threads into an improvised hammock, further cementing the sharkbeast as the group's favored beast of burden. She is comfortable enough, after all, despite smelling like rust and rotten fish.

After a few minutes of walking, they reach the Rig's main courtyard, where there's quite a flurry of activity. Barriers are being erected around the gates, while engineer zombies fit the compound's guards with backmounted flamethrowers. Kelly, surprisingly, seems to have left the safety of her control room, and is coordinating the delivery of fuel and ammunition to the various combat vehicles.

Oh look, it's Klimt! And Emilia too, though Curie is nowhere to be seen. They both look... A bit worse for wear, covered in scratches and dried blood, and the boy seems to be missing his coat and the legs of his pants. An eyeless doll with a large camera stuck to her neck seems to be guiding them towards Kelly.



____________________


Klimt and company reach the courtyard beneath the Rig's vast superstructure, finding the place agog with dolls and zombies assembling the facility's defenses.

Oh look, it's Eigla! She seems to be coming from the fort on the far end of the Rig, and is being followed by... A rather large, lumbering war machine of teeth and iron, bristling with weaponry, and carrying Malia, Sally and the zombike on its muscular back. Could this be Rosa?

EVENTS:

As the party reconvenes, Sally puffs her chest, pointing towards the windmill field with a rusty saber.

Sally: ”The plan, obviously, is ta’ ram into their line with yer crew, an’ drive back the spineless abomina-“

Kelly: ”I WILL tell you what the plan is, Sally.”

The industrious sister has walked close while you were distracted, and regards you all with tired eyes.

Kelly: ”Hm. Took you long enough. Now. I am not sure, what the mud kings are doing. It, might be an attack, or it might not. I do not think the, meatblob, has arrived, or Sally’s stranded team would have noticed it. So.

The only thing that changed, was your attempt at parlay with them. Hmm. I do not know, hm, what you said to whip the things into a frenzy, but it seems to have worked. So, very simply, here is what I will have you do. You’ll walk out there, flanked by enough troops to make sure you don’t run away. Then, you’ll speak with them again, and discover what the hell is going on. If they are trying to invade the rig, or cut off our access to the shore, or anything else - We’ll need to begin shelling.

Understand this. If, we deplete our ammo stocks dealing with the mud kings, chances are we won’t be able to stop the blob. In that case, you will no longer be welcome in my rig. I will not become collateral damage.”


Emilia perks up, looking worried.

Emilia: ”Does that include Klimt? The meatblob is not after him, you know!”

Kelly: ”You say it isn’t, but you can’t be sure. Hmmm. The way I see it, you seem to be followed by catastrophe wherever you go. And, now that Molly took tissue samples, you’ve become rather... Replaceable.
Don’t outlive your usefulness.”



And one and two
And three
PUSH!

Rosa feels one of Bigrosa’s eyes go numb and unfocus, then look around in a rather dizzying manner. Seems like the echoes have awoken.

Ah ha! See, I knew we could connect to it!
Not having depth perception sucks, though.
Hm. Lot of people in here. Did we miss something?

Hey look, it’s Klimt!
Where? Let me see - wow.
Swoon.
SWOON.
Swoooooon~
*swoms louder-ly*
Shwoon!
Nwoos!
Swoon/10 would swoon again.

EVENTS:

Kelly nods.

Kelly: ” Hm. So you’ve said. If push comes to shove, I will part with whatever remains of you, as well. Molly will not be happy, but she’s not, entirely, selfdestructive. Not yet, at least. My Rig will survive.”


Rosa closes her eyes, trying to focus, remembering how it felt to communicate with the mud kings.

What do you mean, we’re strange? You’ve been in love with him since always, right?
Shoosh! She’s trying to concentrate!
Oh. Right. I mean, I just found it unsual th-
SHUSH.

Hmm. There is, though faint, an undercurrent of urgency in the air. Somehow it reminds Rosa of a hurricane siren - A distant, droning signal, a command to seek shelter. Looking at the distant waves, she feels the abyss calling to her once more, ever stronger. She yearns for home.



Klimt feels something poke his back, and the creature within his backpack pulls itself upwards, until its maw rests gently against his ear. Dark, pungent blood runs down the side of his neck as it lets out as Peggy whispers.

Peggy: ”Where, where did Curie go? I, can see the rest of the hangers-on, but she’s not here. Who’s the stuck-up broad, by the way? She loves to run her mouth off, doesn’t she?”

EVENTS:

Rosa begins to walk out of the Rig’s courtyard, toward the windmill fields and the threat of the mud kings. Will anyone follow?


Inside her head, there is a moment of silence - She feels the echoes processing her statement with surprise, as if she’d just said she’d never been called Rosa before.

Nnnno, I’m pretty sure you did? I mean, I distinctly recall that. Right, girls?
Yeah, I think so. Hm. Very much so, in fact.
YES. ME HEART KLIMT.
I agree too - Heck, in all my memories of him he’s being such a reliable leader and stuff. Very handsome, too.
Yeap, a solid 9/10 would marry. I mean, if Eigla is okay with it. Maybe she could marry him too!
We should ask her! Though - Would the ‘til death do us part’ count? With us being all, dead, and stuff.
We should ask HIM first though. What if we’re not good enough for him?
Then - we must be better.
Hm. True words, sister.



Meanwhile, Kelly glances casually at Klimt.

Kelly: ”Hmm. You, talk as if I had not met her just yesterday. Yes, I saw the brain-girl again. How could I not, when she stormed into my control room last nigh, crying like a newborn and apologising madly for being some sort of monster? A pity, really. I did not expect her to stoop so low as to become... Emotional. Though, she was right to feel bad for damaging the Rig.

At any rate, while she was busy bawling her eyes out, Molly showed up and the two left together. Must be busy working on something in her lab - My sister has a habit of locking herself with her experiments at the first sign of danger.”

The Peggy-bag makes a low, unsatisfied gurgle. She seems unusually interested in Curie’s situation.