A/N: I'm slowly fixing mistakes and rewriting parts of the story. Looking back at it I'm pretty happy how it turned out, but I also think I could do much better than what was basically a night of drinking beer and writing down every wild idea that came to me.

Chapter 1

It was a scorching hot day in the Capital Wasteland and the sun shone relentlessly on the people occupying the Citadel. One of them was the Lone Wanderer who found herself atop the Wall of the huge complex trying to clean her power armor from the blood of a Behemoth. Like so many times before she frustratingly scrubbed off the stains from the metal that protected her every day, when she was out fighting and saving another poor soul, trying to make do in a cruel place still scarred of the atomic war of the past.

On such days the Lone Wanderer wanted to be left alone with her thoughts and concentrate on the tedious task of cleaning. But as irony wants it the Lone Wanderer would not be left alone that day, when a young woman suddenly greeted her.

"Hey there", Paladin Sarah Lyons said, while making herself comfortable next to the Lone Wanderer, "What are you doing?"

"Just cleaning up the mess left by a Behemoth I killed when I was on my way back from Big Town. I figured there would be fewer of them left, since we started sending out hunting parties but I guess there a are still a few big ones left. Nothing I can't handle though"

Sarah Lyons watched her work on a rather nasty stain with a well used sponge for a few minutes before replying.

"You know you don't have to do this anymore."

"Do what, Sarah?", the Lone Wanderer asked without looking up.

"Going out to hunt Super Mutants or on some dangerous quest to God knows where. You and your father have done more than enough for the Capital Wasteland already. You need to take a break from all of this. This is the least of what you deserve. I'd feel better if you took a few weeks off from everything or at least just chose to do something less connected to radioactive ruins and Death Claws. I bet you could help some of our Scribes around the Citadel or maybe even the purifier."

The Lone Wanderer didn't reply but stopped brushing her armor for a moment and looked at Sarah. The young Paladin had a serious look on her face. This was obviously something that bothered her very much."

"Listen Kid, I know people see you as some kind of hero, but you're only human and I'm afraid you're going to get yourself killed one of these days" Sarah continued. In a soft voice she added, "I'd be a lot happier if you let the Brotherhood handle things from here on now. Just for a while at least. There will be plenty of rebuilding and cleaning done in the next few months and like I mentioned I think the Scribes will be more than happy if you tagged along, since you know the area in and around the inner city pretty well."

The Vault Dweller considered her words and then chuckled, "I'm sorry Sarah, but I can't just stop being the Lone Wanderer. People need me and I'm one of the few people capable of helping them out. Hell, Three Dog makes me out like some kind of Messiah and you know how people love their symbols. There's probably some poor bastard waiting for me to show up and fix their pipes or something.."

The Lone Wanderer laughed.

Sarah wasn't surprised by her response, her friend had always been cocky, but the thought of her dying out there alone without anyone around her worried her. The Brotherhood was good, but she couldn't deny that they weren't progressing as quickly as she wanted them to. A lot of areas were still infested with mutants and other horrors. Then there was the conflict with the Outcasts, their former brothers and sisters. It would take more time for people to warm up to the Order so the people of the Capital Wasteland put their faith into the Lone Wanderer and not into the Brotherhood of Steel.

"Then at least take some Paladins with you", Sarah said. "I don't understand why you always have to be on your own. Lone Wanderer or not, at least somebody will have your back when things get ugly."

Once again, the Lone Wanderer considered her words and gazed over the courtyard of the Citadel. It seemed peaceful, only a couple of Patrols were on the walls and the rest of the Soldiers were inside the complex. Paladin Gunny was trying to shape the new recruits into capable fighters but seemed frustrated. Since the Brotherhood took control of the purifier a lot more people wanted to join the ranks of the Paladins and Gunny was the only person who was willing and capable to work with them. Few Wastelanders understood what kind of commitment they were getting themselves into and even fewer made it through basic training. The Order demanded only the best and many failed before they were allowed to receive basic weapons training.

The Lone Wanderer smiled sadly and then looked at Sarah before answering, "I can't put other people at risk Sarah. I've done fine until now and I'm pretty sure I won't die soon." She laughed sadly. "Besides, I can't die".

Sarah looked unamused at the Lone Wanderer who started to scrub the blood stain on her power armor again. Sometimes she was such a knucklehead and for the love of God, she couldn't do anything about it. She knew that her friend's accomplishments were far and wide, but that didn't mean that her luck wouldn't run out at some point. No one lived forever. Even the most battle-hardened Paladins died and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

She gathered her thoughts and pushed tried again once more, "Stop being an ass already and take a Paladin or two with you! They are at risk the moment they sign up for service. Every man and woman knows what they get into when they join the Brotherhood of Steel. We don't lie about the risks and most of them would be more than happy to help out the person who brought some stability back to a place where most had lost hope. I can't die, yeah right. I know you're pretty cocky, but even you should know how ridiculous that sounds."

The Lone Wanderer put down the sponge again and stared Sarah intently in the eyes. She thought about revealing her secret to her, one that she swore she would never utter to another human being. Something she realized that day she left Vault 101, but she knew people would call her insane. After contemplating it she said "I'm serious Sarah. I can't die. I know how to prove it to you, but I know you will think I'm crazy."

Sarah Lyons raised an eyebrow. She knew that what the Lone Wanderer said was absurd, since such a thing was impossible, but deep inside a part of her was intrigued by the strange proposal.

"Alright, I'll bite. Prove it to me. Prove to me, that you found a way to cheat death and I'll personally crown you Leader of the Brotherhood of Steel. I will personally crown you myself."

The Lone Wanderer smiled and brought the Paladin's attention to a recruit walking towards Paladin Gunny.

"See that recruit over there? The one walking straight towards Paladin Gunny? Watch him. He's going to trip and drop his Laser Rifle. It will go off and fire a shot into the sandbags next to Gunny. He will get mad at him and educate him on the importance of using the safety on guns. I've seen it countless of times now."

Sarah scoffed at this and observed the recruit's path. Soon enough he tripped and dropped his rifle which fired a Shot into the sandbags next to Gunny. The Drill Sergeant became furious and began yelling at the recruit. Sarah couldn't understand what he was screaming about but judging from the frantic movements of Gunny it wasn't very pleasant.

"Alright, you got lucky with this one. I know this recruit; everyone knows he's clumsy. That doesn't prove you can't die. Stop jerking me around and get some help on your next trip into the Wasteland."

The Lone Wanderer smiled at Sarah and pointed to a Guard on the Citadel wall.

"See that guard over there. I think Mercer's his name. He's going to pull off his helmet and sneeze. Afterwards he will notice that some snot got on his armor, and he will try to wipe it away only to notice he hasn't anything with him on the wall to wipe it away. He will call out to the other patrol next to him and tell him that he'll be right back."

Sarah looked at her dumbfounded but looked over to the Paladin guarding the East Wall of the Citadel. And once again the predictions of her friend became reality. The guard shouted something to one of the other patrolling men and went down the stairs inside the courtyard.

"Look", Sarah said a little irritated, "I don't know how you convinced everyone to help you into pranking me, but you need to stop right now. This isn't funny anymore. I am concerned for you and all I want is for you to take it easy or get some more people out with you next time you leave. Why are you being so ridiculous right now?"

The Lone Wanderer looked at her friend with a sad expression and said, "I'm sorry Sarah, but I'm honestly telling you that I can't die. I CAN NOT DIE SARAH! I am not lying, and I haven't convinced anyone to prank you! I'm not on drugs and I am not crazy Please believe me!"

Her voice sounded pleadingly and sincere so Sarah, against better judgment remained silent for once.

The Lone Wanderer took a deep breath and continued.

"As you know I've left Vault 101 about a year ago. I had been naïve back then and did not consider the dangers of the Capital Wasteland. The first time I left I did not run straight for Megaton, but went into the opposite direction towards some ruins, even though our Overseer's computer had information on the place, suggesting it might not be a safe travel point."

She hesitated before continuing, "It was a mistake. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by a group of Raiders. I haven't had any training at that point. No real conflicts beside the ones when I tried to leave the Vault. I had been easy prey for them. They attacked me. One of them knocked me on my feet with a tire iron and broke my legs. I was helpless and terrified. They violated me, Sarah. I had no way to defend myself, no hope to make it out alive. And I got lucky that day. When they were done with me they shot me in the head."

The Lone Wanderer looked up to Sarah, who was looking at her with an uncertain expression.

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but please bear with me for a while. After they shot me, I woke up just outside of Vault 101. All the wounds inflicted on me were gone and my Pip-boy showed it was about an hour before I decided to go towards the ruins. I was terrified and didn't know what to make of it. In the end I concluded that it had all been a terrible dream due to the stress of leaving the vault. This time I made my way into Megaton. I spend some days there before setting off towards Arefu, to deliver a letter given to me by Lucy West. I figured that I could use the caps and get accustomed to the Wasteland while searching for my father. Before long I realized that I was walking through the same ruins again, when the same group of Raiders surrounded me again. I started to shake and didn't know how to react, because at that moment I remembered what happened the first time. I fought back but ultimately I had been no match again, only this time, before they overpowered me, I shot myself in the head."

There was a heavy pause before the Lone Wanderer continued, "I thought suicide was a better alternative than to experience all the pain and terror again I felt the first time I was captured. It didn't matter to me whether it had been real or not. It felt real to me. I didn't wake up at the vault again that time. This time I found myself in on one of the beds of the Common House in Megaton. It was just before I talked to Lucy West.

I had always been a smart kid back in the Vault. Some called me a genius, but I'm not sure if it is true. A lot of solutions to a problem just come naturally to me but I still have my faults, nobody is perfect. But anyway, I figured that me waking up in Megaton meant two things. Either I was becoming insane, or I was stuck in some kind of time loop, which I haven't figured out yet completely. Sometimes I wake up minutes prior to dying, sometimes it's days. And sometimes it happens before something important happens, or at least something I deem important. I know this sounds ridiculous, but please Sarah!", her voice became desperate at this point, "You need to believe me! Everything I tell you is true! I'm not some drugged up schizophrenic! Why do you think I can predict with such accuracy what the people around the Citadel are going to do or what will happen around them? It's because I've seen it countless of times. Why do you think I can accomplish in a few months what the Brotherhood could not in years? Every time I was about to die or something bad happened, I shot myself in the head and every time I had gotten a chance to remake my mistakes. I practically conquered the Capital Wasteland because I literally can't die. I don't know if this is a curse or a blessing, but I'm making the best of it."

She smiled at Sarah who didn't know how to reply and continued, "This is why I don't need an escort. I doubt my comrades will be as lucky and come back from the dead when they get blown up by a grenade. Who- or whatever is responsible for my inability to die is clearly having a plan for me. Before I'm finished with my tasks I won't get the satisfaction of rest, of Death."

They sat in silence together for a while before Sarah said softly, "Ok, I admit this very, very hard to believe. I mean can you blame me? But let's say what you say is true, then what big task is ahead of you now? I doubt it's killing Super Mutants. What do you think is so important now, that you can't die? I mean, everything is going well right now, the purifier works, everyone is getting water and the remnants of Enclave are slowly disappearing. Everyday our troops are clearing the area around the city of remaining hostiles, so what else is there for you to do?"

At that the Lone Wanderer paused. A heavy silence passed between them before the Lone Wanderer replied, "Preventing your death."

"What?" A cold feeling of dread ran through Sarah's body.

The Lone Wanderer looked at Sarah, tears running down her cheeks.

"It's true Sarah. I see you die all the time. It's always different. Sometimes it's when you're out on patrol. Sometimes it's when you're collecting technology. It's always different and I can't change it."

The Lone Wanderer started to sob silently, and Sarah's face became pale. After a short moment, she asked, "Tell me, if you see me die all the time. How often have we had this conversation? How often have you tried to save me?"

Wiping her tears, the Lone Wanderer thought about the number and then replied, "We never had this conversation before, because I didn't know how to explain something like that to somebody else. Didn't even want to do it to be honest. As for trying to save you I lost count at about 300. Everything I've tried so far never worked."

The Lone Wanderer got up and pulled Sarah Lyons to her feet and hugged her.

"I promise I will find a way to save you Sarah. I won't stop until I know you're safe. Even if it means dying over and over again. I will do whatever is necessary.

Sarah Lyons still looking pale excused herself to her quarters, needing to process about what she had been told. The Lone Wanderer smiled sadly at her and thought about all the times she tried to live her life after Sarah's Death. There were robots and a big desert. A war between nations which side's she both had fought and died for. But all to no avail. Every time she was killed, she woke up exactly three days before the love of her life died and she could not stop it. She hoped she would find a solution by traveling across the land, but she wasn't sure what to look for to end this nightmare. And she would not stop until she saved her.