"The waste's gonna eat you up."
Veronica's hood slid back over her head as she was pushed gently against the wall, and Cass roughly ran a hand over her chin, a sly smile her on face, a hint of whiskey on her breath. "But that's all right. I can protect you. Wouldn't want anything hurting your pretty little ass, now would we?"
Veronica offered her a smile despite her reddening cheeks. "Guess I'll hold you to that, if you can even remember you said it later on."
Cassidy smirked, leaning in closer, her lips just moments from the other woman's. "I'm not that drunk, sweetheart."
Veronica was used to fighting, to combat. They all were. But it was nothing compared to the war going on now for Hoover Dam.
The Courier had almost reached the Legate's camp; he had most of his companions and a Securitron army at his beck and call, so in their minds there was little to worry about, considering the circumstances. He'd had Veronica and Cass remain behind to keep track of the NCR movements, and protect any Brotherhood of Steel members they came across. The Legion was supposedly cleared from the area, but Cass just laughed and kept her gun at the ready.
"These assholes don't know which end of their guns fire the bullets half the time. I'm not letting my guard down."
Veronica stifled a laugh as the NCR combat medic tailing them gave the ex-caravan owner a dark look. It was a young man, barely in his twenties - covered in blood and without a unit to patch up anymore. He's said his name was Cary, but kept his words to a minimum; Veronica figured it was understandable. He'd been trailing them since they killed the Legion stragglers that wiped his associates out.
The three of them were close to the exit of the Dam office building now, the door not twenty feet away. "Let's go. The quicker we get out of here, the better. At least outside, we can see 'em coming." The scribe flexed the hand in her power glove as she said this, twitchy as she stepped over another lifeless NCR soldier strewn across the ground. Cass nodded, but Cary didn't respond at all - until Cass held up a hand to silence them and stop them, turning to watch the corridors behind them.
"I hear something," she whispered. "Get ready. Start backing closer to the door." Straining their ears, they could definitely hear quiet footsteps of several people drawing closer. The three of them kept backing closer to the door out of the building, weapons at the ready -
They were almost there when the Legionaries finally rounded the corner.
"Profligate scum!" There were six of them, all armed with rippers. Cary hesitated, his rifle shaking slightly as they advanced, but Cassidy's shotgun was already aimed and firing. Veronica stepped forward, lunging with a right hook that knocked the wind from one assassin before Cass blew his head off. The man behind him advanced on Veronica with another Legion soldier, but Cary found his nerves and dropped one with four quick shots to the chest; Veronica quite literally, and quite messily, knocked the face off of the other recruit.
Three still remained, however, all too eager to step over the bodies of their comrades. Two went for Cass, and the last made a dash for Veronica, ripper at the ready. The scribe blocked the Legionaries' cut with the power glove before kicking him in the shin; Cary shot him in the head, and he dropped almost instantly. Veronica turned in time to see Cass shoot one of her attackers in the neck; the other raised his ripper high, bringing it down right towards her shocked and fearful face.
The Brotherhood scribe dove between the redhead and the assassin, trying to use her glove as a shield again; but the blow was too high, and the metal bit into the flesh of her upper arm with a cruelty she had not expected. The Legionary grinned and pushed harder on the weapon, revving it so the blade spun faster; Veronica screamed, and the sound of it turned Cassidy's blood to ice. Her cry of agony did not diminish, but Cary looked on with unabated horror as Veronica's right arm fell to the ground, completely severed.
With an almost inhuman rage, Cass gripped her shotgun tight, kicking the man off of the scribe and bringing him eye level with the barrel of her gun.
"Enjoy the trip to hell, you worthless piece of shit!"
She pulled the trigger once, twice, three times, kicking the man even as his bloody corpse fell uselessly to the floor. Her heart racing with dread, she turned to see Veronica kneeling on the floor, Cary at her side with numerous stimpaks and bandages at the ready, whispering words of encouragement he clearly didn't believe.
"It's going to be okay, Veronica. Please lie down, lie down..." Her face was white with shock, blood covering her robes and armor, pooling around her on the floor all too quickly. She crumpled, and Cass was at her side in a moment, holding her left hand tightly in her own. Cary took a syringe of colorless fluid from his pack, and injected it into the scribe's neck with no hesitation.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Cass asked, her voice almost a whisper.
"Sedating her. She's going to go into shock. I need to stop the bleeding - but she has to calm down. Her heart beating so fast is going to make her bleed out even more quickly," he explained, sticking her with multiple stimpaks right above the severed area. He took a bandage and tied it tightly around the area highest on her arm, above the stimpaks, as a makeshift tourniquet. "Come on, come on..."
"You better not let her die," Cass seethed, her face pale and eyes wide with fear.
"Stop goddamn threatening me and let me work!" he yelled back, switching the stimpaks again. The viscous gel was covering the stump, the area developing a thick, disgusting scab. He was rummaging in his pack, taking out more bandages and ointments. As the stimpaks emptied themselves, he removed them, covering the scab with ointment and bandaging the stump liberally.
"I'm getting her the hell out of here," Cass said. "Do you have any more stimpaks and sedatives on you?"
Cary looked at her like she was crazy. "You're leaving the Dam? Now? In the middle of the fight?"
"It's not in the middle of the fight, it's almost over. Now, spare stimpaks and sedative, yes or no?"
He handed her two stimpaks and two syringes, obviously not happy about it. "Least I can do for you two saving me, I guess. Let's leave the building, then, but I'm splitting off and going with the first NCR trooper I see. You two are on your own after that."
"Whatever. Help me get her up." Just as she'd said it, the door opened, a Securitron standing in the portal, haloed by the sunlight of the oncoming dusk. Two more stood behind it, silent and watching.
"Howdy there, Miss Rose! Fancy seeing you here with an NCR soldier. But it looks like Miss Santangelo has seen better days. Let me help you out!"
"Pick her up. Carefully, you piece of shit!" After a moment of awkward hauling, Veronica was limp in the robot's arms, pale and blissfully unconscious. "All right... all right, let's get going. Shoot any Legion scumbags you see on sight." She waved a hand at Cary. "Stay safe, kid. Thanks for saving her."
Cary nodded his head and slipped between the robots, giving her a small salute. "Good luck, both of you."
They were a seven hour walk out of the Dam area when Veronica awoke.
Her brown eyes opened slowly, the searing pain and strange, phantom sense of loss urging her to look down at herself, still cradled carefully in the arms of a Securitron. She saw the bandaged stump of her arm, and a cold, dark mix of fear and worthlessness almost overwhelmed her. Looking up, she saw Cass walking ahead with two more of the robots in the dark, shotgun slung over her back and purpose in her stride.
"C-Cass?" she whispered. The woman didn't hear her, but the Securitron holding her did, and piped up.
"Why, Miss Rose, I believe your friend would like a word! Isn't that grand? She's all awake now!"
Cass whirled at this announcement, at Veronica's side in an instant. "Hey there, sleeping beauty," she said softly, rummaging through the pack she'd had slung over her shoulder. She took out a stimpak, carefully placing the needle through the bandages on what remained of the scribe's arm; it ended just a few inches below the shoulder. "I'd ask how you're feeling, but that's pretty damn obvious, I think."
"W-where are we... going? What about the Dam?"
"Fuck the Dam, sweetheart." She pulled another syringe out of the pack; it was one of the sedatives Cary had given her before he left. "They could spare a few metalheads and me. I wasn't about to leave you there after you saved my ass like that." She quieted as she said it, looking at the scribe with intense respect and concern in her eyes; Veronica, however, was too delirious to notice. "We're going back to Hidden Valley. Anyone has some tech for you, it'll be them."
"Tech... like... cybernetics?" As she spoke, Cass put the needle to her neck, emptying the syringe completely.
"Hell if I know, girl. Sleep. Just go back to sleep..."
"...metal components for protection, but still retain mobility and strength..."
"...course, she is more than worthy. Veronica has represented us well through our hardest times, an..."
Opening her eyes brought fresh waves of pain and nausea, but she did, anyway - slowly. Everything was so damn bright...
"Elder, she's waking up!"
A pair of kind blue eyes regarded her as her vision finally began to focus - Elder McNamara hovered over her, a sad smile on his face. "Veronica, you are in the medical wing of the bunker. You have been unconscious for three days," he explained, very slowly and calmly. "Do you remember what happened at the Dam?"
Of course she remembered. How could she ever forget? "M-my... my arm. My arm..."
"Yes. Sharon Cassidy has explained you lost it by saving her life. The other scribes have been working on creating and fitting a bionic arm for you. You have an arm again, Veronica. You are a part of this order, differences aside, and we will not leave you in the dark."
"I... have an arm?" She looked down, and an understanding of both relief and profound sadness came over her face.
It wasn't quite finished, yet, but there it was, a construction of metal rivets and pieces fit to the ending of her upper arm. The skin had grown over some of the parts near the top, very slightly, and she found that she could already move her metallic fingers; the many wires crossed along the hand and forearm almost like veins, and she watched it in motion, entranced.
I won't ever be beautiful this way.
"We have but a few more adjustments to make; it will be fitted with metal plating after, to protect it from damage," he explained, unaware of her inner turmoil. "You may certainly leave after it is completed, if you wish; your friend was explaining that you would want to meet back in the Strip to tend to injuries and help the organization of forces after the battle."
"Where is she?" she asked slowly, trying to push her despair away. She attempted to sit, but the Elder put a hand out to stop her.
"Please, remain lying down until the arm is completed. It should be done by tonight at the latest." He motioned behind him. "She has been here the entire time, and, ah... insisted rather strongly that she would not leave. I am afraid that she is, at the moment, quite asleep." Veronica turned her head to look behind him, and sure enough, there was Cass sprawled across three chairs, her hat haphazardly tossed over her eyes, arms and legs all askew. The scribe smiled, ever so slightly, and then turned back to Nolan.
"Thanks, Elder. I mean it." She flexed the fingers of the bionic hand once more. "I can get used to this." Not that I really have a choice.
The plates covering the arm were smooth and made of the strongest steels.
There was one case for her upper arm, the plate almost seamlessly covering the stump. Another plate encased the lower arm, and there was yet another for her palm. Her fingers were made of several smaller pieces, rivets holding it all together along the many seams. It was all a tarnished silver with a uniform, dull sheen, broken only by lines where plates of steel overlapped or a small bolt gleamed.
"If I punch someone, will it hurt?"
Nolan looked at her with a raised eyebrow, obviously amused. "Veronica, your hand is made of tempered steel. You will injure them quite badly, even without a power glove. Perhaps even more than you would have before." Crossing his arms, he continued, "I'd recommend against trying it out, of course. The bionics are quite durable, but you may wear the parts from repeated assaults."
"Glad you have your priorities straight." Cass placed a hand on the younger woman's shoulder, offering her a huge smile as she laughed. "You ready to head back to the Lucky 38? News came in, by the way. Looks like we won the independence after all. That little shit managed to really drive off the Legion and the NCR!"
For a moment, Veronica's own expression of elation wasn't forced at all. "Hell yes I am! I think there's some probably some celebrating to be done. And then maybe some order-inducing stuff, too, and tending to the wounded. Robots and things. But definitely some celebrating. Ooh, I hope there's cake!"
Nolan laughed. "Stay safe in your travels. Steel be with you."
Veronica, Cassidy noticed, was a lot quieter than usual on their way back to the Strip. The redhead was pretty sure she knew exactly why, but didn't bring it up. It wasn't the time to - not yet. She let the scribe stew in her silence, laughing at her sarcasm in the rare moments she decided to comment on something. The Securitrons are more talkative than she is, damn.
But I know exactly what'll wipe that frown right off that sexy little face.
She hadn't forgotten any of the offhanded comments Veronica had made in the past about the beautiful dresses the women of the Strip wore, about how for once, she'd like to dress up too and just feel like she looked nice. It had been a thought in the back of her head for weeks, and in the downtime in Hidden Valley while they built Veronica's arm, she'd had even more time to reflect on it. As they stepped through the doors of the familiar casino, she found herself smiling, just a little.
"Doesn't look like anyone else came back yet. Hey, follow me to my room, I got something for you."
Veronica raised an eyebrow, smirking as they stepped into the elevator. "What? You haven't had anything to drink yet."
"Not that kind of present, damn!" Cassidy laughed as they stepped into the suite area, the younger woman at her side as they walked. The silence was almost eerie, but they paid it no mind as Cass pushed open the door to her room, making no move to hide the smile on her face. "Close your eyes."
"Is it a sexy present?" Veronica teased, doing as she was told.
"You could say that." The scribe heard her open the dresser, closing it again. "All right, open 'em."
She felt her heart begin to beat faster, all her depression fighting a wave of trepidation and hope. In her hands, Cassidy held a simple, but elegant white dress.
Veronica's voice caught in her throat, and she felt tears burning at her eyes as she stepped forward. A black sash was loose around the waist, one strap to go over the right shoulder, a low scooping cut in the bust. The fabric was silky and flawless, and the scribe's sad smile wrenched at emotions Cassidy didn't know she was still capable of feeling.
"It's... it's beautiful. How did you -?"
"Strip's good for something other than liquor, gambling and whores once in a while, as it turns out." She reached forward slowly, pushing Veronica's hood back from her head - the scribe didn't even flinch when she did it, though her eyes widened slightly. "Well, let's have you try it on! Come on."
"Right now?" Her cheeks colored a little as she asked the question, though she already knew the answer.
"No, fifty goddamn years from now. Of course." She laid the dress carefully onto her bed, turning back to the brunette, who had already taken off her hood completely, and held it in her hands. Cass took it from her, tossing it onto a chair. "Come on, then," she said with a sly smile, "you can't put it on if you're still wearing all of that." Veronica reached shyly to the bottom of her shirt, pulling it up as Cass - to her surprise - turned away to pick up the dress once more from the bed. In just moments, she had the bottom of the robes off as well; she covered her breasts and refused to meet Cassidy's eyes as the redhead stepped closer, cheeks burning brighter.
"It zips up, in the back." Cass grinned. "Put your arms out, and step into it, and then I'll zip it up and help you tie the sash. Come on, I've seen plenty of tits in my lifetime, just do it."
Veronica nodded once and did as she was told, but the other woman didn't hesitate to get a nice look at what was going into the dress. Damn, those robes hide everything. She said nothing, though, and moved behind to zip up the back of the dress; Veronica handed her the black sash, and she tied it around her surprisingly small waist, taking a step back and smiling. The top of the dress hugged all of her curves, the bottom flowing out past the sash and swaying with each slight movement. She stood there awkwardly, flexing the fingers of her bionic arm.
"Damn," Cass remarked quietly. "You're fucking gorgeous."
Veronica laughed, but it sounded a little hollow. "You got a thing for girls with robot arms?"
"No," she replied, walking over to the radio and turning it on. A slow, easy song came over the speaker. "I have a thing for smart, sexy women, and if they just so happen to have a couple of metal parts after they saved me from being cut in half, I can't say I give a fuck; they're still smart and sexy." She moved close to Veronica, putting one hand on her waist, clasping the bionic hand with her other. A smile tugged at her lips. "Well? Let's dance."
They moved slowly about the room, and Veronica's dark eyes seemed to become happier as they did. "You don't think I'm sort of... hideous, then? Romantically holding my metal hand doesn't freak you out a little?"
Cass snorted. "Hell, no. You could win an award for those tits, by the way." She looked her straight in the eyes as Veronica flushed, leaning in a little closer as the song continued to play. "I'm just sorry I didn't keep my word to you."
"Your word?"
"I promised to protect you. Instead, you saved me, and look what you got for it." She continued to dance with her, leading her slowly about the room in small circles. "I like it, though. Gives you a dangerous edge, a 'don't-fuck-with-me' vibe. And yet you're still damn good looking."
Veronica offered her a small smile. "Thanks. I mean, this is... the dress, and the... saving me, and stuff. And telling me all of this."
"After what you pulled to save my ass, this is nothing."
"But you had this here even before then." The song was coming to a close, now; Cass was leading her to the wall, cornering her like she had those weeks ago. Again, she put a hand to the scribe's chin, running a hand gently over the metal of her right arm.
"You really sound like you want to pay me back, or something," Cassidy smiled.
"I guess you could say that. I feel like... I feel like I owe you. This is... amazing. I didn't think I could feel - like this. Not with the way I am now."
"Well, sweetheart, I know exactly what it is I want from you," the redhead whispered, leaning in closer, her lips hovering just inches from Veronica's.
With the first real smile she'd had since she heard the Dam was won, the scribe beat her to it - she seized Cass gently by the waist and pulled her close, pushing their lips together firmly, the smile still on her face, her metal fingers intertwined with the softer, calloused hands of Sharon Cassidy.
end.