A Nation Reborn

Disclaimer: I do not in anyway shape or form own Fallout, nor am I associated with them to any degree. The franchise belongs to Bethesda and I am in no way associated with them. This is a non-profit fan work written for the sole purpose of entertainment. This is in no way canon. This should be obvious by now but just in case.

Sorry, guys but no specific responses to questions and statements for this chapter. Sorry. But next update I will though!

So, I read through your guys comments on the last chapter and made some changes and updates in line with your suggestions. Hopefully I did a better job with this chapter.

Now without further ado, onto the update!

Chapter 7

(Location: Illinois state)

(Time: October 24. 2244)

Sarah Gilmore never wanted to become to become a raider. But was forced to do so out of necessity, after the collapse of her home town after it had been overrun by a horde of ghouls. Being (un)fortunate enough to come across the raider group who she was currently apart of known as Allan's raiders, named after the groups first leader over a few decades ago. It's been years since then, with her committing many condemnable things in order to survive.

Still, it could have been worst. That much she knew for sure. But, there were some good moments, like meeting her boyfriend Daniel. It still tore at her when they had forced people who just trying to survive like her at gunpoint to give them their hard-earned crops and supplies. But, such was life in the wasteland, if you wanted to survive you better be willing to do whatever was necessary to get it.

It was sure as hell better than being a beggar wandering the roads. Being preyed upon by other raider groups or running into a horde of mutants. She at least had a roof over her head and a somewhat stable life.

That had all changed when they had appeared.

Flying metal birds known as Vetibirds unlike anything she or anyone else she had known had rained hellfire on multiple raider camps. With the corpses hanged for all to see as a warning. They also exterminated the hordes of super mutants, deathclaws, and other dangerous beasts in the area.

They called themselves the Enclave and requested that various settlements joined them. Providing protection and relief in exchange for support, whether it be manpower, food, or something else.

That was a year ago, with many raider groups such as hers being hounded relentlessly resulting in multiple members deserting. With her hearing that most of them attempted to integrate in United States territory while others went off on their own separate ways.

Something that she, Daniel, and several of her friends were also considering. With the no reason they didn't yet was that they were still considering where to go to. After much deliberation, Daniel had decided that they were to head to the nearest United States controlled settlement and try to integrate themselves there. Posing as refugees which would hopefully allow them to bypass the local security forces and start their new lives.

Yeah, sure there was the possibility that they would be identified as former raiders and there was the fact that would be trying to integrate themselves into the same faction that was wiping them out. But they didn't exactly have a lot of options at the moment.

Besides, she and Daniel had snuck into a few towns that have pledged themselves to the cause of rebuilding the United States, and they have already made more progress in a year in reconstruction than she had ever seen before. With the American Reconstruction Authority and Army Corp of Engineers bringing back power, clean drinking water, plumbing, and a myriad of other essential services that many communities in the region have been lacking for decades.

It was there best option in starting a new life. One that didn't require them robbing from people in order to acquire food and necessary supplies. A life that where it was actually possible for her to start a peaceful life with her beloved, and maybe even raise children together. A place where they could actually begin to live instead of just surviving.

And so, after careful and discreet planning to avoid drawing the attention of the groups leader Miquel, who in his struggle to keep the raiders afloat have started issuing orders that anyone caught planning to desert would be executed on the spot, her boyfriend and and the rest of their friends would be leaving for the town of New Hammond by nightfall once most of the camp was asleep. With them sneaking out as Joel was on watch tonight, another member of their group, and would leave alongside them under the cover of night.

Now, it's been about several minutes since their departure, as she took up watch along with Daniel while the rest of their friends slept. Taking shelter in the ruined husk of what she had been told was a gas station hundreds of years ago before the nukes fell from the sky.

"You alright, babe?" A voice she was all too familiar with spoke up from behind her slightly startling the former raider. Turning her head over her shoulder, she saw her boyfriend Daniel walking up to her. Placing his Browning Automatic Rifle against a shelf as he sat beside her on a torn up couch. Placing his arm around her as Sarah instantly began nuzzling up to him, placing her head against his chest as all the tension in her body began fading away.

"I'm alright." She replied. Her voice muffled as her face was buried in his shirt. "What about you? Are you doing ok?" She asked in concern.

"I'm fine." He waved off as the two just enjoyed each other's company.

"Daniel..." Sarah began after several minutes of silence as she looked up to face him. "

"Yeah?"

"A-Are you sure about this?"

Daniel sighed. "I don't know." He admitted. "But I really don't see any other option. Every town around here has already pledged themselves to the Enclave, and every raid these last few months have ended in failure."

"But what happens if they recognize us. Or if they don't allow us admissions?"

"I've already taken care of that." He assured. "I've already bribed a custom officers in Hammond to give us new papers. He'll sneak us inside once we get there." He rubbed his girlfriend's back as he did his best to soothe her fears.

"Ok...that's good." She said. Trusting her boyfriend to take care of her. The two of them had been nearly together of nearly seven years now, with him saving her life three times before they got together. There was no one she trusted more.

Suddenly and without warning, she felt as if the ground was beginning to shake and the walls of the building began to vibrate, the wind seemed to pick up as the trees outside began to move.

Sarah instantly knew what it was, as it could only originated from one thing in the wasteland. As she had heard it herself several times in the past few months. Most notable when the machines making said noices were flying overhead in patrols or delivering personnel and supplies to settlements and outposts.

Cautiously peaking out the window was she held her M16A1 close to her while everyone else grabbed their respective weapons and readied themselves for combat, she saw them. Several vertibirds flew overhead their camping spot in what looked to be some kind of attack formation. She could see men hanging off the sides of the dropships scanning for any kind of threat with more men inside the craft itself. She then noticed that they were headed in the same exact direction that Gilmore and her group had came from, where the remainder of their raider group resided.

It didn't take a genius to put two and two together.

As soon as the vertibirds were in fact gone and the group breathed a sigh of relief, one thought went through Sarah's head.

'Glad we got out when we had the chance.'

(Flashback)

(Several months ago)

Collins thought he knew fear. After all, his home town was besieged by raider groups and mutant wildlife many times in the past with the town being dangerously close to being overrun.

However, he was wrong. For he now knew true fear as he met the man who would be in charge into molding them into United States soldiers for the next few couple of weeks before they moved into AIT.

"I am your senior drill instructor Sergeant-Major Dornan- tuck in your gut!" The senior NCO hit a recruit with his baton not too hard, but hard enough to make his point as the young man sucked in his stomach.

" The president deemed me as head of training the next generation of warriors in this here United States Army. And that is a responsibility I take very seriously- feet together!" The recruit whom had earned his ire complied instantly. "Make no mistake! I will allow no one here to shame the world's best fighting force with their moping or crying."

Dornan paused as a fierce scowl to the man named Paul, whom Ethan had met on the transport taking them to the training grounds. Who was visibly trying not to laugh, something that Dornan could tell as he got right up to the nineteen year old that was now desperately trying force himself to stop laughing.

"You think I'm funny, retard?" Dornan asked with his voice dangerously low. "Is that what you think?"

Paul gulped. "S-Sorry, sir."

The last word uttered out by the teenager sent the senior NCO into a rage.

"SIR!?" He roared with spit flying on Paul's face. "SIR IS WHAT YOU SAY TO PEOPLE WHO THINK THAT THEY ARE IMPORTANT BUT ARE ACTUALLY USELESS! I AM A SERGEANT-MAJOR, AND YOU WILL ADRESS ME AS SUCH! AM I UNDERSTOOD!?

"Yes, Sergeant-Major!" Paul yelped as Dornan grabbed his shirt and pointed him to the base's inner perimeter.

"Fifteen laps around the cordon. Go." The Sergeant-Major instructed as Paul slumped in defeat. Causing Dornan to hit him several times with his baton.

"Go, go, go!" He yelled as the recruit began running as fast as he can. "Brown, stay with him." He ordered one of the drill sergeant who immediately began to keep pace with the trainee as he whipped out his own baton.

He pointed at the entrance on the side a few hundred meters away. "As I was saying, anytime you ladies feel like whining, complaining, or missing your mommy, then QUIT! No one's stopping you! That's if you're fine with not gaining your citizenship! Make no mistake! If you quit, you will never get another chance to be a part of this great nation! Now, anybody feel like quitting!"

"Am I understood!"

"Yes, Drill Sergeant!"

"Good..." A sadistic grin grew on the man's face. Causing a tidal wave of fear in the sea of recruits. "Let's get to work..."

(Present day)

Ethan Collins woke up when he was shaken by one of his fellow troopers, a specialist by the name of Kull, who looked to him nonchalantly.

"Yo, wake up, Collins. It's almost game time." He said as he began checking his gear. With Collins doing the same as he looked over his pouches on his vest that contained all his gear and his laser rifle.

Once he was finished, he strapped on his MICH2000 kevlar helmet and looked outside the VB-02. The landscape and scenery below passing by before he could fully process them that was being scanned by the crew chiefs of the birds for any potential threat on the ground. Seeing that there was still some time before they touched down, Ethan began reminiscing on all that has happened over the past few months.

After finishing basic, he was able to officially serve in the U.S Army as a regular infantryman, but was given the option to try out for some of the more specialized units before formed like Infantry scouts, CBRN, etc. After much deliberation, he decided to apply to join up with the newly formed cavalry. A unit that was going to be deploying troops from choppers and aircraft in air assault operations.

As of now, he was a part of the 1st squadron of the newly formed 1st Cavalry Division as part of the 2nd troop. Which was now currently deployed as part of an anti-raider campaign in United States territory.

"Yo, Collins." The Private First Class sitting across from him named "Derek" bumped his shoulder into his side. "You looking a little green there. Need me to hold your hand?"

"Ha, ha, ha," Ethan laughed sarcastically. "Screw you, Derek."

"Nah, man. You're not my type. Plus, I'm already taken, you know. Told you about my girl back home."

"Yeah, I bet she already started banging Jody the moment you left." Mason another friend of theirs chimed in with a laugh.

Derek laughed along with Mason and Derek, as Mason pulled a belt from his ammo pack on his back and loaded it into Derek's newly issued M240B machine gun. With Mason closing the cover and racking the charging handle before Dante pulled the weapon strap over his head. Since Derek was the man that was "volunteered to carry the machine gun, he was also assigned a suit of APA Mark 2 armor to help him carry the gun and all the ammo that feeds it along with the tripod and spare barrels. With Mason as his assigned assistant gunner to help him carry out there tasks during engagements.

It was all in good fun, the bantering and snarking to one another. Something he had quickly learned after joining the military is that the majority of the time the insults your fellow battle buddies gave to you were usually ones of endearment.

"Alright, game faces, gents!" Staff Sergeant Lockett, the NCO in command of Ethan's squad, bellowed over the aircraft's engine. "Mouths closed, check your kit, we're down in two."

Looking outside, he could see the gunship variants of the Vertibird firing their gatling lasers and twin rocket tubes at the Raider encampment as soon as they were in firing range.

In Collin's humble opinion, it was overkill. Sending gunships and air assault troops supported by men in power armor against a raider group.

Still, in the wisdom of President Eden, the unit could use the practice and it helped to send an example to any other raider groups still operating in United States territory.

If you joined groups threatening the people of America, you had better be ready to die for it. But, the United States wouldn't be without mercy, as during these kinds of operations the rules of engagement were cleared, captured anyone who surrendered but if they pointed a weapon at you you were free and clear to drop them where they stood.

Besides, he would rather be facing poorly equipped bandits than a battalion of supermutants. Like 1st troop was assigned to. Wiping out supermutants in the area that are a threat, or will prove a threat, to the Enclave's towns and bases in the region.

(Play Ride of the Valkyries here)

Once the vertibirds were in weapons in range, several VB-02s fired rockets courtesy of their onboard pods. Causing plumes of smokes and explosions from everywhere in the camp and causing the raiders below to grab their weapons in preparation for the assault.

The vertibirds began circling the camp, the crew chiefs manning the M60Ds and the newer M240B machine gun lit up any raider that came into view. The ones not going down desperately returning fire with what small arms they had on hand, giving they lacked appropriate anti-aircraft weaponry. A few rockets were launched at the aircraft, they were easily dodged by the pilots before the launcher's users were gunned down by the crew chiefs.

The battle, if it could even be called that, lasted only for around several minutes with no casualties on the American's side as of yet. Though, that was to be expected, as it seems the raiders lacked any significant anti-aircraft capabilities aside from a few heavy machine guns. Which had been taken out by the gunships as soon as they entered weapons range.

Once all resistance in sight was neutralized, the vertibirds carrying troops touched down with the gunships providing aerial cover. As soon, as the birds landing gear touched the earth, the men inside jumped out and began forming a perimeter around the camp. With the grunts outfitted in power armor jumping out first and drawing fire from the raiders that had begun engaging them. Laying down suppressive fire with their machine guns while the troops not kitted out in armor deployed after and began following in behind the power armor troops that started marching ahead. Using them as cover as they moved forwards under the hail of gunfire as the raiders desperately tried to organize a defense.

Once they were in throwing range, the soldiers began tossing grenades in the makeshift defenses. Flushing the few occupants inside out before they were gunned down by a hail of bullets.

As soon as the cordon was established, a few platoons began moving inside as they sweep the site for any survivors, with Collins and his platoon included. At this point, resistance had been snuffed out as the majority of the remaining raiders threw down their weapons and surrendered to the American forces. With only a few continuing to fight, including the group's leader. A useless act of defiance that ultimately achieved nothing except end with their deaths.

Gathering the captured prisoners in groups, Ethan and his squad were one of several that were charged with watching over them. Waiting for the transports that would take them back to base. Where they would be judged for their actions and if found guilty, they would be sent to a labor facility to help do their part in the rebuilding of the United States.

All in all, not bad for Ethan's first combat op.

Author's note: That's it for now. Hope you all found this chapter to be satisfactory. Again many thanks to all of you for taking the time to read and check out this story. This is the first story I did, that got one-thousand follows and got over one-hundred thousand views, still can't believe it. Again, thank you all for your support. It really means a lot to me. Thanks again for being patient.

Terms:

-AIT: Advanced individual training.

-Jody: A person that a servicemen spouse cheats with when they're deployed.

So, yeah. First chapter without the titular main character in it. I'll probably include a lot more common man point of views for the next few chapters. That's at lease what I'm currently planning right now.

Have a good one, lads, and I will see you all next time. As always, remember... stay frosty, gents.