A/N: Here is perhaps one of the more action packed stories I have done in some time. Here we see James and Jericho pinned down in the caverns of Evergreen Mills, after the events of the last chapter. Will they escape? Will they Survive? Lets find out. Remember to Read & Review.
James covered his head as bullets flew overhead, and glass rained down on them. Jericho was waiting patiently for the bullets to stop before lifting his head over the counter and opening fire with his machine gun.
"GET SOME!" Jericho screamed, unloading his rifle into the crowd attacking them.
Ducking back into his original position Jericho loaded his rifle carefully, a concerned look on his face as he looked towards James. James hadn't moved since the firelight began. The reason for this was that he hadn't come so far just to die here, especially when he was so close to reuniting with his father. Looking towards the corpse of the bartender, who was the first casualty of this barrage of bullets, James noticed a shotgun cradled in his arms. James knew this man's death was his entire fault for acting up, and opening his big fucking mouth. This man's blood was on James's hands, and no amount of apologies would make up for that. He found himself smiling, as the realisation he was thinking this way about some asshole who worked for raiders seeped in. This guy probably supplied half of the drugs and booze to the dirty bastards, and here James was feeling sorry about getting him killed.
"KID!" Jericho shouted, catching James's attention.
"Yeah?" James shouted, turning towards Jericho.
"You gonna fight, or you gonna sit on your ass?" Jericho shouted, as he fiddled with his rifle.
"Maybe. What the fuck do you care?!" James asked, getting his rifle ready before taking a deep breath.
Jericho was right; James couldn't sit here and expect him to do all the work when it was his fault they were in this mess. If he had kept his big mouth shut, then they wouldn't be in this situation. Well if he was being honest, it probably would have ended up the same way regardless. They would probably have picked a fight with some asshole after a few drinks, and they would have found themselves in the same situation. Standing up, James unleashed four shots out into the crowd of approaching raiders. They were getting closer, and despite being surrounded by what seemed like supplies, James wasn't sure if he had the time to start searching for another weapon.
"My rifle is fucked, kid. It's fucking useless, now." Jericho shouted, flinging his rifle across the bar.
"Picked a hell of a time to do that!" James shouted, getting to his feet and firing a few rounds at their attackers. Each bullet hit its target with deadly precision, killing them on impact.
"Tell me about it!" Jericho shouted, as James looked towards the shotgun that once belonged to the bartender.
"The shotgun!" James shouted, nodding towards the corpse of the Bartender as he reloaded his rifle. Scurrying towards the corpse, Jericho grabbed the gun and turned the safety off as James unloaded another couple of rounds into the approaching wave of raiders. Checking the rounds, he smiled as he found a full clip and a few boxes of ammo under the counter.
"This looks like it's gonna cause some damage!" Jericho shouted in glee, standing up and lining up his shot.
*Click*
Both men didn't have time to question why the gun didn't fire, as they leapt to the ground to avoid another incoming wave of bullets. Jericho didn't understand what the hell was happening, as he was sure he had the safety off. So why the hell wouldn't the fucking shotgun fire? Pulling the trigger a few more times, he looked towards James and aimed the shotgun at him.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" James asked, slapping the shotgun away from him. Jericho quickly aimed the shotgun back at James and pulled the trigger.
*Click*
"This fucking thing isn't working!" Jericho shouted, still gripping the shotgun.
"If it did, I'd be fucking dead right now!" James shouted, as his breath quickened.
"No you don't get it. Jack used to fucken spout all this bullshit about how this thing could cause a fuck tonne of damage, but it doesn't even fire!" Jericho shouted, slapping the shotgun a couple of times while he continued to pull the trigger on the gun.
"Great! We are outgunned, outnumbered, and fucked! Maybe try turning the safety on!" James shouted sarcastically, standing up but with his attention on Jericho did not see the knife coming towards him that dug into his shoulder.
James shouted in pain as he fell back towards the ground. He found himself asking, "Why do they always get the good arm?" As three raiders climbed on top of the bar, Jericho took James's advice and turned the safety on before pulling the trigger. The thunderous shot erupted through the caverns amongst the gunfire, bellowing louder than any of the shots firing. The three men that were targeted were sent flying off the counter and half way across the room, long dead before they hit the ground. Jericho stared in awe at the shotgun that had just killed three men at once.
"HOLY FUCK!" Jericho shouted a large smile on his face.
"I FUCKING LOVE THIS GUN!" Jericho shouted, standing up and unloading another couple of rounds into the now retreating raiders. Jericho was letting out a sadistic laughter as the raiders ran from the power of his shotgun.
"Why don't we get you and your new gun a fucking room when we get the hell out of here?" James shouted, as he pulled the knife out of his shoulder swearing to himself in pain.
"Kid, if this was a woman…"
"Gonna stop you right there, Jericho. I don't want to know." James responded, not wanting to hear what Jericho would do.
"Wait…do you hear that?" Jericho asked, as a distinct familiar whirling sound filled the air.
"Sounds like….Oh shit!" James shouted, as both men ducked as low as they could. The sound was familiar to both, and was a preferred weapon among the Outcasts of the Brotherhood of Steel. This weapon was a mini-gun. The heavy barrage of bullets was shredding everything around them once it began firing, as James gripped his already bleeding wound. They were in deep trouble now; as if they got into the line of sight of that thing they would be torn apart. The only downside to the weapon was that it would overheat after emptying a clip and couldn't be used for a couple of seconds. Not nearly enough time for both of them to jump the counter and rush towards the group of raiders without getting killed.
"How the fuck do we get out of this?!" James shouted, glaring over at Jericho.
Suddenly, a smile crossed Jericho's face, something that both worried James and caused a shiver to run up his spine. James knew he wasn't going to like what was about to come out of the old raiders mouth, but Jericho didn't give a shit whether or not James liked it. Grabbing a bottle of vodka and an old rag, Jericho proceeded to pull the cap of the bottle off with his teeth.
"Is this really the time for a fucking drink, Jericho?" James asked, as more bullets whizzed past their heads.
"Shut it! Does that arm come off?" Jericho asked, the cap hanging from his mouth secured by his teeth.
"What? Yeah? Wait what the fuck are you planning?" James asked, not liking where the hell this was going.
"Got a light? Jericho asked, causing James to raise an eyebrow.
The mini gun emptied its clip, and was now red hot due to its overheating. There were about 15 of their men dead, but there was a lot more where that came from ready to get payback on the bastards responsible. They were going to rip them apart slowly, piece by piece. Suddenly, something was thrown from the other side of the bar, and was immediately fired upon. It was an arm. Completely harmless to the raiders, but did provide the distraction needed for what came next. From behind the bar came four bottles, each carrying a destructive purpose. As the bottle hit the raiders, they erupted into flames causing the men around the minigun to panic in pain and fear. Smoke filled the area around them, choking those who were not burning.
"If I die tonight because of you, I'm gonna kill you!" a voice shouted from behind the bar, as a shadowy figure rushed towards the crowd of raiders.
A blade glistened in its hand, as it proceeded to slash the throat of any raider that wasn't burning. Rolling across the ground to avoid the panicked fire from those who were too far from the figure to kill with its knife, it quickly picked up an assault rifle and fired it into the crowd. Kicking over some tables as fast as he could, it turned back towards the bar.
"NOW!" James shouted, as Jericho leapt over the bar still holding the shotgun.
James slapped and patted down the parts of his outfit that were now on fire with one arm, his breathing heavy as Jericho rushed towards his position. Jericho knew that if they lifted their heads from behind the bar, the raiders would open fire on them. He also knew that they would fire the first thing that popped out from where they were hiding. So, in a rare act of genius, Jericho decided to use what they had at their disposal. James was the best choice to go out and kill any stragglers in front of the bar, as without his arm he was much faster on his feet and deadlier with a knife. The reason this was, was because the arm itself was pretty heavy. It was after all a giant piece of metal he had to attach to his body, or as its creator often called it "a hardwired masterpiece of cybernetics". James had mixed feeling taking off his metallic arm, as on the one hand he loved the cold air on the stub that once was his arm, but on the other, he hated the hassle of putting the arm back on. This time however, he knew it was their only option. The stench of blood filled the air. The two were now surrounded by the dead raiders that dropped first, but more importantly their weapons. Jericho threw James a needle containing med-x, which James clumsily caught as he picked up his metallic arm. Ramming the needle into his arm, James grunted as he felt the effects soon come over him. He quickly re-attached his arm, feeling the pain flow through his body.
"FUCK!" James screamed, as he knew he had probably messed up on re-attaching the arm. Maybe he didn't use enough med-x, or maybe he put it on too fast. All he knew was, it hurt like hell. It was like a hundred little needles made of flame were pricking his shoulder all at once.
"You okay, sweetie?" Jericho asked pure condescension in his tone as he threw the minigun from across the room behind them.
"How many left?" James asked, his heavy breathing displayed just how much his last action took out of him.
"Too many…at least if we are not gonna use grenades." Jericho said, as James slowly got to his feet.
"We are in a cave, Jericho. We throw grenades, we cause a cave in. I don't know about you, but I don't plan on dying tonight!" James barked.
"Then we're fucked!" Jericho said, as James noticed a smile cross the old raiders face.
"You're enjoying this?!" James shouted, shocked at the old raiders amusement.
"Of fucking course I am. If I'm going out, I'm going out fighting!" Jericho shouted, as both men heard the footsteps of approaching attackers. No time to load his gun, James reached out to grab the nearest blunt object he could to swing.
Grabbing a pool cue, James lunged around the corner swinging the cue hard into the head of one of the raiders. The sound of the snapping cue echoed silently through the cavern, as James lunged the broken half still in his hand into the chest of the raider behind his first victim. Quickly, Jericho unloaded two shells into the rest of the incoming raiders. Both men took deep heavy breaths, as they looked around at the remaining raiders surrounding them.
"Well…fuck….Any ideas?" James wheezed, adrenaline flushing through his body as he gripped the butt of his rifle. Besides his rifle and knife, James had a small pistol he kept on hand in the event he ran out of ammo.
"Shoot the shit out of them; leave none of the bastards alive?" Jericho wheezed, coughing heavily causing James to turn towards him with a smile.
"Shit…that's a bit unfair. They don't stand a chance." James said, smiling towards the old raider.
"Now you're speaking my language kid, let's fuck them up!" Jericho responded.
"Oh… are you going to help?" James smirked, pushing his back towards that of the old raiders.
"Of fucken course! Not gonna let you have all the fun, kid." Jericho smiled, loading the shotgun he had just acquired.
"So how's this sound? I'll take the twenty on the right; you take the twenty on the left?" James asked a smile on his face, before quickly feeling an elbow dig into his back.
"Fuck you; I'll take down whoever the fuck gets in my way." Jericho smirked, aiming his shotgun into the crowd approaching them.
Both men began to roar as they ran in opposite directions, firing their weapons at any incoming enemies as they looked for cover. James slid behind the pool table, as Jericho ducked behind a large stalagmite. Unloading another couple of shells into an oncoming crowd, Jericho let out a sadistic laugh causing James to smile widely as he unloaded a couple of shells of his own. Both men ducked behind their respective cover, as bullets continued to fly quickly past them. James felt a bullet whip past his face, causing a small cut to open on his cheek. It stung like hell, but it was better than a bullet to the skull that was sure. He doubted anyone could survive getting shot in the head, and continue on after that. James dwelled on this for too long, as soon he found himself getting a hard kick in the face. His body hit the ground hard, as he looked towards his attacker. There were two of them, and neither of them looked very pleased to see him. Taking aim on James, they opened fire. James, thinking as fast as he could, rolled under the pool table to avoid their bullets. Pulling out his knife, James stabbed one of his attackers in the leg before pulling out his pistol and shooting both men in their kneecaps. It didn't kill them, but James knew it hurt like hell, and for what it was worth they weren't going to be alive much longer to worry about the pain. James rolled out on the other side of the table, and proceeded to unload the remaining bullets in the clip into the men he just assaulted. Having no time to congratulate himself, James reloaded and turned around to open fire on the remaining attackers. Jericho was having much less trouble with his group, as he was not concentrating on anything but the horde of raiders approaching him. Blasting holes into them one after another, they fell to the ground like the sacks of shit they were. Any that got too close to the old raider got smacked with the butt of his shotgun, before being blasted back into the men following him. Just as it seemed they were gaining the upper hand, the unthinkable happened, and James' gun jammed. In what was the longest three seconds of his life, James took a shot to his chest causing him to drop his pistol. He looked down at the wound as blood began seeping out of it. It wasn't long before he took two more shots in the shoulder and back in the chest, causing James to drop to his knees, holding his wounds as raiders approached him. Blood ran from his mouth, as James looked out into the horde of his attackers. Seeing this, Jericho fired rounds into the horde approaching James, before pulling the pin of a grenade out with his teeth and shoving it into an approaching raider's shirt just as he kicked the raider into the group behind him. Jericho rushed towards his fallen companion, killing off the remaining raiders as the grenade went off, bringing rubble down on those who were not blown to pieces as a result of the explosion.
"Kid! Don't fucking die on me!" Jericho barked as he applied pressure to the wounds with one hand.
"How…how fucking bad is it?" James gasped, as he choked on his own blood. He clearly taken a bullet to his lungs, and needed something to fix it fast otherwise he was going to die.
"Pretty fucking bad!" Jericho responded, pulling his knife out.
"I'm going to kick your ass if I die…." James responded, smiling as Jericho took a deep breath.
"If I give you a stimpack…It's only gonna fix your chest." Jericho explained, his knife digging into James' wound to dig out the slug. That was the trouble with stimpacks, they healed the wound but if there was a slug in it had to be taken out. That was always the hard uncomfortable part.
"So…I bleed to death anyways?" James grunted, a bloody smile on his face as Jericho dug out one of the slugs.
"Only if you're a pussy. Look…this is gonna hurt like hell!" Jericho said, digging the knife into the next wound searching for the bullet.
"FUCK!" James grunted, showcasing just how gentle Jericho was not being.
"Oooh poor baby!" Jericho responded, as he took great care taking the slug out of James' chest. Taking it out, Jericho quickly jammed a stimpack into James's chest, the serum worked fast as the wound began to close.
Jericho took out a shotgun shell and opened it up, pouring the gun powder on the two wounds that didn't close. This was a raider trick, which Jericho knew from his old days, for fixing up wounds when there wasn't a stimpack on hand. It wasn't comfortable, but it was very effective. The next step was igniting the powder, and that part always hurt like hell. Taking out James's lighter from his pocket, Jericho ignited the powder. The bang that followed was loud, but not as loud as the scream James let out when the wound was burnt shut.
"Fuck that hurt!" James grunted as Jericho dragged him over to the wall.
"Come on, don't be such a pussy." Jericho responded, as he sat down next to James and poured a bottle of vodka on the wounds. James grunted in pain at the disinfectant, as Jericho chuckled in sadistic amusement.
James sat next to Jericho, his breathing heavy and body weak. He could feel the stimpack do its work, as Jericho lit a cigarette and began smoking. James looked at his pip-boy and saw it was 12 am. Weakly, James pulled a cigarette out of his own pocket and yanked his lighter back from Jericho. Getting up, Jericho walked away towards the bar. He returned moments later with two bottles of whiskey, handing one to James as he sat back down beside him. Both men sat there, smoking and drinking from their respectful bottles without saying a word to each other.
"I didn't think I was going to die like this…." James said, taking a swig of his whiskey before taking another drag of his cigarette.
"Stop being talking like a dumbass. You're not gonna die." Jericho barked, taking a long drink.
"You could have at least given me some Med-x for the pain." James said, rubbing the charred flesh that moments ago were open.
"Yeah, well I didn't count on you being such a bitch." Jericho responded, laughing to himself.
"So...that was a hell of a fucking shoot out!" James said, laughing to himself as he looked towards Jericho.
"Fuck yeah it was….but it aint over yet." Jericho responded glee in his voice as he spoke.
"What the hell do you mean? We are caved in thanks to that dumb grenade of yours." James stated, looking towards Jericho with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, but those fucks aint gonna let us go now, and they certainly won't give up all the booze, ammo, and drugs they got in here." Jericho explained, as James took a deep breath.
"So how long do you think we got before those assholes get through the debris?" James asked, looking towards the debris blocking the entrance/exit to the cavern.
"Couple of hours, I guess. But when they break through, there's gonna be a fuck tonne of them." Jericho explained, before letting a large puff of smoke escape his lips.
"So….what we need…is a plan." James responded, smiling wickedly at Jericho.
A/N 2: So a couple of things I wanted to point out about this chapter to avoid a couple of angry Pms and to show connections to some of my other stories:
1. Jericho vanilla weapon was the Chinese assault rifle, but from the very start I have mentioned he used the Terrible Shotgun. So in this story we see how and why Jericho came into possession of the shotgun.
2. The safety on/off of the shotgun has been a thing since Homeward Bound and was really just one of the reasons I could think of giving it its namesake of "The Terrible Shotgun".
3. Thanks to F04 for nerfing the minigun, I was able to come up with a solid reason to make the minigun bit work.
4. The arm thing is a reference to Megaton Stories, in which during his tale Jericho mentions that they used the arm as a distraction.
5. James being lighter on his feet has always been the case, since I could hardly think having a lump of metal attached to you makes you faster. James has to stay strong in order to cope with his large heavy limb, which seeing as I have mentioned hes quick on his feet with it on, should tell you just how much faster he is with it off.
6. Stimpacks cannot heal a wound if theres a bullet in it, that just doesnt make sense to me. So yes you have to dig it out. And even then, without a few stimpacks your not 100% likely to survive. Hence the gunpowder trick for closing wound. Side note, another example of James's scars.
7. The Grenade in the cavern causing a collapse made sense to me, since physics!
8. The ending point there, with the two just enjoying a smoke and each others company made me smile when writing it.
9. Next chapter I will be putting the pregnant woman scene. So you have been forewarned.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I will see you all in the future.
