"Mornin', Bell."
Bell yawned as he sat up and stretched. The sun hadn't risen yet, but the sky was slightly lightening, and he watched as the Courier smothered the last embers of their campfire. A moment later, he stood up and dressed, the bleariness from just awakening fading as he prepared for the day. Next, he rolled up the bedroll he slept on, and watched, fascinated as Six stored it within her Pip-boy.
"How does that work?" Bell asked. Six took a second to think about it before answering.
"Well, I can't really teach you the physics behind it unless you already have a good understanding of the subject, so I guess the easiest way for you to think about it is that my Pip-boy can magically redistribute the particles of my equipment around me so it can put it back together later. Essentially, I can carry as much as I can physically lift. Alright, is that everything?"
At Bell's nod, the two begin the trip back to Orario, leaving the forest behind. As they hit the road, the sun rose above the horizon behind them, and Six turned to bask in it. Bell laughed at the sight, his teacher's eyes were closed, hands behind her head, and she was walking backwards with a soft smile on her face.
"What are you doing, miss Six? You look like a cat- or a plant."
"Just taking in the light, kid. I've always risen with the sun."
The two kept walking, and after a while, the walls of Orario came into sight. Six groaned as the line to enter the city did, too.
"Why are there so many people there?"
"Well, I heard that there's a festival called Monster Philia today. I guess there all here for that."
"Yeah, the guy who stopped by our campsite last night mentioned it. Must be some big deal."
"Would you want to go to it? I-I mean, with me? It's supposed to be pretty fun, and they have a show with monsters in the arena."
"Oh? Wouldn't you rather ask Ais Wallenstein? Or that Syr girl?" Six grinned, looking at Bell as he blushed. To her surprise, however, rather than stuttering or denying, he took a deep breath and spoke seriously.
"I want to go with you. Last night, you said we were barely acquaintances. I want to be your friend, because you're already mine."
For the first time since Bell knew her, he watched as the Courier was taken aback. She couldn't find the words to respond for a moment, and when she did speak again, it was quiet and serious.
"I don't really have friends, Bell. The closest thing I do have is a machine that I hardwired to be fond of me. I've had companions, people I trust enough to do certain things and fight alongside, and I've had flings, but I've never been close enough to someone to call them a friend."
"That sounds lonely. Please, will you try?"
"You don't know anything about me. I've done horrible things that'd make you sick, and my morals are skewed beyond belief. You want to be a hero, right? I might as well be a monster."
"Don't say that! I know enough. I know that you are kind enough to help a rookie survive, and strong enough to protect people. I want to be your friend."
Six looked at Bell. He was serious, his face set with a determined grin. The Courier heaved a sigh, before smiling at Bell. It was a small smile, but the most genuine one the boy had seen from her.
"You wouldn't last a day in the wasteland. Alright, Bell Cranel. I'll go to Monster Philia. Now that we're friends, I guess I should give you this."
Courier Six handed Bell a green brick, with a couple buttons on the side, an antenna on top, and two grates on the front.
"Thanks… what is it?"
With a sly grin, Six lifted her Pip-boy and pushed a button before speaking. To Bell's surprise, the brick crackled, and her voice came out of it.
"That's a radio I got from the NCR a while back. Right now, it's set to the same frequency as my Pip-boy, so if you push that side button, we can have a conversation from far away. It's got good range, so if you need help or want to ask me something, try it."
"Th-that's amazing! I-I can't take this! It must be worth a fortune! You're just giving this to me? Thank you, miss Six!"
"Eh, it's just some junk back home. Don't sweat it. And, if we're going to be friends, cut it out with that 'miss' shit. Just Six is fine."
"Right… sorry."
The two were silent for a while, and as they neared the city, Bell asked another question.
"So, what did you do that was so bad?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Well, you said- Hey! Mi- SIX! Wait for me!"
Six laughed as she ran to the line, leaving Bell to catch up.
After Six explained her name to yet another guard, the pair of adventurers were allowed back into the city. When Six heard about the monster fights, she imagined that the festival would be confined to the arena, and that it would be an event like the fights held in the sewers of New Vegas at the Thorn.
She was absolutely wrong. The streets were packed, with vendors loudly hawking their wares, and so many people moving between attractions and stalls that it made the Strip look like a ghost town. The only place she had seen this many bodies was at the second battle of Hoover Dam, and the crowd was putting her on edge. It was getting harder and harder for her to hide her discomfort from her young companion, and it wasn't long before Bell led Six to a gap between two food stalls.
"Six, are you alright?"
"Just peachy," Six replied, eyes darting between passersby, watching for possible aggression.
Bell gave her a pointed look at the obvious lie.
"Okay, maybe not peachy, but... Ah, fine. This crowd is… a little much."
Before Bell could respond, a voice called out.
"Bell!"
"Goddess! You're back!"
"Well, yeah! I just missed you so stinking much! How about you?"
"Oh, yeah. I missed you too. It's just that-"
"I'm so glad! I always knew we had an unbreakable bond."
Hestia smiled and grabbed Bell's hand and turned to lead him away.
"Goddess Hestia, what are you-"
"Let's go on a date, okay?"
Bell drug his feet a bit as Hestia tried to get him to budge.
"W-w-wait a second, Goddess! I'm here with a friend today."
"Okay, he can come with us as we have our date."
"That might be a bad idea."
Six had watched this exchange, smirking as Bell looked back to her for help. The amusing sight had helped her forget about the crowds for a moment, and she finally decided to speak up.
"Hello, Hestia. Good to see you again."
Hestia froze, before turning around and giving Bell a cold smile.
"Bell, you didn't tell me that the friend you were spending the festival with was a girl. Hello, Courier Six."
"Sorry, goddess. Six and I were about to go find somewhere with a lot less people nearby, though."
The Courier held back a laugh as Hestia practically squawked.
"It's been three days and you're already taking her to secluded areas during a festival?! And just 'Six', no formalities?!" The goddess bemoaned, before turning to Six, looking betrayed. "And you! You said you weren't interested in Bell!"
"Sorry 'bout that, Hestia, Bell and I got a lot closer after spending the night together."
"Six! That doesn't help! Please stop hitting me, goddess. We went hunting yesterday as part of my training; we just slept in the woods!"
After Bell managed to defuse the conversation, Hestia was back to making doe eyes at him. She begrudgingly accepted accompanying the two as they ate lunch in a relatively empty patch of grass outside the arena, and eagerly sent Bell to get crepes for the trio. The two women chatted as they waited.
"So, Six. I managed to talk to the leader of a Familia about you at the gods' banquet a couple of nights ago. They might reach out to you, so keep an eye out."
"Thanks, Hestia. I've only spoken with Soma, so I'm more than willing to hear them out. By the way, Bell's doing well in training. He learns quickly, but he needs a new weapon. His current one is pretty low quality, and knives are dangerous to rely on as a primary weapon."
Hestia grew concerned.
"What do you mean? Why's it dangerous?"
"Well, the lack of reach puts you in the way of pretty much any retaliation, and the short blade will make it hard to do a lot of damage to larger creatures with thicker flesh. Honestly, I was going to suggest for him to learn how to use a spear."
Hestia looked a little green.
"U-use a different weapon, h-huh. How bad would it be if he stayed with a knife?"
"It's not ideal, but he would probably be fine for a while if he added some more tools to his arsenal. Something for a ranged fight, or to help him deal with larger targets."
The two sat in silence until Bell brought back the food. When he got back, Hestia pushed whatever was troubling her to the back of her mind, and soon was pestering Bell to share food with her.
The Courier silently ate the crepe, marveling at taste. A permanent connection here could solve so many food problems back home, Six thought, but there's no way to implement it on a large enough scale to solve any problems without creating more. When she finished her food, she stood and addressed the other two.
"This was fun, Bell. Thanks for insisting I go. I'm going to check out the monster show, so I'll leave you two to your date."
Distracted by each other, neither of the two objected to Six leaving, and she began walking towards the coliseum.
After a brief walk, Six arrived at her destination, and was met by the sight of a familiar face.
Her Dungeon advisor from the guild was talking with a brunette employee of elven heritage in a low, hushed whisper, doing their best to avoid drawing attention. Both women had a worried expression on their face, and as Six approached them, she heard the tail end of their conversation.
"They said to ask for help from any adventurers I could find, regardless of what Familia they happen to be from," Misha informed her colleague.
"Ugh, great. Not sure if we want the ones around here," she responded. Naturally, Six decided to offer her services.
"Misha? What's going on?"
"I would like to know as well."
The other voice that spoke up belonged to a blonde-haired woman who was twisting the finger of a red-haired goddess. Six recognized her as Ais Wallenstein, but couldn't tell if she remembered the Courier from their brief encounter in the Dungeon. Both of the employees seemed surprised when the adventurers spoke, but the brunette was the first to recover.
"Sword Princess, Miss… Courier, the Guild requires your assistance. Several monsters have escaped and are running amok in the streets. We would request that you hunt the monsters and kill them before anyone gets hurt. Ideally, we would like to prevent a mass panic, so if you could keep this quiet and try to portray it as part of the festivities, that would be appreciated."
"Of course," Ais was quick to accept.
"Sure," Six replied easily, "What's the pay?"
The elven worker narrowed her eyes, coldly responding, "You may keep the magic stones, and further payment will be discussed after the situation is resolved. If anyone gets seriously hurt, you'll get nothing."
"Hmm…" the Courier mulled the offer over, ignoring the glare from the negotiator, the shock from Misha, and the curious look from the goddess, before responding. "Alright. I've done more for less before."
After a quick briefing, Six and Ais got to work. Well, Ais did, at least. Now, Six was not slow by any stretch of the imagination. She was a powerful person, and was agile enough that some wastelanders spread rumors that she could walk on water. Her body was above the absolute peak of human condition in the wasteland, and was further enhanced by extensive cybernetic implants, leaving her more machine than mortal, as well as almost unrivalled in both physical and mental ability. What she was seeing now though, defied all logic.
Ais Wallenstein practically flew to the top of a nearby pillar, jumping nearly twice the height that the Courier could reach in a single leap. She was far more than an acrobatic marvel, and after scanning the surrounding areas, she quietly whispered "Tempest" before she launched herself toward the nearest monster at a speed Six could barely reach without her implants on full blast.
Left standing behind with the red-haired goddess and the two employees, Six spoke.
"Forget about the payment. I might not make it in time to actually fight anything."
Then, pushing off, Six started running at a breakneck pace, barely managing to keep pace with the Sword Princess who was able to quickly leap up and down from the rooftops. The only reason she was able to at all was because of the couple seconds of break she would take to deal with the monsters along her path.
It was just after she cleared a square of four monsters that Six managed to catch up. Seeing Ais stop moving, the Courier came to a stop as well.
"You kno- aaaaaand she's gone again. YOU COULD AT LEAST LEAVE SOMETHING FOR ME TO FIGHT, GODDAMNIT." She yelled after the adventurer.
This was very annoying for the Courier. She had been looking forward to venting at least a little frustration after being near crowds all day, and while she could probably keep pace with Ais in a more enclosed environment like the Dungeon, she was so much more maneuverable around the city's architecture than the Courier, that all Six could really do was pick up the stones that the blonde was leaving in her wake.
Before she could leave to chase Ais, three more people ran into the clearing. They were also from the group she met in the Dungeon, and they looked at the grumbling Courier in confusion. Then, one of the dark-skinned twins spoke.
"Oooh, you're that lady from the Dungeon! The one that put Bete in his place! Nice to meet ya; I'm Tiona!"
Snapped out of her muttering, Six blinked at the cheerful woman before responding.
"Yeah. Nice to meet you. I'm called the Courier."
As she reaches out to take shake Tiona's hand, the woman eager grabs her hand and begins examining the glove of her elite riot gear.
"Wow, your armor's so cool! Especially with that helmet, it makes you look like a badass! Where'd you get it?"
"Uh, I found it in a ruined city a while back. The last guy didn't need it anymore, and it offers some serious protection."
At this, Tiona quickly let go of the glove before awkwardly saying, "Well, it's really cool that it's an ancient relic of the past, but doesn't taking a dead person's armor seem a little… morbid?"
"I washed it," Six replied, shrugging. "It's saved me more times than I can count, so I stopped caring about that a while ago. Anyways, who're they?"
"My name's Tione, Tiona's big sister," the other amazon responded
"Lefiya. Now let's go catch up in case Ais needs our help," Lefiya curtly stated before turning to follow the swordswoman.
"Don't worry," Tione responds, "we won't even get a chance to fight. Let's just leave it to Ais today, yeah?"
"Okay," the elf conceded, "we didn't even bring our weapons or anything."
They four of them walked to the center of the square, and before Tiona could begin pestering Six with a variety of questions, the ground started quaking.
Erupting through the ground a few yards away was a thick, green tendril, causing the civilians still lingering in the square to panic, and the adventurers prepared for battle.
"I've never seen anything like it," Tiona spoke," where'd the Genasha Familia even find this thing?"
"We need to attack it," Tione ordered, "Lefiya, start chanting."
"Right!"
The twins rushed forward, hitting the tendril with a surprising amount of force. It crashed to the ground, before flinging the two off, rising again no worse for wear. Six stood at the ready, observing the elf as she raised her hands and began chanting something, presumably magic, Six thought.
Suddenly, the tendril turned to face Lefiya, ignoring the two amazons, and Six felt the earth beneath her feet tremble. Moving quickly, Six grabbed the caster's arm and yanked her away from another tendril that burst from the ground. With her other hand, she swung with Blood-nap, and cut into the monster. While it did do damage, the blade was too short to do enough to dissuade the attack or impair it, and the blow struck Six across the chest piece.
Taking the hit well, Six slid back from the impact before regaining her stance and took a moment to think about her options. Blunt attacks don't seem to be too effective, Blood-nap isn't enough, and my pistol would take too much ammo. The larger tendril that initiated the fight suddenly bloomed, opening the pod at the top to reveal a ring of petals and a mouth behind the jaws of a plant bearing the resemblance of the spore plants found in Vault 22. Six smirked as she saw the resemblance. Perfect. I have just the thing.
A moment later, the plant rose higher, unleashing more vines, and managed to wrap them around the two bruisers in front of it. With them restrained, the monster turned toward the elf and the Courier that stood on the other end of the square.
"What are you doing!? We need to help them!" Lefiya shouted at the other woman, who was now fiddling with the device on her wrist.
"Give me a moment, almost there…" the Courier grunted.
The plant reeled back a vine, and swept it in a wide arc toward the two. Lefiya, threw her arms up and braced for the impact, but it never came. Cracking one eye open, she looked at the Courier in confusion.
The last of some blue sparks faded into nothingness as the Courier held a blade across her front, blocking the vine. The sword seemingly materialized out of thin air, along with a tank strapped to the woman's back. The tank was rusty, with a faded yellow triangle with a symbol that could only mean fire on it, a cap on top, and a black hose connected to the hilt of the blade. There was a blue valve on the handguard, and some kind of lever on the front, and the cruel-looking blade was singed black.
With a push, Six shoved the vine back, and a she quickly turned the valve. With a flick of her wrist, Six coated the blade in some liquid, and in a pump of the lever, the sword was wreathed in an intense flame, and Lefiya could feel the heat from where she stood.
"Alright, you overgrown weed. I started carrying this baby around after I escaped a green hell."
Six leapt forth with a wordless shout, and pierced the base of the plant with her weapon. She sliced it upwards, and as she cut the plant, it screeched as the flames took hold. It writhed as it recoiled from the Courier, and before long it burnt to ash.
As the twins fought the vines entangling them, the ground rumbled again. Three more of the plants sprouted from the earth, and with a roar, one lunged at Lefiya. Then, the other two plants abruptly turned towards the sky, and the one lunging was slammed off-course, as the Sword Princess smashed into it.
Unfortunately, the sword she was using broke under the pressure of the strike, and she was forced to retreat as the three plants turned their attention to her.
"AIS! This flower thing can sense magic! Get rid of your wind NOW!"
With a nod, Ais dropped the magic enhancing her, and she slowed down considerably. While slower, the plants became less agitated, and leaned off the aggression to her. Six started targeting one of the plants, and it avoided the flaming blade at all costs. It would use it's smaller vines to block heavy strikes, and maneuver it's main body to avoid any direct hits, meaning it was never in contact with the sword long enough to ignite like the first one did. It was getting burnt and moving slower as the fight dragged on, however.
Without warning, Ais reactivated her tempest midair, and the plant she was fighting, as well one of them that was turning towards a stall, snapped to attention. The distraction let Six finally sink her weapon into the third plant, and it screeched as its body went up in flames.
There was a crunch, and Six saw from the corner of her eye as Ais was bitten by a plant midair, and was violently flung into the wall behind her. Meanwhile, as one of the plants burned, Tiona and Tione managed to escape the vines and intercept one of the plants as it lunged towards the thrown adventurer.
That was when Misha and Eina ran into the square. The two stared as the Sword Princess rose with a shattered blade in hand, the twins were ineffectively hitting back two plants, and Six was fighting a burning flower with a sword wreathed in fire. While all this happened Lefiya stood, frozen, watching as her idol was hit. What use am I? They immediately target me, and I have to be saved again. I… I'm just in the way.
In its death throes, the flaming plant slammed into the Courier, knocking her back as it faded to ash. She slid back, quickly rising to her feet again, before her sword sputtered. It struggled for a second, and went out as the hose fueling the sword was gone. It was ripped from place as she slid along the ground, and now her limited supply of fuel was spilled across the square, and her weapon was now just a normal, if hot, sword. Six dematerialized her weapon's components, resolving to fix it later.
"Miss Courier! Your weapon! Get back!"
Six glanced over. It was Misha, who stood next to her coworker and Lefiya. She smirked before answering.
"Now why would I do that? I'm in the middle of a job right now."
Six turned back towards the fight, pulling her fist back for a Legion Assault. She leapt into the devastating attack, and delivered a piercing strike to one of the vines. She broke the hard skin, and tore into the stem of the flower monster, before it screeched and recoiled from the fist.
As the four fought weaponless, Lefiya finally moved. I need courage. I want to help. I want to support her. I want to fight ALONGSIDE her, the elf thought, feeling motivation burn deep inside her.
"Proud warrior, snipers of the forest. Take up your bows before the advancing plunderers. Answer the call of your brethren and ready your arrows. Tinge them with flame, the lamplight of the forest."
"Isn't that… fire magic?" asks Tiona.
"Yeah, it hits a wide area with fire. Defend her until she's done," Tione responded.
Six looked down as she heard this. A grin covered her face.
"Haha! Oh, you know how to make my day!" The Courier crooned. "Everyone, get away as soon as she's finished!"
"Release them, the fire arrows of the fairies. Falling like rain, burn away the savages. Fusillade Fallarica!"
The four combatants flee from the plants as Lefiya finished her chant. The plants roars as they are bombarded, shrugging off the fire magic as it hits in small bursts. Then, the embers reach the ground.
The fuel for Six's weapon ignited, and the center of the square ignited into a corona of flames, shining in a bright blue and violent orange as the potent fuel mixed with the magical fires and consumed the tinder that was their opponents.
The column of flames swirled as the plants shrieked, and the civilians returned to watch it, awestruck. The Courier laughed in glee as the flames crackled, and Lefiya looked on, proudly.
"You were great out there, Lefiya!" Tiona called, giving the girl a tight hug.
Six watched the blaze as the red-haired goddess from earlier showed up. She was giving the other combatants orders on what to do next, when Six's radio picked up an incoming transmission.
"Six! I don't know if you can hear me, but Bell needs your help! He's fighting a monster he can't win against!"
"Hestia?" the Courier asks, worried. "Where are you?"
The only ones still in the square were Loki, Lefiya, and Ais. Loki looked at the Courier, listening intently to the conversation.
"He-he locked me in the tunnels in Daedalus Street to protect me. He's still out there, Six!"
"Daedalus Street? I'll hurry as fast as I can."
Without another word, Six sprinted east. Loki sighed.
"Ais, you should go too. As much as I hate the runt, she shouldn't have to lose a child."
Loki looked around, only seeing Lefiya, who was trying to go as well.
"Of course, she's gone already. Where'd ya think you're going? Someone's gotta make sure this fire doesn't get out of control."
Six was sprinting through the streets and alleys, relying on her Pip-boy's map to guide her through the labyrinthian city. Meanwhile, she tried to get information from the frantic goddess.
"Hestia, it seems like y'all wound up on the other side of the city. Where exactly on Daedalus Street are you?"
"I- I dunno! I'm in a tunnel now, and we were a square earlier."
Six grit her teeth at the vague answer.
"Alright. Stay put, I'll be there soon."
"I can't, I need to help Bell!"
"Hestia, wait! Hestia? Hestia!"
No response.
"Damnit!" Six swore, cursing the diminutive goddess for her impulsiveness.
"Having a bad day?" A voice asked from the end of the alleyway she was currently running through.
Three people blocked Six's path. The one who spoke wore a leather jacket, jeans, and a pair of goggles, and had jet black swept-back hair and a cocky grin. Strapped to his thigh was a large dagger, and in his right hand was a jagged red spear, barbed to cause as much damage as possible. On his left, Six saw a familiar face. Gran was standing there, holding his sword with reluctance, the miserable look on his face broadcasting that he would rather be anywhere else. On the other side, stood a short man wielding an axe, with scraps of metal armor splayed across his body. When the man in the middle spoke, Six heard someone move to block the way she came, cutting of her escape route. Six ground to a halt.
"I have somewhere very important to be. I don't suppose I could convince you all to get out of my way?"
"Ah, but I have business with you, Courier," the man in the middle said. "We haven't met, but you have caused quite a few problems for me."
"You must be Dix," Six realized. "Head of the Ikelos Familia, right? Surprised you can afford to spare the manpower to hunt me after the deathclaw got loose."
"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. You see, we lost a lot of people. Then, one of our best manages to survive, and what happens?" He asks casually, before his cocksure attitude drops into an angry snarl. "He runs into some random bitch, who convinces him to turn himself in to the Guild and betray our Familia. Do you know how hard it is to kidnap someone in Guild custody? I had to use the last of my favors and paid quite a hefty bribe to get Gran back."
He took a deep breath before smiling again.
"So, between the bribes and that 'deathclaw' escaping, we need some more manpower, merchandise, and money. Doesn't help that we lost a shipment in the woods earlier this week. Actually, it happened the day before you arrived, and the guards were killed using a method I've never seen before. That's weird, I don't suppose you saw what happened, mysterious stranger?"
Six remained silent, content to let Dix rant for a moment longer.
"Gran told me you were hunting the monster we caught in order to kill it. But here's my theory: I think that you freed those subhuman freaks, and they begged you to save their friend that came to get them. And you, a filthy monster lover, decided to trick Gran so he'd shut down our business, so we could all live happily ever after with the hellspawn in the Dungeon. And thus, I- Oi, what's so funny?" Dix frowned as he was interrupted by Six's guffaw.
"Y-you think I was trying t-to SAVE a DEATHCLAW," Six gasped for air as she laughed. "Y-you think the deathclaw wanted to SAVE the xenos! Y-you've absolutely lost it!"
"SHUT UP!" Dix roared, infuriated at the mockery. Another moment passed as the Courier calmed herself, then she looked directly at Gran before she spoke.
"You've seen its eyes, Gran. Did that monster appear capable of caring? Empathy? Mercy? Do you really believe it was there to help the Xenos? Do you think I lied about wanting to kill it?"
Gran averted his eyes.
"Funny thing about that. I can prove you did lie," came the oily voice of Dix. Both Six and Gran looked to him as he pulled out a paper. "Look here, Gran. Official Guild records show's she's Level 2. She promised you that she could kill it, right? How could you, a Level 4, be unable to beat a monster that she could?"
The paper in Gran's grip trembled as he looked at the number 2, his expression twisting in betrayal as he desperately wished for it to change.
"So, Gran, I've come up with a solution to all of our problems, and the best part is, your new friend can help! Gran! I should silence you for trying to snitch on the Familia, but you can prove your loyalty by capturing her. Do that, and I'll forgive you. We'll have some merchandise to replace the monsters we lost. Hell, she's a pretty thing under that helmet, maybe you can keep her if you hunt down that deathclaw. Actually, kill her if she gives you too much trouble. We'll just strip her gear and sell it for hundreds of millions. Maybe even a billion."
Gran stepped forward, anger and hurt written onto his expression. He was followed by the axman, and Six heard the man behind her step up as well.
Six spoke once more.
"This is your last chance to walk away."
The man with the axe snickered.
"Oh, yeah? What happens if we don't?"
"Let's just say I'll leave just enough of you for the hellhounds to fight over," Six spoke, causing the surrounding men to freeze in place.
The demeanor of the Courier changed when she spoke. She no longer resembled the Six that Gran had met, rather her presence felt akin to the deathclaw, and the lenses of her helmet glowed like the eyes of a monster. She was unstoppable, and it would be certain death if they approached her. The first one to move, Gran threw his greatsword to the ground. Six began to walk forward.
"As I said earlier, I have somewhere urgent to-"
"Lose thyself amidst an unending illusion! Phobetor Daedalus!"
Six stumbled, along with the others in the alley, as Dix ran away. Six clutched her head, and it felt like she had just taken enough psycho to OD a yao guai. She couldn't move for a moment, and tried to gather her thoughts through the red mist clouding her mind. She almost managed to gather her wits when she felt something bounce off the back of her armor. Her head turned, and she felt unparalleled rage. The axe of the short man had been unable to get through her armor, and now he was reeling from the overzealous strike. Six unleashed a wordless scream, and pounced as she lost control of her actions. She bowled the man over, and kneeled on his chest as she punched his face. He didn't survive the first punch, and the next ones created a crater as she turned him into a bloody mess.
Gran had grabbed his sword and launched at the man who was cutting off escape from the alley, and began dueling him in earnest. Overcome by the curse, he paid no mind to thoughts of escape, and lost himself in a frenzy. While the thug facing Gran down was good for a level 3, he was no match for Gran's strength and skill, and was slowly being overwhelmed. Gran dodged a strike that was overextended, and he swung in retaliation. The large sword cleaved cleanly through the man's arm, and Gran turned to face the Courier as his opponent collapsed.
As he looked at the Courier, the illusion changed. Atop the short man was the deathclaw, and in his deep seeded fear, he stepped back, begging to the gods for mercy. He turned and sprinted away, but the sudden movement grabbed the Courier's attention. She pursued Gran, and leapt into a Legion assault.
The wild attack landed on Gran's lower back, and he was flung into the street the alley let out in. Civilians screamed as he crashed into a Monster Philia stand, and shortly after, the Courier stomped onto the street as well.
Gran was losing his battle for consciousness, and the fog over his eyes lifted as his eyelids grew heavy. Dix, you bastard, Gran cursed. He watched as the glowing red eyes of the Courier swept over the crowd of men, women, and children that trembled in fear. He felt the winds shift, and the Courier reared back and roared a challenge.
"FUCKING KILL!"
With that battle cry, Six leapt at a girl who could be no older than ten. She cried, holding her plush needle rabbit in a death grip. Gran's eyes closed as he drifted into unconsciousness.