Early autumn rays bathed a vast expanse of grasslands in a glorious shade of gold, the light danced and shimmered on the long grass peppered in dew drops making it appear as if the land were a living sea of deep green. Tall evergreen trees peppered the area here and there, adding some distinctiveness to the land, and a cool breeze carrying with it the alluring fragrance of flora permeated the atmosphere. The bombs never fell here, and why would they? There were no cities to speak of in the vicinity, no manmade structures of any kind as far as the eye could see, and up until recently no signs of human activity. It seemed that not even radioactive thunderstorms reached this part of the land either, whether that was by sheer coincidence or due to the natural eddies in the atmosphere. This was unknown territory, even for Ash and Aelius who had explored and covered much ground on their trek to New Canaan; now, here they were in uncharted territories, about to cross an area unknown to any of them.
"Quite a sight", he heard Ash comment as she approached to stand beside him and admire the view.
"Mmm", Aelius gave a curt nod and smiled. Even though he'd never seen anything like this land stretched out before them, he felt that familiar tug nudging him to where he knew they had to go, "As beautiful as it is, we should keep moving", he suggested, readjusting his pack on his shoulders, "Those Deathclaws Donna warned us about could be anywhere, especially if they've been looking for new hunting grounds".
"Agreed", Six's voice concurred behind them. She was studying the map on her PipBoy and making the necessary adjustments to their route, "Looks like this valley stretches for miles to the North and West. If we carry on in a South Westerly direction like your old friends suggested, we should find a main road in a couple of days". By old friends she was of course meaning the residents of Manti, which was a two-day journey behind them. Given that Donna and the others knew the area better than anyone, they heeded their advice when they said to avoid the roads as there had been increased sightings of raiding parties, junkies and….exotic wildlife; no doubt a result of the lack of movement from Caesar's Legion.
"Days?" Aelius inquired with concern. Though he appreciated the natural beauty around them, he was hoping that the detour they had to take wouldn't cost them this much of a delay. The longer they stayed in unknown lands, the increased chances they had of coming across someone…or something that wasn't all that friendly.
"Mhm", Six nodded in affirmation, slinging her pack back over her shoulders roughly, causing the metal accoutrements in there to clang and rattle, "I know it's going to delay our arrival to New Vegas, but we had no other choice".
Aelius knew the Courier was correct.
"We have about six or so hours of good daylight before we need to think about finding shelter for the night. Can make good time on our trek", Aelius added, following the direction Six pointed to.
"And enjoy the views", Ash added with enthusiasm.
The trio continued on their long journey, making short stops every once in a while, to rest or admire the scenery. With such friendly company, sharing stories of amusing experiences and sights made time pass quickly and before they knew it, the sun was already setting and they were yet to find a suitable shelter for the night.
"If we don't find something soon, I'm afraid we're going to have to camp out in the open", Six panted up the hill.
Ash shook her head, "Rather not, especially after what happened on the second night of our trek". A shiver went up her spine as she remembered their encounter with a yao guai. Thankfully it was a young one, inexperienced in dealing with a group of humans and they managed to scare the creature away. Even so, the encounter left all of them wary and unable to get any restful shut eye that night.
"I think I found us a place to stay the night", Aelius called, looking through a pair of binoculars, "Looks like there's a cave, or at the very least a sheltered rocky outcropping about half a mile away".
"Lead the way", Ash followed eagerly behind, looking forward to finally stopping and having a long rest for the night.
As they made their way downhill and approached the area of interest, Six couldn't help but notice some heavy dark clouds on the horizon behind them.
'Don't like the look of them', a cautious voice in her head chimed in. Focusing her attention back to her group, she hoped that the heavy dark clouds would pass them by; though instinct and past experience told her they'd better prepare for that potential scenario.
Since she could remember, Olivia hated crowds; in the Legion crowds meant punishment, and this was something that was ingrained in her. Slaves and soldiers alike were ordered to gather to witness "lessons" being administered, almost always with fatal results. In the NCR, crowds were almost unavoidable. With so many personnel working at the base, traders coming in and out, and civilians coming through for both official and unofficial dealings, Olivia found herself either following the flow of people or trying to make her way through to get to her destination. In all instances she felt the familiar grasp of fear around her throat and even though she knew she was safe from the Legion, she could never shake that feeling of dreaded anticipation…until a few days ago.
Heaving with the lunchtime rush, Olivia sat at a four-seat table, sharing her space with three unfamiliar NCR soldiers who were all too busy immersed in their culinary choices to look up and notice her. Though others might have thought this an uneventful occurrence, Olivia felt a sense of delight in herself…so much so she couldn't wipe the small curve in the corners of her lips. Her mind went back to the words Betsy shared with her several nights go about the initial effects of taking the medication Dr. Usanagi had prescribed her, about how she could not wipe a stupid grin off her face. Olivia felt very much the same and, not only that, but felt a newfound solidarity with Betsy who she had come to rely on for advice and a friendly ear to listen to. Betsy herself seemed to enjoy her company and was more than eager to offer her input and answer questions Olivia has about her side effects.
"I know it feels a bit scary and weird at first", she remembered Betsy's advice when she started experiencing the side effects, "But you're going to be alright. This is just your body reacting to the medicine, it'll get used to it soon enough, so just sit back and enjoy the ride".
And she did; for possibly the very first time in her life, Olivia was enjoying herself. She looked around at all the people bustling around, many eager to get their plates of food, some meeting with friend and colleagues to have animated chatters about their day, others looking slightly annoyed as they got bumped into and jostled with the flow of the crowd. Thankfully Olivia's CO was understanding and gave her a minimum of two weeks to take it easy and only come in to work if she wanted to and, though many of her colleagues insisted she go home or go blow off some steam on the strip with the freedom she'd been given, the only place Olivia seemed to truly enjoy being in was McCarran airport.
Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure making his way down the line with his tray of food, the auburn of his hair peaking from under his crimson beret. Olivia grinned widely as her gaze followed him, noticing that he hadn't spotted her yet. Just as she was deciding whether to get up and join him when he eventually found a table for himself, the three soldiers sitting at hers all finished their food, packed up their trays and made their way out. Seizing her opportunity, Olivia's arm shot up and she waved Drew down; a flutter passed through her when their eyes met and he grinned just as widely when he saw her.
"Hey there stranger. Haven't seen you around for a while", Drew said, taking the chair opposite her, "I thought you didn't like crowds".
"I don't but… Guess you could say I'm trying out new things", she shrugged, pulling a loose strand of her dark brown hair away from her face.
Drew cocked an eyebrow, "Really? Are you sure you're alright? Don't want to finish your food outside in the courtyard?"
Olivia pondered his suggestion, "No, but a walk around the aircraft hanger after lunch would be nice"
"Don't mind if I tag along?", Drew saw his opportunity and took it, relieved when Olivia's expression beamed at his suggestion.
Taking their time to finish their food in the canteen, they caught up with each other, oblivious to the humdrum of activity around them. By the time they had finished their meal, they had taken so long that they didn't realise lunch service had ended and, apart from the canteen staff, they were the only two people sitting there.
"Where did everyone go?" Oliva chuckled in amusement, before checking the time on her watch, "Oh crap! Did we really sit here for over three hours?!"
Drew laughed and made a move to pick up their trays, "Time flies when you're having fun".
They pushed their chairs back in and after Drew put away their trays, they made the short walk through McCarran airport and to the aircraft hangar.
"Maybe we could have stayed at our table and carried on talking. It'll be dinner service in just over an hour or so", Olivia grinned as they strolled through the grounds, admiring the old-world aircraft.
"Hmm, not sure… Tonight's dinner menu isn't as exciting as it normally tends to be", Drew made a see-saw motion with his hand, "Besides, I've finished my shift for today and got tomorrow booked off so… Want to take full advantage of my free time", his voice tailed off and Olivia realised he must have made plans for himself.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to take up your time, you must have made plans for tonight and-"
"No plans", Drew interrupted her, giving an emphatic shake of his head, "I was just thinking of heading to the Strip to play some cards and spend some caps, but we can do something around here if you'd like?"
Olivia raised an eyebrow, "Here? In McCarran?"
"Or Freeside", Drew shrugged, "Wherever you'd like to go or…whatever you'd like to do. It was nice to catch up with you at lunch time and…to be honest, I'm hoping to carry on. We've hardly seen hair nor hide of each other in weeks and… y'know", he rubbed the back of his neck, feeling a bit exposed and turning a shade of pink around his ears and cheeks, "I hope you don't mind me saying this, but… I've missed you and I like spending time with you".
"Oh…", Olivia raised her eyebrows, sauntering beside him, "Thanks I… I like spending time with you too". Now she felt her own face blushing.
The revelation made Drew visibly relax and he sported a wide grin on his face, "Great! Well…uh…where'd you like to go? What would you like to do?"
Olivia gave his question some consideration, a grin creeping in the corners of her lips, "How about… The strip?"
Her suggestion made Drew almost trip on his feet with surprise, "The strip? But, I thought you said you didn't like it"
Olivia shrugged, "I feel like trying some new things and…give some old things another chance".
Drew's face turned bright red and Olivia couldn't help but chuckle in response.
"Ok, the Strip it is", he gave a nod, "I'll uhh… I'll go back to my quarters and get changed. Meet you at the monorail in about half an hour?"
"Half an hour", she gave a nod in agreement, "It's a date".
Her last remark made Drew stumble on his feet, catching himself almost gracefully without hitting the floor. She didn't think it possible but Drew flushed an even deeper shade of red before chuckling at his own clumsiness and running off to his quarters to get changed.
Olivia felt her heart flutter and, though part of her knew that this was one of the side effects of the medication, another part knew that it was also from her unexpected newfound confidence, as well as the prospect of going out on her very first date.
Just as quickly as she felt the sense of elation build within her, a pit began to gnaw at her core. Olivia stopped in her tracks and felt her mind begin to swim with unease - she had absolutely no idea what to wear on a first date.