As they tramped south east, Lee wondered what his father had been up to for the past three months. And what could the 'huge break' in the research be? If they just needed some machines fixed up and turned on, maybe the project was closer to completion than he'd thought. He looked out across the stretch of land they were traversing; the fallen, broken sections of highway, the empty husks of old buildings, the dead and barren earth. Even with clean water and people helping, it would take a long, long time for the world to recycle itself back to any semblance of growth and liveliness. But what a help it would be anyways, to have clean water for crops and radiation-free drinking water.
They made their way past Wilhelm's Wharf and continued on down the road only to come up on a short bridge spanning a narrow part of the river. Before they could get closer, Charon put a hand out and pointed to the bridge itself. Lee looked closer and spotted a string of mines dotting the bridge's surface. They were scattered all the way across, and were spread too thickly to think about walking between them. The law of bridges being either inhabited by hostile beings or full of traps held true here.
"Well, this is easy, I just hope the entire bridge doesn't come down," Lee said as he pulled his rifle around to the front. He crouched and took aim at the closest mine, watching for the tiny red light blinking on the top. The echo of the report was drowned out in the rapid string of booming explosions that traveled in a wave across the bridge. A chunk of the railing was blown out into the water, but the rest of it stayed standing, and the two of them crossed the smoking road towards the squat building of the war memorial. They made it to the other side and climbed up the stairs to the flat patio overlooking the river. The long expanse of the water flowed around the cement embankments and the ruined structures along the shore leaned drunkenly. The wind tugged white ripples into the water and whined around the eaves of the memorial. Far in the distance was the big bridge that spanned the wide river. He made an ugly face thinking of the super mutant pair they'd come across last time they'd been in that area. If they were still hanging around, they wouldn't be much longer.
Charon's voice came from the far edge of the deck, "We've got company."
Lee turned away from the edge facing the river and joined Charon, looking down at the clittering monstrosities walking below them. "Oh. Mirelurks," he said miserably.
The 'lurks lumbered around the bank and the shallows of the tiny island, most likely drawn by the sound of the exploding landmines from the bridge. Their claws clacked together as they quested around almost blindly for the source of the disturbance.
"You wanna... go ahead and... yeah," Lee said, repulsed. Their segmented bodies, tiny evil looking faces, jerky movements, and that creepy noise they make. Fuckin' no thanks. Charon gave him a curious sidelong glance, but swung over the cement ridge and dropped to the ground to face them. Disgusting opponents, but it was always thrilling to watch Charon do what he did best.
The shotgun roared as it vaporized the limbs and heads of the mirelurks, and Charon reloaded without interrupting the constant motion. He flowed around their snapping claws, twisting away from their lumbering attacks and skipping back when they lunged. His lips pulled back in an ecstatic snarl, turning his face into something much more fearsome than usual. Poetry in motion, Lee thought, watching the dance unfold below him. Well, kind of gruesome poetry. The ghoul swiped a handful of river mud into the eyes of one lurk and kicked a second onto its back so that he could concentrate on a third swimming up from the water. He spun and dodged, fired and kicked, and soon the ground was littered with the corpses of the lurks unfortunate enough to have investigated the noise. Charon stilled and the slightly mad look in his eyes faded as the feeling of blood lust receded. He re-shouldered his shotgun and looked back as Lee dropped from the memorial roof to join him again.
As always, he felt oddly cautious of Charon after seeing the displays of carnage he inflicted on the unlucky wasteland denizens. But so turned on. It was like watching a performance, if a little grisly. He was very aware of the heat creeping up his throat and into his cheeks and waved a hand at Charon, dismissing the questioning look on his face.
"Nothing, you showoff."
A small smile flitted over Charon's face before vanishing again. "As you say."
"Well, let's keep going," Lee continued, experimentally poking a mirelurk shell with his boot. It shifted and rolled back with a meaty thud. Disgusting even when they're dead. Yeesh.
The Potomac River rushed by on their right as they walked along the bank, rocks plinking into the water as they kicked them aside. A cool breeze blew in, carrying the smell of the water and creating rills on the surface. The bridge loomed closer, and Lee had a sudden realization of where they were.
"Hey, hang on a sec," Lee beckoned at Charon to follow him after they'd climbed a short staircase. They approached a long empty street with a connector spanning two buildings at the far end. Lee hunched over and scrambled up against a low street railing, making way for Charon to crowd up next to him. He drew out his rifle and leaned it against the rail, pointing it at the connector.
"It's only been a few weeks since we were here last, maybe they're still... ah." The questing of the barrel stopped and Lee motioned Charon to take a look through the scope. The two super mutants were still keeping a lookout up on the connecting bridge; one with a missile launcher and the other with a smaller hunting rifle. They stomped back and forth, occasionally pausing and looking down the other way at the city or just clenching their fists and staring at the floor looking bored. Charon lifted his face and raised an eyebrow at Lee.
Playfully defensive, Lee said, "Yes, I'm still pissed at them. I didn't forget that awful haircut they tried to give me or this crappy attempt at eye surgery." He drew a finger along the curved pink scar on his cheek right below his eye. With a prankish smile he asked, "So whaddaya say. Wanna bump off those muties?"
"Alright," Charon said, leaning back out of the way.
Lee looked up at the mutants and back to Charon. "Wanna try it?" he asked, grinning and pushing the stock of the gun towards the ghoul.
He paused for a moment, but shrugged his shoulders and nodded. "I can't say I've ever really used one of these."
"Okay, here. You take it, and I will instruct." Lee shuffled over and shrugged his backpack off, laying it on top of the rail. "This'll be nice, we actually have time to set up and get a good shot instead of stuff screaming and running at us." He turned around and leaned his back against the rail so he could see what Charon was doing and to make sure nothing untoward approached them from behind. The ghoul was holding the rifle stock and waiting expectantly, pale eyes glinting in the fading light.
"That's what the shotgun's for."
Lee laughed and nodded. "Alright. Lay the barrel on top of my pack for support. Anything to balance against is good, but something soft is best." He closed his eyes, running through the motions of his routine in his mind as Charon followed his directions. "The most important thing is to relax. Find a comfortable position and breathe deep to calm yourself. Any excess motion throws off the shot, and your body is what you have to control the most."
Charon inched up next to the gun, bending a leg under him and pressing the other against his chest. The barrel of the gun rested on Lee's backpack, and the bottom of the stock sat on his raised knee.
"Watch your targets for a minute. Look to see if they have a pattern of where they like to pause when they're pacing. We're fairly close, so you won't have to compensate for distance. Just aim for head height, and observe them until you can kind of read when they're going to move and when they're going to be still."
The ghoul leaned in and set his eye against the scope, picking out the rocket launcher mutant in the glass lens. He stomped back and forth. Turned to his partner as he said something. Stomped again. Looked out over the railing. Charon watched for what felt like an eternity, but in reality was only a few minutes. Still focusing, he rumbled, "Got it."
Lee nodded. "Good. Get in and find your target, where his head would be when he pauses." He duckwalked around behind Charon and leaned over him, speaking quietly into his shoulder and making a tiny adjustment to where Charon was bracing the end of the gun. "It'll kick, but if your body and arms are loose like they should be, you'll absorb the recoil alright. Pull the trigger straight back with the ball of your finger so you don't jerk the gun sideways." Still behind Charon, Lee inspected the easy set up and shook off an unexpected surge of lust; seeing Charon using his rifle was oddly... appealing. His face creased in a frown of concentration, arms draped sinuously over the long gun, a slow pulse beating in his throat, lips hanging slightly open...
Pfff. Right. He examined the ghoul's stance again, nodded, and backed away, filing that for later. "When it's time, just take a breath, hold it, and squeeze."
Charon watched through the scope again, breathing easily and letting his body relax. His sight narrowed down to the crosshairs on the lens and the head of the super mutant. He waited. The two joined together, and Charon took his breath. Time seemed to spin out as the .308 flew through the air and found its mark. A large hole appeared in the mutant's head, and for a split second Charon could see a wink of daylight through it before blood filled the gap and the big ugly slumped out of sight. He released his breath and the world resumed around him: the second mutant was now scrambling over to his fallen comrade, and Lee was quietly whooping and thumping him on the back.
"Yes! Nice shot!"
Charon grinned reluctantly. It wasn't the flesh-shredding destruction and close-quarters killing of a shotgun, but there was a cold elegance to the sniper rifle. He leaned his head away as Lee gently head-butted him to the side, socking his eye up against the scope.
"Here, get his buddy while he's still confused." Lee could see the smaller mutant crouching over the fallen corpse, not yet standing up to search for the cause of his partner's death. Charon sighted in and waited for it to stand up. His finger squeezed the trigger as the thing rose to meet the rifle sights and it jerked and dropped with about as much fanfare as the first mutant.
"Perfect." Lee sounded extremely pleased. He practically skipped around as he packed up his gear and gun again. "So, how'd you like it?" Lee asked, patting the stock of his gun.
"It's different. But not bad."
Still smiling a little as they walked on, Lee peered up at him out of the corner of his eye. "Pfff, you thought it was awesome, I see it," he said, attempting to shove the ghoul playfully and failing to even budge Charon's solid weight. He only got a non-committal grunt as an answer.
"Aaaah, well that's a load off. C'mon, let's find a place to crash and we can go meet everyone in the morning."