Jess sat in stunned silence for a moment. She had seen the tunnelers before in the Divide. They were mostly an unseen threat that lurked below the surface. However nothing that stumbled into their domain lived to tell about out. She had personally watched a deathclaw be taken out by a small number of them. They would tear up the barely defended town of Goodsprings overnight.
"Mr. House, I don't care what you think of it I am going to go to Goodsprings and help them. That town saved my life and I owe them."
"You ceased to owe a debt to them the moment you saved the town from those Powder Gangers. Nevertheless I have no intentions to let these abominations terrorize my territory. However I won't be allowing you to gallivanting across the waste leaving a smoking trail the whole way. I have reports of caravans going missing throughout the wastes, but when my securitrons and scouts check the area, there nothing, no signs, no tracks, no anything. There is no pattern to the attacks. Moreover there is continues reports of suspicious behavior throughout the strip There is no way of determining what this unseen threat would do if it was aware of our other enemies."
Jess thought on this for a moment, "So what do you propose we do about this?"
"I propose nothing. I am sending you to Freeside with Veronica immediately following our conversation."
"Why are you sending me to Freeside the tunnelers are in Goodsprings, and wouldn't it make more sense to send Arcade, he knows the place more than any of us, or what about Boone? Boone skills in observation could greatly help in finding any signs of these intruders in the Mojave."
" Veronica's experience in close quarter combat and her regular usage of power armor puts her leagues ahead of the others. Ghouls and super mutants would attract too much unwanted attention. Cass's alcoholism makes her a security risk with this assignment. Boone's observational skills and tactical skill at a distance would prove useful, but I suspect you are going to spend much of your time in narrow spaces with no need for observation, and very little space for distance. I also highly doubt Boone would refrain from telling our friend Cass about what he was doing. Those two have been growing rather close it seems. This leaves Arcade. Arcade's skill in power armor and energy weapons puts him just behind Veronica in this, and his medicinal skills brings them even closer. However Arcades allegiances is where he falls through. True he may have fought valiantly at Hoover Dam, but he also fought in a suit of Enclave Power Armor. We have no way of telling who this new threat is, but the Enclave is far from destroyed in the wastes. He is already resentful at how the battle ended and there is little doubt in my mind he would like to see me thrown out. He only stays because of his loyalty to you, you know. Veronica left the now deceased brotherhood. Her only allegiance left is hers to you"
Jess waited for him to continue. If she intervened he would take longer to get to the point lecturing or chastising her short sightedness or some other complaint he had. Also, being reminded of the fate of the brotherhood so soon after her dream this morning shook her up. Fortunately Mr. House seemed to not notice it, or at least choose to ignore how his words troubled her.
"I am sure that by now this has sunk in and you have realized that my choosing Veronica was in fact the correct choice.
He was right, as usual. But Jess couldn't help but be annoyed by his arrogant nature was infuriating sometimes. Is this what happens after being left alone to your own plans for two hundred years? No, she suspected he had always been this way. Even so though, he was right. Could she last having to see her everyday? No matter how short this trip to Freeside would be, it would be long.
"Now, as to your actions in Freeside, you will be announcing my plans of tearing down a wall. Its time to properly rule all of New Vegas, not just the Strip. You will have to talk to the King and get his blessing, but given your reputation with Freeside, this shouldn't be too much of a problem. You'll be delivering a mandatory contract to the Atomic Wrangler and Mick and Ralph's. You will be ending the night at the Followers of the Apocalypse."
Mr. House's mannerisms at times drove the Courier crazy. She was ready for House to get where he was going with this. He had a way of either overly simplify things to a basic order and leaving everything else to her, or to in detail slowly describe his entire vision of how things shall go. There was no medium to him. She fumed enough is enough, I don't care what he says this has gone on long enough.
"How does uniting Freeside do anything to help Goodsprings?"
Irritation entered Mr House's voice but he continued where he was.
"Freeside will be your first stop, you will be taking nearly a reverse path of your original trip to the Strip, just don't end it with a bullet to the head. I need you to stop at the towns of Novac, Nipton, and Prim. I will have additional stops along the way for you. As to why I am sending you on this long trek across the wastes instead of just to Goodsprings, the answer is secrecy. If someone is closely watching us then they would notice your absence. And by making this an official public demonstration, I can send with you an escort of Securitrons and not raise any question. Invisibility in plain site. As an additional feature, we will also be spreading more direct influence throughout the cities you travel. Nothing as pressing as what the NCR would do, but only mild little reforms. Do you have any other questions? I suggest you make them quick if so."
Jess was eager to get this over with. The sooner she got started the sooner she could help her friends. "No, that will be all Mr. House." She turned to leave.
"Erm Jess?" did he just erm? She had never heard him say anything of the sort. "Take care of yourself out there. Take it easy on your trip to Goodsprings. Sleep well for once."
Hey thanks for reading this story, this is just the beginning intro parts. Ill try to make sure the next chapter is a lot less dialogue. Any comments, suggestions, or ideas just post a review.