Note: I know, twice in one year! I guess the premier of the Fallout series inspired me to get off my ass update this. Like I said, I'm trying to update the story faster to keep people interested. As always, comments are welcome.

Hail to the King

Marcus took a moment and regarded the man in front of him. Arcade was slightly taller than him, and lengthy to say the least. In most circles, the man might be considered a 'nerd', but the firm handshake said otherwise.

"Nice to meet you, Arcade. Veronica here says you've been a big help to her."

Arcade shrugged. "Always happy to help the needy. Besides, her technical expertise has helped us to keep this place going." He sat down at a desk and pulled out a notebook. "As you can imagine, there isn't exactly a repair service out here we can call."

Arcade checked off a few things on the notebook. "Julie! Do you have the last patient's blood work?"

A young woman with a spiked mohawk came rushing from the otherside of the tent. "Right here, doctor." She handed him a slip.

"Thank you. This is Julie Farkas, my right hand. Without her…I'd be getting a lot less sleep."

Julie, though obviously exhausted, forced a smile. "Nice to meet you."

"So," Arcade began, "you're the Courier causing all the stir in the Mojave."

Marcus smirked. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear on the radio."

"Oh I agree. I never take things at face value." He looked up from his notes. "Like the fact that you survived a bullet to the head. As a physician, I'm rather fascinated by that."

Something about the tone in Arcade's voice, and the stare he was giving him, caused a feeling of sudden panic in Marcus. He quickly recovered and only shrugged. "Just lucky I guess."

Arcade held his gaze for another moment. "Hu." His eyes shot back to the notebook he was writing in, and Marcus breathed a sigh of relief.

Julie placed her hand on the back of Arcade's chair. "Arcade, you've been at it for almost fifteen hours. Why don't you take a rest. I can finish up here."

Arcade sat back in his chair and let out a tired sigh. "Well…I guess I can take a quick coffee break before dropping dead from exhaustion." He stood up and looked at the Courier and his companions. "Come on. I'll give you the grand tour."

When they emerged from the tent, Arcade nearly ran smack into ED-E and the doctor froze. Sarah could see the fear in his eyes. "Don't worry about ED-E. The Enclave may have built him but he's been reprogrammed not to be a genocidal prick."

Arcade swallowed the lump in his throat and composed himself. "That's…reassuring."

Arcade took them around the makeshift hospital, and the scene could be summed up in one word: heartbreaking. Overworked doctors and volunteers were treating everything from broken bones, knife and gunshot wounds, all manner of diseases and drug withdrawal. The entire scene especially hit Follows-Chalk. "I never imagined there'd be such suffering in the civilized lands."

Arcade let out a bitter chuckle. "Many people come here thinking the streets are paved with gold. But soon they realized it's paved with this." He waved his hand towards the compound.

"Doesn't House give you any funding or supplies?" Marcus asked.

Arcade laughed. "Who do you think walled this place up? House doesn't give a mole rats ass about this place…or the people here. All he cares about is his golden city and the high rollers that keep it going."

Marcus heard Moira let out a soft moan. Apparently, this revelation about her hero was not a pleasant one.

"We rely on private donations from NCR citizens, and by working with outsiders like Veronica."

"Well," Cass began, "after seeing all of this I need a drink. Don't suppose you got any booze around here?"

"With all the addicts and alcoholics we treat that would be a bad idea. There is a bar called the Atomic Wrangler. I normally wouldn't recommend that place to anyone…but you look like you can handle yourself."

"Damn straight!" She playfully slapped Boone's arm. "Come on old man. Let's wet our whistles."

Boone shook his head. "I don't drink, Cass."

Cass was almost knocked over. "Why? You find religion or something?"

Boone didn't answer. Cass however, would not be deterred. "Fine. You can sit and watch me drink. Come on."

Boone sighed in defeat. "Okay."

As they headed out, Marcus called after them. "You two stay out of trouble."

"Oh, we won't!" Cass playfully answered back.

Sarah turned to Arcade. "We need to meet with this character called the King. Where can we find them?"

"He's more than a 'character'. He and his gang pretty much run this neighborhood. They're not exactly saints, but the King is the reason we're able to operate out of here. As far as meeting him well…he doesn't just give an audience to anyone. You need to get into his good graces. Of course…I might be able to help you with that."

Marcus gave him a sideways glance. "How?"

"In addition to patching up several of his boys, I've been assisting him with his dog, Rex. Rex is a cybernetic dog but lately he's been having…problems. The King treats him like he's his own child."

Marcus smirked. "I'm guessing you'll want something in return?"

"You catch on quick. Yes, there is something I want you to do." He pulled Marcus aside and they began walking through the courtyard, with Sarah and Follows-Chalk behind them. "We've been having problems getting a steady stream of supplies. NCR citizens had been bringing them in, but they're being harassed by the King's crew. As a result…nothing is getting to us or the Freeside residents. Myself and Julie have tried to talk to him about it, but he won't listen. He insists the troopers are to blame."

"What makes you think he'll listen to me?"

"In addition to being a third party, you already have a glowing reputation around here. Maybe, just maybe, he'll listen to you."

Marcus looked over at Sarah, who responded with a shrug. "I guess we can try." she said.

"Excellent!" Arcade said, before letting out a long yawn. "Let me…get cleaned up. Then, I'll meet you at the fort's gate."

"I…think I would like to stay here and see if I can help." Follows-Chalk said.

"Sure. We're always looking for volunteers."

Marcus turned to Lily. "You should probably stay here and help too, Lily. We don't know how the Kings will react to you."

"Oh, that's a wonderful idea, dearie. You remember how grandma used to always take care of you when you were sick."

Marcus looked over at Arcade and expected the usual laugh or look of bewilderment, but the doctor seemed completely unfazed and shrugged. "We could always use extra muscle to help in moving the patients."

"Mind if I tag along with you?" Veronica asked Marcus. "I always wanted to see one of the Kings' shows."

"Shows?!" Marcus and Sarah said in unison.

Arcade smiled. "You'll see."

The Atomic Wrangler wasn't the toughest bar in the Mojave, but it was a close second. Drifters, gamblers, prostitutes and rustlers filled the place, though it was hard to see through the cigar and cigarette smoke. In the corner a small fight broke out over a game of cards, but the bouncers quickly dragged the matter outside.

Cass sat down at the bar and immediately ordered a whiskey. Boone sat down next to her.

"You sure you don't want anything?" she asked.

Boone thought for a moment. "Sarsaparilla."

Cass rolled her eyes and ordered the drink. They both sat there in silence nursing them. Finally, Cass couldn't take it anymore. "You were always a brooder, but lately you've turned it into an art form. What's with you these days?"

Boone just stared ahead and shrugged. "Just…not much for conversation, that's all."

Cass took a drink from her bottle. "Yeah. I guess seeing Monroe brought back some bad memories."

Boone didn't answer. Cass leaned in closer. "He was at Bitter Springs, wasn't he?"

Boone stared down at his drink, and his voice became lower than normal. "What do you know about it?"

"I know your old unit was there. I know that the story the NCR fed everybody was bullshit, and that something seriously fucked up happened there."

Silence.

"Look, I know you better than anyone, okay. You can talk to me. Hell…we used to tell each other everything."

"We were kids." he snapped.

"And now we're adults…and we're both a little fucked up."

Boone let out a sigh. "I…I just don't want to talk about it, okay?"

He could see how disappointed she was. "Look Cass…I appreciate what you're trying to do…I really do. I just…don't want to open up old wounds. It's in the past. It's done!"

Cass nodded and took another swig from her whisky. "You haven't said one word about your wife. What was she like?"

Boone briefly tightened the grip on his bottle. "She was…beautiful. As a jewel. She…brought me back from a very dark place. The night she disappeared I went out after her. I wanted to find her, to save her…but instead I…" He stopped mid sentence and turned from her.

Cass would not let it go. "Instead what? What happened, Boone?"

Though his head was turned, Cass could tell he quickly wiped away some tears before facing forward. "Nothing! She's gone. That's all that matters."

Cass wanted to press the issue, but decided to let it go. Instead she placed her hand on his. "When you're ready to talk, I'm here."

Boone didn't say anything. He simply nodded and the two friends sat in silence enjoying their drinks.

Marcus stood dumbfounded as he took in the scene in front of him. The giant neon sign shaped like a guitar next to the words: "School of Impersonations" lite up the block. Milling around underneath that sign were several men, all with the same black, greased hair style. Some were wearing jeans and a black leather jacket, others were wearing jump suits of different colors and styles. From inside the building, the song "Burning Love" was playing. From the historical records in Vault 101 (and his father's music collection) Marcus finally figured out why this gang called themselves The Kings.

"They're Elvis impersonat…"

Both Veronica and Arcade responded to his outburst with a chorus of shushes.

"Whatever you do, don't say the E word around here." Arcade said.

Now Marcus was even more confused. "Why not?"

"Well," Arcade began, "years ago when the original founder of the Kings stumbled onto this place, he found a lot of information about him. His music. Some of his movies. Even pieces of a few interviews he gave. But never his name or where he was from. Only that he was called 'The King'! It wasn't until the NCR showed up and thanks to the records in Vault City, they finally learned his name. Since then, the King has forbidden anyone in Freeside from saying that name."

"Wait…why would they not want people to use his name?" Sarah asked

"Because they practically worship the guy." Veronica said. "Think about it. Do you believe in a higher power?"

"Yes." Marcus answered.

"Well then how would you feel if you found out the name of your deity was John Smith, and that he cheated on his wife and died from drug abuse?"

Marcus pondered this for a moment…and he couldn't argue with the logic. "I suppose that would up end things."

Veronica nodded. "See, by calling him by his name, then he's just another man with flaws and weaknesses. But as 'The King', he's a symbol of hope…and an example to follow."

Marcus took a deep breath. "Alright, then. Let's go meet the 'King of Rock n' Roll'!"

They made their way across the street and stepped inside, and found themselves standing in a lobby with a large reception desk. Arcade led them to a door to the left, where one of the Kings was standing guard.

"Well, well. Another prospect for the Kings."

Marcus had to contain his laughter at the man's attempts to sound like Elvis. "Actually, I'm just here to pay my respects to the King."

"Yeah well, the King's time ain't free, you know what I'm say'n?"

"Come on, Pacer," Arcade began, "I didn't charge you the last time I had to patch you up."

Pacer's jaw hardened in annoyance. "Fine. Go on through. The King's the bored looking guy by the stage. Can't fuck'n miss him."

The trio walked inside. Almost immediately a song began to play and the first line was: "If you're look'n for trouble…[instrumental]...you came to the right place…"

Marcus, Sarah and Veronica took in the room. It was a large showroom with round tables and chairs. At the far end was a stage, and one of the kings was singing the song "Trouble". And just like Pacer said, sitting in the front table, with a cybernetic dog at his feet, was the King himself. He wasn't dressed as the rest of his gang. He was dressed in a white, three piece suit and was drinking bourbon from a glass. The king on the stage was about halfway through the song when the King suddenly shot up from his seat. "Stop! Stop!"

The music stopped and the King approached the stage. "Hold on a second man. You've got the sing'n down, but you're still too stiff. You got to loosen up, you know what I mean? Here…like this…"

The King began thrusting his arms and hips sharply and fast. Though the display only lasted a few seconds, the man appeared to break into a sweat. "You got it now?" he asked.

The impersonator on the stage nodded.

The King fixed his jacket. "Go ahead and take five." He walked back towards the table and began to pet Rex. "Hey there boy, how you doing tonight?"

The dog managed to wage his tail and lick his owner's hand.

The King addressed the people in front of him. "Arcade. Good to see ya, my man. You here to check on Rex?"

Arcade shook his head. "No house call today, King. I'd like to introduce you to an associate of mine. This is Six."

"Six? Does that mean there's five more of ya?"

That caused Veronica to giggle. A lopsided grin appeared on the King's face. "And who might you be, little lady?"

"Veronica Santangelo."

"That sounds pretty exotic. We're having a show two days from now. You should come by and check it out."

Veronica polity smiled. "I'd like to but, duty calls I'm afraid."

The King shrugged. "I understand." He turned his attention to Sarah. "And who might this fire haired beauty be?"

Sarah didn't know if she wanted to laugh or slap him. "This 'fire haired beauty' is with him."

The King was quick to recover. "My apologies, ma'am. I should've known a woman like you'd be taken."

The usual stoic Sarah couldn't help but blush.

The King turned to Marcus. "So Six, you got a reason for coming by?"

"I'm new in town and wanted to pay my respects."

The King seemed delightfully surprised. "Well, that's mighty big of you. Most people forget who's in charge around here. Why don't you have a seat, and I'll order ya something."

"Thank you." Marcus said. He and his companions sat down. Arcade tried to contain a yawn. "Thank you King but…I pulled an all nighter. I'll come by tomorrow to check on Rex."

The King sat down with his guests. "I understand, Arcade. Thanks for coming by."

With that, Arcade turned and left. The King noticed Dogmeat sitting at Marcus' feet. "That's a fine K-9 you got there." He turned and stroked Rex's back. "O'l Rex here's been having a few health problems. Arcade does what he can but…" He let the sentence trail off.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Marcus said. "Moira, could you scan Rex and see if there's anything we can do?"

Moira's avatar appeared on his PIPBOY. "Okidoki!"

The King nearly jumped back. "Whoa! That's something you don't see every day."

Moira scanned the K-9. "Hu. Looks like his circuits are working fine, it's his biological components that are failing. Ohhhh, you poor thing."

"So what does that mean in English?" The King asked.

"In basic terms, his brain is failing. And because his brain is failing, all of the other functions are failing too. If it wasn't for his robot parts he would've died long ago."

Marcus was beginning to understand. "Is there any way to reverse what's happening?"

Moira took a moment to think. "Welllllll, we could try putting in a new brain."

The King nearly jumped out of his seat. "Hold on there, little lady! You're saying Rex needs a new brain?! How in sam hill can we manage that?"

"I'm not sure. I can download a brain into a computer, but putting an actual brain into a robot, I've never done that…but I'd like to try!"

"NO!" Everyone at the table said in unison.

"I'm sorry, King." Marcus said. "I know that's not the news you were hoping for."

The King downed the rest of his bourbon. "That's alright. I guess…all I can do now is keep him comfortable and help him enjoy what time he has left." The King nearly choked up, but managed to compose himself. "So…what can the King do for ya?"

Marcus leaned in closer. "I've been tracking someone since Goodsprings. Goes by the name of Benny. I believe he's on the Strip at the Tops Casino. I need to get to him."

The King let out a chuckle. "So you need to get into New Vegas, hu?" He sat back in his chair and stared down at his empty glass. "Well…there's one of two ways to get into Vegas. The first one is to be on the high rollers list which…doesn't look like you are. And the other way is to have no less than two-thousand bottle caps on ya. And that's two-thousand for each member of your entourage."

Veronica let out a whistle. "That's…a lot."

"Now I might be able to help you acquire some of those caps. Question is…how badly do you want to find this guy?"

'Here it comes', Marcus thought as he took a deep breath. "It's the only reason I'm here. What do you need me to do?"

The King smiled and ordered another drink. "Alright. A lot of folk round these parts who've been here a while resent the sheer number of people that have come into the area since the Strip was built. In turn the newcomers, most of whom come from the NCR, have gotten ornery from being resented. Sometimes things get violent.

"This is one of those occasions. Recently, a few friends of mine were attacked, and I want you to find out who did it. Words come that they just woke up over at the Old Mormon Fort. Head on over there and see if they remember anything."

Marcus took a moment to contemplate his answer before nodding his head. "Alright. I'll head over and see what I can find out."

The King presented a lopsided grin. "Good. I like that enthusiasm. Return when you have some information we can use."

The trio, with Dogmeat in tow, made their way outside of the studio.

"Mar…um…Six!" Veronica stammered. "You never asked him about getting aid to the fort."

"That's right. I have a feeling if we solve this problem, we might solve the other."

"You think the Kings are stopping the supplies because NCR citizens are harassing Freeside residents?" Sarah asked.

"All I know is both sides are pointing fingers at each other. My gut's telling me someone is stirring things up between the NCR and Kings. We need to figure out who and why."

Sarah was skeptical. "You know the King might be pretending to be ignorant about it."

Marcus shrugged. "Maybe…but I don't think so. Veronica, you know more about him than we do. Does he strike you as a liar?"

Veronica thought for a moment. "Well…all I can say is out of all the gangs I've come across, the Kings are the only ones who haven't tried to kill me, rape me, or enslave me. Around here…that practically makes them saints."

"Well," Marcus said, "then let's head back to the fort and see what we can find out."

Marcus, Sarah and Veronica soon confirmed that it had been NCR soldiers who had attacked the King's friends. Or at least, people posing as NCR soldiers. For most of the afternoon they tried to get more information from the residents of Freeside, but soon discovered it was a daunting task.

"Any luck?" Marcus asked.

Sarah sighed in frustration. "Well all of these people seem to agree on one thing: no one wants to talk."

Veronica echoed that sentiment. "Most people just clammed up, and a few told us to shove our questions into rather personal spaces."

Marcus closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Okay. I guess we'll have to go back to the King and…"

"Hey smoothskin."

They looked around, trying to find the source of the gravelly voice.

"Hey! Over here!"

They soon found the source across the street. A ghoul, wearing what could only be described as rags, was sitting down against one of the abandoned buildings.

"Of course." Veronica said. 'Should've known it was ol' Rotface."

Both Marcus and Sarah gave her a sideways glance. "Rotface?"

"Yeah, that's what the locals call him. He's got a bit of a…jet habit. But he usually knows what's going on around here."

"Will he talk?" Marcus asked.

"Give him enough caps for his next fix and he'll tell ya where his mother's pearls are hidden."

Being that they were out of options, the trio reluctantly crossed the street and approached the ghoul. He was visibly shaking and twitching.

"Hey Rotface." Veronica said. "How you feeling these days?"

"Ah, ya know…same as always - lousy. But if you can spare a few caps I'll be right on my feet."

Marcus looked down at the ghoul with a mixture of disgust and pity. How anyone could sink this low was beyond his comprehension, and he was grateful that drugs were outlawed in the Capital Union. "You have something to offer for these caps?"

The ghoul nodded. "I hear you're looking for information on what the NCR's up to around here. I'll tell ya…for two-hundred caps."

Sarah stared daggers at the ghoul. "Two-hundred? You can't be serious!"

Before Rotface could respond, Marcus reached inside his pocket. "Tell you what…I'll give ya fifty caps. Take it or leave it."

The ghoul let out a grunt. "You drive a hard bargain…but since we're friends…deal." He held out his shaking hand and took the caps. "The NCR's been secretly handing out food and supplies in Freeside, but only to NCR citizens."

"Well that would explain why the Freeside residents are pissed." Veronica said.

"Wait," Marcus said, "how can they be doing this right under the King's nose?"

"There's a secret store house in Freeside. Only NCR citizens know where it is, and you have to prove you're a citizen to get in. You either have to have ID, take a test or know the password. I just so happen to know where it is, and the password. But…my memory's a little hazy."

Marcus rolled his eyes. "Will another fifty caps jog your memory?"

Rotface took the caps. "I don't know…maybe another fifty will help."

Sarah's patience had run out, and she presented the ghoul with a closed fist. "How about a good punch in your head? Would that help you remember?!"

The ghoul raised both hands. "Alright, alright! On second thought it's all coming back to me. It's in an old warehouse near the abandoned train station. The password is hope."

The warehouse was located right where Rotface had said. Two guards, dressed in plain clothes, stood by the main door.

"Looks like Rotface was telling the truth." Veronica said.

Sarah agreed. "I guess we'll find out if this password he gave us was worth the caps."

"If it doesn't, we could always try our NCR ID's."

The trio approached the guards, and when they gave the password, the guard unlocked the door. Breathing a sigh of relief, they entered and took in the scene before them. Several disheveled people were standing in line in front of a large counter. Behind that counter were NCR missionaries and, judging by the haircuts, troopers handing out boxes of food and water. Not wanting to cut the line, Marcus approached the end of the counter and called over a tall, blonde female trooper. "Excuse me, ma'am."

"If you're here for supplies, the line begins over there." She began to walk past him but Marcus stopped her.

"Actually we're not here for supplies." He presented her his ID. "My name is Six, my companions and I are NCR citizens and I was wondering…"

"Wait! Did you say your name was Six?"

Marcus was taken aback. "Yes."

The woman's eyes seemed to light up. "You're the Courier who helped rescue our troops in Nelson. I knew some of those men. We can't thank you enough. I'm Major Elizabeth Kieran. Are you sure you and your friends don't need any supplies?"

"We're fine, thank you. I'd just like to know why you're only handing out supplies to NCR citizens?"

Elizabeth's demeanor suddenly changed. "That's not something we like to talk about…but I guess I owe you after Nelson. We actually sent an envoy to the King offering to coordinate the relief effort."

This revelation shocked Marcus. "And the King refused?"

Elizabeth crossed her arms. "In a manner of speaking. Our envoy was brutally beaten and barely survived. My superiors ordered the relief mission scrapped. I managed to get clearance to carry out the mission anyway, but with greatly reduced support. Now there's not enough supplies to go around even if I wanted to serve the rest of Freeside…which I don't."

The trio stood there dumbfounded. Veronica stepped up to Marcus' side. "That doesn't sound like something the KIng would do."

Elizabeth was visibly annoyed. "You don't believe me? Ask him yourself." she turned to her left. "Steven, could you come here please?"

One of the missionaries, a middle-aged Asian man, put down a box and walked over to them. It was clear from the bruises on his face that he was still healing from his ordeal.

"Steven, tell them what happened when you went to see the King."

Steven took a deep breath. It was clear he did not like reliving that day. "I went inside the King's headquarters, introduced myself, and before I could even tell him why I was there he tells me to get lost. When I tried to explain to him that we wanted to try and help everyone in Freeside, three of his goons jumped me from behind." He began to choke up, and struggled to control his voice. "When they were done with me, they dumped me in front of the Mormon Fort. The Followers patched me up."

As Marcus listened to his story, he couldn't help but feel that something was not adding up. "Are you sure it was the actual King you spoke to?"

Steven shrugged. "I assume so. He sure acted like he was in charge. Hard to say really, I mean they look and sound alike. Hell, they even all wore the same leather jackets."

The last statement got Sarah's attention. "Wait. They all wore leather jackets?"

Steven nodded. "Yes."

Marcus leaned forward. "The ring leader, the one who told you to get lost, was he wearing a three piece white suit?"

Steven took a moment to search his memory and shook his head. "No. None of them wore a suit. They all wore those same leather jackets."

Marcus looked over at both Veronica and Sarah. No words were spoken, but they all had reached the same conclusion. Marcus placed a handful of caps on the counter. "For your relief efforts."

Both Steven and Elizabeth were surprised by the gesture. "Thank you so much." she said.

Marcus nodded, and the trio walked outside.

"You know," Veronica began, "if you keep handing out caps you're never getting into Vegas."

Sarah couldn't help but smirk. "That's what he does. Its both endearing and annoying."

"Well if I'm right the King is about to give us all the caps we'll need." He said. "It's safe to say that it was Pacer who stopped the envoy from even meeting the King, forcing the NCR to shut down the program and horde supplies."

"Which causes resentment between the NCR citizens and the locals and they start tearing into each other." Veronica said.

"But why would Pacer do that?" Sarah asked. "What does he get by having Freeside and the NCR at each other's throats?"

Marcus took a moment to contemplate the answer. "You remember what the King said? A lot of locals are upset about so many NCR citizens moving in. Maybe Pacer figures if he can stop supplies from coming into Freeside, the NCR will stop coming altogether, and even leave."

Sarah nodded in agreement. "How do you think the King will react to all of this?"

Marcus straightened his hat. "Let's go find out."

The trio headed off back to the King's headquarters, never noticing the man in the leather jacket with slicked black hair lurking in the alley nearby.

School of Impersonations:

"You find out something about them soldier boys yet?" the King asked.

Marcus proceeded to tell him the whole story, waiting to see how he'd react. The look of shock on the King's face was undeniable.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute! They said what?"

"They said the man was severely beaten and barely survived." Sarah answered.

The King was deep in thought as the revelation sank in. "Pacer! Damn fool! Shaking people down at the door is one thing, but this…no wonder the NCR's all riled up."

Just then, one of the kings came running over, out of breath and sweating. "King…"

"Hey!" the King interrupted. "Find Pacer, and bring him back here now!"

The king swallowed and tried to catch his breath. "That's what I came to tell you…we got problems."

The King raised an eyebrow. "Lay it on me."

"Pacer's in a shootout at the old train station. It might be the NCR."

The King slammed his fist on the table. "What the hell is that fool doing!?" He turned to Marcus. "We need to head out and try to defuse the situation."

The king was alarmed. "King, it's too dangerous…"

"I have no choice!" he snapped. "They need to hear from me that I'm willing to cooperate."

After bidding Rex goodbye, the King, Marcus, Sarah and Veronica headed to the train station as fast as they could. They could hear a mixture of gun and laser fire in the distance, and when they found Pacer, he was cowering behind a building with a bullet in his left arm.

When he looked up and saw his boss standing over him, no one could tell if Pacer was white from his wound, or the look on the King's face. "King I…"

"Save it! Looks like I have to bail us out of a mess you've created." He turned to a couple of the gang members. "Take him back to the school and patch'em up. And don't let him leave."

As the kings took Pacer away, Sarah was behind cover, looking through her gauss rifle's scope. "Looks like six tangos, well entrenched. How do you want to do this?"

The King took a quick glance around the building. "If I could only talk to them I know we can work this out."

Veronica shook her head. "If you try to get across that field they'll blow your head off."

"She's right." Marcus said. "Tell your guys to fall back. The Major knows us, and thinks we're NCR citizens, so chances are they won't shoot at us."

Veronica was a little less faithful. "We should probably walk out with a white flag just in case."

The King's eyes went wide. He couldn't believe the risk the Courier was willing to take. "That's pretty risky…but I guess we have no choice. Good luck."

Once the Kings had fallen back, Marcus raised the makeshift white flag and slowly came out from behind cover. Even though he knew his armor's shield would stop a volley of bullets, he still took a deep breath and hoped this would work.

Major Kieran spotted the white flag through her binoculars. At first she thought it was a trick, until she realized it was the Courier who was holding it. "Hold your fire!" she shouted.

The trooper next to her was still staring down his gun sights. "It could be a trick."

The Major shook her head. "I don't think so. Let them come forward."

When he was not met by a hail of bullets and lasers, Marcus, Sarah and Veronica slowly began to make their way towards the train station. "So far so good." Marcus said.

When they were within speaking distance the trio stopped. "Major Kieran!" Marcus shouted.

The Major came out from behind cover and made her way over to them. "What's this about?"

Marcus took a breath. "This is all a misunderstanding. The King didn't even know about your envoy."

For the first time since they'd met her, Kieran seemed to lose her calm demeanor. "That's a lie! He made it all the way into his headquarters."

"Those kings were not acting on his orders." Sarah said.

"He says he wants to cooperate with the relief effort."

Kieran crossed her arms. "If that's true he should watch his back. I need to hear this from him."

Before she was asked, Veronica turned and ran back to the Kings. It wasn't long before the King, flanked by two of his men, appeared. Kieran was struck by the swagger with which he walked; as if he owned all of Freeside and New Vegas. When they were finally face to face, Kieran had to will herself not to become weak kneed as she stared into his eyes. "You the actual King?"

The King gave a slight nod. "The one and only. It seems we have a big misunderstanding here. Don't you worry. I'm gonna deal with the offending party, and I'd like to offer compensation to your envoy for all he went through."

The Major was pleasantly surprised. "I appreciate that. Alright…if you keep your end of the bargain I'll tell our undercovers to stop preventing Freeside residents from getting supplies."

The King flashed her a lopsided grin and he noticed that Kieran's cheeks became flush. "Thank you, thank you very much. Let's say you and I get together later and…work out some details."

Now Kieran's cheeks were reality getting red. "Th…that would be great."

School of Impersonations…

Pacer was in the makeshift infirmary on the second floor when his boss walked in. "King listen, I was…"

"I don't want to hear it!" The King snapped. "You nearly started a damn war out there! It seems to me that you've forgotten who the big hound dog is around here."

Pacer's throat went dry, making him unable to speak.

"Once you're patched up, you turn in your jacket, cut your hair and I don't ever want to see you here again."

Pacer turned white as a ghost. "But King I…"

"You're out, Pacer! Consider yourself lucky that exile is all that's happening to you."

Without saying another word, the King left. He met Marcus down stairs next to the stage and presented him with a rather heavy satchel. "Here you go…a deal's a deal. There's enough caps in there for two of ya to make it into Vegas."

Marcus shook his hand. "It was my pleasure, King. Hopefully things will start getting better out there with this relief effort."

"It'll help. But it's gonna take a lot more to turn things around. Anyway, you're welcome back here anytime. Here, I want you to have this jacket. As far as I'm concerned, you're an honorary King."

Marcus thanked the King and headed back to the Mormon Fort with Sarah, Veronica and Dogmeat.

Next stop, New Vegas.

Note: Remember, I had Moira saying Okidoki long before the Fallout series premiered.