Chapter 2
[UNRECOVERABLE DATA] AA#%SKA-++-/\1~!#[DATA RECOVERED] Launch was a success, at least. I thought this was going to be an airplane or something. Nope. It's a spacecraft! I think it's exciting. I'm finally, finally away from the Wasteland I know and hate. I'm going to other parts of the world. Hopefully it's different. I'l[CORRRUPT] what's out there. I don't know what I'm up against. It's frightening. Maple has been reassuring me throughout the entirety of this journey, though. Thank God for her. I would rather French kiss a deathclaw than go without my best friend.
… One of the downsides to this f[CORRUPT] ship is it has no windows. According to the NCR, Pre-War spaceships only had one window. They [UNRECOVERABLE DATA] The engineers weren't going to risk windows. "Structural weakness," they said. … They also hadn't thought of repairs while the shuttle is in use. I'm good at fixing things, but I need help. Comm[UNRECOVERABLE DATA]re down. I've been kind of panicking for the past hour or so. I heard somewhere that pressure is a thing you feel when you don't know what the hell you're doing.
Feelin' a lot of pressure right now.
… I need to rest, it's getting cold.
Chri[UNRECOVERABLE DATA]
ERROR
[UNRECOVERABLE DATA]TTHAK! )%$**##)-==== #$(CE)(#( !~~~~fk3-054%((# [DATA RECOVERED] Hello. It's been two days since I took off. Comms are down; I have no clue why.
So, uh, I may be in trouble. I have absolutely no idea where I am, but I know how high I am. I'm trying to go for the softest crash landing I can manage, because I'm falling. Slowly, at least.
What's down there? Land, water? I already know I'm going to crash, but where?
... Ugh, damn it. I can't think. I'm done writing for now. I need to focus.
Christy
On-board AI Log, Day 3- Mechanical failure, electrical fires. Location is unknown. Shuttle overheating. Crash landing imminent. On-board AI shutting down.
Christy lies among the wreckage of her burning ship. The faint, constant sound of stimpaks being administered could be heard over the crackling of the flames. The computer of the Elite Riot Gear was, for the first time, truly afraid for her best friend. Maple has been doing everything within her capabilities to keep the famous Courier Six alive. Between frantic pumps of Med-X and stimpaks, Maple whispered to her unresponsive patient.
"Christy, please… Not like this… After everything we've been through… Please, please don't leave me… C'mon Christy, get up… Legends don't die…"
"Maple…"
The voice of the computer gasped in surprise. "Christy?! Where does it hurt? Can you get up?! Please get up! This is all my fault! I'm sorry, Christy…"
The Courier attempted to push herself off the ground, but only managed to flip herself onto her back. "Maple, please," she said, her words quiet and dry, "Not so loud. This isn't your fault, so stop saying that."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Is there?" Maple didn't respond. "I think I'm just going to wait here a bit before I get up…"
"Christy, don't you dare close your eyes."
"Please, Maple, I would like to rest for just a little while…"
"Christy, don't do it! Um, um… Stay away from the light?"
The panicked voice of the artificial intelligence drifted away among the lovely sound of the fire all around Christy. The Courier closed her eyes, and, for that brief moment, Christy felt peaceful.
Another steady sound met her ears. A continuous ka-chunk ka-chunk was unfamiliar to her. Her eyes shot open.
Christy was careful not to move. She was in foreign territory, she didn't know where her weapons were, and she didn't know who the enemy was. Christy couldn't see much from where she was laying, though. She took note of the area she could see.
It's clean… It looks like a Pre-War bus, or a train, she thought.
She slowly sat upright, looking for an escape route or a foe. What she saw did not surprise her in the slightest. A humanoid, feline-looking thing was looking at her with it's big, curious eyes, a concerned look on its face. It was a cat. A cat. Like the little clawed furry things Christy kept stepping on back in the Wasteland. It was sitting up straight, just like a human. It was wearing human clothes…
"Wow. Radiation hits hard, huh?" Christy said. That was the first thought that popped into her head.
"Whoa!" he said, ignoring Christy's strange comment, "Thank goodness you're awake! I was beginning to worry! Well, I was already worried… but still! I'm glad-" It speaks English. Oooo-kayyy…
"Where am I?" the Courier inquired.
"Oh! You're on the train headed for the town Bigwood. Bigwood has the best doctor around! We were going to help you, but you look fine to me."
"Uh, 'scuse me, did you say 'Bigwood'?"
"Yes, Bigwood! It's a beautiful little town right on the coast."
"Bigwood… Heh…" she smiled to herself beneath her helmet. Christy was about to question the cat about what's been bugging her for a little while, but it seems that it read her mind.
"I found you and your ship when I was taking a bus to the train station. I yelled at the bus driver, and he picked you up. We loaded the supplies we found from your ship from the bus to the back of the train," he pointed behind the Courier, "So you hardly lost anything. We thought you were fine and just couldn't move, because a voice came from you. It said it was your clothes, and that you needed help. As if that wasn't obvious!" The cat laughed loudly for a couple of seconds before continuing. "Anyway, my name is Rover. Nice to meet you! You are…?"
The Courier couldn't see this cat doing any harm. She felt safe here. For once, she didn't feel like she had to look at her Pip-Boy for red ticks on the compass.
"My name is Christy."
"Christy? I like it! It's really cute!" She couldn't help but smile at such a cheerful attitude. It was refreshing. The happy conversation was a nice break from the usual wasteland greeting, "The fuck you want?"
"Yeah, isn't it?" the Courier replied happily.
"I'm guessing you're not from here. Don't worry about anything! You must be tough to have survived that accident, so living life here will be easy!"
Christy looked at her options. I could try to repair my ship and continue my mission into an irradiated, hostile wasteland where every-fucking-thing is trying to kill you, or I can live the most peaceful life imaginable with really nice and cute animals. … Fuck the Wasteland. They're just gonna kill each other if I "united the men of a dead world." I like this place already. Wherever this is…
"I hope so," Christy said, dreams of her nice, calm, un-irradiated future already filling her mind.
"The neighbors are really friendly; they'll help you if you need it. Oh! And here's a map of Bigwood."
"Thank you kindly, Rover."
The train began to slow down. "Bigwood, comin' up!" the conductor yelled. The Courier chuckled lightly.
"Well, this is your stop, Christy!" Rover said. Christy stood up and looked at the door to the outdoors. There was her future, just past there. "Oh, by the way, do you need help with your stuff?" He gestured to the boxes and packs in the back.
Christy shook her head. "You've done enough good deeds for me in a lifetime, Rover. No, thank you."
"Okay," Rover said as Christy stepped off the train, all her belongings with her. "Good luck!"
The Courier gave a curt nod to the blue cat, and stepped into the train station.
"Maple?"
"Yes, Christy?"
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. Now get out there. I want to see the beach." Christy smiled inside her helmet. She knew Maple could feel the curve on her lips. The Courier stopped before the closed doorway. "… Problem?"
"I'm just taking a moment to reflect on things…" Christy was just really, really excited for this. Nothing has tried to kill her yet. This is a record.
"Reflect faster, please."
Christy giggled, opened the door, and stepped outside into the fresh air. The fresh, pure, non-filtered, non-irradiated air. She wanted to take her helmet off. But then she got stagefright.
A small crew of humanoid animals stood before here. The Courier was prepared to meet more of them, but not all at once. She assumed this group lived in this town. Christy could hear whispers from the neighbors.
"OMIGOSH! Is that her…?"
"She looks scary… But I bet that's the girl…"
"Whoa… Look at those clothes… Guys… We can't just stand here. Let's say hi!"
A yellow dog, who didn't seem as intimidated as the others, huffed. The crowd met her eyes, and she took the opportunity to give them a look of disapproval. The group took a moment to gather their composure.
"Okay, everyone! Here we go… Ready? And… From those of us in Bigwood… "
"WELCOME!" the crowd screamed. Christy recoiled a bit, noticing that they were probably feeling more scared than welcoming. The Courier found their perfect coordination amusing. The yellow dog cleared her throat.
"Mayor! We're so happy you're finally here!"
"… No… Really? There must be a mistake." The Courier said flatly.
"Um…" the dog whispered. She began to shift nervously. "Don't pretend you don't know! Didn't you hear the conductor announcing our town name? You said you'd be arriving on this train! And we've all been waiting for your arrival!"
Christy chuckled at this. "I'm a Courier, not a mayor."
"Oh no!" she said, "You can't fool me! Things are just as you said it would be! All is well. There is no mistake!"
The Courier couldn't help but openly laugh at the situation. "You know I literally just arrived in this… place. Like, a few hours ago. I crash landed in this country."
When Christy said this, the crowd exchanged different looks. The dog returned Christy's laugh. "Tee hee! You're a real jokester!"
"W-wait a moment…"
"Well, let's continue this discussion in the town hall, shall we? Here's a map of Bigwood for your reference, Mayor Christy." The girl gently handed the small page of the open notebook to the Courier.
Mayor Christy. That doesn't sound bad at all. Christy thought.
The dog pointed to a strange shape on the map. "That right there is the town hall, so let's head that way, shall we?"
Christy simply nodded and walked beside the dog. She let her mind drift away as they strolled along. It's… Beautiful here… Grass. And Trees. And Flowers. Christy lost her focus. She could only dream of the life here. This is just surreal. Look at all the life here! Oh… I want to touch the plants. They don't eat people here… I want to take in the fresh air. Christy's new friend tapped the Courier on the arm once they entered the town hall.
"Ms. Mayor? This town hall will be your base of operations. Oh! And I completely forgot to mention I'm on staff here too! I'm Isabelle, your secretary." She gave Christy a warm smile. "And I'm here to help you in any way I can."
Christy nodded. "It's so nice to meet you, Isabelle."
"You too! Um, but if I may be frank, I was surprised to see someone as young as you step off the train."
"Young as me? You haven't seen my face yet, Isabelle."
Christy dropped her secretary's guard for a moment. She stuttered, "Oh, well, I mean, um…"
The Courier laughed merrily again, undoing the latches on her helmet. She removed her headgear, and tucked it under her arm. She smoothed her dark hair with her free arm as she gave Isabelle a cheerful smirk. "Sorry about that. Hah hah, I didn't mean anything by it, Isabelle."
That seemed to fix the situation, because the secretary returned to the happy girl at the train station. "I mean, our former mayor held the position for many, many years and was quite set in his ways. But youth is a breath of fresh air. And exactly the new image our town needs! You're perfect for the job!"
"Maybe…"
"All right… Of course we need you to get started right away on your work as mayor. Therefore, first we must complete your resident registration. A mayor really should be a resident!" Isabelle laughed. "So, what is your name, Mayor?" The Former Courier tilted her head, the smirk on her face still not gone. "… Oh, right, Christy. Duh. OK, I have your name. Next… Where did you last take up residence?"
"Uh, let's see… I lived in Circle Junction for a little while, as well as New Reno, Vault City, Fort Abandon, umm… Oh, I went on Brahmin rides at the Big Circle. I stayed in New Vegas for a few months, and now I'm here." Christy could see the gears in Isabelle's head turning as she tried to comprehend what information she was just told. She scribbled something on her notepad and moved on.
"O-okay… What's next… OH NO! THIS IS BAD!" Christy jumped at the sudden outburst.
"… Problem?"
Isabelle kept talking, her own thoughts having blocked out Christy's question. "I can't believe I forgot something so vitally important!"
The Courier put a hand on her secretary's shoulder. "Isabelle! Calm yourself, please. What's the issue?"
The dog did the same nervous sway she did back at the station. "In order to register you as a town resident, we need your address for the form!"
"… Oh…"
"… Christy, do you have a place to live yet? There aren't any vacant houses here… but you can build one!"
"I can do that. Do you have any cars or anything?"
"Oh, haha! YOU'RE not building the house! Let's decide on where you want to live before we proceed. And here I made you come all the way here for nothing. I apologize for being so flaky! Um, on the other side of the tracks, on Main Street, is Nook's Homes, the real-estate office…"
Christy raised a hand to stop her secretary from continuing. "That's all I need to hear, Isabelle, thank you. I'm going to use this opportunity to explore a bit. See you later," she said as she made her way out.
"Don't get lost, Mayor!" Isabelle called after her.
Christy waited until the door closed before she muttered, "I hope I do." She looked at the clean, friendly environment around her. Trees. And flowers. Real ones. Blue rivers and skies, tiny, winged bugs flying around, Christy was absorbed in this sight. She let her legs move her anywhere. She didn't care where she was going. All she cared about right now was the beauty all around her. As her head was turning to take in everything, one spot in particular looked outstandingly wonderful to her. The area next to the short cliff on the beach was filled with many small flowers and trees, and the waterfall leading to the small lake that formed the river made a nice background for the area. She decided that she'll remember this place later.
The flap to the tent flung open and Christy poked her head inside. "Oh, wow. Bigger than it looks." The new Mayor pushed her belongings from the ship into her temporary home before lying down and propping herself up on an elbow on the sleeping bag provided for her. A thought popped into her head, suddenly. Christy checked the journal entries she made on the ship. "Damn," she whispered. The files were damaged, presumably from the crash. That would explain all the unrecoverable data. Deciding that it wasn't a big deal, she placed her helmet on the floor carefully, looking at her reflection.
A familiar voice piped up. "What's on your mind, Christy?" The woman shifted onto her back.
"It's amazing, isn't it?"
"Yeah."
"It's going to take a while for me to get used to all this."
"I think a while is an understatement."
The Former Courier giggled lightly. "Maple… I'm so happy to be here. It's only been a few hours, and I'm in love."
"It is nice in Bigwood."
"I wish you had senses, Maple. You'd like it."
"Senses? Like touch, taste?"
"Yeah. Damn it if that wouldn't be fantastic."
"That would be a nice change. Though I was grateful for the lack of sight, smell, and touch back in the Wasteland. 75% of the air there is composed of bullets."
"And the other 25% was lasers, plasma, and grenades."
"Can you remember any time you truly felt happy?"
"… No. No, I can't. There was always something in the back of my head. It reminded me of the hell I was living in. Whenever I was happy or having fun or drunk it was there, like a small cloud hanging over me. It fucking sucked."
"Oh… I was expecting a story about your childhood or Amelia and the others, not something like that."
"Cloud's gone, Maple. It's gone. Forecast: sunny."
A noise outside her tent startled her, and the Former Courier sat up immediately. She loosened up once she saw Isabelle's cute face pop in. "Hi, Mayor Christy! I just came by to check on you in your new home. It's cozy in here! Oh, before I forget, I have a present for you!"
Christy stood up with a huge smile on her face. "Aww, you shouldn't have," she said as her secretary gave her a box, all wrapped up and sealed with a ribbon. Christy hesitated, as she had never opened one of these things before. She literally tore off the top, hardly acknowledging the somewhat shocked look Isabelle was giving her. "… Oh my goodness, it's a lantern! Wow…" Her secretary's face lit up at Christy's excited gasp of awe. "Okay, I'm not kidding, I've always wanted one of these. Thank you so much, Isabelle!"
"I'm glad you like it! Um…" Isabelle looked away for a moment during the pause in her words. "Do you mind if I ask you some questions?" The dark haired woman shook her head. "Okay. I just wanted to get to know you better, that's all. Also, I don't mean anything when I'm asking these questions. I'm only curious, that's all."
"Relax, Isabelle. I'm not that scary."
"Sorry. So, um, what are you wearing?"
"Personalized armor made for controlling riots. I wear it because it keeps me from dying back from where I'm from. Long story."
That answer didn't seem to satisfy the dog. "O-okay… Uh, Where did you say you were from, Ms. Mayor?"
"I'm from a hellish place called New Vegas. Actually, there are places worse than it. Much worse. Imagine a stupidly hot desert filled with robots, drug addicts, abominations, y'know, and other sort of pleasant types. Back there, actions spoke louder than words, and guns spoke louder than actions. Absolutely no one was safe. Food sucked because it was usually poisoned with radiation, the water was almost guaranteed to be irradiated, umm, am I missing anything, Maple?"
"Did you mention the violence and hatred? What about the violence? And the violence?"
Isabelle gasped in surprise. "Did your armor just... did it just talk to you?"
"It did," the synthetic voice said, "And her name is Maple."
The secretary was slowly backing out of the tent. "Okay, well, it's getting late. Thank you for answering my questions, Mayor Christy. Good night!" And then she booked it out of there.
"Oh. I hope we didn't scare her."
"She'll be fine. She hasn't heard the worst of it."
"Well, there's no use worrying about it, Christy. What you need to do is sleep." The Mayor didn't question her best friend's command. She collapsed onto her sleeping bag, still garbed in her armor. That's all right. She's used to it. Countless thoughts raced through her head as she laid there. How can this place even exist? Did she die in the crash and gone to heaven? What is the NCR going to do once they figure out that she's gone and not coming back? Did she really scare Isabelle? She wondered about her friends back home. Did they even know she was missing? She thought about what they must be doing right about now. Veronica would be out scavenging, again. Boone was probably staring at the desert through a scope. Rex and Roxie must be busy with their litter of cyberpups. Ol' Lily would be taking a nap, Cass would be drinking, of course, Raul was hunting down another dirty son of a bitch, most likely. ED-E must be simply flying around the Mojave. The other couriers are probably partying right now. Christy had no clue what Amelia and her crew was up to. Arcade… Christy didn't know what he would be doing. He probably hated her. It is her fault, after all, that he has bounty hunters, NCR rangers, and the Brotherhood of Steel after him. She shouldn't have let him fight alongside the Remnants.
"Sorry, Arcade…"
"Get some rest, Christy. Sleep well."
"Good night, Maple. … Good night…"
A/N: Edit, 07-28-14: Changed almost all of the dialogue. If you have not read the original chapter, don't worry. You didn't miss anything.
