Chapter 6: Lilys
Some time after the Courier and Leonhardt's departure...
{System reboot initializing...}
{OS online. Running diagnostics scan on primary systems.}
{Motion tracker activated. Navigational systems online. IFF markers online. Refreshing targeting parameters… complete. No changes detected. Workbench fully operational. Automated repairs online. Tactical interface and damage-avoidance protocols online. Companion protocol scripts loaded.}
{Error! Universal interface override system incompatible with current hardware. Recommend hardware update to utilize duplicate's hacking capabilities.}
{Localized gravity field online. Repulsors fully functional. Biometric and medical scanners online.}
{Danger! Motion detectors indicate that combat is already in progress beyond the designated base. Smoke and high temperatures detected. Probability of fires is high. Calculating best course of action.}
{Mission update; investigate commotion for analysis. Attempt to contact User.}
{Error: Door is unresponsive. Running diagnostic check on Tesla cannon… complete. Cannon is fully operational. Conducting field test on doorknob.}
{Complete; Tesla cannon is functioning as intended and the barrier is removed. Departing designated base now.}
{Danger! Enemy forces- designation "mobsters"- have already breached allied base. Casualties on both sides detected. Confirmation of civilians under fire.}
{Guardian Protocel initiated. Mission objectives updated. Defend the civilian population and terminate all hostile forces. Entering combat zone now.}
{Optical sensors detecting allied IFF markers. Designation 'Croissant'. Allied marker is under fire from mobster-units. Playing file; 'victorious charge'. Entering combat}
To say that Croissant was having a bad day was putting it mildly. Not long after Leonahrdt and Six left there was an explosion outside the subhouse. The next thing she knew there was sniper fire and some thugs stormed into the bunker. They weren't the grunts that she and Six ran into days ago either. They were merciless, cutting down anyone without a second thought.
One of them had already ripped the shield and hammer from her hands and restrained her. Another was beating the living hell out of her with some brass knuckles. One more was trying to tear down Hoover's door with a sledgehammer. He was about to break through when they heard music through the smoke.
A blue bolt of energy struck the brute at the door, superheating his armor and scarring the flesh underneath. He yelled out in pain as another light flew at him, melting through the breastplate. One more struck him in the face and melted his face's flesh too. He could only let out a muffled scream as his lips and eyelids melded together. One more put him out of his misery.
His buddies were startled by the laserfire. "Che cazzo!?" exclaimed the one holding Croissant.
His grip on her was slightly relaxed. That allowed her to slip a hand free and grab his arm. She threw him over her shoulder and into the asshole with the brass knuckles. She retrieved her weapons and smashed the latter's legs first, then his skull. The last goon was disintegrated before she could have her revenge. She looked back to see ED-E flying toward her.
"Thank the lords," she exclaimed. "Thought they'd run off with my goods or worse."
ED-E issued a series of beeps at her. "I'll take that as a 'yer welcome.' Ya happ'n to come across anyone else?"
ED-E replied with more negative-sounding beeps. Croissant sighed.
"Well, can ya keep an eye out for them? I've gots some folk dat need savin'."
ED-E issued an acknowledging tone as she ran back into the smoke.
{Mission update: Locate and assess situation with remaining allies. Currently unaccounted: Exusiai, Suzuran, and April.}
ED-E flew back into the battlefield, vaporizing any goon stupid enough to tangle with it. Survivors ran past the eyebot and towards the exit, occasionally carrying a body with them. The eyebot and its User never properly explored the bunker, so it was surprised to find it bigger than its User anticipated.
There were several wings, each possessing a different function. Lobby, intelligence, offices, vaults, workshop, and some more. The more the robot explored, the more of a labyrinth it became. Considering the company that owned it, it was likely a deliberate design choice. No problem for a robot such as ED-E, though.
Eventually, it found Exusiai in front of a giant vault. It didn't know what it held but it was obviously valuable. The girl had already ripped several of the minions to shreds with her guns and wasn't having any issue with the rest. As far as ED-E was concerned, she was fine. Still, it did blast some of the goons charging at her anyway. Protocol did dictate the elimination of all hostiles, after all.
It didn't stick around to hear her thanks. It didn't need them. The robot flew around some more, running into April and Suzuran at something resembling an arcade room. They were surrounded by thugs and April seemed to be struggling with her aim. The smoke must be clouding her vision.
ED-E flew into the fray and unleashed a laser storm on the gangsters. Many of them were scorched to the bone or vaporized before they could process who just entered the arena. Some managed to escape with varying degrees of burns into some other part of the complex. The rest tried to up a fight.
April took out one of her arrows and began using it as a makeshift dagger, stabbing at the nearest goon. Suzuran conjured up some form of Arts field. The wounds on April began to fade away while the enemies' movement wave slowed to a crawl. What perplexed the robot was that it was also reacting to its automated repair systems. It noticed an increase in efficiency in those mechanisms while in the field's radius.
Both girls looked at the robot with relief as the Arts field died down. "Thank goodness you came along," Suzuran said. "Otherwise those bad people…"
Suzuran looked at some of the civilian bodies before closing her eyes. April knelt down and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Shh… It's okay," she assured the child. "We're here. We'll keep you safe."
"But who's going to protect everyone else? We can put up a fight, but they-"
ED-E could easily pick up the distress in her voice. It floated over to her and issued some bleeps at her. They seemed to calm her down some, judging from the smile on her face. Before the conversation could go on any further, there was a flash of light. The girls yelled and staggered around, covering their eyes and ears. It must've been a flashbang grenade.
ED-E was unaffected of course, being a robot. But when it turned around to face the offenders a blast of navy-blue hit it. Its anti-gravity repulsor and several other systems went offline. Static and whitenoise now obstructed its vision. A quick diagnostics test revealed that its Perception was brought down from a perfect 10 to a crippling 1.
It could only make out faint outlines of everything. It could barely pick out the sounds of punches and kicks, followed by the females shouting something. Something had picked up the eyebot and was carrying it through the smoke. Before its optics failed it caught a glimpse of its abductor; devilish horns and tail, gleaming arm. Cigar in his mouth.
Then the operating system crashed.
Now...
"They've got Suzuran, Leonhardt. They've got her. April and the robot too. I'm sawry."
Six blinked. 'The robot'? They couldn't possibly mean-
Six ran down the ladder without a second thought. His mask filtered out the smoke but it didn't help his vision all that much. The Pip-boy's flashlight proved to be useless in these conditions too. Every so often his feet made contact with a body and he stumbled over it. On one occasion he found a pile of grey ashes. A sign of disintegration by laserfire. He called out for ED-E, checked his Pip-Boy for the Eyebot's signal. Nothing.
The complex was bigger than he expected. He never thought about exploring it further beyond the barracks and initial lobby. Now he was regretting it. Many of the halls have collapsed or caved in, blocking off several paths and wings. In whatever areas he could access he didn't find the Eyebot. There were two places he could think of the little robot going to at this point.
At last, he made his way back to his room. The door was open and everything had been reduced to ashes. ED-E's frame was nowhere to be seen, though. What's more was that the lock appeared to have been shot off from the inside. Didn't take a genius to figure out who did that. Six let out a sigh of relief. So he didn't burn up in there.
Six noticed that Hoover's door had been smashed to pieces and peered inside. The old man was slumped against a wall. Six knelt down and felt for a pulse. Nothing. He looked down to see crimson stains on his chest. It was still fresh, sticking to his gloved fingers. Maybe there was still a chance to revive him. He jammed a Stimpak into Hoover's chest. He can give him CPR once it's sealed up and they're out of the smoke.
Six went back to searching for his robo-buddy in the meantime. He checked every nook and cranny but he never turned up. His heart was sinking closer to the abyss by the second. His boot bumped against something. Something metallic judging from the 'clank' he heard. He looked down to see his Sonic Emitter. Six picked it up and examined it. It was all crumpled up like a tin can. That was a fucking gift from Dr. 8.
Something crossed Six's mind; he hasn't seen any of the other weapons he left in here. Frantically he searched the room again, throwing open every drawer and everything else onto the floor. He noticed a number of safes and boxes under a workbench. They were all busted open, with a drill judging from the marks.
He looked back at Hoover's body. The holes hadn't closed up at all. Either the chems were taking their sweet time or-
His head weighed itself down. He really is gone. Something pressed itself against his back. He had been through this scenario enough times to recognize the feel of a gun barrel. He held his hands up in the air.
"Turn around slowly," a familiar voice commanded.
Six did as told to face a woman wearing a gasmask. Even with all the smoke and ashes, Six could still make out a white-and-black coat and red hair. The muzzle of her gun drifted away from his chest soon afterward.
"Six?" Exusiai said in relief. "Man am I glad to see you."
"Believe it or not the feeling's mutual. What the hell happened here?"
"That'll have to wait until we're topside. We've got fires and some bodies down here. We're not leaving anyone behind."
Six nodded, grabbing Hoover's body and slinging it over his shoulder. He had already memorized the route back up days ago so it wasn't too difficult on paper. The smoke and debris however were making things complicated for him. At least twice Exusiai had to stop and move some stuff over for him. He could see Croissant smashing her way through some rubble, clearing the way for some workers.
They finally reached the ladder and climbed up. Exusiai was the first to taste fresh air and help Six pull Hoover onto the surface. As soon as Six got he knelt down beside the corpse. Without the smoke to obscure them, Six got a better look at the injuries.
[Medicine 40] The first thing that caught his attention was the holes in his chest. No burn marks, arrows, or bolts. Didn't take a genius to see these as bullet holes. Hardly uncommon back home, but probably rare as hell on Terra.
Exusiai was kneeling beside him now. "No bolts or arrows in him," she noted. "Must be bullet holes."
Six examined the corpse some more. There were bruises all over his head and arms, plus some cuts on the latter. Looks like someone got up close and personal with him. He tried to block the blows from the looks of things. Obviously, he failed. A glint caught his eye; there was still a bullet lodged in his chest. Six carefully pried it off of the body and showed it to Exusiai.
".45 Auto,'' she deduced. "That's rare, even among firearms. The only one I've ever seen is-" Her eyes went wide. "Oh lordie…"
Six had a similar reaction. "One of my guns," he realized. A Light Shining In Darkness.
He looked over to the Cerato. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, he could actually inspect the body. It was just like Hoover's; riddled with bruises and bullet holes, with the extra seasoning of bolts. The holes themselves were of a different size, though.
[Guns 30] They were 10mm. Sleepytime. The one in the back of his head seemed to be the coup de grâce. .45 auto like with Hoover.
"...Guntur." Exusiai said. So that was his name.
Six's hands balled up into fists. That gun already had enough of a bloody history from what Graham told him about himself. He thought that giving it to Six would wash the blood away, absolve it of his own crimes. Instead, the Courier allowed history to repeat itself. He buckled and fell onto his knees. He was clawing at the concrete now.
"Six…" Exusiai said softly. She laid a hand on his shoulder. "It's not your fault."
Six didn't say anything at first. After a minute he rose back onto his feet and looked her square in the eye. Even if she couldn't see his eyes, she could sense the fury behind the lens.
"Croissant said that April and Suzuran were taken captive by those 'Sicilian' assholes," Six recalled. "You're an intelligence firm, aren't you? Surely you know where their hideout is."
Exusiai nodded. "Of course we do. But we're not in any shape to take on an entire Mafia cell by ourselves. We've got wounded and they've probably got hundreds of goons on their turf."
Six reloaded his riot shotgun and looked over at Leonhardt. "Leonhardt," he called out. "You got medical experience right? Can you handle the civilians without me and fill the ladies in on our discoveries?"
Leonhardt could see where this was going. "Mate, you're just one guy. You'll get torn to pieces by th-"
"Have you already forgotten what they just did? Who they've taken from us?! If I wasn't pissed off before, I sure as hell am now."
And besides, Six privately noted. ED-E's got an ammo workbench installed in his chassis. If they figure out how to use it and the Energy weapons he's carrying…
Six switched out to That Gun and checked its ammo. A full chamber and plenty of ammo for the moment. "I've killed hundreds of thugs and monsters," he said. "Those cosplayers got nothing on me."
"But they've got hostages," Leonhardt retorted. "And the layout of their base. You might as well be walking into a minefield."
Six paused, growling. "But we can't stand around here. Not when they've got your friends and ED-E."
And alien tech.
Exusiai and Leonhardt looked at each other. "I'll go with him," the former offered. "You and Croissant stay here and tend to everybody. Then you get all non-combatants out of town. It's too dangerous for them."
Six gave her a nod of approval. "Lead the way, guardian angel," he said.
Nighttime had already crept in on Da Vinci. Though the blackened skies obscured the smoke, a keen eye can still pick out the embers. Six and Exusiai headed to the south of town, sticking to the shadows. While the lad more or less blended in, Exusiai stuck out like a sore thumb with her wings and halo. She cursed these traits under her breath with each step. If the situation weren't dire, Six would've chuckled at all this.
After half an hour of dashing through the streets and back alleys, they found themselves before a series of warehouses on the edge of town. It felt like one of those prewar docks, with cranes, crates, warehouses, and other stuff. There was a ledge where the 'ships' should be, with the wasteland directly below. Exusiai claimed that this was something of a docking station for connecting settlements with one another. For trading and whatnot.
It was all rather unassuming at first, but the guards stuck out more than the angel. Dark gray suits, sunglasses, barreled crossbows. The duo crouched behind a corner and surveyed the entrance. Six felt certain they could fight their way through, but that would raise alarms in a heartbeat.
He spotted a particularly tall gangster among them. Around his height, if his eyes were still any good. A plan was forming in that scattered brain of his and he looked back at Exusiai. He pointed at her and the roof, following up with himself and then the tallest goon. She smirked and nodded, clinging to the outskirts for a way up.
Six quickly dashed to the closest warehouse and threw a rock at the tallest minion. The man snarled and marched over in his direction. Six ducked under some boxes and waited for him to pass over. Once he saw his back Six brought out VATS and targeted the base of his neck with his sniper rifle. The bullet that flew out severed the spine, insta-killing the man. Six dragged the body into a corner and stripped it of all its contents.
Now dining the goon's attire, he threw the body into a dumpster and claimed his crossbow. He had a sense of deja-vu as he adjusted the sunglasses, hat, and scarf. He swore he saw images of a pre-war comic-book hero back home with a similar get-up. What was his name again? The noir-styled vigilante with the Tommygun? Eh, he'll worry about that later. Right now death was coming to visit these assholes.
He gave the warehouses a quick survey. One guard asked him about his business, but he just acted all gruff and told him he was "inspecting security". Took a bit of flexing to get the wise guy to mind his own damn business, but it worked. Where the silver tongue fails, sheer terror prevails. Or starts even more shit. Exusiai waved at him and pointed to her building. Six searched for an entrance and peeked inside.
It appeared to be devoid of guards so he slipped in. The only objects here were containers but he looked around just to be safe. When he finally did deem it as such, he motioned for the angel to hop down. She leaped from the window to a crate and down onto ground level.
"So far so good," Six whispered. "Have you found anything?"
Exusiai shook her head. "Naw, no sign of our friends. But I caught a glimpse of some familiar arms. Seems like some baddies are keeping them as trophies."
Six grinned. "I'll relieve them of their burdens if I get the chance. Any idea where they'd keep people of interest?"
She shrugged. "They could be anywhere. In some containers, in an underground bunker."
"You'd bet on the latter?"
"Hey, we're in a nomadic village, right? It's practically a requirement these days. And shady folk have a thing for them anyway."
Six sighed. "Keep to the skies while I search the grounds."
The girl nodded and climbed back through the window. She's pretty agile for someone of her build. He hoped she didn't have a quicker draw than him. He went back outside and kept an ear out for anything out of the ordinary. The alarm, hushed tones, gunfire, anything. He finally heard something out of place; a small chainsaw revving up.
He rounded a corner to see three mafia thugs toying around with his GRA ripper. He stuck to the shadows, trying to listen in on any conversation they could be having.
"Man, how come you of all people get that thing?" said one.
"Hey, the fact that I even got it should speak volumes," retorted the second. "Boss has been hoarding most of the good stuff for himself ever since we got the drop on the Penguins."
"Isn't he trying to get those laser guns to work or something?" asked the first.
"Laser guns? What are you talking about?" butted In the third goon.
"Shh! Not so loud," hushed the second man. "Boss doesn't want to show his hand yet."
Six had heard enough and revealed himself. "You mean not until he stops scratching his head," he snarked.
The goons drew their weapons at him, but they calmed down after seeing the suit. "Cripe, how long have ya been here?" asked the first.
"Long enough to hear your grips. Is it true? The boss has been keeping all the fun toys for himself?"
"Yeah," confirmed the third. "He's got them locked up in his office."
"Remind me where that is again."
The one wielding the ripper laughed. "Why? Have you forgotten already? Oh, what am I saying, of course you have. All you've got in your head is rocks."
Six walked up to the man who dared to speak out, channeling his inner devil.
"[Terrifying Presence] It'll keep all of your limbs attached, dumbass."
The offender gulped. "Underground. The entrance is at Warehouse 4."
"That where he's keeping the girls too?"
"Maybe the kid. He's got plans for her. The older gal's held up in number 3. A body like hers could fetch a high price up in the Empire of Ursus."
"Who else got the spoils at Pete's?"
"Sandy took an SMG last I checked. Orion got some glowy ax. Apollo's keeping some weird pistol with him while they study the laser stuff together. They'll show them off to anybody they come across, though. Jackasses."
"Seen any metal orbs floating or lying about?"
"Floatin- hell naw. Are you smoking those spices again?"
Six growled, shutting the man up. "Okay, low blow. But seriously, none of us saw any wrecking balls or anything around."
"I see. Thank you for reminding me."
Six kicked the man between his legs, causing him to drop the ripper. Six caught it with one hand and pulled the thug in with the other. In one motion he revved up the handheld chainsaw and tore into the man's abdomen and up out of his shoulder-blade. He nearly split in half as his gore fell onto the ground. His friends lost their lunch at the sight.
"That was for being a smartass. Rat me out and you're next."
He turned his back and back to 'patrolling' the area. He shook the blood off of his reclaimed ripper and sheathed it. One of the guards noticed the red stains on his suit and stopped him.
"Woah there, you okay?"
"[Speech 25] I'm fine," Six lied. "Just fell on my own knife is all. I've patched myself up."
"Well wash those clothes when you have a chance. You'll spook the others."
The Courier ignored his advice and continued onwards. He looked into each of the other warehouses, trying to find his weapons or ED-E. He never found the eyebot in any of them but he did spy Sleepytime in Warehouse 5. Sandy- a fair-skinned Lupo with blond hair- was trying to shoot at some empty bottles with it but he was too far for the spread to hit. Obviously he never used an SMG before.
He jumped at the sight of Six and pointed the gun at him. "Bloody hell, you scared me, Banner. What are you doing here, though? Shouldn't you be-"
Six never gave him the chance to finish. He brought down the ripper on his right arm, severing it and the gun from his person. Sandy screamed and gripped at the bloody stump with his remaining hand. Six then slashed across his throat with the chainsaw, ripping it to shreds.
Six knelt down and retrieved his weapon. He checked the clip to see how much ammo was left. To no surprise, Sandy had completely emptied the clip. Good thing he had some extras, though. As soon as he reloaded it he heard a door swing open. Someone had heard the commotion inside.
He turned to see two swordsmen approaching him, both horrified at the grisly sight before him.
"Gods, Banner, what the fuck!?" exclaimed one.
Six didn't respond. Instead, he started marching toward them like those slasher film monsters. Both goons were frozen in place. He fired Sleepytime at them before they got the brainpower to run or alert the others. Six then shut the door and dragged the bodies away, into some dark corner or another. Once the bodies were hidden he walked back out and headed for warehouse 3.
There was April, locked in a cage and on her knees. Her hands were chained behind her back while her legs were weighed down by an iron ball. There were guards all over the place, dogs too. Six had the urge to reach for his gun but he refrained himself. He didn't want to risk setting the base on red alert, but the hounds were gonna make that difficult. And right on cue, one of them sniffed the air and barked at him. The guard holding its leash approached him.
"Hold it, Banner," he said with a hand up. "This isn't your assigned post."
"Boss wanted me to inspect the warehouses," Six claimed. "Make sure nobody was slacking off."
The dog was growling at him now. It was then that the guard noticed the blood on him. His eyes went up to the Courier's and seemed to burrow through them. For a moment Six thought that he was reaching out for his very soul. The thug's grasp on the leash loosened and the dog broke free. Six instinctively drew out his Plasma Defender and melted the mongrel before it got to him. Immediately after he realized his mistake and cursed himself.
"We've got a spy here, boys," shouted the guard as he pointed. "Sic 'em!"
Everybody came running at him. Swords, hammers, crossbows, shields, and jaws all lined up to butcher him. A shower of bullets rained down on some of the enemy from above. All eyes looked up to see a certain redhead peeping out of the roof. She waved with a smile.
"Hiya," she said.
"The hell is that bitch?" said a thug.
"It's one of the Penguins!" said another.
While their backs were turned, Six snuck up on a couple of them with Sleepytime. He put them into a dirt nap with a pull of the trigger. The dogs quickly caught onto him but Six was already toggling VATS as the bodies fell. He backed up and reloaded, locking onto their skulls and ripping them to shreds. The remaining one tried to bite him but a well-timed kick stunned it long enough for him to reload and fire again.
The humanoids split off into two teams. Casters and Snipers were trying to bring Exusiai down to Earth- erm, Terra- while the rest focused on Six. The Courier switched to Thump Thump and used it to send clusters of thugs flying away. Most of them were blown to pieces, and those who survived the initial explosions were limping away in agony. The 'Defender' class (as Croissant called them) weathered through the blasts unscathed. Six switched to his riot shotgun and replaced the regular ammo with flechette. That ripped the shields a new one real quick. He swapped the shotgun for his Plasma Defender, burning and melting the shieldguards alive. He used That Gun to put Thump Thump's survivors out of their misery.
A loud boom caught the Courier's attention. He looked to see Exusiai on the ground in a daze. The bowmen and Casters had her surrounded. Six reloaded his guns and hid behind some shipping containers, evaluating the situation with VATS. Not good. She's too close to them for an explosive solution and he didn't want to risk shooting her by accident.
A burst of gunfire put his worries at ease. A cry of"Rock an' roll!" echoed throughout the warehouse as magic bullets tore through the mafia. Some simply dropped dead, others were sliced into bloody gibs. Six drew out Christine's sniper rifle and began taking headshots in the chaos. When the last mook fell, the floor was drenched in blood, gore, and bone.
Six looked back to April. She seemed to be struggling to contain her lunch. Exusiai by comparison was better, merely tiptoeing over the messes and making the occasional gross-out face. Six was more careful than his temporary partner, not wanting to leave a future trail. He looted the bodies while Exusiai shot off the cage's lock. She frowned at the sight of another one on April's chains, but six already found a solution. He brought the key over and removed the lock, freeing April.
"Thank the Eight," she breathed. "I thought I'd be some General's maid back there."
"You okay?" Six asked. "Nothing broken?"
April shook her head. "Naw. They wanted me intact and unsullied for any… potential grooms." she shuddered. "I don't know whether to be thankful for their business mindset or horrified."
Six had another surprise for them, drawing out her bow. "Found this on one of the archers. Seems like he kept it as a trophy."
Six tossed the weapon and some ammo to her. She inspected it for wear and was pleased to find none. She sheathed it and smiled at the Courier. "If you weren't covered in blood right about now, I'd hug ya."
Six looked at his disguise with a frown. No way he could sneak around the base with this much red and gunk. He considered replacing it with one from his recent victims, but they were ruined beyond salvage or washing. And he didn't have the time to stitch together a new one either. He went behind a shipping container and changed into his Elite Riot Gear.
"So much for going quiet, huh," Exusiai noted.
"I still have an ace or two up my sleeve if the need arises. But from here on out, it's just old-fashioned spec-ops."
Six opened up the door ever so slightly. To his disappointment there were some guards just outside, heading right towards him. He signaled the girls to hide and they scattered. The goons entered the scene of the crime and were rather stunned by the scene. Six struck first, gunning one of them down with Sleepytime. April fired at another with a volley of arrows while Exusiai fired at all of them. They dropped dead before they could alert anyone.
Six risked peeking his head out again and was relieved to find no other guards. The trio slipped into the shadows and marched towards warehouse 4. April took point and peered inside for them. One by one they slipped in, each taking a gander before entering. A quick sweep of the area revealed no guards present. That moment of peace could be broken any second, though, so they went to work on finding an entrance ASAP.
Exusiai found a lever hidden in a fake barrel. Without a second thought, she pulled it and she heard something hiss and shift behind her. She turned to see some floorboards sliding out of existence and the Courier nearly falling into some hole. He managed to hop onto solid ground in the nick of time and looked down at the opening. It was rather dark.
Six was the first one to go, activating his Pip-Boy's internal lights before climbing down the ladder. The tunnel was rather narrow and minimal, with nothing but concrete walls. Rather dull in comparison to Pete's. The girls reached the bottom soon after him and huddled behind the Courier. Six took the lead with his light, That Gun in one hand and Chance's Knife in the other.
The walls soon gave way to cold iron and rivets. Burnt-out circuit boxes and pipes were lined up against the wall, with the occasional sliding door. Rust and dirt were collecting everywhere, implying that they hadn't been in use for years. The lack of tracks seemed to confirm this. For some reason, he was getting a sense of deja vu about all of this.
Six spotted something green in the corner of his eyes. He pressed up against a wall and peeked into a room. There were a number of plants in the chamber ahead. They were all healthy, despite the lack of sunlight down here. He saw no lamps or heaters nearby, though. How did they get so-
The green vanished. All that was there was debris and darkness. Six blinked. Was he imagining it?
The journey crept on for roughly five more minutes before there was a change in scenery. And it wasn't what he was expecting. The chamber was massive, probably about twice the size of a hanger back at Nellis Air Force Base. It looked like an underground highway from where he was standing. Exusiai whistled at the sight.
"Damn," she said. "I didn't think we'd get this deep into the town."
"Where are we?" Six asked.
"The foundation level. The guts of the village's mobile platform," Exusiai explained. "Or at least the one carrying the warehouse district."
"One? These settlements are made of multiples?"
"Some of them are. This must be from the early days of the village's construction. Probably where building materials were moved and stored during assembly."
Six looked at several supply crates nearby. Something told him those weren't for construction, though.
"Could hide anything down here," Exusiai continued. "It'll probably take ages to find a lead on our friends."
Six cursed under his breath. He walked around the chamber, trying to find signs or footprints or anything else that'd point them in any direction. Then he heard a beeping sound. He looked around for a source but didn't find anything. April gave him a concerned look.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"That beeping sound."
The bunny-eared girl looked around the room and shook her head. "Are you sure you're hearing anything?"
Six brought up his Pip-boy and looked at the Radio tab. There was a lone frequency on the display. It sounded like one of those prewar distress beacons. But he didn't bring any with him, did h-
Six froze. "ED-E," he realized.
Six began fiddling around with the Pip-Boy, trying to lock onto the signal. A waypoint had been set up on his HUD, pointing towards the east. He motioned for the ladies to follow him. The trio found a corridor and walked into another metallic hallway. The room was drenched in a crimson light as alarms blurred. Six cursed again. The mafia must be onto them now.
His fears were confirmed when several men with crossbows came storming towards them. April conjured up a smokescreen for them while Exusiai and Six ducked. Gunfire ripped through the clouds and into the goons. A swordsman charged forth, carrying a miniature shield. It was sturdy enough to withstand bullets, but it melted after receiving a Plasma bolt. The man screamed a curse as it burnt his arm. The gunners took advantage of this to finish him.
April took the front while the angel and Courier reloaded their firearms. Two more swordsmen moved up but they lacked shields of their own. They took arrows to the kneecaps, and then in their brains. Exusiai switched places with her, charging up her bullets with Arts as the fallen were replaced. One goon exploded into gibs while another burst into flames. Six tore up the kneecaps of another with his shotgun with two shells and his head with a single blast.
It descended into a literal bloodbath. The trio was already leaving crimson footprints in their wake. The further they ventured into the crowded hall, the faster and more frantic the signal sounded off. Every now and then Six could've sworn he saw the pools of blood rise. At one point it even seemed to be at his knees' level. At last, they came across a massive garage, filled to the brim with scrap metal and vehicles. And it was already occupied.
There was a man with a strange tail standing over a workbench. It appeared to be feline but there was a brush of fur at the end. Six had seen that kind of appendage in old zoo advertisements. They belonged to an extinct creature called "lions". Croissant called these people 'Aslan' if he recalled correctly. And standing next to him and the workbench was the Protonic inversal axe.
Six softly hushed at Exusiai and April, motioning for them to stay just outside the doorway. They both nodded and crouched at opposite sides as Six snuck in. The Aslan- Orion if Six were a betting man- was tinkering with the inert chassis of ED-E. The Eyebot had already been partially dismantled, his internal workbenches exposed. There was more wear and tear on them than he had ever seen. A short glance to his right revealed why.
On a small stand lay some energy cells, Microfusion cells, satchel changes, and flamer fuel. ED-E would normally give each of those once a day, but these guys were overclocking him. Six snarled and bore his teeth under his breath. The lion-man must've heard him because his cat ears perked up and he spun around. Six lunged at him but Orion threw him back.
The Courier crashed into a car, smashing a window and setting off a car alarm. He barely had time to dodge a vertical slash from the thug and duck under a horizontal one afterward. An arrow embedded itself into his suit and he turned to see April near the entrance. She was flinging every arrow she had at the Aslan and he didn't even flinch. Six struck out with Chance's Knife and managed to impale it into him. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to yank it back out.
Orion batted Six aside and charged at April. She vanished in a cloud of smoke as the axe came down upon her position. Six took out Christine's sniper rifle and toggled VATS. The Cautus was hiding behind a van while the man searched for her in the cloud. Six switched the system off until the smokescreen dissipated and he could get a better shot. The Courier targeted the man's left arm, crippling it.
Orion howled as it went limp, struggling to hold the protonic axe. He snarled at Six and charged at him with a spin attack. Six rolled under the sloppy display of power and took out That Gun, crippling his other arm with it. The man dropped the axe and ran back to the workbench. Six tackled him and brought out his ripper, slamming it into his chest. The man gurgled as his insides were torn up by the miniature chainsaw. Once he stopped struggling, Six reached down for Chance's Knife, finally tearing it free from the Aslan's flesh.
Orion wasn't down yet. He grabbed Six by the throat and pinned him down on the concrete floor. Six attempted to break free but he couldn't. The bastard had a bear-like grip on him. He couldn't even reach for his weapons. He didn't need to as an arrow pierce the back of his thick skull, finally ending his life. Six heaved the fresh corpse off of him and revved up his ripper, letting it shred through the body and out toward freedom. He sheathed it and went to reclaim the protonic inversal axe.
With the push of a button, the axe's handle partially collapsed in on itself. Now the length of a pickaxe, Six holstered the weapon onto a latch on his belt. While Six was inspecting the body for loot, Exusiai was examining the automobiles and motorcycles in the garage. She whistled at the sight.
"Have to admit, they have a sense of style," she said.
Six wasn't paying any attention to her. He was more concerned with ED-E and his captor. The Courier found a set of keys on Orion's person, plus some LMD and energy cells. Six went to the workbench and examined the ammo the bastard produced. It all was of average quality, nothing in bulk or overcharged. Six collected the ammo and went over to ED-E, inspecting his inventory.
The most valuable pieces- some Power Armor and the Stealth suit MK II- hadn't been reassembled yet. Some of the weapons he hid were gone, though. The Q-35 matter modulator, a Multiplas rifle, the Holorifle, the YCS/186, the AER14 prototype, an Arcwelder, the Sprtel-Wood 9700, Elijah's Tesla Cannon, and some extra laser and Plasma weapons were absent. Cleansing Flame, Annabelle, Red Glare, an SMMG, a 25mm grenade APW, Paladin Toaster, Two-Step Goodbye, Gehenna, Blade of the West, All-American, Medicine Stick, Lucky, a silenced .22 pistol, a Ranger Sequoia, Blood-Nap, Gehenna, Oh Baby, and the Embrace of the Mantis King remained. Some Stealth Boys and chems he stashed away were also missing.
Six pocketed the .22 and closed the compartment up, then drew out a robot repair kit. He can reclaim his Energy Weapons later. Right now he had to fix his companion. The Courier bent over the Eyebot and went to work.
"Don't worry buddy," Six whispered. "I'll have you patched up in no time."
He spent the next few minutes repairing the eyebot while April scouted the area some more. Exusiai remained with Six to watch over him. She couldn't help but notice how gentle he was with the robot. How he tended to it like a living creature rather than a machine. It certainly didn't behave like one the few times she interacted with it. Maybe it's the closest thing he had to a friend? He wouldn't be the first person she knew to dot over their machines.
ED-E's turbines roared to life and he leapt into the air. The robot emitted a series of chirps and beeps at the two humans, yet only Six seemed to understand it.
"I know," Six jested. "This is getting old. How are you feeling? Can you tell me what happened?"
ED-E emitted a series of somber notes.
"They attacked the base shortly after I left huh," Six translated. "They must've been watching us for some time."
ED-E agreed, then emitted an inquisitive tone. Six frowned under his helm.
"No, they trashed the whole place and the surrounding area. A lot of innocent people died in the attack. They've nabbed that kid with all the tails too. I intend on making them pay. Think you can help us find her?"
ED-E chirped and bounced around in agreement. Six smiled as the Eyebot played its leitmotif and charged out of the garage. It sped past April and down a hall. Naturally, it drew the attention of some mafia thugs and they charged at it. The Duraframe lived up to its name and weathered bolts, arrows, and blades. All of the offenders were reduced to dust. Exusiai's jaw dropped at the carnage.
"Wow," she said. "Those are some serious Arts."
"That's one way to put it," Six said as he walked by her.
Six took the frontlines with Sleepytime, gunning down some brawlers looking to introduce their fists to their faces. Shieldbearers came to the forefront to protect their brethren, absorbing bullets and laser fire. Six was forced to use Thump Thump again to open up a pathway for them, praying that the ceiling didn't give way to the explosions.
The four fought their way to another junction, splitting off into three paths. There wasn't any sign or map to guide them, though. The three organics looked at one another.
"Split up?" April suggested.
Exusiai shook her head. "Nah ah," she retorted. "They'd pick us off one by one. And even if we stayed together, those corridors look more cramped than the last ones. We'd be sitting ducks."
"So why not sneak our way through? We don't really need to fight anyone. Aren't you supposed to be an expert in that field anyway?"
Exusiai pointed to the lightbulbs that were her wings and halo. April gave her a face that said 'So what?' in retort. Exusiai just looked at her in disbelief.
Six placed a hand on his chin. April did have a point. They were wasting ammo shooting their way through and he was the only one with decent melee experience. He turned to ED-E for a suggestion. The robot only bleeped out a confused tone, just as stumped as they are. Six reached into his pouch for a solution.
A couple of items caught his eye; flashbangs and Stealth Boys. He remembered the Brotherhood's motto with technology and the state of this world. But he reminded himself that the latter burnt itself out after a while. The other half of his brain reminded him of the psychological dangers, though. Exusiai was already plenty dangerous with her guns. Throwing a Stealth Boy at her would be a very bad idea. And April already had her smokescreen anyway.
Six tossed two flashbangs to the ladies. "These could help in a bind," Six suggested.
April gave him a nod of approval. "Nice," she said. "Been wanting to give these guys a taste of their own medicine."
Six motioned for ED-E to follow him down a corridor and into another hall. Both girls looked at one another with mixed expressions before splitting off. Six strapped a Stealth Boy onto his other wrist when he put enough distance between himself and his allies. He heard rumors of a canvas-styled variant but he had yet to find any himself. He didn't mind too much, though. Freed up his belt for actual weapons and his trusty Vault 13 canteen.
The lights went off while they were walking. Six smirked and merely flipped on night vision. The world took on a crimson tint as the darkness fled from sight. His HUD was picking up some red marks to his sides at a t-junction. Probably some fools looking to ambush him. Six decided to turn the tables by rolling a frag grenade at the chokepoint. As soon as it went off he heard some men scream and caught red splashes in the explosion.
Six charged forth into the smoke with his riot shotgun, firing Dragon's Breath at the surviving gangsters. Their bodies lit up the hall as the flames consumed them, screams echoing and reverberating. When the last of them kicked the bucket, Six took the left hall and resumed his journey. At the end of it was another garage, judging from the large sliding door before him. There wasn't a lock to pick but there was a console. Six walked over to it and examined it.
There was some damage to the outer casing and some shrapnel in the exposed gaps. It must've been damaged by his grenade. Six pushed some buttons to see if anything worked but nope. Nothing. Six peeled away at the casing some more and noticed some wires. They were sliced apart but he could tie them back together.
[Repair 50] It took some finesse and patience, but he managed to rewire the console. Six swapped his ammo around as the door slid open and hugged a corner. Light poured out onto the hall and a young man with brown hair, blue eyes, and wings on his back walked out. The last bits weren't holographic like Exusiai's though. They were flesh and bone, with feathers even. One of Fiammetta and Hoover's people, perhaps? He was also carrying a familiar blue recharger pistol.
"Ya got him?" Said the Liberi in a Bostonian accent. "Ya finally g- hello? Where da frickin' hell is everybody?"
Six drew out Sleepytime and opened fire. The wings absorbed most of the bullets, with one of them snapping off from all the damage. The man screamed in pain and grasped where the missing appendage used to be. He spun around and fired the MF Hyperbreeder Alpha wildly, each shot leaving behind a brief glowing trail.
[Luck 3/5] One laser hit the chestplate of Six's armor and slashed light against his body. He cursed his luck for the millionth time.
The man- Apollo if he were to guess - caught a glimpse of the Courier and fired again. Six weathered the laser barrage until the battery ran dry. The Liberi cursed his own luck and backed up. Six lunged at him with his Ripper. Apollo attempted to parry him but he got his arm severed for it. His head was the next thing to fly off.
Six retrieved the recharger pistol from his latest victim and holstered it. That left Graham's old sidearm and his missing energy weapons. All of which were under the leader's watchful eye. The Courier gave the garage a brief inspection and came across some salvage. These could come in handy down the line.
Six then left the room and went down the other hall, crocheting as he left the light. Red Scare came back online and he peered through the dark veil. He wouldn't pick up any movement for the next two minutes. He spent most of that time searching each and every room he happened across. Some closets here, some break rooms there, a couple of restrooms here and there. He even ran into some barracks down here. Nobody living in those but dust bunnies.
At last, he came across something he hadn't expected; a decontamination chamber. A series of sprinklers along concrete walls with steel doors at each end. Six looked at a sign next to the entrance and was even more confused; 'Laboratory'? Why the hell would a lab be under some warehouses? Was it used during construction or afterward? What could they be using it for now? Drugs?
Six hesitated to step inside. Already memories of the ambush back at Pluto's- back at Earth- were flooding back to him. Lily was by his side again and there were windows at each side of the chamber. The one on his left was filled with raiders, including Jigsaw. For some reason, his Power Armor was set ablaze, with dark crystals bursting out of it.
The other window had a bunch of Vault dwellers inside. Some of them were ghouls, others smoothskins covered in vines. They were all banging their fists on the glass, screaming and begging for help. The raiders were cheering as the other side was flooded with a crimson fluid. The dwellers tried to hold their breaths but they failed. They all drowned in the red tides.
Six shook his head again. The chamber was empty and barren once more. He blinked. Why was he having all of those visions? He wasn't tripping on Party Time or Jet again, was he? No, he hadn't touched those kinda chems in weeks, maybe even a couple of months. Any addictions he had to them were also cured ages ago. Was it an after-effect from the Stealth Boys back in Pluto? Possibly…
Six finally mustered the courage to step inside. To his relief, the system didn't come online. If anything the sprinklers appeared to be in disrepair. The steel door on the other side remained closed, with a red button next to it. There was a speaker as well. Something told him that the button alone wasn't going to be enough. And his HUD was displaying movement just behind it.
"ED-E, fall back to one of the rooms we passed by and keep your chassis down. I'm gonna see if I can get that door open."
ED-E chimed a concerned beep but complied as ordered. Once the robot was hidden, Six pressed the button and a voice popped up from the speaker.
"What the fuck do you want, welp? Can't you see that I'm busy?"
Six didn't say anything. He was trying to conjure up an excuse but his mind was grasping straws. He glanced down at his Stealth Boy as he held the button. The man on the other side was growing impatient.
"Hello? Hello! Is anybody fuckin' there? Respond!"
Still nothing.
"...that's it, I'm sending somebody down. If that's you goofing off again Loki, I'll have your ass hanging over my fireplace!"
Steam was slithering from the steel barrier. He heard gears groaning to life and instinctively flipped the Stealth Boy on. He took some steps back as the door lifted upwards and a man stepped out. The canine ears and tail indicated that he was yet another Lupo. He looked at the speaker and did a double-take. He began sniffing the air and searched the area, slowly approaching Six. The Courier was about to pull the trigger of his Plasma Defender before some music sounded off.
ED-E's leitmotif. The mafia thug ran off to the source of the sound and disappeared into a room. Six saw some blue flashes and ED-E flew out from his hiding spot. Nobody followed him out. Six smiled.
"Nice," Six said. "Let's head in before they notice he's AWOL."
The duo slipped into the lab and flipped a switch on the other side of the hall. The entrance door crept back down and the two darted behind some barrels. Six peeped over one to see an array of massive vats and machinery, the kind you'd expect from a factory or refinery. Six's nostrils were assaulted by a foul smell. It smelt like Bramin dung. Were they using it as fuel or-?
Six noticed some platforms above them. He climbed up a ladder and poked his invisible head out. There were some guys in hazmat suits working at several chemstations. He climbed onto the platform and crept by each one of the workers. There was a pungent scent coming from the miniature labs. It reminded him of Jack and Diane's workshop at Red Rock.
There were boxes and bins filled with all sorts of stuff. Fertilizer, plastic, detergent, acid, circuit boards, morphine, antiseptic, whiskey, adrenaline shots. There were also crates of various flora and fungi, each one with a label. Some of them he recognized; carrots, Prosopis glandulosa, Yucca baccata, Opuntia basilaris, corn, silt beans, even something resembling cave fungus and mutfruit. He had never seen the rest before, though. Flammulina velutipes, Iresine herbstii, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Gyromitra esculenta. Something told him that most of these weren't local produce.
Some guards were pushing carts full of supplies out of a room nearby. Six tapped into his radio and brought up ED-E's frequency. "ED-E, keep to the shadows down there and try to explore the lower level. I'll take the high roads."
ED-E beeped in acknowledgment and cut off the transmission. He saw the robot hover behind a giant vat and proceeded to sneak past the hazmats. Six's nose picked up more smells, even tastes. Whatever they were cooking, it was potent. A stray shot could ignite the whole area if he wasn't careful.
The Courier found himself in some storage room. Piles upon piles of crates and boxes littered the room. There was an elevator at the back end, no doubt where the cargo was brought. There was another exit nearby, leading back to the laboratory. Six went through and found himself surrounded by more workers. Six could make out a large circular window at the far back, with some stairways at the corners. It kinda reminded him of-
The laboratory vanished and gave way to a Vault's atrium. It was rusted and decayed, crumbling apart. There were splashes of green goop everywhere, with strange flora growing out of them. Feral Ghouls with fungi growing on their bodies patrolled the area, ready to bite and tear at anything that moved. And standing in the window of the Overseer's office was-
Six shook off the vision just in time to avoid bumping into a hazmat. He blinked and crawled as far away from the worker as possible. He looked back at the floor level. The former had guards roaming about, some of them in what appeared to be combat armor. Mercenaries?
He looked back at the window to see two men behind it. One of them appeared to be in a brown suit, jacket, and fedora. He wasn't wearing a trenchcoat like the local mafia, though, and seemed more portly than the gangsters he fought. It was when he turned around that he saw all the badges on him. This must be the mayor, Sanna.
The other man had a cigar in his mouth and had a more padded trench coat. It was hard to tell from his position, but Six could've sworn one of his hands was silver. Chrome. Six could make out black horns protruding through his fedora, but it was difficult to tell what race he was from here. There was a crossbow strapped to his back, and two pistols holstered on each leg. Even from a distance, he recognized the grip of A Light Shining in Darkness. That had to be the head honcho of the local gang.
Light began to flicker around in Six's eyes. Shit, not now! he thought.
He leaped over a railing and rolled behind some vats. The Stealth Boy burned out as soon as he hit the floor. He pocketed the ruined device and took out his silenced .22 pistol. He peeked his head out slightly to see a mafia guard nearby. He hadn't noticed him yet. Six waited for him to pass by then dashed behind some new cover. He repeated the process until he reached the end of the lab. ED-E was already waiting for him behind some crates.
"Had any trouble buddy?" Six whispered.
ED-E emitted a beep.
"Good. The fewer distractions, the better. Now come on, we got some loot to reclaim. And maybe a damsel in distress if we're lucky."
The two of them made their trek across the steps. Six left behind a couple of satchel charges on the way up. Just in case any goon decided to come this way or if the alarms went off. As they neared the top of the stairway they heard voices. One of them had a hint of an Italian accent, another akin to someone from Boston. What surprised him was the presence of a third voice. A young, girly voice.
Six held up his hand as they found a doorway. Six crept to the side and peeked over the edge. The room ahead wasn't like any office he had seen before. Not befitting of a mayor or an Overseer. No, it seemed like a grease monkey's workshop rather than an office. The closest thing to even belonging in such an environment was a wooden desk. Everywhere else were workbenches and junk.
Lined up along the walls were most of his missing energy weapons. On the desk lay some of his missing chem stash. Slasher, Psycho, Mentats, Buffout, Med-X. But what shocked him was the small figure at one of the workbenches. There- standing on a small stool- was Suzuran. Before her was the AER14 prototype, while her staff hung on the opposite wall.
Sanna and the don were standing by the desk, helping themselves to Mentats. Six could see the cranberry stains on their lips and their tails swishing about behind them. Sanna's was a Feline's tail while the mafia leader's resembled a devil's. The latter also possessed what appeared to be a mechanical arm.
The mayor walked over to Suzuran with a nervous look on his face.
"So… um, any progress on your research?" Mayor Sanna asked.
The girl shook her head. "No," she said. "I don't sense any Originium in these machines or their power cells. I don't need to be a technician to see that."
"For once I agree with the brat," the Sarkaz don said. "I've been shootin' for years and I haven't felt anything in my prize either."
He drew A Light Shining in Darkness from one of his holsters and examined it. "Eggheads in the lab can't make heads or tails of the propellant. Whatever it is, it's something new."
The man took a puff from his cigar. "Guns that don't need Arts training, guns that can disintegrate or melt people… damn thing sounds like some B-rate sci-fi film. But just think of what we can do with them, though. We can storm the capital and take down the other clans. Or hell, start a black market for these babies and make a shitload of soldi. This could be the breakthrough the Diavoli d'Ebano's been looking for."
"What about that Caster? The original owner of the arms?" Sanna asked.
"Buried. Sent him out after your old rival's gang."
The mayor's face morphed into a dark smile. "Always good to see those diseased dogs bite the dust. Speaking of which..."
He looked back at Suzuran with a judgmental look on his face. "What about her? You know she's a biohazard to us all."
"To you, maybe. But to me she's bait."
"Bait? Oh, don't tell me you're still chasing ghosts. She's dead, Aelius. Has been for years. How about you dispose of the sick hound and-"
Aelius drew the other pistol- something resembling a Colt 6520- and fired it at Sanna's chest cavity. The bullet burrowed into him and burst into flames. The man screamed as his insides were cooked and collapsed onto the ground. Suzuran yelped and spun around as she saw the mayor's body collapse onto the floor. Steam slithered out of the fresh corpse's throat as Aelius twirled his pistol and holstered it.
"Oh she'll be a ghost when she gets here," Aelius said. "A real mother would come running to her daughter's aid. And until she does, we're keeping the wretch alive. After that… well, anything's possible."
Six looked back at ED-E. This guy must have some Arts training if he can cook someone on the inside like that. Six reexamined the room ahead and considered his options. The Sarkaz already had one of his Stealth Boys strapped onto his wrist. While ED-E could technically pick him up on his motion tracker, Six couldn't hit him with VATS. He'd had to rely on his own eyes to catch him. Six drew out his .22 pistol and peeped out from his hiding spot, taking aim.
[Luck 3/8] An explosion went off downstairs and shook the floor. The Courier dropped his gun and stumbled into the office.
"My leg!" someone screamed. "My fucking leg!"
The don turned around as the goon's screams bounced around the lab. He cursed under his breath as he saw the Courier.
"You!?" Aelius said. "You've gotta be shittin' me!"
Aelius dashed the laser RCW while Six went after his pistol. Midcharge Six activated his GRX Implant, injecting his body with a small dose of Turbo. It only lasted for a few seconds, but it gave him the speed boost he needed to retaliate. Both of them showered one another with their respective ammo, neither man showing any sign of slowing down. When Aelius's energy cell ran dry, Six decided to go for a direct approach.
Six drew out his ripper and charged at the man. To his surprise, the gangster caught the weapon midswing. The robotic hand held the weapon by the teeth yet it withstood their onslaught. He yanked it from the Courier's grip and delivered a punch to the gut with his fleshy fist. He shoved Six against the glass window and started pummeling the living hell out of him.
The window was cracking now. A few more hits and Six might fall through. The don reeled back his metal fist for another punch when a green beam hit him in the back. He let out a small cry as the heat seeped through his armor and into his skin. He twisted his head to see Suzuran firing the prototype laser rifle at him. That gave Six the chance to free himself and draw out his shotgun. One shot sent the bastard flying through the glass and onto the floor below.
Despite the glass embedded into his suit, it didn't appear to draw any actual blood. Aelius growled and jammed some Psycho into his organic arm and activated the Stealth Boy.
"That fucking cowboy's in the lab!" the man screeched on the intercom. "Get your fat asses down here and maim the little piece of shit!"
Six's eyes twitched at a particular word. "'Cowboy'?" Six sneered. "Did he just call me a fucking 'cowboy'? I'll have you louts know that-"
A bolt whizzed past his head and impaled the wall behind him. He ducked in time to avoid a volley of them. Suzuran was already ahead of him, crawling on the ground and reclaiming her antenna. Some of the stolen energy weapons were being knocked onto the floor in the chaos. Six went to work on grabbing them all before crawling to ED-E. His back was straining from all the weight he was forcing onto himself but he endured long enough to reach the Eyebot. Six then placed all of the reclaimed loot into ED-E's storage. Suzuran ran to his side while he was busy, handing him the Prototype.
"You alright kid?" Six asked.
"I'm fine," she replied. "This isn't my first firefight."
"I figured as much. That thing's battery still good or are we gonna need to find a new one?"
Suzuran pouted at the Courier's mention of a 'battery'. She was about to say something when they heard footsteps just outside. Six's HUD was picking up movement outside. ED-E's Tesla cannon sounded off and he heard some people scream. Six ran outside to see some Mafia swordsmen charging at them. They stood little chance against the Eyebot and Six's riot shotgun.
Snipers rained down bolts on them from the catwalks above. Six switched to Thump Thump and fired a grenade at the offenders. The bombs ignited all of the chemicals up at the makeshift labs and started a colorful chain reaction. Bodies flew from the ledges as the walkways were cloaked in fire and smoke. Six fired at the other ledge for similar results. He grinned.
Something wrapped itself around him and pulled him forward. Six let out a yelp as he was dragged before two goons. One of them had a dart rope around the hero. The other had a shield and brought it down on his chest. That knocked the wind out of him. He tried to stop the next strike but he nearly got his arms crippled for his efforts. Another gangster was drawing out a knife as he walked towards him. He didn't like the grin on his face.
He was already reaching for his own as the man got closer and was punished for it with another bash at his ribs. Just as the bastard reached him, though, he was hit with a blue laser. When he turned around to face the offender, he turned to dust. The first two goons jumped at the sight of ED-E flying towards them. Six managed to cut the rope binding him and stabbed his captor in the knee, nearly severing it.
The man cried out in pain and reached for the wound. Six took advantage of this and stabbed into his throat next. He drowned in his own blood while the shieldbearer stomped over his body. Six took out his Plasma Defender and lobbed glowing goo at his armor. He dissolved after a few hits. Huffing and puffing, Six took out a box of Mentats and popped a tablet into his mouth. His brain and senses were overlocking themselves right now, trying to find Aelius in the chaos.
Another asshole tried to reel him in with a rope. This time he saw the attack coming and dodged it. He grabbed it and pulled the offending party to himself, firing his Plasma Defender. The gangster's chest cavity melted on impact. He took the time to insert a fresh Microfusion Cell while he had the chance.
Something tackled Six to the ground and a knife flickered into existence. He grabbed it just in time to keep digging into his neck. A coarse laugh echoed as Six struggled to keep it away. He kicked at the invisible figure but he just shrugged them all off.
"You have any idea who you fucking with, cowboy?" taunted Aelius. "Do you really understand the gravity of your situation? You think that I make all the calls around here? I'm just one of several heads of a fucking hydra. Cut me down and someone else will take my place. All the other heads are reaching out across Terra. Our eyes and ears are everywhere, bitch. And once get a scent of our prey, we ain't gonna stop till-"
Aelius let out a high-pitched scream as Six's foot finally found his prized jewels. Six finally broke free and let Chance's Knife fly like crazy. Slashing, stabbing, thrusting, twirling. He didn't stop until he finally drew blood from the cloaked bastard. And once he saw red he switched to his riot shotgun. He loaded it up with dragon's breath slugs and fired away. The man screamed as the flames ate away at him.
Unfortunately, it also sent him into a frenzy. He drew out his 10mm pistol and Darkness, dual-wielding them and firing at the Courier. Six had to take cover as Aelius raged on, throwing A Light in Shining Darkness into some corner when he ran outta ammo for it. Six popped out occasionally to fire his AER14 at the raging madman, ducking to reload. Finally, the Stealth Boy wore off and Six could use VATS on him. Swapping out his riot shotgun and switching to magnum rounds, Six focused VATS on the robotic arm, shooting it off of him. The man cursed as it dropped to the floor.
Six ran to retrieve his final trophy, reloading it and firing at the bastard. He didn't stop until all of his fleshy limbs were crippled. He dropped his Originium pistol as he collapsed, allowing the Courier to kick it away from him. He cursed as he stared at the Courier, his blood pooling underneath him.
"Heh," he said in defeat. "You… *cough!* would've made a good Sarkaz."
"But not a good mobster," Six sneered. "I'm not some cowardly parasite you. I'm not some petty bully who hides in back alleys. And sure as hell not some kidnapping, Saturday morning cartoon villain."
Aelius coughed out a dark laugh. "Hate to break it to you lad, but there's actually strength in the shadows. Going gung-ho like that will just get you buried six feet under. And 'bully'? Please. Most people hardly know their place around here. They need some muscle to remind them."
That was when something unexpected happened. Aelius's suit took on a checkered pattern. His hat and sunglasses vanished to reveal brown hair and eyes. He recognized that face anywhere.
Benny!? Six thought to himself.
Benny smirked at him as he coughed out blood. He still had the horns and tail of Aelius.
"But let me tell you something, baby," he said. "That kiddo ain't as clean as you think she is. You think I'm the devil? Ask her what kinda person her Ma was. Ask her about the family business. You won't like the answer..."
Six's hand was shaking now. The don shifted between himself and a demonic Benny every split second. The world turned red and Six let out a bloodthirsty roar. He emptied an entire clip at the cackling Benny hallucination and switched to Chance's knife to stab away at him. He didn't know how long he was swinging the knife around. All he knew was that Suzuran shouted something at him and he turned to look at her. She had a horrified expression on her face.
Six looked back at Aelius. He couldn't recognize his face now, not what little of it remained. His gibbs lay scattered all around him and he was drenched in his blood. He jumped and sheathed his pistol and knife, stumbling back. For a brief moment, the world flickered between the ruined drug lab and Benny's penthouse. He collapsed onto his knees from the sensory overload. When the world finally stopped spinning, only he and Suzuran remained. Everybody else in the lab was either dead or running for their life.
The fox child had a concerned look on her face. "Are you… okay?" she asked uneasily.
"I am now," Six replied. "I just… saw a ghost back there."
"You want to talk about it?"
Six shook his head. "Not here at least. Maybe somewhere where we won't get peppered with arrows and magic."
Suzuran nodded and walked with him and ED-E out of the lab. No more goons dared to poke their head out as they walked to the crossroads. Suzuran tugged at his sleeve many times during the journey but not once he did acknowledge her. She grew more and more concerned with each step.
Finally, they saw two running cars waiting for them. April sat in the driver's seat of one while Exusiai sat in the other. Both vehicles resemble the Sedans of the Mojave and had guns attached to their hoods. Probably used that 'Arts' stuff like every other firearm here.
Exusiai's eyes shone brighter than her holograms when she saw the Vulpo beside him.
"Our little light and joy!" she shouted.
She hugged the girl and lifted her into the air. Suzuran struggled to breathe in her bear grip. Six had to tap her shoulder to get her to see this. She quickly saw her error and giggled nervously as she sat the kid back down.
"Sorry," Exui said. "She's just so darn fluffy. You got everything back?"
Six flashed A Light Shining In Darkness before her. "You could say that," he said with a smirk "With a dash of justice."
"Sweet! Suzuran, get in with April. Six and the eyeball are with me."
Six nodded and got into the passenger seat. ED-E floated to the backseat as Exui revved up the engine. Both cars sped down the underground road for about a few minutes before they found a way out. They were greeted with the night sky and the stars above. Croissant was waiting for them outside. Leonhardt and the survivors were nowhere to be seen though. They must've sped off to their HQ.
Exusiai rolled down her window and shouted something to Croissant. She briefly engaged in banter with him in their primary language, probably about his efforts. After a minute of talking, she rolled the window back up and looked back at Six. She seemed worried for some reason.
"We need to talk," the angel said in a serious tone.
Six got several ideas as to where this was going. "What's there to talk about? I rescued Suzuran, killed their don-"
"It's about your guns."
Six's jaws locked up.
"I didn't feel any Arts in them. Not in your Shining Light, not in that Glock blaster, none of them. There's no Orignium in any of those bullets, is there?"
Then she flashed an Energy Cell at him. "Or this?"
Six started to stutter. "W-where did you-"
"Nabbed this just after April capped that Aslan. Where did you find the rest?"
[Charisma 4/7] "I'll tell you the same thing I told Croissant; I found all my stuff-"
[FAILED!] "In a wasteland out west. She passed your story onto me earlier today. We have a hard time believing it. 'Experimental weapons'? There'd be bounties for them by now. Heck, I hardly recognize the designs for half of them. And I'm the gun nut among my circle of friends."
"Maybe your company isn't as thorough as they think they are?"
"Or maybe you're hiding something. You know what would happen if anyone caught wind of these, of you? They'd hunt you down to the ends of the world. If anyone like Columbia or Ursus got their hands on them, things are gonna go to hell in a ham basket real fast. Hell, Laterono might-"
She stopped to give herself a breather. Six could've been hallucinating again, but he swore Exusiai's wings lights flickered when she was composing herself. Hell, for a nanosecond they seemed to shift into silver or grey.
"My people run a monopoly on the firearm industry. They aren't gonna like the idea of competitors. If they don't reverse engineer your stuff, they'll just destroy it and their wielder."
She leaned towards him and held out her hand. "I know a place where you can lay low. They can lock your stuff up and hide it from the rest of the world. They-"
"Lock up my guns?! You're asking me to throw away my only means of defending myself! I'm not sure if you noticed, but brute strength ain't exactly my forte. Are you really trying to protect me, or are you just trying to steal the tech all for your-fucking-self?!"
Exusiai didn't take that accusation lightly. She pounced on him and grabbed his coat's collar with furrowed brows. ED-E beeped in alarm and would've fired a laser beam at her right there and then. Six had to hold his hand out to convince him otherwise. Close quarters was not the best place to be firing a tesla cannon.
Instinct was telling him to just take his knife out and shove it into her eye. He pushed it back and tried to look her in the eye. There was a maelstrom of emotions behind them, fear being chief among them. But was it fear for his life, or of him? He gently removed the angel's hands and she backed off. He was about to say something when someone tapped his shoulder. He spun around to see Croissant on the other side of his door. The window was down. When did-?
Croissant grabbed him by the shoulders and brought his helmet to her face. She looked him dead in the eye.
"Six, the world will eat ya alive if you go about this on yer own," the Forte said. "Please. Come with us. With me."
Six just looked back and forth between her and Exusiai. The bull-girl's attire flickered between Brotherhood of Steel power armor and a Fiend's leather attire. Exusiai's outfit flashed between a Scribe's and Ulysses'. Far off into the distance, he could make out mushroom clouds while the Geiger counter was beeping like mad. The earth around the car was tattooed with fresh shadows, yet their casters were nowhere to be found. The ashen marks rose from the dead earth and ascended to the third dimension as shadowy specters. Haunting white lights emerged from their head, forming faces. They were either mournful frowns or gaping screams of horror. They were all muttering a single word.
Why?
[Strength 8] Six broke free from Criossant's grip and threw a Flashbang grenade into the back seat under ED-E. Usually, it was a stupid idea to use grenades in closed spaces, but it wasn't a frag. Plus he had his helmet to shield him from the flashes and loud bangs. ED-E was a robot so it didn't affect him either. Exusiai and Croissant, not so much.
While they were disoriented, Six opened the driver's door and kicked Exusiai out. He locked it back up and rolled the passenger's window. As soon as he plopped himself in the driver's seat, he realized something; He had no idea how to drive a car. So he started fiddling with every switch and pedal until it moved. It backed up into the wall outside, busting open the trunk. He finally found the right pedal and sped off into the distance before anyone could fire on him.
April and Suzuran were startled when they saw Exusiai fly out of the car seat. Even more so when the vehicle drove off without her. It was a miracle that she and Croissant weren't run over. The two ladies left their car to help Exusiai and Croissant back onto their feet.
"What in the world happened back there?" April asked the angel.
Exusiai shook her head as her vision cleared up. For the first time since she enlisted at Rhode Island, she frowned.
"I think we just triggered his fight-or-flight response back there," she confessed.
A/N:
Wow, talk about a rough start.
Plenty to talk about down here. First of all are the visions Six's been having. Where the hell are they coming from? Well, there's a multitude of factors to blame. Brain damage, stress, chems, maybe a hint of PTSD. He's already had physical trauma from Benny's ambush and certainly some on the psychological side to boot.
And speaking of the devil, Six hasn't entirely gotten over what he did to him. Even after getting his revenge, his hatred of Benny hasn't fully died out. Of course, he's far from the only thing he hates these days, but I don't feel like showing off the rest of his blacklist right now.
Then there's the scene with him and the Penguin girls. Yeah, that confrontation was long overdue. Originally it was just Exusiai but I thought she seemed too OOC for it. Especially after having her pounce on Six to drill some sense into him. She's usually a ray of sunshine and hope among her fellow Operators, so seeing her like this might feel off to some people.
Then again, she does make some valid points about Laterano. Speaking of which, that scene with her holograms acting up was my interpretation of their 'laws'. We don't know much about how they operate or what the full doctrine is, so I just went with the idea that it'd kick in if she tried to spill any sensitive beans (or at least stuff the law deemed sensitive).
I thought I could balance it out by throwing Croissant into the mix. She's known Six longer than Exusiai has, so it'd make sense to add her. Instead, I feel like I might've tugged both-or at least one of- them toward Yandere or shipping turf. I may go back to the drawing board and try to tweak it depending on feedback.
Part of me also worried that I made Six a bit too jumpy, but Mentats can have negative effects on the mind. So that combined with Terra's dick-measuring between its nations at least justifies Six's fears and reactions in my book.
And some more of his stats have been revealed. First of all, he has the Reinforced Spine perk so he has two additional points to Strength. Then there's also the Hypertrophy Accelerator implant for an additional point. Without those augmentations, his Strength would be 5. Of course, the only reason he could break free was that Croissant wasn't exercising her full strength.
But just because his Strength is 8 doesn't mean he's Superman. Even if it were at 10, he'd prefer guns over Melee or Unarmed. Not to mention that a lot of Terra's natives probably would be graded past that number anyway. Hell, personally I'd grade Croissant with a whopping 13. And yes, I kinda did use Fallout 76's SPECIAL just now. Bite me.
Then there's Charisma. Yeah, he had the Terrifying Presence perk, but that's more to add to his imposing nature. He does have the Lady Killer perk but so far he hasn't met any natives that really catch his interest. Well, maybe not yet, but it is possible to resist the perk. Just look at Vikia from The Pitt DLC. Just like with Strength, he has an implant to increase it. Hell, he already bought whatever ones he could. His Endurance is high enough to handle all of them.
The next chapter is gonna be a while because well… it technically isn't complete like the others are. The reason I even posted them up so fast up until now was that they were months in the making. All I had to do was edit and tweak them out some. Chapter Six (no pun intended) isn't and may undergo further revision before I deem it decent enough to post.
All I can say is that he'll make a couple of stops along his Journey to the East. And we'll explore his psyche some more down the line.