Over the Edge Part 2

A Fallout Fanfic

Ben came out, wearing a red flannel with cut-off sleeves and blue jeans, holding a .45 Auto Pistol in his right hand. "Long time no see" Ben replied, with a genuine smile on his face. Emily and Ben hugged, then walked into his living room and sat down on one of the couches. Ben walked up to his refurbished refrigerator, opened it, and grabbed two bottles of Sunset Sarsaparilla. He handed one to Emily and the two sat back down and began to talk. After about an hour of reminiscing about old times together, the topic changed to Emily's new assignment with the Followers. "I knew from the outset that working with the Followers can be dangerous, but never this dangerous. Look Ben, 7 of our scientists vanished, near Yucca Flats without a trace". "They left us no note, no radio transmission, no leads for us to follow". "Why would the Followers be interested in that hellhole? "Last time I was even near Yucca Flats, there were massive Radscorpions, Super Mutant gangs, and to top it off, enough heavily armed Raiders and Fiends to give any Ranger a run for their money". "Well, Ben, I…, we, would like to hire you to travel into Yucca Flats and investigate the disappearances of our scientists". "Before you object, the Followers promise 25,000 caps, plus food and ammunition expenses, along with any medical supplies you need". "Only 25,000?" "Yucca Flats is a raider stronghold, filled with some of the most unsavory types the Mojave Wasteland has to offer". 'So, what's your price then?", Emily said, desperate to get him to take the job. "I'll double it to 50,000 caps upon the return of our scientists, or their remains, along with the reason and cause of their death. 'Tell you what Emma, lets talk about this over dinner at the Chateau du Lac, and before you ask, Its on me". "Ok Ben, I'll take you up on dinner, as long as I get everything I need to say out in the open". "very good" Ben replied, "besides, the lakeside view never disappoints". The two headed out together, walking towards the Chateau for a lovely dinner.

The Chateau du Lac, (Castle of the Lake), was once considered one of Pre-War Henderson's finest restaurants and luxury hotels. The Chateau was in the Aberdeen Hills district, in the southern part of the Lake Las Vegas community. Its exterior resembled a French castle, built with tan stone bricks along the lakeside. Thankfully, it survived the war with only moderate damage, which was mostly repaired by the original Post-War settlers of Lake Las Vegas. It still open and continues to rent rooms to any well-heeled inhabitants and travelers looking for a standard of luxury that puts most casinos to shame. One could sit down, enjoy the finer elements of Mojave Wasteland cuisine, and get a lovely view of the entire development, especially the massive Country Club Farms, which was a massive private farm located on what was once a Pre-War golf course, where most of the fresh fruits, grains, and vegetables, served in Lake Las Vegas restaurants and markets, came from. The current owner of the Chateau was a man named Ray Desmolin, who came from a family of wealthy Brahmins back in NCR territory. Ray also was a former NCR Desert Veteran Ranger, who served many years with Ben. The Chateau's bailey and walls that faced the lakeside, provided gorgeous views of both the lake and the city of New Vegas. Ben and Emily arrived at the Chateau, walking up to the host, a 16-year-old boy. "Hey Blake, how's business today?" Ben asked the teenager. "Nearly a full house Mr. McCall, but don't worry one bit, dad told me to save your usual table". "Tell your father that I stopped by and said hello", Ben replied, before Blake showed the two to their table. Ben and Emily sat down, with their table overlooking the setting sun over Lake Las Vegas. They ordered two Nuka Colas, along with 2 orders of exquisite Brahmin Wellington. "What a view, Emily said, clearly mesmerized by the stunning scenery. After marveling the exquisite sunset over the lake, their waiter brought them their food and drinks. They began to eat, and after a few minutes, they began to pick up the business conversation where they left off.

"So, Ben, while I love taking in the scenery, I need an answer". "Here's the deal Emily, I'll need to hire at least one or two others to go with me out there and enough caps to bribe any of the Yucca Flats Raider overbosses for information about your missing colleagues". "That requires more than 50,000 caps, hell, it requires more than 75 grand". Emma spoke up, "100,000 caps plus expenses". Ben nearly spat the Nuka Cola out his mouth, "Emily, how do the Followers have 100,000 caps to spend?" "You guys are always begging for caps or medicine, all while living in a dilapidated fort in the Freeside". Emma retorted, "unlike the NCR, we still have our ace in the hole, who's always had our back in tough times. "Alright Emily, if your pocket ace agrees to my terms of 100,000 caps, my choice of team members, plus all travel and medical expenses, then you have my services". Emily smiled joyously, 'Ben, you're amazing for helping us with this, the work that our scientists were doing with the Yuccan population is one of our crucial projects as of now". "I can't give you all of the details right now, but let's just say that we're on the brink of uncovering something big. Something so sinister, that could threaten the entire Mojave and all its inhabitants". Ben responded, "if the Followers and their ace are willing to shell out 100,000 caps, I'd say they must have evidence".

The two finished their meal, Ben paid the bill, and then the two left, heading back to Ben's place. By the time they'd left the Chateau, the afternoon had turned into a dark night. "Listen Emily, I know you came out all this way from Tahoe just to see me, you're welcome to stay the night". Emma paused, smiled a little, clearly sensing Ben's intentions, "I'm alright, besides, I've holed up at a Followers safehouse for the night". Ben cavalierly responded "Well, at least have some coffee back at my place, actual coffee, not the hotter kind". "I'm fine with that", Emily responded as the two walked through Aberdeen's downtown area, and after an hour's walk, the two arrived the checkpoint, marking an entrance to the Westin Estates. After a short walk, they found themselves walking up the cracked asphalt walkway up to Ben's door. What they didn't know, was that an assassin, concealed by his Stealth Boy, had arrived minutes before they did, laying in wait for his target to reveal themselves.

Ben and Emily walked up to his door, "I locked the door, give me a second to find my keyring". As he fumbled through the keys on his keyring looking for the right one, an angry voice that he immediately recognized, shouted directly at him. "McCall! You rat bastard!" "You rat bastard!". Ben and Emma quickly turned around, and spotted the man, who then deactivated his Stealth Boy. Ben shouted, "CFC Winslow! Put your gun down". Winslow was a tall man, weighing around 220 lbs. who was built like a prizefighter. He was wearing a set of battered NCR Trooper Fatigues, which had several medals for valor and meritorious service, pinned on the upper right shoulder of the uniform, while he also wore a brown NCR beret, which did nothing to hide his disheveled mullet hairstyle. He had a cowboy mustache and wielded a sawed-off 10-gauge shotgun that could blow a man in half. He was tweaking and trembling severely from the Slasher he regularly abused, with wild eyes, like a rabid animal, looking to rip apart anyone who stood it its way. "Ben slowly reached for the .45 Auto pistol from the back of his jeans, calling out to the disheveled gunman, "listen Clyde, we can talk about this, just put your gun down and…". Winslow screamed an incomprehensible series of words, then fired both barrels of his shotgun, suddenly, Emily ran in front of Ben. Sadly, she was hit by both slugs, causing her to be blasted back, flying about 2 feet before hitting the ground. The gunman then ran away from the scene, deploying a stealth boy once he had left the scene.

Ben, normally a man of stone, with Ranger training that could remedy any situation, was reduced to shock, utterly paralyzed from watching the person he loved blown away. He quickly ran to Emily, to try and deliver what aid he could. "Emma, who heavily bleeding from her gaping shotgun wound, didn't scream in pain or agony, but knew that she wouldn't survive the night. Ben, called for help from his neighbors, but most of them weren't home. "It's going to be alright Emily, Ben stammered, "I'm going to get some Stimpaks, Med-X, and you'll be right as rain in a few days". Emily moved her hand and held Ben's, "please Ben, find my friends, for me". Ben replied, "I'll do it, don't worry, and you'll see your friends again". Emily leaned her head closer to Ben's ear and whispered, "don't tell". Ben, puzzled, asked Emily "Don't tell what?". "Don't tell", Emily said, before she died in Ben's arms. After about 5 minutes, Westin Estates Security (WES) officers arrived, trying to secure the scene and deliver crucial first aid to Emily. However, since she had died before they arrived, the arriving officers solemnly placed her on a stretcher and headed towards the Westin Medical Clinic for autopsy. As the officers went about securing the scene, Ben wanted to break down, but quickly composed himself. He walked into his home, grabbed a bottle of whiskey and gulped down about half of the bottle, before going off to sleep. He knew that tomorrow, he'd have to compartmentalize the trauma and get to work on cracking the case.