Chapter Specific Characters: Porter Gage, Phyllis Daily, H1-87, Shank
Chapter Specific Tags/Warning: Non-explicit blowjob
"Place doesn't look armed." Ash muttered, looking at Egret Tours Marina from a distance. "Looks abandoned."
"Shank's info ain't never wrong, boss. Man prides himself on always havin' good info." Gage replied, standing behind Ash.
"Well, screw it." Ash sighed, walking towards the marina and triggering a mine almost as soon as he'd stepped onto the docks. As soon as the countdown started, Ash dropped to a crouch and stuck his finger under the trigger, locating the off-switch a second before the mine was going to detonate and flipping it. Letting out a sigh, Ash fell back onto his ass.
"Boss." Gage said tightly, looking a warring mix of pissed and impressed.
"I know!" Ash sighed, tilting his head back to look at Gage. "I'm sorry, I panicked. My first instinct was to shut it off, not to run. It was too late to fight it by the time I realized what I was doing.
After a bit, Gage sighed deeply and shook his head. "Ya got shitty instincts, boss."
"Yeah." Ash agreed, righting his head and pointing further down the docks. "There's more of them. They'll be easier to shut down since I know they're there."
Squinting, Gage looked out where Ash was pointing and saw a few scattered red lights hidden decently by leaves and other debris. He pursed his lips and considered his options for a bit before sighing in defeat. "Alright."
Staying low, Ash easily turned off all the mines around the docks before most of them even started their countdown. He was aware of Gage following him, likely hoping that the knowledge that he'd be getting caught in the blast as well would deter Ash from doing anything stupid. That only made Ash more determined not to fuck up and to prove to Gage that he planned on keeping his promise to get better.
Glancing around after about five more mines, Ash stood up and gave a nod. "Coast's clear." He announced, taking his pistol out and kicking in the door to the marina.
Within was a single older woman, gun raised and trained on Ash. "Kid, I don't know who you are, but you'd better clear out before I go haywire and blast you." She shouted, keeping her gun on Ash as he came further into the room to let Gage in.
As tempted as Ash was to blast her then and there for calling him "kid", the haywire thing caught his attention and made him curious enough to curb his trigger finger. "Haywire?"
"It means I'm a synth, you numskull, and if you don't take off I'm liable to put a hole in your head." The woman informed loudly, her tone a mix of threatening and warning.
Smiling slowly, Ash lowered his gun, the darker part of his mind perking up. "What makes you think you're a synth?" He asked softly, tilting his head a bit.
"Black-outs. People I've hurt that I don't remember." The woman listed, her aim unwavering, not even seeming to notice Gage with his gun trained on her. "Any second now they might send some signal or I'll see the color orange or whatever it is they do and- boom." She said, her tone becoming frantic before she quietly added the "boom", suddenly seeming very sad. "One more dead fool." She muttered, taking a breath and getting right back to ornery easily. "Now, are you gonna get out of here or wait for them to make me kill you?"
Giggling softly, Ash raised his Pip-Boy and pushed some buttons. Shortly after, there was a blue flash and H1-87 appeared beside him. "You wanted to see me?" They asked calmly, not even sparing either of the other two people in the room a glance. Gage took a step away from H1-87 and the woman for her part looked too shocked to do anything.
"Yes. Is this woman a synth?" Ash asked, smiling behind his mask and motioning at the woman in question.
Looking at the woman, H1-87 stepped forward and she snapped out of her stupor, suddenly raising her gun to them. "You stay away from me!" She shouted, shaking and firing when H1-87 came closer still. The bullet didn't do anything to their heavy courser coat and they grabbed her gun, bending the barrel so that it was now unusable.
Reaching forward calmly now that the woman was back in a proper shocked state of silent compliance, H1-87 used a device on their wrist to scan her and then stepped back. "Negative." They said, looking to Ash.
Laughing darkly, Ash tilted his head at the woman. "This is a synth, lady. A real synth." He said, motioning over at H1-87. "Whatever shit you've done, you did on your own, no Institute meddling required." Ash informed, eyes taking on that almost-glowing quality they had when he was feeling strong emotions as that sank in slowly and the woman went limp with despair before his very eyes.
"Oh god." She muttered, knocking her hat off in order to scrub a hand up her forehead. "Oh god, no."
"God can't hear you, lady." Ash said, kneeling in front of the woman and holding out his pistol. "But I bet if you asked the devil nicely, he'd end it for you." He offered, voice bordering on sweet but mostly just cruel.
Letting out a sob, the woman bared her most vital parts, tilting her head back and spreading her arms. "Just do it." She sniffled softly, crying hard but trying to keep from making too much noise.
Humming briefly, Ash pressed the gun to the soft meat under her chin. "That was shitty, but even the devil can be merciful sometimes." He said, pulling the trigger and giggling softly as the woman's brains painted over the tacky boat paintings on the walls. "You're dismissed, H1-87." Ash said offhandedly, turning to look at Gage once H1-87 relayed away. The look on Gage's face made Ash pause. He looked a mix of disturbed and, strangely, aroused.
"So-" Gage started, stopping to clear his throat lightly. "That's new. The uh- the "ask nicely for it" approach."
Smiling shyly, Ash shrugged a bit, holstering his pistol. "You don't look entirely against it."
Laughing nervously, Gage looked away. "Mighta been a little excitin' to watch." He admitted, starting when he looked forward again and Ash was right there. It took Gage a beat too long to realize Ash had his mask down and when he did, the teen had already stolen a quick kiss from him and was fixing his mask.
"Saucy cowboy motherfucker." Ash muttered, walking past Gage to get back outside.
"Sau- what?" Gage asked loudly, following Ash out. "What'd you just call me?"
"I think you heard me." Ash replied, shooting Gage a smug look before collecting the mines he'd disarmed from outside the marina. He put them in his bag while Gage glared at him. Since he was busy, Ash didn't see Gage's glare morph into a smirk. He did, however, feel it when he straightened up and Gage grabbed him gently by the hips from behind.
"Darlin'." Gage whispered in his ear, his voice lower and more husky than Ash had ever heard it. He quickly pulled back and managed to just barely avoid Ash elbowing him in the ribs. Ash whipped around to glare at him and Gage was wearing a smug grin of his own.
"That's cheating, you dick." Ash accused, face red under his mask.
"I don't recall us settin' down any rules." Gage retorted, shrugging and grinning when Ash's eyes narrowed at him.
"You win this round." Ash admitted after a bit, tearing his eyes from Gage to walk back into the marina. "But I'll get you."
"Lookin' forward to it, boss." Gage said, following Ash and leaning against the wall to watch him as he linked up with the workshop and went about making the marina secure and livable.
Several hours passed before Ash decided the Egret Tours Marina was "Ash-approved" and ready for raiders. He hadn't bothered to call any synths in since he didn't need to build any actual buildings and, even though he'd offered several times, Ash refused to let Gage help, insisting that he had it. Gage got the feeling that Ash was just too picky about how he thought things should be and that's why he wouldn't let him help. He kept that to himself though.
Regardless, the work was done, and Ash called in two of the more robotic synths to hold the settlement together before the Disciples arrived, ordering another in to take the body of the woman back to Sanctum. He needed some fresh decorations, the ones he'd made out of the ex-Institute were getting ripe even for him. Once the synths that were to watch the settlement were set up, which didn't take long at all, Ash looked to Gage.
"Well, I think three settlements in a day is productive enough for me." He declared, looking down to fiddle with his Pip-Boy. "One more stop and then I'm heading to Sanctum for the night."
"Where we headed, boss?" Gage asked, stepping closer to Ash for the inevitable relay. It was nice not having to walk anywhere. He wasn't really sure how the relay worked and he doubted he'd understand even if Ash explained it to him, but it was damn convenient.
"The ocean." Ash responded, far too casually, before reaching out and triggering the relay once he had Gage's hand.
Despite what Ash's answer had implied, the two men came out of the relay on a beach. Yes, the ocean was right there, but Ash had made it sound like they were going swimming or some shit. Just as Gage was looking over to voice as much, he realized what Ash was up to and closed his mouth. Ash was rifling through his bag.
Pulling out the three beacons he'd shown Gage earlier in the day, Ash looked out at the ocean. He might've saved these for something, once upon a time, or tried to come up with something more fun to use them for, but considering everything that had happened recently, he honestly just wanted to get rid of them. Gage was right, he didn't need access to nukes, he didn't have the impulse control to have access to nukes. He didn't need to look over to know Gage was watching him tensely.
Twisting the antennas of the beacons together, Ash cocked his arm back and threw them as hard as he could. They stayed together thanks to their twisted antennas and actually flew pretty far due to their combined weight. Still, Ash grabbed his bag and then Gage's hand, triggering another relay before the whistling of the nukes coming by overhead could even be heard. No chances, no risks, nothing stupid. Ash wasn't even sure the beacons had worked, but it didn't matter, they weren't his problem anymore.
Finally looking at Gage once they were safe inside Sanctum, Ash was relieved to see that he was smiling. "Thought for sure you'd at least try to stick around to watch the blast." Gage said, sounding something close to pleased. "But I guess you're really serious about not givin' me anymore heart attacks."
Nodding softly, Ash looked away again. "I wanna get better. I don't ever wanna find myself hovering over the edge again." He sighed softly, rubbing one of his arms a bit. "I'm tired of listening to the voice that tells me to die all the time."
Feeling that weird protective feeling he sometimes felt when Ash actually looked his age, Gage had to resist the urge to hug him. "If there's anything I can do to help you, boss, you just let me know." He offered gently, reaching to touch Ash's arm and gasping when Ash hugged him first for once.
"Just don't give up on me." Ash said softly, sighing lightly when Gage hugged him back.
"Don't worry, boss, I already told you I'm in this for the long haul."
Pulling back after a bit, Ash flashed Gage a smile, having removed his mask at some point during the hug, and started to head to his room. "I'm gonna clean up and then I'm gonna tinker." He stopped and looked over his shoulder at Gage. "You can watch if you want."
Keeping his cool easily despite the zip of excitement he felt at being given permission to watch Ash tinker, Gage nodded. "Sounds fun, boss."
Smiling again, Ash continued up the stairs, heading straight for his beloved shower once he reached his room. If the showers in Sanctum weren't so small, he might've invited Gage to join him for that too. Maybe it was something he could get renovated when he had the synths to spare. Currently all his spares were busy taking down his old decorations and turning them into fertilizer. Shaun and the old Directorate had already been cleaned up. Ash would miss chatting with his brother but he supposed it wouldn't kill him to simply talk aloud to himself without someone to aim it at.
Or maybe he'd have someone pick up the Codsworth husk from Sanctuary. If it was even still there. That thought made him snicker. He hadn't been to Sanctuary since H1-87 had dragged him to the Institute. That seemed like such a long time ago that at first it seemed possible that the area could've been claimed by someone, but Sanctuary's defenses had been on when he left and since he hadn't been back, they were still on. If anyone had tried to claim the area, they would've had to deal with all his turrets and traps. Honestly, if someone got past all that, and then also got past the smell, which had to be honestly putrid by now, they deserved Sanctuary.
Ash would go, pick up the Codsworth husk, shake their hand, and wish them luck. Shaking his head at the thought as he dried off, Ash put on some pants and found himself distracted by the thought of one day not having to pull the drawstrings so much to make them stay on his hips. Baby steps. It would take time, but he'd get there, he was committed.
When Ash finally came out of the restroom, Gage was already waiting in his room. "Did all people take forever in the shower before the war or is that just a you thing, boss?" He asked, looking quite comfortable stretched out on Ash's favorite couch.
"Living here gives me more clean hot water than I could ever use, so what's the rush?" Ash asked back, walking past Gage to his workshop.
"That ain't an answer." Gage called, getting up and following after Ash.
Sighing, Ash looked at Gage with exaggerated tiredness. "It's just a me thing." He turned back to his workshop, glancing over when Gage leaned against a table and crossed his arms over his chest. "There was a little thing called rationing going on before the war that kept people from actually enjoying their supposedly luxurious lives." Ash added, hunting down some scrap metal and pliers. "Nate- my father- he was real big on following the government's rules so as long as he was home, showers didn't last longer than five minutes."
"Huh. Sounds like a real hard-ass." Gage muttered, raising an eyebrow when Ash snorted.
"Yeah, no. You wanna know what I got if I broke the five-minute rule? A stern talking to about the economy." Ash said, glancing over to see the amused expression on Gage's face and smiling. "Yeah. Nate and Nora were big on boring me to death as a punishment." Sighing a bit, Ash shrugged, currently busy curling metal with the pliers. "Coulda been worse, I guess."
"I usually got extra chores lumped on me if I got in trouble." Gage said, leaning back a bit further so he could see what Ash was working on better. "Did kids even have chores before the war?"
Laughing, Ash shook his head. "I didn't. We had a robot that did all the cooking and cleaning and stuff for us so the only thing I ever had to worry about was my room."
"Sounds like a real confusin' time you lived in, boss." Gage said, watching Ash hold the curled bits of metal to each of the sections of all ten fingers before setting them aside and fishing some black gloves out of a box that was full of clothes.
"I guess it kinda was." Ash admitted, fitting some metal wiring on the outside of the gloves before running them through a sewing machine. He then began attaching the bits of curled metal to the wires, using a soldering iron to fuse the curled metal to itself around the wires. After some time with only the sound of the soldering iron, Gage spoke up again.
"How'd you learn to do all this shit, anyhow?"
Setting the iron aside, Ash shrugged. "I didn't. I just sort of get an idea and work it out with whatever I have on hand." He said, trying the gloves on and flexing his fingers in them. He took them off and started making adjustments to the metal and wires, starting with some small hinges where he'd bent the wire flexing. "I'm sure if there were any professionals left, they'd see all the shit I did wrong." Ash smiled a bit, snipping away at the wires and adding the hinges as he spoke. "I'm sure our guns aren't up to whatever code there might be for gun modifications."
"I mean, they don't explode when you shoot 'em and they kill people better than most guns I've handled, so I say fuck the code." Gage said, tilting his head a bit when Ash started cutting crystal and fitting the sharp bits he made into the metal cones at the tips of the gloves. He looked up to ask another question and caught the tail-end of a smile on Ash's face. It was nice being able to see Ash's face. "What the hell are you makin', anyway?"
Grinning, Ash slid one glove on and walked up to Gage. "I'm so glad you asked." He said, reaching out and catching Gage's jaw in his hand before Gage could escape. He dug his fingers in a little and Gage immediately felt the bite of the sharp crystal. Ash could tell Gage wanted to pull away from how tense he was but he held still, the sharpness of the crystal digging into his skin letting him know he'd be getting some cuts if he did move. "You like?" Ash asked quietly, moving Gage's face this way and that with his fairly lax grip on it.
"Not really." Gage muttered, trying not to move his jaw too much while he talked lest he get scratched.
Smirking, Ash pulled on Gage's jaw and the man came closer, frowning uncomfortably as he was manipulated into place so Ash could whisper in his ear. "I think you do." He whispered, releasing Gage and pointing one claw down at his crotch before going back to his station and carrying on with his tinkering.
Flushing as a certain part of his anatomy ratted him out, Gage crossed his arms again, having had uncrossed them to grip the edge of the table when Ash had come over. "Fuckin' traitor." He grumbled, glaring at Ash when he snorted.
"And I thought I was crazy for talking to corpses." He said, moving to the side and laughing when Gage reached over to swipe at him.
"You are crazy." Gage said, settling back into a comfortable leaning position to keep watching Ash despite his problem. "You aren't plannin' on usin' those for fightin', are you, boss?"
"No." Ash replied easily, slipping the glove back on to give it a few test flexes before taking it back off and carrying on. "It's mostly for the intimidation value." He grinned, glancing at Gage. "Plus grabbing people will be way more fun with them on." Gage shot him a glare and Ash snickered, turning his attention back to his work. "They'd also be good for- well, other stuff." He started, finishing in a mumble as he rethought sharing what he'd been about to blurt out.
"Other stuff?" Gage pressed, realizing what Ash meant as soon as he tore his eye from his hands and caught the way his eyes were almost glowing. "Oh."
"Yeah." Ash mumbled, setting his tools aside and trying both gloves on. He flexed his fingers, picked some stuff up, and dragged them against a table to see how the crystal would hold up before taking them back off. He removed the metal skeleton from the gloves, the stitches he'd made with the sewing machine coming out easily since he'd intentionally made them temporary. Ash spray-painted the metal black on both sides and then stepped back, looking content. "Once those dry, I can attach them for real and then I'll have some kickass claws to wear."
"It was neat seein' those come together." Gage said, smiling a bit at Ash. "Thanks for lettin' me watch, boss."
Going over to Gage, Ash put his hands on the older man's hips, keeping him from straightening up and moving away from the table like he'd been about to. "Can I blow you?"
Having been about to ask Ash what he was doing, Gage stood there with his mouth open for a bit before eventually closing it. "I-I guess so." He mumbled, surprised by Ash's forwardness. Gage supposed he should've been expecting forwardness considering Ash was a decidedly blunt person, but he hadn't expected him to just ask outright like that.
Frowning a bit, Ash pulled his hands away. "Gage, if you don't want it, just-"
"No, I want it." Gage said quickly, offering Ash a smile and taking his hands. "You just surprised me is all."
Nodding softly after scanning Gage's face for a bit, Ash got to work fixing the problem he'd caused earlier. By the time he was finished, his claws were done drying and Ash attached them to the gloves properly, leaving the workshop with Gage once they were done. The two men had dinner together and spent to rest of the evening enjoying eachother's presence while doing their own things. Gage reading and Ash doodling, both of them getting occasionally interrupted by Nubs demanding attention or playtime.
"Next settlement on the list is County Crossing." Shank informed the next morning, pencil at the ready even as he had an idea of who Ash would give the settlement to. He had a bit of a pattern going. Disciples, Pack, Operators, Disciples, Pack, Operators, Disciples-
"This one goes to the Pack." Ash said, not noticing the faint shadow of a pleased look on Shank's face as he wrote that down before giving Ash the coordinates.
"Have fun, boss." Shank said, closing his book and putting it away once Ash was set.
"Right." Ash muttered, relaying away with Gage. "He seem- almost chipper to you?" He asked once he and Gage came out of the relay. "Creepier than usual at least?"
"Little bit, yeah." Gage responded, gun already drawn despite the short trek they still needed to take to get to County Crossing. "Probably got laid last night or somethin'."
Frowning behind his mask, Ash glanced at Gage. "What's he like in bed? Is he creepy while you're fucking?"
Laughing softly, Gage nodded. "He, uh, he doesn't talk much during, but, uh, he does kinda stare." He admitted, laughing again when Ash shuddered.
"Of course he does. I bet he doesn't emote either." Ash ventured, drawing his gun as they neared County Crossing.
"Nope. Doesn't make much noise at all, actually." Gage said, checking to make sure he had a full clip of ammo even though he'd checked it before leaving Sanctum. "It was honestly always more uncomfortable than not if I couldn't convince him on doggy-style."
"Wow." Ash mumbled, cocking his gun as the came upon the settlers tending their crops. One of them started to stand and Ash leveled his gun on them. "I'd stay down if I were you." He said, nodding a bit when the settler listened, the two of them passing a nervous look between them. "Have you heard of the raider boss that's been enslaving settlements?"
"Sure we have, but-"
Raising his free hand, Ash cut the settler off. "Good, I get tired of the speech. You wanna let me collar you or you wanna get shot in the leg and then let me collar you?" The settlers exchanged another look before they both put their hands up in surrender. "Smart." Ash quipped, collaring the one nearest him and watching Gage do the rest. Once the settlers were collared and back to working, Ash looked at Gage. "So why were you even taking it from Shank when you had Colter?" He asked, linking up with the workshop and summoning his synths to get started on building a shack for the Pack.
"Nothin' builds trust like puttin' out for someone and Shank is a sneaky fuckin' bastard." Gage said, shrugging and watching as the synths appeared, only needing to be told where to put the Pack's house and otherwise already knowing what Ash wanted them to be doing. "It was a good way to keep an eye on him in the early days of the operation and it just sorta kept goin' on even after I decided he wasn't a threat to what I was tryin' to accomplish."
"Huh." Ash huffed, nodding a bit. "Yeah, that makes sense. He at least any good in bed?"
"Meh." Gage said, shrugging. "Not all that attentive, honestly. Kinda soft for my taste too."
"Bet that wasn't a problem with Colter." Ash said, watching his synths set up the area he and Gage would be relaxing in for the majority of their stay in the settlement. "He didn't seem like the soft type."
"He wasn't." Gage confirmed, shaking his head a bit but smiling. "It was more like a fight than sex with him. We'd wrestle for top and there was almost always blood." Pursing his lips, Gage scowled a bit. "He also wasn't real attentive. Guess it's a raider thing."
"You're attentive." Ash slipped, flushing under his mask when Gage looked at him in surprise.
"Am I?" Gage asked, grinning in amusement. He remembered that night on the roof too, but the fine details were blurry. He knew he topped, he remembered there being alot of sound, he remembered enjoying himself, everything else was hazy at best.
"Yeah." Ash muttered, walking over to the covered area the synths had just finished putting together. He picked a chair and plopped down, not looking at Gage. Before the older man could say anything, Ash decided to change the subject. "Did you love Colter?" He asked, looking at Gage and catching the surprised look on his face as he sat down.
"Time was I thought I did." Gage said after a bit, settling into his chair. "In the beginnin'. 'Fore he got all lazy." He said, looking over at Ash. "He was real driven in the beginnin', real ambitious. I liked that. Then he got a little bit of what he always said he wanted and that was suddenly enough." Gage looked away again, shaking his head. "Things went downhill fast after that. I didn't feel anythin' but relief when you took him out in the arena."
When Ash hummed but didn't say anything, Gage looked over again and found Ash staring at the canopy shading them. "Why you so curious about all this all of a sudden, boss? Feelin' jealous?"
Shaking his head, Ash looked over at Gage. "I just like it when you tell me about how much better I am than Colter was."
Snorting, Gage shook his head. "And here I thought you didn't like gettin' your ego stroked."
"Depends on who's stroking it." Ash said, smiling a little. "And how. I'm picky."
"Clearly." Gage muttered, rolling his head to the side and smiling lazily at Ash. Even though he couldn't really see it, Gage could tell he was smiling back.
After a week of work, the settlement was set but the Pack hadn't arrived yet so Ash set up a team of synths to watch over the settlers before they arrived. The next settlement to take was the Finch Farm and Ash assigned it to the Operators before taking it. It went down much the same as the others had. Ash only needed to shoot the man who appeared to be the leader of the settlement and they all fell into submission. The Finch Farm also took a week to make livable and by then, Ash simply reassigned the team that had been looking over County Crossing to look over the Finch Farm.
There was a slight hiccup at Nuka-World when Ash and Gage returned from the Finch Farm and Shank informed Ash that the next settlement up for the taking was the Slog.
"The Slog is under my protection and won't be going to one of the gangs." Ash informed calmly, ignoring the surprised look Shank gave him. "What's next?"
Blinking a few times, Shank took a moment to realize Ash wasn't going to even give him the chance to argue or ask any questions and looked back down at his book. Shank was many things, but he wasn't an idiot, and he knew when to just shut up and obey. "That'd be Somerville Place." He informed, putting the coordinates in for Ash when he put his arm out.
"Disciples." Ash said, relaying away with Gage right after.
"Well, that's one way to tell Shank to mind his own business." Gage said, a bit of laughter in his voice. "I think you put 'im into shock."
"It's not that I don't want him to know why the Slog is off-limits, it's that I don't want to tell him." Ash explained, starting the trek to Somerville Place. "Or I guess technically I'm not in the mood to answer any questions."
"Hey, I'm not criticizin', it was funny as hell watchin' him flounder like that." Gage said, following Ash.
"That was Shank floundering? He barely missed a beat." Ash said, frowning back at Gage.
"Yeah, that's Shank for flounderin'." Gage replied, shrugging. "You should see him panic. Calmest panickin' you'll ever see in your life, I guarantee."
"I don't know if I wanna stab him or take notes from him." Ash grumbled, annoyed at being a veritable open book compared to Shank even with his hat and mask combo. Gage found his misery amusing but hearing the older man laugh made Ash smile a little and feel somewhat better. Then they reached the outskirts of Somerville Place and Ash's stomach sank. Were those- kids. Those were kids. He- could Ash collar a child? It seemed- excessive. Even with how much Ash generally hated children, it seemed cruel to slap a shock collar on one.
When the father noticed Ash and Gage, he ushered his kids inside and walked up to the duo. "You're Overboss Ash, aren't you?" He asked quietly, looking incredibly nervous.
"I am." Ash replied, pistol at the ready.
"I- you won't get a fight from me, but-but could I- that is, could I ask you for a favor?" The father stammered, shifting nervously as Gage walked up beside him and expertly snapped a shock collar around his neck.
"You may." Ash said, curious to know what could be so important that it would warrant this level of boldness.
"Please don't collar the kids." The man practically whispered, glancing at the house. "They're good kids, I swear, and-and they'll be good. If-if they aren't, I'll take full responsibility, just-just please."
Even though he tried, Ash couldn't keep his eyes from getting brighter as the man pleaded with him. "I already have everything that belonged to you and I also own you. You have nothing to give me in exchange for this favor." He replied coldly, one part of him wanting to just accept the man's request since he didn't even want to collar his kids, but the darker side of himself winning the decision to have a little sadistic fun first. Not wanting to slap shock collars on some children didn't make him a good person, after all, he was still loving the fear in the man's eyes and the desperation on his face.
"Please, I-I know I don't really have anything, but-but they're just kids." The man practically whimpered, glancing at Gage as people often did before turning his eyes back to Ash.
Stepping forward, Ash caught the man's face in his free hand, putting his new claws to good use in keeping his face still and dragging a whimper from the man. "I'm right here, not over there." He growled quietly, feeling the man swallow from the grip under his chin.
"I-I'm sorry." The man whispered, flinching and whimpering again when Ash dug his claws in a little.
"You're sorry what?" Ash prompted, eyes practically glowing.
"O-Overboss." The man stuttered, keeping his eyes firmly on Ash. "I'm sorry, Overboss."
After a moment, Ash let the man go and watched in amusement as he fell to his knees. "Alright." He said calmly, putting his gun away. "I won't collar your kids. But if they don't behave themselves, you will regret it."
"I-I understand. Thank you, Overboss." The man said hurriedly, practically on the verge of tears.
Humming softly in acknowledgment, Ash left Gage to relieve the man of his belongings while he linked up with the workshop. Once Gage was done with the father, his kids ran out to him and Ash glanced over in time to see them hugging him. Rolling his eyes, Ash sent out the order for his synths and began taking note of what needed to be done. They'd need another house on the property, security of course, plus the main house needed roof repairs. Once the synths arrived, Ash informed them of as much and then went to relax with Gage once they were set with their tasks.
"Bet you been dyin' to use those things." Gage said once Ash was comfortable, smiling wryly. "Finally found an excuse to grab someone."
Smiling a bit, Ash shrugged lightly. "I really do hate it when people look at you like you're gonna save them."
"I mean, I'm sort of the only person who could once they got your attention. Maybe they sense it." Gage suggested, shrugging when Ash raised an eyebrow at him. "Like a survival instinct."
"Huh. Maybe." Ash said, shaking his head a bit. "Guess it wouldn't be the weirdest thing I've heard since thawing out."
"What is the weirdest thing you've heard since thawin' out?" Gage asked, watching as Ash took a bottle of alcohol from his bag and poured them both a glass.
"Probably that cosmetic surgery is still a thing." Ash said after a bit of thought, adding some Nuka-Cola to his own drink before taking a sip. "I mean, I can't even imagine all the health hazards of getting surgery done in this kind of world, so cosmetic surgery seems like such a huge, unnecessary risk."
"Thought for sure you'd say ferals." Gage hummed, seeming slightly disappointed.
"We had these things called zombies when I'm from. They weren't real, but they were pretty popular, and they were similar enough to ferals that I wasn't that bothered when I saw my first one. Actually, I thought the first feral I ever saw was cool." Ash said, smiling when Gage snorted.
"Bet you don't think that anymore."
"Yeah, no." Ash replied, watching idly as the family they'd just enslaved tended their land like nothing was different. "Now I think they're a pain in the ass." Then he smiled and looked at Gage. "Sometimes literally."
Rolling his eye, Gage shook his head. "You ever actually been bit by a feral, boss?" He asked, looking at Ash seriously. When Ash shook his head, Gage scoffed. "Remind me to show you what a feral bite looks like next time we're alone."
"Why can't you show me now?" Ash asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's in a delicate place."
"Your ass?" Ash asked excitedly, perking up. "Did you for real get bit on the ass by a feral?"
"No!" Gage said, shaking his head when Ash deflated in disappointment. "Ferals go for limbs and the neck, not for somethin' as hard to bite as an ass. I got bit in the thigh." He suddenly frowned, looking slightly annoyed. "I've watched you fight ferals before, you never noticed where they were lungin'?"
"I was too busy shooting them to study them." Ash said with a frown. "They've never gotten close enough to lunge at me let alone bite me."
Snorting, Gage looked away. "Yeah, well, not all of us have the depth perception to be casually snipin' ferals." He grumbled, frowning at Ash when he started laughing. "That's rude, boss."
Calming down quickly, Ash pointed at Gage's face. "How'd you lose your eye, anyway?"
Humming softly, Gage leaned back in his chair. "It happened with the first raider gang I ever joined." He glanced over and saw Ash getting comfy, looking ready for the story. "So, I was sixteen. A decent sized gang took me in. It was alright, but they weren't usin' their muscle the best they could. Me bein' new, I didn't know enough to keep my suggestions about how to improve things to myself." Gage said, smiling a bit at the memory of his naive younger self.
"Eventually the boss, Connor, came to me. At first I thought he was pissed, but he wasn't, he actually listened to me and took my advice." Gage sighed then, frowning a bit. "So there I was, this teenage punk who had the ear of the boss. He used to always come to me, askin' what I thought of his plans, tellin' me how much he trusted me." Looking over, Gage saw that Ash was watching him closely as he spoke. "Can't lie, it all went to my head."
"After like a year of workin' together, we came up with this plan to make peace with a rival gang. I was more than happy to do all the talkin', of course." Gage sighed again, looking away and shaking his head. "The motherfucker set me up. About an hour into the talk, I started hearin' gunfire and explosions. He used me as a diversion, somethin' to keep the other gang's attention while him and his men ambushed 'em" He said, still sounding quite bitter about the whole affair.
"Guess he figured he'd pumped me for all the information I was good for, thought if he kept me around much longer, I'd be a threat to his position. So, now he gets all the rival gang's stuff, and I happen to die in the crossfire. Perfect day for him." Gage looked at Ash again, not looking anywhere near as bitter as he sounded. "I lost my eye gettin' out of there. Can't really remember how it happened, or how I even managed to get out alive." He frowned a bit as he thought about it. "It's all a blur when I try to remember it, I just know I was real fucked up by the time I got out." Gage shrugged, taking his last swallow of booze. "So that's it. That's how I lost my eye."
"But what happened with Connor?" Ash asked, frowning at Gage. "You can't leave it at that!"
Laughing a bit, Gage looked a little surprised but shrugged. "Well, I realized I couldn't go back, the one guy I thought I could trust just tried to get me killed. Thought about goin' in shootin', but that was just anger talkin'. I knew how that would end realistically, so I moved on. Promised myself I was never gonna be that stupid again, was never gonna trust anyone more than I had to for 'em to be useful to me." He hummed lightly, setting his cup down. "Been livin' like that since. Well, 'til I met you, of course." He added, smiling over at Ash. "I trust you."
Smiling lightly, Ash reached over the small table that sat between their chairs and took Gage's hand. "Even after everything I've put you through?"
"Yeah." Gage muttered, leaning down to kiss Ash's knuckles. "Guess that's just what bein' in love does to ya. Even though you drive me crazy, there ain't nobody I'd rather have with me and there ain't a soul on this planet I trust more than you."
Smiling more, Ash let Gage's hand go and busied himself with pouring them both another drink so he could resist the urge to climb into the other man's chair with him. Had to keep up appearances around the settlers, after all. It was fine and dandy to be touchy when they were alone, not that they'd actually gotten to touchy, but definitely not around the settlers.
Chatting was okay though and that's exactly what Ash and Gage continued to do while the synths and settlers worked.
So I looked at Gage's third affinity dialogue and decided it didn't fit with how he and Ash had pretty much already skipped ahead to the romance option, as it were. I still wanted to use it though, so I took it, ran it through a paper shredder, shuffled the shreds, threw them in a hat, picked them out one at a time, and glued them back together in a way that I think worked out nicely. There were casualties, his actual dialogue is long as shit, but I think this works better.