[14:33] <~Kumaton> Jimmy is currently sitting by what was the fire, with an open can of food, using a multitool to scrape out whatever contents is left in there.
[14:33] <~Kumaton> "Had a rought night?" he asks Lucy.
[14:36] <Lucy> "Not as rough as some nights..."
[14:37] <~Kumaton> "Good," he nods, then looks down at his food. "Hell, don't know why I'm still doing this."
[14:37] <~Kumaton> He looks to the three of you. "So, I figure, if we're going to be traveling for a few days, I better know more about all you than just your names."
[14:39] <epicurius> "What do you wish to know?  We will tell, if we can."
[14:39] <~Kumaton> "Well, first off, I'd like to know what the hell you're dressing up as..." he points his tool to Bison.
[14:42] <epicurius> "These are the horns of a bison.  They symbolize the protection that Bison grants me."
[14:42] <~Kumaton> "There's still bison around?
[14:43] <epicurius> "Yes, on the plains of Ioway, there are many.  In the time of the Ancestors, they were rare, but now they once again roam the plains, their six hooves tearing up the grass."
[14:44] <~Kumaton> Jimmy smiles. "Yeah, in my time, they had four legs, but six sounds alright, too."
[14:44] <~Kumaton> "So, Ioway - You mean Iowa? South of here?"
[14:46] <epicurius> "Ioway is south of here, yes.  My people are from there.  But they have been taken by raiders; slavetakers and cannibals.  I go to Minnesota to find help to rescue them."
[14:47] <~Kumaton> "Well...uh...didn't know that Minnesota had slavers and raiders. In my time, this place was just bad food and snow. I guess one of those's still around."
[14:48] <~Kumaton> "What about you, huh?" he raises his tool to Lucy. "You don't look like you'd normally hang around these dudes. No offense. Kind of look like my niece, back in 2077."
[14:48] <epicurius> Ah.  They are not from Minnesota, these raiders.  They are from the East
[14:49] <~Kumaton> "Oh...huh...I heard some guys from Green Bay were bad news, but other than that, I don't know about anyone who could just up and take an entire population."
[14:50] <Lucy> "I'm from farther east. Grew up on the road with my dad, till he passed not long ago. Spent a year in Springfield working for a doctor before getting on the road again"
[14:50] <~Kumaton> "Which Springfield?"
[14:50] <Lucy> "Spent my whole life walking around, seeing the world. Could never sit still for long. This is another opportunity"
[14:51] <Lucy> "Never knew there was another one. Mine is south of here, a few hundred miles"
[14:51] <~Kumaton> "So...Illinois, huh?"
[14:51] <~Kumaton> "Yeah, there's a ton of Springfields. Used to be, anyway. About one in each state."
[14:51] <Lucy> "I guess? I don't know a whole lot about past borders or anything."
[14:53] <~Kumaton> "Eh, it's something that only an old dude like me would know."
[14:55] <~Kumaton> "Well, I'm James, the ugly fucker. Used to be a Senior Airman for the Air Force, haven't flown since 2078, though. Pretty much stayed around Illinois or Ill-e-nos-ee or whatever people called it nowadays, but when the Brotherhood started trying to get into Scott AFB, I got the hell out."
[14:57] <~Kumaton> "I would've tried to stop them, but, hell, I'm rotting in places I didn't know I could rot in. All I had was a .50 cal with two mags left and a couple of vertibirds that barely flew anymore. You know that a 'bird's on-board fusion cells could last five round-trips around the world? Well, they're a bitch to get going again if they're ever shut off by an EMP, and there was an EMP wave after the bombs hit, so no luck there."
[14:58] * epicurius grunts.
[14:58] <~Kumaton> "Hell if I was going to stay for the couple of hours it took to get one going again when those powered-armored tin cans came knocking at the door."
[15:00] <~Kumaton> "Went south, went north, came here, don't know why. That's me."
[15:03] <~Kumaton> "Anyway, if any of you want food that isn't jerky or whatever the hell you eat, I got a couple of cans left."
[15:04] <epicurius> "Cans?"
[15:05] <~Kumaton> He pulls his duffel bag to his side, unzips it, and pulls out a large can with a military label. "MRE's, basically, but more...uh, luxurious."
[15:07] <Lucy> "What's in it?"
[15:12] <~Kumaton> He pries open the top with his multitool, then takes out several different items. "Chopped egg and ham meal, powdered milk, sugar, cookies..."
[15:12] <~Kumaton> "I don't need it. Don't gotta eat anymore unless I want to. Take it."
[15:12] <~Kumaton> He rolls the can over to you, then picks up his Springfield rifle and nudges it to you when it doesn't go the whole way.
[15:13] * epicurius picks it up and smells it
[15:14] <epicurius> and carefully tastes it
[15:14] <epicurius> "This is good!"
[15:16] <epicurius> "I've never tasted some of this before.", Bison says to Jimmy.
[15:16] * Lucy glances into the can
[15:16] <Lucy> "How old is this?"
[15:19] <~Kumaton> "Doesn't matter. Designed to last more than a 100 years, and pretty rad free. SAFB was hit directly, but the underground armory didn't get affected much.
[15:24] <Lucy> "Well, if it's meant to be...."
[15:24] * Lucy takes a cookie
[15:25] <~Kumaton> It's a bit stale, but otherwise sweet, and once it hits your tongue it turns delightfully chewy.
[15:28] <Lucy> "Oh my God, I don't think things like these even exist anymore"
[15:30] <~Kumaton> "Yeah, it's certainly something."
[15:31] <~Kumaton> "I got three more rations in the bag if you want them. Don't need them much now."
[15:33] <epicurius> "Your kindness is overwhelming."
[15:34] <~Kumaton> "Don't expect me to give you the clothes off of my back, but, hell, I figured we might as well be sharing supplies now."
[15:35] <Lucy> "So, any plans for how to go from here?"
[15:35] <~Kumaton> "
[15:35] <~Kumaton> "Where we heading, again? St. Cloud, right? Making any stops before there?"
[15:35] <~Kumaton> "Anyone got a map?"
[15:36] <epicurius> "I have this.  I have been told it is a map.".  And he hands the map over
[15:37] * Lucy looks at the map
[15:37] <Lucy> "If we keep taking the 35 north, we should be able to get almost 50 miles before the river. The Twins are right across that"
[15:38] <Lucy> "We were thinking about going around the Twins on the way up and going cross-country to St. Cloud. You know any ways across the river?"
[15:39] <~Kumaton> "Well, I'm not too fond of rivers nowadays, but...hm."
[15:39] <~Kumaton> "Minneapolis and St. Paul were pretty populous, if I remember right. I'd imagine there'd be a bridge somewhere."
[15:40] <Lucy> "There should be a bridge on the 35 since it looks like it goes straight to the Twins. I'm just not sure where the danger zone for that place starts"
[15:40] <~Kumaton> "Danger zone?"
[15:40] <epicurius> "Danger zone?"
[15:43] <Lucy> "Well, I know the Twins are a pretty rough place. Big urban area"
[15:44] <~Kumaton> "I've been in those before. That's not to dangerous."
[15:46] <Lucy> "I'll take your word for it. So, continue down the road until we hit a bridge?"
[15:47] <~Kumaton> "Yep. Though, it might not be there, depending on the abuse the city got."
[15:47] <~Kumaton> "How badly did the place get nuked? Do you know?"
[15:48] <epicurius> This is a question he does not know, so he stays silent
[15:48] <Lucy> "Never been there before. I know there's some tough feral ghouls there, and tough guys love urban exploration and adventuring in the abandoned businesses."
[15:48] <Lucy> "If the bridge on 35 is gone, we may be able to walk west along the river until we find a crossing"
[15:49] <~Kumaton> "Sounds fun. I think you're making this place seem too dangerous. Ghouls ain't too bad, and if there's people there, that means there's some form of safety."
[15:49] <~Kumaton> "Snow might complicate things, but oh well."
[15:51] <Lucy> "So, how 'bout we finish breakfast and then get on the road?"
[15:51] <~Kumaton> He looks down at the can in his hand, then tosses it behind him.
[15:53] * epicurius looks at the ghoul. "Honored one, do you plan to leave that?"
[15:53] <~Kumaton> "Yeah. Who cares?"
[15:55] * epicurius wars with himself. It is not his place to contract the Living Ancestor, but still....
[15:55] <epicurius> "Honored one, that is good metal."
[15:56] <~Kumaton> "Not sure what I can do with it. Only use I can see is using it for scrap, but...hell, haven't seen a workable plane or car in a hundred years."
[15:58] <Lucy> "Man, I wonder if these military rations are still around. Or better yet, the factories to make them...."
[15:59] <epicurius> "It can be remade, honored one.  Melted down and recast."
[15:59] <~Kumaton> "Back when the world was still working, pretty much every food company made military rations. If you find a factory, you'll probably find rations."
[15:59] <~Kumaton> "Well, I don't see any sort of foundry around, so I'm not sure what the hell I can do with them."
[16:00] <epicurius> "Besides, if we cannot use it, perhaps we will find another who does have need of it."
[16:00] <epicurius> "It is easier to reuse already mined metal than to mine new metal."
[16:04] <~Kumaton> "I just don't see finding a use for alumninum cans. Too big to make cartridges out of, anyway."
[16:07] <epicurius> "As you say, Honored one.", and bows