Note: Trying my hand at some horror for your Halloween delight. This is entirely a flight of fancy, of course, and has some smut. Enjoy.
Lin opened her eyes and immediately started screaming. A bloodied and partially defleshed skull gaped at her, smashed up against her cheek. It was pinned to her because she was inside of a metal cage, swinging around wildly with every move she made. She jerked upright, kicking out at the skull with both feet, shrieking and frenzied.
Her hands were bound―her feet, too―she hyperventilated, trying to breathe but failing. Her chest rose and fell quickly―much too quickly―she saw white dots in her vision. Oh, God, what was going on?!
Calm down, Lin, calm down! Keeping her eyes on the bloody skull and squinting so she couldn't see her surroundings, she willed herself to calm her breathing. Her heart was beating rapidly against her ribs, so startled by the jerk awake and the horror scene in front of her, that she could swear it was going to burst.
Calm down, Lin, it's alright, it's just a bad dream! She sang softly, under her breath, a song her dad sang to her as a baby. "Deep and wide... deep and wide... there's a fountain flowing deep and wide..." It made her feel a little better. Thinking about her dad, about finding him.
It took her ten minutes to calm down enough that she could begin figure out where she was. A dark room―couldn't see very much. She wiped her face of blood and stared at her hands, bound by what appeared to be bloodied rags. Her feet were bound too. She was in a metal cage, slowly swinging in mid-air.
Lin used her nose to turn on her Pip-Boy light, closed her eyes against the brightness, and steeled herself against what she might discover. Her heart rebelled a little. Her breath came quicker again, but this time she swallowed the fear. It's not scary, she told herself. It's not―it's not!
It smelled like decaying flesh and blood, bloated bodies in the sun. She whimpered a little.
Lin opened her eyes and focused herself. She'd been walking the highway, she remembered that. Along the road from the Nuka-Cola Plant. Stopped into a wrecked truck to take a breather―her chest tightened in memory. She'd needed to take a break because she hadn't been able to breathe easy, after that exciting encounter with the raiders.
Lin stared down at a couple of counter tops, covered in gore and body parts. Holy shit, this place―oh, God! Oh, God, was someone eating―eating people?!
She closed her eyes again and tried not to hyperventilate again. Jesus―
She'd stopped into the truck to sit down and drink a bottle of water and calm her heart, and then... and then she'd passed out? She ran a hand blindly up to her hair and felt around on her scalp. No wounds. She wasn't bloody but for her cheek where the skull had rested. She must have passed out. Too much excitement―
Lin felt faint again. Oh, God, and someone tied her up and put her in a cage in a room full of dead bodies and gore and bloody knives―
She cried for a long time. Her heartbeat in her chest was the only thing she could hear. She couldn't even find her voice to scream again or sing to herself. It seemed like forever before she heard the telltale sound of a door opening.
Lin sat upright, against the bars, and quickly shut off her Pip-Boy with a quick jab of her nose. She pretended to be asleep, still, leaning back against the bars. The footsteps drew nearer―her heartbeat sped up again, and she fought her voice not to whimper. Not to draw attention to herself.
"The new one," a man said. He sounded excited. Lin breathed a little quicker, then kicked herself. Stay calm, Lin!
"Yeah? ...Oh, she's gorgeous," another man said. He sounded disappointed. "Damn shame, really." Lin's blood rushed through her veins, every cell a bullet. If only one would reach her heart―
The other scoffed. "What would you do with her, Jack?" he said, disapprovingly. "We've got families. Hungry families. And we don't need another mouth to feed―"
Oh, Jesus. Lin felt tears welling up in her eyes. It was bad enough that she had been trapped in a cage by cannibals, but to hear them talking about―she fought a shudder.
"Well, there's always a chance something might happen to Linda," the one called Jack said, casually.
It was too much for Lin―the bindings, being in the cage and hearing the absurdity of the way they talked, the overbearing smell of the room and now―her name, and the ominous meaning behind the man's words.
She started crying, tears rolling down her face. Couldn't help it, big fat hiccuping cries coming from her mouth, whimpers of the most pathetic order. She didn't open her eyes, just cried and moaned and made a lot more noise than she ought to have.
Oh, God, she was going to die.
They were going to eat her.
"Jack," the first man said, and Lin heard a motor noise chugging to life. Her cries grew louder. Tears soaked the collar of her Vault suit, plastering her messy hair to her face. Oh―Oh, God―!
The motor sound sputtered and stopped after a quick moment. "You idiot! Ran out of gas, again!" Jack said, reproachfully. "Go and get some more."
The other sighed and there was a clatter. "Fine," he said, angrily. The door opened and closed, slamming shut.
"Shush, darling," Jack whispered, and the cage began to sway. Lin pressed her back against the bars, whimpering.
"It really is a shame you'll have to die," he said, his voice eerily calm and gentle. The cage began to spin in a circle. Her stomach heaved in stress and motion sickness.
She choked on her own tongue, trying not to shriek at him. "No!" she spat out, covering her face with her hands as best she could. "Let me go, you bastard!"
"Come, now, there's no need to be rude," he said. A hand reached out to touch her face, moving through the bars. "It's a very simple idea, this. You're helping us, really, you are."
Lin jerked away from his touch and opened her eyes without intending to―and got her first glimpse of the cannibal. Didn't look like a monster. Was wearing a nice Pre-War outfit, his gray hair brushed all neat, dark eyes intense on her face. She squeezed them shut again and he chuckled.
"Blonde and blue-eyed, quite the American dreamgirl," he said, chuckling. His voice made her spine crawl. "You'd fit right in around here. Andale is the best little town in America."
Lin tried not to make any sound, but she couldn't help it. Her throat vibrated with each whine and whimper she gave, pathetically voicing her distress. The cannibal Jack kept the cage spinning slowly, making appreciative noises, poking her in the side, grabbing her upper arm and making her jerk away from him.
Lin sobbed. How―how to get out of this? She didn't want to get eaten! She tried to stop crying, but it wouldn't work―she kept her eyes shut, so she wouldn't have to look at the man who wanted to eat her.
The door opened abruptly. "Jack," the other man said. "The Rocket is out of gas. Have to do it the old fashioned way."
"Hell," Jack said, and heavy footsteps moved away from her. "I hate using the knives... How about we wait? We've got the backup, she'll be fine for another day."
"We eat the backup, we won't have it," the other pointed out, grumpily. "And I was looking forward to some fresh meat."
Lin made a pathetically terrible noise.
"Yeah, but this one is too nice to waste." Jack chuckled darkly. "Let's go have dinner. We'll talk about her, later."
Before they left her alone in the dark room, Jack turned back to her and said, "Sweet dreams, beautiful."
She passed out inside the cage, her stomach cramping in stress and heartbeat panicked. It was too much for her to handle.
At some point in the night, one of the men came back. Lin had been sleeping, fitfully, and was instantly awake. Her initial panic had faded, and was replaced with anger―anger that someone could be out here, eating people, and no one had ever tried to stop them. She had to get out of this cage. Had to stop these bastards from eating her or anyone else.
She felt the nerve to face down her captors rising, and breathed out calmly. Grabbing one of the bars with both hands, she stared out. Settled her stomach and squinted into the darkness, watching him move around.
It was the other one, the one whose name she hadn't heard. He was stumbling about in the dark room, rambling to himself about something. Lin watched his shadow moving through the room and drew back as a bright light flared into existence.
He stumbled across the room, dragging a hand along a counter top, chuckling. Lin realized he was drunk as he fumbled to pick up a knife and muttered under his breath.
Opportunity, she thought. Put on an act, Lin. Get out of here.
"Y'know, y'really are v'ry p-pretty," he stammered, coming up to the cage. "Jack was right." He stared at her in the dim lamplight, eyes traveling the length of her body. "...Too pretty f'r th'knife." He stared at the one in his hand, and tossed it away, laughing.
"Thank you," she said, slowly. "Hey... why not let me out?" Her stomach flopped, but she held it down with sheer willpower. Anything to get out of the cage― "I promise I'll behave."
"Behave," he snorted. "Heard tha one before." He slumped against the cage, holding the bars and staring through it at her. "Jus wanna out so's y'can escape."
"I do understand, you know," she murmured, staring at him without expression. "You have to feed your family. It was just bad luck I happened through."
"It ish damn hard work!" he slurred. "An' no apresh―preshi―"
"No appreciation for all that work?" Lin clucked under her tongue at him. "That's awful." She considered him for a moment. Earlier, he hadn't been happy with the way Jack treated him. Maybe she could use that. "I can't believe it. A man trying to provide for his own, and no one cares?"
"Huh, huh," he chuckled. "Better b'lieve it." He leaned his head against the bars and stared at her. "Where you, where you come from, girl?"
"I'm local," she said, smiling at him as best as she could. "Raised and bred right here in D.C., up near Springvale."
"Hell," he swore, then made a face. "Sorry. Local, huh." He coughed and dry heaved, covering his mouth and swallowing hard.
"Yes," Lin said. She watched him moving his fingers aimlessly on the bars. He was definitely too drunk to do her any real damage. She leaned against the bars and stretched her bound hands up above her head, trying a little lie. "I heard Andale was the best town in America. Had to come see."
The man laughed, wiping his nose. His hand fell to his side and dangled there. "Bess town, yeah, think so. Not t'bess people, though." He scoffed and released the cage, angrily.
"Why don't you tell me about it," she said, gently maneuvering him into conversation. "Get it off your chest?"
He coughed and rubbed his chest, looking down at the vest he was wearing. Lin watched him, carefully. "Prob'ly," he said. "Martha jus doan get it. Hard work." He gestured to the knives and body parts.
"And Jack is always talking down to you?" Lin prompted, tilting her head at him.
"Shhhaaa," the man said, waving a hand. "Thinks he's hot shi―" he stopped himself. "Why d'you care. Gonna kill you in t'morning."
"Yeah," she said, shrugging casually. "But maybe I'd like to spend my last night alive doing something fun." She looked away from him and smiled, knowingly. "...Maybe just doing someone."
"...God, I wish I could keep you," he said, moving back to the bars and leaning his forehead onto them. "Yer a sight f'sore eyes."
"Why can't you?" she asked, curiously.
He sighed and closed his eyes. "Jus... jus can't," he said, woefully.
Lin moved over to the side of the cage and put her hands onto one of his, stroking it gently. "Tell me why," she said, softly, feeling the roughness of his hands. He had very hairy knuckles. Lin fought her stomach again, but told herself to stop. She had to get out. Had to. No matter how.
He smiled, ruefully. "Got a wife," he said, quietly.
"Not one that appreciates you," Lin answered, moving her face parallel to his, as close as she could. "I'm lonely, too," she whispered, breathing out onto his lips.
He stared at her for a moment, blinking drunkenly, then reached a hand into the cage and pulled her forward against the bars. Lin fought a shriek as he jammed his mouth onto hers, kissing her sloppily. She got her bearings and pushed her hands through the bars, rubbing his shoulder, kissing him back.
His breath was laced with whiskey, filling up her nose. She was too distracted to notice when one of his hands left her head and moved downward on the metal bar, and she yelped involuntarily when she fell out of the cage. She rolled with the skull and the skeleton it was attached to, onto the floor. She came to a rest on her back, reeling from the suddenness.
The man knelt over her and brushed a hair out of her face, bending down to kiss her again. Lin played up to him, trying to look out of the corners of her eyes at the floor. Where did that knife go, that he tossed away? She couldn't see the counter tops from here, would have to figure something out.
He fumbled at her clothes, pulling the zipper of the Vault suit down. Lin closed her eyes, working at the kiss, moving her hands down to his hips. She felt along his front until she found his belt buckle, then started undoing it with trembling hands. It won't go that far, she promised herself. Just―just distract him long enough to find a weapon―
His hands were on her chest, under the suit, moving over her breasts and down her side. Lin finished undoing his belt just as he grabbed her lower back with one hand, moving the other to her shoulder. He broke off the kiss and turned her around so that she was lying flat on her stomach.
Shit! She tried to push upward but he grabbed the back of her neck and pushed her into the floor, tugging at her top, pulling her arm back roughly. Lin yelped when he pulled the fabric from her arm, painfully twisting her arm back, pulling the rags around her wrists free. He repeated the step with the other side, just as roughly, breathing heavily and grunting with effort.
Calm down, Lin, she told herself. Her stomach was doing loops inside of her. He was about to―calm down, Lin. You're out of the cage and he's drunk as hell. And there are knives everywhere―
Her breasts were squished against the floor, painfully. It smelled terrible, so close to the floor, like dead things and shit. She wanted to cover her nose―dammit!
The man moved to the side and pulled her Vault suit down over her hips, until they rested around her knees. Lin whimpered, then smacked herself internally. Dammit, can't show fear!
He pulled her underwear down, then lifted up her hips so that she was on her knees, her head still pressed into the floor. His breathing quickened, running a hand along her skin, then grabbing a handful and squeezing.
"Mmm," she moaned, softly, pretending. Her eyes scraped along the floor that she could see, looking for anything she could use―
She moaned as he rubbed a finger along her folds, pressing down and into the hood of her sex. Jesus, his fingers were so thick―she pressed back against him, feeling her body betraying her. Shit!
"Martha never les me do this," he slurred, moving his finger hard against her clit. Lin closed her eyes and felt them rolling up into the back of her head. God, it felt really good―
"...You can do whatever you want, baby," she played along. She tried not to make a face, having to act like that. "Feels really good―ahhh!"
He stopped, abruptly, and moved his finger up, pressing against her entrance. "Never les me d'this one, either." He pushed into her flesh and she jerked in surprise and pleasure.
Waves of hot feeling rushed up her stomach and to her brain, making her pant out a guttural sound. He chuckled, moving his finger in and out of her, as the world went to oblivion around her. Good God, it was―she wasn't a virgin, but―never felt like that, before.
He slowly withdrew, removing his hand from the back of her head. He got up onto his knees and fiddled with his pants, as Lin pushed herself up from the floor onto her hands. She looked left and right, then saw the knife. Part-way under a fridge, less than ten feet from her. She glanced back at him, then scooted herself sideways, rolling onto her back. Placing herself within grabbing distance.
When he came back for her, she would grab it and stab him in the back. She breathed out, noisily. "Not from behind, baby," she murmured, touching her chest with a hand. "It's no good for me."
"Alright," he mumbled, moving to lay himself over her.
Lin reached up and grabbed his collar, pulling him in for another kiss, but he pushed her hands away, drawing them together and wrapping her wrists back up with the rags. Goddammit! He was smarter than she'd given him credit for―
He began to tug at her legs, pulling them up into the air and moving her hips closer to him. With her feet still bound together―he couldn't get at her from on top―he lifted her hips into the air, placing them on his thighs. "Wass―" he cleared his throat. "Wass y'name?"
She willed her heart to not explode. He was right there―she panted, in fear. "Linda," she choked out. Couldn't let it get that far, dammit!
"Linda..." he scooted himself forward and held her hips tightly. "May I?" he asked, blinking sleepily at her.
She saw the motion. He was about to pass out. Lin gestured to her bindings. "I can't really move like this, baby―" Jesus, she didn't want him to... to actually screw her, oh, God!
"Doan worry," he slurred, adjusting himself. "It'll be good."
Lin threw her head back and looked at where the knife was lying, working her hands up to it. Before she could reach it, he pushed forward and sunk himself into her.
Oh, God, he was right―she moaned, feeling the smooth motions, hitting her right where it needed to be. Warmth ran up and down her stomach, reaching her throat and making her cry out, as he grunted and moved at a gentle rolling pace.
Her hands touched the handle of the knife. Lin grabbed it and brought it down to her head, hiding it behind her messy hair. Her back scraped across the rough floor with every motion, her throat issuing out moans with each plunge.
Christ, he was good. Her spine began to curve up, pressing the back of her head into the floor, as he moved in and out. Every new thrust brought more and more wonderful feeling to her, flooding through her lower half.
He groaned, moving upward onto his knees, and bent her legs forward a little too much. She was suddenly in pain―and it reminded her of her goal―her hips were in the air now, his hands occupied by holding her up―
It was time.
Lin brought the knife out and held the handle tightly with her arms above her head, then bent her knees and kicked at his face as hard as she could. He stumbled backward, making a surprised noise, pulling out of her and dropping her hips to the floor.
She yelped in pain and rolled over quickly, onto her elbows and knees, pushing herself up awkwardly and bringing her hands around to stab the knife backwards. He was recovered, had a hand on her shoulder and an angry look on his face―then a wide look of alarm as the knife sunk deep into his stomach just below the ribs.
Lin stabbed again and again, shrieking, frantically trying to get him to die. He fell forward, groaning in pain, his hands digging into her skin and pulling her down. In a panic, she shoved her shoulder into him, pulling the knife out of his stomach and watching him fall onto the floor.
Once he'd hit the ground, she stabbed down into his back, the knife skipping across his shoulder blade and opening the flesh in a long strip. Lin kept stabbing until she was so out of breath she had to stop, folding herself onto her knees and crying. Blood smeared over her face as she wiped her tears away, trying to stop herself from freaking out―
He was twitching and bleeding to death in front of her.
God, it was fucking horrible―
She had to get out of here.
Had to―
Lin opened the shack door with the man's key, slipping out into the dark, keeping her eyes on her Pip-Boy's motion tracker. She was so shaky―felt like she was going to pass out again, her legs rubbery and her heart pounding in her chest so hard.
She hauled herself up to the road and crouch walked along the asphalt until she couldn't stand it anymore, and pushed her back up against the same truck she'd been caught in. She cried, then, big fat tears falling down her face. Soundless sobs wracking her body―
She felt so dirty, but she'd killed him. Killed him and now―now she needed to go back in there and kill the rest of them, but she couldn't. She didn't want to go anywhere near that fucking place! As soon as her legs would let her move again, she was going to run back through those fucking raiders and get out of here―
Lin shot one look back as she started away from the place. Her legs wobbled as she saw a shadow moving―she fell, hitting her head off a metal girder―
Lin opened her eyes and immediately started screaming. A bloodied and partially defleshed skull gaped at her, smashed up against her cheek.
She heard a motor noise chugging to life, and turned her head quickly, smacking her cheek into metal bars―
"...Sweet dreams, beautiful."