THE HARSH LIGHT OF DAY

Dawn slept into the next morning with the sunlight entering the room and shining across her bed. When she rose out of bed she looked to the bed next to her and saw that Damon was gone. She looked in the bathroom, but it was empty. Then, she went back near the desk by the bed and poured her a small amount of bourbon. After she drank it, she looked out the window and saw nothing but the bunkers, the dinosaur, the desert, and the bright sunlight. She poured herself another glass. Then, Damon busted through the door.

"Dawn, we gotta go right now," he said anxiously.

"What the hell is going on?"

"They're headed this way. The Outcasts are in full force."

Quickly, she got dressed, strapped her pip-boy onto her wrist, got their belongings, and they left the room. Dawn and Damon stood on the roof nearby and saw three Jeeps headed their way. They ran downstairs.

"The old REPCONN facility is up ahead," Dawn notified.

As they ran towards the facility, the Outcasts spotted them and began firing at them. Damon fell to the ground and Dawn shot at the Jeep, causing it to run off the road and into a ditch. She helped him up and they ran as fast as they could towards the facility. Damon sprinted far ahead. Dawn was not the runner she used to be; every step she took sent a shock of pain through her legs. They ran through an old guard post which contained supplies, an overpass, and a few skeletons. The entrance to the REPCONN test site was ahead. There was a rocket on display outside. Dawn didn't have time to figure out if it was a real rocket or just a rusting metal sculpture. Damon ran up the stairs and was out of Dawn's sight. She wanted to yell for him to wait, but she did not have the stamina. Behind her, were two Jeeps and a Humvee. Dawn ran up the stairs and looked around for Damon. Realizing, she had no time to look for him, she ran up to the door. For the first time in a while, luck was on her side as the door was unlocked. She hoped Damon made it inside.

The facility was dark and derelict. There were debris scattered across the floor and at the reception desk, there was a blown-out terminal along with office supplies. She needed to hide quickly and saw a bathroom down the hall. She opened one stall and there was a skeleton inside. As the Outcasts made their way in, Dawn hid in the next stall. She heard them rustling around the reception area. It was a hell of a day, Dawn thought to herself. She was barely awake before encountering another group of mercenaries that wanted to kill her. Then there was Damon to worry about. The kid must have been scared. She kept worrying about him and knew she could not live with herself if he ended up dead. During her reminiscence, one of the Outcasts entered the bathroom. There was a flashlight attached to his M-16. Dawn saw the light move around and remained still. The mercenary kicked a stall door open. Dawn exited the stall quietly and went behind him. She wrapped his arms around his neck and attempted to choke him but his strength was too great for her. He grabbed her arm and flipped her onto the floor. Before he could shoot her, she kicked the M-16 out of his hand and quickly stood up. The mercenary threw punches and kicks at her, but she dodged each one. She landed an open palm strike to his face, sending him into the stall. As he tried to dash out, she slammed the door directly onto his head, knocking him out. Dawn heard more Outcasts heading her way. She got her gun ready and stood near the door. There were multiple lights shining on the wall near her. Dawn knew what the only way out was. She used her .45 to fire at them, causing them to retreat into the lobby. Dawn poked her head out and was immediately fired upon. One of the Outcasts took out a frag grenade and tossed it near her. She ran back into a stall. The grenade exploded, knocking off the bathroom door. The Outcasts approached the bathroom. Suddenly, Dawn shot at them with her assault rifle, killing each of them. She ran down the hallway and headed upstairs.

Dawn looked through a dirty and cracked window. More Outcasts approached the building. Their attire was made up of tactical vests, black pants, boots with small spikes on them, and assault weapons. She saw Rowan, near the steps and he looked irritated. He held up a bullhorn.

"Dawn, I know you're in there," he said into the bullhorn, "I also know how much of a pain in the ass you can be. It's time I cut you a deal. I'm willing to let the whole incident of you killing my right-hand man in exchange for Damon."

There was a puzzled look on her face. It became obvious to her that Damon bad not been completely honest with her.

"What do you say Dawn?" Rowan continued, "He is worthless to you. Give him up.

Dawn needed to find Damon quick and prevent the Outcasts from getting to him. As they marched in, she headed upstairs into the darkness. She used the pip boy light to illuminate the surrounding area. There were old terminals, electronic parts, and lab equipment inside the rooms and in the hallway. The area felt cold and it was eerily quiet. When Dawn reached the end of the hallway, she saw what appeared to be a robot curled up in the corner. It had a spherical body and four arms. There was also a thruster mechanism underneath the body. She turned the corner and walked into a dark room. Inside were parts for robots and on the walls were blueprints to make a mechanical army. There was a small amount of sunlight that made it through into the room. She removed a warped piece of wood which covered a broken window. The harsh light of day hurt her eyes. She blocked out the light with her hand and saw the vehicles outside. The roof was a short climbing distance from her and she knew there was a better chance of taking the unavoidable conflict on the roof. Using the skills Damon taught her, she climbed outside and ascended towards the roof.

The top was laid out with piping, railings and staircases which had rusted. As she looked around for Damon, she noticed a small shack that had its door open. As she made her way over, she heard someone coming up to the roof. Dawn quickly ran into the shack as the Outcasts searched the roof. She had her assault rifle ready. Inside the shack was a small desk with a terminal on it and on the torn leather chair was a skeleton wearing a white shirt with a blue tie and brown slacks. The skeleton head stared at her with its jaws open. Then, one of the Outcast went near the shack. Dawn quietly grabbed him and pulled him inside. She locked her arms around his neck as he attempted to struggle free. He nearly broke free, but Dawn snapped his neck and quietly placed him on the ground. While the Outcasts continued their search, she noticed the flak jacket he had and put it on. The other Outcasts looked around for the missing soldier. One of them signaled for the others to go near the shack. Dawn saw the shadows on the wall. When they got close, she fired shots at them. The bullets hit their flak jackets and caused them to stumble down. Dawn quickly ran up the steps and ran across the platform. She did not know where she was headed. The Outcasts fired shots at her, but the bullets narrowly missed her as they bounced off the steel. The sound created by the bullets striking the steel sounded different. She returned fire as the Outcasts dove out of the way. Dawn ran down the steps and saw a ladder that had a safety cage around it.

She climbed down to the ground and did her best to stay out of sight. She quietly moved towards the vehicles in hopes of finding Damon. Then, the Outcasts surrounded her. There were only four of them and they all had their rifles pointed at her.

"Drop it!" One of them shouted.

Then, Rowan emerged. He had a smirk on his face as he stared at Dawn.

"Lower your weapons," he instructed his mercenaries, "I know Dawn Crenshaw isn't stupid."

Dawn threw her rifle down. Rowan walked behind her and kicked the rifle underneath a Jeep.

"Where is Damon?" He asked sternly.

"What do you want with him?"

"I'm asking the questions here. Where is he?"

"I don't know, he ran off. I was trying to find him."

"Hmmm."

Rowan stepped on the back of her knee causing her to drop to the ground and then grabbed her hair.

"You would die for him?" He fumed, "Do you even know who he is or what he is capable of? He has something we want, and we will take it."

Rowan shoved her to the ground. Dawn was angered and thought about getting up and beating him to a pulp. Then, she remembered the way the bullets sounded when they bounced off the metal railing and that the guns looked to be ones that fired rubber bullets.

"You're gonna kill me with rubber bullets?" Dawn pointed out.

"Wow! I'm impressed," Rowan admitted, "I should have known you would have figured that out. You see, we were not going to kill you, but now, you leave me no choice."

Damon saw the commotion from inside the facility. He was at an open window.

"Hey asshole!" Damon shouted.

They looked up at him, but he vanished.

"Shit! Go inside and bring him out here now!" Rowan ordered the Outcasts.

They went inside the facility. Dawn tried to get up, but Rowan held her down. He put his face near her hair and felt it. He moved his face near her neck and Dawn felt his breath.

"I heard stories about you," Rowan whispered, "I gotta admit, I always had a thing for badass women. But you've seem to have lost that edge."

"Yeah, well I got it back."

Dawn quickly struck him with an elbow and stood up, ready to fight. She struck him with punches to the stomach and then kneed him in the face. Rowan backed into the Humvee and quickly kicked her down. He smiled. Dawn stood back up and tried punches and kicks, but they were blocked. Rowan tried to kick her, but she grabbed his leg and drove an elbow into his thigh. He grunted in pain and then laughed it off. She tried to kick him, but he grabbed her leg and tripped her. He got on top of her and pinned her arms down.

"Damn, you still got claws," he mocked.

She tried to struggle free as he leaned in closer to her. When he got close, he licked her face. Dawn got one arm free and struck him in the face, knocking him off. She tried to kick him when he was down, but he grabbed her leg and swung her back to the ground. He quickly stood up. Then, gun shots were heard. He looked at the building and then the gunfire stopped. Suddenly, Dawn struck him in the groin. He screamed in pain as she locked him in a front headlock, trying to suffocate him. Rowan overpowered her and threw her down, ripping her shirt. She was on all fours. Rowan kicked her in the ribs and she grunted in pain. He bent over in pain while smiling and chuckling. Then, he kicked her in the ribs again. Dawn rolled on her back as the pain reverberated through her. He kneeled beside her and felt her face with the back of his hand. Then, Damon appeared behind him holding a rifle.

"Hey dumb shit," he alerted him

Rowan turned around and was surprised to see him. Damon shot Rowan, who fell to the ground. The bullets bounced off Rowan, indicating rubber bullets. He grunted in pain as Damon helped Dawn up.

"Let's go, now!" he urged.

He helped Dawn into the Humvee and Damon got in the driver's seat. The Humvee had a desert camo design and had a hatch on the roof. He drove out into the desert. Dawn was still dazed as she looked ahead.

"What the hell happened to you?" She asked.

"Sorry, I had to hide, I thought you did the same thing. If I would have known you were gonna fight them head on-"

"I was looking for you."

"Look, sorry, okay. But now we got this Humvee and we can drive to Junktown. They have a good doctor there."

"Who was that creep?"

"His name is Rowan, the leader of the Outcasts."

"Why are they after you? Is what he said about you true?"

Damon remained silent. He got a glimpse of Dawn staring at him with an annoyed look.

"I can't explain right now," he stalled, "When we get to the Mojave Outpost, I'll tell you. "

"They had rubber bullets," Dawn clarified, "They wanted to apprehend you, not kill you."

"I know. I ran out of ammo and that's what I shot Rowan with."

Dawn reeled in pain, knowing that she had to face another harsh reality. When the night came, Dawn and Damon stopped at the Mojave Outpost. It was a place for NCR soldiers as well as for travelers. The buildings were old and in desperate need of repair. Merchants, soldiers, and travelers walked around the area. Dawn drank a bottle of beer while staring out at the desert. Damon walked behind her.

"You take the stimpaks?" Damon asked her.

"Yeah, I feel a little better now."

Dawn looked at him.

"You ready to tell me?" She pressed, "Why are they after you?"

"Okay, you're gonna find out anyway," he said, "Just promise me you won't be mad. Promise me you won't think any different of me."

"I'm listening."

"Look you and me, we've travelled together, we helped each other, you're the first real friend I've had."

"Damon, if we really are friends, you won't hide anything from me."

Damon looked out into the desert.

"They are after me because I…am not a human being.

Dawn dropped her bottle.

"Okay, this is a joke," she assumed.

"I'm serious. They want to capture me and create more beings like me. I am what you call a gen 3 synth. I was created in a place called the Institute located in the Commonwealth. I can prove everything to you."

Dawn laughed.

"The Institute in the Commonwealth?" Dawn responded in disbelief, "Maddie told me about that, I never knew it actually existed."

"It is the truth, I wouldn't lie to you."

"Okay, prove it. Prove you are a gen 3 synth."

"Well, I can't right now unless I rip my skin off. It's artificial, but it looks and feels like real human skin. I can prove it to you once we get to Junktown."

"How is it that you act like a human then?"

"The Institute has the technology to make the gen 3 synths act and make them truly believe they are human. There are gen 3's out there who don't even know they are synths."

"So, the Outcasts, they want to create more of you."

"Yes, that's why we need to get to Junktown. Killian can help us."

Damon looked Dawn in the eye and place his hands on her shoulders.

"I know, I'm supposed to help you," Damon pleaded, "But I need to get away from here. You and me, we are still friends, right?"

Dawn smiled.

"Of course we are," she replied, "Why-?

"There are people who fear synths," he interjected, "They think they're abominations."

"You don't seem so bad."

Damon giggled. Dawn hugged him. Then, they went back to the bunkers. There was doubt in Dawn's mind about Damon, but he had no reason to lie to her about this. Now she needed to stick with him and find out if there was any truth to what he said.