AN: Now for the moment you've all been waiting for! (Ok maybe not all.) Enjoy!
Amata stood in the middle of the New Vegas strip nearly mesmerized by the sights and sounds of her surroundings, when the Courier chimed in with a question.
"So… any idea where to find him?" he asked.
After a few moments of silence pass Amata could feel a slight vein pulsing on the side of her forehead.
'Now I got to find him in here!?' she thought, she racked her brain tearing through any detail no matter how small in hopes of getting an idea of where he might of head to inside the New Vegas strip. She let out a sigh along with her answer. "No."
"Well I'm sure if you take a look around you'll get a clue." The Courier suggested, it came as a bit odd to Amata as he didn't strike her as the 'helpful' type.
'Careful he's up to something.' The warning Veronica gave her suddenly popped into her mind.
'That's right, he is up to something… but what?' Amata thought doing her best not to let her suspicion to show.
"Well hello there, welcome to the Strip. Is this your first time?" a voice said cutting into Amata's train of thought.
"Uh, yeah." She answered before she knew who she was answering. She turned to face who asked her the question and came face to face with a scantily dressed woman who handed her a flier. On the flier a silhouette was pole dancing with the words 'Cum have a good time at Gomorrah!" printed over it.
"Um, thanks?" Amata said accepting the flier a bit off put, but before the woman walked away an idea popped into Amata's head.
"Excuse me but can you tell me if a man about average height and build walked through here?" she asked.
"Honey take a look around that describes nearly everyone." The woman answered.
"He had one of these on his arm." Amata added pointing to the Pip-boy on her arm.
The woman squinted at the device and soon her eye grew wide with realization. "Yeah, I saw something just like that, figured you have to be rich to afford some pre-war tech like that. I pointed him towards Gomorrah obviously but he seemed more interested in the Lucky 38, but after I told him that that place hasn't had visitors in a long while he seemed to lose interest and headed off in to the second half of the strip." The woman answered.
"Second half? Where?" Amata asked excitedly.
The woman had barely pointed to the second set of gates before Amata took off towards them. The gates couldn't open fast enough for her as she squeezed her way pass the crowds that had gather to transition to the other part of the strip. On the other side she was greeted with two casinos.
"So, which one do you think he's in?" the Courier asked once he managed to catch up.
"I don't know." Amata said but in truth she had an idea which casino the Lone Wanderer might be in. she looked at the casino on the left, it had a white fountain in from and the words 'Ultra-luxe' flashing in cursive on the building's front. It struck her as something that was a bit too fancy for her taste and most like the Lone Wanderer's as well which left her with the casino on the right which was light up from head to toe in lights with the title 'Tops' lit in big lights.
"We should split up. You take the one on the left. I'll take the one on the right." Amata suggested, she headed off towards the Tops before he had a chance to object. Once inside the casino she approached the greeter.
"Well hey toots, what brings you to the greatest place in New Vegas?" he greeted with a flirt, but Amata had completely ignored it and shove her Pip-boy in his face.
"Have you seen a man with this on his arm?" she demanded.
"Whoa, hey take it easy, everything's smooth as silk baby." The greeter said keeping his composure, after taking a look at the Pip-boy he nodded in acknowledgment. "Yeah I've seen a dude with that exact same thing on his arm… what's it to you?" he asked suspicious.
"Nothing." She quickly lied as she started to head into the casino, but the greeter grabbed onto her arm.
"Hey, Hey, there kitten. I know you're excited to have a fun time but we have rules here." He told her as he nodded to the 9mm on her waist.
"We don't allow weapons inside, don't want an incident like last time." He said as he asked her to turn in her weapons.
'Well I guess that makes sense.' Amata thought as she began to place her weapons in the holding bin. She took the time to look around. Despite it's 'extravagant' lighting outside the inside looked a bit less promising. Bodyguards dressed in prewar business outfits to give off an 'authentic' business/entertainment environment each with slicked back hairdos. Gamblers gathered around the roulette tables winning and losing money at the drop of a ball. Others sat in front of machines pulling levers watching pictures spin by as their time and money went along with it. Part of Amata couldn't understand why anyone let alone the Lone Wanderer would come her and yet another part of her wanted to try her luck at one of those machines.
'Just one pull.' She thought, she suddenly realized what was happening to her and she quickly shook the notion out of her head.
'No! Stay focus! You didn't come all this way just to waste away in front of some machine.' She reasoned with herself. Her thought was suddenly interrupted with the sound of one of the machines going off, bells chimed and alarms dinged telling all that the individual sitting in front had won a huge payoff, but something seemed off… the individual sitting in front of the machine had no reaction to it as if numb to it all, when the bells stopped chiming and the alarm died down the individual collected his winning and got up. Amata didn't need to see the Pip-boy on his arm, because she knew who he was. She felt her body go hot and then suddenly cold, a burden she didn't know she was carrying had suddenly made itself known and shifted on her shoulders. There was no thoughts in her head as her feet began moving her towards the individual. The individual settled himself at a blackjack table oblivious to the woman following him at a distance.
'Maybe you can help him.' Cass words flashed into Amata's head.
"I will." Amata said to no one.
'He doesn't remember.'
"Then I will remind him." She said as pent-up emotions started to reach critical mass the closer she got to him. Her heart raced as she was close enough to reach out and touch him.
'What are you going to say to him?' she asked herself and soon she had her answer.
"Remember me?"
…
"Remember me?"
The Lone Wanderer's body went straight as if he had been hit with a lightning bolt and before he even knew what was coming out of his mouth he said.
"Amata?" he said as he turned and face the red haired woman. He didn't know how he knew her but he was sure that was her name, what was worst was the look on her face. She looked exhausted yet relieved but she also looked furious and for the life of the Lone Wanderer he couldn't understand why.
Amata had found him, after trailing him across the vast wastelands that made up America, fighting, killing, running. She had finally found him… at a table… playing blackjack. There was so many emotions fighting to gain control she finally decided to pick one… she punched him.
"You… Son of a Bitch! What the hell's wrong with you? Why did you leave? Did I do something wrong?" she cried as her tears refused to be held back anymore.
Ignoring the stinging sensation in his jaw the Lone Wanderer looked at Amata dumbfounded. Did he wrong her in some way? Why what did he leave behind? This red-haired woman named Amata raised more questions in his mind but somewhere deep inside he knew she had the answers.
"Alright put the claws away, no need to let a lover's quarrel get out of hand." A bouncer said placing a hand on Amata's shoulder, before she could protest the Lone Wanderer floored him with a straight punch.
'Why the hell did I just do that?' he thought as he looked at her.
"You have to tell me, who am I?" he asked her grabbing her shoulders.
Amata was caught off guard by the question. "You're the Lone Wanderer, you know the urban ranger of the Capitol Wasteland." She told him hoping it would jog his memory.
She could see him searching his mind for any faint trace of the memory or any for that matter.
"I need more to go on." He told her hurriedly.
"W-well where do I begin?" Amata asked eager to help.
"How about you're under arrest." The Courier announced startling Amata.
"Wait!? What? On what grounds?" Amata shouted her anger getting the best of her.
"Take your pick, fleeing from NCR justice, destruction of property, running an NCR blockade, or the assault he just committed." The Courier listed as a group of NCR soldiers joined him.
"You, you weren't supposed to be here." Amata told him.
"And you just admitted to attempting to aid and abet a fugitive on the run from NCR justice, way to go Amata." The Courier informed her.
"Y-you can't do this! I-I trusted you." Amata said in disbelief.
"10th person to tell me that. Yeah, not your best decision, but I do have to say you gave me a run for my money. I mean I've never met someone with your resolve. I was sure you were going to bite it when the Legion set fire to the townhouse, and don't get me started about the vault." The Courier rambled.
"But you saved me…" Amata trailed off.
"True, but I was also saving myself and hey I had to protect my asset, especially if she was going to lead me to the big catch." The Courier explain nodding toward the Lone Wanderer.
"It's nothing personal." He added, to which the Lone Wanderer glared at him.
"Your friend isn't much of a talker." The Courier pointed out.
"You asshole!" Amata yell infuriated.
"418! Wow you really like that word don't you?" the Courier goaded.
"I'm going to kill you!" she yelled as she charged.
The Courier quickly pulled his ranger sequoia and trained it on Amata's forehead. "216th, you know, you'd think people would catch on. Everyone says that and yet no one has been able to follow through with it, obviously because I'm still alive and so far 195 people who've said that have died, all by my hand of course… don't be 196th." He warned as he pulled the hammer back with his thumb.
Amata looked around, eyeing each NCR soldier, trying to figure a way out of this mess. Until the Lone Wanderer spoke up.
"Amata, I know it's hard to see it but there is a way out of this, but it's not through fighting." He told her.
Amata looked back at the Long Wanderer and suddenly a sharp pain hit her in the back of her head knocking her to the ground. As her conscious began to fade the Courier stood above her.
"That was for Goodsprings." He told her before she lost conscious.
"You didn't have to do that!" the Lone Wanderer yelled.
"Yeah, I didn't have to but damn if it didn't feel right." The Courier said as he ordered the soldiers to handcuff her and the Lone Wanderer. As they marched him pass the Courier he planted his feet becoming almost a stump in the ground.
"I barely know that girl but I could tell from the way she sounded. She really believed in you and you repay her kindness with this? Let me tell you something. I will get free, some way, somehow, I don't care what deal with the devil I have to make but I'll come for you." The Lone Wanderer threatened.
"Yeah, yeah now you're just grandstanding." The Courier blew off as the NCR soldiers finally shoved him off.
As he followed after them he saw Amata's limp unconscious body being half carried and half dragged in front of the Lone Wanderer and a feeling he hadn't felt in a long time struck him in the chest, it was the same feeling of when he had destroyed the Brotherhood of Steel's bunker and thus erasing everything and everyone Veronica loved… it was guilt.
AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter as I did in writing it. (Though it took me a while!)