Note: This story takes place largely after the events of the Fallout: New Vegas, with the Courier establishing an independent New Vegas with the help of Yes Man, as I feel this is the most "natural" ending to the game, and the best starting point for the kind of story that I want to write. First, however, we begin at the end: the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. Brandon Carter, the Courier in this story is based on the character and choices from my own playthrough of New Vegas. Hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: All characters, locations, etc. are properties of Bethesda Softworks and the people who worked on the Fallout games. I do not claim to own any of them.
The Second Battle of Hoover Dam, Part 1: War... War never Changes.
Hoover Dam, near the Guest Entrance
July 19th, 2281 19:46 p.m.
"War. War never changes."
"What're you, getting philosophical on me, Boone?" the Courier rasped through his Ranger mask as the pair squatted side-to-side behind a pile of sandbags. All around them, Hoover Dam was in chaos: The sound of explosions ripped through the air, leaving fire and ash in their wake as the screams of the dying and wounded rose in their wake. The concrete length of the dam was choked in the bodies of NCR soldiers and Legionnaries alike, blood soaking into the scarred and weathered material. "
It's something my old CO used to say", responded the ex-soldier, his somber tone unchanged by the frenzy around them. "He was out in California during the NCR's formative years. Saw a lot of combat. Used to say that before we engaged any hostiles. Seemed appropriate."
"You know….." the Courier began, looking over at his sunglass-wearing companion, his grizzled features tinted red through the lenses in the Courier's Ranger mask. "That may be the most words you've ever said to me at one time."
"Heh…." Boone grunted, completely straightfaced. It was probably the closest he would ever come to laughing.
Raising his head over the sandbags, the Courier pulled the barrel of his All-American up and unleashed a hail of bullets on a group of oncoming Legion soldiers. He was rewarded with screams of pain and two bodies hitting the ground, blood streaming from their wounds. His cartridge spent, Carter spun away and ducked back down, already in the process of switching magazines.
"I need you here, Boone. Not back at Bitter Springs. Cause I don't know shit about war." It came out as a joke, but it was a hard truth. The wasteland was violent and unpredictable, but this was on a different scale. Everywhere he looked, it seemed, Hoover Dam was ablaze and smoking. Craters and debris left from explosions littered the dam, along with the bodies of the fallen. The tranquil silence that usually graced the dam was broken by a symphony of violence. All along its length, the familiar chop of gunfire could be heard as NCR forces and Legion soldiers fought and died and bled. A sudden rash of explosions tore through the air, engulfing large sections of the Dam in flames and death. The lucky men were incinerated immediately; the unlucky were only wounded by the shrapnel, reduced to bleeding and screaming and dying. Without warning, the massive anti-aircraft gun nearest the Dam's first tower exploded, flames erupting from its bowels as it spewed shrapnel into the sky.
"Fuck! Down!" Carter roared at his small band of soldiers, flattening himself to the ground as debris rained down around him. Hands overhead and eyes closed, he let the sounds and quaking of the explosion wash over him before he deigned to resurface, looking downfield for anymore enemies. For the moment, it looked clear. Overhead, the whining propellers of the Boomers' B-29 could hardly be heard over the chaos on the Dam.
"Good, they're here." he acknowledged, pulling his camouflaged All-American to his chest, the weapon once again filled with ammunition. "They almost fucking killed us, but they're here. At least all that listening to their history and swimming to the bottom of a fucking lake wasn't for nothing."
"Oh, we did that for a reason?" Cass quipped from his left, sliding her back against the same bags as her cohorts. "Here I thought you were just trying to bore me to death."
"Put some whiskey in it, Rose of Cassidy." the Courier growled good-naturedly, still sweeping the dam with his eyes. "We've got a Caesar to kill."
"Leave him to me." Boone's gruff voice, right in his ear.
"Fine by me." Carter agreed, raising his All-American and giving the trigger several quick squeezes. Several meters away, a Legionnaire hit the concrete of the dam, a victim of the carbine's onslaught. Somewhere nearby, a grenade exploded, throwing up a shower of debris.
"More coming!" came Cass's raucous tones over the din. Peeking over the barrier as much as he dared, the Courier replied as he squeezed off a few more rounds at the veterans now ducking into the tower.
"Shit. Boone, eyes up. Cass, with me." His companions moved to obey as the Courier shot forward towards the next pile of sandbags, keeping low as he moved. Bullets screamed by him, nipping at head and haunches. Still bogged down near the Visitor's Center, Carter seriously doubted they would be able to reach the Legion-controlled tower without dying first. On his flanks, his compatriots squeezed out rounds, dealing death with each pull of the trigger. Cass and Boone were with him because they were the best marksmen out of their merry band of misfits. And they needed to make every bullet count. More soldiers streamed in from everywhere, NCR and Legion alike flocking to the slaughter.
"What've we got?!" the Courier yelled towards his companions, seated behind his own personal pile of bags. Around him, the world grew steadily darker as the sun dipped closer to the horizon, turning the world from his mask from a bold crimson to a more subdued hue of red. It almost matched the blood on the ground.
"Tower's quiet." Boone muttered, maneuvering carefully in beside the Courier.
"I got two of 'em. Might be some still hiding."
"Better than getting none. Cass?"
"Rest of the Dam looks pretty clear." Cass observed. "Course there could be more Legion pouring out of somewhere any minute now. Oh, speak of the devil."
Carter didn't even look up to see the newest wave of enemies. "Rex!" he called, hoping his voice would reach the dog over the noise of war.
"Woof!" An enthusiastic bark from the cyberdog, who bounded up as if from nowhere and sat readily at the Courier's feet, tongue lolling from his mouth.
"Good boy." the Courier cooed, giving the dog a quick headrub. "Now sic 'em."
With a growl, the dog took off like a gunshot towards the nearest group of Legionnaires. The sound of their frightened screams as the robotically-enhanced canine descended upon them was like music to his ears.
"Alright, Big Blue. You take the point. ED-E. Command Protocol: Attack." the Courier directed his robotic allies, looking back towards the soldier-faced Securitron and the floating Eyebot.
ED-E he had no qualms about. Since he had repaired the robot back in Primm, the floating robot's steadfastness had been matched only by Rex. The Securitron, however, was a different story. Yes Man had insisted they bring it with them, but whether it would respond to his commands or not, he did not know. Inwardly, he breathed a sigh of relief as the machine rolled forward, with a mechanical "Yes, sir", its weaponized arms pointed towards any oncoming assailants. The Legion had nearly made it all the way across, but the NCR, despite heavy losses, was holding steady. All they had to do now was to deliver the deathblow, and the Leigion would dissolve. Crouching low, the Courier advanced swiftly, keeping his head below sandbag level. Behind him, Cass followed in the same fashion, moving from cover to cover. The occasional explosion or sizzling zap let him know that ED-E and the Securitron had neutralized an enemy. For the moment, they were only authorized to attack Legion soldiers, but that could all very well change in an instant if the NCR proved troublesome. Carter, Cass, and Boone moved up behind their robotic vanguard, reaching the nearest dam tower after only a minute or so.
"Boone, take the side ladder up. Cover us till we reach the dam's entrance, then meet us there."
"Right." the ex-Recon man growled. Stowing his hunting rifle, he began his ascent up the ladder, his footfalls clanking metallically against the rungs. From inside the screams of men could be heard as Rex went about his grisly work, and for a few moments Cass and Carter were alone. Or as alone as two people could be in the midst of a battlefield.
"Stay sharp, Cass. And try not to hit any Rangers. Let's move." And move they did, keeping their heads low as they alighted near the fortified walkway the NCR had built to cross the dam. Cass and the Courier encountered no more opposition as they moved along the dam, but as they turned the corner to the walkway that led to the Dam proper, the door burst open
"For the Legion!" screamed a man dressed in a red plumed helmet and shining, metal armor. Flanking him on either side were roughly ten Legion soldiers.
Spying the odd foursome, they charged in madly.
"They're like fucking ants." Cass whispered in exasperation, ducking behind the wall to the right of the pathway.
Opposite her, the Courier smirked as he eyed the Legion men through his scope. "You sober, Cass?" he teased, squeezing, off a few rounds.
"I thought you loved this shit."
"Nah, I like shootin Legionnaires fine." Cass retorted, uncharacteristically serious. "Just tryin not to think about what happens if we fuck up." The Courier eyed her briefly, a short chuckle passing his lips.
"Definitely sounds like someone skipped their morning drink." A torrent of gunfire rained on the pair from across the pathway. The Centurion, bloodthirsty and crazed, charged towards them, a chainsaw revving in his hands. Ignoring sandbags and his own dead, he barreled towards them, roaring like the psychopath that he was. Carter was about to put him down when a blue blur shot through his scope. The Securitron accelerated forwards, laser gun spewing red-hot death at the armored man. Despite the rounds that caught him in face, chest and legs, the centurion kept coming, raising the chainsaw high before plunging it into the torso of the unfortunate bot with a horrible screeching noise. The force of the blow caused the bot to sway wildly, loosing laser shots and several grenades into the air. To its credit, the Securitron stayed upright, filling the man with more and more laser holes as they swayed towards the edge of the pathway. With his chainsaw stuck in the robot's torso, the centurion was trapped, too proud a fool to let go of his weapon as the pair swung over the railing and into the water below.
"Shit!" the Courier exclaimed, looking at where the pair had fallen over. Renewed gunfire caused him to duck down again. "So, Cass…. bad news….." he began, as he checked how many bullets were left in his cartridge. The one downside of using automatic weapons was how easy it was to lose track of ammo. After two more clips, he'd be out.
"Yeah. I saw." she said, raising her trail carbine over her head to blindfire at the Legion gunmen. "Figured the giant robot would've lasted longer."
"Ha. Ha." the Courier retorted straightfaced over the din of gunfire. "Looks like it's time to blow some shit up. And what the fuck is Boone doing?!" he wondered, reaching for the dynamite at his belt. Were the sniper doing his job, they might still have a self-repairing, grenade-firing Securitron at their disposal. Placing the All-American to his side, Carter reached into his pocket, closing his hand around the lighter that had once belonged to Benny. Flicking the lighter to life, he lit the fuse of the stick, counted to three, turned, and hurled, synchronizing perfectly with Cass on the other side. They were soon rewarded with panicked screams and one hell of an explosion, ripping through several sandbags that had been the Legion's cover. Carbine in hand once again, Carter went prone, picking off the men who had fled cover to try the walkway, each pull of the trigger rewarded with a scream and a shower of blood. Distantly, he was aware of the slow, methodical pace of gunfire that was Boone playing reaper, packing people off to the afterlife one shot at a time. Any remaining Legion soldiers were soon deceased, and the Courier pressed forward into the entrance tower, Cass and ED-E following close behind. Inside the small building, it was quiet, with only the faintest sounds of a fight penetrating the manhole cover that led into the Dam itself. Ushering the others inside, Carter remained by the door, cracking it open to keep eyes out for the sniper and Rex. Even if it was only a brief respite, he was thankful for the break from fighting.
"Cass, make sure no one comes through that grate."
"Can't. I'm far too sober."
"Oh, for fuck's sake…." Carter breathed. "Can we not play this game in the middle of a goddamn warzone, Cass?"
"I'm tryin to put it behind me, alright?! McLafferty and the Van Graffs, maybe the drinkin, too..." Even in the silence, her voice was strained. Carter turned towards her, looking hard at the woman from behind his mask. The melancholy note in the Rose's voice grabbed at his stomach immediately.
"I thought we did that already." he felt almost cowardly hiding behind the Ranger helmet.
"Yeah, well me too." the redhead admitted sheepishly, her eyes trailing to the ground. "Felt good for a while, killin 'em and gettin to enjoy revenge for a while. But now it's just… hollow. And all the drinks don't help like they used to." "
"I'm not the person for this shit, Cass."
"Ha! Clearly. I'd be better off talkin to the robot." the venom in her voice was unmistakable.
"Well, we're not goin anywhere…" the Courier growled by way of response. The silence that followed the statement was deafening and oppressive. The sight of Boone, crouched low as he shuffled into the building with Rex behind him, was an all-too-welcome reprieve.
"Gang's all here." Carter remarked, sliding the cover away from the ladder to reveal the path into the dam. He was careful not to look at Cass.
"Let's go."
So... yeah, first chapter. Let me know what you all think. I'm trying to go a little bit more realistic here, and focus on all the fighting/survival aspects of the Wasteland rather than the video game stuff like Pip-Boys and Courier stats that I've seen in some other fics. This'll probably have a T rating due to all the violence and language, but I'm not gonna get terribly graphic about anything. Anyways, hope you enjoyed the first part of the intro.