Over the course of the next two weeks, I learned an awful lot about end of the world construction techniques. It mostly involved slapping extra boards together with a hope and a prayer. Ok, so maybe not quite that desperate but not by much. Slowly but surely, the beaten down yellow house became more livable. Sturges was an excellent teacher and a huge help when it came to making it feel like a solid home. Some of the other settlers donated things like nails, furniture, and an extra hand when needed. My new next door neighbor shared her generator once we were able to scout out the supplies she needed to make it stronger. Having a cozy little place with lights to push back the night turned out to be just what I needed to begin calming down a bit in this new world I'd found myself in.
Preston started in on his formal lessons once my house was about as complete as I cared to make it, which truthfully wasn't much. We began with weapons training. Turned out that I was much more proficient at shooting with hunting rifles than any of the other guns we had tried. He also showed me how to modify my new weapon so it would better meet my needs. A good sight went a long way to improving both my accuracy and my peace of mind. The further from battle the better off I was, in my opinion at least.
While shooting targets made of old glass cola bottles down by the banks of the small river that flowed just outside of Sanctuary had been fun, going after live prey proved to be more exciting. And by exciting I mean frustrating. Picking off bloatflies and mole rats did eventually improve my reaction time. Preston somehow managed to be both encouraging and commanding at the same time.
"That's it! Just spend a little more time tracking your target and you'll miss less." Preston said with approval at my progress.
"If the damn flies would stay still for a second, this would be much easier." I said.
"Easy doesn't help you hone your skills. You've got this. We'll just keep practicing." he said with a little pat to my shoulder.
"Let's head back to Sanctuary. You'd promised we could begin work on that whole armor thing. Make me a walking tin can and I'll be a happy lady." I said, dreaming of knights and shining armor. If I could be encased in enough material to ensure my survival, that was all I needed to be able to sleep better at night.
"Power armor is still a bit out of your arena." Preston said with a smile.
We gathered up our weapons, and began the short hike back to the settlement. Despite having my own personal hunting rifle, I still kept Nate's 10mm pistol strapped to my belt. Having the first weapon I'd ever carried in the Commonwealth by my side gave me a measure of comfort I never would've expected.
As we entered Sanctuary, I could see a pack brahmin up ahead near the trading post area of the settlement. The two-headed beasties still left me a little nauseous at the sight of them, even though they had been coming and going frequently enough. For the people of Sanctuary, having the chance to shop, trade a little gossip from other settlements, and perhaps score a bargain seemed to brighten up life here. I still needed help on that end. Using bottle caps as currency was such a foreign concept to me that Preston was forever worried I would get scammed in my attempts to trade. He was usually right, at least when Trashcan Carla came through. That woman could smell a mark a hundred miles away.
"Hey, I'm going to go see what some of this ammo I'm not going to use can get me. Wanna come with?" I asked Preston, hoping he'd say no.
"Sure. Sounds like a good time for another lesson on when to trade, and when to keep your caps." he said brightly.
The crowd had thinned out a bit by the time we had made our way over to the trader. Since I was so absorbed in counting through my ammo stash, I wasn't paying too much attention to the man who was working out a deal with one of the residents. His gravelly voice sounded odd, but who am I to judge? A lifetime in a radioactive wasteland probably affected more things in people than I was even aware of.
"C'mon, Dan! I don't have that many caps on me. Can't ya go a little lower on your price?" Leo whined.
Leo lived in one of the rooms on top of the Complex. That was the name Sanctuary's residents had given to that monstrously huge construction that had become an unmistakable landmark for many in the surrounding area. The man also had a budding drug addiction. Unlike Mama Murphy, Leo had no "special ability" to help him sucker folks out of their chems.
"You know my prices are firm. Honestly, I should raise my chem prices in your case. You've got to start cleaning up your act, Leo." the trader whose name was apparently Dan said sternly.
I glanced up to watch the unfolding haggle-turned-argument. I screamed, dropped my rucksack, and pulled the 10mm out, aiming it at the zombie trader. Everyone in my vicinity took off running. Except Preston. He grabbed my arms, and restrained me.
"Don't shoot, Brenna! He's not a feral!" Preston shouted.
For my part, all I could do was tremble with the sudden shock and fear of something so dangerous in our midst. How could everyone just act like we were safe?
The zombie was backing away from me slowly, holding its hands in the air like we were playing a game of Cops and Robbers.
"Hold her back! I didn't do anything wrong, I swear!" it yelled, the obvious fear of me in its voice.
Preston wrestled the pistol from my hands, and began dragging me back the way we'd returned to Sanctuary.
"You've got to calm down. Dan isn't feral. He's a pre-war ghoul. Nate knew him from back then. That's why he's now one of our dedicated traders. He won't hurt anyone. He's probably the most harmless guy I know." he said.
"What the flying fuck is a ghoul?! Preston, it's a zombie. We have to kill it!" I said in a panic, struggling to get out of his firm embrace.
"Brenna, listen to me. He. Is. Not. Going. To. Hurt. You. Let's get you back home for a bit, and I'll explain. Come on." he said with that same commanding authority I'd become accustomed to from him.
As Preston marched me back to my house, the ghoul sat cowering by the cooking station. I glared at the creature. It shrank back even further into the chair it was sitting in. Various settlers gathered around it, trying to soothe the monster in their midst.
As soon as we were safe in my temporary home, Preston pointed at the couch and ordered me to sit down. With the sudden shock of it all, I complied without so much as a peep.
"You've got to understand: there are two types of ghouls. Normal and feral. You've only had experience with feral ones. Yes, those ones will attack mercilessly. Ghouls like Dan are normal people who survived the bombs, and turned into what they are. Just like you and me. You've got nothing to fear from them." he said.
"Nothing to fear? Are you kidding me? Preston, you've seen them up close. They're monsters!" I said.
"While some might be assholes, they're not monsters. You owe Dan an apology. If you'd just talk to him, you'll see that he's a good guy." he said.
He practically dragged me out of my home and over to the ghoul. Although there were some tense words at first, things seemed to calm down around the cook fire after a heartfelt apology on my part. Turns out that Preston was right, and Dan was indeed harmless. As we chatted, alarms blared in the night. The spotlights on top of the Complex swiveled towards the side of Sanctuary closest to the river bank. People all around us jumped up, grabbed their weapons, and ran towards the beginning of a battle.