It took a bit of work, but I finally mapped out the final details on threading my Fallout stories together. Well, the ones that will be threaded. Alex is the most complicated because of New Vegas being as expansive as it is, but Nevaeh may beat him idk.

I'm glad everyone is enjoying this so far and remember to fav, follow and review ya know.

We waited until the dead of night and when Cas gave the all clear that ED-E was well out of range; he was chasing the Legion Mongrels that had - for some reason - wandered back into the town. I carried our packs and Cas held her shotgun out, wiggling through the crack I provided while I did the same. Painful cus it dug my chest plate into my skin, but any further and the jam would creak and I didn't want him knowing about us leaving until we were well on the outskirts of Nipton.

When we reached my bike, the tarp was gone and my nerves were more fried than when he arrived but I grabbed the handlebars and clicked my tongue at Cas. She nodded and kept on my ass - seriously, I could practically feel her breath on my balls here - as we eased the bike over too-loud dirt; it crackled and fumbled out of the tires way as we inched along. Risk alerting ED-E or the scorpions lazing about in the dust storm just to our right? Eh, I think I'll try to balance on that thin line of neither. Unfortunately, we were halfway to the road leading to the mountain pass when I realized how close we were to that satellite. It was scanning the area again, its blue lights flashing over mole rats digging in the distance and then. . .us.

"Hostile detected, civilians are cautioned to flee the combat zone," the scanner flicked off and the beeping began; in the distance, I head trumpet music. "Warning repeats: Hostile detected, civilians are cautioned to flee the combat zone."

"God mother-lovin dammit," I snarled and swung a leg over my bike, hauling Cas up by her collar. "Hold th' fuck on, lass!"

"I hate this shit so much!" She wailed, legs kicking out and then straddling the bike in a death grip.

"Shouldn'a came along then ," I kicked the bike to life.

I could see ED-E bobbing over the hill but we had a massive head start and barreling up a decently non-vandalized-or-possibly-raped highway was a huge help. There was no hesitance, no pot holes to thunk through, just clean, eighty miles per hour up a cliff and ya know what?

I loved every. fucking. second. of. it.

The wind around my face, the threat of the bike flying out beneath me at every twist and turn. I usually settled for the slug of alcohol, but adrenaline was always saved for battle and when I got to use it on the outside, it had me shaking so damn bad but I couldn't stop grinning like an idiot.

"Yeah baby!"

Cas on the other hand. . .

Yeah, she didn't fair too well.

She didn't scream like before, but I could tell she was trying. Her face was buried in my back and I could feel her sputtering against me but every turn I had to make around another pile up of vehicles made her voice jerk into just a plain squeak. It wasn't like trying to climb up to the Outpost again thankfully, but what did worry me were the landmines I could see blinking ahead of us.

"Aw fudge pops."

The first explosion jerked my bike forward and I had to jerk it to the right to avoid the. . .whatever that was leaping out from behind a boulder. He was half naked and waving around a cleaver, shouting something through the foam in his mouth. The second explosion awesomely went off in his face because he was too high for those survival instincts to kick in and say the beepin was bad. The bike was fast enough to barely even get clipped by the next two explosions, and I was no noob to riding one so I managed to keep her straight even though the explosions wanted to toss her tail end all over the place. I could hear screaming behind me and smirked over my shoulder, watching two more Fiends sliding down the hill to reach the idiot holding his face and wailing at the sky.

Once we crested over the next hill I slowed the bike down again but I most definitely was not stopping.

I gripped the bars tight and looked over my shoulder again, catching bloody limbs flopping down to the ground in the aftermath of the last explosion. I sighed and looked forward again, taking the next curve and turning off before I thought it smart to go over that untrustworthy bridge. Novac was only maybe a mile away now, no need in stopping.

I would definitely need a drink after this. . .but Novac didn't have a bar. Cripes, what the Hell was wrong with these people? Oh right. . .right, Legion attacks; couldn't handle those if you were piss drunk.

But I could.

"Ya okay back th're lass," I called over my shoulder.

I trembled when her hiss was in my ear. "I hate you."

I just chuckled and kept my eyes on the road. I saw a Legion party up ahead and steeled my jaw, surprised when they didn't attack us but instead one of them actually saluted me.

What the Hell?

I could hear Cas give the curious sound against my back but another thing that would have to wait until we were at a stand still. I need rearview mirrors, so I could make sure this wasn't a trap or something; Legion being friendly neighbors?

I scared.

"Oh thank God," Cass flailed her limbs as she collapsed to the ground, hugging a chunk of concrete.

I arched my eye at her with an amused expression. "Drama queen," I murmured, dragging our bags from the back of the bike. "Take this," I tossed her bag at her and she grunted when it hit her side. "Well, see, that's what you get fer actin stupid."

"How about you bite me," she snapped and stood, smacking her hat off on her knee. "So, should we go get a motel room 'er what?"

I shook my head and tugged mt hat down on my brow. "We resupply an' then we get the fuck out of here."

Cass hesitated for some reason and then nodded firmly. "Gotcha."

I paused when her face twisted a little. "What?"

"Where're ya goin? Stores are this way," she jerked a thumb over her shoulder.

I chuckled. "I gotta go. . .recruit someone, I'll meet ya back at th' bike," I promised.

She didn't question my motives, thankfully, and rolled her eyes. "Whatever, 'm goin ta see if they have any booze in this shithole."

"Don' wander off too far, we leave in ten," I wouldn't crush her dreams that there was alcohol sold anywhere around here.

She waved a hand at me over her shoulder and continued towards a tent, greeting the woman outside; they must have known each other from the way the woman grinned and blushed. Was Cas?. . .meh, none of ma business about her sexuality, and it would just distract me anyway.

It wasn't my first time in Novac, may not have been recent since my last visit, but I knew it well enough to recognize a few faces. The first most being Manny. Now, Manny was a man of law, even though he acted like he was a run-of-the-mill bad boy turned soldier, but I know Manny and his set of morals. That's why he was no longer running strict with the Khans, but he still had those tattoos peeking up from under his collar when I approached him. I knew he didn't recognize me at first, with the distrust in his eyes and that suddenly tight grip on the strap to his rifle.

But when I got closer, just an extra foot or two, his face split in a wide grin and he started a brisk pace towards me, so I stopped.

"Please don't," I begged.

"Oh yeah."

He slammed into me, and pretty damn hard considering he was just walking fast and not running. His arms snaked around me like a vice and he damn neared lifted me off of the ground but thankfully the Capital put extra muscle and radiation in me so I was at least two times heavier than when he last tried this.

"Bloody Hell, lad," I pushed him back by his head but he chuckled at me, struggling only for a moment. "Quit the shite," and now I was grinning. "See ya not doin as bad as I thought ya would have."

He cocked his head and adjusted his rifle. "Whatcha mean?"

I hesitated and dipped my head a little, hat coming down to block his forehead. "I heard 'bout Carla."

His face darkened and he looked just as nervous as I was mentioning it. "Yeah," he mumbled. "Yeah, that really. . .sucked."

"Sucked? I expected more than that all things considered."

"Yeah, well Boone. . .I think he blames me for the shit," he looked annoyed now.

Boone and I. . .never saw eye-to-eye.

Despite the bigotry in the NCR, one of the high ranking officers accepted me - or rather, enlisted me - as one of his bodyguards when he was doing rounds at the bases and stations around the Mojave. I met Boone on the Strip via Manny, who I had known before that when I was robbed by him and a few of his gang buddies. So short and young, fresh and vicious running up to me and demandin I give him everything I had.

Yeah, we had a little meet-cute like any old couple.

Boone didn't like me right away when Carla opened her big flapper, tipsy off of what the bot at the Wrangler called a margarita - and it was no damn margarita without the lime, the bastard. She thought it was funny mentioning about the time I had hit on her and stolen that one, petty little kiss - which made her throw up afterwards, but she swore it was the alcohol. I didn't really care, about the vomit or Boone's suddenly snobbish attitude, but he took it personal.

Like I'd confessed ta fingerin the lass while we were all seated at the bar together.

"Thought the two of ya were close," we started shuffling towards the Dino-De-Light motel, presumably towards his room. "How could he think such a thing?"

"Because when he moved her out here, Carla turned into more of a snooty bitch than she was on the Strip," Manny shook his head. "Look, I tried to tolerate her, for Boone's sake, but I blew up on her and. . .now he won't talk to me."

I sighed and threw an arm around his shoulder. "Don' worry lad, I'll make him come around. You just get th' rest ya deserve, aight?"

Manny nodded solemnly and I sent him to bed like a child, able to catch the end of Boone's rifle peeking out from between bulbous teeth in Dinky's mouth. I sighed through my nose and tugged my hat brim a little, sweeping back my coat as I started towards the steps. There was a man struggling with a box of plastic dinos, trying to open the door to what I guessed was his house and looking around like he wasn't supposed to be doing it but I think he owned the place so. . .

"Ya know," I grumbled, pushing the still-smoking barrel of Boone's rifle from my face. Gettin real tired of havin guns in ma face."

Boone's eyebrow arched over the rim of his sunglasses - douchebags wore sunglasses at night - and he abruptly lowered his rifle, looking as disgruntled as always. He still wore a hole-riddled shirt and cargo pants, boots laced properly and firmly like the army drilled into your head. And that beret still hung on a crew cut, the patch faded but I still remember what it said: 'The Last Thing You Ever See' laid beneath a bear skull with rifles crossed behind it.

I think I burned mine like a victory flag.

"Alexander," ah, how I have missed that asshole-ish tone to his voice. "Back in the Mojave, I see?"

I nodded. "Yeah, Capital didn't wanna deal with ma shite anymore, got kicked on home," I grinned. "See you're stuck in smallville."

He grunted. "What'd do you want?"

I hummed, rocking back on my heels, hands tucked deeply into my pockets. "Just wanted to know if you still had it in ya to trek to Vegas."

His shoulders tensed. "Why would you wanna go back there?"

I shrugged. "Got shot in the head by one of the bosses," my smile tightened, injected with venom. "Figured I'd ask for my apology in person."

He gave me a once over, probably not seeing the evidence; radiation was a hell of a thing to a ghoul, I still could never get over it.

"And why do you need me to come with you," he questioned.

I sighed. "I still owe ya for Boulder City," he arched that eyebrow again. "So I pay off my debt, and you watch my six again. We did make a good team once, ya know?"

Boone was silent for a long time, though that was no shocker really. Manny always said it was a front, but Boone and I had never had a lot to say to each other so he could be right. We were a good team when we were partnered before everything went to Hell, and there's not many people I trust to watch my back in the Mojave. Everyone's worse than raiders and Fiends, always looking for their own slice and nor caring for anyone else's skin.

Boone was different.

"I do have something you can help me with," Boone muttered. "But its gonna take some snooping."

I shrugged. "I got a skinny gal to help," I smirked.