4

"This is stupid, MacCready.", Sydney whispered.

"I can second that.", Emaline agreed.

Just before the leader of the special forces of the Minutemen told them to shut up, the two fist bumped before bringing their hands back to their long guns. "Thank you, Major.", the two sang.

MacCready sighed. "Just keep your voices down and your eyes up."

"Mine, mine, mine!", one of the members from Far Harbor. Everyone stopped. "Clear.", he called out after he had defused and pocketed the explosive.

"Do you really think they're 'swift as the wind'?", Emaline asked.

Sydney replied. "What about the 'strength of ten men'?"

"That would make this more pleasure than business, but maybe they can turn into bats.", Emaline supposed.

Sydney rolled her eyes. "And when they look in your eyes to hypnotise you?"

Her friend shrugged. "Everybody's got their own way of flirting their way into my pants." Emaline swung her weapon at a crack in the ceiling but realized it wasn't a real entry point or hiding spot, and returned her attention to the infiltration.

"Just be thankful that we get to do this during the day.", MacCready reminded.

1

"Oof.", the old man let out as he sat himself down in one of the ramshackle shacks of Arefu. "'scuse me, sonny. There's not a lot of blood running through this old man's veins nowadays."

"That's an odd turn of phrase.", MacCready noted.

"So what is it that you...you, Minutemen, was it? What is it that you wanted to talk to Arefu about?", Evan King asked.

"Alright. The Minutemen are in the process of taking operational control of the Capitol Wastes from the Brotherhood of Steel.", the major responded.

The old man nodded. "You mean the metal clad folks that sometimes stomp by? That is news. Fortunately, it doesn't have anything to do with us."

MacCready sighed. "Well, your town of Arefu is in the Capitol Wastes. Which means we need to work out with your local government how to integrate your town into the Commonwealth's government - the civilian led government the Minutemen defend. And since everyone living here says that you're in charge and you make the deals for as long as anyone remembers, we've come to you to start that process."

The old man started laughing. "Oh boy-o-boy. If you've come here to start a protection racket, then you have come to the wrong place."

"No racket, old man.", Sydney assured. "I've seen it with my own eyes. When you sign on with the Commonwealth you get real, in the hand, benefits - water filter tech, communal food source security, access to trade routes that stretch farther than even I've been. All it takes is abiding by the laws your community gets a say in writing along with the others - like the recent law against mercenary work after...after...", she snapped her fingers, "What was it, Major?"

"The Gunner Civil War.", he supplied.

"That's it. And after signing up, the Minutemen would only do your external security. Local law enforcement would still be completely internal to your guys."

"Ha. You're trying to be a salesman but you're not one, Mr. MacCready. We already got all the protection we need from the Family."

Sydney shrugged. She told MacCready, "Never heard of the outfit."

Emaline, former soldier for hire, tunnel rat, and current volunteer for special forces visibly paled. "I have, major. They're vampires."

MacCready turned to her. Turned back to Evan. Turned back to Emaline. "The f...What is a vampire, exactly."

King cut her off, if she was going to answer at all. "They is monsters of the night that come out of their lair at Meresti Station to wreck terrible vengance is what they is. We keep the blood drinkers in blood, see. That's why so many of us are tired all the time. In exchange, if anything was to happen to anyone in Arefu or even the attempt of it, there'd be a terrible reckoning."

"uh, huh.", MacCready nodded.

"Look here, Mr. MacCready. Our current guard is sleeping during the day time, like he usually does. You're welcome to stay the night. Talk to him."

"Thank you, Mr. King.", the major agreed. "My team will prepare for this and head out in the morning, if that's alright with you?"

"Of course, my boy."

2

"Are we in ear shot?", MacCready asked.

The others looked around and shook their heads.

"Okay, what do we know about vampires?", he asked. "Anyone? Anything?"

Emaline frowned. "Vampires ain't nothing to fuck with.", she began. "Blood drinking serial killers that as soon snatch a child's flesh of his bones as they'd claw into a deathclaw's heart for the 'sweet meats'. Heard of a cannibal that was run out of Rivet City. A time later, his family got back a letter in his handwriting that he had ascended through the laws and had become a vampire."

"Really, Emaline?", Sydney challenged. "The Major's asking for information and you're feeding us this urban legend?"

"It's all I got."

MacCready shook his head. "Alright, we're calling this in. Unpack the CB."

A few minutes later, a faint but clear and familiar voice responded. "Radio Freedom, over."

"This is Major MacCready, in the field. Requesting specialized intelligence. Time sensitive for immediate mission response. Over."

"Intel...may be delayed, eta unknown...at least hours, maybe a day. Submit request. Over."

"Ask one of Desdemona's people to get anything they can dig up on vampires. Spelled...How do you spell it?"

Emaline informed him. "I've heard v-a-m-p-i-r-e, v-a-m-p-y-r, and even v-a-m-p-i-r-o."

"Did you catch that? Over."

"Sir, yes, sir. Intelligence request will be submitted...please hold." There was talking in the background. "Please hold for Admiral Zhao. Over."

MacCready looked to his people. None of them had a clue. "Holding. Over."

"This is Admiral Zhao. Am I speaking to the leader of our special forces? Over."

"Yes, sir. Over?"

"I respect that you answer directly to the General. However, I do out rank you. You will obey my commands? Over."

MacCready shrugged. "Yes, sir. Over."

"That is good, Major. Please have all of your personnel immediately walk into direct sunlight. This is an order. Over."

The group looked around at each other.

"We are all outside, under the sun right now, admiral. Over."

"I understand, Major. Would you please put on a randomly chosen subordinate of yours? Over."

MacCready took a breath but then said nothing. An eenie-meanie-minie-mo later and a man from Far Harbor was on the line with the Admiral.

"Is Major MacCready telling me the truth when he says that all of you are out of doors and under the sun's light? Over."

"Yes, sir. The Major's not lying. *pause* Over."

"Good. Thank you. Please put the Major back on the line. We will hold for the Major. Over."

"Admiral, MacCready here. Over."

"Do you believe any of your people to be infected, Major? Over."

"Infected with what? Over."

"Why do you call in an intelligence request about these monsters? Over."

"We're in a town called Arefu. We were chatting them up on joining the Commonwealth once the lines make it out this far. They said that their protection force is a family of vampires. Over."

"I see." The airspace went dead for a few moments. "Major. I want to dismiss such a claim as impossible, drawn from stories and myth. However, I have become an ageless mummy of my former self understanding that I am one accident or attack away from becoming a mindless, and possibly glowing, threat to all around me. I understand that the science fiction monsters of super soldier engineering programs prowl the land in search of flesh. I understand that the little wildlife that survives has nearly all devolved into super predators. So I am not going to dismiss the claim.

"From the stories we told in the east - if there was enough corruption, either in the soul or the land the body was buried and so on, then what you might call a zombie could rise. If it ate enough life force, through the flesh or the blood or the breath, it could graduate, I suppose, into a vampire. No amount of mere warriorship or soldierly craft is sufficient to destroy a single one of such monsters. In my interest in the West before being assigned to your seas, I happened to come across a few stories that after two centuries of captaining my Yangtze in place are quite well read. Your vampires may be even more powerful.

"I am not ordering you to alter your mission in anyway. I do respect that you answer to the General and not directly to my command. However, if you were to withdraw and inform the General once she returns from her vacation of any nest's coordinates on a map, you may also tell her from me that I would not consider those coordinates to be a mistake.

"Now, let us go over the powers that I can remember. Please expect to encounter more./

3

The special forces team sat around their CB radio, looking over each others' shoulders as well as keeping watch on themselves in the night.

"Mr. King said you wanted to talk to me.", Alan announced. None of the soldiers had noticed him come up in the dead of night.

Everyone jumped to their feet. After a quick look at MacCready, no one was drawing weapons.

"That depends.", the major began. "You're one of the family that provides protection to Arefu."

"I am a member of the Family.", Alan replied.

"Are you a vampire?", MacCready continued.

Alan saw how outnumbered he was. The man, pale as if he hadn't seen the sun in over a decade, made a show of relaxing. "Yes.", he offered. "I have accepted the Laws."

The Major asked, "How much do you know about the Commonwealth and the Minutemen who defend it."

"Only what we hear from Three Dog's broadcasts. Considering your markings, either those reports are inaccurate or you are being very cautious given my condition.", Alan answered.

"And did Mr. King tell you about our proposal?", MacCready continued.

Alan still could see how outnumbered he was. "I must inform you that any attempt to extort Arefu will be responded to multiple fold by the Family."

"We aren't trying to extort anyone.", the major countered.

"Just stating facts?", Alan challenged.

MacCready frowned. "Without that tone.

"As far as we can see, legally Arefu and for that matter Meresti Station are in Commonwealth territory. This was surrendered by the Brotherhood of Steel. However, despite the Brotherhood surrendering both this territory and its organization after we thwarted their third invasion of the Commonwealth, they've decided to keep fighting. We are going to remove their oppression from the Capitol Wastes.

"Now that I've said that, how that affects you and yours. In the Commonwealth, there are two places where Commonwealth citizens live. Settlements directly under the control of the Minutemen. And communities that send representation to our civilian led council. We're working on getting several of our settlements - Sanctuary Hills, the Slog, and such - to become communities with none of the reverse. Places that aren't those two, and are inside Commonwealth territory...that's going to be problem both ways.

"Communities get full access to trade. We help setup water filtration. Help with farming if it's needed. A representative on the council that runs things. But a place that isn't a community or settlement..."

"Are just places surrounded by Minutemen forces that are in charge of defending the territory that place happens to be in.", Alan surmised.

"Yeah.", MacCready agreed. "So I'm looking to get us a place where we're talking about integrating Arefu into the Commonwealth rather than not, even though we all agree that Arefu doesn't hold any sympathizing for the Brotherhood of Steel."

"And Meresti Station?", the paler one asked.

MacCready shrugged. "Doesn't that come part and parcel with Arefu."

"No, it does not.", Alan sighed. "Here's what I recommend. Go down and talk to Vance. He leads the Family. Explain things to him and he'll start making decisions about us. I can' t speak for him but I suspect he'll talk it over with Mr. King and see what we want to do.

"Arefu has kept us in blood for a number of years, after all."

4

"Who do you all think you are?", the Family member behind the bars called out.

MacCready, like the rest of his team, we're hiding behind cover. "I'm Major MacCready, Minutemen Special Forces. We're not here to shoot, just talk. We were a told a Vance was in charge."

"What do you have to say to Vance? With all that Three-Dog has been saying about you, I don't know if I need Vance within sight of you.", Robert objected.

"I give you my word that if you can get Vance or a representative up to the gate, we will not enter your lair today. We'll even guard it while you're gone to keep anyone else out.", MacCready offered.

"You better not. We have enough traps in here to blow you sky high.", Robert called out.

There was silence. When the soldiers checked, Robert was gone despite no one having heard footsteps. They didn't even notice Vance approaching. The new one just sort of stepped from the shadows and was suddenly there.

The soldiers all ducked back under cover.

Vance called out. "I was told there were Minutemen that wanted to bargain with the Family. I understand that's best done when men look each other in the eye."

"No dice, vampire.", MacCready called out.

Vance smirked. "I believe you overestimate our abilities. I promise, no harm for civil conversation if it remains civil."