Queen's Notes: derp! So i had the wrong e before, now it's the right second chapter XD
Welcome to the Wasteland
Chapter Two
Co-op
"Why stag for them all though?" Lana asked, frowning as she glanced down at her feet careful of the loose rocks. Even the big moose had slowed their pace and were waiting at the incline to go down one at a time. "I thought 'stag' was only for the males, another world for a buck? Like elk?"
Deegan flashed a smile as he heard a snort from Buck below them, the bull lifting his head to look back, "I'm not sure when the name rad-stag stuck, I think it was about a hundred and... twenty something years ago that the name started becoming common."
The ghoul was taking his time as they talked, well aware of the eerily quiet deathclaw standing at her full height behind them. Scanning for any threats as the group moved down the sharper incline of this hill. The road path would cut too far east before hooking around near the overpass south of them. Deegan was alright with the current path so far. As this was the biggest challenge so far, he had to give Valory credit for finding a safe route.
A worried sound from the brahmin had the man focusing back on the task at hand, leading the bull down the slope. Kicking a few too big and loose rocks out of the way. The brahmin had a much shorter stride then the moose, and could not take the exact same steps where Buck and the cow did on their trip downhill. Lana was just starting to go down with the second fawn as Deegan's feet hit more level ground.
"Even the doe are called stags?" Lana's voice drifted down, that almost innocent confused tone had Deegan laughing softly.
Then again some more as he realized what confused the young woman. "Radstag does. Ridiculous isn't it?"
Lana grinned down at him as she managed the still nervous fawn as the oldest cow was just starting down. Her hood was down and the semi short strawberry blond hair was a little bit of a poofy mess. At least it was not in her eyes thanks to a little yellow headband. Her black leather like jacket was open as the air warmed up in the late morning. But the girl- young woman Deegan reminded himself- had solid boots and relatively newish looking jeans, not something warn thread thin from years of re-use. Just broken in.
Edward Deegan took great pride in being able to get a good read on people. Always on the lookout for people he could rely on, use for jobs yes, but also those that his family might like. It was not all for guards at the asylum, or in-house help with the family at the manor. Though poor Linda was getting ready to pass on, he needed to find some more help then just for her but the misses.
...though Wilhelmina was doting on the poor old girl right now. They had taken her in at twelve and now at old age...
Yes, Deegan was good at judging the character of people, for over two hundred years. Good for finding help in and out of the manor, finding people that could help them, or be of help for the cabot's mental health. Keep them grounded.
That also meant finding help in other ways. As odd as his extended family was, they still needed to eat and drink, and needed the same basic needs as everyone else despite their age.
If this kiddo really was one of Richard's living descendants, and considering how proud the ghoul had been of his brothers' surviving kids and wife. The good, if worn-in clothes and shoes, the healthy if semi lean build that was mostly standard in the wasteland. Lana definitely had no lack of protein with her guardian, but Deegen could tell someone who had no lack of food growing up.
...and the living breathing intelligent deathclaw as added proof. Well this was an opportunity of all hell.
Enough so Deegan was skimming through the names and faces of people in the back of his head as he talked with both Lana and Valory. The matriarch was turning out to have a decent sass-pants side, though thankfully she seemed to like Deegan well enough.
The fact still remained that Deegan was traveling with a resident of a seed bunker. Someone who kept getting distracted but the struggling spring greenery and lingering winter blooms. Someone he would bet his right arm had some of those seeds in the big saddle bags on the moose.
But also... What was in those animal cages?
Well worth making sure to know where Lana and Valory were settling before leaving himself, if not lending a helping hand. Deegan's family were well stocked at the manor and safe for the next month or so at least.
A cuffing from the two headed brahmin, and there was a nudge at his elbow for attention. The man turned to run a scarred hand over the broad left head. Giving into the demand for attention and comfort as the small bull was still hurting from the gunshot wounds.
Once they were all on level ground did Valory slide herself down the rocks and huffed back at Luna. Standing in a slouching posture as she walked on hind legs, big tail working as counterbalance, Valory motioned to the west, slightly north. "Almost there, see a big pipe up there?"
Lana looked up from tying the fawn's lead line to Grace's saddle. "Yeah?"
"We are following it now."
Deegan paused before he recognized the area at last. It took a bit as he was coming from a different angle as they started down the rest of the gradual slope, "The old Co-op camp?"
"I do not know that word...coh-ahp?" Valory tilted her head, looking back at Lana.
"I think it's like the farmer's market?" The young woman frowned, then looked up at a chuckle from Deegan.
The scared man smiled, "You still have farmer's markets where you're from? Just food?"
"Not just food." Lana nodded in confirmation. "Not everyone lives in the bunker proper anymore. The valleys are safe and we're lucky to have the moss on all the buildings and in the water. But some pre-war people... ghouls?- they still have tanning skills and a lye deposit for soups and other cleaners. Trees didn't get hit as hard so there's woodworking. Enough smaller villages in the overall community to get together and have a market every week or two."
"That must be the foundations Richard was talking about," Deegan said softly to himself thinking back, and louder added, "It sounds like you guys are lucky enough not to deal with raiders or just highwaymen to get to that."
The ghoul man tilted his head at Valory, as she paused up ahead to sniff at a flowering hub-bush.
"When did you guys meet deathclaws?" Deegan asked, watching as Lana started to drift a bit to where her pack sister was. Looking very curious at the new plant as well. "I don't think I've heard of a talking deathclaw, except once not that long after the war, when they were, and back in California."
"We came from the eldest of us, who saved the Last Old Matriarch," Valory stepped aside, settling in a half crouch half sit position only deathclaws seemed to be able to do.
"Grandpa Goris and Grandma Chichi, to use normal terms instead of fancy pack titles." Lana put in, knowing enough how much to say to stay safe but also make sense. "Goris was fleeing California after someone called 'The Master' died, his original pack had been murdered. But he found one surviving egg and left with it. Just heading over the Rocky Mountains before stopping on our mountain. The egg had since hatched and became a breeding size female at that time."
Lana shrugged as they stopped by the bush. It was as good as any spot to take a rest while talking. "They took shelter in an old tunnel, it was connected to the vent systems of the bunker, or what would have been another part of the bunker...and it was just pure chance and dumb luck from there. Chichi never knew what humans were, and didn't see them as a possible food source. So when one of the kids back then found her and the nest they were just odd play buddies to the hatchlings."
"That's hell of some luck." Deegan sighed a bit, not sure how he would handle any of the kids in his charge from before, to after the war finding a deathclaw den. Let alone becoming playmates with hatchlings. "How did the rest of the bunker find out?"
"It was a while later believe it or not," Lana tilted her head, "The adults of both groups were hunting for game on the complete opposite sides of the mountain and valleys. It wasn't until a wild moose almost killed one of those original kids, and a half grown deathclaw saved him that anyone knew. On either side. And even then those in the bunker had no idea what deathclaws even were."
"Elder Goris still thinks it's funny, he had to explain it to everyone, humans and pack... a few times." Valory put in, and then distinctly rolled her eyes as Lana was poking at the purple flowers. Motioning to the young woman with the first two knuckles of her left hand, claws kept folded.
Deegan chuckled, reaching out to pick two of the flowers. Showing Lana the flower and softer green leaves, "Hub bush. The flowers and the smaller leaves are good for tea and some chems."
"Sorry," Lana ducked her head a bit sheepishly, but she had been wanting to ask the moment she spotted the new flowers. The young woman looked a bit surprised as a scarred hand lifted to ruffle her hair, before Deegan finished picking the full blooms.
"It's alright Lana, You're uncle was not that different." Deegan assured as he had a good handful of flowers for them. It was a nice, bigger bush and tea did sound good that night. The ghoul man did remember to point out the fully developed seed pods. Watching as Lana eagerly took them. "Save those, it's not often the hub bush manages a full seed pod. At least from what I've seen nearer Boston."
Probably they were stripped pretty fast to even go to seed.
Lana turned the pod around in her hand, reminded of a rose hip, but larger, almost twice the size. She glanced at the hub-bush, noting its roots and now it was supported by the tree mostly. The main root branches were not all the way in the ground now.
Something to come back and poke at. For now she, Deegan and Valory started off again, and Lana was happy she had not sat down for the rest. She wanted back up on Buck, but it seemed rude to do so.
"Anyways, where were we?" Lana asked, hesitating as she saw the pipe come out of the ground and curve wide to the east then up north.
"Goris I think?" Deegan offered shifting the rifle on his shoulder and avoiding some jutting rocks while heading down what seemed to be a game trail. Keeping that parge pipe to his right for the most part, some distance needed to keep to safer footing.
"Right, he's the one that really helped negotiate peace with the adults back then," Lana gave a snort, "'Young and dumb' kids on both sides just... got along for some reason. Over the years in the harsher winters the Deathclaws were allowed deeper and deeper in the bunker. The humans started to help take care of eggs after the first...two years."
"Spaces where we fit." Valory snorted, twitching her tail. Still mildly miffed at outgrowing a lot of the rooms in the old bunker proper.
"As I understand it, there was no bias to Deathclaws to start with, or the new generations of deathclaws against the humans. Its like what you said, a few big strokes of luck, but I think it helped that, that one deathclaw saved his friend. I think it helped too that everyone in the community were used to the radiation scarred people like you, and that the older members were already surviving botanist and biologist used to documenting changes."
"Lots of luck seems to have given you a lot of good things." Deegan agreed, he had come across old deathclaw nests before. Had taken the time to examine them once it was for sure safe. He had seen the damage to bones and few bits of corpses that were too far gone even for the wild beasts. Pretty much everything under the sun was found in the outer nest walls.
The man pointed to a lard red thing ahead of them, slightly to his right and where the land leveled out for a semi distance. "See that over there? The co-op should be on the other side of those old grain or water silos."
Lana turned and stood on her toes to try and peer over the rocks. "Kinda see them..."
Deegan chuckled again, starting again and once more ruffling the young woman's hair with his free hand. Laughing at the face she made and pulling up her hood, sticking her tongue out at the man. "That's probably because you're short, come on."
"I'm not that short!" Lana, who stood at five foot three and a half inches, protested.
"She's very short." Valory agreed, chittering her own natural laughter sound.
"Everyone is short to you Val, you're almost two stories tall!"
"Still a shortie kiddo." Deegan was grinning wider as his new companion puffed her cheeks before skittering over to Buck.
The big bull grumbled happily at his person coming over, dipping his mass to let Lana climb up into the saddle. The woman made a face and puffed her cheeks as she looked around.
"Still short my soft one," Valory pointed out, coming over to carefully bump her head against Lana. It was a clear affectionate motion, even when Lana tied to slap at the broad head and horns. The interaction is not unlike how a parent was trying to embarrass their kid or just a younger family member using overt shows of family.
It was interesting, and made Deegan relax another part of his guard in regards to these too. Listening to the teasing between them, even seeing Buck huff and try to lightly smack Varory when her bulk started to be too much for him. They came across a few more hub-bushes and carrot flowers that Deegan picked, using the edge of his armor and right strap to hold them.
The man unslung his riffle off his shoulder as they started to draw closer to the old silos. Glancing up at Lana "Last time I passed by this way… a few months ago? There was a herd of ferals. You're...Lost Ones you called them?"
"Yes, how many?" Lana asked, focusing back now that her guardian was walking again. She did start zipping her jacket up again, making sure nothing was in the hood and the mask part.
"Back then, about a dozen, it could be that or fewer at this point." Deegan allowed, the man stopping once they were at the silos, staring past where the semi ring of rustic cabins were. Rustic by old world standards. Still in pretty good shape for nowadays.
"It's possible an 'ouch.'" Lana noted more then asked, hearing Deegan's soft laugh as she arranged her quiver and bow in hand now.
Sensing eyes on her, the woman glanced back at the scarred man. Paused and squinted a bit back.
"Did Richard teach you how to use that?" Deegan asked, motioning to the bow, arching an eyebrow ridge.
Lana huffed, puffing her cheeks, "Uncle and Auntie Alexis taught me when I was little. I've been using a bow and arrows since I was six."
"Eight." Valory corrected, and when Lana looked over she held up big hands, claws spread, "Eight years was when you started to target practice for hunting. Used my side several times before with the foam ...darts."
Deegan's low laugh came again, "Good, as long as you know what you're doing Lana."