Cat takes point, since it doesn't seem like anyone else is going to, and it is her errand they're running, after all. She moves quickly but quietly, ducking behind the receptionist's desk and scanning the lobby before standing up and shrugging. "I don't think there's anybody in here. Probably they all came out and got blown up."

The others follow, light-footed and experienced in being covert.

"That would be convenient," Epimetheus agrees. "But I am assuming that we are still proceeding as though not all hostiles have been eliminated?"

"Yeah," Cat says, but doesn't bother lowering her voice. "Most super mutants take stealth as some kind of personal insult, so if you walk in a room and there isn't any gunfire, there's probably no one there. Well, gunfire or yelling. The yelling is a constant." She rifles through the drawers in the desk, pockets a few bottlecaps, then moves on. "You can loot whatever you want out of here, finders keepers."

"...I am glad we have a way to potentially note hostile without better scanners," Prometheus notes.

"Got to say I am missing your other chassis, Epime," 'Sidora notes. "...mmm. What passes for currency around here?"

"Not half as much as I miss it, sir," Epimetheus murmurs as she advances slightly.

Cat snorts at Prometheus's line before answering. "Bottlecaps," she says, and then, preemptively, "I know."

"...Apparently my theory that currency would persist in one form or another in a post apocalyptic state was in fact entirely accurate," Prometheus sounds almost surprised. "At least in one universe."

"Humans are apparently inclined to maintain currency rather than a system of goods trading. Who would have guessed?" Is that a faint sense of sarcasm?

(Anesidora is chuckling quietly and shaking his head at them.)

"That's not even the best part. I found some guy who was trying to reinvent credit cards - well, that's kind of generous, what he was really doing was scamming people - he tried to get me to give him, I forget what, two hundred caps? in exchange for a piece of metal with '200 caps' written on it."

Hancock laughs, apparently not having heard this story before. "When was that? You didn’t give it to him, did you?"

"No, of course not, guy practically had 'Take the Money and Run' written on his forehead. Besides, it was right after I left Sanctuary, I didn't have the caps even if I was that dumb."

"And that proves that there are always people who chance running a credit scam," 'Sidora chuckles. "Sanctuary?"

"Is now really the time for personal histories, sir?"

"Why not?" Hancock says dryly. "We're only tromping through a building that probably has super mutants in it somewhere. What could go wrong?"

"Sanctuary is what we call this little settlement up to the northwest," Cat says, ignoring this. "It's the neighborhood I used to live in before the war. The development was Sanctuary Hills, the sign managed to survive somehow, Q.E.D. Sanctuary. I like it, it's kind of poetic."

"Also you gather information when you can. And that seemed like the opportune moment. Besides which. Unless they successfully ambush us, we kind of have the high ground..."

Prometheus and Epimetheus both immediately shift as though expecting super mutants to crash through the walls.

"I thought we agreed you would not say things like that."

'Sidora ignores them. "But yeah. That does sound like a bit of a feat. For a sign to survive a nuclear war... I like it."

"Yeah? Maybe we should head up that way after this." She snorts. "I bet Preston has another settlement that needs my help. What good is a militia if I'm always the one going out to clean up the messes, I ask you."

She's been poking at the receptionist's computer terminal as she talks; now she straightens from it, looking a little displeased. "Just company memos and crap. I think I'm done here, how about y'all?"

"I mean. Why would you use your nice militia to attack anything? That runs the risk of them being killed! And then you have problems! Much better to send some sole person who might succeed and benefits as well. Not my personal choice of tactics but it is in fact a win-win scenario for them."

He stands from his own search. "Yeah. I'm not finding anything interesting."

She considers this. "To be fair, I do so far have a one hundred percent success rate."

Hancock has a poorly-disguised laughing fit at that, and jogs up the intact side of the stairs before Cat can level a mock-glare at him.

"Ah. See. There's your problem!" 'Sidora picks his way after Hancock, Epime and 'Metheus just ahead of them. "A bit of failure stops people thinking you're the answer to all their problems. Just make sure it's small failures. There's no prizes for suicidal failure..."

"I don't want to fuck over the actual people that need help, though," Cat says, bringing up the rear. "I'm just lazy, I'm not a horrible person. Even if it would be a lot easier if they'd all just come back to Sanctuary, but nooooo, 'This farm has been in my family for generations!' Generations my ass, I went to that park when the only thing growing there was pine trees."

"That was 200 years ago," Hancock points out. "Besides, you like it when Preston pats you on the head and says you did good."

"I have better aim than you."

"Yes ma'am," says Hancock, sounding not at all repentant in the slightest.

"I think growing up on military bases did a lot to mess with my perspective of what's important. Buildings mean very little, it's the people that are important. I'd move where it was safe in a flat second so long as I could take my people with me."

He laughs slightly. "To be fair, the military also did instil an ingrained response to superiors telling me I did a good job."

"And to yelling," Epimetheus notes clinically. "You can see sir's heels twitch when someone yells an order."

"Laugh it up, Epime, the only reason yours don't is because you cheat and filter for unwanted movements."