Quick Note: Kinda touchy subjects presented in this chapter, borderline M for my type of writing.

Oh, and interesting quip: My songs of inspiration for this chapter are Don't Forget by Demi Lovato and Lu:na by Gackt, neither of which I own, but are amazing songs and kinda fit with this chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fallout 3, or any related subjects. I own Mei and most of the plot in this chapter. I'm sure you can distinguish which part I don't own. That is all.

Chapter 3: Revenge

I tasted salty water, and it disgusted me. I think I threw up, as I could feel acid burning my throat. I sat up, coughing up the bile, letting it drip onto whatever floor I was on. It felt as though the floor was rocking back and forth, and everything was dark. I coughed up more acid, and it spilled onto the floor with the rest. Some sort of door was opened before me, letting in a lot of light all at once. I flinched at the bright light, thrusting my hand up to block it.

"Nice to see you're finally awake," a man said. "I was beginning to worry you wouldn't be joining us, miss one oh one."

I was confused, but maybe this man would let me know what was going on.

~Charon's POV~

I was worried about the kid. She passed out, and she showed no signs of waking up. Her pulse was weaker, and I knew that she needed medical attention. The closest doctor was that of Megaton, and he and Mei did not get along well. She needed medical attention, though.

Suddenly, she began to stir in my arms. She gazed up at me, an odd look on her face.

"What… Where am I?"

"We are on our way to Megaton," I told her. "We will be there shortly."

"I… Kari-" she stopped to take a breath before continuing. "I remember Kari. It was like, I was her, starting the purifier. She was so brave, even as sick as she was, she was able to go in there and do it to save all of us. I remember her. I remembered the Vault, but only those memories that pertain to her. It's… odd."

"I think that is because you had such a strong bond with her," I stated. "You were with her from the moment you were born, so most of your memories must have some sort of tie with her."

She nodded and asked to be let down. I obliged, and we continued on our way to Megaton.

~Mei's POV~

Megaton, the location that held my house. I don't recall owning a house, but that's coming from the girl who can never seem to remember her own name lately. The scrap metal city came into view just after the sun rose, which gave us a whole day to try to remember.

My house was so familiar, but nothing really came to me. I was greeted by a cheery robot named Wadsworth. He knew my name, which meant Charon was not lying to me when he said it belonged to me. The robot went to make us some breakfast, which I couldn't wait for. The only thing I ate was radroach meat, which was nasty.

I explored the house, eager to recover any kind of memory. Charon left me to look around the house on my own, which I was kind of thankful for. I wanted to be alone for a bit. Everything downstairs was familiar, but nothing triggered any kind of memory. I went upstairs, hoping I would have better luck. I found two rooms, a bedroom and a storage room. There was only one bed, and I wondered how all three of us had managed to sleep on it. I traced a pattern in the mattress absentmindedly as I glanced around some more. The desk held a few caps and some ammo for my gun, but that was it. There was nothing in the filing cabinet, and the computer terminal was broken.

I soon moved on to the storage room, but all it held was junk; empty tin cans, broken cups and pitchers, and various colored plates littered the shelves, but they were all spotless. I guess the robot needed something to do while we were away.

I went back downstairs, but there was still nothing. I sat at the table and Wadsworth brought out some sweet rolls that he had baked. They tasted amazing, especially since I had been living off of radroach meat. I had a cup of Brahmin milk to go with it, but then Charon made me drink a cup of spoiled milk, claiming that I had discovered, with a woman by the name of Moira Brown, that it helped to keep radiation at bay. It tasted nasty, but I felt slightly more energized, as though the radiation was holding me back.

I jumped when someone knocked on the door, and Charon got up to answer it. He chatted with whoever was there, and I got up to see, but I didn't know whoever it was. He wore a business suit, dark sunglasses, and a pre-war fedora. He pushed by Charon and handed me an envelope that smelled like old men's cologne. When the man left, I opened it. It was a simple letter.

Beloved Mei,

The pain of your absence is at times crippling. But I must persevere. I must! It is very important work I am doing for mankind.

Oh, but I wish I could sweep it all away to be with you now!

Be patient love. I will send for you soon

Your's very truly,

Burke

Burke. The name was so familiar, and it instilled anger in me. I felt my face heat up, but I had no idea why. My head began to pound, and I dropped the letter and held my head in my hands, hoping to dispel whatever was happening, but to no avail. It worsened and worsened. Images flashed before my eyes. There was a man… Burke. We talked. He handed me something, and he left. It was later… My hair was a different color, a lot like Kari's. He was there again. He forced me into his house, into his room, onto his bed. I wanted the images to stop, but they kept playing like a slideshow that I had no control over. I felt so dirty when it was over, and I realized why I felt hatred towards the name. I stood up from the floor I had fallen to, brushing off the dirt.

Charon looked at me with a weird look, and I think I was closer to finding my old memories.

"Are you alright?" Charon asked.

"Better," I replied. "Where is Tenpenny Tower?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I have some… unfinished business to attend to," I stated. "I wish to go there."

"Then I will take you there, but that place is full of bigots, so I may not be let in."

I nodded. "I can handle myself."

"Very well. When do you wish to leave?"

"As soon as possible. How long will it take us to get there?" I questioned.

"About two days," he stated.

"I'd like to stock up on supplies, and then we can leave."

He nodded and proceeded to fix his gun while I went out shopping. I found the supply shop easy enough. The shopkeeper seemed to know me, and I realized that she was the one that I had discovered the rotten Brahmin milk cure with. I bought some ammo and real food from her before heading back to Charon. He had taken the liberty to repair my gun, as well I thanked him before he handed it back to me. We then headed out to the main gate.

"Charon, was I as well liked as Kari?" I inquired. "You said a lot of people really liked her."

"No," was all he said.

"Oh. Well, why not?"

"You were very blunt and sometimes rude, which tended to rub people the wrong way. You were a lot more selfish, caring only for yourself and your sister. You were not entirely a bigot, but you thought yourself higher than most ghouls, and you had a big dislike for androids and robots. You also treated me very… inhumane at first," he stated. "Kari was very open to people, and she helped out anyone who needed it. She treated everyone as equal, which most people were not used to. People were just drawn to her."

I fell silent. Was I really that mean? Kari seemed like such a wonderful person from what I could remember about her. I wished I could maybe go back in time and fix whatever I had done and make everything right.

"Well, what about my parents? What happened to them?" I wondered.

"Your mother, from what I understand, died giving birth," he replied. "Your father died to save Project Purity, you, and Hikari."

I sighed. "I wish I would die doing something as meaningful."

"Many do not wish to die at all," Charon said. "Most people avoid thinking of death."

"Yeah, but death is inevitable," I pointed out. "It's going to happen no matter what we do, and it'll happen to everyone, so we might as well just go along with it, y'know?"

He nodded in agreement.

"How old are you, anyway?" I asked.

"I am two-hundred and twenty three," he replied. "And yes, that means I am a pre-war ghoul."

"You're really old," I stated. "I wouldn't be surprised if you were the oldest person in the wastes!"

He smirked. "I probably am."

"You know, that's the closest thing to a smile I've seen on you since I woke up," I told him. "Did you ever smile before?"

"Once or twice," he replied.

"When?"

"After I met your sister," was all he said.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I questioned. "Were you two… involved?"

"No," he stated. "No, not like that. I did love her, though. She made me… happy."

We fell into an awkward silence for a while until I asked, "How come ghouls live so long?"

"That is a question that a lot of us ask," he said. "Doctor Barrows is trying to answer it, along with a lot of other questions. Personally, I believe that it is because we are healed by radiation, and it is everywhere.

As Charon had said, it took us two days to reach the tower. It was a lot larger than I had expected, and it was in really good condition. There was a ghoul talking into the intercom, shouting at whoever was on the other end.

"You can tell Tenpenny he can kiss my ass!" he shouted. "We've got plenty of caps! Let me in, bastard!"

"How many times do we have to go through this? You're not getting in," the person on the other side responded.

"Well I can stand here all day yelling at you through this damn speaker if I have to!"

"I've already told you, Tenpenny won't allow zombies to live here," the other responded.

"Who are you calling a zombie?"

"You're not human, and that's for damn sure. No zombies allowed!"

"Can't you tell the difference between me and a feral?" he questioned. "Fine! I'll show you the fucking difference, just you wait! You'll get yours! All of you!"

With that said, the ghoul turned around, and he wore a startled look.

"Oh, Charon," he said. "What are you doing here?"

"Just escorting Mei to see someone here," he replied. "You're still trying to get in, obviously."

"Those bigots still can't tell the difference between us and a feral. Is she your new employer?"

"No. I am in control of my own contract, now," Charon said. "I am with her for personal reasons."

"Oh, are you two, like-"

"No, nothing of that sort," Charon interrupted. "Strictly professional."

"Sure," the other ghoul said. "Anyway, you want to help us out?"

"Maybe later," he stated. "We have business to attend to."

"Well, I'll be down in Warrington Station, should you change your mind."

Charon nodded, and I approached the mic.

"I thought I told you to get the hell out of here!" the voice shouted again. "Tenpenny doesn't want your goddamn caps, and I don't want the fucking headache! For the last time, get your rotting, ugly, fucking ass off Mister Tenpenny's private property!"

"God, is that how you treat all of your guests?" I responded.

"What? No, just those damn ghouls. Sorry, thought you were one of them," he replied. "Still, ghoul or not, you're trespassing on Allistair Tenpenny's private property. Renters and official business only."

I sighed. "Look, I'm just here to see Burke."

"He's not here," he stated.

"Well, he told me that he'd be here," I told him. "I have letters that he has been sending me as proof of contact."

"Oh, you're that girl," he said. "He's told us aaaall about you. Good, maybe now he'll shut up about you. Come on in."

"Charon, I think it would be best for you to wait out here, or if you prefer, down with the other ghoul in the station."

He nodded and began to head off in another direction. I noted what it was so I could find him again.

"I'm chief Gustavo," the guard said. "You must be Mei. My, you are awfully young."

"I'm nearly twenty," I told him. "It's not that young."

"Compared to everyone here, yes, that is young. Tenpenny's up on the top floor. Take the elevator," he instructed. "He'll decide what to do with you until Burke gets back."

I nodded. It wasn't like he would really harm me, so there was no real risk with going to see Tenpenny.

"Great, another bitch," a woman muttered.

"You got somethin' to say?" I called. "Say it to my face, and not behind my back."

"I'll say it wherever the hell I want," she replied.

"Someone needs an attitude adjustment," I shot.

"Who the hell are you to tell me what I need?"

"When one calls me a bitch for no reason, I think that justifies the means to say that the person needs an attitude adjustment."

"I have never been spoken to in such a manor!"

"Well it's about time that someone did!"

I saw it before it happened. She launched herself towards me, perfectly manicured nails wielded as claws. Something kicked in during that split second, remembered training of some kind with Charon. As she was lunging, I saw an opening, like I had watched for during that training. I took it, and she was on the ground, not moving.

A guard was on me almost immediately, and I was on the ground, as well. I struggled against his grip, but he was stronger.

"I don't know how you got in here, but-"

"What's going on here?" an old person asked.

I craned my neck, and the man was dressed in a red, crisp suit, a sniper rifle attached to his back.

"Mister Tenpenny-!"

"Who is this girl?" he demanded.

"We don't know, but-"

"Let her up. I wish to speak with her."

"Yes, sir."

The weight of the guard was relieved as he stood up, and I pulled myself off of the floor.

"What is your name?" he questioned.

"Mei," I told him.

"Mei… Please, excuse my guards. Will you follow me to my quarters?"

"Why should I?"

"You are here about Mister Burke, correct?"

"Yes, I am."

"Then you are who I thought you were. I wish to talk more privately," he stated before addressing everyone else. "She is not to be harmed in any way. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," the security men responded in unison.

"Mister Tenpenny-"

"Please, just Allistair. I feel as though I already know of you. Burke speaks so highly of you."

"Very well, Allistair."

He smirked. "So, what can I help you with today?"

"I'm here to see Burke, but I've been told that he's not here."

"You are correct. He should be back in a couple of days, though. I sent him away to do some errands for me. If you want to wait around, I'll let you know when he arrives."

"I actually have some errands of my own to run for a bit, but I should be back by the end of the day."

"Very well," he said. "I'll have a suite prepared for you, then. It'll be the one on this floor, only on the right from the elevator, rather than to the left. Here's the key."

"Thank you," I replied. "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

He nodded, and as I reached the lower floor, I saw the woman who had attacked me holding her head while sitting in a chair. She sent me a death glare, and I couldn't help but smirk. She had gotten what she had deserved. The others all gave me looks of disgust, and one resident even commented on how ratty my clothes were. Whatever. I headed over to the train station to find Charon and the other ghoul. Maybe we could come up with some sort of mutual agreement.

I snuck by a few feral ghouls before a ghoul called to me from an overlook.

"Come where I can see you, and don't try anything. We've got two killing machines that aren't but a call away!"

"I've come to see my killing machine," I told him. "Charon still here?"

"Oh, you must be the smoothskin they told me about. Go on through."

"Thanks."

He nodded down at me, and I went through the gate underneath the steps. I could hear three voices from further back. One was Charon, one was the ghoul from the gate, and the third belonged to someone I didn't know. I entered the room, and the three were just sitting and chatting.

"Oh-!" the female ghoul said.

"Bessie, don't be frightened," the other ghoul told her. "It's just Charon's smoothskin."

"Nice to know I belong to you," I said as I sat down on the dusty bed next to Charon.

"Whatever," the other ghoul replied. "Look, I need your help."

"Well, you and Charon know each other," I stated. "How is that?"

"Roy used to come in to Ahzrukhal's a lot," Charon stated. "When my former employer was drunk or high, we would chat."

"Okay, and what about you needing my help?"

"I have an idea," Roy told me. "But that requires an inside person. I need you to open the basement door that leads here in the station. Shouldn't be too much of a problem. You in?"

"Just tell me what you plan on doing when you get in there."

"We plan on sending in a few of our brethren to try and work out a deal of some kind," he explained. "You see, they won't listen to us, so I thought that perhaps if we got some ghouls in the hotel, they'd listen to us for once."

"And what do I get out of it?" I asked, leaning forward onto my knees.

"The satisfaction of you knowing that you did the right thing," the ghoul said.

I thought for a moment, wondering what Kari would do. Knowing what little I did of her, I gave a small nod and said, "Fine. Just tell me what I need to do."

"Great. You'll need to find a key, and then you can make your way through to the emergency exit, outside through the room with the generators."

"I'll get right on it. Charon, I think it would be best for you to stay here. The residents don't take too kindly to me, anyway."

He sighed. "What did you do?"

"There was one woman who, just by entering the building, called me a bitch and… well, you can guess where that led to. By the way, I remembered something again. I remember… you, and you were training me for some reason. Hand to hand combat. I don't know why, though. Although, if it weren't for that, I might have shot the bitch, and that wouldn't have ended well…"

"You and your sister had swapped spots," Charon stated. "I remember that. I was trying to train Hikari, but you two switched spots. After you pinned me, I knew what had happened."

"Oh. Well, sorry, I guess."

He shrugged.

"You should get going," Roy interrupted. "I don't know what you told them, but you need to get that key."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going. Tenpenny's getting me a room until Burke comes back," I told him. "And after I help you out, I'm going to kill him. Hope you don't mind. Of course, if you do, it won't matter. I'm going to kill him, anyway."

With nothing else to say, I headed back to the tower. Gustavo let me in without another word, and I headed up to the room that was prepared for me. As I entered the elevator, the woman that I had fought with earlier stopped the door and got in with me.

"What now?" I inquired. "Isn't one humiliation enough for you?"

She glared and waited for the door to close before she launched herself at me. I sort of saw it coming and dodged it, prepared for her next attack.

"Don't get me angry," I told her.

She ignored me and tried to have another go, but I jumped behind her, bringing assault rifle out in the process. I aimed it at her, and she stopped.

"You don't have the guts to do it," she taunted.

"You have no idea who I am, what I have been through, or what I am capable of," I stated.

I flipped the gun around and used the butt of it to hit her in the head. She slumped forward, and I jumped out of the way as she hit the ground. The door opened just after I had put my gun away. I stepped out casually and went to the room that Tenpenny had told me of.

"Good evening, Madame Mei!" a Mister Handy robot greeted. "My name is Godfrey. What can I do for you?"

"Make me some food, will ya?" I requested. "Some sweet rolls?"

"Coming right up!"

"And start to make some of the purified water, too."

"Will do!"

Just as I flopped onto perhaps the softest bed I had lain in since leaving the Vault, there was a knock on the door.

"I've got it!" I called over to the robot.

I opened the door, and an elderly man was standing there.

"Greetings!" he said. "I heard you'll be staying with us for a while. I thought I'd come and welcome you. May I come in?"

"Sure, whatever," I replied.

"I must say, that was a good show with Susan Lancaster. She doesn't really have the best reputation. But, I am getting a bit ahead of myself. I am Herbert Dashwood. Y'know, Herbert "Daring" Dashwood from the radio broadcasts?"

"Oh! Yeah, I've heard those," I lied. "Hey, do you know anything about the generator room?"

He chuckled. "Did you know that Chief Gustavo turns a lovely shade of violet when he, "misplaces," stuff? Especially important stuff, like keys?"

"So you're saying you have a key?"

"Maybe, maybe not," he replied. "That's for you to find out."

"That's a yes, then."

"If you play my game, you can have it," he tempted.

"Please, no games," I requested. "I'm really tired and I just came a long way and had to deal with that Susan lady."

"Oh, fine," he grumbled. "Ruin my fun…"

He fished out a key from his pocket and tossed it to me.

"Thanks!" I replied. "You know, you're alright."

"Dashwooood!" I heard someone shout from down the hall.

"Well, gotta run!" he said with a large grin. "Nice meeting you!"

"Likewise," I replied before he dashed off.

An older man ran up to me, out of breath.

"Which way did Dashwood go, comrade?" he questioned. "He's been messing with my terminal again!"

"Dunno," I replied before turning to go back in my room.

The following morning, after making sure Herbert was safe in my room, I went downstairs and outside towards the generator room. I made sure that there were no security guards around before I went down the stairs leading to the said room. I made my way through piles of junk and the hulking, whirring machines before I came to a barred door.

"Good, now just activate the terminal," Roy instructed through the bars.

I nodded and made quick work of it. "Now what?"

"Charon and I'll meet you back outside," he replied. "The terminal activates the entrance inside the tower."

I nodded and left the room. I could hear screams from inside the tower, and Roy opened the door a crack before slipping out. Charon followed suit.

"Here," Roy said, tossing a weird mask my way. "Go ahead and put it on."

"Why?" I asked suspiciously.

"You don't want the ferals to attack you, do you?"

"Ferals? Why are there ferals in there? You told me that only a couple of ghouls would be going in there to negotiate."

"Did I say that? What I meant was that you were going to open the entrance for us so the feral ghouls could clear everyone out for us," he said with a dark chuckle.

"You what?" Charon said as Mei fell quiet. "I am all for equality between ghouls and smoothskins, but this has gone too far, Roy. You can't just kill everyone inside the tower because they won't let you in. It just shows others that we are cold-blooded killers!"

"No! It shows them that we are to be treated as equals or they will suffer out wrath! That we are more than just dumb zombies! That we can think for ourselves! That we are not to be trifled with!"

"You... You lied to me," I muttered disbelievingly. "I can't believe I... I believed you, that I fell for it. I thought that maybe, for once, I could be like Kari and do the right thing, but you... You lied!"

"Yes, people tend to do that here in the wastes. It's a part of life, Kiddo. Get used to it."

Anger suddenly flooded through me, and I wanted to rip him to shreds. Not for me, but for those people inside that were likely getting being killed by those feral ghouls that I was tricked into letting in. I may not have liked that one lady that I got into a fight with, but Herbert seemed pretty nice, so I was sure there were more people like him in that tower that were suffering. I seethed as Roy continued to gloat.

~Charon's POV~

I hoped that the kid hadn't gone crazy, because I don't think I would be able to take it if she really had. I had already dealt with her when she wasn't clinically insane, and it was taxing. As she launched herself toward Roy with a shout of anger, I found myself questioning her sanity. He was probably twice as strong as her and could easily overtake her once he realized what was going on.

Almost as soon as she was on him, I pulled her off and held her back, which was a fairly easy task, even though she thrashed against me.

"Charon, let me go!" she shouted.

"Roy, what the hell is wrong with you? Get the ferals out of there now before I kill you myself."

"You wouldn't dare," he said, rising to his feet and wiping a small amount of blood from his lip where Mei had landed her first punch. "You kill me and what's to stop all of those ferals inside? You? Her?"

"You have until the count of five to get your ass in there and remove them or I'll blow your damn brains out," I threatened. "One. Two. Three. Four-"

"Even if I wanted to, it's too late for them. I can't stop them now. The only way to do so is to kill them all," he quickly said.

~Mei's POV~

"Damn it!" I shouted before getting a better grip on my assault rifle and kicking the door open.

But I wasn't ready for what was within. People were screaming, running away from the ferals, but it was no use. They were faster and stronger than regular humans, and they had a killer instinct; they were being literally ripped to shreds as they tried to save themselves. I stood there for a moment in complete shock before anger flooded my senses and I charged in, gun not bothering to stop shooting until I had to change magazines. Soon, I heard the roar of Charon's shotgun join in, and together we were able to clear the first floor, but there weren't any survivors here.

I quickly sprinted up the stairs and to the next floor. I opened fire on every feral ghoul that I could see, and a part of me enjoyed watching their blood spatter across the once pristine floor and walls. Another part of me felt horrible, guilty. It was my fault that the people were dying such horrible deaths. I did my best to shut out their screams as I tried to save them.

Not soon enough, we reached the top floor, where Mr. Tenpenny himself resided. Although his door was locked, the ghouls were clawing at it, trying to get it open and get to him. I cleared them out with help from Charon, and that was it for the ferals in the tower. I leaned against a wall and wiped the sweat from my brow with the back of my bloodied hand as I quickly caught my breath. It was over. I could relax. But for some reason, I couldn't. My body was shaking so bad that I slid down the wall and onto my rear. My vision began to blur, and it was then that I realized what was going on. I was crying. Sobbing, even.

I jumped when I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, and I looked up to see Charon staring down at me, almost as though he was concerned for me. I quickly dried my tears and rose to my feet defiantly. If I remembered one thing, it was that crying was a weakness, and I was not a weak person. I refused to be.

"I'm fine," I said in an even voice before he could ask. "Let's just... get out of here."

"And what about the man you came to see?"

"Forget about him. He's... He's not even worth my time anymore," I muttered. "I want to go home."

~Charon's POV~

I could tell the kid was not fine, even though she claimed to be. I think that she blamed herself for what happened, but it was not her fault. Roy was the one that tricked her into letting them in. While Mei was no longer crazy, she had gone into a spiraling depression. I did my best to help her, but she pushed me away, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Usually when something like this happened, it was Hikari what got her out of it, but she was no longer with us.

I took her back to Megaton, hoping that maybe getting her out of the environment of Tenpenny Tower may help, but it didn't. She just stayed up in her room all day. It was a lot like when the twins' father passed. Neither would accept any help, nor would they talk or eat. Mei was not eating, which worried me. She was already scrawny enough.

"Charon," Mei called from her room.

I went upstairs and she was sitting on the bed, a blank look on her face.

"Yes?"

She took a deep breath before saying, "I want to go out."

This was better that it had been.

"Where to?" I questioned.

"I don't know… somewhere. Just not here."

"Very well," I replied. "Is your assault rifle in working order?"

"Yeah," she stated. "I haven't used it since we invaded the tower."

"Okay. I'll get ready."

~Mei's POV~

Charon was getting all worried about me when there wasn't anything to really worry about. I hoped that just getting out of the house for a while would throw him off of me, maybe get him to leave me alone for a while.

I started to wander once we exited the town, heading northwest, according to my pip-boy. I had a couple of people come up to me, saying they heard about me on the radio. I don't even know how they know that I'm the one from Vault 101, nor did I know that Three Dog was still broadcasting my adventures. To be honest, he was kind of annoying. The wastelanders asked me for various things like food and water, but I wouldn't give them anything. I wasn't a nice person, and I wasn't Kari. I was getting sick of them thinking I was.

After Notes:

I made a LOT of changes to this chapter recently (I pretty much rewrote it) and I think I like it better this way.

Please let me know what you think or any mistakes you may notice through a review/PM. They really are great motivators now that I'm sort of writing the chapters right now other than waiting to be finished with it before I upload them (if that makes sense). Much appreciated, HikariMei.