Fallout 3, the race for Eden

[Keanumoreira]

Chapter 7: We’re going to Vegas baby!

 

High above the hustle and bustle of the lights of New Vegas, and once again finding myself in another Vertibird, I took the short time I had to study the G.E.C.K while I still could.

 

This simple white box, with its capital symbol engraved in the center, was the whole reason, I now realized, why I was meant to survive in the Vault that day. Although Richard and God knows who else were after us, that wasn’t the threat. The threat was that if this plan didn’t work, then I could no longer declare myself a human being. That’s how much all of this mattered.

 

But as simple as it appeared, the kit had more secrets than meets the eye. The Pipboy, and the kit had one key similarity. They were both forged by the same company, which meant deep down they both had the same processing core. And because of that one connection, I could actually study it by scanning it with the Pipboy. The readings supplied a vast knowledge, not found in our Vaults computers for obvious reasons, about all G.E.C.K’s in existence. The information concluded what was originally believed; in our hands was the last G.E.C.K on the planet still capable of activation. The readings knew this because it revealed that every Pipboy, if used to investigate a G.E.C.K, would unlock a hidden mechanism that only Vault-Tec could have known about. That mechanism was able to map every kit known to still be intact or partially intact, and the only one to show up on screen was the one in my lap. But as surprising as this truth was, an even greater suspicion emerged. What else was Vault-Tech, and supposedly their creations, were hiding?

 

But before I could give it another thought, our flight came to a close as the sounds of moving water suppressed the sound of the Verti’s whirling.

 

Below the landing pad was pure concrete in perfect condition, unscaved by Mother Nature’s influence. It was then that I noticed we were standing on a gigantic Dam, but not just any Dam, the Hover Dam.

 

It was Las Vegas, this city, this oasis of the Mojave Desert, was the one I brought from the ashes of the Earth. And it seemed that it’s time defying return deserved its new title. New Vegas.

 

I can’t believe I didn’t figure it out sooner, Vegas, the land of Gambling, hookers, sex, thrill, and many other aspects of nightlife excitement. And that explained how every corner of it was bathed in electricity; the Hover Dam, it’s hydroelectric supplier. It was truly a God sent in the 26th century, perhaps the capital of Earth, the first of its kind. And the protectors of this fine region, the Brotherhood of the East, the Knights of the West, came the California Republic, ready to greet the visiting scientists.

 

The small band of men stopped before us in a trained manner, splitting themselves into two groups to allow one women to appear from the crowd.

Unlike the rest, she wasn’t dressed in all black, nor was she wearing a helmet to hold her chestnut hair. Amusingly, she was a very, very petite woman, not even higher than my belly button. But behind her grey eyes was that same fiery ambition that rested behind mine. Although blind, she didn’t have a hard time finding her way around, just like Riley back in Megaton. Taking eight brave, yet trusted steps, she stopped, looked up to my face, and put out her hand.

 

“Welcome Roscoe.” She greeted in a friendly mood as we shook, “I’m Rudy, the leader of the California Republic.”

 

“You know me?”

 

“Well of course we do! Your actions are as biblical as Moses and the Red Sea, and Noah of the Ark. I can see in your hands that you have acquired the Garden of Eden Creation Kit, and are traveling back to D.C.”

 

“Uh, yes that’s correct. But how…”

 

“Ah, you’ve noticed my handicap. I can “see” the kit because I can see movement. When you moved, I could make out the shape of two people, and one small, but very recognizable creation. We’ve been expecting you, and we know why you’re here. Your friend informed us that you’re in need of clean water, which of course the Dam provides, and seeds.” I turned over to Darleen.

 

“Seeds?”

 

“Yes.” Darleen answered, taking the kit and opening it.“The G.E.C.K doesn’t function without two key elements: Water and seeds. The G.E.C.K, in order to terraform, most have at least eight different seedlings in order to scan their DNA, combine them, and recreate them into a natural habitat through the process of replication. The only problem is that we don’t know where to find some.” Rudy carefully took Darleen by the hands as she gave me the kit, leading us inside her stronghold.

 

“Not quite sweetheart. There is one place in New Vegas where some seeds might exist. I know of a place called Vault 21, now named the Lucky 38. The foolish common wealth have transformed it into another casino, but buried beneath their feet is an entire assortment of filed seeds, locked away in the hopes that one day, the Earth could be replanted. But there’s a problem. One man refuses to let anyone from entering. His name is Mr. House.

 

“Who?” Rudy stopped in her tracks, and glared at me, dramatically walking over and again looking up at my face.

 

“Mr. House. He’s a vile, criminal, lowlife, scumbag, black hearted, shallow, dirt munching, tramp f*****g man who steals from the poor and threatens the rich.” Rudy approached the railing of the Dam, looking endlessly into the setting sun, the light catching her facial expression perfectly that I swear it was like a Hollywood moment. “That Damn leech had himself in stasis twice. He’s over five hundred years don’t you know? Stole my daughter from right in front of me, and then imprisoned her somewhere in the city. We can’t just barge into the Lucky 38 and make demands. He’d have her killed in a heartbeat. My poor little Annabel…A…Anyway, access to Vault 21 won’t be as easy as walking in. You’ll have to find some way to convince Mr. House to open his doors. And I think I have an idea. Come with me, there’s one thing I’ve been dying to try out.” Rudy escorted us into the very heart of the concrete structure, unraveling a network of scavenged, but advanced technology.

 

Every member of the Republic eyed us as we passed them, pushing aside their meals, rising from their beds, and ceasing their training exercises to spy on our arrival, making me most uneasy.

 

“What’s with them?”

 

“What the men? Ah, their just keeping their guard up. They’ve never seen outsiders in their inner sanctum.” As we pulled in deeper, Rudy stopped to comment on the Republics notable features.

 

“This is our hydroelectric processing room, the core of the Dam and the power for the city. Each side contains four, eight ton generators, each as old as Mr. House himself, but as you can see, we have taken great care to repair them. Let’s proceed.” Leaving the core and entering the living quarters, Rudy pointed out every member’s daily routine.

 

“Each man starts their day at precisely 5:00 A.M where they will eat three course meals, train, execute missions, and bring back supplies. This room here is where most of the men sleep, converse, and where some…well…do a little more than that.” Darleen snickered.

 

“You…you mean some are…gay?”

 

“We prefer the term, sexually various Roscoe as to not cause resentment between the men. This way if you please.” Darleen laughed under her breath as she pushed me forward.

 

“And this is where they shower.”

 

“Good god!” I nearly vomited while Darleen’s face turned a cherry red, desperately trying to contain her laughter. Rudy took on to herself to question my reaction.

 

“Is something wrong?”

 

“Rudy I don’t mean to be rude, but I’d really prefer we don’t be here right now.”

 

“What? You’ve never showered with another male before?” By this time, Darleen turned purple, her eyes gushing painfully with tears.

 

“Of course not! What the hell is the matter with you Rudy?”

 

“Well I assumed you were in a fighting organization such as this.” As if the situation couldn’t possible get any worse, one of the men looked at me with interest as he wrapped the towel around himself.

 

“So…are you single?” Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, Darleen burst out laughing.

 

“Oh my God! Oh my God, it’s too much! My chest…my chest is on fire!”

 

“Darleen…” I snarled, “This isn’t funny.”

 

“Hey…hey…hey ask…ask him to get a private room. He’s real good in bed!”

 

“Darleen!”

 

“I bet he is…So when do we start?” Being sexually harassed, and publicly embarrassed, there was only one way out of this uncomfortable position.

 

Having no other choice, I gripped Darleens back, dipped her, and locked lips. The transaction worked, giving him the “I’m not interested” message and sending him away in a huff.

 

“What does she have that I don’t?”

 

I threw her to the floor as soon as he left, spitting in disgust.

 

“Gah, that was repulsive!” But Darleen on the other hand, found it otherwise.

 

“Whoa! Roscoe, that…that was amazing!” She said as she puffed the tip of her shirt as if the sun were blazing down on her.

 

“Yeah, well don’t get any ideas.”

 

“This way.” Rudy aimed, acting as if nothing occurred.

 

“Please tell me we’re going to a female shower next.”

 

“Ha, ha. Oh Roscoe, you card, there are no other females in the Republic. That way I get all the sex!” She winked.

 

“Yep, it’s official. I lost my lunch.” On our final stop on this rollercoaster of terror, Rudy introduced us to the pinnacle of her arsenal. It was obviously a machine, a massive, cylinder shaped, disheartening, machine, held in place by dozens of free hanging cables.

 

And it's nature didn’t sound pleasant.

 

“And this…Ho, ho, this…this baby is what I call the Orion Punch.”

 

“What is it?” I asked in awe.

 

“I don’t know for sure. But what I do know is that it condenses matter into a defined space, and then releases it, causing massive destruction in every direction in a maximum radius almost as large as the cities limits.”

 

“And this is going to help us how, by destroying New Vegas?”

 

“No. What we are going to do is lure Mr. House into the Desert and near the Dam while you infiltrate Vault 21. While we fight him and his newly forged alliance with the Caesar’s legion, you can find the seeds, and perhaps some information as to the whereabouts of my daughter. And before you ask, we won’t bring the city down in the process; the machine’s radius can be lowered. As long as it doesn’t overheat, it won’t give us any grief.”

 

“Are you sure about this Rudy?”

 

“Of course Roscoe. It’s fool proof. Common, let’s get you strapped up and rearmed. You never know what will happen in Satan’s realm.” As we left the machine be to prepare to get the plan in motion, unbeknownst to us, someone left it running.

[Keanumoreira]

Rearmed, resupplied, and reenergized, Darleen and I headed into the strip of New Vegas, while Rudy and the Republic put together the ambush.

 

The strip reminded me much of my recent visit to 2077, with its streaming lights at every corner, and a few high class citizens going here and there. The bright, gambling signs still hung in place, tempting all to visit its sinful secrets. The nighttime rush, that sense that you were alive, was palpable everywhere you looked, and made you wonder what this city was like in its heyday.

 

It wasn’t long before we came across the Lucky 38, shining like a star throughout the area, with its famous advertisement “Revolving Cocktail Lounge” and “Hottest tables in the city” teasing those who put their eyes to it. At the entrance was guarded by a rare sight in the world, but was a unique commodity to the Mohave Wasteland. It was one of those T.V robots that could flash epic entertainment, and its raging emotions, through its computer screen. And this one, once it caught sight of Darleen and I, flashed the image of a general.

 

“Halt! Where do you think you’re going?”

 

“We’re here to see Mr. House. It is an important matter.”

 

“Nobody is allowed access to the Lucky 38 no matter the situation without Mr. House’s consent.”

 

I tapped on his screen, “Then how are we suppose to get in?”

 

“You don’t, only Mr. House talks to those who he finds potential in, that is when he feels like leaving. Nobody has asked for membership, and has been allowed that wish for many centuries, and I will continue guarding for centuries more. Besides, Mr. House isn’t in at the moment. He is currently enjoying himself at Vault 21.”

 

“Isn’t this Vault 21?” Darleen asked curiously.

 

“No. The Lucky 38 has always been a casino, even in the time of the Civilization that came before. Vault 21, which Mr. House recently had the luck to purchase, was this casino vault it appears your searching for according to related speech from Vault 21 files.”

 

“Wait. You mean Mr. House owns both the Lucky 38 and Vault 21?”

 

“Yes. Mr. House discovered not too long ago, a hidden passage that led from his casino to the one in Vault 21. No one knows why it’s there, even I don’t have records on it, but Mr. House found it to be a perfect business transaction. The previous owner of the Vault was demanded to step down from his ownership, when Mr. House concluded that Vault 21 was rightfully his and therefore declared it to be transferred over to him. The owner, however, thought the same about the Lucky 38, so to close the deal, Mr. House bought the Vault out and is now run under the same procedures as his original casino.”

 

“But we were told Vault 21 and the Lucky 38 was the same place.”

 

“That is a normal misconception for people not familiar to New Vegas. The two casinos, I assure you, are completely separate places that had separate timelines. The two are nothing alike other than that nobody enters without permission, which brings me to the original situation. I am ordered to give one warning to leave before I pass open fire. Now if you excuse me, and I must continue my patrol.”

 

“Great. What now?” Darleen said disappointedly as we walked away empty handed.

 

“I don’t know, but it’s clear that we’ll have to find another way to go about this. Lets scout Vault 21, maybe there’s something we can find that can allow us to sneak in.” Heading just down the lit road, we found a duplicate robot undergoing the same instructions. It didn’t take a Nuclear physicist to tell us that we weren’t getting in either way, but we wouldn’t let one selfish man stop us now. But after searching every inch of the outside, this was no way to breach it.

 

“We tried Roscoe, but there’s no way in.”

 

“There has to be a way.” I argued, “There’s always a way.”

 

“Wait. Who’s that?” Darleen pointed her finger at a couple nearing the entrance of the Vault, and we both had that same smile on our face. Devising a plan, and agreeing on it, went decided to use them as the bait we needed.

 

“Hello, I’m Roscoe.” I introduced as we came up to them, “And this is my sister Darleen. We were just wondering if you knew that the robot over there threatened to rape your wife if you two ugly, disgusting vermin were to pass near him again. His words not mine.”

 

“What! I’ll kill him!” The man said as his tightened one of his fists and raised it in the air.

 

“Now Charlie, don’t get worked up, it’s no big deal.”

 

“He also called your wife fat.” I added.

 

“We’ll kill him!” We watched as the two of them ambushed the mechanical guard, ripping pieces from their circuits, bringing him further and further from the entrance.

 

Before going inside, Darleen picked up the robots memory core, to help us locate the underground storage.Inside the Vault, we searched amongst the slot machines, blackjack tables, guests, and stripers before we found a single, well dressed man, sitting in a dark corner of the casino by himself. He watched as his guests went here and there, exhaling in puffs from his cigar. He looked intrigued as we took a seat with him, and House knew these weren’t his regular visitors.

 

“What are you doing in my Vault?” He said in a menacing, yet relaxed tone.

 

“Mr. House I presume?”

 

“Who’s asking?”

 

“My name is Roscoe Vitoli, and this is my friend Darleen. We’ve come to ask you a historical question.” Mr. House rose from his slouched position, interested in the words whispering through the halls of his ears.

 

“What kind of question?”

 

“We want to know if you will consider buying the Hover Dam from the California Republic.”

 

“Buy? And why would I do that when I have the most popular casinos in all of Vegas?” I knew he was testing me, squinting in suspicion as he pierced into my eyes.

 

“Think about it Mr. House. An entire Dam, the very one that runs the cities electricity, all yours for which you could charge. Not only that, but think of all that space for which your third, and soon to be most powerful casino, will be forged.”

 

“Your words, they are favorable, and I have longed for that Dam ever since I’ve learned of its abilities and potential. But what I would like to know is why the Republic wants to sell it, and why you’re the one telling me. Your obviously not part of their group; neither is she.”

 

“The Republic has no heart for the Dam anymore; they want to move on to Greener Pastures. So they paid me to invite you there knowing that if they sent one of their own men, you wouldn’t listen. So what do you say?”

 

“Rudy wants to sell me the Dam? I still have my doubts, but this sounds too good to be true. I must go there and see to it myself.”

 

“Well thank you for your time Mr. House, it has been a pleasure doing business with you.”

 

“Likewise. I will go to Rudy and take part in this deal…” He pulled out a 9mm, and directed it in my face. “But if I find out that your cheating me in anyway…Well, let’s just say that you won’t live to see the end of it. Enjoy your stay in Vault 21.” And with that, he made his departure, pushing aside all those in his way.

 

To be sure Mr. House left the Vault; we waited it out for a good ten minutes, just to be safe. Then we made our move. Using the memory core as our guide, we found a secluded panel, distinguishable from the rest, behind a mirror in the men’s bathroom. Removing it revealed an empty space around it, and upon digging away at the other panels, we found the underground tunnel that led from Vault 21 to the Lucky 38. The core had no further implanted entries, making its usefulness obsolete, meaning the seeds still haven’t been found, and that its hiding place within the tunnel still remained a mystery. After climbing unto the sink, and crawling through the hole, I used the Pipboy to light the way, looking for any evidence of a diverging passageway. But the only thing we found was the Lucky 38 above our heads once we reached the other side.

 

Darleen leaned on the wall, shrugging her shoulders in discouragement, “Nothing. Damn Vault designers hid it well; only Vault-Tec would know.”

 

“Vault-Tec?” The memory came back to me, that connection between the company and its creation around my arm, “That’s it, that’s the answer.” Darleen shook her head like I was speaking gibberish.

 

“What’s it?”

 

“I didn’t have time to tell you, but while over the city, I unearthed a remarkable finding within the Pipboy. I wanted to learn everything about the creation kit, so I used the Pipboy to scan it and it turns out that there is a secret connection. The Pipboy has a mechanism, perhaps dozens that can only be activated when used to scan a Vault-Tec creation, in this case the G.E.C.K…” I showed her the screen of the Pipboy, “And look what happened.” We both said it aloud as it pixilated.

 

“The map to every G.E.C.K.”

 

“Roscoe, that means that we can…”

 

“Scan the walls of this tunnel until we find a connection. That’s the key, the Vault-Tec gene.”

 

“Unbelievable. That means that it is probable that every Vault-Tec invention might be hording something arcane. Even the Pipboy itself…”

 

“We’ll figure it out later Darleen, for now, let’s find that seed depository.” Our hunch turned out to be true.

 

The Pipboy came across a Vault-Tec computer terminal, the very one used to open and close Vault doors, protected by the same type of panels that covered the way into the tunnel. The terminal sparked a burp of static when we got closer, proving once and for all that we were on to something. We didn’t need a password, which came unexpected. All we needed to do was connect the two together, before it accepted, opening up a section of the wall and a set of stairs that inclined below.

 

Following this path brought us to what we were searching for; the resting place of natures only ancestors. Thankfully, the room was still refrigerated after all those time, which promised that the seeds were still preserved. There were thousands of seeds stored away down here, but the problem was, which seeds were the right ones.

 

“Alright roscoe, we can do this.” Darleen ambitioned, “We need any eight types of seeds. The only catch is what eight are the most influential.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Well two seeds should be enough to revive an entire continent. We only need eight because the only complex biomes lie in North and South America which makes up four seeds, and Europe and Asia which make up the other four. Africa isn’t as complex since it’s mostly grassland and desert, and Antarctica was only ice, so we can choose the combined DNA of any of the eight seeds for these two. But which ones will closely resemble what the continent previously looked like; those are the ones we need to find.”

 

“And you’re sure it won’t alter the native plants?”

 

“Positive. When combined, the DNA isn’t “actually” combined when released. During this first stage, they are only fused to find every DNA molecule responsible for making up a certain type of plant. That’s why we need to be careful which two we join, otherwise we won’t get all the genes, and therefore not all the plants we can possibly make that were on the continent before it became dry. What we are looking for are the seeds that contain DNA that are most closely matched when put together with every type of plant that once lived on that continent. Then we can determine which goes where.”

 

“It sounds so brain twisting.”

 

“It does, but trust me, I know what I’m doing. Now, the only setback is that plants introduced to other continents won’t be present, but most were harmful anyway so I think we’ll be okay. It may take some time to find the right seeds, so we’ll be here for awhile. Why don’t go over your Vault-Tec findings while I sort through this.” But nothing of value showed up while reading the rest of the information, but by the time I had finished, so was Darleen.

 

“There we go, all set.”

 

“You got them?”

 

“Yep all eight, we’re reading to go home. I guess it didn’t take as long as I anticipated everything’s…” Without warning, the power shut off, leaving only the light of the Pipboy to battle the dark.

 

Darleen attempted to seek the source of the blackout, but couldn’t come to a conclusion, “What just happened?”

 

“I don’t know. There’s no reason why it should have done that. Let’s head back to Vault 21, maybe the tunnel is the only place without power.” But when we returned, Vault 21 was dark and deserted.

 

“Roscoe, there’s no one here. And the lights, they’re still intact yet they aren’t producing light.”

 

“Common, let’s go outside, I’m sure it’s just this building. I'm going to store the seeds in the Pipboy so we don't lose them. (Sigh) This was suppose to be easy.” But the only thing we found outside was a world absent of the emanation of phosphorescence.

 

Every corner of New Vegas was unrecognizable; it was as if darkness itself swallowed the city whole. We were completely baffled.

 

“What the hell is going on?” I announced, “Where did all the electricity go?”

 

“Wait. Do you hear that? It sounds like…rushing water.” Darleen stated as she faced the base of the sound.” Even though blinded without any radiant energy, we could make out the stampede of water drowning the city.

 

The curvature depicted a monster wave, large enough to submerge us under 500 feet of water. On that estimate, ten trillion gallons of it was engulfing everything in its path towards Vault 21 in a killer tsunami.

 

Darleen grabbed my arm as we took off in the opposite direction, fleeing from the possibility of drowning; but there’s no outrunning a wave that large and as loud as a freight train. Within seconds we immersed by the wall of water, carried away by impending doom. The precious gas I gasped before began to dissipate from my system, causing my lungs to become inflamed.

 

Suffocation was setting in.

 

I knew it wouldn’t be long before I blacked out, and if I did, my unconscious body would submit to the open arms of death. Because I was as blind as a bat, resisting a powerful current, and was rapidly running out of oxygen, it seemed that the swim to the surface was as eternal as the universe is wide. But eventually I felt my lungs refill, and that cool sensation of the surface air. I could breathe again, but the immediate danger of being swept out to sea where we would never be seen again. But in order to escape, I had to find Darleen first before the Colorado River claimed her life.

 

“Darleen! Darleen!” I hollered over the gushing influence of the reborn river, “Darleen can you hear me?” There was no answer. “Darleen, Darleen!” I cried desperately, yelling louder and louder with each vocalization. “DARLEEN PLEASE ANSWER! PLEASE!” But when hope was all but lost, I heard a single, faint call for help.

 

“Roscoe…”

 

“DARLEEN! DARLEEN IS THAT YOU!”

 

“Roscoe….help…”

 

“I’M COMING DARLEEN, HANG ON! I’M COMING!” I sliced my way through the boiling waters until I ran into her limb body, barely floating at the surface.

 

“Oh my God! Darleen, are you hurt?” She didn’t answer me, but her eyes fluttered open in a dead condition, dropping back down.

 

“No, no, no. Wake up! Don’t fall asleep, do you hear me? WAKE UP!” I shook her about, trying to keep her awake, but she didn’t even respond to this simple action.

 

To keep the life within her, I flipped her over onto her back and placed her unto mine, risking my own survival for hers in the process. Since we couldn’t see, and daylight was far off, we were forced to ride with the current until daylight broke through, but God knows how long that would take. If it was going to be hours then that would be a problem due to my head constantly dipping into the water because of Darleen’s weight. If this continued, she would be the only one left alive assuming that the ocean wouldn’t drag her under. Awhile in, and with my lungs exhausted, I was wishing that I could join Darleen in comatose, and that’s exactly what I got. A sudden force collided into my head, and whatever it was, it knocked me out cold in an instant.

 

Be careful what you wish for right?

 

Unable to steer through the river, and unaware if I was still holding Darleen up, we were at the total mercy of elements, which at any moment could very well terminate our struggle to endure once and for all.

[Keanumoreira]

(Last part of the chapter. Enjoy.)

 

Tick…Tick…Tick…Tick…

 

The sound liberated me from my suspension of consciousness, giving me awareness to an unseen, yet completely recognizable danger. As the Pipboy flashed Vigorously, I was fully attuned to the sea of radiation slowly depriving me of my energy.

 

All around me was the green, slow moving gunk in all directions with land nowhere to be seen, and yet Darleen and I still managed to stay together and afloat. The river had washed us into the Ocean and into the territory of Mexico, or so we thought. Switching on the A.I, Alas gave me the full extent of our seafaring journey.

 

“It appears you were right to fear the current Mr. Vitoli. According to world map coordinates, you and Darleen were dumped into Mexican waters before you drifted 20 miles off the coast of Louisiana.”

 

“Louisiana! How the hell did we make it this far!”

 

“I’ve been tracking your movement ever since you left the Colorado. You and Darleen were carried by the sea through the Bolivian straight, which was a man made river used to Separate Mexico politically in 2062. From there, you were deposited into the Atlantic, were it took three and a half months for you to arrive where you are now.”

 

“Three and a half months? How are we still alive?”

 

“It was very difficult, especially with two people, but I sacrificed most of my energy, and directed it into Solar so I could feed, and deradiate the two of you during daylight hours. During the night, I would purify the irradiated salt water as long as I could to supply the two of you until I would need to shut down until morning. I was supposed to awake a few hours from now, but I can see I no longer have to take care of you.”

 

“How are we going to get back D.C if we’re all the way out here?”

 

“I’ve calculated such a question at a 99% chance, and to prepare for it, I’ve located a way for you to reach Florida, and then to D.C. Not too far from here is an Oilrig field, built from 2054-2077. The field is so dense, that you can literally jump from each rig to the next until you reach a point of two miles from the Floridian shore, cutting at least another month from your return.”

 

“Looks like I better get started then...” Placing Darleen on my back once more, and setting my sights on Florida, I sought out the collection of oilrigs.

 

The momentous swim over here no doubt took its toll. Swallowing foul sea water, and getting stung by mutated jelly fish, the size of a mini T.V were just the simple annoyances. Getting pummeled by large waves, entangled by a swarm of seaweed, and not to mention the constant exposure and flush of radiation that mixed into large concentrations and then dispersed in my places throughout my body, were the real boiling points. But at least it wasn’t permanent. Along the way, Alas explained to me why I was out here in the first place. Apparently, the Dam back in New Vegas had burst, which was the only explanation for the blackout, and the mass flooding. She believed it was caused by the Orion Punch, the enormous gun Rudy had showed me hours before the city would be demolished. According to Alas, there was a fluctuation in energy that rivaled even that of a G.E.C.K’s activation. Whoever turned it on must have set the preferences wrong, and therefore blew the Dam apart. It all made sense; Rudy, the California Republic, Mr. House, all deceased. And visiting these old memories reminded me of the kit and the seeds, which were still stored where I last left them. We were closer than ever to pulling this off.

 

It took a bit of courage, and a day and a half, before the field of Oilrigs could be seen jutting out from the green waters in the distance. They reached for the sky like Gods of the sea, overlooking their homes in a coat of rusted brown. Some were still standing with pride; others were closer to the sea bottom as they looked like they were going to keel over. Many of them were strangled by the same mutant seaweed that I had encountered, wrapping their vines around the rigs in tight masses. Below their decks reined the sea field of metal, which was a thick body of debris that floated just at the surface. In order to reach one of the Oilrigs, I would have to traverse through this menacing sphere of active uncertainly.

 

Venturing in, I meticulously made my way around each shard of glass, every chunk of metal, and away from the buoyant platforms that lazily passed me as mini ships in their own right. One of those platforms had nearly broken away from one of the rigs to the right of us, slouching in a perfect path from the water up to the decks. Getting up was easier said than done, since climbing the metallic wires with one hand, while struggling to hang on to a half dead women in the other made it almost impossible. Not only that, but the platform itself was unstable, very unstable. The slightest push or pull would send it rocking back and forth uncontrollably which in turn ate away at the palms of my hands. Even worse, by the time we reached the top, the last piece holding it together began to strain and crack under our weight, endangering our lives if we were to fall into the swirling cauldron of rust below. But at the last second, just as it broke away, I lifted Darleen into the air and ran up the falling platform, jumping on the edge and landing on the rig, listening to the erratic crash afterwards.

 

I was exhausted, injured, and sore, but it was one of those times in life when you want to keep going despite what you endured, whether it be small, or in this case, life altering. But even going through something that laborious, Poseidon decided he wasn’t through with me. Shortly after the fall of the platform, a bellow from beneath the deep, a scream so terrible and unnerving that even the thunder of scratching ten chalk boards simultaneously couldn’t compare. Each shatter of sanity came every twenty seconds or so, but as it progressed, each one came sooner and sooner, louder and louder. At ten seconds apart, bubbles bigger than a standard jeep, fizzed at the surface in ferocious foams as they popped like pouring milk over sugared cereal. Then, like a stalker amongst the fish, straight from the pages of cryptology, came a sea monster as legendary as the ones shown from the world’s first sailors.

 

The grotesque, bluish-green monstrosity was an overly mutated shark, leaping all the way over the length of the rig, and propelling itself back into the water. The creature bellowed again, assaulting the rig with its cosmic tail as it slammed into its side, causing the entire aged behemoth to sway. Darleen finally opened her eyes as wreckage fell at every turn.

 

“Wa...What happened? Why does my head hurt?”

 

“Darleen get up!” I urged, “We have to get out of here!”

 

“What do we mean, what’s going on?” As a final act of destruction, the rigs oil tower caved in, hurdling down with great power.

 

I took her by the hand and ran as the rig literally began to fall apart, falling towards another to which we managed jumped to. But it was like a chain reaction, causing every rig to crash into one another, forcing us to jump from each one to the next. Every sinking only fueled the creature’s instinct to kill, and he wasn’t an absent minded beast. With a strategic whip of his tail, the sea monster caused an oilrig in front of us to lean in our direction, cutting through the debris field like a heated knife through butter. With nothing to balance it, the structure continued to advance, showing no signs of stopping. Being hunted and flanked on three sides with no possible chance of escape, the death nail hammered in as we were trapped at sea.

[species5478]

Nice read. You seem to be evolving as a writer. Keep it up, I enjoy your work for what it is, and for what it can be.

[Keanumoreira]

Nice read. You seem to be evolving as a writer. Keep it up, I enjoy your work for what it is, and for what it can be.

 

Thank you Species.

 

I agree with you that I am evolving as a writer, but I won't lie to you; it does need work. But this is only my first full fledge story I've ever written, so yeah their are going to be mistakes, but considering how it turned it out so far, I'd say it's not too bad. Now I know the full challenge of the writer, this stuff isn't easy to write, but then again, giving up isn't easy either, at least not for me.

[Keanumoreira]

Chapter 8: Tourists

 

I closed my eyes, waiting for the rigs to smash us like a pancake, but instead, they were blown from place, incinerated as it lit up in a fireball. The culprit was the last person in the world that I expected to emerge from the blue. It was Eve, carrying an RPG while her daughter struggled to balance the controls.

 

As the monster gave it another go, Eve launched the second missile, achieving a direct hit and causing it to fall on the rig. The beast’s weight tore through the fragile support under the deck, leaving only a slim and very weak portion to hold us up. The unstable foundation began to tear itself apart as it collapsed under its own weight, opening up a gaping hole leading directly into the mass of lethal metal four stories below.

 

“Step on it Molly!” Eve commanded, using the debris field as ramps and sharp turns to maneuver towards us.

 

“Roscoe, Darleen!” She shouted at us over the clatter of falling metal, “You have to jump!”

 

“What! Are you insane?” I called back, “It’s a four story fall, there’s no way we’ll survive such a jump!”

 

“Roscoe you have to trust me. Just jump!”

 

“It isn’t safe!”

 

“Just jump!” I turned over to Darleen as she was biting her nails, unsure what choice should be made.

 

“I...I think we should listen to her.” Darleen said, gathering her courage and walking up to the edge.

 

“Alright, we’re coming down!” She looked back at me, waiting for me to join her, “Well?”

 

“Well what?” I questioned, “I’m not jumping.”

 

“Roscoe, she said to trust her, don’t you trust her?” I said nothing, allowing my eyes to do the talking for me, “I can’t believe this; whatever happened to saving the people? Whatever happened to friendship, and love, and sticking together in time of crisis...(Sigh), Look, there is no other way off this rig which is about to propel us into certain annihilation. You and Eve love each other, I heard it myself, and now you’re not going to take the smallest risk you’ve taken so far in your long journey, and you’re not going to trust your girlfriend? Fine, I will, but if you want to die then go ahead, all I need is the seeds and the G.E.C.K.” She held her hand out, giving me a look of disappointment and anger.

 

“No.” I answered, “That won’t be necessary...I’ll jump.” Darleen smiled as she took me by the hand, waving to Eve to signal her to get ready.

 

To ease the pressure, we did the common “Count back to ten” to encourage us to follow Eve’s instruction. “Ten...nine...eight...seven...six...five...four...three...two...one...” Hand in hand, we slowly leaned over the edge, cutting through the air and collecting momentum.

 

For a second, it seemed that Eve had forgotten to save us, but when our fall suddenly stopped, and we felt lighter than air, we knew we were saved. Amazingly, Eve managed to save us by pulling us from the air itself, using some kind of tractor beam to tug us into the boat. Immediately thereafter, we did as every couple did when they are away from each other too long, the casual hug and kiss, but because it was a nuclear apocalypse, where anything could happen, of course there would be emotion behind it. We all said our hellos and friendly pats, reassuring the tight bonds we all shared.

 

“Eve how...where...why...” I was lost with words, still stunned from the recent events.

 

“What? Did you think we would actually listen and go back to D.C. to abandon you guys? We’re family, of course we came back!”

 

“Wait, you knew Darleen was with me.” My response didn’t come to a surprise to her, “Yes, in fact, she’s the reason how we got here. You see, as Sandra was driving us back, we caught sight of a small helicopter landing not too far from us. We were weary at first, but when we saw Darleen open the door to greet us, those emotions of worry just drained away. Apparently, she never stayed back in Megaton Roscoe; she’s been following us the entire time!” Darleen raised her right eyebrow as turned to her.

 

“It’s true; I’ve been tracking you guys on your entire journey.”

 

“But what about the science crew, we heard them in the background of the radio after I got injured.” She pulled out a holotape concealed within her lab coat from under her armor, “You mean this? It’s a recording of the science team’s cheers along with several responses they would make. I had to make you believe that I was still in the lab.”

 

“Well, whatever happened to Sandra?” Molly lowered her head to the ground.

 

“Sandra is dead Roscoe.” Eve said remorsefully.

 

“What?”

 

“We were ambushed by the Enclave after Darleen traded the Desert Skimmer for her helicopter and left; they were after the kit. They bombarded us with every heavy weapon in their inventory, nearly bringing us to submission. We managed to fight back with what we could and escaped south towards the Atlantic. Sandra had been struck once in the heart, and four times in the chest when they opened up an assault rifle on us. Within hours, she fell into a comma, two days later, she lost her fight. We did everything we could to save her; a close eye, plenty of water, but her injuries we just too grave, and we couldn’t find a hospital or outpost where we could replenish her lost blood supply. After she passed, we buried her somewhere in Colorado before heading to the coast of Texas where we believed we would find you. After many, many weeks of waiting, and low on fuel, me and Molly decided to build a boat to sling around the tip of Florida and back to D.C, assuming that the two of you were already ahead of us. But after some time, we noticed a wide oil slick coming from this location, and after investigating what do we find? The two of you about to be compacted into fish food. We saved you guys with this; it’s a machine that induces a gravity free environment wherever the beam is focused. It was another thing she departed with. ”

 

“I can’t believe she died...It’s just so sudden. I mean, I don’t feel a lot of grief because I barely knew her, but still it’s just so sad.”

 

“I know...I know. I will admit I was jealous of her when the two of you met, but now that’s she gone… I feel so guilty. Before she fell into her comma, however, she already knew she wasn’t going to wake up again, so she wanted you to have this.” Eve gave me the G.S.P, the Genetic Scanning Processor that Sandra showed me while we were still in Oregon. “She wanted you to find that alien and track it down for her once you rebuilt the world. She still believed that it was hunting all of us.”

 

“Do you really think there’s an alien Eve?”

 

“I don’t know Roscoe, I doubt it, but it was her dying wish for you to receive this. Don’t you think she deserves to be listened?” I nodded my head,

 

“Yes...yes she does.”

 

“It’ll be okay, she’s in a better place, in a better world where she doesn’t need to worry about pain and misery.” She comforted, rubbing my back like a loved one do in times of hardship,

 

“Speaking of which, I believe it’s time we head back to D.C., now that you got us a boat, we don’t have to worry about rig hopping to Florida. Ready?”

 

“Ready. Are you ready Molly?”

 

“Ready Mommy!” She exclaimed, “What about you Darleen?”

 

“Yes sweetie, I’m ready.”

 

“Good, then let’s go!” But as the engine turned on, something began to make a fuss.

 

The debris field suddenly ruptured in a mass of water and rig remains, throwing an assemblage of impaling rubbish high into the air.

 

“It’s still alive!”

 

“We’ll don’t just stand there Eve!” I asserted, “Get us the hell out of here!” She pulled at the string that triggered the activation of the boat, but it simply wouldn’t turn on, leaving us vulnerable with nothing to protect ourselves.

 

The mountainous amount of garbage began to slow its ascent, raining back down with enough kinetic energy to turn us into fragments of flesh and bone.

 

“Eve! Hurry up!”

 

“I’m trying but this thing won’t start!” I took her by the arms and jerked the string from place with titan force.

 

The engine roared and moved forward just as the oncoming air raid struck behind us, throwing up a series of large waves that pushed us ever further into the waiting ocean. Darleen quickly got the boat back under control as Eve and I focused the RPG in defense against the surviving sea monster. The creature surfaced, hauling itself towards the speeding boat, fighting the waves along the way. I pulled the trigger as it got closer, missing and landing in the shimmering waters away from it. Four more shots were released before we ran out of ammo, each of them, like the one before them, missing their mark for a wet grave. As if to intimidate us to take advantage of our loss, the creature revealed the other half of its gargantuan head, exposing a deep flesh wound from the RPG’s intensive blast, rotting in the humidity.

 

“Eve, what do we do?”

 

“I don’t know we only have one missile left. If we miss, it’s all over.”

 

“Wait, where’s that missile being kept?”

 

“In my backpack why...What are you doing?” She asked confused as I removed it from safekeeping.

 

“I have an idea that involves this lone missile.”

 

“But it’s the last one we have! Don’t you think we should keep it until the very last second?”

 

“One missile is all I need.” I retorted, placing the missile in and jamming the RPG’s tunnel with a piece of scrap metal that found its way onto the boat, “What I’m going to do is jam the RPG and throw it at the monster where he will hopefully gorge himself into oblivion.” Eve challenged this belief,

 

“That’s crazy! The only outcome will be us baked at a fine temperature where we will be served in a gourmet dish to that thing chasing after us.” I looked into her eyes,

 

“Eve...Trust me.” That look of contingent failure occupying the corners of her face reassembled itself into a look of astonishment; that same, familiar phrase was now testing her.

 

She moved as if to speak, but each time she kept the words inside her, unsure how to react, until finally she found the right ones. “Your right, I should trust you. Very well, proceed with the plan.” We shared a smile before I made sure the tunnel was blocked all the way, clicking the trigger and hastily disposing of it.

 

As planned, the creature, who by now was only a handful of feet away, thoughtlessly swallowed the RPG, expiring as it exploded from within. A wall of fire, followed by more giant waves mixed with monster bits, washed over us, causing us to tumble under the ocean. That same scenario, countless weeks before, seeked its revenge and this time it had the upper hand.

 

The boat had completely dissolved from place, its very structure ripped from its shingles and swallowed by a hungry aquarium of never ending chaos. Everyone was still alive, and better yet, able to hold themselves above the surface. We had no choice but to climb back on the unsettling rigs, hopping from each one to the other for many days. The ocean, during this time, grew unusually restless, throwing itself from place as the wind picked up.

 

A storm was brewing...…

 

Our pace increased as the storm grew, threatening to devour us in its wake. Eventually, despite the harsh welcome of the rig field, we reached the coast of Florida after swimming the last few miles.

 

As expected as anywhere else in the world, even the Sunshine State of the past couldn’t survive the nuclear onslaught of a World’s selfish endeavors. It was brown, desolate, and quiet, leaving the state with the only thing in its past it could still hold on to…Sunshine and a humid climate, but with the apocalyptic twist everyone knows and loves.

 

Once we got ourselves and whatever supplies we managed to keep onto the shore, we crossed width of Florida to its other side. From there, we surveyed our surroundings for anything of use. Not even Darleen could find anything useful,

 

“There’s nothing here but trash and sand dunes; I would think Florida would be somewhat different. Where are we anyway?” As always, Alas was the informant,

 

“Longitude and latitude readings confirm we are in the remains of what was once an efficacious, attractive hotspot when tourists used to visit this place. It was known as Miami, the official capital of Florida when the year 2032 arrived. It once contained a vast network of luxurious beaches and crafty timeshare projects, millions of visitors from around the world looking for weather that was alive yet tranquil, and at one time housed some of the world’s most popular modeling opportunities. It was one of Americas most visited cities, today, as you can see, it lies in ruins.”

 

“I don’t see anything Alas, just giant dunes.”

 

“Those giant dunes Mr. Vitoli, aren’t dunes, they are the Skyscrapers that never fell, covered by the loose topsoil that blew over them for the past five centuries. Sensors indicate decay and sandblasting erosion, but most of Miami’s skyline is 90% intact. If you can reach their insides, although it will be very difficult, then you might be able to scavenge some supplies including materials needed to build a new boat to slingshot around the keys and into D.C boundaries. I am also detecting no life signs within an eight mile radius; this is perhaps one of the most inhospitable places in the U.S.”

 

“Not if we return home.” I added, “We might as well get to work. Darleen, I need you to come with me to search through these Dunes. Eve, I want you to look after Molly while you use the tractor beam to recover anything of use from the ocean. We need to be quick, we are low on resources and the light is fading fast, it’ll be nightfall before we can even blink. Everyone has their assignments and responsibilities; let’s get started.” We began the tedious and mind grueling assignments ahead of us.

 

For many, many hours we dug through the dunes, searching for anything of use, but the sands were just too thick to dig through. It was hopeless.

 

Eve and Molly, however, had more luck than we did. They were able to find nearly all the right components to put together a boat; the only thing missing was an engine and something to weld all of this together. Alas couldn’t do it herself because of how powerful her lasers were. However, she told us that if we could find an engine that can convert electricity from itself to another source using jumper cables, than she can redirect it into her system and apply just the right amount of heat. The engine was once again the answer to everything, there was just one problem...where would we find one like this? The type of engine Alas described hasn’t been mass produced since the beginning of the 21st century after solar, hydroelectric, aerodynamic, and electric engines were invented. This model was among the rarest of its kind, and to find jumper cables to go with it would be like trying to find Atlantis on a moving ocean floor, and even Alas herself didn’t have entries on what these models looked like. And even if we knew where to find one, how would we get through all the weight of the sand occupying every building that has been sleeping under the Earth for all this time? Darleen proposed using something to transport the ocean water to spray it over the dunes, but to require such a feat, Alas would need something very, very absorbent to transfer the gallons of liquid through her system to magnify this output. That’s when the tractor beam became more resourceful than we could have imagined.

 

Using the tractor beam to focus the ocean water into the Pipboy; the production more than tripled, clearing away much of the dunes in only a matter of minutes. The ruins provided plenty of water, food, and elements that could improve our waterborne craft, but without an engine to mobilize us, all of our work was in vain. As minutes turned into hours, and hours into days, we still hadn’t found the appropriate engine or a way to substitute it. Our searches seemed fruitless, until yet another radical idea was conceived on the spot.

 

Why not build one?

 

“Build the engine?” Eve said with her arms extended in an uncertain fashion, “How the hell are we going to build something this complicated?” We glimpsed down at the Pipboy,

 

“The city holds the answer; find a blueprint shop.”

 

“But Alas, how will find it? The tractor beam can only expand so far.”

 

“No need to fret Mrs. Kalaborn, the shop is buried somewhere near the beach according to the latest satellite maps. The trick is identifying it.” And it didn’t take long to find our blueprint shop.

 

It was hiding in absolute, plain sight, being one of the first buildings we excavated, and we didn’t have the slightest recondition of its former peak. The shop was still overwhelmed by the accumulation of sand and grain; much of it was seeping from the cracks everywhere they may exist. The second story was inaccessible, and we couldn’t domesticate the water to this location if two sets of walls prohibited its passing. In order for us to access the second story, we would have to burrow our way up the stairs, and hope that the tractor beam could spray water effectively through the windows for the cleaning process to commence.

 

After this objective had been met; though the wind and stubborn ocean currents refused to comply, acting for a stressful environment; the entire shop was now open for inspection. We found a lot of documents for a diverse family of advanced technology, but none was stitched with the rare print. Although stumped, we still decided to adopt the documents if they were ever to come in handy, and no doubt the world had largely lost these plans of genius. And locked within each of their intersecting lines, equations, and formulas; the plan to the engine was staring me dead in the face as if it couldn’t be more obvious. That night, while everyone slept and being the depressed and worried oath I was at the time, I felt like taking one last look at these works of the past before I would call it a night; and that’s when I found the secret to building the engine.

 

In order to do it, I would need to combine the blueprints together and search with the eye of the hawk to solve the rest of the puzzle. I worked through the night, matching each idea with another, taking the study of the concepts of architecture one step ahead at a time. What I found was even sharper than the original model, still capable to run the motors of our primitive ship, but the cost was still realistic. Jumper cables were still a priority to bind the working materials as one, buoyant craft.

 

The next day was a new one, and the luminous star in the sky brought with it new possibilities. While the rest of the team focused on the plan I discovered, me and Alas went ahead to find these jumper cables. Every other building was scouted for the second time, and to make sure, a third time; it felt more and more as a goose chase as our options wore ever thin. It just seemed so pointless to continue hunting for two Siamese clips in a range of buildings no bigger than what was town square in post New York. With such a small area to work with, it was no wonder why things were so unproductive because of the shortage of skyline we could delve in. There was but one solution...find a way to uncover more structures, or simply give up.

 

And that wasn’t going to happen; I couldn’t afford to allow that to happen…Not now…not ever….

 

This was a good opportunity to brainstorm, but the chances of striking a golden scheme were against me. I guess fate had favored me. Pondering it over with the mix of the old pacing, summoned forth multiple understandings that I could work with. Why not come up with an alternative?

 

“Of course...That’s the key.”

 

The alternative was fairly basic; I would need an electric power source that could emit an electric current on the ground to which Alas could pick up to complete the final stages of the plan. The principles, however, were still elementary at the most; more dunes would have to fall. There was no other way around this problem; the tractor beam just couldn’t reach a distance so vast, and to dig inside these complexes was the equivalent of digging past the first layer of the Earth with bare hands alone. Every bump in the road fathomed presented even more challenges, but every pace of every movement has its friction which will eventually able it still. The same applied here; if we continued to solve these problems more and more, then eventually, our wishes will sink in. This was to be the final piece of enigma; which building provided the significant source of an electric current? To figure that out, another exchange of technology would need to be made; fundamental was the explanation to the equation yet again.

 

The solution?

 

Easy...

 

A water cannon.

 

Fortunately, the conditions were just right for this to work. Alas has an infinite storage capacity, therefore, theoretically, we could store an ample volume of liquid water within her while creating some kind of cannon from the leftovers of society to transport the water where it needed to go, and Alas would have no difficulty thrusting this water either. The plan was flawless, impenetrable, impervious, and most of all, thoroughly structured, as divine and mystical as life was when it was nurtured.

 

Everyone’s heard of mans strive to cut through the atmosphere and enter the void that is space, everyone remembers how anxious it was. Now, take that first launch, enhance it by double its worth, double its chances to which it could burst like the oversized firecracker it is only to be buried by a mass of fire and falling debris, and you’ve got one tense man. But who wouldn’t be nervous with a plan that could possibly plunge the world into the enveloping darkness for the rest of father time, who wouldn’t be jumping erratically like a giddy schoolgirl who’s dress is about to pop like a gorged water balloon feeding in excess, it’s not like it’s a big deal right...…

 

Right?

 

So, with fingers fidgeting, a heart running the marathon, and the brain as alert as instinct is to survival, the intense moments of the testing of a goal in the making was underway; life or death was about to be judged. The cannon was loaded, the switch was pestering, the air was alive…

 

One tempting point...…

 

One clear consequence for failure...…

 

One switch...…

 

One finger...…

 

ACTIVATION...……

 

A rousing success!

 

The water vented from the mouth of the cannon like the pressurized release of a bloated pimple, spilling in all directions, causing the mountains of sand to recede from their foundations. The sound of displacement was a chorus of wonder, like music to my ears, the banishment of sand, like a ballet to the eyes, the emotion of joy, like the feeling of being cultured; all three were my symphony. There was no limit to the explorers of Miami.

 

It took awhile, roughly half the day before Alas could perfect her satellite imaging, comparing the now more recognizable metropolitan area with the one in 2077, leading us to the nearest, and last known source of running electricity in the city, located deep within the financial district. There we found a normal skyscraper, going about its eternal death like its brothers and sisters that surround it, harboring the harbinger of revolution. After loosening the desert barricade, acting as if it were the bouncer of the entrance, we made our way inside to put an end to this scavenger hunt through Florida once and for all. But of course, it wouldn’t make things all peachy for the hard working band of survivalists who’s reward should be sailing home.

 

Of course it had to be complicated...…

 

Fifty stories of searching, no elevator access, four people, one handicapped A.I due to poor, extensive programming, and one building of traps, unstable infrastructure, burdensome sand, and limited lighting; add that together, thrown in some fatigue with a dash of irritation and you have a recipe for disaster. How to find the rumored electrical source? Splitting up in groups of three, not exactly the safest decision to make when in a situation this extreme, especially when the building is over five hundred years old; Alas’s claim of preservation how to be taken seriously now more than ever. Ours lives depended on this trust. The first through the thirteen floors where fully investigated before issues began to arise. Before we met this floor, we were making great time, spending less than two hours in the building before this point. On this floor, which apparently was struck hard by some kind of unknown source, was heavily damaged. The walls ached with plaster and even more sand gushing from its sores; the floors were rickety, unfettered, and overgrown with the coating of oxidation; water had been here before. Sharing this travesty with the bending walls and the wave mimicking ground was everything else that called this story its home. Desks were overturned and battered, wind shuffled in from the long absence of glass barriers holding back the outside world, light fixtures hung lazily by a tangled thread of cords, and lamps lay silently on the frosty tiles below, vacant of any source of heat. And what catches our eye as we are careful not to trip from a steel girder into the Aperture under it? It’s none other than our electric source; a plain, simplistic printer, running off a stored amount of electricity, clanking wildly as if it were printing paper, but the only thing printing today is the rush of air flowing through it. It lied there in wait, envisioning two hands to lift it from its bound position, but a lack of structure posed many obstacles; one of us would have to jump forty inches through overlapping debris, with the possibility of the ground giving way from beneath their shoes, to reach one, seemingly insignificant printer.

 

“So...Who wants to go first?” I presented, only to get three blank faces and a crushing silence, “Anyone? Common, you’re not really going to make me do this are you?” Eve stepped forward,

 

“Honey...baby...” She said in a charming, playful pitch, sliding her finger down my chest, “You know I love you as much as I love my little Molly, but I can’t do this, I’m afraid of heights indefinitely, but I’m more than willing to help you with anything else, I promise.” Darleen looked in the other direction as my eyes fell to her.

 

“Darleen.” I said disappointed, “I thought you were a hardy scientist, not a terrified puppy who wets himself in a puddle of yellow when lightening takes the sky.”

 

“I...I don’t know Roscoe, It’s a long fall...”

 

“And? That never stopped me; I nearly fell out of one myself.” Darleen courageously peered over the cleavage taunting her, accepting to put aside her fears and confront her deepest, ant wishes.

 

“Alright, alright, I accept, I’ll take the leap.” I smiled as I gripped her by the shoulder,

 

“Don’t worry; I’m here to back you up all the way. Just simply jump, and retrieve that printer, we’ll do the rest.” She shook her head to give herself some positive vigor, taking three, long breaths before she sprung from place.

 

Her frog like jump pushed her to the other side where she stuck the landing, without a scratch, without a gouge. Darleen removed the printer from place, throwing it across the mini chasm where it safely landed within the confines of the endless universe growing from inside of Alas. It was Darleen’s turn to face the space, jumping with petrified confidence and skillful determination. Her arrival next to us was followed by a slip, where the aperture could have gobbled her up with the snap of a finger, but two extra hands pulled her to safety.

 

“Are you ok? You’re not hurt or anything?”

 

“No...no Roscoe I’m fine.” She answered back, “Just a little shaken up, but I must say that was exhilarating, but I’m certainly not attempting that again.”

 

“I don’t blame you my friend, I would have shared the same emotions. Well we should go; we still have much to do.” But as we rejoined the girdle, something foreboding lingered about us.

 

A sheering sound of creaking, which proceeded to ring into our ears, vibrated throughout the story; the ceiling began to crumble.

 

The skyscraper was imploding.

 

We ran straight across the girdle as if the threat of falling no longer applied, escaping the cave in of demolition hurdling its way down to what was about to be ground zero. Not getting caught in the ensuing fray was much more of a cakewalk than intended, considering the fact all four of us were slipping down numerous holes and gaps without breaking a sweat or our necks. Our nimble, if not impulsive falls were interrupted by the third floor which failed to provide the enduring path to the outside realm. The collapsing floors where still eight stories away, granting us an estimate of thirty seconds to get out before we became grated cheese in a recipe gone horrifically wrong; every object restraining our course was now a mortal enemy from here on out. Heart filled sprints dropped to muffled breaths, our lungs whipped by the seething air, and our life expectancy hung in the balance, but we urged each other to keep going, to stampede through that cart that got in our way, to make that last strive to the entrance where we were lunged into the streets by the advancing rumble. With a staggering stroke of luck, we were able to surface from the resulting calamity without a single injury to be noted or to be felt, making our way to the shoreline where our preparations for the return to D.C. were planned to take place.

 

On the oil soaked and seaweed infested shores, we used what electricity the printer still had left, introducing water into its system, delivering a charge to the ground where the Pipboy rested. Almost instantly, Alas used the influence to manipulate her laser systems for a brief time, where a cool down process was now taking place. We worked quickly against the clock, using the heat from the lasers to put the boat together and its engine attached to the backside. It was finally completed, and was confirmed by Alas to be a safe unit of transportation to D.C. Packing whatever we needed that was left, and checking it over, we climbed into the makeshift ship and sailed due north for home.

 

Although crowded, sleepless, noisy, and restless, the voyage took a mere ten days, which compared to walking, according to Alas, was a major conservation of time. Some of us had our doubts, after all, life at sea was boring, maddening, sticky, and stinky, but the sacrifice was worth the trouble. Spreading clear out into the distance was the first familiar sight of home; we had returned to D.C. at last.

 

“Roscoe look.” Darleen pointed, making out the companionship of an aircraft carrier and 2 cargo vessels mounted from the mouth of the river itself, “You know what that is?”

 

“No.” I said, squinting through the thick fog of the morning.

 

“That...That is Rivet City.”

[Keanumoreira]

LOL, double post. :laugh:

 

Skip down to the next post for the latest entry. :happy:

[Keanumoreira]

I apologize for the delay for the entry to those who are reading the story. Although this isn't the last chapter in the race for Eden, it is the exciting Peak within the story. Read on guys, I hope you will enjoy it. :happy:

 

Chapter 9: Biblical Proportions

Part 1:

Rivet city…A true monument of the Capital wasteland, the three way city on the D.C basin. These raggedy, hydro corroded, flaccid Vintages of ocean skimming represented the new hotspot and soon to be capital of the region. They glistened in the morning light as radiated dew captured the rays of the low mass entity, bringing a classy and sheen appearance to an otherwise shabby impression. As we came to port, Darleen clarified just a bit more on this rare assortment fixed to the basin.

 

“So Roscoe…care to brush up on your history?”

 

“What do you mean?” She sat me down as we slowly rocked past the city,

 

“What I mean is if you know anything about Rivet city?” The question was quite convenient, “No…I guess I don’t. What about you?” Darleen almost laughed at this, taking it as an insult on her knowledge of the current settlements.

 

“Do I know anything about Rivet City…?” She paused, looking at the floating Atlantis in familiarity, “Yes…I was born there.” It seemed such a simple thing to say, but the vibes she was giving off were anything but simple.

 

“Are you ok?”

 

“I’m fine; it’s just that I choke up every time I think about it.” Almost instantly, Darleen displayed a cheerful smile to mask whatever it was gnawing away at her which almost simultaneously, caught my interest. “I know much about my birth place; most of it is…troublesome, you could say. Rivet city is a unique colony, founded about forty years before the Lone wanderer was born. Do you see the aircraft carrier?” This question was rhetorical because you would have to be ignorant or directionally challenged to not see the carrier, which was the heart of the city, towering well above the medium sized cargo vessels. “That was the original Rivet city, that is where it got its roots. Supposedly, after extensive research from an unknown source which was to be written in a published Survival Guide after the Lone Wanderers escape from Vault 101, this aircraft carrier was discovered to be abandoned by a wandering science group. This group, lead by a very famous scientist who would make great strides in hydroponics, known As Dr. Lee, found a science bay onboard. This bay, which preserved countless, irreplaceable technologies and experiments would be the main reason for developing what you see in front of you. It wasn’t long before they formed a council, and when news of this spread throughout the land, people began to migrate to this beacon in a search for an established society. About one hundred years later, the city would grow by half its size when a mysterious cargo vessel, rumored to be the one left of the carrier, sailed in from the Atlantic for no apparent reason whatsoever. It took many months of careful planning and trial and error, but eventually, after rerouting the river, they managed to place the vessel in its original location, becoming one of the greatest team work efforts after the bombs fell. After this remarkable and fortunate event occurred, it was rumored that the other cargo vessel shared the same journey, this time appearing from upriver. Although unexplained, what is clear is that these two additions would forever change how modern humanity would view the limited governments.”

 

“It’s historically rich, I would agree, but you described a society in turmoil. What happened to the republic?” A bothered look came to her face; it was clear that it was a difficult conversation.

 

“A revolution…it was so…so very sudden, almost unplanned. I was a little girl then, barely able to understand the uncontrolled and flagrant crowd sweeping through the three parts of the city in a barbarous manner, destroying everything they could get their hands on. The leader of the rebellion was my own father who wanted to exact revenge on the council for letting my sister Isabella die from Cholera. Once they stormed into and rampaged the council room, he became so changed, so different, that he seized me by my hair and forced me to watch as he killed my mother before my eyes, who too, had a seat on the council. I will never forget how much blood he spilled on that day, how bloodthirsty and murderous he had become, representing the very evil he sought to smother beneath his leather boot. From that day forward, my father became a ruthless Dictator of Rivet City, taking in eighty percent of everyone’s profit, assuring himself that those who didn’t help him would suffer the most. It wasn’t long before even his friends fell by his gun; those he really cared for were either imprisoned, or converted into his personal servants. Not even I was safe from his oppression, suffering many beatings over the next ten years of my miserable and deplorable existence. Things became so bad, and his black heart so hard, that he even closed off the basin, charging all the wastelanders a monthly tribute, otherwise, he would forever close it to the public for his own selfish needs, and there wasn’t a damn thing we could do to stop him. Countless assassination attempts, so many riots in the streets…too many bodies dumped into the fresh water lake to count…the smell…too much to comprehend…” Darleen took a heavy breath, battling against the instinct to display her grief.

 

“That’s so horrible…and you never returned; the republic never bounced back?”

 

“No, never…it never returned, and neither did I. I left Rivet city when I was only fifteen, migrating further north into Megaton where I stayed to find myself, to get away from the man that shackled me. I was to be taken in by a man who I considered to be my real father who would raise me the way every child deserves and taught me the benefits of Biology, Astronomy, Chemistry, and overall Science. When I was old enough to work, I did, assisting my stepfather in the laboratories where I would take his place when he would leave this World in search of the cosmos, his true resting place. At least, that’s what he always told me. I never once in my life believed that I would ever return home again, but I am reluctant to say that the line between what’s reality and what’s not has blurred a bit.” I cocked my right eyebrow, slightly intrigued and distressed at the same time.

 

“What do mean by return?” Her eyes traveled diagonally to the border of their lids, displaying a sense of guilt and discomfort.

 

“Well...there might be something I forgot to mention.” These words were striking, after all, we were suppose to be a team, a well oiled machine; there was to be no exceptions for bottled up secrets.

 

“Like what?” My eyes stayed firm, my nerves tense.

 

“Rocket thrusters.”

 

“Rocket thrusters? Why in hell would we possibly need Rocket thrusters?”

 

“For the satellite to launch…you see, I didn’t anticipate for my team to virtually dissolve without my leadership and to therefore, abandon all hope. They are having a very hard time restoring the trashed Science lab and they just don’t have time to look for the final installment for Space flight.” I was infuriated, hotheaded, brimming with steam, and she knew it.

 

“So you mean to tell me, that I can’t finalize my work because of your blunder, and we, meaning us three and a little girl, have to enter a dictatorial union where we could possibly be killed?” The words hissed from under my teeth, feeling as if I could just throttle her and throw her overboard.

 

“Roscoe I’m sorry, but I didn’t predict for this to go the way it did. Believe me, I find it intolerable to have to face my father again, but we are so close to salvation. I know this is perhaps the greatest thing I have to ask you, but please, I implore you, we can’t quit now.” Implore; verb; to beg, to plead, to beseech; such a funny name.

 

She implored me to look within my heart to forgive her, but I was tired of doing what everyone else wanted, tired of giving in.

 

“You implore me?” My answer struck like a downcast, “And why should I listen to you, why should I sacrifice so much for so little?” Eve and Molly came to Darleen’s side concerned.

 

“Roscoe…what are you saying?”

 

“What am I saying? I’ll tell you what I’m saying. I’m through, I’m done, I want nothing to do with you, with any of you, and when you see how much I surrendered, when you realize that I’m not some sort of puppet to you, then you can crawl on your knees back from whence you came.” Eve was completely baffled, her eyes about to split apart.

 

“Roscoe wait!” I stopped in my tracks, not even giving Eve the decency to turn around, “Have you lost your mind, you can’t leave now, not after all we’ve been through.” I didn’t answer, “Roscoe please…please don’t act like a fool.” I started to walk, “Roscoe! Roscoe stop!” Tears slid down her cheeks, but I didn’t even show a weakness for compassion.

 

“Go burn in hell…” Eve froze in place, unable to move or make a sound; her heart had been torn out.

 

My response surprised even me, and it certainly didn't extend to just the both of us. Darleen, in a fit of fury, her personality, which had turned to something much more sinister, simmered at the brink of civility. “NOW YOU WAIT A MINUTE!” Her reaction struck like the release of the first atom bomb, its disastrous fallout affecting every one of us. “WHAT THE HELL HAS GOTTEN INTO YOU?” My soul had been provoked, no longer able to confine the gentle being within; I finally lost it.

 

Pulling out a gun, and aiming at Darleen, my itchy trigger finger invited me to fire, but the dying, righteous half of me still defending itself against the horde of corruption, restrained my hand.

 

Everyone was caught off guard; this is the last thing they would expected, thinking that I would think twice before unstrapping a gun to them.

 

They were wrong.

 

Darleen put her foot down and confronted me, “Go ahead…shoot.” She was taunting me; she wanted me to fire the bullet, “Go right on ahead and shoot me, but I know you know better.” Darleen was right, I wasn’t strong enough to take the life from a valuable friend, but that didn’t stop me from pretending I could.

 

“Shut up, just shut up and back away!” My head frenzied with the inundating power of a mysterious force plaguing my sanity.

 

“Don’t try to patronize me Darleen!” I clicked the weapon, ready to empty the barrel, “Because it won’t work!” She strategically crept forward, raising her hands in the air to act like her balance on a tightrope performance.

 

“Roscoe; put the gun down. You won’t forgive yourself if you kill any of us.” That was true, but I knew one person who could do it for me.

 

“No. But Alas won’t have to carry that burden; she has no sympathy. Alas…engage lethal action.” Molly clutched onto Eves dress, petrified as if she would jump out of her skin at any moment.

 

“Roscoe…you wouldn’t.”

 

“Try me.”

 

“ALAS! ALAS YOU HAVE TO STOP THIS!” But Darleen’s words only seemed to reflect off of the Pipboy’s screen.

 

“I apologize for the inconvenience, but Mr. Vitoli is my master, I am programmed against my will to serve him. What he orders I must follow.” The Pipboy flashed an alarming red, indicating that Alas had identified said targets. “I am ready to fire when you give the word Mr. Vitoli…my master.” Darleen pushed everyone behind her in a defensive stance, knowing that I couldn’t be persuaded.

 

“No…no, no, no, no, no….” Eve broke down sobbing, dropping to her knees, allowing the wind to swirl sand about it. “Roscoe…ROSCOE! No, no please you can’t, YOU CAN’T!!!” She whispered in sorrow, “You can’t…I love you...and you...you...you love me...” To see her so distraught almost made me view a second opinion…

 

Almost...

 

“There is nothing you can say to change this...no matter how much I care for you.” I aimed the Pipboy in her direction, obligating Darleen to take evasive action.

 

She charged like a blood lust bull drunk with adrenaline, ready to withstand anything to be thrown into her stampeding body. I snatched her in mid speed, fastening my hands around her brittle neck, tightening a little harder and a little harder, and just a little harder, every chance I got. She squirmed like a fish out of water, attempting to coax the oxygen back into her lungs where it belonged, turning her face into a dark violet. It felt like squeezing a grape, a poor, innocent, defensive grape. She was rushing with pain, grabbing at the air; blood and tears exited through her every pore, and out of her gurgling mouth. Close to death, and as weak as an inland hurricane, I anchored the Pipboy at the base of her gut, and sentenced the half dead Darleen to a brutal end,

 

“Fire.” The air light up with the sparks from the Pipboy, the blast so hard that it sent her airborne, carrying her to the side of the trembling Eve and Molly.

 

Her body lied their motionless, with the eyelids still exposed, burning in the immense heat wave. Eve placed her hand over her mouth, squeaking and wincing as she poked her friend’s lifeless corpse, her attention locked to the heated flesh wound that had claimed her. She back away as I closed in, kicking desperately against the sand to get her and her daughter into a safe corner.

 

But nowhere was ever safe, not here, not there, not from behind the rocks, or from inside the city…or from me.

 

I positioned the Pipboy directly at their head,

 

“I’m…” There was a long, tense, frightening pause in the sentence, “Sorry…” I hesitated once, and then twice, before I turned myself the other way, fired, and listened as their unanimated bodies drooped into the dirt.

 

I didn’t even look at them, tossing my gun and the G.E.C.K aside, removing my armor plating to reveal the simple clothing beneath, and left them there to decompose in the dust, to ready myself anew.

[species5478]

A sheering sound of creaking, which proceeded to ring into our ears, vibrated throughout the story; the ceiling began to crumble.

 

The skyscraper was imploding. - Keanumoreira

 

Very descriptive. And the playful relationship between characters was a pleasant touch.

[Keanumoreira]

A sheering sound of creaking, which proceeded to ring into our ears, vibrated throughout the story; the ceiling began to crumble.

 

The skyscraper was imploding. - Keanumoreira

 

Very descriptive. And the playful relationship between characters was a pleasant touch.

 

Thank you Species. :happy: