Woah. Sorry for the wait. But I've got you a huge chapter. 4k words of what I'd say is my best work. First things first, thanks for all the love. All the views, favorites and such. Those are great. I'm sorry this took so long, but I'm a procrastinating freshman, so I don't have much free time. I promised a chapter last week, but I figured a wayyyy better chapter was better than the 1.7k chapter I had.
Also, Afterlife is completed. So read that. It's good. But I am sorry to say that I will be remastering those chapters. Meaning they'll be brought up to atleast 3k words, which is good for readers of that story, but bad for you guys here. That means that the next chapter will probably be delayed. Probably. But I mean, I wrote this in an hour, so maybe I'll whip something else up.
Hope you like enjoy, ~PepoClap
Oh yeah, as always, i've got no beta, and don't really want one. So, it's me that's going to be reviewing the chapters for mistakes, which means i'm gonna miss stuff, and it wont be perfect. I mean, I wrote this in an hour, so there is stuff that is going to be wrong. But i'll iron this stuff out soon enough.
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The Vertibird simply couldn't withstand all the bullets simultaneously slamming themselves into the steel hull. Slowly chipping away, slowly burying themselves in technology, fragile and to be handled with care.
Jayden felt his body fly up, with no weight. In the split second he had, as the Vertibird soared, he spent glancing at the team he'd left behind. Connor was in the trenches, firing away. Many more of his Brothers lay wounded, some cowering in fear. Some trying to continue the fight. But they had to get away from the battle.
Something even he couldn't do. His body slammed against the back wall of the cabin, he felt his Power Armor groan in pain, and slowly tear the metal behind him. The Vertibird, burning and slowly losing altitude had to make a emergency landing.
Jayden held onto a chair, as he felt the bird slowly tear it's way on the top of a rooftop. Slowly searing the exterior hull, to a bitter crisp.
Jayden hit his head again, on the chair. He groaned, and he opened his eyes. His HUD told him he had 80 percent of his health left. That was good. His vision lit up with the callsigns of his team members.
He turned around and reached for the radio system. His shaking hands gripped the side of the aluminum base and he quickly grasped the side of the device for the transmitter. His sweating, gloved hands fumbled with the device before he shrieked for backup.
He turned and reached for the nearest weapon next to him. He checked the clip of Remington 700 and slammed it back in. He gripped the handguard, glancing around the slightly dinged up cabin interior.
His mind drifted off.
The Lyons' Pride was currently deployed at the White House, his team was on Ground Zero. He'd have to make his crew last long enough for the backup to arrive.
The thing was, they were usually the backup.
Alice had shrunk within herself. The mention of Boone's former wife still haunted her. It made her realize that despite everything she fought to achieve. To change the world, she couldn't have a perfect ending with a perfect man.
No. She'd didn't. But, sometimes she felt sort of relived that Carla had died. Boone was broken, and would show signs of wear and tear. But he was hers. And she desperately fought to scrub away the imperfections of their relationship and let herself believe lies.
We are perfect. The NCR's poster child of a relationship gone right. Two soldiers, who eventually found each other, and live their lives to the fullest. Shooting legionnaires, and protecting dams.
A lie she loved to hold dear to her heart. As a wanderer from Montana, she spent her entire life with very little contact with others. An already some population before the war, but now in a post war apocalypse? No. She hadn't known many others.
But when she wandered into the Mojave. Things changed. She loved speaking to people. Something she never had the chance to do back home.
Her mother and her father, plus her brother. The only three people she knew. Now? So many people, her head spinned.
But all she wanted to do, was live her life happy. Something the world decided. That no, that was to big of an ask.
Boone stopped and grabbed her hand. He flashed her a rare smile, but Alice stared passed him and towards the young couple in front of them.
Alex had snuck up behind Sarah, who was currently sifting through a crate with Dusk. They both had been packing up weapons into several crates, so they could load up and go back to the Citadel.
Alex quickly dashed and hefted Sarah onto his shoulders. Sarah gasped and her face quickly turned a fierce shade of red.
"Put me down! That's an order!" She screeched out, but Alex wasn't having any of it. "What do you say Sarah?"
She playfully smacked his shoulder, but Alex shook his head. "Nope, violence isn't it. Try again, you nearly got it."
She sighed and whispered out, "Please?" Alex smirked, he started to let he moved from his iron grasp, but at the last second pulled her back into his grasp. "Sorry, I couldn't hear you."
She threw her entire weight at him and he stumbled, tried to regain his balance, but eventually both of them tumbled to the floor in a laughing heap.
Alice stared blankly at the both of them. How could they be so smitten with love that they just didn't care about anything else? Why did she have to endure the pain of remembering that she wasn't living the life she so desperately wanted?
Even more, why did she want that? To live a life that hadn't be around since pre-war times? All she wanted to do was explore the world, then lay down roots and be a happy family
Sometimes she didn't know what Boone wanted. Sometimes she'd dream of him leaving her, stranding her in the Capital Wasteland with absolutely nobody else. Save for maybe those two in front of her.
That was the worst part, she was so… broken. She let out a choked laugh into the silent march to the Vertibird. Boone stared at the woman before him, glancing at her eyes. She gazed back at him, her green eyes glazed with years of hurt.
Alice spoke, "I'm not much of a talker, but you want me? What the fuck." Boone's face went through a ray of emotions, before settling to a face beaming of warmth. "Yeah, you aren't. But I don't like to talk either, I guess we are perfect for each other, aren't we?" Boone whispered.
With that, she intertwined her slender fingers, covered in blood and slightly bent, with Boone's. She looked up to him, "Let go fuck up some ghouls."
The first thing he noticed was that it was hot. The other thing was that he was bleeding, profusely. Then his senses kicked into overdrive, and an overwhelming sense of panic swelled in his chest, threatening to burst.
But then he felt pressure on his back. A swift tug, and he heard a loud pop as air rushed into his melted suit. He sucked in a shallow breath and tried to move his arms. Still nothing. But now sunlight streamed into the edges of his vision.
Then the sounds of bullet hailing around him and screams sounding out, perked up his body. He struggled to move out of the metal coffin, but he just couldn't. He tried another breath. His ears were still ringing and the sounds of the battlefield above just pounded his head.
Everything slammed back into place a moment later, and he could now vividly hear the screaming. Of someone. Behind him.
"Are you with me? Connor! Alright, brace yourself." Someone sounded above him. Oh yeah, Richards.
He didn't get a chance to squeeze another thought before the pain pierced his mind. He screamed into his shattered visor. He distinctly felt something leaving his body. He bit down on his lower lip, but the pain didn't numb.
His head slumped against the rock that destroyed his visor, and started to doze off. Yeah, that's what he'd do. Just rest against the gray pillow, and…
He was pulled out of the suit violently, and his world flipped upside down. He caught his breath, and faced the sky, were the floor once was. He shook his head, and the world was picked up it's pieces and put themselves back in place.
When he opened his eyes, he could see the Initiate's eyes looking over his body, covered in blood and bandages. They locked eyes and Connor could see the terrified look in his eyes. Richards pulled him to his feet, and shoved a Laser Rifle into his grasp. He glanced down at his AER-9, the tubing on the underside of the grip was torn cleanly off, and his stock was blown to bits.
He gripped what was essentially a Laser SMG, and gazed at the battle above him.
Jayden stared at the melting pot under him. Bite sized figures ran across the burning trenches, some fired. Some fell. Another glance and he could make out the taller, more muscular green mutants marching forward. Falling, getting torn to shred.
Unless one side got some more support, they'd all be killed in action. His knuckles were painted white as he gripped the concrete railing. People around him were grabbing scopes, or shooting from their high position.
They were going to get overrun, that was guarantee. There was stomping that shook the very foundation of the building. Smaller, quicker thuds sounded below him. Yes, they were going to make their final stand here, but he was going to make sure that if he was to go down. He'd take down every single emerald monster that decided to walk up the stairs.
He grasped the rifle off his back and into his hands, several men were pulling ordinance from the stranded aircraft. More people were setting up fortifications. He took a quick glance down at the scene unfolding at Ground Zero before turning to his men.
"Our brothers will fight tooth and nail down below. But we can't give them anymore support. Not yet. We first got to melt the incoming. Strap in, and aim at those stairs. Ad Victoriam."
With that, Jayden cocked back the bolt of the Hunting Rifle in his hands. "Let's leave this hotel covered in green blood gentlemen."
Richards gripped the torn, wooden side of the trench, hefting himself up, so that his upper body was the only thing visible. He fired away, turning countless mutants to dust. For everyone he dropped, the more barbaric they became. Disregarding their own lives and simply pushing the Brotherhood members with a intensity that he'd never seen before. A emerald body flew through the air, just missing his right arm and slammed into the bottom of the trench.
He turned around, aiming down his dirt stained ironsights, finger on the trigger of the 10MM Submachine gun. He tugged the metal trigger, let a spray tear through the barrel of his gun. He saw the first bullet come out of the barrel in slow motion. He shifted, ready for his target to move, and he was right about that.
The mutant did move, with a sluggish move, he rolled over and tried charging towards the inexperience soldier, but he never got the chance to. A bullet sounded, louder and more menacing tore the air around him quicker than his inferior bullet. It buried itself into the skull of the mutant, spraying the trench vivid red.
He glanced around, and that's when the world went back to full speed. The familiar chopping of the air above him sounded out. Then, the crackle of a the intercom he knew to well.
"Goodnight mutie bastards! Any last words? Oh wait, can't hear you over the screams!" the taunting voice sounded around his body, filling his body with the swagger of the Brotherhood. He glanced at the jet black Vertibird above him, his eyes grazed the underside, reading the white letters decorating it.
"Ophanim." He grinned, and pulled himself out the trench. It their turn to give the muties a taste of their own venom. With one hand gripping the pistol grip, and the other reaching for his M9-Bayonet. He sprinted towards a Feral Reaver, and stabbed his kneecap, bringing him to the floor.
He peered into the clouded eyes of the zombie, before slamming his foot into its head. He stared down the sights of his gun this time. A quick pull, and the mutant in front of him, trying to reload, was filled with it's daily dose of lead.
A mutant and ghoul both tried rushing him. He managed a quick swipe at the larger opponent, ripping his bicep open, before side stepping and rolling. His combat armor grazed the floor, and in a instant he was back up, on the balls of his feet.
A quick one-two step and the knife was inside the eyes of the ghoul. He dodged a heavy fist, and whipped out his SMG. He pulled the trigger, but only three bullets came out. They imbedded themselves into the inviting body before them, but the staggering mutant infront of him was still standing.
This time, he didn't move fast enough. A fist slammed into his chest plating and nearly knocked him over. He slid back two feet from the impact, but he quickly recovered. Before he got to make a move, the mutant fell over, it's head replaced by cold air.
Connor blew the hot steam coming from the barrel of the Laser SMG. He grinned, before tossing Richards a M1911.
He caught it, cocked the slide back and moved forward with his fireteam partner.
Alex reloaded the Barrett 50. Cal in his hands and slid it back into it's resting slot on the wall of the cabin. He reached for his Laser Rifle, unclipped the metal locks and stood up. He made a move to grab his helmet, but Sarah cut him off.
"Listen, the drinking. It's been on my mind. I'm sorry for tearing into you, but you've got to understand how I'm feeling. I hate seeing you rely on something else for support. I've got you, alright? That's what you promised me. That you'd let me shoulder some of your responsibility. Let me do that for you. Okay?" Sarah tugged Alex's shoulder, and his hazel eyes snapped up from their gazing spot on the floor and peered into her blue orbs.
He stood there, stoic, but his face changed. A confusing mess of changing gazes, before settling into a single expression. Acceptance, or was it happiness? At this point, Sarah didn't care.
But what did surprise her, was his reaction. He wrapped his metalliac arms around her steel chest and pulled her as close as their armors would let them. She mentally cursed the armor for not letting them get closer together, but she content enough right now.
Alex shook her body lightly, forcing her to meet his stare. She didn't know what she was expecting, for him to shut her out, or for him to completely break down. Instead, his lips parted and he spoke, "God. What did I ever do to deserve you?"
Sarah smiled back at him, "You saved me more times than I can count. How'd I ever deserve a guardian angel?"
Alex pulled her into a intimate kiss. A moan from Sarah, and a throat clearing from… Butch. He pulled away, and realized that they were in the crowded Aircraft, ready to help the stranded Vertibird. His face dunked itself into a vat of red, and Sarah looked confused for a second before she turned around.
Her eyes met everyone's in the interior. Butch broke the silence. "God, I will never be able to bleach the event I just witnessed. You guys make me sick."
Alex laughed, and the rest of the Pride joined him. The Vertibird shook slightly, Alex immediately perked up, and quickly moved to the cockpit. "Colvin? Are we alright? Let me co-pilot."
He stepped inside, his nose being hit with a scent. "Oh fuck. Their copilot was strapped into the seat, his neck torn in half with a bullet the size of his hand. He turned around and screamed at the people in the interior. "Get ready for immediate drop! Our co-pilot is down! Alice!"
He swiftly turned around when the glass exploded, his armor getting jabbed with tiny shards of the translucent barrier. Colvin screamed and fell out of his chair, he was clutching his left arm. Alex hefted him out of the cramped room and reached for the Yoke and maneuvered them so that they didn't crash into the gray building. With his left hand, he quickly grabbed the side stick and pulled the throttle forwards.
He slammed the button on autopilot and grabbed the dead body to his right, and pulled him out of the chair and into the cabin.
Alice was standing over Colvin, who was coughing and groaned from the unforgiving floor. She was pulling various syringes and gauzes from her bag and sighed. Boone swiftly moved from his seat, and grabbed his Remington 700 VTS, he quickly moved to the opening ramp and gripped the overhead railing.
Sarah was the first to drop, her helmet was on and her rifle in her grasp. She jumped the nine feet gap, and slammed her feet into the grime covered concrete floor. A shockwave shuttered the debris around her.
She flicked the switch of the Laser Rifle and shot a beam into the disfigured face of the mutant. He screeched for a full second before his face gave out, and fell to the floor, in clumps of red and green.
A mutant sidestepped her second burst, and tried rushing her postition next to a crate. She quickly pressed a button on her receiver and a Laser Bayonet erupted, the blue electricity crackled, before she slammed it into the torso of a now screaming mutant. She didn't stop there, she continued pulled upwards, tearing through his abdomen and finishing by ripping apart his left pectoral.
The body hit the floor with a thud, and then blood leaked out from the underside of the dismembered corpse.
She turned around, and fired point blank into a mutant, turning him into a pile of green dust. With a quick sidestep, she only took a slight graze of the oversized fist that tried to hit her left shoulder. She brought her knee up, into the crotch of the unfortunate FEV monster.
He groaned, and she slammed her fingers into the vulnerable flesh of the mutie's neck. She swiftly tugged out his windpipe and it hit the floor with a splat, before she slammed his head with a burst of blue light.
Alex turned around and moved the Vertibird closer to the building. Now, there was no gap for them to jump across, merely a twenty feet drop, something that was child's play for their Power Armor.
He hated not being on the ground, going toe to toe with a mutant, but here he was. Stuck inside of the cockpit, being the pilot, when he could very well do his job of Field Commander, or Medic. He pulled to the left, and the .50 bullet missed the hull of the VTOL craft.
Vargas was already manning the Laser turret and was raining down red beams of death onto the opposition. He let out a laugh, before getting up and reaching for a Laser Rifle. Then, he too jumped.
Now it was just him, Colvin, Alice, and… Boone? He turned around to see Boone staring at him, from the threshold between the two parts of the aircraft. He spoke, "Let me man the aircraft. Get on the ground floor. Just shoot a mutie between the eyes for me."
He tersely nodded, and broke into a sprint. His right foot grazed the metal ramp before he jumped. His vision slowed down and he scanned the fight for Sarah. He saw her spraying her Laser Rifle, letting her modified receiver shoot out blue beams of electricity.
A mutant was caught in his gaze. "Goodnight bastard." He whispered into the space in his helmet, as his vision sped up, his feet slammed themselves into the side of the mutant's head. As his entire weight slammed into his neck, his head exploded, staining his legs with the blood of the FEV mutant.
He quickly turned around and jabbed his Laser Bayonet into the shoulder of a shocked mutant, he swiftly tugged downwards, and the scream of the person in front of him was deafening. The right arm fell out of it's socket, and slammed into the concrete floor, embedding itself into the broken floor.
He fired into the flesh protecting his heart, and the mutant dropped quicker than would be expected of a goliath of a monster that size. It hit the floor, creating its own shockwave, which he could feel shake his shins.
He fired into the head of another mutant, taking it cleanly off, then that beam tore through a neck of unsuspecting mutant. Alex let out a light laugh, "Take that, biatch!"
He popped out the spent microfusion cell, replacing it with another, shaking with energy. It shook his rifle, before settling into a hum of power coursing through, "Archangel."
He pulled the trigger three times, and three mutants hit the floor. He slid over a crate, and planted his rifle bayonet into the kneecap of a mutant. He fell, and Alex took advantage. He quickly scrambled onto his back and slammed his bayonet into the back of the mutant's head. He shoved it forward, and it went through the brain and came out through his forehead.
Alex stood up, and fire twice at a wounded mutant. He brushed his left arm and gazed at the rest of his team. Sarah threw a fist into a mutant's nose, breaking it, no, decimating it. Dusk fired a Barrett .50 Cal, point blank, with one hand. The her other hand was gripping her Laser Knife which she threw into the skull of another mutant.
Vargas was firing away, turning bodies to dusk quicker than Alex could react. Jayden was firing away from a crate, tearing through three mutants with one shot. His eyes landed on Gallows next, who held two Rippers, one in each hand, and slammed them into each side of a poor mutant's head.
Alex felt a jab hit his chest, and the Mutant leader threw a left hook. This connected, harder this time. His head spun, his rifle flew from his hands and towards Jayden's position.
Alex rolled backwards and brought up his fists. His helmet was broken now, and another hook with break it into pieces. Alex was faster, slimmer, but possessed less power than the towering 8 mutant of pure muscle.
Alex, seven foot, three in his T-45F Power Armor, swiftly jogged forward. He swiftly dodged the reaction jab from the Commander, and threw a uppercut, connecting with a chin. He felt the mutant's head snap upwards, and Alex quickly retreaded. The mutant charged, and Alex was already a step ahead. He jumped onto a wooden crate, which quickly groaned in opposition to the weight that was quickly placed onto it.
Alex was in the air, and he brought his right arm down, slamming into the neck of the mutant, but right after, before he hit the floor, connected with his left hood, both forces hit the mutant at almost the same time.
The Commander's neck was completely shattered, nothing was supporting his head, so it just slumped over, and hung limply in the air, before the body hit the floor.
Alex caught his breath, and realized his helmet was no longer on his head. He swiftly moved towards his rifle, and looked at the aftermath of the battle.
Everyone was reloading and checking the bodies. Some men were injured, but nobody had died. Jayden had tossed him his rifle back. Jayden turned to face his commander. "Thanks for the assist, Sentinel. I've got the VIP, and the black box inside our bird. Ready for you when you are."
Alex nodded, "Give me a second, I need to do something." Jayden nodded and put his helmet back on, and Alex could faintly hear a name escape from Jayden's body as he walked away from him. Piper.
Alex's thoughts snapped to Sarah. He glanced over, and tried to find her, but he couldn't see her in the horde of Brotherhood soldiers. His eyes moved over and stared at the commander's corpse, where Sarah was standing over him.
Alex walked towards her. She took off her helmet. "God. That was thrilling. But look at what he had. What is this?"
Alex looked at the card in Sarah's palm. He gently grasped it from her, and gazed at it. He spoke aloud, his voice hitting the cold air of September.
"What the hell is a New York?"
