Mark walked up the road, approaching a sign that said that he was entering a restricted military area. Large red letters had been painted on it that said "WARNING! BOOMERS!" He passed by it, stopping in his tracks when he heard someone call out to him. "HALT!" the male voice said. Mark stopped but did not turn around. "MARI, threat analysis," Mark said. "Two people, ten feet behind you, three feet apart from one another. Currently invisible, likely using stealth boys. Infrared analysis indicates they are wearing power armor," the AI said to him.
'Brotherhood then,' Mark thought. "Turn around slowly, and no sudden movements," the same voice said. Mark turned around, seeing nothing for a second before two figures appeared out of thin air, both wearing power armor, carrying laser rifles, both of which were pointed at him. "Something I can help you with?" Mark asked.
This time the other person spoke, the voice indicating that it was also a man, standing to Mark's right. "Under the authority of the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel, you are hereby ordered to turn over that suit immediately," he said. Mark pretended to think it over. "Hmm. Tempting, but no. How did you guys find me, anyway?" Mark asked.
"We were patrolling when we saw something fly in this direction, something that matches what you're wearing. We got here just as soon as you were finished digging that grave back there," the one on his left said. "And you're just now confronting me? Why not before?" Mark asked curiously. "We respect the sanctity of the dead. We're not monsters. Now step out of the suit. We're not going to ask again," the one on his left ordered.
"Yeah, my answer is still no," Mark answered back. "Fine," the man on his right said, "then we will take it from you by force." They began to advance on Mark, who just smirked under his helmet. The arc reactor on his chest glowed brightly for a second before returning to normal. The two Brotherhood members stopped in their tracks, hissing and popping noises coming from their suits.
"What the hell?! I can't move!" the man on Mark's right said. "Neither can I!" the other one added. "What the hell did you do, outsider?!" He yelled at Mark. "Well, I think it should be obvious. A localized EMP burst-" Mark tapped his chest "-has fried all the circuits in your suits and weapons, rendering them completely useless. That power armor is impressive, far above regular armor in most respects, but, as you likely know, it has a fatal flaw, one that any idiot with a pulse grenade can exploit."
He calmly walked up to them, and with one hand, pushed them both backwards on the ground, eliciting groans of pain from them. That was followed by both yelling obscenities at Mark. "Hey! Language! Your parents must not have raised you very well if you're using those words. Ah well. Now, let's see who we're dealing with here."
Mark first went to the man on his right. Using his increased strength, both from the suit and his surgically enhanced spine, Mark broke the helmet latches that were now fused to the suit and took off the helmet, tossing it away. The man, who was scowling at Mark, had short brown hair and brown eyes. "What's your name, soldier?" Mark asked him. "Fuck you," the man answered. Mark gave the man a light tap on the side of his head. "Hey! What did I say before? Language!" Mark said before moving over to the other man, repeating the same process with the helmet. Upon removing it, Mark got a surprise as he saw a familiar face.
"Hey, Maxwell. How's it hanging?" It was indeed the same Paladin that he and Veronica had a confrontation with at Hidden Valley. "How do you know my name?" Maxwell asked angrily. Mark put a hand over his heart, feigning being hurt. "Oh Maxwell, that hurts. Right in the old ticker. Although the mask kind of makes it hard to tell who I am, so I guess I can forgive you."
"What are you going on about?" Maxwell asked. Mark retracted the helmet, revealing his face. It took a few seconds, but Maxwell's face dawned in recognition, then anger. "YOU!" he yelled. "Maxwell, you know him?" the other Paladin asked. "Yeah. He came to the bunker with Veronica once. He's part of Lyons' chapter."
"Yeah, we go way back," Mark said. "So, did McNamara finally lift the lockdown?" "That's none of your business, outsider," Maxwell said. "Well, I'm gonna take that as a "no," then. Which means the two of you snuck out, since Veronica told me you only send patrols out at night. Naughty, naughty," Mark said, wagging a finger at them.
"Now, the question is, what to do with you?" Mark started to pace, rubbing his chin as he thought. "Hmm, I guess the easiest thing I could do is to just kill the both of you and leave you out here to rot. Or maybe I just leave you out here as you are. With that sun beating down on you, you'd get one hell of a sunburn. Then there are the various creatures that would be attracted to the smell of cooking flesh."
"Both options are appealing, but luckily for you I'm feeling merciful today. You did let me finish what I was doing before." He punched Maxwell in the head, knocking him out. Mark then walked over and did the same to the other man.
(Half-hour later, Hidden Valley)
Elder McNamara was in the security office, speaking with Paladin Ramos. "Are you sure about that, sir?" Ramos asked the Elder. "Are you questioning my authority, Paladin?" McNamara asked back. Ramos shook his head. "No sir, of course not. It's just that-" They were interrupted when someone knocked frantically on the door. "Paladin Ramos!" the male voice said.
McNamara went over and opened the door. On the other side was a man of Hispanic descent with short black hair and dark brown eyes, wearing recon armor. "Paladin Ramos, there's-" the man cut himself off when he saw who had opened the door. The man then saluted. There was silence for a few moments before McNamara broke it. "Did you have something that you needed to say, Knight Williamson?"
"Uh, yes, Elder, sir. Um, there's something in the antechamber that you need to see." "What is it, Knight?" Williamson paused for a moment. "I, um, I really don't know how to explain it. It's something that you need to see for yourself, sir." McNamara stared at the man before speaking. "Very well. Dismissed, Knight. Ramos, with me."
They were met with an interesting sight upon entering the antechamber. There were two Paladins lying on the floor, both apparently unconscious. Their bodies were rigid, weapons aiming upward, as if they would have been aiming at something had they been standing. Painted on each of their chest plates in red paint were the words, "I WAS A NAUGHTY BOY!"
McNamara recognized them as Paladins Maxwell and Gregorson. There was a piece of paper taped to Maxwell's head. Ramos went over and checked their pulses. "They're alive, sir," he said. Ramos then took the paper off Maxwell's head and handed it to McNamara. "It's addressed to you, sir." McNamara took the note and opened it.
Elder McNamara,
These two Paladins apparently snuck out and attempted to take something from me at gunpoint. Don't worry, they are not dead, merely sedated, and they will awaken in a few hours. If this happens again, however, I may not be feeling so merciful. Got your note, by the way. I appreciate the help.
Sincerely,
Captain Mark Franklin
Head of the sovereign state of New Vegas
P.S. Yes, I know you know about House.
P.P.S. Their suits are fried, so have fun getting them out.
McNamara chuckled and then looked at Ramos. "Get a team to cut them out of their suits, and then take them to medbay. They're going to be out for a while, apparently. They are to be confined there until further notice, and instruct Scribe Schuler to inform me when they awaken. Is that understood, Paladin?" Ramos nodded. "Yes, Elder." "Very good," McNamara said before turning and heading back down the stairs.
(Twelve minutes earlier, outside Nellis)
Mark was now walking down the road that led to Nellis, completely invisible. There were multiple craters, skeletons, as well as destroyed buildings and cars lining the road. There was a large chain-link fence with barbed wire on the top of it that separated from Nellis from the rest of the world.
Satellite photos of the former Air Force base showed raised platforms strategically placed every hundred feet or so just inside the fence, except for two that were close together just inside the main gate, manned by Boomers wielding missile launchers. There were also howitzers placed further inward. Getting closer, Mark observed that they were wearing bomber jackets over what he instantly recognized as vault suits, as well as pip-boys. 'Interesting,' he thought. 'Maybe they were originally from a vault.'
He then retracted the mask and made himself visible. "Hey there," he said loudly. Both Boomers jumped, and then looked at him in astonishment. The one to Mark's right spoke. "What the-where did you come from? How did you get here without us seeing you? Who are you?" Mark grinned.
"Name's Mark. I hail from Washington, DC, but if you're talking more recently, Goodsprings, and currently New Vegas. As for how I got here, well, I just walked right up to the front gate. Maybe you guys need to be more attentive." The other Boomer spoke. "Stop being a smartass. What do you want?"
"I wish to speak to whomever is in charge here," Mark answered. The Boomer took a walkie talkie off his belt and pressed a button. "Raquel, come in," he said. A few seconds later, he got a response. "This better be important, Martinez." "Uh, yeah, we have an outsider at the front gate who wishes to speak with Mother Pearl." The woman, apparently Raquel, let out an audible sigh.
"Martinez, I already warned you that if you pulled any more pranks, you'd be punished. Hope you enjoy scrubbing toilets, because that's what you'll be doing for the next month." The other Boomer grabbed his own walkie. "Raquel, this is Johnson. This actually isn't a prank. There really is someone at the gate."
Raquel went silent for about ten seconds. "Alright, hang on. I'll be right there. Raquel out." With that, both Boomers put their walkies back on their belts. "Raquel will be here to meet you. It may be a few minutes," Martinez said. Mark nodded. "No problem. I'll just take a seat." He sat down against what was left of a wall and went to his pip-boy. "You guys don't mind if I play some music, do you?" Without waiting for an answer, he pressed a button and music began to play:
"I'm tickled pink
That things are rosy
And skies are blue once again…"
Once that song finished, he played another, and was halfway through a third when he heard a yell. "Outsider!" He looked to his left. At the gate was a woman of Asian descent with black hair put up in a bun. She was wearing green combat armor and carrying a grenade machinegun. There was also a Mister Gutsy trailing behind her. Mark turned off the music, got to his feet, and approached the gate. "I'm Raquel, Master-At-Arms for the Nellis Homeland," she said. "Mark Franklin. Pleasure to meet you," Mark responded. "You're the first outsider to ever make it to the gate, and I didn't even hear any explosions. How exactly did you manage that?" she asked him.
"Well, like I told those two behind you, I just walked right up to the gate. Not my fault that they weren't paying attention," Mark answered. Raquel turned and glared at them. They both cowered in fear at that look. She turned back to look at Mark.
"Against my advice, our eldest, Mother Pearl, would like to speak with you. You will be the first outsider to set foot in Nellis since it was claimed by our ancestors. Be warned, outsider: if you start causing any trouble, or harm anyone, you will be killed. Is that clear?" "Raquel, my reasons for being here are purely diplomatic. If I wanted to hurt anyone or cause any trouble, I would've been inside that gate doing it already," Mark said.
Raquel raised an eyebrow, looking at him skeptically. "Oh really now? How would you have done that, exactly?" she asked. Mark grinned. "Like this." He rose straight in the air, to the astonishment of the three Boomers. He stopped when he was fully above the fence line. Looking to his right, he saw an already destroyed car. He stuck out an arm, firing a repulsor blast at it, followed by a volley of rockets.
He then came back down to the ground. "So?" he said. She stared at him for a few moments, her face impassive, before placing her weapon on the ground and removing a key ring from her belt. Finding the right one, she unlocked the gate. "Welcome to Nellis, outsider." Mark stepped through, with Raquel closing and re-locking the gate behind him.
"Follow me," she said curtly. Nellis was a sprawling complex, as one might expect a military base to be. There were numerous buildings, including an air traffic control tower, two large hangars, and quonset huts scattered around. The runway had multiple craters in it, along with multiple dilapidated military vehicles spread across the complex. There were also multiple Mister Gutsies patrolling the base.
Mark tried to start up a conversation with Raquel multiple times, but it was clear from her lack of response that she wasn't interested. Eventually they stopped at a small wooden building just past the hangars that had the words "Commanding Officer" painted in white above the door. Raquel turned and faced Mark.
"Mother Pearl is in there. She has requested that your meeting be private, again, against my recommendation, so I will leave you here. Please be respectful. Goodbye, outsider," she said to him before she walked past him and headed back in the direction they had just come from. 'She's certainly a ray of sunshine,' Mark thought before he went up the steps to the door, knocking on it.
"Come in," came a woman's voice from inside. Mark opened the door and entered. It was a fairly large L-shaped building. Directly in front of him was a coffee table with a couch on either side of it. To his right were some filing cabinets, a desk, and a blue flag with the number "34" in gold in the center of it. This leant more credence to his theory that these people were originally from a vault.
To his left were a couple of bookcases below a row of small windows. In the back left corner was a bathroom, and in the back was a kitchenette. He couldn't see around the corner from his position, but since this was Pearl's quarters, he assumed that there was a bed.
From around that corner came an old woman wearing a similar vault-suit-and-bomber-jacket outfit as the Boomers near the gates. There was a weapon holstered on her back, but Mark couldn't see what it was exactly. "Welcome, child! You sure took your sweet time getting here, didn't you?" she said as she stopped on the other side of the coffee table.
"Well," Mark said, "I mean, I had to wait for Raquel to unlock the gate and then lead me here. I obviously didn't know where to go, so I could only walk as fast as she could." Pearl chuckled and shook her head. "No, that's not what I meant. I've been waiting a good number of years for someone to make it to the gate. You're the first person to do so since we claimed Nellis as our own, and you did it without a shot being fired. Very impressive."
"Oh, but where are my manners. I am Mother Pearl, leader of this tribe. Welcome to Nellis." Mark gave a short bow. "It is an honor to meet you, Mother Pearl. I am Mark Franklin," Mark replied. "Well, Mark Franklin, have a seat. These old bones are getting tired of standing," she said as she sat down on the couch to Mark's left. Mark sat down across from her.
"So, you were seriously waiting for someone to make it to the gate?" Mark asked. "Oh, yes," Mother Pearl responded. "I just hoped that it was a savage-sorry, outsider-that made it before one of those armies came knocking. You are the first contact I've had with the outside world since I was barely a woman, and the youngers have never interacted with an outsider, well, aside from blowing them up."
"Seclusion has kept us safe, but the world around us is changing. Neon lights in the distance, patrolling robots, soldiers…my youngers think our guns can keep out the world, but I think that we need to let it in, just a little, or become its victim. You are that little piece of the world, child." Her eyes then traveled down Mark's left arm, seeing a pip-boy screen. "Are you from a vault, child?"
Mark nodded. "Yes. I am from Vault 101, which is near Washington, DC, which is on the other side of the country. I'm guessing that you all are from a Vault as well?" "Yes, Vault 34. It has been decades since we were last there, and I am one of the last few here who actually lived there."
That jogged something in Mark's memory. The pip-boy they found on one of the bodies at the Sierra Madre had a "34" imprinted on it. "Um, Mother Pearl, by any chance, has anyone left Nellis recently?" he asked. She sighed. "Leaving the homeland has been strictly forbidden since we first took Nellis, but a few months ago, one of our own apparently snuck out in the middle of the night. He left a note, saying something about finding a treasure or some such nonsense. Why do you ask? Did you come across them?"
Mark became a bit uncomfortable, rubbing the back of his head. "By your body language, I'm guessing that you don't have good news," Mother Pearl said. 'I'm sorry, Mother Pearl, but he is dead. His pip-boy had a "34" on it, which was the only way that I could tell." Pearl's eyes closed, tears leaking out of the corners. It was a minute or so before she spoke again.
"Thank you for that information child. Is there any chance of recovering the body?" Mark wasn't going to tell her that the body was incinerated when he blew the Sierra Madre up. "No. The place we found him is quite a way away from here, and it was in a very hazardous area that I have no desire to return to." She nodded. "I understand. At least now we finally have some closure. Did you take his pip-boy, by any chance?" "Uh, yeah. My friend Veronica uses it now. I can see if I can get it back for you if you want."
"No, that's quite alright," Pearl said. "I know how useful they can be." She then let out a breath. "Well, enough about that. Why is it that you came to Nellis, child?" "Right. Um, well, it appears that you already know about the NCR and Legion, so that saves me some explanation." Pearl nodded. "We are aware of them, yes. We do have radios on base."
"Well," Mark said, "they are going to clash at Hoover Dam at some point in the near future, and I believe that your immense firepower would be a great aid." Pearl leaned forward and stared him down. "Which side do you fight for, child?" she asked. "Neither. I have my own army, and we have our own plans. I want to help the NCR keep the Legion from taking the dam and the Mojave, but that's it."
"And then afterwards?" she asked. "Well, I have a few contingency plans based on how things shake out. Most of them involve limiting the NCR's influence, but to what degree remains to be seen," Mark answered. "From what I can tell, you do not seem to care much for the NCR," Pearl said. Mark shrugged. "Let's just say that I have issues with their current leadership and leave it at that."
Pearl nodded. "So, tell me child, why should we help you? We're doing just fine by ourselves," the Boomer leader said. Mark got the feeling that Pearl was gauging him. "Oh, you don't have to help me at all. If you decline, then I will leave, and you will not hear from me again. But, in the unlikely event that my army were to be completely destroyed, there would be nothing stopping the victor from showing up to your front gate in force, and they will not be as nice as I am."
"The Legion will either kill you all or assimilate you, and in either case will erase your history. The NCR will likely force you to turn control of Nellis over to them as an NCR territory. It may take a few years to build their forces back up before they attack, but they will, and while your firepower is impressive, it cannot defeat a full-strength army. And since you don't trade, or interact with the outside world at all, your ammunition is limited."
Pearl rubbed her chin. "Tell me, child, say what you want to happen actually happens, destroying the Legion and limiting the NCR. What happens to this region? What happens to my people?" "Well, my army would take over the security for the Mojave. As for you and your people, if you want to be left alone, you'll be left alone, although maybe open to a trading relationship with Vegas."
"Vegas? Are you an emissary of this Mr. House that I've heard about?" Pearl asked. Mark gave it a thought and figured that he could trust Pearl with the truth. "I did work for him once, but his demands became unreasonable, so I killed him and took control of the city, forming a ruling council with some friends of mine. The rest of the world believes him to still be alive, and that's how I want it for now. And if you're worried that I'll become a dictator or something, don't. That's the reason I formed a council, which includes my wife by the way, to keep me in check. I didn't even want to be in charge, but they wanted me to be, so…" he trailed off.
"Interesting," Pearl said before going silent, looking to be in thought. About a minute later, she spoke again. "Raquel has informed me that we are down to about a five-year supply of missiles for our launchers. Would you be able to procure more missiles for us?" "Easily," Mark said, thinking of Wallace's replicating ability.
Pearl nodded. "Very well, child. We will help you, but we need some help in return. Besides the missiles, that is." Mark nodded. "Sure. What's the problem?" he asked. Pearl chuckled. "What isn't the problem should be the more appropriate question, for we are currently swimming in them."
"There is an ant infestation in the generator room underneath the solar array. Loyal, our head mechanic, informs me that some of the solar array panels were damaged in a recent dust storm and that we are out of replacement parts. Also, Doc Argyll, our resident physician, has more patients than he can currently handle and has been asking for help. And while this isn't a problem, I know that Pete, the Keeper of the Story, would be thrilled to tell the story of our people to an outsider."
"Well, um," Mark said after taking a moment to digest what he was just told, "those are quite the set of problems, and each one would take me a good amount of time on their own to complete." He paused for a moment. "However, if I brought in some outside help, all of that could get done in a quicker timeframe."
Pearl sighed. "Child, I am trying to get my youngers adjusted to seeing one outsider here on base, but a group of them might be more than they can handle." "And I completely understand that Mother Pearl, but those jobs sound like they need to get resolved quickly, and as I said before, they would each take a while to complete. I'm not talking like a large group here. Just a small contingent of my most trusted friends. That's it."
Pearl went silent as she thought about it. "Very well," she said eventually, "but they are your responsibility. Any trouble, and the deal's off." Mark nodded. "Understood," Mark replied. "How fast can this group get here?" she asked. "Not long. We have vertibirds available. In fact, let me call-" He was interrupted by Amata's voice coming through his pip-boy. "Mark, come in," she said, sounding upset. He looked at Pearl. "Sorry, that's the wife. Gotta take it." She nodded.
"Amata, what's going on? What's wrong?" Mark asked her. "Mark, it-it's Christina. The NCR has her in custody." Mark stared at the pip-boy in disbelief. "Wait, what? What do you mean, "the NCR has her in custody?" What the hell happened?" he said as he stood up. "I-I guess Christina left the 38, and she must not have been paying attention to where she was going, because she wandered over near the NCR Embassy, and a couple soldiers dragged her onto Embassy grounds and into one of the buildings. Mark, you have to get her out of there. Please."
Mark was incensed. This was a direct violation of the New Vegas Treaty. "How long ago?" Mark asked, trying to keep his rage in check. "A half-hour or so. I was taking a shower so Yes Man didn't tell me until a few minutes ago," Amata answered. "Alright, I'm on my way. Don't you worry, babe. I'll take care of it." "Thank you, Mark. Love you." "Love you too, babe. Talk to you later." Mark then cut the connection, and looked at Mother Pearl, who had been listening with interest.
"I'm sorry, Mother Pearl. I've got to go take care of this. I'll be back either later today or tomorrow, depending on how long this is going to take to clear up." "That's fine child. Now go, that sounded important." Mark nodded and walked out the door. Pearl walked over to the window and looked out. She saw Mark rise into the air and then take off, becoming a small dot in the sky rather quickly. She then took her walkie off her belt and pressed a button. "Raquel, Loyal, come to my quarters immediately. Pearl out."
(With Mark)
Mark was flying as fast as he could to Vegas. He had called Amata back to verify that the notice that said Christina had renounced her NCR citizenship had been delivered to the Embassy. She confirmed that it had, not that it mattered, since Christina was still on New Vegas grounds when she was taken. Mark just wanted to do this by the book, no matter how much he wanted to go in the Embassy and start yelling, so to not jeopardize the treaty signing tomorrow. He also had Yes Man have a Securitron meet him outside the Embassy and to have the security footage ready to go.
He approached the Strip, landing on the roof of the 38. Leaving the suit there, he went to the elevator and rode it down to the casino floor. He then walked onto the Strip and made for the Embassy. He strode in to find Ambassador Crocker conversing with his secretary.
"Ambassador Crocker!" Mark called out. All focus in the room was now on Mark and the Securitron. At his sudden outburst, the two guards in the back corners of the room pointed their guns at Mark, but he didn't bat an eyelash. "Can I help you with something, Mr. Franklin? And what's with the Securitron? Per the treaty, they aren't allowed on Embassy grounds unless it is at our request."
"Well, first, Ambassador, it is Captain Franklin. My friends bestowed the title on me, so I've decided to start using it. Second, we need to have a chat, because I'm not the only one who has violated the treaty today." "Um, sure, we can chat. If you'll just step into my office-" "Here's fine," Mark said, brokering no argument. "Ok, so what can I help you with Mist-I mean Captain Franklin?"
"Good. Mr. House has evidence that the NCR has broken the New Vegas Treaty, and he would like an explanation as to why. Immediately." Crocker looked confused. "I don't understand. To my knowledge, none of the provisions have been broken. To what are you referring to?" "I am talking about the illegal arrest and imprisonment of a New Vegas citizen, one Christina Morales. Mr. House demands her immediate release, or there will be problems."
"Captain Franklin, Private Christina Morales is an NCR soldier. She was reported missing from Camp McCarran two days ago and was declared a deserter, with a warrant being put out for her arrest shortly thereafter. A short while ago I was informed that she was on Embassy grounds and had been promptly arrested, which is all above board, so I see no reason for any repercussions."
Mark simply stared at the man. "Well, then someone's lying to you. Play it," he said, pointing back to the Securitron. The face on the Securitron disappeared, instead showing security footage. It showed Christina walking near the Embassy when two soldiers grabbed her and brought her onto Embassy grounds. "That was the first violation," Mark said, not giving Crocker a chance to reply.
"The second violation is the fact that Mrs. Morales is no longer an NCR soldier nor citizen. She is now a citizen of New Vegas, and thus no longer subject to NCR laws. A notice was delivered here stating she renounced her citizenship, and House confirmed delivery." Crocker shook his head. "I can assure you that I have not seen nor have any knowledge of any such notice."
Mark glanced over at the secretary, who looked extremely uncomfortable. "Well, it appears that your secretary does, from her body language. Ask her if she knows about it." Crocker looked over at the secretary. "Margaret, do you know about this?" Crocker asked her calmly. She looked like she would rather be anywhere else.
"Um, Ambassador Crocker, sir, we actually did receive a notice from Mr. House the other day. You, um, you were at McCarran when it came, and I put it in a cabinet to give to you when you got back, but I was swamped with paperwork and it slipped my mind." Crocker looked at Mark, who had a triumphant look on his face, and then back to Margaret. "Please get me that notice, Margaret," Crocker said.
She got up from her chair and walked to one of the cabinets behind her desk. She opened a drawer, flipped through a few pages and pulled out an envelope. She handed it to Crocker without looking at him. Crocker opened it, took out a paper, and read it. Once finished, he looked at Mark, lips pursed.
"Well, um, Captain Franklin, it appears we have a bit of a misunderstanding, and I don't think that there is any need for any repercussions, right?" "Release Mrs. Morales and I will do my best to convince House to not take any action against the NCR," Mark replied. Crocker nodded. "Of course. Please, follow me."
(7 minutes earlier)
Christina was panicking. She was currently sitting in a jail cell in the prison building on the grounds of the Embassy. About a half-hour earlier, she had decided to go take a walk on the Strip to stretch her legs, as well as to go speak with Sarah Weintraub about the job that Amata had arranged for her.
Neither she nor Esteban had visited it before, choosing to spend their down time at McCarran. They didn't want to be tempted to spend their pay at the casinos, since they had a family to plan for. Of course, that went out the window when he passed.
While she walked, she had thought back on what happened in the past few days. She had deserted the NCR military, defected from the NCR completely, and had become a New Vegas citizen, as well as getting to stay in the Lucky 38. Like many, she had wondered what it looked like on the inside. It far surpassed any expectations she had of the place. It had all the bells and whistles, and the beds were the softest that she had ever slept on. She had never slept better in her entire life.
Then there was last night. Mark had magically appeared on the roof of the 38 in a mechanical suit, and with him were bags of extinct pre-war fruit, two people, and a robot dog. The older gentleman that was with them was apparently Cass' long-lost father. Then those vertibirds had shown up, carrying Mark's friends from Washington, DC, the majority of whom were members of the Brotherhood of Steel.
One of the first things she had learned in the army was who the Brotherhood were, and that any Brotherhood personnel were to be shot on sight, unless the Brotherhood personnel outnumbered them, in which case they were to retreat and report the activity. She had always thought that the Brotherhood were the reclusive sort, preferring to keep to themselves.
From what she had been told by Amata when she asked her about them, this chapter was different than the ones on the west coast. They were more open and welcoming, working to protect the people instead of just collecting technology. They had traveled thousands of miles to help Mark, who had absolutely no idea that they were coming. They must have really respected Mark if they came all that way to help him with something that wasn't really their problem.
Then there was the fact that House was dead, and that Mark was actually running the city. That was a big shocker. Amata had made her swear that she would not tell anyone that didn't already know, saying that the plan was to reveal that fact after the Legion was dealt with, when things were more stable.
Then there was this morning when Arcade, along with five former Enclave members, arrived at the Lucky 38. She had only heard tales about the Enclave and what they had done. It was believed that they had been eradicated, but apparently there were a few left, and now they were going to help the NCR. And the way that Mark had taken command and laid down the law earlier that morning was impressive. She was sure that if he was in the NCR Army, he would've been one of their top officers, despite his young age.
Mark had also made her part of his council, or at least, she thinks that he did, asking her for her opinion. She would have to get clarification later. She didn't think that she deserved to be. The others were extremely skilled at what they did from what she had gathered. She wasn't that great of a fighter, nor was she particularly smart, but she would do whatever he asked. She owed it to him. She really wished that Esteban was still alive. Like she had told Mark, she thought that he and Esteban would've gotten along. Then again, if Esteban hadn't died, she wouldn't have been where she was when Mark came to McCarran that day, so they might have never met.
That was when things had gone awry. She had been so lost in thought that she didn't realize that she had ended up in front of the NCR Embassy. That was when she had been grabbed by two NCR soldiers and dragged onto the Embassy grounds. She had been so shocked at first that she couldn't speak. They were in the prison building by the time she found her voice.
"What-what's going on? Let me go!" she said, panicked. Neither of the soldiers responded to her as she was tossed unceremoniously into a cell, the door being locked behind her. She scrambled to her feet and went to the front of the cell, grasping the bars in her hands. "Let me out of here!" she exclaimed. Both soldiers ignored her and left the room. Almost immediately, another person entered the cell block. It was a woman with shoulder-length black hair. She approached Christina's cell.
"Private Christina Morales, you are under arrest for desertion. You have the right to remain silent. If you give up that right, anything you say can and will be used against you at your tribunal. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be provided to you. Do you understand what I have just explained to you?"
"Look," Christina said, "you don't understand. I'm not an NCR citizen anymore. I defected to New Vegas. I was granted citizenship by Mr. House!" The woman rolled her eyes. "Sure you were. If that's true, then let's see your passport." Christina searched her pockets, coming up empty as she realized that she left it in her room at the 38. "I, uh, I seem to have forgotten it. If you let me go, I can go to the Lucky 38 and get it," Christina said, realizing that this wasn't looking good.
"Right. You were in the Lucky 38," the soldier said sarcastically. "Save your crazy stories for your hearing. You will be transported to Camp McCarran tomorrow morning at 10 AM where you will be held pending scheduling of a tribunal. Do you have any questions?" "Please, this is all a misunderstanding. A note was supposed to be sent to Ambassador Crocker. If you'll just allow me to speak with him-" "The Ambassador has better things to do with his time than listening to your nutty ramblings," she said, cutting Christina off. "Instead of concocting lie after lie, you need to take responsibility for your own actions, Private."
With that, the soldier left the cell block, leaving Christina by herself. She backed up until she hit the wall of the cell, and then slid down until she was sitting down. She put her head in her hands, wondering how she could have been so stupid as to not pay attention to where she was walking. She just sat there, unmoving, for what she guessed was maybe a half hour, although without a clock in the room it was difficult to tell.
Multiple thoughts ran through her head. Among those were that maybe Amata had forgotten to send the note to the Embassy, and that hopefully Mark and/or Amata had been informed about what had happened, and that they would retrieve her before she was transported to McCarran. She had heard stories of what they did to deserters, and it was not pretty.
She began hyperventilating and was close to having a full-blown panic attack when the door to the cell block opened again. She looked up, seeing three people walk in. When she saw who the person in the lead was, she nearly started crying tears of joy. The second person, whom she recognized as the soldier she had the conversation earlier, unlocked the door, a surly look on her face.
Mark walked in the cell and extended a hand to her. "Are you okay, Christina?" Mark asked. She extended a hand to him, and he pulled her up. "I-I am now. Am I getting out of here?" she asked, trying to compose herself. "Yeah, we're leaving. There was a little mix-up, but it's all cleared up now, right, Ambassador?"
Christina looked at the third person, realizing that it was in fact Ambassador Crocker. "Uh, yes. Mrs. Morales, the NCR would like to extend to you a formal apology and an assurance that this will not occur again. I will make sure to inform the brass at McCarran of your change in status." Christina nodded. "Thank you, Ambassador. If you don't mind, I'd like to leave now." He nodded. "Of course. Both of you have a nice day." As they left the room, Christina couldn't help but look over her shoulder and smirk at the other woman.
Once they were back outside, they headed back towards the 38. "Are you sure that you're alright, Christina?" Mark asked as they walked. "Just-just a bit shaken up, but otherwise I'm fine. I did learn a lesson about making sure I keep my passport with me if I leave the building, so some good came out of all this," she said.
As soon as they stepped back into the 38, Christina was almost knocked over by Amata as she was engulfed in a hug. "Christina, I'm sorry! I'm so, so, so, so, sorry! My god, are you okay?" "Amata, I'm fine," Christina said as Amata broke the hug. "And what are you sorry for? It wasn't your fault."
"I-I should've had Yes Man make sure that the Securitrons were keeping an eye on you so this wouldn't happen. Are you sure you're fine?" Amata said as her eyes traveled up and down Christina's body, checking for injuries. "Amata, seriously, I'm fine, and again, it wasn't your fault. It was the NCR's, and Mark cleared up everything, so this shouldn't happen again."
Amata smiled. "Glad to hear you're okay." She then walked over to Mark and hugged him. "Thank you, Mark," she said. She then lowered her voice to a whisper. "You'll be getting rewarded tonight, just so you know," she whispered seductively. Mark grinned. "Looking forward to it," he responded.
The two broke apart to see that Christina was no longer there. "So, anyway, how'd it go with the Boomers?" Amata asked. "Uh, good. I spoke with their leader. They're willing to help us, but they need our help first," Mark answered. "Help with what?" "A few things, so I'm going to need assemble a small team to help me with them."
(1 hour later)
Mark was flying back to Nellis. There was a vertibird on standby back at the 38 that would depart once Mark informed Pearl of it so they wouldn't be fired upon. The team, besides himself, consisted of Daisy, Veronica, Sarah, Cass, Boone, John, and Butcher. Daisy would be piloting the vertibird, while Sarah, Cass, Boone and John would be taking care of the ants. Butcher would aid Nellis' doctor (Mark had initially asked Arcade to help with that, but Arcade informed him that he was busy with something else), while himself and Veronica would look at the solar panels.
He landed back in front of Pearl's quarters, made himself visible again, and knocked on the door. Upon gaining permission, he entered. There were two other people in the room with Pearl. One was Raquel, and the other was an old Caucasian man with a bald head and full grey beard, dressed similarly to the other Boomers.
"Welcome back, child," Mother Pearl said. "I hope that that problem you had was taken care of." Mark nodded. "Yeah, it was just a misunderstanding. Everything's good now," Mark replied. "That's good. I'd like you to meet Loyal, our chief mechanic. Loyal, this is the young man that I was telling you about," Pearl said.
"Nice to meet you, outsider," the old man, apparently called Loyal, said. Mark extended a hand. "Mark Franklin, but feel free to call me Mark. It's a pleasure to meet you, Loyal," Mark said as they shook hands. He nodded, and then looked Mark up and down. "Pearl and Raquel mentioned that suit of yours. Mighty fancy. Where'd you get it?" "Uh, that's a long story, so maybe another time, as I believe that there are more pressing matters that need attending to."
He then turned to Pearl. "I have a vertibird on standby in Vegas with my team aboard. I'll radio them to depart as soon as it's safe for them to fly in here." Pearl nodded. "Raquel, if you would, please," the elder woman said to the younger woman. Raquel nodded. "Of course, Mother Pearl." She then went to her radio.
"Attention all perimeter guards: we will be having a vertibird heading this way from the southwest. It is not to be fired upon. I repeat, it is not to be fired upon. All stations confirm." Once she got confirmation, she looked at Mark. "Your friends are clear to enter." Mark nodded. "MARI, contact the vertibird," he said to the AI. The other three in the room looked at him in confusion before MARI spoke.
"All set, sir," the AI responded. "Daisy, do you copy?" Mark asked. "Copy, this is Daisy, go ahead." "Daisy, you're clear to approach Nellis. Land on the part of the runway that's just past the two hangars near an L-shaped wooden building, copy?" "I copy," Daisy said. "ETA, about thirty minutes. Daisy out."
"So, how many people are coming?" Pearl asked. "Seven more, Mother Pearl," Mark answered. "Mother Pearl, I don't mean to question you, but are you sure that it is wise to allow more outsiders on the base?" Raquel asked. "Raquel, I understand your concerns, but our friend here assures me that they will behave, and I believe him," Pearl replied. Raquel still had her doubts, but realized that any further questioning would go nowhere, so she simply nodded. "Uh, Mother Pearl," Mark said, "you mentioned something earlier about someone named Pete and the story of your people? I'd love to hear it while we wait for the others."
(25 minutes later)
Mark walked back to the CO's quarters after listening to the story of the Boomer's history. Pete, a twelve-year-old kid who was the "Keeper of the Story," told Mark of their history using a large mural. He had only been the "Apprentice Keeper of the Story" until a short while ago. The old Keeper, a man named Don, was apparently killed in an accident involving whiskey and land mines.
Looking to his left, he saw a black spot in the sky that was growing larger. Realizing that it was the vertibird, he stood near Pearl's quarters and raised his right arm in the air and gave it a wave, letting them know it was him. As it got closer and made more noise, Pearl, Loyal, and Raquel came out and joined him.
Once the vertibird landed, the group disembarked. Sarah was in her Power Armor, since the Boomers likely had no idea who the Brotherhood was, given their (the Brotherhood's) reclusiveness. "Hello, everyone, and welcome to Nellis. I am Mother Pearl, leader of the Boomers. This is Loyal, our chief mechanic, and this is Raquel, our Master-At-Arms."
She then paused for a moment. "Mr. Franklin here has vouched for your trustworthiness, and I have taken him at his word. I do not know if he explained it to you or not, but this is the first time we've had outsiders in Nellis, so it may be a bit jarring to our people to see so many of you at once. I ask that you please treat our people with respect, or you will be asked to leave."
"Ma'am," Sarah said, "Mark already forewarned us. We have no intention of harming or disrespecting your people. We are only here to help." Pearl smiled. "Thank you, dear. Now, since I'm guessing that you were informed of our problems, who will be doing what?"
Mark pointed out each person as he explained who was doing what. "Uh, Veronica and I will be looking at those solar panels. Sarah, Boone, Cass, and John will be taking care of your ant problem, and Butcher over there will be assisting your doctor." Pearl nodded, and then looked at Daisy. "And you, dear?" she asked. "I'm just the pilot. I'll be waiting here with the bird while the rest of them do what they need to do," Daisy replied.
"Nonsense. You'll join me inside where it's cooler. No need to wait out in the heat when it's unnecessary," Pearl said. Daisy shrugged. "Sure, as long as no one messes with the ol' bird." "No one will touch it," Pearl replied. "Now come on in. Raquel and Loyal can take it from here." The two older women went inside.
Raquel then spoke. "Ok, so the ants are in the generator building, which the solar arrays are on top of," she said, pointing to a building in the distance. The group turned and looked. "Our main power supply failed a few days ago due to the infestation. I led a team down to exterminate them, but there were so many of them, and two people were killed and three were wounded."
"Oh, and I think that the ants are eating gunpowder from the munitions stored in there, because they exploded when hit with a flamethrower and laser pistol. Bullets seem to work okay, though. Just be careful not to hit the artillery shells. Loyal, give them that thing you were working on."
Loyal grabbed something from off the ground behind him. It was about the size of a block of C-4, was green, and had a couple of dials and small screens on it, as well as a switch on the side. "This here is a sonic emitter. Theoretically it should kill the ants, but it's useless without knowing the exact frequency needed."
"Any signal over twenty-two thousand hertz at one-hundred-fifty or more decibels should do the trick," Veronica said. "Hot damn little missy, you're right!" Loyal said. "It just so happens that I was testing it at twenty-four thousand hertz, so it should be good to go. Too high for humans to hear, although it might make you a bit queasy. Just place it near one of their burrows and turn it on, and it should kill the rest of those critters." He handed it to Sarah.
"Thank you, Loyal," Sarah said. Raquel then took something out of her pocket, handing it to John. "This is the key to the building. We keep it locked for obvious reasons. I will escort, uh, Butcher to our medical station since I assume you don't need me to walk you there. Good luck."
The group, minus Butcher, headed for the generator building. It was a one-story concrete building with solar panels on top of it, with a fence surrounding it. Splitting up, Mark and Veronica went on top while the rest entered the building. The two examined the panels. A few of them had panels missing, leaving wiring exposed. "You know, I think that the arrays at Helios use the same panels, and chances are they had spares lying around there somewhere. Maybe you could fly over there and see if the NCR could lend you some." Veronica said.
Mark rubbed his chin. "Yeah, I could do that, but I have a better idea." Mark recalled the helmet and facemask. "MARI, scan the arrays, please." "Scanning arrays…done. Solar panels using photovoltaic cells, currently offline." the AI said. "Thank you, MARI," Mark said.
"What's your idea, Mark?" Veronica asked, looking curious. He retracted the helmet. "The panels on the Big MT satellite appear to be similar to these, or at least close enough where we could jury rig them to work. I just need to head up to the ship to confirm," he said before he disappeared. Veronica sat down and waited for Mark to return. About fifteen minutes later, he did, carrying a duffel bag and a toolbox. "I'm guessing that that's a "yes" then?" Veronica said, walking over to him. "Yup. MARI confirmed it. Let's get to work."
It took about an hour-and-a-half to fix everything, but in the end, they looked as good as new. During that time, the group that was below fighting the ants came out. They were a bit bloodied, bruised, and caked in guts, but more importantly, all alive. They reported that the ants were all dead and the generators restarted. That group headed back towards the hangers to get medical attention while Mark and Veronica finished up with their task.
Once they were done, they headed back to Pearl's quarters to find the remainder of the group, including Butcher, there. "Ah, welcome back. I assume that you were successful with your task?" Pearl asked. "Yup. Panels are repaired, and I got a few spares in here for you should this happen again," Mark said, putting the bag down off to the side.
"Where were you able to find spares?" Loyal, who was there also, asked. "I found them, uh, elsewhere," Mark said evasively. The old man shrugged. "Guess it doesn't really matter in the end since they got fixed," he said. "Oh, um, Mother Pearl," Sarah said, "I don't mean to be rude, but do you really think that it's smart to keep your main power supply in the same room as your munitions? If there's a fire that you don't know about, that building, and that part of the base, is going to be a giant crater."
"It was like that when we arrived, child, so we saw no reason to change it, although you do have a point. Perhaps it is time to find a new location for them, but that's for another time. Since you all helped us with all of that, perhaps there is one more thing that you could help us with. It is something that would help us fulfill our end of our agreement."
"I'm listening," Mark said. Pearl looked at Loyal. "Loyal, please tell these folks about our people's fondest dream," she said. Loyal nodded. "A long time ago, long before the war that damn near killed everything that ever lived, a bomber crashed not far from here in Lake Mead. A bomber is a flying contraption that could drop explosives on anything that it flew over. Anyway, when we first found the base, I found a magazine with an article in it that said the bomber was still damn near intact."
"There's one in one of the hangers, part of a museum exhibit. Doesn't work but has a lot of spare parts. See where I'm going with this? So, will you help us?" While the others commented on the seemingly ridiculousness of trying to raise a bomber from a lake, Mark thought back to earlier when he was listening to Pete tell the history of the Boomers.
They left Vault 34 after the Overseer denied them access to the armory, and eventually settled at Nellis. The old Air Force base had been uninhabited since the bombs fell since it had been hit by some of the warheads, so people had avoided it out of habit. However, the Geiger counters on the Boomer's pip-boys showed them that the radiation had decayed to safe levels. The Howitzers had not been here originally, recovered from somewhere called "Area 2", which Mark made a note of to check if Yes Man had any information on the place.
Once the Boomers had restored power to the base, they found out that the fancy chairs that some of them had been sleeping in were flight simulators. They also grew their own crops using water drawn from Lake Mead, making them completely self-sufficient. The last part of the story was not of their past, but of what they envisioned for their future:
"Nellis has revealed many secrets. It has taught us how to fly the bombers once based here, and it has taught us where to find one! And that is our story so far, for the last image is our future. To restore the bomber, to fly the open skies in armored safety, raining bombs on ignorant savages-this is our destiny!"
Mark had asked Pete a few questions about that last part, discovering that Loyal had found an old magazine article on the crash. He had meant to ask Pearl and Loyal about it earlier, but the others had arrived first. A weapon like that would be a great asset. Coming back to the present, Mark realized that arguing was still going on. He let out a shrill whistle, silencing everyone. "Loyal, if it gets raised, how quickly could you get it running?" he asked.
"Oh, pretty damn quick," the elder man said. "It has been the dream of our people for so long that there would be no shortage of hands working on it." Mark nodded. "Well, assuming that it's used to aid us as part of our deal, consider it done." Pearl and Loyal looked at each other and smiled, realizing their dream was finally about to come true.
(Next day, noon)
Mark had sent the others back to the 38 from Nellis the previous day while he took care of raising the plane. Since flying with two deployable ballasts and a detonator all the way to Lake Mead would be a bit awkward and difficult, he instead flew to a secluded location away from the base and went up to the ship, confirmed where the bomber was, and then teleported down to the lake.
After taking care of a few cazadores, he flew into the lake and attached the ballasts under each wing. The suit had its own rebreather, which MARI informed Mark of when he asked Loyal how he was supposed to breathe underwater. After watching the bomber rise to the surface, he radioed Loyal that it was all set to be retrieved, which would be done by robots while the Boomers shelled an unoccupied area in Outer Vegas as a distraction.
Nothing else of note happened for the remainder of the day. It was now time for the signing of the "Freeside Accords." Amata had typed up the agreement, of which three copies were laid out on a table. Cass, Mark, Amata, and the King were already there, and were waiting on Colonel Hsu to arrive. The quartet were chatting when Yes Man interrupted them.
"Sir, there is an NCR soldier outside who says he has a message from Colonel Hsu," the AI said. "Uh, thank you, Yes Man. I'll get it," Mark said. "Wonder what that's 'bout," Cass said. "Maybe something came up and he needs to reschedule," Amata said. "Well, let's find out," Mark said as he exited. A few seconds later, Mark came back in, a paper in hand.
He read it silently, the others noticing him become increasingly unhappy. "Mark, what does it say?" Amata asked anxiously, knowing that something was wrong. Mark finished and looked at the others. "We need to have a council meeting. Now."
Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Until next time, and reviews are welcomed and appreciated.