Chapter 9: Bad to Worse

Authors Note: Thank you for your reviews and for your support. I am glad that some of you like my recent update and I hope you enjoy more to come.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fallout New Vegas.


It was a rough time getting to Camp Forlorn Hope, but the Misfits managed just fine and hadn't rationed their equipment to much. When they got to the camp they could tell right away that these brave men and women have been through hell.

Noah's sisters went on ahead of us, since they were the only two that would obviously pass for NCR troops. The guards let them pass and led them all to their main headquarters.

While they passed through the camp they camp they could tell these people have had the worst of it. There weren't that many troops and a lot of them didn't have their standard issue Service Rifles. Once they had approached the main headquarters of the camp the misfits were introduced to the camps leader, Major Polatli.

"Are you those Mercs everybody has been talking about?" He asked.

"Yes, my name is Drake and these are Mike and Noah, former members of the NCR." He explained. "His sisters were captured by the Legion and informed us that Nelson has been taken over."

"Yes and we are no better. We are low on troops, ammo and most important of all morale." He has explained. "Not to mention with the Legion at Nelson breathing down my neck and robbing us of both troops and supplies. It won't be long before the rest of Legion moves in and wipes us out."

"Don't worry," Noah insured. "We will help you with Hope and then retake Nelson." Polatli looked at all of the Misfits in astonishment.

"Why would you guys do this?" He asked. "We don't have much money and we don't have any equipment to spare, so why would you guys do this for us?"

"This group has had its run-ins with Legion before, hell they are the reason we were formed to begin with." Drake explained. "They robbed me of my family a long time ago as well. So, for anyone else's grudge match we would charge them, but for Legion we'll wipe them all off the map for free."

"That's music to my ears and everyone else will be glad to hear it too." He smiled before clapping his hands together. "Go speak to Quartermaster Mayes and see what you can do to help resupply our troops."

"We'll get right on that." Drake said.

They parted ways and the group made their way to the armory tent. Noah went on ahead since he was the one who carried the team's spare ammo. When he got there he was stunned to see the entire armory empty.

The rest of the team followed as well and were all equally stunned. The shelves, floors and lockers were all emptied. Noah was broken from his trance when a gruff voice scoffed next to him. Everyone looked over to see a soldier with a black beard and short hair, sitting at a table next to the door. In front of him were a 9mm handgun and a flask of whiskey.

"Are you guys new?" He grunted bitterly before taking a swig from his bottle. "No one told me about any new troops showing up. This is just great, we get new troops and no new supplies for them."

"Major Polatli sent us to help you out." Noah explained.

"So the Major has you running errands for him." Mayes grinned. "Well, we're short on personnel as well as supplies so we'll take all the help we can get."

"Just tell us how we can help with your supply problems." Noah said with determination. Both Mike and Mayes, even Noah's sisters shook their heads at his Boy Scout attitude.

"The Major let me send out some troops to gather supplies, but unfortunately they never returned. I'm guessing they ran into some trouble on the way."

"How can we help?" Serena asked. She saw Noah tense, but she brushed him off easily.

"You can help by finding the troops and assisting them in bringing back any supplies they found."

"Any ideas on where we should start looking?" Drake asked.

"I sent them to HELIOS One to see if they had any supplies they could spare. They've got to be somewhere between here and there. I'd try searching the main road, or checking with the men at HELIOS One to see if they know anything."

"Okay, but how is the ammo situation here?" Noah asked.

"Terrible, I'm sure you've noticed that a lot of the troops around here are unprepared." Mayes stated as he took another sip out of his bottle. "The Legion sent a few raids after us for the past few days, sending their recruits at us and we used up most of our ammo just to take them out."

"They're wearing you down." Mike stated with a grin across his face. "They send their whelps at you so you waste your ammo before finishing you of with their more experienced soldiers, clever."

"Yes, and now we have no additional ammo for our Service Rifles. I actually had to have the Major order everyone to give what rounds they have to the guards and as for our handguns well, one loaded gun and a spare clip."

"That's it?" Noah snapped. "All the Legion has to do is attack at this point!"

"Put that in a list of shit I already know." Mayes retorted. "We're running on fumes."

"Alright, don't worry, we brought some ammo." Noah explained. He waved his hand over at Drake and he quickly stepped up to the table and put a small handbag on top of it.

"We have about ten clips for the rifles and twelve for the handguns." Drake explained. "We also have a few boxes of bullets in our munitions pack."

"If you still have any empty mags we can fill them up right now."

"That's more than what we had five minutes ago. What am I going to do say no?" He chuckled. "We still need more guns. A lot of ours have been damaged."

"Eh, we might have some weapons to spare." Drake looked at their newest members. "Sam, Jane, if you would."

Sam rolled her eyes as she approached the group and slammed the duffle bag she had been carrying onto the ground along with her sister. They both unraveled their bags and revealed the weapons they had. Mayes was still unimpressed.

"A caravan shotgun, three Winchester repeaters, two revolvers, a 9mm handgun and a stick of dynamite."

"Yeah, just give these to your best men. Sam and Jane I want you to take a handgun and a machete. You will need them just in case. I want you two to patrol and help keep watch."

"You got it." Sam said as she picked up a revolver. Jane took a 9mm handgun before stepping out with her sister. Drake looked back at his team.

"Noah, I want you to assist with the forts weaponry. Whatever guns they have, load them. If their guns are broken see if you can fix them."

"Okay," He looked at his sisters. "You two have to help me. There is no one better who can clean these guns faster than us." Abella was all for it since she would do anything for her brother, but Serena was about to give him lip, until Drake stepped in.

"Before you argue, let me remind you that bullets won't be worth a damn if our guns are jammed from poor maintenance." Drake explained to her in a firm tone. Noah could tell that she was going to give him lip, but she relented and knew he was right. So she nodded and let him make the decisions.

"Okay, Mike I need you to head on over to their medical tent and lend a hand to their surgeon." Mike nodded and made his way to the head surgeon. Skye and Zach looked at Drake. "As for you two, you will help me gather their supplies."

"You got it." She said.

"You think there will be trouble?" Zach asked.

"If I didn't then we wouldn't be going on this little venture." Drake stated playfully.

"Fair point."

(HELIOS One)

Drake and his small team made their way to the large power plant and were greeted by the one of their Lieutenants.

"This is a restricted area. State your business." She demanded. Not wanting to waste any time Drake told her about how they were from Hope and how they were sent here to receive supplies. She let out a heavy sigh and shook her head in disappointment.

"Yeah, they were here a while ago." She explained. "Gave them all I could, which wasn't much. But as many problems as we're having here, I know they've got it worse."

"It's really that horrible to go to Forlorn Hope?" Zach asked in a concerned tone.

"I've seen soldiers get assigned there. It's like they got told they were gonna die. I wouldn't wish it on anybody." She said sadly.

"Any idea on how we can find them?" Drake asked.

"If you're trying to track them down, we put a GPS marker in the supply crate. You can track it with your friends Pip-Boy. Good luck."

"Thank you." Drake said as Skye let the Lieutenant punch in the code for the GPS in her Pip-Boy.

The small team followed Skye to the GPS location. Drake and Zach followed her, but they couldn't help but feel like they were being watched. They both jumped when they heard Skye curse.

They both quickly caught up to her to see what was happening. They both had disappointed looks across their faces when they saw that the supply runners had been gunned down like dogs. Drake walked over to one of the bodies and was sad to see his eyes were still open.

"I get their dog tags," He said as he closed his lifeless eyes. "You two check for the supplies."

Zach was looking into a broken wooden crate, but to his disappointment it was picked cleaned. "Hey guys I found it." Zach looked over at Skye and smiled when he saw her standing over a security crate. He smiled at her find, but a shining light kept flickering in his eyes.

He looked up at a cliff and he started to panic when he saw it was the scope of a Legionnaire's hunting rifle.

Drake had taken the last dog tag off of the last fallen NCR trooper's neck. He flinched when a loud gunshot echoed like a lightning bolt. When he heard Skye let out a yelp he started to panic and rushed over to where she was searching.

He saw Zach lying on top of her as another gunshot stuck Zach, but thanks to his power armor, it bounced off him unharmed.

Drake quickly looked around to see where the gunshot came from. He spotted the sniper, perched on a hilltop readying another shot. Drake pulled out his .45 and fired three rounds at his direction. He missed, but he did manage to scare him off.

He was ready to go after him, but he was soon ambushed by two more scouts, wielding machetes. He was about to gun them down, but they were too quick and knocked his handgun out of his hand, and the other one brought his machete down on Drake.

Zach looked up to see Drake blocking the scout's blade with his shotgun while the other scout was about to cut him down from behind. Zach quickly pulled out Lucky and fired a round into the oncoming scouts head. Drake managed to get a grip on his bowie knife and stabbed the scout in his throat.

Skye got to her feet with her anti material rifle in hand and looked for the sniper. She grinned when she spotted him reloading his rifle. She let out a breath before lining him up in her sights and firing. In a second his head had been blown clean off.

"I got him." She said with a smug grin.

"Great shot, Skye." She smiled as Drake cleaned his knife. "Alright Zach, give me a hand with the supplies. Skye keep us covered. Let's get this shit back to Hope."

(!)

Back at Camp Forlorn Hope, Mike was currently assisting Dr. Richards with their wounded patients. He wasn't a professional, but he helped out as best he could. He cleaned one man's cuts and stitched his wounds closed, amputated another's hand and leg and pulled shrapnel out of a man's body. It was tiresome, but he managed just find.

After he was finished with that, he made his way back to the quartermaster to see how Noah was doing with his sisters. Mike was just outside the tent when he heard his Noah's sisters talking.

"I just don't understand why you became a mercenary." Serena said. Mike looked inside of the tent to see her and Noah cleaning a couple of service rifles. "You could have been a Major of your own settlement."

"Yeah, after Caesar had me nailed to a cross and watched as I slowly rotted away." He said just a bitter. "Our leader sent three men to go out and do reconnaissance on those powder gangers and I end up at the Legion stronghold."

"So you quit the NCR, to join some punk and his gang?"

"Hey, I never gave up on the NCR, but they didn't save me from that Stronghold, they didn't help me across the waste and they don't hold out on food rations for the starving kids in Freeside!"

"Hey, you've seen Camp Hope. The NCR is stretched thin as it is." She said defensively. "The Legion is backing us into a corner at Hoover Dam and while you are off beating up drunks for caps, no one is helping us, because we're apparently the bad guys for bring the law to the wasteland."

"Oh, so this right here isn't me helping?" Noah said rhetorically. "As we speak, Mike is helping out your injured while Drake is out looking for your NCR supplies."

"Yeah, all for that big payday, right?"

"In case you forgot, he's doing for free." Noah sighed before setting his gun down. "Look, I know you don't like what I am doing, but ever since I joined up with Drake I feel like I am doing more good with him than I was following orders from some fallen general."

"But what's his angle, why is Drake fighting Legion for free, no Merc is that selfless." Serena asked as she loaded a new clip into the rifle she was working on.

"I don't know, but like us I think he has a grudge against the Legion."

"Hey guys," Mike ducked out of sight as Abella rushed inside the tent. "Drake and the rest are back with the supplies."

Mike walked down in the center of Hope and greeted his friends.

"Hey, how was the trip?" Mike chuckled. Drake shook his head as he set the crate down and holstered his handgun. "Pretty rough, we got jumped by Legion, as did the runners."

"Damn," Noah said as he joined the group. "Well as long as you are alright."

"Is the supplies here?" Polatli asked as he pushed his way past his men.

"Yes, and Drake is okay as well." Noah explained as he gave Serena a look. She looked away ashamed.

"Great, you and your men have been a big help, but we still have Legion forces at Nelson to deal with. If we can retake Nelson, that will be a huge help to our efforts in this area and give us an advantage at Hoover Dam."

"What is the situation at Nelson?" Zach asked. "Could we take them on with the right tools and manpower?"

"Reports have the Legion forces at Nelson sizable, but not insurmountable." He explained. "And thanks to your help and team, we can retake Nelson by morning."

"Well then, once your camp is ready we'll all head out then." Drake explained.

(Later that night)

Drake and his team, along with some of the men from Hope, joined up with Sergeant Cooper on the outskirts of Nelson. Drake approached the Sergeant.

"So you're the Mercs Major Polatli sent?" He asked.

"Yes, my men and I are ready to help the NCR retake Nelson." Drake explained.

"Okay, we can attack from both sides, so where do you want your men?"

"Skye, Abella and Jane are our best shots, so they will take the ridge on the east. The rest will take the north."

"North it is Reports also say they might have some NCR hostages. If that's true we need to do what we can to save them. So stay sharp and let's move out."

Skye led her small group to the east while Drake followed Cooper to the north.

"Who's the leader of this Group?"

"He's known as Dead Sea. He is our primary target." He explained as they moved up the sandy trail. "You really want some helpful Intel kill him on sight."

Drake nodded as they made their way to the outside of the town. Drake crouched down next to a nearby boulder with Zach behind him. Zach handed him some grenades and the two counted to three before pulling the pins and throwing them at a small group of Legion troops.

They let out a series of shouts before being silenced by the large explosions. Drake charged in with his team at his back and opened fire with his shotgun.

Noah and Mike picked off one by one with their carbine rifles as Zach turned everyone that came towards him to glowing green goop with his Multiplas rifle.

Noah ducked out of the way as a spear was sent flying towards his face. He raised his carbine and popped a round into his assailants head. Mike quickly changed mags as he chased a group of Legion soldiers into a nearby house.

"I'll get them from behind, you got the front?" Mike asked. Noah nodded and shouldered his carbine and swapped to his duel 10mm handguns. Serena joined Mike at the back of the house. She readied a frag grenade and tossed it inside the house through a broken window.

When it went off, Mike and Serena both stormed in and gunned the down one by one. When the Legion troops ran out of the building they were greeted by two 10mm handguns. Noah put down every last one of them that came out. He jumped when three more troops got the jump on him and charged at him with machetes.

His handguns were empty so he quickly switched to his sawed off shotgun, but before he could kill them, they were all gunned down by unseen allies. Noah looked up and saw Skye with her rifle aimed at his direction.

He gave her a small wave before taking off to help the hostages.

Sam was cornered by a few Legion troops. She ran out of shells for Lucy and was down to three rounds for her revolver. She was hiding behind some crates as bullets whipped past her at every corner.

Drake saw this and quickly rushed in to save her. He fired his riot shotgun at them as Skye gunned them down with her rifle. When his riot shotgun clicked empty, he pulled out his .45 and put down any troops that came his way.

"Sam, are you okay?" Drake asked from afar as he switched clips. Sam rose up from her cover and gave him the thumbs up before her face broke out in panic.

"Behind you!"

Drake quickly pointed his .45 at his oncoming assailant, but his gun was kicked out of his hand. The Legion soldier swung his machete at Drake, who blocked with his riot shotgun. Drake could tell from his helmet that his was a Decanus. This was Dead Sea.

Drake swung his shotgun at Dead Sea, but he dodged it and swung his blade at Drake's arm causing him to drop it.

"The "great" republic couldn't find enough soldiers to liberate this camp so they sent you? Pathetic." He snarled while Drake drew his knife.

"Eh, they managed just fine. It's you who will be nailed to those fucking crosses." Drake charged at him and swung his knife at him. Dead Sea blocked with his machete, but Drake planted a kick into his stomach.

Sea swung his blade across Drake's stomach and cut into his clothes, but missed his stomach by mere inches. Drake stuck his knife forward and managed to stab him into his shoulder. Sea let out a low growl before tackling Drake to the ground.

Drake wrapped his arm around the hand that held the machete, but he couldn't get a good swing with his knife. The two struggled with each other for a few minutes and Drake could feel Sea's arm loosening from his grip.

With one final pull, Sea freed his arm and held his machete high ready for the killing blow, but he never landed his finishing strike as Sam fired her revolver and struck him in his shoulder.

Sea's machete fell from his hand and Drake kicked him off before picking up his blade.

"Nelson belongs to the NCR once again, Dead Sea." Drake chuckled as his friends rejoined them back in Nelson.

"Another job well done." Drake chuckled as his friends cheered in victory.