Fallout NV fanfic: Old Man Courier chpt 15

“HA-HA, okay, okay, stop, it tickles, ha-ha!”

Sol and ED-E were playing around, he was like a cute little newborn puppy, just a big ball of metal that was only capable of producing a couple of beeping noises due its newly installed personality module and yet it managed to float around in circles and flow around like little cute cotton ball. The eyebot was apparently much better equipped than they expected, only when the eyebot woke up did it activated its laser gun at the bottom. It was an older model of the laser pistol but it had a big battery reserves so Sol predicted it to be semi-automatic.

“So…” Boone said, “What on earth is a Chicago?”

“Beats me,” Raul answered, “If I have to guess, I’d say it’s a town of some sort.”

“It’s a city,” Solmund suddenly joined in, “a city in the state Illinois. Saw the name in one of the old books that me dad found me when I was a kid. It had the map of the United States. Although only basic information. I doubt that this so called Chicago is the same Chicago back in the years before the bombs fell.”

“Have you been to Chicago?”

“You kidding?” Sol said, “It’d take a miracle for anyone to be able to go that far. It’s up north way over to the East. Far past Arizona. Caesar’s land.”

“I thought that those were civilized lands.” Raul said, which in turns irritated Boone:

“The only thing civilized about them is the fact that they know how to hunt, eat and get water. Other than that they’re a bunch of savages.”

“Say what you want about the Legion,” Raul replied, “I’ve been there myself, and let me tell you that their ‘police’ force is on the level of NCR’s martial law enforcement.”

That was perhaps true, Solmund may have to take Raul’s words for it because he was not intending to cross the Colorado River any time soon.

“So,” Raul said, “Enclave, huh? Haven’t heard of them folks in a while. I heard that they were once even more powerful than a lot of the big nations. NCR, Legion, even Brotherhood didn’t stood a chance.”

“Heard some rumors,” Boone said, “they died at some oil rig. I don’t know, because I wasn’t there.”

“So what on earth are we suppose to do with the eyebot,” Raul said almost irritated, “are we seriously going to take it to Chicago?”

“Well,” Sol answered, “I think ED-E can handle things by himself, won’t you boy? Right now? We just need to take him to somewhere across the Colorado, far enough so he won’t be attacked by raiders or Legion. I mean, c’mon, let’s help a poor little guy out.”

They approached a little outpost on a bridge. There were a couple of merchants setting up their station in many of the old trucks and cars that were left behind on the bridge. Thank god the energy fuel inside those cars were long depleted otherwise the bridge would’ve been blown up. There were also a couple of NCR troopers around a big tent over the other side of the bridge. They were all armed with service rifles and 9mm pistols.

“This is an NCR trading post,” Boone said, “Gun Runners folks like to set up camp here and trade. It’s a good position. A lot of caravan folks go through here.”

But what caught Solmund’s eyes weren’t the NCR troopers nor was it the massive amount of traders going around on Brahmin carts. Over by the edge of the bridge was a girl, she was young and had a bright face, she could not have been over 30 years old. Could’ve spotted her from a mile away especially since she was wearing such a ridiculous outfit. She was wearing a bright red robe with a belt high above the waist and a big collar around her neck. She also wore a pair of glasses over that young face and bright brunette hair. Normal people who went by would think that she was just another wacky insane person like thousands others across the wasteland. 

He walked up to her when both Raul and Boone would’ve insisted him not to.

“Hello there young lady,” Sol waved at her as she turned around. She was somewhat petite up close.

“Oh hi there.” she said. She had this strange magical spark in her eyes that they could not put their fingers on it. It was a careless spark of joy and life. As if there wasn't a single worry in the world.

“So… I don’t want to sound rude or anything,” said Sol, “but you look strangely out of place. Here at least. I suspect that you have a story to tell.”

She smiled brilliantly:

“How right you are, my name is Veronica. I live in a hole underground.”

The three of them were speechless. Stood there, poker face and all. ED-E made a few beeping noises here and there while Veronica laughed:

“Ha, I’m just messing with ya. I’m actually just another traveler. Nothing much to it. I see the caravan folks here and there and I just go around helping out. In turns they pay me back.”

“Oh… yeah… that’s cool I guess…” Sol said, “My name’s Solmund, you can call me Sol. Here’s Mr. Grumpy, calls himself Boone. Raul’s the mechanic and that’s ED-E.”

“Aw aren’t you a cutie,” Veronica said while looking at ED-E. Sol could’ve sworn that ED-E was blushing through all his incomprehensible beeping.

“Nice to meet you.” Boone and Raul said.

“Pleasure’s all mine,” Veronica smiled, “Anyway, can I asked you a question? I know this is a little bit out of the blue, but have any of you run into a group called the Brotherhood of Steel?”

Sol had a feeling something like this would happened. He pulled out a cigarette and lit it up, then said:

“Brotherhood? Them folks who go around scavenging for Old World tech? Didn’t they die off some time long ago? I mean, jeez, NCR’s army is as plentiful as an ant’s nest. And I don’t think they have enough battery for that.”

“Have you run across any?” Veronica asked.

“Nah, but I sure as hell know where they are.”

At this point, all three, Boone, Raul and Veronica raised their eyebrows.

“What?” Sol asked dumbly, “Don’t tell me that you don’t see it. Raul, Boone. We walked down Black Mountain the other day into a little abandoned test site remember? The place where it got that bloody sandstorm and bark scorpions the other night. Anybody with half a brain would pick up that those bunkers in those areas are not abandoned. I mean, seriously. A couple of bunkers with NO inhabitants or scavengers and a blasted sandstorm every single night? What a coincidence that was. And an even bigger coincidence is that there's a girl in a Brotherhood scribe robe asking about the Brotherhood.”

Raul and Boone stared at her. Her little joyous spark in her eyes suddenly died a little.

“Come on now…” Sol told her, “Do you think that I didn’t recognize it? If I have to guess then now’s the time when you’d probably give me one of those excuses of how you found it in a trash can once or one of your scavenging buddies found it while looking into a junkyard. Whatever the excuse are I have one word for that… Bullshit!”

Veronica finally came out clean:

“Fine… alright, alright… ‘ere’s the truth. I need you to take me to the Hidden Valley’s bunker.”