Perry strolled through the caves as gunfire ricocheted off his armour. The Terrible Shotgun was in his hands but he wasn't even aiming. He wanted the raiders to know they had no chance of surviving. He wanted them to be overcome with fear and the knowledge of inevitable death. He wanted them to suffer. But most of all; he wanted them to know how their prey felt, what it was like on the receiving end. The raiders were emptying entire rounds of ammunition onto Perry and while the impact was painful, he wasn't in any danger. The raiders knew it, but they tried anyway.

When a few of the raiders ran out of ammunition they turned and fled. One of the remaining raiders yelled insults at them as his head exploded with Perry's first shot. It was so quick. One minute the head was there, the next it was replaced with a burst of gore and a gaping hole. The body collapsed forward and the neck bled onto the ground. The image always fascinated Perry. He remembered the first time he killed a man, the ruined flesh and splattered blood made him throw up but eventually he grew used to it. He could even see an artistic skill to it.

These were not people; they were canvases for his art.

Perry removed Ol' Painless from his back and replaced it with the shotgun. He took aim and shot a raider through the leg, it ripped clean off. The raider screamed in pain and fell back; the others abandoned him and ran further into the caves. Perry slowly walked towards the downed murderer as he pathetically tried to back away with one leg. He screamed in agony and terror as the figure approached him. Perry took aim again and shot the raider in his right arm. The impact spread blood over the raider's face, the arm itself was hanging on by a thread. Perry could not even imagine the kind of pain this man was in. No… not man. This… monster was receiving the punishment he deserved. But hearing his scream and seeing his face as it was drenched in blood and tears, Perry couldn't stand anymore of it. He quickly fired a round into the raider's head.

Silence filled the cave again. He could vaguely hear the sound of voices further in the cave, barking terrified orders. They were scared. Good.

Perry quickly left the body. The longer he spent cleansing this cave the longer the raiders had to prepare and he had already spent too much time torturing this lone raider. He marched further into the darkness; he couldn't hear any voices so they must be waiting for him. A long, narrow corridor greeted him stretching into blackness. A battle cry echoed down the cave towards Perry, he activated the flashlight on his helmet and saw a lone raider about 50 metres away wielding an axe and rushing towards him. Perry didn't shoot or make any effort to aim his rifle. The raider lifted the axe above his head and was within 10 metres of Perry when he unknowingly broke the tripwire and was instantly crushed between the rock wall and an iron girder. No doubt another raider had set the trap but neglected to tell anyone else about it.

Perry noticed the man was still alive. He was gasping, there was blood everywhere and several cracked bones were piercing out of his skin. This raider has been dealt his punishment, so Perry put him out of his misery with a single round to the head. Moving on, he kept an eye open for signs of any more traps but found none. Presumably they didn't have time to set anymore. The corridor eventually opened into a large cavern, there were huts and beds set up everywhere along with rows of tables lined with food and butchered corpses. This must be the heart of the base. The cavern was also full of rock columns with wooden bridges connecting each one.

"NOW!"

Perry looked up to the closest column as three raiders leapt up, each holding a rocket launcher. They fired at the same time but Perry was already leaping behind one of the tables and out of the way. The ground shook with the impact of the missiles and his ears were ringing loudly. Without thinking, he pulled the Tesla Cannon off his back and inserted a charge pack into the socket. The ringing eventually died and he could hear the raiders yelling.

"Reload! Quickly! The fucker isn't dead yet!" They each hurriedly picked up a missile that was lying next to them. Perry stood up out of cover and took aim. One of the raiders managed to glance back down and the last thing he saw was the barrel of the cannon, a flash of light and then nothing. The raider that Perry hit burst in a cloud of gore and blood, the electricity that was hanging in the air killed the other two. Their eyes popped like grapes and they fell to the ground, dead but twitching erratically.

On the other side of the cavern, Perry could hear screams.

"There's no stopping him! Quick! Give me your gun!" Perry was expecting one last stand from these raiders but to his surprise he heard a gunshot from where the voices were coming from. There was silence and then five other shots were fired one after the other. He walked through the columns and reached the origin of the voices. A lone raider stood in a group of dead bodies, a fresh bullet wound in each of their heads. The living raider turned to Perry.

"You're not getting the satisfaction, screw you motherfucker!" He lifted the barrel up towards his temple and pulled the trigger.

Click.

"No…" He tried again.

Click.

His eyes slowly opened in horror and he began to shake, sweat growing on his brow and his hands. "No! No, no, no, no, no!" He dropped the gun and slowly backed against the wall with his hands in front of him like he was begging for mercy. Perry walked towards the raider, purposefully making his steps slow and powerful. This was the last one; he had all the time in the world now. The raider slid down the wall with his hands still in front of him, tears streaming down his face. Perry stood over him.

"What makes a person into this?" His voice was cold and sounded inhuman through the helmet. "What drives a man to become a monster? What drives him to torture, kill and destroy… for the fun of it? IS THAT WHY? WAS IT WORTH IT YOU PIECE OF SHIT? HUH?"

The raider was whimpering now… pathetic.

Perry bent down and struck his hand out, grabbing the raider by the throat. He gasped and desperately tried to grab Perry's hands. Perry straightened up and pulled the raider off his feet, still clutching his throat. He gave it a small squeeze; the raider gagged and tried to pull his fingers off to no success. Perry brought the raider right up to his covered face; he was within an inch of his helmet.

"You are a plague, a disease that must be purged… I've seen one of your kind burn and torture a little girl until she died screaming from the pain." Perry then slammed the raiders head into the wall. He leaned in closer and whispered, "You're about to know what that feels like…"

Perry took a bottle of stolen Aqua Pura from one of the tables and splashed his armour with it to wash the blood off. His hands were the bloodiest; no surprise after what he did to that last raider. He was glad none of his friends would ever have to see that. If Fawkes was here then he would probably never speak to Perry again. But he had to do it, there is no justice in this world except what you make for yourself…. for yourself. You didn't do this for the people; you did this out of your own anger, your own disgust. Murder for murder's sake. How do you live with yourself?

How indeed…

Perry detached the tubing of his helmet and pulled it off his head. He held the object in his hands and stared into the visor. So this is the last thing those raiders ever saw. He thought back to the raider he spared from Paradise Falls. He saved one raider and ruthlessly slaughtered another. Who is he? He continued to stare into the visor.

Which is my true face?

Perry dropped the helmet. It clanged against the rock floor and laid still. Perry screamed and smashed his fist into the table. He screamed and screamed until his voice was sore, and then he screamed louder.

Perry walked out into the day light. His helmet was in his satchel, he couldn't bear to look at it any longer. He stood on a small cliff edge that shielded the raider base entrance which would explain why he never found it. He looked out onto the wastes and didn't move. He merely watched. Was this shithole really what he was fighting for? Was this Wasteland worth all this slaughter?

No it isn't… but father knew what it might one day be. THAT is worth fighting for. That was what he died for.

Trying to take his mind off his haunting memories, Perry flicked some switches on his Pip-Boy to activate the radio. Three-Dog once again rang out from the speakers.

"Heya Capital Wasteland, how have you been these days? Wait, why am I asking you? You're tuning in to find out from me, ha ha, well here's the news. The Brotherhood of Steel has asked me to send out a message to Perry Neeson, a.k.a. the Lone Wanderer. They've asked if you could stop by the Citadel for a friendly chat, my money's on it having something to do with the super mutants, guess we'll wait and see. That's it for the news kiddies, here's some music specially requested by an anonymous Wastelander. Enjoy."

A guitar began to slowly play as Perry walked down the cliff. He recognised it immediately, it was a song by Johnny Cash titled "Hurt", it was the last song he played before he died.

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a hole
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

The regret and sorrow of Johnny Cash was clearly evident in his singing, it struck a powerful cord with Perry.

What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know
goes away
In the end

What have I become? Those words pierced Perry's soul. He continued to listen to the song as he walked through the rocks and the shrubs, a single tear falling down his cheek.

And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

If I could start again
A million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way

As the music slowed and finally stopped, Perry did to. If I could start again, a million miles away, I would keep myself, I would find a way…

He will find a way.

A/N: I'll admit this chapter is a bit emo but it's all part of the walking contradiction that is the Lone Wanderer. He saves people and spares enemies one minute and then ruthlessly slaughters and tortures others. He's not sure of himself and what he stands for. Yeah it's depressing, but having Perry as a flawless nice guy with no internal struggle would have just been boring. Hopefully you'll enjoy it.

Oh and I would seriously suggest looking up Johnny Cash's Hurt music video on youtube, it's beautifully tragic and may give you a better understanding of what Perry is feeling. In fact, here's the link, now you have no excuse. .com/watch?v=o22eIJDtKho

Reviews and criticisms appreciated.