A/N: I still don't own Fallout.
Her steps were ragged and sketchy, while he strode forward through the wasteland like a phantom: smoothly, as if his feet weren't even touching the sand. Her breath was faint and her expression reflected the pain and exhaustion she was suffering. He had a small content smile on his face, and his eyes, gazing into the distance, were peaceful. The two of them were slowly making their way to what seemed like a huge dark spot on the sand in the distance.
'I want you to know how strong you are' Matthew said, his eyes still staring at the distance. The love he felt for her was obvious in his voice, and it made her feet somewhat lighter to drag.
'After surviving this, just think about what you can accomplish from now on' he continued. 'Now you're as though as any wastelander; you can do anything!'
'I'm still in the middle of nowhere' she replied, her breath ragged, her lips dry, and her tongue hard like a rock. 'And I don't want to accomplish 'anything'. I want to live the rest of my life with you'
'So do I' his smile widened a little bit. He turned his head and looked at her with the love and tenderness she was drenched in anytime they were together, back when things were simple and fine. 'But it's a long and thorny road. I -am- going to wait for you at the end, no matter how long it takes. Because I know I -will- be seeing you'
The dark spot had turned into the silhouette of a thriving, if somewhat dirty, desert oasis and even her blurry vision could make out the caravan carts and their drivers at the settlement's entry.
'I already -am- seeing you in everything, even this god-forsaken stretch of barren wasteland'
His smile widened and he leaned in close to her. Everything about him looked divine that moment, the smooth skin, the light dancing in his blue eyes, and that smile, oh, that smile!
'Me too. Every second of my life I am seeing you'
He kissed her on the lips, so lightly that she barely felt anything physical. She closed her eyes. She was drenched in love once more.
When she opened her eyes she was alone, except for the caravaners that were now approaching her.
'You alright?' she heard one of them ask as they reached her.
She smiled ever so faintly and passed out on the sand.
Junktown
2161-12-25 10:22 PM
The Skum Pitt, Matthew was surprised to find, was a quaint place. It was dirty and a bit dark, but it somehow felt... raw, natural. He sat down with Tycho at one of the tables and ordered some beer. The waitress, a stunningly pretty young woman named Trish, brought them their drinks and winked at Matthew. He smiled back and averted further eye contact by looking around to see where Dogmeat was. The dog was making itself comfortable on the wood floor by his chair. Tycho cracked a smile at the display of the younger man's shyness. There weren't many people at the bar at this hour, and Matthew reasoned that most of them are probably at the casino. The owner and bartender, Neal, was wiping the glasses behind the bar absent-mindedly, and a weathered singer of sorts, Ismarc as Tycho called him, was sitting at the corner slowly singing one song after another. None of the songs made much sense, but their slow and melancholic flow gave the bar a pleasant atmosphere. For the first time in a while, Matthew truly relaxed.
'New to Junktown, eh?' Tycho asked after a long silence. Matthew nodded lazily.
'Yeah, came in just this evening, just passing by, going to the Hub'
'Ah, the usual. Everyone just comes here to drink or just passes by'
'This is a nice place' Matthew was being honest. Maybe it was just that the bar, shrouded with darkness on the outside, looked like a safe, impenetrable cave, and that felt really quaint to him.
'Yeah, Junktown's got its charm' Tycho agreed. They each took a gulp of their beers.
'So, you're heading to the Hub?' Tycho asked.
'Yeah' Matthew replied, tensing up a bit. 'Me and my friends, we're going there to get a decent job, guarding the caravans' he said. That wasn't exactly the truth, but it also wasn't exactly a lie. Anyway, he didn't feel like telling the truth about his business in the Hub to anyone who asks.
'Really?' the older man chuckled, 'You don't look like much of a fighter, no offense. And that strange thing on your wrist says you're some kind of an engineer'
'This?' Matthew asked, faking a smile and raising his left wrist with the Pip-Boy on, 'This is my notebook, of a sort. I'm the doctor, my two friends are the guns. I just patch them up if something goes wrong'
'Oh' Tycho said, taking another gulp of his beer, 'I was kinda hoping you were a tech, Junktown could use one'
'Yeah? Why?'
'Well, the business has been good lately so they're thinking of... well, getting a few things that would help people live more comfortably. I helped Killian with the lights around here, for instance, but that's about as much as I'm good for. Many houses here run on car batteries and such, and no one really knows how to fix them once they break'
'Sorry, don't know anything about that' Matthew replied.
'Had a girl up here who could, she showed me how to do it. I thought I got it, but as soon as she left I was helpless again' Tycho chuckled 'She went south with one of the caravans, to the Hub. I swear to god, Killian should hire someone from there to come up here'
'I take it you're not the town mechanic, then?'
'Nah, I'm a Desert Ranger' Tycho said with pride, probably expecting the younger man to gasp in awe.
'What's that?' Matthew asked instead. Tycho gave him an incredulous look.
'I know we usually don't operate this far west, but I thought you would've heard of us'
'Sorry' Matthew replied. 'Don't get many stories from the sand and rocks of the wasteland'
The vault dweller couldn't help but mentally pat himself on the back for getting into character so quickly.
'Well, we're the descendants of the Texas Rangers, though we operate mostly in Nevada. We're taught from childhood about shooting and surviving, so we could make the world a better place for everybody'
'Sounds cool. How do you do that?'
'We offer our aid to those who can't help themselves: defend towns from raiders, hunt down outlaws, cannibals, and such. We're the law of the wastes. I myself am more of a scout, decided to come here and check out California, maybe some of us will move in to help folks up here, though I must say California's pretty well off, can't compare it to the tribals in Nevada and Arizona'
'Ah, the police force' Matthew's voice got a somewhat more serious tone as he took another gulp of the beer. 'You're the justice around Nevada?'
'Yeah. Judge, jury, and executioner'
Executioner. Great.
'I see' the vault dweller said plainly.
'What's wrong?'
Matthew looked Tycho in the eye. He looked like a good man, maybe he can tell this to him...
'I killed my first man recently' Matthew said, his gaze locked firmly on the tabletop 'I kind of... can't understand how people can go around killing each other. I mean, it's...' he wanted to say immoral, but decided not to, and got some more beer in him instead.
'But if you've been around these friends of yours that shouldn't be news to you'
'Looking at it from the sidelines and actually doing it are different things' Matthew replied, staring intently at the wall behind the bar, admiring the way the dim lights reflected on a shiny metal urn on a shelf, a strange thing to see in a place like this. 'Besides, I frowned upon it all the time when those two did it'
He looked at Tycho. He was frowning.
'I know' Matthew rolled his eyes 'Look at the wastelander who hasn't heard of 'kill or be killed', heard that a thousand fucking times'
'It -is- strange' Tycho said after a long pause. 'But I'm not saying it's bad. Many people kill without remorse, and even if it's for the right cause, it's still a rare virtue to actually care about it' he smiled, 'A virtue worth respect'
'Thanks' Matthew smiled 'Tell that to my comrades'
'It grows on you, you know' Tycho replied, staring at something on the wall behind the bar. 'It grew on me, and I understand it grew on them. And it bothers me. I mean, it -is- kill or be killed, that's just the way it is, but if you're doing it without remorse... That's just wrong'
The vault dweller looked at the ranger and the ranger looked back at him.
'As long as you feel that remorse,' the older man continued, 'you are still human'
Matthew broke the gaze and looked at his hand, wrapped around the bottle of beer. He drank some. The man was probably right...
'I don't want that remorse' he said. 'Or rather, I don't want to do anything so... wrong'
Tycho chuckled, 'Then you got born in the wrong century'
Matthew smiled back, 'Yeah. Fuck it. Cheers'
Junktown
2161-12-25 10:49 PM
'He's not going to like this' Ian smiled mischievously as he opened up Matthew's backpack and started rummaging through it. Tabitha and he were in their hotel room at the Crash House, where the beds were cleaner and the walls had fewer halls than those of the other buildings.
'What he doesn't know can't hurt him' Tabitha said with a smile. She was lying on the bed on her side in her underwear, stroking an unruly lock with one hand absent-mindedly.
'Here it is' Ian took out the vault jumpsuit. 'It -is- a kinky thing'
'Feels good on the skin, if a little tight around the chest' Tabitha smiled. 'Won't be a problem for you'
'Oh it's my turn now?' Ian asked sarcastically, 'I thought you -loved- wearing it yourself despite all of the daydreaming you had about me in it'
'I saw you, I wanted to try it on, and I liked it. Now it's your turn. Come on, don't be shy'
'Don't be shy, she says! I'm the first one who did this!'
He put it on while Tabitha lazily changed her position and sat down on the edge of the bed.
'So' Ian said as he closed the zipper, 'do I look like Matt now; do you like it?'
'You look hot and I like it' Tabitha frowned. 'Matt doesn't have anything to do with this'
'Really?' He asked with that mischievous grin again as he approached her and sat down on her knees facing her. 'It doesn't make you shiver when he talks with that cool, strong voice of his?'
'I'm a woman' Tabitha replied as she stoke his hips. 'He's kinda hot sometimes, but, really, do you think we could ever be a couple? He and I don't work. The two of -us- do'
Ian was gently rubbing his finger on Tabitha's upper lip and as she finished he let the hand slide gently down her jaw line, her neck, and then her side as he kissed passionately.
'So I'm not the runner-upper?' Ian asked without a hint of seriousness in his voice. Tabitha wrapped her arm around his neck.
'No, he'd be the runner-upper if you went away, and prolly not a good one at that' She kissed him once 'He's not my type. You are, you sexy fucking smartass'
He smiled and gently laid her down on the bed, his tongue wandering in her mouth and his hand wandering around her slender waist. He took off her bra and panties while her hands roamed freely through his body.
'Thank god for Shady Sands' he said. 'Otherwise I wouldn't have met you'
Suddenly, a scream from the next room broke the passionate embrace. A woman was screaming in panic next door, and through the thin junk walls the two could hear the angry shouting of a man.
'Goddamn it...' Ian cursed as he stood up and snatched his pistol from the table. 'We should probably check that out'
Tabitha stood up without a word, grabbed her coat and her gun, doing only two buttons before she rushed out of the room after Ian.
Junktown
2161-12-25 10:54 PM
Matthew leaned closer to Tycho and whispered, 'Is that normal?'
Two men by the bar were arguing for maybe ten minutes now, and they were now both off their stools and shouting to each other the obscene ways they are going to kill each other, and the way they did suggested those weren't exactly empty threats. Half of the patrons of the bar didn't even seem to notice the impossible-not-to-notice argument. The other half, like Tycho, just watched the men without any interest.
'Skullz mouthing off? Yeah, normal' Tycho replied, his voice sounding bored and a little bit tired, which Matthew thought was kind of strange after all the beers the ranger had.
'I take it the 'Skullz' are the local gang?' Matthew asked.
'Yup, Gizmo's little enforcers' Tycho replied plainly. 'Just here to cause trouble and occasionally shake down someone foolish enough not to repay their debts to the casino owner. Bunch of freeloading assholes'
Tycho looked at Matthew's empty bottle of beer, then his, and motioned Trish, the pretty waitress, to bring them some more booze.
One of the men, the taller and bulkier one, suddenly right-hooked the other in the jaw, and he fell down on the floor, blood dripping from his mouth. The taller man kicked him in the ribs and drew a knife from his boot. Trish, carrying two bottles of beer, gave the two men a wide berth and delivered the drinks without so much as looking their way.
'That's enough, Jerry, leave' the bartender said calmly, pointing a gun at the taller man, Jerry. Matthew was amazed by the fact he didn't even see him draw. Jerry stared at the owner-bartender of the bar with a murderous gaze for a couple of seconds, put his knife back, spat on the man on the floor, and simply left. Still no one in the bar seemed to notice the argument. The smaller man slowly stood up.
'No fun, Neal' he said. 'I was gonna gut that bitch'
'Yeah, you sure were, Jack' Neal replied, frowning.
'Why do you always have to be a buzz kill?' Jack whined as he leaned on the bar. Trish was returning to the bar, and as she passed by him, Jack suddenly lunged forward, grabbed her by the hip, and pulled her to him.
'You can make it up to me, baby' he said grinning, wrapping his arm around the waitress, who was now trying to escape. 'After all this excitement I fancy a fuck'
'Get your hands off of her' Neal threatened. Matthew was immediately aware of the glint of serious threat in his eyes and voice.
'Get your hands off of me or I'm telling Saul' Trish demanded, struggling to break free of him.
'Oh yeah, bitch? Remember what happened the last time you did that?'
'Yeah' she replied, suddenly stopping to struggle, looking him straight in the eye, and continuing with loathe in her voice. 'He beat up your sorry ass, and you came running back to Gizmo who almost closed the ring'
'Yeah' Jack replied cockily. 'And he still can. Besides, don't pretend you don't like a good fuck from the Skullz, you ugly whore'
There was a loud bang, and bloody pieces of Jack's brain splattered all over the floor and Matthew and Tycho's table. Jack's dead body hit the floor, and after the first few seconds of shock, Trish kicked him in the ribs 'That's what you get, you fucking bastard!' Her whole body was shaking and he was close to getting hysterical. Half of the bar's patrons stood up and left without a word or an expression on their faces. Matthew noted that Ismarc's singing had stopped at some point.
Tycho sighed, took a gulp of his beer, and slowly stood up. Neal put his gun behind the bar and approached the dead body.
'Help you with it?' Tycho asked. Neal nodded.
'This is Gizmo's little shit, let's just dump him at his doorstep'
Tycho turned around, motioned Matthew to approach Trish, who was now sitting at the bar and trying not to spill whiskey all over the counter as she poured a glass for herself with shaky hands, and then grabbed the Skull's dead body by the hands while Neal grabbed it by the feet, and both men dragged it out of the bar.
Ismarc continued singing and the other patrons continued talking like nothing happened. Matthew took a gulp of his beer, frowned at the bloodstains all over, and approached the bar, sitting down on a stool by Trish.
'Are you okay?' he asked, placing a hand gently on her shoulder. She immediately looked up at his face with tension, but something about him probably put her at ease. She drank the glass in a single gulp and set it down on the counter.
'Yeah' she replied finally, staring intently at the glass in her hand. 'Yeah, I kinda got used to it, living here and all'
'I'm sorry' Matthew said, not knowing what else he could possibly say. She looked up from the glass at him and smiled. A strange but pleasant shiver ran down the vault dweller's spine.
'It's okay' she said. 'One less Skull to deal with. God, I wish Killian would just run them out of town'
Matthew assumed this Killian was the town's Sherriff.
'Why doesn't he?' he asked. Trish's smile widened.
'New in town, huh? Killian can't just throw people away for nothing unless they've done something wrong. And even then he needs poof, and since these fuckers are all Gizmo's little boys there are usually no witnesses to their acts and no complaints about them'
Matthew thought about it.
'That sucks' he said. Trish laughed.
'You're cute' she said. Matthew tried to reply, but cast his eyes down instead. Trish laughed again. 'So cute. Come on, let's have a drink together'
Junktown
2161-12-25 10:56 PM
Ian, still in Matthew's jumpsuit, ran out of the room with half-naked Tabitha in tow. There, by the door to the room the screams kept coming from, they saw the hotel's owner, Marcelles, looking wide-eyed at the door, obviously too scared to open it.
'What was that?' Ian asked approaching her.
'Sinthia's in there with some guy' the woman whispered back, frightened. 'God, he must be some kind of a psycho, he's hurting her!'
'You take the front, I'll check out if the room's window's open' Tabitha whispered hastily to Ian and ran out.
'Will you help her?' Marcelles pleaded.
Ian nodded and motioned her to go away. She took a few steps away from the door, folded her arms on her chest, and kept staring nervously at the door to the room. Ian slowly opened the door.
The room was lit by a dim table lamp, attached to some sort of a battery. A naked woman was lying on the bed, clutching her cheek and a bulky man was standing over her in his boxers, rage in his eyes. Ian noticed that the window was shut, and only then saw that the crazed man was staring at him, as if ready to attack.
'Hey, hey, I'm not here to fight you' Ian tried to calm the man down. 'What's going on in here?'
'The bitch ripped on my mother!' the man was fuming. 'She said she's a dirty slut! This fucking whore said that!' he turned to the woman and was looking like he wanted to hit her again.
'Calm down, calm down.' Ian said, taking a step into the room. The man grabbed a pistol from the nightstand and pointed it at the woman, who started sobbing uncontrollably.
'Take another step and I'll blow the bitch's brain out!' the man shouted. Ian stopped and slowly to a step back, returning to the doorway.
'Look, it doesn't have to be this way' Ian tried. 'If you shoot her - and me - the guards are going to be all over you. Do you want that?'
'No one talks shit about my mother!' the man shouted. He was looking at Sinthia like a rabid dog looking at its first lunch in a week. 'I'm gonna end her pathetic whore's life!'
Tabitha quietly walked back into the Crash House and returned Marcelles questioning look by shaking her head.
'What do we do now?' the hotel owner whispered.
'Look at me. Look at me!' Ian raised his voice. The man looked at him. 'Let's talk, okay? Let's see if we can work this out'
The man shook his head. 'No way, man, no way, the bitch's gotta pay!' The prostitute's sobs got louder again.
'This ain't gonna do' Tabitha murmured. She handed Marcelles her pistol while she quickly took her coat off, and then took back the pistol. Ian was on the right side of the doorway, she was to the right of the door... maybe this would work...
Dressed the same as the moment she was born, Tabitha slowly approached Ian, stood at his left while hiding her hand with the pistol behind his back, and gave the man a seductive look.
'Hey' she said with a small smile.
The man, seeing before him an attractive naked woman, paused, and that was just what she needed. She suddenly raised the pistol and shot it three times from right above Ian's right shoulder. The first and third bullet missed entirely. The second hit the man in the shoulder. Ian suddenly bolted at the man and kicked him right in the stomach, throwing him on the ground on his back. He stomped on the man's wrist and he let go of the pistol, which Ian then kicked behind the bed. Sinthia ran out of the room, past Marcelles, and out into the town. Ian turned the attacker around, on his stomach, and jumped on his back to keep him down. Tabitha calmly approached him, pointing a pistol at his head.
'Simmer down, buddy, it's all over' she said calmly. He looked up at her.
'Hey there, sexy'
Tabitha frowned. 'Take a hike, momma's boy'
The man started thrashing, but Ian kept him down.
'That was insane' Ian scolded Tabitha. 'He could've killed her, do you understand just how unlikely your plan was to work? I mean... God!'
'What's going on in here?' there were suddenly three guards in the motel room. The one at the front, Lars, frowned at Tabitha. 'You! Put the gun down and get dressed!'
'What're the charges, officer?' she asked calmly.
'Put-down-the-gun and get-dressed'
'Tabitha' Ian pleaded.
Tabitha sighed and slowly threw the gun on the bed. Marcelles shambled into the room, still shaken, and handed her the coat, which she put on slowly and calmly.
'That man attacked Sinthia. These people saved her!' Marcelles tried to explain. Lars frowned and looked at both of them.
'Where is she now?'
'I... don't know... She ran off...'
'Right. Take that scumbag to Doc Morbid, find the girl, and lock these two up'
'Fuck off!' Tabitha retorted. Lars adopted a threatening gaze.
'Ma'am...'
'We saved the goddamn whore and paid for a good night's rest in the motel, we ain't goin' to no grungy dungeon of yours!'
Another guard approached Ian and the merc stood up, letting the man take over the situation. 'Tabitha' Ian pleaded once more.
'This doesn't make any fucking sense!' the woman protested.
'And what're gonna do about it?' Lars asked cockily. Tabitha looked at him like she'd just been given a challenge and she just accepted it.
'No!' Ian said and approached her, putting a hand on her shoulder. 'Don't be an idiot, we don't have a choice. Let's go'
Tabitha stared at him intently for a couple of seconds and finally conceded. 'Fine. But wherever they take us, we're gonna do it there'
'Ma'am, I must inform you...'
'Can it' she interrupted. Ian wrapped his arm around Tabitha.
'Shhh, don't talk, let's just go'
They were put in separate cells.
Junktown
2161-12-26 06:47 AM
'Hey! Wake up!'
Matthew groaned and tried to shake the hand off his shoulder. The moment the woman's voice woke him up, he was assaulted by a massive headache and was now afraid that if he opens his eyes sees any light, his head will explode.
'Come on, you gotta go now'
'But I...'
He opened his eyelids just a little bit and saw Trish, an old blanket covering her naked body, waking him up. He was naked too. And they were in a bed.
And he remembered.
'Shit' he said, sitting up. They were at Trish's house.
'Saul's coming back in an hour or so, you should go now' Trish said.
'Saul...' Matthew struggled to bring about his wits. 'Your boyfriend?'
The woman nodded. Matthew slowly got out of his bed and looked around, only to find different pieces of his clothing in different corners of the room.
'Oh god, my head is gonna explode' he whined as he started collecting his clothes. Trish lied down and smiled.
'What? No comment on the sex?'
Matthew paused. Oh, yeah, the sex. Right... Damn he was drunk.
'I... couldn't possibly find the words to describe it...' Matthew tried to talk his way out of the strange situation. Trish, however, seemed to be able to look right through him.
'I bet you say that to all the girls'
Matthew got his clothes together and started dressing. 'Who's your boyfriend, by the way?'
'Saul. He's a boxer. He fights at night in a ring behind Gizmo's'
'Is he any good?'
'The best'
'Awesome' Matthew remarked bitterly. Trish chuckled once again.
'You're cute'
'And you're the player here'
She got out of the bed and took him to the door, taking a look through the window to see if anyone was about at this hour. No one was, of course.
'You're heading out today?' she asked.
'Probably' he answered plainly. The hangover and the headache did wonders to his usually shy and polite behaviour. 'Guess you won't get in trouble for this'
'Awww' she smiled and gave him a kiss. 'You're cute even when you're grumpy' she opened the door.
'Well... bye then' Matthew said awkwardly.
'Bye' Trish smiled and he left.
The night's chill still lingered in the town as Matthew slowly looked around, saw the Skumm Pitt and went there to find the way back to the Crash House.
'I just had sex with some wastelander girl' he thought. 'I should be feeling guilty'
He thought of Evelyn and he did feel guilty, but only a little bit, and that's why was concerned, but also only a little bit. In the end he decided he was just too confused right now to swallow the situation, and instead focused on the facts. What did he do last night?
He remembered meeting Dogmeat and Tycho. Then there was the fight, and that one Skull got shot in the head, and then he went to comfort the girl... He remembered feeling awkward and not knowing what to do. He also remembered Trish smiling and saying 'you're cute' a lot. Ah, so she just got laid with the confused 'cute' guy! Matt kicked the sand. He also remembered both of them drinking whiskey, then Trish giving him a flirty smile and saying 'Won't you take a lady home?' He remembered how she kissed him at the doorway, and how he, for some reason beyond him, responded with three times the passion, and was basically the one to get them both in bed. He remembered her nails in his scalp and his tongue tracing down her belly. He remembered feeling good, good beyond the sexual pleasure. He couldn't really put it to words, but it felt like he was doing something right, that he was... being normal? That wasn't the word he was looking for. Damn, and Evelyn... Goddamn it, why can't he hear her voice inside his head scolding him? Why can't he hear -his- voice scolding himself for being unfaithful? Unfaithful? That wasn't what he was... he was...
He was tired and the confusing thoughts in his aching head were killing him. He needed to sleep, right now.
'How can I help you?' the young woman behind the Crash house counter asked as he walked in.
'I've got a room here with two of my friends, a cocky merc chick and a smartass caravan guard'
'Oh... they got arrested last night...'
'Serves them right. Which room is it?'
'This one...' she pointed her finger at Ian and Tabitha's room, confused. Matthew grunted something approximating a thank you, went into the room and literally crashed into the bed, sleep taking over him quickly as various bits of last night swam before his eyes. The last thing he remembered before falling asleep were her breasts. They were awesome.
Junktown
2161-12-26 11:23 AM
'So we found Sinthia and your story checked out. Even the damn scum who attacked her told the same thing; I believe the man's out of his mind. So... you're free to go'
Killian Darkwater, the slow-tempered sandy-haired mayor of Junktown and owner and proprietor of Darkwaters General Store, had Ian and Tabitha brought to his store in the morning, after a night of incarceration. Though Killian ran the town, his own place was a room by the store, which wasn't the tiniest bit more luxurious than other houses in town, only a bit bigger, like a proper store. That spoke volumes about the authority of the town.
Ian, still wearing Matt's vault jumpsuit, was the understanding one of the two.
'It's okay, mayor. Good to see justice being carried out properly these days'
Tabitha, still wearing her coat and just her coat, was the sulky pissed one.
'You could've let us share a cell though' she said bitterly.
Killian sighed. 'There's protocol to be followed, ma'am. But, as a way of saying sorry for the incarceration and thank you for saving Sinthia, why don't you let me pay for your stay and supplies to get you to the Hub?'
Killian, of course, knew all about their plans; his men questioned the two half the night: where are they from, where are they going, their purpose of staying, and the maiden name of their aunt.
'You've got a deal' Tabitha said, still massively pissed off.
'Great. And if you want anything from the store, I'd be happy to give you a discount...'
'Awesome' Tabitha said, still pissed, turned around, and started checking out the tables, which had a little bit of everything on them.
'I'm sorry about her attitude' Ian said. 'She's just a natural trouble-maker'
'Well, as long as she behaves... You haven't done anything wrong yet...'
'Really? Seems to me like you think so' Tabitha said quietly, rummaging through the stuff. Ian rolled his eyes. Out in the corner of his eye he saw an African-American man in a red t-shirt walking slowly into the store.
'Well, then, if you don't mind, we'll be out of your hair...'
'Gizmo sends his regards!' the new arrival in the red t-shirt suddenly exclaimed, suddenly drawing his gun and pointing it at Killian. Both men were caught by surprise. Tabitha whipped her head around, and, without wasting a moment, grabbed the nearest thing to her hand on the table, a motorcycle helmet, and threw it at the man. The assailant raised his hands in defence, and the helmet bounced off. However, he wasn't pointing his gun at the mayor now, and Ian used this to close in on him, while Tabitha moved closer to Killian. Ian grabbed the gun in the man's hand, but he didn't let go. The mercenary put his leg behind the assailant's and pushed, making him fall over, but he still didn't move his gun, which was now pointed at the door. The man grabbed Ian by his wrist and pulled him on himself, quickly rolling around and pushing Ian to the ground, trying to push the gun so it would point at the mercenary's face. Killian drew his gun, and Tabitha, having noticed the move, quickly snatched it.
'What...'
Tabitha fell on one knee and aimed at the man's head.
'You gotta be careful with the trajectory' she replied coldly. Though the men were thrashing, having the assailant's head in the same horizontal line as the gun guaranteed she wouldn't hit Ian.
The gun fired, piercing the man's throat and piercing straight through the makeshift wall. The man's eyes bulged in shock. Ian quickly shook him off and snatched the gun, jumping on his legs and pointing it at him. The man was lying on the ground, his hand on his throat, the bleeding of which was unstoppable.
'He's done for' Tabitha stated plainly, standing up and giving Killian back his gun. Ian watched the man's eyes slowly close and his twitching seize. Two guards ran into the store; one of them was Lars.
'You two again?' he growled.
'Stand down, Lars, they saved my hide' Killian calmed the angry guard. 'Guess I owe you thanks yet again'
Lars was still looking hostile, especially since Tabitha was staring straight at him as if asking if he had a problem. Lars broke the stare and looked down at the dead body.
'Another one of Gizmo's assassins?' he asked. 'Shit, we gotta do something about that bastard'
'He does this often?' Ian inquired.
'From time to time, yes' Killian replied. 'He's rich and influential, and if it wasn't for me he'd be running his town'
Ian looked down at the body. Tabitha shook her head.
'No'
Ian looked back at Killian.
'It's a nice place you've got here... what do you need in order to book that fucker?'
'I guess a confession... on a tape would do, like planting a bug in his office or wearing one when he confesses... You think you could help us with that?'
'These people are new in town' Lars butt in, 'they can pretend to be assassins for hire and ask him for a job. If he says yes, he's as good as dead. They've only been to the Crash House and the Jail, he wouldn't know better if they told him they just arrived today'
Ian gave Tabitha a pleading look. She was visibly irritated.
'What does it pay?' she asked, crossing her hands on her chest.
'Anything from the store' Killian replied, maintaining his sleepy demeanour, though the upturned edge of his lip suggested he was quite excited, by his own standards at least. 'A full kit of medical equipment, new guns with enough ammo, or armour, just name it'
'What do you say?' Ian asked. Tabitha rolled her eyes.
'Fine' she conceded. 'But we'll have to agree on that later, if we're going to do this, the best time is now' Ian smiled seeing the cold business-like Tabitha return. 'Just gives us the bug, we'll change, and go there, every second we waste gives him time to learn about us and makes our story less believable. I would, however, like you to tell me about this casino and any ways to escape should the worse come to worst'
Ian was grinning. He loved that incredibly cold wasteland chick.
Junktown
2161-12-26 11:49 AM
The sound of Ian and Tabitha barging into their room at the Crash House woke him up. Thankfully, the headache had subsided considerably. But the moment he woke up he felt disgust.
'Hey' Tabitha said without any expression in her voice as she came in and quickly wiggled out of her coat. Ian was somewhat surprised to see Matthew continue to stare at the ceiling while Tabitha walked around the room naked, looking for her clothes.
'I'm sorry I burrowed the jumpsuit again' Ian said, taking it off. Matthew gave a quiet grunt and kept staring at the ceiling. Tabitha put on her bra and underwear and looked at the ragged man on the bed.
'You look like shit. Wanna take your clothes off before you go to bed?'
Matthew grunted.
'We're going to get evidence to lock up Gizmo' Ian said casually. 'You wanna come?'
Matthew grunted and kept staring at the ceiling.
'Okay' Ian said, somewhat concerned about Matthew.
The two finished putting their clothes on and Ian took out the 'bug' which was a fist-sized tape recorder.
'Put it in a pocket?' he asked.
'Nah' Tabitha replied, snatching it from his hands, unbuttoning the top few buttons of her coat, and squeezing it in between her breasts. Ian chuckled. 'Thank god for my perky tits'
Ian's chuckle grew to a full-scale laughter.
'So how do we do this?' Ian asked once he calmed down.
'You stay behind for now, I'll approach him myself. If it doesn't work, we still don't know each other. You should probably talk to Marcelles and make sure he doesn't say anything... and move out of the room. For all intents and purposes, we don't know each other' Ian nodded. 'I'll go to Gizmo's right now'
'Could you stop by the Skumm Pitt on your way?' Matthew suddenly asked, his voice rough. 'I left my dog there'
'You have a dog?' Ian asked.
'Yeah, apparently' Matthew replied, closed his eyes, and rolled on his side. 'Thanks'
Ian and Tabitha gave each other confused looks and slowly left the room.
As soon as he was alone in the room, Matthew opened his eyes and sighed. In these few minutes he understood a couple of things he didn't understand this morning, and he wasn't enjoying that. The conclusions he made were 'You're a cheating asshole' and 'You egomaniac'.
Ever since Shady Sands Matthew relied on Ian and Tabitha for survival. Aside from the time he treated Ian after the mantis attack, he never really did anything, just rode on their skills. He was completely reliant on them. A better man would just accept and say 'thank you' instead of arguing over things he didn't know, like wasteland life. But Matthew never really appreciated it. No, he fucked the first woman he could get just to prove to himself that there were things he could do by himself. That was the truth, that was the reason he did it: he fucked Trish so he could prove to himself that he can still function without his companions, he probably destroyed all he had with Evelyn just to stop his ego from deflating; he knew he'll never be able to touch her until he confesses what he did, and she probably won't want to touch him ever again when he does. So he was a selfish cheating asshole. Selfish cheating asshole.
Matthew winced 'I wish I could turn you off' he thought, referring to his brain. He looked around the room. The window was open, illuminating the dust in the room made of makeshift materials: makeshift walls, a few completely different chairs by a table, which was a flat piece of wood on a couple of small concrete blocks. The room was admittedly maybe the nicest one he's seen in Junktown, but he was still disgusted just looking at it. He was disgusted looking at the dust flying about in the sun. He was disgusted looking at the sky. He was disgusted feeling the blanket on his bare hand. He was disgusted with the air he breathed. He was disgusted at himself, first and foremost, and it was this feeling, and not the hangover, that rendered him physically unable to get up from the bed.
He spotted Tabitha's backpack by the bed, and stretched his arm to fetch it. Feeling too lazy get the other from under him, he rummaged through the stuff with one hand until he found a bottle. He took it out. Whiskey.
'It's probably not helping' he thought as he took several gulps straight from the bottle. 'But the thought that I'm drinking is. The rest will be found at the bottom of the bottle'
