"Lucy, I won't let your mother take you, but I won't kill you either." Said William, determined not to lose Lucy.
MEANWHILE, AT THE BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL!!!!!
"I'm not suggesting any of that David and Goliath stuff, but I really want a look at that Robot." Said Evan, his eyes gleaming with delight at the possibilities in store if he could get close to that giant robot. Of course he would need help, "This sounds like a job for The Three Musketeers!" Cried Evan, "Come on Aramis number 3, let's get Porthos and catch ourselves a robot."
Maybe it could be their D'Artagnan and he could train it, or reprogram it.
A flash of inspiration hit Evan as he looked at Ferdinand, "But we won't be going as ourselves, my friend and I happen to be Enclave Asset 18 and 19." Evan decided some further clarification was needed, "I'm number 19 but it doesn't mean he can pull rank on me." Said Evan, wagging his finger in Ferdinand's face in what he hoped was an authoritative voice.
The journey to the edge of the ruins had proven uneventful. Charlie had donned the sunglasses labelled 'lucky' in the hope that they really did increase his good fortune. Hopefully that would help him avoid anymore murderous, musical mutants. The stimpack had worked wonders, his hip was pain free and his body felt pretty fantastic in general.
"Man, I gotta hang onto these. They're miracle workers!"
Stopping just outside, Charlie gazed into the ruins laid out in front of him, slightly awed by the scale of destruction. What would they have looked like before the war? Charlie couldn't even imagine. He was willing to bet it would have been a safer area to take a stroll through however.
Stepping forward tentatively, Charlie walked into the ruins, scanning the surroundings closely. The area appeared deserted, but the Thorns back in Megaton had indicated that the area was dangerous. Charlie didn't really feel like getting into another battle to the death quite so soon after that last one.
[hr]
Time passed and the ruins remained quiet. Charlie had his map out, although his path was somewhat directed by the layout of the streets. With the lack of any obvious threat, he allowed himself to relax somewhat and enjoy the walk.
"Maybe those guys had some out of date information. These ruins seem pretty safe to me..."
The second that thought passed through his head, Charlie heard voices up ahead. Crouching down and slipping into a nearby building, he listened intently. The voices seemed to be heading in his direction and from the sounds of it they were... singing? Confused, he snuck a peek around the doorway.
Marching down the street was a horde of blue haired girls all singing in time. Strangely, the song seemed to consist of only one word.
Sylphy! Sylphy, Sylphy, Sylphy! Sylphy!
Charlie watched with an expression that could only be described as 'poleaxed'. Luckily for him, the strange group walked right past his hiding spot and back the way he had approached from. Feeling rather bemused, Charlie waited a few minutes to make sure they weren't coming back before resuming his trek towards the Citadel.
The former hub of the U.S. Military machine still stood. It might have a few more holes than its previous or current occupants might like, and it certainly needed much more reinforcement than the Brotherhood could make, but it endured and remained a... serviceable fortress.
Walking along the shores of the purified Potomac, a lone figure approached the Citadel, returning from a long "scouting and negotiation" mission. Instead of the usual Brotherhood recon garb, it wore a simple brown robe with the hood pulled over its head, and some light leather armor underneath. Behind the hood, the mysterious figure's face looked normal enough... it didn't have anything especially interesting about it, looked pretty average... no facial hair, nose of an average, unassuming size, eyes evenly spaced out...
and that's when you start to notice there's something off about the skin. Its just a little too pale, and a little too smooth... like factory smooth... as if a mad scientist had invented a printing press for fake skin, and the lone figure approaching the Citadel was the result.
It had no real name, just as much as nothing about it was really human upon closer inspection... except for the eyes, those were eerily human features on an otherwise completely inhumanly average face. This machine carried no weapons, because it couldn't control its strength accurately enough to fire a gun or swing a sword without breaking the damn thing. But then again, when one has the strength to break through a concrete wall in a few seconds, and some metallic ones if given enough time... well, you seldom need weapons. Especially when most people in the Wasteland have gotten good at avoiding lone figures that are about six feet tall and at least have the appearance of musculature.
The mission had gone well, from a certain point of view. The drone reported to the Citadel's Elder to debrief him. The drone had to wait for some time to get an audience, but once allowed in, it gave a simple response:
"Statement: Master, I found the group you wished to have dealings with. Regretfully, it did not go as well as you would have hoped, and when negotiations failed, this unit was forced to terminate hostilities. Rest assured though, this unit was efficient and left no survivors."
Except for one, who now knew exactly who had sent the droid. It didn't have name, its only designation when it was found in the ruins of a secret lab underneath a previously undiscovered vault was "TK-1K". In the last couple of weeks, the boys at the Citadel had taken to calling it "Tik Tok."
Elsewhere in the D.C. Ruins
Johnny Truant had been... lying dormant for some time. Between the hellish visions that he had seen (though are they merely visions if you take souvenirs back with you?), and well... if that wasn't killing Sylphee, it sure seemed like it was damn close...
well... what did Mr. Truant have to say about any of that? He had always been on the tipping edge of insanity... now he was hanging on the ledge by his metaphorical fingers. And after all the damage he had done... was there any coming back from that? Ever something he could do to make up for it?
No. He decided... but he could still try anyway.
At any rate, he woke up from his BSOD to find himself lying down, staring at the stars, tucked into a sleeping bag. Sylph... only she'd still have any reason to give a damn... even if it was an artificial one. Worming his way out of the sleeping bag, he accidentally turned his portable radio on in the process...
"Is anyone getting this? Brotherhood, Enclave, fucking bandits with a heroic streak, I don't care! Just somebody, please tell me you're getting this signal and tell me you're sending help to Rivet City! A goddamned Behemoth decided to take over and use the place as a meat locker! We're all trapped inside... he eats at least one of us every day. Someone please for the love of..." In the background, several people screamed in terror as a metal door creaked open, and someone was dragged kicking and screaming out of the room before the door slammed shut again, "JUST SOMEBODY PLEASE SAVE US!"
Without even really giving the matter much thought, Johnny checked his gear, checked his ammo, got up, made sure he had everything he needed to head out, and ran up to the top of a nearby hill to get his bearings. Once he figured out where the river was, he started cutting a path that ran parallel to it, heading for Rivet City... the last place on this wasted Earth that he'd ever want to go back to... well... second to last... he wanted to stay the HELL away from South Park, Colorado if he could help it. THAT place was fucked up.
He turned the radio off in case the distress call or worse, music started playing and woke everyone up... or at least alerted those tied up in... intense conversations that he was leaving. As far as he could tell, it'd be a lot better for everyone if no one even noticed his absence until long after it was too late.
Nothing ever goes according to plan, at least not when there's a Sylphy nearby. So Johnny's plan of leaving camp undetected was out the door even before he had finished formulating it. In Sylphy's defense, it was totally Johnny's fault for having Jet in the first place.
Sylphy - Doppel-Sylphy was in the middle of her 528th Jet induced lap around her 5 foot in diameter track when she heard Johnny running up the hill and became curious as to why Johnny would leave in the first place. He was pretty tired after shooting that pile of onto the Meanie Sister Sylphy and been punched a few times by the Meanie Sister Sylphy's friend. The fact that he seemed like a nice enough person was partially the reason why Sylphy decided to follow him into the darkness. The other reason was the fact that he had those wonderful inhalers that Sylphy liked.
Running up the hill that the man had run up, Sylphy watched as he made his was in the direction of The Boat and started to follow. Sylphy waited quietly until he got to the bottom of the overlook before she moved after him as quietly as a Sylphy could.
It took a while for the One Eyed Gauss girl to find her center and remove herself from the brink of the panic that she felt earlier when William had informed her that her Mother, Amy Kane, was watching them. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Lucy found it strangely comforting that neither William nor Sylph would allow her to be taken by her mother, though dying on the tip of the Red Menace's blade was not how the once Bookish Girl had envisioned her end. The young woman spent a few minutes observing her Blue Haired sister as she fixed the wrist blade that had pierced through the flesh of many, MANY unfortunate people, some more deserving of it than others.
Thinking back on what Sylph had revealed to Lucy, Lucy couldn't help but draw a parallel between Sylph's "Father" and Lucy's very own mother. As much as Lucy and Sylph seemed to be cut from the same cloth childhood wise, so too did Henry McGee and Amy Kane.
While Sister Lucy Black sat in pensive silence, Sylph was busy preparing herself to look for the Enclave Underground. Knowing that Sister Lucy Black's mother was located within the very same walls as the Enclave Underground made the ground's mission seem all the more important. The apprehension and self doubt that Sylph had felt earlier had evaporated in the wake of something familiar to the young blue haired girl. She had been given a target by Sister Lucy Black and this was a familiar, if not comforting, territory for her.
As Sylph finished her preparations in the darkness, a sound in the distance made her pause.
While the sound of the Doppel-Sylph falling off the face of Reality wouldn't have given Sylph cause for concern, the sound of her crashing headlong into Master(?) Johnny Truant did.
Dropping her pack, Sylph and Lucy quickly ran towards the noise and discovered the Clone Sylphy laying atop Master(?) Johnny Truant.
"What happened?" Lucy asked as she slid down the hill toward the pile of Johnny and Sylphy, helping Sylphy up to her feet and off of Johnny. Sylph, on the other hand was still on top of the hill, looking down towards Master(?) Johnny Shakes and his bag that was packed for travel.
Seeing that Master(?) Johnny Truant was about to abandon her and take the Doppel-Sylphy with him, the Red Menace shot her Master(?) a look with her icy, stormy blue eyes before turning around back towards the camp.
[hr]
The Wild Wastelands: Team Stim
After being helped up by the friendly lady, who didn't look like a Sister Sylphy, the Doppel-Sylphy brushed the dirt and dust off of her clothes and watched as her clone, Sylph, laid a guilt trip on the man with the stimulating inhalers. Sylphy wouldn't have cared much were it not for the fact that the man 1) Had the Jet and 2) Seemed pretty friendly even though he was trying to sneak away in the middle of the night.
Seeing as how the others were distracted, Sylphy thought it would be a good time as any to see what else the friendly man who she would later learn was named Johnny had in his pack. Rooting through his items without a care in the world, not that the phrase "personal possessions" meant anything to Sylphy, the blue haired clone found a few syringes filled with something called Med-X.
She'd seen syringes used in the cloning vats when new Sister Sylphy embryos were being injected with DNA, so she did understand a syringes use, as was demonstrated by her ability to jab the needle in her arm and push down on the plunger.
"Ssss - sssss - ssssylphy." Sylphy stammered as the world became pleasant to look at with its multicolored hues and enough lens flares to make 10 J.J. Abrams Star Trek movies.
"Sssssssyyyyylphyyyyyy!" The Clone blurted as she waved her hands in front of her face before wandering off towards what looked like a group of friendly black combat armor wearing clowns in the distance.
"...Well shit."
There goes one part of one plan. Danielle was hoping to recruit the Chinese Ghouls to fight the Enclave. Their grievance was with the United States government after all. It would have proven problematic though, as the only Mandarin Danielle knew (Not counting food. Anyone else want a bao?) was "Nihao" for hello, "Mao" for cat (Which was extinct anyways, making that knowledge useless.) and "Xie Xie" for Thank you. Charades would have proven problematic.
Didn't matter now Though. Danielle doubted the ghouls could swim for the miles needed to reach shore, and she was pretty sure that ghouls needed to breathe.
Marlon shared a look with Danielle as the report came in. Not that he could see her face behind the helmet, but she had a notable frown. "We were told you were planning to see Mr. Bloom on some sort of business. He's on the bridge right now. Follow us when you've settled affairs here."
Bloom suits. Unscrupulous vultures. They give you a big toothy smile while they pick your pocket. (Metaphorically)
Marlon smiled. "Mister Bloom likes to stay informed huh? Good. I like that. Expected it, sure, since you don't stay ahead in business unless you are, but good. Glad to hear he's on top of the game. We'll be sure to head up there soon. I'm lookin' forward to meeting him."
"I'll see him when I'm ready." "You wanna go chat business first? We can always get the supplies afterwards. You're the boss."
"You go first, I need to handle something real quick."
Danielle found the nearest merchant stall.
"I need a pencil and paper."
Danielle put five caps on the counter. High price for what she was getting, but she didn't want to waste time haggling. "Sure thing."
Danielle found a discreet corner and wrote something, and folded it.
Danielle was now ready for her meeting with Bloom.
The rest of Charlie's journey through the DC ruins was rather unremarkable. He picked up some bits and pieces on his way, a couple of bottles of nuka-cola, a packet of BlamCo Mac & Cheese and various other junk. He didn't understand how there were still items to scavenge after all this time, yet he wasn't complaining. He did love that sweet cola taste after all.
The occasional explosion or gunshot could be heard from somewhere within the ruins although, apart from a near miss with a pack of super mutants, Charlie didn't run into another soul. Luckily for him those mutants spotted more of those strange blue-haired girls and chased after them, leaving his path unobstructed. In what felt like no time at all, Charlie came to a large pre-war building.
Assuming I've followed this map correctly, this should be the place... Heck yes! They've got to accept me now, I made it through their test in one piece after all!"
Feeling exceptionally pleased with himself, Charlie wandered up to the entrance, in plain view for anyone watching the building's surroundings. There were people rushing all over the place, it seemed some serious business was going down within the compound.
The Thorns were milling about their new Megaton base when suddenly...
Jake: "Hey, I just realized I didn't give Chuck a note or anything to indicate we sent him."
Moe: "I got into the Brotherhood without a referral, I'm sure he'll be fine."
Sam: "We probably also should have given him some Rad-Away.:
John: "I suppose there's nothing we can do about it now.
Washington, District of Columbia - Museum Of Technology
"Identify your bionic butt and don't spare me the details!"
Though he wasn't quite sure how the man could see his bionics, he wasn't going to question the man infront of him.
"Spc. Talion of California. Ex-Paladin of the Brotherhood of Steel. Exiled for radiation induced mutations resulting in status as ghoul. Seeking Reenlistment to combat Enclave menace."
He noticed one of the androids on the ground starting to move on the ground again so he quickly unloaded a couple of round into it before it could cause any more trouble.
"I heard rumours that the chapter here was accepting those afflicted with mutations and also of a re-emergence of the Enclave in its proximity." He paused "Based on what I've seen here, I'm guessing the museum's not normally like this. If you need assistance with your objective here I'm ready and willing."
The Thorns in unison: ...Early in the morning!
Sam: "so what do you do with a drunken sailor?"
John: "That's like asking "Who got the funk?" or "How much is that doggie in the window?" The answer isn't the point."
Moe: "I wonder what Dan's up to."
Jake: "No clue. No use wondering though. 'Goodbye my Coney Island Baby' on three?
Moe: "A one, two three..."
John: "Bum bum bum..."
Unison: "Goodbye my Coney Island baby..."
Amy Kane's unexpected and ominous contact was weighing heavily on the young Gauss Girl. Despite the reassurances from both William and Sylph, this was something that would change their dynamic forever.
The fact that Amy Kane was watching and most likely preparing to track her daughter down again had made her reconsider her immediate plans. Plans that heartwrenchingly did not include William, Sylph or Johnny.
Lucy had shown an incredible desire to seek out the answers to her past. The answers themselves had tested and changed her character. She would never be the same. There was no going back to normal. Lucy had repeatedly snatched these answers from the jaws of death and each time a small part of herself was sacrificed after each attempt.
Lucy had made enemies, betrayed entire organisations and waged war against the Enclave itself.
Lucy had also made friends, forged unique relationships and created memories that would live on in her heart.
Lucy had not lost the capacity to care, sometimes unreasonably, for those that chose to stay by her side. It was because of these bonds that Lucy had to pull away.
Lucy was bound to an existence of waging war against her Father's enemies and her inner demons. A fate she had once fought against, but now it was something that she had actively embraced.
Lucy had destroyed raiders, behemoths, crippled a giant mirelurk, stared down the people behind her Father's murder...now she was starting her rampage on the Enclave itself.
With the entrance of Amy Kane, Lucy couldn't live with putting her friends in danger anymore.
This was her fight.
[hr]
Goodbyes
Lucy regarded Johnny for a moment. Usually she would feel compelled to scold him for leaving, despite their strained relationship. However, she couldn't fault him when she was just about to do the same.
Taking a moment to secure her eyepatch over her left eye, Lucy stepped forward and laid a hand on Johnny's shoulder. Her hand lingered for a moment before snaking around his neck and pulling him closer. There was a sense of finality within her movements.
Breaking off, Lucy walked up the hill to find William. Without hesitation, the eyepatched female walked right up to William, stood on her toes and kissed him. Despite the rush of butterflies, Lucy could take no joy from that moment.
"Keep my plasma pistol, William. Remember me."
Finally, and this was the part that had torn Lucy's heart to shreds...she walked over to Sylph and pulled her into a tight embrace. Softly, Lucy had wept on the Crimson-Clad shoulder.
"I have to go for good. At least for a little while. Maybe you'll find me at Megaton...it's the only place I can go to anymore." Pulling away, Lucy rested her hand on Sylph's cheek. "I am putting everyone here at risk...my mother, Amy Kane, is my demon to face...and I can't let anything happen to you because of my past. I refuse to pull you into that."
Lucy pulled at the key resting around her neck, Shifty Mcgee's final gift to her should anything happen to him. Lucy pushed this key into Sylph's hand.
"That was Shifty's, The Undertaker. He promised it to me should anything happen to him. There's a footlocker at The Citadel...there might be more answers for you there. I think this actually belongs with you."
Lucy got up slowly and fixed her eye on Sylph. Knowing that this was clearly their goodbye, she couldn't hide the sadness in her voice.
"My father said that putting someone else's needs before your own can be considered a form of love. I know what he meant by that now..."
Lucy half-turned, biting back anymore tears.
"I love you, Sylphy. You were the closest thing I've had to family in years."
Finally, Lucy Black turned and walked away from the only people that cared for her. She hoped that one day they would understand why she had walked away.
Not knowing where she was or where she was heading. The eyepatched female armed with a Gauss Rifle walked in an unknown direction. She walked for the singular purpose of fighting to her death...however that fate might choose to present itself.
Apologies for the rushed post, but I had to put an end to Lucy in some way or another. This has been a ton of fun and I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to write alongside everyone here.
A very special thanks to:
- FalloutJack for making this all possible, I really appreciate the effort put into working around my mess of a character concept. This roleplay has been one heck of a ride.
- Generic NPC 22, you kept me motivated for such a long time. I adore Sylph and it's sad to see The Adventures of The Red Menace & The Gauss Girl come to an end before they even really started. Thanks for everything!
- TheDoctor455, you're a pleasure to work with and you kept me on my toes. Thank you for keeping things interesting.
And just like that, Lucy was gone. Disappeared into the night and leaving William with a kiss and a Plasma pistol. Once again the question: "What now?" hung over the group like the mirelurk in the room. They had been Lucy's crew, all joined together through her and with the centrepiece gone, the rest of the group could soon follow.
William decided it was time for honesty, now that they seemed to lack a particular mission. He walked back to the centre of the camp and spoke to Johnny and Sylph, "Ok, all cards on the table now, this might be it. We might all go our separate ways, but that doesn't have to be the case. I need to go to the Citadel for several reasons. If either of you are heading in that direction you're welcome to join me." Said William, reminded of how similar this was to his previous experience with the Anver residents. Though this was less angry.
"Even if you've not got a reason to be heading that way, you might come anyway just because..." William let that sentence out with a shrug, "But whatever comes, it has been one hell of a time with you."
The Red Menace was too stunned to act or say anything as Sister Lucy Black said her goodbyes. Apart of the Blue Haired Homicidal Maniac wanted to latch onto 1EGG's leg and never leg go, forcing Sister Lucy Black to drag Sylph across the Wastes of D.C. while fighting the forces of evil. Another part of Sylph wanted to drug the ***** and drag HER around the Wastes of D.C. as a warning to those who might someday abandon the Red Menace. In the end, Sylph watched her dear sister leave the group, one hand fingering the key that she had been given and the other one rubbing the freshly kissed cheek, protecting them from the storm of tears that threatened to wash away Sylph's only remembrance of the brief few moments that she had a sister.
While the threat of Master(?) Johnny Truant leaving had knocked the Stormy Eyed Young woman for a loop, the actual departure of Sister Lucy Black had been a punch to Sylph's face and left the already vulnerable girl feeling a bit desperate to cling onto those around her.
"Ok, all cards on the table now, this might be it. We might all go our separate ways, but that doesn't have to be the case. I need to go to the Citadel for several reasons. If either of you are heading in that direction you're welcome to join me."
The Red Uniformed girl looked over to William Knight and simply nodded a nod of thanks. She would join William Knight on his trip to the Citadel, at least as far as Master(?) Johnny Truant would go.
"If Master(?) Johnny Truant is going to travel with you then so am I." Sylph responded with a small smile the signaled her relief that she wouldn't be left alone for at least another short while.
"Even if you've not got a reason to be heading that way, you might come anyway just because..."
Did Sylph even have a purpose anymore? Father was out there and he was more than likely watching them right now. She could've gone back to him were it not for Master(?) Johnny Truant's and Mistress(?) Beryl Craw's hold on her but there was a large part of her that had found that life outside of Father's watch was more desirable.
There was also the fact that given Father's past actions, Master(?) Johnny Truant, Mistress(?) Beryl Craw and William Knight would be safer if Sylph were with them than without.
[hr]
Not the Wild Wastelands:
Alex: We'd like to take a moment to welcome our audience back from commercial and get Double Jeopardy! under way. Currently we have Generic NPC 22 in the lead with two hundred dollars and is in control of the board.
Generic NPC 22: I'd like 'WTF!' for One Thousand Alex!
Alex: Alright and here's the clue: Because she's high as an f-ing kite, like, if she was any higher, she'd be a moon orbiting Pictoris b.
DING!
Alex: Generic?
Generic NPC 22: Why does Doppel-Sylphy think that the Talon Company scout in front of her is a clown holding a bubble gun?
Alex: Right you are for a Thousand! I'd like to take another commercial break to go fist my producers in the collective brown eye for making me read this crap...
[hr]
Back to the Wild Wastelands:
The Doppel-Sylphy was laughing and clapping her hands at the image in front of her. Contrary to what was really in front of her, Sylphy didn't see a rather large Talon Company Scout pointing a 10mm Pistol at her head, she saw a rather large clown holding a bubble gun that fired bubbles that chimed musical notes when she popped them.
This, of course, was not real reality but rather a Med-X induced reality that Sylphy experienced. In real reality, the Talon Company Scout was getting rather frustrated that his Pistol appeared to be jammed and would not fire on the annoying little runt in front of him. In Sylph's Med-X reality, the clown started bending his bubble gun into a balloon mole-rat. Which just wasn't the case in real reality where the Talon Company scout was checking the pistol to ensure that there was nothing wrong with the firing mechanism. This was contracted by Sylphy's Med-X reality were the clown popped the balloon mole-rat and turned it back into his bubble gun. Back in real reality, the Talon Company Scout made a rather unfortunate mistake by looking in the barrel of his 10mm pistol which took the opportunity to discharge and splatter his head across the Wasteland. Of coursem in Sylphy's reality, the clown's head exploded into a cloud of glitter and rainbows.
"Sylphy sylphy sylphy!!" Sylphy said clapping her hands loudly before the clown disappeared. Bored now, Sylphy looked around and spotted the group with the mean Sylphy and the two men in the distance.
"Sylphy Sylphy Sylphy!!!!" Sylphy Sylphy'd as she ran back towards them excited to tell them about the clown that she just met and his awesome performance.
At the entrance to the Citadel's courtyard a power-armoured man intercepted Charlie, halting him with an upraised hand. He carried a laser rifle, currently resting on his shoulder.
"Halt boy. What business do you have here?"
"Hi there, uh, sir. I came to sign up with The Brotherhood. I ran into some paladins called the Thorns in Megaton and they said that if I made it here in one piece that I would be Brotherhood material... and well, here I am."
"The Thorns huh? I think that's Danielle's squad, unfortunately she left for Rivet City recently. I'm sure she would have liked to hear from them. Anyway, did they give you any proof of identification to bring with you? I can't just let you in on your word you see. For all I know you could be an Enclave spy who overheard that name somewhere.
Charlie cursed his ignorance at that comment. Why hadn't he asked for proof? Idiot!
"Well no... but they did give me pretty much all of my gear. Oh, I can describe them! There's four of them, Sam, John, Moe and Jake. I didn't talk to the others all that much, but John knew a hell of a lot about explosives. Also some pretty crass jokes, nearly had me in stitches he did. Also... uh sir?"
Charlie trailed off as he realized the man wasn't paying attention anymore. Following his gaze over his shoulder, Charlie turned around to quite a sight...
[hr]
Deep in the DC Ruins:
Steve jumped over some rubble and grabbed the one of the blue haired girls in his giant, green fist. The super mutant roared in triumph, these little menaces had proven surprisingly difficult to catch. The girl squirmed in his grip but he held on tight, not letting it wiggle free.
"Sylphy Sylphy Sylph! Syyylllphyyyyyyyyyyy!"
"Shut it twerp! Hey Barry, I caught one of the little shits!" Steve called out to his comrade, a grin plastered across his ugly face.
"Nicely done shitface! Slippery little minxes this lot," came the reply, as a second mutant wandered up, breathing hard. "Say... do you hear that?
"Hear what?" Steve said, as he struggled to stuff the girl into a sack. Succeeding, he turned around and looked down the road Barry was staring at. The rest of their crew were sprinting towards them, looking terrified!
"Run you fools! RUN!"
As the other mutants bolted past them, Steve and Barry looked to back down the road, searching for what they were meant to be running from.
"Holy shit... let's get the fuck outta here!"
[hr]
Back at The Citadel Gate:
Coming down the road Charlie had just traveled was a pack of super mutants! That wasn't the terrifying site however, what was chasing them was...
"SYLPHY! SYLPHY SYLPHY SYLPHY! SYLPHY!
The group of musical girls Charlie had seen earlier appeared to have grown. There were dozens of them, marching double time down the street and singing their lungs out! One had even grabbed a metal rod from somewhere and was wielding it like a baton, conducting the terrifying stampede!
A laser rifle shot fired from behind Charlie shook him out of his shock as it hit one of the mutants in the face, dropping him to the ground. The guard stepped up beside him and continued shooting, taking down another of the giant greenskins.
"Hey kid, help me deal with this lot and then we'll talk about signing you up!"
"R-roger that sir!" Charlie stammered, fumbling a grenade out of his pocket. Pulling the pin, he threw it towards what remained of the mutant pack.
Washington, District of Columbia - Museum Of Technology
After a short discussion with the Paladins, he left them to guard Laura while Edwards and another backed him up in the hunt for the Lunar Lander, which was apparently not only here but robotic, armed, and carrying a dish for a local radio station.
Walking through the corridors with his thermal lance out and readied, he heard a sort of hovering noise. The two paladins backing him up signaled to him that it was there, so he told them to take positions with their rifles. He turned a corner, saw it in its full glory and as it opened fire on him he charged.
The lance burned through its metal hide and it started to electrocute him. His suit started to lock up from the charge but he grabbed the prod, ripped it off and tossed it away. He screamed for the Paladins assistance and they opened fire upon it as they ran out from their cover. He jammed his lance into it's propulsion unit and as it hit the ground he started tearing its weapons off it.
After a few minutes of dismantling history beside Brotherhood Paladins, Talion was able to present Edwards his radio dish.
Boom! The grenade Charlie had tossed detonated, the shrapnel ripping into the remaining super mutants. Those that didn't go down stumbled and were swept up in the tide of Sylphies, vanishing from site. Undeterred, the flood of blue-haired girls marched onward, singing their lungs out. Most had picked up various bits and pieces of junk and rubble and were wielding them threateningly. As they got close to the gate they picked up speed, surging forward in a flood of red dresses.
Fighting down feelings of panic and bewilderment, Charlie pulled out several of his homemade dynamite sticks and his Zippo lighter. The girls weren't armored so these would be just as effective as their military grade counterparts. Lighting several at once, Charlie launched them into the crowd, taking down multiple girls with each. Beside him the guard blasted away with his rifle, red laser shots dropping several members of the horde.
"To arms! We're under attack!"
Other members of the Brotherhood had noticed the commotion and ran over, tearing into the crowd with their deadly energy weapons. There were too many to stop before they spilled into the courtyard however, hacking and battering at the defenders and everything else they could get within range of. Luckily their attacks weren't strong enough to penetrate the suits of power armor most of the Brotherhood were wearing. Unluckily for Charlie and several others in the courtyard, they weren't wearing power armor. Several fell screaming as they were torn apart by the savage little menaces.
Hastily stashing his lighter, Charlie drew his machete and desperately fended off a girl wielding a metal pole. She was incredibly fast, it was all he could do to block her attacks. Trying to put some distance between them he backpedaled quckly, only to trip over a fallen body. He looked up in horror as the girl raised the pole and swung it directly at his face...
CRUNCH!
Out of nowhere a power fist wielding paladin appeared and smashed the girl in the face, sending her flying! Offering Charlie a hand, he hauled the young man to his feet. The pair of them readied themselves for another attack, but found there was no need. The last of the girls had broken and were fleeing out the gate. They had been no match for the heavily armoured paladins and their vastly superior weaponry.
Exhaling a sigh of relief, Charlie stowed his machete and turned to his savior.
"Thanks for saving me Si- uh... Ma'am," Charlie said, realizing at the last instant that he had been saved by a woman. It was difficult to distinguish genders when they were armored up. The woman just stared at him for a moment before speaking.
"So... who are you exactly? I don't think I've seen you before."
Before Charlie could answer, the guard from the gate walked over to them.
"There you are kid, glad you're okay." He turned to the other paladin. "This kid just arrived, he wants to sign up. I'll take care of him"
"Whatever, he's your problem now," she replied, walking away. Looking around the courtyard the guard sighed.
"What a mess. Anyway kid, good job on staying alive. Come with me and we can talk while the rest of this lot clean up. What was your name anyway?"
Mentally exhausted as he was from the ordeal, Charlie still perked up upon hearing those words.
A lonely path led from their camp on the edge of the DC Ruins back into the urban sprawl with the Citadel as their destination. William, Sylph and Johnny trudged down an empty street in the dead of night. As they walked, William silently admired their surroundings.
The DC Ruins were both beautiful and ugly in the dark of the night. Some buildings had power and the lights were on. Other late night lights came from sporadic explosions that briefly lit up the area while bursts of gunfire provided background noise. Twisted metal jutted out from every ruin and broken concrete littered the ground. Each bombed out building was warzone unto itself and reminders of the battles that raged every day were present. Bullet holes scarred walls, laser blasts left their scorch marks and bones, blood and bodies were strewn in tragic poses of their last moments.
Some battles could be traced by the wreckage they left behind, the body of a dead wastelander lay in a heap on some rubble, a spar of metal protruded from her torso and her face was a bloody mess. A single bent nail jutted out from the woman's cheek, a .32 pistol lay on the ground a few feet away from her right hand. Upon closer inspection the pistol was broken, a powerful foot had stamped it to pieces. The woman was wearing makeshift armour comprised of rusted metal plates. She was obviously not an experienced survivor or she wouldn't have been in the DC ruins with such poor equipment. Instead, she had probably heard DC was safer now and blundered in. Of course all it took was one Super Mutant with a nail board to throw her around and bludgeon her to death.
The Brotherhood of Steel had expanded their operations to cover most of the city, but they couldn't be everywhere at once. Unfortunately this had led to ambitious but stupid scavengers venturing into parts of DC once considered suicidal to enter, the Brotherhood couldn't always get there in time. This was coupled with the Enclave's efforts to destabilise the Brotherhood's grip on DC, meaning Raiders, Super Mutants and assorted ruffians crept back in at every opportunity.
A little further along the road, a small group of shell casings trickled off into a line. Someone had been firing an assault rifle while moving. The trail ended abruptly as dried blood splattered the ground and a wastelander clad in more practical metal armour, a man this time, lay flat on his back covered in bullet holes with a Chinese Assault Rifle clenched in his dead hands. Not far from him were the bodies of three raiders, also full of holes. They must have ambushed him, though he had put up a good fight and judging by the shell casings and blood splatters he had charged his enemies while injured. If you're going to go, might as well go down fighting. Thought William, noticing there were more blood spots away from the other bodies, William guessed that there must have been another one, maybe two attackers who got away. Not before the man had punished them for their troubles though. They must have been injured badly enough that they couldn't stay to loot the bodies. Still, these battles they had seen were long over, no Raiders or Mutants were on the road this time.
There are fights like these going on every day and night in DC, it can't be stopped because anybody can get into the city. No matter how many times the Brotherhood drives them out they creep back in through the sewers and subways. They make it back to their old camps and bases and it's like they were never gone. But nobody has the manpower to hold DC, not even the Brotherhood. William mused.
"How are we doing people? Able to keep going?" Asked William, it would take them the better part of tomorrow to get to the Citadel unless there was some delay but they'd need to eat at some point and could probably do with getting some sleep.
"...must be a mighty keen radio ta still be fizzlin', you got parts? Cuz ah knows, see? Ah may not look like much, but a man like me...well..."
"Yes...it really has been through the wars, hasn't it? Rather like us, wouldn't you say?"
"..."
"Lost for words? That's not like you."
"...don't you forget who caught who, Fishy."
"..."
"Sisters, Brothers, and all true Shoals of the Wet One. Consider this my inaugural address as his conduit. I hesitate to announce myself a prophet or any nature of leader, for an ego has no place in His Shoal. Indeed, even He does not come before you as a kindly father, a just ruler, or as a stern and callous godhead. A Shoal has no need of a godhead, for a Shoal is one body, to which many contribute to become one. The most powerful, perfect and fluid organism ever devised by the blind hand of nature."
"Crawver is my name. I was a doctor."
"There are souls in this dusk-bound world that would seek to prevent His plan. Our plan. For this, we offer no malice, malice has no use. And I cannot apportion blame to those who dwelt for so long, perhaps since their own inaugurations, on this cracked earth in the age of fire, steel and soil. However, adversaries they remain; for they pluck our lives from the earth in their desperation."
"This sermon finds this shoal...depleted by one such adversary."
"Four of our number fell victim to the creature's howls as we prayed. My trusted first companion, Abraham St. John, ensured that they were spared suffering. It pains my old heart that a true burial was impossible, for death will claim us all before we would have reached the ocean. It pains me. Abraham."
"hm?"
"I was a doctor once, you know. Doctors...they deal with death, so that others are spared such a taxing duty. Why, the world has to function, and we all fulfil our roles. Well...uh...aturally, we have to carry this burden so that others' may be made bearable. And so we...we deal with these things, in our own ways. Perhaps I had grown calloused as my tough old gut. But...I think I may be losing my shell, Abe. And it doesn't bode well."
"...aww, you jist need a drink! See these? Ah just needs my special herbs an' shiny things, an' Abe's gon' solve all our ails!"
"...ugh..."
"An'...uh...'tween jist you an' me, Fish, ah think we'd best hurry. You jus' follow me, now. Y'know how it is, yank n' slack."
"We have been granted some relief from doom, somehow. At our most desperate moment, I committed the sin of rationality and scepticism. I prayed. I prayed and commanded others to do so. But I am alive. And Abraham is alive. And this Shoal, while aching from the emptiness of those taken, still persists. It's...it's all got to mean something."
...
"Father Crawver!"
"My brother! What dooms do you bring upon my brow?"
"Father, I do not mean..."
"Just...don't worry. I see you have no need for wit here."
"..."
"Oh, nevermind. I'm sorry."
"Your predictions were most insightful, Father Crawver. There is naught but dust and scrub around for miles. The land lies flat and the sun climbs to a punishing peak. Please...how long shall it be before we can be quenched?"
"...it'll be a fair while, my brother. It is not within my mind to fail you. But the cracked earth may see to that before long."
"Pray tell us, what does His plan entail?"
"You misunderstand the nature of his plan, young fellow..."
"Father Craw-"
"Please. I am aware of this new burden placed upon me; I am doing what I can! I am doing...what I can."
"..."
"And my burden shall not be eased. Not anymore."
"...please don't be angry, Father."
"...well here's something of a plan. We must gather the Shoal. We stand out here in a radiation desert with such good news, what is the use of that! The young journalist. That poor, wretched sod. He was conducting recordings for a reason, for broadcast! There must be some way of broadcasting my sermon, and His message, and His teachings...Somewhere out here."
"But Father, we have no map!"
"Do you know what I'm going to say? Call it the madness of privations, but...what else to do but choose a direction, and follow it? No desert is endless, though it may seem it."
"But our supplies, Father Crawver! I see nothing on either horizon, and my eyes are keen, despite my visage! They will be depleted before we see three nights! And the cow shall not last as long."
"Udders..."
"Oh Fishy..."
"Oh for god's...what is it now, Abe?"
"Think ah might just have some good news! heh heh heh."
"...go on, humour me. It'll pass the time. You old twit."
"See this?"
"...some dried up root is your good news? Oh! Pray tell! Is there more?"
"Now, now, Fish, ah could jus' as easy throw you back. So you listen to Abe, if'n y'know what'll keep you alive long enough to put what's on your radio on th' big radio."
"..."
"Don'tcha see? Now I found there here tubes, well, maybe you oughtn't tah know 'til it's done...but everythin' 'round here. It's all ah need!"
"...You know, it would be rude of me to disregard you in such a hopeless time. You...you go on ahead."
"Nuh, uh, you're gon' have to help me. Mah eyes ent what they used to be."
Frank's head was spinning.
[Repair]Systems check.
Main optics: Bust. Frank switched to the secondary optics. (The little dealy on top of the helmet.)
Servos: Functioning.
Auditory systems: Functioning.
There was a substantial burn on Frank's left love-handle.
Left knee-blade had snapped off.
Plumbing: Leaking.
Air filter: Unobstructed, but not filtering.
[???]Something in the unfiltered wasteland air made Frank feel invigorated. He felt like a million caps for some reason.
[Perception]The asshole was walking away.
Frank got up.
[Super Slam]Left hand on power pack, right hand on helmet, spurs assisting in the lean part of the push...
Nope. Clever.
"How much do you weigh?"
Helmet speakers: Functional. "Five-hoondrid keeligrohms with me ahmoh loddie." So we just stall him till it happens?
Frank had very little experience with bad accents, so Scott's accent was magnified tenfold in his mind.
"...Oh."
A large hammer came down towards Frank, only to be sidestepped and riposted with a punch to the right-elbow-pit. Float like a bloatfly, sting like a radscorpion!
[Striking points: Armor]"You're slowing down. I wonder why that could be? Perhaps it has something to do with my punching a hole in your hydraulic shoulder servo."
Frank's wit was met with a less witty, but very potent left backhand that sent him away aways.
"You fight like a gorilla; all brawn, no technique!" "I'll shoo ye technique loddie!"
"You can pronounce "Technique" but not "You"? Speaking of gorillas..."
"MONKEY STYLE!"(Yes I know Gorillas are apes, not monkeys. Frank doesn't.)
[HEADING=1]Chimpanzee throws its shit[/HEADING]
All that Rad-away Frank took earlier had an interesting effect. His "Leavings" were notably softer, making them substantially harder to scrape off entirely. "Ye deerty leettle..."
A toy car with a bomb attached came out of Scott's armor and began making its way towards Frank.
Frank displacer-jumped into the air towards the now shitfaced Scott as a the car exploded at his previous location.
weapon: stinger
A metal pole with a blade attached to the end, it also has the trigger to a paint sprayer attached, with a hose running along the shaft and the spray at the tip of the spear. The container of the paint sprayer is attached to the other end of the spear. Inside the container is rad scorpion venom. This allows the weapon to spray venom a short distance, best used to blind foe and aimed at open wounds. it can also be sprayed once the spear is penetrated into someone for a incredibly high dose of venom which should allow you to bring down large targets quickly e.g. deathclaw (though one would have to get within spear stabbing distance of a deathclaw to do so). Another option is to spray and then swing the blade through the venom cloud to coat it in a thin layer of venom.
Larry proceeded to make as many of each of his contraptions as he could. Sleeping in the middle of his make ship workshop at night. Once finished he explained each of his contraptions to Simms as well as leaving plans behind so Simms could make more of each whenever he wanted. Larry grabbed a set of metal armour, pair of tesla gloves, a tesla cut which he sheath on his left hand side, a tesla shank which he sheath on his right hand side and a scalpel shot.
He then left megaton and headed into the wasteland.
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