act28side

They say there's gonna be another attack in about half an hour. You want some water?

Never mind. Look how tense you are. You'd just throw it up anyway... Breathe, breathe... Relax... Where are you from, girl?

Columbia, huh...? Ever heard of Davistown?

No? That's a shame. It's a pretty neat place. Its route takes it around the eastern forests, and the winters are long and cold, but its plate is home to a mine. Keeps its core's energy tower burning the whole time.

Just the heat generated from that keeps everyone warm all winter.

It can get pretty hot indoors, but it's also cold outside, so no matter where you go, as soon as you open the door you get puffs of white steam gushing out toward you. Which condenses on your eyelashes like teardrops.

You have to wipe them off quick, or the kids inside will laugh at you. But that's okay. That's when you fight back. Lift 'em by the armpits and toss them into the thick snowdrifts outside.

Now you get to laugh at all the snow on their faces.

Oh... Piqued your interest?

Yeah, it's a great place. Everyone wants to go see it for themselves. And I...

I really want to go back and have a look, too.

Hfff—How is it so damn cold here? I don't get it!

How the hell does this even happen? So goddamned cold!

Get your ass inside then! If you know it's cold, why're you complaining about it with the door open?

I don't want to get the floor dirty.

You say that like you can wipe your feet on the snow... Here, hot tea.

Pff... That's hot!

...The floor's pretty dirty in the diner today, huh? If I'd known, I would've just walked in.

We got some heavy snow. Every time someone steps inside, it just gets dirty again. I'll clean it up after closing.

So what're you having? Beans? Bread?

What kinda choice is that?

It's all we have. If you'd rather have nothing, suit yourself.

Can I get a little of both?

Fine, seeing how you're my first customer without a few screws loose. I'll even throw in a scoop of butter, on the house.

Helena...

Now what?

Why do you have mud on your chairs—

Hey you two, this ain't your home. Put your feet down!

You talking to us, old man?

*sigh*... Settle down, you two.

You stay out of this.

Don't be like that. Everyone's here for a hot meal. No need to get physical.

Hey, why're you taking his side?

Because I'd rather not see every little quarrel in this joint end in a knife fight.

Shut up, or I'll knife you too.

For the love of—

Stay out of this, Helena. I'll teach these hoodlums a lesson.

Heh, your funeral!

The ruffian takes his knife and steps forward, only for a dinner knife to fly at him from the opposite side and embed itself in the ground near his feet.

You?!

Not another inch, boy. It's late. Go home to your mommy.

Right back at you, woman—

Before he can take another step, a second knife brushes past his cheek and lodges itself in the wall behind him.

A few drops of fresh blood drip to the ground.

My ear?!

Stop whining. It's still attached.

But I can't promise it'll stay that way unless you scram. Now.

The restaurant's proprietor turns around and takes a cloth off the rack to start wiping the bar.

There is another knife wedged between her fingers.

Shit...

Forget it, let's go. We can get them back for this later.

Here, your meal.

Thanks...

Yowch! It's hot!

You're about the only person who can burn his tongue twice in one visit.

Hey, I was starving. Haven't had a good meal all day. Anyhow, don't you think we've been getting more and more of these thugs in town?

Probably because Woodrow's out searching for Miles... So they think nobody's gonna stop them.

Hmph... Miles sure knows how to be a pain in the neck. He left the plate without a word to look for fuel, only to disappear without a trace. And now Woodrow's gotta go look for him.

What choice did he have? We don't have enough fuel to go around. Besides, it don't matter what he ran into. He can deal with anything, man or beast, in three seconds flat.

But what if Woodrow's too late—

Alright, enough yapping. Finish your bean stew.

*sigh* I'm just worried...

Here, it's my last bit of butter. Now shut your trap, will you?

Kids, you awake?

There may be ambushers in the forest. The recon team has gone ahead to scout the area, and if they need any fire support, we can't just be napping in the transport.

So get off your butts, pick up your gear, and cover yourselves. On the count of three.

Ugh, my eyes...

What's wrong?

It's the glare from the snow.

I'm pretty sure I gave you a reminder of what to look out for when fighting in a snowfield. Where are your sunglasses?

Guess I didn't think it through. Whatever, I'll have to make do with what I have on hand.

How are things looking up ahead?

Patience. The situation's a little tricky right now. The snow's too thick, so it's hard to spot any enemies in hiding. It'll take some time to pinpoint their location.

*sigh* This was supposed to be a power plant repair job, and now we've gotta clear out bandits, too? Guess I'll just think of it as charity work.

What do you say, kids?

Ready to go.

Seems my lackeys can't wait anymore, Captain. Can we get in touch with the Davistown officers?

They said they'll send someone to meet us at the entrance to the plate, but there's not much they can do in the way of combat support outside.

Wow, such hospitality. Good to know I won't be getting lost in town, at any rate.

It's a nearly bankrupt mining platform. We can't ask too much of them.

They reported the power plant explosion and subsequent fuel leakage to the state government at the start of the year, but nobody cared.

All things considered, they've dealt with it pretty well. So the pollution hasn't spread much, but the plant itself is almost beyond repair. Certainly more than the locals can handle.

Hold up. The start of the year? How come they're only contacting us now?

You think a tiny municipality has the budget for that? They never spend a dime until they're out of options.

At the time, the plant could still barely support the platform's movements. A few months ago, it stopped working entirely. Now, I doubt it can provide its most basic function, heating.

It's minus 14 degrees here...

And colder at night.

So, is it all bad news, or...?

Based on the map, Davistown is just up ahead. You should see it as soon as you get out of the woods.

Anything more exciting?

...Perfect timing. We've located all our targets. You can start clearing them out.

Lovely.

One last thing before I hop to it. Where are Jessica and Laura? You send them somewhere?

The enemy camp. There's a local being held captive there, without too many guards. It wasn't a good idea to send too big of a force.

Okay, gotcha. I'll clean this up ASAP.

Hey. We've been hanging you here for an hour, old man. You thirsty? Need a sip of water?

If you ain't saying nothing, that means yes, right?

(Picks up a handful of snow from the ground)

Here, have as much as you want. No need to thank me.

*cough* *cough*, *cough* *cough*...