The story of a rose in a shallow grave belongs to Wombag1786; this is the sequel to it.
I do not own RWBY and Fallout.
A rose over a shallow grave belongs to Wombag1786
P.S.: We have reached the confrontation everyone has been waiting for.
Chapter 12: Reunions
Walking calmly through the Commonwealth was not an unusual occurrence. If you were from before the war, you would consider it a routine. But now it was challenging and dangerous, both due to hostile humans and creatures.
Nate moved forward on the outskirts of Boston Center while Albondiga guided him toward Kellogg. They had already passed through the railway tracks after finding a small trail of another cigarette. As they descended the stairs, they saw that Kellogg had fought against some raiders, evidenced by the two bodies and the destroyed machine gun. Among some pipes lay bloodied bandages that Albondiga sniffed and followed the scent. As they continued along the tracks, they awaited an ambush set by Kellogg or someone else, where a mannequin and a mine had been placed to lure them in, complete with another cigarette outside for the dog to follow the trail.
They passed over a bridge filled with ghouls, fighting their way through until they reached the remains of a Securitron.
"It looks like Kellogg had some fun," Nick said, surveying the carnage.
"Name... identified... Kellogg," said the Securitron, or what was left of it: its head.
"Yep, it was him," Seis confirmed.
"Bip, bop, bip" (Just die already, ASSaultron) ED-E mocked, earning a disapproving glance from Seis.
"Keep following the trail, kid," Nate urged, continuing onward.
They advanced past a wrought-iron wall where the trail led to burned, blood-stained bandages, directing them toward an old precinct with several active turrets outside. Nick took care of them using his pistol.
Dogmeat stopped, attempting to open a blocked door.
"This is it," Nate said, loading his weapon. "There must be an entrance in the parking garage," he said, eyeing the area beneath the building.
They moved through the area, passing by what had once been the refuge of a dead dealer in his bed. They disregarded it to enter through a door in the complex.
The gray-blue hallway led to a door that Nate tried to open, but it was locked from the other side. "Damn it."
"Upstairs it is," Nick said, starting to climb the stairs. Before they reached where the Securitron was, ED-E detected something. "Bib, bop, bip" (There are several active machines above us... I think they're Assaultrons), Seis nodded silently, grateful for the information.
"We'll have company past this point," Seis informed the group.
"Well, it was to be expected from a high-level mercenary like him," Nick replied, checking his weapon.
"We'll clear floor by floor, and we stick together," said Nate as he took the lead, adopting a commanding posture from his military experience.
As they advanced, they saw a synth for the first time. It had several circuits and metal in its body, covered by plastic skin. Upon seeing them, it pointed. "Intruder in Fort H—" A bullet struck it.
"Synth down. Initiating attack protocols," it said in a robotic monotone as three more emerged.
Seis fired quick shots with his revolver to disarm them, but the bullets shattered their armed limbs. Nate, along with Nick and ED-E, quickly took them down.
But more Synths were closing in. "Split up!" Nick shouted, heading toward a blue door while Seis climbed with ED-E, leaving Nate where he was.
"Come get me!" Nate yelled, drawing the attention of several Synths.
"Surround subject zero-zero-two," called a synth with an automatic laser rifle, firing. Nate pulled a grenade to disperse them. Something knocked him to the ground, biting into his right arm. He looked up to see it was a synth dog, like the others but made entirely of metal and standing two meters tall like a Great Dane, sporting a sharp jaw.
"Grrr," Albondiga lunged at the robot dog. Nate got up, wincing in pain, and helped his dog.
"Go, boy!" The dog dashed ahead while Nate yanked the torn piece from his arm and injected a stimpack, beginning to shoot anyone who approached with All-American.
Six and ED-E managed the modified turrets with incendiary lasers. Luckily, there were only a few, but the Synths sported some white carbon-fiber armor.
One approached from behind, but ED-E took it out, and Seis grabbed another that was closing in with an electrified police baton, taking it by the neck and firing at two others in the head. Once they were dispatched, he took care of his laser shield.
Nick took down a turret using his synth abilities to his advantage. But he ran out of ammo and grabbed an Institute rifle that fired blue lasers, starting to shoot at several advancing Synths. One took cover, while another took every shot. Nick quickly approached, using the rifle to take it down. He had no time to react as Nick fired first, killing it. Once the area was clear, he went to help Nate, who had already taken down three, leaving two.
Nick shot one in the head, while Albondiga disarmed the other, allowing them both to finish it off.
"All clear!" Nate shouted.
The group gathered where they were to catch their breath, reload their weapons, and push forward through the floor, where one of the terminal rooms had an elevator that opened, allowing two Synths in that were gunned down by Nate and Seis.
"This way down," Seis said.
First, Nate and Nick descended, clearing the hallway where they found two more with automatic rifles waiting. Then Seis and ED-E followed down.
They moved through the hallway toward the door, but the loudspeakers activated.
"Well, if it isn't the walking ice cube. The last time I saw you, you were flirting with the peas and the ice cream tart. Apparently, my call worked and brought along the famous group of the Courier Six. Tell me, cowboy, do you still have amnesia? Or do I remind you of the Division?" The megaphone clicked off, leaving them stunned that Kellogg was here, but Seis was even more surprised that he recognized them, especially the kids.
"The Division?" Nick asked, confused.
"Just a place we come from," Seis replied, shaking off his confusion to follow Nate.
'Now I'm intrigued by this Kellogg,' thought Seis.
Before they entered the door that led further into the complex, the loudspeaker activated again.
"Sorry your house has been a mess for two hundred years, but I don't need company. Leave."
They advanced through the ruins of the building and Kellogg spoke. "I thought a man from before the war wouldn't survive in the Commonwealth, but here you are. Tell me, Courier, do your kids still have that 'mystical crap'? I heard the eggheads want to replicate that in Synths."
"'Mystical crap?'" Nate asked, looking at Seis, who had an annoyed expression at his knowledge of who they were and the topic of aura and semblances.
They passed through a hallway with a darkened room. Kellogg spoke again. "I'm sorry about your wife, but what do you intend to do when you find the boy? Go back to normal?"
They moved through some rooms, taking down a laser turret along the way, and descended to where a kitchen and medical area existed with two Synths in full combat armor. There was another turret that they took down and continued advancing.
"You've got guts and determination, which is admirable. But you don't realize how far this is slipping from your grasp."
Nate ignored him and continued forward, killing another Synth in the process as they cleared the last remaining defenses. They arrived in a brightly lit room with some medical supplies.
"Well done, you made it. I'm right here. My Synths have retreated. Let's talk."
The group reloaded their weapons and moved toward the door that opened, revealing the dark room they had seen not long ago. The lights came on.
"And here we are," Kellogg said, revealing three Synths deactivating a stealth field and the man they were looking for standing there with his hands up, gun in hand. "The most tenacious man in the Commonwealth and the most resilient Courier of the NCR. I thought I'd have that honor."
Just like that day, he wore the same clothes: the brown jacket, the shirt underneath, green pants, and of course, the shoulder armor on his left arm. Not to mention the face Nate despised.
"Assassin son of a thousand bitches. Where is my son? Where is Shaun!" Nate shouted, aiming his weapon at Kellogg's head.
"I'm just a puppet like you, but I move on a larger stage. Shaun is a good boy, a bit older than you expected, isn't he? But the thing is...he's no longer here. He's with those who pull the strings," he said, lowering his hands.
"You'll take me to him, alive or dead," Nate demanded, keeping his aim steady.
"Take you to him? Hahaha. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't. Don't you get it? No one can reach where your son is. Shaun is safe at home. In the Institute."
"There it is, at this 'Institute.' How do I get there?"
"You don't understand; you're not looking for the Institute — the Institute finds you. Just like it did with the Courier and his kids who changed the Mojave," he observed, looking calmly at his revolver. Seis was about to speak, but he was interrupted. "But we've talked enough. There's only one way this will end. Want to do the honors?"
Nate roared, his voice filled with rage: "You know? In a hundred years, when I die, I hope to go to hell just to kill you again, son of a bitch." As he spoke, his face contorted with adrenaline, ready to pull the trigger. But before he could do so, Kellogg moved with deadly swiftness, sweeping Nate's legs out from under him. Nate crashed to the ground, lifting his gaze just in time to see Kellogg aiming his revolver at him.
Without thinking, Nate rolled to the side, dodging the shot and finding cover behind an old desk that reeked of gunpowder and desperation.
"BIP, BOP, BIP!" ED-E's robotic voice echoed as it shot at an advancing Synth. Seis and Nick lunged toward the other two enemies, coordinating their attacks. Suddenly, a deafening shot rang out, and Nick was knocked down by a bullet that struck his shoulder, causing him to fall to the ground, his weapon flying away from him.
"BIP, BOP-!" (Stealth!) ED-E dodged another shot with a graceful maneuver, its scanners searching for Kellogg amidst the chaos.
Seis was on high alert, feeling the air charged with tension when suddenly, a solid blow stunned him in the face, making him stagger. Determined, he drew his revolver and fired into the air, but his shot was a miss that slammed into the wall.
At that moment, a pulse grenade exploded nearby, disorienting Nick and ED-E, leaving them temporarily incapacitated. Seis quickly got back on his feet and saw Kellogg disabling the stealth. Without hesitation, he began firing at him, but Kellogg agilely moved, taking shelter behind a heavy piece of furniture.
"Stop hiding and fight!" Nate yelled, already focused on defeating his enemy.
A shot whizzed past him as he saw Kellogg rushing towards him. Thinking quickly, he drew his combat knife, trying to slash at Kellogg's face, but Kellogg dodged, unleashing a kick that sent Nate off balance, then hitting him with a punch that stunned him.
Seis, seizing the opportunity, fired quickly, but Kellogg was smarter and grabbed Nate by the neck, using him as a human shield. With desperate effort, Nate elbowed him, breaking free and throwing his knife, injuring Kellogg in the shoulder.
Kellogg yanked the knife out with a sharp motion and, without wasting any time, fired his revolver towards the group. The bullets ricocheted off the metallic parts of his armor, protecting Nate and Seis.
With renewed determination, Seis activated VATS, aiming for Kellogg's hand to disarm him. Time seemed to freeze as he made his choice, and a barrage of bullets fired from his weapon, disarming the enemy in the process.
Kellogg, however, had a trick up his sleeve. Without anyone noticing, he pulled out two grenades from his belt, throwing them to the ground while activating his last stealth. Nate, injured but unyielding, charged at him, delivering a powerful right hook and finishing it off with a liver punch that sent Kellogg reeling backward, but not before a flying grenade blasted him painfully.
Nick, finally regaining consciousness, grabbed a laser rifle and shot at Kellogg's leg. The laser shot hit, causing Kellogg to brace himself, struggling to maintain his balance. Taking advantage of the confusion, Nate threw his combat knife, sinking it into Kellogg's abdomen.
Beside him, Seis grabbed an arm from a fallen synth, using it as an improvised weapon, striking at an approaching enemy. However, Kellogg wasn't easily defeated; he recovered in an instant, using his strength to slam Seis to the ground, attempting a head kick in a final desperate effort.
Nate and Nick fired again at Kellogg, realizing that time was running out. The laser bullets impacted his armor, creating sparks that lit up the dark confrontation.
Aware he was at a disadvantage and that his time was running out, Kellogg decided to take them all down with him. He pulled his last three grenades, his eyes blazing with desperation.
"No!" Seis shouted, aiming. Using VATS, he calculated and fired precisely at one of the grenades just in time. He took cover behind the desk, and the explosions echoed, shaking the place and knocking everyone down. Chaos reigned in the air as dust covered the battlefield, the fate of each person hanging by a thread.
Nate woke up, his ears still ringing, and raised his gaze toward the wall where he saw Kellogg, gravely injured. Struggling, he approached him while keeping an eye on the revolver Seis had dropped. With determination, he lifted the weapon and aimed at the enemy.
"Where... is my son?" Kellogg inquired, his voice faint yet venomous as he spat blood.
Kellogg smirked derisively. "Inst... itute," he murmured, his words laced with contempt.
Furious, Nate was about to pull the trigger and end it all, but felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Seis, looking at him intently. "Let me handle this. Go help Nick and ED-E."
"No," Nate replied angrily. "This murderer is my responsibility, and I'll deal with him personally."
"You will, but first I need you to answer me something." Nate looked at him, hesitating, but finally lowered the weapon.
"You have five minutes," he stated before moving to help his comrades.
Seis knelt beside Kellogg, his gaze intense. "You won't tell us where Shaun is, but answer me this: How do you know about us?"
"I spent some time in New Vegas and reported to the Institute about you… they're interested in your abilities," Kellogg replied with a cruel smile. "Even if you have those skills, the Institute will find a way to replicate them for their synth hunters."
Before Nate could move in for the kill, Kellogg spoke again. "Aim for the head with my own revolver."
Nate bent down to pick up the weapon from the floor, approaching the traitor. With a decisive movement, he placed the barrel to Kellogg's forehead and pulled the trigger, his expression unchanged as Kellogg's head exploded in a shower of metal and flesh.
Nate focused on the remnants, noticing robotic parts mixed with the brain matter. He took whatever he could: a fragment that contained an access code for a terminal along with the shoulder armor that had withstood the impact of the explosion.
While struggling to unlock the terminal, Seis approached. "Use this," he said, handing Nate the password he had obtained from Kellogg, which promised to open a key file about Shaun.
"Local Access. Login: Kellogg."
The notes began to unfold. "The boy, Shaun, has been delivered to the Institute, payment received. New orders: track the renegade. Reinforcements on the way. Fort Hagen cleared and secured. We will leave soon."
With a heavy sigh, Seis deactivated the security, allowing them to escape. Together with Nick, they gathered pieces from the fallen synths to repair him, as well as components that might assist ED-E.
"And now where?" Nick asked, puffing on his cigarette. "Kellogg wasn't lying; we know he's at the Institute, but we have no idea how to get there. And that I was built by them."
"We need someone to investigate them," Seis said thoughtfully.
"Well... there's a journalist in Diamond City. Piper. We should go see her and tell her everything," Nate suggested, starting to feel the urgency to act.
"Sounds good. And let's take care of our wounds in the meantime," Nate finished, completing repairs on ED-E, who beeped in gratitude.
They exited through the blocked door towards an elevator that would take them to the roof of the building. As the doors opened, the cool breeze of the Commonwealth night wrapped around them, providing a refreshing breath as they prepared for their next move.
What do you think of the fight? Why didn't you add the Brotherhood entrance? It's because I have a plan and an arc for the DLCs and the Brotherhood. Stay tuned for the next update titled "Resurgence Arc."
Look out for the next chapter. :)