Fallout: New World

by ComeInMeBro

The man who had cheated death in the cemetery outside of Goodsprings, finds his mind muddled and his companion missing after awakening in a forest. With his gear and weapons accounted for, he begins his adventure in this strange New World. Little does he know, he isn't the only one bewildered by his new surroundings. Neutral Courier.

7. Chapter 6

Six stared at the bandaged hand presenting him the soft cover of a book. He kept his view on it for a few seconds before looking up and making eye contact with the one who had offered it to him. Two burning blue eyes met the dull red lenses of his helmet.

"It is yours now. Perhaps one day it might help you." The man's unmistakable voice came through the wrapping around his mouth. "Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you."

"You know I'm not the religious type, Graham." Six responded as he accepted the book anyway.

"And yet you take it." Joshua furrowed his brows, but it looked more like he narrowed his eyes. "You've helped me - us - more than you know, Courier. Such kindness in this corrupted earth and its people is practically unheard of. Which is why I wish to extend a helping hand."

"What do you mean?" Six asked as he inspected the new object in his right hand.

"We all have our moments of weakness. Some of us are more resilient than others and can overcome such times." He gestured to the book. "One day you may be tempted to give the world what it has given you. It is in this corrupted earth and its people that we lose ourselves."

"I hope that, one day, this helps you in your time of need."

…

Six opened the book and looked at the first page. He honestly didn't know what to expect. Praying? God? He had asked Joshua before but the explanation had not been deep. Could there truly be a higher power who had created him, his fellow man. If what the residents of Nazarick say are true about their creators, then this could certainly be the case. But who was the one responsible for creating the higher beings in the first place? Some omnipotent entity? He never concerned himself with things like this, free time was a luxury he hadn't been able to afford. Thoughts like these bothered him. So, he began reading…

In Genesis Chapter 1 he read about how the LORD, God, created the heavens, earth, and everything that had and is living. This being created them in his image. In the second chapter, he formed the first man and placed him in the garden known as Eden. He was free to do as he wished save for eating from the tree of good and evil. It was here that in realizing the loneliness he had given Adam, the first man, he created a woman to act as his partner. Afterwards, the deceiver - a treacherous snake - tricked eve and made her eat from the tree. With the garden now cursed, God removed the partners away from it.

Six only got this far before a knock came from his door. He gently closed the book and left it sitting on the edge of his bed. He approached the door and opened it to reveal whomever it was to have come seeking him.

Much to his surprise, the pale woman he knew as Shalltear Bloodfallen stood behind it. He tilted his head and realized that he was utterly alone. None of the battle maids were present. And they were here before which means that the vampire glaring up at him must have asked them to leave. His brain into overdrive as he began thinking of the many reasons as to why she could possibly be here. His initial thought was that Ainz had sent her to kill him. But he quickly dismissed that seeing as sending only one person here would be very foolish since the Overlord didn't truly know him. That and a fight in Nazarick one could have easily had elsewhere like the Sixth Floor would be much easier. So then he thought about Shalltear herself. Had he done anything that had earned him her ire? He quickly thought back to what she had told him about Aura and Mare. Was this something to do with that? Ah, whatever. He was about to find out.

"Hey, Shalltear." He gave her a quick wave. An action he soon regretted. His greeting only fueled the cold glare she refused to drop. So there Six stood awkwardly in the doorway as the silence in the room started to get to him. So once again he tried to break it. "So, uh, why are you here?"

"We must speak. Privately. Now." She with the utmost seriousness. Six didn't detect any of the previous hostility from before.

"Um… okay?" He looked behind himself and gestured for ED-E to move aside so that he could let the admittedly spooky lady in. He stepped aside and let her through. Once she was in, he closed the door and approached the bed. Usually ED-E would be here next to him, but he's been spending more time with the other residents of this great tomb. He didn't blame him, doing nothing near himself would have bored him too. With his current restriction of staying within Nazarick, unless specifically ordered to do so, tied his hands. He sat down near the Bible Joshua had given him and met Shalltear's eyes behind his helmet. It was more recognizable than his real face. That's why he wore it. Strangers back in Nevada knew who he was if he had it on. Without it, he was just another guy.

"What's this about?" He leaned forward and devoted his attention to Shalltear.

She scoffed at his question. "You don't even know."

He crossed his arms. "Maybe I would if you told me."

"It concerns Aura, you pedophile."

Six quite literally recoiled in surprise at the accusation suddenly punching him in the gut. What on earth had he done to warrant such an attack on him? All he did was receive some of their aid in covering up that other hidden tomb and talked to one another a bit. He immediately thought back to his encounter with Saint James and his partner Dermot. To know that there was an active pedophile and a soulless greedy man kidnapping and selling women and children into sexual slavery made him explode into a rage so rarely seen from him. When he confronted them both with the ledger detailing all of their sins, they attacked him. Not like it mattered. Since he was going to kill them anyway. Which he took his time with.

"Man, you are really overprotective of her. It's heartwarming in all honesty." He continued. "But, and with all due respect, you wouldn't be able to spot a kiddy fiddler if it masturbated over a child." He said angrily.

"I should rip your tongue out, human." She growled as a black mist began developing.

"You keep saying that so do it already if you're so confident." He leaned his head back and exposed his neck. She only clicked her tongue in anger. Six knew full well she wouldn't do such a thing. Especially if ordered by Ainz to specifically not to hurt him. He sighed and let his head fall back down to its original position. Six didn't know why she hated him, he guessed certain people just aren't compatible.

Shalltear assumed a more dignified expression. "Though you do not deserve it, I've come to make a deal with you."

"Shoot." He simply said.

"I want you to stop talking to Aura if it's at all possible. Of course, if Ainz for some reason wills it to be so then I won't be upset." She paused. "And in return, I'll lend you a few of my Vampire Brides. You can do as your heart desires. They'll do as you say."

"Oh that sounds great. We'll play tag together." Six made sure to sound as sarcastic as possible.

The True Vampire frowned. "Do you refuse then?"

Another sigh escaped the Courier. He wanted this to end. "Look, if me interacting with Aura really bothers you that much then I'll make sure to stay out of her way. You don't need to make deals with me. I'll respect your boundaries. In the end, I'm just a stranger in your home who happened to be accepted by the owner. I know the position I'm in."

"You best stay true to your word, Courier." She threatened. "I will be watching you."

"Don't doubt it." He said unconcernedly.

[Wesson Hall.]

Six's head suddenly shot up. He instantly recognized that voice.

[Ah, so it finally works. I wondered why the "Message" spell refused to work between us and those in Nazarick. Interesting isn't it?]

"Momonga? That you?" Six asked aloud. He didn't notice the curious look Shalltear gave him.

[Ah, that name. I did not inform you did I? I apologize.]

"What do you mean?"

[I now go as Ainz Ooal Gown. This is what you must call me from now.]

"Okay, but can I ask why?"

[It is what I will be known as outside of Nazarick. But mainly, it is also in honor of all those who once resided in this great tomb.]

Six didn't get a chance to respond.

[Now, head to the Throne Room we must speak.]

"Uh, okay. I'll be there."

Upon saying those words, Six felt as if something from his brain had disconnected from whatever connected two people using a message spell. He turned to look at Shalltear who patiently and waited for an explanation as if he owed it to her.

"Momong…" Six trailed off after realizing his mistake. "Ainz wants me to go to the Throne Room. Said he wanted to talk." He stood up from his bed. "So if you'll excuse me…"

Six opened the door and stepped through it. He glanced behind himself and saw Shalltear stand up as well. Not bothering to close the next door leading to the halls, he left her alone.

Shalltear was about to leave the room before she fully noticed the black titleless book laying innocently on the bed. She turned her head to where Six had left and focused her attention back on the softcover. She picked it up and opened it to a random page. She was curious, but not so much so that she'd read it all.

Out of randomness, she landed on the Proverb section and began skimming through it. One particular quote stuck out to her.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

…

Six stood still as the two large and decorated doors leading to the throne opened slowly and of their own accord. Once again, he laid eyes on the regal and magnificent area meant only for a king. He slowly walked, eyes forward and locked on the undead ruler of Nazarick. Once present near the steps he stopped and slightly tilted his head up so that his eyes could meet Ainz's. Not breaking the tradition, he refused to bow before the Overlord. At this point, Ainz had been beyond caring but the Guardian Overseer herself had yet to grow accustomed to it. The reason she wasn't too upset was because of her master's explanation as to why he allowed it. Still, it never sat right with her.

"I'm here." Six said and placed his gloved hands within the coat's pockets.

"So you are." Ainz responded in kind. "But do you know why?"

The Courier only shook his head at the question.

"It has come to my attention that you have earned the affections from one of the Denizens of Nazarick."

The Courier nodded. "Aura, right?"

"You were aware." Ainz slightly leaned forward. "Do you know this came about?"

Six shrugged. "No idea honestly. We made some small talk when we went to hide the Mummy Lord's tomb."

"What about exactly?"

"Uh, I told them about the Nightstalkers after we encountered a pack."

"Nightstalkers? And what are they?"

"A combination of snake and canine. They hiss just like snakes do but act mostly like wolves. They lay eggs to reproduce and some can become invisible."

"Hm. Interesting. First Deathclaws and now this."

"I would request a detailed synopsis of these other creatures you've encountered if we had the time. But there are other matters that are much more important, such as your loyalty."

Six stayed silent.

"How can I be so sure that you won't betray me? That one day you will change your mind and ally yourself with someone else?"

More silence.

"Your sudden appearance in Nazarick is no mere coincidence and it just so happens that you also lose some of your memories alongside it? I will not lie, you have been a boon thus far but I fear your unquestioning nature is suspicious. Had you been born within Nazarick I would not have doubted your allegiance. But you are a stranger who happily goes along with it all. In the end, I have to know your motivations. So…" The red glow in Ainz's eyes intensified greatly. "Explain yourself, Wesson Hall."

Six shifted in place before breaking his own silence. "It's because you're undead."

The Skeleton gestured for him to continue. "Go on."

"Normally, I would come out and say that a dictatorship such as the one you are running now would fail in the near future. It's no secret that once the ruler, the one who lords over everything will eventually pass and the civilization within will collapse if loyalty was only ever to that one man." A pause. "I knew a man who went by Caesar, though Edward Sallow was his real name. He led a totalitarian dictatorship made up of a total of 87 tribes he had conquered. You remind me of him in a way."

Six used a single second to put together his next words. "Though you both use a dictatorship to achieve your goals, you do it in highly different ways. When I first came here, I was shown mercy and you simply apprehended me. You showed me kindness by finding ED-E and offering me a choice to stay within Nazarick or go outside with my memories altered. It's obvious to me that you are a benevolent ruler who truly cares for his subjects. Anyone with half a brain could tell you that. As for what's in it for me… I just don't want a repeat of the world that was left behind. When you eventually conquer the world, I know that the truly vile and wretched people in this New World will make it terrible once again. You are the answer I never thought existed. Which is why I want to be a part of this. I'll always be of service to you. No matter what."

The Overlord said nothing initially. The red glow in his eyes seemed to be almost on fire, the orb on his chest doing the same as well. And then he laughed.

It was not of the mocking kind but the one being made whenever something truly pleased them. Ainz laughed and laughed for a good while before it suddenly ceased and he was calmed down once again.

"And what makes you so certain that I am the one who will lead the world into glory? How can you put it all in faith and assume what I intend to do?" Ainz honestly believed Six, but he still wanted to continue this conversation.

"I just have a good feeling."

"Hmph. 'A good feeling' you say? And just how often do you let your instincts make a decision for you?"

Six smiled underneath his mask. "More than I would like to admit."

A chuckle escaped Ainz. "It seems to have worked in your favor thus far."

Six then crossed the fingers on his right hand. "Here's hoping I die of old age."

"We shall certainly see. Well, let's move on to the next topic. Now back to Aura…"

Six said nothing.

"I have no desire to let the other guardians know of this. I'm certain it would only cause her further embarrassment. You leave me in awe, Hall."

The Courier raised his brow at that last part. "Well, I have an explanation for that. I think."

"Oh? Let's hear it then."

"Uh, ok, so from what I learned, 'crushes' come from the fantasy made within their mind. They tend to project their values on the person receiving those feelings. They use what little pieces of information they have and shape it into something that fits what they wish that person could be."

"You have studied this?"

"Not intentionally. I read a lot. Well, used to. If there's one thing I know for sure, you can learn a lot from old books."

Ainz hummed. "You are aware there is a library within Nazarick right, Hall."

"You do?! Where?" Six said that a bit more desperately than he intended. It only caused the Overlord to smile. Of course, you couldn't tell by looking at him.

"Coincidentally, it is on this very floor. However…" Ainz studied Six for a while. Was there really any harm in allowing him to enter the area? Initially he didn't think so, but then he remembered the collection of event books. Though they were uncommon in YGGDRASIL, here in this New World that might not be the case. And if Six decided that he would use some of these important items… "I'll allow it. On one condition."

"Anything."

"You will be heavily monitored by those roaming the area. If they tell you that certain items are off limits, I fully expect you to leave it alone. I don't have to tell you what happens should you break that deal."

Six didn't mind the threat or the conditions. He got those all the time. "Deal. I won't touch whatever's off-limits. I swear on ED-E's life." He said seriously.

"Good. Now then, onto more pressing matters."

"H-Hold on a sec, what should I do about Aura?"

"You said it best yourself. In time it will pass. This matter will sort itself out. If you want some advice… don't do anything you will regret."

Six furrowed his brow at that last statement. He didn't know what Ainz meant by that. He didn't get much time to think about it before Ainz changed the subject.

"Are you familiar with Martial Arts?"

Six mulled the question for a moment. "I know they're supposed to be unarmed techniques - you say it like it means something else."

"These 'Martial Arts' are not of that kind. From what I gathered within Carne Village they are a sort of a skill that greatly enhances the abilities of its user."

"So kinda like magic then?"

"Precisely. I want to know more about this. As such, I have a new task for you. Learn all you can about these abilities. And, if possible, try and possess such tactics for yourself. Should you succeed, I expect you to teach it to the other warriors in Nazarick."

Six was about to open his mouth before Ainz spoke again. "I realize that doing this in your Worker persona would be extremely detrimental. It would be suspicious for one who 'slew' a Mummy Lord to have no techniques, no? Which is why you will be going out not as Wesson Hall, but Courier Six. You may use any and all of your equipment to accomplish this task. Including your Pip-Boy. I believe it will aid you. Prepare yourself and depart tomorrow."

Six only had one question. "And ED-E?"

"You wish to bring him with you?"

The Courier nodded fiercely.

"Your appearance will bring attention regardless. ED-E will only solidify to those outside that you are one not to be trifled with… I'll allow it."

Ainz paused for a moment. "I believe that concludes this meeting. I have other matters I must attend to." The Supreme Being said as he stood up with a flourish of his academic gown he stood up and used some form of magic that Six knew to be teleportation. He stared at the spot Ainz had disappeared from.

It didn't last long after noticing Albedo step down from the Throne. He knew that the reason she was always by Ainz's side was more than just because she loved him. She quite literally acted as his shield. So it made sense for her to be chosen to guard the ruler everyone in Nazarick swore fealty to. He thought she would simply walk past him and go about her day like it usually played out.

"Courier." Which is why it surprised him when she unexpectedly called him.

Six almost looked around himself to make sure that she was in fact speaking to him. He just always felt like there was some kind of tension between himself and this horned lady. Unlike with the open hostility with him and Shalltear, this strain was something that almost made him uneasy. His perception warned him of a silent animosity combined with jealousy. Though there was also a twinge of apprehensiveness.

"...Yeah?" He asked dumbly.

"I have become aware of the hostility between you and Shalltear."

"Right, you're the Guardian Overseer. You're supposed to know about stuff like that.

"I didn't have to superintend her or the others to find out. After all, she was here minutes before you arrived to voice her disapproval at the relationship between you and Aura."

"There is NO relationship! Christ… all I did was talk to the kid for a minute." Six rubbed the front of his helmet in frustration as if it would somehow sooth him. It is now that he realized just how tired he was.

"Regardless, I have an offer for you."

Wariness soon flooded him at the mention of an offer. "Okay…"

"Become a part of my group against Shalltear. I have already assembled Narberal Gamma, Yuri Alpha and Lupusregina Beta on my side."

"Huh? Your group? Ohhhh… you mean that rivalry you and Shalltear have got going on - Wait..." Six pushed aside his fatigue. "Why me? What possible advantage would you have in recruiting me?"

"Though I hate to admit this, despite staying at my beloved Ainz-sama's side I can never truly grasp what goes on within his all-knowing mind. However, it is plainly evident from your interactions with Ainz-sama that there is a mutual understanding between you two. You comprehend his thought processes better than I. That is a powerful tool that can help in my objective. That ability may be just the thing I require to defeat Shalltear."

An interested hum was all the Courier released after hearing that. At least she was honest, so he appreciated that. It was almost enough to agree to it all but…

"I'm gonna have to say no."

Albedo didn't look so pleased anymore. Her pleasant face turned into a neutral one. Even though it wasn't hostile, Six realized it wasn't something he wanted to be on the receiving end of.

"But also yes."

Now she simply looked confused and asked: "What do you mean?"

"I'll help you and Shalltear both instead of just one of you."

Albedo almost looked flabbergasted. "For what possible reason would you do so?"

"I like close fights. It's boring if one side gets utterly annihilated."

"You wish to be entertained? Is that it?"

Six snapped his fingers and pointed his finger at her. "Bingo." He continued. "Here's a freebie tip for you: Don't be clingy." The Courier suddenly turned around on his heel and gave a half-assed wave.

Albedo furrowed her brows in serious thought. She wasn't clingy. She was sure of it. Right?

…

Ferdinas and Amadeius roared in victory as they clinked two bottles of alcohol against one another. The two men each had their own considerably attractive woman next to them who shared the same but more restrained enthusiasm their two partners indulged themselves in. The two previously fallen nobles never imagined themselves to be riding in such a luxurious stagecoach once again.

"To new and better beginnings!" Amadeius said before taking a generous sip of the spirit. Ferdinas followed the action as he did so. They both let out satisfied and refreshed sighs after the burning liquid went beyond the throat.

"What do you girls think, hm? Enjoying yourselves?" Ferdinas asked them both as he leaned back.

The first to speak was a woman with curly dark brown pushed mostly to her right side. "If I were to be honest, the seats here are slightly uncomfortable." The other woman, one with a blonde ponytail, nodded in agreement with her.

Ferdinas looked somewhat embarrassed. "Ah, we apologize, we did not wish to be too wasteful on things such as this."

"You lack the money to purchase mere soft seats?" The other asked him.

"Quite the opposite." Amadeius joined in. "It is because of our wealth that we want to be extremely careful with it. Truth be told, my bottom is sore. We'll make sure to add better material next time we travel."

"You can be sure of it." Ferdinas confirmed for them. "For now," he pointed to the food and beverages placed in the middle of the small moving room. "Let us enjoy ourselves. We have yet to reach the half point between E-Rantel and Re-Estize."

"It has been too long."

"They'll be quite surprised won't they?" An amused grin spread on Ferdinas' face.

"Yes, surprise. Along with competition." A warning tone came from Amadeius. "No doubt we'll be seen as the enemy. But with our excessive wealth we'll be able to blindside them. We're lucky the Kingdom is in such a state."

"We shouldn't discuss this in front of them." Ferdinas gestured with his head with the other two women who were speaking with one another. It seemed that they had all but forgotten their existence.

"Of course. Let's talk about something else." Amadeius made to change the subject but stopped himself when the stagecoach came to a sudden halt which nearly spilled some of the food.

Both men glanced at one another quickly but it was Ferdinas who decided to open the door on his side. He peeked his head out and looked at the driver who was supposed to be doing his job.

"Why have you stopped?" He asked in a polite tone.

"I'm sorry Sir but…" The hired man turned his head back in front of himself.

Ferdinas followed the man's line of sight. What lay ahead of them all was something to truly behold. Metal men, perhaps men in metal stood at the center of the main road. At the moment, they seemed to be conversing with a man on horseback. The conversation seemed to be going well. That's what it looked like from the outside at least. There were three of these men, however, only one of them conversed with the other traveler. But that's not what caught his attention. What really stood out to him was the metal behemoth twice the size as the others next to him. To say he was intimidating would be an understatement. Just looking from afar, Ferdinas knew that the person behind it was everything but a pushover. It was a few moments after these thoughts that the imposing man suddenly turned his head to face his direction. Though the glassy oval eyes hid the face behind it, he knew this being looked directly at him. He couldn't help but get goosebumps.

"What is it?" Amadeius popped his head out from the very same door and looked to where his partner stared at. "Well I'll be." He would be lying if he said what stood ahead of them wasn't something that made him gawk. "Those suits look similar to the ones that adamantite adventurer uses."

"You mean Azuth Aindra?"

"Yes, that the one."

"Do you think they're connected somehow?"

"Who knows but-"

"Sirs! They are coming our way…" The driver's nervousness was extremely apparent.

"Calm down. If their intent was to harm then surely they would have attacked that man." Amadeius pointed at the man on horseback who had departed without incident. He even wore a small smile on his face.

"That's true but…"

"If you're nervous, then let me do all the talking. Things shall go smoothly." Amadeius held no fear in his eyes.

"What's going on?" The blonde woman asked.

"Nothing to worry about. It will only take a moment." Ferdinas said as he tried his best to act casual and confident.

"Hail travelers!" A filtered and polite voice came from one of the metal men as he approached them. It was here that Amadeius got to work.

"Greetings gentlemen. A fine day is it not?"

"Beautiful weather to be sure." The same one in the suit responded. "We apologize for interrupting you, but we simply wished to inform you about ourselves."

Amadeius slightly raised his eyebrows. It was clear he was curious about what they had to say. He nodded and said: "Go on."

"We are the Enclave. A purely human civilization residing both within and outside on the entirety of the Azerlisia Mountains."

Ferdinas, who stood next to his partner, looked both shocked and skeptical at the same time, but it was Amadeius who voiced these questions. "The whole range? Please excuse me, but I find that claim very hard to believe. Frost Dragons and Giants fight over such a territory. Their strength alone is something humans can scarcely achieve."

"Your skepticism is expected, but we speak the truth. The days of non-human weakness are over. It is not just those two species which have annihilation. The Quagoa, Myconids, and many more that resided there. We extend invitations to not just you, but to Humanity as a whole. Become a citizen, or choose to join as a soldier. Every man, woman and child is expected to do their part to ensure the prosperity of humanity's future." The metal man produced what appeared to be a propaganda poster of some kind and handed it to Amadeius.

The noble unrolled the paper he had accepted and let Ferdinas look at it as well. The artwork on it displayed a soldier in the very same suit of armor the man in front of him wore. Children enthusiastically hung from the stoic soldier who held their combined weight as if it were nothing. That itself was simply in the background. Near the center stood what appeared to be a noble with his spouse at his side. He gazed proudly ahead of himself with his fists placed near his side. Above to the right of him were the words:

Rebuilding Humanity's Future Today!

He didn't fail to notice the logo on the top right of the poster. An 'E' with stars surrounding it.

"It is our hope you spread our message and decided to join us as we prosper. We stand stronger together."

Amadeius and Ferdinas looked at one another. This was too elaborate to not be considered real. However, Amadeius has one final question.

"And who rules this kingdom?"

Upon hearing the question, the two soldiers looked at each before turning around and looking at the towering man. A voice deep and guttural came from the helmets

filter. "That would be me."

"A-And you are?" Amadeius silently cursed himself for stuttering.

"Frank Horrigan. The Enclave's King. The one who led the extermination of all the muties."

"...Muties? Does he mean the creatures?"

"...It's a pleasure to meet you, your majesty." Amadeius forced a smile and bowed with Ferdinas doing the same.

"Likewise. Now, be on your way and spread our message." The way Horrigan said it sounded more like an order than a suggestion.

The two nobles dumbly nodded. "We shall do that." Ferdinas looked at the man leading the horses and gestured for him to start again. With a nervous nod, the silent man urged the horses to continue once again. The stagecoach quickly passed the metal men and left them behind. The driver turned his head for a moment to see if they were still looking at him. They were. He snapped his head back in front of himself and pretended they didn't exist.

…

"Stop moving, idiot." Six chastised his companion. ED-E squirmed as the Courier reached into the eyebot's back. "You're only making it take longer."

ED-E would describe the feelings of having your insides readjusted to the feeling one might have if someone sliced your belly open to reach inside for whatever they required. It was very uncomfortable to say the least.

"...What are you doing?" The short eyepatch wearer asked from behind Six.

Six didn't bother looking in CZ's direction. "Getting goodies from ED-E. I found out not too long ago, by accident, that he has some items in his body."

"...Like what?"

Six was about to respond before he felt his hand brush against something. He ignored the question and grabbed a hold of whatever he had made contact with. Moments later, with some effort, he pulled out a large weapon. If Six has his helmet off then CZ would have noticed the big grin on his face. There was no mistaking this weapon for anything else. This is a minigun. But it isn't the average one. This variant in particular was dubbed the CZ57 Avenger. What made it stand out from amongst the rest of its kind is was the absurd fire rate it put thanks to all of the modifications it had received such as improved cooling and chromium plated barrels-bores which gave it the better fire rate and range it needed.

"Like this. This is exactly what I was hoping for. I wonder what else I can get."

A series of tired beeps came from ED-E. The bot had even lowered itself closer to the ground so it wouldn't have to use too much energy to keep itself higher.

"Really? That's too bad. We'll try some other time then."

Relentless beeping soon exploded from the eyebot after Six had spoken. "Alright alright!" He threw his hands up halfway in defense. "Jeez… no need for all the swearing."

Six turned to look at CZ who was staring at the weapon in his hands. "It's called the CZ57 Avenger."

"...It has my name on it."

"Part of it does, yeah. Your creator certainly had a thing for weapons. It's a shame I can't meet him right now." After saying these words, through his perfect Perception, he was able to make out a very subtle hint of sadness on the girl's face. No doubt it had occurred because he had brought up her creator, whomever they might have been.

"Want to go shoot it?" Six asked knowing the offer would wipe away any traces of the negative emotion.

CZ's answer?

"...I can't." Her flat tone betrayed the slight hint of emotion on her face.

Six slightly tilted his head. He was sure she would be all over the gun. "Why not?"

"...I've been ordered by Ainz-sama to guard the Ninth Floor for an indefinite period of time."

Six gave a simple. "Oh." But he quickly thought of something else. "Take it anyway." Six offered the Avenger to her. "If anyone does make it to the Ninth Floor, you'll be ready. Trust me. They'll resemble Swiss cheese after a literal second of this." CZ looked at the weapon for a moment. Six noticed her good eye scanning the object for a fee seconds before she almost greedily took it from his hands. To his expectations, she carried it in one hand without much effort.

"Knock yourself out." He gestured with an open palm.

Wordlessly, she turned around in her usual robotic manner and went for the door. She exited and left the Courier alone with his metal eyeball.

"What next, ED-E?" He turned to look at his buddy. The bot mimicked the action and let out a few beeps. "Hm. That's not a bad idea." He mulled whatever thought the bot had put into his head. "Wait, you just want to be with those maids again don't you?" He accused the bot. His companion denied this but he knew better. "Whatever. I could use a meal. But first, the library. I want to see what they have in Nazarick."

...

Six stared at the two Golems guarding the wide door to the library he had been aware of. These constructs in particular were made of iron and stood almost 3 meters tall. Both of them gazed back at Six who intently studied them. His curiosity had won over for the moment as he looked at them up and down in an attempt to see if it was magic or technology that kept them going. Or could it have been a mix of both? Regardless…

"Hey, uh, can I come in?" He looked between the two beings. They did not respond to his question and merely kept their single glowing orb of light acting and eyeball directly at him. "Ainz said I could, so..." Six waited for an answer. He got nothing. Surely the Overlord informed the ones residing in this area that he had been allowed here, right?

With a silent sigh, Six began taking towards the decorated and pristine doors without batting an eye at the ones guarding it. He mentally prepared himself for conflict as he drew near. Much to his relief, the two guards did nothing as he placed his hands on the door and swung the one on the right open. It was here that he got his first look at the area.

"Woah. This place is huge." Six couldn't help say it aloud as he stared in awe at the expansive room containing what one might exaggerate as endless. A plethora of many books lay within the open shelves. This place was absolutely massive. Like the rest of Nazarick this place was more than just clean. Though it was certainly a library, it had elements that also implied that it too could have been an art museum if the paintings on the walls were any indication. Six took notice of the second floor here that had some books behind glass shelves. Those were probably the items that Ainz had deemed off-limits to him.

"Welcome to Ashurbanipal, Courier Six-sama." Nazarick's first ally turned his head to look at the one who had spoken to him. A man in a black hooded robe who looked not unlike a leper locked eyes with the helmet's red visors.

"Just Six or Courier. Please." He nearly begged the decrepit being.

"If that is what you wish." The man then gestured for Six to follow. "Come with me."

Six did as he was told and followed the man in front of him. "I didn't get your name."

"I am Librarian J. One of the many caretakers here."

Six simply hummed in acknowledgement. He did this so as to not offend him by saying something along the lines of "what a weird name" or "how strange". The only interesting part of the name was the 'J' part. There had to be some reason behind that specific letter. J did say that there were other caretakers here. Maybe when the letters were placed together and rearranged it would spell something.

"You have a lot of books here." The Courier noted the obvious. He was just trying to make small talk.

"Indeed. There are many types of books one could choose from here. Unfortunately, we have been informed that the only category you may choose from are novels." Six continued listening as he took quick glances at the titles of the books here. "We expected your arrival, as such, I took the liberty of gathering ones that may spark your interest."

Six raised his brows underneath his helmet. "You didn't have to go that far. Now I feel like I just wasted your time…"

"Don't concern yourself with that. I took great joy in perusing the Great Library for novels worthy of being read."

Librarian J made a sudden turn to his left down another hall full of (you guessed it) more books. Unlike the previous ones, this hallway leads to a clean wooden table with copious amounts of literature.

"It's a shame that almost no one in Nazarick visits Ashurbanipal. It's worthy of more attention."

"Who comes by then?"

"A recent and frequent visitor is Mare-sama. He returned one and withdrew another not too long ago."

So Aura's brother liked to read. A good amount it seemed. Six noted that down mentally. Their brief conversation ended there and they continued down the hall in silence. It took no more than ten seconds to reach the table holding all the printed works. Librarian J was the first to reach it. He stepped aside and indicated for the Courier to start looking at his leisure. The mailman wouldn't lie, he was actually pretty excited to be here. Nuclear devastation had turned the majority of the world into nothing more than cinders. This of course includes literature. Pre-war books aren't sought after by most - that's their mistake. Scientia potentia est. Knowledge is power; Sir Francis Bacon.

"Who names themselves after Bacon?"

"I should let you know that you are allowed only one book at a time unfortunately. Is there anything in particular you like? J's voice shook Six out the zone he had been in. To the caretaker, Six had appeared to be looking the books over intently when in reality had actually spaced out. Still, the Courier did actually see a particular volume that piqued his interest.

"This one." Six grabbed the book that had caught his attention.

"Fahrenheit 45... a fine choice."

"Have you read any of these?" Six looked down at the borrowed book and then at the others.

J chuckled almost silently. "Every book in Ashurbanipal I have read at least once. Every one of us belonging to the library has done so in fact." The hooded man paused for a moment. "I'll note the removal of this item. Enjoy your read." And with that, the Librarian bowed and turned his back to his Six. What he was going to be up to the Courier did not know. Realizing he was done here, he backtracked to the doors and exited the library. In front of the Iron Golems floated ED-E who had been patiently waiting for him. He raised the book into the air to show his friend.

"Got it. Time for grub."

…

Six hadn't realized just how popular ED-E had become with the Homunculus Maids of Nazarick. The moment he and his companion had stepped into the mess hall to grab some chow they were immediately bombarded with voices from various women who wanted the eyebot to hover near them. Some would have even approached the bot had it not been for the Courier who acted as a deterrent for them to do so. Not that it was his intent. He walked up to the long white pristine counter and looked through the clear glass. Picking up a tray at the start of the long counter, he decided that mashed potatoes along with some ham would be his meal for the day. After filling his tray, Six searched for an empty table but was not able to spot one. Though he would rather enjoy his meal alone, he would have to be forced to sit with someone.

"This sucks…"

It looked like he would have to suck it up and sit with one of the maids. He searched for the least occupied table and found just what he was looking for. And then some. Seated not too far away, sat a woman with brown hair and sharp eyes. She was alone and had an unfriendly and reserved air around her.

"Perfect."

As casually as he could, Six approached the table and made sure to look past the woman as if she didn't exist as he walked by her. It worked. He managed to get by her and sit on the opposite side of the table. Not being able to help himself, he turned his head to look at her for a moment and, of course, she was looking his way as well. He performed a curt nod and focused on the meal in front of himself. He was about to use his spoon to begin eating before he realized he had his helmet on. It was a bad habit he had developed over the course of wearing the item after finding it in that Lonesome Road. He removed it from himself and placed it on the ground underneath the table and began eating. After a minute of savoring the godly potatoes and ham, he decided that now would be a good time to begin on at least getting through a few pages on his newfound book.

And so he began his read. Though he himself did not know it, Six read at around 400 words per minute. He could go faster but such a practice was extremely ineffective if you were trying to enjoy the material you were reading and not simply doing so to finish it as quickly as possible. Sure, he could do that and get a basic summary of each chapter but he would miss out on the more intricate details that require you to pause for a moment. Themes and symbolisms to name a few. Still, he got through the introduction in a short amount of time and there were some things that stuck out to him. Messages that he wholeheartedly agreed with.

"This is a book of warning. It is a reminder that what we have is valuable, and sometimes we take what we value for granted." He read in his mind. "'What if…?' gives us change. 'If only…' lets us explore the glories and dangers of tomorrow. 'If this goes on…' is the most predictive of the three…"

"What if the bombs dropped today? If only humanity could see past their differences. If this goes on, the entire world will face total atomic annihilation at the press of a button." He naturally filled in the blanks for himself. What surprised Six was the fact that there apparently had been a film made by someone named Francois Truffaut. He became excited by the idea but soon remembered that if it had once existed then bombs had wiped them out. This upset him more than it should have. He steeled himself mentally and pushed any negative thoughts away from himself.

He finished the lengthy introduction and was about to actually get into it until he felt someone's eyes assaulting him. He looked up from the first page and saw the woman with the pageboy-styled hair gazing at him. He met her eyes, but without the red visor this time. Six glanced down at the object underneath one of her hands and noticed that she had also taken it upon herself to read here.

"Huh, who would've thought?" He kept his eyes on hers, but she too decided to glance at his own book. He decided to be the one to break the strange silence between them.

"What are you reading?" His tone didn't betray his relaxed posture.

The woman said nothing for a few moments before responding with: "Brave New World." She paused. "And you?"

He closed, raised his book and turned it so that it faced her. Though she read the title perfectly fine, he still said it out loud. "Fahrenheit 451. Just starting it now." He glanced at her book. "What's yours about?

"It's a dystopian novel which takes place in a futuristic society. Science and productivity are valued while individuality and emotions are removed almost entirely."

He nodded. "Sounds interesting. How far are you in?"

"About less than halfway. Why do you ask?"

"Because I want to borrow it once you're done with it. It'll be a hassle to search the library after you've returned it. It's faster this way."

"Only if you agree to let me read that one as well." She eyed the mostly red book in Six's hand.

"Deal. Spit on it?" He pretended to spew his saliva in his hand and offered it to her. Much to his amusement, she gave him an emotion mixed with both anger and disgust.

"I'm kidding." He chuckled as he spoke and retracted his hand. "I'll let you know when I'm done with mine, uh…" He thought for a second. "Increment! That's your name right?" The maid raised her brows in surprise. She didn't expect him to know her name. "Now, if you'll excuse me…" Six ended the conversation there and refocused his attention back on his book.

Time seemed to pass by as he chowed down on his food and read through the first many pages of his novel. ED-E, who had been mingling almost all the maids, eventually returned. The homunculus women here had duties to attend to of course. In the corner of his eye, Six noticed Increment leave the area without so much as sneaking a glance at him. Luckily for the Courier, he did not need to vacate the area. Though it was intended to be a job, Six looked forward to tomorrow. His wanderlust and adventuring were about to finally be fulfilled. His task to learn Martial Arts went hand in hand with his genuine curiosity in this New World.

"Maybe I can make some new friends-"

Six scowled and shook his head furiously. He began to grow angry at himself.

"They'll just use you and screw you over again, idiot. Stop thinking like that."

He picked up his helmet and intended to put it on. Instead he unintentionally noticed his own reflection on the red lenses. Upon seeing his own face his anger soon turned into melancholy. He could feel the heartaches forming his forlorn expression. He heard ED-E release quick and anxious beeps from his left.

"I'm fine." He gave the bot a piercing glare before letting it soften. He inhaled through his nose and exhaled from his mouth in an attempt to strengthen his nerves. "I'm fine." He said more calmly.

"I should get some sleep." He suddenly got up from the bench and stood up. He didn't bother checking the time. It could be morning and he would still choose to doze off. Anything to get rid of this mood he was in. Restraining his negative emotions, he went back to his quarters without incident.

…

Joshua Graham sat behind a wooden table on a chair made of the same material. In front of him various sheets and other such documents he had grown accustomed to seeing long ago. Especially if one is the acting warchief of the surrounding tribe. Never in his life did Joshua expect to be commanding elves. Dark elves to be more precise. It was mere luck that placed him in the Great Forest of Evasha. But that was years ago and he would rather not dwell on his time as a prisoner to the Elf Country. The only reason he had been granted freedom in the first place was due to his large wealth of wisdom and experience as a master in guerilla warfare. It also helped that he was also insanely powerful by New World standards. Initially, Even he did not know his own strength but learned to grow accustomed to it. Who would have thought that making a mere suggestion in a conversation he wasn't involved in would set him free? Regardless, he was here now and fighting the Slane Theocracy at the behest of Elf King. A distasteful man, but one he would have to work with in order to bring the Theocracy down.

"Joshua, sir!" A familiar voice, one belonging to a male dark elf, caught his attention. He turned his head to look at the one who had spoken. It was one of his many scouts. This one in particular went by...

"Ruvek. Have you learned something? I imagine it's anything but good news." The burned man stopped inspecting the papers. The former legate assumed this to be the case on the account that the scout had decided to report directly to him instead of writing down a report and leaving him to read it later. Whatever this was, it demanded his immediate attention.

"That is unfortunately the case." The dark elf nearly muttered.

"It is hard to come by these days. Summarize it for me and make your report afterwards."

"Yes!" Ruvek began his report. "While posing as an adventurer, I came across men in metal suits. They had wished to speak to me." The dark elf reached into his satchel, pulled out a long sheet of paper and presented it to Joshua. "They handed this to me." The warchief took it and began looking at it for himself. "They called themselves 'The Enclave', a purely human civilization apparently situated on the entirety of the Azerlisia Mountains. They claimed to have exterminated anything non-human in that area and were looking to add more members and civilians to Lord over."

Joshua furrowed his brows at the mention of this supposedly defunct group. Their organization had supposedly been wiped a long time ago. In his world at least. To have them make a comeback here would be more than bad.

"Frost Dragons reside there. If what they say is true then we deal with a powerful foe. To add to this, they want to make their presence known." Joshua frowned underneath his bandages which caused them to shift slightly. "Could it be they want an alliance with the Slane Theocracy?" Joshua set his fiery blue eyes on the scout. "Is there anything else?"

Ruvek nodded. "For some unknown reason they had their king accompanying them. This group in particular that is."

"Did you speak to him?"

"I didn't say anything but he introduced himself as 'Frank Horrigan'."

That name rang no bells in Joshua's mind. But he knew what he had to be done next. If this continued on without interference from their side than the Elf Country would most likely go up in flames. Though he despised the King, he wouldn't want to see its citizens go down alongside their leader. He absolutely had to report it to this elf king. Whether he liked it or not.

"Thank you, Ruvek. Get some rest. You've earned it." Joshua stood up and made to exit the cavern serving as his base of operations. "I must be on my way. Follow the usual protocol."

"Yes, sir!"

Joshua reached for his pistol laying atop of some forms and tucked it into its holster. He walked past the elf wordlessly and followed the path that served as the entrance. As he made his way through, he received a few glances from the elf soldiers living in this area. Unlike their comrades situated to the south of the forest, they were what held the front line of the Elf Country from the Slane Theocracy. But he knew that wouldn't last much longer.

As he began delving deeper into the forest, he couldn't help but think that they too would need an ally to get through this. Unfortunately, they had none of those at the moment. Though he wanted to stay positive, he couldn't see a win out of this unless he showed up again. Hopefully his scouts could locate him.

Joshua revealed himself to the forest and gazed into the dangerous area. It was no secret that hostile creatures lurked here. Mentally sterling himself for a talk with the king, he went on prepared for whatever may come at him.

...

The Ripper roared to life as Six activated the weapon. He held it down for a few seconds before letting it wind down and humming in near silence. He scrutinized it for a few seconds before deciding that it would serve him well. He had decided that strapping himself with the Anti-Material gun and Medicine Stick was not something he wanted to be showing to everyone. Bringing in his guaranteed problem solvers from the get-go would be too much. But just in case he ran into something that could be an actual threat, he had his Alien Blaster very securely tucked away. His current setup also included Lucky and the MF Hyperbreeder Alpha.

He nodded to himself. It was time. He then whistled loudly. ED-E, who had been on standby, suddenly came to life and focused his attention on the Courier. "Ready to go far beyond Nazarick?" He asked his companion. The eyebot beeped in excitement. Six nodded and opened the door. He walked out into the main area of the Pleiades' headquarters and saw it to be empty still. Had they even taken a break? Now that he thought about, he hadn't seen any of Nazarick's residents sleeping. Was he the only one doing it? Ah, whatever. It's not like it mattered.

Six left that area as well and now found himself on the lavish hallways always devoid of any kind of uncleanliness. Six turned to his left and began making his way to the gate that led to the lower floors. Which were actually higher above. It was just now that he noticed that detail. He supposed it was ironic in a way. On his way there, he happened to bump into a roaming Entoma who seemed to be randomly patrolling. He found it odd that she wasn't with her sisters. It didn't take her long to stop in her tracks and notice Six in the distance.

"Hi~" She waved to him as he came closer. Though it was hidden under his helmet, Six wore an apprehensive smile on his face. This was due to the fact that she had a… concerning amount of drool dripping from underneath the cutesy mask constantly on her face. Six said nothing but returned the greeting with a motion of his hand.

"Where are you going?" She placed her hidden arm on her chin as she tilted her head. Six sometimes wondered if this was all done on purpose to lead his astray for whatever reason.

"Outside of Nazarick. Ainz gave me the task to learn more about 'Martial Arts'." He gestured with air quotes.

"Really?"

"Really." He parroted.

"Can I ask for a favor then?" She stopped tilting her head and almost flapped her arms.

"Shoot."

"I want some more human meat. If you find someone willing or dead, I would appreciate it if you brought it back."

Six almost laughed but there was still amusement in his tone. "I don't think any human outside Nazarick would want to let you eat them."

"But you did."

"That's…" Six trailed off in an attempt to refute that. But he couldn't with something that was objectively true. "Look, almost all humans have a sense of self-preservation. Offering themselves to be eaten is the opposite of that."

"So where is yours then? Do you not have one? Is it because you want to die?"

Six raised his brows. He certainly hadn't expected her to ask something like that. "No, no nothing like that. I hacked myself just because."

"Because…?"

"Because I can. If I'm able to help someone without it being detrimental to me or anyone else, then why not do it?"

"Hmm… you're weird~"

"Maybe. Anyway, human meat… l'll, uh, procure… something." Six stood there awkwardly for a moment. "Er, anyway, see ya." He said almost forcefully before briskly walking past her.

Entoma stood in place and watched him go silently to the start of the Ninth Floor. When he disappeared from her sight she looked around herself before going back the way she came.

…

"It's hot. But I'm not uncomfortable." Six thought to himself after taking his second first step on the seventh floor. He turned to look at his bud and found him to be suffering no ill-effects either.

The hellscape before him didn't affect him in any way. The burgundy colored and cracked ground flowing with lava was still something he avoided just in case it somehow damaged anything on his person. The creatures around the area either ignored or glanced in his direction. Unlike the last time he visited here, he knew where the gate to the Sixth Floor was this time. He completely avoided the Blazing Temple though that was because it was simply nowhere near the gate. He wondered how much time Demiurge spent outside of that home of his.

Nothing of importance occurred and he passed through without incident. The same applied to the Sixth Floor he frequently visited. The only thing worth mentioning about the Fifth Floor was his annoyance that some snow managed to stick inside of his boots. At least it wasn't a nuclear winter. Radioactive snow would be bad news. He eventually made his way to the Catacombs acting as the combined floors. He navigated his way through the concrete halls filled with varying forms of undead life wandering the area. Initially, he had forgotten the area was nearly pitch black. He could see fine without his activated lenses thanks to the minuscule sources of light coming from the weak torches hanging on the sconces. Even so, he still wanted to make sure he didn't trip over a skull or bump into someone by accident.

Six pressed his index finger on the side of his elite riot gear helmet and turned on the night vision. His sight immediately turned red and the place around him became a lot more clear. In truth, he didn't really need to do this since his Perception would have done all the work. He just wanted an excuse to turn it on. Because it was cool. So, he made his way past all the living dead and eventually made his way to the Second Floor. At least, that is what he assumed since it seemed to be more spacious. He turned around and realized he had come out from what appeared to be a rundown chapel. It didn't take him to also notice the long fissure in the ground separating him from the otherside. What connected the two was the most unsafe rope bridge Six had seen in his life. Thin and torn rope along with either missing or rotten planks definitely assured him that he would fall should he try and cross. It looked like it was one sneeze away from falling apart. Even so, Six approached the bridge and decided to look down beyond it.

"Corpses." He mumbled to himself upon looking down at the humanoid shapes impaled on pointed rocks or simply laid dead on the floor from the high fall itself. And it seemed that they were still kicking, if the arms waving and pitiful moans were any indication. He stopped staring below and looked across. There was no way he could make a jump to the otherside. It was simply too far.

"Screw it, just walk on it, you pussy." He took one step forward and placed one foot one the sturdiest looking piece of wood. It held firmly. He did this slowly over and over again until he had made it to the otherside without issue. "A Deathclaw charges and you stay cool. But a rickety bridge has you quaking." Six shook his head at himself and proceeded forward.

He, however, stopped when he felt something crawling around his leg. "Hm?" He looked down and found a small cockroach attempting to infiltrate his armor. It obviously wasn't doing a good job if it was noticed immediately by him. "What are you doing, buddy?" Six picked the insect up with his thumb and index finger, making sure not to crush it in the process. "You're Lucky I'm not starving." He placed the roach on his shoulder. To his surprise, it didn't move the place. In fact, it even seemed to be looking at him, it's antenna waving at him. "Though I did eat one of your boys when Entoma offered him to me."

The Cockroach went dead still. Without any warning, it suddenly leapt off of him and scaddled ahead of Six and into a crack on the ground.

"I wasn't going to eat you…" He mumbled as he walked on. Mindlessly going forward, he eventually encountered an innocent looking stone door acting as a pit stop before reaching the First Floor. He studied it for a few seconds and realized that it wasn't actually made of stone but metal. He assumed the appearance was changed to match the aesthetic in the area. Deciding to ignore it and move on, he continued his walk down the path.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Six stopped in his tracks and turned around. He already knew who was behind him. Painstakingly, he suppressed a sigh as he turned around and started looking at Shalltear Bloodfallen. He really didn't feel like talking to her. He noticed that the door he had encountered earlier had somehow opened without his knowledge. It apparently was silent. Behind it, he could multiple faces of pale beautiful women in wedding dresses. But their eyes revealed that they too were vampires like the one before him. Curiosity had gotten the better of them. Six glanced at them for a moment before returning his sight to Shalltear.

"I'm going outside to study Martial Arts. Big man's orders." His answer caused her expression to change. If that was Ainz's will, she would not question it. His word was law. And arguing with their supreme master was heresy.

"I don't believe you." Unless of course Six had just lied to her. He hadn't, but the True Vampire has made it abundantly clear that she didn't like the Courier one bit.

"Cool, but I don't remember asking." He turned on his heel and went onwards. He could feel her fiery stare trying to brand his back but didn't let it get to him. It eventually ceased when he finally left her line of sight and emerged onto the surface world. Ascending the steps and coming upon the marble pillars surrounding the grand tomb, he followed the stone path and out the exit. He heard ED-E humming as the eyebot hovered next to him.

"Let's go." He said as he began walking once more at a more eager pace.

…

Night Lights by Gerry Mulligan played in the background as Six enjoyed his leisure walk against the beaten road. He had the fortunate timing of leaving just as the sun had begun to set. By the time he had made it into Re-Estize territory the moon and its countless stars had come out. But what really enthralled the Courier the most was the Milky Way itself. Seeing the dark streak across the sky with light behind it was always breathtaking. His avid stargazing went uninterrupted until he chanced upon something spectacular. Six turned his head slightly away from the sky and looked at a grouping of trees. Green, sturdy, bushes and other fauna surrounded the objects. That was normal of course. What isn't normal was what remained of a broken and battered carriage hanging between two trees. He couldn't make out the spilled contents too well, but he guessed it had been a large shipment of spirit. The broken glass and pungent smell of alcohol gave it away. Anyone who might come across a situation like this would have asked: "Who or what did this?"

ED-E beeped to his left and the messenger turned in response. The bot hovered off the side of the road and did a little dance above what it had discovered. He approached his companion and looked down at the small plain of grass trees neighboring the otherside of the road. Six froze in place when he saw it. One of many three-toed prints of a reptilian hind foot.

The metal eyeball patiently waited for his friend's reaction. Six forced himself to look away and more around himself. He noticed more Deathclaw prints but they were slightly further away and going in the opposite direction. What were the chances that someone had survived the killer claws of this beast? Very low in all honesty. But so was the chance of someone enduring two point blank shots to the dome and living. Six nodded to himself and stood up. He had a new objective.

Head down and his lenses still on, he followed the footprints that led to what he assumed to be the Deathclaw's territory. His perception informed him of small trickles of blood spread in a linear path on the blades of short grass. Six deduced that the abomination had (temporarily) spared whatever had temporarily lived to feed on later. It wasn't uncommon for those mutated reptiles to do such a thing. Whether it was a man or animal had remained to be seen. He followed the trail to a slightly less dense area. It was here that Six came upon a truly impressive sight. To his left a bumpy slope with patches of grass led deeper into the wide entrance of what he knew to be a limestone cave. Inside the entrance lay a medium sized pool of water perfectly reflecting everything around it. From the pointed rocks to the asymmetrical stone around him. He descended further into the slanted earth with ED-E right behind him. He didn't care that his footsteps echoed as he walked. Fact was that he wasn't trying to be sneaky - opposite of that in fact. The faster he drew this thing out the better. It would also leave whomever or whoever was still alive. He purposely stomped around the pool and listened very carefully for anything indicating its presence. He wandered further inside still doing this but had yet to draw it out. Something was definitely off. Deathclaws are extremely hostile. It'll kill anything that isn't a member of its species. Even then there's a good chance some would fight over territory.

"So where the hell is it?"

Something made a noise.

Six stopped in his tracks, causing the end of the echoey steps of his. He stayed absolutely still and strained his ears for it to start again. He heard it again and it was clear this time. Though it was frail, he was 95% sure that someone was painfully moaning. Whoever it was seemed to be trying their hardest to get his attention. With no real other choice, he turned to where the sound had come from and delved further deeper into one of the many caves halls. Maybe he would decide to explore the rest later after figuring this out. He walked for about half a minute before his night vision allowed him to see a figure leaning against a wall a few feet away from a large nest of twigs that comforted four eggs.

Six purposefully made noise by dragging his feet slightly against the ground. Almost immediately, the person somehow still alive reacted by croaking something he couldn't quite make out. They shifted in place before putting all their strength to speak this:

"...Help…"

The Courier calmly walked forward and took a knee to what he now identified as man. He seemed to be in his 50's. The significant amount of gray hair on his noggin told him that. He noted the expensive clothing and jewelry around his neck and fingers.

"Another noble? No, wait, that makes sense. The carriage looked regal.

"Please…"

Six noted the man's wounds. Nothing too severe. A few broken bones and slashed skin. One or two stimpaks would do the trick, but he wasn't going to hand those out all willy-nilly. He was sure that this man would inquire about it to other people should he survive.

"You'll be fine. It spared you." Six abruptly stated. The man attempted to get up only to slump back against the rock. Six clicked his tongue. "Can't walk?"

"I really don't feel like carrying him, especially with…"

Distant but heavy footsteps sounded off behind him. He turned around once he realized the Deathclaw had come back. He looked around himself in search of something to hide behind. It took him a few seconds to spot portions of rock acting as a pillar. And big enough for ED-E and him. Silently but rapidly, he moved past the man and the nest to hide behind the formation. It took the Deathclaw ten seconds to reach its nest. Though Six didn't see it happen, he heard something heavy hit the floor with a thud. More meat? He heard the wounded man whimper before a low growl from the abomination forced him to be silent. This was his chance, Six drew Lucky and aimed at the Deathclaw in front of him. A Deathclaw Mother was what stood in front of him, but that didn't deter him. He pulled the trigger.

An anguished roar of pain instantly erupted from the mother. ED-E emerged from his hiding spot as well and unleashed his lasers as five more shots rang out, the majority of them striking the soft belly of the Deathclaw. Critical hits combined with a sneak attack and laser damage from the bot did a great amount of damage, but it wasn't dead yet.

The Deathclaw at this point had gone into a frenzy and rushed Six at a breakneck speed, much faster than he had seen any Deathclaw move in fact. However he was still quicker than it. Opting out of a reload of his gun, he dropped it on the ground and reached for the MF Hyperbreeder Alpha while doing the same for the Ripper.

He unleashed a flurry of laser shots at randomized locations of this apex predator as he backed up. By the time the laser gun had gone dry, his back had gone up against the cave's curved wall. Six narrowly avoided swipes as he purposely fell on his back and activated his Ripper. He thrust the weapon in front of himself and embedded it into the beast's belly. The creature roared in pain as he used both hands to swipe diagonally towards the heart. As blood and guts spilled out from it, he willed himself back into his feet and used his strength to shove the creature away and onto the floor, leaving the weapon on its chest. But he refused to stop it there. Six sprinted towards the monster and delivered a swift blow to its head to stun. Deathclaws are tough sons of bitches who could survive the craziest amounts of things.

Six holstered his Hyperbreeder and rushed to Lucky. He picked up the weapon and without wasting a second, he put a single bullet in the cylinder and closed it back in. He placed the barrel on the mother's head, turned his head away and pulled the trigger. His Bloody Mess kicked in and created a heap of both blood, bone, meat and brain matter. His chest and left arm took most of the stuff. He turned his head back and looked at the corpse. He let out a sigh and reloaded his revolver before holstering it. He reached for his melee weapon and pulled it out. Picking off an organ he couldn't identify, he inspected the drenched weapon. It was fine. He flicked it away from himself several times before approaching the incapacitated man.

"Hey, buddy, how many fingers am I holding up?" Six asked as he flipped the man off.

"O-one…" He responded weakly.

Six smiled underneath his helmet and pulled something out from one of his many pockets. It looked to be a pouch one would assume to be filled with coins, but that would be incorrect. Six undid the string and exposed the contents within.

"Healing powder should be enough to keep you alive. Luckily for you, it's the kind that's made for legates." Six said as he generously sprinkled powder on the slashed flesh. He was surprised at how effective something like this could be. It's no stimpak, but it is a good alternative.

"...My vision..." The man managed to get out as the effects began to take place.

"Yeah, it's a temporary side effect. It won't be there long." Six took a step back from the man and looked at the dead Deathclaw. "You're lucky she was full. Otherwise you would've been chow as well."

The man said nothing but did groan in pain.

"Okay, I'll help you now…"

ED-E furiously and frantically beeped behind Six, his speech had been said so quickly that Six hadn't even been able to understand it.

"Huh? Slow…" Six began as he turned around but stopped short when he laid eyes on someone. This someone stuck out against the dark backdrop thanks to the bulky crimson armor they wore. Upon further scrutiny he was able to actually make out the features of this individual. Blonde hair, blue eyes, a squared jaw and a huge hammer resting on the right shoulder. He nearly mistook them for a man, but the two rounded shapes on her shoulders gave away her sex. They stared at one another for seconds before Six decided to speak.

"Come here often?"

She let out a hearty laugh. The Courier did a little victory dance in his head. This was a good start.

"Caves aren't my thing. It's hard to swing this around." She gestured to her weapon.

"That's a strange thing to say to a potential enemy. Unless you were lying." Six responded with his usual friendliness.

"Yeah, I guess it would be…"

Six's perception suddenly alerted him to the presence of two more people. With great effort, he forced himself to not react and draw his weapons. His sixth sense alerted him further by screaming at him that both were now at his back. ED-E began beeping in caution.

"But not if I was alone."

As she said that last line, he felt the pressure of a blade on his neck and on his back. He didn't try to crane his neck to get a look at his assailants. All he knew right now was that they smelled nice.

"Do not move if you value your life." One of them said.

"I'll be still as a statue."

He felt the blade on his neck push deeper into him. "Do not talk either."

"Mm-hm." He acknowledged the command.

"Everything under control over there?" Six watched two women emerge from behind the behemoth of a woman. One of average height, the other much shorter - about a kid's size. The kid hid her identity with a white mask that held a red jewel on its forehead. The red robe she wore reminded him of the little red riding hood story. The other woman had seven floating swords on her back and an elegant set of armor. He wouldn't lie, he thought it was pretty cool. It would be convenient to have something like that.

"Yes, Evil Boss." He heard one of his assailants say.

"So this is where the noises came from…" The kid next to the green-eyed woman went in further.

"But those were explosions. I don't see any sign of such a thing happening."

"Then we should ask him." The one in the red robe obviously referred to Six who had gone completely rigid.

"Ah! Is that…" Green-eye looked past Six and at the man laying next to the Deathclaw. "Mr. Montfort!"

The muscled lady seemed surprised as well. "Oi, is that really him? I figured him dead."

The girl with the floating swords quickly made her way to the man with her other two teammates following her closely.

"Don't worry, I'll cast a spell." She stood before the wounded noble and murmured something Six had trouble hearing. He likened it to a prayer or something along those lines.

He watched the wounds on the man rapidly disappear alongside the blood previously present on his now pristine clothing. It must have been healing magic of some sort. With renewed vigor and health, the man had no trouble standing up on his own once more. An immensely grateful smile soon replaced the painful sorrow.

"I cannot thank you enough Ms. Lakyus!" He forcefully but kindly shook the woman's hand with both of his. "The pain was unbearable." His eyes wandered towards Six. "But I am also indebted to you sir, that beast would have slain me if not for you."

"This man saved your life?" The chick he now knew as Lakyus asked him.

"Without a doubt."

Everyone in the room turned to look at him, sizing him up no doubt. Lakyus was the one who most intently looked at him. It seemed she was coming up with her decision.

"Tia. Tina. Let him go." She ordered.

And a good one it was. Without a moment's hesitation the two people behind him removed their blades and stepped away from him. Six turned his head and saw two blonde twins glaring back at him. Their light clothing emphasized stealth and speed. One wore a blue ribbon and the other a red one. No doubt meant to tell them apart.

"Sorry about that." Lakyus took a few steps closer but still seemed cautionary with him. "Who are you?"

The helmeted stranger caressed his neck before proceeding to whistle. At his behest, ED-E slowly came out from the pillar and beeped slowly.

"Yeah, yeah, all fine and dandy. Don't worry about them." He gestured to the new folks around him. "Oh, right, I'm Courier Six and that's ED-E." He thumbed to the floating bot. The female group focused their attention on the metal eyeball before them. They were most certainly intrigued by his buddy. Six was sure they had never seen something like him.

"An interesting name."

"It's obviously not my real one."

Six tapped the side of his leg and turned his head away from them and looked around. They all stood there awkwardly for a few seconds.

"Welp, I'll be on my way then." He began to walk away before a voice stopped him.

"Hold, sir, please."

Six turned around to look at the noble. His helmet hid the exasperated look on his face. He just wanted to be far from these people.

"Let me at least reward you for your trouble." He turned to look at Lakyus. "This applies to your group as well of course."

Six saw his chance here and what he needed was info. As such…

"You want to reward me? Fine. Tell me who the strongest Martial Arts user is."

"Perhaps you refer to Gazef Stronoff?"

"You don't know who Stronoff is?" The bulky chick asked him.

"Do I look like I'm from around here?" He answered her with a rhetorical question with a flourish aimed at himself. Six looked back at Montfort. "Where is he?"

"At the capital of the Re-Estize Kingdom naturally. You don't seek to do him harm do you?"

"Is that the vibe I give off?" He mumbled to himself. "No, no, just wanna learn some of his Martial Arts."

The big girl chuckled. "Good luck with that."

Six hummed. "Anyway, how do I get there?"

"Why not join us?" Everyone turned to look at Lakyus. "We were heading anyway. An extra hand against highwaymen on the road would be welcome as well."

Six immediately rejected the offer. "I would prefer directions over traveling with strangers."

"You trust too easily, Lakyus." The kid criticized her teammates.

"He went out of his way to save someone's life. That in itself speaks of his character."

"It was out of curiosity really…" Six thought to himself.

"Hmph." She turned to look at the Courier. "She may place some faith in you, but I don't. I'll be keeping an eye on you."

"Then I'll make sure to look down every once in a while. Don't want to end up tripping."

The muscled chick let out an "Oh-ho!" at his barb.

"Insults is it?"

"You're one to talk." Lakyus added before she realized something. "Does this mean you'll come with us?"

It dawned on Six what exactly his words implied. He felt like smacking himself for subconsciously wanting to go along. Having more people would be a pain. At least, that's what his logical side told him. But his emotions wanted him to accompany them.

"I…" He sighed. "Fine. I'll come along. But once we reach the capital I'm out."

"It's settled then. Please stay in the middle of us all Mr. Montfort." Lakyus then faced Six. "Introductions are in order then. Tia, Tina, Gagaran and Evileye. I'm Lakyus of course." She pointed at everyone respectively, turned to face the entrance of the cave and began walking out.

Six watched them all go ahead before turning to look at his companion. "New friends?" He received various beeps and boops.

"I know it's stupid. But they're going there anyway."

The bot beeped again.

"It's a good excuse to me." He said before breaking off into a power walk so he could catch up.

…

The initial walk outside into the darkened world had no one utter a word. It was mostly due to the fact of the two men accompanying the group. However, unlike Six, Montfort actually conversed with Lakyus mostly who spoke about the losses of the carriage along with some small talk.

Six and ED-E kept their distance a few feet behind them without making a peep. He eventually decided on fiddling with his Pip-Boy and looking through the data within. Though he had his eyes focused on it, he could feel the folks in front eyeballing him. He ignored it and continued his fiddling until he found what he was looking for. He lowered the volume on his device and pressed play to resume his playing of Gerry Mulligan's Night Lights.

"Is that… music?" Montfort ceased his conversation and turned around to locate the source. His interest grew when e realized it was coming from the man who initially saved him.

"Yeah, it is." Six answered casually and continued walking.

"That's amazing! That object strapped to your arm, is that the source."

"Yep."

"Where did you find such a thing?"

"It was given to me actually. By someone I won't name."

"What else can it do?"

"It monitors my overall health, it maps out areas, stores and takes notes, acts as a light source and it has a built in Geiger counter." Six made sure to omit the radio part. He was sure it wouldn't make sense to them.

"What's a… guy-ger counter?" Gagaran asked.

"It alerts me to the presence of harmful radiation."

"Radiation would be?"

"An invisible airborne poison undetectable by any senses. Exposure to it causes massive amounts of tissue damage and mutations to any individual exposed to it. Too much exposure outright kills. You would be surprised how fast it can happen." He continued. "Hints that show you're contaminated includes blood pooling in your gums, anemia, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, brutal hemorrhages, loss of hair, teeth and skin, gastrointestinal bleeding, bloating, and, finally, diarrhea." There was a silence. "So if you want to experience any of that, take a bath in it."

"I've never heard of something so awful." Lakyus commented. "There has to be other methods of detecting such a thing."

"If there is, I haven't found one yet."

"Is this poison naturally occurring or is artificially made?" Evileye inquired further.

"Mother Nature is cruel but even she wouldn't whip up something like that."

"If something like that exists then we must prepare for it."

"This is all under the assumption that none of this is fabricated." Evileye said.

Six shrugged his shoulders. "Believe me or don't. It's on you."

"There has to be a way we can defend ourselves." Lakyus placed her hand underneath her chin.

"He said it was airborne." Evileye started. "Therefore, creating an air bubble around ourselves will work. Should it come up, I'm confident I can prevent ourselves from becoming afflicted."

"Can you create an air bubble around your whole team?" Six asked the magic caster.

"Without a doubt."

"So what happens if you're split up and can't protect them?" His question met only silence. "You need a backup." He reached into one of his pockets and pulled out exactly five pills. The adventurer group all looked at the hand that presented the objects. "It's an anti-radiation pill. It'll protect you for almost five minutes." He moved his arm in a motion saying "take it."

Lakyus was the first to walk up to the red-eyed stranger and plucked one from his hand. "Thank you."

He grunted in acknowledgement and moved his head to look at the others. "C'mon over here. I don't bite." He said dryly.

With some encouragement from their leader, the rest of the party each took one pill from the man as well. Each of them inspected their respective drug before pocketing it where they pleased.

ED-E beeped rapidly next to him while moving his body left to right as if shaking his head.

"I've got more than enough."

More furious beeps.

"It's not a waste."

ED-E got in front of him and purposefully collided with him while beeping angrily.

Six shook his head in response. "That'll never happen. I learned my lesson."

The others in the group looked on as the Courier conversed with his companion. They only had half of the exchange and Six's answers didn't reveal much.

The eyebot beeped in finality and repositioned itself next to the mailman.

"Let's keep going. Don't want to waste time." Six walked past the adventurer group despite not knowing the way. He simply followed the road ahead of himself and decided he would choose a fork in the path at random.

Six marched onward as his music played.

Gazef Stronoff better be worth it.

…

Author's Note:

This chapter is proof that I didn't die. In all honesty, I had plenty of time to write. However, I simply didn't feel like it. It was starting to feel forced so I stopped. However, about a month ago I had the urge to start again. I actually wrote THREE chapters but ended up scrapping two of them because I didn't like the way they were going. This one is the one I decided would be best. Anyway, that's all from me. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'll see you in the next one. Whenever that is.