Chloe had learned a lot about the Sierra Madre from Dean Domino. The history, the people behind it, and how it all came to an end the night the bombs fell. She also learned more about the so-called Gala Event, and how it was supposed to be the grand opening of the casino. He'd taken a little over an hour to explain the plan to Chloe, how they needed to get a few things in place before they could send the signal that would unlock the front doors of the building to let them in.
To that end the ghoul had sent Chloe to the Villa's abandoned Police Station, in search of supplies and a key for the Puesta del Sol Switching Station. According to Dean, Villa power needed to be rerouted to the casino to release the electronic locks of the front doors, as the casino's built-in power plant had been built to power 'other needs' as Dean had put it. Namely, he told her, the holographic security.
And so Chloe had made her way through the streets to the Police Station, the building as quiet as the rest of the Villa. The door to the left of the main entrance was locked via a terminal on the desk, and while Chloe had some experience with computers, it wasn't enough to break the terminal's password. She hoped the key wasn't in there and moved on. Dean told her the building's basement was where most things were stored, so she made her way through a pair of busted double doors and down the stairs. There was a terminal on a table, the entries unrelated to her search, and she moved deeper into the basement. She walked by a rattling generator and through a winding hall to a backroom, a ham radio on the desk.
There was no key in sight, so she started rummaging through the boxes in the room. Aside from a few bobby pins, there was nothing of importance. She'd passed through a few rooms on the way, each with boxes and cabinets in them, so she decided she'd have to search each one carefully. She walked out of the radio room and searched the filing cabinets there, coming up empty. She was about to walk back to the generator room when the ham radio crackled to life.
"Chloe? Are you there? It's Dean."
She walked back over to the radio and looked it over, unsure of how to use it. There were a number of knobs on the front of the unit, along with a microphone and a spring-loaded tab attached to a little square. Chloe pressed down on the tab and spoke. "Dean?"
"Ah, wonderful, you made it. Did you find the key yet?" Dean said.
"No, I'm still looking. I passed through a generator room on the way here, and there were a bunch of cabinets in it. Would the key be in one of them?" she asked.
"The construction crew for the Villa was a bit sleazy. Corrupt, if you ask me. Their foreman was something of a drunk, got thrown in the cage a few times to sober up and cool off. Anything confiscated from those in the holding cells would be put in a storeroom in the basement. Or, in the contraband room in the lobby if it was real dangerous. Check there."
"The contraband room was locked, but I'll take a look in the basement storeroom. Thanks" Chloe said.
"Don't mention it, beautiful. Oh, and I'm afraid I have some bad news. I'm over here in Puesta del Sol and saw your bounty hunter friend. He was coming out of the Switching Station. No idea what he's after, but if he's still there when we go in we'll have to...get rid of him."
"I won't have a problem with that. Bye" Chloe said, and stepped back from the radio. She made her way through the winding hall back to the generator room, spotting the open door to the storeroom across the way. There were bottles of liquor in the baskets, a bottle of Buffout, sundry items like buckets and boxes of Abraxo Cleaner. She started pulling open the drawers of the filing cabinet and soon came across a key attached to a fob shaped like a lightning bolt. No doubt the key to the Switching Station. She rushed back to the radio room.
"Dean, are you there? I found the key."
There was no response. Chloe frowned and waited for a moment, thinking that Dean had just stepped away for a moment. When a minute passed without a reply she decided to head for Puesta del Sol. She jogged back through the basement, up the stairs, and out the main entrance to the streets of the Villa. From there she followed the streets as they winded back towards the Town Square, the road signs pointing her to the West. The doors to Puesta del Sol were lit and, with gun in hand, Chloe pushed them open.
He'd been in the Cloud for less than twenty seconds, but it was enough for a lifetime. A searing, wrenching burn filled his lungs and his nose, his skin feeling like it was on fire. A pounding filled his head and his stomach was in knots, but he had made it into the building, the back of the room he was in lined with computer banks and computers. According to that file he'd read, the chemical suits were here. He'd find them, put one on, and then the Cloud wouldn't be a problem any more.
Jackson slung his rifle and approached one of the terminals. There was some info about a gas leak, no doubt referring to the Cloud, and a log entry.
'Status report
Ventilation's all shot to hell, which is going to be a problem when summer hits. The pipes backed up, the chambers started spewing out this red dust cloud, like rust - whatever it was, caused the guys to start choking and vomiting. It's like the place was getting sprayed for roaches, 'cept the bug spray was hitting us. Got the boys to the Clinic, put them out of commission. Mr. Yesterday said he couldn't justify having them paid, but he'd see what he could do "on the side." Sounds like he was going to get them some chems - and a little green for keeping their mouths shut.'
Mr. Yesterday? Stupid name. There was a door opposite the computer banks, a hall beyond it. Jackson stepped through and made his way around a corner and down two flights of stairs which took him to a massive generator room, the machinery below concealed beneath a thick blanket of the Cloud. There was a door straight ahead, the sign above it reading 'Utility.' The catwalk leading to it was damaged, unstable. He pressed a foot to it and it held, and quickly walked across. The metal groaned and the catwalk trembled, but it was still intact.
He walked into the utility room, a massive console against the wall to the right. He approached the terminal on the desk and when he saw the third entry on the list he smiled.
'Suits are here.
Those new chemical suits came in today, so we could check out the ventilation chambers, see how that cloud cocktail formed. Suits are kind of creepy looking, hard to talk in them, so we had to use sign language to actually make sense of each other. At least we can check out the pipes and ventilation chambers now.
Gas worries me, though. Really messed the guys up. If the chambers get backed up again hate to see that gas get out, wipe out the Villa.'
Jackson entered the next room, a bank of lockers against the side wall. "Jackpot." He walked over to them and started pulling the doors open. There, inside the third locker, hung up on a hook, was one of the black chemical suits. He pulled it out, folded it up, and stuffed it into his backpack. Now, if he needed to go through any Cloud banks, he'd be safe.
There was another door in the room, opposite the lockers, and Jackson popped it open. There were a few laser turrets set up in the next room, dormant. He closed the door and headed back, the rickety catwalk still holding as he crossed it. He followed the halls and stairs back up to the room with the computer banks and put on the cowl of the chemical suit. He'd only be in the Cloud for a few seconds, so putting on the whole suit wouldn't be necessary. He rushed down the stairs, through the Cloud, and back to the streets of Puesta del Sol. From there he headed South, through an archway, and around a corner. There was a shambler by a pair of doors, which he killed, and he stepped through the doors into Puesta del Sol South.
The Ghost People were all over Puesta del Sol. From the moment Chloe stepped through the doors she'd been fending them off with what little ammo she had left. She had just inserted her last magazine when she reached the base of the stairs that led up to the Switching Station, Dean standing nearby.
"We have to go through that to get into the Switching Station?" Chloe asked, and Dean nodded.
"Afraid so, partner. There's a trick, though. You see, the Cloud doesn't affect me as much as you smoothskins. So if you walk directly behind me, it creates this pocket of relatively clean air. It works best when you're only in the Cloud a short time though, so don't dawdle" Dean said, and Chloe nodded. She got close to Dean and the two of them walked quickly through the Cloud to the door of the Switching Station.
Once inside, Chloe took a deep breath, appreciative of the clean air in the station. "What next?" she asked.
"I've only been in the station a few times, but I think we need to head to the back of the building to get the power rerouted. Follow me" Dean said, and Chloe did as asked. The two of them proceeded through the halls of the Switching Station, soon coming across a rickety catwalk. "After you, beautiful."
Chloe nodded and slowly made her way across the catwalk. It pitched and groaned under her weight, the metal bending at the other end. There was a sudden, jarring jolt, and Chloe rushed across the last of the walkway. She'd just made it to the other end when the catwalk collapsed, disappearing into the Cloud below with a terrible crashing.
"Shit! I'm OK, I'm OK" Chloe said, looking across the gap at Dean. The ghoul looked down into the Cloud and briskly walked around the catwalk towards a staircase. He jogged down the stairs and disappeared into the blood-red mist. "Dean!" Chloe shouted. She walked over to the corner of the catwalk, hands on the railing, looking for the ghoul. After a minute he came rushing up the stairs on the other side of the room, little wisps of the Cloud trailing off of him.
"Didn't even break a sweat. Not that it's an option" Dean said, and Chloe nodded. Together they proceeded into a utility room, through a room with a terminal and into a room with lockers. The room beyond was latticed with more catwalks, a single laser turret watching over the room, though it seemed like it was off.
"That cranny way on the other end of the room is where we're going, I think" Dean said, and Chloe nodded. She carefully proceeded across the catwalks to a door opposite the utility room, the door locked. Dean pointed out another way to get across, a section of hooded catwalk that a ceiling pipe had fallen through, smashing it in half. She stepped out onto the ceiling pipe, then across the gap to the other end of the catwalk, a terminal mounted on the wall. Dean followed right behind her, his hand on the wall.
"Check the elevator, partner" Dean said, and sat at a nearby terminal. Chloe walked over to the lift, pressed the down bottom, and rode it all the way to a room filled with a horrible whirring noise from the generators and machines. There were a few control panels and consoles crowded into the tiny room, and she took the elevator back up to the Switching Station.
"There's a room at the bottom, barely bigger than a closet. I think it's what we're looking for" Chloe said.
Dean nodded. "Good, then we're in business, because this terminal's locked up tighter than a miser's purse. Let me take a look" Dean said, and he rode the elevator down. Chloe took a look at the locked terminal and noticed another terminal down the hall, on a red desk. Curious, she walked over to it and sat down. There was an entry about a locker key, along with another one.
'Suit Damage
Sure, the Docs at the Clinic got mad, but we didn't have any choice if we wanted to get medical attention after that gas hit us. So we cut his suit open with one of those surplus steak knives(things could cut through T-bone like it was hot butter). Rest of us tried to pry the locks on our suits, finally had to use the knives on ours, too.
Can't wait until this job is over and we can let the Villa collapse on itself. They'll be too busy at the casino anyway.'
Chloe wasn't sure of what to make of Dean yet, but he was definitely right about the Sierra Madre Villa being a hack job. She had just stood when the lights in the Switching Station dimmed, the pitch of the humming machines deepening. After a few seconds the lights came back up and she walked back over to the elevator. She was half watching the elevator and half-watching the laser turret. She had just heard the ding of the elevator when the laser turret across the room came to life, turned to target her, and open fire.
Chloe threw herself to the floor as the elevator opened, the lasers beaming into the computer banks all around the elevator. She looked over her shoulder in time to see the elevator doors close, the light for 'up' on. She waited until the light went off before she crawled over to the panel and reached up to call the elevator down, laser beams still flashing overhead.
The elevator soon arrive and she crawled inside. She hit the up button, the doors closed, and only then did she feel safe to stand. The elevator stopped and opened up on an office, Dean waiting for her by a hole in the wall.
"Ah, good, you made it. Wasn't looking forward to doing the rest of this myself" Dean said, and Chloe nodded, her hands on her knees. "Are you going to need a breather, partner?"
Chloe stood and blew out a breath. "Is there much left?" she asked, and Dean nodded.
"'Fraid so, partner. but we can talk more about it later. For now, let's head back to that safehouse of yours and take a load off" Dean said, and together they climbed down from the hole in the wall and started the trek back to the Town Square.
