Chapter 9 King of the Hill

Logan stared at a ghost. Well, not exactly… the man who stood right in front of him was the very man who could have taken him out earlier with a rifle pointed right at him. Actually, it was a whole GANG of them with weapons pointed right at him. At this moment, he thought really hard as to how he got into this predicament. He never stole. He never lied (white lies don't count). He never killed anyone out of malice. Logan was a godsend to many… or at least that is what he thought. He had faced a showdown before, but nothing that compared to this.

Ok, eight Great Khans were pointing guns at him. That's nothing that he faced before.

Logan raised his arms above his head and looked at the man again. Tommy smirked at the courier as he strolled over to him and grabbed his gun. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes. You know, you should have taken my offer. You never what you can encounter in the wasteland, like the Powders Gangers down in Primm…fire ants on the I-15... Khans just trying to deliver a package, anything."

Logan narrowed his eyes as he watched the man circle around him, swinging his gun, "Yeah, especially that one. Boy, I kinda hate this job, but us Great Khan never back down from a job. So, here's what we're going to do…you are going to give us that package that you are carrying, and then we'll let you walk free. What to do you say? Easy as pie." Tommy stood in front of him now, gun still in hand, smirking at the Courier. Logan said nothing.

"Oh come on. All we want is that package. You see, we went through some heavy shit before getting to you. We just lost one of our own…just to get to your lame ass. We'll trade his life for that. Last chance cowboy."

All the Khans shifted in their places, eagerly awaiting orders to waste the courier in front of them. Logan, however, wasn't very eager to get shot by these guys anyways. He referred back to his original plan when he first met these guys hours ago, only finding that he had no way out of the situation through force. So he quickly thought of another way to get out of it. Bye New Reno…

"Alright boys, here's the deal. I have to get home, as do you all, so I am in a hurry. Here's my offer: I'll triple what your boss offered you. That's more than what this package is worth. I know that won't make up for your loss, but at least we can all walk away from this without conflict."

Tommy thought about it... it won't be more than what the Chairman offered and there would be no way he and his men can take on the Khans once their deal with Caesar was done. But just then, his friend stepped in, gun pointed at the Courier.

"Nice try, wise guy. We know the worth of that package and there's no way you have the caps to get yourself out of the Mojave." Jessup stood in front of him, his eyes unwavering. Logan stood up straight and saw the other Khans watch who seemed to be the leader of this group. Jessup, however, was in no mood to joke around. He just lost one of his brothers and there was no way he was going to screw up this job when so much was at stake. To be honest, Jessup didn't agree to this job, but he hoped with the extra caps they can seem to be at better odds with Caesar. He also didn't like Benny. He thought Benny was crooked and was going to screw them. Papa insisted on the job, and so he found himself halfway in the Mojave, with his brother death, and this tight-ass mailman who has the worst bad luck in the world.

At this moment, Logan was thinking: he could just give them the package and run. He had to. There was no way he can take all these guys, especially if they were packing heat and live. Unless… he creates a diversion.

"Come on, there is nothing else you can do or say to get you out of this. Just give it to me and you'll live." Tommy watched earnestly as Jessup held out his hand and Logan staring at him. Logan didn't spare a second grabbing a pulse grenade from his pouch and throwing it at Jessup's face. Like a flash, the grenade erupted and the Khans felt the electricity dance across their bodies. Logan, who didn't feel an thing, knocked his gun off Tommy's hand and started to run. He knew that they would only be stunned for a few moments, precious moments he had to get away. He grabbed his .44 magnum and booked it down the hill. Hopping over shrubs and cacti, Logan ran like he never ran before, already heading back towards the highway where he approached by the tribesmen.

One of the Khan scouts, Oliver rushed over to him (out of nowhere as he now recalled) and asked if he could help his sister who was hurt from fire geckos. Logan, although in a hurry, decided to follow the kid to his injured sister. Or so he thought.

Now, Logan was running down the hill, trying to flee from eight Great Khans for the very thing that was carrying. He didn't even know what he was carrying, but he knew that it was enough to get killed over.

Logan didn't dare to look behind him. He was trying to make as much distance as he could away, maybe heading back into Primm where the Khans wouldn't get near with the NCR looming around. Then he would take the long way around to get to Vegas… what a trip that would be.

In his haste however, Logan didn't see a coyote and her pups run into the cave in front of him, which caused him to lose his footing and fall, hard. Boy did he fall. Logan was running so fast him that the impact knocked him out cold, at the worst time possible. It didn't take long for the Khans to catch up with the courier, who found him face down in the dirt. Jessup took some solace that the capture for the guy was easy, but losing his brother to this clown was sickening.

Two of him men grabbed him from the shoulders and Jessup got a closer look at Logan. Then he took a swing at him, just for good measure. "Alright boys, fresh meat coming through. Let's get back Goodsprings. Benny likes his meat rare."

Logan's luck had just ran out.

Boone and Veronica blasted through the ruins of Primm and made it to the interstate once again. Boone realized that they took some much time to get out that he was afraid that their chance was slipping. He knew that he was close to the target, but also knew that whoever was chasing after the others was close too. He just knew it.

Veronica was still a little tired from her trip deep in NCR territory and she had been running for quite a while now. She was used to it, but she was reaching her peak. She hoped that they would get the guy so she can get back home and rest. But she also knew how big this was and excited to analyze the item they were suppose to obtain.

Boone halted and looked towards the west. He put his hand out, halting the power-armored scribe.
"Listen, do you hear that?" Veronica turned her head towards the same direction, using her suit to help her find whatever he heard. None of her sensor's lit up so she stared at her companion, "I got nothing B. I'm not getting any readings." The sniper scowled, "What's the use of tech if it doesn't work? I hear gunshots, maybe half a click northwest from here." Veronica brushed off his tech comment and scanned that area again.

"Nothing. Listen, we have been at this for days. I know that you may be just hearing things. Yet, I should just shut up now because you're giving me that look … my scanners picked up something northwest." Boone smirks and starts running in that direction and Veronica followed behind. The reading became stronger and she saw what they were approaching. So did Boone.

The very same coyote and her pups ran across their path and halted the two guardians. Boone sighed and kicked some dirt away. Veronica, gasping for air, started to giggle.

"So cute! They are so young! Man I wondered who taught them how to shoot? Oh! Ow! Boone! Don't throw that stick at my head!" Boone crossed his arms and looked towards the west, watching the sun starting to set. I could have sworn I heard gunshots this way… God, am I going crazy? Maybe the Scribe is right… I am losing it. Oh Penny, where the hell are you?

The women arrived at the second caravan marked on the map, the Griffin Wares caravan and saw the same scene that they encountered at Cassidy's wreckage. They again found more clues and yet again Cass was feeling more anxious than ever. Penny however was becoming more confident that she figured out a small piece of the puzzle.

The sun was setting and Cass yawned. The grief had gotten to her and she was drained. She was not done yet, as she was determined to get to all the caravans before morning. Penny was keeping up pace, but the injuries she sustained from the deathclaw attack were affecting her. She secretly took some small doses of Med-X when Cass wasn't looking and drank some coffee mixed with tobacco leaf. Penny tried to focus on the road ahead, but was slowly started to falter from exhaustion.

When Cass whipped out her pack of smokes and offered on to her friend, she finally realized what was going on. Stopping in front of the ex-Ranger, Cass grabbed Penny from the shoulders and slowly moved her off the side of the road.

"Penny, are you ok? You were stumbling as I was trying to give you a cig. We can stop that it totally ok." Penny waved her off, trying to stand rather to sit. "I'm fi-fine. I'm just tired. Don't worry, I'll drink some coffee and perk up here soon." Cass stared into her eyes and saw that Penny's eyes were big and her forehead covered in sweat. Penny slightly pushed her away, swinging her bag around. She pulled out her canteen of water and started to sip from it. Then she pulled a syringe of Med-X and started to inject into her arm when Cass yanked it from her.

"Penny, I have been watching you all day. You can't keep doing this. Let's rest for a bit and get you back to strength. I'm sorry for pushing you so hard. Please." Cass pleaded with Penny and slowly Penny stopped resisting and allowed for Cass to sit her down. It didn't take long for the woman to set up camp, in which Penny helped as much as she could. Once settled, the women sat in front of the fire, passing back and forth some instamash and iguana bits. Penny tried to stay awake but finally her body started to shut down for sleep. Cass helped her lay down, pulling the Brahmin cover over her. Finally closing her eyes, Penny whispered a, "thank you" before falling asleep. Cass drank some coffee and took watch for the night.

Benny went into the bar at Goodsprings, sitting down farthest from the front door, ordering a drink fit for a gentleman. Trudy brings over a glass of whiskey with just a splash of water. This was the closest to the drink he had in mind; settlements outside of New Vegas didn't have fridges that made ice cubes so he couldn't have it the way he usually does. Quietly sipping his drink, Benny watched the townsfolk coming into the bar and talking about the NCR and Gangers showdown down south. Apparently, they also had some gangers move in town and these two women came in and helped out. What a bunch of ninnies and saps, he thought. Though, he had to admire the spunk of the women, specifically one in particular. Penny… huh somehow that name sounds familiar? Maybe some dame that Swank had over… I don't remember. The evening went on and the crowd started to get smaller. Benny had enough time to realize that his plan was going to work. All the other couriers were all empty-handed and it has to be this guy. Once he had that in his possession, his plan was going to start rolling. There would be nothing to stop him.

It was a quarter till ten and Benny placed some caps on his table. Before Trudy could wave the stranger goodbye, Benny went through the back door and started him way to the cemetery up the hill. It was time to start anew.

Oliver started on the hole as soon as they captured the man. He has been at it for several hours now, making it deep enough for the body. He was still in the hole when he heard the footsteps and saw the man with the checkered suit making his way to him. Leaping out of the hole, Oliver nodded at the Chairman who smiled at the Khan. Patting him on the shoulder, Benny admired the future grave site, "Atta boy. That hole looks mighty fine. The boys are coming right? Do they have the package?" Oliver nodded and Benny smiled. Everything was going according to plan. He felt like he was king of the world, the top of the radioactive heap. He never felt so happy when he saw the Khans carrying over the courier, who had a sack over their head and their wrists wounded up with rope.

This is what high-living must be like. I will live like this till I die.

Haiiii! I am going to continue with this story. I really like it and I am going to try to crank chapters out and just let the story flow. SOOOOO the Courier and Benny meet. Boone and Veronica aren't far behind and Penny is dealing with her injuries while getting closer to those responsible on the caravan attacks. I apologize for any errors! I will edit these as soon as I can. Thank you! :D