"The Fuck you call me!?" The Large Mutant snarled, grabbing a settler in his large, green hand and throwing him across the yard, prompting a settler to raise a rather weathered looking Varmint Rifle at his face.
"Oh, you want some to!? You pricks in some sort of suicide cult!? I'll kick all your asses!"
The Settler leapt back in shock, letting off a round, which flew into the mutant's shoulder, he yelled in fury and frustration before charging forward at the idiot Settler, knowing fully well that his Varmint Rifle was like a BB gun to him, it stung but it would take a well-placed shot or hundreds of pot shots to penetrate his thick skin.
"You want to shoot me again, asshole!?"He growled, grabbing hold of his rifle arm and ripping the rifle from his shaking hands before breaking it over his knee and prompting the Settler to fall back to the floor, scrambling away.
"That's what I thought, you stupid shitter! Anyone else!?"
As everyone else backed away, a boy in a tattered brown coat approached him, a tattered brown coat, with a golden star on the lapel.
Hardin kept his weapon in its holster, knowing that shooting this pissed off mutant was more or less a one way ticket to hell. Given that the mutant was talking and not just flat out murdering people, he figured he had a shot of appeasing it.
"I am the sheriff of Megaton, Harden Simms." He began, feeling somewhat hesitant as he began.
"Oh good, law enforcement!" The Supermutant said, his tone suggested mockery.
"Your people ain't exactly rolled out the welcome wagon!"
"Yeah we ain't exactly used to Supermutants just... entering the town, without attacking anyone... not right away, anyway. Hell, the only other time that it happened, the mutant was accompanied by a... Resident."
There was a long pause, allowing Hardin to take in what he was looking at. The mutant was wearing a blood-red sack shirt and pants, though the design of them were odd... The trim of the shirt looked like a dressing gown, like the ones in the old world catalogues and the pants were torn at the bottom, the feet encased in foot wraps.
Wrapped around his waist was a green belt, tied in a knot, again, like a dressing gown. The way that he was dressed almost seemed like imitation. He seemed to be dressed, like an Asian fighter, like you see on those dumb movie posters from before the war. He'd seen one, once, back when he used to scavenge with Mr Jericho.
"Understandable... Still, that don't give you the right to point fuckin' guns in my face!"
"It don't but... How the hell are we supposed to know, who's hostile and who ain't?" Hardin pointed out.
"Don't got any weapons." The Mutant shrugged.
"Didn't stop you from nearly cripplin' our guys."
"Better than killin' 'em." The Mutant shrugged.
"I think."
"We don't tolerate assault here..."
"Good, that was self defense. I ain't allowed to attack people, gotta wait for them to make the first move." The Mutant shrugged, looking around.
"Right..." Hardin shrugged, with a faint sigh, he didn't know if he was being compliant or not.
"Can I ask... What're you wearing?" Hardin asked, looking the mutant up and down.
"It's called a 'Gi', made it myself, based on the one that my Master used to wear."
"Your... Master?" Hardin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"He a mutant to?"
"The hell does it matter!? No, he wasn't, if it makes you comfortable. He was a human, like you but not as... erm... dark? Dark but... lighter dark? I don't know what you call it but he was human anyway."
"Hmm... I can't say I've heard of people like him before, wearing clothes like that... Is he a tribal?" Hardin asked, by this point, everyone began to back away. They seemed satisfied that he wasn't going to cause a riot.
"Nah he erm... Do we have to talk out here? I'd rather have a drink and talk. Got caps in my roll." The Mutant informed him, gesturing to his hip.
"I should probably tell everyone else." Jynx offered.
"Y'know... Big mutant walking around the town? Kinda scary..."
"Fair enough." The Mutant shrugged, with a faint sigh, rubbing the back of his bald head.
"You... Got a name?" She asked, it was odd to ask a mutant for his name as few actually had names or at least, few got a chance to introduce themselves.
"My rank is Kyu so... That'll do, my kind don't get names, we gotta pick 'em ourselves." The Mutant shrugged.
"I ain't found a word that sums me up yet... I know some assholes settle for names like 'fist' or 'sharp pointy stick' or whatever object they see as soon as they crawl out of the F.E.V chamber but not me. Gotta mean somethin' you follow?"
"I... Yeah, I know what you mean, our Raiders are similar." Hardin admitted.
"We can go to the tavern but anyone who causes problems there gets shot. Drunk or... whatever." The Sheriff pointed out, glancing away.
"Fine, it'd take six kegs to get me drunk." Kyu admitted, rather nonchalantly.
"Only six?" The Sheriff smirked.
"Damn lightweight."
On recollection as the two of them made their way up the approach, it seemed like a fantastic idea to get the mutant out of the common areas, not that he deserves it but it can cause some unrest, best that some people are prepared.
Kyu seemed incredibly focussed on the path ahead, though he was unable to hide how bothered he was by the occasional comment made by far off settlers. Some screamed, others gasped and some blurted their opinions at him, inflicting them without any form of distinction or purpose.
Even Hardin himself was disgusted by what he was hearing. You would think that after Gob, the people of the town would have learned a thing or two about tolerance, when it came to mutants but no, same old shit.
Maybe people were just born hateful? Maybe they just needed an excuse... According to an old book that Hardin found, he would've been a pariah, because his skin was slightly darker than everyone else's, a few hundred years ago.
Thank God that big green men and flesh rotten fiends came along, to take the heat off of him and divert it onto someone else.
Kyu stood before the doorway, looking somewhat stern and frustrated at it as he glanced to the door handle.
"Could you? I have a habit of breaking these stupid things..."
"Course, Mister." Hardin nodded, pushing the handle down and letting it slowly fall open, creaking loudly as it did and exposing Kyu to the people in the tavern, standing tall and proud in the face of ignorance.
"Woah... Been a while since we had one of you in here." Gob commented as the giant marched over to the counter top, placing his large hands on it.
"What can we get you?"
"What the hell is wrong with your face?" Kyu asked, his face was permanently stuck in a snarl, so it was hard to figure out what he was feeling but right now, it was obvious that he was confused.
"I'm a Ghoul? You seen a Ghoul before?" Gob asked, wringing his hand around the rim of a glass, shifting his hazy eyes towards Hardin, he looked incredibly unnerved that Kyu would try and fix his face, with his bare hands. The Sheriff simply gave him a nod, keeping a stern gaze fixed on him, to assure him that he was still safe.
"No, I ain't... I thought you were just a human, with a messed up face." Kyu admitted, with a shrug.
"Well, that's... Basically what a ghoul is." Gob answered, hesitantly at first but the longer he spent with the mutant, the more at ease he felt. After all, they weren't so different...
"We Ghouls ain't considered human, we're somethin' else. There's a whole city of us, out in DC."
"That's stupid, I mean, you are basically human, right?"
"Mrgh... Most of us, some went feral, others live in... well, let's just say that sometimes dignity can be traded for survival."
"Hmm... Not too different from we mutants then." He shrugged, taking look over the ghoul's shoulder.
"Give me somethin' strong."
"Erm... Okay, how strong?"
"Anything bellow Whiskey? I might as well be drinking fruit juice." Kyu said, indifferently, looking around the room for any clear signs of alcohol storage.
"I got whiskey... vodka... an old Moonshine formula, somewhere in the back."
"That the stuff that Denis gave to you, with the battery acid?" Hardin asked, his nose wrinkled in disgust. He'd tried it once, he could've sworn that he'd been temporarily blinded by that shit, hell, that one tentative sip had probably shaved a year or two off of his life.
"Well, it's technically the strongest thing I've got..."
"Sure, I'll give it a..." As Kyu began to speak, he felt Hardin's hand grasp his arm, quickly getting the mutant's attention as he gave him a stern shake of the head. The mutant's adventurous spirit quickly withered as he slowly retracted his statement.
"Y'know what? Gimme a shot of whiskey."
"By a shot, you mean the whole bottle, poured into the tallest glass that we have, right?"
"Ain't that what I said?" Kyu shrugged as Gob sighed and wandered off, looking for something suitable. Hardin was somewhat relieved as it gave the two of them some time alone...
"So... You ain't erm... What anyone was expecting." He admitted, fumbling over his words a little as he tried not to offend the large brutish creature.
"Heh, don't I know it?" The Mutant shrugged, glancing down to the young sheriff.
"There are odd ones, odd ones that get locked away. Though, from what I hear, more of 'em are bein' used now. I got out just in time."
"Just in time?" Hardin asked, finding his interests peaking.
"Erm... Yeah, I ask my mutant brothers about shit from time to time." He began as Gob approached with a tall glass, getting an appreciative nod from the mutant.
"You can just do that? I would've thought they'd shoot you on sight..."
"Nah, it'd be a waste of ammo... They don't got a reason to attack me, unless I give 'em one. As far as they're concerned, I'm too snazzily dressed for 'em." He began, taking his shot.
"They can't turn me and they know that pissin' me off ain't a good idea, so they don't attack on sight. I can convince 'em, usually, to share some info with me. Dependin' on the mutant, I can lie about bein' one of them from another chapter or admit the truth, that I ain't buying into their shit. Usually, they share stories with me... Well, as well as they can. There was this one asshole who wouldn't stop laughing, told me he had somethin' funny to tell me but then kept laughin' like a jackass. I just... walked."
"One of 'em told you that you'd left just in time?" Hardin asked, wanting to get back on topic as this sounded somewhat interesting.
"Oh, right, yeah! So erm... Last time I talked to 'em, the guys told me that they had a new leader. He's a whole different kind of mutant. They call him Shepard..." He explained, pausing to think on it for a bit.
"The way they talk about him... Sounds like he's not even one of us. He has like... grey purple skin and is way smarter than any of us. He claims he's from some place called Cal-four-ya or some shit or other, they say he's the Chieftain who is reigning them all in."
"So... The mutants are gettin' smarter?" Hardin asked, seeming genuinely concerned about this. Brute strength was all that they had, with smarts? They could be devastating...
"Nah, just their leader." Kyu shrugged, putting the glass back down.
"Still, he's smart enough to know what's important... Y'see, I'm not even unique, I'm a mutant among mutants. There was that guy that you talked about..."
"Fawkes? I think that was his name, big green guy, in a blue jumpsuit?"
"Must've been one of the residents." Kyu commented, thoughtfully.
"There was another one, who's considered a joke among out people. This guy comes out of the chambers all Xen and shit. He comes out an honest to God pacifist! How that works, I dunno..."
"Then there's you." Hardin pointed out, getting a quick glare from the oddly dressed mutant, almost as if that angered him but he quickly retracted to his usual calm state.
"To tell you the truth, I was like any other mutant... Rage was all I knew, I just wanted to kill and eat things, didn't give a fuck about anything...
One day, I'm travelling with my brothers and we spot this guy on his own. We figure he ain't much, just some lone jackass with a hunting rifle, so we jumped him.
"Guy next to me got his head blown clean off, I got gutshot... the guy behind me... I didn't even see him die. I should thank my fucky stars that he wandered off, he didn't even check our bodies to make sure we were properly dead.
I got the strength to get back up, I was dyin' though... The bullet wasn't normal, it tore through me like... fuck knows, it just fucked me up, real bad."
"Might've been armour piercing or something." Hardin suggested, with a shrug.
"Dunno, don't care." Kyu stated, dragging his fingers around the rim of the glass.
"I woke up, hours after... I went staggering through the rocky canyons, not having a damn clue where I was goin' our what my endgame was. Hell, I was so fuckin' stupid back then, that I would've attacked anyone who came across me.
Hell, I did, come to think of it. Ended up findin' this shack, thought it'd be empty, to be honest but then there was this guy in there, dressed in a robe. I clumsily swung at him, with my nail-stick, found myself impressed, when he more or less took me down, usin' my weight against me and sendin' me straight to the floor.
Dunno if I hit my head on the way down but... I wanted to know what he did, how he did it. I got up and demanded that he tell me, how to fight like he did."
"Shit, I bet it surprised him..." Hardin agreed, pouring himself another drink.
"Surprised me to, I wasn't even sure of what I was sayin', still not sure if it was coherent or... whatever but he stopped tryin' to defend himself after that. He told me, that he couldn't teach animals to fight, obviously this pissed me off... I threatened to kill him or somethin'... to which he looked kinda... I dunno, like I'd said somethin' funny?
He said 'I must stop bein' an animal and should start bein' a warrior, only then, could he teach me.' He knew that I couldn't hurt him, not in my state. First time in my life and I couldn't coax a man into doin' somethin' for me through violence or fear of violence.
This guy wasn't afraid of me, not on any level and I don't even think that's because I was badly wounded or that he could kick the shit out of me, even at my full strength. The Man understood, there's more important things out there than yourself, than killin'...
Anyone can kill but takin' down a bunch of homicidal maniacs and not killin' any of 'em? That's a challenge, it's why I don't want to kill. I ain't afraid of it, in fact I want to kill, all the time. I wanna kill people right now but I can't, I'm a warrior, not a thug or a monster. I fight with purpose, to better myself in body, mind and technique. I can't learn that if I kill all of my opponents."
"That's... An odd attitude for a mutant." Hardin commented, glancing to the blood stains on the floor.
"You know that life don't work that way, right?"
"It don't?" Kyu asked, finding himself curious.
"See that? The blood on the floor? That was two guys, this mornin', came in here and started attackin' people. I had to put 'em down."
"You did... didn't have to kill 'em though." Kyu shrugged, seeming not too phased by the blood.
"They were hurtin' the bar staff. What was I supposed to do?"
"Kick their asses, throw 'em in your... dungeon or whatever you call it."
"We don't have one." Hardin admitted, he seemed rather cold and bitter in his tone.
"You don't have a place for prisoners?" Kyu seemed kind of baffled by this, even mutants took prisoners.
"Nah, we don't take 'em... Nobody screws with a town, that takes no prisoners." Hardin explained, though Kyu didn't exactly sound convinced.
"You don't think so? It didn't put those assholes off."
"Well, some people are just stupid." Hardin shrugged as the door opened and Jynx stepped in, she seemed a little flustered but otherwise in good spirits.
"Oh good you're... Drinking." She sighed as she approached the bar, seemingly having no issues expressing her disapproval.
"It was his idea." Kyu shrugged, gesturing to Hardin.
"She meant me..." Hardin countered, with an irritable sigh as he knocked some more whiskey back.
"She thinks I have a 'problem.'"
"You do have a problem." Jynx scowled, taking a seat.
"Whatever, that's not why I'm here... I've warned the shop keepers about you and as many townsfolk as I can. They won't attack you or anythin' now... Can't promise that all of them will be forthcoming or that they'll serve you."
"Bah, what do I need from them? They probably only got a few 10Mill bullets and a packet of damp cigarettes between 'em anyway."
"Oh and erm... If Moira asks you to let her... experiment on you or anything along those lines? Just say 'no,' trust me, you'll feel better for it." Jynx advised, getting a faint chuckle off Hardin.
"I don't think she needs it anymore, Denis helped her with that crazy book of her's. That book that most people without some sort of degree can't understand."
"Huh... I wish I could read, I'd give it a once over." The Mutant shrugged, he didn't sound very sincere though as he immediately poured himself more drink, from a second bottle of whiskey.
"Maybe you can do, some day... The folks at the Church of Atom could teach you." Jynx suggested, with a shrug.
"The Church of... I don't think they're as welcomin' to strangers anymore, not since the fight with Hamilton."
"Well, they might make an exception for our radiation proof friend here."
"They might try lockin' him up as well. I mean, have you seen what they do to ghouls?"
"It was just a thought..." The former Scavver sighed, shaking her head.
"No need to get so defensive."
"I ain't gettin' defensive, I'm just..." He paused, sighing heavily.
"I'm just sayin' to be careful with 'em, is all. They tried poisonin' our water a few years ago..."
"Mrgh, screw 'em, I'll get someone who isn't crazy or stupid to teach me how to read." Kyu grunted as the door burst open and one of the settlers rushed inside.
"Sheriff! We have a visitor and erm... well..." The Man fumbled a bit, grasping one of his hands in the other and holding it, firmly as if he was expecting it to shake.
"Let me guess, they're talkin' Deathclaws." Hardin scowled, rising up to his feet and marching towards the door, it was there that he immediately found himself face to face with a hooded woman, wrapped up in brown robes, with a young boy by her side.
She was well armed, a laser rifle hugged her back and it looked well maintained and modified.
"You are the Sheriff?" She asked, seemingly disapproving of his youthful nature.
"You're barely older than my charge, you might even be younger."
"Oh. Well, sorry Miss, you could come back in a few years, when I'm old enough to be useful."
The Woman just glared at him, falling silent before pushing the boy with her forward.
"I need a room for the boy, a secure one."
"Who is he, President of the United States?" Hardin asked, with a bemused smirk as the woman just glanced at the boy, he remained silent but looked like he had a lot to say.
"Something like that..." The Woman answered, honestly.
"Can you give us a secure room?"
"Sure." Gob acknowledged, stepping out from the back room, collecting the tall glass before it was tragically broken by some clumsy asshole.
"So long as you've got the caps, it's One-ten but I'll need a deposit of twenty, to make sure you don't leave with the key."
"Deal." The Robed woman said, looking back to the boy.
"Go upstairs, the room at the far end of the balcony? That'll be ours... Stay there, don't open the door to anyone but me."
The Boy quickly nodded, without a word, he began his ascent. He seemed to be a little hesitant, as if staying in a place like this was new to him. To be fair, it most likely was...
The Woman approached Hardin again, looking up and seeing Kyu for the first time and looking very unnerved.
"Is... Is he tame?" She asked, prompting Kyu clench his fist.
"Sure, he's got a slight drinking problem but you'll never find a tamer human."
"Oh, a mutant with a smart mouth. As if you beasts couldn't get any worse..." The Robed woman said, the emphasis on her words were like sharp spits, something that added insult to injury. Kyu, remarkably kept his composure...
He was practically immovable.
"Are you going to be a problem?" Hardin asked.
"Kyu is just as entitled to be here as you, I don't wanna hear anything otherwise!" Hardin insisted, glaring to the Robed woman, with a stern, sharp eye. She found herself glaring back to the Mutant, with a degree of distrust but after a few moments, she had no choice but to accept that he was a little too well protected to start anything with.
"So long as he's tame..." She said, continuing to stare him down before stepping away, heading towards the tavern's counter and throwing a small bag full of caps onto it before making her way upstairs.
Hardin couldn't help but keep his eyes fixed on her, the way that she carried herself, like she was above everything and everyone else in the room. It was the strange combination of fascination and frustration that kept him watching before he could watch no more...
"Snooty bitch... You get 'em a lot, like that?" Kyu grunted, folding his arms as he gave Hardin a stern glare.
"Not really... Thank you though, you erm... Showed a lot of restraint."
"For a mutant, ya mean..."
"No, for someone being spoken to like they were a piece of shit." Hardin corrected him, with a shrug.
"I appreciate it."
The Mutant rubbed his head, vigorously, sighing a little as he did so.
"Well... I was taught better than to throw a punch at everythin' that I don't like. I fight to defend myself, nothin' more."
"Sounds like there's a lot of restraint involved..." Jynx commented as she went back over to the bar and sat on the stool.
"Especially when dealing with people like... her." She added, her emphasis kind of surprised Hardin as normally she wasn't so keen to show her disgust for others.
"Bah, she was a snooty bitch but not worth killin'... Lookin' at her weapon and the armour, under her robes? I think she's one of the bucket heads."
"Bucket heads?" Hardin asked, with a bemused smirk.
"Yeah, those assholes that pretend to be robots, with buckets on their heads? You know the ones..."
"The Brotherhood?" Jynx suggested, it was her best guess, matched the description quite well.
"Yeah, Brotherhood of Assholes, looks like she's the Queen asshole."
Hardin paused, looking back towards the stairway and taking a deep, sharp breath.
"That kid..." He began, taking hold of his glass.
"They don't normally take kids into the citadel, he must be important..."
"He didn't look important, looked like a lamplighter, given his outfit." Jynx observed, she'd know, since she grew up with them.
"Maybe he's the Elder's Son?"
"Nah, Elder has a daughter... I met her once..."Hardin then paused, thinking a little more.
"He could be her kid?"
"Whoever squeezed him out, that little shitter is probably goin' to be their King or Elder or God or whatever..." Kyu observed, rising to his feet.
"Imagine the ransom..."
"What!?" Hardin seemed genuinely shocked by this as both he and Jynx immediately had their attention robbed by the tall mutant as they stared, dumbfounded by what he had just said, it was almost as if they were pleading for him to admit that he was joking.
Kyu laughed a little shaking his head at their nervousness as he waved his hand dismissively.
"I'm fuckin' with you... You ever held a kid hostage? They're the fuckin' worst!"
"I've never had the... experience." Hardin sighed, going for another shot of drink but realising that he was out. He decided to call it quits, mainly so that Jynx wouldn't have a go at him...
"Trust me, you ain't missin' out."
Arthur stared upward at the ceiling, his eyes remained fixated on the patterns as he made a slight game of imagining himself on the cracks and flaked off bits. The actual ceiling itself was lava and he couldn't jump too far, so he had to plan it out carefully.
It seemed pointless but he couldn't sleep and it kind of annoyed him at this point, how little he could do. The whole point of running away was to grow, to become more independent... Yet, he finds himself being bogged down by 'help' and told when and where he can speak. It was just a little maddening...
It had been half an hour, Durga, the woman who had took it upon herself to take care of him, was curled up on the far side of the room. He could easily slip in and out, without waking her...
It took him some self assurance, so many 'what ifs' that kept his desire to leave his room at bay, so many possibilities of disaster...
Still, it was better than the alternative, lying here, staring into the dark...
No, it was certain, he was going to have a look around the nearby area and procure something that could help protect them.
He stepped over to the door and realised that he'd need the key, he shook his head in frustration before looking around. Durga most likely had it, clasped within her palm. Was it worth even attempting to retrieve it?
He paused, sighing heavily as he stepped on over to his bed and took a seat, taking several breaths before looking back up to the ceiling. Lying here made his mind go in circles, considering what happened to Sarah, all of the power hungry 'Elder Candidates' that fought like jackals over a soon to be carcas. He was a boy and he could see it...
The Brotherhood was dying.
As admirable as it was, Lyons' desire to save everyone and police the wastes had left them at somewhat of an impasse. The Brotherhood most likely wouldn't support anyone whole heartedly. There was the technophobes of the old order, those who were close to becoming outcasts and then there were the Lyons loyalists.
Neither of which were achieving anything, left intact.
He could see the division, it was caused by a lack of leadership, a lack of focus or goal. The Brotherhood's purpose was no longer clearly defined and so, everyone was struggling to understand their place.
Arthur felt like the embodiment of this conflict at times, he himself was divided as to what he wanted from the Brotherhood... Both goals were admirable, their difficulties and rewards were both grand but which one was right? Which one would have them stand, immemorial?
Sarah knew what she wanted to do... He was sure of it. She didn't know that she knew... if that made sense but there was a burning desire to do what was right. She knew what the Brotherhood needed and she did it, without question.
He heard her confess once, that she would've preferred the support of Paladin Callaghan. After Project Purity and Adam's, she expected him to be there, with her, in the end. Instead, he shirked his duty and ran. He was a traitor in Arthur's eyes, an interloper, who wasn't loyal to the cause at all, just his own indeterminable whims.
Many tried to excuse him, tried to say that he was merely an 'honorary member' but that was a load of shit. He used the order and then fled, taking half of Megaton with him, according to the reports.
If he had been there, that night, if he had stuck to his duty... Sarah would be the Elder right now, she would have the Brotherhood united under one banner and working to help the Capital Wasteland.
But now? She was gone, they were all gone and all that Arthur had was one big mess to salvage an order out of.
Was this what growing up was? Solving the mistakes that shitty adults made, over the course of their lives? Weighing their kin down with flags and burdens, that stopped them from running free?
It was a hard thing to consider... but maybe Denis wasn't the only one who had betrayed him, maybe it was all of them.
It was at this point, Arthur heard a faint clunk on the far side of the room, prompting Arthur's eyes to widen as he quickly glanced to investigate. It would seem that Durga's grip had loosened...
Arthur found himself wandering the town for the best part of an hour, he constantly checked his watch. The Watch was battered and old, the glass on it was cracked but it still served him well. It had a small Vault Boy at its center, with his arms serving as the clock's hands.
It looked very uncomfortable for the Vault Boy, it always kind of irked Arthur how it didn't look possible to hold your arms in that position. Hell, the only time that it looked normal was at 4-6 AM/PM.
From what he understood, a lot of young Vault Dwellers were given these. Some people won them in cereal boxes but those ones were flimsy and apparently broke easily. This was a lot heavier than those, according to Durga, who more or less knew everything about her store room.
She'd got him this for his birthday, back when she was just some woman, who he never spoke to. Back then, she lived shut in to the armoury, serving as a quarter master of sorts. As the fighting broke out in the assembly hall, Arthur often found himself offering help to her.
He liked the quiet of the stock room, the focus of stacking the shelves and the isolation. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they didn't but either way, over the past few months, Durga was thee one that he was closest to.
She was nothing compared to Sarah... Harsh but true, Sarah was everything to Arthur. She was his inspiration, the thing that inspired him. He honestly felt like he loved her at times...
By now, the streets were more or less deserted and he himself had wandered the ramparts more times than he dared to count. There was something about this place, being nobody and wandering like a ghost...
He had no idea what the buildings were, that he was looking at. None of them were well lit, except for one of them. Out of curiosity, he made his way over to this building, running his hand along the railings and glancing over the edge. He could see a Brahmin, blissfully unaware of the troubles that affected the world.
He often wondered about the thought process of animals. He knew that they had some form of basic psychology, like how pigs were like children, burrowing their faces into the wall, when they were scared.
He wondered if they could think, like he did, if this creature, who simply observes people as it stuffs its face its whole life would have any insight into the troubles of the Brotherhood or that of his own really.
Somehow, it was doubtful but it was nice to have something to ponder, whilst wandering aimlessly through the dark. By this time that his thoughts had been lost to a slight distraction, he found himself stood, directly outside the brightly lit room and it suddenly made a lot more sense.
This shack was the Armoury...
Arthur looked around before getting on one knee and examining the lock, a lock that could not be picked easily. He knew how to pick basic locks but he had a long way to go before he would be cracking safes. Still, he felt intrigued by what weapons or armour would be waiting for him inside...
He gently placed his hand on the handle, he didn't expect it to magically be unlocked but at the same time, he could hope. It seemed like his only option...
"That ain't the bathroom." Hardin informed him, getting him to turn around, somewhat startled. The Sheriff looked incredibly suspicious of him already and he knew that he wasn't exactly a great liar, it wasn't in his nature.
"Oh, I'm sorry I... I was just hoping to see inside." Arthur admitted, with a sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"I grew up in a military complex, this is the only building that will begin to feel like home."
This was partly true, though he wasn't homesick. He intended to go back, to find a any technology and procure it for himself. He needed a weapon, despite Durga's insistence that he didn't.
"Well... You don't want to be in there anyway, the robot would kill you on sight." Hardin shrugged.
"We'd also probably shoot you as a trespasser as well."
Arthur let go of the handle and stepped away from the door, leaning against the wall as he did his best to not look troublesome.
"You don't like me much, do you?"
"Now that you mention it? No, not really..." Hardin shrugged, he found himself a little more eager to draw his weapon. This boy was a dumb kid, dumb kids were always happy to reach for their weapons to prove themselves.
He knew that, better than anybody...
"Please... I know that Durga can be a bit... well, firm but she's a good person." Arthur insisted, with a sigh.
"We both are, we're out here, looking to help save this wasteland from the mutant threat."
"The Brotherhood of Steel sent a kid?" Hardin asked, he seemed sceptical.
"B-Brother... Dammit, how'd you know?" The Maxson child was certain that their identities remained a secret until now.
"My friend, the mutant? He figured you out... So are you like a child soldier?" Hardin asked, finding himself curious.
"N-No... I'm a... Well, I'm a special case. I was brought from California to... Well, I was brought to make sure that we wouldn't run out of young people in the future."
"California?" Hardin asked, finding himself curious.
"That... Can't be a coincidence."
"What can't?" Arthur asked, he seemed concerned but part of him was glad that the topic had been moved from him, his origins and Hardin's suspicions of him.
"Shepherd... The Super Mutant's new leader, he said he was from that place." Hardin admitted, looking back to the Saloon.
"Shepherd? He's leading the mutants?" Arthur asked, his tone was demanding, almost like this had turned into an interrogation.
"Yeah... You can ask Kyu about it... Nicely though, if I hear you've been pulling any shit? I'll send you back to your brothers in a tin can!"
Arthur remained silent, though nobody had talked to him that way before, he didn't exactly dislike it. He appreciated Hardin's honesty and his code of ethics, a lot more than he would blind obedience.
"Very well, you have my word..."
Hardin wasn't really looking for his word but he decided to just wander towards the balcony, staring over the edge of the railings at the sleeping giant at the center of town. He had nothing else to say to the boy, now that he knew where he'd come from and what he was doing here.
Unless he started shooting things with a laser or plasma weapon, Hardin no longer had a problem with him.
Well, for now...