Chance
Chapter 5: BoSoB's
MacCready and Roulette remained in Nuka World for a few days, mostly because Roulette wanted to catch up with Cherry on a few things. At times, the pair would wander the park and surrounding areas. At one point, they caught the sound of what seemed to be power armor clanking in the distance. Upon investigating the noise, they found a group of four people clad in full suits of power armor, with the closest to them having a logo which both of them recognized right away. Emblazoned on the shoulder of the suit was the emblem of the Brotherhood of Steel.
"Oh, damn it all," Roulette muttered. "We should get going, unless we want to deal with the BoSoB's."
"BoSoB's?" MacCready questioned.
"Brotherhood of Sons of, well, you can figure it out," Roulette told him.
"That's, actually kind of clever," MacCready replied with a chuckle.
"Yeah, it's clever, and very true. Now, let's get out of here before they spot us," Roulette stated.
MacCready nodded. During his time in the Capital, he'd run into a handful of Brotherhood members, and hadn't enjoyed any of his encounters. He didn't know what experience Roulette had with the group, but she seemed to hold a similar distaste, if not a stronger one. The man followed the teen back to where they had been staying with Cherry and Gage, finding the pair in the middle of a conversation about some topic unknown to the newcomers.
"What're you two going on about, this time?" Roulette interjected, as the conversation continued, with neither participant noticing the arrival of herself and MacCready.
"Gage is saying he saw a gang of you-know-what's not far from the park," Cherry stated. "I don't believe it, they've never come this close."
"Actually, he's right. Mac and I found about four of them not too far out. It isn't normal, but it's true," Rou informed her.
"Damn, that's bad," the redhead muttered, giving a frustrated sigh.
"Yeah. I might have to take off if they don't leave."
"Wh- oh, right. Yeah, I can see why."
Roulette nodded, letting out an annoyed sigh. What the hell could the Brotherhood be doing this close to a safe haven for raiders? In all honesty, she'd rather not find out. Especially if a certain someone was among the team she and MacCready had found.
"What should we do now, then? The others have probably noticed those guys by now," Gage inquired.
"I don't know. Honestly, I just hope a certain you-know-who isn't here," Roulette replied. It wasn't much of an answer, but it was all she could give at the moment.
"Who?" MacCready questioned. Who was this person everyone in the room seemed to know about? All this talk of someone who wouldn't be identified by anybody was starting to both concern and confuse him.
"You don't need to know, Mac," Roulette stated, suddenly sounding cold an irritated.
"C'mon, Rou, he should know," Cherry urged.
"He doesn't need to know, Cherry," Roulette replied, before giving a sigh. "I need to get a few things, I'll be back later," she stated, before grabbing a pouch of caps out of her bag and leaving.
Cherry shood her head, sighing a bit. She turned to MacCready, "She hasn't told me much, but, well, Rou was part of some falling out with a member of the Brotherhood. I guess they used to be pretty close, but now, Rou won't even mention their name or how they knew each other," the redhead told him.
"Wow, that would kind of explain a few things," MacCready mused.
Suddenly, there started a commotion outside the building. The three occupants silently agreed to investigate, and stepped out into the path. Many of the raiders seemed to be muttering amongst themselves as a couple of Brotherhood members, still clad in power armor, came down the way.
"This doesn't look good," Gage observed.
"No shit, Gage," Cherry muttered.
Just then, Roulette came down the street, her pace quick, almost urgent. She absently pushed by the three bodies in the doorway, and made her way over to her bag. In her rush, she put the supplies she had bought into the worn backpack and strapped on her armor, before shrugging the bag onto her shoulders.
"What's the hurry?" MacCready questioned, finding the actions somewhat odd. In the short time he'd known Roulette, she'd never been this urgent in anything she did.
"We have to go. The BoS are moving in, and I'm not interested in hearing any of their bullshit," Roulette hurriedly, if not bitterly, stated.
MacCready nodded a bit, and went to get his own bag. Though, as he was getting his things together, a suit of power armor stood in the doorway to the room, blocking the way out.
The power armor-clad figure made their way inside and gave a partial wave. Roulette moved into the corner of the room, wanting to avoid being seen, as the back of the suit opened up, and the occupant lowered themselves out. A dull orange suit stood out against the faded interior of the building. As the stranger stepped into view, their most striking features were their height, their eyes, and a scar running across the left side of their jaw. The woman stood what seemed to be nearly six feet tall, and their eyes were a stunning, dark blue, standing out against their tan skin and black hair. She stood like many of the BoS MacCready had encountered; tall and straight, like the pre-war soldiers he had seen in faded posters. He had never understood why they would stand as if they were impaled head to toe on a pole, though he didn't care whether or not he ever found out the reason.
"Greetings, civilians," the stranger began, though before she could continue, Roulette rolled her eyes and cut in.
"None of us are interested," she stated, crossing her arms as she looked up at the imposing figure.
The stranger looked down at the shorter figure before her, before continuing with what she had been saying. "I am Initiate Thomas, with the Eastern chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel. On behalf of the Brotherhood, I am here with my comrades to offer a hand to the inhabitants of Nuka World," she said, her tone even, just on the line between being calm and being authoritative.
"Catherine, nobody here is going to be interested in your BoS bull crap," Roulette interjected.
"You know her?" MacCready questioned.
"Unfortunately," Rou muttered.
The stranger wore a look of confusion for a moment, before she seemed to come to a sort of realization. "Ash?" she questioned, sounding somewhat surprised.
"I don't go by that, anymore. I haven't since you last saw me. And before you even try, I'm not coming back to you and all those BoSoB's," with that, Roulette began to leave, followed by her even more confused comrades.
The four left Nuka World, all carrying a backpack of some sort, and walked in silence. Roulette kept a brisk pace, seemingly still brooding from the entire encounter. Cherry and MacCready were both equally confused, and Gage wasn't about to disclose any of what he knew of the situation. Nothing was said for some time as they walked, heading to an area not too far from the park. As they arrived, the group found, to their relief, that there was no sign of the Brotherhood. The group entered the ghostly building and set down their things.
"Well this is fantastic," Roulette groaned, rubbing her eyes with the heels of her palms.
"Now do you know her?" Cherry questioned. "You had some sort of falling out with her, didn't you?"
"You don't need to know, Cherry," Roulette stated.
"Roulette, we have the right to know," MacCready urged.
"It's none of your business, Mac."
"You've got to tell them, Roulette," Gage told her, stepping into the situation. "If you don't tell them, I will," he passively threatened.
"You wouldn't," Rou suggested.
"You know I would, Ashley."
"Gage! You know I hate that name! Don't you dare go any further!"
"If you don't want me saying it, then you have to," Gage replied, crossing his arms.
"I hate you, Gage," Roulette grumbled, finally giving in. With a sigh, she finally submitted, knowing there was no way of avoiding this. "Well, I guess it's storytime. I'll tell you guys how I know those BoSoB's."