Walking back into the Penthouse office, Mark realized that he had not told the Remnants where to go. "Yes Man," he said to the AI on the monitor, "is there anyone else on this floor right now?" "No sir. You are currently the only one here." Mark nodded. "Good. Inform Sarah, Reilly, Arcade, and the Remnants to come down here. I'm going to send a message to have Amata come up here, and once she's here, block off the floor to anyone else. No elevator, no stairway. Is that clear?" "Yes sir," the AI answered. While Mark waited for those on the roof to come down, he sent a message to Amata:
Come to Penthouse alone. Urgent.
About ten seconds later, he got a response:
Be there in a couple minutes.
With that done, he looked back at the computer screen to give additional instructions. "Have five more rooms prepared, Yes Man. Make sure that there's a one-floor gap between the Remnants and the others." "Of course, sir." Hearing footsteps, he turned around to see the group that was just on the roof were heading into the room and down the stairs.
The Remnants looked around as they walked. "Huh. Always wondered what the inside of this place looked like. Not too bad," one of them, Kreger if he remembered correctly, said. Doc Henry, meanwhile, was focused on the computer setup. "Amazing. This rivals anything we had at Navarro." He made to get closer, but Mark stopped him.
"Not so fast, Doc. Just because I let you in here doesn't mean you get free reign. Unless I say otherwise, this whole setup is off-limits to you and your crew, so back up." Doc Henry sighed, looking at the computer longingly before stepping back. "Good. This is the Penthouse, and that cartoony-looking face on the monitor is Yes Man. He's an AI that keeps the city running under my direction."
"Hi everyone! It sure is nice to meet even more new people!" Yes Man said. "Alright, so, Kreger, you're the Captain, and Henry, you're the doctor-" "-and technical specialist," Henry added. Mark nodded. "So, what about the rest of you?" "Heavy weapons," Moreno said. Daisy went next. "Pilot," she said. "Squad marksman," Johnson finished off. Mark then remembered something.
"What's with the nickname? You're not really a cannibal, are you?" Johnson shook his head. "Hell no. One time some raiders had me surrounded, so I cut out the heart of one of the ones that I already killed and took a bite out of it. Some ran, others hesitated long enough for me to make my escape."
Mark gagged a little. "Well, that's gross. Effective, but gross. I didn't think that Arcade would bring a cannibal here, but I just wanted to make sure. So, what did his dad do?" Mark asked, pointing to Arcade. "Oh, old Mark was the squad Captain before I was. I took over when he passed, God rest his soul," Kreger answered.
Before Mark could comment on that, Amata's voice came from outside the room. "Mark?" "In the office, babe," Mark responded. Moments later, Amata came through the curtain on the ground level, looking at Abby, who was in her arms, her face nuzzling Amata's neck. "I know you said come alone, but a certain someone is being very clingy today." She then looked up, seeing the Remnants. "Oh, hello. Arcade, you're back."
Hearing Arcade's name, Abby whipped her head up and saw Arcade. Her eyes lit up when she saw him. "Uncle Arcade!" She then squirmed out of Amata's arms and ran over to Arcade, hugging him around the waist. "I missed you so much!" Arcade smiled as he picked her up and gave her a kiss on her forehead.
"Hey, Abby. I missed you, too. You haven't been getting into trouble, have you?" Arcade asked, mirth in his voice. "No, I've been good. Well, mostly. Oh, and guess what? We have a dog now! And daddy found Auntie Cass' daddy! What are these on your armor? Who are all these people with you? Hi, I'm Abby!" Mark, Amata, and Arcade chuckled at the young girl's enthusiasm. Sarah and Reilly did as well, despite the presence of Enclave personnel in the room.
"Well, hello there, sweetie. Name's Daisy. My, don't you look lovely?" Abby blushed and hid her face in Arcade's chest. Amata then came over and gave Arcade a pat on the arm. "Welcome back, Arcade. Place wasn't the same without you," she said. "No kidding. I'm gone for three days and suddenly there's people from DC here, Mark's had surgery, and is now sporting some kind of metal suit that I am very interested in learning about."
He then looked down at Abby. "Oh, and apparently we now have a dog. And what was that about Cass' dad?" "We'll explain later, Arcade. Now, um, who are these people?" "Oh right, um, these are members of my dad's old squad, the "Devil's Brigade." These days they call themselves the "Enclave Remnants."" He then introduced everyone. "This was the reason that I was gone. I brought them here because I thought that they could help, and Mark agreed to let them stay."
Amata looked over at Mark, a look of shock on her face. Mark nodded, grimacing a bit. Amata shook off her shock and looked back at the Remnants. "Well, hello everyone. I am Amata Franklin, Mark's wife." She then looked back to Mark. "Mark, honey, could I talk to you in private?" Mark nodded and followed her out of the room, through the curtains and over to the kitchen area.
It was there when she stopped, turned around, and kissed him. She pulled away after a few seconds. "I'm so proud of you, Mark," she said. "For what?" he asked. "For putting aside your animosity towards the Enclave and letting them help us. But before anything else happens, we need to run this by the others first, you know, Cass, Veronica, and Boone." "Why?" Mark asked.
"This is their home too, Mark. They have a right to decide who they want to have staying here. You told the others that you didn't want to be a dictator, yet you invited the Rangers, the Brotherhood, and John to stay here without consulting the others, although I don't think they have any problem with John, seeing as he's Cass' dad. I'm kind of guilty of that, too, as I invited Christina to stay without asking if it was alright. We are your council, remember?"
Mark thought it over. "Crap, you're right," he said. Amata flicked him on the nose. "Hey, language." Mark laughed, then sighed. "Well, I was planning on calling everyone up here to introduce them to the Remnants, so I'll rectify that mistake at the same." He went to his pip-boy. "Yes Man, I need you to find everyone, and I mean everyone, and have them come up to the Penthouse."
(10 minutes later)
Everyone was now gathered in the Penthouse. For the time being, Arcade and the Remnants were hidden behind the secret wall partition. Mark had asked Sarah and Reilly to not say anything to their teams, and to let him explain. There were multiple inquiries as to why they were being summoned, but Mark's response was the same to all of them: he would explain once everyone was there. Cass, Veronica, Boone, John, and Christina stood near one another, away from the Brotherhood and Rangers.
Mark stood at the front of the room, Amata to his left, with Abby in her arms. ED-E floated behind them while Skye sat to Mark's right. When everyone was settled, he spoke. "Well, I'm sure that you're all wondering why I needed everyone up here. I will get to that in a moment, but first, I need to correct an oversight that was recently brought to my attention." He looked at the Mojave group.
"Cass, Boone, Veronica, I need to apologize to you guys." "We both do, actually," Amata added. "Uh, for what?" Veronica asked, looking confused. Cass sported a similar expression, while Boone remained as stoic as ever. Mark answered. "We need to apologize because, well, we invited various people to stay here without your consent. This is your home as well, and you are part of my council, so you should get a say in who stays here."
"I will fix that right now. Do any of the three of you have any objections to John, Christina, the Brotherhood, or the Rangers staying here?" Boone shook his head. "Um, no, not really," Veronica said. "Same here, Captain. I ain't got no problems, especially with ma dad over here. But, uh, Arcade might, whenever he gets back from wherever he is," Cass said.
"Yes, well, thank you. Actually, Cass, that sort of brings us to the main reason that everyone is up here: Arcade has returned." A bunch of people looked around, trying to find him. "Wait, where is he?" Veronica asked. "He's here, in this room, and has heard every word that we've said. He's currently behind the secret wall over there. The reason that he's hidden is because he's not alone. When he came back a short while ago, he brought some people with him, people that are related to his, uh, previously-unknown affiliation."
Veronica looked shocked, while Cass raised an eyebrow. "Are you talkin' 'bout what I think yer talkin' 'bout?" Cass asked. "Probably. Yes Man, open the door. Everyone, come on out." The door opened, Arcade being the first one out, followed by the rest. Upon seeing Enclave insignia, a majority of the Brotherhood and Rangers drew their weapons. The Mojave group was more curious than anything, although Mark thought he saw one of John's eyes twitching. Knowing that this was what their reaction would be, Mark put himself between the Remnants and the group, arms spread. "Put your weapons away," Mark ordered.
No one did. "Sarah, Reilly, if you would, please," Mark said. Sarah looked like she swallowed something sour but gave the order to the Brotherhood members. Reilly ordered her Rangers to as well. All obeyed, except for Dusk. "Knight-Captain, do you have a hearing problem? Because I believe I just said to holster your weapon," Sarah said.
"Sentinel, they're fucking Enclave!" Dusk exclaimed, scowling. "Language!" shouted Mark, Amata, Veronica and Cass all at the same time. They all glanced at each other, chuckling a bit. "No, I must've missed that part, Dusk," Sarah said rhetorically. "Of course I know that they're Enclave! I'm not blind, and I was with Mark when they arrived! So, unless you want to be written up for insubordination, I suggest you put your gun away NOW!"
Dusk then complied. Mark then put his arms down. "Hey doc, nice ta see ya again. Fancy get-up you've got there," Cass said, directly addressing Arcade. "Cass, Veronica, Boone, it's nice to see you again," Arcade said. "Alright," Mark said, "everyone who was at the briefing this morning should recognize him from the picture that I showed. Christina, you remember Arcade, right?"
"Yeah, yeah, I remember him. Nice to see you again," Christina said. "Nice to see you as well, Private. How are you dealing with, well, you know?" "As well as can be, I guess. And I'm not a Private anymore. I deserted the Army." "Oh, okay. Well, if you ever need to talk, my door's always open," Arcade said.
Mark then spoke. "Alright, um, Arcade, the old guy over there is John Cassidy, Cass' dad." "Pleasure to meet you, sir," Arcade said. "Likewise," John responded. "Ok," Mark said, "if it isn't obvious, the rest of the people with Arcade are former members of the Enclave. They served in the same unit as Arcade's father. Arcade, introduce them." He did so. "Look, while I understand that from what Mark's told us, you have absolutely no reason to trust anyone from the Enclave, I believe that their knowledge and experience could aid us at Hoover Dam."
"I agree, Arcade," Mark said, "but before we go any further, council members, do any of you have any objections to the Remnants staying here?" Nearly every Brotherhood member and Ranger raised their hands. "Yeah, I was talking to my council, which consists of her and them," Mark said, pointing to Amata and then the Mojave group, "not any of you." "So, what, we don't get a say in this?" Tristan asked.
Mark shook his head. "No. You guys are guests here. As stated earlier, this is their home as well as it is mine, and they should have a say in who gets to stay here. Now, I'll ask again: my council, and only my council, does anyone object to the Remnants staying here?" Cass, Veronica, and Boone did not object.
"John, Christina, I'm asking you as well, since I'm guessing that both of you will be staying here for the foreseeable future," Mark said. "Well," John said, "I'm not a big fan of the Enclave either, but I'll defer to your judgement on this one, kid. I just hope you know what you're doing." Mark nodded. He would have to ask John about the man's prior encounters with the Enclave later. "Christina? What about you?" "Uh, no, no objections," she said, shaking her head.
"How- how can any of you possibly be okay with this? Do you know what the Enclave has done?" Dusk asked, flabbergasted that they were accepting as they were. "Look," Arcade said, "I get that your interactions with the Enclave were more recent, but you have to understand, the Enclave hasn't existed as a functioning entity out here for over three decades now. John is probably the only one here who saw them at the height of their power." John nodded. "I was born into the Enclave, yes, but they were already in a decline at that point."
"Yeah, it's what he said," Veronica added. "Most of us weren't born yet, or if we were, we were way too young to understand what was really going on. I mean, I've read the Brotherhood's reports, so I have a good idea what they've done, but reading secondhand reports of what happened doesn't really equate to living through it. Besides, Arcade is our friend, and if he vouches for them, then, well…" She trailed off and shrugged her shoulders.
"Look, Mark," Sarah said, "I'm still highly uncomfortable with this. I mean, they did kill your dad. I'm not sure that he would like with you working with them." The room went deathly silent at the mention of Mark's dad. Mark glared angrily at Sarah, a few moments passing before he started speaking in an eerily calm voice. "You know nothing about my father." His eyes then swept the room. "None of you do, except for Amata. None of you know who he truly was."
"You have no idea how much it pained him to walk away from Project Purity, something that meant so much to his wife. You have no idea how hard it was for him to live in a damn hole in the ground for twenty years, raising me by himself, pretending he knew nothing about the outside world, all the while having to deal with an Overseer who was a complete and utter…bully."
Amata was sure that he wanted to call her father something else but held back for Abby's sake. Honestly, a bully was probably one of the nicer things that Mark could've called him. "It killed him that he got to live in safety while those above ground suffered when he could've helped. You don't know how he felt when he left me behind in the vault so he could go finish Project Purity. He thought that he would never see any member of his family again. None of you saw the look in his eyes as he drew his final breaths."
"And when I stepped into that chamber to activate Project Purity, fully preparing to die, I knew that he was there with me. He was always with me, and he will always be with me. He was a loving and compassionate man with the patience of a saint. That's who he was, and I think, no, I know that he would be proud of me for putting aside my anger and accepting the Enclave's help. The Enclave played a role in his death, but it was his own actions that ultimately killed him. The group behind me hasn't specifically done anything to me, and they have mine and my council's approval, so they're staying, and that's that."
He then took a deep breath. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear: Brotherhood, Rangers, Remnants, there will be no fighting. That is my rule. Brotherhood, I followed the rules when I visited the Citadel, and Rangers, I did the same when I visited your compound, so I expect you all to reciprocate. If you don't follow that rule, there will be consequences, up to and including expulsion from the Strip. I've already thrown one person out for not following the rules, and I will not hesitate to do it again."
"And don't think for one second that I won't know. I have eyes and ears everywhere. It's a big hotel; you can avoid one another easily." He paused for a couple moments. "You know, I'm reminded of something I read about in a history book once. At the signing of the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock supposedly said that Congress needed to hang together. Benjamin Franklin then supposedly replied, "Yes, we must indeed hang together, or most assuredly we will all hang separately.""
"When we're out there fighting the Legion, if you're trying to one-up each other, or start having arguments with one another, that just gives the Legion a better chance to kill you, and a better chance for them to win. I don't care what flag you fly. Brotherhood, NCR, Enclave, Rangers, it doesn't matter. We're all on the same side now, so deal with it. If you can't, then leave. We're done here."
He then faced Abby, still in Amata's arms, and smiled at her. "Abby, I'm going to be working on a special project, and I need a special helper. Would you like to be my special helper?" Abby nodded excitedly. "Yes daddy! I'll be your special helper!" "Well then, let's go," he said. He took her out of Amata's arms. "Going up to the ship. Cover for me," he whispered to Amata. She nodded and gave him a kiss.
Once Mark was out of the room, everyone started to disperse. Amata went over to Sarah. "Could I speak to you for a moment, Sarah?" "Uh, sure, Amata," Sarah answered. Amata led Sarah over into the hidden area. She then turned and glared at the Sentinel. "Don't you ever pull that shit again!" Sarah was a bit taken aback by Amata's hostility. "Uh, pull what, exactly?" Amata rolled her eyes.
"Oh, don't start feigning ignorance, Sarah. You just tried to guilt-trip Mark by bringing up his father." Sarah shook her head. "No, I was just merely voicing my opinion," the Sentinel responded. "Okay, A, that's bull, and you know it, and B, your opinion was neither asked for nor wanted. That's still a sore spot for him, and I'm betting that you already know that."
"James was more of a father to me than my own father was. My heart broke when I heard that he died. I am as mad as Mark is that you, a supposed friend, would pull a stunt like that. You do that again, and you will have to deal me. I don't care that you're some highly trained warrior; I will take you down." With that, Amata brushed by Sarah and left the room, leaving her alone with her thoughts.
(2 hours later, Mothership Zeta)
The "special project" that Mark was working on was a machine that would enable him to re-paint the suit. It did look nice as it was, but the red and gold color scheme was currently associated with the Legion. While it was highly unlikely that anyone would think that a Legion agent would use this level of technology given their aversion to it, he didn't want to take any risks.
The schematics for the machine had been uploaded to the suit by the man who created it, so he was currently working off that. Sure, he probably could've made his own with his now super-advanced intellect gained from his brain being soaked in ground mentats, but as the old saying went, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
He currently had only the console built, and was now taking a break, listening to the radio. Abby had been with him for a half-hour or so, with him telling her stories about his dad. Eventually, Sally had found them and wanted to play with Abby. She didn't want to at first, but Mark insisted that they go spend some time together, so off they went.
As he took a sip of water, the song that was playing ended, and Mr. New Vegas came back on. "This is Mr. New Vegas, and I've got some news for you. Reports have come in about vertibirds landing on top of the Lucky 38, both last evening and this morning. NCR officials have released a statement saying that the vertibirds are not theirs, and that they are trying to reach out to Mr. House but have thus far been unsuccessful. Got a song for you now. It's about a guy who's cool on the exterior, but deep down, you know he's a good man. And his name…is Johnny Guitar."
Mark knew that the NCR would be attempting to find out what the deal was with all the vertibirds, not that they would be getting anything out of him. His pip-boy then beeped. He looked down and saw a message from Amata:
Need you to come back down. Abby needs to eat, and she still has her lessons. Plus, the others are getting suspicious.
Mark sent a message back saying that he would be right down. Remembering Sally saying something about being in her room, he headed in that direction. He heard music playing and the girls laughing as he entered. The girl's room had been decked out with any Captain Cosmos memorabilia that they could find after he had assumed command of the ship and had given her a room. Posters, toys, comics, if it was Captain Cosmos-related, Sally had it.
To his right was a desk with paper and crayons on it. Along the far wall was Sally's bed. Try as they might, they could not find any Captain Cosmos-themed bedsheets, so there was just a pillow and a plain blue blanket. There was a Jangles the Moon Monkey doll on the bed as well. To his right was a working tv and holotape player. Various posters and drawings adorned the walls.
One of the drawings, which were all stick figures with hair, was her family from before the war, while another was one of her and one of those whom she considered her new family, such as himself, Elliott, and the other defrostees. There also seemed to be a new one, one that the names on the page said were her and Abby.
The girls were sitting in front of the tv, laughing as the credits rolled to a Captain Cosmos episode. "That was so funny how Jangles threw that banana peel on the floor and made that henchman fall flat on his face!" Abby said. "I know! That was one of my favorite episodes! Wanna watch another?" Sally asked.
Mark interrupted before Abby could answer. "Unfortunately, that's going to have to wait for another time, girls. Abby, we need to head back to the 38." Abby stood up and pouted. "Aww, why? I wanna watch more Captain Cosmos daddy!" "Yeah, and you can, but later. Your mom just messaged me. You need to eat lunch, and then you have your lessons."
Abby continued to pout, giving him puppy-dog eyes for good measure. Sally copied her. "Please let me stay, daddy," Abby said. Hit with that double-dose of cuteness, he almost gave in, but the fear of facing Amata's wrath enabled him to overcome it. "No, that's not going to work this time. I promise that you can come back later today, but only if you're good. Besides, your mom loves teaching you, and you wouldn't want to disappoint her, would you?"
Abby sighed. "No, I don't." She then turned to Sally and gave her a hug. "Alright, I guess I'll see you, Sally." "That's fine! We'll have even more fun later!" Sally replied enthusiastically. Abby smiled at her friend and then went over to Mark, who then took her hand. "Take us home, MARI."
Arriving on the roof, they took the elevator down to the Presidential Suite. "Amata?" Mark called out. "Kitchen!" Amata yelled back. Abby skipped into the kitchen, Mark following. Amata, Cass, Veronica, John, and Christina were all at the table, eating various things. Abby ran right to Amata, who picked her up and put her in her lap and gave her a kiss on the top of her head.
"Hey, sweetheart. Did you have fun with your dad?" Amata asked. "Yeah! He told me all about his daddy! Then I went to play with Sally, and we watched Captain Cosmos holotapes. They were awesome!" That got some laughs. "Uh, who's Sally?" John asked. "She's a friend who lives elsewhere. We'll introduce you to her another time," Mark said. John nodded and went back to his food.
Abby then looked around the room. "Mommy, where are Skye and ED-E?" "Um, I believe that Skye is sleeping in the game room, and Uncle Arcade is pulling some data off ED-E, so he's unavailable right now. Now let's get you some food, and then we'll get into your lessons, okay?" Abby nodded. "Yes mommy."
"Veronica, would you mind getting her some food? I need to have a quick chat with Mark," Amata said. "No problem, I was just about done anyways," Veronica said. Amata got up and deposited Abby in the seat to the right of hers. She then indicated for Mark to follow her. She led them into their bedroom, Mark closing the door behind them.
"What's going on?" Mark asked as Amata sat down on one of the couches. "Is this about what happened this morning? Am I in trouble again?" "No, no, this isn't about that. I have no issues with what happened this morning. Although, um, Arcade is cool with everyone staying here. I asked him since I noticed that you forgot. We do have a problem, though."
"What problem?" Mark asked concernedly, stepping out of the suit and sitting down next to her. Amata wrung her hands. "Well, I mean, it isn't a problem yet, but it might possibly be a problem in the future, conceivably. I hope it isn't, but we need to be ready in case it does, because-"
She was cut off as Mark put a finger on her lips. "Babe, you're rambling. Just tell me what may or not be a problem, preferably today." He removed his finger. "Sorry. It's just-I'm worried about Abby." "Abby? What about her? If it's about her spending time with Sally instead of me, don't worry about it. I actually insisted because I could tell she wasn't really interested in the mechanical stuff I was working on."
She shook her head. "No, it's not about that either. I'm happy she and Sally are getting along. No, it's more about how Abby will react when the baby comes." Mark tried to figure out where she was going with this but came up empty. "You lost me, babe," he said. "Well, you know that book I've been reading?" she asked, pointing to the book on her nightstand.
Mark nodded. "Well, it said that an older sibling might get jealous of a new baby because the baby is going to need all of our attention. I fear that she's going to feel neglected. Am I being paranoid?" Mark was silent for a couple moments and then started chuckling. Amata didn't see the humor in this situation. "This isn't funny, Mark!" Amata exclaimed.
"Sorry, babe, but you are being a bit paranoid. You do realize that Cass and all them are probably going to help us with the baby, right? I'm sure that we'll have to pry the baby away from Veronica with a crowbar, if the way she dotes on Abby is any indication. We'll still have time for her. Or if we can't give her attention, one of the others will, or worst-case scenario, she can go visit Sally. She will never be neglected. If it makes you feel better, we'll have a talk with her to make sure she understands what's going to happen."
Amata smiled at him. "Yeah, I was thinking we should do that, too. Stupid hormones, making me act all crazy." Mark laughed and then put a hand on her stomach. She covered his hand with one of her own. Mark then leaned in to kiss her.
"So, what are you planning for the rest of the day?" she asked him. "Well, after we talk with Abby, I'm going to bring some art books from this place over to Sheldon. I think they'll be better than just the pictures that he wanted. After that, well, I have a few ideas, but I haven't decided yet. Actually, did you and Abby want to come with me to see Sheldon?" Amata thought about it, then shook her head. "No, we'll visit another time. She still has her lessons." "Okay. Well, let's go see if she's finished eating so we can talk with her."
The talk with Abby went better than they expected. They simply explained to her that the baby was going to require a lot of attention as they were not able to do anything for themselves. That meant that they might not be able to spend as much time with them as she was used to. However, they made it clear that that did not mean that they would not want to spend time with her, or that they would stop loving her. Abby understood what they were saying, adding that she wanted to spend as much time with the baby as possible, so she would be spending time with them regardless of whether they were with the baby or not.
After that, Mark took off so that Amata could get on with teaching Abby. Learning from Yes Man that the bag with the books he requested was on one of the check-in desks on the casino level, he took the elevator down. He decided to forgo the suit, not wanting to reveal that secret to the outside world just yet. He opted for a pair of blue jeans and a white t-shirt instead.
Seeing the bag on the desk to his right, he went over, grabbed it, and was about to leave, when a voice stopped him. "Hey, Mark, hold up a second," came a voice from behind him. Mark turned to see Sarah heading towards him, coming from behind the elevator. She was wearing leather armor, most likely Amata's, with a 10 mm pistol on her hip.
"Sarah," Mark said flatly. She stopped a couple feet from him. "Christ, Mark, I've been looking for you everywhere. Amata wouldn't tell me where you were, just that you were busy." "I was. If you're here to try again to convince me to not let the Remnants stay, then save it. It's already been decided and I'm not hearing another word about it."
"No, I'm not here to do that. I, um, I want to apologize for what happened today. While we may not like it, as you said, we are your guests, and it is not our place to tell you who can and cannot stay here. I've spoken with my team, and they will do as you suggested and avoid the Remnants as much as possible."
"In addition, I would like to apologize for my own actions. It was wrong of me to use your dad's name like that. You have every right to be angry at me. Hell, I'm angry at me, and I know that my dad would be angry at me for pulling a cheap stunt like that. I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me."
Mark sighed. "Alright, I forgive you. Just don't let it happen again." Sarah felt a weight lift off her shoulders. "Thank you, Mark. I promise that it won't happen again. So, where are you going?" "Heading down the street to bring these books to Sheldon. Wanna take a walk?" She nodded. "Sure. I'd like to get a better look at the city."
The pair exited the building and onto the Strip. "Wow. They really don't have any shame, do they?" Sarah asked as they walked by the hookers in front of Gomorrah. Mark shrugged. "Sex sells; it always has. Remember those old Nuka-Cola ads with the girl in the skimpy spacesuit? Besides, this whole city is devoted to vice and sin. I'd be more surprised if there weren't hookers and strippers somewhere."
"Yeah, I guess you have a point," Sarah said. She looked around, taking in the sights, when her eyes rested on a Securitron. "Oh yeah, you never told us what those Securitrons could actually do." Mark rubbed his chin. "I didn't? Huh, must've slipped my mind." He looked around, making sure that no one was eavesdropping. "Um, they have an X-25 gatling laser, a 9 mm submachine gun, an M-235 surface-to-air missile launcher, and a rapid-fire grenade launching system. They also have a sophisticated on-board self-repair system."
Sarah let out a whistle. "Wow. That is quite the arsenal." "Yeah, the Platinum Chip installed the Mark II operating system, which unlocked the drivers for the missile and grenade launchers. The previous Mark I software only allowed them to use the submachine gun and the gatling laser. We're here."
The had indeed arrived at Michael Angelo's workshop. They were about to enter when someone called out. "Excuse me," the voice called out. They both turned to see a female NCR soldier approaching them. She had shoulder-length black hair. "Um, can we help you with something?" Mark asked.
"Yes. You are Mark Franklin, also known as the Courier, correct?" she asked curtly. "Yes, I am, and this is my friend Sarah Lyons. And you are?" "Captain Marie Pappas, head of the NCR Military Police." "Ah yes, Captain Pappas, the only NCR soldier allowed to carry a weapon on the Strip. What can I do for you, Captain?"
"I was about to head down to the Lucky 38, but this saves me the trip. Ambassador Crocker wishes to speak with you," she answered. "Regarding what?" Mark asked, although he already had a good idea of what it was. "We have reports of three vertibirds arriving last night and one more this morning. The brass are concerned about whom and/or what they are carrying and whether it poses any risk to the NCR. We tried to get in contact with House, but he's not responding, so I was sent to see if I could speak with you instead."
Mark looked at Sarah, and then back to Pappas. "Well, uh, Captain, I'm busy right now, and most likely for the foreseeable future, so I don't really have time to visit with the good Ambassador. However, you are welcome to inform him that whom or what the vertibirds were carrying pose no threat to the NCR, so he need not worry. Now, if you don't mind, we have an errand to run. Good day, Captain." Mark turned and went into the building. "Uh, nice to meet you, Captain," Sarah said before following Mark in.
They found Sheldon in his room, typing on his computer. He looked much more rested than the last time Mark saw him. Mark knocked on the open door to get his attention. When he looked over and saw Mark, he smiled. "Ah, the brave photographer returns. Come in, come in," he said as he stood up. Mark entered, Sarah trailing behind him.
"Oh, and you must be Amata. It's wonderful to finally meet you. You look quite lovely, I must say." "Um, actually, Sheldon, this is my friend Sarah Lyons." Sheldon looked embarrassed. "Oh. My apologies Ms. Lyons. It's still nice to meet you regardless. I am Sheldon Weintraub, aka Michael Angelo. Welcome to my workshop." "Nice to meet you too, Sheldon, and please call me Sarah."
Sheldon nodded and then looked back at Mark. "So, do you have the pictures that I asked for?" Mark hefted the duffel bag up onto the desk. "Nope. I did you one better. In here are all the art books from the Lucky 38. They're yours to keep." Sheldon looked at Mark in disbelief. "Are-are you serious?" he asked. "Yup," Mark replied. "Open the bag and take a look."
Sheldon opened the bag and grabbed a book at random. He flipped through it quickly, and then put it down and repeated the process with a second book. He then looked back at Mark. "I…I don't know what to say. These are amazing. My inspiration is going to be fueled for years. Giving you a camera and some film hardly seems like an equitable trade for all of these wonderful books. There must be something else I can give you, or something that I can do for you. And I'm not taking no for an answer."
"Well," Mark said, "there was another reason I came to see you besides the books. I'd like to personally commission a project. It's going to be a gift for my daughter." "Wonderful! I'd be happy to do it if I can. Just tell me what you'd like done." Mark then explained what he wanted.
"So, would that be possible for you to do?" Mark asked. "Oh, yes, yes, that's well within my capabilities. I just need a few more details." He pulled out a pen and a piece of paper and asked Mark a couple more questions. Once he was done, he looked at the paper. "Ok. I will get started on this right away."
"Shouldn't take more than a week, so check back in then. Actually, I forgot that I can contact you directly now," he said, looking at his pip-boy, "so if you'd like, I could contact you when it is complete." "Yeah, just send me a message when it's done. Well, we've got to go. It was nice seeing you again, Sheldon," he said as they shook hands.
After saying their goodbyes, Mark and Sarah headed out. "What was that about him being able to contact you directly?" Sarah asked him as they headed for the exit. "Back when Amata and I were back in Goodsprings, I modified our pip-boys so that we could talk to one another, and once we got to the Strip, we added a text message ability. Eventually I did the same for Veronica, Sheldon, and his sister." Sarah raised an eyebrow. "You were able to do that?" "Yup," Mark said proudly.
(1 hour later)
Mark decided that it was time to deal with the Boomers. When he was asked how he was going to get there without being blown up, Mark tapped the suit and said that he was going to walk right up to the front gate. He was now flying to the northeast, heading in the direction of Nellis. There was another reason that he was heading that way as well, one that he informed Amata of.
He remembered what Abby had told them, about how her and her birth parents lived in a shack near Nellis. He wanted to check it out to see if there was anything left that they could give to Abby, and to hopefully find enough of Chris and Hannah to give them a proper burial. Amata wanted to join him, but it was ultimately decided that she would stay back for the safety of the baby.
Upon seeing what looked like a pile of burnt wood, he made his descent, stumbling a bit as he landed. After disposing of a couple of bloatflies, he retracted the helmet and took a closer look. There was a burnt-out generator nearby, along with a small pen with a couple of rotting brahmin corpses. He started lifting the wood and tossed the pieces to the side.
He found both bodies close to one another. Both were blackened with bones visible through the skin. He was able to determine who was who by finding a hole in one of the skulls, indicating that it was Chris. He picked up the bodies one at a time and moved them over to the side.
Looking through the rest of the wreckage, he found that nothing was salvageable. He was upset that he couldn't bring anything else back to Abby, but there was nothing that he could do about it. He then teleported up to the ship, returning a few minutes later with a shovel. "You know, sir," MARI said while he was digging, "you could use the repulsors to blast through the ground. It would make this go much faster." "I'm sure it would, MARI, but I just feel like I have to do this the old-fashioned way," Mark replied.
The hole he dug was a couple feet down, and wide and long enough to fit both bodies. He gingerly placed both bodies in the grave and covered them with the loose dirt. He then took a small piece of wood and planted it in the ground at the head of the grave to mark it. Once he was done with that, he knelt beside it.
"Chris, Hannah," he said somberly, "you deserved a better fate. But, you know, we don't always get what we deserve. One day, when she thinks she's ready, my wife and I will bring Abby to visit." He paused for a few moments. "May you both rest in peace." He then stood up, recalled the helmet, and continued on to Nellis.
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Next chapter we deal with the Boomers, among other things. Until next time, and reviews are always welcomed and appreciated.