ICC- Fallout Chapter 2- The Wastelands

The ghoul's skin had mostly melted off it's skulls so that the eyes seemed to dance crazily. For Dwemer, never having seen a ghoul before, the visage was shocking.

"Brother, you're in bad fucking shape. You should see a doctor."

But Roadrunner intervened. "Wait. You're the message from out of time. I saw you in a dream."

Daniel looked at the girl. "Babe, if you are having sex dreams about ghouls, you need some lovin bad."

"No. You know about the past." Said Roadrunner.

"The past? Hell, I come from the past." Said Daniel.

"Yes, and you are the key to the future." Said Roadrunner. "What do you know about the Hollow Men."

Daniel stopped cold, his mouth hung open. In his mind the dark man. The dark sunglasses hiding black pits where eyes should be. The sense of vacume sucking everything in, consuming all.

"The Hollow men..." was all Daniel Stuttered. Then the ghouls fainted.

Dwemer looked at the ghoul lieing on the ground. "I think he's dead. He looks dead. We should take him someplace before one of the dogs starts to chew on his limbs."

Indeed one of Shady Sands dogs was already sniffing, and others were coming. Dwemer saw the dog shyly flick it's tongue over the apparently dead man, as if trying to discern if the man was dangerous to eat. Judging by the man's rotting skin, perhaps such caution was well justified.

"No he just looks like he's dieing. He's a ghoul, but ghouls don't much care for sunlight. So let's get him in." Said Roadrunner.

"Was this the one we were waiting for?" Asked Dwemer.

"No, there are two more."

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

"So baby, what was Vault 15 like?" Asked Melvin.

Katrina was lieing next to him, and Melvin like the feeling of her lovely white breasts against his skin. After the fight with the tentacled beast, this was a nice place to come home to. In fact he was thinking maybe he should never leave.

When Katrina didn't at first answer, Melvin checked to see if she was asleep. All night long and she was still wanting.

No, not asleep.

"There was a lot of division there." Said Katrina, slowly.

"What do you mean?"

"I was too young. I don't remember."

"You must have remembered something." Insisted Melvin.

"My parents took me out of there, but they were killed before they got here." Said Katrina. "I don't like to talk about it."

Melvin let that sit for awhile.

Then Katrina said something else. "There was something wrong with Vault 15. Always. They were digging deep. I don't know why. There was something wrong there, something dark. Before my father died, he asked me never to go back to Vault 15. There is evil there."

Melvin tried to hold her, to offer some comfort, because he had learned it was important to give a little lovin after the deed was done if you wanted another helping, and what man didn't want more. Then he said. "What do you think he meant. I'm supposed to be going there."

Katrina looked at him. "I wish you wouldn't. Daddy said there was something else at Vault 15, something older than the vault, older than mankind. Something that wasn't happy and wanted out, and was willing to use people for its dark ends. It's a terrible place."

"Probably just superstitions."

"Maybe." She said, "Maybe not."

 

OCC- Ok, I am thinking it's time to wrap this chapter up and start a new chapter Vault 15 where we get to encounter a mysterious enemy. This is a last engagement for this chapter, but I will let everyone get their licks in. The assassin here is not human and must escape. Furthermore, he cannot be wounded in a normal way. I will pm those involved in this gunfight.

ICC-

Caribe had dragged off Inne. Rob had left shortly after Caribe had dragged Inne's comatose body away. Roadrunner had moved off, doing her fortune telling trick for whatever bottle caps she could make. Rich was trying to help out the fainted ghoul who was slowly coming to. Dwemer had never seen such a creature, and he felt both nauseous and curious at the sight of him.

The ghouls eyes rolled back up and he looked at both. "Where the hell?"

"It's ok, you're with friends." Said Rich.

"Friends hunh? Well who the fuck are you?" Asked the ghoul.

"Rich, and this is Dwemer, or Brute. He's the one who's going to Vault 15. I'm still thinking about it." Said Rich.

"Think about it! Sure, better think about it good. It's a bad place Vault 15!" Said the ghoul, who was struggling to get up.

"You're not the first one to tell me." Said Dwemer. His head was starting to get fuzzy from all the drinking. "What is it about the darkness there."

"Darkness there, sometime darkness here. Creatures of the darkness. From the deep! I think." Said the ghoul, his mind starting to catch up to him. "Better not say it loudly."

"Or?" Asked Rich.

"Or the darkness will find you." Said a voice above them.

Neither man had been paying attention to the bar. It was the ghoul who saw the man first, and his eyes nearly popped open in the recognition. The ghoul jumped back from the table, as if evading the strike of a snake, banged his head, and collapsed.

Neither Dwemer nor Rich had seen the man approach, it was as if he had materialized before them. But both were well aware of the blade coming down.

(Later, Roadrunner would tell them she had not seen the man approach, although she had secretly been glancing towards Dwemer. Zeke, who had been sitting facing them, would also tell them that he had not seen the stranger, thinking he had been thinking more about his drink. Vedpose, facing away never noticed the stranger at all. In fact, when Seth later investigated, none in the bar could recall seeing the man enter the tavern. He simply wasn't one moment, was the next. )

Dwemer heard the buzz and lifted the table as a shield for both him and Rich. An awkward move made possible only for Dwemer's quickness and strength.

Lifting the table shielded the attack, and both men saw a chainsaw blade cutting into the table that shielded.

"Hey! That's my table you fucker!" Shouted the barkeep. "You just can't..."

Neither Dwemer nor Rich saw the gun, but heard the boom of the cannon like gun that silenced the bartender. The same blast, only feet from Vedpose's ear, momentarily deafened the woman.

Zeke fully aware now, saw the man, a giant, in a a long black leather coat that seemed to flow down to his boots, a black hate and eyes hidden behind dark shades. He saw the man reaching out with his huge gun, point it to the barkeeper and fire one shot. The man was a giant and all the others in the bar either fled for the door or ducked down to avoid the crossfire.

Zeke acted quickly and without thinking, grabbing Vedpose and pulling her out of the way.

The shot gave both Rich and Dwemer a moment, Dwemer pushed the table up and against the man, shoving him to the side, and then rolled to the left as Rich rolled to the right. Zeke at the bar, was also going for his weapon. Vedpose, who had hit the floor hard, was momentarily stunned and a bit slow reaching for her gun.

But the man had vanished.

Then the lights went out. Blinding them all in pitch black darkness.

Roadrunner- "You ok?"

"Yeah. Where the fuck did he go." Said Rich.

"Roadrunner, stay down. I don't see him." Said Dwemer.

"Whatever you do, don't shoot at what you can't see. You might just hit me and I'm not ready to die." Said another, later discovered to be Zeke.

"Who the hell did you piss off?" Said Vedpose.

The five adventurers, perhaps the only ones that remained in the bar, were silent, listening, hoping they might hear the assassin.

Than, eerily from behind the bar. "Death awaits those that seek Vault 15."

Then the room exploded in thunderous booms as the assassin blasted at those that remained in the bar with his huge gun.

OCC- sorry, forgot to post for Vedpose. Please reread and note.

 

The moment in which the assassin spoke gave the others time to recover and draw their weapons.

When the assassin fired, his gun flashed like lightning into the room. But his gunfire was met with a battery of pistol fire in response.

For a moment the bar crackled in gunfire, both from the assassin and his targets.

Then silence.

No moans. Each person waiting, listening.

Then quickly the sound of reloading.

Then silence.

Zeke spoke first. "Ved, you hit?"

"What?" Said Vedpose, momentarily still deaf.

Zeke repeated the question, now louder. "No, I don't think he was shooting at me." She whispered.

 

Even in her dream, Sam heard the thunder.

A storm was coming over the horizon, rain, precious rain, pelted the dry ground, and where the rain fell, flowers and grass like she had not seen before, sprung from the ground.

Above her storm clouds rolled across the sky and before her walked a man in the wardrobe of old. He seemed to walk at and easy gate, but he still rapidly closed the distance before stopping.

He wore a shaggy cloak made of an unknown creature, and around his neck was a chain of teeth. Behind his head were a number of brilliant feathers and he wore soft shoes that seemed to glide against the ground. But he was old, his face lined with canyons, his eyes deep and sad.

Who are you? Sam asked.

Your grandfather, said the sad old man.

Why have I never met you? She asked.

The old man laughed. YOu have always known me. My blood and yours is the same. You are my child.

You are dead. She said.

As dead or as alive as our kind is and will ever be.

I don't understand.

You're not to supposed to, girl, this is a vision thing. It's better to experience this with peyote or the happy grass.

What do you want with me?

Thunder rolled across the land, lightning flashes.

The old ones are awake again. They will destroy us if they can. Said the man, looking up and feeling is face pelted with rain. And yet, the world can be reborn in the rains.

Who are they? Asked Sam.

They are those that have always been, those that lie malignant in the land. The ones we keep abay with our songs. But there are no more songs. There are no more shamans. They are unleashed again.

What do they want?

What do all things imprisoned want? Their freedom. But they will find their freedom in fire. They will not be allowed to escape. You must stop them. Because it is in your blood.

Because of you? She asked.

The old man smiled and nodded. You betcha kid. But hey, you also got my good looks. But be mindful. They will not be allowed to escape, but if you fail in this, the others will intervene and will bathe the world in fire.

The old man lifeted his head to the rain again. Fire or water, the future rests with you.

The sky filled with a rolling thunder and the grandfather disappeared.

The sound was like gunfire, and once that mental connection was made, the vision dematerialized, and Sam realized there was a gunfight in the bar.

_____________

Rich checked the bartender, for a pulse, but the man was well past him. The bullet had blown away much of Morton's head.

The assassin had come for Dwemer. Dwemer?

Rich came back around the bar, and saw Dwemer. There was blood coming from his colleague's scalp.

"Fuck, he's hit." Said Rich.

Zeke and Vedpose saw Rich bending over a fallen man. Both quickly came to his aid.

"There's a pulse." Said Rich. "Strong one."

"Blood is in the back of the scalp, but I can't find an entry wound. " Said Zeke. "More like he hit his head hard."

"Looks like his pipboy is fucked though." Said Vedpose. Indeed, his pipboy was still buzzing and sizzling. Two bullets had smashed the unit.

Dwemer's eyes flickered.

"Looks like burns on his wrist." Said Vedpose. "Probably an electric shock when the pipboy got hit. Those are electric burns."

"Looks like he got a bruise on his chest as well." Said Zeke.

Roadrunner, watching the men work, was quickly putting things together. "The shooter went for the chest, but probably hit the pipboy instead. Maybe Dwemer's arm was up and the shots hit that, giving him a shock that knocked him out. The blood from his head came from the fall." She had known Dwemer had not been killed. It was not his time.


Dwemer's eyes were open now and starting to focus. "What the fuck happened?"

"You got lucky bud." Said Rich.

"I think your friend will be alright." Said Zeke. "I'm Zeke and she's Vedpose."

"Dwemer." Said Dwemer, "Some call me Brute. This is Rich."
OCC-
Ok, I am shutting down this chapter now. WIll lock it tomorrow unless anyone wants to post something new.