Sunny Smiles sat huddled on the dusty ground in front of a small campfire and smoothed a hand over her dog's grey and black fur, enjoying the warmth it gave her fingers. Cheyenne's tongue lolled out of the side of her mouth and she closed her eyes in contentment, angling her head slightly towards her owner's touch. Sunny envied the animal's sense of blissful serenity, a feeling she could not hope to experience again herself for a long time to come. She had lost everything she had ever known, her whole way of life, when the Powder Gangers came to Goodsprings.
A split log of radiation blasted wood burned through the middle and shifted in the concrete block lined fire ring, sending a shower of tiny glowing embers dancing into the night air. Sunny watched them swirl upwards and die one by one against the dark sky. She shivered even though the fire was warm, feeling a deep sense of loneliness settle into her chest. The outlaw Joe Cobb and his band of cutthroats had taken over the town and killed everyone who had resisted. Sunny had fought bravely and watched as her whole community, the only family she had even known, had been picked off one by one. Only when everyone else had fallen and it was clear that the situation was absolutely hopeless had she fled for her life with Cheyenne.
Now she sat alone in the dark with nowhere to turn and no one to trust. Maybe she should have stayed and made an end to it all. The Mojave would likely finish her off soon anyway. Sunny was an experienced hunter, but she had never strayed far from Goodsprings, and she had heard tales of bigger and more ferocious monsters than the geckos she was used to fighting. She didn't suppose she would last very long out here in the wide wasteland.
She lay down on her bedroll and drifted off to sleep with Cheyenne's warm body curled at her back and the soft, silky voice of Mr. New Vegas murmuring in her ear from her pipboy.
Cheyenne's low growl woke Sunny several hours later into the night. She reached for her rifle and looked sharply around her. The fire had burned low and was barely giving off enough light to see around the campsite. Nothing moved that Sunny could see and the only sound was the soft playing of a new song on Radio New Vegas.
"In the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day…"
The singer crooned, and out of the darkness two ovals of red light flashed for a moment on the other side of Sunny's fire ring. A man in a long black trench coat and was standing there, and she could now see that his eyes were lit red by the goggled helmet he wore. He removed it now, presenting a much less alarming figure with it off.
"Hardly spoke to folks around him, didn't have too much to say…"
He was tall and broad of shoulder with skin the color of mahogany and a scraggly black goatee curling around his chin. He wore heavy soled boots caked with the dust of many roads, and on his back he carried a long, scoped .50 caliber sniper rifle.
"No one dared to ask his business, no one dared to make a slip…"
But above all else, the most striking thing about the stranger was the massive revolver slung low on his hip. It hung in its leather holster as though it carried the weight of many departed souls, and the metal seemed to give off an unearthly glow in the light of the dying fire.
"The stranger there among them had a big iron on his hip."
The man sat down on a cinder block and pulled off one dark leather glove before moving one of the last crumbling pieces of wood Sunny had collected onto the dying fire. His hands were large and scarred all over. With a note of apology in his ocean deep voice he spoke to her.
"I hope I didn't frighten you miss," He explained "but I saw your fire and when I came over to investigate I saw that you were alone." He unslung his rifle and carefully laid it on the ground before stretching his legs out with a sigh. "I would appreciate you letting me rest my weary feet for a short while."
Sunny did not say anything, still unsure what to make of this strange man, and feeling more than a little uncomfortable holding a simple varmint rifle to compete with such impressive weaponry if a fight was coming.
"My name is Mason, I'm a Ranger with the NCR."
At the mention of the NCR and the rangers Sunny relaxed a little. She then recognized the bear patch on the stranger's shoulder and remembered that she had heard about the distinctive veteran ranger helmet with its red glowing goggles.
"I'm Sunny Smiles" she said softly "and this is Cheyenne."
"It's nice to meet you Sunny." The ranger rolled his head around, stretching his neck and wincing a little as he eased his muscles. He pulled a mess kit from his pack and motioned to the fire with it. "May I?"
Sunny nodded and watched as he proceeded to open a can of pork and beans and poured it into a small pan to heat. Cheyenne, apparently feeling that the stranger must be friendly if he had food, walked over and placed her head on his knee while he cooked his meal. The ranger alternately scratched Cheyenne under the chin while stirring his beans, occasionally picking out small pieces of bacon and feeding them to the dog.
"What brings you out here in the Mojave alone Sunny? Don't you have a home?"
"I did…" She began, and through tears and more than a few sobs, she told him about Goodsprings.
He listened silently until she had finished and offered no apologies or condolences, just sat and ate his beans and looked thoughtful. Then, after several minutes he spoke.
"I normally wouldn't suggest this, because I don't need or want anyone tagging along with me. Veteran Rangers work alone out here. That's the way it is, and that's how we like it." He finished off his meal and let Cheyenne lick the pan. "But the way I see it, you need some direction and I can't stop to help you find it so the only real solution is for you to come with me until my mission is done, then I will take you to Camp Golf where you can be safe until you figure out what you want to do with yourself."
He didn't say this in a kind manner, nor did he say it with any pity, he simply stated facts and made an offer. Sunny considered and decided that she didn't have any better ideas. Then she replied in the only way she could.
"What's the mission?"