PART TWO: Remembering Games and Daisy Chains
Chapter One: No Place Like Home
Someplace where there isn't any trouble. Do you suppose there is such a place, Toto? There must be. It's not a place you can get to by a boat or train. It's far, far away... behind the moon... beyond the rain.-Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Boone walks with an arm full of bandages and alcohol to Julie Farkas. He'd been staying at the Old Mormon Fort instead of the Lucky 38 to help out wherever he could. With his skill set, he'd mostly been a delivery boy for the doctors, and extra security for the Follower's base at night. He'd ask the doctors whenever he got a chance about Haze's brain injury, but the only one who could make any sense to him had been Arcade, who made an effort to use words he could understand.
Foolishly, he'd expected her to arrive back the day he had, if not a day after. But he and Arcade had gotten back to Freeside, and Boone had been left waiting. After the fourth day, Boone had thrown himself into helping the Followers to keep himself from worrying. By the sixth day, he'd been ready to shoulder his rifle and go after her, for better or worse.
After she'd been gone a week, she walks through the doors of the Old Mormon Fort with a group in tow. The people look weary and dirty. The oldest girl flinches every time a man walks too closely to her. Haze smiles down at a small child who holds her hand, and something aches in Boone's chest. Those people had obviously been slaves, and she'd gotten them out. He doesn't say anything, doesn't call out to her, unsure of what to say. Julie takes the medical supplies from him with a small smile.
"Thanks, Boone," she says. She looks between Boone and Lola, with the former unable to tear his eyes from the latter. "Go on and say hi-you've done more than enough here." He nods, swallowing, and moves toward Haze before stopping short. The oldest woman of the group hugs Haze tightly, kissing her cheek, and says what sounds to Boone to be a tearful thank you. Haze shakes the hand of the boy, and says to the oldest girl,
"You still hot-got that pistol?" The girl nods, patting her side, and Lola nods in return. She looks up to see Boone in the middle of all the doctors, looking at her past his sunglasses. She considers what she might say to him after everything she'd been through the past few days.
"Still not Legion," is the greeting she settles on. Boone doesn't smile, instead saying,
"Huh. You were gone for a while. Didn't think you were coming back, Haze."
"Didn't want to stay," she says. "Vaccum-vacation package there is shit." At that, his brow crinkles in amusement. He looks down over his sunglasses, and asks,
"Who is that?" Melody hides behind Lola's legs, clutching her hand. The poor child had hardly gone a moment without holding her hand. Lola can't imagine how scared she must be.
"You wanna intervene-introduce yourself?" Lola asks. Melody looks up at her with wide, questioning eyes. "It's okay-he's my friend."
"I'm Melody," she says quietly. She then holds out her worn teddy bear. "And this is Sergeant Teddy."
"Huh. He's a Sergeant, is he?" Boone says, the ghost of a smile creeping along his lips. "He looks a sight tougher than some of the sergeants I've seen." Melody truly smiles at that, nodding her head vigorously.
"When we were behind enemy lines, Sergeant Teddy got captured. But Miss Lola went into the arena and saved him!" she says proudly. Boone looks at Lola with a strange expression before turning his attention back to Melody.
"Well, that doesn't surprise me," Boone eventually says, and her heart melts a bit at the words. She gives him a tentative smile, and he nods, faintly smiling back. Melody shyly steps out behind Lola's legs. Boone wordlessly holds his hand out and Melody takes it. He walks off to lead Melody to Julie, smiling down at her fondly, and Lola feels a sharp pain in her chest as she thinks of what a good father he would have been.
She hadn't seen any sign of Carla at the Fort, and no one would tell her anything.
"So, the mighty Dante returns," she hears, and she turns to see Arcade walking out of a tent.
"Relatively unhurt too," she says, ignoring the pull of her sutures.
"I'm glad you're back in one piece," Arcade says. "It was hard keeping Boone occupied-he's a bit of a mother hen when it comes to you, and worries far more than someone his age should."
"Worries about what I night-might do," she mumbles.
"Worries about what might happen to you," Arcade says sternly. The two of them watch as Melody holds Boone's hand, and how Julie crouches down with a smile to talk to her. "He cares about you a great deal, even if he's a bit lunk-headed about showing it." Lola makes a non-committal grunt in the back of her throat, not sure if she believes Arcade.
But she does hope he's right with a fierceness that frightens her because she cares a great deal for Boone too.
She and Arcade walk up to Boone, Julie and Melody. Melody looks up at her with wide and watery eyes.
"This lady is talking about me staying here. Are you leaving me here?" the girl asks quietly, and it's as bad as a punch to the gut. It makes Lola feel bad for her decision, even though she knows it is for the best. Lola crouches down, and puts on her best smile.
"Yeah," she says. "This is a good place for you." Melody shakes her head furiously.
"I want to come with you," she pleads. Lola winces, shaking her head in response.
"My kinda life," she starts. "What I do. How I live. It-it ain't gone-good for kids."
"I wanna be like you, Miss Lola," Melody insists. "No one will ever hurt me again if I'm like you." Panicked, Lola grabs Melody's shoulder.
"Don't say that," she says. "You don't want that. The Followers are good people-they'll feed you, you'll have a send-safe place to sleep. They'll teach you things-good things," she insists before Melody can protest. "You'll learn how to help people. All I could tent-teach you is how to kill. Here, you'll learn to save people."
"You save people," Melody says quietly, her voice shaking and her eyes shining with tears. The young girl throws her arms around Lola, crying into her shoulder, and it's all Lola can do to keep from crying too.
"It'll pass," Julie says gently, still crouched next to them. "You're probably the only safe, stable person she's had in her life for a while-it's only natural she'd want to stay with you."
"She can't," Lola says shakily, and Melody sobs even harder at that. Lola hugs the girl, trying to comfort her. They stay like that for a few minutes until Melody's crying slows.
"I can come visit," she tries, rustling the girl's hair. "I don't live that far from here." Melody sniffs.
"Do you promise you won't forget?" she asks quietly, her voice thick from crying. Lola nods.
"I won't foreign-forget," she says gently. Melody reluctantly allows Julie to pull her from Lola, and the doctor pulls her away to show her around the Fort. Lola stands, stretching the tightness out of her legs. Melody looks over her shoulder at Lola, cheeks tear-stained, and Lola gives her a thumbs up. Weakly smiling, the girl returns the thumbs up.
"Huh," Boone says.
"You're good with kids," Arcade comments. Lola shakes her head.
"No," she says. "I don't think I am. I just don't line-like people hurting kids." Did she feel that way before? Looking at Melody, and thinking of all the lost children at the Fort, she doesn't think it matters.
"You ready to head back?" Boone asks quietly. "I'm sure the others are worried." She nods, thinking of her friends with affection. She begins to walk to the exit of Old Mormon fort, and hears a few echoing footsteps beside her.
"Didn't you tell them?" she asks. Before Boone can comment, she looks over to see Arcade walking on the other side of them. He smiles unsurely, rubbing the back of his next.
"You're coming too?" she asks in surprise.
"Why not? There are people out there to help, things to learn. Maybe not in that order," he says. Lola looks around her almost frantically.
"Is there anyone following me?" she asks suspiciously. Boone's cheeks redden slightly, and Arcade laughs.
"No, no. I thought traveling with you for a bit might just be the thing I need to get out of my funk," he says. "I haven't made much progress in my research, and it's been disheartening."
"So, how was your descent into the 9th circle of hell?" Arcade asks as they make their way through Freeside. Various Kings wave at Lola, and she waves back. "Murderous, slaving monsters though they are, you had a chance few outsiders can lay claim to."
"Her trip to the Fort wasn't for intellectual curiosity," Boone says grouchily.
"No," Arcade starts carefully. "It wasn't-but I admit that I am curious as to what she saw, and what she thought about it, as I'm sure you are."
"It was frightening," she says, honestly and automatically. "There were crux-crucifixions all over the place, most of them NCR soldiers." Boone grits his teeth at that. Lola's eyes get a bit cloudy, and she blinks it away. "There were children, little boys, training to be soldiers. They-the Legion-was training them to be vacant-vicious. The others struck one of their own, and they didn't stop, even with his pleading."
"Jesus," Arcade breathes. She shakes her head.
"Caesar," she says, and Boone glares at her pronunciation of the name. "Cee-sar," she corrects, and it seems to relax him, further the distance between her and the Legion in his mind. "He has headaches, like the kind I get sometimes."
"That's interesting," Arcade muses. "I doubt anyone's shot him in the head, though."
"I'd like to," Boone mumbles. Lola gets the feeling he thinks about killing Caesar a lot.
"He's old," she says softly. "He's old, and he's a madman."
"Well, Caesar used to be a follower. He wanted to rebuild the world in the image of the old-a sad story of good intentions gone bad. In that regard, he's hardly unique," Arcade says dryly. "He can quote Cato to suit his purpose, but all he is a jerk who steps on others to get his way."
"That's one way of putting it," Boone says. "I'd call him something stronger than a jerk, though."
"Well, my mother taught me to watch my manners. I have delicate sensibilities," Arcade jokes.
"Vul-" she stops herself. Names had power, and familiarity. She's half afraid saying his name will summon him, like some demon of legend. "The man who gave me my invent-invitation is cruel, and merciless," she shudders, the phantom feeling of his hands running over her skin. "He is the devil." Before either man can ask more, they walk through the gates to the Strip. Victor rolls up to meet them, and Lola is all at once eased and unnerved by the robot's presence.
"It's mighty fine you're back, Lola!" Victor says enthusiastic. "Thanks for the upgrades-I feel brand new!" She doesn't know if she can smile, but she tries for Victor's sake, nodding in response.
"You've been a pretty popular lady while you've been gone! You have a letter from the NCR and a package from what I'd guess to be a secret admirer-didn't leave a name or anything," Victor says, and her stomach sinks a bit at that. "But I reckon you'd better talk to the boss first."
"Thanks, Victor," she says numbly.
"Upgrades?" Arcade asks. The men follow her into the Lucky 38, and into the elevator.
"I'll tell you later," Lola mumbles, fiddling with her pistol holster.
A flurry of thin limbs clothed in green fabric attacks Lola when the elevator doors open.
"Where have you been?" Veronica all but screeches, and her arms wrap around her tightly in a hug. She knocks Lola's hat off of her head in her enthusiasm. Lola's arms wrap around the girl instinctively, pulling her into a close hug.
"Hi, Arcade," she says in a much calmer tone of voice.
"Hey, Veronica," Arcade greets, reaching down to pick up Lola's hat to hand to her.
"Uh," Lola starts, looking down at the girl. "I was-"
"She had business to take care of," Boone says brusquely. Lola looks at him in surprise past Veronica's clinging arms. He gives her a small, almost invisible nod.
"You guys had business together?" Cass asks. She catches Raul's eye and, after checking that Boone and Lola weren't looking, makes an obscene gesture with her right fist and left index finger. Raul rolls his eyes, a smile playing on his lips and he nods his head in response. Before either Boone or Lola can answer, House's voice cuts in over the intercom.
"Ms. Haze, its good you're back," he says. "Meet me in the Presidential Suite with the Chip. We have much to discuss."
"Be right there, Mr. House," she answers wearily. Her gaze falls on the door of the master bedroom, and she sighs, longingly thinking of the bed. Veronica lets go of her, looking at her concernedly.
"I hate it when he does that," Cass mutters darkly. "Creepy fuck."
"Yeah, boss, House has asked after you for the past four days," Raul comments. She cringes at that, and moves toward the elevator. The doors slide shut, leaving Lola's companions together in the Presidential Suite. Lola avoids looking out the windows once she reaches the Penthouse Suite, stepping past Jane the securitron and making her way to House's screen. His large, unflinching face flickers on almost impatiently.
"I didn't expect you to take so long," he says by way of greeting. She nods.
"I escorted a family out of the Fort," she answers honestly. "They weren't used to the keene-kind of pace I keep, so I slowed down for them." He makes some sort of disapproving noise, and then sighs.
"Well, I suppose in the world I am trying to build, there is a need for people like you," he says finally. "Come along then, to the elevator to your right. I have much to show you." Unwillingly, she steps into the elevator revealed by a moving bookcase. It's smaller, and less fancy than the main elevator. It jerkily begins to drop, and she watches the floors tick by one by one until she reaches the very bottom. The elevator opens to a dark, sparse basement room. She sees two securitrons behind safety glass.
"Closer to the demonstration area, if you would, Ms. Haze," House says, and he sounds excited. She cautiously moves closer, and House begins his speech on the securitron's upgrades. Apparently, they had been running on outdated software. Their current weapons had been their backups, though she shudders to think what weapon could be so powerful that a Gatling laser would be the spare gun. She doesn't have to wait long to find out. The securitrons begin using those shiny new rocket launchers, and a grenade goes off next to the safety glass, cracking it slightly.
"These upgrades constitute an almost 237% increase in effectiveness," House says proudly.
So not only had she gifted House's securitrons with rocket launchers, she'd given them grenades and a higher intellect as well. So not only were they robots with deadlier explosives, they were smart robots with deadly explosives. She sighs, pushing the flat of her palm against her forehead in attempt to dull the ache building behind her eyes. Hadn't one of her books dealt with this kind of scenario?
"You have a very bright future ahead of you," House says almost fondly as she rides the elevator up from the basement back to the Penthouse Suite. "And, thanks to your actions, so does the rest of mankind." She takes the main elevator back to the Presidental Suite. She walks into the Presidental Suite, and several of her friends stick their heads out of their rooms at the sound. She waves, signaling that she's going to take a nap, and walks into the master bedroom.
On the bed, there is a box with a letter on top of it. Sure enough, the letter is from the NCR embassy on the Strip. She reads over it without emotion-someone named Ambassador Crocker is inviting her to meet with him about diplomatic matters, since she's caused such a stir on the Strip. She sets the letter aside-she'd have to remember to take Boone, and maybe Cass if the caravaneer could control her tongue. Out of all of her companions, they were the ones to have the most experience with the NCR. She feels a little uneasy at the thought of the meeting, but she chalks it up to lack of sleep. The NCR has good folks in it.
The box doesn't have a sender, only her name and The Lucky 38 written on it. She cuts the tape that holds the box closed, and cautiously peels pack the flaps. On top lies several barrel cactus flowers, and she cautiously fishes those out of the box, careful of their spiny stems. Her blood runs cold at the sight of a familiar checkered pattern, and next she pulls out Benny's suit jacket. The edges of it are stained with blood, and she drops it to the floor with a shudder. Underneath the jacket lay a machete and a pistol. She reaches for the pistol, ignoring the machete. She examines the stock of the pistol in the light of her room. The pearly white handle glistens, and the image of a woman wrapped in blue robes, with her head down in prayer, graces the handle.
"Madre Dolorosa," she whispers. On the back of the stock, the name 'Maria' is engraved. "Ave Maria. Mary." It's a beautiful weapon, and she wants to keep it, though she thinks it might be a bit morbid considering it is the gun Benny shot her with. She sets it aside, and takes a deep breath before looking back in the box. Beneath the machete is a note, and so she pulls it out. When she opens it to read it, she wishes she had the strength to throw it in the sender's face.
'Darling Tenebrae,
You left in such a haste that these trophies nearly found a permanent home in the dirt of the profligate's grave. Take them, and be proud of your accomplishment. Always find pleasure in an enemy slain, for I find pleasure in watching you slay them.
Vulpes.'
With a shudder, she crumples the letter in her fist. Something bothers her, setting off warning bells in her head, and she furrows her brow.
What was that word Vulpes kept calling her?
Taking the letter, she exits the bedroom to look for Arcade. She finds him in one of the spare bedrooms, reading a book titled The Gulag Archipelago, and notices with relief that he is alone.
"Arcade, what's a te-tena-," she starts but in frustration she pulls out Vulpes' note to find the word. "Ten-na-bray."
"Tenebrae?" he asks, his brow furrowed. She nods. "It's the Roman form of Keres. They were the daughters of Nyx, goddess of the night, and female death spirits. Their specialty was particularly in violent and bloody death-they were not merciful reapers." Lola falls uncomfortably silent, crumpling the note in her hand. The color leaks out of her cheeks and her eyes fall flat with regret.
"Lola?" he says quietly. "Where did you hear that word?"
"I was-" she starts, swallowing. "I was called that. After I k-killed Benny."
"Okay," Arcade says, and she could hug him for not reacting in disgust or fear at the knowledge of her killing Benny. "By who?" She looks down at the crumpled in her hand. She's unable to say Vulpes' name-more out of fear than because of her head-and she hands the note over to Arcade. He smooths it out on his book, pushing his glasses up his nose and begins to read.
"Oh," he says. "Vulpes Inculta?" She nods miserably and Arcade swears quietly. "And how does he call you 'tenebrae'?"
"With affection," Lola whispers, and the word fills her mouth like so much blood. It's an ugly thing, Vulpes' affection, and not something she thinks she can survive.
"Well," Arcade says, crumpling the note up again. "Let's get rid of this, and just ignore anything else he sends your way."
"He isn't a man to be ignoble-ignored," she says quietly.
"I doubt he'll try to get into the Lucky 38, and if we meet him out in the wasteland, well, that's what we have Boone for, right?" Arcade says, giving her what she is sure is meant to be a reassuring smile as he hands her the note back. She nods.
"Right," she says as though she could make herself believe it. She turns, going back to the master bedroom. She shuts the door behind her, looking at the letter crumpled in her hand. She takes Benny's lighter from her pocket, a now gruesome memento, and sets the letter aflame. She drops it into the trashcan, watching the carefully written words burn to ash. Dealings with the Legion always ended in hellfire-she isn't sure how she knows this, but it is a knowledge she holds on to with desperation.
Fear seems right in the face of Vulpes Inculta's smile.
She drops the machete in the trashcan as well, and picks up Benny's jacket. Idly, she considers throwing it out too, but decides against it. Swank would need proof of Benny's death. Some abraxo and elbow grease should take care of the blood. She should really give him back Benny's gun, but she decides the likes it, saturnine reminder of Benny though it is. Looking at the woman on the handle makes her feel a strange nostalgia, like if she reached hard enough she could remember something about her past. She strips out of her armor, and falls on the bed in relief. She drifts off to sleep listening to sounds of someone cooking in the kitchen, and of Veronica's laughter, and feels glad to be home.
"Hey, Boone," Veronica says, holding a wooden spoon out for him to taste. Gingerly, he tastes the scalding stew.
"It's good," he says honestly.
"You've said that the last five times I've made you try this," she says, though she sounds pleased. She turns back to the stove. Boone dries dishes and sets the aside for everyone to use. It's been a while since he's used actual dishes, instead of scraping food out of a can or a box so he wouldn't fall over during the night shift. ED-E beeps, floating in and out and playing the radio softly. Cass and Raul play Caravan, and Raul has a substantial amount of caps in front of him. Arcade is in the next room, and Boone can see him reading through the door way.
"Hey," Veronica says, pulling him from his thoughts. "Go wake up our fearless leader. She should eat something." He nods, setting the last bowl down next to the others, and goes to the master bedroom. He knocks, waiting for an answer. When none is given, he slowly opens the door and walks inside.
He sees the handle of a machete sticking out of the top of her trashcan. He picks it up, noticing that its Legion make. He looks down in the trashcan to see ashes coating the bottom of the can. His brow furrows-what could have been important enough to burn? He knew that spies would often burn any instructions they had received to keep them from being known by their enemies. His eyes follow the trail of armor to the large bed at the back of the room, and he counts the breaths she takes in her sleep.
What have I done other than pray in a language I don't cave-clearly remember to a god I know nothing about?
He shakes his head. Lost past and a memory of Latin aside, Haze didn't seem the type to work with the Legion. Legion spies didn't go around freeing slaves, and they sure as hell didn't go around helping snipers that were vengeful against their entire culture. She'd said the Legion frightened her, and he believed her. He no longer believed that she would follow them willingly, but there were more persuasive reasons besides loyalty to follow someone.
You are loyal to the NCR, and I am loyal to you. He can leave her to her secrets-God knows she's left him to his. And, if the Legion had used fear to manipulate her, well-that was just one more reason for him to enjoy taking them down.
His eyes trail over the foot of the bed, to follow the path of her body from the weathered bottoms of her feet. She sleeps on her stomach, her check buried in the pillow. Her armor lies in a haphazard path next to the bed and Boone carefully steps over it. She's well-muscled, and Boone notes with an ache that her dark skin is lighter than Carla's was. Burn scars cover her back with the worst of them centered on her shoulders. They seem to trail down her skin like rain flooding a window. He reaches over to grab the corner of the blanket and pulls it over her gently to cover her up. He doesn't touch her until he hears a soft whimper.
The hand lying on the pillow clutches it, her fingers digging deeply into the fabric. She cries out in her sleep, and the sound echoes with frightened despair in Boone's ears. He places a hand on the top of her head, rubbing her hair affectionately.
"Shh, Haze," he says softly. "You're safe-they can't get you here." She calms down slightly, her hand still clutching the pillow, and he idly keeps rubbing the top of her head.
"I'm with you. I'll protect you," he says, though given his previous track record he isn't sure if that will do more harm than good for her nightmares.
"I notice you do that a lot," he hears. He looks up to see Cass leaning against the doorway, a full bottle of whiskey in one hand and a full bowl of food in the other. "The whole comforting thing when she has nightmares."
"Veronica does it too," he says defensively, taking his hand from her hair. "And Raul."
"No, they don't," Cass says, her eyes piercing as though she is looking right through him. "Not the way you do."
"Oh yeah?" he asks, not liking the direction this conversation is beginning to take.
"They comfort her like she's their sister, or daughter," she says almost conversationally. "You comfort her like..." here, her voice falters at the heated glare Boone gives her. "Like she's something else." Boone walks to the doorway, and stiffly moves past her.
"Why are you so afraid to touch her when she's awake, Boone?" Cass asks when he passes her.
"Go to hell," he answers, surprised at the venom in his own voice. After risking one last look at Haze's sleeping form, Boone flees to the closest spare bedroom, and ignores Veronica's urging to come have dinner.
"Touchy," Cass mutters under her breath. She walks over to the bed, setting down the bowl of food and the whiskey on the nightstand. She gently kicks the bedframe, and Lola's eyes fly open.
"Hey, wake up, heartbreaker," Cass says, and the sound of her voice soothes the panic Lola felt at being jerked awake. "Better eat some dinner before Veronica has a conniption fit."
"Heartbreaker?" Lola yawns widely, reaching for the food on the nightstand. Cass chuckles, shaking her head.
"Nevermind," she says, wondering how long Boone is going to sulk in the guest bedroom. "Eat up, champ."
Lola eyes everyone in the Strip around them with suspicion. If anyone gets too close to her, she tilts her head to see their face. She swears he is here-he can feel her eyes on her. She can hear the echo of his voice in her head, and nothing she can do can chase it away.
"You okay?" a voice asks next to her ear and she jumps.
"Yeah," she says to Boone, catching her breath.
"Looking for someone in particular?" he asks, brow furrowed. She can't tell his expression from behind his sunglasses.
"No," she says, forcing herself to look ahead of her, and not at the people that push past them to get to the Casinos. He could be anyone, and she'd never know. She forces a smile. "No one at all."
Freeside is a little easier. The people are fond of them there, and she sees enough familiar faces around her that it calms her down a bit. A stray King runs up to her, and she fights the urge to jump at his loud footsteps. He holds an apple out to her, thanking her with stuttering words for helping Freeside. She smiles, taking a bite out of the apple, and his face lights up, showing his youth.
"Ya'll need any help?" she asks. She liked all of the Kings of Freeside, and wanted to check in on how The King was doing with Major Kiernan's relief effort.
"The King's dog is real sick," the King says, and her brow furrows as she remembers Rex.
"I'll stop in," she says. The group makes their way through Freeside to the King's School of Impersonation. As they walk in, Pacer lowers his head and skulks away to the stairs. They find The King in the longue, listening to one of his men sing, and he has Rex curled up in his lap. The brain in the dog's brain case looks sicker than the last time she'd seen him, black spots devouring it.
"Look, Rexie," The King says gently. "We have some visitors." The dog barks weakly, growling when he catches sight of Lola's hat. She takes it off hastily, crouching down to pet the cyberdog.
"Hey, boy," she says. "Remember me?" The dog licks her hand as if answering her. She looks up at The King. "He looks bad."
"He's not doin' so hot, poor boy," The King says. "I went to the Followers to see if they could help him but I came back empty handed."
"There's a doctor in Jacobstown that specializes in cyberdogs," Arcade says causally, and The King's head snaps up to look at him disbelievingly. "I would have told you, but you were more interested in giving me a black eye." The King laughs nervously, a flush creeping over his cheeks and down his neck.
"Well, I guess I was mighty steamed at the time," The King says apologetically. "I'm glad to see your eye has healed."
"And now I'm back to my handsome, charming self," Arcade says.
"That you are," The King agrees. Lola looks between the two of them again, raising an eyebrow at Arcade. The doctor blushes almost as red as The King, and says quickly,
"We can take him to Jacobstown, if that's okay with our fearless leader." Lola smiles, scratching Rex behind the ears.
"Come on, boy," she says. "Let's get you a new bin-brain." The dog barks happily in response.
Filler chapter is filler! So, we're getting into part two of what I have planned! I have a lot of stuff planned, so I am going to break this up into separate stories, much like Cressida Isolde and Pookie02 have done with their Fallout fics. (Which are totes awesome) I'll keep this chapter up here at the end of part one, and update it in the new story.
Thank you all for your support! I appreciate hearing from you all, and the patience you had while waiting. I probably won't update as quickly once work starts, but I've set a schedule that I am going to try and stick to.