I don't even think about what I'm doing or the fact that I could possibly be putting my life at risk. I lower my head and begin tearing across the canyon ground. I keep my eyes locked on my target as I speed through the lip of the canyon and into the open area. The humanoid figure stands. I prepare for a fight, but something else happens first. An ungodly, inhuman scream rings out across the canyon. Instantly, I buckle to my knees. My hands are clasping my bleeding ears. Finally, it stops. Well, kind of. My eardrums both flare in extreme agony while my vision swings, then my hearing goes dead. I peel my hands away and see they're both completely scarlet. I look up and see the figure still standing there. Apparently, it thinks its screaming is still working.
I heave myself up and resume my charge. However, the Courier is quicker. She scrabbles up the side of the cliff like a damned goat. I'm forced to stop at the edge. I mentally curse as I realize I don't have a gun. I turn and begin running back towards Cass and the ranger. Both are stopped only ten feet away from me. Cass is pointing upwards and screaming something. I don't know what it is, but I see the ranger get his chest blown to bits. Cass is luckier and manages to dodge bullets as she grabs the dying ranger, me, and the brahmin. Cass manages to save all of our asses by yanking us behind a rock barely big enough for all of us.
My hearing isn't back, but Cass must have realized that. So, she just mimics her plan with her hands. I nod to show I understand, but I have no idea what she means. I quickly get the idea when she starts performing her plan. Cass gives the ranger a quick death (something I would have stopped had I known what she was going to do) before tying him atop the brahmin. Next, she lights the poor animal's tail on fire using a lighter she has for what I'm assuming are cigarettes. The animal runs out of hiding and towards the Courier. Bullets rain down upon the creature, but most are aimed at the corpse riding atop it. Although, I notice most bullets don't even come near the target. The ranger getting killed must have been a lucky shot. Odd. The Courier was always a crack shot.
Cass and I cautiously watch for about a minute before the rain of bullets stop. Cass claps me on the shoulder. I've already seen what her plan is, so when she starts running I'm right behind her. Cass manages to take a quick second to splash some water on the brahmin's tail as we run by, but otherwise our run is unhindered. My friend scales the mountain as best as she can. I'm barely even managing to climb it. It takes us about an hour to reach the top. Honestly, I'm afraid the Courier has fled. And, she has. Only it's not the grand escape she was most likely hoping for. The Courier is standing at the edge of the cliff opposite where we came from. Currently, she's looking down the side of it and shuffling her feet. Gathering the courage to plunge to her doom as the sun rises in front of her.
Cass stands beside me, reaches over, and shoves a finger in both of my ears. My vision flashes white and pain shoots through me for a second. Then, my hearing comes back to me. The shuffling of feet on the ground; the breeze around us; and Cass taking in a deep breath before pulling away from me to talk to the Courier.
"It's over. Put down your gun and-". The woman flips around. Cass stops talking. The monster before us isn't our friend. I take one step forward. That's when it hits. A small pain right behind my eyeballs. Radiation. I take a step away from the Courier. The pain fades. The Courier shuffles towards me. The pain returns. I shake my head and look at what my friend's become. Her combat armor is dented and shattered with large holes in it; her helmet is a mass of twisted metal; and her gun is so badly rusted it looks like it'll fall apart with the smallest touch. The Courier's naked feet are swollen and bleeding a whitish-orange ooze. However, her outfit isn't the worst of it. My friend's sagging skin is yellow, her white hair is thin with patches that have fallen out, and her lips are frozen in a permanent snarl.
Past her lips, I see a mass of black, shattered teeth sticking out from deathly white gums. My friend cocks her head and a low, long hiss comes from her. I finally bring myself to look at my friend's eyes. Pink where there should be white, red where there should be blue, and hazy white where there should be black. Thick, purple veins are protruding from the Courier's flesh and showing where her blood flows beneath. I watch as my friend reaches for her face.
Thin, bony fingers without any nails clutch her own face where it's been scratched by a bullet the ranger or Cass must have shot. I'm not sure if she's touching it because she's just now feeling it, or because she can't believe one of us fired at her head in an attempt to kill her. Slowly, the Courier pulls her hand away. Orange, thick cream sticks to her hand. More terrifying, the flesh she touched is beginning to slowly melt off of her face. Finally, a large chunk of her jaw's skin on the right side splats to the floor. Muscle and bone reveal themselves. The only reason I know it's the Courier is because of her armor, gun, and faded cross hanging from her neck. Cass is the first to speak.
"A ghoul.". I shake my head as I look at her. Not there. Not quite.
"Radiated. Sick. Ghoulifying. Or dying. Maybe both.". We aren't given a longer chance to speak. The Courier charges. Cass levels her gun for the Courier's leg instantly and it's clear she's going to try to only wound the Courier. I can't let her do that. My old friend has committed horrible crimes. She might not have been in the right mind, but that makes it even worse. Now she's committed horrible crimes and is on the way to dying. Killing her will stop this monster that's wearing my friend's face while putting her out of her misery. I wait for a single second for the Courier to get closer to me, then I meet her halfway. The Courier is swinging her gun behind her in an attempt to hit me with it. I easily catch the gun in one hand while swinging my other backwards.
"NO!". Cass's scream causes my strength to falter during my swing. A hit that should have caved in the monster's ribs instead only cracks a few. My friend gasps and collapses against me in a heap. I instinctively take a step backwards. Slowly, the Courier slides to the ground while dropping her gun. I take in a deep breath and sigh as I look down at her. The woman's crying while curling in on herself to clutch at her ribs. Her gun is laying uselessly beside her. I can't kill her. Not now. Now she's just a pathetic sight that makes my heart hurt. Cass sees I'm not going to murder the Courier, so she rushes towards our downed friend. Cass begins speaking her name while taking the dying woman's face in her hands.
The monster's eyes roll around in her skull without any recognition that she even knows her own name. Cass motions me over. I ignore the painful spike of radiation and kneel down beside Cass. My friend asks a simple question as she keeps the Courier's face in her hands.
"How did this happen?". I see something I hadn't noticed during the fight. My old friend's Pip-Boy's screen is smashed. It was always cracked and buggy before the Divide, but it was never this bad. I don't answer Cass as I take the Courier's wrist in my hands and begins trying to 'fix' it. I don't have a screen to replace it, but if I press down in certain spots I can mimic what the screen would look like if it was whole.
"I know how it happened.". I show Cass the Pip-Boy that's currently put on the 'Rads' tab of the 'Health' page. It's currently showing a 999 that's bouncing to 1000 and back. Cass suddenly asks something.
"Would radiation give you a headache?". I nod.
"Would radiation make you throw up and piss yourself?". I nod again.
"Was the Courier's sickness before the Divide just radiation?". My fingers slide off of the Pip-Boy and the Courier's arm collapses back to her side. I whisper a single word while looking at the Courier.
"Shit.". Cass nods and keeps adding to the pile of shit.
"Does that mean she was already heavily radiated before going into the Divide?". I hang my head as I confirm what Cass is saying.
"She was already sick with radiation poisoning before she even went into the Divide. The radiation in the Divide must have been what pushed her over the edge.". Guilt for some strange reason comes over me. I was with the Courier before she went to the Divide. I traveled with her for years. I should have noticed her sickness. The Courier, meanwhile, is still clutching her ribs and trying to ease the pain somehow. Cass runs her fingers along the Pip-Boy as she asks me a question.
"So, why isn't she dead? 1000 rads is suppose to be the maximum amount anyone can handle.". I shrug and ask a more important question.
"Why didn't she ever get any RadAway in her? She knows what happens to people who don't treat their radiation.". Cass examines the Pip-Boy before showing it to me.
"I think I know why.". The cracked Pip-Boy shows 100 rads due to the fact a giant crack covers the final 0. I look down at my radiated friend and think aloud.
"So, she just got this way because she never thought she was above 99 or 100 rads. Why didn't-". I fall silent as I realize my answer to 'why didn't she question it'. The Courier was too stupid about machines to fix her Pip-Boy, realize something was wrong, or think about paying someone to fix it. Cass nods to show me her mind is in the exact same place. However, Cass is the first to move on.
"What do we do with her?". I want to put a bullet between her eyes and hope this one kills her, but I know Cass will disagree. An argument here would cost both of us, so I decide to offer a solution that would temporarily please both of us.
"Can we take her to a doctor and get this fixed?". Cass bites her lip and looks at the Courier. Finally, she talks to me.
"We have to try. She's not a ghoul yet, and the Followers of the Apocalypse in New Vegas might be able to stop the process.". I remind her of an important fact.
"If it's even starting. For all we know the Courier's dying of radiation poisoning and nothing more.". Cass frowns, but nods in acceptance. However, I also add another point that makes her frown even deeper.
"Are you sure the Followers will help her? She's been killing their members, and I wouldn't imagine they'd take too kindly to that.". Cass sighs and shakes her head.
"We have to try. I want her to live. And, if you want her to die just think of it as 'getting her healthy for her trial'.". I suppose that's true. If the Courier doesn't die, then she'll be put on trial. Obviously, she'd be found guilty and killed. I decide to agree with Cass, but I have a better (and safer) idea.
"Alright, but can't we take her to Jacobstown? There's a doctor there, it's closer, and Lily might be able to help us. I'm aware 'super mutant' isn't the same as 'ghoul'; I just think Lily might be able to see if the ghoulification process starts. If she's in her right mind.". Cass considers my words while 'looting' the Courier. Some heavily irradiated water, radiated food, and a single half-empty sack of RadAway. My heart clenches in sympathy as I realize at some point the Courier must have realized she was radiated and tried to heal herself. Cass likewise seems upset and tries to make sense of the situation.
"Why wouldn't she use the whole bag?". I already know the answer and tell Cass. Although, I doubt the answer will cheer her up at all.
"She hates needles. Can barely stick herself. She must have put it in and couldn't handle it, so she ripped it out before all of the medicine was in.". Cass hands me the bag to hold while examining the Courier's arm.
"Well, she's not going to have much say in it right now.". Cass finds a vein and injects the medicine. My sympathy keeps growing as the Courier whimpers like a dog when she's stuck. The dying woman is still trying to fix her broken ribs. RadAway slowly enters her vein and fills her. Obviously, the expected effect would be to lower the radiation level. Sadly, nothing is ever easy in the Mojave. When the sack is emptied Cass checks the radiation level and frowns.
"Stuck on 1000.". I nearly gag on air.
"What?". Cass's face begins twisting in concern as she gives me a command.
"Go get the brahmin. We need to move her. Now.". I begin standing, but demand an answer.
"What do you mean-". An unholy, agonizing scream from the Courier answers me. I begin running for the brahmin.