Hello all, figured I would go ahead and post the second chapter while my internet holds out! Once again, I hope you all enjoy the story. Please feel free to review so I can improve my writing and get some feedback. Thanks again!
Collin hurried out into the bailey of the Citadel. He passed one of Paladin Gunny's groups of initiates, running laps around the Citadel as he directed them from above. What he needed to get to was parked in the middle of the Citadel itself. A little something he'd discovered in an old military motor pool, it had been nicely preserved and already converted to run on electron charge packs or microfusion cells. It was an old Harley-Davidson WLA, a military motorcycle from before the Great War. The paint had faded on it, but a white star in a circle was still visible.
He walked up to the bike and checked that his rifle, an M1 Garand, was still in its leather scabbard. He also checked the side car of the bike, where a very happy Dogmeat was laying along with his extra supplies. Collin smiled lightly, scratching the dogs head and hearing his tail thump against the side of the cart itself. Collin started taking off his combat armor, a suit he'd painted a dark urban grey, but with a big yellow 101 on the front and back of its chest plate. He rolled his shoulders and straightened the tan shirt that he wore underneath. Finally, he pulled off the leg plates, revealing the pair of old BDU pants he'd scavenged.
He set his things into the floor of the side car, then hopped onto the bike itself and started it. The electric engine hummed to life, not as exciting as the old roaring bikes in the holotapes, but still a thrill to ride. Checking that he had enough fuel to get back to Megaton, he set out, pulling out of the Citadel gates and wasting no time getting onto the road that crossed the Potomac to where his home was.
The ride itself had been uneventful and fast. Ever since the Brotherhood had gained new members and all the tech from the Enclave War, they'd been able to start regular patrols along the main road that connected Rivet City and the Citadel to the rest of the wastes. That and the new Regulator patrol on the opposite side of the river had served to make a relatively safe trade route for most wastelanders.
Collin looked down at Dogmeat and smiled. "Gotta love not having a speed limit, right boy?" He said as he climbed off the bike. A short bark was his response as Dogmeat hopped out. He took a moment to look out over Megaton itself. The area had grown somewhat since the end of the Enclave War. More settlers had come to the area, and a small market had been set up around the now deactivated bomb. He smiled as he walked into his home, hoping it was a sign of progress.
"Ah, Master Sharp! Glad to see that you have made it back safely! May I get anything for you?" His Mr. Handy of a butler, Wadsworth, greeted Collin as soon as he walked through the door. Collin plopped down onto his couch and put his feet up onto a table.
"Yeah. Could you please get me a water and a can of Pork N' Beans?" Collin asked as he turned on the radio in his house. Wadsworth quickly returned with a can of beans, spoon, and bottle of water, then went about his business as Collin ate. Three Dog's voice quickly filled the house.
"It is I, Three Dog! Bringing the music and helping all of you out in the wastes to fight the good fight! Come on and gather 'round ghouls and girls, cause old Three Dog has got a little PSA for you. As we all know by now, winter is getting closer with each day. This means two things. One: All the big uglies out there are getting ready to bunker down and wait out the cold, giving our friends in the Brotherhood a much needed break. And two: You had better start doing the same folks. If you want to survive, you need food, shelter, clothes, and fire of course. Here's a little tip, the Brotherhood happened across some emergency winter clothing that doesn't match with all that power armor, and they may be willing to part with some of it at GNR Plaza. Bow wow wow. Now, here's that Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B, coming to brighten up your day!" He said as the lively music began to play from the radio. Collin smiled a little as he continued to eat. Another bonus to all the influx of Brotherhood Initiates, they could finally keep the Super Mutants beat down enough to actually help the people in the wastes. He took the last bite of the food, then set the can in a recycling box with others. He stood and headed to the newest addition to his home. He'd paid a few of the locals without work to help him dig out a small basement under his house. It was down here where he kept most of his supplies and weapons, a sentry gun sat in the corner, guarding his supplies.
Hefting his armor onto a hanging rack, Collin started removing the chest plate from it. He looked at the three claw marks that were carved through the 101 on it, thanks to the Legendary Deathclaw they'd found in Old Olney. Had he not jumped back in time, the thing would've cut him in two. He walked over to a footlocker that held a few extra pieces for his combat armor. He pulled out a chest plate that originally belonged to a Talon Company merc, but now sported his colors, and began attaching it to his current set.
Collin had built himself a respectable armory down here. He'd found an old gun store that, while picked clean of any weapons or ammo, held all the tools he'd needed to make both a reloading bench and a work bench. As a bonus, he'd taken a few of the rifle racks from the store, along with a safe that had jars of gunpowder and boxes of primers inside. The racks had been put to good use quickly, holding a mix of the various long rifles found in the wasteland, including six of the M1 Garand's and five 45. Auto SMG's he'd recovered from a National Guard armory.
The armor repaired, he quickly cleaned his M1 and replenished his ammunition. He laid out three frag grenades on the table, along with the 10mm pistol he'd had when he first left the vault. Finally, he set his most recent project on the table. A combat helmet that he'd attached a transparent visor to. The screen went over his eyes and plugged directly into his pip boy, creating a HUD similar to the one that was in a power armor helmet. This HUD allowed him to see all the information that V.A.T.S offered, and would switch over to night vision when needed.
He made sure everything was in order then checked his Pipboy clock, he needed to link up with the two squads in a half hour. He changed into some fresh clothes, then went about placing his armor back on. He checked each strap, making sure it was secured, and grabbed his balaclava. The ski mask completely covered his face, leaving only a slot for his eyes. He used it more for intimidation than identity protection, and thanks to the grinning skull that had been printed onto the front of it, it most certainly did its job. Finally, he placed the helmet on his head and left, satisfied that everything was in order.
It was getting dark out by the time Collin had walked to the hill overlooking Springvale. He could see the destroyed houses below him, few of them still standing, and of course, the school itself. Easing into a crouch, Collin moved himself along the side of the hill so he wouldn't be silhouetted against the sun. Dogmeat was still beside him, padding carefully along with his Master. It wasn't long before he saw a slight movement, and a quick scan with his visor revealed a Knight laying prone, laser rifle pointed at Collin himself.
"Thunder!" the knight said in a loud whisper when he spotted Collin. He shifted a little, getting a better sight on Collin in case he wasn't a friendly.
"Flash." Collin whispered back as he stood to his full height. The knight quickly stood, the servos in his power armor whirring softly as they assisted him. He stepped up to meet with Collin, giving him a quick nod.
"Knight Sharp, glad you could join us. Knight Reyes, leader of 2nd Squad, reporting for duty Sir." He said as they slipped down into a dip in the hill they were on. Collin looked around to see only a single squad of nine men instead of the two he'd been promised.
"Command told me I would have two squads for this raid. Where's the other one?" He asked curiously as he looked around.
"We got a message over the radio, a group of raiders had ambushed and pinned down a water convoy just outside Minefield. The other squad was dispatched to go help them out." Reyes told him as they walked up to where a small lookout post had been set up with two more soldiers watching over the school. "Junior Knight Owens, what have you got for me?" He asked one of the men, who was looking through a sniper rifles scope.
"Not much sir. Ever since that group of five passed through with the cart of equipment, it's been the same. Three sentries patrolling the bombed out portion, two armed with hunting rifles, another has an R-91 assault rifle. Spotted two more down near the main entrance, looks like both have Chinese AK's. No clue on the amount inside beyond the five we spotted earlier. Although I'd guess around twenty tangos if they can post five sentries." The man said without taking his eyes away from the scope.
"Any ideas?" Reyes asked Collin, who looked thoughtful for a moment.
"I'd say we move in as close as possible to the front entrance. Have your marksman pick off one of the sentries up on the second floor when we get in position. After that, we move in and do the classic sweep and clear while the marksman and another wait here to make sure no one comes in behind us. Hopefully they won't have any surprises waiting on us." Collin said as he grabbed his M1. Reyes nodded, and relayed the info to his squad.
They slowly moved out, easing down the hill and behind a few of the burnt out cars. Collin switched his visor over to night vision and everything turned into a different shade of green. He could see the two raiders outside the front door, both were clearly high on some chem or another, judging by the conversation they were having.
"Fuck me, bossman says we'll be living the highlife soon enough! I-I heard that these vaults are just full of the good shit from before the war! Weapons! Chems! Food! We're gonna live like kings down there!" One of them said quickly. He was jittery, and Collin was almost certain that he was insane too. The other one let out a giggle as he looked around.
"I-I know! Also said that there'd be all kinds of little bitches down there for us to play with! Damn well lookin' forward too it too! That bitch Tania hasn't been putting out enough lately. I need a good fuck." He said with another laugh as he took a deep inhale from a small canister. Jet, of course they'd be hyped up on what was basically super cocaine. Collin despised the stuff, he'd seen what it did to people. He nodded to Reyes, who relayed the all clear to his marksman.
A lone shot split the quiet of the night, followed by the thud of a body as one of the raiders fell from the school, his head separated from his body. The other four almost instantly went into a panic, screaming and cursing as they scrambled to find the shooter. Collin didn't give them a chance. He stood and lined up one of the raiders by the door. Two shots erupted from the rifle, hitting the crazed man in the chest. He fell, laying still as he bled onto the pavement. The rest of the squad was up and firing alongside him. The other raider by the door was met with multiple laser blasts. Collin watched as his body was instantly burned to ash.
The two still left on the second floor fared no better, and were quickly overwhelmed by the combined firepower of the squad. Collin scanned the area, "Clear!" He called out to the others as they did the same. Collin checked his rifle, only two rounds were left in the en bloc clip. He sighed, the only downside to the rifle was having to empty the clip before you could reload. He hurried over to the door where 2nd Squad had formed up against the wall.
"On your word Knight." Knight Reyes said as one of his men moved up, ready to punch the door in thanks to a power fist. Collin nodded, and the soldier forced the door off its hinges with the pneumatic powered punch. The action was met by a barrage of bullets coming from inside the school. The knight was pulled out of the way by Reyes, his armor damaged by the barrage of bullets.
"Shit! They've got a machinegun up on that balcony! Sounds like a .30 Cal!" One of the other soldiers called out. The one who'd been hit checked himself over glanced at the rounds now lodged in his chest plate, and the spot where a bullet had pierced the gap in his shoulder armor.
"Yeah, damned well felt like one too." He said as he groaned at the pain and slipped a stimpack into the induction port along his arm. Collin edged up to the door, the machinegun had fallen silent. He could hear the raiders inside yelling taunts at them. Pulling the pin on a grenade, Collin tossed it hard inside. Shouts and curses were heard inside, followed by the thump of the grenade going off. The dust kicked up inside was the opening they needed. Collin charged inside, firing off two rounds at the V.A.T.S outlined figure of the raider. Then, sliding along the old marble floors, he slipped into cover behind a desk.
The all too familiar ping of the ejected clip resounded through the school. Collin quickly reloaded, pushing a new clip into his rifle. He watched as the brotherhood squad poured in with him. A raider was screaming loudly as she lay bleeding on the floor. One of her legs had been taken by the blast. The two raiders remaining on the bottom floor fired sporadically with hunting rifles. Two of the soldiers responded with laser fire that drove them back deeper into the school. The remaining squad members focused fire on the machine gunner, reducing him to ashes. Reyes walked forward along with his squad. Pulling out a laser pistol, he fired two blasts into the screaming raider, putting her out of her misery.
Seven raiders lay dead in the front entrance, counting the machine gunner up top. Collin glanced at the weapons, everything from old rifles, to R-91's in very good condition, and then there was the machinegun upstairs. He didn't have time to ponder why they had the weapons, as the scraping of desks could be heard upstairs. The squad pushed upstairs as soon as they'd cleared the rest of the first floor. The double doors to the library were open, same way they had been the last time Collin had cleared this place alone. He rushed up to the door, hoping to catch them off guard. He came face to face with a desperate raider holding a hunting rifle and pointing it right at him. The raider fired, but the result was not as expected. Instead of a bullet flying out and hitting the Lone Wanderer, the bolt of the weapon exploded, flying back and smashing the raiders face in. Collin took the stroke of luck and fired on the remaining raiders alongside 2nd squad. One of them rushed him with a large wrench in his hands, hyped up on multiple different chems with every intention of beating Collin to death. Collin acted fast. He grabbed the barrel of his rifle and swung it like a bat. The raiders head snapped to the side, his neck broken and side of his head partially caved in.
The room had finally fallen silent except for the sound of sizzling flesh and clothes from the laser fire. Collin turned back to see Reyes and a few others looking at him in surprise. He eased the rifle back into a ready position and sighed. "Bet you couldn't do that with one of those laser rifles." He chuckled, his voice muffled by the mask he wore. He started checking some of the bodies, looking for the usual signs of a raider leader. Normally a leader would have the best armor, along with the brand that Jericho had taught him about. An explosion down below quickly stopped Collin's searching as the entire building shook.
"Damn! Sounds like they just tried breaching the Vaults walls! We saw them carrying in torch cutters earlier! Let's get down there!" Reyes yelled as they ran for the basement of the school. Collin let the worry overcome him, and was soon at the front. 'Don't worry Amata. I'm coming for you and everyone.' He thought to himself as he ran.