Later after meeting with the Elders, the " Outsiders" are taken to the schoolhouse and given an aptitude test. A day later, Raquel appears with the results.
"Your assignment is based upon a review of your skills," Raquel explains, handing Agnes and Vulpes each a piece of paper. "Everyone here pulls their own weight. Laziness will not be tolerated."
Much to her chagrin, Agnes is assigned to work in the fields while Vulpes was assigned to Loyal. He doesn't bother to hide his delight at her assignment, his smile larger than the Dam.
"Food production is just as important, if not more important than security," Raquel says to the sour look on Agnes' face. "Both your shifts start after morning exercise. Don't be late."
As soon as Raquel closes the door, Vulpes erupts in laughter.
"It's not that funny!," Agnes says, crossing her arms.
Vulpes had yet to stop laughing, tears gathering at the corners of his eyes. Wiping his face, he finally manages to rein himself in.
"By Mars, that was hilarious!," he cries. "The Savior of the Empire has been judged and found worthy to tend crops!
Agnes humphs at his behavior, turning her back on him. Vulpes attempts to embrace Agnes, who shrugs him off. He comes back, pulling her into a tight hug.
"My poor lamb," he croons as she steadily huffs against his chest.
"If I wanted to be a farmer, I would have stayed in Arizona," she whines.
Vulpes attempts to control himself but is unable as he begins to giggle. Agnes pulls away from him, giving him a hard glare for laughing at her.
"Come on," he defends, as she walks out the door. "It's funny!
...
Agnes and Vulpes fall into an uneasy partnership. Out in public, Max and Agnes are the perfect couple: friendly, helpful and loving. Behind closed doors, their implied passion sits boxed and shelved until the next outing.
Vulpes sits at the desk; writing reports, constantly scheming while Agnes reads whatever she can get her hands on. The PreWar installation is a treasure trove, especially when she finds the base library. A large set of books titled "The Encyclopedia" entertain Agnes for days.
...
"Impressing and gaining the trust of all the Elders is the key to our success," Vulpes says one rainy evening. As the rain patters upon the metal roof, he outlines their objectives.
The ultimate goal is to obtain the Boomer's allegiance and by extension, use of their powerful artillery. In order to do so, they must gain the trust of the Boomers. Vulpes lists three names: Loyal, Argyll, and Raquel. Just like with the Khans, they must win over the Elders before they can convince Mother Pearl
Per her Mentor, Mother Pearl is quite taken with the two of them partially due to their earlier display of fortitude but mostly because her personal concerns about the future of the Mojave.
"Pearl knows that her people need to change along with the Mojave. She wants to trust us but they've been alone for so long. We are the first people to reach out to them, to actually touch their fence! We are in a fantastic spot to impress and imprint upon them. It's all there my lamb, we just have to reach out and take it!" Vulpes exclaims.
"How are we going to do that?," Agnes asks.
"I'm glad you asked," Vulpes purrs. "I'm going to show you. "
...
Vulpes dons the persona of Max, her doting husband. Kind, well mannered and even tempered, Max is a likable guy. He even spends time with the baby Boomers, spinning tales of the world outside their chain link fence.
"It was adorable watching you with the children. They loved your stories," Agnes says as they leave the recreation hall.
Vulpes smirks, "I've been called many things but adorable is not one of them."
Agnes rolls her eyes,, "The scene was adorable. You're as adorable as a basket full of nightstalker pups."
Vulpes gives her a mischievous grin.
"Children are the future, " he tells her as they walk back to their cabin. "It's every man's duty to procreate in the Legion."
Oh course it is, Agnes thinks as she nods.
"Do you have any children?," she asks.
"I have a few, " Vulpes answers.
"How many is a few?," Agnes teases. "Like five?"
"Seven. "
Agnes issues a sharp bark of laughter at his reply.
"My God Vulpes!," she says, earning a stern look.
"Damn Max," she amends. "Seven. That's...that's a lot! When the good Lord said Go forth and be fruitful, you took it to heart."
Vulpes gives her a sly grin.
"Am I gonna be okay sleeping in the same bed as you?" Agnes asks with false concern. "I would hate to wake up pregnant."
Vulpes snakes an arm around her waist, pulling her into him.
"I have big plans for you , my lamb and they don't require you being pregnant," he states.
"Yet," he adds, waggling his eyebrows.
Agnes gives Vulpes a playful swat.
"The last thing I need is a child," she says. "Could you imagine?"
Vulpes says nothing, only giving her a toothy grin.
...
At times, Agnes forgets that Max is fictitious until Vulpes smirks at her, a predatory look in his eyes.
In the showers, Agnes overhears a few of the women discussing Max: how charming and handsome he is, how they wish they could find a man like that amongst their own. That night, Agnes tells Vulpes what she overheard. He laughs, sounding very pleased with himself.
"You should have been an actor," Agnes tells him as they lay in bed.
Vulpes makes a noise of agreement.
She soon regrets telling Vulpes anything as he begins to pepper her with little touches here and there the following day. She blushes every time he plants a kiss on her cheek.
"You blush most beautifully," he mummers as he places a soft kiss on her lips.
Vulpes chuckles watching the tops of her ears turn red. He takes her hand and gently kisses every knuckle.
"My love," he whispers, staring into her eyes.
Agnes feels her face and other parts of her grow warm at his attention. Vulpes' eyes shine in delight at her growing flush.
"You're incorrigible," she utters as he embraces her.
"I have to entertain myself somehow," he says in her ear.
...
Vulpes deems Agnes ready as they conclude their "lessons of espionage."
Her first task is to win over Doctor Argyll.
...
"Dr. Argyll?," Agnes calls, entering the clinic.
"Back here," he calls.
Agnes makes her way back, finding the good Doctor checking on an unconscious man.
"Hello Agnes. Everything okay?," he asks.
"Everything is fine. I just come to ask you if you needed any help."
Doctor Agyll gives her a strange look.
"Lets talk at my desk."
In the harsh light of the desk lamp, Dr. Argyll looks less friendly than he did a few minutes ago.
"So," he begins. "You want to assist me? What kind of training do you have?"
"I assisted Siri, our healer at the Fort. I know some herbal remedies and I know how to make Stimpacks."
"Stimpacks? I'm not familiar with those. "
Agnes pulls out a Stimpack, placing it in his desk. Dr. Argyll begins inspecting the mysterious object.
"What does it do? ," he asks.
"It's a miracle of modern science. It heals minor injuries almost instantly. Boosts regenerative properties of the human body."
"How does it work? "
"You just inject the contents near the wound. You can regulate the amount as needed."
Dr. Argyll nods his head. "But how does it actually work?"
"Oh, I have no idea about that, I just know that they work. Believe it or not, I've been shot twenty times and each time, I've treated myself with Stimpacks."
Dr. Argyll stares in disbelieve at her story.
"I'll have to check with Pearl," he says, finally "I'm very interested in this Stimpack business, especially if this is something we can produce."
A few days later, Agnes is summoned from the fields.
She meets Mother Pearl, Dr. Argyll and Raquel in the older woman's private quarters.
"I remember these," Mother Pearl says with a smile, holding up the Stimpack. "Been quite a while since I've seen one."
"Why do you wish to assist Dr. Argyll? Are you not happy with your assignment?," Mother Pearl asks.
"I feel the test did not accurately reflect my abilities," Agnes explains. "I would like to assist Dr. Argyll since he helped me, plus I can show you how to create Stimpacks."
By the end of the day, Agnes has a new assignment.
Vulpes is very pleased.
...
Raquel is a much harder person to impress.
"Oh my God," Agnes says to Vulpes as they peer into the generator room. "That is a huge fucking ant!"
When Raquel said they had an ant problem, she wasn't kidding. At first Agnes didn't believe the Master-At-Arms when she mentions exploding ants. Apparently one exploding earlier, killing two Boomers and injuring three. That "hazard" really limiting their weapon selection. Vulpes equips them both with freshly sharpened machetes.
The pair peak around the corner of a doorway in the Generator room. A clutch of large white eggs sit in between a set of generators. A giant ant tends to the eggs, it's antennae moving constantly.
Agnes watches Vulpes evaluate the situation. He looks to her and winks before jumping up and running towards the massive creature. Luckily the ant is facing away allowing Vulpes to sneak up and in one swoop, hack off a rear leg with his machete. The ant squeals, turning to face its attacker, it's mandibles clacking loudly. Vulpes turns with the creature, hacking off another leg, then another. The ant roars as it collapses on one side, it's remaining legs unable to move its hefty body. It lunges at Vulpes as he faces the creature, a wide grin on his face. With a loud cry, her Mentor buries his machete into its brain. The creature shudders before falling still.
"Sonofabitch," Agnes says in awe from her corner view.
Vulpes grins, quite proud of himself, before motioning her over.
The ant problem is quickly resolved.
During clean up, an unexpected treasures is found.
"I want it," Agnes says, her eyes glued on Thump Thump as Vulpes holds it.
The unique grenade rifle was found by a skeleton that lay near the ant nest.
"I could get a thousand caps on the Strip," she says dreamily, admiring it .
Vulpes smirks, "If that's all your going to do with it, I have a much better idea. "
Rachel politely declines Thump Thump upon Vulpes' first offer only to quick accept upon his insistence. Her eyes light up as she admires the weapon, smiling as she reads the writing on the barrel.
"Two down," Vulpes smirks as they walk back to the cabin.
...
Loyal's task is infinitely more complicated than killing oversized ants. Their task was to repair the broken solar panels.
"Do you know how to fix solar panels?," Agnes asks her Mentor as she reviews the manual.
"No but I can read," Vulpes sniffs.
"I can read too!," Agnes huffs. "I've looked at the manual and it's not gonna work. We need new parts."
Vulpes smirks, "Are you sure you're doing it properly? This is electronics, you can't just bash it with a hammer and expect it to work. "
Agnes narrows her eyes, "Fine then, you have a go at it."
Two hours later, Vulpes walks in the cabin, clearly frustrated.
"We need new parts," he says, laying down on the bed, besides Agnes.
"Told you," Agnes says from behind her book.
"Where can we get some?" he asks, arms folded behind his head, staring at the metal ceiling.
"Get your feet off the bed," Agnes tells him instead. "You're getting dirt everywhere. "
Vulpes doesn't move, only shifting his eyes at her.
"We need new parts, do you know where we can get them?," he repeats.
"Your feet?," she insists.
Vulpes sniffs as he removes his feet from the bed, hanging them off the side of the bed. Afterwards, he shoots her a look that reads Happy?
"Thank you," she offers.
"Well?," Vulpes states.
"Helios One, " Agnes states.
Vulpes makes a face, "That's three days away."
"I know, that why I was hoping that one of us could fix those panels," she replies.
Vulpes stands.
"Where you going?"
He shoots her a look. "I'm going to talk with Loyal, see what he thinks."
...
Three days later, Agnes and Vulpes approach the NCR held Helios One Power Station.
"Are you sure this will work?" Vulpes asks.
"It should."
"Should?," Vulpes hisses. "I didn't walk three days on a possibility. "
"As long as they believe I still serve the NCR, everything should be fine. Let's just get the parts and get the fuck out. Okay?"
Vulpes twists his face before nodding his head in agreement.
"In and out," he says.
"In and out," she agrees.
...
"I'm going to kill you," Vulpes hisses as they are pinned down by automated laser turrets. "I don't care what Caesar says, I'm going to kill you and I'm going to enjoy every second of it."
"Oh, be quiet," Agnes snarks as she lobs a pulse grenade towards the mechanized defenses.
Before vacating Helios One, the Brotherhood had left a parting gift. The security system that guarded the Solar Collection tower was activated. Unable to gain entrance nor remotely shut off the defenses, the NCR simply guarded the tower. Of course, the task that Ignacio wanted them to complete in exchange for parts would be located in such a place. Agnes mentions none of this to her Mentor as they snuck inside the guarded tower.
They both duck behind the short wall, waiting for the explosion. Even behind her closed eyes, the flash is bright as a tingling sensation fills the air. The turrets fall silent, shorted out by the grenade. Checking for additional dangers and finding none, Agnes comes out, motioning for Vulpes to follow.
"Where are you going now?," he snaps as she heads down the descending stairs.
"I made a deal with Ignacio," she says over her shoulder. "We needs those parts. We help him and he helps us."
"How do you know we can trust him?," her Mentor grumbles.
"He's a Follower," Agnes chuckles. "I trust 'em."
Behind her Agnes hears Vulpes angrily complaining in Latin, describing in vivid detail how she would suffer immensely at his hands before begging for death. She smiles as they continue downwards.
...
After a long trek thru seemingly endless rooms, they finally find the Mainframe. Much to her annoyance, the Mainframe won't power up. Vulpes declares there is something wrong with the generator as he surveys the silent piece of equipment, tracing wires and hoses. After a few minutes, her Mentor wipes his hands.
"It should work now," he announces.
Agnes nods, turning the generator on. It fires up with a soft purr. The mainframe starts with whirring sounds as the monitor flickers to life. Agnes squeals in excitement, smiling widely at Vulpes. She attempts to hug him, only to be driven off.
"Hurry up," he says. "I don't want to spend the night here."
Giving a crisp salute, Agnes begins to review the menu options.
"What did Ignacio want anyways?," Vulpes asks, peering over her shoulder.
"He wants me to transfer power to Freeside and Westside, instead of the Strip and McCarran. In exchange he will give us the parts we need to fix the Boomer's panels."
Vulpes makes a noise to indicate that he heard her as he continues to read over her shoulder.
"What's that?," he asks, pointing at the screen. "Archimedes II?"
Agnes selects the option and is surprised at what she finds. Before her eyes is the description of an incredible PreWar weapon. Her eyebrows shoot up into her hairline.
A laser beam from space?!
"Well this is certainly interesting," Vulpes grins . "Let's go with this option."
Agnes wants to argue against such a device but reading further alleviates her apprehension. To activate the weapon, the user must have something called the Euclid C-Finder. The image provided shows what appears to be a child's toy, a plastic ray gun.
"We gotta find that," Vulpes says as he leans on her shoulders. "The possibilities are endless."
...
Parts in hand, Agnes and Vulpes begin their trek North. Her Mentor begins to talk about the massive energy weapon. The way he smiles while talking about possible locations for such a devastating weapon has Agnes promising herself to never allow such a device to fall into Legion hands.
Loyal is very pleased once Vulpes repairs the panels.
The final name is crossed off the list.
...
The pair celebrate their achievements at the cabin. Vulpes procures a jar of hooch, to which they toast each other.
Agnes gives a particularly bawdy toast that has Vulpes regarding her with a hungry expression. He presses in on her, drawing her near before trailing kisses down her neck. Agnes clutches on to him, releasing sounds of pleasure at his ministrations. He works his way back up to her lips. Any control either party have is quickly swept away as they kiss. Agnes looks at him with a heavy gaze, desire and longing clear upon her face.
"Max," she coos, running her hands over his chest.
Vulpes takes her hands, pulling her flush against him.
"Is it me you want or Max?," he utters lowly.
"Does it matter?," she responds breathily.
Vulpes pauses before withdrawing from her grasp much to Agnes's dismay.
"We should stop before things get too carried away," he says calmly.
Agnes is confused by his actions. She thought everything was going so well. The confusion must have been clear of her face as Vulpes gives her a half smile.
"It's nothing with you," he explains, taking her hands in his.
Vulpes places a chaste kiss on her forehead before standing.
"Get some rest my lamb, tomorrow will be an exciting day."
Agnes watches Vulpes practically run into their tiny bathroom and shut the door behind him.
She heaves a heavy sigh as she flops back onto the bed, still confused on what just happened.
It had been months since she last felt the touch of a man. Agnes thinks back to her final romp with Boone.
The timing was impeccable. She needed a release after the destruction of the Brotherhood and Boone was more than eager to assist. Generally, Boone was a gentle lover but this time he was aggressive and heavy handed as he fucked her with abandon. Agnes didn't mind at all, she didn't want kindness.
Afterwards, standing in the bathroom, Agnes regards herself in the mirror, seeing the collection of bite marks and dark bruises that Boone had zealously left behind. Agnes spots one bite that sits higher on her throat than the rest. Fiddling with her shirt collar, she realizes that the mark might be seen. Her thoughts turn to Vulpes and the possibility of him finding out the cause of her delay, she can picture the sneer on his face and the anger in his eyes. To her surprise, Agnes feels an inkling of shame for her actions. With a scoff, she dismisses the thought.
"Screw the Legion," she spits, adjusting her collar.
"Let them see, I am no slave. I am my own Master."
...
"I am my own Master," Agnes repeats softly as she lies with her back to the bathroom door.