First things first, I'm not going for an exact replica of the game. If some info is wrong, it's on purpose.
After leaving Moriarty's Saloon, Faith trudged on in the heat. She made a total of three steps outside of Mega Scrap until completely coming undone at the seams.
She sunk down to her knees and raised her arms over her head, "Why must it be so hot? Why must I be so cruel? Why, why?" She belted to the sky.
Pulling her arms down, she looked around.
Where would she find a school? Ah.
She pulled herself up to a standing position and glanced at her wrist, "Maybe the pip-boy will work…"
She opened the map of the surrounding area, "Ah-ha. I'm such a good dreamer. At least the school really isn't far…"
"Howdy there!"
Faith looked up from her pip-boy and noticed a man dressed in a duster and goggles hanging around his neck with… another cow! This one had a backpack. Aww. A carrier cow. Next to the cow was another man, he was dressed up in fancy looking leather and held a big gun in his hands.
Faith smiled and walked up to the group, "Hi! My name is Faith, what's yours?"
The man smiled back and puffed out his chest, "My name is Wolfgang! Welcome, Faith, to Crazy Wolfgang's Traveling Junk Store! The Depot of Detritus, the Shop of Slop, and the Caravan of Crap! Now, what odds and ends can I, the Craziest of all possible Wolfgangs offer to you?"
Faith looked on in bewilderment, she even dreamed up a caravan! She patted her pockets and looked for something to sell. If she could just get the necessary currency, she could definitely breathe easier.
She came across more vault suits, a couple of helmets, two batons, her old BB gun, a baseball bat, a baseball glove, bobby pins, Grognak the Barbarian… What the hell? Did she just dream this shit up?
Faith looked to Wolfgang, "Well… I have things… Do I… just give them to you? I've never bought or sold anything before…"
The brown haired man whistled, "You have quite the collection. Here, let me take a look. Do you know what you want to sell?"
Faith shook her head, "Should I just sell everything? I mean… I didn't even notice I had this… junk. Heh."
Wolfgang smirked, "No, missy. It's treasure. Let me help you sort it out."
The both knelt to the ground as Faith took out everything. Wolfgang made a pile of what to keep and what not to keep, as far as survival goes, "Now, you'll want to keep any ammo you find. Stimpacks are your friend, right missy? Food is a keeper, any drinks… Sell armor and any unwanted weapons, but remember to keep two available at all times. Never know if you'll run out of bullets or you're too tired to swing, alright?"
Faith nodded, "OK, sounds fair enough. What am I keeping ammo and bullets for?"
Wolfgang's head shot up and gave her a weird face, "Other than the raiders and vicious, mutated animals?"
He watched as Faith's face morphed into confusion and fear, "Vicious animals? Raiders? What are raiders?"
Wollfgang started to fold up the rest of Faith's treasure and counted out the necessary caps, "Listen, kid… You're cute, really, so I'll try and help you out. Raiders are evil sons of bitches who kill for pleasure and fuck for fun."
Faith blanched and put away her ammo and weapons, "I… Well I hope I don't see them. I haven't met them yet so…"
After patting herself down, she glanced to Wolfgang who was staring at her, "I mean, then again…. This could turn into a nightmare pretty easy… But it seems to be benign… and I'm apparently having a lucid dream, so nothing to fear… right?"
Wolfgang shook his head, his greasy hair staying put, "I don't really follow, just… watch out, Faith. You're real sweet, but out here… people take advantage of that… So be careful."
Giving Faith an uneasy smile, he turned to walk toward the cow and put all the newly purchase items in his bags.
Faith tried not to think about the scary danger Wolfgang was talking about. Hey… it was her dream and she could change it if she tried… right? She thought about the money that didn't appear when she wished it… Well… Maybe actions were different, rather than money. She was always told that she was extremely lucky… maybe that was still true in her dreams.
One last glance at Wolfgang, Faith smiled and waved, "Thanks for your help, Wolfgang! I'll be heading out!"
Wolfgang put his hand in the air and waved. The guard, the cow and the merchant watched as she stumbled down the hill, watching her glowing machine on her wrist.
The caravan guard shook his head, "She's so dead."
Wolfgang narrowed his eyes and punched the guard's arm, not unfriendly, "Don't say that shit man… I had this feeling, you know? She's… Well she's obviously different. A little stupid, but I have this feeling that she's going to do something big. You know?"
The guard smirked and turned to Wolfgang, "Oh, I know. A feeling, huh? Kinda like that feeling you get when you see Moira."
The guard's pitch increase to mock a woman's voice, "Oh Wolfgang, please! Fuck me until I go sane again!"
The taller man blushed, narrowed his eyes and punched his friend again, "Shut up, asshole. Not that feeling and me and Moira never fucked. It's strictly business."
The guard laughed, "Business. Oh, Wolfgang, you're a goddamned trip, you know that?"
Wolfgang only mumbled and face away from the caravan guard, "It was business…"
Faith wandered away from Wolfgang, feeling incredibly lighter. Although his news were depressing, at least she got a fair amount of these 'caps.'
Glancing back at her pip-boy for reference, Faith walked down the way she came. Passing the Nuka Cola machine, she stopped…
After popping open another bottle of Nuka Cola, she drank eagerly. Faith stroked her chin and looked at the pip-boy, "Only a few meters left…"
Pausing to catch her bearings, she heard this weird sound. Like… something waddling… waddling fast. She looked from right to left, seeing nothing.
The sound got louder and louder. When she heard something leaping, she looked behind her and saw… What the hell did she see!
It… it's a… thing. Yeah, it is a thing. A thing leaping for her. She pushed her arms in front of her and flinched, waiting for the impact. The Nuka Cola in her hands sloshing around in the bottle. When nothing happened, she looked around and saw the… thing sitting and wagging its tail.
Faith's eyebrows rose to her hair line, her mouth twisting… then she shrugged. She always wanted a pet, it only made sense for her to dream up a weird looking one. Faith pat its head and motioned for it to follow, "You aren't as cute as the cow, but you're cute for a thing... You know what? That's what I'll name you. Although The Thing was covered in hair… and you're bald… But who cares? It's my dream and I'll do whatever I want."
She marched on and took a swig, Thing following behind her.
As Faith neared the school she tried to remember what that old bar man said, "Was the lady in the school? Or… not in the school?"
Thing walked ahead of her and sat near a ruddy, off-white fence that was broken in several spots in front of a small house that was still intact.
Neat!
Faith followed Thing to the door and looked at him… She put her Nuka Cola down and looked under Thing… then sucked in her lips and bugged her eyes, yep… Him.
Picking herself and the Cola off the ground, Faith looked long and hard at the door, "Should I knock? I mean… it's a door, and I don't live here… so…"
Faith lifted her hand to the door and rapped her knuckles against the soft wood.
Knock Knock Knock
1… 2… 3…
"Well, that means no one is home!" She cheered and threw her hands up, turning to Thing.
Opening the door, she glanced around. Everything was dirty, but she should have expected that. This dream was very dirty. Not the pleasing kind of dirty, the real dirty. The book shelf to the right was broken and some books were even on the ground.
Faith left room for Thing to walk in, but he didn't budge. Faith clapped her free hand on her knee, "'Cmon boy, let's go!"
He still didn't move, but wagged his tail and let out a mewl. Faith guessed he didn't like closed in spaces, "Alright, I'll be right back."
Letting the door swing shut behind her, she inspected the place and noticed a small table, stove and counter tops, and even a refrigerator!
Faith's eyes gleamed as she hypnotically walked to the appliance. As she neared, she clapped to herself and pulled at the handle, only to have the door slammed in her face, "Who the hell are you? Where did you come from? Did Moriarty send you?"
Pouting at the fridge, Faith turned her head and saw woman with blond hair and buck teeth. Her eyes widened momentarily then nodded her head, bringing her hands across her chest, puckering her lips.
The blond woman stared at Faith, waiting for a response. She was frightened when she heard the knock on her door and even more frightened when she heard the door open. The longer she looked at Faith, the more tense and uncomfortable she felt. The Nuka Cola in her hands was resting against her hips. She flinched when Faith lifted her hand to scratch her chin, still nodding.
Faith suddenly pointed at the blond woman with the Nuka Cola in hand, "You! What is your name?"
Jutting her head back and pursing her lips the blond woman said, "Silver… My name is Silver."
Still nodding, Faith kept her finger pointed at Silver, "I need something from you to get information! And I totally forgot what it was that I needed!"
The blond woman closed her eyes and breathed out through her gritted teeth. She looked at Faith, "That bastard… He… He's a liar! He just wants me dead! Those caps are all mine! I earned them!"
Faith's hand went back to her side, a quizzical look crossed her face, "You know… I'm pretty sure that's what I needed. Caps." She looked at the blond woman before her, "Do you… happen to know how many 'caps' I need for the… uh… Information?"
Looking affronted, Silver put her hands on her hips, "Look I used to work for that slob doing… you know… favors for guys. Well I got sick and tired of it. I told Moriarty I'm taking my share of the caps and leaving. I even slept with the pig to seal the deal. Next morning he tells me I couldn't leave. So I bolted. I took my money and ran. Now he's branded me a thief and a junkie and sent his cronies to find me. I guess I need a new hiding place."
Faith twisted her head to the side and stared at Silver, "Favors… Slept with the… Oh, oh. That's just… not good, Silver. We women need to unite!"
She sighed and walked toward Silver, clapping her on the back, "Do not worry, Silver. I shall not disclose your latitude and longitude to a person such as him!"
Silver looked distraught at first, looking from side to side and ending her gaze on Faith's hand. Then she looked into Faith's eyes and saw determination. She was a weird one, but Silver couldn't help but feel drawn to her. She had one hell of a charisma.
Pulling her hand back and taking the last swig of her forgotten Cola, Faith looked cheekily at Silver, "There is still a slight… problem. I need some caps for information. If you could… I don't know… spare a few… I'm not sure how much, but you seem to know him better than I. How much do you think he will charge for information? I'll even tell him that you are gone, or something. Took a vacation to… where ever."
Silver's eyebrows shot up, "You'd do that for me? I can't believe it… You hardly even know me! Thanks, kid. You watch yourself out there."
Pulling out a burlap sack out of her jacket pocket, she handed Faith a smaller bag that jingled with caps. Faith smiled at her, "Hey, I should know you since I did dream you up, so… heh heh. Anyway, thanks Silver. I'll be on my way!"
Silver sat down at her table and watched Faith open the door and leave. She put her hands on her head and slouched, her shoulders shaking, "Dream?"
She shook her head and let a smile grace her lips. She hasn't smiled in the longest time.
She glanced at the door when she heard it open again, tensing. She relaxed when she saw Faith's face, "By the way, do you have a trashcan?"
Read, review, just read, whatever. PEACE.
Abby.