"Can I have a word with you?" Cass said as she finally found Boone near the waterfalls in the Narrows. The sniper turned her way and gave her a glare. It didn't do him any good.
"You need to talk to Layla, preferably without blowing up at her." He didn't seem to like that, and glowered further. Cass returned the glare.
"What do you want to do? Up and leave?" Cass said, crossing her arms over her chest. "If that's the case, we either drag Layla back to the Mojave against her will or leave her here. Neither of those are gonna happen, so you'd better get it in your head that we're staying. That includes helping these people, which means helping Graham."
"I didn't know you were part of his fan club too," the sniper muttered.
"For fuck's sake, you think I'm happy about this?" the woman said, but continued thoughtfully. "Since we've been here, he's only worked to help the Sorrows."
The man was still frowning. Cass sighed.
"What was Layla supposed to do? She sees most of the caravan get killed, then we fall off a bridge and she doesn't know if we're dead. Once she met Graham, all he did was offer to help her find us and put her up for the night. What was she gonna do? Shoot him in the face?"
Boone's frowned deepened, and he sighed heavily. "I know. It's just… I've seen first hand what he's done, and now we're helping him. It doesn't seem right."
"Yeah, I know," Cass couldn't help but agree. "If it turns out we're all wrong and he's planning on pulling something, you're gonna have to do a better job than your partner did."
"I will."
"Good, now go find Layla. She probably thinks we're about to abandon her."
*.*.*
"Now add leaves to hot water."
Layla did as she was told, trying to mimic what she'd been shown.
"Good. You pick it up well."
"Thank you," she said.
"Why you hide from friends?"
"What?" Layla hadn't expected White Bird, the Sorrows' shaman, to guess the exact reason she'd come to his cave. She'd hoped the guise of wanting to learn some recipes would mask her reasons, but clearly it hadn't. The man was waiting patiently for her to speak.
"We've... We're disagreeing on something," she said finally. White Bird said nothing, but was still clearly waiting for her to elaborate. "We want to help you and the Dead Horses, but..."
"Joshua Graham was enemy to outside world."
"Yeah… That's it." Layla was relieved he knew what was going on, if not a little surprised.
"Your friends object, but they stay. Stay for you." White Bird said sagely as he added the roasted honey mesquite pods to the pot.
"Yeah, they worry about me."
"They loyal," the shaman said.
"I know. I think they're pretty mad at me, though."
"I would be if friend helping enemy."
Layla laughed. "Yeah, I guess I would be too." She gave the shaman an sideways look. "How is it you know so much about this, and us?"
"You wear heart out for all to see. Not hard to read." That made the girl start blushing instantly. "It good thing," he added.
"If you say so." She frowned, staring at the fire. She was definitely hiding from Boone and Cass. Well, mainly Boone. Cass she'd butt heads with plenty of times; it wasn't a big deal, and she was pretty sure the woman agreed with her by this point. But Boone's previously unlimited patience with her seemed to have run out. She wasn't going to back down from this, and he was clearly furious about it. Layla understood why; she'd probably be angry at him if their positions were reversed, but Graham was honest about his intentions, and she couldn't let the Sorrows down. It didn't keep her heart from sinking at the thought of Boone angry with her, though.
"It is done," White Bird said. He poured some of the liquid from the pot into two bowls. Layla accepted one with a nod and took a drink.
"Oh, this is so much better than chicory," she sighed. The black 'coffee' the tribals had made from tobacco leaves and honey mesquite had a deep, smoky flavor, and she could just make out the taste of the tobacco. Arcade was going to love this; he and Boone were her coffee junkies. She knew the sniper would enjoy it too, and the thought made her frown. She was going to have to figure out a way to get back in his good books. She couldn't stand the idea of him being mad at her.
"Thank you, White Bird," the Courier said with a smile. "This is amazing."
"Do you want to learn truth?" he asked. "Spirit Journey. Sacred Datura flower, drink tea, see truth."
"Spirit journey?" Layla had spoken to a few Sorrows about the rituals surrounding their yao guai gauntlets. One was supposed to aid the tribe by defeating a yao guai that threatened the Sorrows, and they'd get a gauntlet made from the creature's forearm and paw. It was supposed to be a rite of passage. She dug around her pack; she'd already picked up a few of the flowers as she'd traveled the canyon.
"…Yeah, lets-"
"Layla?"
She turned to find Boone in the entrance of the cave.
"Hey," she answered, then bit her lip. The Courier really hoped he hadn't come to try to 'discuss' working with Graham. She would end up yelling again, and she really didn't want to in front of White Bird.
"I…" he started, sounding uncomfortable. "I'm not going to…" Whatever it was he was trying to say, he was having a hard time with it. He frowned, then seemed to notice the flowers in Layla's hands.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"I was about to go on a spirit journey," she answered.
"Oh." He looked at the datura flowers with a wary expression. "Do you want me to go with you?"
"I... Yeah, that'd be great." She looked at White Bird, and he gave an approving nod. "Yeah, let's do it then."
*.*.*
A short time later, the Sorrow's shaman handed Layla a bowl. Boone stood nearby, not sure how he felt about this idea. Normally he'd just tell the girl his misgivings, but it felt like there was a wall between them since their argument. The sniper wasn't happy about it; he'd wanted to clear the air between them, but instead she was going on a 'spirit journey.' The shaman spoke to Layla.
"Drink tea, see path before you. Ready?" The Courier bit her lip, but nodded.
"Drink, tea is strong. Tea is bitter. Wisdom is strong. Wisdom is bitter, you see." Boone saw her glance his way, then take a drink from the bowl. Her eyes closed. A moment later, they opened, but were slightly glazed over. The shaman looked satisfied with her condition.
"Put Ghost of She to rest," he said to her. "Bring peace where there was strife."
The Courier nodded once and stood. Boone followed after her as she wandered out of the cave. She walked purposefully out of the camp through the river.
"Do you know where we're going?" he asked cautiously.
"Yes," the girl answered simply. She wasn't checking her Pip-Boy as she started leading them through the twisting paths of the canyon. Boone didn't know what to make of that; Layla had a terrible sense of direction. He was about to question her when she suddenly stopped.
"We have little time for distractions." She pulled her gun from its holster. Boone stared at the weapon; he'd never seen her use it before. It took him another moment to realize it was that gun Cliff Briscoe had been trying to sell at the Dino-Bite. He hadn't known Layla had bought it off him.
He was going to ask about it when the girl aimed at the canyon wall to their right and fired, seemingly at random. There was a cry after the shot rang out, and a White Leg crashed down the rock wall into the river a moment later, dead. She holstered the gun and kept moving as Boone stared at the corpse, amazed. That would have been a tricky shot with his rifle, never mind a pistol.
The rock wall of the canyon split into a valley, which Layla followed. Not far into it, they found what looked like a very old camp littered with skeletons. Most of the skulls were shattered; it looked like they'd had been shot from a distance. Boone couldn't really tell how old the bones were, but he had to guess they weren't pre-war. This place had been a park.
"They were Vault Dwellers," Layla said, looking intently at one of the bodies. "The plant was eating them."
Boone's prior worry about the Courier continued to grow as she shuddered suddenly. She took a step back and stumbled. Moving to her, Boone caught her just as she started to fall.
"Did you hear something?" she murmured as Boone saw movement in the corner of his eye. Looking over his shoulder, he grimaced. There was something green and humanoid charging their way. He didn't have time to let go of Layla and grab his machete, so instead he reached over and pulled that gun from Layla's holster. He quickly shot down the creature before it reached them. Once it was dead, he handed Layla back her gun as he let her go.
Moving to the corpse of the creature he'd just shot, he grimaced when he recognized what it was: a spore carrier.
The plant was eating them. Boone suddenly remembered what Ricky had said about his vault suit. Zion scavengers. Vault 22 must have had some refugees who brought their plague with them.
Just as he thought about it, another spore carrier appeared and charged at them. Freeing his machete, Boone set his feet and waited for it to reach him. The creature leapt at him, and he dodged, swinging down on its back as it flew by. It let out a screech and scuttled away, just something splashed to the ground near his feet. Looking up, he noticed a spore plant on a higher ridge, spitting venom at him.
The sniper dove out of the way of another blast of venom as a second carrier leapt at him. Scrambling back to his feet, he scored a underhand slice on the creature, which flopped to the ground with a wet thud. Backing up rapidly, he quickly pulled his rifle from his back and put two rounds in the other carrier's torso, dropping it.
The spitting flower shot another load of venom at him, and he stepped to the side, shooting the plant's stalk in half. Catching his breath, he looked around. No spore carriers or flowers moved; most were in pieces.
It was about then that he noticed Layla wasn't in the valley with him.
"Layla?" he called. Not hearing her respond, he searched the ground for her tracks. The sneaking armor she'd been wearing had a distinctive footprint, and he found her trail easily and followed it up another valley.
A few moments later, he nearly slammed into the girl as she calmly walked back to rejoin him.
"Layla?" he said, confused and concerned. "What happened?"
She looked up at him with a hazy expression.
"I found the Ghost of She. The spirit was a great bear. It was alight in flame and took three forms."
"Uh…huh." He finally noticed there was a gigantic yao guai arm in her hands. He gaped at it; the size that bear must have been to have an arm that large...
"We can go back now," the Courier said simply. "Thank you for your assistance."
"Okay…"
They started back the way they'd come, and Boone noticed Layla was getting less steady on her feet as they continued.
"Are you okay?" he asked, moving closer as she took a wobbly step.
"I'm good." She was starting to sound more like herself, but at the same time less coherent.
"When you fell off that bridge, I was scared you hadn't survived," she said suddenly, still sounding hazy, but serious. "Losing Cass would have been terrible… but I don't know if I could have gone on if you'd died."
Boone hadn't been expecting that, and felt a burst of giddy warmth he hadn't been prepared for. It faded a moment later into the guilt he'd been wrestling lately. Trying to clamp down on it, he found her looking at him.
"I'm glad you're okay too…" he answered.
She nodded, and they made their way back to the Narrows. Soon they were back in the shaman's cave, and Layla was having a lot of trouble keeping on her feet.
"Does Ghost of She lie quiet in the grave?" the tattooed man asked as they approached.
"It is done," Layla said as she handed him the severed arm. The shaman took it reverently.
"Will you learn from the truth? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Only for you to decide."
Layla nodded gravely at him, and the motion nearly toppled her over. The shaman looked at Boone.
"She needs to lie down."
"Yeah," Boone said, managing to keep the sarcasm out of his voice as he got her to one of the bighorner pelt sleeping mats.
*.*.*
Cass found Layla lounging on a rock, legs kicked up. She looked far more relaxed than usual. If the caravaneer didn't know better, she'd say the girl was on something. She was absent-mindedly running her hand through her hair.
"Are you going tribal on me?" the older woman asked. "You never keep your hair down this much."
"Huh?" the Courier pulled the hand out of her loose hair, then shrugged. "I dunno, sometimes it gets annoying to keep it up all the time." She grinned. "And what do you mean, 'going tribal?' None of them have hair."
"You know what I mean."
"Uh huh." The girl stretched lazily. "Then this might not be the best time to tell you the Dead Horses have offered to give me a tattoo."
"Of what?" Cass asked. "You haven't killed anything since we came here."
"Oh, apparently I've been named a 'Tierfreund' because I can 'talk' to bighorners and geckos. You get a tattoo for that."
"Are you going to?"
"Maybe when this is all over," she said, looking down at her torso, which was still in a blue Sorrows wrap. "Depends on where it goes and how big it is."
She sat up and looked at something behind Cass. Turning, the woman saw Follows-Chalk approaching.
"Ah, there you are," Layla said, standing. "Wanna help me find some broc flowers?"
"Sure thing," the tribal answered. Cass gave her a questioning look.
"The camp's low on healing powders," Layla answered. "If we can get some more components, I can make a bunch."
"Don't get eaten by a bear," the caravaneer said as they headed off.
"No promises," the girl called back as she left the camp. Cass glanced around, eyes landing on Daniel as he was speaking with a group of Sorrows sorting through their food supplies. She frowned, suddenly remembering the bone she had to pick with him. The missionary looked wary as she approached.
"What can I do for you?" he said.
"What are you hiding about Waking Cloud's family?"
He clearly hadn't been expecting that. The man blanched, and Cass could almost see him trying to think his way out of answering.
"I'm… not sure what I could tell you that she couldn't…"
"Stuff it, you're a terrible liar."
He sighed heavily. "Waking Cloud's husband died a few weeks ago defending their children from a White Legs attack. The children are safe and have already met up with the other New Canaanites further East."
Cass had had a hunch something had happened to the woman's family. She leveled a glare at Daniel.
"Were you planning on telling her? Or did that not seem important?"
The missionary's frown turned defensive.
"For everything there is a season. Who are I or you to put this heavy burden on her?"
"Oh you can blow your excuses; you did it for your sake, not hers," she said, disgusted. "I thought you were supposed to be leading these people."
"I know I shouldn't have hidden this from her, but she is one of the few Sorrows who can speak English and the Dead Horse language. We need her head to be clear now or we could all die," he answered. Cass glowered at him.
"You're so full of shit. That's her husband you've neglected to tell her about."
Daniel sighed heavily. "Tell her if you think it's the right thing to do. I wont stop you…"
"You're fucking right you won't," the caravaneer said, leaving without another word. She stormed in the direction she'd last seen the woman, eventually spotting her near one of the sleeping areas. Cass found her pace slowing as she neared the tribal. She'd never had to give news like this before, and for once found herself unsure of how to proceed.
For a moment, she thought about waiting until Layla got back. This was her department. But Cass didn't want to be a hypocrite.
"Waking Cloud?"
"Katu Veo," she greeted Cass with a smile. It faded as she noticed the serious look the other woman was sporting.
"Can we talk, somewhere private?"
The Sorrow's frown grew, but she motioned her toward the far end of the valley, away from the camp. Once they were alone, the tribal stared at her, looking apprehensive.
Cass took off her hat without thinking, and going by the face Waking Cloud made, she knew what she was about to be told.
"Your husband is dead."
The woman's face registered first shock, then disbelief. "Daniel should have told me…"
Cass grimaced. "He thought your grief would distract you."
"I... thought he was my friend." Waking Cloud starting to sound furious. "He cares nothing for the Sorrows!"
"He was doing what he thought was best," she said. "He wasn't happy about it." Cass wondered for a moment why she was defending Daniel, but he really did care. He had just been an obstinate jack-off about it.
"He and I are going to have a very long talk when this is over… Thank you for telling me this truth."
Cass nodded. "I'm sorry." The tribal's angry expression faded, replaced with pain.
"Thank you… I… I need to be alone."
The woman took off for one of the nearby caves. Cass watched her go, wishing she could feel better for her good deed.
*.*.*
Boone had left Layla sitting on a rock when she'd woken from the end results of her spirit journey. By the time he'd gone back to check on her, she was gone, and a Sorrow had informed him she'd gone off with her Dead Horse friend to look for medicinal herbs. Arcade had once suggested they put a bell on the girl, and Boone was starting to agree.
As he walked by the river running through the camp the Courier had emerged from one of the side areas and spotted him. She looked anxious to approach, so he moved to her.
"Hey," he said, trying to get his thoughts in order again while the same jumbled mess bounced around his skull instead.
"Hey," Layla answered. "Did… did I say anything stupid while I was out of it?" She bit her lip as she waited for him to answer.
"No." He'd wondered what she would remember from her 'journey.' The girl looked relieved from his answer, and suddenly he could think clearly.
"Cass and I are going to see this through with you," he said to her. "Even if we're not happy about it, we're not going to leave you here."
Layla frowned for a moment, then nodded.
"They're planning to evacuate the Sorrows to a place called the Grand Staircase. Daniel wants us to try to find a map of it, probably in one of the visitor shacks or gifts shops. Do you want to go with?"
He simply nodded.
"Good… Let's see if Follows-Chalk wants to come along."
*.*.*
"They call this the Morning Glory cave," Follows-Chalk said. "It's supposed to be haunted."
"Seems like most of the canyon is haunted," Layla said lightly. The tribal laughed.
"The Sorrows say people never come back from the caves, but no one goes in…"
If she had to guess, she'd expect to find another one of Randall Clark's terminals here. It seemed like she always found them in the caves the Sorrows worried about the most. She was starting to see the correlation; the man had booby trapped all the caves he lived in.
"Keep an eye out for traps," she said to Boone. He nodded and automatically moved ahead of Layla and Follows-Chalk.
"Are all the Sunset People's warriors also scouts?" he asked. Layla smirked at Boone.
"Apparently we're the Sunset People," she said to the sniper. "And no, Boone was part of a special group of soldiers," she answered Follows-Chalk.
"Oh. That must be some group."
"They are a fun bunch," Layla said with a smile. Boone kept his eyes on the path before them. The tribal had been very curious about the sniper since they'd started traveling together, and if Layla didn't know better, it was embarrassing him.
The cavern was wide and lit by a fissure in the wall. As Boone and Follows-Chalk looked ahead for more traps, Layla noticed a ridge further up.
"Hey, there's something up there…" Layla called to them as she moved to the ledge leading up to what looked like a door. Stepping up the first ridge, she put her hands on the next to pull herself up. She felt branches under her hands, then felt something snap like a wire.
"Uh-"
She was cut off by what sounded like two cannons going off next to her ears. Opening her eyes, which she'd squeezed shut, she found she was still in one piece. Looking up, she spotted two rigged shotguns pointed at the space directly above her. If she'd been a foot or so taller, she'd be missing her head.
"Layla?" Boone said from behind her.
"Uh, tripwire," she smiled sheepishly. Boone sighed and stepped up to the ledge, examining the trap. He shook his head when he noted the guns' aim, probably coming to the same conclusion about her height. Climbing up the to the higher ledge, he looked back to her.
"Stay here." He frowned as she put her hand on her hips. "Let me just take a look first…"
She relented, and he disappeared into the doorway. After a few moments and the sound of a few bear traps snapping closed, he reemerged.
"Clear."
He offered her a hand, and she climbed up. She, in turn, helped Follows-Chalk, and they entered the doorway, which Layla noted was adorned with brahmin and human skulls. The door led to small cavern, one that looked lived-in. There was a computer terminal, a sleeping bag, and duffle bag in a small enclosure.
Looking through the duffle bag, Layla found a few maps rolled up together. Among them was the map of the Grand Staircase they were searching for.
"Thank you, Mister Clark," Layla said with a smile. Boone looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Randall Clark; he was here right after the war," she explained. "Lived in the canyon. He's the one who killed all the Vault Dwellers." She moved to the computer terminal. "He's probably got a few entries on here."
Switching on the power, she began reading through the logs.
"What's it say?" Boone asked, poking through the ammo in the duffel bag.
Layla frowned. She had found another entry earlier today while she and Follows-Chalk had been looking for broc flowers. Clark had indeed killed the militant Vault Dwellers, but had befriended one that hadn't been infected. Eventually, she'd become pregnant, and he had been somewhere between thrilled and terrified about it.
She hadn't mentioned that part to Boone because the baby had died in childbirth, along with the mother. She was already upset about Waking Cloud's husband as it was; Cass had stopped them on the way out of the camp and informed them of the tribal's loss. Thinking about Waking Cloud or Clark again brought her close to tears, and she bit her lip to hold them back. She was fairly certain she wouldn't be able to get the story out of her mouth without dissolving into a sobbing mess, which really wasn't something she wanted either of her companions to see.
Boone was staring at her, and she realized she hadn't answered him. Looking down at the terminal, she read the new entries.
"Ummm… He saw some feral ghouls for the first time. Scared the crap out of him, can't blame him there. Put them out of their misery…" She skipped over the part about the man contemplating suicide. "Found a pack of kids that wandered into Zion."
"That's it?"
"Yep, probably another terminal in the canyon somewhere with more. Knowing him, he probably helped the kids out." Layla didn't say that knowing him and the way his luck went, something terrible had probably happened to them as well.
Boone didn't say anything, but the look he gave her said he knew she hadn't told him everything. Sometimes she thought he could read her mind.
Thanks a lot chapter, now I have to sweet-talk my in-laws into sending me some more Café Du Monde.
Anyway, in light of the missed update last week, there will be an extra chapter update on July 4th! With it, there will be an announcement about the series in general, and the next installment in particular. "My Peace I Give Unto You" will conclude next Wednesday.
Thanks for reading, thanks in advanced if you review, favorite or add an alert! See you on Saturday :D
