Chapter Four
Freeside was not the safest place in the Mojave, it was a slum, abandoned by the master of The Strip and the NCR. It was overrun with crime, poverty, alcoholism, chem abuse, and degeneracy. If the Legion attacked, it would be the first to fall. At least they had protectors, The Kings, a gang of vigilantes that impersonate a pre-war musician known as 'The King'. They owed Clara, she helped them a while back by intercepting a shipment of chems laced with chemicals meant to make them less potent and more addictive. As it turned out, the NCR was supplying a dealer named Dixon with tainted chems. Clara and a few members of The Kings hunted the man down and killed him, putting him on display to show other dealers what happens if they poison Freeside. She had to admit, while brutal, it was effective. Because of what happened, Freeside was a safe place to find Chems. Med-X, Jet, and booze were especially safe, Clara certainly enjoyed that.
"We're gonna make a pitstop with The King, he can get us in, he owes me." Clara stated.
"Gotcha. In case it takes time, know any good spots around here? I'm new around these parts." Ed asked.
"Well, The Silver Rush has good energy weapons, you can find a solid drink and decently clean hookers at the Atomic Wrangler. If you need supplies, go to Mick and Ralphs, Mick sells equipment, Ralph sells guns. Medical supplies and treatment can be found at the old Morman Fort. It's run by the Followers of The Apocalypse, they only charge for supplies, treatment is public service." Clara explained. "Can probably find a back alley chem dealer too if you want a quick fix." Ed nodded, taking in the information he was given. The duo entered the King's base, Pacer giving Clara a nod.
"You and your friend can come in, King figures you'd want to see him." Pacer stated. "If you want-"
"Thanks Pacer, still not going out with you." Clara responded.
"Aw shucks, worth a shot." Pacer responded. "Boss man is inside." Clara and Ed stepped inside the showroom, The King sitting beside his robo-dog, Rex. Clara took off her hat as the dog barked.
"Look boy, that lady you like came to visit, and she brought a friend too." The King said softly.
"Hey king, I'm gonna have to call in that favor." Clara responded. "My friend and I need to get into The Strip, think you can get us in?"
"I can get you in, but I'm gonna have trouble with that friend of yours." The King stated. "NCR is growing suspicious of us, we can't get people across the gates quickly."
"Is there any way we can get him across alternatively?" Clara asked. The King thought for a moment, then smiled.
"As a matter of fact, I do." He began. "If he can get his hands on 2000 caps, he could get in the legit way. It just so happens I know a way he can get those caps. Happy Trails needs carvaners, mostly medics, scouts, and especially couriers. They'll pay him 1000 in advance, and another 1000 when they reach their destination."
"What's the catch?" Ed asked.
"It's going to New Canaan, miles and miles away." The King answered. "Should be long enough to get you ready to enter The Strip."
"I don't know…" Clara stated. "I'm getting a bad feeling about this, and I'm getting really attached to Ed here."
"Clara, I can do this, trust me." Ed told her. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Fine, but come back safe, okay?" Clara firmly told Ed. "I want you with me when we face Benny."
"You have my word." Ed smiled. The King guided Ed to the site where Ed would meet the caravan. She tried to ignore her concerns, but she couldn't help but feel something was going to go wrong.
Eddie finished pitching his tent as Jed Masterson finished tying down the brahmin. Eddie sat down at the fire and began eating his Jerky. Eddie cleaned his rifle as Jed sat down and began cooking rations. Jed faced Eddie, a concerned look on his face.
"Now, Eddie, have you ever been to New Canaan?" Jed asked. Eddie shook his head no. "I thought not, I know many of the people around the Mojave don't get around. So I'm gonna have to warn you, don't mention Joshua Graham."
"Why would I not want to mention him?" Eddie asked.
"Story time." Jed stated. "The New Canaanites are a proud, warrior people. They follow an old religion, something called the Church of Latterday Saints. They were amazing warriors, but Joshua, he was the best. Unfortunately, he worked with Caesar, he was one of the founders, he was the Malpais Legate. He was brutal and efficient in his work, but he made one fatal mistake, he failed to take the Hoover Dam. Caesar was beyond pissed, he was furious. He had Joshua covered in pitch, set on fire, and tossed into the Grand Canyon. Thing is, he didn't die. Rumor has it he survived, and Caesar was not happy. He forbade his Legion from even mentioning his name under threat of death."
"Damnatio Memoriae." Eddie stated. Jed gave Eddie a look.
"Yep, he wanted to wipe his memory of the face of the earth." Jed responded. "All it did was add to the legend of the Burned Man. Rumor has it he's still alive, so be careful what you say, especially around the tribals in Zion, they get jumpy around the mention of his name."
"I'll be careful." Eddie stated, pouring cleaning solute down the barrel of his rifle.
"You'll want to be, the tribals might skin you alive if you even consider saying his name." Jed sighed. "Best get some sleep, we'll be in Zion in the morning."
"Shouldn't we have someone keep watch?" Eddie asked.
"We're in Legion territory. Roads are safe here, Eddie. Bandits know they'll be brutally slaughtered if they violate any laws, so they do their business in NCR territory." Jed stated. "Now then, get some rest, you'll need it." Eddie nodded, crawling into his tent. He considered what he just heard as he wrapped his poncho liner over himself. Safe roads, something the NCR couldn't manage, but The Legion did.
Eddie had to admit, Zion was beautiful. Eddie had not seen so much green in his life. Well, at least he thought so, he couldn't remember. The plants sticking out of the rocky cliffs, the clean rivers below him, it was all so beautiful. Eddie took a look around, the place he and the caravan were was not ideal. There was a cliff face just ahead of them that would serve as an excellent vantage point, and the numerous plants provided cover for an ambush.
"I know you're tired, your feet hurt, but we're almost at New Canaan. Just a little more and we're good." Jed briefed, facing the caravan.
"Jed, I don't like the looks of these cliffs, it's a great ambush point." Stella stated. Eddie nodded.
"Yeah, if I were a bandit, I'd set up on those cliffs and post guards at the rope bridge. Noone would see it coming until it's done." Eddie added. Jed sighed at their concern.
"We gotta get moving, the tribals will help us once we cross the bridge. Eddie sighed, flipping the safety off his rifle. Sure enough, the caravan was ambushed. Men wearing pale white body paint armed with SMGs and high calibre rifles began attacking the caravan. The first to go was Ricky, a chem addicted conman, who got hit in the head with a tomahawk, killing him instantly. Then Jed died, being shot in the leg and set on fire when a molotov exploded near him. Last was Stella and the other guards, who were all shot in various places while fighting back against the assumed tribals. Only Eddie remained, fighting them off alone, noting it took more shots than usual if he used his Glock. Eddie scavenged what he could from the caravan, mostly just caps, some .308 bullets, and a China Lake with four grenades for it. Eddie moved cautiously, assuming the tribes had reinforcements, which they did. After Eddie left the bridge, a tribal leapt out of a bush, carrying a tomahawk. Eddie would have been killed by the tribal, had another one not saved his life. He was far more tanned than the murderous tribals, dressed in a prewar hat, bore different tattoos, and had a handgun none of the pale tribals used.
"Hoi, are you some kind of lucky." The tribal stated. "The White Legs almost killed you. Joshua will want to speak with you."
"Joshua? As in-" Eddie began. The tribal cut him off immediately.
"Yep, as in Joshua Graham." The tribal stated.
"I was told it was taboo to speak his name in these parts." Eddie informed the tribal. He laughed a hearty, genuine laugh, one coming from his chest, not his throat.
"No, you were informed wrong. Now then, why don't you come with me?" The tribal stated.
"Thanks, I'm Eddie Morris." Eddie stated.
"Follows-Chalk, it is good meeting you." Follows-Chalk stated. Follows guided Eddie to a large cave, waiting outside of it as Eddie entered.
"Hoi! Owslander, you zookuh Joshua?" a tribal asked. Eddie thought for a moment. Hoi seemed to be a greeting of some kind, owslander was definitely outlander, zookuh, maybe search or seek?
"Uh, yes I am seeking Joshua." Eddie stated. The tribal laughed the same laugh as Follows.
"Nah ash ne wit deer! I am playing with you." she laughed. Eddie chuckled, yeah he fell for it. "Joshua's in the other room, he's expecting you." Eddie nodded and entered the main chamber of the cave. Sitting inside was Joshua Graham, dressed in a kevlar vest, white shit, jeans, and bandages covering his entire body.
"Welcome to Zion. I have heard news of what happened. We prayed that the White Legs would not reach Happy Trails first, but we can't expect God to do all the work." Joshua opened. "I was expecting you, courier, though you were not the one I was expecting."
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm not courier." Eddie stated. "I'm a medic and, evidently from this job, a mercenary."
"Are you not a courier? You carry a message, a package of your own, but not the type most carry." Joshua responded. "You carry a message of death, as that is the fate that most certainly awaits your friend's enemy. A package different from what other couriers carry, but a message nonetheless."
"I guess that makes me a courier." Eddie chuckled. "I was with the Happy Trails caravan, we were seeking New Canaan."
"Then I regret to inform you that New Canaan is gone, it was razed by the White Legs as ordered by Caesar." Joshua stated. "He did it out of spite for me. He seeks to kill, for I failed him years ago. The tribals were displaced by this, and the White Legs are seeking to destroy them for Caesar."
"Well, I'm not leaving without offering my aid." Eddie stated. "How can I help?"
"Thank you, you truly are our neighbor." Joshua stated. "There are items that Daniel, a fellow New Canaanite needs to evacuate one of the tribes, the sorrows. The problem is, they're all in prewar areas, taboo to the tribals. Follows-Chalk will go with you, he's young enough to ignore these taboos. I need you to go to three places, a hunting lodge to retrieve radios, a crashed bus to find a combas, and a ranger station and general store to retrieve lunch boxes and medical supplies. I'll give you a weapon of my people to help you." Joshua picked up an oversized version of a 1911 and a box of ammo. "It's called a Grizzly, a design based on one my ancestors made. I cannot use it, so I wish for you to give it more use than I can."
"I'll take great care of it, what ammo does it use?" Eddie asked.
".50 Action Express, the box I gave you should contain enough ammunition to last you several months worth of battle." Joshua stated. Eddie opened it. Sure enough, countless magazines sat inside, ready to be used.
"Thank you, I'll go gather those materials now." Eddie stated. He set off out of the cave, meeting with Follows-Chalk.
"How did it go?" he asked.
"Looks like you and I are going to break some taboo." Eddie smirked.
Getting the equipment wasn't the hard part, it was the tedium that came with it. It was absolutely boring. The compass was just taken directly from the bus, after being fixed, that is. The medical supplies were so easy to clean it was laughable. The lunch boxes were just lying around, and the radios were just taken directly out of the cabinet they were in, no effort needed. Infact, the cabinet had an Ithaca 37 and two boxes of shells for it. And guess what happened when he delivered the supplies? More fetching. Well, he was really only grabbing a map and some bear traps left on a bridge, he also got to kill some white legs and yao guai, so that was fun. Just as Eddie arrived back at the camp the second time, he found Joshua waiting for him at the entrance, greeting him with a bible verse.
"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, and yea we wept, when we remembered zion. Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem who said 'Raze it, raze it even to the foundation'. O Daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed. Happy shall he be who rewardth thee as thou hast served us. Happy shall he be who taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones." Joshua spoke upon Eddie. "Do you know what it means?" Eddie felt like he recognized the verse, that he knew what it meant. It spoke about genocide.
"You don't want to leave Zion, you would rather kill each and every member of the White Legs, even the children." Eddie answered. Joshua gave Eddie a solemn nod.
"Given the choice between the two, I would rather not have the Sorrows lose their home." Joshua explained. "I don't enjoy killing, but when done righteously, it's a chore like any other."
"I would be inclined to agree, but something feels... wrong." Eddie responded. "It feels like genocide."
"Something you may have experienced." Joshua stated. "Follows-Chalk told me about your fighting style. You move slowly, methodically, engaging from safety if you can, at close quarters if you must. When outdoors, you use a rifle, in the tighter spaces of the canyon, a shotgun, and indoors, your pistol. You spend no more than two bullets on one person, and occasionally put an extra into those you don't think are truly dead. Your tactics work better in teams, small squads of three to four people. In short, your tactics are similar to that of old world America."
"I don't know what you mean." Eddie stated. "I know I have combat experience, but I don't know where from."
"Seek the shaman of the Sorrows, White Bird." Joshua stated. "He has been seeking you for some time. He wishes to induct you into the tribe, by order of the tribe's remaining leaders. Go now, seek him out. I shall deliver what you obtained to Daniel." Eddie nodded, walking to a cave within the Sorrows' camp. Inside was White Bird, a certainly odd individual.
"Ah, you are the one assisting us, or are we assisting you?" White Bird stated. "Come, sit, listen." Eddie did so, sitting at White Bird's fire. White Bird took a pot off the fire and poured it into a ceramic cup. "Drink tea, tea is bitter, truth is bitter. Yes. Go, seek your truth, seek Ghost of She, return with her paw." Eddie drank the tea, his vision blurring. Eddie stood up, leaving the cave, blacking out upon his exit.
Eddie woke up in a cave, carrying the paw of a yao guai. Sitting directly in front of him was a footlocker, a sleeveless duster, and an armored vest sitting on top. Eddie put them on, vaguely remembering a figure giving them to him. As Eddie returned to White Bird, he marveled at Eddie's clothes.
"The Father in The Caves visited you." White Bird stated. "Gave you his blessing, your clothes say so. Go, speak with Joshua and Daniel, tell them what he told you." Eddie nodded, approaching the pair of New Canaanites.
"So, I assume you're ready to make a choice?" Daniel stated.
"Go with God, do what your heart says." Joshua stated. Eddie shook his head.
"The Father in The Cave visited me during my initiation, I think." Eddie stated. "He said something about their innocence."
"Good, we're leaving then. Let's-" Joshua cut him off.
"And you trust the result of a hallucination?" Joshua asked.
"Yes, I believe it. And no, we are not leaving." Eddie stated. "The Sorrows will make a stand here. The White Legs will fall, but they will not be a warring tribe. As are The Father's wishes, they will attack those who attack them with righteous anger, then mourn their loss."
"If that's what you wish, that's what we will do." Joshua stated. Daniel sighed.
"I'd still rather see them leave, but fine." Daniel stated. "We'll make a stand."
"As are The Father's wishes, I think." Eddie stated.
"Leave gaps in the barricades, let them flow in so we can down any enemies who come through." Eddie stated as the Dead Horses and Sorrows placed junk, wood, and steel to close off the entrance to the Sorrows' camp. They also set up primitive, but effective traps, such as punji spikes and bear traps smeared with human matter in the water.
"Tsagasee, we have come to a decision about you." one of the Sorrows stated. "You are one of us now, and with all you have done for us, you deserve to show it to everyone you meet."
"What are you saying?" Eddie asked.
"We want to give you these." another stated, showing off his tattoos. "These are what make our people, these are what show us that we are connected to the Virgin River."
"Thank you, I know how much this means to you all, and I am proud to represent your people." Eddie stated. Eddie went with them to prepare for their ceremony, putting on their traditional garb as they slowly tattooed his body with the symbol of the Virgin River. Unusually, despite the others wearing it only on their stomach and chest, they placed the symbol on Eddie's limbs, head, and even back. Eddie assumed this was a sign of something, and it was, it was something new given specifically to him, it was a symbol of a protector. Eddie thought to himself as he put his gear back on for the upcoming battle. They saw him as their protector, and he wasn't going to disappoint.
The battle began at 0300, it was pitch black. Eddie had the Sorrows put out their fires so they could see their enemy coming, and as a tactic. As the night went on, they could see better in the dark. The White Legs, who marched with fires, could not see the way the Sorrows and Dead Horses did. They approached their barricades, the first White Leg setting off a bear trap.
"NOW!" Eddie shouted. The Dead Horses were the first to spring into battle, being that they carried handguns, and could escape a fight faster, they were the first line of defense. The White legs that slipped through them were taken down by members of the Sorrows, their yao guai fists proving to be powerful weapons. Even Eddie got in on the action, using the paw of She to slay many white legs. The battle lasted three hours, the sun rising around Joshua and the dying White Legs as Eddie approached Salt-Upon-Wounds, leader of the White Legs. Joshua executed the remaining White Legs, turning his aim to Salt-Upon-Wounds.
"Outman! Kunna Man mad! He kill all white legs, you talk, you stop!" Salt-Upon-Wounds pleaded. Eddie turned to face Joshua Graham.
"Joshua, don't do this, we are not killing this man." Eddie stated. "Put your gun down."
"And why should we spare him?" Joshua stated. "He massacred the New Cannanites, salted the earth so that nothing may grow again, and attempted to drive the Sorrows out of their land. Why should we spare him?"
"Why do you want him dead?" Eddie asked simply.
"Revenge. Revenge for New Cannan, revenge for the Sorrows." Joshua stated. "I want to show him what happens when you ally with Caesar, the man who represents everything I hate. I want him to know suffering as I have known."
"Does this make you any different from Caesar? Any better than him?" Eddie asked. "Caesar would do the exact same thing, he does the exact same thing still. If you truly want him to suffer, to have him pay, have him go home."
"I see. Go, go home to the Great Salt Lake." Joshua ordered. Eddie turned to face Salt-Upon-Wounds.
"Go, go to your home, tell them Eddie of California sent you home, tell them of your failure. Tell them that I am the protector of the Sorrows, and of the White Legs." Eddie ordered. "They may continue to fight, but they will leave Zion alone, or they will be completely destroyed." Salt-Upon-Wounds stood up, facing Eddie.
"Thank you Outman, you saved all White Legs." Salt-Upon-Wounds stated. He turned and fled the canyon, never to be seen again.
"Thank you." Joshua stated. "It is done, I could not have done this without you. I find it strange, however, how you chose to spare Salt-Upon-Wounds, not kill him."
"I may believe in violence being a tool, but it does have it's limitations." Eddie stated. "But when used as a tool of revenge, the person it kills is the one pulling the trigger. You told me a bible verse the other day, now I want to give you one. 'Do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. Whoever wants to sue you and take your shirt, give him your coat also. Whoever forces you to go one mile, go with him two'. I am sure you know what it means."
"Do not curse those who trespass against you, but forgive them." Joshua stated.
"It's important to show compassion in your darkest times." Eddie explained. "Otherwise, we forget that we are all one human species, and that we're all children of God."
"You read the bible, didn't you?" Joshua asked.
"Daniel convinced me." Eddie stated. "As we prepared, I told him that I have a lot of darkness within me, and he advised me to read scripture. I did so, and I found a loving God to care for me. I won't worship the way you do, but I will make sure God is there in everything I do."
"I assume you are leaving the valley?" Joshua asked. Eddie nodded in response. "Before you go, you should know something. The bible is correct in what it says, The Lord forgives all people, and he will forgive you. Remember that when you discover who you are."
"Thank you, Joshua." Eddie said with a smile. "Now then, I must leave, I have business to attend to back in The Mojave."
A/N: Yeah I wrote way more than I expected. This was originally only going to be the beginning of Honest hearts, and I ended up just kind of getting into a groove. Anyways, you will be happy to hear I passed my finals, and will be able to write more. Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter and have great break!