We all got up the very early the next morning. After some breakfast involving last night's leftovers, we began preparing for the day's events. Nate, who was feeling in a much better mood, took Holly to go over some things with the APC. From the sound of it, I think he was afraid she'd somehow break it while we were gone. Mark worked with North to find the best directions between here and the publishers that would allow us to avoid any potential dangers. Blanche and Drake were also getting ready, although it mostly consisted of Drake waiting while Blanche drank. I swear, if alcohol ever disappeared from the planet entirely, she would probably die of thirst. That left Onion, who was really put out that he wasn't going with me.

"Miss, I really do object! The last time we were separated you got kidnapped."

"I know Onion, but I need you here. Besides making sure nothing bad happens while we're away, you're the only direct link to us if anything happens. I've already told Holly that if you receive any sort of distress signal from us, she is to contact the Guardians immediately. If you go with us and something bad happens, she may not find out until it's too late."

"But Miss…"

"No buts Onion. You're staying here and that's that. Don't make me use the override."

"You wouldn't dare Miss. Would you?"

"Depends, are you going to listen to me and stay?"

"Alright Miss. I don't like it, but it's the most logical course of action. Please do be careful Miss."

"I always am."

"Override?" Mark's voice caught me off guard as I left the workshop where Onion's charging station was at.

"Oh you overheard me? Yeah. It's something that I installed a few months after I first built him. Before the learning algorithms had fully kicked in, he was a bit of a stickler for rules. Probably due to the fact that I used a modified Burrow-Tec algorithm multiprocessor segment, and I had forgotten to purge the secondary memory banks, which incidentally, contained the original Burrow Seventy-Six residency rules. I had done something, technically illegal, I'll spare you the details, and Onion was nearly about to turn me in. He said it was his 'civic duty as Burrow-Tec property'. I had to have him offline for almost a week before I could finally purge all Burrow-Tec processes and let the learning software make him a bit more reliable. The override basically let me take complete control over his entire system, including speech and 'thought' processes with my Pip-Boar. I only ever had to use it once and he didn't like it. Not at all."

"It felt like I was being possessed Miss. A quite unpleasant feeling."

"Well, technically you were Onion."

"I would rather not go through that again Miss."

"And that is why threatening you with it always works."

The door to the workshop slammed closed. Did he just… slam the door on me? Maybe leaving him here wasn't a good idea. He better not pick up anything from Holly, or else I'll be forced to reformat his entire memory bank. Maybe a personality adjustment. He was doing a lot of cleaning last night, maybe I'll make him into the bunker's personal maid. He would probably shock me an inch from death if I did that.

"So Mark, you get everything squared away with North?"

"Yeah, it shouldn't be that difficult to get to. There's actually an underground rail line that leads nearly there. There's only one problem, accessing it means we have to…"

"Oh, please don't tell me. We have to go through a sewer, don't we?"

"Afraid so."

"Fuck! I knew it. How did I know you were going to say that. I left the Burrow to get away from shit like that, and here that'll be the… third time I had to go through that… shit, since leaving the Burrow. You know what? Fuck you fate. Fuck you and whatever bastard you rode in on."

"Um… are you okay Olivia?"

Shit. I thought I was thinking that to myself. "Sorry. Ever since before leaving, I always contemplated the meaning of life, and how some have told me that some unseen paw guided us through life, and that every single thing that happens to a mammal happens for a reason and is often unavoidable. Sometimes life really does feel that way, and it makes me wonder, was I simply destined to meet you all, or was it just a fluke?"

"That's… no offense Olivia, but that's surprisingly deep coming from you. I figured you followed your own path, especially since half the time it seems like you're just making it up as you go alone."

"I don't make it up half the time! I make it up at least three-fourths of the time."

"That's not unsettling at all."

"Gee thanks. Hey, do you guys believe in the whole 'fate' thing?"

"That's… well that's a tricky subject honestly. Did I feel fated to meet Holly? Sometimes it feels like that, especially with her being the daughter of the Overseer. The thing is, fate isn't a one way street. If you believe you were fated to experience the good in life, then the bad was fated to you as well, and to think that it was fate's paw that treated Nate how he was, to believe that everything that happened to him was destined to occur, no matter what, then no, I can't imagine anyone being that cruel. Freedom, safety, now those are things to believe in. Those are what Saint Marian taught us."

"Saint Marian?"

"Nate and I's patron saint. It's… do you believe in any gods Olivia?"

"Gods? I… I never really gave it much thought honestly. Most nights my mother said she prayed for our safety and wellness before going to sleep, but I always thought it was just a figure of speech. I always had my nose in a book or my paws on tools to ever bother. I didn't even start to wonder about this whole fate thing until a few months ago."

"Well, I won't try to force anything on you, just remember, whether it's fate or religion, it's never simply a one way street. You have to take the good with the bad. Though sometimes, things get so bad that even you second guess your own beliefs." Mark started to walk away before stopping to say one last thing. "Of course, no matter what you believe in, I'll tell you this. I think you were given to us for a reason, or more specifically, to Nate. With everything that's happened to him, I think you're the brightest light in his ever growing darkness."

It's been an hour since we left the bunker but Mark's words still echoed in my head. I knew Nate cared for me, but did I really mean that much to him? He's known Holly and Mark his whole life, and they just met me a few weeks ago. How can I have become his 'brightest light in the darkness' in such a short time? Maybe whatever 'aura' Mayor Swift had to make me feel… odd around her rubbed off on me. Did something like that have a smell?

"Olivia? Why are you smelling your arm pits?" Mark sounded a bit confused.

"Nothing! I mean… oh look, is that the entrance there?"

"Why'd you have to go and find the craziest rabbit in the wasteland Nate?"

"At least she knows her way around tools. If Holly damages that APC…"

While Nate and Mark were arguing over Holly's competency in the garage, I found my way to the entry hatch for the sewage system. I told myself that I would never have to deal with this again, but here I am… again. If fate really was a two way street, there better be a fucking gold mine on the other side of this.

The door was stuck but with a bit of muscle I was able to turn the access wheel enough for it to swing open. The unwelcome smell of rotting waste filled my nose, causing me to gag. I nearly threw up before I was pulled back away from the entrance.

"Forgot to tell you. I dug these out of storage. Figured they would come in handy."

Mark handed me a mask. It was large enough to cover my face. A giant 'window' of plastic allowed me to have a good view out of it. A small disk like object protruded out the left side. "What's this?"

"A gas mask. They're designed to filter out any harmful chemicals, or in this case, hazardous waste. They also have the handy side effect of blocking out smells, although you need to adjust your breathing a bit. There's typically a higher resistance to airflow due to the filter."

"You had me at 'blocking out smells'. Now if only I brought my jumpsuit. Those things are usually water tight, but I left it in Hope."

"The one Mayor Swift gave you?"

"No, the one from the… well I left it behind for a reason. Anyways. Let's get this show on the road. I wanna get that book, if it even exists, and get back home."

"You and me both." I didn't notice them stopping their bickering as Mark's voice came from right behind me. "Although I think home to Nate is wherever you are Olivia. Ow! Did...Did you just hit me bro?!"

I felt Nate's tail creep up on my back.

"Okay boys, enough lollygagging. Let's get these masks on. I want to spend as little time in here as possible."

Once we all had our masks on we entered the entryway to the sewer system. This entry was unlike the typical street top ones. This was a large door attached to the side of a large concrete structure. It had deteriorated beyond recognition so I had no idea if it was once a treatment plant or just an over sized entrance. Either way it was our only ticket to the subway system. The only other entrance to the tunnels we needed was deep in Gray Quill territory, and I've already dealt with those fuckers enough for one lifetime.

We kept quiet mainly due to how muffled the masks made our voices, but also due to the fact that Mark had mentioned sometimes savage ghouls lived in the sewage tunnels. I nearly slapped his ears off when he told me that. I may have gotten to like North, but those savage fuckers? They can burn for all I care.

Thankfully our trip was uneventful save for Nate nearly slipping into the river of filth flowing through the tunnels, we didn't run into anything bad. It was only about forty minutes of careful walking until we reached the maintenance tunnel that connected to the main rail lines. I have no idea if it was smart, or stupid, planning putting these systems so close to each other, but it made things much easier for us.

After exiting a set of double sealed doors we were in a very dark area. Oddly enough, the sewage had working lights, but the rail tunnels didn't. It only took a few moments before my eyes had adjusted enough to see, although with so little light, it was hard to make the proper adjustments. I may have developed a fox's keen night vision, but you still need light for it to work.

"Let me get in front of you to help you see…" Nate tried to move in front of me but I grabbed his tail. His subsequent yelp echoed down the tunnels. "Ow! What'd you do that for?"

I looked at him and pointed towards the edge of the walkway. He followed my arm towards where the rails should be, and instead there was a dark nothingness. "Freaky mutant bunny fox, remember? I think my eyesight is just as good yours now, 'Mr. Chivalry'."

"Oh… I guess I forgot… thanks."

I turned my Pip-Boar's light on to get a better look around. Just as I suspected. Where the tracks should be was a very large hole, probably created during one of those quakes. I really hope no one was standing there when it collapsed. Then again, from the looks of it, I highly doubt anyone's been down here for a while.

"That's a deep hole." Mark whistled before he said it.

"I'm sorry that I grabbed your tail like that."

"It's okay. It's not every day you meet a mammal with multiple genetic types." He was rubbing his neck a bit nervously as he spoke.

"If it wasn't for the vision, I probably would too."

"And you're not a freak." Nate was nearly at a whisper when he spoke.

"Yeah, Holly actually came up with a clever name for you Olivia."

"Don't you start with that Mark."

"What? It's nothing bad. She just couldn't decide if that made you a doe or a vixen, and then she decided that you're a doxen."

I placed my paw in front of my face to try to drown out the groan I let loose. "I guess it could be worse. She could have started to call me a funny… don't you tell her that. Don't you dare."

"I promise."

"You better."

The giant grin on Mark's face said otherwise, but maybe he'll forget by the time we get back. Now that I think of it, I do have something that I wanted to ask him, and maybe that will help.

"Hey Nate?"

"Yeah?"

"I need to talk to your brother about something, you mind scouting ahead with your Pip-Boar sweetie?"

"Yeah, sure."

I turned to Mark and he had a very large smirk on his face. "What?"

"Oh nothing… 'sweetie'."

"Why did you…" I felt my face heat up tremendously.

"Now, what did you want to talk to me about that you had to send Nate away?"

"I-I… oh. Yeah. Well, yesterday while Nate and I were… talking, he brought up something about 'marking' me? What exactly does that mean? He was a bit nervous, well very nervous talking about it."

"That's… he… really?"

"Yeah."

"You're talking about Nate… OUR Nate?"

"Um, like I said before… yes. Why do you sound so surprised by it?"

"It's… wow. I never actually thought he of all mammals would bring that up. Ever. It's just. You see, with certain mammals, like us foxes, it's kinda like a… claim."

"Claim? What, you mean he wants to make me his property or something?"

"No! Oh, no that's not it at all! It's… sorry, I'm trying to think of a good way to explain it. I'll just tell you what I told Holly when I first brought it up. You see, yes, it is a claim, but not like claiming a bed to sleep in or land to live on, it's more than that. In a fox's entire life, they may never find the right person, but when they do, when they feel deep down in their heart of hearts that 'this is the one', they'll make a promise to that one mammal through their marking. The promise is steadfast, they'll be the one, and the only one for the rest of their days. They will protect them with their life, honor them, and forever stand with them. For Nate to even bring this up, to even broach the subject with you? It means that deep down, he knows he will never find another like you Olivia. You're his spark, just as Holly is mine. A spark goes even deeper than your own soul, it's like your very meaning to live. If a mammal loses their spark? Well, there may as well be no reason for living for them. To us, you are family, but for Nate to ask you that? You are more than family, you're his very reason for living."

His reason for living? That… "I really mean that much to him?"

"You do. Holly and I have noticed it. Gradually at first, but just being around you has changed him for the better. He has a long way to go I'm afraid, but you've pushed him in the right direction at a far greater pace than I thought was even possible. I still never expected him to come out and ask you about marking. That's a big step, even for him."

"That's… a lot to think over. What about the actual 'marking'? Wait… he's not going to… pee on me… is he?"

"NO! No, no, no. No. That's a barbaric way of marking from the stone ages. Where exactly did you learn your biology? Actually, I don't want to know, forget I asked. You see, foxes have certain glands that they basically use to spread their markings through caressing, nuzzling, and basically… well being very intimate. Rabbits have them too you know, just under the jaw if I remember correctly, but from what Holly tells me, it isn't nearly as… bonding to them as a fox. Still, she did help contribute during it, rubbing her jaw all over my…"

"TOO MUCH INFORMATION! Too. Much. Information!"

"Sorry, got carried away there. It's just… I'm not used to being separated from her like this."

"We'll be back before she even remembers you left. Now, you said it was… intimate? How much? I… after the…"

Mark gently placed his paw over my shoulder. "No, it doesn't have to be that way. Honestly, I don't think he'd even want to be that way with you, not yet. Not that he doesn't love you that much, it's just… he's always afraid of hurting others, and if for even a moment he thought that doing something would make you relapse back to what happened to you, well, you've seen him freeze up and whimper. He hates feeling pain, but he hates causing it to those closest to him, even if it wasn't his fault at all."

"I've noticed that. It's… I wish there was something I could do to help him."

"Like I've said, you've done more for him already than I think anyone could. Just keep… just keep being you. Just keep loving him. I think… yeah, I think he may eventually come around."

I looked at Mark and saw tears start to fall. I wiped them away with my paw as he blinked and looked away.

"Sorry. I just never thought. He's been through so much, I never thought he would ever recover. Thank you. For everything."

I gave Mark a hug to help comfort him. I knew Nate was… well broken, but if this was how his own brother was reacting, then I really must be that important to him. I don't want to feel pressured into accepting Nate's marking offer, but at the same time, I want to help him as much as I can, and if this helps Nate that much… When we get back I'll have to sit down and talk to him a bit more… privately about it.

"Did I miss something?"

Mark tried to wipe his eyes without Nate seeing as he turned. "No, everything's alright bro, we were just having a little… talk about something. Did you find anything?"

"No… are you… are you crying?"

"Me? No. Never."

Nate then looked at me, more confused than anything, but before he could say anything, I quickly moved to him and grabbed his arm, giving him a kiss. Mostly because I knew that usually helped to distract him, but also, after hearing how Mark described Nate's feelings towards me, he deserved to be shown my affection.

"We all good? We're all good. Now, you didn't see anything on your scanners?"

"No, well, maybe."

"Maybe? What do you mean, maybe?"

"The problem with these Pip-Boars is that they can't perform multi level scanning. There were a few blips, but I couldn't see or smell anything out of the ordinary, so they might be either above, or below us."

"That's not very reassuring."

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault Nate. I'm sure if there was a way to change that, you would've already done it. Let's just make sure we keep our noses and ears… wait, did you hear that?"

"No, what was it?"

"Not sure Mark. Wait here you two. I'll be right back."

"But…"

"I said wait here. Trust me."

"We're doomed."

"You sound like Onion."

I snuck away before they could say anything else, turning off my Pip-Boar light in the process. It was hard to make out, but I think it was the sound of… groaning? I couldn't tell if it was a mammal or simply some loose material. I could have sworn I heard voices too, but they were so muffled that I wasn't sure.

The path ahead split into two. Straight ahead is where we needed to be going, but the branch to the right is where the sounds seem to emanate from. I checked my scanner and sure enough, there were two dots a little down that path, but if Nate was right then it might not even be on the same level as I was. Still, I had to be sure.

"I think I hear it now."

"Fuck! Mark, don't sneak up on me like that! Nate? You too? Didn't I tell you to stay back?"

"Tell that to lover boy over here. He was afraid you'd run into trouble."

"I-I…"

"Fine. Just stick close and I better not hear a peep out of you two." How in the world does Holly deal with these two on a regular basis?

I kept the lead as they trailed a few feet behind me. As soon as we turned a corner I saw something illuminating the tunnel from a distance. It started out faint, but grew brighter as we neared its origin. This path must have been some kind of maintenance tunnel because it opened up on another rail line. Unlike the other one, this had working lights in the immediate area, and also unlike the other area, there was a large train car sitting on the tracks.

"I think this is where the noise is coming from. Think anyone's home?"

"I'd rather not find out."

"Do mammals even live down here Mark?"

"Possibly, but it's usually near stations, not this deep into the system. With the threat of ghouls, no sane mammal would dare to go this far."

Ghouls. I forgot about them for a moment. "You think its… ghouls?"

"I'd rather not find out if it's all well and good."

My brain was torn between there being danger, and there potentially being someone in need. I thought I heard groaning noises, but they seem to have stopped. Maybe it was just my imagination? "We shouldn't risk it. Come on, let's go before something bad happens." I turned around figuring that they would have started to head back towards where we came but instead smacked my face right into Mark's back. "What's the deal? Why aren't you…"

Mark looked at me with a very nervous look in his eyes as he traced a path with them to the ground. I followed until I saw a thin wire caught on… his… leg. Fuck.

"It's a trip wire." Mark gulped as he spoke.

"Don't move. Nate, keep an eye out." I looked at the taught wire and followed it. One end connected to a nearby wall, so I traced the other side of it right to a pile of crates. Being careful not to touch it, I found what it was connected to. A very large shotgun. Who the fuck rigs a shotgun to a trip wire? I wasn't familiar with this type of weapon, although how different could it be? Pull the trigger and hope someone dies. This time, I wanted to make sure no one died.

I saw that the wire was wrapped in such a way that if wire gets any more pressure on it, the gun will fire. I tried to slowly move it, but in doing so I saw the tension of the wire increase. I was about to tell Mark to see if he could slowly move out of the way to release the tension but that's when I noticed that whoever set this up was smart. The wire that he was on was not directly connected to the gun, but rather to a small mechanical device that from the looks of it, will trigger the gun no matter if the wire is tightened or loosened.

If I tried to move the gun, it will go off, if I tried to cut the wire, it will go off, and the direction it was pointing, it would be guaranteed to hit Mark, and since Nate didn't want to leave his brother's side, he would be in the line of fire as well. Fuck. I thought about potentially plugging up the barrel, but I may just end up adding another projectile to the fray. There was only one thing I could think of, and they were probably not going to like it.

I moved closer to Mark and Nate. "Okay, here's the deal. The wire is attached to a primed shotgun, and there's no way of disarming it without setting it off before it's safe, so this is what I need you to do. As soon as I give the signal, move as fast as you can back into the tunnel, alright?"

"What are you planning to do?" Mark seemed skeptical about my plan.

"Oh, I have an idea. Trust me."

"I really don't like when you say that." Now he seemed nervous.

"I-Is there anything I c-can do?" The sudden nervous stuttering told me that Nate was getting very worried, although I had no idea if it was worry for me or his brother.

"Just run and make sure he gets into the tunnel. Just in case."

"A-are you g-going to be…"

"I'll be fine Nate, I promise. Now, on my signal."

"Uh, you haven't told us what it is yet."

"You'll know. Trust me, you'll know."

Before I could get any more objections out of them, especially since I wasn't sure how this would play out myself, I moved back over to where the gun was. I made sure that no one had spotted us, if there was even anyone here, the noises had stopped a bit ago, and then looked over to the brothers and smiled, winked, and said two little words. "Pip-Boar, kill."

It took them a moment to realize what was happening but by the time the chemicals kicked in, plus the fact that I had been frantically waving at them that that was the signal, I could see the tension in the wire decrease as Mark jumped out of its snare. At the same time I threw my back to the ground and kicked the gun with all my might, causing it to expel its contents towards the ceiling. B.A.T.S. was sure nice for allowing me to take things nice and slow, but apparently it did not do a damn thing about sounds, because the roar of the shotgun that close to me caused a small ringing in my ears. I wasn't deaf, but it was still disorientating.

I turned back to the tunnel to see one of their tails vanishing into it. I was about to follow them but I heard a noise that caused me to duck behind the nearby crates instead. It was muffled, but it was definitely a voice. I peaked over the crates just as the chemicals were wearing off. Out stepped a mostly black polecat. He started to look around as he was putting on a jacket, a jacket that looked a lot like… fuck! It's a Legionary!

"Hey! Who goes there? I know someone set off my trap. Show yourselves!"

Fuck me. Why did it have to be a Legionary? Were there more? Damn it, why didn't I bring bigger guns? I stayed there. Hoping he would just think it was an accident and go on his way. That would've been the best scenario, but the moment he started to move towards where the gun was, which just so happened to be where I was as well, I knew my luck wouldn't be that good.

"James! Get back here! What if it's my crew looking for me?"

I had to adjust my position as he got closer, still waiting for my B.A.T.S. to cool down. I took a look at the new voice, expecting to see another Legionary, but instead saw another polecat with striped fur that had a color scheme almost identical to my own. She didn't have a Legionary uniform on, rather she barely had anything on at all. A purple halter top and panties was all she wore. What the hell? Then I remembered the groaning noise…

"Pipe down sis! And get some damn clothes on! Those damn Quills won't be able to find us here."

"Well someone set off your trap."

"If you'd shut up I'll be able to figure it out!"

"Sorry, bro."

Bro? Sis? Wait a second, if they're related, and the noise I heard were… I shuddered at the thought. That ain't right. I had to do something, and fast. The others were probably wondering where the hell I was, and if this Legionary reported where I was, then we were royally screwed. Still, that other polecat seemed very familiar to me. Who did she remind me of?

"Ah-ha! I see you rabbit!"

He saw me? How the fuck did he… fuck, my ears. I could have sworn they were just flattened against my head. I really wish there was some kind of indicator on my Pip-Boar, I have no idea if sixty seconds had passed yet or not. I tried to look towards the tunnel, but I had moved into such a position that unless I stood up, I wouldn't have been able to see it. There was one thing I could do however. I pressed a button on my Pip-Boar and slowly stood up.

"Don't shoot!"

"Well well, what a cute little rabbit. Now tell me girl, how did you manage to find… well shit! Oh, this is gold! Cece! It's the fucking bitch me and the crew were hired to apprehend!"

Fuck. How did he recognize me already? Was I one of the only rabbits in the wasteland or something? "I-I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Shove it cunt, I know exactly who you are. Hell, I even have a picture." He reached into one of his coat pockets and drew out a folded piece of paper. He unfolded it with one paw, his other one gripping a gun that was pointed right at me, and held the unfolded paper towards me. It was a picture. Of me, or at least from my neck up. How the hell did he get a picture of me?

"I don't know who hired you, but what the fuck did I do to piss off someone that bad?"

"Fuck if I know. I ain't paid to know things, I'm paid to kill things, although in your case, I'll get paid even more if I bring you in alive. Although no one said you had to be in one piece. Hey sis! Didn't you say you recognized that bitch as well?"

"That fucking rabbit? Yeah, that cunt killed Bailey and my partner… holy fuck, that's her alright!" The female, now dressed in a black shirt with black jeans on, was now very familiar. She was there during my attack on the Theater. I thought I killed all those fuckers? Guess I missed one, and now it's come back to bite me in the ass.

"Tell me, bitch. How did the Legionaries most wanted come waltzing right into the arms of one of their lieutenants, huh?"

It had to have been more than sixty seconds, it just had to be. "Well, funny story, first there was this grenade, and then there were these to tiny little words: Pip-Boar, kill."

I started to move before I even felt the chemicals take place. He fired off a round but it had just missed me. I really hope that Nate was listening in on my conversation. I also hope he got my message. Once the chemicals were fully integrated into my system I drew my gun and fired a round into his leg, causing him to buckle and fall. I wanted him alive. His sister? Not too much. I pointed my gun at her as I saw her in the air, her entire body twisting around her javelin as she readied to throw it. If I wasn't in the middle of a fight, I would have been awestruck at the sight. I aimed my gun up at her and fired just as she was about to release. I was hoping to finish her off quickly, but even in my state of enhanced accuracy, she was moving just fast enough for me to hit her arm instead. She dropped like a rock, screaming, but not before tossing her javelin.

I jumped out of the way but her aim had been faltered by my shot and instead of hitting me like she was probably planning to, the javelin impaled her brother right through the chest. Damn it, I wanted him alive!

"JAMES! You… YOU FUCKING CUNT! I'LL KILL YOU!"

"Oh, shut the fuck up brother fucker." I pointed my gun right at her head and fired just before the chemicals wore off. It was a clean kill. I… I will admit, I felt a little bad, basically making her kill her own brother, but it was me or them. While I did wanted to find out who had hired those bastards to get me, part of me was afraid. I was afraid of it being another… Wild Times… all over again. I looked over the body of the Legionary. He wasn't moving. He was already dead. I was going to find out who sent them, but it will be on my own terms. Not theirs.

"Olivia!"

I saw Nate and Mark running from the tunnel. "What part of grenade didn't you understand?"

"Holly keeps the grenades, I thought you were warning us about a grenade! That's why we didn't come sooner!"

Mark stopped at the Legionary while Nate ran right up to me and hugged me tightly, muttering 'I'm sorry' over and over again until I put my paw on his muzzle to stop him from talking.

"It's not your fault Nate, it's mine. I had just assumed that you guys kept some grenades on you."

"I don't think Holly trusts Nate with any type of explosives."

"S-shut up Mark."

"Still, I'm glad you two didn't just try to rush in to help me. While I was hoping that the grenade would prove to be a distraction, adding you two into the fray might not have been the best idea, especially since they wanted me alive. I doubt he would have hesitated with shooting you two." I saw Mark rummaging through the pockets of the Legionary. "Anything good Mark?"

"Ammo, some chems, a picture of… you?"

"Yeah, I have no fucking clue where he got that from. There's no scar so it's not recent, although that bothers the hell out of me, and worries me too. You saw those… pirates in Darkwater. They said they were hoping to sell me to the Legionaries. What if they got so desperate to find me that they start handing out pictures of me? The last thing I need is a bounty on my head with the entire wasteland trying to claim it."

"I can picture it now. 'Olivia the Typhoon, Six billion cap reward'." Mark seemed oddly chipper saying that.

"Olivia the typhoon?"

"Eh, from a graphic novel I read. Sorry, got books on the brain right now."

"Don't you mean your brain is a book, bro?"

"You're sounding awfully comfortable despite the fact that your girlfriend just killed two mammals without any thought."

"Hey! I gave it some thought. Like… six seconds."

"I'm j-just glad you're alive."

"It's gonna take a lot more than that to take me down."

I would say that it was me who kissed Nate, but honestly I think this time it was a joint effort. Mark nearly died from a trap, I almost got captured by the mammals we were hunting, nearly got skewered with a giant metal pole, and we were standing next to two still bleeding corpses. Why the hell was the mood so high right now? I guess we were just all glad to be alive.

"You think they had anything of importance in there?"

"Hmm, perhaps Mark. Let's go take a look. Maybe a clue to who hired him."

We moved towards the train car that sat alone on the tracks. I wanted to go first, just in case there was another trap, but Mark insisted he go first since I had just been 'drugged' up twice by B.A.T.S. even though Nate and I both assured him it had no side effects like other chems, but the medical training in him must not have trusted any non-medicinal chem. I think Nate had enough of our bickering because he pushed his way past and went in first, before returning a few seconds later, his ears redder than anything I had seen before, and his cheeks were matching.

"You okay bro? What's in there?"

"I-I-I."

"Nate sweetie, you okay?"

Mark popped his head in, Nate still stuttering. This was not a fearful look on his face, more like… embarrassment?

"Ooh myyy."

"What? What is it Mark?"

"You… yeah there's nothing in here. Nothing important. Let's go."

What the hell was in there that made them look like they just saw a ghost? Much to Mark's disapproval, I pushed past him and looked inside. Most of the lights were coming from half burnt candles, with a large multi-colored reflective ball hanging above a very large bed. On the bed were some ropes. Did they actually have a hostage at some point? I tried to find signs of struggle but all I saw were strange looking objects of different shapes and sizes. What the hell are these, weapons of some kind? I picked one up and it was a bit wiggly, and it had a strange smelling funk on it.

"What the heck are you doing Olivia? Put that down! Put. That. Down."

"What is it?"

"You… really? I'm so not telling Holly this, I promise. That little sis, is a… wolf's… penis."

I dropped it in shock at what Mark just said. "WHAT?"

"Not a real one! It's… a sex toy, made to look like one…"

"How the fuck do you… no. I don't wanna know. I said NO! And you will not tell Holly this or else…" Then something he said hit me like a brick. "Did you just call me… 'little sis'?"

"I told you, you're family to us, so better get used to it. I think this is making Nate very uncomfortable, so let's get out of here. From the sound of it he didn't know who hired him, and I doubt he'd just leave that laying around, and stop staring at the 'toys' Olivia."

"I'm not staring!" I was staring. Why the fuck was I staring? I… I can't even… why the fuck would two siblings have these things in their bed!? Why the hell was she nearly naked? Why… WHY? My head was awash with more thoughts and feelings than I knew what to do with. I stormed out of there, trying to clear my head. Nate was still standing there, red faced and in shock. I grabbed him by the arm and dragged him down the small ramp that connected to the car. Once we were down on the ground I think I shocked him with how forcefully I kissed him. It helped him get his mind off of things, I was hoping this would help to release my own… tension.

"Better?" From the sound of it, I wonder if Mark knew exactly why I did that.

"Actually, yeah. Sorry Nate." It surprisingly did work, although that feeling of tension, it was… oddly stimulating. At least it was until it started to bring back memories I was still trying to erase. If that tension had built up much longer…

"S-s… for w-wha…"

"Being so forceful, but I… let's just get going. You good Nate?"

"Y-yeah… I think."

"Good enough. C'mon, let's get out of this place."

The rest of the tunnels were very uneventful, which actually bummed me out a little. When I first left the Burrow, it was one harrowing fight after another. Ghouls, giant insects, raiders, there were times I thought they would never stop, and I was kinda missing that. Yeah there had been those evil Guardian types with their plasma weapons, and those damn spiders, but up until these two, I hadn't seen a real gun fight, and the rush from it was still lingering. It was nice feeling like I had the upper paw again.

"The trail ends here. There," Mark pointed upwards towards a small maintenance hatch above us. The ladder leading up to it was large enough for us, but it was definitely not designed for anything larger than a wolf… and now I need to put my brain through the wash cycle again. Oh, I really hope I don't see a wolf anytime soon.

Before anyone could start to argue about who goes first, I jumped onto the ladder and started to climb. It had to have been nearly two hundred feet before I reached the small hatch. It was similar to the one at the sewer where it had a wheel like device that I had to turn to open. Unlike that one, however, this wasn't loose at all. I wondered if this is where those two came through? I'm surprised we didn't run into any other traps.

There was a small bit of light coming through a filtered window on the hatch, but once it was fully open, I nearly lost my grip as I got blinded by the sunlight. I regained my composure and slowly peeked out, using my paw to make sure that my ears were against my head. Both my scanner and my eyes showed no sign of anyone so I slowly crept out of the hatch as the foxes followed behind me. Once we were out, I slowly closed the door, to make sure that no one suspected anything. Last thing we needed was to be scouring this place and get ambushed.

Our destination was immediately in front of us. A giant sign read: Random Den Publications. The building was about two stories tall and a very box like shape. It looked more like a child's toy than a building. Keeping an eye on my scanner, we approached the building. There was a torn poster on one of the walls. Limited Time Only! Meet the One and Only, Jack Savage!

"Wow, I would have loved to meet him."

"You do realize he was a fictional character, right? It was probably just some actor."

"Way to break my dream Mark."

"Keeping your head in the clouds just means you have to fall at some point."

"Maybe you should write a book. Let's try finding a way in…"

The sound of a gunshot distracted me. Part of me got mad that we were being interrupted from a potential treasure, while another part got excited at the thought of more action. Then there was a new part, one that I had felt for a little bit, but was growing exponentially. Keeping them, keeping Nate, safe.

"I see one dot on the scanner. It looks like it's around back."

"Were going to investigate, aren't we?"

"You expect anything less?"

We moved towards an alleyway on the left side of the building. Nate was keeping extra close to me. He was probably still worried about what happened earlier, despite me telling him it wasn't his fault. I really hope nothing ever happens that ends up being his fault. That might destroy him. I'll just have to make sure that never happens.

Another gunshot echoed through the passage, telling us that we were getting closer. Both shots sounded the same, so either there was only one person shooting, or two mammals had the same gun. For all I knew it was just someone practicing. I remember doing that myself with some bottles, what felt like a long time ago.

I reached the edge of the alley and paused, waiting to hear another shot. When there was none, I took a glance around the corner. There, crouched behind a large dumpster was a rabbit. He was dressed in a black and white suit, the darkness of the fabric making the gray color of his fur seem much brighter. There was something… striking about him. I wanted to move and get a closer look, but I started to feel warmth on the top of my head. I looked and saw Mark trying to peak between my ears.

"Can I help you?"

"I wanted to… is that… no, it can't be!"

The rabbit suddenly looked right in our direction. Fuck, he saw us. Without getting up from his crouch he pointed his gun right at us, but rather than trying to shoot, or even yelling at us to identify ourselves, he simply waved his gun and his head as if telling us to move closer to him. It could be a trap, but I had an odd feeling that he wasn't any danger to us. At least not yet.

"He wants us to go to him."

"You think that's wise?"

"No, but for some reason I don't think he will hurt us. Keep your eyes and ears open though. Follow me."

Nate tried to stop me by wrapping his tail around my leg, but I shook it off and gave him a stern look. I didn't want to be mean to him, and I wasn't angry, but he couldn't always protect me by stopping me from doing something potentially stupid and reckless. It's just who I am. Probably some other genetic mutation, cozying right alongside my foxy part. I chuckled to myself. 'Doxen'. I kinda liked it.

We were halfway towards where the rabbit was when he suddenly held up his paw, jumped up and fired into the distance over the dumpster before dropping down again and signaling us to get closer. Who was he attacking? There was no return gun fire, so ghouls maybe? Once we got closer I could see him in more detail. The tips of his ears were very dark, and he had three tiger like stripes on either side of his face in the same darkened color. Why did he look so familiar?

"You chaps from the Ministry? You don't look like Agents."

"Ministry? No, we're not… who are you?"

"Not my back-up? Damn shame. Well, looks like you caught me in quite the pickle here love. Let me introduce myself. The name's Savage. Jack Savage."

Fallout: Zootopia After Show

Featuring:

'Stripes in the Morning'

[Stripes]

"Good morning Zootopian wasteland! This is Stripes with Stripes in the Morning! Now, it appears that some of you are still slightly confused as to a certain ghoul's placement within the world. While I will not be revealing too much, stay tuned for a future official reveal, and trust me folks, you're gonna like it. I did however, manage to get a chance to have a nice little chat with a one North West. Good day Mr. West, how are you fairing?"

[North]

"I look like a deathwings's scratching post, just spent nearly every cap to my name, and unsure of what to do or where to go from here, but hey, it's sunny out, so that's a plus."

[Stripes]

"It is a rather nice day, isn't it? So, let me get right into it. Why exactly were you willing to spend your savings on a random rabbit and her friends? You really don't seem to be the generous type."

[North]

"It's complicated, so complicated that I don't think that I understand it. Olivia is a good kid, but generally good kids get killed before they have a chance to do any real good. Her? She's a fighter, and not the usual type you find out in the wasteland, no, she's more than that. She sees the real good in mammals, and even when she's in her most dire moments, she still fights not just for herself, but for others, even if she knows it's the last fight she'll give. I respect her for that. It's more than I ever have or ever will accomplish."

[Stripes]

"I simply mentioned a rabbit and her friends, yet you not only knew who I was talking about, you also seemed to go into great detail about her, and her alone. Tell me, do you two have any connections, any at all?"

[North]

"I barely know the girl, I just know she means good, and has shown she's committed to that. When I first met her, I figured it was a phase. I could tell she was a Burrow dweller right away. Sure she didn't have the fancy blue jumpsuit, and any moron can get a Pip-Boar if they know where to look and have the caps. It's how she talked, how she moved that told me. I've met a few of them before, they never last. Every single one says that this world is crap and they want to bring it back to its glory days. The problem is, they're all talk and the moment they run into even the meekest of raiders, they're either left naked and alone, or dead. Usually the latter. I figured it would've been the same with her, but then I ran into her again, and again, and then I saw her get brought to Wild Times. Something in me just… it clicked, and I just had to do something."

[Stripes]

"That brings me to two questions. First is this, why exactly were you at Wild Times that fateful day? I can't imagine a mammal such as you trading with such… deplorable mammals."

[North]

"Do I enjoy working with slavers? No, no I do not. Up until recently, my only driving force was caps. Find or buy some junk, turn it around and sell it for a much higher profit. I admit, I have on multiple occasions sold someone something that was… not up to quality standards, but usually I try to deal with profit trades. Buy low, sell high. I tend to do a lot of traveling as well, gathering what I can, including whatever chemicals and such I can find that are still usable. That's what I was doing at Wild Times that day, and that was what I had been doing. They get their supplies from whatever belongings their newly acquired slaves had previously, but the chemicals they use for keeping them in line? It was traders like me that supplied them. Now, before any of you goody-two shoes start to complain that I'm as bad as or worse than the slavers, let me fill you in on something. First, this world is cruel, and in order to live as long as I have, you need to be cruel at times. I don't like slavery. It just feels… wrong. I do, however, like my own freedom, and if trading with them helped to keep that damn collar from my neck, then so be it. I'll also note that I didn't know exactly what the chemicals were for. They simply said to keep their slaves in line, so I didn't push it, because at the time, I really didn't care."

[Stripes]

"That's… well folks, I have no words. While it sounds like he is one of the bad guys in that fact, he is right. Survival is key out here, and sometimes you have to do things that you never thought you would do in order to survive. Otherwise, there wouldn't be any mammals alive to try to save."

[North]

"Now look here bub. Just because I dealt with slavers doesn't make me a 'bad guy'. I knew some pretty honest slavers who simply wanted to survive like me. A few of them, like this one cheetah I know named Chucky, he's a pretty decent guy. Sure he helps round up slaves, but he told me he never liked it. He also tried his best to make sure that any slaves sold through him were not only fed well and kept safe, but even slipped them something that not every slave knows. You can buy your freedom. Chucky was a slave who was able to buy his own freedom. Now me? I would've high tailed it out of there and never looked back, but Chucky, no, he was a slave ever since he was a wee cub, so he didn't have any family, had few friends, and really had no place to go. Since he knew the ins and outs of slave life, he used that to help as many as he could. This world is so cruel that I don't think an army of Olivias would be able to put an end to it. Even if Wild Times has been burned to the ground, the Slave Prince, or whoever decided to take up the mantel would simply start again somewhere else. When you can't stop something, it's better to find a way to live with it."

[Stripes]

"What if she could end it?"

[North]

"I'd give her the clothing off my own back and be her faithful servant, but you know what? Even that is slavery. Offering your life to another, no matter how genuine, that's slavery as well. Being tied to a dead end job with no future? Slavery. Being forced to be sly, under-pawed, and untrustworthy just because of your species or just being a ghoul like me? Slavery. No matter how you word it, no matter how much you sugar coat it, slavery always has, and always will exist."

[Stripes]

"You seemed rather… well just now, you seemed different, like you were someone else, if only for a short moment."

[North]

"I did? Yeah, sometimes I feel… probably just my slowly rotting brain. Look, I got things to do, how long are you going to keep me tied up here?"

[Stripes]

"I just have a few more questions, it won't take long. Okay, so do you remember anything about your life before your ghoulification? Like your occupation, any family members, even where you lived?"

[North]

"Nope. Sure, I get… feelings here and there, but nothing solid. I know I'm a fox, and I know from my getup I had a very bad taste in clothing apparently, but at the same time, I can't find myself parting with it. I had a picture once, one that I thought was me, but I tore it up into scrap. Seeing how I was, compared to how I am just made these past centuries even harder. I can't even remember my own name."

[Stripes]

"That's a shame. Not knowing who you were, or even your birth name must be very hard on you, especially after all these years. Max, it looks like you have a question?"

[Max]

"Yeah. There's something that's bothering me to no end, and I do apologize for my wording, but why the Hell do you call yourself North West? That's a direction, not a name!"

[North]

"Heh. You're not the first, trust me. Like I said, I didn't even know my own name. The only thing I had was a torn tie with the monogrammed letters of N and W. It might have been a clue to my name, but it also could've been the name of the tailor that made it. Heck, maybe my past self stole it from someone else, I can't imagine skills like mine would come so naturally to me unless it was already what I did. My first years as a ghoul were a bit fuzzy. I would wander around, and when others, those who didn't try to shoot me on sight, asked my name, I started to say my name was simply N. Once I started to establish myself as a trader, things got problematic with simply going by a single letter. I'd tell everyone to just look for N, but then they would see traders with the name Nigel, Nate, Nick, or even females like Natasha, Natalie, and the like, and assume that's what the N stood for, despite no ghoul being present. They probably figured I was a slave, or a servant, or some piss-poor ghoul. Nine times out of ten, if a ghoul isn't killed on sight, they're kept as servants, just a fancy way of saying slaves. Now, as for my current name. It's rather silly, yet so very effective. Mooching off of another trader caravan is easy money, and I always planted myself south east of where a major one was set up. So, whenever someone told a traveler that there was a trader set up north west of their location? They end up running into a trader named North West, and assume that was what the person meant. I'd do my business and then send them anywhere BUT towards the other traders. Sure that earned me a bit of ire from the other more… honorable traders, but let's face it, where there's caps, there's a way."

[Stripes]

"That's rather… is it wrong to think of it both devious yet very effective? You sir, must be a genius among thieves."

[North]

"Eh, I don't like to brag, but I'll take that compliment."

[Stripes]

"Well, my time is running short but there is one last thing I have to ask. You've been around for a very long time, so you must have met a lot of mammals in that time, am I correct in saying this?"

[North]

"Pal, I know everyone there is to know."

[Stripes]

"Well then, does the name, Nick Wilde ring a bell?"

[North]

"Um… nope, can't say it does."

[Stripes]

"Well, it was worth a try folks. Thank you for your time Mr. West. So folks, that ends yet another After Show, and I hope I leave you with many of your questions answered, although I'm sure I've just opened a new can of worms. You know, I really don't get that expression. Who keeps their worms in a can? I mean, bugs, yes, I can see that, I mean, I'm a herbivore, but I've seen some mammals eating Hungry Maw canned Bug-a-Do's, but worms?"

[Max]

"Get on with it you single minded mammal!"

[Stripes]

"Yes, sorry, trailed off a little. Well then folks, as I was saying, I hope you enjoyed this episode, and tune in next time as the story unfolds, the adventure continues, and perhaps we will have another special interview planned. So, until then, take care everyone! Now, what the heck am I supposed to do with this pineapple, apple, and two pens?"