The screams of the bear were heard throughout the Mojave and beyond during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. The legionnaires with their bloodthirsty blades trounced the NCR troopers' reliance on rifles and distance. Mars rained hellfire on the profigates above, vaporizing them and burning them where they stood. The Great Khans cut the NCR off at the Dam and cornered them inside the Dam itself. The White Gloves and the Omertas launched their devastating attack on the Vegas Strip. Camp Forlorn Hope and Camp Golf fell to the Legion within minutes of the initial invasion further into the Mojave.
The bear scurried away like a rat further into the Hoover Dam's offices and power plants. It was clear that running away from the bull wasn't going to work this time. Although many of the bear's elite soldiers fought inside the Dam itself, they couldn't stop the inevitable. Much like the battle above ground, the Legion's soldiers dominated the NCR. But the Legion didn't win the battle just through their connections to the local tribes of the Mojave and their close quarters combat prowess itself. They also had an ace up their sleeve. A member of the dissolute which became an instrument of Caesar's will.
The Courier was present at the battle and personally led the soldiers to victory. The man who made Camp Forlorn Hope a mass grave, killed Mr. House and secured many alliances for Caesar's Legion. A man who has brutally killed the NCR assassins who were sent after him. A living legend who escaped the Sierra Madre and Big MT, and conquered the Divide with his sheer will power.
He was also the one to kill the leader of the profigates in the Mojave. Once he stepped out of the rat's compound, he was celebrated as a hero of the Legion and a gift from Mars himself. He was properly inducted into the Legion itself, and got his face minted into Legion coin for his victory at the dam.
However, things weren't all sunshine and rainbows for the bull in the Mojave. The new empire needed to find its new golden age. Assimilation, subjugation, birthrates and trade routes were becoming issues within its lands. Although answers to these growing problems can wait, celebrations were to be held at Caesar's crown jewel in his empire, New Vegas.
But one factor stayed the same throughout the regime changes in the Mojave, blood was still spilled, gunshots still rang out in the distance because war, war never changes. But men do though the roads they walk, and this road has reached its end.
Xxx
The Courier woke up from his slumber due to a knock on his door. He currently was living in New Vegas itself, in one of the three casinos on the strip. He groggily got up from his bed and got dressed. He put on his duster he got from the Divide, from a wise man. The duster itself was black and on the back of it the symbol of the bull was emblazoned on it. Besides the red bull on the back, the duster was completely black. There were knee pads on the pants of the outfit, and the outfit itself showed its age through its weather-beaten appearance.
He put on the mark of Caesar around his neck, a gift given to him by Caesar himself. He finally put on his breathing mask, its black appearance juxtaposing his own skin and eye color. His skin was a tanned white, and his eyes were a light green. The Courier then lightly brushed his blonde hair to its side. He then went to open the door and was met with the infamous Vulpes Inculta.
"Didn't expect you to visit me at this time, what's going on?" The Courier asked.
"Caesar has told me to retrieve you from your… humble abode." Vulpes replied.
"What? Living in the high roller suite is pretty nice," Courier Six said. "Better than sleeping in some tent on the sandy floor."
"I didn't come here to talk about renovations to my living space," Vulpes replied snarkily. "Besides, I do field work more than you. I can't make one place my home."
"Fair point," Courier Six. "Let's get going then."
Vulpes gave him a nod and started walking out of The Tops. The Courier walked right beside him. He let his eyes wander the area, and he saw casinos usual shenanigans happening all round him and Vulpes. He saw gamblers throw their caps, and other various currencies helplessly onto the roulette and poker tables. However there were a few differences in the Tops, a specific change in management. The Chairman were all eliminated or enslaved during or after the battle of Hoover Dam. Due to Strip politics and geography of the area, the Whites Gloves assumed control of the Tops.
There was slight culture shock for the Courier at first, the Whites Gloves were more strict than both the Omertas and the Chairmen. But like all situations, he adapted to it. He and Vulpes finally reached the door that would lead to the greater area of the Strip. But before they left the Courier stopped abruptly, which made Vulpes cocked his eyebrow.
"Having second thoughts?" Vulpes asked. "I can request Caesar give you more time to prepare for the meet-". However Vulpes stopped mid sentence to see the Courier putting on his lucky shades. The Courier looked at him funny.
"What? I just wanted to put these on first, my eyes haven't adjusted to the sun yet," Courier said, while chuckling. "Did you really think I would willingly skip out on a meeting like this?"
Vulpes huffed, and opened the door to the outside. He then held the door open for the Courier, in which the Courier thanked him for doing so. The outside of the Strip hadn't changed much, aside from the fact that legionaries replaced the securitrons as the police of New Vegas. The NCR embassy became a storage unit for all of the weapons and other such supplies for the Legion's future campaign into the NCR homeland. Many of which came from Camp McCarran and Camp Golf.
There were little to no slaves in the strip so far, many of them were being used as labor to harvest and ready crops at the sharecropper farms. There were no prostitutes in the streets, they were all contained within Gomorrah walls. The drunks weren't common in the streets of Vegas anymore as well. The sale and use of alcohol is only permitted in the casinos, and those within the Legion aren't allowed to partake in it.
"The city has changed quite a bit since I first came here a few weeks ago." the Courier observed.
"Well, the profigates have fled the strip like the cowards they are," Vulpes stated with a smirk. "They left us with a town of whores and money changers, so we will mold this city into our great capital." Vulpes and Courier Six both reached the front of the Lucky 38 in no time. The jewel in the desert that drove both the NCR and BOS to the region, along with its old world relic just east of it.
The Lucky 38 was currently where Caesar was staying at, for now. It became the capital building of the Legion within a week after the battle of Hoover Dam. It had two praetorian guards at the front of the building, armed with the finest weaponry of the Legion. Once they saw both Vulpes and Courier Six, they ushered them into the building.
The interior of the first floor was the same as it was when it first opened up to the Courier weeks ago. However the interior design of the first floor has changed. The bar seemed to be alcohol free, there was a flag with the bull emblazoned just above the elevator, and there were many legion soldiers of many ranks putting Caesar's plan into motion for Vegas.
"Where is the meeting taking place, Vulpes?" the Courier asked
"The penthouse most likely." Vulpes answered, while motioning his associate to the elevator. He pressed the button to bring the elevator down to them. The elevator gave a little ding noise to signal that it was there, and then the doors opened. Both the leader of the Frumentarii and the faux mailman walked into it. Courier Six pressed the button that would bring the elevator to the penthouse floor.
The elevator was small, yet had enough room for both men. The soft humming of the elevator juxtaposed the metallic scratching from its doors. The men stood there awkwardly, until Courier Six spoke.
"Have the Great Khans fully assimilated into the Legion yet?"
Vulpes gave a puzzled look in response, "They have, some mourned the loss of their tribal identity, but most were satisfied with their vengeance against the profligates. Why do you ask?"
"Well some of those Khans know alot when it comes to chems," Courier Six said. "You could use that knowledge to plague the bear with addiction, and weaken it from within."
Vulpes hummed in response, clearly liking the idea given to him by his subordinate, but then slightly sighed.
"It's a good idea, I'll give you that. However I doubt Caesar will approve of that," Vulpes retorted, albeit in a lecturing way. "It also wouldn't earn me any favors with the Legate."
"That's a fair point," The Courier conceded but went on further. "But it would help us in the long run, we already have contacts with the Van Graffs-"
"Contacts who haven't been seen since their rendezvous with the Van Graffs." Vulpes countered.
"Sure, but having a potential temporary or permanent ally that is established in New Reno could peddle chems to those profligates of the west and can get us easy access to energy weapons." Courier Six explained.
Vulpes gave a light chuckle to the Courier's words, "If you think energy weapons would be approved for legionnaires in our lifetime you are sorely mistaken."
"But hypothetically speaking, would you approve this operation for the field if given the permission to" The Courier asked genuinely.
"I would if we got confirmation that the Van Graffs were willing to work with us for a period of time," Vulpes stated. "However it is unlikely that a criminal family would be willing to deal with us, our former contacts with them are MIA, most likely KIA. They are trying to play both sides most likely."
"But we could-forget about it, you're right." The Courier conceded completely. "That's why you're the leader of the Frumentarii, and not me."
Vulpes smirked at the praise. "But of course, I am Caesar's spymaster after all. I also gave him the good word about a wanderer that spread word of our deeds at Nipton."
Before the Courier could give his thanks to Vulpes, the elevator suddenly stopped moving, and gave a loud ding. The elevator doors to the penthouse floor opened, revealing the new headquarters of Caesar's Legion. The pair walked out of the elevator and into the floor. From what the Courier can tell, nothing about the room has changed much, besides the majority of the Praetorian Guard being located here. Which made sense, due to the fact that Caesar was making this his personal home and main place for planning for the future of his Legion.
The duo walked down the stairs and they saw the giant computer screen where once Mr House was. But the screen now was green with the text 'connection terminated' written out in the middle of the screen. But just left of the screen there was a room. The Courier remembered when this room was still hidden by a wall. All it took was a press of a key on a keyboard and the opening of a wall to end an almost 200 year reign by the once all powerful Mr House.
But now, the hidden room was open for everyone to see and was currently being used. There was a wooden table in the middle of the room, with five wooden chairs surrounding it, three of which were being occupied by people. Caesar was sitting in the carver chair, which was clearly made for an enlightened despot such as himself. To the left of him sat the leader of the Praetorian Guard, Lucius. Finally, to the right of Caesar sat the Monster of the East, Legate Lanius.
The Courier and Vulpes both walked into the room, hearing Caesar and Lucius discussing something, while Lanius was sitting patiently and silently. Both Vulpes and Courier Six sat down into their respective chairs. The Courier sat closer to Legate Lanius, while Vulpes sat closer to Lucius. The conservation that Lucius and Caesar was having had finally calmed down and ended. Caesar looked at both Vulpes and Courier Six, and gave them a welcome.
"Well it seems that we can finally start this meeting." Caesar said with authority laced within his tone. "Lucius, inform the guards that we are starting this meeting and make sure nobody is to disturb us."
Lucius nodded and got up wordlessly to inform the praetorians in the Lucky 38 of Caesar's newest order. Then an odd silence descended into the room. Legate Lanius wasn't a sociable person nor cared for formalites, so he made no attempt to talk with anyone. Vulpes, while being slightly more sociable than the Legate, didn't make any attempt to make conversation. So the Courier decided to strike the iron first, and make conversation with the people in the room he was currently with.
"Well, Caesar," The Courier. "I wish to give you a gift, a thank you for letting me achieve everything I have done with my life." Courier Six then brought up his pip-boy to and scroll through his apparel section. He then selected what he wanted and materialized it into his hand. It was a rather well smithed laurel wreath, made from some of his gold he had gotten from the Sierra Madre. Caesar at the sight of the laurel wreath smiled.
"I give you my thanks Courier, who forged this beautiful work of art?" Caesar asked while picking up the laurel wreath and putting it on his head.
"Well, I had legion blacksmiths make it, Vulpes helped me get in contact with them." The Courier replied.
Before Caesar could say something else to Courier Six, Lucius came back into the room and sat back down in his chair. The once connected rooms were once again separated by a wall. Lucius then put down a piece of paper and pen, obviously preparing for the meeting to actually start. Caesar then began his speech, a speech which will only be heard by four other people.
"Before we get started I would like to congratulate everyone in this room for my Legion's victory in the Mojave. Lucius and the praetorian guard guarding me with their lives, Vulpes's intelligence and espionage, Legate Lanius strategy and tactics." Caesar proclaimed with pride. He then let his eyes gaze only towards the Courier for just a moment, before continuing on.
"I would also like to congratulate our newest member of my Legion, Courier Six. A man who is dedicated to my cause and my empire. A true wild card in every sense, and crawled out of his own grave just to take his revenge upon his failed killer. He then came to me, and carried out my will perfectly. For all of his hard work and steadfast dedication to my people and nation, I give him the title of tabellarius." Caesar pronounced proudly.
The Courier felt a sense of pride wash over him. He knew of his deeds, and the consequences of them. But it felt different when Caesar gave him his approval. He didn't know why, he had gotten praise in the past from other people.
"I will wear that title proudly, and when I get sent out West to fight our enemies I will make it as a feared title as the Monster of the East." The Courier said with pride within his tone. He then stood up very quickly to give a curtsy bow, before sitting back down.
"Then let us get started with this meeting Caesar has created for reasons unknown to us." Legate Lanius stated with his gravelly voice.
Caesar nodded, and started to speak again. "Of course with our victory in the Mojave, we are open to invade the NCR at any time. But I feel like a cornered animal, it will lash out and cause unnecessary damage to my empire."
"Not to doubt your will, but what makes you think that the profigates of the West have in them to have one last stand against our combined might?" Lanius asked. "The Legion will conquer any foe that Mars throws at us, it is our divine right to conquer those tribes of the West and give them new meaning, free of the bear's weak influence."
"The NCR we faced weren't sending their best soldiers to their campaign in the Mojave. Many of their best are fighting in Baja or guarding caravans for the Stockmen's Association or the CCC. Their elite will fight our elite, and we must prepare for it accordingly." Vulpes answered.
Legate Lanius gave a dry chuckle of dismissal towards Vulpes, his masked face mocking Vulpes's suggestion by merely glancing at him slightly. "And where do you get this information from Vulpes? Disgruntled brahmin barons?"
Vulpes shook his head in disapproving manner, his hands starting to make their way to squeeze his chair's armrest in anticipation for the coming argument. "I understand with your upbringing into the Legion you would distrust my information, but it is the truth."
Lanius titled his head to the side a bit while crossing his arms in slight anger at the remark made by Vulpes. "Are you saying that due to me being more rooted in the Legion's traditions that I am too blind to see the Legion's shortcomings? For the whole campaign I have been adaptioning and strengthening the Legion to overcoming the Burned Man's failures at the Dam."
Everyone had a different reaction to the Legate's statement. Caesar bristled at the mention of the cofounder of the Legion but made no attempt to stop his Legate from speaking. Lucius showed shock through his facial expression, with him having his mouth slightly agape for a few seconds, before becoming stoic once more. Vulpes had a look of a scorned child upon his face. However, before he could respond, the Courier did for him.
"How exactly did you adapt the Legion at the Second Battle of Hoover Dam? In my eyes it hadn't changed a bit since the first battle." The Courier countered. "That's not to doubt your ability to lead or make strategies for the future, but simply throwing men into a meat grinder wouldn't work in the West."
Legate Lanius merely scoffed at the claim given to him. "The Legion won due to their superior numbers at the Dam, everytime an NCR soldier killed one legionary, five more would appear with more experience and better weaponry. We had tribal allies helping us on the ground and in the sky. We also had more time to study the enemy's tactics and nerves."
"What's to say they weren't studying your tactics throughout their campaign? They let us take their intake towers during the battle to get a tactical advantage. It only failed due to the fact that the Enclave Remnants and Boomers caught them off guard." Courier Six argued. "Furthermore they will use what they learned during their time in the Mojave and counter our every advancement into their land."
"What would you propose to counter this exactly? We can't just change our entire structure for just one conquest to remain unpredictable, it would collapse us behind our feet." Lanius asked.
"We could use any power armor from Hidden Valley and repurpose it, just like NCR did during their war with the Brotherhood of Steel. We could embrace more medically advantageous medicines to keep our troops alive longer. We could-"
"Absolutely not. That would weaken our collective human spirit within the Legion and increase our reliance on foreign technology used by profligates." Lucius exclaimed, cutting off Courier Six.
"But if we don't innovate we will be out maneuvered and die off into the pages of history." Courier Six retorted. "We sent thunder from the sky, and sent the fire raining down on the profigates at the Dam. Did that destroy the human spirit? Our legionnaires celebrating at the sight of the Boomer's bomber vaporizing their enemies?" Courier Six responded.
"You are right about that Courier Six, the Boomers played a part in winning the battle. But what you are asking for is a complete revamp on our moral code given to us by the son of Mars, Caesar." Lucius stated more seriously than before. "Unless he approves the use of more advanced technology, I will not allow my subordinates to use any sort of energy weapons and the like."
The Legate a nod of approval to Lucius. It seemed that the debate was in gridlock. Vulpes wanted some light reforms while the Courier wanted major reforms. While Legate Lanius and Lucius wanted to stay rooted in the tradition that they grew into. An uneasy silence had settled within the room itself. Nobody wanted to make another verbal move against one another. But Caesar finally spoke after hearing everyone's arguments.
"I understand the arguments said about the future of my empire, and the coming invasion of the NCR," Caesar remarked. "But I know it better than anyone else in this room. What I can say is that I have plans in my head that maybe put into motion."
"What do you have in mind specifically?" Vulpes asked, quieter than before.
"I agree with Tabellarius, we do need to somewhat modernize now." Caesar declared. "However I cannot let my Legion become dependent on technology, just like the profigates of the West."
"What was the radical part of my proposal, Caesar?" Courier Six asked.
"My new empire doesn't have the industrial base to produce and replace such technologies for one and like Lucius said things such as power armor, energy weapons and robots of any nature would destroy the human spirit of my legion." Caesar stated.
Lucius had a look of vindication worn across his face at Caesar's proclamation, the Legate, however was confused by his lord's ambiguity of his statement.
"Then what do you wish to be modernized Caesar?" Lanius requested respectfully.
"Lucius, write this down and spread it as law within my empire," Caesar commanded. Lucius picked up his pen and got ready to write down what he would say into law.
"Stimpaks, and of their variations will become legal to produce, use and trade for commerce within Caesar's Legion from this day forward." Caesar proclaimed with authority. Lucius wrote his proclamation down on his paper while Caesar was speaking.
After the debate about technology and its future within Caesar's Legion, the tone of the room had become more laid back, more bureaucratic like. They discussed many topics such as the slave trade and its uses, trade routes and protection of trade caravans. Expansion further west, birth rates and how to make people have more children. Economics and how to make a flourishing society. The states of the Omertas and the White Gloves Society as vassals to make money from Vegas's old gig economy. There were other topics, but the Courier had either forgotten them out of boredom or they weren't as interested in them.
The once sunny day had turned dark, with the pale moon slightly reflecting the Sun's light. The neon colors of the Strip had turned on hours ago, covering the Mojave skyline with many unique and distinct colors. One by one, people within the meeting were dismissed due to them by Caesar due to them being needed elsewhere. First it was Lucius, then Vulpes, and finally Caesar dismissed Legate Lanius. The only two people left in the room were Caesar himself and Courier Six.
They sat in silence for a bit, since they spoke about nearly every subject under the sun today. But the Courier noticed something off about the son of Mars. His body language portrayed him being strong and unmoving, however his eyes told a different story. These eyes told the Courier that he was making a decision about something right before his very eyes, and that he has been debating himself about the decision he wants to reach. But before the Courier could psychoanalyze Caesar further, he spoke.
"Why did you choose my Legion over the NCR and Mr House," he asked. "And tell the whole truth, do not lie at all with your answer."
The Courier pondered the question. He knew that before talking to Caesar about the Legion's history he was only in it to enact revenge on Benny and Mr House. He wanted to kill Benny in retribution for shooting him in the head in the first place. He also wanted revenge on Mr House because he ruined his life. He didn't, couldn't remember anything about his past. No memories of potential parents, siblings and friends. No memory of his past work and how he acted before his fateful delivery.
But after caving Benny's face in with a tire iron and hitting Mr House over the head with a golf club, he felt nothing. There was no satisfaction, no happiness, and no catharsis. His new life's purpose of vengeance against those that wronged him have given him nothing in return besides his new life as Courier Six, a living wasteland legend. But then he asked Caesar about his Legion's history, and found himself agreeing with the answers given to him.
Courier Six knew his answer to this question.
"At first, it was about vengeance," he said truthfully. "But it morphed into something else later on."
"What did your motivation morph into then?" Caesar probed. There was a long silence for a few seconds, before the Courier responded.
"I realized during our talk about the Legion's history that you were correct about the NCR, that it was a weak, ineffective and corrupt society that was ready to collapse at any time. I blamed Mr House for the reason why I was almost killed at Goodsprings by Benny. So I killed him without any mercy."
Caesar furrowed his brows at the Courier's answer, and asked again about his choices.
"What within our conversation convinced you that I was the best choice for the Mojave?"
"The new world in which we inhabit cannot go back to the old world values that nearly destroyed humanity," Courier Six explained. "That is why the NCR is failing partly, its reliance on irrelevant values and morals of the past. The NCR must be destroyed because it is destined to happen and that is the thesis that spawned its antithesis, Caesar's Legion,"
"Through my travels in the Mojave, I have only heard bad news of both the Legion and NCR. However people didn't view the Legion favorably due to their actions, not because of sheer stupidity and corruption like the NCR. The NCR doesn't keep its own citizens safe from raiders within their own borders, they allow the Brahmin Barons to rob their people and is on the verge of economic collapse. The Legion's future victory at Shady Sands will create a synthesis, a new nation without the flaws of either the thesis or the antithesis."
"I must commend you on your use of hegelian dialectics, it isn't the most easy concept to grasp." Caesar praised lightly. "However many people in your position would question my Legion's morals when it comes to topics such as slavery and women. Wouldn't that be seen as an excuse given to the masses by the elites of the society they live in?"
"Again, clinging to old world values in a new, ever evolving world is useless and self destructive. But any society must have order and hierarchy, without those the society falters and disappears from reality into the history books. The slaves are needed to work the jobs the Legionaires can't while they fight the Legion's enemies. The women are needed for new soldiers and bringing people into the Cult of Mars. They all have their uses within society,"
Caesar hummed at the Courier's answer, and suddenly asked a question.
"Do you know why I minted your face into the double aureus?"
"To commentate the Legion's victory at the Hoover Dam?" The Courier answered, with a hint of confusion.
"Partly, all of our currency shows the history of the Legion." Caesar said, while getting up. Caesar then walked over to the Courier. "Come take a walk with me, I want to explain something to you."
Courier Six got up and followed Caesar towards the elevator. They both went in and rode the elevator down to the casino floor. They walked out of the elevator and through the casino floor of the Lucky 38 and left the building. Both Caesar and the Courier walked for a while in silence before stopping at the front of the former NCR embassy in the Strip.
"Do you understand the symbolism of the double aureus?" Caesar asked abruptly.
"The front has a machete going through the top of General Olivers's cap vertically with the words 'Mojave Victoria' inscribed just above it. The back has a side view of my face on it with the words 'Taurus Tabellarium' inscribed on it. It represents the victory at Hoover Dam and the Legion's victory in its campaign in the Mojave." Courier Six answers, albeit with some confusion in his voice.
"That's true, but who are the only other people with their faces on the coinage?" Caesar asked, not satisfied by the Courier's answer.
"You, the Burned Man and Calhoun. The founders of the Legion that you lead today." Courier Six replied back.
Caesar sighed and put both of his hands on the Courier's shoulders and looked him dead in the eye and said "Why do you think I minted your face into the double aureus and not Lanius or Vulpes?"
The Courier thought about what Caesar asked, it was an oddquestion. He thought he had already answered it already, but clearly wasn't the answer Caesar was looking for. He then thought of Ancient Roman history just a bit. He didn't know as much as Caesar, but he had some knowledge of the topic. He thought of the reason why the Roman would mint faces onto their coins-
But then it hit him like a train. A conclusion that was far too outlandish and quite frankly silly. There was no way a person like Caesar would trust him like that. He was too new to Caesar's Legion for a responsibility of that caliber. But wasn't Legate Lanius entrusted with that being that he was Caesar's Legate? So he mustered enough courage to answer Caesar's question.
"You want to make me the heir to your empire?" The Courier answered, his voice quieter than the hums of the neon lights of the strip currently operating.
"It took you long enough." Caesar affirmed. "For a person that is intelligent, you can be fucking dense sometimes."
"You're serious about this? Why me over Lanius or Vulpes?" Courier Six asked.
"Well, you understand why the Legion was founded, while Vulpes and Lanius do not. You have the heart of a warrior and the brain of a scholar. Which both Vulpes and Lanius lack."
The Courier was dumbfounded at Caesar's admission. He was the heir to the throne, not Legate Lanius. He felt a great burden latch onto his shoulders like a parasite, he would have to lead a nation full of people. He wasn't prepared in any way possible, but if Caesar thought he could lead why should he have doubts in the first place. He put his dismissing thoughts at the back of his mind for a moment.
Caesar let go of his shoulders, and looked at Courier Six with a look of resolve.
"I will make you into the Augustus of our time, come back to the Lucky 38 in the morning of tomorrow. Me and Lanius will give you lessons on leadership both militarily and domestically."
Courier Six gave a quick nod of approval and watched as Caesar walked back to the Lucky 38. Courier Six decided to walk to let his mind clear after it got the news that it did. He walked out of the strip and Freeside into the barren Mojave Wasteland. He was a vagabond at heart and liked to travel places. He walked the old cracked roads of the wasteland to where he found the Lonesome Drifter. But once he got closer, he tensed up. There was smoke in the air, like a smokestack of one of those old factories.
He couldn't exactly see who it was making the fire there, due to the giant billboard obscuring his vision. He reached for his gun in his holster, a gun he got from Primm behind a locked safe called Lucky.
He quickly and quietly walked around the billboard to see a familiar face, but it wasn't one he ever wanted to see again. The man was sitting on the ground next to a makeshift campfire, and was wearing a NCR beret, aviator glasses and plain looking clothing. He had a ranger sequoia tucked into his pants on his right side and was smoking a cigarette. His face and eyes bore an expression of a war veteran even though he wasn't even in his thirties yet. The man noticed Courier Six and stood up immediately.
"Six," the man said with clear venom in his tone. "I didn't see or hear you approach me like that, it gave me flashbacks of the time we met at Nelson in the dinosaur's mouth. You have changed since then."
The Courier kept his hand on the handle of Lucky which was still in its holster, for now. The pale moonlight illuminated the two men, seeing each other's reflections on each other's glasses. The scene was tense, with nobody making a move, not wanting to make a misplaced shot, at least for now. The Courier sighed and took his hand off his revolver handle.
"Boone, you do know what you did at Hoover Dam that day?" The Courier muttered with anger.
"I took potshots at advancing legionaries," Boone replied snidely. "Clearly I didn't have a good enough shot if you're still here."
The arrid wind of the Mojave blew out the fire, leaving only a small bundle of what was. The Courier was livid at Boone's comment, but he bottled it up mostly on the inside.
"But there was a person you took a shot at who you knew in the past" The Courier hissed with fury. "You killed him, just like you killed your wife Carla-"
"Don't even speak of her, you lunatic." Boone warned angrily. "He was an enemy combatant and I couldn't just let Caesar take the Dam without a fight."
"I didn't take shots at you Boone, you know that. So why did you kill him." Courier Six asked with even more anger in his voice.
Boone slowly walked at the opposite end of Courier Six on the road. The fire was completely out, embers and all else. Just the wind spreading its ashes among the sands of the vast Mojave desert.
"He was a gunslinger and stood out with the outfit he was wearing, so I took the shot." Boone explained. "I don't care if you didn't aim at me specifically at the Dam, you took aim at my comrades indiscriminately like a butcher."
The Courier cocked the hammer of Lucky and kept his hand on the handle, getting ready to strike like a viper in the grass. He also heard Boone's gun get ready to shoot too, if his ears weren't lying to him. There wasn't a single sound after that, just pure silence.
"It doesn't matter now anyway," The Courier said out loud, not caring in the slightest if Boone heard his spoken thought. "It's like you said when we traveled together, right? Fair is fair."
"That's true, but not in the way you're thinking." Boone remarked sarcastically.
Now, it was just the two former friends staring each other down at night, with only the natural light and artificial light of Vegas illuminating the environment. No gunshots were heard in the distance, no animals made their advances on the two, it was in complete silence. They both held their hands on their respective guns, and waited for what felt like hours for the other to react.
They did react, nearly at the same time. With both men bringing their guns up and aiming their sights at one another and firing. The Courier felt a pain in his chest area, but was thankfully protected by the armor there, but that didn't stop him from falling straight down and being laid straight out. But as he was falling he saw that his shot had hit Boone, in the shoulder to be precise. Crimson red blood poured out of his shirt, staining his upper half of his shirt.
The Courier then heard a quick succession of footsteps coming towards his way, almost certainly belonging to the former NCR sniper. He saw and felt Boone put his boot on his chest, pointing his ranger sequoia at his head while doing so.
"Thumbs down, bitch." Boone mocked with a slight mixture of happiness and anger in his voice. He cocked the hammer back on his ranger sequoia, and readied himself to do the deed. However Boone forgot one vital weapon that the Courier has on him at all times, no matter the time or place he currently is at. His pip-boy on his left forearm.
The Courier knew he had about five seconds before Boone took his shot, so he had to make his move quickly, before he could end up a corpse at the side of the road. Like any other wastelander within the Mojave, and he couldn't accept that, not with the things he had been through. He wasn't going to be killed by a person who he considered a friend. But he was a friend a lifetime ago, and he shouldn't let past ties hold him down like this.
One second
The Courier puts his revolver back into his pipboy for further use down the road, if he survives this encounter that is.
Two seconds
The Courier brings his pip-boy to his face, much to the confusion of Boone, who thought he had given up on living.
Three seconds
The Courier finds the weapon he is looking for, and it seems that Boone is patching together an idea on what the Courier is trying to do.
Four seconds
Tabellarius brought the Big Boomer out and materialized it into his right hand. Boone's eyes widened behind his sunglasses in shock.
Five seconds
Both Tabellarius and Boone fired their guns, however one bullet missed the other by a hair, and the other was doomed to die by bleeding out.
Courier Six felt the bullet graze his right ear, the shot barley missing his head by only a few inches. Boone however dropped his ranger sequoia and clutched his stomach, which was now colored red. Boone lifted up his left hand to see it completely drenched in his own blood.
"You…you blew my guts out." Boone remarked quieter than his usual monotone voice is used to. Boone then dropped to the ground,face first, just right to the Courier. The Courier had a sad smile behind his breathing mask. His anger died out within him when he saw his friend fall to the ground, with a lethal wound in his stomach.
"It seems like the bear's strongest soldier has been defeated by the bull's greatest." The Courier said sadly.
Boone lifted his head up from the ground and put his blood stained hand on Courier Six's breast plate and gave a dry chuckle.
"That's what you think, us first recon troopers have a lot of tricks up our sleeves." Boone coughed up a bit of blood from his mouth, letting it dribble like drool down his chin. The Courier knew that Boone's left hand was on his chest, so what can Boone do before he dies? Strangle him to death?
But then it clicked, but it wasn't in a metaphorical way like thinking of a solution to a problem. He heard a clicking of a grenade pin. He saw Boone place his right hand over his chest, which made him worry a bit. Boone showed what he was holding within it, a grenade without its pin in it.
That made Courier Six panic, and before a person could count one mississippi, put the Big Boomer away and brought out the Black Mountain Transportalponder! And clicking the trigger of the device frantically multiple times before seeing the Big Mountain's blue light consume him. The explosion from Boone's hand grenade went off at the same time as the Transportalponder, which made Courier Six's vision fade to black.
Xxx
"You think his pistol would sell on the market?"
"Most of these huntsmen weapons are personalized, so they might sell good"
The Courier didn't recognize any of these voices talking about him. His vision, which was once black turned blurry, then turned back to normal. He saw some blonde guy with dirty blonde hair and a guy wearing an eye patch over his right eye standing over him.
The Courier shot up immediately and backed up a few feet, and put the Black Mountain Trasportalponder! in his duster. He got a better view of each man by doing so. The dirty blonde had a bandana around his neck and had a stubble around his mouth. The other person with the eyepatch had a rifle slung over his shoulder, and wore the same sort of disorganized uniform as the dirty blonde.
"Who are you, and why were you trying to rob me?" The Courier spouted quickly.
"Are you hearing this Patchy?" The dirty blonde said while laughing. "He doesn't know who we are."
"Shay… let's think about this for a bit. He's a huntsman in training at least if we judge by his armor. He may be a foreigner and doesn't actually know." Patchy said with some concern.
Shay stopped laughing and deadpanned at Patchy. He took out his weird hybrid weapon of a pistol and pressed it against Patchy's neck.
"You think of me as some joke? I outrank you crippled fuck, don't you ever say something that ever again, or I leave you to the grimm." Shay corrected, with a snarl.
"You two are a very dysfunctional sodomite couple. I am not impressed by your lover's quarrel." Courier Six quipped, with a smirk beneath his breathing mask.
Shay's rage went from Patchy to the Courier, aiming his gun at the Courier. Patchy had a look of alarm at Shay's brash decision. Shay returned Patchy a look of pure rage, and Patchy conceded, without saying a word. Patchy took the rifle off his shoulder, letting the sling drop and swing in the wind.
"Sorry kid, maybe if you give us all of your personal belongings we will let you live." Patchy said while aiming his rifle down the sight
Before Shay could say a quip, or Patchy make another statement, Patchy's one good eye exploded in a cloud of red mist. Shay looked at Patchy's still standing body with shock and before he could fire at the Courier, Courier Six swept him off his feet and took his gun. The Courier put That Gun back into the pip-boy to look at Shay's gun.
The Courier inspected Shay's gun with disgust. He knew people like him weren't exactly smart, but why would a person mix knuckle dusters with a pistol? As he was thinking, Patchy's body finally hit the ground, on his back. The Courier saw his one good eye be replaced by a red hole of meat and brain matter. With the blood from his wound, staining the grass around him.
Wait, why was there grass in the ground? The only place in the Mojave with grass and greenery is Vault 22 and Jacobstown. Even then Vault 22 was green due to an experiment and Jacobstown was mostly covered in snow. The Big Empty definitely didn't have this much grass, and trees. The Courier's thoughts swirled around in his head like a fish going down a toilet bowl.
The Courier's thoughts were interrupted by Shay's begging.
"Please don't kill me! It was an honest mistake!" Shay begged with tears starting to build up in the corners of his eyes.
"Your gun's design is horrible, I don't see a use for it in my collection." The Courier critiqued with snark.
"You, where am I?" Courier Six asked impatiently.
"In western Mistral, far away from the cities." Shay confessed quickly.
"How close is New Vegas in relation to Mistral?" The Courier requested.
Shay gave the Courier a look, before replying.
"I don't know," Shay said honestly. "I haven't heard of a New Veg-"
Before Shay could finish, he was picked up by the Courier with one hand by his shirt and pushed against a tree and had his own pistol's barrel pressed against his forehead.
"If you tell another lie I will end you." The Courier threatened. He stopped pressing him upon the tree, and gripped him by the back of his head, making him look at Patchy's corpse. "You don't want to end up like your friend, right?"
Shay shook his head frantically to please the Courier.
"I don't know of New Vegas, I swear. I could take you to my tribe's leader." Shay bargained.
The Courier pressed the pistol's barrel further into Shay's forehead.
"Why should I trust you? You might lead me into an ambush," The Courier said harshly. "Even if you're telling the truth, why would I want to go see your dear chieftain."
"She has information that you may want." Shay revealed. The Courier gave a slight tsk, and threw Shay's pistol away further into the wilderness. Shay sighed in relief, only for a moment however, since he felt another barrel placed onto his back by Courier Six.
"Walk Shay, your life depends on it. Don't run or make any moves, or you will die. Alone in this forest of yours." Courier Six jeered.
Shay nodded his head, and started walking in one direction, specifically north of Patchy's corpse.The Courier didn't put his gun away in his holster or pip-boy,making good on his threat against Shay. Shay never once looked back at the Courier, fearing something may happen to him if he does so.
They walked for about twenty minutes, before they found an old trail and followed it. The forest became less thick, and showed signs of deforestation. The trail was clearly new, due to the footprints in the dirt trail being more profound. If the trail was old then nature would have covered up humanity's blemishes against it already.
"We're close to the camp." Shay announced. Courier Six gave a sigh of relief, he didn't feel like holding his gun at Shay's back at a ninety degree aim forever. He put That Gun back into his pip-boy and started to walk beside Shay. The camp's walls were made of wood, mostly made from the surrounding trees. There was a huge gate as well, also made out of the wood of the surrounding trees, guarded by two people. Shay and Courier walked up to the gate, which confused the guards.
"Shay..who's this guy?" asked one of the guards, who was a female with an odd haircut and outfit.
"He wants to meet with Raven for information." Shay said quickly, not wanting to be around Courier Six any longer than he needs to be.
"What's your name girl?" Courier Six interrupted with a cheshire grin underneath his mask.
"Pearl White, why do you ask?" Pearl said with a nearly blank stare.
"Nevermind, I don't really need to remember names of potential bed warmers." Courier snidely replied.
To say Pearl got pissed would be an understatement, but Shay quickly put a stop to her acting rash towards the Courier, by putting his arm up to protect him.
"Look if you let him in, the less time he has to be here." Shay explained. Pearl grumbled under her breath, and signaled for the gate to be opened. It took a few seconds,butthe huge gate opened. Both Shay and Courier Six walked into the camp itself.
The people in the camp stared at Courier Six, many of whom were just talking and drinking before he arrived. One was sharpening the blades of this tribe, a clear blacksmith. There were many tents within the camp itself, but the biggest, most extragnet one was nestled within the top right corner of the camp. Some people came out of their tents to see what the commotion was about, bringing their weapons along with them.
Just outside the main tent, was a girl with short brown hair, and blue eyes who wore jeans, a brown vest and boots. The girl had some weird ring shaped blades attached to each side of her hips. The Courier saw no practical use of the pair of swords, but wasn't going to audibly complain about it.
"This guy wants to see Raven for information." Shay reveals to the younger girl. The girl looked at Shay, and then looked at the Courier Six.
"He doesn't look like much." The girl commented. "Why should Raven give this man her light of day?"
Shays stuttered out a response nobody could understand, so the Courier responded for him instead.
"I want information, simple as. If your leader gives me what I will get out of your hair." The Courier said coolly. The girl frowned at what the Courier said.
"We're bandits, not information brokers, go find Lil' Miss Malachite if you want information." The girl sassed. Shay looked like he had just died on the inside, while the Courier looked calm, cool and collected on the outside.
On the outside that is.
In his thoughts, on the inside, he was very angry about this girl's statement. He just took time out of his day to come here to find out where he was, and how he could return home. He wasn't going to be rejected by someone who looked like she worked at Gomorrah. The Courier walked past Shay, and to the girl, and leaned in close to her face, close enough where their noses were almost touching.
"You care to repeat that, miss?" The Courier growled out. The girl huffed in response.
"You don't scare me. And it isn't smart to threaten a second in command in their own camp, don't you think?" The girl said with a tone colder than ice.
A group of bandits started to amass around the three people in front of the main tent. Shay looked nervous at all of the attention Courier Six was getting. But Shay's nervous demeanor disappeared at the site of his tribe surrounding the mailman. His smile became devious and cunning, his tone had changed from scared to smug in a manner of minutes. He then turned around to address the growing crowd of people.
"This guy here is a riot," Shay shouted with bravado, wiping fake tears from his eyes. "I entertained his idea, and he comes to threaten our second in command when he doesn't get his way, like a toddler."
"It's interesting you didn't say this in the forest," The Courier said without breaking eye contact with the girl. "A rat like you would have met his demise with your friend if you would have."
The girl broke eye contact with the Courier to look at Shay, with her eyes portraying intrigue at the mysterious stranger's words. Shay puffed his chest out and stated what happened prior to this to the rest of the tribe.
To say that the tribe wanted his head on a pike would be an understatement, but the Courier wasn't afraid of some backwater tribals. He wasn't the average walk the wasteland fuck, no he was a living legend that slain many creatures and people that these bandits could never dream of fighting.
The Courier turned away from the girl and looked at the massing, angry mob forming due to Shay's little story. He faced the crowd, and prepared himself for anything to happen. He put his right hand in his inner duster pocket and used his pipboy to manifest That Gun into his right hand. The duster covered his gun in his gun, but the tribe knew that he was armed due to Shay's story. The people of this tribe were well armed to say the least, and more sober than the Fiends so they wouldn't generally be incompentent like them. It would be an uphill battle to get himself out of here, but he was confident in his own abilities.
The Courier gripped his gun that was in his duster, waiting for a potential shootout to break out. The bandits thought the same as well, gripping their weapons or getting into a fighting stance. The girl backed away from him, and started to reach for her blades that were on her hips. The climate was humid and damp, and the sun was casting down its glorious golden rays of sunshine onto the situation almost like a spotlight. But before anything could go down, a voice called out from the main tent.
"What's with all the noise? You're all going to attract grimm with all of your shouting." the voice proclaimed loudly, shutting up the tribe of bandits. The girl with the peculiar circular swords called back out to the voice.
"This guy in our camp killed one of our own, and Shay took him in. Says that he wants information." The girl responded back. There wasn't a reply back, and only heard thefootsteps of this mysterious voice.
The footsteps were owned by a woman wearing a black V neck with red styled top with a black skirt. She wore a plethora of beaded necklaces around her neck and wore a pure white mask that had four red and black slits. A red sash with a red tasset that was on her waist held her weapons sheath upon her right side. Along with wearing black boots, it was clear to the Courier that she was the leader of this tribe.
"Vernal, get the tribe under control," The chieftain commanded, she turned to the Courier and looked at him. "And you, follow me."
The Courier put That Gun in his holster, and started to follow the chieftain into her tent. He noticed the girl from earlier, who he now knows as Vernal, tried to diffuse the situation with the rest of the tribe. He also saw Shay cross his arms and gave a smug smile, thinking that his vengeful sob story would get him killed today. But the Courier is a very convincing and lucky man, and he wouldn't be going down that easily.
They both entered the main tent, and the chieftain walked around the cushion nearest to the tent flap and sat across from where he was currently standing. So the Courier Six likewise did the same, sitting across from the leader of the tribe he had angered. After a few seconds of silence Courier Six spoke.
"You're Raven right? Shay said that you could give me the information that I need." he asked.
"I am Raven," Raven confirmed. "People don't usually seek me out for information though, most come to criticize or try to avenge their villages."
"I face much of the same," Courier Six remarked. "My tribe is a tribe full of warriors and we aren't afraid to take what we want and what we need."
"I haven't heard much of your tribe's deeds out here in Mistral. Are they local to Mistral?"
The Courier shook his head, "No they are at the Mojave right now, though they originate further east from where they are currently."
"TheMojave?" I am not familiar with any places in Mistral called that?" Raven stated.
"You don't know about the Mojave Wasteland? The place with tribal warfare, violent wildlife and leftover arms stockpiles from the Great War?" The Courier replied back.
"I didn't know that Western Vacuo had regional power structures left after the Great War. From what I know it had been abandoned by Vacuo and left to the grimm." Raven said while waving her hand for emphasis.
The Courier didn't know what she was referring to. He knew that most tribal leaders weren't well educated in history and other such topics. He considered himself to have knowledge that most didn't, but he hadn't heard of a place called Vacuo.
"Of Course, the West has recovered since then, and is slowly being engulfed into my tribe's grasp of control." Courier Six said, mixing his truth and Raven's statement together.
"Really now? Last time I was there it was rather wild and dangerous." Raven said with little to no interest.
"Anyway" Raven continued. "Onto the important issue, is it true that you killed one of my tribesmen?"
He felt the eyes of the woman behind her mask hardened with resolve for information. He knows that even if he killed her it wouldn't be worth the trouble. He would unnecessarily burn a bridge with a potential tribe for assimilation. Even if he personally hated Shay for being a rat like those profligates in the West, he would have to hide it behind an impersonal front.
"Yes I did kill one of your own, but it wasn't out of an irrational decision. Shay and Patchy tried to rob me at gunpoint. So I acted in self defense." Courier Six stated with little emotion present in his voice.
"And you came here with your former robber for information about geography essentially." Raven snarked lightly.
The Courier nodded, "Right, I was in a gunfight in the desert and woke up in a forest. So naturally I want to know where I am."
Raven tilted her head to the side ever so slightly to show curiosity to his predicament, but didn't comment on it. She stood up from her seat, and gave a light chuckle.
"You're a little young to be getting into gunfights, but I can't be moralizing you." Raven said with some amusement.
Courier Six slightly nodded to her comment while getting up from his seat. He didn't know his age exactly, it was probably around nineteen to twenty five he was to guess himself. Due to past experiences as a mailman.
"Are you letting me off on killing one of your own?" The Courier asked."I'm not complaining, but wouldn't that make yourself look weak in front of your people?"
"The person you killed was missing one eye, and would have died to some else anyway," Raven explained. "You got rid of one of the weakest members in my tribe, so I don't really care. But if it was anyone else there would have been a problem."
The Courier gave a curt nod in response. He didn't want to spend another minute here with these bandits, so he would have to be more direct in his wording.
"Now, about the information you could give me?" Courier Six said a little too quickly.
"Well if you do a favor for me, I will give you it." Raven disclosed.
"Well, what is it you want me to do?" Courier Six inquired with some tiny droplets of annoyance in his voice.
"My second in command, Vernal hasn't lost to anyone in spar besides me. She is beginning to feel too comfortable with fighting, I feel that she is getting too big of a head. I need you to bring her down a peg." Raven explained with a
The Courier laughed internally. With the weapons Vernal was carrying around, she would just wildly swing those circular blades around with as much grace and brutality as a boatfly. This seemed like an easy sweep in his favor.
"Seems easy enough to me." The Courier said, agreeing to Raven's request. He brought his left hand out for Raven to shake. She took his hand into a firm handshake, sealing the deal.
"I am going to announce your spar with Vernal to the whole tribe, for them to watch and learn from both of you. If you win, it will keep the tribe off your back, for now." Raven stated clearly.
She motioned the Courier to follow her outside with a simple head movement. The Courier did so, and before they both could walk out, Raven with a tent flap lifted up with her right hand turned her head around and asked a very simple question.
"I'm going to tell everyone about the spar, but I don't know your name, so can you tell me your name?"
The Courier felt a slight smirk fall upon his face. These people didn't know about his deeds in the Mojave, judging by Raven's reaction to his information he gave her. His name will be known as the messenger of the Bull's will, no matter where he may roam.
"Courier Six"
X
Name: Courier Six
Sex: Male
Level: 50
Karma: Evil
Strength:10
Perception:10
Endurance:10
Charisma:10
Intelligence:10
Agility:10
Luck: 10
Skills( in general): 100
Reputation:
Idolized: Caesar's Legion, Great Khans, White Glove Society, The Boomers, The Omertas, Goodsprings, Primm
Vilified: New California Republic, Powder Gangers, Brotherhood of Steel, Novac, The Strip, Freeside
Inventory
Weapons:
A Light Shining in Darkness
All-American
Big Boomer
Big Mountain Transportalponder!
Dinner Bell
Gobi Campaign scout rifle
Lucky
Maria
Mysterious Magnum
Survivalist's Rifle
That Gun
Holorifle
Pew Pew
Love and Hate
Pushy
She's embrace
Blood-Nap
Liberator
Knock-Knock
Old Glory
Figaro
Nephi's golf driver
Apparel:
Benny's suit
Desert Ranger Armor
Courier Duster(Fighting Chance Variant)
Hazmat suit
Lucky Shades
Marked Beast eyes helmet
Rebreather
Breathing mask
Vera's dress
Aid:
Antivenom(2)
Bitter Drink(4)
Stimpak (23)
Super Stimpak(2)
Healing Powder(7)
Med-X (12)
Miscellaneous:
Mark of Caesar
NCR emergency radio
Pre-war money(12)
NCR 20 dollar bill(20)
NCR 5 dollar bill(5)
NCR 100 dollar bill(3)
Legion Denarius(13)
Legion Aureus(23)
Legion Double Aureus(1)
Traits:
Trigger Discipline
Wild Wasteland
Perks:
Lady Killer
Confirmed Bachelor
Friend of the Night
Heave, Ho!
Rapid Reload
Hunter
Run n' Gun
Bloody Mess
Gunslinger
Shotgun Surgeon
Quick Draw
Commando
Cowboy
The Professional
Vigilant Recycler
Stonewall
Strong Back
Super Slam!
Sneering Imperialist
Terrifying Presence
Mysterious Stranger
Hit the Deck
Life Giver
Piercing Strike
Silent Running
Sniper
Unstoppable Force
Adamantium Skeleton
Jury Rigging
Paralyzing Palm
Slayer
Ninja
Khan Trick
Ranger Takedown
Legion Assault
Brainless
Spineless
Heartless