AN: Well here is the second installment of the story I thank you for the support from those of you who reviewed or Favorited/followed my story. It means a lot to me, I have some bad news for you guys though next week is my finals week. I will be studying and all that stuff so it might take longer to get pt.3 out. Now enough of my blabbing enjoy! "As you wish sir", this is what Codsworth said. Although it triggered something completely different. This is when my mind did the unexpected.
I was back on my second tour with my best friend Kay, in the army we were considered the loners and we took the long hard dirt path. I couldn't remember where we were, but it was in some hot dense jungle, and we were running like hell. Enemy squadrons cornered us in a small village. We got trapped on a roof and I was using all my body weight against the door to make sure they couldn't get through.
"Kay take my rifle and pick them off", I ordered. "I turned on our emergency signal so reinforcements are coming soon". "As you wish sir", he said jokingly.
In this job we were equals, same rank and we went on the same amount of operations. There just was never a mission where Kay wasn't around. He was my spotter and I was his. It was just how things were. He picked up my rifle, and that's when it happened. A force broke through the door that I was holding and I got pushed to the edge of the roof. My head hit the railing and the metal door landed on my legs. I was forced to watch as the figure that broke our defenses down broke down my friend. It was brutal, Kay was taken out punch by punch.
That force was our worst fear.. a suit of power armor. In our world there were only the cold hard truths. It was true that when I pulled the trigger someone died. It was the same when someone in power armor got close to a duo of snipers.
I struggled to move the door, but I didn't have the strength to move it at all. Kay looked at me with his eyes. His body was broken down, but on the inside I knew he hadn't kicked it yet. He said something I would never forget. To him I was his only family. Kay lived in the Bronx growing up and after dropping out of school he decided to join the army.
He was the laughing stock of the boot camp, that is until I told him to pick himself up. One day he was left out in the mud, kindness was a rare commodity during that time. I gave Kay what little I had l to offer.
Our lives were very different, but we were the same. It's why we worked so well together. His last words were, "never forget". That's when the power suit made a hole in my best friend's chest and he was sent to oblivion.
It was strange because I didn't scream or yell. I did struggle to get the door off my legs, but I knew even if I was successful I would of been ripped to shreds like my friend. The suit of power armor started to walk towards me and that is when I knew it was over.
What I didn't expect was another suit to drop from the sky. When it landed on the roof it shook everything. The door flew off my legs and grazed my face. It made the enemy fall to their knee. The sound of metal hitting metal was the last thing I remember before I woke up in the med bay.
I was breathing heavily, where am I? What am I doing? I saw the rifle in my hand I hastily threw it to the ground.
"Sir are you okay", said Codsworth sensing my pain. After hearing his voice I seemed to be a little better, but there was a part of me that was not. Something was telling me I was worthless and I didn't deserve to be able to pick up that rifle again. It was saying it should've been me instead.
"They're coming get ready!" Preston yelled. "Get a grip on yourself what's a group of half naked guys got on you", I chuckled at my own joke. My panic attack seemed to be gone now.
XXX
Everything was going smooth until I got shot in the arm. "Fuck", I cursed to help to ease the pain. I turned towards the church and wildly shot until the raider fell off the top of the building.
"I'm sorry Master Caleb, but there are just too many of them." I looked down to see Preston dealing with some sort of giant beast.
"What the hell is that?", I audibly muttered.
I waved off my robot, "just cover me". My robot didn't seem to ever stop worrying about me.
"Shit happens Cod". I hid back into the crashed vertibird and took some painkillers out of my bag and swallowed them dry. Now that will feel better in a few. I looked at the gap between buildings as Codsworth kept them busy. I've jumped farther in worse conditions, "fuck it", I muttered to myself. When I went to jump Codsworth almost whined, "Master".
I ignored my overprotective robot, they have to die right now. After I got rid of the ones on the roof, I picked up a grenade off one of the dead bodies and threw it down the stairwell. I heard them scream in fear of the grenade. What I heard after was way better, it was peaceful silence.
"Teach you to shoot me you idiots", I spat off the roof. Preston had just killed well whatever that thing was. He waved for me to come down. "Cod meet me by the group on the first floor."
I walked down the church, I never went to church. I didn't believe in a god and if I did all hope of that god would be gone by now. I mean what creator would allow so much death and destruction to his people.
When I got to the lobby I saw that Preston was out already out of the power armor, on the inside I peacefully sighed. The old power armor, was like a ghost haunting me. "That was insane", Sturges said. I shook my head, "Preston what the hell was that thing you were fighting?"
"You must not be from around here", he said in disbelief . "that was a deathclaw", Sturges said. "Preston you know he is from a vault right?"
"That's what I thought, but how could a vault dweller be possibly be so good at killing?"
"Lay off it Preston, he isn't prying into your past life. He helped us so that's enough." I nodded in thanks to Sturges.
"Well we need to find a safe place to set up shop", Preston started to say but then an old lady interrupted him. "Preston tell everyone about the place."
"Mama Murphy, nobody wants another one of your ideas. That's what led us to the ghouls a couple of days ago.", another lady in the group said snarkily. As the group continued to bicker, Codsworth came up to me.
"May I speak with you in private sir", Codsworth asked. "Sure", we walked to the other side of the room. "Master, I must put my input in with you about what these people want. You truly want to survive then these people could help you.I suggest telling them about Sanctuary."
A part of me wanted to never be there again, but I knew it was the best chance of survival. I called Preston over, "I know a place that you guys could set up as a safe house, but I want something in return."
He fiddled with his laser musket, "sure anything". "So up by the vault I was from...", I swallowed the grief and continued. "There is a small community of houses by a river that could easily be set up as a home base." "
"Yeah that sounds like the place Mama Murphy was talking about. So what did you want from me?" Preston asked. "If you are to use that as a secure base just promise me that you won't bring the power armor to that town."
"I would, but I have no where to put it and it is just too valuable to leave it here.", Preston said.
"Sir if I may, I know a place that we could store the power armor in Sanctuary.", Codsworth said. "What do you mean by that Cod?", I asked puzzled.
"Remember when we would have block parties with the whole neighborhood? Well one of our neighbors had a cellar that had an entrance from the backyard. We could simply put it down there.", Codsworth suggested.
"Well that would work, except for one thing I was going to use that for where I live." I said. "So that would not work."
"Well how about this, we use one building to store it and you can stay away from that building. You going to tell me why? What do you have against power armor?", Preston started to try to get answers out of me.
"You stay out of my business and i'll do likewise for you. We may be allies, but we are not friends", I said darkly. Preston didn't have anything to say after that. "I guess I will meet you there".
When I left the Museum the sun was setting down, "We better get home Codsworth", I simply said.
"Right you are Master", I looked over the street and there was quite a collection of dead bodies. One of the raiders that was in beefier armor was still alive. He was probably the leader.
He was mumbling in pain, "How did a damn Vault Dweller beat me". I crouched and put my face in front of his. I need to remember the faces I told myself. Simply I said, "This Vault Dweller can kill". I pushed my pistol into his head and blew it off. Laying a few feet away was a hunting rifle. The mahogany on the stock of the gun was dented and stained with blood. When I picked it up it kind of stuck to my hand.
"These raiders just don't take care of their guns!", I gave a frustrated cry as I threw it in my bag and headed home.
XXX
I was halfway across the old bridge that went across the river and went into Sanctuary. When the wood planks under me snapped in half.
"Master are you okay?", the robot frantically asked. "Yeah", I coughed out some dirty river water. I struggled to get out of the river. It was dark, cold, and my arm was starting to hurt again. I haven't been able to get the bullet out of my arm. When I got out of the water I was shivering from head to toe. Turns out vault jumpsuits are not meant for the cold.
"Sir you need to warm up otherwise you are going to get hypothermia", Codsworth said tirelessly. "Is there any extra clothing in the town?" I asked him.
"I think there was some in the house across the street. In the meantime just stay in the house Sir. It would not do you well to get sick." As soon as Codsworth got out the entrance of the house. He crashed into the ground.
"Cod?", I asked. I jumped up, making sure I didn't hit my arm against the wall. I put my hand against the robots metal shell. Quickly my hand began to heat up from contact with the downed robot.
"That's not good", I muttered. I took my hand off the robot and opened his back panel. "I don't know shit about robots", I grumbled. Maybe Sturges can fix him up or something. I hit Codsworth's power switch to the off position.
The shivers that ran through my body reminded me that I was going to need to get warmed up. It needed to happen soon. I have had hypothermia before. It was the winter of my first tour. We lost our good friend Pete, it was all because of me. If I didn't take that extra blanket maybe he would not be dead. I shuddered at the memory, I didn't need to freak out right now. I could die, but the hollow face he made after the cold had taken him was too much.
"You are a worthless piece of shit", the voice said. It wasn't the first time I had heard the voice, but it had been a while. Then it seemed to disappear before I went into the vault, why did it have to come back now?
"You just let your friends die", it hissed. "You fall for everything and stand for nothing!"
"Stop please, stop it", I begged the voice inside my head. I heard footsteps and turned around to see Preston and Sturges.
"Damn did you fall in the river", Sturges asked. "So that's what that hole was from." Preston didn't say a word, but instead he took off his cream colored duster and put it over me.
"Sturges stay by him his temperature must be low. I am going to get some excess wood to start a fire and get him warmed back up.
Everything around me went fuzzy, I knew people were around. I even knew what Preston was doing for me, but my body didn't no it couldn't respond. Those were the last feelings I felt until I passed out.
XXX
The first thing I could feel was my face and it felt like a pint sized rock hit it. I slowly opened my eyes and I see concrete. My arm hurt too, but that was thanks to the bullet stuck in my arm. I heard a crackle from a fire. What happened? I remember that my robot just crashed for one reason or another. Preston gave me his jacket. Now that was something I wasn't expecting. I rolled over and sat up, my body was sore from falling asleep on the concrete. Nobody was around, but there was a plastic plate with some cooked up eggs.
"Beggars can't be too picky I guess", I shrugged. After I was done I got up I went to try to go find Sturges or Preston. I saw them talking by the playground.
"This may be a good place to settle down", Preston said. "No", Sturges was shaking his head. "It's way too open. We can be attacked from across the river and from many other directions".
"Then we will just build a wall around that area", Preston pointed at the old cold-a-sack. "Preston think logically that is going to take a absurd amount of resources."
"Well here we have an absurd amount of resources. There is a forest just over there and the buildings need to be scrapped.", I piped into the argument.
"Good Morning Caleb, how did you sleep", Sturges asked obviously annoyed that sided with Preston. "Not bad, but not good. Thanks Preston", he gave me a silent nod. Sturges our options are simple, for one there are only seven of us and that's including Codsworth. For two how much longer do you want to search for a good place to settle down? From what I have seen from what has change I really don't think there is anyplace truly safe."
Sturges didn't argue back but he didn't look happy either, "well I better look for a set of tools so I can start on 'our' project".
"Oh hey Sturges, so since my robot crashed you wanna help me with that?", I asked.
"Yeah I saw that, well I think I may know what is wrong with him, but we probably don't have spare parts for him. So we will have to go hunting for them. I will help you, but in return tell me what happened in that vault?"
"Well I was in cryostasis.", I said simply.
"Cryo-what?", Preston asked.
"It's where you're pretty much on ice in a machine. Well I was on ice for 200 years."
Their eyes widened, "so you're from before the war?",Sturges asked amazed.
"Yeah I was, I also lived here. Codsworth was my robotic servant of sorts."
"I see now", Sturges said connecting the dots. "Yeah I will help you, but first thing is first let's get you out of that vault suit. You look like a Brahmin in a Deathclaw pen."
"A what?", I asked confused.
"Ha, wow Sturges and here I thought Mama Murphy was crazy. That joke was horrible.", Preston shook his head.
"Whatever, still the point is you are a target in that suit."
When he left Preston came over to me. "Were you the only person who made it out of the vault?"
"Yeah", I muttered. "I got to do something before I start helping with the 'project."
XXX
Out of all the things in my life going back to that vault was the hardest. I just wanted to hide from the suffering and pain. I just wanted to forget about what happened in there, but I knew I couldn't. If I did that I would be forgetting all those things about my wife that were so great. Before all this happened she was my heart and I was her shield. In a way she was my shield also. She kept my demons away, but now they are back and ready to thrive off this new world. I carried my dead wife out of the forsaken vault, when I got to the bridge that went over the tiny stream I stopped. Even with the total nuclear annihilation this area was pretty and it was still full of life. There were trees and all sorts of plants. Even if they are mutated to some extent, it still is beautiful.
I looked up at the sky and water started to hit my face. It was raining, so maybe the atmosphere isn't totally messed up. "I'm sorry, I couldn't save you." I clenched my fist. The pain from losing her was worse than any bullet I had taken in my life. Either physically or emotionally. Tears started to come out of my eye ducts, soon the rain and tears became one. "Let's take you home", I said to my dead partner. I lifted her up and carried her back to Sanctuary. I found a shovel and started to dig a hole in my old back yard.
Once it was big enough I went over to my wife and sat down next to her. I brushed her hair out of the way and I kissed her on the forehead. "Goodbye my love", I whispered. I slowly lifted her down the hold. By this time it was pouring down rain. I packed the dirt back on top of her, then I grabbed an old yellow wooden crate and mounted in the dirt in front of the grave. I pulled my hunting knife out of my bag and carved her name in it.
Jessica Danes
Was loved by all of those around her, a great wife and a great women.
"I guess that will have to do", I sighed and sat down against the wall and let the misery trickle down on to my face.