Hello everyone, hope you are doing well. Today, Damian ventures deeper in Old Olney in search of the Tesla Coil.
Enjoy this chapter and do not hesitate to make remarks (negative or positive).
Damian could feel his heart pounding. The smell that floated in the air was hardly bearable and stung his nostrils. The whole sewage system was plunged into darkness and his flashlight was struggling to give a source of light enough to illuminate everything.
Damian walked through a maintenance room, which had been converted into a dormitory by the former occupants of the city. Traces of dried blood covered the floor and the beds had been knocked over. He tried to imagine the terror the former occupants must have felt, seeing a pack of Deathclaw ringing at their door and ransacking everything.
He went through another sewer tunnel and came across several dead bodies, including that of a member of the Brotherhood. The man was dead for a couple of days. His power armor was shredded, and he was bathed in a large pool of blood and viscera. His helmet was a little farther away and an expression of terror could be seen on his face.
Damian grabbed the man's ID-tag and put them in his pocket before turning his light in both directions of the tunnel. He began to hear footsteps and breathing sounds. He tried to ignore the drumming of his heart in his chest and listened. The noises had stopped, but he was sure he had not been dreaming. Damian swallowed with difficulty and resumed his exploration of the tunnels.
The big napalm tank was starting to give him back pain. From time to time he could feel a bone or human or animal remains cracking under his feet.
After several minutes and after turning back several times, Damian stumbled on a ladder. He prayed inwardly that he had not returned to his starting point and began to climb the metal rungs.
Damian pushed the manhole cover and put his head through the opening. He was in a small messy room. A destroyed generator occupied one corner of the room and a makeshift barricade of wood, metal and sandbags surrounded the manhole.
Damian approached the door and heard footsteps. The sounds were coming towards him and he could see that it was two people running.
Two ghouls wearing patched clothes burst into the room. When they saw Damian with his flamethrower, they stopped and raised their hands in the air.
"Don't shoot!" shouted one of the ghouls.
The second ghoul turned to her and put its hand over its mouth before taking a terrified look at where they came from. Silence fell. Damian observed the two ghouls in silence.
Seeing that he had no belligerent intentions towards them and that nothing was pursuing them, the two ghouls relaxed a little.
"What are you doing here?" asked a ghoul with a cap and motorcycle glasses.
"I can ask you the same question," said Damian.
The two ghouls exchanged glances.
"We had come to settle here with our people, but the jerks just forgot to tell us it was in the middle of a nest of fucking Deathclaws."
The ghoul took another nervous look behind them and then turned to the manhole.
"Is that where you came from?" asked the ghouls.
Damian nodded. The two ghouls looked at each other again. Damian stepped aside to let them pass.
The two ghouls rushed to the manhole.
"I'm looking for a power station. Do you know if there is one in Old Olney?"
"You're already in it, smoothskin. But the thing is, it's crawling with Deathclaw and believe me, they're not happy."
The ghouls came down the ladder and closed the manhole cover behind them. Damian took a deep breath and left the room. He entered a large room, filled with turbines, which had been turned into a common room by the former occupants. Walls of sheet metal and wooden planks separated a bar and restaurant from the rest of the room.
Damian walked to a maintenance tunnel and arrived in a stairwell. Emergency lighting was working, but the small lamps hanging on the walls were not enough to illuminate the place properly.
The staircase led Damian to the first floor of the turbine room. On the large footbridge, Damian came across two ghoul corpses, or rather what was left of them. One of the ghouls had half its body crushed under a cupboard and its head had been pulverized and the trace of a large animal footprint was in its place.
The second ghoul had been cut in half and a long trail of blood ran from its torso and disappeared to the rest of the plant.
Reluctantly, Damian followed the blood trail, which led him to other ghoul corpses with large gashes on their backs or torso.
Damian descended a staircase and found an entrance for a water drainage tunnel. A little further on, a hole had been dug in the wall and led to a cave. Damian went in and immediately put his hand on the flashlight to hide the beam.
A bone with some meat still hanging around it rolled to Damian's feet and he looked up. The cave ended on a small upward slope and at the top was a pile of bones and pieces of flesh, and a long brown reptilian tail with small thorns on it.
Damian could hear the creature eating. Its tail moved slowly. The Deathclaw looked up and sniffed the air. Damian leaned against the cave wall and held his breath.
The young man tilted his head. The Deathclaw was gone. Damian advanced slowly. His hands were gripping the handle of the flamethrower so tightly that his fingers began to cramp.
One step at a time, Damian climbed up the slope. The cave was under a ruined building. There was nothing in the room he had just entered. A little further on, Damian could see medical beds and large lamps used for surgery.
The walls were in part destroyed or collapsed. The paint on the ceiling and walls that were still standing was peeling. The place was into complete darkness. Damian felt the urge to run for his life and go back, growing inside him.
There was no sound at all, other than his breathing. A shiver ran down Damian's spine. He walked slowly and heard a slight growl coming from further down the corridors. He froze and swung his bust from right to left to light up the place around him.
Damian took a few more steps forward. He stepped over a destroyed wall looking all around him. Through a hole in the wall, the beam of his lamp caught a skin covered with scales.
Damian turned slowly to the left. Through another hole in the wall, he lit the Deathclaw's head. The creature's head turned towards him and stared at him with reptilian eyes. Damian saw the creature's pupils retract as he held the torch at its face.
The Deathclaw slowly opened its mouth, revealing a jaw full of fangs. The creature looked at Damian and growled. It wasn't wearing a mind control helmet and its horns were much longer than on any other specimen Damian had encountered.
The monster growled again. With its hand, he grabbed the end of the hole and scraped its claws against the wall.
Damian felt that his heart was about to burst out of his chest. This specimen was much larger than the one in Raven Rock and must have been twice as large and long as the one outside. Damian could not take his eyes off the creature. Behind it, he saw movement.
Two more Deathclaw appeared, then a third and a fourth. Damian quickly slid his eyes towards the other creatures. They seemed younger than the great monster watching him and their horns were much shorter, unlike the claws on their hands, which could cut anything to pieces.
Damian knew nothing about these creatures, except for the few pieces of information that the scribe Vallincourt had given him. He slowly backed away, keeping his ears open to make sure that no Deathclaw was behind him or trying to get around him. He had the feeling that if he took his eyes off the creatures, they were going to attack him.
Damian felt the tank of the flamethrower hit the wall. The lapping of the napalm resounded, and he heard the great Deathclaw growl and hiss. The creature turned its head towards two others little Deathclaws who approached Damian and growled.
The two young ones immediately retreated. The larger specimen scraped its claws against the wall and moved forward a little. Damian could see that even when leaned forward, the horns of the mutant abomination were only inches from the ceiling.
The Deathclaw scratched the floor and growled at Damian. It opened its jaws, and saliva dropped from it on the ground. Even at that distance, Damian could smell the horrible breath of putrid flesh coming from the creature. The Deathclaw roared and Damian pulled the trigger on his flamethrower.
The tongue of fire licked the skin of the monster, which retreated with a groan of pain. The spot of light emitted by the flames had stuck to Damian's retina and he blinked several times to stabilize his vision.
He saw the Deathclaw turn on itself and whip the air with its tail and advance again to him. Damian fired again. The flames caused the creature to retreat, and it began to roar and hit the ground.
Damian fired again and left the trigger pulled. The Deathclaw arm caught fire. The monster screamed in pain and began to roll on the ground. The other Deathclaw growled and roared. Damian shot at the creature again and engulfed it completely in the flames.
Damian pointed the flamethrower at the other creatures. The little Deathclaw hesitated. They stared at Damian, hissing and growling. Damian pulled small flames towards the monsters to make them back off.
The big Deathclaw was dead. Damian approached the burning corpse. The fire lit up the surroundings and Damian counted a total of ten other young Deathclaw. They came in various sizes, but the largest was about the same size as him.
The flames cracked and gnawed at the skin and flesh of the monster, giving off the smell of overcooked meat. The light of the blaze illuminated the other creatures, reinforcing their horrific appearance. They were all bunched up and were looking at him, ready to jump forward and slash him with their claws.
Damian saw them move and begin to surround him. One of the Scorcher approached Damian... He pointed his weapon at the creature, which stopped and whistled before retreating.
"That's it, boys," Damian said. "You understand that if you get too close, you're going to end up fried like your fat friend."
He looked around him. The monsters didn't move.
"Come on, now get out of here."
Damian pulled out a new tongue of fire. The Deathclaws moved aside and growled again. Damian moved forward. He was not sure why he was not dead yet. He did not know if the Deathclaws were afraid of him because he had killed the biggest of them, or if they were afraid of the flames.
Damian used his flamethrower to create a path of fire to a hole in the ground. Below, the basement of the building. Part of the floor was held back by pipes and from there Damian could jump on a large boiler to reach the basement.
He did not know where he had to go next, but anywhere but here would be perfect.
One of the Deathclaw ran at him, growling and Damian throw a tongue of fire in its direction. He took the opportunity to jump down below. The part of the floor resting on the pipes gave way under his weight and Damian slid down. When he hit the floor, he rolled to the side.
He got up as quickly as he could and looked around, pointing his flamethrower in all directions. Above him he could hear the Deathclaw growling and whistling. He heard footsteps coming from a stairwell. Damian rushed to the door and just as he saw the two legs of a Deathclaw coming down the stairs and rushing towards him, he fired a stream of flame and closed the door before blocking it with whatever he could find.
He heard something smash on the door and through the small opaque window he saw the head of a Deathclaw. Damian moved back, his flamethrower ready to fire. The Deathclaw scraped the metal door with their claws.
The noises stopped. Damian stood staring at the door for a few more seconds and let out a long sigh. His adventure in the Statesman Hotel or Vault 87 had been a terrifying experience, but it was nothing compared to coming face to face with a pack of those monsters.
Damian turned around and walked across the room he was in. He came to an opening in a wall, leading to another room, which had been transformed into a living space by the former occupants of the building. Damian wanted to search the place in a little more detail, but above all he wanted to put as much distance as possible between him and the Deathclaws.
He resumed his advance, passing by the shelves and everyday objects still present, as well as the remains of the last humans to have lived there. He went through several tunnels dug in the rock or the walls and wondered whether it was the work of the Deathclaws or of the people who lived here, until he fell into a room with a large machine from which several pipes and water pipes were coming out.
Damian heard something crack under his feet. He looked down and realized that it was not just another human or animal bone, but an eggshell. He raised his head and lit up the room. In the corners, around furniture or machines, small piles of eggs, the size of a football.
Most had hatched and seemed to have been there for a long time, while others had been laid recently. By lighting them up, Damian could see the embryos and skinning babies moving inside.
The idea of burning the nest crossed his mind, but he changed his mind. He wanted to keep his ammunition and the fuel for his flamethrower in case he ran into troops from the Enclave or another Deathclaw. Moreover, having a pack of these abominations locked up with him in a dark and cramped place was bad enough for his nerves, and the last thing he needed was for the Deathclaws to go completely mad because he had decided to burn their nest.
He heard metallic footsteps coming towards him. Damian looked around and hid in a recess in the wall near a machine that looked like a turbine or pump and turned off his flashlight.
Footsteps were approaching and Damian saw three silhouettes enter the room. Despite the darkness, he could see that the three newcomers were wearing power armor, thanks to the red lids on their helmets, which gave the impression of seeing two eyes floating in the void.
The three silhouettes entered the room and scanned the area.
Damian discreetly grabbed his pistol. The three soldiers of the Enclave resumed their advance, moving slowly towards the Deathclaw nest. Damian watched them pass by, his gun ready for use.
The soldiers stopped in front of the nest and started to talk in a low voice. Two of them went in the tunnel dug in the wall, while the third soldier, crouched and started to grab the eggs to put them in a large crate. The Enclave was probably there to get their hands on the Tesla coil before the Brotherhood did and capture several of the Hunters for their training program.
Damian took the opportunity to sneak out of his hiding place. He took the path the soldiers had taken, being careful not to make any noise.
Damian took a staircase and after going through a corridor, came to another ruined building. It was as if the place had been hit by an earthquake. The ceiling had collapsed and taken all the floors with it, only a few pillars were still standing, with a remnant of floor around them.
Damian could hear a motor roar above his head. He approached cautiously and looked up.
Just above the building, a hovering Vertibird. It was lowering a cage for a Deathclaw with a cable, under the supervision of several soldiers.
Damian inspected the interior of the building. There were four soldiers from the Enclave in total, but there could have been others in the corridors or behind the pillars. Damian looked for a few more seconds at the scene unfolding before his eyes. He grabbed his assault rifle and stabilized his weapon against a piece of concrete and placed the Vertibird in his sight.
Damian pulled the trigger. A small set of sparks came out of one of the Vertibird's rotors. Damian fired again. From the corner of his eye, he could see the soldiers of the Enclave grabbing their weapons and looking for him.
Damian fired several successive shots. The Vertibird's rotor gave off smoke and then flames appeared in the propeller.
The Vertibird began to swing, dragging the cage with it. The cage swung along its cable and began to hit the walls. The pilot visibly tried to get away by gaining altitude. The rotor exploded and the aircraft began to spin.
The cage suspended at the end of the cable spun dangerously, bumping into the pillars and the soldiers of the Enclave running for cover further down the building.
Damian took advantage of the confusion to shoot the remaining soldiers. He turned around and saw the three soldiers he had passed earlier coming running towards his. Damian emptied the rest of his clip in their direction, forcing them to back off. He grabbed his flamethrower and fired a spray of flame in their direction.
Damian jumped over the concrete mound and took shelter from the debris falling around him. Behind him, he heard the Vertibird crash into the roof of the building and fall inside. Damian looked up at the three soldiers.
A few small flames finished burning, and Damian could hear a horrible scream. One of the soldiers was gone, replaced by a puddle of a viscous, green, fluorescent liquid in the area where the bubble had formed.
One Enclave soldier was lying on his back, shaken with spasms. His armor and helmet had melted, and a green puddle-like liquid was flowing inside on his body.
The second soldier was sitting on the floor screaming in pain. He was holding his right arm, dissolving in a steaming greenish liquid.
The heat of the flames must have exploded a plasma grenade on one of the soldiers. Damian reloaded his assault rifle and walked through the building.
He passed under the wreckage of the Vertibird, trapped between two concrete slabs a few meters above the ground. Both pilots were still harnessed in their seats, dead or unconscious.
Damian entered another part of the building. He climbed up a stairwell and crossed a corridor to reach a footbridge over a large room filled with turbines and computer consoles.
This section of the building was empty. Damian came across only the inert remains of several Sentry bots.
He searched the adjacent offices and came across a map of the building. After memorizing it the best he could, he resumed his exploration of the premises.
His Pip-Boy sizzled as he arrived near a hallway separated by a metal door and a wall terminal. After activating the computer, Damian was given two options. He was given two options: "Evacuate radiation" or "Turn off the automatic procedure" of a device.
Preferring to play it safe, Damian activated both options. He heard the crackling of his Pip-Boy stop. He entered the hallway and found several rectangular shaped devices on the walls, similar to those used by members of the Church of Atom in Springvale to irradiate water.
There were several skeletons in the corridor, and fluorescent mushrooms had grown on their remains.
Damian crossed the hallway and entered a large room, where there were several strange devices. These generators looked like large air vents mounted on top of each other. From the space between the two parts, small electric arcs regularly spurted out in a crackling sound. Damian walked slowly, being careful not to get too close to the machines.
He passed the toasted remains of a Sentry bot. At the end of the room, he came across a corridor lined with computer consoles whose diodes all flashed at slow and irregular rates.
Damian entered the corridor and immediately heard a metal door sliding on his left. He turned his head at the same time as a red laser beam passed within a few centimeters of his head. Surprised, Damian stumbled backwards. He crawled back on all fours and pointed his rifle at the door.
He heard no footsteps, no voices, no sound except the crackling of the electric arcs behind him.
Damian got up and slowly approached the door. He glanced and a laser beam crashed against the wall.
"Damn it!"
Damian closed his eyes and backed away again. He reached for his canteen and poured water on his face. He opened his eyes slowly and blinked several times. The laser beam had projected shards of concrete and wall cladding and Damian had received some in his face. He let his eyesight return to normal, praying inside not to go blind.
He turned back and returned to the offices he had searched earlier. He returned with two mugs in his hands. He stopped in front of the corridor.
He threw the first mug into the corridor and immediately two laser beams targeted the object and burst it. The shots continued to be fired at the porcelain pieces for a while longer and only ceased when there was nothing left.
Damian checked that his weapon was in automatic mode. He threw the mug into the corridor, towards the source of the laser beams. The discharges of energy caused the mug to explode. Damian jumped from behind the door and pointed his gun at the source of the fire.
Two military-type laser turrets fired relentlessly at what was left of the cup. Damian fired two bursts on each turret which went off. Damian took cover again. Leaning against the wall, he slid down to the floor and picked up a shell casing between his fingers and threw it into the hallway. He heard the small copper cartridge fall to the floor, but no laser shot.
Damian ventured to look. The turrets were no longer a threat. Damian sighed and crossed the corridor.
He arrived at a new metal door and opened it, preparing to fall on a new set of turrets. Instead, he discovered a large circular room, with a hole in the middle, from which large electric arcs escaped, projecting a bright blue light onto the walls.
Damian cautiously approached the hole. A few meters below, he could see a small object that resembled the one described in Hood's file.
The electric arcs seemed to gush out of the Tesla Coil and rise up to the ceiling and into receptacles before continuing their way God only knew where.
The young man searched the room looking for a way to get to the Tesla Coil, and especially for a way to turn off the current. In the hole, around the Tesla Coil, Damian noticed three switches. Convinced that if he went down there without turning off the current, he would be electrocuted, he decided to find another way. He could have fired the switches to destroy them, but he didn't want to find out if the metal barrel of his gun would attract the lightning if he got too close.
Damian found a ladder and a sign indicating the exit, as well as a stairway. He took the stairs and came across a small office.
The notes of the scientists who had worked on this project were scattered all over the room, and next to a functioning terminal, Damian found a miniature replica of the Tesla Coil. The terminal was locked. Damian began searching, with little hope of finding the password through all the clutter. Luck smiled upon him when he found an ID card, inside a lab coat hanging on a chair.
Damian heard the power go out and the infernal crackling of the lightning in the hole stopped. He opened the door and, noticing that he was no longer in any danger, he entered and took the Tesla Coil.
The object was surprisingly light, and Damian felt a slight tingling in his hands as he grasped it.
"Tristan?" Damian asked on his radio.
The radio only emitted statics
"Tristan, this is Franklin. Do you read me?" he asked.
The radio remained silent.
"Shit," swore Damian.
He stowed the Tesla Coil in his bag and put his radio's strap back on his shoulder, then walked to the ladder he had seen earlier and climbed to the surface.
Hope you enjoyed.
This encounter with the Deathclaw is mostly inspired from one in FO4 and the 1st Jurassic Park book.
Until next time.
