#I was walking around some rubble and a ghoul attacked me and I thought I could make a jump with my jetpack. I uh. couldn't.

[dangerouscakes]

[mxvladdy]

More than just a flirt

John Hancock X OC

Hi hi! My smut hand be rusty but nothing like completely self indulgent OC smut to bring me back :)

So I’m still new to tagging and the like but my Fallout 4 OC is GN but I do insinuate female genitals. Soooo ye *finger guns* 

If ya read it I hope a like it! 

John was a flirt; that’s all he ever could be. He was charming. He was witty. He was an adventure covered in an oversized trench coat. What bed partners he had came for one thing. The experience. The ability to boast loudly about fuckin’ a ghoul. Like it was a damn badge of honor. His whole life had been a stream of one night stands, and cold beds. That's all he ever could be. That’s all he ever would be.

So then why did he wake up so warm?

Cracking an eye open John reached behind him searching blindly for what was heating his back. His burned fingers were a complete contrast to the soft flesh that greeted him. Slowly, he traces down it, following the flow of the dark muscular till he is holding on to an arm wrapped around his middle.

“Morin’.” His bed partner huffs in his ear. Chestnut curls tickle his cheek as they hug him closer. Whiskey and melon sweet breath bringing back memories of their lips against his. Last night clicks in place. Ophelia. John rose quickly as if burned. This was wrong, they are a friend. A good friend, a trustworthy hardworking leader. They deserved better than-than…

“John?” Ophelia rose uncaring of how the blankets slipped from their arms. Old fabric pooling around their bare waist. They rub at their eyes wearily. “You ok?”

He froze at the edge of the mattress. Long fingers reaching for his pants on a very recognizable floor. He was in Ophelia’s room; or rather this was their hotel room. Damn. He couldn't remember a thing from last night. What did he take? Fuck. He could kick himself. Of all the one-nighters, he wanted to at least remember this one. “Ye doll, sorry...just didn't wanna wake ya.” He smiles, covering his momentary panic.

Ophelia frowned, sleepy hazel eyes narrowing into a familiar piercing glaze. They size him up. Reading him better than anyone ever had before. John couldn’t help but squirm. They looked at him just like when they had first met. Strong jaw tense and their chin high, silently calling out his bullshit.

“I'm fine, honest. Didn't expect to see you is all.” Hancock tried again tugging on his pants.

“In my own room?” His friend snorts, rising to go open the curtains. “Where else would I be?”

John is silent. “I don’t know. Not here-with me.” He keeps his back turned. It was stupid to linger. The warm tingling of their soft body seeps down into the floorboards leaving him aching and cold. Staring at his irradiated hands he could almost cry. Almost- his tear ducts had been scarred shut years ago.  

“John?” Ophelia comes within arms reach. He could sense their hand hovering close to his own boney shoulder. They drop it moments later. “You sure you’re ok? You coming down from a bad trip or somethin’?” John chuckles humorlessly. Was he that predictable? Stepping away from them he finishes dressing.  

“Ye sunshine. Don’t worry about it. Ain’t my first time and sure as hell won’t be my last.” He tosses out over his shoulder. “I’ll give ya a minute ta get ready and meet you out front.”

If Ophelia had anything to say after that they kept between their pretty little lips.

“I think we should head for shelter.” Ophelia says, looking up from the fallen mutant. Their arms filled with loot. John follows their gaze. His black eyes reflect the eerie shade of green growing in the sky. Rad storm. Looked like a big one too. He lights a cigarette and sticks it between his grimy teeth before helping collect a few more useful items.

“Closest place is probably that supermarket couple o’ klicks back.” He jabs a thumb over his shoulder. If they hoof it they could probably get there and pick off any ferals before the worst of the storm hit. Ophelia sighs, John knew how much they hated backtracking. The decision was made for them when their pip-boy starts clicking in warning.

“Well-�� They frown, throwing a glance back at the ghoul. “You alright with taking two steps forward and ten steps back?” John laughs, tipping his tricorn up to flash them a quick wink.

“Shit doll- You just summed up my life in a sentence.” Offering a hand he helps the sharpshooter over some loose rubble. “You keep an eye out K? I know you’re low on ammo so I’ll take point.” Ophelia nods. Their sniper rifle slung uselessly across their back. Readying his shotgun John follows behind.

The storm hit just when he had expected. Dropping rain and hunks of debris on the two as they struggle to close the supermarket doors against the high winds. Thanks to their combined dumb luck the place was empty. The sentry bots long since destroyed and even a few tins of food were still scattered about the aisle. Ophelia left him to collect some and scout out any hidden lock boxes, leaving him to set up the sleeping bags and start a small fire. Cracking open a room-temperature beer he stares idly into the flicking flames. It grew steadily as he fed it bits of cardboard and kindling. The yellow glow touches his skin and starts to dry his drenched clothes. John contemplates his predicament while he waits for Ophelia to return. The memories of last night slowly start to come back to him in the silence. The tastes, and smells of washed sheets and sweating skin permeate his senses. Ophelia’s sweet mewls and gasps echo around in between his ears. Who gave them the right to make his name sound so sweet?

Shit-He knew he shouldn’t dwell on it. First rule of one-nighters is to live in the moment then walk away clean. But damn if he wasn’t the worst at following rules.

He relives it all the best he can, parts still blurring and blocked, like a scratch in a holotape. But he’ll take it. He’ll take the phantom feel of strong, sure fingers mapping his body. The ghost of a tongue slipping against his. Washing away the taste of mentats and cheap drinks. He can’t remember the last time he had felt so warm and wanted. Made the sudden distance he put between them hurt even more. Fuck him for getting greedy.

John flicks the butt of his cigarette into the roaring flames and searches for another. He grumbles in irritation as each pocket bears no fruit. “Here. I got some.” A familiar red and white box appears in his peripheral. Ophelia’s chipped yellow nail polish clashing with the old carton.

“Thanks, sunshine.” He rasps, taking the box. He can’t bear looking up for the crumbled container. The thought of making eye contact with them while his blood and brains were living in his trousers seemed unholy. Pulling out the least damaged cigarette of the lot he lights it with a practiced flick of his wrist. “Found anything good?”

They shrug, putting a few cans of beans and corn in the growing amount of embers around the fire pit to heat. “Some ammo and super glue. Also-” They grin, forcing him to look up. “Got you a present.” They pull a bottle out from behind their back to brandish it at him triumphantly. He stares. Not at the bottle, but at the way that little pull of muscle brightens up their whole face. That signature gapped tooth smile warming him better than the beer and firelight combined. He reaches numbly for the bottle. A Nuka-Cola Quantum, the chill of the bottle a welcomed surprise.

He and the rest of the crew had learned over the years not to reject a gift, no matter how valuable. MacCready nearly had a heart attack when he was gifted with a shiny new sniper rifle. That pretty little custom piece came with all the bells and whistles. Not to mention a few boxes of specialized ammo. John had zoned out when the other man started rambling rapid-fire over specs clutching the gun to him like a newborn. Each of the core companions got some good shit from time to time. He had some absolutely sinful blades and an old bottle of pre war bourbon tucked away in his office. Valentine had gotten some fantastic upgrades to his hardware and repairs to his offices. Hell- Curie got a whole bloody body.

Can’t beat these job perks.  

“What’s the occasion?” He pops the cap off with the blunt end of his pocket knife, taking a pull from the bottle. The rush of sugar and god knows what else damping his headache.

Ophelia shrugs from across the pit. Pulling off their worn boots to warm their feet by the fire. “I remember you said they perk you up after a particularly bad crash.” They pause, face closing down for a moment, before looking up in horror. “I would have thought- I mean. I- you-I hope I didn’t do anything last night that upset you. I know you were a bit buzzed and I was way past tipsy. But, if I stepped out of line you would tell me right ?” John looks at them beyond confused.

"What?" He asks dumbly.

" Is," Ophelia waves vaguely at the distance between them. Normally when they camped together they were thick as thieves. Joking and nudging at each other's shoulders. Others used to joke about them getting a room. Now it felt like a great chasm had opened between them. "all of this about last night."

"Oh. Nah. Don't gotta worry none doll." John shrugs. Best to rip the bandage off now then later. "It's in the past, best leave it there. " He lies. It burns his throat worse than jet, but he has to. If only to protect his crumbling pride. One day he'll believe his own words. Hopefully.

"Well I am worried. How 'bout we start over. What’s wrong?" Ophelia jabs.

John feels heat rise under his thick skin. Just pokin’ a fresh cut tonight huh..."Kinda hard to start over after having someone's dick down your throat." He tosses it out carelessly. A shit attempt to derail the coming train wreck. Ophelia doesn't even flinch.

"Well, it's a damn good thing we both know how flexible I am then.” They rebuttal smoothly. “So, I'll ask again. What’s. Wrong?" The ghoul shrinks under their heated look. He was never keen on being hit with these eyes. Meant another kinda storm was brewing.

John throws his hands up in frustration. Had they never heard the phrase 'read the room'. "What, ya never had a one nighter before?" He regrets it the second the words leave his lips. He'd never seen someone flinch from words before. "Look, doll, I ain't one for making things awkward. I know the rules so let's just forget it and move on."

Ophelia deflates. Their signature look that could pin a super mutant in fight extinguished just like that. John watches them mouth over his words slowly. Clearly hating the taste of them as much as he did. "Is- was that what you wanted out of it?" Ophelia sighs. They dig a hand through sweat tangled locks. The tight coils of their hair protesting the drag of their fingers. His own fingers itch watching them, remembering the feel of their hair wrapped around his hand as he pulled them in for a kiss.

"What did you want out of it?" He asks, feeling dumber than a radroach.

Ophelia mimics him, throwing their hands up with a short laugh. "John, I thought it was clear. I don't go sleeping around with my friends and colleagues for shits and giggles. Who do I always ask to join me on travels?"

“Dogmeat?” John jokes, the knot in his stomach loosening with hope. It's unimaginable really- and yet. Were they serious? The past couple of times out they had always come to him. Even when they would be at a strategic disadvantage for whatever crazy scheme they had brewing. Only time he wasn’t Ophelia’s top pick was when some Minutemen tasks needed to be done. Even then He could always expect them at his front door the moment their feet landed on safe ground. A bottle of liquor in hand and an unbelievable story to tell.

“Not funny.” They chastised him scooting until they were seated next to him, knees brushing. "My idea for this morning was to maybe get breakfast and a semi decent cup of coffee. But I guess this is fine." They scrunch their nose in distaste at the cans warming in the fire pit.

“Shit doll,” John reaches out, wrapping a wiry arm around their waist. “Can I make it up to you? For being such an ass?” They hum in jest covering his hand with their own. The kiss that follows was unlike anything that he expected. It was slow and sweet. So different from the fast pecks he would get with others he slept with. He deepens it greedily, not ready to part just yet.

“You’re lucky I find you attractive.” Ophelia whispers into his mouth tossing his tricorn to the side and straddling his narrow hips. “We are going to have a talk about all this. Just-later-much, much later. I need a repeat performance of last night now that we are both sober.”

John groans letting them push him down. “Damn-you got it. You got whatever you want if you mean it.” Ophelia scoffs, ridding themselves of their baggy jacket. John can’t help but marvel at how beautiful they were backlit by the roaring flames. The orange glow of the light wrapping around their dark skin much like he craved to do. The flicking of it lapping at their smooth skin. Flashes of last night coming back to him of his tongue traveling down the same areas. He would have to remap them.

“As if I could ever lie to your smart ass.” They scoff grinding down on the growing bulge hidden in his rough pants. “But you have been lying to me and yourself it seems.”

He grunts in acknowledgment eyeing the way their ass moves. “You are absolutely right.Fuck- how can I make it up to you?”

Ophelia smirks cupping his cheeks. Their eyes meet. Rich hazel meeting cold black. The moment digs dip under his tough hide. The raw emotions in their stare makes his throat dry. “Put that mouth to good use- hmm? I know it’s good for more than some self-depreciation.”  

Spurred by Ophelia’s words he flips their positions, placing the sniper down on his bedroll. John sinks lower, kissing and nipping at their hip bone. Mapping out all the sensitive parts of their body. His tongue tracing the silver little streaks on their belly. Ophelia’s stomach twitches at the feel of his warm breath on their stretch marks, cursing quietly as he finds their slick core. Their nails score his scalp, dragging a hiss of pleasure from his lips. He licks with gusto, taking full advantage of their isolated positions to make them scream.  

“John-” They mew clawing at his shoulders to pull him back up to their kiss swollen lips. He goes leaving a trail of kisses in his wake before giving them a surprisingly chaste kiss on their lips.

“You sure ‘bout this doll?” He didn’t know what would happen after this, but it felt so different compared to his other recurring bed partners. He did want to see them again. He wanted this relationship to bleed into every aspect of his life. If he could relive that morning wrapped in their arms till his brain was splattered out on some dusty alleyway then he would. Without question.

Ophelia nods, reading in between the lines of his multilayered question. If there was one power figure in this wasteland they trusted, it was him. Wrapping a strong leg around his strong waist they shimmy off their tactical pants. Their eyes lock onto his pants as if the ratty briefs offended them.  John chuckles and casually loosens the draw strings keeping his pants up. Ophelia takes it from there scooting the rough material down his legs. They pur, grasping his erection and stroking it. Their dexterous fingers play with his head drawing out a healthy bit of pre.

John sighs and rests his forehead on Ophelia’s brow breathing in their naturally clean scent. It reminded him of the rare times he could get freshly washed laundry mixed with the springtime. Shen the wild plants strong enough to brave this cruel world sprouted. He kisses them, nipping at their chin and collarbone while they drive him wild. “Doll, please.” He gasps, back arching into their touch. “You’re killin’ me ya know.” Ophelia chuckles returning a deep kiss.

“Good, consider it penance for thinking I couldn’t love you.”

John heaves, lost for breath as their words hit him. He pulls back floundering.  “You mean that?” He sees the rapid fire thoughts racing through their wide eyes. Shock that they let slip that dirty little secret, fear of what he would do, then a stark resolution.

“Of course.” Ophelia nods through their embarrassment. Their sharp cheeks beginning to warm under his gaze. They say it like it’s an obvious statement. Like he should have just known. In a way he did. He just couldn’t believe it.

John takes the initiative now.  Dragging Ophelia down to his scarred lips preening when he feels them sigh into it. Their tongue teasing his telling him point blank what they wanted. Grabbing onto their plush hips John grinds down on them, rubbing his stiff erection through the seam of their thighs and wet entrance. The moans that elicited from them made his radioactive blood boil with need. He had to have them again, last night was a dud. He would savoir this time.

Positioning themselves over John’s cock Ophelia shoots him a sultry wink before sinking down onto him slowly. “Oh fuck me.” He groans, dropping his head to his pillow. Their body was feverish around his, soft, pliant and so willing.

“That was my intention.” They grab onto his shoulders for support. Eyelids fluttering heavily. “If I’m not getting that across now, perhaps I should quit while I’m behind?” They joke as they ride him. Their hips move in slow tight circles. It’s enough to drive him wild.

John digs his fingers into the supple flesh of Ophelia’s hips. With any luck he’ll leave bruises. Excellent. Ophelia couldn’t stop John as he flipped their position. He pinned them roughly down on his sleeping bag. “Don’t worry Doll. You got your point across very well. Don’t need to go putting yourself out like that.”

“You’re one to ta-” John thrusts into them cutting off their snark. Taking  devilish delight in flustering them. Setting a fast pace he drives in deep revealing in their cries of pleasure. God damn- this was almost enough to make him wanna go sober. How did he ever think one night would be enough?

“Fuck! I don’t deserve you.” His hisses cutting through the wet slaps of skin on skin. Ophelia does nothing but groan. Neither of them last long. Much to John’s chagrin. He finishes with a choked shout, hips and stomach twitching as he spills himself on their thigh. Ophelia doesn’t fare much better. They bite hard at the rough skin of his neck, nails scoring his back with a perfect mixture of pleasure and pain while they came undone beneath him.

“Do you mean it?” He asks, cupping the back of Ophelia’s skull. They wrap an arm around his neck nuzzling close, draping their body across his.

“Ye- but if you talk down about yourself again I’ll have to feed you to a deathclaw.” John chuckles feeling his eyelids getting heavy. He wouldn’t put it past them.

[lone-survivor-six-tales]

Ain’t That A Shot in The Head Ch.3

"This is Mr. New Vegas wishing you all lady-like luck tonight" Mr. New Vegas' voice crooned over Six's pip-boy radio as she tended to the small fire at their makeshift camp. They had set up camp on the top of a small ledge to give them the perfect view of anything attempting to approach their camp.

"I swear, I think I've heard someone like him before," She mumbled to herself as she looked out at the sky slowly changing colors as the last of the sun's rays disappeared beyond the horizon. A quick zip of movement on the ground below caught her eye and she grabbed her binoculars to get a better look.

"What the hell are those?" She asked out loud to no one as she spotted a large bug creature flitting around back and forth. It was too large and fast to be a bloatfly and she couldn't recall seeing anything like it in her limited memories.

"It's probably a cazador, spotted a hive not too far away."

Six jumped and turned with her pistol out to face Boone who had just returned to camp with a dead gecko slung over his shoulder. Six relaxed and took the gecko from him to begin preparing it for cooking while Boone sat across from her to take over tending to the fire.

"What's a cazador?" Six asked, skewering some meat and holding it over the fire. While she couldn't see his eyes, she could see Boone raise an eyebrow at her question.

"They're a quick and dangerous insect. Getting stung by one of the adults is an almost guaranteed death sentence. There was a guy in first recon called Sting that survived getting stung by one of the younger cazadores and he had a permanent scar from the stinger."

Six could hear it in his voice that he was confused how she didn't know about them. Passing him the cooked gecko meat, she began adding more to another skewer before answering his silent question.

"I don't remember where I came from but wherever it was, there weren't any cazadores there." She gently touched the scar on her head as she tried to recall anything about her life before getting shot in the head. "I've tried remembering but all I know is there were a lot of buildings and rubble." She gave a tug on the collar of the vault suit Doc Mitchell gave her with a frown. "Wearing this feels familiar too, like I've worn it before."

Boone frowned, tossing his empty skewer stick into the fire as he rested his arms on his knees. "Are you sure you really don't know? How do I know this isn't just an act for pity?"

Six's skewer slipped out of her hand and into the fire as she looked at Boone. "Why would I lie about something like that? We've been traveling for a week now and this is the first time I even mentioned it to you. If I wanted you to pity me, I would have told you about it sooner."

Boone shrugged as he looked away. "If you're really from a vault then how are you so skilled with a gun? I've heard many stories of vault dwellers leaving and dying in the wastes because no one taught them to fight in the vault."

"I don't know, maybe someone taught me." She replied, looking down and watching the meat burn in the fire.

"Maybe someone like Charon," she thought but kept to herself. She had told Boone she was looking for two people but she didn't mention one was a ghoul who she had a contract with. At this point she's not sure if he'd even believe her if she tried explaining it to her.

"How do I know you're not working with the Legion?"

Six's head snapped up and she couldn't stop her jaw from dropping in shock at his insinuation. "How could you think that?"

Boone looked at her with furrowed brows and a frown. "I've heard stories about the Legion using kids to attack NCR troops. I wouldn't put it past them to use a woman to trick a first recon soldier into letting their guard down."

Before Boone could react Six was on her feet and his cheek was stinging where she slapped him.

"How dare you say something like that Craig Boone. Did you think I'd try coming onto you or something after reading that bill of sale. I don't know what made you think I would do something like that but you should know not everyone has an ulterior motive."

Boone sat still as she grabbed her pack and her pistol. Behind her ED-E made a confused beep as she stormed past Boone and started making her way down the hill.

"You should go with her." Boone mumbled to the eyebot who floated silently for a moment before beeping and quickly flying to catch up with her. Boone listened to her footsteps slowly fade away and when he couldn't hear her footsteps anymore he sighed, taking his sunglasses off to rub his eyes as the fire slowly faded until all that was left were dying embers.

------------------------------------------------

Six kicked a rock as she shone the light of the pip-boy in front of her. She was starting to regret storming off while it was still dark. She froze when she heard the sound of rocks falling a few feet ahead of her. Slowly she raised her pip-boy and cursed when the light ahead of her shone on the thick leathery back of a deathclaw that turned to face her.

Six had turned and began sprinting away as the deathclaw roared behind her. She could feel the earth tremble as it began chasing after her. She took out her pistol and fired a few shots behind her, hoping to hit the beast even just once.

Six let out a scream as the ground gave way under her feet and she fell into a deep hole she didn't see. She let out a pained shout when she hit the ground and pain shot up her left leg. Above her she could hear the deathclaw growl and huff as it paced around the hole. ED-E nudged her shoulder and gave a concerned beep as he hovered above her.

"ED-E, go find Boone, tell him there's a deathclaw and I need help," she told ED-E who beeped in confirmation before flying up quickly to avoid the deathclaw swiping at him. She listened to the deathclaw give another growl as it continued it's pacing. Using her pip-boy light she checked her leg to see her ankle was beginning to swell from a sprain. She dug through her bag looking for the roll of gauze she kept in her pack until she heard a pained roar from the deathclaw followed by the sound of a loud buzzing noise.

-----------------------------------------

Boone was just starting to fall asleep when the alert beeping of ED-E jolted him awake and reached for a flashlight in his pack. By the time he had the flashlight on, ED-E was circling around him continuing his beeping.

"ED-E? Why are you back? Where's Six?" He asked. ED-E halted and played back the panicked recording of Six.

"ED-E go find Boone, tell him there's a deathclaw and I need help."

Boone cursed and jumped up, grabbing his rifle as ED-E started flying back the way he came. It was difficult to keep up with the eyebot but Boone kept running until instead of the roar of a deathclaw, Boone could hear nothing except for his own footsteps.

As they approached Boone could see in the light multiple cazadores scattered across the ground dead. Finally the large body of a dead deathclaw came into view. It's body was riddled with sting marks from the cazadores. Boone quickly readied his rifle in case more cazadores flew out from the darkness.

"Six! Can you hear me?" Boone called out as he looked around for a trace of her. He heard a faint cough and a voice almost too soft for him to hear.

"Boone."

Boone turned and pointed his light in the direction of the voice. He could see a hole in the light beam and carefully walked over and looked over the edge. What he saw made his blood run cold.

In the bottom of the pit was Six, skin a sickly pale with scratches covering her face and vault suit torn. On top of her laid a dead cazador with Six's knife embedded in it's head. The from his position Boone could see the cazador's stinger was still stuck in Six's leg.

"Six!" Boone quickly but carefully climbed down and shoved the dead insect off her. Six groaned in pain as the stinger was pulled out of her leg as Boone sat her up and dug through her bag for a vial of antivenom.

"Do you think you can hold onto me? We need to get you out of here and to a doctor." Boone said as he passed her the antivenom. Six drank the vial and climbed onto Boone's back. Her arms were draped over his shoulders as he climbed back up the pit. Her blood felt like it was boiling and it took everything she could not to cry out in pain. She could feel her eyes drooping and she was about to close them until she felt one of Boone's hands squeeze her thigh hard.

"I need you to stay awake Six. That antivenom won't work for long. Just stay awake until we get into Freeside." Boone explained as he started running. While he wanted to take her to camp McCarran he knew the Followers of The Apocalypse have a better chance of having cazador antivenom.

"I'll try but I feel so tired. It hurts so much." Six said, voice begining to slur.

"Just keep talking Six." Boone encouraged her as he reached a nearby road and ran down it. He was thinking of the quickest way to get to the north gate without running through fiend territory

"I don't know what to say. You won't believe what I say anyway." She said, groaning in pain when Boone had to jump over rubble and it jostled her sprain.

"I'm sorry for what I said. Loosing Carla made me cautious about trusting anyone. Tell me about what you remember." Boone replied before cursing when he saw a group of fiends ahead of them. He quickly took a sharp turn around a building as the fiends opened fire on them. With the plan to avoid the fiends failed, Boone changed directions and charged straight through the fiend territory. He could hear fiends shouting as he ran past them and bullets whizzing by him as he ran between buildings.

"Boone, just leave me. You're going to get shot at this rate." Six could barely get her words out. Her lips and tongue felt numb and her vision was starting to blur as she tried to focus on his face over his shoulder.

"I take back what I said Six, be quiet if you're going to talk like that." Boone growled, picking up speed as the north gate came into sight. Suddenly a bullet ripped through his right leg and Boone stumbled, falling to the ground and Six falling off his back and onto the street. Boone cursed as he pushed himself back on his feet, wincing when he put weight on his leg. Looking at Six he knew she wasn't going to be able to climb back on his back so he carefully picked her up and held her tightly against his chest as he started limping to the gate.

-------------------------------------------------

Arcade yawned as he walked around the tents trying to wake up. He'd give anything for a cup of coffee right now but unfortunately the last caravan didn't have any so he was screwed until the next caravan. His thoughts were interrupted when an eyebot flew over the fort walls and began beeping frantically at anyone that it flew near. Most ignored or tried pushing the eyebot away but this was too unusual for Arcade to ignore.

"Hey there buddy, what has your circuits going haywire?" He asked the eyebot as he walked up to it. The eyebot immediately perked up and began repeating a woman's voice saying help and flew over to the fort entrance. Taking it as a sign to follow it, Arcade walked over to the doors and pushed one open on the other side, collapsed about a foot away from the doors was a man, his back coated in blood and a woman with a bloody leg.

"Shit. Julie get a stretcher! We got two people that need help!"

[allthetribbles]

Betrayal

March 30, 2085

A week after the incident in the Pit, and the OIS was still picking through the pieces of the rubble. A lot of priceless and dangerous items managed to get out. People were dead and injured. When a letter crosses her desk.... it happened to catch her eye.

"Director Lewis Elwood Meet me at the cafe. The one you first met and captured us at. We're returning something. The contact's name is SunMoon."

Knock knock knock.

A hint like that will make a woman take notice; sounded like she had a meeting to attend and a package to receive.

-------------------------------------------

The Starbucks was doing well - the wall had already been rebuilt and business was bustling when she walked through the door. A quick scan of the crowd revealed only one with a package on the table, waiting expectantly - a human male, by the looks of things. She walked over, slipping into the opposite seat.

"You don't look like Director Lewis Elwood."

"The Director sent me in his stead."

"The letter was for the Director. Who are you?"

"The Director is a busy man. My name is Agent Livia Grasse."

"I have information that he will want to hear. Who attacked the Pit and what their goals are, but I will only talk to the Director."

"As I said, the Director is a busy man. He sent me. I take it you're SunMoon?"

"Aren't you interested in this information?"

"Very. And you're welcome to come down to HQ to discuss it."

"No... no. I very much prefer being alive..."

"I take it this is his."

"As I said, I have information on who attacked your Pit. The Director will want to hear it and make the time."

"The Director doesn't fit into your schedule. You fit into his. You are welcome to come down to HQ and discuss this with him. I'm sure he'll find time."

"Do you know who Nyarlathotep is?"

"... That is a little above my paygrade." Liv glanced around, watching the crowd for any perked ears. Such a dangerous word...

"Then come back with someone with the paygrade." The human began to stand, taking the package. Liv's eye twitched, her eyes following him as he moved back to sit in his chair - gravikenesis to the rescue.

"I know who he is. He is a bad dude."

"And of Shub-Niggurath?"

"Yes. I am aware of that as well." Liv winced, rubbing her forehead.

"When combined with two other artifacts it has the power to bring Shub-Niggurath into this world. Those other two artifacts, when combined can trace down this artifact. Our organization no longer has the ability to protect it, so we're entrusting it to you. You have to understand that we have lost everything to this artifact."

"And what is your organization's name?"

"Our allies... it doesn't matter our name. Our master is dead, do you understand that? We are giving this to you to protect - they have the other two."

"Understood... We take our security very seriously." Liv stood, taking the package off the table and tucking it into her bag.

"Not seriously enough if agents of Nyarlathotep were able to raze your Pit."

Liv didn't have any words for that, holding him to his seat as she left the coffee shop. So much information gained in less than fifteen minutes... such tantalizingly close, but closely guarded secrets. She would release him after she got far enough away. She didn't want to give him the option of tailing her. It wouldn't stop anyone else from following her; if he was friends with those they had captured and were released from the Pit.

Two organizations fighting for control over this tiny piece of a puzzle. One bowed out for another to step in, hoping they could continue the fight. She patted the bag, confirming the box was still there. Such a small package to be such trouble... If it was even the real deal.

She knew just who to check with to make sure it was.

... And if it was... what then.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liv took a round-about way back to her car - she wasn't sure if the contact would try to follow her but she didn't want to take a chance. There was annoyance that a piece of paper was on her windshield, expecting a note of a dent incurred while parked.

It was worse.

< Take the package to ##### Aaaaaaa Place. Return an hour later to retrieve. >

Her attempts to dissuade someone following her was for naught. Someone already knew she had the package. Someone - some*thing*? - definitely wanted it.

She began to berate herself mentally as she changed course... heading to the destination. Who had left the message? Who were they working for? ... Who was SHE working for?

Why didn't she get that voice's name! Why had she thought Power was of more importance than knowing WHO or WHAT she was dealing with?

THAT WAS OCCULT 101!

Never make deals with the unknown - there was always a price. Well, there was no denying - she had power alright. The power to destroy the world right in her hot little hands... if combined with its other two pieces... that could track this singular one if put together. That had been the target of apparently more than one destroyed safe haven.

And considering the unknown enemies of the secondary had the other two pieces, it was only a matter of time unless this piece was warded and placed in wards within wards. .... And even then...

Turn over the piece and save her own skin, assume to be used to summon Shub-Niggaroth... destroy the world... die anyway.

What good is Power if there isn't a world to use it in? Liv stopped, stepping out of the foot traffic. She threaded her hand between the zipper of the bag to grasp the package tight.

< There are true monsters in this world. When it comes down to us or them - it's us every time. > Bobby's words roared to the front of her mind.

How human was she feeling? She caught her reflection in the mirrored glass, and compared to the ones around herself. Each lost in their own worlds - concerns unknown to everyone else. Well... with exception of certain psychics. She looked human, felt human.

With humanity or against? Human or monster. Choose the carrot or chance the whip?

. . .

"Fuck me."

It was muttered under her breath as she withdrew her hand, leaving the note behind as she zipped the bag closed. Her course changed yet again, more pep to her step as she bee-lined for HQ.

She paused, something clicking into her mind from months ago. An overheard threat of a Ghoul about the razing of "The Tagers" safe haven. THEIR safe haven had just been destroyed... by an unknown force. But they had been in the Pit. The Pit was razed by agents of Nyarlathotep - their motivations unknown. This artifact had been stolen from the Pit.

Could this group, the one returning it, be the Tagers? While it was maddening it couldn't be confirmed, it did invite a sense of dread to live in her stomach. And if they went after it twice before...

. . .

She didn't dare look at her reflection as she resumed her hastened walk to OIS HQ.

She definitely didn't want to know what she had been consorting with beyond her comprehension.

She had a very, very bad feeling about this.

[blueplanettrash]

The Obedient Demon (Final Chapter)

So this is it. The final chapter of The Obedient Demon; of the main story at least. I hope you all enjoy! 💙

“LANCE!” He shrieked, summoning his weapon. It lit up brightly, changing into a bright pillar of light before swinging it towards the ghoul. He screamed in anguish, tears flowing freely down his face.

The ghoul roared out pitifully as the light consumed its massive body. He leapt on the creature’s face, staring down at it in contempt before stabbing down in a final attack. Allura watched in shock, the power surrounding Keith was like none she’d ever seen before. He landed in a cloud of dust in front of her.

“Kei-,” she could barely get out before he sprinted away from her towards the demolished building.

“LANCE!” He screamed, digging through the rubble. Concrete and rebar sliced through his hands as he searched, dotting the destruction with blood. He barely blinked, afraid he would miss something in that split second. He continued to scream his husband’s name, every call felt like a shard of glass lodging in his throat until he couldn’t scream anymore.

They could only watch their leader fall apart in his grief, scream his voice hoarse, and collapse helplessly in the fallen rubble. He fell to his knees, sobbing as he tried to dig with shaking hands.

“Please Lance,” he whispered, pleading “don’t do this to me,”

The sharp, acrid smell of brimstone would be almost nauseating if it weren’t so familiar to him. It seemed that some things just can’t be forgotten.

“Hello!” He called, eyes darting around the dark, smoky landscape. “Is anyone there?” Smoke curled around wistfully, creating illusions of people that were just out of sight. He felt like he was being watched from every possible direction, the feeling of paranoia spiking every second he spent there.

“I-I think I’m lost,” he called, nervous tears building up in his eyes. He stumbled through the land, rubbing at his eyes and nose when the burning of tears or sulfur became too much. He wished he was at home, he wished he was enjoying his wedding, he wished for his friends, Keith and… Shiro.

What was he thinking? Why did he have to get himself in this situation? He was happy, or as happy as he could have been at that time in his life. He was in love, he got married, he had the most amazing friends in the world. The most amazing husband but…. he threw it all away. All because of a dumb idea. Something he had no way of knowing was even possible. He didn’t think about Keith at all; why did he always have to be so selfish.

“Shiro!” He suddenly cried helplessly. He didn’t know what to do, he didn’t know what to feel. Did he deserve it because of his selfishness? Because he didn’t think before he acted? He just wanted to be happy.

His ear perked up at the sound of something sliding over rocks behind him and he quickly whipped around, only to slam into the ground. Another demon tackled him, caging him in with his knees and pointing a staff threateningly at his face. Lance’s ears lowered in submission and he tucked his chin down to protect his throat. His eyes stayed glued to the staff for a moment before darting to his attacker’s face. His blood ran cold like ice.

“Pidge?” He asked in complete bafflement. For a moment, their eyes widened in shock before narrowing dangerously.

“How do you know that name?” The voice was deep, obviously not Pidge but someone who looked remarkably like them. The staff dug into his chest after a few more seconds of silence and Lance rushed to explain his relationship with his teammate. The man, watched him silently, only his eyes betraying his concern. After the short explanation, he nodded and moved off of Lance.

“I think you should come with me,”

Lance gulped and scuttled backwards. He huffed and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms in front of him. It felt like he was looking at Pidge, from the disgruntled expression to the annoyed posture and he couldn’t help but trust him. He cautiously got up and followed the man into the smoke.

“Where are we going?” He asked after a few minutes of quiet walking. The man doesn’t respond. “Just to let you know, if you kill me, there are a lot of people who’d be pretty upset,”

“Oh yeah? Got a lot of friends?” The man laughs, looking back at him.

“Yeah I do, and a wonderful husband!” Lance preens happily, ignoring for a moment that he was nowhere near his family. “Speaking of which, how do you know Pidge?”

He seems to hesitate for a second before sighing.

“I’m her brother, the name’s Matt,”

“Her brother!? I didn’t know she had a brother,”

“Yeah well, I don’t exactly think she’d remember,” he stated sadly.

“Keith, we have to go,” Allura said softly, coming up slowly from behind the distraught familiar. Keith slowly shook his head, not facing her.

“I can’t go,” he replied.

“Keith we must, there isn’t much time,” she insisted.

“I have to find him,” he croaked.

“He has to be summoned again, Keith,”

“What?”

“When a familiar dies, they return to Hell, we have to summon Lance again,”

“But I thought only Shiro could summon him,” Keith said weakly, wiping away his tears.

“We have ways Keith, it’s not too late but we have to go now,” she insisted, reaching out with her hand.

It wasn’t long until they came across a small opening in the side of a sheer cliff. Matt went in first, turning so he could squeeze into the small space. They went in further until they could see a ratty looking curtain covering the deeper parts of the cave. Matt held it open for Lance to walk through. He looked at him strangely but did so, glancing around the homey space as he did. Matt gestured for him to move on, an easy smile on his face.

Lance stopped cold in the doorway of the next room, a small gasp escaping him.

“Hey Matt, welcome back,”

Shiro.

Shiro.

Lance’s hands went to his mouth, trying to cover the surprised cries coming from him. He was already crying happily but he couldn’t move. It didn’t feel real.

“Matt?” Shiro asked confused, turning to the doorway. His eyes landed on Lance and he dropped something in shock. “Lance?” He whispered, eyes wide. Lance wailed and ran forward, collapsing in Shiro’s warm arms. It was everything he missed, Shiro soothingly pet Lance’s head and whispered reassurances to him as he tried to calm down.

“What are you doing here?” He asked quietly.

“I had to find you,”

“You shouldn’t be here, it’s dangerous,”

“I couldn’t, I knew you weren’t dead, I couldn’t just leave you here,”

“You knew I wasn’t dead? How did you figure that out? Do we have a connection or something?” Shiro asked, pulling away from his familiar. Lance shook his head and looked away, suddenly reminded of his time with the changeling.

“What happened while I was gone, Lance?” Shiro asked. Lance gulped, he forgot how well Shiro could read him.

“There was a changeling, it came back as you,” he admitted, looking down instead. “And I didn’t realize that it wasn’t you,”

“Did it hurt you?” Was the first thing he asked, shocking Lance. He expected him to be disappointed that he didn’t recognize his Master. Lance hesitated, the changeling never hit him or anything like that, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t hurt.

“Not physically,” he decided on, looking back at Shiro. The way he was looking at him though, it was as if Lance had told him the changeling stabbed him.

“I’m so sorry Lance,”

“It wasn’t you,” he deflected.

“No, but that doesn’t mean I can’t sympathize with you,”

There was more to the summoning then he thought there’d be. Although, he didn’t think it was possible in the first place. They had to recreate Lance’s circle to perfection, then they had to acquire DNA from both Lance and Shiro to include in the circle to ensure that they would be summoning Lance, but since he was Shiro’s familiar something of his had to be present. Then they had to add spells to prevent Lance from losing his memories of his time on Earth before. So much work was being put into bringing him back, but Keith couldn’t help but have a few doubts while he was waiting in the hallway with his Master.

Allura looked over at Keith, surprised at the contemplative expression on his face.

“What’s wrong Keith?” She asked, careful not to cause a distraction inside the room. He gulped before looking at her, his face open and vulnerable.

“Do you think he even wants to come back?”

“What?” She blinked in shock, her face showing her surprise. Keith’s ears laid flat, exposing his anxiousness.

“Lance. Would he want to come back? Ever since Shiro disappeared, and we found out about the changeling, he’s been miserable. Nothing made him happier than being by Shiro’s side, it destroyed him and I couldn’t even help him.” Tears welled up in Keith’s eyes and he struggled to brush them away. “Being here would be a constant reminder of everything he’s lost,”

Allura watched him for a moment, two sides warring each other in her mind. On one hand, she could understand where Keith was coming from, on the other, she wanted to smack him on the head for thinking like that.

“You know Lance loves you right?” She asked carefully. Keith nodded hesitantly, watching her warily. “And you love Lance?”

“More than anything in the world,”

“If you were in his situation, where would you want to be? Back with the ones, you love, or someplace you don’t completely remember?” Keith gasped slightly at the question, reality finally sinking in. “Lance has been with us for so long, he doesn’t remember what Hell was for him and I hate to say this but he’s probably alone and scared right now,”

Keith gulped and nodded, if it was in relief or concern, he didn’t really know. Silently he slunk forward and pressed his face to Allura’s shoulder. She smiled sadly and pet his ears back comfortingly.

“Master Allura?” One of the priests stuck their head out of the room. “We’re ready,”

She pulled away from Keith with a comforting smile, Keith wiped away his tears unable to return the gesture and they headed inside.

“You and Keith are married!?”

Lance laughed merrily, nodding and wiping away a tear.

“When did that happen?”

“I don’t know, a while ago? But we were just married recently,” he smiled serenely before sighing. “But now we have to figure out a way to get out of Hell,”

“I wouldn’t worry about that, they’re most likely working on summoning you again right now,” Shiro stated.

“They can do that?” Matt asked in shock.

“Well yeah, there’s not many things that can take a demon completely out of commission,” Shiro explained, before looking over at Lance. “It looks like it’s already started,” he said, poking Lance in the forehead where a dot of glowing blue light appeared. Lance shrieked, jumping up and attempting to rub the light away somehow. Both Shiro and Matt laughed as the light spread down Lance’s body all the way to the tip of his tail.

“They’re almost complete,” Shiro commented offhandedly, making Lance come to a stop. He looked over at the two of them contemplatively before seemingly coming to a decision.

“Lance?” Matt asked in concern. Lance nodded to himself and launched at the two of them, wrapping his arms around their necks. With a big flash of light, they shot into the sky. Both Shiro and Matt screamed in panic at the speed they were ascending.

“WHAT THE FUCK!” Matt wailed, clutching onto Lance with his talons.

“I’M TAKING YOU BITCHES WITH ME!” He screamed back with a sharp grin.

He watched the bright circle unblinking, it glowed steadily brighter. He didn’t know how long it would take, neither did any of the priests. To them, it was always different, depending on what type of familiar it was or how eager they were to return to the surface. That was the part Keith was afraid of, what if Lance never reappeared? What if he was right and Lance didn’t want to come back? He didn’t want to think of the possibility but according to the priests, it was just as likely.

He expected maybe Lance to be thinking about it in Hell, or make them wait for a little while before reappearing.

He didn’t expect for the room to immediately burst into blinding light. The power boomed throughout the headquarters, knocking everyone to the ground; Keith included. It took a few dizzying seconds to pull his head off the ground but when he did, his heart almost exploded.

Right in front of him was his husband.

“LANCE!” He cried happily, scooping the cat familiar up in his arms. It took a few seconds but Lance wrapped his arms around his neck and purred happily as he nuzzled closer.

“Keith,” he sighed happily. Keith wept, holding him close to his chest.

“I can’t believe you went to Hell on our wedding day,” he said, sniffing slightly. Lance looked sheepish for a second before glancing over Keith's shoulder and smiling.

“Uhh, speaking of which,” he trailed off as a shadow fell over their forms. Keith blinked, confused before looking behind him. Or rather above them.

“I don’t think you asked for permission to marry my son,” Shiro stood above him, his arms crossed as he looked menacing down at him. The effect was slightly ruined when the other exorcists ran to him and clung on for dear life.

“Shiro,” he said in disbelief. Shiro laughed, giving the two of them a wide smile.

“Welcome home,”

I’m hoping to do a short side story with Matt and Pidge. I hope everyone enjoyed this series 💙

Masterlist

[superaskthebatimocsandfriends]

wrote a bit of a what-if Henry and Sammy ended up in the Fallout universe both versions belong to @metallicartist  , Kola belongs to me and the other characters mention belongs to their rightful owners. 

         Henry gave a groan as he sat up slowly as he rubbed his head as he tried to get his bearings only to finally notice that the floor under him wasn’t a floor but a sandy ground. He jumped up and looked around falling on his ass as he looked around in shock seeing that they were out of the studio in the near middle of nowhere. The man couldn’t believe it they were out of the studio they were free of that hell hole the man couldn’t help but laugh before being brought back from his thought. Behind him, Sammy gave a groan the ink-covered man sitting up “my head what happened?” he asked sitting up on his knees as Henry came up beside him. He took a moment to clear his head before finally seeing where they were at looking around confused “Henry.. why are we in the middle of the desert?” he asked the other male. Henry just gave a shrug in response to this showing he didn’t know “I don’t think it really matters all I can say is as long as it’s not the studio I’m fine with this” he tells him.  Beside him, Sammy gave a sigh as he stood up swaying for a moment before catching his balance as he dusted himself off before looking around trying to figure out where to go. As the two tried to pick a direction to go in they suddenly heard someone laughing behind them catching the attention of the two “well what do we have here fellas some fresh meat?” it said as the person came into view. The person stepped out along with four other people all dressed strangely joining the leader jeering at the two men “It looks like we got ourselves some fresh meat, good I was getting ansty with not having anything for some time” one said a look of excitement in their eyes.  Causing Sammy to hold up his hands in response as did Henry “hey we don’t want any trouble we just want directions home is all” the ink man told them only for the female of the group to come up and hit him with a butt of a gun knowing him down. He heard Henry went to scold them only to also get hit also falling to the ground groaning in response to this as Sammy went to yell at them only to stop when a gun was aimed at his face.  

         Moments later both men were tied up back to back as their captors laughed and jeered at them making comments about the two of them. Both men watched as the strangers took a bit off of something laughing in response to this the female of the group tried to force the needled into Henry’s arm. Only for her head to suddenly explode splattering her blood and brains all over the man’s face causing a shocked look to cross his and Sammy’s face. As things became chaos around them as the other strangers started to freak out trying to find where the shots had come from. Only for them to fall one by one till only the leader remained who was on the ground hurt as the sound of footsteps coming closer was heard before they stopped. As the mysterious savior came to a stop beside the leader as the man started to spit swears at the person before a shot rang out and everything was silent once again. Before the stranger walked over to them showing it to be just a kid wearing a strange blue outfit with yellow on it and what looked to be a shoulder pat on it. The knelt down a bit to their height as they started to set them free untying their bindings before standing up and going over to the bodies and started to mess with them as if looking for something. Henry rubbed his wrist once they freed him as he looked at the child confused “who are you?” he asked before seeing the girl stand up and looked at him stepping over holding out her hand to him. Before she spoke to the two men “Kola F-Frost nice to met y-you,” she tells him before the man took her hand to shake it “Henry Stein and this is Sammy Lawrence” she tells him.  

           Sammy didn’t take her hand as he simply said “pleasure, now can I ask where we are at?” he asked the kid who looked up at him giving him a look for a moment. Before she realized that he wasn’t joking around with her as she gave a sigh “t-this is the Mojave w-wasteland,” she tells them seeing the two men look at each other then back at her. Wondering if this kid was just fucking around with the two of them but the way she and those people were dressed along with other factors told them she wasn’t messing with them. Kola figured it would be for the best if they all got to a safe location so with that she signaled them “come on you b-both can freakout l-later, for now, we should get t-to a safe place” she tells them before leading the way. Not having much of a choice the two men followed her as they walked going past blasted out buildings and rubble as they walked for a good bit before coming to a large gate of sorts. Going through both men were in even more shock as they saw more buildings either ruined or board up as she leads them on now and then having to stop when they got attacked or when someone came to talk to Kola. But other than that nothing too exciting happened as she dragged them along before finally coming to one last gate with what looked to be a bunch of big imposing robots with strange faced on the screen. She told the bots that the two men were with her and to let them pass all of them slowly lowering their weapons to let her, Henry and Sammy pass through. The voice of one saying “enjoy your stay on the strip” to them as they did so opening the gate as the three went through only for both to stop in awe as they looked at all the surrounding casinos. Each one looked different but they couldn’t stay and ogle before Kola grabbed them both and dragged them into one that looked to have a sign that said “Lucky 38” on it as she walked in. This one looked to be in a bit of disarray but other than that looked fine as she went to the elevator and dragged them in with her before hitting a button as they rode up together.  

        Finally, making it the three stepped out only for the girl to get tackled on to the ground by something the three seeing it was a dog. Only it looked odd as its upper half looked a bit normal but the lower looked to be robotic in nature not only that its brain looked to be exposed. Henry looked at Sammy who looked back as they listened to the girl laugh in response to this “I-I missed you t-too Rex!” she tells the dog who gave a happy bark before the dog noticed them and growled in response. Kola frowned at this hugging the dog in response to this “down boy t-they’re friends” she tells the robotic dog calming it down as it sat panting looking at them. Soon a voice was heard speaking that sounded like a female “Kola is that you?” it asked as a woman wear what looked to be a brown hood on her head came out of one room. Others followed behind her a round sphere looking robot, a man wearing a beret and sunglasses, a blond-haired man with a doctor coat on, another woman in a cowboy hat, a zombie in a mechanic suit, and a large blue looking monster with a sun hat with a flower on it. Standing up Kola dusted herself off in response oh “Henry, S-Sammy this is Rex, Veronica, C-Cass, Raul, B-Boone, Arcade, ED-E, a-and Lily” she said introducing each one by one showing who was who to them.  Both took note on each one now knowing Rex was the dog, ED-E was the sphere thing, Boone wore the beret, Arcade wore the doctor's coat, Raul was the zombie looking thing, Cass wore the cowboy hat, Veronica wore the brown hood on her head and lastly Lily was the big blue monster. As they took note the girl brought them back to the present explaining a bit to them “Raul is a g-ghoul and L-Lily is called an n-nightkin don’t worry they’re n-nice and won’t do anything to you” she tells the two men seeing the worry on their faces.    

        Lily spoke up to both men smiling at them almost “hello dearies, I am so to meet you both if your hungry I can cook something up for you” she tells them before lumbering away before they could say anything about it. She walked into the kitchen followed by the others figuring they would finish eating before going to do their own thing. Kola gave a shrug as she signaled for them to follow her as both men did so figuring something to eat didn’t sound half bad. As they sat down joining the others at the table as they all talked with each other about what they had done that day or what they would do. Henry listened in with Sammy now and then both responding to questions anyone had despite still being freaked out by everything around them this seemed better than being held captive by some crazies or back in the studio. But other than that they were safe for now tho it still worried them as to how they had ended up in a place like this suddenly maybe they could see if Kola knew anything but for now they’d wait.   

[gakimer2]

Chapter 3

As I flew through the doors into the museum, I was greeted by the sounds of gunfire and shouts. I quickly noticed two raiders up high on platforms, preparing to shoot down at me. I raised up the laser musket to fire, but when I pulled the trigger, nothing game out.

“You have to crank it to give it energy!” shouted the man I had seen earlier. I quickly spun the large handle on the side. This time when I shot, a laser like a lightning bolt struck the raider right in the chest, sending him tumbling backwards off the ledge.

The other raider began to fire down at me. I quickly hid behind a large piece of rubble. While I hid, I cranked the rifle twice, preparing for a strong blast since the guy up higher had more armor. As soon as there was a pause in the shooting, I stood up, quickly aimed, and pulled the trigger. What was left of the raider crumbled down.

As I moved through the museum, I came a large fenced off area with a fusion core generator inside, still with a fusion core. I thought it might be useful later, so I blasted the lock off the door and stole the core.

When I got to the second floor, the first room I came to had two raiders inside, talking up a storm. I took out my pistol and sneaked up underneath a railing. As soon as I got close to them, I stood up and opened fire, killing one before he even realized that I was there and the second before they realized where I was. I noticed that on their body, they had some decent leather armor, so I pulled it off of them and stuck it on myself. I also grabbed a shotgun off of the larger raider and put it in my bag for later.

A few raiders later, I had finally made it to the door that all the raiders had been trying to break down. I carefully walked up to it and knocked three times.

“Are you the vault-dweller or just another raider?” asked the man on the other side.

“If by vault-dweller you mean the guy with the blue spandex. Yeah, that’s me.” The door opened to reveal the revolution guy.

“Hi. My name is Preston Garvey. The last of the Minutemen.”

“I’m Theo Johnson. The last of Vault 111. And apparently over 200 years old.” Garvey’s eyes widened.

“200 years old? But you barely look 30, and you sure as heck aren’t a ghoul.”

“Ghoul? I have no idea what that means. But yeah, 200 years. Apparently Vault 111 was some cryogenic facility… and they didn’t tell anyone. And now that I’m out I’m trying to find my son, Shaun. He was stolen while I was frozen. He wasn’t even a year old.”

“Damn. I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen anything. We only just got here from Quincy. We are in desperate need of help. We’ve already lost so many good people. If you help us, maybe we’ll be able to help you.”

I looked around the room. There were four people other than Garvey. A guy sitting at a desk with his head in his hands, a girl pacing the room mumbling angrily, an old lady petting my dog, and a guy rapidly typing away on a computer.

“I’ll help you Garvey, but I don’t know if this musket will get us through all the raiders that are probably waiting for us.”

“No, but Sturges has an idea. Sturges?” The guy who was typing at the computer stood up and faced me.

“You might have noticed the crashed vertibird on the roof. Well, whoever crashed it left behind a fully functional set of T-45 power armor. It’s probably been there for 200 years. None of us here know how to use it, and it’s out of juice. If I’m not mistaken, it needs a-”

“A fusion core.” I cut in. “I grabbed one from downstairs. And I know all too well how to use power armor. I practically lived inside a set for a few years back in the day.”

“Wonderful. And there’s a minigun in the vertibird that, with the power armor, you will be able to rip off and obliterate the raiders with.”

“Wonderful. I’ll get right to it.” As I began walking, the old lady beckoned at me.

“I wasn’t sure what Dogmeat was going to bring us, but you are surely better than what I could’ve ever hoped for. Thank you for helping us, but be warned. Something dangerous is out there. Something big. Be careful.” I nodded to her and left to the door, Dogmeat right at me heels.

As I climbed into the power armor on the roof, I realized just how much it felt like home. It may have been years since I last wore any, but putting it on felt normal. It was an older model then I was used to, but it was still power armor. I grabbed the minigun of the vertibird and easily ripped it off. I was prepared for anything. Or so I thought.

I jumped off the building, causing the ground to shake, and immediately began to mow down the raiders. I probably had killed 10 of them before I had to reload.

At that point, only one or two raiders remained. I thought I had seen one duck into a nearby building, but before I could go after him, a raider with a lot more armor than the rest stepped out onto the road. He was clearly the leader.

“Why are you helping those people!” they shouted. “They are weak. You are clearly incredibly strong. You have to have been to get through my men twice.”

“I’m helping them because they need helping. They are just ordinary people, trying to live their lives. But people like you come along and destroy their lives. The America I believe in and fought for protects the weak, and so do I.”

“America is dead. And soon, you will be-” The raider was cut off by a loud roar. I looked past the raider to see what looked like a massive, angry lizard. The raider slowly turned around. “Shit! Deathclaw!” The raider immediately began to open fire, and I did the same.

The deathclaw easily waded through the stream of bullets and swiped at the raider, slicing through him with its massive claws. Then it turned towards me and charged.

I quickly dropped the minigun and raised up my arm to block the attack of the creature. When the claws struck the armor, it ripped through it, nearly getting to my arm. Then, realizing it couldn’t get to me through the armor, it picked me up and smashed me against the ground. I thought for sure I was a goner. There was no way for me to escape its grasp, and it would get to me eventually.

Then, suddenly, as the deathclaw roared, I heard a laser blast, and the deathclaw fell over dead. I looked back to see Garvey standing on the steps, his laser musket still raised.

“What the hell was that thing!” I asked as I stood up.

“Meet the deathclaw. The scariest beast of the Commonwealth.” Slowly, one by the other people in Garvey’s group walked out, all muttering about the massive corpse. “You said earlier that you were glad to help. Well, if you ever want to help us any more, meet us in Sanctuary. It’s a place just up the road that Mama Murphy has seen.”

“Yeah. I know Sanctuary. That’s where I used to live. It’s a nice place. I’ll definitely be back there sometime.”

“Wonderful. Well, we should probably get going.”

“Wait.” said the old lady, Mama Murphy. “A word about your son. I’ve seen him. He’s alive.”

“Seen him? Where?” She chuckled.

“No, not like that. I have what we call the Sight. It allows me to see things. If you want to find your son, go to the great green jewel of the Commonwealth, Diamond City.”

“Where’s that?” I asked.

“The old baseball stadium in Boston. Hopefully there you will find what you are looking for. Good luck.”

“Wait. I need more!”

“If you want more, bring me some Jet. The chems make it easier to see.” I glanced at Garvey. It was clear he disapproved of the chems.

“I’ll see you all later. I’m going to make the trek to Diamond City. Don’t worry, I’ll be back. Oh, and tell Codsworth hi for me.” I gave Garvey one last look before taking off towards Boston.

[mixterglacia]

Still One Outlaw Left: Fallout 4

There had always been two things Hancock would vividly remember about Logan. Even if he was high as a kite (and twice as funky, according to said human.) they were always clear in his mind.

The first was how he’d first met the old military man. 

Finn had skittered off towards the gate, which almost always meant trouble was brewing. It was just in his nature to cause issues. So Hancock followed along at a leisurely pace, wanting to give the nuisance enough time to get into trouble again. After all, he’d been itching for an excuse to snuff out the little shit for quite some time.

He could hear Finn starting up the “insurance” nonsense he seemed so fond of, and rounded the corner just in time to witness a brutal end even by Goodneighbor’s violent standards.

Finn was on the ground, apparently stunned by whatever had hit him. Blood was already starting to drip down his chin. Hancock’s gaze was caught by the motion of a blue baseball bat, strapped with razor blades. It arced through the cool evening air and hit home with a resounding crack, ending the town’s problem child faster than you could blink.

There was a moment where the mayor couldn’t quite process what the fuck had just happened. Then he sensed he was being watched. Hancock put on a lazy grin before he even looked up to see if he was right. (Mostly for appearances mind you.) The batter seemed to be waiting for him, like he just happened to know the ghoul was lurking nearby.

“Nice show of dominance, brother.” He said, knowingly standing out of range of his swing.

The mans posture calmed after that, which Hancock took as a good sign. Even going as far as putting his swatter away, before closing the distance the mayor had been fairly keen on keeping.

He had to admit, he was startled to see Valentine with him, though that wouldn’t be the last surprise of the day for sure. In the end, it all wound up with the man leaning on his balcony, listening to his speech to the town. He had this air of danger about him that was almost more thrilling than off putting.

“Got a name, brother?” Hancock prompted afterwards.

The man snorted, glancing from behind his dark glasses. “You can call me Paddy, sir.”

“That sounds fake.” Now it wasn’t his place to judge what folks called themselves, but he wanted to hear more of this fella’s voice and it seemed like the best option he had to achieve that goal.

“Because it is, smartass.”

Hancock laughed until he was wheezing, not expecting the strangers response. Rubbing at his mouth to stifle another fit of giggles, the ghoul caught a glimpse of a tin of Mentats tucked into the shoulder bag he kept close to his side.

The mayors grin went from lazy to full blown shit eating.

“Fair enough, friend.”

The next memory wasn’t quite as entertaining as the first. It’s not like it was awful but...if pressed to describe it, Hancock might have called it bittersweet. 

He’d been roaming the wastes for a good long while now, and had even learned Paddy’s real name was Logan. (He’d overheard a tiff between him and Nicky where the detective had called him by name.) He’d pestered him into pulling down the bandanna the fella wore over his face, seen the scars that split his cheeks in two. 

He’d even brushed a thumb over the mans lips, asked if it was okay to kiss him. Logan had pushed him away but had said that it wasn’t that he didn’t want to. He just felt uncomfortable with it at the time. He would rarely humor the ghoul and get high with him, watching the stars and telling him the names they used to be called before the world ended. He pointed to a small string and told him how he was born under those stars 40 years ago, before correcting himself. (”I mean...250? I guess? Fuck if I can keep track anymore.” He’d say.)

So when they’d drifted back to Sanctuary, Hancock felt like he’d gotten to know the man calling himself Paddy pretty damn well. Knew he had a strong distaste for confined spaces. (Said half the reason he’d shown Bobbi No-Nose zero mercy was because she’d forced him into these tiny tunnels stuffed with mirelurks.)

Except he didn’t know everything that made the guy tick. 

Until a wild thunderstorm rolled in that night.

He came in, soaked to the bone and ready to demand that Logan finally put a damn roof over the chemistry station, but the words died in his throat when he came into the bedroom. He couldn’t say he’d ever seen the human cry before, at least not really. He’d seen him get misty over his adopted kid, even over Hancock himself when he’d shared too much one night after a little too much Jet.

He wasn’t even sure if this counted as crying. Somewhere in the back of his mind he recalled the term would have been hyperventilating. Whatever it was called, Lo’ was curled against Nicky’s side, hands tightly clinging to the musty old coat. The detective ran his bad hand down the fella’s back, trying to soothe him but he got snapped at instead.

“I don’t need another fucking lecture Val’!” Hancock felt like he was hearing something not meant for anyone else. “I know for a -fact- that I gave you a tin of Mentats last time I was here!”

“I thought you said you weren’t a junkie.” The synth whispered harshly. “Or was that a lie?”

Logan’s breathing went funny before he shot up and snagged Nick’s tie, yanking it hard enough for some of the stitches to pop. “I am a grown man, Valentine. I was a -surgeon- I know about addiction, and let me tell you something-” He stammered a bit before clearing his throat. “-Sometimes it ain’t about getting high, it’s about not taking a knife an-”

Hancock’s boot nudged a bit of rubble, causing it to clatter on the tile floor.

All eyes were on him in an instant. He was caught, and had pretty much no way out of this situation. The ghoul couldn’t even force a grin, instead he ducked his head and sheepishly mumbled, “Sorry for, -uh-, interrupting I just...” before trailing off, unable to finish his thought.

Logan let go of Nick and waved him over. “Hancock. You’ve got Mentats on you, right?”

“I mean yeah, of course-”

“I just need one.” The man snapped, eyes burning holes through the ghoul, only made more intense by the lack of his shades.

Nick placed a hand on Logan’s shoulder. “Hancock, have you been pushing chems on him? You kn-”

“Nick Valentine, you fucking listen to me!” Logan shouted, startling him. The guy usually didn’t talk much at all, let alone raise his voice.

The synth in question went silent, optics flickering nervously around the room.

“I have an anxiety disorder.” He admitted, shakily. “After I got out of the military, I couldn’t feel safe anymore. Thunder scares the shit out of me. I don’t know why, but it does.” His hands shook a little. Hancock had to stop himself from going over and holding them to stop the trembling.

“So, “ he continued. “My shrink had me take these pills to help. It made me feel a little safer. Made it so I didn’t tear up my arms when everything got to be too much. It worked great.” He looked up, staring right at Nick. “Except now? They don’t make it anymore. So I’m wandering this gods forsaken place with no help until I find a tin of Mentats. I read the box and what did I find?” He paused to let the synth process the information for a moment.

“I found out that they shared a whole bunch of the same stuff as my old script. It’s a hell of a lot stronger, and not totally right but I decided to take one.” He took a breath. “It helped me think straight again. Let me logic my way out of the attacks. So, yeah.” His tone became bitter again. “Call me an addict all you want Nicky-Boy. I keep Addictol’s on me just in case I do go too far. But you are going to hand over that tin or I’m going to get one from Hancock because I just want to be able to -sleep- tonight.” 

Hancock found himself walking over, cautiously sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting to be shouted at or grabbed. That didn’t happen. He heard a rattle and saw that Nick had fished out the tin of chems from his pocket. There was no hesitation as he slipped it into Logan’s hand. Then the synth tugged him into a tight hug. He’d almost missed what he said to the man.

“I’m sorry. Just...please just be careful, Lo’.”

The human slipped a single tablet under his tongue with practiced ease. Then he lightly pressed his forehead to Nick’s.

“I will, Val’.”

It wasn’t the kind of thing you’d tell your kids but those memories were precious to Hancock. Almost more precious than the first time Logan had kissed him. The first time he’d admitted that he’d fallen hard for the ghoul. He’d been fondly recounting them to Fahrenheit, after the man had asked him to stay in Goodneighbor while he and Nicky went to the Glowing Sea to track down his adopted kid. 

One of his guards burst through the door, eyes wide. “Boss, you’ve gotta’ get to the gate fast!”

“What’s going down this time?” He said, a hint of teasing in his tone.

“It’s Nick-he’s got that human of yours and-and” the guard stumbled over his words, swallowing hard. “He’s hurt real bad.”

Hancock wasn’t ready for this. Not ready at all.