Peligro

[ThreadLurkingComorant]

Your group gets settled in the other room, Chickpea looking over.

He glances at the newly rebuilt familiar.

Chickpea: Uh… everything alright?

???: Um…

Nacho: Don’t worry about it. Storytime, maybe you might want in too?

Nacho: Not that it matters, don’t think I’ll be taking you on this job.

Chickpea: Job? And why not?

Nacho: Car’s full.

Chickpea: Ah.

Nacho: Can still listen in though, might be good if we need to retreat to have you up to speed.

Chickpea: How much context?

Nacho: Mostly filling in these three on what they don’t know so..

Chickpea: I’ll… figure it out.

Nacho: So…

Nacho: I’m the local witch, it’s a spot I tend to pop in on occasion. Big investigation target.

Nacho: Didn’t really want to be doing this to be honest, but I guess this place needs the help.

Nacho: Especially now.

Nacho: Truth be told, more of an archivist.

Nacho: Lots of important knowledge, culture, history… gets lost to time. You usually go in with the mindset that you can’t salvage everything when you take up this sort of work.

Nacho: Course in my case, I was born into it.

Javi: Family business?

Nacho: Created. Not much different from the familiars I can make really.

Nacho: Try not to think about it too much, just take the job and see how it goes.

Nacho: Bit of an experimental model myself though. Using multiple setups for this kind of work is common, minimize bad conditions if you’re just built for it. Know what I mean?

Nacho: My case, I’m practically an archive myself. Lots of data collection groups sample from all of god’s creatures, and I’m able to update in real time instead of using mods or spares.

Nacho: Least on paper. Might just be a little too unstable for that.

Nacho: But… it’s good work, and I like what we’re doing.

Frida: You from another world then? Never heard of this before…

Nacho: Might be from this one, 70% sure. At least some version of it.

Nacho: Chances of you ever seeing anyone else like me though? Once in a lifetime.

Nacho: Don’t get too attached. 

Javi: So like…

Javi: You don’t exist yet?

Nacho: Maybe.

Javi: You shouldn’t be telling me this then, yeah?

Nacho: No offense, you’re not going to live long enough for it to matter.

They point to Frida.

Nacho: You on the other hand?

Nacho: Probably, you entity types don’t seem to die.

Frida: Don’t think we can?

Nacho: You’re thinking wrong then, stay cautious.

Nacho: Though all said, you’ve got the best odds probably.

Nacho: Truth be told, not much to save with this place.
Nacho: Pretty sure it becomes a ghost town down no matter what we do.

Nacho: Unsalvagable. 

Javi:.. What happens to the people?

Nacho: Don’t know yet. I got a lot of feed from the future but.. You know.

Nacho: Weird connection going on. Can’t go back to where I came, but I can pull anything I need from there. Til then? Enjoying my time hopping around.

Nacho: That said, place is a big blank. Nothing was documented aside from tours in a few decades where the watchman phenomenon becomes a bit of a urban legend to people.

Nacho: Best we can do is make sure folks get the options to book it before it crumbles.

Javi: So in other words…

Nacho: You got no say in the matter, just a question of when and why you want to leave.

Nacho: Sticking around though, might be a bit of a hard sell.

???: I mean I can prove I’m alive…

Nacho: Yeah, thumpers for the old books aren’t going to take kindly to constructs.

Javi:.... I’ve never seen one in town actually.

Nacho: Point proven.

Nacho: Personally once we’ve got a better connection, we can set you up with something better than what you’ve got for now though.

Nacho: People can be whatever they want, long as you’re willing to do a little work with me after.

???: Think I’m going to need time on that.

Javi: So if you’re modified…

Nacho: I’m a Chimeric Unit. Not really modified, built from the ground up.

Nacho: Mix and match traits, most of us start as remixes though so to speak.

Nacho: When you archive enough about people, especially historically notable witches well…

Nacho: Easy to use them as reference models for folks like me.

Nacho: Don’t know what I’d think if I met my original, personally.

Nacho: Ask them why they fucked up so bad, argue, make out, get taken to dinner, and then crawl out the bathroom window.

Frida: Sounds like you got a lot going on.

Nacho: Used to it really.

Nacho: You’re both welcome to join in on this too. Gotta be more exciting than a place like this.

Javi: You’re offering?

Nacho: Little bit, need other people to talk to. Got my little guys but.. You know.

Javi: Think I’m good for now.

Nacho: Figures.. No offense taken though.

Nacho: You mentioned a fiend, speaking of.

Javi: What about?

Nacho: I wanna meet them before we go into the woods.

Nacho: Got a hunch, figure you’d wanna see them too like we planned.

Javi: I mean yeah.

Nacho: Good. I’m gonna ask our driver to start warming up the car in a sec then.

Javi: We’re gonna go right now?

Nacho: Can’t be taking too long, you know?

Nacho: You wanna stick with me, gotta get used to this pacing.

Nacho: Offer to just leave is still there.

Javi: Still sticking it out.

Nacho: Got five minutes then, get packed.