An Arm And A Leg (Ash City Alts)

Dzara wasted no time grabbing hold Himura's tunic and teleporting to the small room beyond the slightly open door. Immediately after arriving in the room, she moved to the door and quietly slid it completely shut.

The back room was itself a cluttered office with various schematics and half-finished gadgets lying about the room, which was furnished with an old but sturdy wooden desk, a lamp, a chair, and a bookshelf containing numerous dusty tomes written in the Dwarven script.

From where they hid, well behind a closed door, Dzara and Himura could only hear the conversation that took place. It had begun when the large men had entered abruptly into the garage as if they owned the place.

"Whatcha workin' on Sally?," one of the men gave a raucous laugh, followed by the sound of a fist knocking on metal like a door, "New toy for the yard?"

"He's very sensitive!," Sal had pleaded, "State of the art, really, and a prototype at that. I'm nowhere near finished."

"Well keep a sharp eye out tonight," another of the men, whose voice was notably more nasal, warned him, "Word on the street is Morae's Madman hasn't come back from his execution assignment yet. Some of the boys are afraid he might have gone rogue."

"I wouldn't know anything about it," Sal evaded.

"Oh no?," the first man scoffed, "I heard you an' Mister Pinstripe were pretty good friends. He pay you any visits tonight little man?"

"I said I don't know anything," Sal insisted, a bit gruffer now.

"See that you keep it that way," the nasal man almost growled, followed by the sound of Sal grunting and his little boots being lifted off the ground, "I wouldn't want Bruno here to lose his temper. He's not a very nice guy when you get him riled up, get it?"

"I get it! I get it!," Sal choked as if in a grip, only to pant heavily soon after.

"Be... seein' you bookie," the nasal man half-laughed as the two men were heard walking out.

"You... can come out now," Sal cleared his throat after a long moment.

As the ordeal sounded like it was over, and hearing Sal giving the all clear, he slowly opened the door incase the thugs came back ~forgetting something~

As he peered into the garage empty as it was with just Sal there, he looked back to Dzara, "He says its clear and it looks it too."

Picking up Zanth again careful somewhat of the panels open, brings him back to the table and sprawls him out, "So i guess those arent the ~Friendly customers~ you normally deal with Sal."

Dzara followed Himura back into the main room, her thumb worrying the ring on her left hand at the reminder of how close she came to dying tonight. Absently, she wondered if she'd even be safe at home. She didn't know where else she could go if she could not return to Kendell Manor, but that was a minor point to her. Jacob was there. How could she leave him? She shook her head to clear it and focused the the small gnome.

"Those guys are just a couple of my boss's watchdogs," Sal rubbed his neck as he went back over to check on Zanth, "Look, I'll repair him on one condition. Let me take those spare parts he's got lodged inside them and build something from that as I go. I don't get my hands on material this advanced every day. It's worth the risk if I can really put it to use."

"He has spare parts inside him? How do you know they're spare parts from just looking?" She peered over the gnome's head into Zanth's opened chest, but only saw a mess of wires and metal parts.

"Well, to begin with these wires here," Sal pointed about to some tattered, off-color wires much larger than the others, "Have no clear connection to the others. They also happen to be of the same variety used for stationary devices such as powered chairs and washers, not the slender little things they put in dolls to keep them lighter weight."

"You can also see riiiiight here," the gnome wiggled a few around with a wrench, "There was forced entry by these parts. Someone must've been recharging our friend ...or he underwent some kind of torture. Either way they're not part of his overall design."

Trying to figure out what all Sal was saying about the wires and such, he never understood much about the Dolls, except the instances he had to battle them as his training in the labs.

"Well i have little idea of what your wanting to do, but as for the torture, if he came from a lab like i did, then torture was an almost everyday thing for him."

Looking into the chest cavity where all the wires were, and seeing some of them looks somewhat out of place, "Well i do see some that look different than most, but from what ive heard about him from some of the lab people he was something special in his own accord."

As he looks up to Dzara, "But the decision i would leave up to you since he was one you pulled out of the lab, so your choice is what you want to do."

She nodded as Sal pointed out the differences. She remembered the details about the room they had found Zanth in and the things the Doctor had said before Mr. Pinstripe killed him the first time. The Doctor most likely had been in the middle of torturing the doll.

"If they don't belong, I believe Mr. Zanth would benefit from their removal."

"Alriiiiiighty," Sal grinned, "I'll be awhile with this, so why don't you folks make yourselves at home."

"I think I'll watch for a little while, if you don't mind, Mr. Sal," Dzara said as she positioned herself at the head of the table, watching the little gnome.

Sal shrugged as he got down to business. The sparks began flying with the fevered pitch of his tool swings as he labored to remove the extra pieces and repair the broken parts.

Within an hour, Zanth appeared to be mostly operational, one of his arms having been severely modified until it looked more robotic than humanoid. Then, something unexpected happened.

The doll's eyes snapped open, fully awake on the table.

As Zanth's eyes open, he can tell that this isn't the same place as before, and he starts to move his right arm, and realizes that his arm isn't the same. Zanth looks around and says, " Sensors indicate I had been rendered unconscious for some time now, tell me what had happened?"

"You fell unconcisious when I healed you, Mr. Zanth. I am not aware of why--perhaps some reaction between the magic and your circuits." She paused before continuing on with the tale. "Mr. Pinstripe gave me the address of Mr. Sal." She gestured towards the gnome. "He fixed you."

Zanth, turning to Sal, says, "I thank you for the help, but it's only a matter of time before......." Zanth then looks at his right arm, and looks back to Sal and says, " I take it my right arm was unsalvageable?"

"No, just obsolete by comparison," the gnome grinned, "Try activating code 00793 sometime and see how that works out. I recommend you aim at something you don't mind losing first though."

~~~~~~~
Granted Ability for Zanth!
~ Charged Attack (Lightning Attack)
~~~~~~~

"So i see youve repaired him somewhat, thats rather good work compared to most... the lab people even feared to work on some of their own creations."

As he steps in from the shadows from the back rooms hauling off the left over parts from Sal, he looks at the Doll on the table, "You look like your functioning again, Good work Sal."

"I can honestly say I enjoyed it," Sal smiled back, "It's not every day I get to improve a Church superweapon."

As the others no doubt looked shocked at his knowledge, the mechanic waved it off, "I saw it in the serial code. Your secret's safe with me."

Dzara froze a moment at Sal's revelation before her social instincts took over. She gestured towards the large werewolf. "Mr. Zanth, may I introduced Mr. Himura Shinari...of the Dark Suns?" Her dark eyes turned toward the werewolf at her question. At his nod, she turned back to Zanth. "Mr. Shinari helped me get you here after you were rendered unconscious."

"That's correct," as he extended out his hand towards Zanth, "The name is Himura Shinari... i was imprisoned in one of the labs that recently gained a new skylight thanks to Dzara over there." giving out a laugh at it, "With her unknowing help i was able to escape through said exit, and now i'm free."

Looking back to the both of them, "Though i'm not too certain of what all you two have come from, she helped me escape so i'm here to help out with what i can to repay some for my freedom she granted me."

Zanth hops off of the table, looks to Himura, and says, " I don't know what they had intended for you,......" Zanth extends his robotic hand and meets Himura's in a rough handshake, and says, " But I have some idea, and I'd be honored to have you with us." Zanth looks to Dzara and says, "Well, what now?"

"I do not know..." Her voice trailed off as an idea came to her. If they went back to Kendell Manor, she could investigate why the Knights thought that they could get the Kendell fortune by killing her. She shuddered as she realized what she would have to do to investigate from Kendell Manor. She hadn't been in Jacob's office since his death. Aside from that, it would be tricky getting back into Kendell Manor. Surely the Knights would be watching... She bit her lip, hesitating over saying anything about her idea.

She looked at first Zanth, then Himura. It wouldn't be easy hiding them, but if something happened, it might be better to have them along than not. Zanth had proven useful with his golems and then the cannon. Himura hadn't proven himself, but that sword did not look as if it would tickle and he certainly seemed to know how to use it. She nodded to herself.

"I think I may have an idea..."

Looking at her as she had conflicting issues on what to do, "So what is this idea you have. From the looks of your moving about, it would seem something not too easy i would assume."

"It would not necessarily be easy and I do not have an exact plan yet," she started, folding her hands together at her waist. The fingers of her right hand twisted the simple wedding band on her left as she continued. "But if we were to return to my home, we might be able to find information that will give us a lead on where to go next."

Zanth, looking to Dzara, says, "But, my guess is that since your meeting with the other two guys didn't go as planned, the Knights would logically be looking for you at your house." Zanth then looks to Himura and then back to his arm, " But trying to hide the two of us would prove most perplexing indeed."