Matt woke with a jolt. Being shaken awake by a large crash coming from somewhere in the building.
He looked around to get his bearings. He was in the storage room of the super-duper market. He looked down at his leg. Not a mark remained of Jericho's assault.
He quickly regained his senses and picked up his rife that lay next to him. He started making his way to the door of the room, carful not to move any of the bottles that ay on the ground that might give him away.
He slowly opened the door, hoping that the door wouldn't squeak.
When there was enough room he squeezed himself through and moved over to the counter and took cover. Looking over the counter slowly he looked round for any sign of what made the noise.
The only noise was a fidgeting noise coming from the bathrooms where he and Jericho had stacked the dead raiders.
He made his move, climbing over the counter and carefully picking his way over to the bathrooms. Passing the now dry pool of blood that indicated his fight with Jericho.
He pressed himself up to the wall of the male bathroom, stepping carefully until he stood by the door frame.
He could hear them now, who every they were. They were shuffling around, panicked but trying to make as little noise as possible. They were swearing under their breath.
Matt glanced around the corner, it was a young woman, couldn't have been more than 18, dark skinned. She was keeling, going through the pockets of the raiders that had been dumped there.
She was dressed in tatted leathers, missing in some parts, showing one of her shoulder blades and the back of her left leg where a long red scar lay. On her head she wore a rank looking baseball cap, that at one time could have been bright green but the years had not been kind, it now took on the appearance of a dark sickly green. Under it she head a mid-length load of black hair hastily pushed under it. It looked like she hadn't washed for a number of weeks maybe months, dirt covered her exposed skin and the hair was tangled and roughly cut. He noticed that her shoulder had a fresh cut, looking round he noticed the ceiling in the far side of the room had collapsed.
She must of hid up there. He thought. Come out when she thought it was safe. Smart.
Matt silently slung his rife over his shoulder and pulled his pistol from its holster. He creped behind the women, he could hear what she said now.
"Fuckers, I'll kill'em, no one fuck with us, fuck'em, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuc-"
The last word cut of by the sound of Matt's gun cocking and the feel of the cold barrel on the back of her head.
"You going to kill me?" She asked calmly a slight Sothern drawl coming across in her voice. Staring straight ahead across the bodies looking at a spot on the far wall like it was a deathclaw on the horizon.
"Haven't decided" Matt answered truthfully.
"You should, no way any raider round here won't hunt you down. No way I won't hunt you down." She said venom creeping into her voice.
"And how would they do that, no fucker, here knows who I am, no fucker left round here" he pushed the pistol into her head. "And it's not like you're in a position to tell them anything."
"We know your partner, people will know he's not in Megaton, they'll put two and two together" she said, still sure of herself.
Matt laughed harshly. "Partner, you mean the dead fucker stinking up the homeware department. I don't think he's going to tell anyone anything"
She gulped he words caught in her throat. She was nervous for the first time. Matt was right she had no idea who he was. Her whole world dropped out from under her, she's lost al control of the situation. But there was something to her, he liked her.
Not many brave enough to threaten the guy with the gun to your head.
"You still got a crew after this?"
She thought it only took a moment but Matt saw her weigh up her options. Lie say their are more say they'll be back any second, he might let me go and run, or he might shoot me and have done. Or…
"No" she answered
Smart girl
"You want one?" Matt pulled the gun from the back of her head but kept it in his hand.
"Are you offering me a fucking job right now?" she visibly relaxed, her shoulders loosed, she dropper her gaze from the spot she'd been staring at on the far wall.
"Yeah I've got something I can't do and it seems you're in the market"
She stood and turned around slowly showing she wasn't a threat. She was pretty not stop you in your tracks. But their as something to her eyes, a deep dark brown they spoke of a softness not normally found in the wasteland. The slight curve of her mouth as she looked Matt up and down taking him in assessing him. The way her face framed it all. Matt knew that she had to be strong to run with raiders and still look how she did, no marks not even a split lip. She smiled.
"I'll take it"
"huh, didn't think it would be that easy"
"Not many crews are able to take out a group like ours, by the look of you, you aren't working for some hard up for caps shit outfit. So I'll take it."
"Good. What's your name?"
"Nitro" She replied
Matt looked at her disappointed and sighed "No what's your real name? I hate raider names."
She looked at him nervously, the smile gone from her lips "Julia" she almost whispered out.
"Good." He smiled. "Your going north, to the Pitt-"
Her faced dropped at the mention of the Pitt, she looked nervous.
Matt continued regardless "go through paradise falls join the group taking slaves to the Pitt crew. When you get north find a a guy called Phantom or a woman called Mona tell them I sent you-"
"And who might you be?" she interrupted gaining back her confidence. Like getting his name would get them back on a equal footing or even she would have the upper hand.
"Matt, and don't interrupt me. When you talk to them give them this" Matt handed Julia a small box, from his duster pocket, it contained the part of Jericho he'd taken. "When you give them it tell them it's for Everett, he should be happy to see it. They should talk you north, if they say no, call in one of my favours, they both owe me. Then present yourself to lord Asher, he'll grant you an audience, when you meet him swear your loyalty to him, swear your life. Ask to be apart of my band."
She nodded understanding the task, Matt carried on.
"Then come back and find me." He paused and looked her over again "I bet your wondering why I'm telling you to do all this it's because you are no one you know nothing. But you have something, I can see it the way you hold yourself, the look in your eyes, I can see the potential in you like Asher did with me. Can you read?"
She was taken aback by everything he'd told her, she was struggling to understand everything. "Yes" she finally said.
"Good, follow me."
Matt placed his pistol back into his holster and started walking back to the desk where he had left the majority of his supplies next to the storage room.
Julia followed him dumb struck by all that was going on, she'd moved crews before but there was never anything like this, a test of strength fighting or killing someone in the group to take their place. But a test of loyalty and oaths, never anything like this, she didn't know anything about the Pitt crew other then what everyone else knew. Don't fuck with them. She'd heard stories of others who crossed them only to them to be wiped out the following day. Just a few years ago the Pitt was a joke where raiders went when they had nothing else, but something had changed over the last year. Now no one joked about them unless they didn't like living.
"Take anything you want from over there" Matt said pointing at the pile of loot from the taken from the raiders. This pulled Julia from her thoughts she walked over and started going through some of the equipment.
Matt mean while went through his back pack pulling out a spare ballistic vest and a book.
"Come here." Matt said after Julie has pulled herself an assault rifle, a 10mm pistol, a combat knife and a number of clips of ammo from the pile of gear. Putting the clips into a unused backpack she walked over to where Matt was waiting.
"Here" he said handing her the vest, "Put it over your head and tighten at the sides, much better then the crap you have now. You might want to find something to go over it."
She did as he said and pulled the vest over herself and tightened it. It looked stupid and stood out from the rest of her gear like a sore thumb. But it was quality, much better than anything else she had ever had.
"Now this is a very important book, I want you to read it as you travel to and from the Pitt, understand it and we will talk about it when you get back" He handed over a leather-bound book with the words 'The Prince' stamped onto the spine.
"Be careful with it not may like it left"
"Thank you" Julia replied, looking carefully at the book and taking Matt's words seriously she carefully placed it into her pack.
Matt looked at his pipboy, they still had a couple of hours until sun up.
Matt pulled out his pack of cigarettes and gave one to Julia that she readily accepted.
"Come we've got to talk" He hopped up to the counter and waited for her to join him.
Over the next few hours they talked, talked about what the Pitt was, what it stood for, why it was important, where Matt had come from, his mission, why Matt had chosen her, what she was, what she was to become, how Matt would help her, how they would change the world.
By the end of the few hours they had together. Julia felt like a life time had passed, she understood now what lay ahead for both her and the wasteland, she looked at Matt now not as the murder who had killed her friends. But as a saviour of the wasteland, a great solider and more importantly as her teacher and mentor.
"You and me, will do great things." Matt said smiling at her. "But first the little things, take that box to where it needs to be, prove yourself to me.
In that moment Matt knew he had her a look of determination came across her face. Matt knew that she was loyal from that moment, he knew that she understood.
She looked at Matt "I won't let you down"
"I know you won't" Matt replied.
With that they both collected their stuff, Matt taking all of the smaller items from the loot pile and they headed to the door.
Once outside Matt turned to Julie "I'll be seeing you soon" and they both set off in different directions, Julia heading north while Matt followed the road that headed towards DC.