Out of the Grave, Into the Desert

[BaldurAnthology]

Chapter 3

 

We had barely started towards Primm when our first problem came up. In this case, a shot rang out. I dropped to the ground near a rock, pulling out my trusty 10 mm, noticing that I was low on ammo, I swore under my breath, Shiori had got out her assault rifle and balanced it on the rock. It was only then that I noticed she had somehow added a scope to it. "I can't see a thing." I said, peering out from behind the rock, looking for something to shoot. "I can." Shiori muttered, and fired off a few rounds, accompanying the sound of these fired shots were the thuds of two bodies hitting the ground. "That's all of them. Oh, and do you have any stim packs? I'm out and they seem to have clipped my leg."

 

"Crap!" I exclaimed under my breath rifling through my medicine kit. "Sorry, I ran out. I can carry you if you can't walk. I'm sure we can get a doctor in Primm, or we can return to Goodsprings." She glared at me, and pushed herself to her feet. "I'm not some weakling, unable to take a hit. I may be young, but not weak." She started limping down the road but a few steps later she collapsed. I rushed over to her, offering a hand up. "She looked at me, with eyes full of pain and said "Guess I'm not as tough as I thought." She took hold of my hand, and I pulled her to her feet. "Lean on the rock while I get my bag on, Then we're going back to Goodsprings."

She looked at me and said "No. I need to make sure my aunt is ok. From what Sunny said, it is not that far away. We go forward!" I sighed. "Fine." I pulled on my pack and hoisted her up, pack and all, to carry Fireman style.

 

I started walking towards Primm. Along the way, it became increasingly clear that Shiori was in bad shape, although she tried to put on a tough face. I found an old pack of MedX in my bag, and offered it to her to dull the pain. "Yes please." I heard the pain in her voice, losing no time injecting the MedX into her leg. Almost immediately, I heard a slight sigh of relief from her. "Thank you!" Shiori mumbled. I just smiled, and after awhile we arrived in Primm.

A soldier came up to me and warned me about some convicts who had taken over the town, and that it would be better if I left. "I have an injured child here. I can't leave without getting her treated!" The soldier looked alarmed, and helped me carry her to their camp, where the commanding officer knew first aid training. He got the bullet out of her leg, and injected her with a few stimpacks to start the healing within a few moments. As the flesh knit back together, the pained look in her face smoothed out, to be replaced by a look of gratitude. "You could have just left me to die, but you didn't. Why not?" Shiori asked me, looking curious. "When I make a promise, I keep it. Now let's ask about your Aunt."

 

We crossed into the town dodging landmines on the ruined bridge. After shooting a few of the convicts for taking pot shots at us, we ended up in a casino, in which a bunch of the townsfolk were grouped. Shiori ran off, looking for her aunt, and I just sat down and chatted, asking questions. I learned before she did that her aunt had been killed when the convicts first showed up, and was trying to think how to break it to Shiori when she went running past me crying her eyes out. I found her huddled in a half destroyed building just down the street. The moment I stepped though the door her hands went to her gun, but when she saw it was me, she ran forward and flung her arms around me.

It was a long time until she stopped, that I was just holding her, stroking her hair and muttering soothing nothings. After awhile, her sobs turned into soft breathing, and I realized she had fallen asleep. I put my pack on the ground to use as a pillow, and let myself drift off.

Edited May 5, 2012 by BaldurAnthology

[BaldurAnthology]

Chapter 4 will be out at some point soon I hope Edited May 4, 2012 by BaldurAnthology

[BaldurAnthology]

Chapter 4, Vengeance

 

I awoke when it started to get light, still holding the sleeping Shiori. She looked so cute, I didn't want her to wake up. Unfortunately, she woke shortly after I did, looking puzzeled, happy, and annoyed at the same time. She then noticed she had been using me as a pillow.

Flushing becomingly, she pushes herself to her feet, mumbling apologies as she did so, "Hey, don't worry about it!" I said, giggling slightly. "It's nothing to be embarassed about." Shiori looked at me seeming puzzled. "Why did we not stay with

my Aunt?" I was completely nonplussed. "Excuse me?" I asked, confused. "Did I not get along with her? Is that..." She trails off, and tears well up in her eyes, as she obviously remembered.

 

As I moved to comfort her, she pushes me away, and grabs her assault rifle. "I'LL KILL EM! I'LL KILL EM ALL!" She screamed, running out of the building. Worrying, I picked up the shotgun I had looted from one of the convict corpses and followed. She started shooting every convict she saw. Before long, there were no convicts in any of the abandoned ruins. I finally caught up to her, and found her bawling her eyes out. She saw an old Hotel, the Bison Steve, and ran towards it.

I followed her, trying to get her to calm down to no avail. She simply would not hear it. As I watched, she slaughtered every single convict until she ran out of ammo. Then she pulled out a combat knife and gutted the next convict she saw. I noticed one trying to sneak up on her, and shot him in the face with my scrounged shotgun. Shiori grabbed the dead convict's weapon, and ran into a large room, where a man with a minigun was waiting, I pushed her behind a ruined couch just as he started to shoot.

 

The minigun started biting into the couch, and I started wondering if we would actually survive. I waited until the minigun needed to be reloaded, during which I pushed Shiori down, and ran out shooting man with my shotgun getting lucky and hitting him in the face. Panting, I walk back to her, and say "Are you alright?"

At which, Shiori looked angry, but at the same time, utterly miserable. "No, but I think I will be. Thanks for, well, you know." Shiori trailed off, blushing slightly. I walked over, and this time, she accepted the offered comforting. As I gave her the hug the kid needed, I wondered what I should do. Should I take her with me, or leave her with Ruby Nash, who I met in the shop?

Fortunately, she answered that, looking up at me with tears still in her eyes, and says "I wanna go with you. You saved me like twice now, and I got no one else. Please?" I smiled and nodded, and after looting what we could, and setting a captured person free, we retrieved our stuff, and got the hell out of there.

[tokyobiohazard]

I like where this is going :D The story begins, hehe

[BaldurAnthology]

Yay! I will start on chapter 5 soon!

[AurianaValoria1]

This is really great! :D

[BaldurAnthology]

Thank you!

[BaldurAnthology]

After a looong Hiatus, Chapter 5 is back on! I am just checking it over, and will post it within moments!

[BaldurAnthology]

Chapter 5, On the Road Again

 

Shiori and I started back on the road, after collecting our belongings from the building in which we slept. Now that the business with her aunt had been taken care of, and I had found out where Checker suit had gone, it was time to go. We bid the townsfolk farewell, and after being given a gift of some food and water from Ruby Nash, we started the long trek north.

I spotted some more convicts watching the road, facing away from us. Sneaking up on them, I slit the throat of one. The other turned and received a shot between the eyes from Shiori, whom I noticed had nicked my 10 mm pistol. "Hey!" I snapped, "Gimme that back!" Shiori grinned, handing it to me,"Why, though? Not like you were using it." "Twerp," I stated with a snort, and then walked over to loot the bodies.

 

I found some ammo for my gun, and a few bottle caps. I didn't want to take gear off the dead, but I grabbed their guns to sell later, and dragged the bodies off the road for the vermin to eat. We continued walking, and saw a police station or something that had Viper members in it. I hid behind what had once been a car, and took a peek. It seemed that there were three of them outside of the place. The leader

was evident, as she was tough and ugly looking, wearing metal armor. Right.. headshot only on that one, I thought to myself. The others seemed to just be wearing Leather armor. Easy pickings. I nodded at Shiori who was right beside me,

 

"Can you take the leader? You got better aim than I do." She nods, loads her gun as quietly as possible with ammo she looted from the outlaws earlier, then shoots the leader in the face.

I run out of cover with my scavenged shotgun and take down the other two, and then look around. "Looks like that's all.." I began, then three more ran out of the police station. F*ck! Thought I, Shooting one with my shotgun for trying to cut me with a knife. The other knocks my shotgun out of my hand with a crowbar, but before he could brain me, I kicked him in the groin, drew my gun and put a bullet between his eyes.

 

The third had an assault rifle, but Shiori picked her off half way out the door. stepping over the body, I walked into the building. I hear a chittering sound, and find there are a bunch of Mantises in the building. Pretty small, they should go down within a hit or two. I grabbed a Crowbar off one of the dead, and started bugswatting. Within a few moments, I had cleared the place of bugs, and went to take a look around.

 

I found a cell with a few bunks in the back of the building, and a dead wastelander with a bunch of supplies on him. Figured he had been caught, then died in the cell. He looked like he'd had a heart attack. I found a bunch of caps on him, as well as a picture of someone, perhaps a loved one? I couldn't be certain. Shiori walks in. "Those freaks didn't have anything good on them. Find anything useful?" I looked over and replied,

"Caps, food and ammo on this one. He was dead when I got here though." Shiori nods. "A shame. Oh well. Let this place be his tomb, and let's get going! We're losing daylight!" I get up and walk out of the building, remarking as I pass her

 

"Since when are you the bossy type?" We start up the road, and before long we can see a large statue in the distance. As we get closer, and the sun drops a little, it becomes apparent that

it is of two men shaking hands. We head towards it, and find an NCR outpost. "Welcome to the Mojave Outpost" A trooper says with a salute, I look at Shiori, who seems to be getting sluggish. "Come on, squirt, just a little farther, then you can sleep." Shiori sticks her tongue out at me, then follows. I find a few trailers in the back with Matresses, and leave her there to sleep. Just to annoy her, I kiss her on the forhead like I was tucking in a baby.

 

"Gerroff mom!" She mutters, half asleep already. I toss a long coat I find in a box over her, and go to see if there is a place to get some food or drink around this place. I walk into the first building I see, and Lo! I find a bar, where a woman is sitting drinking whiskey. There are small red patches on her cheeks from the drink. She looks like she could use someone to talk to." I think, and sit down near her. "What'll ya have, miss?" The bartender says, sidling over.

Atomic Cocktail, please." The bartender nods. The drinking woman leans over. "Can't hold your whisky, sweetie? Need to get little fruity drinks?" I looked over at her. Her eyes were slightly bloodshot, a sign she had been drinking for a while.

 

The bartender comes back, and says "Cass, leave the girl alone, huh? You know that's just the alcohol talking. Speaking of, you've had enough, go sleep it off." The drunk woman goes off, grumbling. "Sorry about her, that's Rose of Sharon Cassidy, also known as Cass. She's been in a foul mood since her caravan was attacled by bandits a few weeks back." I nodded at the barkeep, and paid him, with extra for getting rid of Cass. He smiles gratefully and leaves me to my drink. I sip it, enjoying how the change of liquid level causes the colour of the glow it emits to change. I loved these things. even though I wound have to pop some radaway after, I still loved the taste, and the glow.

 

I sipped some more, and thought of my recent life, of Shiori, and what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to get to tme man who shot me, but I couldn't decide what to do. Should I kill him? Or just get the chip back and deliver it? Either way, I needed to think this through, and not go rushing in to anything rash. Before I knew it, I had finished my drink. I realized how tired I was, and went off to the trailer that I had last seen Shiori in. I noticed it only had one mattress, so I dragged one from another trailer to hers, and fell asleep shortly after laying down.

[BaldurAnthology]

Don't expect Chapter 6 any time soon, I have no Idea where I am going with this yet...