[POV: 5 Coloured Walker]

Running off into the night may be a thing with some people, and visibility wasn't as bad as it could be given the fact it was the Capitol Wasteland, a place with clear blue skies where the idea of light pollution would only bring lots of 'Huh?''s to the table."

And 'The Lone Wanderer' may be an idealized me from back then, with me being pretty good at long distance running, particularly with a goal in mind or someone to run with. And keep in mind I wasn't helping him so much as just being ready.

But you try grabbing a random engineer who lives a fairly healthy if sedentary life [though perhaps a teen would work better], give him a couple of weeks of mostly walking whilst carrying around weights, and tell him to run off as far as he can in full armor, carrying all too many weapons with their ammo, food and water supplies for several days, medical supplies, as well as some engineering supplies and some random stuff that's heavy. See how far he goes before he decides it would be better to find some random hole in the ground to try and hole up.

And don't forget the long walk to vault 87, a constant stream of fire fights in areas were cover was the exception unless you wanted to run back down the corridor being fired at by assault rifles, then being captured, more firefights, and then sprinting out of a base along with a large number of people that could crush you if they veered wrong.

And that's how I came to be awake, holed up under the end of a collapsed old world bridge, hidden right at the back against some rocks, with no protection except my gun, trying not to collapse and actually sleep a true sleep, not a drug induced one… It was how I also had one of my first real discussions with 'The Lone Wanderer'… I hesitate to call him me, even now, despite him having been reabsorbed. Were a shrink to look at me he'd probably say that that's just how fiercely the split personality thought of itself as being entirely separate, despite the body sharing.

-XXXX –

[POV: The Lone Wanderer]

I was exhausted, tired, cold, and trying to ignore what may or may not the sniffing of a Yoa Guiy, my plasma rifle the only source of warmth, left sweeping through the open slit of the bridge, wishing I had mines.

'So… Apparently I'm stuck with you…' I addressed the other thing in my head. He was more than just a voice, that much was certain.

'Huh- Oh… I think so…' He sounded confused.

'You think so?'

'Well the only way I've heard of things like this are in… old cancelled tv series', and some really old books. The former however good is closer, but doesn't give me anything to help, and from the later I can say I'd be being treated delusions before split personality, and I don't see you joining with my mind.' He seemed dismissive of the thought.

'You may well be right…'

For a while there was a sort of awkward silence.

'So what's your name?'

'I… I'm surprised, but my names E***, the same as you… Why?' He sounded confused again.

'I wish I had popcorn.' This was the 'voice' of the cat…

'Shut up guide.'

'I'm just saying, this looks like the awkward stuff that makes you half leave the room.' The damn thing sounded pleased.

'Well hello you. I almost forgot you existed.'

'Says the one that shouldn't exist.'

I growled at his dismissive tone, an actual growl.

'Guide, if you're going to be like that find a corner and imagine popcorn, but shut the fuck up.' The other guy sounded just as angry as me.

'Fine, fine. I'm going. Sheesh.' I felt a presence retract as the cat spoke, were it real I would have been glaring at it.

'Good… Um… Yea, why are you talking to me all of a sudden?'

'Well if I'm not getting rid of you then you could at least make for conversation so I don't fall asleep here. I just want to wait for my chest to stop burning then I'll set out slower, find a door I can lock myself behind until I can find some mines… Where are we?-'

My question was rhetorical as I flipped through my Pip-Boy, finding myself being far to the north of any place I knew, and west of anyplace decent to hole up in.

'That's a long walk... I hope the Enclave doesn't catch up to us by then.'

I scoffed.

'You and me both… And you can't be E***, I'm E***, you're not E***.'

'Well I am, so the two of us are stuck with it. My middle name is L******, what's yours?'

'…Catherine.' For a moment I considered saying no, but embarrassing as a middle name or not, it would be disrespectful to my mum.

'Well then. I'm El, your Ec.' He stated, as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

'Seriously, Ec?'

'Why not?'

'Because it sounds like easy.' I'd be rolling my eyes now were they not watching shadows.

'So?

'I'd rather you not decide to use an insult for my name.'

'How about Echo?'

'Really, do I even need to pick apart how that's an insult.' I was becoming annoyed.

'Hey, my names a girl's name to my knowledge, so pick one.'

'If I wanted to call you a girl I'd call you E****. My last name is Thorn.'

'ET, I like it. You can be ET instead.' He laughed at me.

'Greaaaat. You can go back in your box now.' I wanted to glare at him.

'Hey, look, sorry… Etho, etho and not a insult. Ethos?'

'Turning to pretentious Latin now… But I think it works El.' My mental voice calmed a fair bit.

'I'm glad we can settle on names, but I'm not exactly an exciting person to be honest.'

'Really, I'm sure your recent history provides plenty to talk about, like why exactly some humming sound means that most definitely is not natural…'

'Yea, there is that… Ok. What did you want to know?'

'Well. You said you died in a car crash right. What was life like pre-war?' I tried not to sound to curious.

His reluctance however was rather strange, considering what he said.

'I… It wasn't your world's pre-war. I want to say it was the real world but I can't say for certain… But it was calm, everything was simple… Mostly. Things were good. Though from what I hear, your world was starting to be on it's way towards a propaganda filled big-brother land… At least in America, to my knowledge '

Now I was rather curious. 'My, your, what do you mean?'

I got the feeling that there was an eye roll from him. 'Have you heard of the infinite world's theory?'

'No.' My answer was as flat as it could be.

'Well… There was a theory that there were infinite realities, where every possible variation plays out… And apparently in the magic worlds, that's true. Among other things…'

'Such as?'

'Well, apparently there's that and more. Apparently there was one universe, and apparently every idea in that universe plays out as well, which makes the multiple universe theory true. As well as the flat earth and so on and so forth.'

'Ok… Wait, you said you knew things, apparently future facts…' A horrid idea bloomed in my head.

'You're wondering if you're just some character in an idea world?'

'I… Yes. Am I?' My body was still as I paid all attention to El…

The silence I got in reply was deafening.

'Your… No… No… Can't… Bullshit!' My mind was realling.

'Does it help that I'm living out in part a card-game, with a meta-reality based on a game for young children, and living another.' His words were flat.

'Wait! My life's a game! This! No! It-'

'Butch tried to steal the sweet roll that… The old lady gave you, because the robot tried to cut your cake with a circular saw, making a right mess. And then when you went outside ahead of your dad about your special present, someone else gave you that really depressive poem, and you caught the tail end of The Overseer calling you a brat and saying he was there only because of your relationship with Amata.'

-XXXX-

[POV: The 5 Coloured Walker]

I have suffered BSOD's before. I wouldn't call them Heroic BSOD's, but I'd had them, I knew how I physically acted and felt emotionally in such events, but here I was, watching it happen to another mind. The plasma rifle dropped to my knees and my shoulders dropped, back hunching. His mind shut down. He wanted to keep refuting, but he knew I wasn't there then, and it hadn't registered to him I could pluck it from his memory, not that I did, otherwise I would have been more detailed… My chest began heaving and the mind retreated. There was no time for this.

As Ethos retreated, I filled the gaps, to an observer it would appear like I was throwing my head back, caught somewhere between a wail and a breath, before pushing what had tipped me over to the back of my mind, the gun raising in my hand.

'Ethos?' I called out in my mind, concerned, my brows furrowed.

For a moment there was silence, and then a whimper. He would need time to process, but we didn't have that time, we needed to move. I checked my Pip-Boy, I needed to head south, and find another crossing. I didn't have the GECK, I could only hope the Enclave had already gotten it to the purifier and I needed to get to the Brotherhood. Hopefully he'd have it together by then, I wanted him out so I could control, but not because I broke him, but because he chose it, hopefully because he had finished chasing his dad and I convinced him out… After a moment I plotted a course on my Pip-Boy.

'Ok. I'm ready to move… Let me know when you're up to talking ok?'

I tried to keep my mental voice soothing as I crab-walked/crawled out from under the bridge into the wasteland night.

-XXXX-

The night passed uneventfully, were it not for my lack of mines and the lack of doors, I would have spent it in a nearby truck that had been converted into lodging, the previous owner disappeared, instead I snuck quietly through the night past mirelurk packs and stray Yao Guai, probably the only creatures potent enough to have the Enclave give them wide birth, even with their weapons, with the dawn finding me hidden away in raider camp along the highway made mostly out of sandbags and blown out cars, clearly cleaned out by the Enclave given the signs of laser damage on the few bodies and the burnt out car husks. The mines and grenades I found allowed me to make up a make shift perimeter and alarm system as I moved to rest in a ditch, pulling a board over me, further hidden by many other similar boards and the various burnt out cars.

However, in the heat of the wasteland, sleep doesn't come quickly. The sand whilst cool to begin with quickly began heating as I was not in a true burrow, and insulated as it was it was quite warm. And then the cars began radiating, reddening my back as I shifted in the furrow I had worn in the sand ditch…

And in addition to being hot and sweaty, I was in my armor. The leather meant I was just a little warm around the few metal sections, and I had buried by Pip-Boy so that I didn't cook my arm like I normally did in the wastes, even with its leather undercover… However you could only get so tired before you rested…

In my state my dream should have been dreamless, just like an exhausted collapse, however Ethos was there, in the darkness, unwilling to create a dreamscape he simply sent me questions in fearful and inquisitive tones, to which I tiredly responded.

'So… I'm a character?'

'Yes.'

'…Are you?'

'… Maybe.'

'Maybe?'

'Did you think you were?'

'No… And you don't think you are… What… What card game?'

'Magic the Gathering… Basically there's a bunch of people in fictional worlds that can travel the planes, being very magical they learn magic that they power from their surroundings, I think…'

'Do… Do they normally come to worlds like this?'

'No… Probably half for legal reasons, but apparently mine is also not a normal travel.'

'…How so?'

'Normally walkers come in their own bodies. According to the guide, the one who claimed to be teaching me forced me to dream walk. As he never did it himself, he doesn't know much about it.'

'What do you know?'

'Apparently, I replace the mind of someone whose about to die, or be involved in some sort of upheaval. Something they don't want to do.'

'I… I wouldn't of wanted to do this. Why did I stay?'

'You didn't. I… Made you, somehow. I'm not an expert in split personalities, but apparently they can be formed in times of stress to protect the whole.'

'So… I'm like… Ablative armor?'

'…Yes.'

He didn't ask for a while, my mind returned to it's rest, only to be called upon later.

'So. What happens to me?' Ethos sounded angry.

'I, I don't know. But you know I don't want to be stuck out of the body I was forced into, though I don't want to force you into my position.'

'… I've… I've felt my hold loosening, as I… As we…'

'I know… I suspect after time we will merge, or after you've done what you're ment to do.'

'And what is that?'

'To live as the wonderer was supposed to, to help me survive in the wasteland.'

'And what was I supposed to do?'

'Finish your dad's work. Provide the wasteland with fresh clean water, at least, when I… yea.'

'And what if I didn't?'

'If you didn't help me live, we may well both die… If we didn't complete your father's tasks… That one I don't know. However I doubt you'd complete them only to contaminate the project with FEV.'

'… You are right… And I'm not going to delay… That's not me.'

'I'm… I'm glad your not as petty as I could be, though I'd like to think I would not either.'

'And… When I'm done?' Now he sounded scared.

'I have my powers to learn, and you know how I am and how I would try to act in the wasteland, for you are my ideal. Me at my most bad ass and moral, bending slightly to not break, but always doing the right thing… You… You would become part of me again, I think. I'm not sure how that'd feel for you.'

'Hopefully not as hot as it is now.'

'It is hot… Perhaps it is morning again… Do you wish to walk?'

'… I am your ideal am I not.'

'You are… It's time to great the morning.'

I let the world fade further from me.

Ok, I'll say it now, it didn't feel right in the writing, but I do hope you liked, my plans for the next one should be flowing better... Hopefully it'll also be sooner.

And I'll say in now, whilst following the main quest line has the game almost done, this fic isn't near done unless I chose to separate the bit where TLW has left the building. I've definitely got Paradise Falls to go, I'm thinking of actually visiting Oasis, I'll probably do The Pit and maybe Operation Anchorage. Let me know if there's anything you would like to see in particular and I may do it.

As for a few recent reviews, look at the name, not just a black planes walker, though black is a fairly common mana in the wasteland, however if it was just black there would be no animals or plants. Also, not Erza, this is a self insert [made clearer], but the second letter is right.

Also, I am thinking about making a story that is just the spells that T5CW learns over time, let me know if you guys would like that. Until then, I hope you enjoyed and can bare to wait until I next put fingers to keyboard.