"We left the West Coast in hopes of finding some new piece of technology, something we could use to rebuild the Brotherhood, or at least something better than what the wastes out west offered. Instead what we found was more of the same. Ruins, Super Mutants and a whole lot of death."
- Defender Anne Marie Morgan
Chapter 8 : Pride
"You ever wondered what it's like up there? To be miles away above this wasteland." The girl wondered as she looked up at the peaceful night sky, illuminated by hundreds of stars.
"Never took you for a dreamy philosophy type." The boy smirked, playfully chewing on a toothpick he had found from the Pitt. Against the night sky, the entire city seemed to light up in a beautiful orange glow.
The girl chuckled. "No, just wondering that's all. It just seems so free up there." She still remembered the first time she saw birds, actual birds flying in the sky. To be free up there, with no responsibilities, no worries.
"Tsk. Tsk. getting lazy already huh? I get it. I guess i'll just have to take up the position of squad leader myself." The boy chuckled.
"Over my dead body." The girl stuck out her tongue. "Just you watch, I'll be the best Paladin in the Wastes, just like my father, and I'll even have my own squad. No boys allowed of course."
"Good luck with that Daddy's girl." Her friend laughed out loud, slapping his knees as he fell back onto the ground, staring up at the stars with her.
She stuck out her tongue at her friend. "Well, maybe I'll make an exception for you. If you pull your weight." She said playfully.
"And take orders from you? Dream on..."
"You still owe me one for that radscorpion..." The girl chuckled.
"The thing surprised me ok? If I wasn't asleep, I could've easily..."
"Riiight."
The boy sighed, reflecting already at the year long journey they had taken from the West, and all that they had seen along the way. Nothing in the bunker really prepared him for life outside. "You think we'll be able to do it? I mean...be paladins. My Dad used to say that not everyone makes it, that it's hard work...Of course, it shouldn't be a prob for you. I bet you have the position all lined up."
"Don't be silly." The girl replied back. "If anything, father will make me work twice as hard. But who knows, I think we have a shot. Don't you?"
The subway tunnel doors groaned as they opened, the steel doors hissing as they pour brilliant sunlight into the dank tunnels. Falls Church may have been beautiful once, a nexus for all the subway and metro trains in the DC area. Overhead, steel arches and girders formed a hollow cage around the ancient husks of old passenger cars and trains. Though over two centuries old, they were surprisingly intact compared to the ruins of the office buildings surrounding the area.
Yet Fitts did not have any time to appreciate this, having walked right in the middle of a torrent of laser and rifle fire. A quick scan already revealed a squad of Mutants taking refuge in the trains.
"Outcasts, fan out and flank em!" Fitts yelled out. Farsight had already taken up post behind a dilapidated bench, setting up her rifle shots.
Kesler and Colt rushed the mutants between the subway trains, who were focused instead on a target outside the station. A Brotherhood Paladin dressed in grey T45d armor.
Just perfect. Brotherhood.
"Engage the Super Mutants, but if the Brotherhood shoots you, don't hesitate to fire back."
"Roger that Protector." Colt replied through the radio helmet.
Fitts crouched down beside a concrete barrier, eyeing a supermutant that was too busy aiming at the Brotherhood soldiers to notice the Outcasts popping in. The Mutie was armed with a hunting rifle, dressed in some makeshift armor made from metal scraps and car parts.
Fitts wasted no time. One shot from his plasma rifle crippled the Mutants head, and just as the monster was yelling, gripping his face, another shot in the torso brought him down between the station rails.
Two more mutants approached from the south of the station, these ones armed with Chinese assault rifles and wearing heavier metal armor. Brutes.
Kesler and Colt were clearing the mutants from inside the station, as the screams and gunfire attested. Fitts did not need to worry about his rear. Across there was a Brotherhood soldier, who was already pinned behind the concrete barrier, armed with an antiquated assault rifle.
The Brutes advanced, bullets chipping off blocks of concrete as they fired at the Brotherhood soldier taking cover. They were serving as a useful diversion for his squad.
"Take them out Farsight."
"Roger."
One of the Brute's head exploded into a cloud of blood and bone, while the other Brute suddenly noticed Fitts' presence, aiming its assault rifle at the Outcast. Fitts broke cover, running towards the mutant while letting loose several plasma blasts. The Mutant's clip ran empty, and he cursed just as searing hot plasma bolts burned a hole into his skull.
A pack of three more mutants emerged from the right, peppering Fitts and the Brotherhood soldier with bullets. Fitts felt the distinct 'ping' and bruise of an assault rifle round bouncing off his shoulder, but he kept moving, eventually finding cover in the concrete barrier beside the Brotherhood Knight.
Fitts quickly recharged his rifle with more fusion cells, firing blinding over the side of the barrier as he watched the Brotherhood soldier sloppily try to reload.
While the three mutants were firing at Fitts, Kesler and Colt enfiladed them with laser fire. One mutant had his arm torn off by precision lasers, while another was thrown back by a well placed round in its chest.
"PAAAIN!" The monster blurted out. Just before Fitts put down the last mutant with the Brotherhood knight, scything him down in a hail of bullets and plasma fire.
With the fall of the last mutant, the Outcast squad made their way towards Fitts. Trigger fingers ready and weapons raised, since the Brotherhood Paladin was still there. Although the mutants were gone, the bad blood between the Brotherhood and the Outcasts could potentially make this encounter lethal.
Fitts watched as the Brotherhood Knight quickly turned, aiming his rifle at him. Both Kesler and Colt trained their rifles at the soldier, ready to put him down.
Underneath his helmet, Fitts grinned, and if the Brotherhood Knight was surprised, he certainly didn't show it.
"Are you going to shoot me Paladin?"
"Give me one reason not to, deserter." The Knight said grimly.
"My squad may have something to say about that." Fitts said seriously, gesturing at Defender Farsight, who already had her sniper rifle trained on the Brotherhood soldier. "Do anything dumb, and...well, you'll look kind of silly running around with no head."
Another voice broke the silence.
"That's enough Paladin. Stand down."
The Brotherhood soldier tensed up for a second, but grudgingly lowered his rifle, the rest of the Outcasts followed suit.
Fitts turned around to see another Paladin, this one armed with a flame thrower, make his way towards the Outcasts.
"My name is Paladin Hoss."
"Protector Fitts."
The Paladin nodded slowly, he had already recognized the voice, having served with them for the better part of the journey from Lost Hills together. "Truth be told, I didn't expect to, nor did I want to see you again, especially like this. But I thank you for your aid."
"That was not our intention Hoss, you just happened to be along our way, but if you get in our way, then we'll have a problem." Fitts said seriously.
Hoss nodded. "Fair enough, however, i'm not so blind as to disregard you completely. I'll be blunt, we're in need of aid. If you're willing, you're welcome to join us."
Fitts almost wanted to laugh at this. The Outcasts...aiding the Brotherhood?
"Fuck off boy scout." Colt shouted. "We're not here to help you."
"You want to go you piece of shit?" The second Brotherhood Paladin trained his rifle towards Colt, but a gesture from Hoss quickly made him back down.
"Calm down Colt." Fitts turned back towards Hoss. "What's going on?"
Hoss, relieved that his old comrade was at least willing to listen, began. "We were performing a training exercise with one of the initiates when we were cut off by the super mutants."
The Brotherhood Paladin then pointed towards an office complex. "We saw him flee into a building up ahead during the attack, but before we could link up with him, we were pushed back."
"Training locals Hoss? Seems like a waste of your talents." Fitts remarked.
"Believe me, I'm not that much happier with it myself, but these are my orders from our elders. And unlike your outfit, I follow them." He said this with a hint of reproach, but not enough to be taken for outright hostility.
"Go on." Fitts nodded, not bothering to even reply to that remark.
"Well, thanks to you, we've cleared this area, we can press forward and recover the initiate. Hopefully he is unharmed."
Kesler was listening in, could not help but wonder why Fitts was entertaining this notion. "What's in it for us?"
The Paladin grumbled. "Aside from saving a fellow Brotherhood soldier?"
"These tribals are not our fellow soldiers. Nor will we ever accept them as such." Fitts put in bluntly.
Hoss nodded. "Lyons had ordered a squad to salvage this area for tech. If you help us save the initiate. I'll give you first dibs. No one needs to know this though."
"We got some time to kill, don't we fellas?" Kesler and Colt nodded.
"It's a shame to see how low the Brotherhood has fallen." Fitts said patronizingly.
"At least we follow our code." Hoss replied harshly. "Now are you in or not?"
Fitts nodded, "You got yourself a deal Hoss. The last of our deals. But if I see you scrounging in our territory again. Ain't no guarantee I'll just put a bullet in your face than see you you off nicely."
"Wouldn't have it any other way... 'Protector'"
Fitts nodded to Kesler and Colt. "Farsight, stay here and keep an eye on the Brotherhood bastards, Colt, Kesler and I will move in for the initiate."
"Roger." The three outcasts began running for the comlex.
"He's up ahead in that building. Don't stop." Hoss shouted
"Are you sure this count is accurate?" Casdin said, a worried look etched onto his face.
Defender Anne nodded. "At this rate, we'll only have enough supplies for the next two weeks. After that, we'll need to start scavenging for mole rats."
They were doing the inventory stock for Fort Independence, not the most exciting of tasks, but the scarcity of resources dictated that they manage their supplies to the last drop of water.
"Water supplies, we have enough for another month, the wells in the fort dried a long time ago. Unless you prefer to drink the irradiated stuff." Anne said.
"As if we don't have enough problems already." Casdin rubbed his eyes. "How about the locals. Megaton, they have to get their supplies from somewhere. We just have to find out where.
"Rivet City sir." Anne replied, knowing the answer. "They are the prime supplier of purified water and radiation free food in the Capitol Wasteland, something about their team of scientists experimenting on purification processes."
"Do we have squads near rivet city?" Casdin personally loathed the idea of negotiation with locals, but he preferred that to starving troops.
"At the moment, no sir. The Brotherhood have heavy patrols in the area, and there are also super mutant camps near the city."
"Still, we should be able to contract a Caravan. Provide an escort..."
"No good if we can't reach them first sir." Anne remarked.
"Then we'll have to find a way won't we..." Casdin was not one to give up easily. There were rumors he had picked up from the scavengers and locals at Megaton. A man whose name kept popping up. Perhaps he may be able to get the Outcasts access to the city. But there weren't any squads on hand. He would have to rely on what he had in the field already.
"Send Fitts a message Anne, it should reach him by the time he's done with his mission."
"Your will, Protector." Anne saluted, then proceeded to work on the encrypted holotape.
"Damn you! Talk you weak-kneed, superstitious, soft-skinned, uneducated piece of irradiated Brahmin shit. Talk!" The brass knuckles went to work again, pounding into the swollen face of the prisoner as the punch chipped another tooth away. He was tied to a chair in some dark, undisclosed room. Blood already pooling onto the floor from the previous beatings, while on the table next to him, were medical instruments varying in degrees of sharpness and size.
"Take it easy soldier, we need him alive. Not half dead and insensate." The power armored hand pushed the assailant away, letting the man continue coughing and choking on his own blood.
Defender Sibley simply spat on the vault dweller, earning him a frown and reproof from Protector McGraw.
"Listen, I know Sibley was rough on you. I'm sorry. I really am." The Protector said in a sympathetic tone. He had practiced this several times with Sibley in the past, the whole 'good cop, bad cop' routine. Sometimes he figured Sibley just enjoyed it way too much, took it too far.
"Gary? Gary?" The Vault Dweller said, dazed and obviously confused. That was all he had been saying for the past day they had detained him for. At first McGraw though Sibley may have hit him on the head too hard, now..he wasn't sure anymore. What he was sure about though, was that this Vaultie had a Pip-Boy 3000 attached to his arm, usable only when authorized by the subject's DNA, which was why they had to secure this man's cooperation.
If only they could get him out of the whole act first. And if they had to beat him out of it until he talked normal. So be it. This guy was proving tough though. So McGraw decided another approach.
"Come on, speak to me Local." McGraw said flatly.
"Gary?" The vaultie seemed to take in his surroundings, realizing where he was. "Gary!"
"Right...you can drop the act now. I'm not here to hurt you." McGraw suddenly caught his own fist tensing, he had kept this act up for hours now, and seemingly it was going no where.
"Speak for yourself sir." Defender Sibley watched the exchange with amusement.
"Shut the fuck up Sibley!" McGraw yelled in frustration. "Let me work..."
He turned back to Gary with a heavy sigh.
"Look, I'm tired. You're tired. We're all fucking tired of this act. Just remove the Pip-boy and we can part ways."
"GARY? GARY!" The man suddenly shouted, completely aware now that the strangers around him were the ones who had been tormenting him for hours on end.
McGraw turned around instantly to Sibley, his temper snapped.
"You know what? FUCK THIS. Hand me that saw, and turn off that recorder."
"That's the nicest thing you've said to me all day Protector." Sibley grinned, then handed the bloody hacksaw to the Protector. They quickly went to work.
Meanwhile, outside the room, the rest of the Outcasts heard nothing but the whirring of an auto-saw, the sickening crunch of blood mixed with squishy meaty sounds, and the ominously disturbing scream of the Vaultie.
"GAAAAAAaaaarry..."
Defender Farsight sighed as she lay in the ruins outside the building, covered under a cloak of rubble and dust. Unbenownst to Paladin Hoss and his companion, she was keeping them both in her sights in case they tried something funny.
She never knew Hoss during her days with the Brotherhood, but she still felt a tinge of regret that it had come to this. All the memories of that fateful day in the courtyard of the Citadel, when the two camps separated. She would hope that she would never have to pull the trigger on her former comrades.
"I thought snipers were supposed to be attentive to their surroundings." A voice behind her suddenly caused Farsight to jump up, but she turned just in time to see the barrel of a gun pointed at her.
"Fancy seeing you here..."
The old pre-ware building was a ruin, perhaps serving as a school as evidenced by the lockers and ruined desks. But for the Outcasts, they knew that even the most harmless looking areas were potentially riddled with dangers. As Defender Colt learned as he narrowly avoided a slab of concrete and steel girders that crashed down on him when he opened a bathroom door.
"Last time I try to sneak into the ladies." The Outcasts said uneasily as he rubbed his shoulder, where the armor had dented from the direct hit from the trap.
"Shut up, and be quiet, I can hear them." Kesler said as the three man squad snuck through the hallways, where a pack of Super mutants were standing.
The Outcasts quietly slid the old wooden door open, filing into the room as they charged their Plasma and laser rifles. They took refuge behind a steel desk, looking through a hole in the plaster wall.
"Pick your targets." The three Outcasts scanned the room, each man settling for their own super Mutant.
"What you think? Bored?" The Super Mutant Brute yawned as he shouldered his rifle.
"Never! Those squishy Brotherhood soldiers were fun. Don't you think? Worthless flesh things." The second Brute laughed bluntly.
Towering above them, was another Super Mutant, this one heavily armored in reinforced scrap metal, even sporting fighter pilot head gear and goggles. His weathered muscular frame contained many scars, as though he had been in many battles.
"Shut up the both of you! Or did you forget why we are here?"
"To get...more of the green stuff!" The first Brute said in a fit of epiphany.
"Right. and you don't get green stuff by standing around saying stupid things!" He smacked the super mutant brute on the back of his head.
"Ow!"
The super mutant master grumbled. He did not recall much since his birth at Vault 87, except that he had this unexplanable need to create more of his brothers. Yes. More brothers, more green goo, so they could take back this wasteland from the ignorant humans. After all, they were the future.
Before he could smack his subordinates on the head again. The Brute's head exploded in a flash of red laser fire. The Master looked at the source of the gunshots and saw three of the armored tin men, but unlike the other ones they had fought, these ones were covered head to toe in black.
"Humans!" The Master shouted at the rest of his uncomprehending squad, at least seven more mutants armed in varying degrees, from sledgehammers to assault rifles."
"I got them! YAAAAAAH!" the Super Mutant with the sledgehammer ran straight for the armored tin men, swinging at one of them, but missing clumsily, only to be disintegrated into dust by one of the humans shooting from the corner.
"RARRR!" The Brutes fired madly, showering the room with assault rifle rounds that pierced slabs of concrete and tearing holes in pre-war desks and doors.
The armored men barely flinched as they advanced from cover to cover, bringing down his brutes one by one. Aiming for limbs, and heads.
One such brute screamed as he was blinded by the laser shot in his eyes, dropping his rifle, the weakling began rubbing his face.
Taking no more of it, the Master charged forward, knocking the brute down, he saw the first Outcast and aimed his chinese assault rifle
"AH! There you are! Scream! Scream for your worthless life!"
Before the Master even finished unloading his clip of bullets, a green bolt emerged from the corner of the room, engulfing his vision and before he even dropped dead on the floor, his entire body.
"Sector clear." Kesler said through the filtered, sanitized microphone in his power armor helmet.
Fitts nodded quietly, shouldering his plasma rifle as he viewed the carpet of green corpses that littered the room. These muties never seemed to learn.
"Alright, fan out. Let's find the initiate."
It did not take long for the Outcasts to locate the shivering initiate. He was dressed in merc combat armor, not even in Brotherhood recon armor. That did not surprise Fitts, as even the Brotherhood wouldn't waste precious equipment on a local. The man seemed young, in his mid twenties, with red hair and a scared face. This young pup seemed too clean for being a soldier.
The young man saw the black power armored figures in the doorway, quickly jumping up. "Thank god someone's come, you have to help me, please!"
"So, you're a representative of the mighty Brotherhood of Steel? You're a disgrace." Colt said mockingly. Even Fitts could not contain his disgust. What was Lyons doing by diluting the quality and toughness of the Brotherhood with these maggots?
"Calm down. We're here to help." Fitts offered.
"Oh, thank god. Paladin Hoss sent you, didn't he? I knew he wouldn't leave me behind. When we were attacked. We were cut off so quickly. My gun jammed and I never even got a shot off. I couldn't do anything but hide."
Fitts could tell now why Hoss was pissed. He wouldn't waste a second of his life training such useless sacks of cannon fodder.
"Don't worry about it. Just keep your head down, and we'll lead the way." Fitts said grudgingly.
"Ok, sure, I guess." The initiate said nervously.
As the four Brotherhood soldiers emerged from the building, Fitts saw Paladin Hoss and his sigh of relief at the initiate being alive.
"Good to see you Fitts."
"You have my thanks."
"Just remember our deal. We get the technology in this area, this place is off limits to you Brotherhood for now." Fitts said with a note of finality in his voice.
"I'm afraid that deal just won't do Protector." A new voice emerged from behind them, and both Paladin Hoss and Fitts turned to see a new squad of Brotherhood soldiers enter the fray.
Seven members of the Brotherhood of Steel, armed to the teeth with Gatling lasers and miniguns all pointed straight at the Outcasts. To his dismay, he saw Defender Farsight standing next to them, with her arms raised as two of the Brotherhood Knights, both armed with sniper rifles, trained them on her head. In the centre of the pack, was the leader of the squad. The familiar face of the girl he once knew, yet now she felt like a stranger. Her eyes were hardened, and her lush blonde hair and skin weathered and darkened by dust and grime.
Defender Colt gave a low wolf whistle behind Fitts, before being jabbed into shutting up by Kesler.
"Sarah Lyons." Protector Fitts said the name blankly, as though it held no meaning.
Sarah quickly raised her rifle, charging the laser battery as the rest of Lyon's Pride did the same. "That's Sentinel Lyons to you. Traitor."
Dun dun dun! What will happen next? ;) Ty for the reads and reviews btw!
Undeadshark: I used to think that too, but i still give the Outcasts props, after all. It takes balls to talk down to someone in Hellfire armor armed with a Tesla cannon ;)