Charon never cared for the guard who stood in their way to Rivet City. He always felt a twist in his gut at the sight of the man who introduced himself as 'Harkness'. He couldn't pinpoint it, but his face looked... off. Also, the man had constantly made his life more complicated whenever he had to come to the ship for business related to Ahzrukhal.
"Well, Dr. James, it's good to finally meet the famous Lone Wanderer GNR goes on about," Harkness cracked a small grin as Leah pulled a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm sure you'll keep your nose clean while you're in my city."
"Of course," She cooed while Charon folded his arms and rolled his eyes. He finally picked up whenever she flared her charms. Her voice would go low and quiet while she blinked her lashes and cocked her head to the side, listening to the idiot she was trying to manipulate. Even though he didn't like it, he admitted it was an effective strategy. A powerful tactic. The look on Harkness' face showed her skill, considering he hadn't expected them to be allowed in because of him.
"And... how about your friend there? You'll keep him in line?" Charon kept his gaze steady at the Chief of Security, whom he had dealt with in the past. They stood at a stalemate with each other, neither sharing any warm feelings towards the other man.
"Charon is a teddy bear," She turned and winked back at him, to which he responded with a barely contained growl under his breath.
"Yeah, I'm sure. You know, every time this 'teddy bear' happened to visit my city, someone ends up dead."
"Really?" She looked genuinely surprised, looking back at Charon then back at Harkness. "I'm sure that was just a coincidence. And Charon is with me, and I won't tolerate any illegal behavior. On my honor," she pressed her hand over her heart, silver irises sparkling with authentic promise. "You can trust me, Chief Harkness."
His head spun sharply when she said his name, blinking back with a smitten expression. "Honestly, I don't know you. We've only just met, ma'am."
"Well, how will you get to know me better if you don't give me a chance? Pleease?" When her voice got that delicate, Charon felt mixed feelings of being impressed and downright insulted as a man. Come on, he can't possibly fall for that act. "We don't plan on staying long. Just trading. And looking for my father, Dr. James Sr."
"Did he have a beard? Looked in his fifties? And not meaning this as an insult," he added, "but I did see a man that you remind me of come through a couple of weeks ago."
"Yes! We do have similar features. He was supposed to meet a Dr. Madison Li?"
"Yeah, Dr. Li is on this ship. She's probably down in her lab." The guard's resolve seemed to soften. "A lot of people have been needing to talk to her lately. You'll probably need to get in line."
"I don't mind. I appreciate you letting us in. We'll behave. Cross my heart."
"Fine, Doc. Stay out of trouble. Just know I'm keeping my eye on you two." The guard had stared at Charon as he said this, squinting his pale eyes up at the ghoul. He turned back at her with a playful smirk. "Maybe after I get off duty, we can grab a drink. Get to know each other better. You've done a lot of good out here, and I'm sure you don't get a lot of chances to take a breather. Least I can do."
Charon narrowed his eyes back, the challenge clear. His arms flexed, hungry to break the man over his knee and toss him over the side of the rusted bridge they stood on.
"Thanks, but let's raincheck that. I have a feeling we'll be busy and running around." She had gravitated around Harkness while he had been distracted, easily squeezing between his fellow patrolmen, already with her hand on the hatch to the door. "Charon, let's go." The door squeaked as she pulled up the latch and disappeared into the dark ship.
Charon followed, one foot over the lower bulkhead. He turned to Harkness and shot him one final death glare, flipping his middle finger in his direction as he backed into the ship and slammed the door shut behind him.
Stepping inside, he was brought back to multiple events in his life-assignments from Ahzrukhal and another one. Another memory that he couldn't suppress. The place used to be so clean. Shinier and freshly painted. Where they just walked into, was where he would stand against the bulkhead, waiting in a long line for chow. The mess lines would stretch all the way up to several levels. There used to be thousands of sailors on this ship. He remembered a girl he would wait in those hour long lines with him. She would crack jokes and complain about her job working in the nuclear power plant deep in the bowels below. He let himself explore the maze of memorium, trying to recall what she had looked like but pulled a blank. Instead, Leah appearead, dressed in blue coveralls, but that wasn't right. Leah hadn't been around then. The memory was incomplete and beginning to get jumbled, pushing his thoughts around. So he pushed it back to its confines and sealed it away.
He focused on Leah. She was talking to a small child, asking for directions. She looked out of her element. Lost. He already knew where the Science Lab was, but decided to let her figure things out herself. The less she knew about his familiarity with the ship, the safer they both would be.
(Necro)
Rivet City carried an overwhelming aroma of jet fuel and old metal. Climbing the steep ladderwells made her knees knock while she gripped the rails tightly while she descended deep into the lower depths of the carrier. She wasn't a fan of heights, having little experience with them. Now, she had to learn how to climb stairs that were practically at a ninety-degree angle.
"Hurry up, lady," the kid called from above.
"Is that how you treat the person who's going buying you dinner, young man?" She called up to James Hargrave, sticking her tongue out to him.
"Well, you're such a slowpoke, I'm going to starve to death before that happens."
"Ooh, good comeback," she muttered and finally reached the next level. "All right, come on down!"
The child simply slid down the rails on his upper arms, stomping onto the floor and walking off like he was the coolest kid in the world. She smiled, liking him. Despite his Butch-like mannerisms, there was a special charisma that she hoped he'd grow up and thrive with. "So, James, how do you like this place?"
"It sucks. There's nothing to do and everyone's an asshole."
Oof. He sounds like he's doing well.
"Anyone who isn't an asshole? You have a friend?"
"C.J."
"Who's C.J.?"
"My friend, idiot."
She laughed at this, shaking her head. "You know, insulting people probably isn't going to help you make more friends."
"Why do you care?" The boy's face burned and he began to practically jog further into the ship.
"Hey! Slow down, buddy!"
"I'm not your buddy."
"Fine, pal," she teased, "But keep talking like that and I won't throw in a Nuka Cola for dessert."
"What?!" The kid pouted and began to ease his pace. "What gives, lady? No one's this nice."
"I have a savior complex," she responded, unabashed. Charon let out a quick breath, holding back laughter. Damn right, she does.
"What's that?"
"Just means I like helping people."
They reached the lab, an old man in a black suit was ranting about how he wouldn't leave until he spoke to Dr. Li. Great, sounds like we're going to be here for a while then.
"All right, lady, now get with the caps."
"Uh-uh. You wait here until I finish talking shop with the Doc. Then, I'll treat you to a hot meal. And then I'll throw in some caps. That was our deal, sonny."
"Ugh. Fine." The kid went to sit on a crate, crossing his legs with a bored expression.
"Charon," Leah went to him, putting a hand on his arm. "Mind checking the area out? Just get a feel for what's going on here?"
He nodded and went to stroll by the chemistry sets and test tubes. He felt mildly queasy as he became more surrounded by the lab instruments, his last bits of skin prickling from past nightmares he struggled to push back. This place. He stopped and squeezed his eyes tight, willing certain thoughts to disappear. But the familiar smells-the sharp smell of sour chemicals and rubbing alcohol with the beeping of test equipment and their mechanical whirring and hissing were overwhelming his mental control.
Fighting it only made it stronger.
He was sitting on a medical bed, IV needles in his arms. A lab coat with a clipboard was scribbling. Muffled words. "Consent" and "Efffeee Veee" were carried over to his then still existing ears. He had put his name on that paper. Pumped with fluids. Escorted to a lead insulated room. The bright light and the feeling of being hot. Hotter than any burn he had ever experienced.
He tried to step into the shadows, wanting some semblance of privacy while he waited for the thoughts to run their course. He leaned against the corner and folded his arms, trying to follow his employer's wishes. Survey the area. Get a feel for what's going here. The old man had a bodyguard. He looked wealthy. Untrustworthy. Clearly, the man was armed, the bulge under his left side coat an obvious weapon. The bodyguard was armed and looked experienced. She was looking right at him, predator studying predator.
He lowered his chin to her with a single, definitive nod, letting her know that he was well aware that she was dangerous. She seemed to be satisfied and went to look over towards Leah, who was talking to one of the scientists.
She seemed fine. Happy, even. She was pointing at random beakers and seemed to be asking those questions she liked to ask. She was animated, even excited, when her new friend held up an apple. Wait, is that a real fucking apple?
Charon squinted, not believing his eyes. The local nerd was holding up other fruits, too. This city can grow real food? He couldn't believe it, but then again, why not?
Leah was clapping her hands excitedly, like a kid getting a kitten. He felt his face relax, her mannerisms a relief from her depressed state earlier. She began chattering loudly, her voice carrying over to his corner. "Are you saying you're developing plants that can not just thrive in but absorb radiation?" She looked ready to swoon.
The dirty blonde labcoat nodded eagerly and the two of them giggled like schoolgirls over their crush. He couldn't help but shake his head, seeing two scientists so hyper usually meant something bad was about to happen. He let his eyes wander about, taking the area. There didn't look like there was a way out besides climbing the stairs and using the walkways above them. Not a very good defensive spot. We're sitting ducks. But this ship is guarded round the clock. Probably feels safe to live here.
Leah had disappeared into a room, making him feel apprehensive. His feet pushed forward and he moved his perch to a spot where he could see the back of her head in the distance. She was speaking to a black-haired, narrow-eyed woman who looked taken aback to see her. The woman looked almost in love with her, eyes widening and smile forming on her just then scowling lips.
After some talk, Leah finally shook hands with the woman and seemed to have concluded their business. Stepping out, she waved over at Charon and practically skipped over to him. "This place is amazing. I never knew. I would have come sooner." She had her hands behind her back, eyebrows knit with an eagerness he had to find the source of.
"What's with the face?"
She pulled out the bright red ball in her hand, the skin shiny. "A real apple. I've never had one before. Want to split it? Kaplinski said it's nothing like a mutfruit. Apparently it'll taste sweet, like sugarbombs, but also have a sourness?" She looked down at the apple and eagerly held it out to him. "Hang onto it, okay? We'll have it later. Maybe watch the sunset up on the flight deck. She said it's the perfect spot to unwind."
He took the smooth, cold fruit in his hand, the sensation almost foreign to his ancient hands. It was a relic, a long-thought extinct thing that he had taken for granted long ago. We used to be able to just eat as many as we wanted. I should have eaten more fruit back then, less processed crap. All we ever eat now is processed crap. He looked up at her as she still beamed at him. She's never known what it was like.
"Sounds good," he forced, nodding and carefully putting the apple in his breast pocket. It bulged awkwardly, but he didn't care.
"Great. Now, let's get this kid some grub. He looks like he doesn't eat enough."
(Necro)
"Jefferson Memorial," She looked off at the great dome in the distance, the water reflecting white droplets of light towards them as they stood at the edge of the flight deck. The sun was setting, the smell of the bay briny and pungent. Clouds stretched unevenly throughout the view. She sat with her legs dangling over the edge, feeling Charon creep forward as though to grab her and pull her back. There was a net a few feet below, holes in the ropes, but still looking strong enough to hold her if she did fall over the side. "Dr. Li said Dad was heading out there." Charon kept standing behind her, making her feel nervous. She turned and patted the rough tarmac. "Sit. Let's have that apple."
He knelt down and handed her the fruit. It was small, barely bigger than a tato. She had tried all the local foods of the wasteland, having heard plenty of complaints from Carol about how good food was before the bombs fell. She was about to take a bite when she paused, looking over at Charon.
"When was the last time you tasted one of these?" She held it out to him.
He looked at it and back to her, no expression revealing what he thought. "Don't remember, exactly. But before I turned into a ghoul."
"Have the first bite." His face looked bright orange and red under the brilliant lowering sun. "Tell me if it's as good as the original."
He took it, taking a bite, slowly chewing loudly. The crunching was crisp, clear and defined. He closed his eyes, seemingly lost in the flavor as he kept his careful consuming. He handed the rest to her. "It tastes better."
"Really?!" She took the apple, sniffing the skin. "I'm feeling nervous."
"Why?"
"I'm afraid I'll never go back to normal food again." He laughed, slowly, until it grew into chuckles that seemed to emanate from his barrel chest. She felt her face flush. "What?"
"Yeah, it'll ruin the crap we eat, for sure. Squirrel bits will never be the same again." He rested his elbow on his thigh, leaning forward and putting his arm around her, pulling her in with a strong side hug. "Eat the whole thing. I've had my time to enjoy good food. You've got some catching up to do." His warmth penetrated through her leathers, soothing her joints and sore muscles. She leaned into him, enjoying the new affection.
She took a shy bite, half-afraid, when she pierced the skin with her teeth. Juicy sweetness burst into her mouth, making her inner cheeks pucker with delight as her eyes watered with how flavorful and tart the meat was. She chewed, her brain short-circuiting and dancing in circles in her skull as she felt the apple break down into sweet tender mush. She swallowed and took in a deep gasp. "Wow. That's some good fruit."
"There used to be trees that grew them. I used to just leave them in the chiller of my fridge until they rotted. Which took months." Charon's voice, raspy and barely used, sounded nostalgic. She took another bite, unable to resist as she tasted and savored for as long as she could. Eyes wide, she watched Charon as he looked out at the brown water and the pale yellow light, his eyes far away. "They always gave us fresh fruit. That was one perk having to live on one of these ships while transiting. The government kept their military stocked with plenty of food. Oranges, bananas, pears, grapefruit..." He turned to her, that pity lacing those glaucomic eyes. "I wish I could have saved some to give them to you. Dumb, I know."
Her eyebrows pushed up and together, her mouth and hand dripping with apple juice, and she put her other hand gently over his, lacing their fingers together. "Thank you." She felt her eyes glisten and she blinked them away. "You know, Janice mentioned that they're in the testing stages of their latest botany project. It sounds like they'll be able to grow plenty of fruit in the next decade. So maybe we'll both be able to eat our fill of all these delicious apples." She took another bite and handed it to him. "Sharing is caring, love."
He took her gift and took another bite, small and sparing. She leaned her head against his shoulder, enjoying the warmth and bulk. She felt tired as she looked out towards the dirty stone igloo-shaped dome in the distance. She already knew he wouldn't be there. But she'd go. She'd search. She could bear it this time. Because even if he wasn't there, at least she wouldn't be leaving the Jefferson Memorial alone.
(Necro)
Charon hated super mutants. He showed how much he despised them by every squeeze of his trigger. Gunpowder and splatter made him feel drunk and he shouted at the one that had caught them by surprise. The one that had swung the sledge hammer on Leah's hip and sent her flying across the room.
"You son of a bitch! You want more?" The creature had finally died, but he kept kicking and shooting with a blinding rage he couldn't calm. He was panting, his mind focused on one thing. Kill. Kill. Kill.
"Charon!" Leah called out, snapping him out of his reddened vision. He blinked back blood and saw that she was lying crumpled against a wall, stimpacks in each hand. She stabbed her upper thigh with one while stabbing her lower belly with the other. She winced and let out a pained sob, looking down at her dislocated hip. "Fuck!" She screamed, driving Charon's pulse into overdrive.
"Are you hurt?"
"Yes!" She snapped. "My pack. Med-X. Now." She was heavy breathing, scrambling in her pockets for more stimpacks. "Stimpacks. Hurry." He realized that her hip looked very twisted and very uneven, like a crushed tin can. He dug through her bag, pulling out everything without a care for organization. Her med pack was there and he tore it open, throwing her every syringe he could locate.
She injected her neck with a med-x syringe, sighing almost immediately after, before leaning her head against the wall as he watched the stimpacks make their progress. "Charon," her eyes were glazed but her voice was finally steady. "I need you to take this leg and push it back into my joint. You'll need to keep it straight. Let me lie down," she pushed the clutter out of the way and stretched out on her back, her hip and left leg still asymmetrical. "Ignore my screaming. Just ram it in. Otherwise, I'm going to heal wrong. Hurry. The stimpack's already mending my pelvis."
He grabbed her thigh with both hands, feeling where the ball joint was. He forced with all his might while trying to keep her leg held from rotating. The pop made his spine tingle in discomfort and she let out a howl that hurt his eardrums.
"FUCKYOUDAD!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, breathing heavy and ragged. After a few moments, she had calmed down. Her eyes were closed. Her sallow face beginning to regain color. She opened her eyes and croaked, "Are they all dead?"
"The ones in this room."
"Can you do me a favor?" She went to grab another syringe, med-x, he noticed.
"What is it?"
"Please kill the rest of them. Just kill them all."
"Of course," he nodded. "Are you going to be okay here?"
"Yeah. This was a one-way street, after all," she joked but winced and went to stab herself again with more needles. "I'll be fine. I'll meet up with you in ten-no, twenty minutes. I just need to wait for the stimpacks to finish their job."
"All right. Sit tight." Charon took his shotgun. "I'll need more grenades."
"Take all of them. Take everything." She waved at her pack and let out a low sigh. "I'm about to play dead, so even if those bastards come they won't know I'm still breathing."
"That does not sound good."
"Charon, I just had my femur forced out of my pelvis, which is also now a shattered pelvis that is actively bonding together. You know painful that is? This is purely medicinal. Doesn't mean I can't enjoy it while I'm recovering, but I'm not just shooting up for the fun of it. And, by the way, this injury will take weeks to heal at least, before I'm able to be back to normal. So... I'm going to take my painkillers and you can just..." she was drifting off, her voice growing slower and her eyes crossed as they closed shut.
He clenched his jaw, not liking the situation. Weeks? Does that mean we're stuck here for weeks? He could carry her to Rivet City, at least, if they were willing to risk walking through more super mutant encampments. It would risky. Too risky.
He wasn't going to keep sitting around to think about it. He wanted blood. He reloaded and stormed into the next room, tossing a grenade and spraying hell upon the yellow uglies before him.
Hulking figures with boards-fucking boards-tried to take him on. He pulled out his combat knife and pushed the blade deep into the belly of one beast, twisting it while the creature cried and coughed out blood. He smiled, glad that they felt pain. Kill them all.
He continued on, hiding behind a pillar while they dumbly walked right by him. He would get them right in the back of the head and watch them sink to their knees and faceplant onto the concrete.
He had made short work of them, finally clearing the place. By the time the last mutant was left in bits and pieces, he heard scraping and turned his head to see that she was up. Limping, pack dragging behind her, but up.
"Should you be walking?"
She nodded. "Of course, I need to rest, but I need to keep this leg active. We're out of stimpacks, by the way." She looked up and around, the bodies on the floor a bloody mustard mess. "I saw what looked like beds in the other room. Any sign of him?"
Charon was confused by what she meant until he remembered. Her father. "No. No smoothskins. Just mutants."
She nodded but did not look surprised. "Typical. Of course, he's not here." She let go of her bag and scratched her head, teeth bare and angry. "This was a waste."
Charon noticed a holotape by a nearby panel. They were next to a giant tank of brown water. "What's this?"
She followed his gaze and limped towards the tape, taking it and sliding it into her pipboy.
A voice came on. Soothing. Male. From the look of her wide and pleased eyes, he figured it was the man of the hour.
"We're back at work, after a full week of delays..." She slowly sank to the ground, leaning her back against the steel railing. Arm holding onto a beam as she pressed the side of her cheek towards her wrist device, eyes closed with concentration.
"...Well, there's no mystery behind Catherine's health problems. The news of her pregnancy has lifted the spirits of everyone here and given us a renewed interest in making the purifier to work..."
He saw a single tear escape the corner of her eye, sliding down her cheek.
(Necro)
She was resting in one of the beds of the sleeping quarters, her hip constantly reminding her of her injury with the pounding ache and agonizing dagger-like stings that would sometimes make her eyes burn and leave her paralyzed as she laid there biting into her leather belt to help with the pain.
She and Charon had gathered all the tapes they could find. Her father had left holotapes on random tables like breadcrumbs through his workflow. Desks with schematics of the Project Purity's Purification System with various components spread out, faded prewar tech combined with carefully handdrawn pencil over yellowing paper. Water samples that had been left in mid-analysis had more of his audio logs. Diagrams of the ion exchanger was folded and dusty, covering more.
She had hungrily absorbed as much as she could the first week they were there. Despite her limp, she refused to just lay about idle. She had scrapped together a makeshift cane out of an old metal pole and wrapped the handle in cloth, using it to help her move about more efficiently. She would replay James' tapes, writing as much as she could.
The more she listened, the more she realized how deep her father had been in his own world-his own life-before she had been around. It humanized him. It helped quench the bonedriness of his absence, her heart swelling with compassion as she realized that her resentment with his abandonment was selfish. He's trying to provide safe drinking water to everyone. He's trying to save the future of this world.
Guilt plucked at her intestines like a mean-spirited guitar player. A lump had made its residence in her throat, deciding to stay there while she soaked up her own self-hatred at how childish she had been. He's right. I'm an adult. I didn't need him anymore. He needed to continue this. But there was still one nagging, annoying petulance in her brain. One thing that irked her. Why didn't he just tell me? Why did he hide this? I could have gone with him. I could have helped him.
She barely understood it, but she had an inkling that it was his fatherly duty to keep her safe. Safety. That was all he ever seemed to obsess about to her. She needed to be safe. Yet he had been completely blind to just how toxic that vault had been.
The pain was starting to tremor again. She hunched over the table, barely brushing into boiling crystal vials, and knocked over an Erlenmeyer flask, the priceless bottle almost falling over the edge. She grabbed it in between the throws of her hip pain, gritting her teeth. Her cane had fallen with a loud clatter, icing on the cake of her shitty situation.
"Hey." Charon's voice was right behind her, hand on his shoulder. "You need to go back to bed."
"No. I just need more med-x." She blinked back tears and straightened up, faking complete recovery. His persistent concern was starting to drive her to hide her symptoms. She didn't want his worry. She turned to him forcing a smile. "I need to find him. He needs me. This project is the sort of thing I was born for. It's the reason I even existed-what my parents worked for."
He didn't look impressed, instead carefully taking her into his arms, cradling her like a doll. "You've been on your feet all day. You need to eat. Sleep."
"No. I order you to put me down." She snapped, waiting for him to comply. He did, gingerly lowering her. He glared at her, letting out a displeased groan of disapproval.
"Well, I found another tape. It's on your bed. Along with some more stimpacks."
"What about med-x?" She had picked up her cane and began her painful three-legged journey back towards the dormitory, keeping her shoulders squared with a confidence she barely clung to.
"...It's there too." He clearly didn't approve but she was in a foul mood to care. We agreed on jet. Nothing else.
"Great." The sound of the metal scraping the ground had become her own little theme song.
Sheek. Sheek. Clink.
Sheek. Sheek. Clink.
"Once I'm fully recovered, we need to head to Vault 112. Dad was searching for any remains of research conducted by a prewar Vault-Tec scientist, Dr. Stanislaus Braun. He was working on something called the 'Garden of Eden Creation Kit'? I don't know, Dad didn't specify a lot. But he left tons of his notes lying around. From what I've gathered, it sounds like he's close. So close. And he needs all the help he can get."
She walked further down the hallway, freezing at what she heard. A woman's voice she had never heard before, and yet recognized it in her soul.
"...that batch of tests was inconclusive, but Madison and I are convinced it's a problem with the secondary filtration system. We're going to re-calibrate the equipment and try again tomorrow, so that... James, please, I'm trying to work. Now's not the time... So that's the next step. Assuming we get the results we need, we'll move on to... James! Stop! I need to finish these notes... We'll move on to diagnosing the issues with the radiation dampeners. That should... Ow! James! Now? We really shouldn't..." Laughter. A woman's laugh. She dropped the cane and sprint-stumbled into the bedroom, heart ready to burst out of her chest.
"Dad!" She broke through the doorway, smile chilling down when she didn't recognize the man sitting on her bed, tape recording in his hands. He was not her father. He was younger.
A man with groomed yellow hair and bright green eyes. Clean-shaven with pale skin, as if he spent most of his days indoors. "Who are you?" She almost thought he was from her vault, he looked so dislocated in the backdrop of dilapidated walls and rust.
Charon had immediately taken her arm and pulled her behind him, taking his gun out, cocking and pointing. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
The man held his arms up in the air with one hand clutching his player, smiling calmly. "Sorry, I thought this place was abandoned. I'm just exploring."
She studied him around Charon's shielding. He was dressed in typical scavenger garb. Worn brown leather and faded brahmin skins. Despite this, she felt something was peculiar about how his clothes were so sunbleached yet his skin and hair weren't blessed with the kiss of the sun's ultraviolet radiation.
"Give the tape back. That's hers." Charon walked closer, carefully sidestepping. She leaned against the wall, her hip shooting through her and forcing her to cling onto support.
"Fine." The stranger got to his feet, taking one step towards the two of them. He was still smiling, his face zen and calm. He ejected the tape, tossing the yellow square onto the bed across the room. Leah's eyes followed the holodisk and a blur of brown crossed her vision. There was a sudden white spark that stung her eyes and she flinched when she heard Charon let out a surprised grunt.
The man had moved faster than she could register, Charon laid on his back twitching and eyes wide with shock. The man stood over him with the ghoul's shotgun in his hands. He disarmed it, shotgun slugs clinking dully onto the ground as he took it further apart, dropping the pieces of the weapon down like they were trash.
"Forgive me, that was rude. But I don't appreciate having a gun pointed at me." The man pocketed his device, walking across the room to retrieve the holodisk he had flung. "Here you are, Madame," he held out the small yellow square, showing little concern to the giant ghoul that was fidgeting.
She ignored him and limped to kneel beside her companion. She touched his neck to feel his pulse, a sudden jolt of electricity shooting up her arm and locking her muscle. She gasped, gripping her forearm as her limb tingled. "What did you do?!" She shot him a hateful glare. Her heart was racing. This was bad.
"Don't worry. I mean you no harm, sweetheart." He smiled down at her, kneeling to match her eye level. He speaks strangely. I've never heard that accent before. "I just happen to have some fun toys that make self-defense relatively easy. Your... friend," he looked down with little remorse towards Charon, "will recover and be completely fine. I just gave him about 50,000 volts. Just a simple stun gun as well as a holotape player. Nothing more. I wanted to make sure I didn't end up with my brains painting the walls. That's fair, wouldn't you agree?" He held the tape out. "I hope you forgive me. Perhaps I'll make it up to you in the future. If you'll allow me."
"Charon?" She tried to touch him again, this time a less intense spark shot pinpricks up her hand. She kept her grip on him. "Can you hear me?"
He looked dizzy, blinking. "What the fuck was that?" He growled, sitting up slowly. He glared at the man who kept a pleasant expression on his face. "Leah, what do you want me to do to this man?"
"Wait." She looked back at him, narrowing her eyes. This was weird, but she didn't want to make any final calls just yet. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't do anything like that again."
"I'll agree to it, so long as you keep your brute in line." He rocked the plastic brick back and forth. "So... did you want this? Or can I keep it?"
She slowly took the tape, feeling his smooth hands brush against her fingers. Soft hands. What kind of scavenger has such delicate hands like that? "His name is Charon. And yes, I do. Thanks," she cautiously eyed him up and down. "Do you have a name? Mister..."
"Ambrose. Just Ambrose. I'm from up North, in case it isn't obvious I look like a fish out of water. I came down here to assist Dr. Madison Li. I'm assuming you're her?"
"That's not a Commonwealth accent," Charon hissed. "You're from the south-Georgian, likely."
"Ah, your help knows his dialect. Impressive. You caught me."
She blinked, not recognizing the region. Rocky start, but I've met stranger people. "No. Dr. Leah James," she held her hand out and shook his hand. His grip was strong and tight, his eyes full of an intensity that made her feel uncharacteristically nervous. "Dr. Li is over at Rivet City, just a thirty minute walk east of here. Just watch out for super mutants. Are you involved with Dr. Li's produce work?" She tested him, waiting for him to give her some information that would make him more distinct. Less mysterious.
Ambrose nodded, "Among other things. I'm just offering my services. I represent an organization that is heavily invested in the good work she's doing, particularly her previous work trying to provide clean drinking water to the Capital Wasteland."
She pondered this, wanting to demand how he knew this, but her instinct held her tongue. She needed to find Li and get some answers. This stunk bad. She knew this man couldn't be trusted. Not yet. But first, she needed to find her father.
"Say, your name rings a bell. You wouldn't happen to be related to the same James who had started Project Purity, over twenty years ago?" He was brushing imaginary dust off his legs. He held his arm out for a handshake. "My father was an old colleague of his."
Charon snarled and slapped the man's hand away from her, forcing himself to his feet and helping pull Leah back to hers. "We're not finished."
"Oh, but we are." The man wiped his hand with repulsion on his frown. "I don't enjoy wasting my time with the genetic rejects of our kind." The man kept his eyes on Leah, the laid back smile finally gone.
She didn't like him. It was decided. "I think it's best you move on, Ambrose. I don't think we'll have much to discuss."
He approached her, closing in. Gold flakes in green eyes. Snake-like eyes. "That's a shame, but I got what I came for. It's clear that Project Purity hasn't made much progress. Must have been abandoned for... less noble pursuits, I see." He smirked, adding, "I'll be heading to Rivet City, then. Catch you later, Dr. Leah James." He turned and walked away, back disappearing around the corner.
"Why are you just letting him walk away?" Charon sounded frustrated, voice still weak. He was clearly still feeling the effects of the electrical shock, lower eyelid twitching.
"What else can I do?" She turned to him, pulling him towards the bed. "It's clear he has tricks up his sleeve we're not ready for. I know a losing battle when I look it in the eye. We'll worry about him later. How are you feeling?" Now, she was the one forcing him to sit on the mattress. She took out a flashlight, shining the beam into his eyes. "Your pupils aren't dilating properly." She put her hand against the side of his neck, pressing deep and feeling the rhythm of his veins. "But your pulse sounds normal."
"I feel fine," he grabbed her wrist to stop her probing, eyes creased with concern. "I fucked up. I'm sorry."
She raised an eyebrow. "You're not infallible, Charon. I know this. It would be unfair to expect you to be. Besides," she sat besides him. "How the fuck were you going to anticipate a goddamn stun gun built into a tape recorder? I would have never thought of that." She shook her head. "Whoever he is, I think he's a little above both our paygrades. For now. And I have a feeling he's not operating alone." She played with a tear in her shirt, biting her lip. "But I wonder if he was telling the truth. Maybe our parents knew each other?"
"He's a liar. I advise staying away from him," Charon warned. "Let's just focus on finding your old man. And getting far from that guy."
She couldn't help but giggle. "Remember when Talon Company was our main enemy?"
Charon shook his head. "They're still a problem, though I'd rather take them than that fuck any day." He got up and went to retrieve the pieces of his trusty weapon. His face was unreadable but his body language reeked of displeasure. He was putting his gun back together gingerly, as though apologizing to it. Shoulders were not as a square with confidence as they usually were.
She waited for him to finish, eyes tracking his movements. He went to sit far from her, on a lone chair in the corner. He was cleaning his gun, staring down to the floor with a distance hazing over his face.
She crawled towards the nearby table, grabbing a med-x syringe and administrating her routine dose of pain relief. She was addicted. Again. But she'd get another detox done when she could head back to Rivet City. They'd resupply before they headed towards Evergreen Mills, in search of that garage her father had gone on about. The familiar warm buzz returned, blossoming waves of pleasance out of her chest like a hot bath. She got to her feet and walked towards the ghoul, who barely acknowledged her approach.
"Hey." She gently gripped the barrel and pushed it off to the side, clearing his lap for her to straddle. She rested onto his thighs, savoring the heat of his being, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He looked up at her with his forehead wrinkling.
"What about your hip?"
"If we stay in this position, it won't be so bad." She let her thumb graze his cheek and brush over his lower mouth, leaning forward to kiss it. "I'm so relieved you're okay."
His hands were on her waist, calloused and uneven fingerpads brushing against the soft arch of her lower back. "You should rest."
"Then help me do that," she lowered her lips and licked the curve where his neck and jaw met. He sharply inhaled, his grip digging deeper into her stomach. "Put me to sleep, Charon."
He was breathing heavier, hands pushing up her shirt to knead her breasts under his strong grasp. She sighed, closing her eyes as her spine tingled as his fingers pinched and played with her hardened nipples. His teeth grazed her shoulder, biting hard enough that it left a dull ache that stung so sweet. He was pulling at the buttons of her pants, one hand lowered to rub her burning loins over the rough fabric.
She forced herself up to her feet, her left side reminding her of her injury with its painful reminder. She pulled her pants down, Charon helping with her panties while he stared hungrily at her bare flesh. He got up, taking his shirt and pants off with the speed and efficiency that she always found amusing. He sat back down, his erection long and upright, standing tall like a veiny red Washington Monument. She giggled as she went to sit on it, standing over his lap while she guided the head against her opening, feeling her slick juices run down his shaft.
He hissed, gripping her cheeks firmly and holding her up. She slowly lowered herself, the prick of him pushing into and stretching her out. Sharp and satisfying. She let gravity assist her work, sinking deeper as she finally sat, caboose against quads. He growled like a dog in her ear, his fingers digging into the meat of her hindquarters.
"Fuck, Leah. You're so tight." She laughed huskily, using her calves to push herself up and letting herself sink back onto his member with slow, teasing motions. He moaned and tried to thrust back, his movements strong and intense, which she hissed in pain at. He was too strong. Too powerful. He stopped, wrought with worry. "Should we stop?"
"Fuck no. But I'll need to drive this ride," She waited for the physical suffering to subside. "Just sit back and enjoy." She returned to her gentle, careful upwards and downwards dance, his grunts and panting putting her over the edge of emotional delight. They were soaked in her natural lubricant and her insides were searing hot with his fiery temperature. She loved it. This was pleasure to its fundamental core. She tossed her head back, feeling Charon's teeth teasingly nip a breast while pulling and fondling the other.
The sounds of wet slapping and the smell of their musky flesh act were heavenly. Every sense she detected was overwhelming her and she realized that the high pitched cries of jubilation were coming from the top of her lungs. "Oh, yes!" She let escape her lips as she continued to ride the ghoul.
"Touch me, Leah," Charon begged, "I want your hands on me."
She happily complied, running her palms over his bulging shoulders and solid pectorals, savoring every bump and crevice in his stomach. His arms were mountains that surrounded her. Forearms with tendons long, hard streaks and ridged with veins. She admired every inch of him, jutting jawline and exposed cheek sinew to meaty flesh and crag-like firmness. Hot and hard. Strong and full of life.
Her lower stomach was building. Pressure and pleasure shot up, white-hot from her clitoris up to the back of her throat. She gasped and twitched, slowing down as she felt herself beginning to approach climax. She was getting tired, her hip starting to win the battle of her pursuit for sexual gratification.
Charon seemed to notice, as he took each of her thighs under his arms and began to aid in her squats. He curled her over his meat, smooth and precise, sweat dripping down her skin as she caught her breath and allowed herself to feel him continue pushing in and out of her. "Charon," she cried, "Yes. Please, keep going."
He obeyed, continuing his act of throwing her up and catching her with the strength of his arms, his organ pushing her in just the right spot that she felt her toes curl and her body twitch as she finally came. She felt waves upon waves of ecstasy roll over her like silken sheets, her back arching and contorting as she felt herself release. She was gasping for air, head slick with her labor, eyes blankly admiring the cracks in the ceiling.
Charon pulled out, still hard and unfinished. She protested. "You're not done yet," she gasped, but he lowered her back onto the bed.
He smirked, kissing her cheek, working his way down to her neck. "I know. I just want to get you comfortable first." He went to retrieve some water, joystick pointing in the direction of where he was going. She suppressed giggles as she admired the curve of his butt and calves. He had gone to retrieve her canteen and his own bottle, bringing it out to her. "You're going to need this," he teased, "We're not through yet."
She let out an eager sigh, gulping down mouthfuls of cool water. She barely had recapped her container when she felt his hot tongue against her opening, sending her head back against the pillow while she let out a startled croak. He ran his wet, sandpaper tongue up her clit, circling and digging his mouth muscle into her. The sound of his smacking lips and her gasps strummed into her heart. He played her like a fiddle, every flick of his lingua a strum of her strings. She screamed as he drove her through mental brick walls, making her mind crash through fortresses of rapture as she came again.
"Stop," she finally called out while trying to keep breathing. She sat up and pushed him onto his back. "You're making it hard for me to keep things even," she took his cock in her hands and began sucking the head of his penis with as much negative pressure as she could muster.
"Fuck, Leah," he yelled out, pulling her thick hair back to see her face. She looked up at him, taking all of him into her mouth, feeling him push deep into her throat. She eagerly pumped her head over his sex organ, sucking and tasting the salt of his anatomy and the sweetness of his precum. He hissed as she sped up and began to let out his own battle cries when she proceeded to twist her head, letting her tongue slide around in precise rotations around his burning phallus. "Leah, I'm about to cum. Keep going," he pleaded, and she eagerly bobbed her head fast and slick, until she felt him twitch and tasted the hot salty sauce that burst in the back of her mouth. She swallowed, resisting the urge to cough from how much he had ejaculated. She slowly pulled his softening penis out of her, his legs twitching with every inch returninng to the atmosphere. He looked at her with idolation, pulling her arms up so she could rest on top of his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, his wet soft knob pressed against her thigh as his breathing slowed.
She closed her eyes, feeling the calm settle over her. She already knew she would have a good night's sleep.
