Hello! I return from the depths of editing and bring you the newest (And hopefully final) Iteration of Sand Blood and Fire! With EXTREME help from JKrlin in regards to editing, consistent accurate character portray and MUCH MUCH MORE, I bring you the first chapter


War… War never changes.

Throughout the centuries of human advancement and development, the instruments of war evolved from crudely constructed weapons into efficient killing machines. As the fighting continued, so did death. Then, the world was forever changed on October 23rd, 2077. The era of advanced civilization was replaced with the ruins of civilization trying not to become just another civilization lost to time. The people of pre-war America went from war saturated people, to wastelanders, just trying to survive.

Many survivors of the Great War were unwillingly transformed into creations that were no longer traditional humans. Ghouls, Super Mutants, Centaurs, the Master; some even turned into human-vegetation hybrids. Some of these new minorities formed isolated communities, so that they could survive in the inhospitable wastelands.

Then, there were those who sought to rebuild the world. The New California Republic, Caesar's Legion, and many more. Each trying to restore the world back to what it was, each in a different way. Caesar's Legion seeks to create a stable and hierarchical structure to stabilize the increasing instability of the Mojave, while the New California Republic strives to restore the values of a democratic republic to the world.

However, the Mojave is about to receive unusual visitors that will forever change it. The sands of the wasteland are starting to shift in drastic ways by the machinations of these new arrivals. This desert wasteland teeters on the brink of total war. These new visitors will take advantage of this conflict that is brewing between the two major forces that are warring over the Mojave, carving their own paths through this treacherous wasteland.


Cinder Fall is a self-imposed slave to Salem, the Mistress of all Grimm. Cinder has killed without pause for thought all her life, and even enjoyed savoring the blood she's drawn. Now, she will find herself in the relentless depths of the Mojave Wasteland. In this expansive, unmerciful desert, she will, for the first time in her long despicable life, learn what it means to be free of her chains.

Cinder awoke to find herself lying in a vast, expansive desert. There was nothing but sand and sky in sight. Her body was covered in cuts and bruises - scars and injuries from the Rose's attack on her. Her legs started to shake violently, her muscles were all but exhausted, and she thought that she would surely succumb to death by fatigue.

It was only after two hours of trial and failure did she manage to regain the use of her legs. From there, Cinder rose to her feet. She decided to pick a direction to walk and just keep on moving in that direction. She didn't know how long she must have been walking, but she knew that she had to keep moving to survive. Damn it all if Cinder was going to die unceremoniously in a barren desert of all places.

As she trekked through the sandy covered continuent, the heat began to bear down on her as she began to sweat profusely. She couldn't lose this much through perspiration if she wanted to live.

She could see a single, lone structure in the distance. Could it be real, or was it just a mirage? She didn't have time to debate herself on the matter. She had to take that chance.

Cinder slowly walked towards the structure in the distance. As she got closer, the structure's image began to sharpen.

Cinder reached the single-story building, basking in its shade for a cool reprieve from the desert's scorching sun. She sat down and rested for a while before entering the deserted building. It appeared to be an abandoned gas station. Its windows were broken with scattered pieces of glass on the floor. The pumps were dried up, and there were no vehicles around to be fueled. Furthermore, there was no sign of any recent inhabitants in this rundown structure.

'Could this be Vacuo?' Cinder pondered as she looked around her. It was certainly a desert, but there was no sign of grimm, humans, or faunus. Again, that was something that was not out of place for an expansive, barren desert. What did worry her was the style of the architecture. She had traveled to Vacuo once and took note of the type of architecture that would be the most practical in a desert landscape, and the road she had found and the gas station she was looking through looked nothing like that type of structural design. That alone was not definitive proof that she wasn't in Vacuo, however. Just a hint.

She rose from her resting place and cautiously strolled into the convenience store. She scanned the shelves; no food or drinks to be found. She moved from the doorway of the store and patrolled around the counter. She only found a few discarded bottle caps and moved on to the back room of the shop.

As she slowly opened the door, a large, naturally armor-plated scorpion which had large, sharp pincers that had barbs on the inside of said pincers. Its stinger was in the form of a sharp fishing hook. Its stinger was rapidly jabbing in front of it, as if it were taking in its surroundings. The creature's large, sharp pincers lunged at her, stabbing her in the right arm with its stinger. She swiftly staggered back to avoid another strike from the scorpion. Cinder scuttled over to the counter where she found a rusty pipe to fight off her assailant.

She could hear her foe's multiple feet crawling across the floor of the store. She tightly gripped the pipe with her left hand, readying herself for the fight. She waited until it was close enough, then swung the pipe down on the creature's carapace as it charged her in retaliation, stabbing her in the stomach with its stinger. She backed off, swinging once more at the creature as it continued to advance towards her. Cinder had little time to react before her heels were caught in the clutches of the scorpion's pincers.

She screamed in pain, aiming for a more brutal approach with her tactic. She began to savagely beat the scorpion's body over and over again as all of her senses began to dull as her adrenaline started to kick in. She continued to bash the body of the wasteland creature; However, she failed to realize that the scorpion was repeatedly stabbing her in the arms and legs as its grip began to tighten further. Cinder moved to one of the pincers, bashing the arm with the pipe until the limb exploded with blood and flesh flying everywhere, the remaining grip on her other leg beginning to tighten and its rapid stabs with its stinger ceased. It still persisted its relentless strikes against Cinder, ramming its body into her, trying to knock her to the ground. She took five large steps back, readying herself for another barrage of attacks on the giant insectoid creature. She gripped tightly on pipe in one hand and readied another fireball in the other. As it began to form, it only grew to half the size of the previous one.

'Interesting. So it seems I have a limited reserve of magic to draw upon, for now at least.' As Cinder pondered on her recent discovery, she noticed the scorpion backing up for another ramming attack. She launched her fireball towards her foe, once again lighting it on fire. She rushed it before it had time to respond, delivering a powerful blow to the head of the armored monstrosity. It squirmed with a pained scream before it finally let go of life as its once energetic body was now lying motionless on the floor of the convenience store.

Cinder inspected her wounds, mentally cursing herself for not being careful enough in her battle. 'Salem would have had me lashed for such impotence,' Cinder thought as her mind conjured up ways to possibly slow down the spreading of the lethal poison

She went back to the back room of the store to find a bottle of water kept nice and cool by a barely functional refrigerator and a single box of apples that appeared to be heavily preserved with multiple chemicals that laid on the floor of the pantry. Both of them were quickly grabbed and consumed, Cinder slowly drank the water, making sure to savor every drop of the cool beverage. After that, she ate the Dandy Boy Apples, making sure to save a few for the road ahead. She had no idea where she was and no idea of how long it would take her to reach a settlement in Vacuo.

As she started to get up from her seated position to leave the building, she looked back at the scorpion with a look of annoyance. 'I'm not going to die today.' She thought as she looked off into the distance. Once she was outside she looked back at the dead scorpion as her stomach grumbled with hunger. 'Should I?' Cinder questioned as she continued to look at the dead creature. 'It could be days, even weeks before I get another chance like this…' she contemplated. 'I should be cautious' Cinder thought as she moved back into the store and began to open the shell of the scorpion with a crack. She pulled the meat out of the scorpion's carapace, holding it her hand and cooking the raw meat in her hand as a small flame started to form in her palm. Once it was cooked to her liking, she started to eat the meat of the creature to fill her stomach. Once she was full, Cinder moved on from the store and continued her walk into the desert, making sure to grab the rusted pipe that saved her life on her way out.

The rest of the day passed without much incident. She managed to find a cave to sleep in for the night. She dozed off, thinking of Salem and how she would be punished for taking so long to arrive back at her palace. Then her mind shifted towards the girl that nearly killed her back at the Tower of Beacon. She was lucky she survived the girl's powers. The rest of her sleep was filled with wonderful nothingness. For Cinder, this was a great thing, nothing to worry over, just rest from the world and its insanity. Her morning, however, would not be so pleasant.

Cinder was awoken by the sounds of gunshots and snarls from outside the cave. Her head shot up from the soft, sand covered floor that she was resting on. Next came a feeling of nausea that hit her like a bag of bricks as she threw up everything she had ate the day before. 'Well there goes my energy.' Cinder thought sarcastically as she puked up the rest of the food that was held within her stomach. 'Must have been that scorpion meat…' Cinder assumed as she finished bending over, the contents of her stomach now strewn across the floor of the cave. She grabbed the rest of her Dandy Boy Apples and her pipe, preparing to leave her place of rest once the sounds from the outside ceased. She waited for what seemed like an hour for the noises to stop, but they never did. She decided to peek out of the cave to see what exactly was happening. As she slowly poked her head out of entrance of the cave, seeing what was happening.

There was a group of three human, men by the look of their figures, who appeared to be dressed in leather armor with a few ammo slings and belts were equipped on their chests. They were fighting off a group of coyotes. Cinder decided to lay low and wait for them to pass. Then she would move on.

Cinder was caught off guard by the coyotes' efficiency at dispatching the men. They were only a quarter of the size of your average grimm, and yet they had taken out the group. She watched as they tore off the exposed flesh from the men's' bodies, devouring it with ferocious speed. She decided to let the coyotes move on, and once she was in the clear, she would retrieve any supplies and weapons they had on them.

As she continued to watch the coyotes eat, a few of them started raising their snouts up to the sky and started to sniff in her general direction, as they did so, the remaining coyotes followed suit, inching towards her position. It was only then that she realized that this was their den, and that she had been staying in what was essentially their home.

She tightly clutched the iron pipe in her hand as she prepared for the second battle in the past two days. She felt her other hand become engorged in heat, looking over at it to see a large flame in the palm of her hand.

'Could I?' Cinder thought, opening her palm as a fireball unleashed itself upon the hoard of coyotes. The closest back off, but the rest continued their advance, this time a bit faster. 'Shit.' She cursed mentally, trying to think quickly on her feet. She counted at least twenty in the pack that continued the advance. Then, all at once, they pounced in an attempt to dog-pile Cinder. She swung erratically, eliminating five members of the pack, the remaining fifteen continuing their attack. She kicked away four more and and lit three on fire, continuously firing fireballs at the offending coyotes. 'At least there aren't more threats…' Cinder thought.

Then, as if to solely prove the pyromancer wrong, a loud roar emanated from the entrance of the cave. Then, a large, lumbering figure stomped into the cave. As it approached her, a shiver shot down her spine as a look of horror graced her face. It was a large creature which had foot-long claws and sharp spinal spikes running down its back. It swiped the remaining nine coyotes to the side, sending enormous gashes on their sides and bellies, walking straight towards Cinder.

The monstrosity stopped, only for a quick second, to look Cinder in the eyes before taking her life. Then, it raised its claws and swung. Cinder, for the first time in her life, was paralyzed in fear. No grimm could match the pure horror of this creature. She definitely wasn't in Vacuo anymore. Could she be in the desert of Menagerie? The large island was known to be inhabited by monstrosities that made the desolate place their homeland. The only thing she could do was send a volley of fireballs at the abomination. However, they all missed, as the adrenaline that started to course through her veins filled her with energy that had nowhere else to go. She tightly gripped her arm to steady it and fire more fireballs, at this point, she had been hit once by the creature and was bleeding out, fast. She ripped part of her dress to use it as a bandage for her newly received wounds. She hid behind a large bend in the cave from the monstrosity that stalked her. She started to sprint through the cave, the natural light dying out, the only source that she had now was the flame engulfing her hand.

She didn't bother looking behind her, as it would be a waste of energy and focus. She needed to find a second exit, which she hopped to the gods existed. For once in the past two days, her prayer was answered as a small light appeared in front of her. She heard the thumping of the creature's footsteps behind her, but she refused to look over her back as she pushed forward, going from a fast jog to a full out sprint. She wouldn't stop until she was either dead or was unable to move a single muscle in her body. She took one more shot at the haunting beast, firing a fireball at it, lighting it's thick hide on fire. It howled in pain, giving Cinder the needed window to escape with her life.

The pyromancer, once she was a safe distance away from the beast, looked back at the cave, nothing but desert surrounding it. 'Well that settles that.' Cinder thought as she started to walk in the same direction she was running.

She continued to walk until sundown, where this time, she had no shelter. All she had was an unused fire pit and a log for a makeshift bench. She launched a small fireball into the fire pit, a large flame growing in front of her. It was then that Cinder felt a strong tinge of pain strike through her body and collapsed as a wave of pain coursed through her. She was exerting a lot of energy just trying to keep her eyes open.

'It must have been that scorpion's poison in action,' Cinder though as the pain continued to increase. 'Why did it take so long to take effect?' Cinder pondered as she could hear the faint sound of footsteps in the distance. 'Must have been delayed since I puked up my food, but now since I've started eating again, the poison must be becoming more potent.'

The sounds of footsteps got louder as her her body collapsed from exhaustion. The last thing she heard were the same footsteps getting even closer and the sound of a man's voice, however she couldn't make out what he was saying.

Right before her eyes shut she looked up at the night sky and found something very strange, something that told her she wasn't on Remnant anymore. A full moon. No fragments, just a full, whole moon, shining down on her and the desert floor.


Blake Belladonna and Ilia Amitola, two faunus girls who were once friends, both of them wanting the equality for their people so that the faunus can be on par with the humans of their world. Now, however, their friendship has become sour and distant, neither of them talking to the other for years. As they spend time in the Mojave, their resolve both their idealistic dreams and their conflicting loyalties will be tested.

Blake continued to stare at the full moon, looking on in awe and splendor at the monolith's form.

"Blake! Where are you?" Ilia called out, trying to locate her lost friend. "Blake?!"

"I'm coming!" Blake shouted in response as she hopped down from the cliff she was seated on, down to where the two had made camp for the night.

"I've managed to find some food scattered around here, but not without running into the local wildlife," Ilia said as she handed Blake a box of Junk Food. They both ate in relative silence as the sound of cicadas filled the night's air.

"Have you been able to find anything about where we are?" Ilia asked with a look of hope in her eyes. She was concerned as to where they were and how long it might be before they could head home.

"Yea… but you might not like it…" Blake said turning away from her friend with a hesitant tone. She always had feared being away from home, but now she wasn't even in Remnant anymore, more or less Menagerie.

"Well, what is it?!" Ilia asked with excitement, hoping the news would be of some interest. She, for lack of a better word, was smitten with Blake. Ever since Adam gained her affection, she was unable to get the affection that Blake gave to him, but now with just her and Blake, that could very well change.

"We aren't on Remnant anymore." Blake calmly explained to her old friend. "When I was up there, I was looking up at the moon. It isn't shattered or even broken, its whole."

"We… aren't on Remnant anymore?" Ilia asked as disbelief overtook her. She had never left Menagerie, but now? She wasn't even on the world she had lived in her entire life.

"Yes. Wherever we are, it's not in Remnant." Blake reassured her old friend. "But I'm sure if we stick together we'll be fine.

"That's bad, we need to get back!" Ilia said as disbelief turned into desperation and her tone turned from confused to frantic.

"I know, but right now we don't have a way to do that. Let's just try and survive for now." Blake said as she moved over to her makeshift bed of sticks and leaves. Ilia nodded and did the same as they both fell asleep.

The next morning, they got up and moved on through the mountains that they were in. The two of them grabbed their weapons and began the long day's journey.

They walked the trails and paths that curved and sways around the mountains. The mountain walls were painted with odd figures and creatures covering it. Ilia took in the expansive landscape and the nearly non-existent weather. The only indication of anything other than clear skies was the occasional cloud. Every forty five minutes the two of them would take a break to rest. They could hear the occasional howl in the distance, but nothing worthy as addressing as a danger.

Blake's ears picked up some faint noises in the distance as they neared the bend of a trail that snaked around a mountain. She motioned for Ilia to hug the body of the mountain as they continued to scale it at a slower pace than before. As they got higher and higher, the noise got louder and louder until it was right on top of them.

"Blake," Ilia whispered, "look up very slowly." As Blake lifted her head up to face the source of the noise, she saw a fur-covered feline which was displaying its fangs with a threatening growl. It was perched just above her on a large outcrop of rock. There was only a foot between her and irradiated bobcat. She tried to look away from its eyes, but something about it kept her staring at it with a mix of shock, horror, and awe. It started to crouch down bearing its claws, preparing to pounce.

"Blake! Stop looking at it!" Ilia whispered with concern, but her friend did not heed her warning. Instead, she began to take out Gamble Shroud from its sheath, getting ready for combat. The rad-cat pounced in front of her, blocking the two faunus' path forward. Ilia took out her weapon, although there wasn't much she could do without hitting Blake. The feral creature began to slowly advance, forcing Blake to back off. She watched it, waiting for it to pounce once more. when it did, she would impale it with Gamble Shroud. It began to crouch again, signaling another pounce, but this time it began to growl and slowly back away. It was at this moment that Ilia noticed the heavy breaths hitting the back of her neck.

She slowly turned around with shock and horror to find a giant, black bear looming over her. She had been so focused on the rad-cat, that she failed to realize the threat directly behind her. The lumbering beast roared, swiping at Ilia with its large claws, smashing her against the mountain wall. Her vision began to fade as she saw Blake charge the Yao Guai and stab it through the head. The last thing she saw was Blake running up to her as everything went to black.

She woke up the next morning in a cave, where Blake had set out a small breakfast for the two of them. Ilia could see a look of relief on her friend's face as she saw her wake up.

"Thank goodness you're alright," Blake said as she handed her friend a piece of cooked meat. She took it and began to eat it. It was only after she had finished eating that she realized just how hungry she was. Her hunger was satisfied as she ate two more chunks of cooked meat.

"What happened after I blacked out?" Ilia asked, wiping her chin with her sleeve.

"Well, I carried you on my back for about two miles, then I set up camp here for the night. After that, I made us something to sleep on, and now it's morning." Blake smiled.

"Alright, should we get going?" Ilia asked as she rose from her seated position.

"Yea, we shouldn't waste any daylight," Blake said as she grabbed their weapons, handing Ilia hers as they exited the cave. It only took them five hours until they began to reach the smaller mountains, a flat landscape could be seen in the distance. Its land littered with specks of concrete, wood and metal. Those specks were the many buildings that littered the Mojave Wasteland. The two of them could make out a cluster of structures that were bigger than the others, that same cluster glowing brighter than the other buildings and structures that were in the Mojave. Both of them took seat on the top of a mountain to enjoy the beautiful view.

"What do you think of this world, Blake?" Ilia asked, looking to her friend for a response.

"I – I don't quite know what to make of it yet. What do you think?" Blake asked, deflecting the question onto Ilia.

"Well, let's just say the first impressions weren't that good," Ilia said with a lighthearted chuckle. The two of them laughed for a short time before moving on to their next trail. This once was on the ground, a welcomed change from the high altitudes of the mountain paths. As they trekked through the thick foliage of the forests below, Ilia and Blake began to pick some fruit from the trees. While they were in the mountains they had to subsist on meat and water, but in the forest, they had access to berries and fruits that they had never seen before. As a cat faunus, Blake was mostly a carnivore when it came to her eating habits, very similar to Ilia, who was a chameleon faunus. Blake had learned during her time at Beacon, that faunus often have the same diet as their animal counterparts, thus the reason for the diverse array of options at the Beacon cafeteria.

Once the two of them finished picking the fruits and berries, they continued to move on to through the trial. As they moved, the two of them could hear multiple voices in the distance. As they got closer the sources of the voices began clear. There were four people, three humans and one, large blue figure which wore a straw hat. The three normal humans were taunting the blue figure, as she had her leg in an unnatural position that both Blake and Ilia knew, with their minimalist medical expertise, wasn't healthy for the creature. A part of the bone was jutting out from under the kneecap, popping out from the side of the knee.

"Ha! She can't even get up to swing at us," one of the men shouted with laughter as he held a combat knife in his left hand. "How pathetic!"

"We should just put her out of her misery!" another one sneered, aiming his rifle at her head. Blake and Ilia watched as the blue human shielded her head with her arms in fear.

"Yea!" the third one cheered on. He had a pistol which was safely strapped to his hilt.

Witnessing this scene began to remind Blake as to why she joined the White Fang. The unending cruelty of the humans towards the Faunus. Watching the humans whip, kick, hit, and cut the faunus slaves as they worked to the bone. She remembered how the faunus were forced to fight a war for their freedom and even then they were given the short end of the stick. It even brought back memories of watching as young faunus children were beaten by adult and adolescent humans.

"We have to do something!" Ilia whispered to Blake, so as not to catch the attention of the three humans.

"Alright," Blake agreed, a plan quickly forming in her head. "We need to get them away from her. Ilia, can you disarm the guy with the knife? I'll go for the one with the rifle."

"Yea, just give me a thumbs up as the signal," Ilia said, stealthily moving to the other side of the humans. Once she was in position, Blake gave a thumbs up and the two of them leapt into action. Ilia cracked her whip, striking the man's knife out of his hand. Blake slashed the barrel of the second man's rifle. The third reached for his pistol, only for Ilia to zap him in the back of the neck, rendering him incapacitated. The remaining two held their hands up defensively, not wanting a fight.

"Get away from her, and never return." Ilia snarled, turning a dark shade of red, the scavengers running off in terror, taking their unconscious friend with them.

"Are you ok?" Blake asked as she took out some medical supplies she had found while scavenging.

"Thank you, dearies! Those scavengers were going to harm poor, old Lily!" Lily said with an appreciate tone as Blake started to tend to her broken leg.

"No problem. We have a history of not being the popular ones in a group." Ilia said, facing Lily with a warm smile as she helped Blake to tend to Lily's leg.

"Hey, Lily," Blake said to the sweet creature. "Do you live around here?"

"Why of course, dearie!" Lily reassured, like a grandmother talking to her grandchildren. "It's just up the road! It's called Jacobstown."

"Are there others like you who live there?" Ilia asked, receiving a nod from the nightkin. "Blake, we should try and see if we can live there." Ilia whispered to Blake.

Blake frowned, not entirely on board with Ilia's plan. "What makes you think they'll take us in?" Blake asked, continuing to treat the wound that Lily has sustained.

"Well, we are currently helping one of their townspeople, not to mention what we are. Remember how the faunus were treated back in Remnant? Her people are like this world's faunus." Ilia reasoned, getting the support from Blake as she finished patching up Lily's leg.


Adam Taurus is the leader of the Vale branch of the White Fang, a pro-Faunus rights group. Over time, the White Fang steadily devolved from a once peaceful protest movement that was seized by violent ideologues. He believes he fights for a right and just cause against a cruel, barbaric, bigoted society. When he is thrusted into the wastes of the Mojave, he will find that humanity is capable of far greater transgressions, but also capable of far better things, as well.

"So, human," Adam sneered, "how are your fellow comrades treating you?"

"Better than they're treating you, that's for sure," the medic shot back.

A strange looking human was stitching Adam's gashes on his legs. He had obtained those injuries and many more when he had first arrived in this world. He arrived near an NCR outpost that was at the top of a hill. The second one of the humans aimed their rifles at him and ordered him to state his business, Adam retaliated with a swift decapitation of that soldier. The ruthless act wasn't taken well, as everyone in the outpost, from soldier or trader, started aiming for his arms and legs. Most of them missed their shots, but a certain pale sharpshooter managed to shoot him through the knees then the elbows. Adam, preferring death to capture by humans, tried to escape, rolling himself down the hill which is where he got the large gashes that were now sealed. As he rolled down the hill, he slashed his legs on some rusted metal of a vehicle. Once he hit the bottom, four soldier were dispatched to retrieve him. After that, he was sent to Camp Forlorn Hope as a prisoner of war.

Adam snapped at him as a surge of pain coursed through his nerves. The medic was half a foot taller than Adam, and his irradiated skin took on a dark red color, as if it was stained with blood. He had eyes that were beautiful dark green, and showed that he had endured more than words could explain.

The older soldiers patrolling the outpost would either ignore Adam or stare at his horns, some childish fools even trying to touch them. However, none got close enough. The only people he would allow to touch his horns were the medic and the medic's assistant.

The former of which was having a chat with the bull faunus.

"So, Adam, why are you so resentful of humans?" the medic, who had introduced himself as Adrian, asked casually as he sat down at a table that Adam sat at.

"Why don't you tell me first, human?" Adam spat at the medic.

"I'm not a human. I'm a ghoul. And for the record, don't talk down to me like some child." Adrian crossed his arms with frustration. "I'm ten times your age. I've lived for more than two hundred years, so show some respect."

"I'll show you respect once you earn it," Adam said with spite. As if an individual with Adrian's charred skin could survive a long life and hardships for two hundred years.

"Hm. Well, if you're not going to show respect, then there's nothing I can do about it. However, there are many things I know that I'm sure you're curious about."

Adam pondered on the many questions he had about this world. If the full moon that shone overnight was anything to go by, this wasn't Remnant. The other clue that he wasn't on his Remnant was the self-proclaimed 'ghoul' treating his injuries. His skin was flaky and chipped, giving the appearance of the bottom of a dried out lake. Never within the recorded history of Remnant had a human such as this been discovered. He had to know how this had happened.

"How did you become like this?" Adam gestured vaguely to Adrian's person. "The scars, the cracked skin. It can't be natural."

Adrian looked up to Adam from the current wound he was treating and gave Adam a look of a pained frown before answering the question. "I was turned into a ghoul by an extreme amount of radiation. Not enough to kill me, but enough to make me what you say before you."

"Radiation? I've never heard of a weapon like that," Adam said with a frown on his face.

"It's not a weapon itself. It's just an echoing remnant from a certain type of weapon that was used against my squad," Adrian explained.

"What type of weapon can hold so much power to scar a man's entire body but keep him alive for so long?"

"A kind of weapon that should never have been created," Adrian responded with a solemn tone as he took swig of whiskey. On that note, Adam decided to go a bit more personal with the human that was with him.

Adam rubbed his chin casually before asking another question. "Where am I exactly?"

"You're in a medical tent," Adrian replied in a terse manner.

"That much is obvious. Care to tell me where I am in more broad scope?"

"We're in Camp Forlorn Hope which is in the Mojave Wasteland," Adrian clarified.

Adam frown with disappointment. He wasn't familiar with either of the places mentioned. He only knew two things, that this was a military camp and that the Mojave was a desert.

"I'm a ghoul who was once a human in the ranks of the NCR," Adrian said with a bored look on his face. "If you're wondering why, let's just say I have a personal vendetta that I could easily fulfill by joining up with them."

Adam was finally getting some semblance of this group that had him in shackles. "What is your job in this NCR?"

"I help treat the wounded and train more medics for the ranks," Adrian explained to the captive.

"A medicine man. Useful." Even for all of Adam's posturing and call for militant action with the White Fang, doctors and medics were integral tools that kept the fight going. "So can you fight as well?"

"I'm not all that enthused about hurting people, which is why I became a medic in the first place," Adrian answered with a stern look on his face.

"Surely you know something with regards to combat if you're supposed to heal warrior."

Adrian had an unimpressed look on his face. He had no intention of being goaded into reckless, emotion-fueled action by Adam."I know how to fight. I merely made the decision to help people instead of hurt them."

"A pacifist."

"Yes. Do you have a problem with that?"

The question that Adrian posed to Adam gave him pause. He didn't necessarily have a problem with it. Adrian was still helping out the cause he saw as right. He just wasn't killing for it. Instead he was helping those that were. "No problems. Only curiosity," Adam answered with a hint of sarcasm. "Why did you turn to pacifism?"

Adrian responded with a visible pause before answering. "I've seen too many good men and women die in a war that never needed to be fought."

"So you wish to end a war?" Adam questioned as he started to ask more about the world he was in. "And who is this war against?"

"The Legion."

Adam needed more than a name. He needed info. "And what makes them a threat?"

"Their tactics. If they know they can win face to face, they'll do it, but if they can't, they'll resort to guerrilla warfare. Ambushing out patrols, raiding our camps, sieging the settlements we were supposed to protect. They won't stop until they achieve their ultimate goal."

Adrian cleared his throat, taking a swig from his flask before elborating. "To capture Hoover Dam. After that, New Vegas, and then the rest of New California."

It sounded like the Legion was out to take over the world. It's one thing to conquer the world. Maintaining your rule over it is another matter.

"In my opinion," Adrian continued, "this whole war for the Dam is waste of good soldiers and an even larger waste of time. So many good men and women died in the first battle for it against the Legion. We managed to make a tactical retreat and lay a trap for them in Boulder City, killing a large number of their forces."

"So you fled with your tails between your legs and forced them back with a counter attack. Where are they based now?"

"The other side of the Dam," Adrian said, shaking his head.

Adam was unimpressed. "So you were unable to take the entire Dam?"

Adrian chuckled with amusement. "You say that now, but you should see the size of it. It's not some junk wall. Hell, the thing has survived more than four hundred years from what I know."

"So you were able to retake some of the Dam?"

"Yes, some of it. The Legion managed to keep about the closest quarter of the Dam that was near their main camp," Adrian explained to his patient. "However, the Legion have taken up other tactics to slowly cut us down. They've become far more dangerous after the first battle for Hoover Dam."

After hearing about this Legion, Adam had to admit, they had potential. "But they are humans, right?"

"Yes, they'll only take humans into their ranks," the medic said with malice in his voice.

"They sound like stubborn fools," Adam said, getting a nod of agreement from Adrian. The rest of their time together was spent with a cold air of silence, Adam's mind began to wander as to where Blake might be, if she was here at all. If he found her, she would pay dearly for her traitorous actions against the White Fang.

The two of them heard gunshots and explosions from outside the tent. Adam followed Adrian outside to see what the source of the noise was. As Adam pulled the flaps of the tent to the side, he took in the sight of the battle currently taking place. Scores of men dressed in red and black body armor and masks were locked in battle against the troopers stationed at Camp Forlorn Hope.

Adrian called over five NCR troopers to escort him and Adam out of the camp. "We will be traveling to Camp Golf and tell them what's happening!" The troopers followed Adrian's lead as they exited northbound from the camp, however their retreat was cut short as more than a dozen Legionaries cut off their escape route.

"Prepare for you death, degenerates," the leader of the Legionaries said before firing at the troopers with his riot shotgun, downing three of them and gravely injuring the other two, leaving only Adrian and Adam in fighting condition.

"Here, take this," Adrian whispered as he handed Adam a serrated combat knife. Adam snatched the knife out of the ghoul medic's hand and readied himself for battle.

"So you two profligates wish to die with honor. Good. I thank you for donating your dog tags to my collection," The leader, a Decanus said with arrogance as he jumped down from the high ground with a curved gladius in hand. He swung for Adam, who parried the strike with his knife, following up a repulst, stabbing the legionary in the arm. The Decanus responded with a powerful uppercut to Adam's chin. He followed up with solid punch to the side of his face, knocking off his White Fang mask. Adam's emerald green eyes leered at the Decanus as he quickly recovered from Adam's attack.

Adam looked over to Adrian who was taking on two Legionaries, and if it kept up the way it did, He might not make it out alive. While Adam was fine with leaving a human to his doom, he still needed Adrian alive. However, Adam's plan fell flat as Adrian's head was lopped off by one of the legionaries, his decapitated head rolling over to Adam's feet. As he stared at the detached head in front of him, his foe, the Legion Decanus swung at Adam's head with a pipe, knocking him to the ground on his hands and knees.

"Profligate, prepare for death." The Decanus said as he held a gladius over Adam's neck.

"Wait," a calm voice ordered as the Legion Decanus halted his swing of the shishkabob that was aimed for Adam's neck. It was so close in fact, that he could feel heat emanating from the flame that was just inches from his neck.

Adam and Dead Sea turned to face the source of the voice to see a man wearing a fox's head over his.

"Vulpes?" Dead Sea asked, addressing the high ranking Frumentarii.

"Yes. I came to check on the raiding camp and discovered that you had decided to directly attack Camp Forlorn Hope. When I learned of this, I decided to have my men join in on the spoils of this raid and to truly strike fear into the hearts of these profligates" Vulpes said as he leaned down to take a look at Adam.

"He appears to have… horns? Interesting, it appears this man is some type of genetic mutation in which he has grown horns. Refrain from killing him, as he will make for a valuable asset in both ability and symbol. He, much like us, are of the Bull. Vulpes commented as Adam was given a strong kick to the head, knocking him out.


As the four of them are forced to survive the harsh environment, the Mojave and its inhabitants will change drastically as major players will rise and fall, and the four inhabitants of Remnant will be forced to endure the pain that is survival. They will encounter adversity, pain, and struggles. Will they remain the same was when they arrived, or will they be forever changed in who they are and what they believe? Only time will tell, but amongst all these questions, there is one absolute that remains clear; War, war never changes.


I hope you all liked it! Please drop a review if you are so inclined to do so and have a nice evening!