#Garnet punches a deathblow in the face

[falloutdelmarvaau]

Fallout: Delmarva (Chapter 2)

Mission: Into the Unknown

My first steps into the wasteland are slow and tentative, but I eventually manage to coax myself outside. As my eyes adjust to the light, the first thing I notice is a single dead tree right next to the Vault entrance, no doubt killed during the Great War. My vision becomes clearer and clearer, and I notice that the entire area seems to be devoid of any life whatsoever. There are no living plants, no animals, no nothing. The whole area is nothing but a dry, brown, barren wasteland as far as the eye can see. Which way am I supposed to go? It’s all so overwhelming!

I get another alert on my Pip-Boy. This time, it’s coming from the Map section. I take a look and discover that a new map has already started to generate. Vault 26 is clearly marked right next to the little triangle that represents my current location. As I zoom out to get a more complete view of the area, I notice another location labeled Beach City. According to the map’s legend, it’s about twelve miles from here. I wonder if it’s a pre-war town or a post-war settlement. Nevertheless, it’s as good a place as any to start to. Maybe I’ll run into these rumored strong people. The directional compass says that Beach City is due east of here, so I start heading that way.

As I trek through the wasteland, I notice a complete and utter lack of anything. I grew up hearing scary stories of ghouls, synths, and super-mutants that dragged humans away and killed them. However, I have yet to spot so much as a radroach out here. There aren’t even anydistinctive features to the landscape apart from the occasional rock that’s slightly larger than all the other rocks.

It doesn’t take long before I start getting bored. I idly scroll to the Music section of my Pip-Boy. I’m about to play one of my favorite songs from the 1950s, but then I notice something else. A new feature has appeared alongside all of my songs: an option to tune in to a local radio tower. Curious, I scroll over to it and select it. This pulls up a new page that lists radio options. The only option is Radio New Delmarva, so I select that.

After taking a second to clear out some static, my Pip-Boy delivers the sound of a man’s voice to me. “What up, my irradiated dudes? This is your undead homie DJ Sour Cream coming to you live from an undisclosed location,” the voice says. I pause, trying to process that. Undead? What did thatmean? After a second, I decide that it’s probably just a DJ gimmick. From what I’ve heard, radio DJs are a weird bunch.

“Not much in the way of news today,” DJ Sour Cream continues. “However, I should point out that today is the first day of deathclaw mating season. Remember: if you don’t bother them, they won’t bother you. Now, without further ado, let’s get back to the music. And remember: when you want a fresh new sound, turn to Radio New Delmarva.”

Then a song starts to play. The DJ was right; it does sound fresh and new. I’ve never heard anything like it before: was it written in the 1950s? Before? After? I don’t know, and I’m not really sure I care. All I know is that I like it.

Looking for your place

In the Universe

Don’t you know the Universe

Is looking too?

Looking for its place

In you

And now it’s coming through

Your dream is coming true

Welcome to the party

Mr. Universe

We’re so glad we are

A part of you

Meet the rocks and flowers

The seconds and the hours

The splinters, winters

Apples, chapels

Teardrops, temples

Cats and castles

Anything that you can be

The things you see and cannot see

Are Mr. Universe

Mr. Universe

I can’t help but bob my head to the beat as I walk. This has to be the most unusual song I’ve ever heard. After a lifetime of hearing nothing but jazzy beats, this slow-paced melody is suddenly pulling me in in a way that nothing ever has before. It kind of makes me feel like maybe I was just being paranoid before. Maybe the outside world isn’t that big of a disaster. Maybe I’ll be just fi-

ROOOOAAAAAAR!

The noise comes from behind and startles me just as the song is wrapping up. I turn around to find myself staring face-to-face with… heaven only knows what! It’s a tall, reptilian beast that’s walking on its hind legs. Each of its six toes and eight fingers ends in a deadly-looking claw, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Its back and tail are covered in plates that could probably do some real damage if I ran into any of them. Its head is about the size of a Vault-Tec generator, with curly horns that look ready to ram. Worst of all, however, are its sharp-looking, meat-covered teeth. The horror of these eating implements is accentuated by its foul breath, suggesting that it has eaten recently. And, yet, judging by the look in its orange, cat-like eyes, it’s still hungry.

My heart leaps into my throat. What is this thing? Could it be one of those deathclaw things that the DJ had mentioned? Whatever it is, it doesn’t seem keen on letting me leave unscathed. Unfortunately, in my zeal to please the Overseer, it hadn’t occur to me to pack a weapon. That leaves me with only one option: running like hell.

My legs propel me away from the nightmare creature as fast as they can. I was never the fastest runner in my Vault, but I seem to be staying out of reach of this thing’s nasty claws, so that’s good. Still, this thought does very little to calm my racing nerves, which is probably for the best, given the circumstances. In fact, the dominant thought that runs through my mind as I attempt to escape is, “Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!”

It’s not long before my legs and lungs start to tire. The panicked, “Shit! Shit! Shit!”in my head grows louder. My endurance is absolute crap. I always had a feeling that could be my final undoing, but I never realize that it would be quite this horrifying! My legs are getting more sore by the minute. I’m gonna die. I’m gonna die. I’m gonna-

“Get down!”

In my panicked state, it doesn’t occur to me to wonder who just said that. I simply obey, diving to the ground and covering my neck with my hands like in those old nuclear war instruction videos. I’m about to close my eyes so that I won’t have to see my fate, but then a red streak above me catches my eye. I turn to look… and my jaw literally hits the ground. As it turns out, the source of the red streak was a person… at least, I think it’s a person.

I can’t see much of this person’s skin, but I can tell that her head and arms are completely red. Judging by the sound of her voice as she screams in primal fury, she is female. Her hair is black and kind of… square? How is that possible? More perplexing than this, however, is her outfit. She’s wearing what appears to be a World War II-style bomber jacket that’s open to reveal a white shirt that reads “Blame my wife” in blue letters. On her lower half, she’s wearing yoga pants that are tucked into combat boots. She’s fending off the horrific creature using two large gauntlets, one on each hand. A yellow visor completes the mysterious look.

The woman leaps high into the air and gives the creature a massive punch to the face. The creature lets out what sounds like a cross between a roar and a whimper as it stumbles backwards. When she lands on the ground in front of me, she takes a protective stance that reminds me of a mama bear defending her cubs. “If you want to live to raise your own offspring,” she threatens the creature, “then I suggest you turn back the way you came!”

To my surprise, the creature actually pauses as if it somehow understands what this woman has said and is contemplating it. Or maybe it just has its doubts about continuing to attack a being that can send it stumbling backwards with one punch. Either way, it lets out an indignant growl as it turns around and skulks away. I watch in amazement as its tall, lumbering form disappears over the horizon.

The threat eliminated, the woman turns to me and asks, “You okay, miss?” Then, as if this whole experience wasn’t surreal enough, her gauntlets vanish into thin air! I have to blink a few times and rub my eyes to confirm it, but those things are well and truly gone, revealing a pair of black gloves that only cover her middle fingers. She extends one of her hands to me. Bewildered as all hell, but still grateful, I take it.

“Um, yeah,” I say, allowing her to help me stand. “Thank you, uh...”

“Garnet,” the woman answers. My eyes widen. Her name is Garnet. This is one of the people I’m looking for! “And you are?”

It takes me a second to remember my own name, “Uh, Angelica. Angelica Miller.” I’m about to mention that I was looking for a Garnet, but then I notice something else. My hand, still in hers, brushes against something hard on her palm. Curious, I turn her hand over to take a look, only to come face-to-face with a gemstone! Again, I have to blink a few times to confirm that it’s there. Judging by how smoothly the skin on her palm bends around her gem, it’s an actual part of her body. But… that can only mean… Holy shit!

“You’re one of those gem aliens,” I breath, starting to feel light-headed. “The old legends are true.”

“Correct,” Garnet replied pragmatically.

“This… this is insane! I-I’d always assumed your stories were just distractions from our brutal reality. And yet… I can’t believe I’m actually talking to you.”

Garnet smiles good-naturedly. “I take it this is your first time on the surface?” she asks.

I blush. “Is it that obvious?”

“Many Vault-dwellers who first come to the surface and meet us don’t believe what they’re seeing, either,” Garnet explains. “Plus, most humans who live on the surface don’t have as much trouble dealing with a deathclaw.”

So that was a deathclaw. “Yeah, I’m pretty new,” I confess. Then, figuring it was as good a way to get to know her as any, I ask, “Can you help me?”

“I certainly can,” Garnet answers. “First things first; we need to get you a weapon. I’m assuming that if you had one, you would have used it.”

My blush deepens as I answer, “Yeah.”

“Well, come with me,” she offers. “I have a friend in New Beach City who knows her way around a man-made firearm.”

I blanch. “New Beach City?”

Garnet frowns. “Your Pip-Boy just listed it as Beach City, didn’t it?”

“Um… yeah?”

Garnet sighs. “Well, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. None of the world’s GPS systems have been updated since the War. In any case we should get moving if you want to get a weapon before another deathclaw attacks you.”

“I’m right behind you,” I reply peppily. She smiles and starts walking towards New Beach City, and I follow close behind. This is great! I can hardly believe this is going so well! As we walk, I look at my Pip-Boy’s screen, switch the display to the Message section, and send a quick message to the Overseer. [I’ve met Garnet. Why didn’t you tell me she was a gem alien?]

It doesn’t take long before I get a reply: [I had heard that these individuals were aliens. I didn’t want to get you all excited in case it wasn’t true. You know how exaggerated those old legends are.]

[They don’t seem all that exaggerated now.] I tell him, remembering how Garnet punched a motherfucking deathclaw until it went away.

The Overseer’s next message reads [In any case, well done for finding the first of your new friends. Contact me again when you have met the other three. In the meantime, don’t tell them that you are receiving orders from me. I want our plans for an alliance to be a surprise.]

This seems reasonable enough to me. After all, I don’t want to overwhelm them within 10 seconds of meeting them. [Okay.] With that, I lower my arm. The music of Radio New Delmarva has still been playing this whole time, and Garnet and I continue our walk to the sounds of a pre-war band singing about dead-end jobs.