I'm back and ready to go with this chapter. It will be the NCR invasion, and believe me when I say that I had fun writing this. Even the boring parts. Reviews:
1: Well, I'm flattered, I'll make sure to keep up my "good work".
Thaqif: I was planning on most of them to show up eventually, with each one having a role in this new BoS Alliance. I was planning that, if Marcus and Fawkes ever met, they would talk about their past experiences, their journeys with their respective heroes, and different philosophies.
B.J. Blazkwoicz: First of all, why are you on fanfiction? Get out of here and keep blasting Nazis. Secondly, thanks for all of the compliments. I'm happy to see that you're enjoying reading this as much as I'm writing this. I plan on having Ulysses in this, but I'm not sure about Joshua. I'll find a way for you though.
Bananas55: I'll make sure that this story stays humorous.
noname8: Thank you.
Brandon Vortex: Well, if you've ever seen Band of Brothers, it's going to be the boring parts of that.
Oh, and recently started watching ShoddyCast's series "The SCIENCE!", specifically the Fallout videos. And (To quote Austin)... Jesus fucking Christ. So be prepared for some slight rewrites of the little "Codex' to put at least some of his concepts in, like the science behind fusion cores.
"All right, I'll need foxholes here, here and here." The Royal Guards behind Nate looked at him in confusion. Nate sighed. "Waist-deep circular holes." They nodded in understanding and immediately got to work. He was in charge of physical defenses, while Javan was setting traps all over, and John training them in how to handle their new weapons. All three had gotten their equipment pods dropped in a little bit ago, filled to the brim with military-grade weapons.
"Well, you all have the aim of blind raiders on Psycho, but you'll get the job done," John said to his gold-clad trainees. The targets he had set up were barely scathed, but had enough holes for the guards to pass. "Now start making spike barricades; They're going to help." The guards nodded and, with R-series assault rifles in hand, jogged off to find sticks in order to make low grade anti-tank hedges. Nate walked up to John, who looked very stressed.
"They're that bad?"
"Like I said, blind raiders on Psycho." He grabbed a shovel form a pile of tools and began to dig his own foxhole in the entrance of Ponyville. All around him were guards doing the same thing, as well as guards boarding up the windows of the buildings, setting sandbag walls all around, and placing crude traps in the bushes, while Javan was placing his won homemade mines under shrubs and small stones. John had taken off his helmet, mask, and backpack and placed beside the rim of his half finished foxhole. Nate started to help expand for room for him and Javan.
"How long until they show up?" John checked the watch he had on his left wrist.
"Two hours left," He muttered as he picked his shovel back up and kept working, "And Celestia's captain isn't even here."
"Probably not even up yet," Nate joked, nodding to the stars above. John chuckled and kept working. Minutes passed, and the foxhole was finished, and the two soldiers started to add extras to the place. Nate dug a makeshift latrine in the corner and added wood planks as extra cover on the top, and John got a few spare chairs lying abandoned on the streets and set up a mirror in front of his seat. He and Nate sit down while he pulled out a shaving kit from his backpack. He pulled out a razor and began to shave off his stubble.
"What do ya think about the Exodus coming down?" John asked, "Kinda crazy how they're sending relief. New bodies, more weapons..." Nate was silent.
"...You think Nora woke up yet?" He asked. John sighed, shaving off a few random long hairs on the left side of his face before moving to the right.
"I hope so," John said, "She sounds like an angel, how you described her." Whenever there was free time with his son, Nate would always talk about his late wife. Her beauty, her kindness, her love. He never stopped. John had seen her in her limbo state on her hospital bed at the Boston Airport before, so he could confirm the prettiness part. "With Shaun starting through puberty, she'll have her hands full in Boston. But when she gets out of her funk, and you get back, you'll have your family back." While it would seem cruel that John was basically taunting his friend of his dreams, it wasn't. Scribes were hard at work getting Nora Howard back to full health, her great knowledge-she was a lawyer before the bombs fell-would be invaluable. Nate's hopes started when he visited her the day after the Battle of Cambridge, and he discovered she was breathing. He quickly got her out of there, and started to tell his ten year old son about her.
"She is an angel," Nate said, looking off in the distance, "My angel." There was a comfortable silence as John finished his little shaving session; The weird proto beard was gone, but a five o' clock shadow was still visible. The guards finished up their defense making, hunkering down in their own foxholes. John put his mask on, but rolled it up on his head like a skullcap, while Javan dropped in after he set up the mine field, the town now surrounded by bottlecap mines.
"How's it hanging?" He asked, smiling like a fool. John stared at him with narrowed eyes before turning back to his watch over the plains in front of Ponyville.
"Everything set?" He asked.
"Yep. Anything that rolls over will be hunks of meat after they roll over those babies." The three sat in silence for awhile, with only their thoughts to accompany them. Javan suddenly reached into his pack and pulled out a box of Sugar Bombs. He produced three bowls and put some cereal into each one. He gave the bowls to his friends, who started to munch on them. They ate in silence for a few minutes.
"Did I ever tell you guys about the first time I had these?" John asked. Nate and Javan looked at each other before turning back to John and shaking their heads no. "I was in Super-Duper Mart outside of Megaton, my first day out of the Vault, for the first part of the Wasteland Survival Guide. I strolled in, still in my jumpsuit, and ran into a few raiders. I was so fucking dumb-when my pistol ran out of ammo, I tried to rush the drugged up naked guy with nothing but a pool cue, and he still beat the shit out of me!" The three laughed. "And after I killed the guy, I went into the back room, turned on this Protectron in there, and relaxed as it patrolled the aisles. I found a box of 'Bombs, and just as I bit into the first one, a raider at the end of the store shot through the robot and through my box!" They laughed some more.
"What's in these things, anyway?" Javan asked, studying one of the puffs.
"Nothing you won't eat, Malarkey," John said as he drained his bowl.
"I won't eat malarkey," Nate stated, smiling as the others laughed. As they finished up their food and their laughs, one of the guards ran over to their foxhole.
"Sentinel Gideon?" He asked. John sighed and turned to his friends, pulling down his mask and strapping on his helmet.
"Get comfy, they'll be awhile," John muttered to them before he jumped out. He looked to the guard's markings before talking. "Sergeant?"
"Captain Shining Armor has arrived," He reported, "He's at Town Hall." Before John could go, the guard grabbed his arm. "Me and my squad appreciate what you've done so far, sir, despite you being a human."
"Why you telling me this?" John asked.
"The Captain doesn't," He said before walking back to his position, a foxhole three down from John's. He smiled at the thought of the Captain as he headed out. He passed various guards still setting up last minute fortifications. As he neared the Town Hall, he saw Princess Celestia conversing with a very angry-looking guard with special armor.
"-ee humans? Why are you letting them walk free?" He yelled.
"I don't like the situation anymore than you do, Shining, but we have to," Celestia said, "But you will cooperate with them, and you will NOT raise your voice at me." He looked a little scared and backed down.
"Yes Princess," He squeaked.
"Your Highness," John called, smirking when he saw Celestia's ears perk up at his voice. Evolution was funny sometimes.
"Sentinel," She replied, "I was hoping you would come back from the frontlines. This is my champion, Prince of the Crystal Kingdom and Captain of the Guard, Shining Armor." She gestured to the guard, who furrowed his brow at the sight of John.
"Captain," John said, nodding. Shining simply glared. "Your men work fast, Captain; 90% of the defenses are completed with about an hour to spare and, while shit shots, are able to work their firearms. Thanks for letting them work with them, Princess, but remember they're probably not gonna keep them." The Alicorn smiled.
"I had a feeling on both accounts, Sentinel," She said playfully. Shining growled in frustration.
"My stallions could shoot circles around you!" He spat out. John deadpanned at him.
"The last man that said that is dead." Shining stayed his tongue. "Anyway, the best shooters are posted on the roofs, and a saferoom for you and the Elements has been prepared in that castle of Princess Twilight's. They're already there. Other public saferooms have been set up in the castle too, and the populace has been moved in."
"Thank you again," Celestia said, "We would be woefully unprepared without you and your friends." Shining growled again.
"We would have done the same thing better if he hadn't showed up!" He yelled. This time others had turned to see what the fuss was about. John had had enough of his baby-like attitude.
"How long have you been on the force, Captain?"
"I have been serving her Majesties for eight years now," He said proudly.
"Really? Oh that's nice. Did you know that a NCR Veteran Ranger has to serve for twenty years before they get their Sequoias? They're pretty experienced by the time they got them." He reached into a satchel he snagged from the group's collective stuff-he had a feeling something like this would happen-and tossed out twelve of the revolvers. It was the trophy bag.
"Oh my," Celestia said, knowing the obtainment of these weapons was no easy task.
"These belong to Nate, he got these when he went hunting for Rangers last month." He dug into the satchel again and pulled out three pairs of deathclaw hands. "Those are Javan's, he ran into a family of deathclaws and killed them all with just his machete." Lastly, he pulled out seven different Super Mutant Behemoth fingers, each from a different monster. "And these are mine, and I got these when I killed all of the Behemoths in the Capital Wasteland."
"That is very impressive, Sentinel," Celestia said with a larger-than-normal smile. Realizing what she was doing, John sighed.
"There's no need for ass kissing, ma'am, I realize and accept you don't like me." Celestia sighed.
"While I don't appreciate you fighting my subjects, you did apologize and make up in the end, and it was justified." John nodded. That was a better answer than he expected.
"Anyway, you know what these things mean, 'Cap?" He pulled on his collar and brought him down until they were touching noses. "Each one of us can wipe out your force without trying, not to mention you." He threw him, sending him on his butt. "You may have been king of your little castle before, but that was before we came in, shiny."
"What does that even mean?" Shining asked, not sure if he supposed to feel complimented or offended.
"Me and my men have over 40 years of combat experience collectively. We've been fighting our whole lives. You've probably never used that toothpick you call a sword outside of practice." He pulled the Royal Guard up. "Next time, don't be such a bitch when you get roasted." John nodded to the Princess and turned around back to his foxhole. But Shining had other ideas.
"Stupid human!" He yelled, drawing his sword and aiming a powerful downward slash. "Next time remember to always have your guard u-" John quickly pulled out his shocksword and, without turning around, blocked the slash with it. Shining pulled away and tried to attack two more times, but John had turned around and blocked both of those. He made a fient, which Shining fell for, and fired a low powered laser blast to his chestplate, not punching through but shocking him long enough for another slash down the surface of his armor. The electricity ran through the unicorn, the pain making him cry out. For the finisher, John grabbed him, dropped his sword, and punched him in the face with his prosthetic arm, sending him through a fruitstand ten feet away. John breathed out, calming himself, and picked up his sword before turning to a shocked Celestia.
"Some champion," He said, "He is as arrogant as a goddamn NCR Ranger, and you know what happens to them? They die!" He threw his sword, blade first, into the ground, sticking it into the hard-packed dirt. "He thinks he is the best fighter in the hellscape I call the world, when he couldn't win against an eight year old Initiate! He doesn't know the first rule of war!"
"Enlighten me," Celestia said in defiance, "I've been in a few fights myself, and I never knew there were rules." John walked up to her slowly, his eyes turning cold. They were swirling with the horrors and experience he had gained fighting for his life for over a decade in the wasteland, and it made Celestia nearly shrink in fear.
"War," He drawled, "War never changes." Celestia was moved by these four words. John reached down and scooped up the dirt and watched as it rolled out of his metal fingers. "Throughout mankind's history, humans have strived for better weapons and armor in an age of constant warfare. As our technology improved, the conflicts grew larger, more devastating. But with all of its violent tendencies, mankind has never had the capability to destroy itself... until World War 2, which brought on the ultimate deterrent; the nuke. For the first time in history, humanity had the power to annihilate itself in its own atomic Armageddon. On October 23, 2077, we nearly did. No one knows how many died in those two hours, but we do know that our ancestors left us a broken world, full of radiation, ruins, ghouls, monsters, and mutants." He looked up to Celestia, who was taking his words in thoughtfully. He turned around and addressed the growing crowd of Equestrian 'soldiers'.
"We should have all died, but we didn't. Even though society was destroyed and the land irradiated beyond reason, new factions still arose, and humanity found new reasons to kill each other. That's why in the world I grew up in, the saying stays true; War, war never changes." He turned back to Celestia, his eyes now full of anger. "I have sacrificed everything I have ever had to make this shattered world a better place; My home, my sanity, my limbs, my father..." He trailed off and walked to Celestia. When he was nose to nose with her, he took a deep breath. "If anymore of your subjects spit on everything me and my people have fought so long for, I will personally guarantee to we will not help when the NCR arrives in full force when they find out of this utopia. Innocent people will die, and all because you didn't realize one simple thing. You aren't god. I have MADE arrogant pricks learn it the hard way, and if you and your people keep this up, you will too." He turned around and walked back to his friends, leaving a thoughtful and slightly pissed off princess, whose 'champion' was just now getting up.
"What happened?" He asked groggily, getting out of the splintery mess he made. Half of his face had swollen up in an extraordinarily large bruise, the skin under his fur purple.
"You were being a fool," She shot out, surprising Shining with her aggression.
"Your highness?" He asked in confusion.
"You insulted a hero deliberately and attacked him when his back was turned! You should be ashamed!"
"It was just a stupid human who can kill us all with a flick of his wrist!"
"You are wrong on both accounts. That 'stupid human' was the Lone Wanderer!" All of the guard listening, including Shining, gasped. "And from what I know of him, he would never murder innocent people for sport! But with your actions, he has threatened to withdraw any of his forces that come in to leave the entire nation to the NCR, who are not our friends!" Celestia turned to her guards. "If I ever hear any of you disrespecting our new friends, I will personally reprimand you!" She stormed off to the Friendship Castle, turning around and adding, "And don't take that the wrong way!" Some of the female guards snickered as their princess walked away.
As John walked back to his group, he thought about what the hell had just happened. The CAPTAIN of the guard just tried to KILL him! And he had to kick his ass! Then he lectured the princess like an angry middle school teacher. He sighed as he dropped into his foxhole.
"You give them the War talk?" Javan asked, a smug looked on his face, "Maybe a few empty threats here and there?" John glared at him, but broke eye contact to scan pull up his seat and sit down.
"They needed it, I gave them it; They haven't seen a day of war in generations." Nate chuckled.
"The US was like that, still kicked ass."
"Which war?" John asked, getting a smile from Nate. His smile vanished when he saw something move in the trees 200 meters in front of him. Something humanoid. Something wearing brown drab.
"John, I saw some movement. Possibly NCR." John peered into the woods himself, and actually saw two of the NCR scouts in one of the trees. The first one was lying in the overgrowth at the base of the tree.
"Javan, circle around, try to be discreet. Nate, get into position in one of the buildings and fire on the right man in the tree on my signal." Javan and Nate both climbed out, Javan going down the road until he was out of sight, and Nate walking into one of the buildings the Guard had captured to fortify. He set up in a third story window, while Javan had sneaked into the forest from the West, now a few feet away from the guy on the ground. John immediately snapped to the left guy with his plasma rifle and, after getting a lock on with VATS, fired. The plasma accelerators inside his gun sent the usually slow ball of green goo quickly into the poor sod, eating a hole through his chest. Nate disintegrated the man on the right into a cloud of ash, while Javan clubbed the last guy in the back of the head, knocking him out for future use as an interrogatee.
"Prisoner captured," Javan reported to himself, expertly going through the minefield. After a few death-defying minutes, he reached his foxhole and unceremoniously through the NCR trooper into it, accidentally breaking the chair. Nate and John, who already had his headgear back on, were right there already and John sent a few weak electric shocks into the trooper's body to wake him up through his robotic arm. As he saw his eyes open, John grabbed ahold of his head and forced him to look at his emotionless visor.
"Here's how this is going to work," He said, "You tell me how many other bear-fuckers are here, what they're packing, and when they're going to strike. If not, I will turn you over to my pal here-" He gestured to Javan, who was already twirling his machete around, "-and he will either get the answers I need or entertainment until your friends get here." The scout, obviously a teen who wanted to play soldier, instantly cracked.
"We have the entire 1st Division with ten Easy Eights and twenty Rangers." He swallowed nervously. "You'll never beat us!" John was unamused.
"When should we expect this holy army?"
"...fifteen minutes. But now that I missed by report back, it should be any sec-" A 28 gauge shotgun blast tore his skull apart, courtesy of Javan. The other two were unfazed.
"I can see the trees getting steamrolled from here," Javan said, getting his rifle and readying it. John did the same with his hunting rifle. He put the plasma rifle onto the left side of his backpack.
"Nate, call in some anti-armor rockets," He ordered, Nate nodding and tossing a beacon a ways away behind him The Easy Eights, also know was M4A3E8 Sherman tanks, were the main battle tank of the US military since World War 2. Instead of just introducing a new tank design after the Korean War, when they were matched by the T-34, they just upgraded the tank with the latest tech. "Jav', make sure the guard knows. Hold the fort." He climbed out and ran towards the castle. His robotic legs gave him the extra speed he needed at this moment. As he got to the castle, he almost smashed down the door in haste, making his way to the VIP saferoom he set up himself. Pushing open the door, he was met with the five girls that he saved when he got to Equestria and the three princesses. "Your highnesses, they're close." The dark coated one, which he noticed was now in heavy plated armor without a helmet, stood up.
"We shall help thou fight, Sentinel," She said regally, patting a scabbard on her hip. He looked at her skeptically.
"Are you sure that's wise, Princess..."
"Luna," She snapped, "Our name is Luna. And are thou doubting our abilities?" John deadpanned.
"Against the 1st NCR Infantry? Yes, I am." He nodded to the guards and waved patiently towards the door. "Well, you want to come or not?" She huffed and walked out, though John stayed behind. "Anything I need to know about your soldiers versus theirs?"
"Yes, actually," Celestia answered, "You humans, and the objects you create, seem to have an extreme resistance to magic." John sighed, wondering if that was blessing or curse.
"Of course we do," He muttered Celestia smirking at them both as they left.
"While I am overly fond of humans, I like that one," She muttered, watching the doors close.
He jogged out the door and down the street, rifle in one hand, while Luna kept pace behind him. He saw a drop pod fall out of the sky and land around the front lines.
"Is yond a support machine of some kind?" She asked, seeing another one come down.
"More or less," He answered as they got into sight of the foxholes. The two drop pods were a ways away from the front, right at the corner of the farthest building, but that was along the lines of the maneuver that John came up with. He called it the Leap-Frog; Fight without power armor until overwhelmed, then run back to the secure spot where your power armor is. Assuming the soldier is still alive by the time they finish step two, they should be ready to deal a lot of damage to finish off the enemy force. He could see the blue suit that belonged to Nate, while the other one was stocked to the brim with heavy weapons, including miniguns and a few missile launchers.
"Why are thou not wearing thy suit of armor?" She asked again, wondering how better it was than hers, "Can we get a set?"
"Tactics," He answered the first question, "And no." He jumped into the foxhole, quickly followed by Luna. Nate and Javan were both surprised by the royal intrusion.
"Y-your highness!" Nate stammered, his coat off, "What the hell are you doing here?" Luna huffed.
"We hath leadeth mine own soldiers into battle personally; I hath decideth to uphold yond mantle once more." Javan shook his head.
"Lady, please drop that crazy Shakespeare speak; You're worse than those greaser fucks I had to deal with in Vegas!" Luna blushed.
"Apologies, sir Knights," She muttered, "I was banished onto the Moon for over a thousand years, and when I came back the way of speaking changed. I have had troubles adjusting." The trio, having been personally been through MUCH stranger situations, shrugged it off.
"Oh, and we're not real Knights," Nate said, "Our titles are just military ranks."
"Hell, Nate isn't even officially a Brotherhood Sentinel," John said, "It's just an honorary title they gave him. He's the general of the Minutemen."
"And I'm just a sexy badboy that broke the rules and got rewarded for it," Javan said jokingly. Nate slugged him in the arm.
"What about you, Sentinel?" Luna asked. "What role do you fill?" John just looked forward.
"The man that fights the darkness you don't think exists," He muttered.
"What is that supposed to me-" Luna was cut off by a burst of gunfire from the treeline. A wave of brown-clad soldiers came out of the trees.
"Here they are," John said, "Ponies! Remember what you fight for!"
"FOR EQUESTRIA!" The guards shouted. Some of them, sticking to the drilling that John and Nate gave them, stayed at their spots and returned fire with their new guns, only a few of the enemy dropping from the initial shots. They dropped to the ground and opened fire, more than a few of the guards taking round to the face. However, Shining Armor got up from his protective spot.
"Guardponies of Equestria! We will not sit in our holes and fight like cowards!" He turned and looked at John, who was half watching him, and half capping NCR grunts from 200 yards. "We will fight up close! For honor!" He screamed a battle yell, drew his sword, readied his magic, and ran towards the enemy. Unfortunately, all but fifteen of the hundred and twenty guards stayed. As Nate and Javan looked on with horror, John (after throwing his hunting rifle at Luna for her use) ran past the now empty foxholes and knelt right beside one of the few occupied ones. It belonged to the same guard that expressed his gratitude to him earlier.
"Sergeant!" He yelled over the roar of war, "Did you tell Captain Armor about the minefield?"
"Yes, sir!" He shouted back, unloading his entire clip at one grunt. He fell after he received ten shots to the chest. "He said that he'll get past them with a scanning spell!" John grumbled.
"Things made by human hands are completely resist to magic!" John told him. The Sergeant grunted as a few bullets kicked up the dirt by his face.
"That's what I told him!" He replied. John growled and pulled his plasma rifle.
"Hold the line!" He yelled before sprinting into No-Man's Land. He passed numerous dead bodies of fallen guards. He fired a few pot shots while he was moving, more often than not scoring a hit. As he made it to the mass of guards, he quickly passed them and made it to the front. He stopped in front of Shining Armor.
"Captain, turn your troops around before anymore die!" He shouted, his request punctuated with a guard receiving a round to the cranium. The golden armor did absolutely nothing to stop it.
"No!" Shining shouted, "This strategy is working! They're scared!" He was clearly delusional. One of the guards, a young stallion who looked as if he just got on, raised his halberd.
"The Captain is right! For Equestria!" He tried to charge, but John held out his hand and stopped him before he could rush into the minefield. His halberd, however, soared through the air and landed directly on one of the bottlecap mines. The only reason that the guard survived was the fact that the shrapnel meant for him embedded itself into John's robot arm. He grunted as he tore it out, sparks flying out of the holes; Luckily it didn't hit anything vital.
"EVERYONE TURN THE FUCK AROUND!" He roared, turning around and firing a few potshots. The order form the Sentinel, and the tank that just burst through the treeline, propelled them to turn around back to their foxholes. He grabbed Armor by the collar and threw him forward, as he was frozen n fear at the Easy Eight. John fired a few plasma bolts at it, melting the left tracks, and giving both of them at opening to run.
"Ramirez! Take out that tank!" He yelled into his radio as one of its 75mm shells landed a few feet away, staggering him and Shining.
"Seriously? Making that joke here?" Came the sarcastic reply. Not a moment later, an armor-piercing missile flew right in-between the turret and bod of the Sherman, literally blowing the top off. John grabbed Shining again and threw him into his foxhole, falling into it right after him. He looked around, seeing Nate and Javan firing away at the enemy, and was surprised to see Luna wielding his rifle with passing accuracy. He quickly got back on the line and added his plasma fire.
"Your Highness? I know this is a bad time but..." He saw a trooper's head explode from a .308, Luna working the bolt afterwards. "...Where the hell did you learn to shoot?"
"I do not know of this 'Hell' you speak of, but this contraption is just a crossbow-" Headshot "-But multitudes greater." John nodded and two down two troopers in rapid secession. Minutes passed, and while the NCR fell fast, the Equestrian guard force fell quicker. Within five minutes, half of the force was gone. John noticed this, and grit this teeth, shooting a plasma blob down the barrel of a Sherman, blowing up the shell already going through it, along with the turret. One of the foxholes beside exploded as a Sherman dialed in an accurate shot.
"Nate, get your armor," He ordered. Nate nodded and, after grabbing his trench coat, ran back to the drop pod. John switched his fire safety off and sprayed a dozen plasma blobs across the field to try and suppress, but had to stop as he ran out of ammo. A tank shell hit rather close to their foxhole, sending dirt all over them.
"Uh, Johnny..." Javan trialed off.
"I know," John snapped, "EVERYONE, FALL BACK TO THE CASTLE!" The scared guards didn't need to be told twice, some of them dropping their weapons so they weren't weighed down. John merely backpedalled, burning the faces off of any NCR troopers that got into his line of sight. As he neared the line of sandbags, he hopped over it and did a backwards somersault. slamming his back against the sandbags and he righted himself. He took a knee and braced his plasma rifle against the sandbags, resuming his marksman fire. He looked to his right and saw Luna, and Javan was on his left. He looked behind himself and was just in time to see Nate, in his Minutemen T-61a, fly over him with his jetpack mod and open fire on a five man squad of NCR, his minigun tearing them to shreds. His body shimmered every time he was hit, his Zetan energy shielding taking away most of the energy of each shot.
"Get some!" Jav shouted as he randomly sprayed, taking out at least three for good before having to take cover and reload. John merely rolled his eyes at the Courier's antics and was about to line up when a shot when he saw the armor of the NCR troopers that were now crossing the foxholes.
"Rangers! Twelve o'clock, 200 meters!" He shouted, firing a blast at one of them. The Ranger's fancy helmet didn't stop the plasma bolt from fusing it to his skull. John ducked as the Rangers opened fire, narrowly missing him with their brush rifles. "Jav, armor up!"
"Got it!" Jav shouted back, throwing a beacon in the open in front of the sandbags. He let out a burst of fire, downing two more troopers.
"I'd love to know where the hell the Prydwen is right about now!" Nate shouted, using his minigun's improvised melee attachments to slice open the gut of a Ranger that got too close with a machete. John grunted as he peeked out, only to nearly be brained by a sniper's bullet. He quickly peeked again and activated VATS, fusing the sniper's mask to his face with a well-placed plasma bolt. He took the lull of no-one-is-trying-to-kill-me and rushed to the side of a house, bracing himself against it as the part of the sandbag line he was at was blown to smithereens with a missile launcher.
"That makes two of us, Nate!" John shouted back. Javan's drop pod fell, and he wasted no time getting into his T-60 suit, with a unique desert camouflage paint job in addition to his Star Paladin markings. He grabbed the plasma caster inside and kicked the door down, actually crushing a dim trooper. He used his large energy weapon to full effect, targeting the Rangers and the lone tank that tried to blow down the castle's crystalline door. John was considering to call down his in-between targets when the wall he was leaning against exploded.
He was thrown back hard to the ground, seeing the blurry form of an NCR heavy trooper walk out of the hole. The trooper pulled out a rather large knife from a sheathe he strapped across his chestplate, knelt down, and tired to stab John in the chest. Despite being disoriented, John could still put up a fight, grabbing his knife hand and pushing it away form his chest. Normally, he wouldn't stand a chance; a power armor frame's strength would've warped the metal of his robotic arm and splintered the bone in his remaining organic one. But since any fusion cores the NCR ever had ran out of juice a while ago, an NCR heavy trooper was not only slow, but weak compared to the average BOS Knight clad in power armor. John finally shook the fuzzies out of his head and kicked the trooper in the chest, sending him back into the wall. John jumped back up on his feet, taking his knife from its sheathe and ramming it in-between the trooper's helmet and chestplate. He ripped the knife out, and watched as the lifeless body of the soldier toppled to the ground.
"John!" Nate shouted. John turned to him, putting his knife back as he did so. He saw Nate fighting three Rangers in hand-to-hand combat, his minigun in two pieces a little ways away form him. Javan was busy physically bending the barrel of a Sherman, not unlike the old Pre-War cartoons John used to watch when he lived in Vault 101. John sprinted over to help his friend, grabbing two of the Ranger's heads and smacking them together with excessive force, cracking their helmets and skulls like eggs. The last Ranger turned to look, and thus letting his guard down to Nate; This proved to be fatal when Nate crushed his skull in-between his mechanical fingers. John was unfazed, having been through enough horrors to make that look like a scrape on a child's knee.
"Better find a replacement," John advised, jerking his thumb back to the weapon cache drop pod behind him. Nate nodded and ran to it, while John slid back to his plasma rifle. After checking for an damage (and finding none), he looked to Shining. He was trying to cut down a grunt with an assault rifle he had gotten from somewhere, but was missing greatly. "Captain!" He shouted at him, getting his attention, "Retreat to inside the castle! We'll take it from here, you've done enough!" Armor nodded and, after shouting his own version of the orders, the guards pulled back to the doors of the castle. John ran to Luna, who was huddled behind a thicker section of sandbags, eyes wide and clutching her rifle like a lifeline. The horrors of modern warfare had finally got to her. He groaned and grabbed the collar of her armor.
"Need some cover?" Nate asked over the radio, another minigun in hand.
"That'd be nice," John grunted, hoisting Luna over his shoulders. Under the cover of the 5mm rounds, John ran back to the castle, where some guards were still waiting for her. He dodged shells, gunfire, and the occasional laser, all the while with Luna on his back. It was something the guards would never forget. He dropped her unceremoniously on the ground in front of the guards, who quickly pulled her inside the safety of the crystal walls. John turned around and threw down a beacon, honestly surprised on how fast the pod came down. John threw his plasma rifle in the air, quickly getting into his power armor and smashing through the hatch after grabbing a gatling laser. He caught the plasma weapon deftly, checking again for damage to the sensitive parts and putting it on his back before going in-between Javan and Nate. Both had their heavy weaponry pointing forward at the enemy. It consisted of the rest of the NCR forces, still about 200 infantry, twenty or so Rangers and about five tanks.
"To be honest boys, I think my life stopped right here at 26 years of age," Javan commented. Nate shrugged, rolling his shoulders.
"Nothing like Anchorage," He shot back, "Any last words, John?" The Lone Wanderer simply looked to the picture he put on the inside of his helmet, a girl he had fallen in love with after Amata, but so much more important. He steeled himself.
"Not while I still have someone to come back home to," He said, starting up his laser barrels. His brothers-in-arms did the same with their respective weapons, each willing to lay down their lives for the greater good.
The big fucking armored zeppelin behind them made it clear that it was not to be.
Brotherhood Fusion Cores (Updated): Know as BFCs to most, these are Standard Fusion Cores and upgraded with new technologies from the Big MT by Scribes. They have an estimated battery life of over one hundred years of continuous use, though that hasn't been put to the test. Since they had started to been used, not one has had to be replaced yet.
However, there is nothing truly special about the new BFCs, simply Fusion Cores and that were recharged and given LED lights for the casings. It was simply a large scam that an ex-Institute scientist that was given refuge in Sanctuary Hills had cooked up, one of the biggest in Post-War history. The scientist, known only as Hill, secured his deal when he learned that the newest fusion cores that the Brotherhood-and by extension the entire continent-used would expire on December 23, 2287 due to the fuel that the fusion tech of the US used (Deuterium gas, which comes from Hydrogen) running out. However, it is one of the most abundant elements in the universe if one knew how to extract it. He, along with the help of other Institute refugees, offered to upgrade, refuel, and even produce more fusion cores and microfusion cells in exchange for protection, money, and future contracts. In short, they made out like mad men, and it would take decades before the Brotherhood would find out they'd been hoodwinked.
Since they are essentially the same thing as regular fusion cores, only guaranteed to last about 105 more years, they are relatively average compared to Pre-War technology. They can power a Gatling Laser for about 630 shots. While seemingly outrageous compared to their battery life in power armor and fusion reactors, each bolt gives out 2.06 megawatts, equal to a train engine. Each fusion core has about 1.28 gigawatts of power, roughly equivalent to hydro-electric dams in the 2010s.
NCR 1st Infantry Division: The most elite infantry division in the NCR military, the 1st Division's numbers are bolstered through receiving the highest scoring recruits in training, transfers that showed by potential, and (unfortunately) recruits with names that were popular within the NCR. They typically receive a lot of support, from the few tank squadrons the NCR has to Vertibird air support. The only group of similar size that can consistently square up with them are Reilly's Rangers.
The Fusion Crisis: On December 23, 2287, the last fusion cells and Fusion Cores in the entire world ran out of fusible atoms. This meant that buildings that had been powered after the war for centuries would shut off, and most of the Brotherhood's advanced technology shut off. Or in a few unfortunate Knights' cases, exploded in superheated plasma after the safeguards of some Fusion Cores failed. However, the wholes crisis was solved by the new year, when an ex-Institute scientist known only as Hill, who escaped the destruction of the Institute, came to the Boston Airport with proposed plans to construct Hydrogen collectors all across the Commonwealth and the Capital Wasteland to get the amount of Deuterium gas needed to construct new and improved Fusion Cores. Hill made hundreds of thousands of caps for him and his team, and soon strange metal five foot silos with tanks on the sides guarded by squads of Initiates were commonplace all across Brotherhood territory.
Due to Railroad efforts, the NCR haven't come close to cracking the secret behind the BFCs. Mostly due to the fact that Deuterium collectors are banned from the Western Wastelands, and any NCR agents and scouts that somehow got to the East, even as far away as Chicago, were quickly silenced. This is accredited to the Railroad's advanced information collecting and archiving techniques; they have tabs on almost every individual inside the controlled Brotherhood territories, and know immediately if someone knew comes in.
The Lone Wanderer: Born Jonathon James Gideon, the Lone Wanderer is arguably the most influential man in Post-War history, though some Scribe/historians have made believable claims that that title also extends to all of history. His father, renown James Gideon, was a member of the Followers of the Apocalypse that volunteered to travel to Washington DC alongside the Brotherhood of Steel band tasked with seeing what was left of the former capital. His father was only onboard when he learned that Catherine Foley, his colleague and crush at the time, was going as well. During the journey, they fell in love and were wed by the time they arrived at their destination.
The Wanderer grew up in Vault 101 (now City 101), but was forced out when he turned 19 after his father escaped to finish his work on Project Purity, the water purification plant at the Jefferson Memorial that James had worked on before his wife died. The Wanderer left a mark wherever he went in the wasteland to search for his father, deactivating an atomic bomb in a heavily populated settlement, helping a group of vampires reintegrate into normal society, stopping two people fighting as comic book characters, fixing the signal strength of the only real radio station in the area, burning the major slave base of the region to the ground after captured and enslaved for a brief period of time, and killing three Super Mutant Behemoths to list a few. H only reunited with his father for a short period of time before he was killed by remnants of the United States government, the Enclave. From there, he led a crusade against the Enclave while trying to finally turn on Project Purity. After the one sided battle known as the March to Project Purity, he did so, absorbing large amounts of radiation and nearly dying in the process.
He woke up two weeks later, and spent the next few months "Fighting the Good Fight", until Elder Sarah Lyons died and a massive power grab within the Brotherhood started. He was the Elder for a few years while teaching the heir to the Brotherhood, Arthur Maxson, everything he knew, stepping down when he became of age and demoting to Sentinel. He lost three of his limbs in a fight with remnants of Talon Company a few years later, receiving cybernetic limbs to compensate. He lost much of his charisma afterwards, but was shown to be much deadlier, able to kill a fully grown Deathclaw with relative ease.
He was sent to the Commonwealth in early August of 2287 as a forward scout, setting up a small outpost in an abandoned bunker with the sole survivor of an earlier recon group. He was scavenging Sanctuary Hills and was preparing to head to Concord when he met the Sole Survivor, who had just climbed out of Vault 111. The rest, as they, was history...
...Or will be explained later on.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed this, tell me what you think.
And ,Bethesda? WHERE THE FUCK ARE MODS FOR PS4?!
Have a good Night/Day, and may eternal flames forever illuminate your path to destiny.