11/29/2286
Starting to get cold, well colder. So I decided to go out and collect as much wood as I can for the fire just in case it snows. Tried cutting some trees down with the hand saw I have but found it just takes far too long to bring one down. Took me a day to get just three small trees cut down and I still have to cut them into smaller parts if I want to burn them in the fire. The cow thing has been a lot of help for this as well, simply tie a rope to it and it'll drag the trees anywhere I want. The stupid thing just follows me everywhere I go, seems to like me... not sure why. So far I have a decent amount of wood piled up near the door for easy access.
Found the girl attempting to leave the building when I got back. She was terrified when she saw me, I thought maybe she was in trouble but no... she was scared that I would be mad at her for trying to leave. I wasn't though, if she wants to go outside then she can. I don't control her, not like I locked the door to keep her in. I asked her to me know when she wanders outside so that I know where she is just in case. I wish she would calm down and understand I don't want to hurt her... Finally got her name though, it's Aubrey.
12/02/2286
Damn, it was a cold one last night. If my pip-boy is to be believed it dropped to four degrees by ten o'clock. Ended up moving downstairs and crawling into the bed with Aubrey, next to the fire. Caused a bit of a misunderstanding of my intentions though, thought I was wanting something more than a little warmth. The relief on her face when I explained myself was quite evident, I would never do that to anyone. This morning I moved all the bedding, clothes, pillows, and blankets downstairs into the back of the diner area under the stairs, going to move the mattress down later as well. I moved the fire-barrel next to the stairs so the smoke would go up and exit through the top of the tower. Started work on a proper chimney for it so I can close most of the windows and keep the heat in.
12/03/2286
Still pretty cold but the improvements I made helped a lot. The chimney isn't perfect but at least most of the smoke is leaving through it so no chance of dying to smoke inhalation... I hope. Also, I moved the tomato plants closer to the fire to keep them from freezing. Decided to go collect more wood today, ended up dropping another tree. We're gonna need a lot more logs if we're going to survive the winter.
So I was outside sawing the tree up and... I swear I heard a motorcycle. Threw me off because who the hell figured out how to fix one of those things and would be riding around these parts? So I ran to the road to see if I could spot them and was surprised to see a man running down the road... making motorcycle noises with his mouth. As he passed by he raised his hand and waved making a honking noise then he "shifted gears" and "gunned it" sprinting off. I have no idea how someone like that can possibly survive out here.
12/07/2286
Aubrey ended up asking me what I intended to do with her. So I told her I wasn't going to do anything, once she was healed up and healthy again she could leave if she wanted to or she could stay it was up to her. Even told her she could leave right then if she wanted. Didn't seem to convince her entirely though, still doesn't trust me. She also still has a cold but it seems to be passing. Two of the bullet wounds are healing nicely but the one in her shoulder was starting to get infected and is taking a while to properly seal, probably moving too much in her sleep. I have been giving her med-x periodically whenever she needs it to help with the pain, found a couple crates of the things in her cart not sure what she was doing with so many or where she got them from... I ran out of stimpaks a while ago though. Haven't told her yet, been pretending to inject her with them hoping the power of suggestion will keep help.
12/10/2286
After last night I came to the conclusion that we can't stay here. The temperature dropped to -22 F, the drive-in building is simply incapable of holding in the heat, there are just far too many holes and not enough insulation for it to do so. If I had time, I could fix that, but I don't have that time. Aubrey won't survive many more nights like that in her current condition. So I'm going to start searching for a better location in the area to move to.
12/12/2286
Well, I found something and it's only about a mile or two away from the drive-in. It's an old retirement center, even found a working fusion generator in the basement so we will have electricity access. The walls and windows will need to be covered up but the walls here will be far easier to work with as they aren't made of metal which means nails will work.
12/18/2286
I got the maintenance storage room fixed up in the retirement home and got a fireplace set up as well to heat it. With the working lock on the door, this is technically the most secure place in the building for the time being. I'm going to move Aubrey and all the supplies I can over here tomorrow. When I explained my plan to her she seemed nervous about it but didn't put forth any real objection about it. She looks worse than ever, constantly shivering and spending most days sleeping near the fire. She consistently feels cold as well... I hope she will be okay. This move will help I just know it.
12/19/2286
I started by moving several cartloads of firewood and stored them in one of the bathrooms, doesn't even have an interior wall anymore so I guess it wouldn't be useful for much else. Then I moved a pair of bed frames into the maintenance room near the fireplace as well as the best two of the various mattresses I found in the place. After that I got a fire going and left to get Aubrey. I had her walk for part of the trip as I need to make sure she has some amount of exercise... she really can't afford to get any weaker than she is. With my assistance, she got about halfway there before she couldn't keep going and I had her ride in the cart. I am glad to have the strange cow, none of this could have happened without it. Aubrey told me its name is Venison, I actually laughed at that. Haven't done that in a long time... kinda hurt.
12/20/2286
Went back to the drive-in to grab the last of supplies we have there... I ended up throwing the mirror out the window. The monster won't be coming with us.
There is a downside to the new location though as we are just outside the city of Lexington. I can periodically hear gunshots throughout the day. Being this close though I can actually tell that they come from the car manufacturing plant on the other side of town. I wonder what is over there that causes them to shoot so often?
It has been far warmer in the room now as well. I spent the day trying to fix up the rest of the building focusing on holes that animals or people can get through. There's even a greenhouse area in the building with several planters, these will be helpful down the line. All told I think this was a wise choice, Aubrey... is mixed on it. Still doesn't talk often but she seems to be in a better mood now that it's warmer.
12/22/2286
Aubrey's health has regressed and now she has a fever... The move may have affected her but I don't know really. At least we aren't cold anymore so hopefully, she will start getting better.
I set up a water purifier in the courtyard with an open-top so it can catch rainwater and put a fire pit at the bottom which will prevent it from freezing as long as I keep it burning and slowly boil out some of the contaminates.
Got started fixing the electric furnace in the basement. It isn't a very good model for the size of the retirement home, but it should help heat up the building if I can get it working again, it will also reduce the amount of firewood we go through each day, so I can spend more time on other projects. The fusion generator still has several months of operation left in it and that's just what it estimates it will need to power the place pre-war. If it runs out I can always find another power core... should be plenty of them in the ruins. I doubt anyone has much need for them unless they have a working set of power armor sitting around and I doubt anyone has many of those if any.
12/23/2286
I asked Aubrey about the area trying to find out if she knew where I could find more places I could scavenge from. She seemed hesitant to reply so I told her we needed medical supplies and food or we would both die... she asked me why I don't go to a settlement and try trading for them... I wasn't sure how to react, I didn't really think about the possibility of settlements in this wasteland.
I think I may have figured out a reason why she has so little trust in me after all this time. When you think about the whole affair it makes a sort of sense, someone hurts you and claims it was an accident and tries to heal you using up all their supplies to do so, and then suddenly they are out of supplies and are desperate, but they don't try finding someone else for help and insist on finding it themselves. She thinks I'm the type of person who would shoot on someone on sight, doesn't she? I guess it is a fair assumption... So I decided to explain myself. I told her where I was from, how I got here, and what I was. As I explained it to her she seemed... incredibly surprised and confused. When I was finished she remained silent for a while and finally suggested going to Bunker Hill as it is the closest caravan hub in the area. It is apparently built around the monument in which the settlement was named. She also informed me that the primary form of currency was bottle caps... not sure why but screw it if that's what folks want then I guess that's what they can get.
I'll admit that I didn't even consider the possibility of large settlements let alone trade centers... but why breed hill? Strategically sure it is in a good location for a settlement I guess but not a trade center. Maybe the local caravans just originated there and view it as their home?
12/24/2286
Christmas Eve. Is there really anything to celebrate? It snowed last night so I guess we can celebrate having a white Christmas... it will be my first one in over two hundred years. I guess I can go out to find something, I'll write another entry if I do.
Well, I found bodies, lots of them. Counted 18 of them before I stopped... I could tell they were split into two distinct groups. The larger group consisted of men and women wearing scavenged together armor and clothing as well as being covered in tattoos many looking to have been junkies. The other smaller group though wore civil war uniforms. There wasn't much left to take from any of them, just a small amount of ammunition I found scattered about as well as some spent casings. Also found some sort of makeshift laser rifle with a crank capacitor, it's broken but I could see what was wrong with it so I may be able to fix it if I can find the correct parts.
Found a truck trailer with several crates of alcohol, a lot of broken bottles but still a good amount of sealed stuff. Not sure how this thing remained locked all these years, the keys to the trailer were in the driver's pocket. Well, at least I have something for Christmas we can celebrate with.
12/25/2286
Christmas day, not the worst one I've ever had but far from being a great one. I got an old wall heater hooked up and working today so we don't need the fire to be lit all day and night. Doesn't put out a ton of heat but it can keep things above 60F which is a lot better than what we had before. The furnace is still going to take some time as the ducts need to be repaired and cleaned, the power regulator needs an overhaul, the coils need replacing, and the blower needs cleaning and new wiring I just don't have enough copper wire to do a lot of the work.
When Aubrey woke up I told her what day it was, she actually knew what Christmas was, apparently, a place called Diamond City celebrates it regularly. At least I didn't have to explain it. We ended up drinking some of the alcohol I found, a good mix as well mostly whiskey but there was some beer, vodka, wine, and a bottle of rum. The fun part is according to a manifest we got from the crate the truck I looted this from was a police shipping truck delivering confiscated assets and evidence to a storage facility. Explains the variety in the box, but it makes me wonder what was actually in the other crates. Good thing I locked it before I left. I broke out the Nuka-Cola as well, heard mixing cola with whiskey was a popular thing among Spain's younger generations while I was overseas.
So while she was drunk Aubrey was actually far more open. Apparently, she was traveling to the Capital Wasteland where supposedly a group called The Brotherhood of Steel was managing to keep the peace and handing out purified water for only a couple caps a bottle. She was thinking it might be safer there because of it. I guess that could be true but I know nothing about this group and considering how word of mouth rumors can be, they are rarely reliable. Who knows maybe shooting Aubrey saved her life. Also, she informed me that she is a rather decent mechanic in her own right having a good amount of knowledge on robots and circuitry.
12/26/2286
Woke up in the early morning to one hell of a firefight coming from the Corvega Plant. Went outside to see what was going on and saw the place covered in muzzle flashes and explosions. Is someone attacking it?
So after about a half-hour, the last of the gunfire went quiet but I can see a good amount of flames scattered around the place. I'm going to go check it out and see what's going on there.
[TRANSCRIPT]
KAST OKAY I'M GOING TO RECORD MY SEARCH THROUGH THE PLANT, I'M GOING TO BE QUIET SO I HOPE THIS THING PICKS IT UP.
*creaking door*
KAST I ENTERED THROUGH THE FRONT ENTRANCE INTO A LOBBY AREA. A LOT OF BODIES SCATTERED ABOUT, I CAN STILL HEAR FIGHTING AHEAD SOUNDS LIKE A BRAWL HONESTLY. WHOEVER CAME THROUGH HERE IS AN EXPERIENCED SHOOTER I DON'T EVEN SEE ANY MISSES ON THEIR PART.
*distant crashing noises, then silence*
KAST OFFICE AREA, LOOKS LIKE A MESS BUT MOST OF IT IS OLD-
*pause*
KAST THROUGH THE HOLE IN THIS WALL LOOKS FAR BIGGER THEN IT HAD BEEN. DOOR AT THE END OF THE HALL HAS BEEN SMASHED OFF ITS HINGES.
*silence*
KAST OH F-
*quick scampering noises*
*metallic clanking and servos*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) HELLO? DON'T THINK I DIDN'T HEAR YOU OVER HERE...
*clanking gets louder*
*clanking stops*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) I KNOW YOU AREN'T ONE OF THEM, YOU FOLLOWED ME IN HERE DIDN'T YOU? LOOK IF YOUR JUST HERE TO SCAVENGE THAT'S FINE, JUST STAY OUT OF MY WAY.
*silence*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) IF YOU DON'T RESPOND I'M GOING TO HAVE TO ASSUME YOU ARE HOSTILE, YOU UNDERSTAND THAT RIGHT?
*whirring servos*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) FOUND YOU.
*crashing sounds of masonry and plaster*
KAST D**NI-
*clanking and whirring servos*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) *laughing* YOU ARE A FAST ONE AREN'T YOU, GET OVER HERE.
*rapid clanks and crashing noises*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) GAH, THE HELL! GET OFF ME!
*gunshot (sound: .38 caliber pistol)*
*failing servos*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) D**NIT! GET OFF.
*crashing of body hitting wall*
KAST MMMPH! *growls in pain*
*three gunshots (sound: .38 caliber pistol)*
*failing servos*
*metallic thunk*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) AH F**K... OKAY ENOUGH!
KAST *GARGLED CHOKING*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) CALM THE F**K DOWN, I DON'T WANT TO FIGHT YOU.
*gunshot (sound: .38 caliber pistol)*
*failing servos*
*thunk of a body hitting the floor*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) SERIOUSLY? YOU REALLY KNOW YOUR POWER ARMOR DON'T YOU?
KAST *gasping for air*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) WELL GREAT, NOW I CAN'T MOVE... THANK YOU, I REALLY NEEDED THIS RIGHT NOW.
KAST YOU- *gasp for air* STARTED IT.
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) *CHUCKLES* I GUESS I DID, WHO ARE YOU?
KAST YOU FIRST JACK***
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) *LAUGHS* YOU ONLY TOOK OUT MY LOCOMOTION SERVOS, I CAN STILL FALL FORWARD AND THIS THING WEIGHS SIX-HUNDRED POUNDS.
KAST FIRST LIEUTENANT KAST VARRIS US ARMY SPECIAL FORCES, SERVICE NUMBER OH ZERO NINE SIX EIGHT ZERO EIGHT FOUR SEVEN SIX SIX TWO.
*silence*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) OFFICER?
*silence*
UNKNOWN MALE VOICE (HELMET MIC) CAPTAIN NATE *distant explosion* US ARMY RANGERS ARMOR CORE, RETIRED. LAST SERVICE CODE I REMEMBER IS ZERO NINETY-SIX TWELVE.
[END RECORDING]
12/27/2286
Well, that was eventful, my body feels like it is on fire. I'll admit to not expecting someone wearing T45 power armor to show up let alone someone else who is about as old as I am. I'm genuinely surprised the vaults worked as well as they claimed, I thought they were just a scam playing off of everyone's fears but I guess they were serious about it.
Today though I am going to stay in bed and rest, fighting someone in power armor at close range is quite... difficult but the older 45 models were built to take a round from long range and not for close-range combat. With well-placed shots, you can easily cripple one by shooting in-between the plates and hitting the various servos, unlike the T51 model which fixed this flaw for the most part by covering the exposed parts better. Though Nate is lucky our roles weren't reversed, I would have killed him the first chance I had... goes to show the differences between our training I guess.
12/31/2286
My left eye isn't working today, Aubrey even commented on how it was just dark gray instead of the usual red... I'm glad she said something though... makes me feel better about it. So I chose to sit around and fiddle with the radio today, got a larger antenna setup for it so I can get a longer range, now I'm going to see if I can pick up any more stations.
Took me a few hours but I found one, and it's from the Capital Wasteland apparently called Galaxy News Radio. The DJ is actually quite entertaining and has a great voice for it... unlike that other station. Aubrey was rather enthusiastic about it as well which is a first for her. Sadly the station is rather fuzzy, but still, it is a station from DC so that's quite a tower they got over there. I'll get started on making a better receiver.
Aubrey is starting to help out by working on small projects for me, currently, she is making a new heating coil for the furnace, I'm glad Nate cleared out the gang running Corvega so now I have a lot of scrap and parts to work with. Managed to bring a box full of copper wire back after my run-in with the soldier. D**n I wish my eye was still working...