[PRP] Brainstorming (Lawr + Melvin + Rodney)

[Baneful]

Lawrence wasn't very imaginative, but that didn't mean that he didn't have people he could call who were. Before surrendering himself completely to his fate at H's hands, he decided at the very least to let his people have a look in.

He texted Rodney and Melvin to meet him in one of the quiet rooms off the Life labs library, without warning either of them the other would be there.

Moonkitsune

Text to Melvin
I have a real problem, I would like your input, meet me in study room 2.

Toshihiko Two

Text to Rodney
I have a real problem, I would like your input, meet me in study room 2.

 

[Toshihiko Two]

Rodney came immediately, as he said promised he would, the vagueness of the text sending a hundred worrying possibilities through his heart.

When he arrived he looked pale and stricken and concerned, which is to say he looked mostly like he usually did.  

[Baneful]

Lawrence didn't understand why Rodney looked so concerned, not empathetic enough to put two and two together with the text and his demeanour. The way he saw it he'd simply called forth his confidants and friends like an underground cult leader and now they would discuss the way to move forward.

He expected more serenity and less worry.

"Light of my life, the very angel I was looking for. Sit down." And he gestured to the seat on his left.

"So I went to speak to H about the wages situation." And then realising he hadn't explained what said situation was. "I didn't get paid. It turns out that I'm not being paid, possibly ever, and owe over 100K to them for past misdemeanours."

He looked a bit ill even as he recounted it.

"I invited Melvin as this potentially affects him too."

 

[Toshihiko Two]

Rodney seemed infinitely relieved that it was a money matter. Although he had enjoyed many of the comforts Lawrence had...been very kind to provide he wasn't a stranger to rice, beans, and sleeping on couches.

"We'll get by," he said softly, putting his hand over Lawrence's. "We still have the house. We can use the cafeteria again, and I can see about selling some of my work. It's...it's just been sitting around the house, we- don't need it."

He wasn't sure why they were meeting here, until Lawrence mentioned Melvin.

"Is...Melvin in, um, a similar situation?" he asked.  

[MoonKitsune]

Melvin wasn't sure what Lawr considered a problem, but the fact he was asking for help was alarming. Grabbing his coat, he left his work and arrived.
"What's happening?" He asked Rodney the moment he saw them.
 

[Baneful]

Lawrence gave Rodney a horrified look at the mention of cafeteria. "N..no I don't think we'll be doing that. There are other options. I spoke to H about it, and Melvin might be in the same boat."

"Speak of the devil." he said as Melvin arrived. "So, basically, partially thanks to your "trauma" according to H and damaged minipets I owe Life divison $117,739. You probably owe them something but the sheer amount I do means I will never be paid again."

"Unless, according to H I find either some way to be valuable or I give up Jan at the end of the week to be taken the way Chantelle was."

He exhaled, "Which as you can imagine isn't ideal."

 

[Toshihiko Two]

"Valuable? You..." Rodney twisted his coats, asking, "S-saving lives...isn't valuable to him? Or, h-helping people? What- what happened to the minipets?"

It...hadn't been intentional, had it? But, at the same time...Rodney had some idea of what went on in those laboratories. He couldn't have worked for life.  

[Baneful]

"Apparently not." Lawr piped up. "And we let them loose when we were children and they melted outside their allocated time. Of course he neglects to comment that a young version of him kidnapped us from where we fell and ...very possibly did horrible horrible things to us."

He shook his head. "He seems to have his own definition of value."

 

[Toshihiko Two]

"He...just cares about the money?" Rodney asked weakly. "Jan...won't make him any money, will he? We'll...don't worry, we'll find a way to pay him back. A week. I don't...even think anyone on the island has that much..."
 

[Baneful]

"Er no. I don't think it's the money it's something useful to the division, research, a direction. I think he thinks I have no ambition or direction within his division. It's far more ineffable than money. He even commented that I valued money too highly.." he shrugged. "Jan would be an experiment."  

[MoonKitsune]

Melvin took a seat and after some time laced his fingertips and started tapping his foot.

"It's not money. Life can't afford to loose money and resources so he is offering an exchange for a larger specimen. As for me, I don't understand how that breaks down in costs for you. I'll ask later but right now we need to figure out what is a equal echange

He continued to think. "What about equipment salvage?"
 

[Toshihiko Two]

"O-oh," Rodney said as Melvin translated. "Maybe you could...just make reparations for um, for what happened. If...if the problem is that, when things happen on the island, the m-minipets are...vunerable because there's no one to care for them, maybe there's...a better system to u-um, protect them and care for them, for a while..."

He looked upset.

"A-although...the ones in the labs end up...k-killed in horrible ways."  

[MoonKitsune]

"Now isn't the time to be concerned about a bunch of specimens and their care rotation." He said to Rodney, trying to keep him on track.

"I'm surprised about that total. Minipets could be replaced by a visit to Halloween and I doubt I make up such a cost." He was actually surprised he was mentioned at all.

"He wants cash straight up which we all don't have and we don't own anything that expensive. Being the Life department, something has to be of value to them. Even if I worked overtime for a month, I couldn't get that. I work runicing new equipment enough to know that stuff gets up there in cost. Can we ask him about any missions or abandoned bases?"
 

[Baneful]

Lawrence gave both men a long blank look, he should have been grateful for them helping him at all but he'd never figured out gratitude really.

"Equipment salvage??" Lawrence wrinkled his nose. "Perhaps if I was some beefy bodybuilder. But no, I'm disabled, I don't fight, that wouldn't work."

Rodney got a long slow look too. "I am not a technical minded person either and that would be electrical engineering level technology. No thats nogood either. Besides minipets irritate me."

"And no he doesn't want cash straight up. He didn't seem to care about the money at all, only me being my best self or something cryptic like that." He snorted "he called me a tick, can you believe that?!"  

[Toshihiko Two]

"Oh, I know you aren't an inventor," Rodney said, "I just thought...m-maybe it was a problem that could be solved with a system, or using um, the things the lab currently has. If....a larger area could be made safe. Or the feeding could be, um, set up to work even if there was an emergency."

Rodney wrung his hands. He cared about the minipets. He...thought it was something that should be fixed.

"And there's other vunerable people on the island when things like that happen. Everyone in the infirmary. Everyone....sleeping in the pod room."

But neither Lawrence or Melvin seemed very interested in that.

"Y-yes. I mean. Anyway, with the money it's not like we could just, rob a bank..."

Lawrence seemed more slighted by the implication that he wasn't good enough.

"You...do a really good job," Rodney said, "in the infirmary. I know he's...a medical doctor and an inventor, but you...have a lot of talents too. It's just that...like, the um, disguises, you have, take...a lot of thought, and you put...everything you have into them. So maybe...you're reluctant to give him an idea, when those are...personal as well."