Now onto Chapter 9. Visiting another Vault.
Mandalore the Survivor - Actually that wasn't Tower Tom that was killed, just one of his goons since the one Jackson killed said 'when Tom comes back'. And once Preston regroups with a certain someone he'll let them know and the two of them can be concerned about Jackson together. With what happened to Red now Jackson also knows that not every raider are like Tower Tom's crew and that may (or may not) come into play for Nuka World.
Insofar as the dealings with Red goes that'll be it until the Brotherhood arrive in the Commonwealth, or thereabouts anyway. Also Red never made any commitment to working with The Minutemen, outside of owning Jackson a favor which he'll cash in again when the Brotherhood arrive. The caravans won't restock or anything like that there, they just won't attack them.
For the Zetan yeah there will be lots of references to Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta so spoiler alert on my Fallout 3 story. This specific Zetan was in fact sent to Earth because of said events after contact was lost after a final transmission was made by the aliens on the ship to their people. As for the Brotherhood I'll be operating under the assumption that The Lone Wanderer did not give them any alien tech.
'Thinking'
"Talking"
Vault 81
October 26th 2287
Jackson paced around the opening to the door where the alien lay for the last hour and a half or so. She still hadn't woken up yet and Jackson was trying to make sure that no nosey settlers saw her and freaked out. Preston approached him and said he would watch over her while Jackson waited for Cindy so that's exactly what Jackson did. Getting closer to where the spacecraft crashed he was able to see Cindy, Dogmeat and Codsworth walking towards him. When Cindy got close enough he could see an angry blush on her face as she spoke to him, "Alright you... you pervert. What's so important that you said what you did so that others in Sanctuary could hear what you said?"
Jackson blushed as well at his Freudian slip. He was too entranced at the ship to register what his mouth was saying to her. Shaking off those thoughts he managed to get some words out, "We have a new settlement allied to us and they need some defenses and a radio recruitment beacon built up," Jackson noticed that her anger hadn't gone down, if anything it was worse so Jackson continued, "and I've found science's Holy Grail," he finished walking towards the crash site. Cindy followed him but was still miffed at him so the two walked the couple of minutes in silence until the spacecraft came into view.
Cindy's jaw dropped and her eyes bulged out of her head a bit seeing the downed spaceship. Doing an amazing job imitating a goldfish she blinked a couple of times, turned to Jackson with the same expression who said, "Yes that is an alien spaceship," and turned back to the ship again.
"No way."
"Yes way."
"No."
"Yes," Jackson said, "But wait, there's more." Cindy looked at him like she couldn't believe there was more but at the same time could just as he atomized from his Pip-boy the weapon the alien had. He gave it to Cindy who looked at it in awe and Jackson could've swore that she hadn't blinked since she looked at him like a goldfish. Turning it over in her hands she was about to speak until Jackson beat her to it knowing what she was going to ask, "No you cannot keep it," Jackson said making her pout after he took back the weapon and returned it to his Pip-boy. That was fine since the next bit was sure to bring her mood back up, "I'm pretty sure the pilot will want it back."
Cindy's eyes widened once again as she spoke, "Pilot? You mean..." she trailed off before pointing at the ship. Upon getting a chuckle and a nod in confirmation from Jackson she said, once again, "No way..."
"Want to see her?"
"See her? One: you mean it's nearby and two: how do you know it's a female?" Cindy asked.
"One: It's over at Oberland Station. Got injured in the crash. And two: If their species is anything like ours then the two things on her chest similar to yours are a dead giveaway," Jackson said turning towards Oberland Station while Cindy glanced down at her own breasts quickly and followed after him. The two reached Oberland Station fairly quickly and Jackson led Cindy to where the alien was. Stepping inside Cindy gasped at seeing the alien and walked around her taking in this momentous discovery.
Cindy walked back over to Jackson and spoke up, "So how..."
Jackson cut her off, "What happened was:" he said explaining the events that transpired after he and Preston exited Beantown Brewery. There was no need to tell her what exactly happened inside. She probably wouldn't take it well. "And as Preston distracted the settlers letting them know the raiders were dealt with I snuck her in here."
Half an hour later the two of them were still in the building with the alien and for that half hour neither had said anything to each other. Cindy finally broke the silence between them from her sitting position on the ground, "So..." she started with a slight blush on her face, "I have a cute butt huh?"
Jackson grew a blush as well before speaking, "Well... yeah you do," he said before chuckling, "You have no idea how many collisions there were in the hallway from people paying more attention there than around them."
Cindy's blush grew, "There weren't that many boys staring at it."
Jackson replied, "You don't have eyes in the back of your head so you don't know what that WMD did."
"WMD?"
"Weapon of Mass Distraction," Jackson said making her blush more, "Besides," Jackson said making Cindy look at him with confusion, "I didn't say it was only boys that were staring." It took Cindy a couple of seconds to register what that meant before blushing the most so far and burying her head in her knees. "Yup," Jackson said, "I think you might've turned a few girls at school," making Cindy utter a muffled 'shut up', "Or at least given them a butt fetish," he finished laughing at her embarrassment.
She stayed silent for a few seconds before speaking to Jackson, "So what's yours?" she asked from in between her knees.
"What?" Jackson asked.
Cindy looked up with a little blush on her face and said, "So what's yours? Your fetish?"
"Well... I... Um..." Jackson started.
The blush had almost left Cindy now thankful for the distraction, "Well? You were so eager to talk about these things before. But now when it's about you you don't want to? Just remember you opened this door," she finished with a smirk on her face. She eyed him carefully after speaking and saw his eyes quickly dart to the side and back. It was so fast she almost missed it. Looking at the same direction there was nothing there but... "OMG," Cindy said making Jackson blush heavily now, "You're a xenophile," she said laughing, "Well then this must be very exciting for you. You now have a very small chance to live out your fantasy."
Jackson now was the one to groan out of embarrassment. But he decided to turn the table on her, "Well what about you?" Jackson asked making Cindy pause. "Not so eager now huh? You were eager to rip into me but now that it's your turn you clam up?"
"Well I..." Cindy started but was interrupted when they heard movement near them. The alien was waking up.
The alien stirred about for a few seconds before its eyes opened up slowly. Slowly sitting upright and putting a hand on its side where it was injured it sat upright completely and took a quick look around. Seeing Jackson and Cindy the alien grabbed the same device from before and spoke. This time though Jackson could've sworn he heard the English word 'understand' mixed in there so he decided to try something. "No. We do not understand what you are saying," he said slowly to the alien avoiding contractions as best he could. The alien eyes went wide, said nothing back and brought the device up to the metal object on its neck and from Jackson's position it seemed like there was a data transfer occurring if the green light connecting the two were any indication.
After it seemed to be finished the alien removed the device and spoke again. But this time Jackson and Cindy were both floored by what happened next. "Can... you... understand... now...?"
To say that Jackson and Cindy were surprised at the alien speaking English albeit a little slower than Jackson did was the biggest understatement in the history of understatements. Though Jackson had to admit her English voice was on the sensual side by human standards and similar to her tone when she spoke in her own language. Shaking off the shock first was Jackson who spoke for both of them. "Yes, we understand what you are saying."
The aliens eyes went wide once again before speaking once again, "It... worked? It truly worked?" she said speaking much better now compared to before while touching the metal object around her neck.
Jackson finally pieced together what the object was, "It's a universal translator, isn't it?" he asked forgetting about not using contractions.
The alien looked at him before speaking again, "Yes. Though the plans for such a device are somewhat... new."
"You mean this is a prototype?" Cindy asked her finally speaking.
The alien looked at her, "Yes. The design originated from a vessel that came to your planet ten years ago. The design and a report of the situation were the last transmissions from it before we lost contact. Our leaders sent me out here with a mission-" she started to say before remembering something and stopping herself from saying more.
"Mission?" Cindy said, "What mission? Does it have to do with the other ship?"
"I cannot say what my mission entails," the alien said, "But no, it has nothing to do with our lost ships."
"Ships?" Jackson asked, "As in more than one?"
The alien looked a little sheepish at her mistake but spoke up nonetheless, "We sent two here ten years ago after a disaster on our species threatened our survival. In addition to your world the two vessels visited many other worlds but could not find what was needed to save us. That is until we visited your world. They spent several of your 'weeks' here observing your species and the preliminary results seemed promising. However the captain of our mothership that was sent there grew impatient and ordered our scientists to speed up research and the results were... suboptimal to say the least."
"Define 'suboptimal'," Cindy said.
"The complete opposite of what we both wanted and needed. In addition the mothership was taken over by a small group of humans who then destroyed the second ship," the alien said before looking away from them, "but at any rate my mission is a failure. Not only did I lose the device needed for my mission I cannot contact my people afterwards. And to top it all off I have been captured by you."
Jackson was quick to respond to that, "You're not our prisoner," he said making the alien look back at him, "We found you injured and brought you back here to heal you. I'm guessing that the stimpack I gave you must've worked then. That's fortunate."
The alien seemed to breathe a sigh of relief at that before speaking again, "Not really. A solar storm brought my ship down. Our motherships are protected from them with their shields but scout ships... not so much," she said before remembering something, "My ship! Where is it? I need to get to it! I-" she said becoming more and more frantic.
"Calm down," Jackson said to her, "Your ship crash landed a little ways from here. It's still mostly intact." The alien breathed a sigh of relief once again and started to head out the door. "Whoa if you're trying to get back to the ship I wouldn't advise that. Most people around here have a 'shoot first, ask questions second' policy around here when it comes to survival," Jackson then brought up his Pip-boy, "If you want to walk around out there you'll need a disguise," he finished atomizing the drifter outfit and the assault gas mask. He put them on a nearby counter and he and Cindy stepped outside as he spoke, "We'll be outside. Join us when you've put those on."
Once Jackson and Cincy were outside she spoke to him, "Well?"
"I see no reason not to at the very least let her come with us. Whether or not I trust her is another thing entirely. She may have told us what happened to the other ships but she left out quite a bit. A lie of omission is still a lie," Jackson said, "With that said though I think it's best if we try and earn her trust and let her tell us the truth on her own. It seems to be the best course of action." Cindy was about to say something but the door opened up revealing the alien all dressed up in the drifter outfit and assault gas mask. If Jackson and Cindy didn't know better they'd say she was human. Jackson then realized something and said, "You know it just occurred to me that we don't know your name."
"My... name?" the alien said. Jackson and Cindy looked at each other and back to the alien, "We are called Zetans. And you both are humans."
"No I mean," Jackson tried to say before taking a deep breath and continuing, "My name is Jackson and this," he said pointing to Cindy who gave her an awkward wave, "Is Cindy. Now what is yours?"
"...Zetan," the alien replied.
"How about we just call her Zee?" Cindy asked Jackson before turning to the alien, "It that alright?"
The alien looked at the two of them before speaking, "Zee... that is what you wish to refer to me as?"
Cindy giggled a little at the aliens naivety, "Sort of. That's what your name is going to be."
"Name... alright. I am Zee then." The group of three then headed over to the spaceship and once there Zee rushed over to the cockpit door and stuck her head in accidentally showing off her still covered ass to Jackson and Cindy in the process.
Jackson looked flushed and tried to look away but that was far easier said than done. Cindy noticed his plight and giggled before saying, "So what created your fetish to begin with?"
Jackson still had a blush on his face as he spoke, "Those old sci-fi movies my parents watched with me. You know, Star Wars, Star Trek and the like," getting a nod from Cindy he continued, "I always thought the alien girls were kinda hot in them and well... I imagined myself doing... things with them."
Cindy giggled once again, "What kind of things?"
Jackson was bout to reluctantly respond until he heard the alien from before speak up, "Got it!" The two of them looked towards her and no longer saw the ship, but they did see her walking towards them. She had a strange device in her hand that was a cube attached to a handle and when she appeared to use it and it not do what it was she wanted she said, "Damn it!"
"Didn't find what you're looking for?" Jackson asked.
"Well yes but..." Zee said, "I cannot get to it. It is too far away."
"Ah," Jackson said. He could've sworn that she was lying to them given the pause, but decided not to press, "So what will you do?"
Zee sighed before speaking, "Well there is nothing I can do until I find what I need closer here. Would you mind if I travelled with the two of you in the meantime?"
"I don't see why not," Jackson said, "Just as long as you pull your own weight."
"I will," Zee replied, "Most of my species is heavily reliant on technology. That is how the mothership was taken over by such a small group of humans. Upon learning of this I started to use our technology less and less than others so I can look after myself," she said before patting down her body realizing something, "My weapon! I must have-"
She was cut off by Jackson who had atomized her weapon, "You mean this?" Jackson asked, "I picked it up looking for you." Zee took the weapon from him with a 'Thank you' and attached it to her hip where it stayed, probably magnetized. "Well with that we should probably collect Preston and head on out."
As they walked back Cindy had a question for their new companion, "So... you're a female?"
"Fe... male?" Zee asked.
"Yeah," Cindy said, "You know, like me."
"Oh," Zee said in understanding, "You mean is my role to birth and take care of the offspring?"
"Well," Cindy replied knowing that wasn't all there was to being a woman, "Yeah lets go with that."
"Then yes I am a female," she said sounding out female as though it was two words, "Both our races can be distinguished by our mating roles by our mammary glands on our chests, though on average your species seems to be larger than ours," Zee said giving Cindy's a squeeze making the poor girl yelp in embarrassment & awkwardness, "It would also appear that your species have more sensitive ones than ours. I would also assume that yours are for feeding the offspring as well?" Getting an awkward nod from Cindy she continued, "I see. There are so many things that our species have in common. It is fortunate that we cannot share diseases since we are immune to each others."
"That's fortunate," Jackson said in between chuckles at Cindy's previous predicament. The poor girl didn't appreciate having her breast squeezed like that and it would seem that Zee needed to be taught some human social cues. Jackson decided to give her one for free, so to speak, "Oh and just so you know it's not proper to grab a woman by her breast," he said before adding, "or anywhere else inappropriate. That goes for men too. At least wait until they give you permission at the very least."
"Oh," Zee said, "My apologies," she said to Cindy.
"It's fine," Cindy said automatically indicating that she wasn't fine with it.
"I should have known better," Zee continued, "Despite our... females... having higher intelligence than our compatriots it would seem even we are not immune to social awkwardness."
Cindy looked at her, "Your females are more intelligent that your males huh?" she said to Zee but Jackson could tell that was meant towards him.
"Yes," Zee said, "Our males leaned more towards warfare to keep the rest of us safe."
The conversation was cut short as they approached Oberland Station and Preston approached them, "Are you ready to head out General?" getting a nod from Jackson he then noticed Zee behind her and continued, "Who's that?"
"That's our visitor," Jackson said making sure to emphasize the word visitor to ensure Preston got what he was saying. Which was confirmed when Preston's eyes widened, "She's going to be travelling with us for a while."
Preston wanted to object but technically he was outranked so he said, "It's your call General." The group left Codsworth behind to supervise the building and they headed southeast towards Diamond City.
Shortly into their walk Jackson noticed something from the southwest, "Uh I'm no meteorologist but that sky does not look good," he said pointing at a green sky approaching fast.
"Oh no," Preston said, "A Radstorm! We need to find shelter and quick!" The trio plus Dogmeat ran further to the south than they intended due to the reservoir nearby.
Looking towards the storm Jackson noticed a cave and so stopped and yelled out, "Hey! There's a cave nearby!" The others stopped as well and sure enough up a hill towards the storm was a cave. Changing direction and running towards it they headed inside before the storm managed to hit.
"I'd like to be further inside if possible," Preston said, "This will only protect us until the wind shifts." Heading deeper into the cave the group was amazed to discover that upon heading up over a rise the ground became manmade metals as a floor along with railings and lights. This seemed all to familiar to Jackson and Cindy. "Oh, this is one of those Vaults. Like you came out of, right?"
"Yeah," Jackson said as Cindy grabbed her arms subconsciously and Jackson shuddered, "Thanks for that."
Preston remembered what Jackson had told him about Vault 111, "Oh, right. I'm sorry General, Cindy," he said to them.
They didn't respond but pressed forward nonetheless. Approaching the giant Vault door they noticed a desk that looked like it had been abandoned. The vault looked like it wouldn't open but Jackson had the key to open it. Stepping up to the big yellow device Jackson pulled out the same object he used to open Vault 111 and inserted it into the same spot as before opening the see-through plastic and Jackson hit the red button.
But instead of the door opening a voice came through on the yellow device, "Hold it right there. Vault 81 security. I don't know where you got your hands on a working Pip-Boy, but you better start talking."
To say the two from Vault 111 were surprised was an understatement. They hadn't expected to find a still functioning Vault after two hundred years. Cindy was the first to speak up, "We got ours in Vault 111"
"Vault 111? Haven't heard of that one yet," the guard spoke in a slightly sarcastic voice, "And what sort of business are you looking to take care of here in 81?"
"A Radstorm hit outside. We were hoping to find shelter," Jackson said.
"Is that so? And you expect me to believe... oh. Overseer!"
"Who is it, Edwards?" a female voice asked him.
The now identified Edwards spoke up again, "Ma'am, some new Commonwealth traveler. Not one of our usual traders."
"Well, if someone wants in, they can earn it like everyone else," the Overseer said to him, "Let me speak to them," she said before the sound of shuffling could be heard, "Sorry about that. Officer Edwards here was just doing his job. I'm sure you can understand our need for caution. For newcomers, we like to operate on exchange. You help us, we help you."
Cindy however was not a very patient woman, "Ma'am please. There's a Radstorm raging outside and we are in desperate need for some shelter. Can't you help out some fellow Vault Dwellers?"
This seemed to be the magic phrase as Edwards spoke up, "Excuse me, Ma'am. Before you arrived, she did say she was from Vault 111, and they are in possession of a working Pip-boy."
"Is that so?" the Overseer said, "I'm going to allow it. Edwards, open the door and make the announcement," she said to Edwards, "Officer Edwards and I will meet you at the entrance." And as soon as she finished speaking the giant Vault door opened up and the group stepped inside.
As they passed the giant door they heard a man speaking with a woman, "C'mon, Gwen, my guys have been working doubles for weeks now. They need a break."
"Everyone's working hard right now, Cal, you think I don't know that?" the woman replied. Jackson seemed to think that she was the Overseer, "Just do the best with what you can. That's all I'm asking."
The man wasn't happy but sucked it up anyway, "Fine. I'll see what I can do. But you and I both know we can't keep going on like this," he finished as he walked away.
The woman turned to the group and spoke up, "Sorry about that. As you'll soon see, we have a few maintenance projects underway. Gwen McNamara. Overseer. Welcome to Vault 81," she said shaking Jackson and Cindy's hands, "We've never encountered a fellow Vault dweller. Is this Vault 111 you mentioned still operational?"
Jackson and Cindy looked downtrodden at this as Jackson spoke up, "No, not anymore. It's more like a graveyard now. The two of us are the only survivors."
Gwen looked sympathetic at them as she asked, "Christ, I'm sorry. What happened there?"
"They had us cryogenically frozen in these pods," Jackson said, "Vault-Tec was supposed to send out an 'All Clear' signal after the bombs dropped but it was never received. Due to the place the signal was sent from being destroyed or damage to the Vaults receiver is unknown. After a while the security division wanted to open up the vault and head outside because supplies were running low but the Overseer wouldn't allow this. As a result a mutiny broke out. Seems the security forces won and they left the Vault with us inside. It was only due to a malfunction that the two of us were able to escape our pods."
"My god. All those lives lost. That's unacceptable. I suppose we've been lucky. Here, we pride ourselves on having maintained a successful Vault over these past two centuries. We'd like to be completely self-sufficient," Gwen said shrugging her shoulders, "but there are certain resources we can't provide ourselves."
"So we noticed," Cindy said referring to the conversation they heard earlier.
"Still it's impressive you maintained a successful Vault for so long," Preston spoke up.
"Thanks. I owe it to the Overseers before me," Gwen said, "But some here would disagree. A few believe opening the doors to the Commonwealth was a mistake."
"They're not entirely wrong," Jackson said, "The Commonwealth may have its dangers, but its got a lot to offer."
Gwen's expression turned sullen, "It's the dangers that concern me. That's why I like to use a give and take system. If outsiders are willing to help us, we're willing to help them. Now, I have work to do," she finished as she turned away.
"Ma'am, what about his dog and uh... friends here?" the security officer Edwards asked.
Gwen turned back to them and spoke, "I'll allow it. Security is already extra mindful as it is. If they've lived this long in the Commonwealth, I'm sure they've chosen their friends wisely." She turned back to where she was walking and finished speaking, "If you need anything else, I'll be in my office," as she disappeared around a corner.
The group walked the same way the Overseer went and after passing through some devices on the ground a scientist spoke up about how Jackson and Cindy had no radiation damage whatsoever. Stepping through the doorway they heard a security personnel talking to a cat which then bolted past them. The group stepped onto the elevator, though it was a tight squeeze and descended to the Vault below. Getting off the elevator a child approached them, "Hey, mister, are you really from the Commonwealth?" he asked Jackson.
"Uh, yeah I am," Jackson said unsure.
"I knew it!" the boy said rather excited, "Hey, I can show you around the vault if you want. Just five caps," he said trying to act innocent.
Jackson figured what the hell. He may as well amuse the kid, "Alright. Give us the tour kid. Here's the caps," he said atomizing five caps.
"Yes! I gotta show you to Erin. She's gonna flip. And my name's Austin just so you know," the boy said, "Follow me. We'll start over here." The boy then led the group to the right and towards an open door stopping at a window, "This is the depot. The Combes family runs it. Erin and I are best friends. Her Mom and Dad fight a lot, so I don't like to go in there when they're around. But if you need something, they're the ones that have it."
"What do they fight about?" Jackson asked.
Austin looked around before gesturing to Jackson to come closer and when he did he began to whisper in his ear, " I shouldn't tell you this, but everybody says Mr. Combes is sleeping with Tina. Mrs. Combes doesn't know, but he's always leaving her to do all the work while he hangs out with Tina."
"I see," Jackson said to him.
"Good to know Austin. Thanks," Cindy said to him unaware of what the two talked about.
"See, I told you I know things," Austin said brimming with pride, "Next stop, the Overseer." He then led them further along the upper walkway as he spoke to Jackson, "I bet you've killed lots of strange things. And raiders! I bet you fought raiders too." After passing a man working on a wall he spoke up again, "The Overseer's office is up there," he said pointing down a hallway that turned left and up a flight of stairs, "They're busy up there and do not like to be bothered. She makes the rules, but she's nice. I like her."
"Does she take care of people that break the rules?" Preston asked.
"Security mostly takes care of people that break the rules. But she's in charge of all the security officers," he said before adding in, "It doesn't happen very often. Next stop, the diner. Now we gotta go downstairs. That's where the diner is." As he walked down the stairs with the group in tow he spoke again, "Everybody eats there. Sometimes it gets real crowded. The Summersets are nice though. You'll like them."
Once downstairs they took an immediate right and were at the diner where a woman spoke up, "Hello, Austin. I see you're showing our guest from the Commonwealth around."
"Yes, ma'am," he said to the woman before turning towards Jackson's group, "This is the Sunshine diner. Gran says that they take all her hard work and turn it into swill. Mr. and Mrs. Summerset run the diner. They're pretty nice. Mrs. Summerset's pies are the best."
"So how is their food," Cindy asked, "Aside from the pies of course."
"I like it. Mrs. Summerset always sneaks me seconds."
"I'll save you a slice of pie, Austin," the older woman said happy to hear that her food was appreciated.
"Next stop, Horatio," he said before adding in, "I told you they were nice." Approaching the barber shop just down the hallway Austin spoke again, "Do you like your hair? I like mine I hate combing it though. Gran makes me comb it."
"Austin, that hair of yours is a mole rat's nest." the barber Horatio spoke up when they got to the shop.
"This is where Horatio fixes up people's hair. Erin's Mom comes here all the time. Gran hardly comes at all. She makes me get my hair cut though. It's not fair," Austin said.
Zee giggled a little, "It is a good thing I do not have any to worry about then."
"Would he do our hair?" Cindy asked.
"Sure. He can turn your hair into just about anything," he again gestured for Jackson to come closer and again whispered, " I wanted him to make mine look like a skull, but Gran wouldn't let him."
"Okay that sounds badass," Jackson said making Cindy swat his shoulder slightly.
"Next stop is Gran. I live with her. She's not my real grandmother though," he said as they headed across the hallway, "My parents died when I was real little," he said sadly.
"Yeah, we uh," Jackson started, "We know that feeling."
"Hi Gran," Austin said.
"Austin? What are you doing here? Are you bothering those strangers from the Commonwealth?" she asked.
Before Austin could reply Jackson spoke up, "Actually he's helping us out by giving us a tour of the Vault."
"Hmmph," was her response.
"That's gran. She takes care of me. You can call her Dr. Penske," Austin said, "She acts all grumpy, but it's not for real." This earned him a 'Says you' from Dr. Penske in response.
"Good to know," Preston said, "I bet she takes good care of you."
"When she remembers, or isn't too busy," Austin said in response.
"Watch it, boy," Dr. Penske said in rebuttal making Jackson be reminded of Kratos in an old video game he played.
"Next stop, Miss Katy," Austin said as they left the hydroponics lab with Austin heading into a sprint, "Come on! Hurry up! We gotta go to the other side of the vault. I'll show you where I go to school. I bet you didn't have to go to school."
"Actually," Jackson said, "Cindy and I did and we both did quite well," he said before looking at Cindy and back, "Well one of us did anyway," which earned him another swat to the shoulder for his trouble.
Heading through an open doorway after their run Austin spoke up again, "This is the school. Miss Katy runs it. It's boring most of the time, but Gran says I have to go anyway."
"Your gran is a smart woman, Austin," Miss Katy said to him.
"Are there a lot of kids in the vault?" Zee asked him.
"Not that many. The Overseer says we're using population control, whatever that is," Austin said. The unspoken words he didn't say were obvious. He wanted more kids to play with.
"I wish my people had that problem," Zee said softly but not softly enough for Jackson heard it but decided to talk to her about it later.
"It's good to know all the kids are getting an education," Jackson chose to say instead, "I was top of my classes back in school."
"If you say so," Austin said slightly irritated, "Let's go downstairs. I'll show you the clinic," he said heading out of the door.
Miss Katy called out to him, "Don't forget that your lunch break is going to be over soon Austin."
If Austin heard her he didn't acknowledge it as he said, "Doc Forsythe and Rachel are okay I guess. But I don't go there unless I have to. Or unless Gran makes me." After heading down the stairs they came to another room with a window, "This is our medical clinic. If you get hurt or sick, you come down here. Dr. Forsythe says I can't bother him or Rachel when they're working."
"Good to know. If we need help, we'll come here," Jackson said to him.
"I hope you don't mind needles. They like to poke you a lot in here," Austin said while shuddering, "Now we go see Erin. She's going to be surprised when she sees you. Come on! This way," he said heading back up the stairs, "Erin and I spend a lot of time together. She didn't believe me what I said I'd bring you to her."
"So.. you and Erin spend a lot of time together huh? Is she your girlfriend then?" Jackson asked Austin making his face go red and earning himself another shoulder swat from Cindy.
After traveling the ground floor walkway past a door on their right Austin stopped at the second door on their right and knocked. Opening up he stepped inside and spoke, "Erin! Look who I found. The stranger from the Commonwealth."
Erin got up from the floor she was laying on, "Wow. You're really from the Commonwealth?" she asked the group.
"That we are," Jackson said, "I take it you're Austin's best friend?"
"We've been friends forever. There aren't a lot of other kids in the Vault," Erin replied.
"Thanks for doing my tour. I was so cool to show you off to everyone," Austin said, "We gotta get back to class now or Miss Katy will flip," Austin finished while heading back to the school.
Erin however stayed behind briefly, "Umm, Mister," she started, "Have you seen my cat?"
Jackson remembered a cat running out of the Vault when he arrived, "I think he's left the vault. I saw him run by me when I got here."
Erin seemed distraught at this, "Left the vault? Oh, please bring him back! Please? No one else would set foot outside for him."
"Where do you think he may have gone?"
"Not far. He'd be terrified. I'm sure if there's anywhere nearby to hide, you'll find him," Erin said frantically.
"Alright," Jackson said, "If we see him out there we'll bring him back for you."
"Thank you, oh thank you," Erin said, "" before running out the door to head to class.
Heading out of Erin's home himself he ran into Miss Katy, "You're that new traveler. You must have had so many adventures out in the Commonwealth," she said to Jackson.
"You could say I've had a few," Jackson said, "It almost feels like every waking moment in an adventure out there."
"Oh, my! I knew it," she said, "My kids would love to hear some of them. Would you be willing to talk to my class?"
Jackson shrugged his shoulders and said, "I'd be glad to talk to them," before remembering what happened at the Beantown Brewery, "But some might be a little to graphic so I'll just skip over any of those."
"Marvelous," she replied, "Class will be back in session as soon as I enter. Want to walk with me?" Jackson nodded and the group headed back to Miss Katy's classroom. Upon entering the classroom Miss Katy spoke up, "Children. Children, listen up," getting the four children's attention she continued, "We have a guest today, who is going to tell us stories about the Commonwealth," she finished as she and Jackson made their way to the front of the room along with Dogmeat. Preston stood near the side of the classroom while Cindy and Zee stood at the back.
"Well," Jackson said, "What would you like to hear about." He had never been on this side of the classroom before.
"Did you ever fight a Deathclaw?" Austin asked him.
Jackson mentally sighed. Of course they would ask something like that. "Well, that all starts back when I entered the destroyed town of Concord. A group of raiders were attacking a group of settlers so Dogmeat and I," gesturing to the dog laying down at his master's feet, "helped them out."
One of the other kids interrupted him, "Did you kill someone?" Miss Katy was about to say something to reprimand those kind of questions but was cut off by Jackson.
"I did," he said making the class ooh and awe making Jackson continue, "But let me tell you it's an awful feeling. I ended up throwing up right after and that feeling of taking a life was the worst I'd ever felt," the kids looked at him strangely and he continued, "However it was an unfortunate necessity and in the same situation I'd do it again if needed. But only if needed. Anyway after dealing with the raiders outside and inside I met up with the settlers who were led by my good friend Preston here," he pointed him out and Preston gave an awkward wave to the class, "More raiders were coming so Preston pointed out some power armor to me to even the odds."
"Power armor!" Austin said, "Wow."
"But you were still able to rescue him, right?" Erin asked.
"That I was Erin," Jackson said before his expression turned solemn at the memory, "But that's when we went from the frying pan into the raging inferno."
"I believe the expression is 'Out of the frying pan, into the fire'," Miss Katy corrected.
"Trust me this was a lot worse than just a fire," Jackson said looking at her, "Getting into the power armor I was able to rip the minigun off a downed aircraft and use it like a gun," that earned him more oohs and awes from the kids, "As I fought the raiders with the minigun and pressed forwards there was a noise coming from behind them." The kids leaned forwards with interest, "Suddenly the grate to the sewer came flying off the ground and from the sewers stepped out a Deathclaw."
"What did it look like?" another kid asked.
"The only was I can describe it is the way it was described to me. Claws and teeth and horns. The very face of death itself," the kids shuddered at their imagination, "The leader of the raiders was right next to the grate when it appeared and well," Jackson said bringing his hand up to his neck while keeping it flat, palm down, "Pop went the weasel," he finished pushing his hand upwards indicating his head was bitten off. The kids shuddered at this and Jackson continued, "The remaining raiders tried to shoot at it but it tore through them so quickly they never had a chance. I raised my minigun at it and fired at it and let me tell you those things must have a very tough hide as the bullets weren't doing much. Four hundred rounds from my minigun were fired into it and it didn't go down," this made the kids gasp in shock at how tough the Deathclaw was, "Unfortunately I needed to reload and just as I got the new clip in it swung its tail at me knocking me to the ground separating me from the minigun and destroying an arm and leg of my power armor. It leapt onto me and began tearing away at my power armor until all that remained were my other arm and leg. And yes that meant my helmet too," Jackson said answering the about to be asked question, "Preston kept firing at it to no effect and I could've sworn it looked me in the eye before opening its mouth ready to eat me."
"Y-You survived that," Erin asked tentatively, "Right?"
Jackson smiled a bit before continuing, "Before it could eat me Dogmeat here decided to eat it and started with its tail," Dogmeat perked up a bit at his master saying his name, "and Preston managed to hit it in the head with his laser musket stunning it enough for me to get my minigun and I let loose another hundred rounds into its belly. After that it collapsed dead."
"Wow," Erin said, "I'll bet you were glad both of them were there."
"You have no idea," Jackson said.
"Well," Miss Katy said, "Thank you so much for that story. Children, say thank you."
"Thank you," all the kids said.
"And we have a thank you gift for you," Miss Katy continued, "Here," she said giving him a copy of Grognak the Barbarian: Demon Slaves, Demon Sands.
"Thank you," Jackson said taking a quick look around the room. Looking at the back of the room he noticed that only Zee was there. No Cindy, "I have to be going now myself, but if the kids want to hear more stories I'd be happy to share."
"We'll keep that in mind," Miss Katy said, "Thanks again."
Heading out of the classroom Jackson went to find Cindy, whom he saw on the lower level from the gap in between levels and asked Zee, Preston and Dogmeat to wait here. Going downstairs he saw that she had her hands on her upper arms just below her shoulders as she walked. Jackson caught up to her quickly, "Cindy what's-" was all he got out before her palm connected with his face hard resulting in a very loud smack echoing through the Vault.
"Don't 'Cindy' me!" she said eyes brimming with rage while yelling at the top of her lungs, "Why the hell didn't you tell me that you almost died out there! I thought there was something building between us! I don't deserve to know when you risk your ass like that!? That's real shitty you know! So why didn't you tell me!? Scared of how I'd react?! Too cowardly?!" she continued on like this but Jackson was able to read between the lines a little bit. She wasn't angry with him. Well, alright she was but it was more like a mixture of concern for his safety, relief at his survival, anger at him hiding this and more anger at almost leaving her alone in the Commonwealth by herself. He could see tears forming in her eyes that were threatening to spill out as she raged on and him tuning her anger out. That's when he made his move and brought her into an embrace. She struggled slightly to get out of it claiming she wasn't through yelling at him before giving up and sobbing into his chest while wrapping her arms around him. And there it was. Her true emotions. She cried into his chest for about a minute or two longer before she finally pulled her head away from his chest and her body away from his slightly. "Thank god you're safe," she said with red tear filled eyes.
"I didn't tell you because I didn't want to worry you Cindy," Jackson said as she looked at him, "You went through so much already I didn't want to add to your already high stress."
Cindy wiped the tears away from her eyes as she spoke up, "Oh," was all she said.
"Yeah," Jackson said, "I figured given everything that had happened up to that point hearing about me nearly dying wouldn't have been right so I kept it to myself." Jackson couldn't help but stare into Cindy's eyes as he continued feeling emboldened by her little yelling spree, "Cindy," he said brushing some hair in her face away, "You are the best thing that I have left from our old life. And I can't see myself continuing to go through this without you," he said bringing his hand to her cheek, "That's how much you mean to me. And that's what I can show you with words," he continued slowly inching his face towards hers at a rate she couldn't notice, "And here's what I can show you with actions," he finished bringing his lips to hers. Cindy's eyes went wide at this but she was quick to close them slightly and melt into the kiss. The two stayed like that with their lips connected and hands wrapped around the others torsos. After a minute or two they needed to separate for air and Jackson spoke up, "I guess we're official now, huh?" he said with a huge blush on his face.
"Yeah," Cindy said dumbly with her own equal blush. The two headed to the staircase hands intertwined but Doc Forsythe got their attention first.
"Excuse me you two," he said making the teens stop, "Can I get your assistance with something?" They looked at one another and Jackson shrugged in a 'why not' way and they entered his lab. "Thank you," Doc Forsythe said, "Now I hope I'm not being presumptuous, but I'd like to ask you a favor. Would you mind donating some medical samples? Even just a blood sample?"
"Uh," Jackson said, "Sure. You can have some blood. Just as well I'm O negative."
"You can have some of mine as well," Cindy said, "Even though it's AB positive."
"Excellent!" Dr. Forsythe said, "Just have a seat there and I'll draw some blood," he said gesturing to a nearby chair. Jackson sat down first and Dr. Forsythe continued, "This will only take a sec..." he said jabbing Jackson's right shoulder, "There. Hardly hurt a bit, eh? now for you," he said as Cindy sat down and Dr. Forsythe took some of her blood, "Thank you. This will be a great help. Now, I need to get these prepared immediately."
The two exited the clinic and regrouped with the others as they headed back towards the main area of the Vault where almost everything Austin showed him was. After Jackson made a quick pitstop at the Combes store to pick up a new right leg, left armguard and right armguard for himself. The cost was almost twenty thousand caps but thanks to Jackson's stash back in Sanctuary that he slightly emptied it wasn't that much of a dent to his coffers. Exiting the store he sat down near the diner with the rest as they waited for the storm to quiet down.
And there we go. Chapter 9 is now done. This marks the longest chapter so far at 8,436 words.
Just in case anyone is wondering Jackson still has over six million caps in Sanctuary as he took out a few hundred thousand, just to be safe.
Also now Cindy and Jackson have shared their first kiss and are official. Yay!
Lastly, your Zoid
(V)_(;,;)_(V)
