That Old Lonesome Road

[Flipout6]

Bear with me, there's some action in a chapter or two, and then some structure after that. My writin skillz are improvin, as clearly is my spelling.

 

Oh, and I may or may not be coming out with a new. and with any luck better, story. Okay, I am. still writing it, though.

Edited September 27, 2012 by Flipout6

[Flipout6]

Jason, despite wearing a regulator duster and cowboy hat, felt almost at home immediately after he walked along through the bunker. Most of the people there were giving him funny looks, and even the ones wearing power helmets inclined their heads his way a little bit. Nevertheless, his face remained an emotionless mask. The Brotherhood of Steel brought back so many good memories of home, but the things that assaulted his mind the most were the flashbacks. Dozens of firefights, faces, and raw emotions blended into a single blurry mix. The only memory that was clear was the one that would haunt him for the rest of his days.

 

Jason arrived at the elder's office, after being led by Veronica. In the chair, a lone man in the robes of a brotherhood elder, surrounded by paladins in T-51b power armor and armed with gauss rifles. If they decided he was a threat, Jason would never leave this room alive. The elder wasn't as old as Jason had expected, perhaps in his mid 40's or early fifties, although his hair was already shockingly white. He spoke to Jason directly, just as Veronica's mouth opened to say something.

 

“So you are the stray knight I've heard about. I am Elder McNamara. Make yourself at home. You've more than earned it.” Jason nodded in acknowledgment, and removed his hat and sunglasses respectfully, and saluted.

 

“He doesn't talk much, Elder.” Veronica interjected. “Nor does he have emotions.” Jason rolled his eyes.

 

“So I see. Do you have any power armor, Knight Rivers?” McNamara asked. Jason shook his head.

 

“Then we shall provide some for you. We have a bed for you, with a storage trunk. You can find your power armor there. Go get some rest. Dismissed,”

 

“Thank you, elder.” Jason finally said, and saluted once more, before leaving with Veronica, who led him to the barracks. Whatever his history with the Brotherhood was, it was more than enough for him to ingratiate himself to the elder without saying five words, and she looked at him with a new respect. Her suspicions were unfounded, quite the opposite in fact. She would definitely be interrogating him on this tomorrow.

 

“Well, then, since you seem to be king of the hill around here, good night, my lord.” Veronica quipped sarcastically, before leaving to her own bed in another room.

 

Jason checked the storage trunk of his bed. And found a set of T-45d power armor and a helmet there, perfect condition, polished and everything. He guessed the elder considered him a full member of this Brotherhood chapter, and gave him fitting armor. Removing his gear, except for his underclothes, he fitted on the power armor, a process which took about two minutes, and moved around in it, getting the feel of it again. It had been almost four years since he last wore power armor, yet it only took him a few minutes to get completely used to it once again. After looking around the bunker in the armor for a while, Jason removed it and went to bed. But even here he kept his .44 revolver fully loaded and within easy reach. Then the nightmares came.

 

Jason was silent whenever he slept, and usually didn’t move. As thus, he didn't wake anyone by thrashing around or yelling or shooting at the ceiling with his pistol, a shot from that monster would put the whole bunker on high alert. Being amongst the Brotherhood again brought back memories that he preferred to keep buried. One in particular returned to him again and again. Falling to the floor as he grew steadily weaker, seeing his friends watch him, distressed. As he hits the ground, wearing T-45d armor, he drops his assault rifle, and an overwhelming sense of finality washes over him....

[Flipout6]

He awoke the next morning slightly sweaty, but otherwise fine. He fitted on his power armor, which thankfully came with temperature regulation. He walked around the bunker, getting used to the layout, and eventually encountered a by-now awake Veronica, who could tell immediately he didn't sleep well.

 

“Well, that look suits you.” She swore internally at Jason's raised eyebrow, that was not not the message she was trying to get across, she wasn't even into men. “I mean, you've worn T-45d before, I can tell. You move in it like it's a second skin.”

 

“Yeah.” He said, simply. He was back to his cold, reserved self. That mischievous smile from the night before was gone, and Veronica felt a little sad. She preferred him that way, he was at least somewhat relatable then.

 

“So, we're heading out today, am I right?” She asked.

 

“Yes.” He said. “But I figured you'd want to decide where.”

 

“Well, the Super Mutants at Black Mountain are well-armed, and they've become aggressive. They might pose a danger to the Brotherhood soon enough. Just like very old times.” She smirked.

 

“Depends where you're from. Let's go, then.” He said. Veronica was prepared, and had her things all packed into her backpack for traveling. Jason had done the same.

 

“You're going to be walking the Wasteland in power armor?” She asked, amused.

 

“Until we destroy the mutants, yes. We'll come back here, store away what we don't need.”

 

“Well, all right then. Just don't make me carry it if you get tired. I don't like carrying the heavy stuff.”

 

Jason developed a pronounced sense of dread as the two of them walked to Black Mountain, despite the fact that they were both wearing power armor, (Veronica in T51-b.) and were both heavily-armed. It had been years since he had faced Super Mutants, and seeing them again would bring back bad memories, something of which he had plenty.

 

“Let's keep it silent as long as we can.” He said, his voice unchanged. Veronica nodded.

 

“Centaurs first up, you should be able to deal with them with those knives of yours.” She noted. He wasted no time. In pulled a pair of combat knives out of their sheaths, and held one in each hand. He gestured wildly for Guardian to attack. Veronica raised her power fist and charged. Guardian tore out a Centaur's throat and moved on to another. Jason's Geiger counter went off the charts. He swore and popped a shot of rad-x.

 

“Veronica, strong radiation!” He yelled, and tapped his pip-boy. She nodded at him, and punched a Centaur in the face, caving it in.

 

Jason leaped into action, rapidly slashing the centaur multiple times before driving his blade into it's throat, splattering his gauntlet with blood and killing it. He kicked it over and caught sight of a very large one in the crater, an evolved centaur that was bigger than the rest. He leaped down into the crater and tackled it, hooking onto it with his knives and pulling it over onto its back. He jumped onto its stomach and stabbed it repeatedly with both knives, before going for the skull. When he reached the top of the crater, Veronica and Guardian had disposed of the remainder, who were significantly weaker. Veronica led him to the pen gate, and opened it. The first minute of killing every mutant on Black Mountain, and nobody was dead. As far as Veronica was concerned, things were going great. Jason was still wary, however. Centaurs were merely watchdogs.

 

The mutants had set up guard outposts at sections upon the winding road, which at least made their locations predictable. One was right ahead. The three of them snuck up on the outpost, everybody was behind the wall. Jason signaled, and they charged in. Veronica hit the nearest mutant square in the face with three consecutive blows from her power fist, with enough force to reduce its head to a broken heap. The mutant tumbled backwards like a tree, stiff and still. Guardian charged a mutant full force, and leaped onto its chest, knocking it on its back. The dog finished him off after a struggle, ripping at its hands when it tried to choke the dog, before mangling the mutant's head. The final one in the back was the one Jason charged for, and had enough time to pull out a sledgehammer and take a swing at him, striking him with a glancing blow. He gasped and was thrown to the side. The mutant raised his hammer, about to squash Jason's head like a melon, but Guardian and Veronica intervened simultaneously, and managed to overwhelm it. Jason quickly recovered and hopped to his feet.

 

They proceeded up the hill to the next guard post, where due to falling rocks, they had to jump out of the way, making quite a racket when their metal power armor hit the pavement. Silence now being unnecessary, Jason had his magnum out and firing at the mutants as he crouched and moved backwards towards cover. He was a very skilled shot, and several mutants fell by the time he had expended all the bullets. Veronica engaged the ones that closed in, her power fist crunching bones and breaking weapons. The mutants fired at them, on of them with a minigun. A stray 5mm bullet struck Jason in the chest with such force that he stumbled backwards, barely staying on his feet. The armor had barely blocked it. He dove behind the cover he was behind, pinned down by minigun fire. Veronica yanked her pistol out of its holster and fired at the mutant, hitting him a few times, but not killing him. Completely enraged, the mutant whirled the minigun on her, and she ducked back behind a rock and reloaded the pistol. Jason used to distraction to come up from behind cover and blow several fist-sized chunks out of the brute with his .44, expending the entire clip in an effort to bring it down. He sighed with relief when it collapsed to the asphalt. With all the gunfire, it didn't take long for the post to be investigated, all of them coming in squads. By then, they were up on the next ridge, about twenty feet up. Jason stopped, and fished for something in his belt- a cluster of microfusion cells, attached to a string. Veronica recognized them.

 

“Micro-fusion cell grenades. Smart.” She noted.

 

Jason tossed them down into the cluster of mutants, and pulled both himself and Veronica backwards. A brilliant green flash, similar to a plasma grenade, lit up the cliffs, and several mutants were killed instantaneously. One injured mutant fired blindly everywhere, mad with pain and fear, he gunned down one of the few still-standing mutants before being brought down by his comrades. One nightkin had been crushed by a flying piece of wall. With several mutants dead or injured, Jason had faith that they wouldn't be flanking him or Veronica.

 

The rest of the hill was mutant-free, until they came upon a small village. The two mutants there were easily disposed of. The final crest of the hill appeared relatively unguarded. Guardian growled and barked fiercely. Two nightkin rushed out of the shadows to attack them. Jason was quick to react, putting three .44 bullets into the chest of one, who was stopped in his tracks and fell to his back. Another nightkin popped out of the camouflage of his stealth boy and forced Jason to draw his combat knives. As Veronica and Guardian fought another one using a super sledge, Jason ducked underneath an overhead blow and brought the knives up into its chin.

 

“Jason, movement in the tower!” Veronica shouted. And then a rocket smashed into the concrete between the two of them.

[Flipout6]

Jason was thrown forcefully into the air and slammed violently into the concrete with a pained grunt. He raised his head, dazed, with everything moving in slow-motion. Guardian was alive and only lightly injured, walking with a limp, having been shielded from the blast by a nightkin. Both of the nightkin had been obliterated, torn to shreds by the shrapnel or the explosion itself, and they fell to the concrete in bloody heaps. Veronica took the brunt of the blast, and was sent whipping through the air twenty feet, and her body landed a few feet from him. Guardian limped up to him and bit around Jason's arm, trying to drag him away. Jason felt a sudden burst of affection for the dog, but nonetheless wrenched his arm from Guardian's mouth and ran over to Veronica. He saw the mutant aiming for another shot, right at his downed friend.

 

“NO!” He shouted, literally the loudest sound his vocal cords had made in five years.

 

He grabbed the inside of an alloy plate on her armor and managed to drag her away from the radius of the blast, when it came. Guardian remained faithfully at his side. Jason didn't bother running tediously down the winding road, he skidded down the cliff face to the next level, almost falling on his face. He did so for the next road, and his armor sparked on the pavement when he stuck the landing, striking his back on the pavement. When he jumped down the next one, his foot struck something hard and he stumbled and tumbled down it, smashing into the cliff face head-first when it upended him. He held the unconscious- or dead- Veronica at arm's length so that he absorbed the force of landing into the radioactive muck at the bottom. She landed on top of him, crushing the wind out of him and denting a piece of his power armor.

 

He struggled and writhed underneath her weight, and broke free, pulling himself out and lifting himself off the ground. He hoisted Veronica up and into his shoulder again, using the considerable extra strength his power armor lent him to his advantage. He considered his options. The mutant with the rocket launcher knew they were there, and would kill them if he tried getting back to Hidden Valley through the centaur pen. Deathclaws infested the area right across the road, and stretched out, and where their area ended, Powder Gangers ran rampant. He had to go north. He took a right when he reached the highway, and ran as fast as he could, given the circumstances. Guardian was right beside him. His fatigue grew with each step, the weight of his power armor as well as the power-armored Veronica inflicting a heavy burden. He managed to run about a mile, before he lost his footing on unstable ground and plunged down into a small, 10-foot-deep canyon, having shaken all pursuers. Guardian jumped down, hopping onto outstretched rocks every here and there to break his fall.

 

The young Rivers smashed into the ground, falling flat on his face and dropping Veronica, who landed about two feet to his left. He felt a pang of panic at seeing her unmoving body being tossed around like that, but was too tired and himself injured to move anywhere. He lay there, his face in the dirt, his arms placed awkwardly above his head, heavily panting and finally feeling the pain of his injuries, although they weren't as bad as Veronica's, he could tell already. Guardian whined and nudged his arm a few times, Jason's power helmet hid his expression, meaning the poor pooch couldn't tell his mood, or if he was even alive. He raised his hand and head off the ground and petted the dog, reassuring him that he was fine.

 

Come on, you've taken worse than this. You have a friend to worry about. He thought.

 

Worry for Veronica spurred him into pained action. He hoisted himself up off the ground, and limped over to Veronica. Out here in the open wouldn't do either of them any favors. He looked around for a sheltered area, and couldn't believe his luck when he found a cave. He stumbled in, a power-armored figure upon his shoulder. He was incredulous when he found a house just inside, and not surprised at all when the door was locked tight. Jason raised his foot and kicked the door violently, shaking dust off of several rafters. He kicked it again and again and again until it was blown off a single hinge and creaked sadly as it swung inwards. The instant sight of an NCR flag on the wall uneased Jason, who considered the consequences of wearing Brotherhood armor around the NCR. Nevertheless, he entered, sawed-off shotgun in hand. The entire place was empty. He laid Veronica delicately on one of several beds laid out in the main room. He changed out of his power armor and into his Wasteland Wanderer outfit, the cream sweater and khaki pants giving him much more room to move around. He removed her power helmet carefully. The right side of her face had been bruised, cut and burned, and if those injuries reached her face even below power armor, her arm and leg, and possibly torso, would be injured as well. Slowly and carefully, he removed her power armor, examining the injuries. Thankfully she was wearing undergarments, she'd probably give him hell later for it if she wasn't. As for injuries, burns mostly, some cuts and maybe a broken bone. Guardian licked Veronica's good hand, panting and letting out a worried whine. Jason fished the medical supplies from his pack and got to work, administering Med-X and stimpaks when needed.

 

 

Veronica woke up several hours later, in a strange house and wearing her undergarments. She felt like she had been hit head-on by a stampede of angry brahmin bulls. She felt something being brushed against her cheek, something soft. She tried to sit up, and a hand darted onto her shoulder and slowed her down a little.

 

“No fast movements, you'll open a wound.” It was Jason, and he looked exhausted. He was holding a cloth wet with antibiotics against her right cheek and lightly wiping her face. As romantic as it might look, Jason was all practicality, and if he was a bit rougher with the cloth or another method he could open up injuries. The antibiotic stung a little as it worked its magic, and she sucked in air through her teeth. “Relax. You're safe." No change from his usual tone of voice.

 

“Where are we?” Veronica inquired groggily.

 

“NCR house, north of the mountain.”

 

“Not the best place for two Brotherhood people to go, don't you think?”

 

“I'm armed.” Jason's voice was incredibly hoarse. He was really tired.

 

“I figured you were acting paranoid again or something. I swear you think the walls will attack you.”

 

“Some places I've been, the only thing that doesn't attack is the walls.” He replied with his usual could-poulticed voice.

 

The memory of an explosion on Black Mountain, and then blackness, occupied her mind. “Wait, how did we get here?”

 

“I carried you.”

 

“When we were both in power armor? Jason, are you inj-” He cut her off, still wiping her face gently with the cloth.

 

“I'm fine. You had it worse.”

 

“But what about you?” She blurted out before he could interrupt.

 

“Nothing on you.” He insisted, an edge creeping into his voice.

 

“No you-” He touched her other cheek, and made her look him in the eyes. It wasn't exactly a tender action, but Jason didn't intend it to be. Veronica noticed his eyes were a pale blue, dead as stone. There was little difference between when he wore his opaque sunglasses and when he didn't. Veronica struggled to look past that, and could faintly read concern, pain, (his injuries, or something else?) and even confusion.

 

“I. Am. Fine.” He enunciated each word clearly, before letting go rather more gently than before. He tried not to show it, but cared about her well-being.

 

“You know what? I don't think you are. You weren't far from me when that missile hit, you can't have gotten out unscathed. And you're exhausted, I can tell just looking at you. Just how long have you been helping me?” Jason consulted his pip-boy.

 

“Ten hours.”

 

“Well, I think I'm good now. Ten hours is long enough, let me stand.”

 

“Robe is on the bed next to you.” Jason muttered. He helped her up off the bed and handed it to her, before turning around to let her put it on. When he turned around after she was done, Veronica's eyes widened.

 

 

He was wearing his Wasteland wanderer outfit, but without the sweater. Even though he had changed to try and hide it, Veronica could see spots of fresh blood wetting the shirt. His arm was burned at well.

 

“Jason, why didn't you treat yourself?” She asked.

 

“You had it worse.” He rasped, and then collapsed unconscious to the floor.

[Flipout6]

Nearing the end of this particular story now, though it will not be the last you see of any of the characters. This is essentially just a chapter of the full story of Jason, Veronica, and Guardian.

 

 

It was a long time before Jason woke up. He began stirring at almost seven in the evening, well after the sun began to set. Guardian was lying down beside him, huffing and whining as he dreamt whatever it was a dog dreamed about. Veronica said in a chair on the far side of the room, boredly examining the Brotherhood dogtag she had slipped off his neck in his sleep. It did mention which branch he was from, his name and rank, and his serial number. The former interested Veronica significantly, as well as caused her inexplicably large amounts of stress. When she heard Jason mutter, her head snapped up just in time to see him open his eyes.

 

"You're finally awake. Took you long enough, I was beginning to think you died. Burying you would have been boring." She smirked. She was actually glad to see him awake, she'd been wanting to talk to him. Him saving her at Black Mountain had shown he cared enough about her to risk his own life in order to preserve hers. She didn't know if he was one of the guys who just kind of did that for anybody or not, but judging from his home chapter she was leaning towards the former.

 

"How long was I out?" Was his first question.

 

"Couple hours. It's around seven."

 

"Where's my gear?" Was his second.

 

"Right there beside you." Veronica answered. His gear was in a pile on the floor. Wordlessly he put on his power armor (except the helmet.) and slipped his gun belt around his waist.

 

"Where's Blackhawk?" He asked, a bit of an edge to his voice.

 

"What?" Veronica had no idea what he was talking about.

 

"My pistol."

 

"I left it by your head for easy access." Veronica wondered why he would name his weapon. He didn't seem the type. Jason grabbed the magnum and put it in its usual place in the gun belt's main holster. It took him a minute, but eventually he determined from Veronica's expression that she was upset about something.

 

"What's your problem?" He asked. "...where are my dogtags?"

 

Veronica held them up for him to see. "I wanted to know more about you, so I examined them." Jason's expression didn't change, although he felt a little confused. "So, from Washington D.C, are you?"

 

"The Capital Wasteland. Yes." Jason replied uncertainly, not knowing where she was going with this.

 

"How does it feel not to have extinction held over your head?" Veronica asked bitterly.

 

"Excuse me?" That got Jason's attention.

 

"Your chapter is loved by the wasteland, supported, and has allies everywhere. Ours is the opposite. How does it feel?" She muttered.

 

Jason's expression darkened. It wasn't his usual lack care. "Listen. Now." He kneeled down and looked her right into the eyes. "My chapter is engaged in a bloody, brutal war against super mutants. We are the only real defense from them, the only reason the wasteland has not been overrun. We lose people every. Single. Day." He said through gritted teeth. "You think you have it bad here, safe and secure in a hidden bunker while your biggest threat is a weakened NCR? The mutants evolve as time goes by, into bigger, tougher forms. There are mutants, Veronica, that stand twenty feet tall, use a car as a shield. They swing fire hydrants like you or I would swing a goddamned STICK!" Jason's voice was growing steadily louder. "The mutants keep multiplying, growing more powerful, while we only lose MORE PEOPLE! THEY CAN RIP A MAN THROUGH HIS POWER ARMOR AND LEAVE US NOTHING TO BURY! NOTHING! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MANY FRIENDS I'VE SEEN DIE? RIPPED TO SHREDS, SQUASHED, PARTIALLY EATEN?!" Jason's face had contorted into an unreadable expression, a perplexing mix of agony and fury. "Stop whining about your own chapter! It could be a lot worse! It IS a lot worse, for my friends back-not even, all of my friends are DEAD!" His volume lowered slowly, until his voice was just barely louder than normal, save the last, which he screamed at the top of his lungs. He quivered with rage.

 

Veronica was blindsided by his outburst, not expecting any more than one of his usual half-sentences. The sheer emotion that poured off him was more than everything he had shown combined. Guardian whined and nudged Jason's hand softly. Despite his rage, he gently petted the dog on the head.

 

"Wait...Super Mutants aren't all violent. Why are you at war?" Even that explosion of temper wasn't enough to render her speechless.

 

"These ones are different. They grow less intelligent and more vicious with time. They evolve. The forced evolutionary virus lives up to its name with them more than anything else." He explained impatiently. "And you're right...there is exactly one non-violent super mutant in the entire DC area. His name is Fawkes. He travelled with the Lone Wanderer."

 

"He travelled with you?" Veronica asked, agape.

 

Jason sighed, exasperated, and explained. "I am not the Wanderer. I was raised with the Brotherhood. The Lone Wanderer, Michael Ryan, was born and raised in a vault, as was a woman my age that came out after him, think it was his sister or something. Her name was Catie or something."

 

"Jason. Really. The Lone Wanderer had a pip-boy, exceptional combat prowess, and nearly matches your description." Veronica added smugly.

 

"And he was also a good person, had family and friends, and was charismatic." Jason responded. Veronica had to agree there. Those were three things Jason didn't have.

 

"Okay, you're not a saintly hero, okay...look, sorry about that. I didn't know just how bad things were out there. All we hear in our chapter is how Lyons' chapter helps the wasteland out, and had betrayed the Brotherhood. We heard nothing about mutants or all the deaths." Veronica was legitimately sorry. She had no idea what made Jason tick, so to speak.

 

Jason took a minute to breathe and calm down, before he asked Veronica lowly. "...What can I do, to help you and your chapter?"

 

Veronica was taken aback once again. After screaming at her like that a minute ago, about how easy her chapter had it, that was the last response she expected. She instantly had her answer. "The Brotherhood is failing. I've always known that. If we don't do something, we're going to fall apart or...fade away." Jason continued listening. "I've never understood why, but I think I do now. I need to go home."

 

"Okay." Was Jason's simple response.

 

"Great. Awesome. I will encourage people to name their non-ugly children after you. Seriously. Let's go tomorrow morning." Jason nodded. They had to retrieve their gear from the bunker anyway.

 

"You're not going anywhere." A woman's voice announced. Jason turned his head and saw an NCR Ranger, .357 revolver pointed squarely at Jason's head. "Disarm yourselves and surrender or face deadly force." Veronica's eyes narrowed and Guardian began growling. Jason began to take off his gun belt, stealthily snagging something from it before he dropped it onto the ground. "Turn and face me." The ranger barked.

 

Jason turned around to face her, having imperceptibly interacted with the object in his hand. When the ranger looked at his clenched fist, Jason had already thrown the grenade. The ranger made the mistake of looking at it, and missed when Jason dragged Guardian and Veronica with him beside a bed he tossed over, shielding himself and his friends from the shrapnel. The grenade went off, disarming the ranger and forcing her through the air and into the wall behind her, stunned. Jason drew Blackhawk in the blink of an eye and brought himself up to one knee. Two .44 rounds blasted out of the gun and into the ranger's head, caving it in and splattering blood everywhere. There was no doubt that she was dead.

 

"Come on. We need to leave. Goodsprings should be a safe place to stop for the night."

Edited January 11, 2013 by Flipout6