The newly formed trio traveled northeast to the ruins of Boulder City, where there was a fenced off area with NCR troopers gathering around. Ramona approached one of the troopers who sat in front of the radio, trying to make contact with someone, "Hey, what's going here?"
The Lieutenant took off his hat to scratch husbanding head, sighing, "We got ourselves a hostage situation with the Great Khans. Whole place is to be locked down until everything is removed. But then again, who knows how long that'll be?"
Ramona looked to her friends, "Great Khans, you say...," she returned her gaze to the NCR agent, "If you don't mind, sir, I'd like me and my friends to gain entry. You see, they stole something of mine."
He gave her a skeptical look, as if she had lost her mind. "Yeah? They've probably slept with my daughter and you don't see me going in there, maybe shooting everything up. We need my men out alive. Why should I let you in?"
Ramona smirked, passing by him, "Because I'm the God-damned mailman."
She gained entrance into the ruins, Sandra laughing and following after her. David stopped by the Lieutenant, slightly out of breath, "Sir, you can put your faith in us. We'll be able to negotiate with the Khans. You can count on us!"
He ran after his friends. The Lieutenant shook his head, sticking a cigarette between his teeth, "Damn kids these days."
Fire and smoke filled the air, obscuring the there's vision. Sandra coughed some, wheezing slightly. David squinted his eyes as they delved further into the ruins, asking, "Where d'you think they might be?"
"Probably in the last building still barely standing," Ramona answered, nodding her head to a corner of the dirty ruins. "Stay close and let me do the talking, alright?"
The siblings nodded, allowing her to enter into the hideout first.
"What the Hell? I thought we wasted you back in Goodsprings. You're supposed to be dead!" One of them shouted, Ramona recognizing him as presumed he was the leader.
"Looks like I got better," she raised her rifle, "Much better, in fact."
"Heh, and I thought we were tough to kill," he shook his head, seating himself behind the counter that separated them, "So, what happens now doll face?"
"I want my Chip," She demanded.
"Looks like you'll have to go searching just a wee bit longer. It turns out Benny stole it from us before stabbing us in the back and leaving us for dead."
"Looks like we have something in common," she smirked, "Did he shoot you in the head, too?"
Sandra felt her attention span begin to crack and wanting to zoom around, her eyes glaring at the empty Sarsaparilla bottles. She chewed her tongue, making shifty, uncomfortable eye contact with some of the other Great Khans before finally looking t her brother who seemed preoccupied staring at something else.
"Are you staring at her ass?" She whispered to him, trying her best to hide her snickers while her grin leaked through.
David automatically became flustered by this accusation, though he wasn't ready to admit her was. "N-No, of course not!" He attempted to keep his voice as a whisper, "I was just spacing out, and my eyes just happened to- Stop looking at me like that."
She looked ready to bust into a mess of giggles and snickers, her grin stretching from ear to ear. "You like the Courier, don't you?" Her face began to turn a bright red.
"Is this really a necessary time to discuss this? Really now-"
"So you do admit it!" Sandra almost broke out of her whisper, with a triumphant look on her face.
She quieted down immediately as Ramona's voice began to rise: "Alright, that's all I needed to know. Now that's over, let's see what we can do about settling things with the NCR, yeah?"
The Khan, Jessup, slammed his 10 mm onto the counter, "Have the NCR back off, we walk out free, nobody gets hurt. Whattya say?"
She holstered her rifle, "Free the hostages, and I'll make the NCR escort you out. Nobody gets hurt, we can all go home. How's that sound?"
"Mighty fine," Jessup grinned, almost chuckling.
Sandra felt the irresistible urge to break out into laughter, nudging her brother in the arm, "H-Hey- Hey Dave, what's big, soft, and something you like to touch?"
"Hm?"
She snorted, "Ramona's butt."
The two broke out into laughter; David only joining in due to the over reaction Sandra created from her "joke". Tears began streaming from her eyes, having to lean on her brother for support.
"SHUT UP!" Ramona barked at the two, the siblings quieting down almost instantly despite tears and wheezing still coming from Sandra. Ramona looked back to the men, "I'm sorry, please ignore them. What were you going to say?"
Jessup intently watched the siblings, a small smile peaking his own face, "You know what? Fine. Have them keep their end of the deal and everything's peachy. Oh and here's a souvenir for you," he tossed her a light object, Ramona catching it with one hand, "Benny's lighter. Shove it up his ass for us, will you?"
She nodded, smiling, "I guess I'll catch you boys on the flip side, then."
They cut the bondages that bound the hostages, instantly making a dash out the door. The three walked out, the first thing Ramona did was slug both of the other two in the arms, "Idiots! All you two had to do was stay quiet, and you can't even do that!"
Sandra stood straight and tall as if nothing happened, "I have this strange feeling like you're mad at us for something... Is it because David thinks your butt is as big and soft as a cloud?"
Ramona made a face of disgust, "Excuse me?"
"Don't mind her, she likes making things up to embarrass me," Davd scratched the back of his head, doing his best to act like his arm wasn't sore. He wondered where she learned to hit so hard. "What is important, however, is making sure the NCR holds up their end of the deal."
"Yeah," she smiled at him, "You're right."
She turned to leave the ruins, David letting out a sigh of relief that she didn't catch on to him. He followed her anyhow, trying his best not to glance any lower than her mid torso. Something about her hip sway just caught his attention.
Outside the makeshift borders of the ruins, the lieutenant from earlier stood in front of the hostages and a couple other troopers. "That's just great," he grumbled, letting out a small cough, "Looks like we have ourselves a new problem. I have orders to kill the Khans despite the negotiation. My hands are tied, what can I do?"
"Excuse me?" Ramona took a stood forward, puffing out her chest. Sandra and David immediately placed a hand on their weapons in fear another conflict would break out. "They held up their end of the deal, now it's time for you to do your part. If you have integrity, you'll honor the deal like a true man and soldier."
The Lieutenant sighed, "I... Suppose you're right goldilocks." He turned to his squad, waving a dismissive hand, "Stand down, men. The Khans are free to go." He turned back to Ramona, holding his hand out. "Glad to see someone useful around who's ready to not waste lives."
She smirked, shaking his hand. "What can I say? That was my good deed for the day."
She saw something passed the lieutenant and other NCR soldiers. Her face slowly fell into a more serious expression, slowly losing grip as her hand retreated back to her side. She began to take slow, heavy steps as if her legs were made of lead. David and Sandra began to quietly follow, trying to pinpoint what exactly caught their blonde friend's attention.
She headed northwest, stopping at the side of a small building on the outskirts of Boulder City. Now, they could see what had caught her interest, staring in amazement with her: Beyond the little town, was a glowing light in the dark, starry sky. That light was a tall building in the shape of a roulette wheel. Below, other dazzling lights helped illuminate the dark night, but none was as attention-grabbing as the tall center tower.
"What is that?" David asked, his mouth hanging down.
Ramona pursed her lips, the ends curling into a small smile. "That," she couldn't help but grow excited at the topic, "That is where we are headed."
They lingered for another moment to soak in the sight, Sandra was the first to finally show some energy. "Well?" She looked to them, a few steps ahead, "Let's go!"
She took another step, almost scared out of her skin as she heard another voice jump from nowhere: "Fancy meeting you here, friend."
A Securitron robot wheeled out from around the corner, giving the trio a wave. Sandra immediately scuttled back to her brother's side, hiding behind his shoulder.
"David," she whispered very loudly, "You speak robot, don't you? Tell it to go away!"
"Guys," Ramona shot them a disproving gaze, "That's rude. This guy here saved my life!" She looked to the robot, "Good seeing you again, Victor."
"Looks like you got yerself a couple o' friends! The more the merrier, I say! Too bad they don't seem to take a liking to me." Victor slowly rolled closer to the pair of siblings, "Now, I don't bite. You can trust me."
"Sorry," David begrudgingly nodded, "Where we're from most robots prefer to attack than make friendly conversation." Sandra quickly nodded in agreement.
"Aww, y'all see that not all robots are the same. But on a different topic, it looks like you three are on your way to New Vegas."
Ramona shot her friends one last threatening look before shutting them out of the conversation. "Yes, actually. You wouldn't happen to be going in a similar direction, would you? We could use a ride."
"Eh, I suppose so. Was never made for transportation but you'll never know unless you try, right?" Victor chuckled.
Ramona signaled her friends to climb on him; David and Sandra climbed on his back, clutching onto his side for support. Ramona, on the other hand, had to be carried in Victor's robotic arms due to limited space. The four of them rode off, thanking Victor repeatedly for the kind gesture.