So here is a collection of one-shots about characters from one of my other stories, Fallout 3: The Wandering Path, if you have not read that already, I suggest you do before reading any further. This includes quests mentioned in the story, backstories for the non-cannon characters I created, and some snips of stuff from others as well. Not in any particular order, not important to read for the main story, though you can if you want, up to you really. Hope you all enjoy!
Dusty Old Stories:
Fucking Radroaches.
Luther was happily dreaming about the night he first met his wife, when something broke through the haze of the dream. He opens his eyes and blearily looks down at his chest. At first, what he sees does not make much sense, then his vision clears and he jerks back, flailing wildly. The radroach is knocked off of his chest where it had been trying, unsuccessfully, to chew through the metal plating of his armor. He sits up and grabs the large bug before it can regain its bearings and flips it over onto its back. The bug's legs flail wildly as it attempts to flip itself back over. Luther rubs the sleep out of his eyes wearily, he just can't catch a break. Running a hand through his long, shaggy, dirty, hair he regards the roach as his stomach makes a loud rumble. "Well," he says to himself, "maybe my luck isn't all that bad."
Dragging himself off the mold covered mattress he had crashed on, he casts about the wreckage of the raider camp for a knife of some sort. Rolling over the corpse of one of said raiders, he lets out a triumphant sound as he sees a rusty shiv on the dead man's belt. Taking the shiv, he flicks his thumb over the edge. The makeshift weapon is a little dull, but it will do. He turns around, ready for his meal, only to see that the roach has vanished. With a disappointed sigh he drops the shiv and grabs a tattered rucksack from the ground. Pulling the bags straps across his shoulder, he takes one last look at the raider camp, making sure there is nothing of value that he has missed.
Exiting the camp, he turns in a full circle before deciding on a direction and starting to walk. Ever since his exile, this is they way it has been. Pick a direction, walk until something happens, sleep if you can, repeat. Right at first, he had simply wanted to die, they had taken everything from him after all, yet his instincts always kept him alive, and he simply doesn't have the willpower to take his own life. Thus he wanders, throwing himself recklessly at any an all passing threats. It is working too, all the fighting added on top of all the drinking has kept all the memories at bay. Speaking of, he reaches into the rucksack and digs around until he finds a half empty bottle of vodka. Tilting it up, he proceeds to down three big gulps. The liquid sears his throat, but he barely notices.
With no real idea of where he is, coupled with the drinking, he has no way to tell how far he has gone. Thus he isn't surprised when a bullet tears through his shoulder. The alcohol nulls the pain, but it also makes his vision so blurry. He cannot see where his attackers are, or how many of them there are, or even what they may be. Grumbling, he awkwardly pulls his pistol from its revolver. What he attempts to say is, "All right, I am drunk, so come out so I can see to shoot you," but what he actually says sounded more like, "Allrit, I ams drunk, hic, surcomso ier cern sea to shert ya."
Nothing happens for a second, so he shrugs and starts walking again. A beeping sound comes from a nearby car and he looks over just in time to see a frag mine detonate. The blast flips him over onto his back. As he sits up, the car explodes upwards into a mushroom cloud. This time he is slides backwards across the cracked road. He sits up with a pained groan, reaching a hand up to gingerly touch the back of his head. Adrenaline is now pumping through him, clearing his vision just enough for him to see the three raiders bearing down on him. He lifts his hand to shoot them, but discovers that his hand is empty. Looking around for his pistol, he spots it, way to far away for him to reach. "Fuck me."
The first raider reaches him and swings a heavy bat at his head. He manages to duck and swings his legs, swiping the raiders feet out from under him. He a solid punch on the raiders face before wrapping his arms around his neck and strangling him. The other two raiders arrive and he feels something slam painfully into his back. He cries out in pain and releases his hold on the first raider. Whipping around ready for a fight, his face takes a blow from a police baton. Blood sprays from his nose and can feel the soft cartilage snap. Tears spring to his eyes, further clouding his already blurry vision. He swings wildly at every movement as the raider whoop and holler while they circle him, shouting all sorts of threats.
He snarls furiously and attempts to stand, only to have a raider slam something into the back of his knee, sending him back to the ground. A raider steps towards him, likely intending to crush his head. He lashes out, grabbing the raider's leg and pulling him to the ground. Before the other two can react he pins the raider and rips off a piece of the man's spiked armor. He lifts the armor above his head and slams it down into the raider's face repeatedly. "Shit," one of the other raiders shouts, "he killed him, he fucking killed him! Shoot him, just shoot the bastard!"
He feels a gun get pressed against his head. He jerks to the left and feels the bullet pass his ear. He reaches up and twists the gun out of the raider's hand, taking the rusty weapon and putting two rounds into its owner's chest. Pushing the corpse away, he turns to the last of the raiders. She screams and runs at him with the police baton above her head. Roaring, he empties the rest of the bullets into the woman's body, watching as she falls to the ground, dead. He gasps and tosses the empty gun away. He can taste blood running into his mouth and knows that his face is covered. He casts his gaze around for his lost gun, scooping it up out of the dirt when he spots it.
Without doing anything to stop the flow of blood from his nose, or to re set the broken bone, he starts walking again. As he does, something scuttles across his pat. He looks down to see a radroach trundling down the road, headed in the same direction he is. The bug shows no signs that it is aware of his presence. That is strange, even to someone who is still very drunk. Most of the time the little insects will attack anything that gets to close. He stares at the bug as he walks, and thus pays no attention to where he is going. He takes a step, but his foot comes down on nothing but thin air. He shouts in surprise as he tumbles forwards, landing hard on his back.
He groans in pain and looks up at where he is. Nearby are the remains of some sort of strange airplane the likes of which he has never seen before. Just beyond the planes cockpit is the corpse of a small green man. A movement catches is eye and he looks up to see the radroach from before scurrying down the hole he fell in. The little thing probably intends to make a meal out of him. He waits, planning on snapping the bugs puny neck when it reaches him, but it never gets that far. As it passed the corpse of the little green man, a bluish light appears around it.
As he watches, the roach freezes in place, and then begins to lift up into the air! That makes no sense at all. Sure, radroaches have wings, but he has never seen them make more than a short flight before. Not only that, but this one isn't even using its wings, yet it is flying straight up. He watches it, awestruck as it ascends upwards into the sky until he can't make it out any more. The bluish light remains for a few seconds, but then vanishes. He waits, lying there in the dust, for the roach to reappear, but it never does.
Finally he shakes his head and stands to leave. He is drunk off his ass. Sure, getting into a fight where he can't see is one thing, but flying radroaches? That is a totally different level of wasted. He makes it about twelve feet from the hole before he stops and slowly turns his head to the left. There, sitting on a rock, is a radroach.
So I know that this was really short, but that is okay, it is a one-shot that just delves a little into the characters. There will be more of these as the main story progresses.