A/N: Yes, this is my first Fallout fanfic. Hopefully you will all enjoy it :D
Description: Elizabeth looked death in the face for the first time, but her struggles have only begun. With the Legion growing and the NCR falling, it will take much strength to survive and love. Courier x Boone, plus some other pairings with companions.
Stand My Ground
Chapter 1
Reborn
The red sun began to fade behind the horizon in the Mojave. To the people of the west, whenever the sun was red, it meant blood was spilt during the day. In the wastelands of the Mojave, the sun was always red. The harsh rays dimmed until it brought night. The air was cool, refreshing compared to the desert heat.
In the night air, two members of the Great Khan tribe worked at digging, their hands beginning to get blisters as they dug. Sweat trickled down from their brows. The taller one with a slight Mohawk was annoyed that the man standing over them wasn't digging. But then again, he was the one who hired him.
The man in the checkered suit stood over them, watching the Great Khan members' dig the hole. He had raven colored hair cut short. His brown eyes made sure that the hole was big enough. A weapon he kept with him at all times. His other hand made sure the chip was safe in his pocket. He felt the smooth metal against his fingers. It was safe. His hand then rested on his pistol, Maria. It was a pistol with silver designs on it that could shoot 9mm bullets.
Near the men lay a woman on the dirt. Her mahogany colored hair sprawled out on the ground, dust gathering in it. Her chocolate eyes twitched as they were closed until she managed to flutter them open. Her head seemed disconnected from the rest of her body. A throbbing pain hammered at the inside of her head. She went to massage her temple when she felt both of her hands being pulled. She blinked rapidly to make sure her vision was clear. Looking down, she could see her hands were bound together. She began to panic, her breath quickening. Her arms pulled apart, hoping to break the bonds but they were tight. She then, after her body began to regain feeling, noticed her legs were bound too. She would not be able to get out of this one.
"You got what you were after, so pay up." Said one of the men as he shoved his shovel into the dirt.
"You're crying in the rain, paly," answered the man in the suit. The woman turned her attention to the noise and noticed the men standing in front of her. They towered over her as she lay on the ground all tied up. One of the Khans, a black man with a white bandana, noticed she was looking at them.
"Guess who's waking up over here?" he said, smirking down at the woman. She was frightened. She gasped and began to try and crawl away. The third Khan, who was finishing the hole, went over to her and pulled her by her ankles back towards them. She continued to squirm and fidget around. The Khan holding her stood up and kicked her in the stomach. A muffled gasp escaped her bound mouth, her eyes widening. She stopped moving and curled up in agony. Air seemed to be something she could not get. When she tried to breath, pain surged through her body. It was like a train had smacked straight into her chest. She continued to look them in the eyes.
The man in the checkered suit smoked a cigarette. He pulled it out of his mouth and let it fall to the ground. His foot smashed it to dust. He then looked back at the courier on the ground.
"Time to cash out," he said, moving closer to her.
"Will ya'h get it over with?" Said the black Great Khan. The man in the suit held up his hand, his index finger extended up. The Khan was silent.
"Maybe Khan's kill people without looking at 'hem in the face. But I ain't a thing, dig?" He reached inside his coat and pulled out a small item. To the courier, it looked like a poker chip. It was the same chip she was sent to deliver to the Strip in New Vegas. She struggled again, hoping the bonds would let her loose. But they wouldn't.
"You made your last delivery, kid." He then placed it back within his coat pocket then pulled out his pistol. "Sorry you got twisted up in this seem." Her eyes widened. She tried to scream but she could feel the gag over her mouth. She could not scream. She could not do anything. She was about as helpless as a mouse. A tear began to form in her eye as her heart raced.
"From where you're kneeling, must seem like an 18 karat run of bad luck." He aimed his pistol right at her skull. The woman's chest was ready to burst, her heart smashing against her sternum. More tears began to dwell within her eyes. They fell from her face, mixing in with the dirt. Her eyes redden.
"Truth is…the game was rigged from the start." And then the pistol fired. The tremendous force entered her skull and knocked her out. Her head fell limp and she became lifeless. The two Khan's standing near the checkered suit man carried her then threw her into the hole. They then proceeded to quickly shovel the dirt back over. It was a shallow grave for a quick kill.
The man with the chip looked over the grave. What was done was done. He got what he wanted and that was all that matter. Right?
They all turned away from the grave and disappeared into the desert. Yet fate had something in mind for their victim…
X X X X X X X X X X
Though her eyes were shut, she could see the light distorting the blackness. Slowly her eyes opened to vaguely see a fan circling above her. Her vision was blurry and everything around her seemed unreal. She lifted her head up and felt the blood rush into her head.
"You're awake, how 'bout that?" A voice said from her left side. She felt a hand on her back as it helped her sit up.
"Whoa, easy there. Easy, You've been out cold a couple of days now. Why don't you just relax a sec, get your bearings?" The woman rubbed her face with her palm. Why is that she was constantly waking up in strange places? Last time there was that creepy graveyard with all of those men and now she was in an old man's house? Strange stuff just loved to follow her. She sat up in the bed and turned to face the old man.
He was bald and had a white mustache. Though she had never seen him before, his voice had a calm tone to it that reassured her that he was the friendly sort of person. Then again he was the first person she was seeing after her near-death experience, so perhaps that was a good thing.
"How about your name. Can you tell me your name?" he asked. The woman continued to rub her eyes with her fingers. She knew she had a name. Something with an E. She began to search whatever memories were still in her mind to find the answer. Closing her eyes, she could see her life flashing before her, fragments of memories that she held dear to. Most of them she could hear her name.
"Elizabeth," she groaned.
"Elizabeth. That's a nice name," came the old man. "I'm Doc. Mitchell."
Elizabeth felt her forehead. It was strange to feel the place she was shot, only to be standing after the wound failed to end her. She turned her attention back to the doctor.
"Let's see if we can get you back up on your feet." He said, holding his arm out to help her up. His old hand grasped her left arm and struggled to pull her up. He was not the strong man he once was. That man had faded through time and became someone else.
Elizabeth staggered as she placed her feet upon the wooden floor. She could not find her balance and nearly fell once she was up. Her eyes vision began to blur again. She rubbed her eyes until everything was clear.
Doc. Mitchell led Elizabeth out of the study and into the living room. He guided her to the sofa and helped her sit down. He looked at her confused face. He did not need to ask why she felt confused.
"Thank you…" she said as he sat down in his chair. A faint smile grew upon the dried lips.
"I suppose you want to know what happened," he replied. Elizabeth nodded. She looked at the doctor's faded eyes and then to the floor. She still struggled to grasp the idea that she had survived against death. In the Mojave, few ever did.
"You were shot in the head. The folks who did it managed to dig you a shallow grave, but luckily, Victor found you. He dug you up and brought you to me."
"Whose Victor?" Elizabeth asked, her eyes perking up. "Did he see the men who shot me?"
"Victor is a robot here in Goodsprings. Nice fella. I'm not sure. You'd better ask him. Elizabeth nodded. If there was any chance of finding the man who shot her, the best thing she could do was ask the one who saved.
After inspecting her to make sure that her head was still connected with her body and that she wasn't dying, the doctor led her to the bathroom of his home. He opened the door to it and let her inside. He turned away and went to his room. Heading towards the drawers, he pulled out a suit that his wife had once worn when they were younger, and when she was alive.
The suit was blue and had the number twenty-one stitched on the back of it. It looked slightly worn out and a bit dust covered but it was at least better than walking around in her underwear. Elizabeth slipped into the suit with ease, zipping it up once her legs and arms were inside. She then placed her feet into the worn out boots. They felt fine to her, despite their condition.
Opening the splintered door, she saw the doctor was still waiting outside of the room. In his hand he held a bag that looked familiar to her. He turned to her as she came out.
"Here. These are yours. Was all you had on you when you was brought in." He handed her the sack. Inside it contained a 9mm pistol, four stimpacks, 18 caps, and 12 bobby pins. She strapped the pistol to her belt and placed the stimpacks, caps and bobby pins in a small pouch that she attached to the belt. The then held out for her a note.
"I hope you don't mind but I gave the note a look. I thought it might help me find a next of kin. But it was just something about a platinum chip." He said.
"It's alright. And once again, thank you for helping me." She replied.
"Well if you're heading back out there, you ought to have this." He said, handing her a strange looking device. It was a mechanical device that looked like it was to be worn around the wrist. Slipping her hand in the thing, she noticed the light on the screen glow.
"They call it a Pip-Boy. I grew up in one of them vaults they made before the war. We all got one. Ain't much use to me now, but you might want such a thing, after what you been through. I know what it's like, having something taken from you."
Elizabeth studied the Pip-Boy for a moment before turning her attention to the doctor. "Thank you. And thanks again for the help."
"Don't mention it." He said. He then opened to door and Elizabeth stepped out into the world for the first time in days.
The heat was the first thing she felt. It smacked her so hard she could feel her skin beginning to sweat. She looked up at the hot sun, which was high in the sky. The breeze would occasionally blow across the plans, pushing a tumbleweed across the dirt and sand.
After standing in the heat, she took her first steps forward, determined to find the man who tried to end her. The hunt had begun, and she would find him.
A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. I've got this planned out so hopefully it shouldn't take too write. And yes, I was listening to Within Temptation's Stand My Ground. It's what made me think of the title.