Alas I am back. It has been too long since I last updated this story and for leaving all of you on a cliff hanger I apologize. This next chapter will hopefully hold you over for the next couple of day. Initially it was part of a much larger and satisfying one but I decided to let it loose instead of waiting a few more day for the whole.
Please leave any criticisms, both positive and negative, so that I may continue to work on my story. Also if you like it, really like it, feel free to favorite or follow free of charge this week only. Lastly, enjoy.
Out of the Frying Pan...
Walker heard Cobalt give off a soft moan as he was roughly carried by their black armored saviors. He had only known the ghoul known the ghoul for a short time, but he was nevertheless worried about his condition. The thoughts of what had transpired since he had awakened haunted his every thought without relent. He had no idea where he was. More critically he had no idea when he was. This facility was unfamiliar to him and appeared to be crumbling in age. He figured that he was either underground or inside a building but he was leaning to the former. He thought more on what he had seen. The condition of his surroundings was unlike what he saw during his travels. The walls and ceilings were in bad condition but it did not look like what resulted from centuries of neglect like nearly every prewar building he was before. The architecture was also different. It was similar, but different none the less. These thoughts continued to race around in his head. His observations led him to theories that made him want to vomit. He hoped he was wrong.
He was knocked from his thinking by one of his armored saviors pushing him sharply in the small of his back. Surprised, he tripped over a fallen piece of ceiling and fell to the floor catching himself on his hands and knees. He turned his head around towards the two and saw them moving as though laughing at his mistake. They made no noises vocally and Walker was willing to bet that they had internal communication systems in their suits. He quickly picked himself back up and with another push from behind he kept moving further along.
Out of his stupor he began looking around again at his surroundings. The walls and ceilings were cracked with chips missing here and there. He also notice scorch marks running the length of the hallway. They looked to be from fire rather than damage caused by weapons giving the otherwise white walls a dirty and deathly look. There were dingy lights on overhead, similar to what he saw earlier. Many of them however were out and the lack of light was made up for small but powerful lamps on stands slightly above eye level spaced every ten feet or so.
During the walk he tried speaking a few times to his escorts only to be received by silence. Whenever he slowed down to look at one thing or another, whether it was a door or adjacent hallway, he received a sharp push and quickly picked up his speed. Finally after about ten minutes of walking they turned one last corner coming upon a guarded entry way into a large lit room. The guards to this entry way were the same as those escorting him. Each wearing the black power armor with matching helmets showcasing the plated faceplates. Both guards had their faceplates blocked and which unnerved Walker greatly. He knew they were looking at him but he could not meet their gaze. He took his time coming close to the guards to study his saviors a bit more.
The armor was a dark mat black and absorbed all light that touched it reflecting none. The armor was also very streamlined and sharp as compared to most power armor Walker had come across. It surprised him how different this power armor looked. The armor seemed lighter and more maneuverable than others. The joints seemed to allowed more flexibility but also offered greater protection from damage. From the small movements that he had seen it seemed as though the power armor was more like a skin than a hard piece of metal. Whenever one of them moved the armor seemed to move naturally with them. It seemed much more than just large and heavy pieces of metal placed onto a person. There were also no tubes connected to the helmet and the suit itself.
Two things on the suits stood out from the black that covered the rest. One was a piece of silver on the armor's collar. While he did not know what it stood for it looked like rank insignia from the prewar military, although that observation without proper context did little to give him anything solid about the group. The second stand out piece on the armor was located on the chest plate. It was a circle of stars painted on the armor in white which gave great contrast to the black that covered all else. Nothing else stuck out to Walker about the soldiers and nothing he saw answered any questions.
Finally he passed by the guards without hearing an exchange of words between the four and came into the room at the end of the hall. Bright white light dominated the area and showed a room vast in size both in width and in height. Dozens of figures walked around the room or worked at various stations. While many were wearing identical armor to the first Walker was glad to see that about half were not and instead hosted while lab coats. The room was a buzz of activity and conversation as he came in, followed by every noise dying as all eyes, and faceplates, turned to him. He slowed down as he met those who's gazes he could meet but the escort behind him gave him another push, although this one was not as sharp as ones previous. As he continued waking conversation from the room's inhabitants began to pick up again, although on a much lower level.
He was directed to the center of the room where a raised platform hosted a large round table. As he walked towards it he took notes of his surroundings. The room had a circular form like the platform and table. There were rows of stations surrounding the platform, each row elevated the further it back so that all areas could see the platform. On the edges of the room he made note of several doors leading to destinations unknown. Debris lined the edges of the room and he noticed this area was not in much better condition than the rest of what he had seen. Cracks as well as scorch marks appeared most places although things seemed to be cleaned recently by the inhabitants. He reached the chipped steps of the platform and began to ascend the few steps leading to where he guessed he was to go.
At the top was another figure clad in the black power armor he had so recently become use to. The individual was, to his best guess, waiting for his little group. It was what hung behind that individual however that caught his eye. On the side of the room opposite of him stood the flag of Vegas. The flag was different in other flags he had seen in the sense that this one was spartan in appearance with nothing more than a red V on a black backdrop. It was its simplicity that made the flag that Walker had worked for and underneath for years strong. Everyone in the Mojave and beyond knew what it was and to Vegas' enemies it struck fear in their hearts. Unfortunately it saddened Walker greatly to see the condition of the flag. It was faded and marked with small tears. The edges of it were singed giving it a sickly look. He tore his eyes away from it with hope that Vegas was not in a similar state even though he feared greatly it was a hop in vain.
As they reached the lone figure standing next to the table Walker was grabbed from behind and forced to a stop by his escorts. They each gave a salute to the on standing before, also in an old military fashion, and they all stood in silence. Walker guessed that they were communicated via the gear inside the suits but it made him uncomfortable to not be able to hear what they were saying. But while he watched the trio stand motionless he heard the wheezing like breathing of Cobalt still being held by one of his escorts. Walker continued to stand their somewhat uncomfortable. The ghoul was in need of help and these people were just standing there. Worse yet they were not even addressing either of them and more or less ignoring them. Finally after another minute of nothing with his patience for these people wearing out Walker took stand amid the uncomfortable silence.
"I would like to thank all of you for your saving our ass back there," he said gesturing to the two escorts behind them while looking at the other's face while putting all the authority he could muster into his voice. "But my friend here is in desperate need of help and while I do not mean to be rude or ungrateful, his condition needs to be addressed." Silence greeted his words and seconds passed by with nothing said.
"You heard the man," said a voice from someone other than the three. "See to it that that creature is taken care of proper." Suddenly and image appeared over the table. It was holographic as it came to form from the table, the light giving off a blue sheen. It took the image of a blue sphere with a white line running through the middle. The two escorts immediately began to make their way off the platform along with the good doctor still under the arm.
Walker grew uncomfortable at hearing the voice and the image he now looked upon. It also worried that the voice called Cobalt "creature" and while it bugged him, he was grateful that the doctor was being helped.
The voice spoke again, this time it was evident it was from the sphere. When he spoke the while line in the middle grew wider and pulsated white matching what was said. "Is there anything else you need of us?" said the voice with a small measure of chiding embedded within, as though talking to a foolish child.
The sphere's tone irritated Walker but he refused to let it show on his face and instead kept and calm and collected manner as he faced the sphere, chin up. "You have already done a lot for us and I am grateful for that, truly. But I not exactly sure what is going on. I guess you could say I have been out of the loop for some time."
"Out of the loop indeed," said the sphere. "Considering you have been dead for some time now Courier, I would expect little else."
Walker was somewhat surprised to hear that they knew who he was, but not overly. He was well known in his time and perhaps this meant that he was not gone as long as he feared. It was a hope he held to vigorously and foolishly.
"You seem to have me at a disadvantage," said Walker without any surprise showing. "You seem to know who I am but I do not know who you are." He brought a charismatic smile to his lips giving himself a friendly demeanor, or as much so as he could muster. He was in a possibly horrendous situation and he needed friends and not enemies if he could avoid it.
"Interesting," said the sphere. "Perhaps we should save introductions until we have taken care of your ghoulish friend. Commander..." The commander, being the individual next to the table then gestured Walker to look across the room by the raising of one of his arms. Walker followed the gesture and his eyes looked to the edge of the room where he saw Ghoul laying on the floor. He was a ways a way but close enough to make him out, and his situation, easily. His tattered shirt was even more so now as it was ripped down the middle showing the man's ribs underneath his ghoulish skin. Connected to his chest were a few small circular dull grey devices that looked like medical contraptions of what nature Walker could only guess. There were two unarmored individuals standing kneeling over him. One was a woman with red hair and the other was a man with dark brown hair, and both wore white and pristine lab coats. Both also wore what Walker guessed to be pipboys on their left wrist, although ones that looked much more advanced than his bulky sidekick. He could see that they were talking to Cobalt and was glad to see the lips of the ghoul moving in return. He wondered what they were talking about but could not hear over the distance as well as the activity going on throughout the room. He watched as the made a few more exchanges and it seemed that the ghoul was a little unnerved.
"I thank you for your help but I don't really see why it matters to our conversation." said Walker as he looked towards the sphere turning away from the scene as the woman overlooking the ghoul performed some action on her pipboy. "As you said yourself I have been more or less dead for I don't even know how long and I would..."
He was interrupted by a throaty scream that echoed around the expanse. He whipped his head around in mid sentence and centered his eyes at Cobalt. He was writhing on the ground yet also looked to be paralyzed to some extent, his arms stuck to his sides and his legs stuck together. He looked like a fish or a work. The grey devices on his chest pulsated and electric blue followed by another scream and more struggling from the tortured ghoul. Again they pulsed and again the ghoul responded. The two standing over him continued to speak between each shock but every time the ghoul responded, or did not respond, he was shocked again.
"What the hell is going on here? " yelled Walker towards the sphere and the commander his body tensing up in preparation for action. "Just what the hell do you think you are doing?"
"We are doing what is necessary for the survival of humanity." said the sphere with a certain zeal to his voice. "This creature may have information that can help us to that end."
"That is a person, not a damned creature," yelled Walker. Those around the room that were not staring at him with a bemused expression at his statement continued to go about their business, many in good cheer, acting as if oblivious to the man being tortured. As Walker to a half second to watch them, he realized that they were not obvious, by instead regarded the man as nothing more than a cockroach.
"You are a fool," said the sphere with a parcel of amusement in his voice. That is no more a person than a sick dog. Outside of what he may be able to tell us of he, is no use." If the sphere had a face Walker imagined it would be smiling in joy.
Walker's knew what precarious situation he was now in. He immediately darted away from the center of the platform towards the ghoul knowing full well that unarmed and surrounded there was little he could do. Regardless he refused to sit and watch a man tortured.. But just as soon as he took a couple of steps he was yanked back by the commander behind him and fell backwards towards the floor. He looked and saw the commander reaching down towards him. He struggled fruitlessly against him as the commander grabbed hold in all his power armored might. He tried everything he could to break free, yelling at the monsters whose den he was now in, cursing them while fighting to no avail. The commander wrapped an arm around his neck and began to squeeze. His vision began to dim as he thrashed less and less. As his body failed him he gazed towards Cobalt. He stared in horror as one of the soldiers approached the doctor dislodging his side arm from his armor as the female in the white lab coat stood up and shook her head. He drew the unfamiliar pistol and pointed it to the doctors head. With his last measure of sight he saw the pistol fire creating a small green flash that turned the good doctors head into nothing more than pulp. Then darkness grabbed hold and Walker finally went still.
The commander let go of the Courier letting him drop roughly to the floor. "What do you want to do with him, sir?" asked the commander to the sphere. His voice was monotone and lacking emotion.
"Bind him and throw away the others," said the sphere. "Prepare some controls. Our new courier friend will be quite the asset, one way or another."
"Yes sir." said the commander gesturing to two soldiers who came up and carried the courier away after binding him.
"I hope that there will be no problems concerning this commander?" asked the sphere.
"Of course not sir. No problems at all."
"Perfect," said the sphere with satisfaction deep in his voice.
And there ends this small part of an exciting adventure. Tune in later for the continuation of Radioactive Dawn. And remember a new dawn brings new things, both blissfully wonderful and utterly horrible.