Author's Note: Howdy folks. How we doing today?
I'll make this quick. This story has been on the back-burner for a few years now. I know it's something I want to work on so I HAVE to get this first chapter out. Doesn't matter how long it takes me to finish the story, but I need it out here.
The main reason I ever come up with ANY stories is because I always want to bring an idea that seems interesting and may not have been done before. I want it to inspire people one way or the other. Let people learn from anything I accomplish or mess up.
This is no different.
Feedback whether it be negative or positive is completely welcome. Whether it's about my method of writing to anything within the world I'm trying to portray, I want to hear it all. It's hard to improve when no one tells me what's up. That said, if you notice any irregularities in this chapter, misspellings, wrong word placement, any of that, let me know about it as well.
Don't know when the next chapter will be up but for now, I need the main elements to be introduced. I already have a huge climax chapter written out, but obviously, I need to get the story from here to way the fuck over there.
I'll give the rest of the details at the end of the chapter, so please, get yourself a meal and beverage, or maybe popcorn, whatever you prefer, and enjoy.
Fallout 4
The Fallen Nation
Chapter One
The Beast
The world has been in disarray for two hundred years. In that time, humanity has done what it can to get by. But the fallout of the war did more than just destroy the world. It caused mutations. It caused new forms of life to exist. Through perseverance alone, humanity has been able to live alongside new threats. Some pockets of civilization are better off than others, but for the majority, the act of living is a fight for survival every day.
There have been factions that have come and gone. Some remain.
Those in power have been diligent at work, trying to harness new forms of technology and the like.
However, one group has been working on a project that the rest of humankind would call insane. It had been attempted once before, but was a complete failure, and because of this, killing machines that have become myth now roam the america's. Just as they had been worked on since before the days the bombs fell, a new group has been at work seeking to 'tame' this form of nature.
It appears they may have had some form of success.
The Lone Survivor will encounter this new phenomenon.
...
...
...
...
...
...
"...Strong is bigger than world knew..."
"You mean WORLD is bigger than Strong knew, right?"
The small company traveled through the North East areas of the Commonwealth. Strong blinked several times, realizing he had been corrected. "Guh...you mock Strong, human?" His face contorted in slight irritation, though the woman in the blue vault suit just chuckled. "Haha, not at all big guy. Just thought I'd let you know that you messed up your wording."
"...Hn, perhaps Rex right about you."
And so, just another day in the Commonwealth was coming to a close.
"Miss Lorraine, are we to head home yet? My sensors indicate that you need some form of nourishment, including the pup here."
At first, Lorraine looked up at the cloudy sky. "Ten-Four on that Codsworth, we're hauling around enough crap as it is." She turned and got on one knee, beckoning her second friend to walk towards her. "Come here girl." She offered a smile and pet the dog's head. "Hungry?" She chuckled again, rubbing her ears. Strong on the other hand snorted. "Why not use dog for food? Tastes good."
Codsworth practically had a heart attack. "Ex-CUSE us? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news Mister Strong, but Miss Lorraine and I are of a different breed! Back in our day, dogs were ALWAYS man's best friend! We will not use the pup here for such twisted gluttony!" He made a point of pointing his 'finger' to strong as he made his proclamation.
"Robot man not even have stomach!"
"Guys, focus. It'll be alright. Stop fighting please."
And once again, Lorraine came to the rescue.
Laughing off the small argument, the young woman continued to lead the way.
"Grr...stupid robot."
"Neanderthal-ish Brute."
'Bark!'
{These guys, as long as they don't kill each other...and I don't lose my sanity...I think we'll be okay.}
It had been earth shattering to awaken to this new period in time, but somehow, Lorraine was adapting to the post-apocalyptic world much better than she honestly thought she would. As it would be for just about anyone, the sheer magnitude of all that had happened to the earth after two centuries was something very difficult to process.
Just one day, everything's normal: Television, a house, bills to pay, a personal vehicle, a husband and a newly born child...and then apparently the next day, all of that is gone, replaced by death and decay, everywhere, and horribly twisted animals and creatures that the world of science would have never thought possible, roam about as if it were an every day thing, because it now is an every day thing. Even the drinking of water is considered dangerous. All the more reason to appreciate having ever gotten Codsworth.
So at least she had some amount of the past with her. That did not, however, change the fact that she no longer had the life that she once had, all due to the stupidity of humankind. Thinking about it was slowly beginning to dampen her mood, so she simply focused on the road ahead. Well, the 'path,' one could call it, was far north east of Trinity Tower, the area from which Lorraine ended up finding Strong and his human companion, Rex Goodman.
That had all been chance, but it's a good thing she had had Codsworth and Dogmeat with her. The Sheppard herself had proven as an excellent distraction for that mini-gunning bastard Fist. Then Codsworth came in with the fire-throwing and the saw...then Lorraine herself came up and close with her shotgun. Add in a few punches to his gullet with some sharp knuckles and he fell down quick enough.
Not exactly 'good times,' seeing as how she learned of the horrors committed by super mutants. Regardless, she had earned herself a powerful victory and much experience in dealing with them. {Would've been nice if I hadn't had to see all those meat bags...} Her face tensed in slight anger, but she let go of the negative emotion fast. It wouldn't do well to stress.
Sighing to herself, she brought up her pip-boy, going to the map section. "First we'll need to go to Green-Top Nursery. I promised to take those guys a few supplies, remember Codsworth?" She spared a glance and a thumbs-up to the floating automaton behind her as she continued leading the way. He of course couldn't answer quick enough. "Yes madame! I remember perfectly if my memory banks aren't malfunctioning! He said exactly, 'We could use some adhesives like glue or tape, anything of the sort.' It seems to me that he and his friend intend to craft some things."
"I think so too. Coming this far out to look for stuff was a good idea."
That's when Strong had something to say. "Little Human is a survivor. Not many humans can travel far in wastes without becoming food for brothers...or Deathclaws."
Lorraine immediately noticed the shift in tone from the tall humanoid, so she turned to look at him directly, skipping over a puddle as she did so. "What's a Deathclaw?"
It was odd when both Codsworth and even Strong became silent for a few seconds, but it became concerning when Dogmeat whimpered at the word, looking around, pressing her ears to her head. "Grr...Strong admit he not the strongest in world...that title belongs to Deathclaws."
Before she could ask, Codsworth began the explanation. "Mum, in the time since you've been gone, many new creatures have mutated and evolved. You have the petty buggers like the bloatflies and mole rats, then the stronger creatures like the mongrel dogs and Bloodbugs all the way up to the Stingwings and Radscorpions. Then for the creatures of the water, we have the Mirelurks, themselves being the most well defended of pretty much any creature around now...then for more land based creatures you have the Yao Guai, the poor irradiated descendants of the bears. In the human category, we have the feral ghouls...then you have the gunners and raiders, being nothing without their precious weapons, the grunts really. Then come the super mutants and very rarely, the Behemoths, Supermutants to the tenth power. We then have the Alpha-Predators of the commonwealth...and perhaps even all of the America's...the Deathclaws."
Lorraine slowed down to look at the three of them, most notably Dogmeat and her reactions to the word. How odd it was that a dog understood the word.
"You forget Mirelurk Queen stupid robot. They huge like Behemoth brothers."
"I've never even heard of a Mirelurk Queen you big oaf! Forgive my apparent ignorance! And surely there's other creatures out there you or I have yet to know about anyway, so there."
"So what have I already had the displeasure of encountering so far?" Trying to stop another argument from popping up, Lorraine interjected with a question to her personal robot. "Yes mum. So far it's only been the baser mammals and insects, although we've now had the misfortune of battling Strong's brothers. Luckily other than that, we are doing well. And so far as I've surmised, the safest place I know of that isn't guarded by walls happens to be our own little 'Sanctuary!' Ha-ha! See what I did there?"
"Strong not understand."
Lorraine just chuckled to herself, nodding as she led the way. "Ten-Four Codsworth. As long as we follow the same path we took to get way the heck out here and not a random path back home, the chances of us getting up close and personal with something scary is pretty much gonna be reduced to nothing, and we're getting pretty close as it is, so I'd say another thirty minutes and we'll make it there."
"As a matter of fact mum, thanks to the coordinates I happen to have, we'll actually make it there in thirty-two minutes and forty seconds at this pace. An excellent guess mum! Ha-ha!"
"Robot annoying."
"I don't believe anyone was asking you for your opinion Mister Strong!"
"Guys..." Lorraine started rubbing her temples, but was actually more entertained than anything.
Only a few hours and both of them were starting to act like brothers.
OOO
Sometime Later...
After the supposed thirty minutes or more, Green-Top Nursery was finally in sight. Along the way, the group had no encounters with anything, not even Bloodbugs, and they actually found a few more little items to add to their collection. There had been a few areas they could have explored, but as Leader of the squad, and considering the fact that they did in fact have enough caps and supplies for the day, Lorraine made the decision to just avoid those areas, opting to go through the open and empty spaces.
At least then, if there were any enemies, they would be seen first and wouldn't be able to ambush the group.
But now, the squad was in a slightly wooded area, thanks to Green Top being in such an area and on top of the hill.
"This place Nursery?"
"Ten-Four big guy. There's only two people here but I'm thinking once we get a beacon set up, more people are gonna start coming around. Although I'd rather just..."
One of the two men noticed her. "Lorraine! What's up! And uh...who's your new friend?"
Strong grumbled for a second but decided to introduce himself. "I am Strong, little man. Human save Strong and Rex Goodman from brothers. Strong follow her now to find Milk of Human Kindness."
Lorraine gave it a few seconds but ended up chuckling at the settler's confused expression. "He's not gonna hurt anyone man. Just like Codsworth and Dogmeat here, he's a new member. Hopefully he'll see me and the crew as family at some point. Anyways, here's all the stuff you wanted..."
She went up to one of the building stations and opened up her satchel. "Got a few rolls of tape, managed to find some wonder-glue, annnnnnnnd I actually got some vegetable starch. That'll work too, no?" She placed everything down and gave a smile of accomplishment. "Oh yeah, I'm good. Not much of a good gunfighter but I make that up with my smarts and my stamina."
As much as the appearance of Strong was bothering him, the gentlemen was more than generous enough to look for the reward that this random woman and her small team had very much earned. "Yeah...you really know what you're doin out here. Thanks a lot. I knew this stash of caps would come in handy some day." As he looked over the contents, he took out the bag of currency that had utterly bewildered Lorraine when she first set foot outside for the first time in two hundred years.
Luckily Codsworth had been a big help in giving her knowledge about how things worked nowadays.
"No problem. Hope everything works out for you guys. Just um...I got something else I might need." She bit her lip and looked elsewhere, hoping it would be okay to ask.
The settler was putting the supplies away for further use, but he was more than ready to answer. "Whatcha got for me ma'am?"
"Dog needs food." Strong bluntly made the statement, knowing already how Lorraine did not like asking people for things. "Human has food for human, Strong has food for Strong. But dog not have own food yet. Robot not need anything."
"You could at least ask nicely you over-sized Neanderthal! Guh! Such terrible manners!"
This actually prompted the man to laugh. "Oh gosh, yeah yeah, that's fine. We have extra meat leftover from a Radstag. Part of the legs and stuff. Go get it please Frank?"
"Yeap, gotcha." The guy designated as 'Frank' had been studying Strong the whole time, but he had been following the conversation. "Strong prefer to just eat dog, but Robot says that make Human unhappy, so Strong listen."
"Ah, well, good on you Strong. I think you'll like hangin' out with Lorraine. She's proving to be one of the better things to happen to people like us in a long time."
"Strong not hang himself or human."
The response was plenty enough to give Lorraine and the settler a good laugh.
"That is not what the gentlemen is implying Mister Strong." Codsworth turned his three vision-sensors to him, obviously not seeing how funny the little interaction was.
'Bark!'
And so, after a little bit of chit-chat and what-not, Lorraine looked at the time on her pip-boy. "Well guys, like I said before, I'm glad you're making it out here. Thanks for the caps and food. I'll be sure to check up on ya'll if I'm passing through again." She gave a piece sign, strapping her satchel back on.
"Much obliged, we pretty much still owe you really. All the hell you went through just to get us a few pieces of junk is worth a lot more than we gave you, you know? But you scored big-time cause now you got the Strong Man on your side, ain't that right bro?"
Strong was just standing there minding his own business until he heard his name. "Strong is Super Mutant, not 'bro,' but yes little man, Human is lucky to have Strong as follower."
This caused the two men to snicker. "No problem Strong, just making sure I'm right."
"Anyways guys, we'll see you later. Stay safe ya hear?" Lorraine extended her hand.
And just like that, she shook hands with them. "Will do ma'am, I would tell you the same but you got three good bodyguards that know that the heck they're doin'. Props to you."
"I agree, thanks again."
"Later."
"Bye."
Without further ado, the woman waved and turned around, ready to go straight home.
As she started walking down the hill, she took another look at her pip-boy.
"Alright fellas...we may have to do a little zig-zagging to get there, but we should be able to make it there by nightfall. Hopefully." She nodded to herself and stepped onto the road. It would only be about three seconds before she noticed something when she looked directly forward. {That's weird.} However, her thoughts were immediately interrupted by one familiar Super Mutant. "Why avoid combat human? Scared of wasteland prey?" He seemed a little peeved, being the aggressive berserker that he was.
It was still noon-ish, so even though it was cloudy, everything was clear. The first time Lorraine came through here was earlier that morning, so she hadn't even seen the big area that was a sinkhole. "Not at all Strong..." She started walking closer, just out of natural curiosity. The others followed as she continued to speak. "It's just that I'm low on ammo. I'm strong for a human being but if I were to go hand-to-hand with something out here in the wastes, I'd rather have some kind of melee weapon. Tomorrow I plan to look for more ammo and stuff, and anything I can use for when I don't have ammo..." She continued onward until she was inside the destroyed building. She moved close to the edge and observing the damage to the area.
"Just like you having that big sledgehammer, I need something I can use either to...hack enemies to pieces or beat them down to a pulp. I'm not saying I like that though."
"Good heavens Miss Lorraine I'm so glad to hear that. Nowadays people are just murderers and thieves, I'm glad you are not turning out to be that way."
The woman merely nodded, still looking down at the hole, noticing how the other half of this particular building had broken and was just a mess, now fallen into the hole. She noticed something else. "Hey look..." She pointed down, to which the other two looked, seeing a destroyed vehicle, but right next to it was a green chest.
However, they didn't seem to notice how Dogmeat was suddenly uncomfortable.
"A military ammo dump. Shall we go down there and see what's inside mum?"
'whine'
The woman was about to answer, but turned immediately at the sudden whimper that Dogmeat gave off. "Hmm? What's the matter girl?" She looked at her in concern, going over and kneeling so she could pet her and rub her back.
Strong and Codsworth exchanged glances, and the former spoke first. "Something not right. Dog senses something."
"I must agree with Mister Strong. My sensors indicate an accelerated heart-rate in Dogmeat. There must be danger nearby."
Lorraine's eyes slightly narrowed as she looked around, noticing something. "Why is it so quiet out here?" She lowered her voice to a whisper.
Her attention returned to her companion. "...It's okay girl, we'll make it through this, okay?" Comforting her as best she could, she gave her a kiss on the forehead and crouched, sneaking back outside the building. {But why the hell would there be something dangerous around here if the guys live just right there? They didn't pick somewhere to live and didn't even bother to scan the surroundings...I hope.}
"By the way mum..." Codsworth spoke in a hushed tone, Strong pulling out his sledgehammer and marching forward, making sure to go ahead of her. "My internal map labels this area as 'Old Gullet Sinkhole...' I am not certain if that information helps...as I do not know of the wildlife around here..."
"...Who knows...we'll find out later for sure."
That's when they heard a gunshot and a roar.
Strong immediately turned in the direction it came from. "HA! YAO GUAI! MAKE GOOD PREY!"
Before the others could say anything, the super mutant took off, around the sinkhole, and the sounds of a scuffle could be heard. However, the leader of the squad was wondering if that was really why Dogmeat was so disturbed. "Miss Lorraine..." The robot began, watching as Strong disappeared over the hill, but following Lorraine. "I do not believe a Yao Guai is the reason for Dogmeat's distress."
"We'll worry about that in a second Codsworth!" The woman immediately started running as she realized a sudden possibility. "C'mon! We have to make sure whoever's shooting doesn't end up thinking Strong's an enemy!"
The robot immediately understood. "Yes Ma'am! Tally-ho!"
And took off they did, but it didn't even take twenty seconds to get to the battle-zone, just above another hill.
"HA! FACE ME!"
"Roooooaaaaa!"
It seemed Strong arrived just in the nick of time, as a lone settler had just narrowly escaped death by climbing onto a tree. "Mother-fucker!" His leg was bleeding.
"Strong! To the left!"
Perfectly to a T, Strong dodged to the left, and Lorraine fired her rifle, hitting the irradiated bear in the side. "Rooooaaaa!"
"Oooohhhh it looks like you angered him mum! I'll protect you! En garde!"
Lorraine lowered the weapon and watched as both of her allies started going back to back against the animal. She sort of felt sorry as fire was unleashed upon it, though that didn't mean her friends weren't getting damaged.
"Ha! You hit like a radroach! RRAHH!" The beast managed to hit Strong hard on the side, but the Super Mutant quickly retaliated and managed a fast one by punching the animal straight in the face. "Roooaaa!" It immediately charged, to which Strong was knocked back against the very tree the settler had retreated too. "Guh! Not even CLOSE to beating ME!"
The beast however was smarter than that, and immediately turned and charged the incoming Codsworth. "Huh?!"
He immediately braced for the impact and was knocked back.
{So this is what happened to the bears. Didn't have a thing for them before...but this is just sad, seeing them like this.} Readying her weapon, Lorraine immediately ran for the cover of some fallen trees, up high on the hill next to her.
What she didn't expect was the small pack of mole rats right where she was going to hide. "What the-?!"
The creatures hissed while she backed up and took out her shotgun. {So much for a hiding spot! One, two, SIX! Alright, not that much! Gotta get rid of them quick!}
BOOM
One down, the others scattering.
In just a few short minutes, Lorraine's whole day went from good to bad. However, the odds were in her favor, even if she herself was outnumbered. As she began using her vats system for better accuracy, she ran scenarios through her head. It was two against one when it came to the Yao Guai, one of them a Super Mutant and the other a Mr Handy with a saw and a flamethrower. Surely that meant something.
And her predicament...well, the little bastards were only a threat if they bit her. Those jaws were probably saturated with a lot of dangerous bacteria.
BOOM
BOOM
Three down, three to go.
"RAGE! RAAAAAAAAAGE!"
The woman heard Strong apparently get mad about something, but she was too focused on the remaining little bastards that were trying to jump her.
BOOM
Another down, this time without the vats system. Two more were left.
"I don't feel pain, you know?!"
Codsworth was heard, along with a loud clang, but that was good, it meant they were holding up. Trying to run circles around them, Lorraine waited patiently for her vats system to replenish. {Ten seconds...seven seconds...four seconds...} She reloaded her gun. {Zero seconds.} She reactivated her vats system.
BOOM
BOOM
And down they went, blood splattering all over the ground. Fortunately she didn't get any on her clothes. However, as she took a few breaths, she heard the sound of rapid movement.
Immediately she tensed and spun around, getting one of the biggest scares of her life as the Yao Guai was only three feet away from her.
In that split second, she saw Strong lifting himself from the ground and Codsworth knocked over a small ledge, also beginning to get up.
"HUMAN!"
She was barely able to throw up her arms as the beast rammed her...and she was knocked off her feet...towards the large sinkhole.
"GAH!"
She twisted in mid air and landed hard, her rifle and shotgun knocked off of her person.
The initial blow stunned her, so by the time she got to the edge, it was too late. In her disoriented state, she recognized that she just barely gained the momentum to roll right over the ledge. And naturally, she tried to hang on to something, but it was beyond her control at this point. It was almost surreal as she began to roll down the edge.
It was only a few seconds, but it seemed to take forever, and by the time she made it to the bottom, her whole body was damaged.
She was now on her front, just laying there next to a pallet and the car she had seen earlier, the one with a military chest right in front of it. But none of that was registering right now.
She was numb.
Her eyes were slightly opened, and she had an expression of disbelief. She wasn't actually even thinking of anything at this point. Then, the pain started to set in. All over, and especially her head, she started to feel immense pain. She bit her lips and closed her eyes, trying her best to relax her body as she took even breaths.
"...hhhhh..." She let out just the smallest of pained grunts, but that was it. The world was a terrible place now, and the only way to adapt would be to strengthen her will and deal with this. It had only been TWO days since she was released from that frozen prison, and even if two hundred years had drastically mutated and morphed the world into something she would have never thought possible, she refused to just submit and die a beggars death. She would pull through this, no matter what.
"Roooaaa!"
She tensed again, this time in anger as she heard the Yao Guai snarl from some random direction. Apparently the creature was finding its way down to her. {Great...just my luck...come on Strong...Codsworth...help...}
'Bark!'
Lorraine's eyes opened wide. {No. No! Dogmeat get out of here!} As she began to agonize over what terrible and possible fate could happen, she heard movement once again, then the whining, and then feeling a warm tongue on her forehead. "No...get out of here girl...he'll kill you..."
'whine'
Once again, she was alarmed. Yet again, Dogmeat began to wine. She struggled as she turned her head up, observing her canine friend's submissive form, the poor thing once again with her tail between her legs, looking at something.
'Raaaoooo...'
The woman heard the approach of the Yao Guai, apparently having found a way down without hurting itself.
"HUMAN!"
"MUM!"
It seemed they were too late, but Lorraine heard as they came down. {Hurry...hurry! Dogmeat doesn't stand a chance!} It was odd how she was more concerned over the well-being of the pup than herself, but she didn't care. Her thoughts quickly turned to the enemy, as the creature was now only several feet away from them, directly opposite of the direction that Strong and Codsworth were coming from.
'BARK'
Through the haze that was her disoriented state, Lorraine tried to study what exactly was going on with Dogmeat. First she was whining, now she was barking aggressively...but once more she seemed to go back to whining, shuffling uncomfortably.
"MUM, WE'LL SAVE YOU!"
"YES HUMAN...STRONG...will..."
Lorraine had been facing the direction she fell down from, which was where Strong and Codsworth came from, so now, she was able to see how both of them immediately stopped, looking at the Yao Guai apparently.
There was a slight problem however. They were tense.
Strong's eyes had become far wider than Lorraine had seen them in the few hours she'd known him. Codsworth retracted all of his limbs, his visual scanners all locked on the enemy apparently.
The Yao Guai started to snarl and growl again, but neither Dogmeat, nor Strong, nor Codsworth were paying attention to that.
'whine'
"...Human..."
The sense of urgency in Strong's voice as he gripped his weapon far tighter started to alarm her.
"Mum...now we know why Dogmeat has been so nervous these past few minutes..."
Lorraine blinked a few times, and just as she was about to turn her head, a sound she had never heard before was uttered.
"Nnnnnnnnnnnn...hhhhhhhhhhhhh..."
The vocal power from whatever the low rumbling came from once more set Lorraine's instincts on high alert, and she put every ounce of strength she could into lifting her head and turning so she could see in the opposite direction.
And then she saw it.
The Yao Guai had turned around, and it began to growl as it finally noticed a new adversary.
Only, this enemy was much larger than it was, and far more menacing, resting inside the building that had shielded it from view.
Lorraine supposed now that she had finally seen it all...because she couldn't make sense of what she was seeing.
"NNNNNNNNN...RRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO..."
A warning.
The Yao Guai had overstepped its boundaries and walked straight into the territory of one of the most terrifying and mythic creatures to ever walk the post-apocalyptic lands of the America's, and now the beast was giving it a warning to get the hell out.
The creature submitted, having encountered beasts like this before and knowing how utterly dreadful the outcome would be, so it started to back away, before taking off.
'whine'
The remaining four were at a loss.
Three of them were wounded, especially Lorraine, and Dogmeat just wouldn't make it even in self-defense.
What were they supposed to do?
But somehow, more than anything, Lorraine was genuinely amazed by what she was seeing. {Whoa...those horns...those eyes...that face...}
This creature seemed to be different from any that Strong had seen, and he took notice.
For one, the creature's hide was an obsidian-black in color. That, and it had many more spikes jutting out of nearly every point on it's body, more than Strong had ever seen before on any individual of this particular species.
He had also been aware that many of these beasts were usually blind, signified by completely blank eyes, but this creature had blood-red sclera, and platinum-white irides? Not only that, it was looking each of them over, especially Dogmeat and Lorraine. Obviously, the creature had better eye sight then it's brethren.
"Human." Strong began to carefully step forward, alert and cautious of the fact that the creature was only there on it's side, watching them and breathing evenly. "We leave. Now. Not prepared to fight new enemy."
Codsworth also began to approach, keeping the saw at the ready. "Yes Mum...we just aren't prepared to fight our new host the way we are now."
The woman could take the suspense no longer, so she asked the question. "Guys...what am I looking at...what is that thing?"
Strong hardened his expression. "That, Human..."
"...Is a Deathclaw, mum." Codsworth finished for him.
Once again, Dogmeat whined when she heard the word, but she was brave enough to stand between the resting beast and the thoroughly injured Lorraine.
Unfortunately, she only managed a weak bark in her attempt to ward off any attempts the creature might have in doing them harm.
But the beast did nothing. It did nothing, other then incline it's head forward and breath loudly, as what sounded like a pained groan managed to escape it.
"Hhhhhhhaaaaaaa..."
Perhaps it was just her being insane, or perhaps it was her maternal instincts, the ones she was also starting to obey when it came to Dogmeat, maybe even the fact that having hit her head had seriously jumbled her brain, or all of those combined, but when Lorraine recognized the sound of pain coming from the creature, she started to force herself to get up.
"Good Human. Prove to Strong your strength."
She started to feel around, and yes, she felt her satchel. "Dogmeat..." She whimpered as she bit back an aggravated yell. It seemed her ribs were badly damaged. But nonetheless, Dogmeat stepped down and came to her, wondering what she was doing. "...Will you come with me?" The pup tilted her head as she whined, not exactly understanding. Lorraine locked eyes tiredly with the beast resting inside the destroyed remains of the very building they had been inside of not even fifteen minutes ago, and began crawling towards it.
"MUM! What are you doing?!"
"Strong know you are tough Human, but you just snack for Deathclaw!"
"Shhhhh...relax guys...can't you see? He's hurt. Look at his leg."
Both individuals had been so focused on the beast's gaze, and because it was also hunched over, they didn't see the massive gashes in the beast's musculure leg.
The beast gave a low hum, though no one could tell what it meant. "Hhhhhhhhh..."
Regardless, Lorraine kept her eyes on the creature and continued onward.
For the next few seconds, it was deathly quiet as Dogmeat bravely accompanied her new master as she crawled towards death itself...and the entire time, death watched her silently.
It watched her as she came near arms length away from it.
"Hey big guy...feeling under the weather too?"
The beast looked straight at her.
"Strong..." Codsworth whispered. The mutant brought his ears closer. "It would appear that in her damaged state, Mum has lost some of her normal cognitive functions...but also, because she is so damaged, the Deathclaw doesn't see her as a threat. We may have a chance to retrieve her before it decides to consume her."
Lorraine was in her own world though, her eyes hazy because of the trauma she received to her head...and Dogmeat was doing her best not to aggravate the beast. "Hey...your leg looks kinda rough, let me help..."
Whether the beast understood anything she just said or not was anyone's guess, but it still had yet to attack. It seemed it was observing her actions for some reason, apparent or not.
Perhaps it was smarter than it let on.
"...M'kay...some of this...and this..."
She took a few items and extended her hand. The beast suddenly recoiled, albeit slightly, but when she just looked up at him in that confused haze, the beast's eyes narrowed, yet he allowed her to touch him.
"HEY! YOU GUYS ALRIGHT?!"
Strong and Codsworth looked back to see the man they helped coming down the side of the sinkhole, a pipe revolver at his side. "I can't thank you guys enough for coming around, I was just barely gonna come to Green-Top to trade some stuff and then...and then..." As he made it down safely and looked at the two, he then immediately noticed their silence, and what seemed like an impossibility.
"Wha...what the hell?" He suddenly whispered, pointing, but immediately flinching when the beast from only 40 feet away, turned it's head to look at him.
"Human is strong. Human can command Deathclaw."
"Let's not blow this out of proportion Strong. We know that the creature is wounded, and the madame is even more damaged than the creature itself. I'm more inclined to believe that it hasn't attacked her for two logical reasons: It already had a meal, and it knows that mum just doesn't pose a threat to it in her damaged state. She doesn't even have her weapons...we do, although I am not suggesting the beast even recognizes such a fact." He remarked, pointing to the two weapons that Strong had picked up for Lorraine, which were now hanging on his shoulder.
"Uh...well anyways guys...so what now?"
Lorraine didn't seem to even know they were conversing, as in her delusional state, she was quietly cleaning off the blood, getting some of it on her pip-boy, but she either didn't notice or care. "Alright...don't think this'll help that much but it's worth a shot..." She took out some gauze and had to crane her head all the way up just to look at the beast, as if she would somehow get approval to keep on with the medical treatment, taking out a stimpak as she did so.
And of course the beast continued to just look at her, breathing and humming calmly, but also with pained grunts.
"This is gonna hurt big guy...don't tear me up when you feel it, okay? Haha..." She turned the stimpak over and put emphasize on the needle, trying to get him to understand.
There was no response, other then the beast actually looking at the stimpak and merely doing what it could to even it's breathing.
Dogmeat was still on edge. 'whine'
Knowing that the creature probably didn't understand a damn thing she was saying, she just silently went for it, and placed her small hand next to the massive gashes on it's leg. "Three...two...one."
She quickly jammed the stimpak into the tender wound.
And that was the second time she got one of the most terrifying scares of her life.
"ROOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Time seemed to slow as the other three tensed and readied for combat. The Obsidian Deathclaw dug it's claws into the walls of the building, roaring out to the heavens as it once more had to deal with an agonizing pain in it's wounded leg. It tore through the frail materials of everything around it, twisting and turning its torso as it continued to howl.
Lorraine closed her eyes and sat there frozen, waiting for the inevitable. She was certain that the beast's roar had been heard for miles.
Luckily anyone that heard wasn't in her spot right now, at point blank range.
Then it all slowed down, and the woman had a feeling why that was.
She slowly began to open her eyes, and what she saw was hard to understand.
"NNNNnnnnnn...mmmmmmm..."
The beast was now resting on one of its elbows, looking at her in the same way it had been before...only...less angry?
"Uh...I take it you can feel the healing process?" She offered slowly, her senses starting to come back to her. The beast continued to breath calmly once again, having an easier time than before. "...I'll take that as a yes...now...if you'll just let me finish up here..." As the beast continued to look at her, now seeing her in a much different way than it had before, she got the gauze and slowly started to wrap the beast's leg.
The other three continued to watch silently.
"And...there...isn't that better?" She chuckled to herself, a little nervously but either way she felt good about it, inspecting her work and the beast itself.
"Mum! Perhaps we should go now!"
Strong began walking towards them, to which the creature took notice, but did nothing.
"Human...you something else. None have been known to tame Deathclaw." He walked straight up to them, recognizing the beast as something even larger and stronger than himself, but he showed no fear, not anymore. If this small human could stand up to the Alpha-Predator of the wastes, then he too would follow in her footsteps. "Strong appreciate you not eating Human, Deathclaw. Strong need Human to help Strong find Milk Of Human kindness."
Dogmeat finally walked closer and started to nuzzle Lorraine, being able to see that the creature before them was no longer hostile, if it even had been at all. Said beast merely kept it's eyes locked with Strong for a few seconds before snorting.
"Hmff."
Strong seemed to recognize that it wasn't going to attack also, so he turned down to his leader. "Human. Time to go. Climb on back. Human wounded."
"Haha, that's okay...nothing some bandaging and sleep can't fix...but yeah, help me up." Lorraine extended her hand. Strong turned around and got on one knee, bringing one hand back so he could help her get on. "There..." He slowly got her on until she was hanging on. "Time to go. Deathclaw..." He turned around so now he and his leader were looking the beast in the eyes once again, both of them acutely aware of the fact that the beast was still much larger than both of them combined, even though it was sitting. "Strong remember act of kindness. In future, Strong give you Milk of Human Kindness as act of thanks. May Deathclaw have good fights in future."
And with that, Strong turned around and started to walk, confident that the beast would not attack him from behind.
"Good heavens mum, would it be remiss to say that you could perhaps be certifiably insane? Goodness, I'm so glad you are unharmed! Well, not harmed from your new medical patient! We must still tend to the wounds from your fall! Please! Give us your symptoms!" Codsworth seemed to have just avoided a panic attack, but that didn't stop him from trailing hastily after Strong as they took their leave.
Just before he was out of sight however, Lorraine turned her head to look at the Obsidian Deathclaw once again, more out of curiosity than anything.
And the beast sat there, observing both her and the others as it absentmindedly dug it's claws through the dirt.
She blinked once, twice, before softly chuckling and closing her eyes, letting her exhaustion take over.
"Mainly Codsworth...just my ribs..."
And with that, she succumbed to exhaustion.
OOO
Some Time later...
At first, all that was heard was the steady sound of fire outside, and a few grunts, familiar heavy ones. "Kuh, useless robot. Not even know how to make campfire."
"If you hadn't noticed my good chum, I am equipped with a personal flamethrower. As I recall, we agreed that it would be you who would get the fire going while I took care of the madame's meal! Also, technically you aren't making a campfire. We're in the vicinity of your new home. Our home. Can't call it a campfire now. Best remember to give the madame your thanks when she wakes up."
It was now early morning.
The day after all the crazy shit that happened.
That meant it was nice and cool. Neither of the two really needed sleep, definitely not Codsworth, so he was the one to keep an eye out the whole night, as he himself stated he would from now on. "Hmph. Strong acknowledge Human's strength. Is good enough."
"Tch...ruffian."
After the whole fiasco that happened yesterday, several things were accounted for. For one, the settler that was luckily saved offered Strong and Codsworth a bit of food and a stimpak for Lorraine's use. He would be the one to deliver the shot to her in her slumbering state, and it would be Codsworth that wrapped up all the wounds on her person, from there they parted ways, and Codsworth led the whole way back home.
Once they made it to Sanctuary Hills, Codsworth led Strong to Lorraine's house and instructed him to place her on the newly made bed.
From there, the whole night was nice and quiet, minus the witty banter that Strong and Codsworth exchanged, leaving Dogmeat to her own devices after being fed.
"Strong have question." The large mutant decided to change the subject, having had a few thoughts on his mind for a while. "Alright, what would that be?" The robot continued to stir the contents of the pot, making sure to follow all the steps of the recipe to a T, even the temperature of the contents. At first, Strong looked around at the environment, taking it all in once more. "How long Human and Robot live here? Place feels...safe, no walls, but far away from all enemies. But Strong notice that human is...clean. No radiation. Only some scars and a few burns. Strong remember Robot say how things different in 'Human's and Robot's day.' What Robot mean?"
A calming breeze swept through Sanctuary Hills, the Super Mutant sitting down on his makeshift steel chair.
Codsworth quietly tapped the pot as he thought it over. In reality, telling Strong may or may not endanger Lorraine in the future. He wasn't sure how, but that was what he simply felt. But, since Strong actually made the effort to understand her and Codsworth himself, the Robot felt compelled to give him the full story. "Mum and I are much older than we look, Mister Strong." Once again, he began to stir the contents in the pot. "I and the madame, as well as her family were here before everything you know today even existed Strong. In other words, we are both over two hundred years old."
The super mutant huffed. "How Human still alive then? Human can't live that long."
"Mum was frozen in time, Mister Strong. That suit that she was wearing is made by a company known as Vault-Tec. I know nothing about that company other than the fact that they offered underground shelter for qualified individuals, shelter from nuclear warfare. It was the nuclear bombs that turned the world into what it is today. The vault that Mum went to is just over yonder. Unfortunately...the Sir and young Shaun were taken away at some point...if it pains me so greatly, I do not know how the madame is taking it."
Strong took a few seconds to ponder this new bit of info over.
"So Human just now adapting to new world?"
"Correct. That's an even bigger reason for me to serve her needs, because as we both know, now with radiation everywhere, Mum will need all she can take to avoid sickness, disease, and of course, she'll need me to be purifying her water. Much is different now than it was two-hundred years ago, and I believe accompanying mum will help her adapt far better."
The Super mutant seemed to understand.
It grew silent as time started to go by. Codsworth continued tending to the pot, making sure each and every last ingredient would cook to perfection. Every so often, Strong would add more wood to the fire, surprisingly cooperative when Codsworth would instruct how much to place in the fire. Not that far away, Dogmeat could be seen playing with various toys and stuffed animals that she had apparently found.
"Morning..."
The two perked up at the familiar voice, turning to see Lorraine walking out of her house, clad in compression shorts and all that gauze covering her torso. She yawned, stretching but also covering her mouth as she did so. "How long was I out...?" She looked between the two tiredly, taking a seat in one of the chairs she brought out from the house. "Good morning of course Mum! And as for your question, you've been soundly asleep since yesterday when you fell into unconsciousness. That gentlemen that had been attacked by the Yao Guai offered us a stimpak for you. Of course after he left I made sure to ask Strong to look away as I wrapped all of your wounds, madame. My apologies for having to disrobe you to do so."
"Not a problem Codsworth, I'm just glad a lot of my old clothes are still intact. The basement didn't really get damaged at all, so that's good." She laughed lightly, rubbing her arms and legs. "Brr, kinda chilly out here."
"Well madame there are of course a few blankets downstairs, perhaps you'd like one?"
"Maybe later Codsworth, I'm actually used to this kind of chill. Also I really don't want to get any of my old things dirty. We still need to find a way to build something we can use to launder all of my old things. There's a good amount of stuff in there that hasn't been tampered with thanks to the lock mechanism we had installed into there. You were very considerate to keep it hidden by burying the entrance with old stuff. Thanks again for that old friend."
Strong titled his head when Codsworth apparently started to sniffle.
"Oh...yes mum! Hhhh, I do so very much feel alive every time I hear your appreciation for me and for what I do to try and serve you!"
The woman chuckled. "Of course Codsworth. Now. It's been almost twenty-four hours since you told me I needed some form of nourishment, and I'm gonna tell you right now, I'm hungryyyyyyy..." It was quite clear that food was all that was on her mind at the moment. "Ha-ha! An astute observation mum! It just so happens that the meal is now ready. Brahmin Stew: carrots, a few onions, sliced mutfruit, and of course chunks of brahmin all cooked to perfection in purified broth! I even made sure to sear the brahmin meat on this flat iron here before adding it at the very end of the cooking process! Have some mum! The dishes and silverware are right behind you on that small table next to the window."
"Ten-Four on that..."
"By the way mum, I've been listening to my internal radio. There are several things you may wish to listen to. Shall I retrieve your pip-boy?"
Since the Sole Survivor hadn't been paying much attention to the radio, she didn't know of what was going on in the news, and apparently Codsworth had been keeping tabs on everything.
"Alright. Where are you hearing it from?" She didn't think it would be that interesting, considering that the world of today was a bit...different. In that regard, she felt that news today was practically nothing, because really, where there any wars anymore? Were the Olympics still taking place? Was ANY kind of sport known throughout the world still being played? Was there some grand meeting of two world leaders happening?
"Diamond City Radio Mum!"
Author's Note: So, there you have it.
For this story in particular, I very much see it as writing a DLC if you will. Like, what if someone were to make an actual film that revolves around Fallout 4?
I think doing something like DLC would be the best way to go. We know the story already. We know what happens. But what if we are placed in a scenario that is familiar, but new elements are introduced? Would be cool if someone was to do that, and then Bethesda actually make DLC off of it and give it to us players.
So, what's the 'DLC' here?
The Obsidian Deathclaw, and the elements that got him here.
Now tell me, how was your very first experience encountering a Deathclaw in any of the fallout games? Probably terrifying, right?
I love their concept and how their lore affects the Fallout universe.
So now, I wanted to do something interesting. The real kicker actually comes from a bug that would happen in Fallout 4. The area, 'Old Gullet Sinkhole' which was addressed by Codsworth in this fiction, is actually in the game.
There is indeed a Deathclaw in that area.
However, for some reason, the game would bug, and the first time I ever went in there, I was looting the military crate that's there. Imagine how I reacted when I started hearing heavy breathing. When I finally turned around, there it was, standing in a spot that hid it from view of anyone looking down into the area. But it wouldn't attack me, even when I walked straight up to the guy.
Nope, I didn't even think of attacking.
You can actually google this, 'Friendly Deathclaw fallout 4,' and you'll find articles on the matter.
For me, this bug was an inspiration. The Alpha Predator of Fallout deserves the respect it has, but there is hardly ANYTHING whether it be actual gameplay or fan works that involve them, so I decided to make a story that would incorporate them, more specifically, one special Deathclaw.
You've only just met him. Later down the road, you'll see that he's more important than the characters give him credit for.
So, that's my idea. That's my 'what-if DLC' type of thing. A story that intertwines the fates of our character and a special alpha predator. I don't know how long this story will last, but I wanted to do this.
Tell me what you think, try to take guesses as to what will happen. I hope to hear from you all, and hey, if you aren't someone signed up on Fanfiction, you can still leave an anonymous review if you really have something you'd like to tell me.
Thank you all, see you next time.
