Chapter 9: The Radiation King

The sun had risen and morning had come. The three mercenaries awoke to greet the new day on the road, but were met with something they didn't think they would see. They awoken to the old man and McKilla, Kelly Newbell, roasting a mole rat on the fire. They all pulled out their guns.

"What is she doing free?" Courtney asked, pointed her gun at the raider.

"I let her free." The old man admitted, aiming his blind eyes at nothing.

"Why? Why in the fuck would you let her free?!" Rodger grilled.

"She is of no threat to us." The old man said.

"No threat?! She tried to kill us." Courtney argued.

"Yes, but that was a different time. A time where we didn't learn." The old man remarked.

Kelly decided to speak for herself. "Hey, I won't start shit if you don't." She said.

"I find that hard to believe." Jr. said, not believing a word she said.

"You all are so jumpy in the face what you perceive as danger, that you don't consider if what you see is actually dangerous." The old man spoke.

"A raider is a raider." Courtney said. "They are monsters and freaks. That's all they are."

"The raiders of the Plains Wasteland are an interesting commodity." The old man said. "At least, that's what Micheal would say."

"Why would he say that?" Kelly asked.

"The Plains Wasteland Raider's aren't actually from these parts. No, they are from out West." The old man explained. "When the NCR massacred the Great Khans out West, most other raider groups took that as their cue to leave. They packed whatever they could and headed East. Some have settled in the Midwest, others have gone so far as Pennsylvania or Appalachia."

"Yeah, we know about that part." Kelly said.

"Yes. Much like how the Enclave and the Brotherhood went out East." The old stranger said.

"The Enclave went out East?" Jr. asked, getting distracted.

"Yep. Don't worry though, Lyon's Brotherhood of Steel destroyed them. Of course, they didn't do it without the aid of the Capital Wasteland's own messiah, the Lone Wanderer." The old man answered. "Even though most of the credit goes to the Dweller from Vault 101, a certain unit in the Brotherhood played a crucial role in the final battle against the Enclave. They defected though and went out West to Wyoming. Micheal ran into them when he was in the Badlands."

"Wait.. Micheal went into the Badlands? When was this?" Rodger was confused.

"Right. You weren't awake when I told the story. Kelly was though." The old man said.

"Kelly? Is that what she calls herself?" Courtney assumed he was talking about McKilla.

"Enough bickering." The old man demanded. "Come. Sit. Breakfast is almost ready." The mercenaries were hesitant, but eventually lowered their guns and joined the two at the campfire.

"...So why would Micheal enter the Badlands?" Jr. asked.

"It was the quickest way to California." Kelly answered. "It was that or leap over the broken bridges on the alternate route."

"Yes." The old man confirmed. "Not the safest path though, as most of you already know."

"Well, what happened in the Badlands? You said Micheal met with this rouge Brotherhood squad, right?" Kelly asked.

"Indeed I did. Along with a few other faces as well." The old man stated. He continued the story.

—

The group had just crossed the state line into Wyoming and spirits weren't high. In fact, they were shaken. Everyone between the West and the Midwest knows about the Badlands and how it's a nightmarish and depressing place to step foot in, all except young Micheal. The Prodigy was still fairly new to The Wasteland, so he had never heard the dreadful tales of the Badlands. Needless to say, his companions were not thrilled to go this way.

Micheal turned his radio on, to try and lighten the mood. The song "Rockin' Robin" by Bobby Day was playing, a rather joyous song, but it ultimately did nothing to lighten the mood. As they drove deeper and deeper into Wyoming, Micheal's Pip-Boy began to lose any signal and, soon enough, the radio died into static. Micheal shook the device on his arm, thinking it was broken at first, but eventually just turned the radio off entirely.

As they drove further, a large shadow loomed over them. The once bright desert sky was now vanquished by a thick layer of dark clouds. The sky was completely black and the dirt looked as if they were ashes. The corpses of trees, rusted signs and telephone-lines stood dead next to the dust covered road. They entered what seemed to be a whole different world compared to where they came from. Compared to this, Broken Heart was luxurious.

"I really think we should turn back." Bonnie broke the silence.

"Why? Nothings happened to us." Micheal remarked.

"Yeah, and I'd like to keep it that way." She argued. "Mikey, the Badlands is a place no one ever goes to for a reason. That reason being that it's a fucking hellhole."

"Necropolis is better than this place." Phyllis joined in.

"Look, we'll be fine. We've got a car, guns and a man in a tank suit in the trunk." Micheal said.

Just then, they heard a large crash from behind them and the car lifted up a bit.

"Jenkins just fell out the back, didn't he?" Micheal asked, fully knowing the answer. "Fantastic."

Micheal stopped the car and put it in reverse. He parked the Highwayman close to his companion, just enough to drag him back. Micheal got out of the car while Bonnie, Phyllis and Dogmeat stayed in the car. He walked over to the Paladin laying on his back.

"You can't get up, can you?" Micheal said to his companion.

"Yes, I can. We Brotherhood aren't helpless." Jenkins said. He began to twist himself like a turtle trying to get off its back. "Although assistance would be nice." He gave up.

Micheal yanked on Jenkins, trying to pull him to his feet, but to no avail. Jenkins was too heavy. Micheal tried everything he could to get that two-ton garbage can on his feet, but none of it worked. The power armor was too heavy.

"Jesus...Christ." Micheal grunted. "You need to lose a few pounds."

"You really think I'm fat?" Jenkins jokingly said, still on the ground.

Micheal thought about his situation and looked around him. He thought about taking down some telephone wire from the poles and pulling him up with the car, but that would only drag him. He sat down on Jenkins' torso, as if he were a seat, and thought for a second.

"If I had a carjack, I could just lift you up." Micheal said. He got an idea.

He stood up and went to go fetch a broken road sign. He yanked a stop sign out of the dirt and grabbed a large rock. He placed the Boulder next to Jenkins and put the stop sign on it, making a makeshift seesaw. He put the stop sign under Jenkins, intending to flip his over.

"Imma flip ya. Ready?" Micheal asked.

"Does a bloatfly shoot gunk?" Jenkins said. Micheal had a perplexed look on his face, not knowing the answer to that question. "Yes. Yes, they do." Jenkins states. "I keep forgetting you're new."

Micheal pushes on the other end of the sign, trying to lift up Jenkins. After some struggle, the seven-foot metal beast eventually turned over onto his front. He pushed himself up off the ground and was soon back on his feet.

"Thanks." Jenkins said to Micheal.

"No problem. Now get back in the trunk, this place is apparently extremely dangerous." Micheal ordered.

"It is dangerous. And it was dangerous to come here." Jenkins said as he climbed back on the car.

Micheal was about to get back in the car, but saw something just down the road. It seemed to be a group of people, but they didn't look like any type of wastlander's. They had suits of T-45 power armor on and carrying laser weaponry. They were marching away from him, so he decided to drive up to them. The group of armored soldiers heard the car pulling up behind them and went to the side of the road, so the car had enough space. Micheal went at the same speed as the soldiers and decided to start a chat with them.

"T-45? Nice. Where'd you guys get it?" Micheal asked one of the troops.

"Look at the insignia, kid. We're Brotherhood of Steel." The troop replied. "...Is that a Highwayman?"

"Yeah. It was a gift, but I've been making sure the thing runs." Micheal said. "So, you guys are Brotherhood, huh? That's cool. We got our own Brotherhood guy in the trunk right now."

The trooper looked at the back of the car and saw Jenkins in his T-51b suit.

"T-51? You part of the Western chapter?" The trooper asked.

"Midwestern." Jenkins corrected. "You?"

"We're from out East, the Capital Wasteland." They said.

"There's a Brotherhood out East?" Jenkins asked.

"Im surprised the Midwestern chapter actually exists. I thought you guys would've been wiped out by now." Another knight spoke up.

"What're you guys doing so far out this way?" Micheal asked.

"That's classified." A trooper responded with.

"Well, can you at least tell us how to get out of here. We're heading West." Bonnie said, climbing over Micheal to reach his window.

"If you follow this road and take the first left, you'll eventually hit the state line, but you'll have to pass through Lincoln City. Or, at least, what's left of it." The trooper said.

"What's in Lincoln City?" Micheal asked.

"Desolate ruins, a whole lot of feral ghouls and death itself. Good luck! You're gonna need it."

"What does that mean?! What the fuck does that mean?!" Bonnie tried to asked them, but Micheal drove off in the direction they said to go.

They drove on for about two hours before eventually hitting the outskirts of what used to be Lincoln City. The ruins spanned miles upon miles of land, but all it's beauty was sucked out of it from generations of petty battles after it was bombed. The skyscrapers that once seemed to touch the clouds were now nothing more than a distant memory covered in rubble and decay. The black complimented the feeling the city gave with the smoke coming out of the fires some survivors and raiders have started. Sometimes it so bad that the raiders and the survivors have to work together to survive. That doesn't stop the raiders from making the place fucking hell though. This place is no city... it's a haunted shadow.

Micheal maneuvered the car passed most of the debris, but his companions were urging him to go faster. However, something happened that put the group in a minor dilemma, they were out of gas.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me." Bonnie expressed her irritation. "Where the fuck are we gonna find fuel out here?!"

"No need." Phyllis said. "These old cars don't run on normal fuel. They run on Microfusion cells." Microfusion cells, or Fusion Cells as some people like to call them, are typically used as ammo in laser and plasma weaponry, but it can also be used to power electronics. In this case, the car needed Microfusion cells for fuel.

"Jenkins, you feel like giving up some of your ammo?" Micheal asked, peering his head out the window.

"No. Microfusion cells are hard to find, I need all the cells I can get to fight." Jenkins denied.

"He can never just pick up a normal gun like the rest of us." Bonnie commented.

"We did pass an electronics store not too long ago, we can probably find something there." Micheal suggested.

"I'm not getting out of this car." Bonnie said.

"What's the matter? Too afraid to step out into the danger zone?" Phyllis mocked.

"Alright, Mr. Badass. You're so brave, you go out there." Bonnie shot back. Phyllis looked at the car door, but wimped out and stayed put. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Jesus Christ, the dog has bigger balls than both of you." Micheal muttered. "Hey, Jenkins! You feel like going for a hike to the electronics store?"

"Beats sitting in the trunk." Jenkins agreed.

The Prodigy and Paladin Jenkins left the car and the rest of their team to search for the cells needed to power the Highwayman. Micheal ordered Dogmeat to stay wait the car as well, so the young Vault Dweller and the Paladin were on their own in this war torn city. Debris covered the streets and the black sky mirrored off whatever reflective substance remained partly intact.

"So..." Micheal tried to start conversation. "Were you always Brotherhood or..."

"Always. I was born into it." Jenkins answered. "My mother and father weren't though."

"Oh really?" Micheal was interested.

"Yeah. They were from the Midwest, but joined the Brotherhood after they arrived." The Paladin said.

"When did the Brotherhood arrive?" Becker asked.

"The Brotherhood arrived in the Midwest around 2197, unwillingly I might add." Jenkins explained. "The Brotherhood of Steel started out in the West just before the war. They were a United States Army detachment stationed at the Mariposa Military Bass out West, but they found out what the scientists were doing there and promptly executed them. Captain Rodger Maxson, one of the officers there, took charge and became the founder of the Brotherhood. Then, the war happened. The base protected them and their families, that they brought to the base, but destroyed the world outside. Maxson led the newly found Brotherhood out of Mariposa and to a place called 'Broken Hills'. Then, the whole super mutant war happened and the Vault Dweller killed The Master, ultimately saving the West. After all that, the Brotherhood made airships to travel to the East, but they were caught in a heavy storm and crashed just a few miles off of Chicago." Jenkins accidentally stepped on a radroach, but scraped it off and continued to tell the story. "They were broken, battered and weak. So they decided to let outsiders into their ranks, two of which were my mother and father."

"...You guys mentioned something called the 'Enclave'. What is that?" Micheal asked.

"The Enclave were a group of enforcers and offspring of the old American government. They were ruthless and destructive, leveling whole towns and killing innocents all in the name of America." Jenkins explained. "I wasn't around when they were at their golden peak, but a few did come to the Midwest in hopes of gaining power, only for that to fail and to be wiped out. I'm not so sure about the East... The Brotherhood and NCR played a massive role in getting rid of them. We were different back then."

"That's good, I guess, but what is the Brotherhood of Steel?" Micheal questioned. "I get the story and all, but what's it like now?"

"We mostly stuck to our original roots: The Brotherhood of Steel is an elite force of highly trained individuals and members that stem from military practice." Jenkins said. "Our mission is to prevent a second Great War by collecting any and all technology that could be used to do so. We then study that technology and use it to achieve our goals."

"...But doesn't that make you guys hypocrites?" Micheal questioned. "You take technology from people because it could cause wars, but you use that technology to fight your wars?"

"If you put it like that, then yes. But our actions are for the betterment of mankind." Jenkins corrected. "At least... that was the original plan." The Paladin sighed and looked down at The Prodigy. "Micheal, I'm gonna be honest with you. The Midwestern Brotherhood chapter isn't doing great. We've been fighting a losing battle since we got here and I don't think we can last much longer..." They continued walking. "We've lost too many good men and women out in the field, and many more in medical beds. I have full respect towards our elders, but we don't need orders. We need a miracle to save us. And I personally believe some old Vault-Tec records will hold the key to our success."

"Yeah... You guys never told me. About what the vaults really are." Micheal said. "I can understand if Vault-Tec was corrupt, but... just how corrupt were they?"

Jenkins sighed. "Vault-Tec..." He began, but was cut off by something lunging at him. A feral ghoul had tried to attack Jenkins, but he quickly threw the creature to the ground and shot it with his gatling laser. Not particularly a smart move because it alerted all other nearby ghouls.

Hordes of feral ghouls crawled out of the debris and bolted toward the two heroes with a malicious screech. Tens, hundreds, thousands of ghouls all wanting to tear them apart like zombies. Micheal readied his Shishkebab and Jenkins revved up his gatling laser, but both decided it was a good idea to retreat. They both legged it across the broken streets of the city, the horde right on their tail and getting ever more closer. Meanwhile, Bonnie and Phyllis were comparing scars back at the car.

"See this? This one's from a Night stalker." Phyllis showed a bite mark on his arm.

"That ain't shit. Check this out." Bonnie moved her hair and showed a claw mark on the back of her neck. "That's from one of Caesars boys wielding a Yao Guai gauntlet."

Dogmeat jumped up, looked out the back window and started barking. Phyllis and Bonnie looked at the mutt to see what he was looking at. They saw both Micheal and Jenkins turning a corner running and an army of feral ghouls right behind them. Phyllis took out his Anti-Material Rifle and started shooting out the back. The ghouls he hit were sent flying back in red chunks by the sheer force of that gun, but it wasn't gonna do any good against a horde. Bonnie climbed over to the drivers seat and took the wheel.

Micheal and Jenkins eventually reached the car and both jumped into the trunk. Jenkins threw Micheal a Microfusion cell he had and Micheal climbed through the back window and opened the little hatch near the glovebox, where the cells had to be placed. He threw the old cell out and replaced it. The car sprang back to life and Bonnie slammed her heel down on the accelerator. The tires screeched and the car went off at full speed. The car was fast, but that didn't stop the horde, nor did it stop the legions of ghouls in various places.

As Bonnie drove the car through the debris covered streets, some ghouls from atop buildings jumped down and landed on the car. Jenkins made sure to take care of the ones on the roof, but one had almost gotten in the car. The ghouls mission was short lived though as he was fed lead from Phyllis' secondary firearm, .45 Auto Pistol.

Micheal dug through the glovebox in hopes of finding anything this car had that could help them, but all he found was a canteen with the number thirteen on it. He stuffed the canteen in one of his pouches and decided to just fight his way through. He took out his revolver and decided to use V.A.T.S. against the ghouls that were hopping from building. He peered his head out the passenger side window and time came to a screeching halt again. He selected three ghouls in the air and shot them down in the slowed timeframe, making their corpses slam onto the concrete when they fell.

Jenkins was punching ghouls off left and right, and occasionally taking pot shots toward the horde. When he ran out of cells for his gun, he decided to use a tire iron he found in the back against the oncoming feral's. What's strange is that it seemed to be working, but ultimately ineffective toward thousands of them.

Bonnie was swerving the car left and right to avoid the oncoming piles of debris and rubble. She drove like she's never driven before which she hasn't, so this was a fun ride for the whole family. It's the apocalypse, who gives a shit about traffic laws? She ran over a couple ghouls which splattered blood speckles all over the front of the car. Bonnie drove the car into what used to be Central Square, but they were stuck. It was a roundabout road with all other sides blocked up by rubble or gates made from various scrap. They were stuck, all exits had been cut. The only choice they had now was to fight.

Bonnie drifted through the roundabout and slammed the side of the car against a group of ghouls, squashing them. Phyllis shot at the horde with his Anti-Material Rifle, blasting some of the into a fine red mush. Jenkins was going crazy with that tire iron, the whole front of his armor was just covered head to toe in ghoul blood. Micheal was teaching Bonnie how to drive while also taking pot shots at the hordes of feral's, making sure they don't get close. Dogmeat was actually biting down on a ghouls arm and dragging the poor bastard across the pavement as Bonnie kept driving. Alas, their efforts proved fruitless as more and more ghouls just kept coming.

Just as all hope seemed lost, one of the metal gates lifted up, kinda like how a guillotine works, and the people on the other side flailed their arms, signaling the team to get inside there. Bonnie saw this and immediately slammed on the accelerator toward the now open gate. The car flew through the passage and the people holding the door up let go of the ropes, slamming the giant metal door back on the ground, closing it. The sounds of scratching and screeching from the ghouls could be heard on the other side, but they could not get in, no matter what.

The gang took a second to breathe and regain themselves. Bonnie slumped down in the drivers seat while Micheal fell out of the car. Jenkins was just dripping in blood at this point, almost covering his entire body. Micheal was laying on the ground, almost thankful for the sweet concrete being the thing he hits. He looked up from the ground to see a man in power armor towering over him.

"A vault dweller? We haven't seen your kind in a bit." The man's voice was rough, like he was sucking on gravel. "Then again, your kind isn't exactly common around here." He grabbed Micheal's collar and pulled him to his feet.

"I.. uh.. yeah." Needless to say, Micheal was a bit intimidated by this fucking pillar of a man. Micheal was only over five feet tall while this power armored giant was at least seven foot. "Thanks for the help, I guess." He said.

"Not a problem." He said, but it was merely a false sense of kindness. He lifted Micheal by his collar, off of his feet to his height. "Now, why are you here?" He asked in a cold, dead voice. His face was heavily scarred, almost as if he's been through war seven times over.

Bonnie got out of the car and aimed her rifle at the man to which every other armed guard there aimed their guns at her. Jenkins joined and readied his blood-soaked tire iron. Phyllis followed shortly by aiming his Anti-Material Rifle at the man and Dogmeat growled at him. The man let Micheal go, knowing it was better to let him free than for anyone to be shot.

"You're all pretty stupid to be coming this way into Wyoming. Or even coming to Wyoming at all." The man said.

"Oh yeah? Then why're you guys here?" Phyllis interrogated.

"That's classified, Ranger." The man said. "And I doubt you'll tell me as to why you're all the way out here." He turned to his men. "Stand down, men! We don't have enough ammo for this."

Bonnie pulled Micheal behind her, trying to protect him from these strangers. Phyllis stepped out of the car and analyzed their surroundings. They were surrounded by at least twenty heavily armed men in T-45 power armor similar to the man they already met. The armor was painted black with red streaks, almost like they were racing cars. Racing cars with massive guns. There were also a bunch of people in lab coats walking about. The area around them was protected by various junk walls, stacked car bodies, ruins of old buildings and some rusty industrial machinery. There were tents put up, big enough to put a small lab inside. This place was only just put up by the looks of it.

Jenkins hopped out of the trunk and wiped some of the blood off. He wiped the blood off his shoulder, revealing the obvious Brotherhood of Steel symbol on his pauldron. At the sight of this, almost every guard aimed their guns at the Paladin. Phyllis and Bonnie immediately raised their guns again while Micheal watched from behind his companion.

"MEN, I SAID STAND DOWN!" The man screamed at them.

"Sir, with all due respect, he is Brotherhood!" One the troopers called out.

"Yes, but it is obvious he is not from Lyon's Pride. NOW STAND DOWN!" The man responded with. The troopers hesitated, but followed their commanders orders without question.

Micheal let his eyes wander and two symbols on flags caught his attention. One symbol was a skull with a beret, a bird under the skull and a combat knife under that. The other symbol was a fancy cross in a circle. It seemed as if there were two factions sharing this spit of territory. He also saw his canine companion leave the group, so Micheal chased after him.

"Alright, everyone stay close." Phyllis said. "We don't know what we've gotten ourselves into, but we'll be stronger as a group." The ranger looked at his fellow companions standing next to him. "...Where's Micheal?" He asked.

Everyone looked behind Bonnie only to see that Micheal and Dogmeat had wandered off again.

Bonnie sighed. "I'm going to kill that kid." She said, annoyed that this is the second time he's done this.

Micheal chased after his dog throughout the grounds, calling Dogmeat's name to try and grab his attention. The place was a little tight on space, so The Prodigy tried his best to try and weave his way through. Dogmeat ran into a rather large tent and Becker followed inside.

"Dogmeat!" He called to his canine. "You shouldn't go wandering off like that."

Micheal knelt to his dog's side, but Dogmeat has his attention else where. Becker looked to what his dog had brought him to: a medical tent full of injured patients and doctors. One of the doctors came up to Micheal.

"Look, I keep telling you that we need more ti..Oh, you're not one of the Angel's." She said with an accent, almost sounding like some form of Spanish. "I'm sorry, we don't usually get outsiders... I would love to help you, but we're a little backed up at the moment. Unless you're shot, stabbed, poisoned or heavily irradiated, we can't help you." The woman was taller than Micheal, most people are. She wore doctor's attire, but had the same cross in a circle patched on to her shoulder sleeve, she seemed to be a doctor. Her black hair had one side shaven, but the top long and drooping to the other side; an androgynous haircut.

"Huh? Oh. Sorry, I don't need any medical attention. At least, I don't think so..." Micheal stated. "My dog ran away, so I chased him. He brought me here." They looked down at Dogmeat who currently had a goofy grin with his tongue out.

"Well, that's reassuring. One less patient to worry about..." She said. "My name is Ana Álvarez, though most people just call me 'Doctor A'" She stuck her hand out for a handshake.

"Micheal Becker, but most people just call me 'The Prodigy'" Micheal said as he shook her hand. "'Álvarez'. What is that? Cuban?" He asked.

"Why yes, that is Cuban. Most people would just assume it were Mexican." She said. "And I assume you're from a vault, or you just stole it."

"No, I'm a vault dweller." Micheal assured. "Vault 25."

"Well, that's interesting." Ana said. "Look, I would love to stay and chat, but I have patients to attend to. Unless you're a decent doctor and don't faint at the sight of blood, I doubt you'll be of any help."

"Well, I did work a little bit with the medical staff of my vault, so I have some experience." Micheal said. Just then, a familiar face came into the tent. It was the man that Micheal has the pleasure of being threatened by.

"How're my troops? Are they ready to jump back in?" He asked, jumping straight to the point.

"Por el amor de Dios. If I told you once, I told you a thousand times, Knoxon." Ana said to him. "Your soldiers are badly wounded and it'll be awhile before they can get back on their feet. And we don't have enough supplies to take care of your men and the survivors."

"My men's health are of upmost importance, but I need them back on their feet as soon as possible." He said.

"Well, maybe if you go and get the supplies from that hospital we told you about months ago, then maybe we could get you guys out of here faster!" Ana shot back.

"We've been trying, Ana, but the streets are infested with ghouls, raiders and God knows what." Knoxon argued.

Micheal watched as the argument ensued, listening closely to what they were saying.

"I'm sorry, Ana, but what you're asking is something the Fallen Angels has been struggling to achieve. We need more men." Knoxon insisted.

"I could help!" Micheal interrupted the dispute. "My group handled those ghouls pretty well." They both looked down to Micheal.

"...You? You want to help?" Knoxon snarked. "Sorry kid, but this is a big boy problem." He rustled Micheal's hair, insulting him.

"So? I've come all the way from Kansas to get to California and I'm still in one piece." Micheal said.

"I usually don't do this, but I'll have to agree." Ana said. "This whole city is infested. You won't make it anywhere near the hospital."

"Besides, why would you want to help us?" Knoxon asked.

"I figure we can help each other." Micheal answered. "I get the supplies from that hospital and you guys give me what I need."

"Oh yeah? What do you need?" Knoxon questioned.

"Microfusion cells. My car runs on them and we're fresh out." Becker informed. "If you give me those cells, I'll fetch your medical supplies. Deal?"

Knoxon thought for a second. "...Alright. Deal." He agreed, much to Ana's dismay.

"What?! You're gonna send out a child instead of a soldier?!" She grilled.

"Don't worry. I have a team of highly trained individuals and killing machines." Micheal assured.

Meanwhile, the gang were scrounging together to try and find Micheal. Jenkins was still wiping off blood with a towel he found, Phyllis was surveying the area and Bonnie lit up a cigarette to calm her nerves.

"Where do you think he is?" Jenkins asked.

"Probably doing something we're not gonna like." Bonnie answered.

Bonnie shot her head around and eventually caught sight of a certain teenager in a blue jumpsuit coming out of a tent. She stormed over to him and wanted to smack Micheal, but decided against it.

"What the fuck were you thinking?!" She grilled The young vault dweller. "This is the second time I've had to come get your ass."

"Bonnie, relax." Micheal said. "I'm fine, and I think I found a way to solve our problem."

"Oh yeah? How so?" Phyllis asked, reuniting with the two, as well as Jenkins. Just then, Knoxon came out of the tent and greeted the gang.

"By helping us." He answered for Micheal.

"Oh for fucks sake." Bonnie exclaimed. "What is it now?"

"There's a hospital deeper into the city, around Gilligan Avenue and 45th street. Inside are old medical equipment and supplies that we desperately need. If you lot can retrieve this equipment, we'll give you the cells you need to power your car." Knoxon explained. "I'll send some of my men with you and some supplies, but we can't spare much."

"So, you want us to go out into the ghoul infested city with barely any ammo or supplies and retrieve medical equipment from an abandoned hospital?" Phyllis remarked.

"Precisely." Knoxon affirmed.

"...Alright. Fine." Phyllis agreed.

"Sounds like an average Tuesday for me." Jenkins also agreed to go.

"...I don't know. This seems like a really bad idea." Bonnie said.

"We'll also pay you all handsomely if you pull this off." Knoxon sweetened the deal.

"Hmm..." Bonnie thought for a second. "Alright. But we better get hands full of caps after this." She agreed.

The whole gang had agreed to go on this journey. Knoxon gave them ammo, stimpak's and soldiers to fight along side with. Ana had decided to go as well, to make sure all the equipment were safely secured. With everything they needed and a kick to the ass, they were on their way.

They had left the walled grounds of the camp about an hour ago and were currently deep within the city. The trek was silent for awhile, mostly from the tense air of ghouls roaming about.

"So..." Micheal broke the silence. "What's your story?" He asked Ana, who was walking next to him.

"My story? Heh. No one really asks about that." She said.

"Well, considering this is gonna be a bit until we get to the hospital, I think it's best we talk for a bit to pass the time." Micheal replied.

"Alright. I'm from Cuba, that much is already known. Cuba wasn't really hit with bombs, but it does occasionally get hit by the extreme radstorms coming from Mexico. My parents grew up in Haven, used to be Havana, and they were extremely big into show biz. When I was born, they named me after a famous actress from before the war 'cause they wanted me to get into show biz as well, but that wasn't for me. I wanted to help people as best I could, so I became a doctor. After years of scrounging up the money, I finally made enough to border a passage to America. I ended up in the East, just off the coast of Florida and made my way to the West. I eventually made it here and joined up with the Followers of the Apocalypse as a doctor." She told her tale.

"What's Florida like?" Bonnie asked, listening in on the story.

"Mostly the same as I was told. Hit by a bomb, but still full of gangsters, drug trade, has-beens and old people." Ana answered. "What about you? What's your story?" She asked Bonnie.

"Don't really have one." She answered. "Grew up in a settlement and decided to become a mercenary." What She said seemed a bit off, but it probably wasn't worth pushing any farther.

"What about you, Micheal?" Ana asked.

"Well, I'm a vault dweller, so I came from a vault. My vault was holding a dangerous liquid, but it eventually started to create fumes and it went throughout the ventilation. Everyone went crazy and tried to kill me, but I got out just in time before it could affect me. I walked out into The Wasteland in hopes to find a cure and I eventually stumbled upon a trader, who took me to a town. After I saved the town from a gang, I went off to Bordertown, but not before hiring Bonnie over there and finding Dogmeat. A few bumps here, a couple distractions there, we eventually made it to Bordertown. There we got a new direction to go and found the Brotherhood Paladin. Since then, we've been getting destination after destination and getting in whole hosts of trouble. The Ranger eventually joined up and we spoke to an 'elder' who gave us a map and the car. After that, we found the town of Broken Heart and saved it from being decimated and now we're here." Micheal told the tale. "...What about these guys?" He was referring to the troopers in power armor.

"These guys are the Fallen Angels, some rouge Spec-Ops unit from the Brotherhood out East. They came here just a few months ago and we've been trying to keep the alliance between us ever since." Ana answered. "That pillar you met was Sigvart Knoxon, the leader of the Fallen Angels. That's all we really know."

"Huh. Alright. So how far are we from the hospital?" Micheal asked.

Before Ana could answer his question, a bullet was shot at them and hit one of the armored soldiers, ricocheting off their armor.

"WE'VE GOT HOSTILES!" One of the soldier's shouted.

They were ambushed by raiders from atop the rubble. A fight broke out, bullets and lasers flying through the air in hopes to kill something. Ana ran to cover while the ones with guns fought. The once tense air was now deafened by the sound of gunfire, which had an unfortunate consequence. The sound had alerted the ghouls and the horde was back on. The ghouls dug themselves out the rubble and immediately attacked anyone they could see.

Bonnie and Phyllis climbed on top of a destroyed truck to try and get to higher ground while Jenkins was unloading his gatling laser into the horde of ghouls and raiders. Dogmeat stood at Micheal's side and took care of the ghouls on the ground while Becker blasted most of the away with his shotgun. Micheal could feel the anger rise in him, but it wasn't enough to make him go into a rage.

One of the raiders decided to lob a grenade at the horde. When it went off, it took care of most of the ghouls, but it also caused something incredibly bad to occur. The grenade cracked the ground and caused it foundation to collapse. The already broken road was now falling into the ground, creating a massive hole where it used to be. Some of the ghouls fell in the hole, but most just ran off, detecting the danger. The raiders also booked it, in fear of falling into the sinkhole.

The truck Bonnie and Phyllis were on started sink as well, so they promptly jumped off, but Phyllis had dropped his Anti-Material Rifle and it fell down the hole. Jenkins and the rest of the remaining troops retreated to stable ground. Dogmeat ran to solid ground, but Micheal was still on the crumbling concrete. Becker tried to run, but the ground below him fell just before he could reach the safe zone. Bonnie threw her gun on the ground and bolted to the hole. She slid to the concrete and grabbed Micheal's left arm. Phyllis, Jenkins and Dogmeat joined and tried to pull Bonnie up with Micheal.

"Don't let go!" Jenkins said to Bonnie.

Micheal was trying his hardest to grab on to whatever ledge he could, but to no avail. Bonnie tried her hardest to hold on, but she had unfortunately grabbed his Pip-Boy. Micheal was slowly slipping out of his arm-mounted, only they didn't realize it at first. The young vault dweller had finally completely slipped out his Pip-Boy, but grabbed the device with both hands.

"Give me your hand!" Bonnie shouted to The Prodigy.

Just before Becker could grab his companions hand, the Pip-Boy unbuckled and caused Bonnie to lose her grip on it. With nothing to grab on and nothing holding him up, Micheal fell down the hole, screaming as the shadows swallowed him whole. Bonnie, Phyllis and Jenkins watched in horror as their vault dweller disappeared into the bellows of the earth, unable to do anything. They could only watch. They stood there for what felt like forever, silent. Just then, a trooper snapped them out of their trance.

"Let's move! We gotta get out of here!" The ordered.

Jenkins and Phyllis hesitated at first, but eventually followed what they were told. Bonnie stayed in her spot of a little longer, her mind empty. That fall was enough to kill anyone... anyone. Bonnie looked next to her to see Dogmeat whining and howling, obviously upset about his master. Bonnie didn't say anything, simply put her hand on the dog. She looked to her right and saw Micheal's shotgun, it probably flew out of his hands before he fell. She picked up the shotgun and just stared at it. Phyllis came back to her and shook her out of her trance.

"We gotta go!" He said.

Bonnie came back to reality and saw that the ground was still collapsing. She stood up and ran, Micheal's shotgun in her hand and Dogmeat right behind her. They couldn't have done anything. Micheal was already gone. He came so far only to fail in his mission. It was over. He failed. Or, at least, that would be true if he actually died.

The sound of rapid ticking could be heard in the darkness. A green light emitting from something on the ground. The green light revealed something in the darkness, a face. The eyes flickered open and the body twisted and turned. It was Micheal, he was alive. Becker was dizzy, but was able to regain his composure. He pushed himself up and felt something soft under him. He looked down to see the corpses of the ghouls that fell down here, acting as a cushion.

Micheal looked to what the green light was coming from, only to reveal his Pip-Boy. The geiger counter detected levels of radiation in the area, so Micheal had to get out of there. He tried to stand up, but just as quickly fell back down in pain. It seemed the fall had injured his leg, but he still had to move. He picked up his Pip-Boy and strapped it back on.

"Nothing can break a Pip-Boy." He grunted.

He tried his best to stand up, though his best had a limp. Micheal looked around him and found that he had fallen into an underground subway system. The place wasn't pitch black, but it was still very difficult to see. Becker turned on his Pip-Boy flashlight and saw both his Shishkebab and revolver had fallen with him, but his shotgun was missing. However, Phyllis' Anti-Material Rifle was down there.

He picked up the weapons and limped his way through the tunnels to try and find an exit. He trekked throughout the train tunnels and eventually found a side door that led into a maintenance tunnel. He fell onto the door and opened it, falling onto the steel ground. He pulled himself back up and muscled forward. Following the maintenance hall, Micheal found himself inside a generator room. Becker sat down on an old generator to try assess his injury.

He took off his boot and rolled up his pant leg to reveal what had been done. The fall had badly twisted his ankle. He needed to fix it if he wanted to escape. Micheal knew how to fix it, but it wasn't gonna be pretty. He saw a first aid kit on the wall next to him, so he ripped that off and opened it. Inside were a few bandages, stimpak's and some radaway. Becker had what he needed, so he decided that this was the best way.

Micheal pulled out his black book and put it in his mouth. He grabbed hold of his foot and counted to three. At the three mark, he twisted his foot, making a crunch sound from the bone. He was in excruciating pain, biting hard into the black book and nearly screaming. He counted again and twisted his foot the other way, causing even more pain. Tears were rolling down his face from the pain, but he had to keep going. Micheal twisted his foot one last time, making the pain near unbearable. He grabbed a stimpak and shove it into his leg, numbing the pain. He let his leg simmer and caught his breath.

He put his boot back on and bandaged two pieces of pipe on his ankle, acting as a cast. Micheal took the book out of his mouth and saw the teeth marks on the cover. Micheal pushed himself and grunted as he stood. He used the Anti-Material Rifle as support and continued his journey. He eventually exited the maintenance tunnel and had entered an underground station. The station had a subway train laying dormant on the tracks, piles of rubble and both entrances blocked off by debris, so that was a no go.

Just then, Micheal heard something. He looked around and found that the place had at least five ghouls infesting it. Micheal was in no condition to fight as of yet, but still raised his revolver. He tried to go into V.A.T.S., but he was using that arm to hold Phyllis' rifle to support him, so he had to do this the old fashion way. He could feel his leg getting better, so he could try and move faster.

Micheal turned around and was met with a ghoul in his face. Becker jumped in surprise and fell to the ground. His revolver fell out of his hand, and out of his reach. He looked up to the poor soul, waiting for the thing to attack him. The ghoul looked down at Micheal with its soulless eyes, staring blankly at the young vault dweller. It's breathing sounded like sandpaper, most likely from the fact that it's throat was torched in radiation. It twitched and shivered as it stared at The Prodigy.

Micheal looked eyes with the ghoul, swallowing his fear and awaiting for what was to come. After a few seconds of sitting there, the ghoul released Micheal from its sight from and walked off. Micheal sat there in confusion about what just transpired. He crawled over, grabbed his revolver and stood up. Micheal shot his head around, realizing that the ghouls weren't attacking him. Becker walked over to another ghoul and stood in front of it.

The Prodigy waved his hand in its face, but the ghoul didn't react in the slightest. Micheal pokes the creature, but it didn't react to that either. He even snapped his fingers in its face, but nothing. Micheal pondered for a moment, but eventually decided to push on. He found a hole in the wall, big enough for him to go through. The hole was the entrance of a cave, probably made from giant rats.

Micheal trekked through the cavern, his leg now almost completely healed from the stimpak, and made it to the other end. On the other side was a massive cavern with a building inside of it, probably fell down in a sinkhole during the war. The building was big enough that some of it was still on the surface, going through the roof of the cavern. The sunlight peering through the massive hole in the ceiling illuminated most of the cavern and revealing what the building was. Among the dilapidated building were the words "Vault-Tec" in big, bold letters.

"Must've been one of their regional buildings." Micheal said to himself.

Micheal thought about his situation and decided that the best way to get out of here was to get to the roof of the building. He slid down the rock and made it to the foot of the building, but the foundation was still there which was too tall for Micheal. He tossed the Anti-Material Rifle onto the foundation and tried to climb it, but his bum leg was preventing him from doing that.

He tried his hardest to pull himself up, but to no avail. Just as he gave up on climbing it, he was suddenly lifted off his feet. He looked down and saw ghouls lifting him up, trying to get Micheal on top of the foundation. They detected that Micheal needed help, so they decided to help him. The ghouls got Micheal on the foundation and walked off back into the caves. Micheal wondered why they would help him. He wasn't a ghoul, so they would attack him, right?

He didn't have to think, he needed to get topside. Micheal stood up, his ankle now back in place thanks to the stimpak, and went into the Vault-Tec building. He was inside the lobby, the floors covered in rubble and concrete, the chairs and furniture littered about, skeletons laying dormant and a vault door hanging from the ceiling as decoration. Some of the lights were still on, so this place did still have power.

Micheal saw an elevator that was still functional, so he decided to take it to the highest floor it could take him to. Unfortunately, it didn't lead to the roof. The elevator took Micheal to the executive offices. The door opened and Micheal traversed the broken offices and cubicles. Micheal walked around to try and find an exit, but stumbled upon something bigger. In one of the offices, a terminal was still functioning, giving a warm green light from the screen.

Micheal went into the office and went onto the terminal. On the terminal, a list of records were filed: Logs, sales, marketing, all the usual business stuff. But one thing caught Micheal's attention. One file was listed as "Local Vaults". Micheal selected the file and a list of vaults scrolled on screen. There was Vault 0, Vault 1, Vault 5, Vault 7, Vault 22, Vault 34, Vault 43, Vault 55... and Vault 25. With this discovery, Micheal used a holotape on the desk, cleared it of anything that was on it and put all the data onto that holotape. Micheal continued on his journey and eventually found the staircase that led to the rooftop. He climbed the stairs and made it back to the surface alive. The question now: where the hell was he?