"At long last, the Red Chinese finally know fear! Their strongholds at Anchorage have been infiltrated and taken over by American operatives parachuted in under the cover of darkness. In the first full counter stroke since the initial sneak attack, a hundred troopers stormed the icy cliffs of the Anchorage Defense Line and brought the battle straight to the heart of the Chinese forces! Through shot and shell, through wind and hail, our brave Army corps will stop at nothing to bring Alaska back home. God bless our troops, and GOD BLESS AMERICA!"

Tuesday, September 18, 2277

Tuesday, November 12, 2075

2:00 AM

"THIS IS VERY NOT FORT BENNING!" Julia yelled into her helmet mic, but whatever Veronica may have said in response was drowned out by the vast rush of wind.'

Okay think. You're probably not going to die but I'm willing to bet hitting the ground at terminal velocity is still going to hurt. A lot. Assuming this is part of the program, then I'm probably supposed to be able to use this thing.

As she had that thought, she saw the telltale white domes of other parachutes opening around her.

So if I know anything about parachutes (which is admittedly a fairly hefty 'if'), there should be some kinda cord I yank to open the thing. Yeah, there it is. Phew!

Giving the cord an experimental yank, however, didn't meet with much success. Another one shortly after also didn't work.

Is it stuck? That is tremendously unfair. Ah there it goes..

The cord finally came loose, but there was no accompanying yank to sap her downward speed. If she was falling faster, she couldn't tell. And the ground looked pretty dang close..

Why. she thought resignedly to herself, before everything went black.

-0-

"-you hear me? Are you okay? Julia, hey!"

Veronica was admittedly freaking out a little. First, even though the program said it had loaded properly, it was apparently some sort of parachute sim instead of the basic training they had been expecting. Then the program had decided to spawn in a glitchy parachute, and then of course there was a severe pain penalty issued. Probably from the ground.

Julia's vitals seemed stable but she'd apparently been knocked a little silly by the landing. The system wasn't supposed to be able to cause actual injury, but apparently all of the pain prompters triggering at once was a bit much for an unprepared nervous system.

"Hey!" She yelled into the transmitter. "Wake up, you're not allowed to die in there!"

Not again… not this soon!

"Nghlphwa?" came the distinctly bleary reply through the headset.

"You're alive!"

"Mmmngh. Allegedly." Julia said, shaking off the remaining effects of her dynamic entry. "What happened?"

"For whatever reason, the system loaded a sim that's different from the one we expected." Veronica began, returning to a familiar groove. "Uh, obviously. Also, the program gave you a faulty parachute instead of a normal one for some reason. That's why it didn't open properly."

"I think I know why that is." Julia's voice was accompanied by the faint sounds of crunching snow - she was on the move. "When I was still falling, I heard gunshots. And I can see at least two parachutes on the ground near here with red stains on them - someone was shooting at the paratroopers."

"So it's a verisimilitude thing?" Veronica asked. "Making it so the only way you could get through the defenses is by not having a proper chute?"

"Maybe?" Julia said, her tone no doubt matching a virtual shrug. "I did land in a large snow drift. Maybe it's intended as a way to introduce the stakes of the program. 'This ain't no sissy training, champ! This is SOLDIER TOWN.'"

"That would fit with my 'pet project' theory." Veronica mused. "If a general wanted to have a harsher basic training routine but couldn't get authorization, maybe this was his way of doing it."

"Swell." came the unenthused voice from within the program. "So what do I do?"

"I'll see what I can dig up on the program from this end." Veronica said. "For now, you may as well keep going. It's still good practice, and if falling from an airplane didn't kill you, you're probably safe from whatever else happens."

"Hang on, there's somebody coming."

-0-

Fortunately, the simulated pain had faded quickly, and Julia was able to start moving along the icy cliff face she had landed on, heading towards what looked like a cave. Veronica's explanations over the comms hadn't really clarified much, but at least she was looking into it. Just then, she heard more footsteps approaching.

"Hang on, there's somebody coming."

She raised her pistol (fortunately very similar to the one she had in the real world) and ducked behind a rocky outcropping. Fortunately, the man who appeared was wearing the same kind of armor that she was, and called out to her.

"Glad you made it, Corporal!" he said in an energetic tone. "That was a hell of a nasty fall you took. When your chute bunched up like that I thought you were a goner. I hope the other guys made it…"

"Who are you? What sort of program is this? Where are we?" Julia asked him.

The guy's face went blank for a moment, then he replied in exactly the same tone as before.

"Glad you made it, Corporal! That was a hell of a nasty fall you took. When your chute bunched up like that I thought you were a goner. I hope the other guys made it…"

"Veronica, what the flop?" she asked, a little weirded out.

"He's not real - he's just part of the program. Probably an NPC."

"What's an 'NPC'?" she asked.

"Sorry, gaming jargon. It stands for 'non-participant character'. It's a catch-all term for people within a game that aren't directly controlled by a human. Didn't you ever play 'Grognak the Barbarian'?"

"'Play'?" Julia asked. "I mean, we had the books, and sometimes the kids would pretend, but…"

"Oh man, I have some wonders to show you.." Veronica cleared her throat and focused back in. "But as for your friend here, he's basically just a terminal prompt that happens to be able to walk around. You'll have to interact with him within the context of the program."

"So like, pretend that I'm actually Corporal Whoever of the US Marine Corps?"

At that, the overly-enthusiastic fellow brightened up.

"Anyway, it's damned good to meet you, Corporal Whoever! I don't think their patrols spotted us coming in, so at least we still have the jump on 'em. Let's go show those Commies what we're made of!"

Julia palmed her face and pretended she couldn't hear Veronica laughing her ass off.

-0-

"So you can't change it?"

"I could..." Veronica said, half-listening and half-typing. "But I'd have to chase down the code that operates your avatar, figure out how to unset its values as read-only, convert a new name into hex values-"

"Alright, I get it." Julia said, rolling her eyes. "It's more complicated than it sounds. And it's ultimately irrelevant anyway. Are you at least getting some good data?"

"Yeah, actually. A fair amount of this is going over my head since neuroscience isn't really my bag, but it looks like most of the important stuff is server-side. All of the simulation and most of the data happens here in computerland, with a relatively thin socket for data exchange."

"By which you mean the freaky mind control beams."

"By which I mean the freaky mind control beams." Veronica agreed cheerfully. "Which, again, not my department. But I'm getting a good read on the shape of the data that gets translated into your brain and how it relates to the state of the sim, which is basically what we're after. It looks like we won't have to even touch the neural interface parts in order to get someone in or out of the simulation."

"Assuming the setup at the other Vault works the same way." Julia demurred. "Which it probably does, really - how many brain-machine interfaces can they have invented in secret in the decade before the war?"

"If you're going to keep taunting Murphy like that I'm taking my ball and going home." Veronica teased. "That said, you're probably right. And if it's too different, we still have the option of not going through with alterations. There's - wait, is that gunfire?"

"Yeah, me and Benji here are attacking the 'ice camp'." Julia said, pausing to let the noise of an explosion die down. "I don't know what kind of naming subroutines this program has, but it definitely lacks in originality."

"I'll let you go, then - attacking a fortified camp needs your focus even in a sim."

"What are you on about, Whoever?" came the enthusiastic NPC's voice over the speakers. "Subroutines? This is an Army gig, not the Navy!"

"Stop CALLING me that!"

-0-

"Alright, looks like you're clear to disconnect." Veronica said. "Come on out!"

"Thank GOD. It feels like I've been in here for a week."

The VR pod hummed as it cycled down for the evening, and before long it opened up. Julia let out a groan and stretched enthusiastically.

"Man, is it weird to be running around all day and come back to stiff limbs," she said. "Would it have killed the budget to include some sort of muscle stimulator function?"

Veronica snorted. "Maybe not, but would you want to be the one who explains to the Brass why your state of the art military simulator machine doubles as a massage chair?"

Julia was still grumbling in response when the Protector came into the room.

"Progress report?" he asked in a voice that made it clear that it wasn't really a request.

Veronica stood straight and summarized the day's events. "Julia here has completed the second module of the simulation. According to what I've been able to dig up, there's only one more before the training is complete and we'll be able to get access to the armory."

McGraw nodded, and turned to Julia. "And how about you, waster? How are you finding the combat?"

"It's interesting." she explained. "It all feels so real while I'm inside it - it's easy to forget that it's just a simulation. Granted, it would be easier if the other characters were more lifelike, but when you're in battle even that fades away."

"Have you determined what the simulation is?" he asked. "We would be very interested in whatever historical data is in the program as well as its tactical possibilities."

"It's a simulation of the Liberation of Anchorage. As far as I've ever heard, that was when the United States military invaded Alaska to reclaim it from the Chinese during the Resource Wars. My best guess is that today's module took place in late 2076 - we were mainly focused on paving the way for a final strike on the city itself."

"That said, I wouldn't put much stock in it as a historical documentary." Veronica interjected. At McGraw's "go on" gesture, she continued. "There's a lot of ah, 'colorful' commentary in here from the people who programmed the simulation. They were pretty well convinced that the General in charge of the project was basically writing his own story of how he wished the campaign had gone rather than how it had gone."

"Then it's a work of fiction?"

"Essentially historical fiction, yes sir," she went on. "I have no doubt the main points are broadly accurate - parachute landings, demolishing artillery, and so forth, but the specifics have been, ah, tweaked."

"There's even a part where we had to fight laser tanks." Julia offered. "Laser. Tanks."

"I… see." McGraw said slowly. "You would still say it's good training for harsh combat situations, though?"

"That much remains to be seen." Julia noted. "But I do feel like I'm learning a lot. The characters may be one-note, but they play that note very enthusiastically."

"Well, keep up the good work." he said, turning to leave. "I was hesitant to accept help from a wastelander, even on Veronica's recommendation, but you've proven adept enough. How soon do you think you'll be finished here?"

"If all goes as it has been, in two days." Veronica said.

"Then I shall see you in four." McGraw said with a wry grin, and left.

"...Did he just make a joke?" Julia asked, boggling a little.

"You must have impressed him." Veronica said, chuckling. "I know they all seem pretty stiff, but it's mostly just how they present themselves to outsiders. Nobody can be that formal all the time."

"So it's got to be pretty weird having us on their base 24/7 these days." Julia mused.

"It helps that we're helping. If we'd done the usual dumbass-waster routine or started making trouble, it'd be a lot different." She shook her head. "That said, we should try and wrap this up as soon as we can. We don't want to overstay our welcome."

"And we also don't want to leave my dad for longer than we need to either. You do remember that part, right?"

"Your who?" Veronica asked, projecting a pure lack of guile.

"My dad?" Julia reminded her. "The one who's stuck in a simulation in some godforsaken Vault? The reason we're here?"

"Oh right!" Veronica said, putting on an exaggerated expression of dawning comprehension. "I just get so wrapped up in this nifty tech stuff I forget about the little details sometimes."

"I was just asking." Julia said, rolling her eyes.

"And I was giving you shit for it." Veronica agreed cheerfully. "Now do you want to go get dinner or keep asking dumb questions?"

"Ugggggggh."

-0-

"...and that concludes the briefing, Corporal Whatever. It's time to show those Red bastards what the U.S. Army is all about. We're cold, we're tired and we want our goddamn oil back - so give 'em hell!"

Julia saluted the General for formality's sake and headed outside into the snow. She could actually see Anchorage from where the Army had made its camp - or at least the refinery outside the city where the Reds had dug in for their last stand. At her side, the ever ready Gunnery Sergeant Benjamin Montgomery flickered slightly in the cold winds. He's not real, she thought to herself, and it's his fault that I'm stuck with that dumb name. But darned if he wasn't helpful.

"You ready to take Alaska back today, Benji?" she asked impishly.

"You're damn right, Corporal." he said, grinning fiercely. "We'll teach those goddamn Commies you don't mess with the U.S.!"

Veronica had all the data she needed from the previous sessions, she'd found out yesterday. Today's information would likely just be a repeat of the same - useful, but not novel. Technically, she was only still in the simulation to hold up their end of the bargain they'd made with the Outcasts. In truth though, she would have wanted to come back anyway. The sim was teaching her a lot sure - and it had been a busy and painful week of getting shot, blown up, stabbed, and even vaporized a few times (frickin LASER frickin TANKS) - but there was something undeniably compelling about marching into battle alongside others in the pursuit of a righteous cause. She would deny the accusation of "starting to enjoy it", but not terribly vehemently. Thus it was with a smile on her face and a song in her heart, she turned and gave the final order of the sim -

"Men - advance!"

-0-

Wednesday, September 26, 2277

5:23 PM

Julia stepped out of the pod for the last time, still brimming with adrenaline from her final push into Anchorage. Even General Chase pausing the entire world to give me an 'attaboy' hasn't brought the mood down too much. That was.. exciting!

"Hey Veronica, did you see that last bit?" she said, stretching. "I know you didn't see it see it, but-"

She broke off in confusion as Veronica was nowhere to be seen. The monitoring chair sat empty, and Veronica's headset lay on the desk. Julia had about enough time to notice that she was confused before a shape came at her from around the corner of the pod. Acting with reflexes borne of far too many unreasonably plentiful and sneaky Chinese stealth troopers she ducked under the thrust and swept a leg underneath whoever was coming at her. They went down hard, but rebounded adroitly and retaliated with some weird move that sent Julia to the floor this time - and followed it up with a finger to the face.

"Boop!" her assailant said. "Got your nose!"

"Veronica what the flop." Julia asked from underneath her newest ally.

"I was seeing if you actually learned anything." she said, shrugging and getting up. "Nice reflexes, by the way! Your reaction time is way better than it used to be."

"I still ended up on the floor." Julia said sourly, before smirking slightly in amusement. "And noseless."

"Well yeah, you got the basics down, but I'm still the Punching Queen." Veronica replied, preening slightly. "In close range, there aren't a lot of people who would be able to match me."

"And most of what we do involves shooting people anyway." Julia said, brushing herself off.

"Which I'm also good at. But now, so are you! Come on, the Protector will be wanting his cache of weapons, and the sooner we're done with that, the sooner we can save your dad." She paused for a moment, considering. "You might want to put some real clothes on first, though."

-0-

It hadn't taken long for McGraw to assemble the necessary people to witness the opening of the armory, and even less time for word to spread around to everyone else on the base. Needless to say, everyone who could come to watch did so. The hallway leading up to the large blast door was filled nearly to capacity with expectant Outcasts in power armor, with a small hemisphere left open for McGraw, Veronica, and Julia.

"It looks like I just type in my name and the passcode from the sim, and it'll let me in." Julia explained.

"Seems almost too simple, after all this time." McGraw mused.

Veronica shrugged expressively. "The entire point of the door is to keep anyone unauthorized from opening it. Now she is authorized. That's how passwords work."

"I know, I know." McGraw said, waving her off. "Just an old man's musings."

Julia typed in her username and password as carefully as she could - no telling if they'd get another shot at this.

"Hey, who's Corporal_Whoever?" one of the soldiers close enough to see the screen asked. "I thought your name was 'Mateus'?"

"I don't want to talk about it." she responded, tapping the submit key with a little more force than was strictly necessary. Any further inquiry was cut off by the sheer noise of the blast doors opening. A puff of air ruffled everyone's hair as the pressures equalized between two long-separated spaces. And then…

"Holy shit, that's a lot of guns."

Normally McGraw would have had words for his mouthy subordinate about such a breach in decorum in front of an outsider, but at the moment all he could really do was nod dumbly in agreement. Racks of pistols. Shelves of rifles. Barrels of bombs. All of the ammo. And in the center, arranged as if the rest of the weaponry were some warlike shrine to it, a pristine suit of power armor, the likes of which none of them had ever seen before, with a sheathed sword mounted on its pedestal in front of the chestplate. The general design was essentially the same as those the other Outcasts wore, but where their armor was red and black, the new set was brilliant white. For an order with a near-religious mandate to seek and discover lost technology, this bordered on a divine revelation. Some of the Knights fell to their knees. One uttered a wordless prayer of thanks. Julia, with her back to all of them and not really noticing, walked in and picked up the sword.

"Hey, I recognize this!" she said, unsheathing it and giving it an experimental twirl. "It's the sword the Chinese General… had.. in..?"

She trailed off as she noticed the state her audience was in. Some of them looked annoyed at her interruption. Others still seemed rapturous. Mostly, they looked ready to lay claim to everything in that room, outsider aid be damned. McGraw, however, knew exactly what to do.

"Outsider!" he boomed in a stentorian voice. "As you have delivered to us this cache of relics from before the War rendered this land asunder, so too do we grant you this boon! The Blade of Jingwei, Scourge of Anchorage! Take it with our blessing, and may you smite great evil with it! Go now in glory!"

"But-" she started to protest, before Veronica nudged her towards the door.

"Jules, don't get between the Brotherhood and their technology." she said, sotto voce, as they made tracks. "McGraw gave you an opening and an excuse, let's not stick around and make them think about it too much."

They hurried into the elevator and Veronica sighed in relief as it started ascending. Julia shrugged and strapped the sheathed sword to her back.

"You were right about the trophy thing, at least." Julia noted as they exited the elevator. "Who else in the Wastes is going to have a sword?"

"It helps that it's not really advanced technology." Veronica noted, looking around for the best way to get underway. "It's a sword."

"Actually, about that." Julia mentioned, unsheathing it. "If it's anything like the one the General had in the simulation…"

She found a toggle built into the hilt and thumbed it on. Coruscating lightning came to life along the entire length of the blade, casting strange, faint shadows on the walls around them.

"...then it's a shocksword." she finished, grinning.