EXSILIUM - contact.

[hostage]

UNIT№409



_“ Hey, it's me. Wait for the thing. _”

Comments

[vaccination]

I miss the city. I keep thinking shit wouldn't be as bad if we were still there. [And, you know, not nuked.]

[hostage]

I miss it, too. It was home, you know? And at least if I was there, I'd have somewhere to run.

[vaccination]

Yeah. There's nowhere else to go here unless you want to maybe stumble into more goddamn monsters.

[hostage]

I shoulda stayed in Hawaii. Just stayed there 'til they figured out a way off the fucking moon, at least.

[vaccination]

Probably. But at this rate I don't know when we'll get out of this place.

[She misses going outside whenever she feels like it. Space lost its novelty a week in at this place.]

What's Hawaii like? Just sand and beaches?

[hostage]

Sand, beaches, jungles, sunsets...

[He sounds so wistful.]

It's beautiful, yeah.

[vaccination]

I wanna see a beach one day. A real one. [She's sure she could get one in the VR room, but that's cheating. And there's not really anyone willing to go on missions with her right now, especially not to a beach. One day.]

I'll pass on the jungles if there are lions and tigers in that shit.

[hostage]

Nah, they're touristy jungles. It's safe.

We're going when I get outta here, okay?

[vaccination]

[This is Ellie trying to not sound too excited, but it slips into her voice anyway.]

What, really?

[hostage]

Hell yeah. Shit, I wanna get as far as I can go.

[vaccination]

I'm in.

... but just so it's out there in case I haven't mentioned it before, I'm not really a good swimmer, so. Uh. I'll be staying away from any water.

[hostage]

Want me to teach you?

[vaccination]

If you think tossing me into a body of water counts as teaching, I'll bite your ear off.

[She feels the need to establish this.]

[hostage]

Oh my god. No, seriously, I wouldn't, like ever.

[vaccination]

Just checking. Joel was teaching me back when we were in Exsilium, which is why I can float, but that's about it.

[hostage]

Don't worry, I'll teach you right. Teach you how to surf, too. They got huge waves out there.

[vaccination]

Whoa, surfing? That's--[SCARY AS FUCK]--seriously? Like, I'm pretty sure it's going to take me forever to learn how to not drown.

[hostage]

Come on, you think I'm gonna let you drown? You'll pick it up.

[vaccination]

I know. [She does wish it was Joel teaching her, because that had been fun when it wasn't frustrating. Just like with the guitar lessons. But she has a feeling neither of those things are going to be happening for a long time.]

It's just--scary. I barely even got to the deep end of the pool, let alone the ocean. It's so big, who knows what the fuck is in there? What about sharks?

[Big surprise, the girl has very little understanding of the ocean.]

[hostage]

The water's so clear, you'd see a shark coming a mile away. Don't worry about it. And we won't go deep, not 'til you're cool with it.

[vaccination]

Alright. [She'll trust him on that.] When you're out, we're doing this. Screw everyone else.

[hostage]

Deal.

[vaccination]

And now I'm even more pissed off at these motherfuckers keeping you in there. [She'd kill to go right now.]

[hostage]

[Same.]

I'd say tell 'em, but they'd probably arrest you.

[vaccination]

I'd like to see them explain that one. And deal with Joel.