5 The Young and the Restless

After the events of Lexington, I must have spent a week in Sanctuary, not feeling any real need to recover, but I was fairly sure there would eventually be a response to what happened there. The raiders didn't come across as particularly intelligent nor organised, but what I did assume was that they would have no problem with a reprisal against whoever was responsible. And considering power armour probably wasn't all that prevalent around the Commonwealth, I had to make sure I didn't lead them back to us.

We now had over twenty settlers at Sanctuary. So many were relieved that they now had somewhere safe, all of them willing to pitch in somehow. Bringing the turrets back from Lexington, we now had two sitting by the bridge, while we'd constructed a barrier, where a Minuteman would remain on guard at all times, armed with the best weapon possible. On both banks of the river I placed mines that I'd found. One thing raiders were was tooled up. Far more weapons and ammo than I expected. I had thought it would be scarce but I guess weapons depots and stores had been ransacked quickly.

We sent three Minutemen to Abernathy Farm and three to Tenpines Bluff on patrol, and formed two other teams. We organised it so there would always be three Minutemen at each farm every night. Once we found more turrets, we'd organise better defences for each. Our farm was already coming on strong, with tato vines already appearing, while we'd planted mutfruit, corn, carrot and melons too. Now that I had a rifle, I was out hunting with Preston and we managed to snag two radstags, dragging them back to the settlement, where we got busy stripping them for meat and leather.

That night, for the first time since waking up, I enjoyed some succulent meat, while we salted a whole lot more, cleaning out a couple of barrels and I wanted to make sure we had plenty of supplies, just in case.

Despite the harsh conditions of life, during the evening, we managed to relax. After a hard day of work, whether we were repairing a house, tilling the fields, or on patrol, all I wanted was a meal, a few cigarettes and a drink. We usually kept a fire burning all day, so we gather around it during the early evening, and though there wasn't much laughter, we could at least relax.

I already had a good reputation with most of the settlers. What I'd done in Lexington spread like wildfire. One woman showed plenty of interest very quickly. Her name was Jennifer. She was cute but also a lot younger than me. When I was put in the fridge, I was thirty-four. I was still thirty-four, as the intervening two hundred and ten years didn't count, while she was only twenty-one. She knew I was a widow. She was effectively an orphan. She was also aware of the age gap, but didn't seem to care.

We ended up sat by the river, sharing a bottle of vodka, and she was interested about life before the bombs. I mentioned my wife, but when I looked at her, I tried not to think about Nora. It felt like a long time since I'd enjoyed the touch and intimacy of a woman. I knew I was probably still mourning, but as she shuffled closer, and the body language suggested clear interest, I knew I'd give into temptation.

She was brunette, keeping her hair just over her shoulders, a pair of brown eyes, slight freckling over her nose. In the moonlight, she did look good, and when we gave in and finally kissed, I think she was relieved I hadn't pushed her away. We barely moved from the bank, ending up the ground, eagerly removing the clothes of the other. She wore a simple jacket, shirt, and trousers, removing those eagerly to reveal a rather tanned body, while she definitely liked mine, her hands running up my arms and down my back.

I was careful removing her underwear, figuring she didn't have too many pairs, and seeing my first naked woman in what felt like months had me harder than steel. I was surprised that her hair was trimmed. I was expecting… a lot more. I knew razors were around, as Preston and Sturges were always clean shaven. I removed my underwear and she ginned at the same time. "Wow," she whispered.

"What?"

"It's… um… is it big?"

I looked down and shrugged. "Well, I think it was slightly above average. I'm not sure, to be honest. Never actually measured it."

What surprised her was when we resumed kissing before I moved down her body, and when I showed an interest in eating her out, that caused her to cry out, more through shock than anything. "What?" I asked.

"What are you doing?"

That made me sit up immediately. "Um… eating you out. A lot of women love it."

"They do?"

"You've had sex, right?"

"Well, yes, but… the guys I've been with just stuck it in, pumped a few times and finished."

I couldn't help chuckle before leaning down and giving her a soft kiss. "Jennifer, you are going to be in for one hell of a good time tonight."

I think I got even harder as I started to tease her, running my tongue up and down her slit, making her cry out before I plunged my tongue. She was wet and hot, and I loved her taste. Pushing her legs back, spreading her nice and wide, she could barely put two words together as I was using everything I'd learned, remembering one or two tricks I'd used on Nora, and they worked a charm on Jennifer. I think she enjoyed her first orgasm that evening, as she was surprised by it to begin with, and when she cried out, I'm sure everyone heard us, but no-one came to investigate.

She asked me to stop once she'd relaxed, so I softly kissed up her body before our eyes met again. "Holy shit!" she exclaimed quietly.

"I'm guessing sex is a little different nowadays. Keep it simple, I suppose."

"I'm also… younger… and I guess inexperienced…"

"Take your time then we can continue." I got up and grabbed the vodka from the nearby stone wall, taking a sip before giving it to her, lying back on the ground next to her. "Been a long time since I had sex in the open."

That made her giggle. "Was that with…"

"My wife? Yes. We were at the lake. I did to her what I just did to you, then we had a swim before making love on the shore. Of course, a lot more people around then, but the thrill of possibly being caught made it a lot more fun."

When I slid inside her a couple of minutes later, I knew I wasn't going to last long at all. It had been quite a while since I'd last had sex, and the feeling of her tight, wet pussy was almost too much straight away. She moaned loudly as I buried myself, her facing lighting up in the moonlight, leaning down to give her a gentle kiss.

As inexperienced as she was, I took my time though I knew I was going to finish quickly. When I suggested she put her heels on my lower back, I felt even deeper inside her, which made her moan very loudly, but she loved it. "Holy shit," she whispered.

"Okay?"

The kiss she gave me suggested she was absolutely fine. I only lasted a couple more minutes before I needed to cum, burying myself as I did, her fingers digging into my back as I groaned loudly before feeling it necessary to just relax and rest above her. "I thought you needed that," she whispered.

"Have I been set up?"

"Oh no, I'm just the one who made the first move." I met her eyes as she grinned. "Let's just say, whenever you want some company, Nate, I won't say no. And I think you might have the same offer from a couple of others."

I couldn't help chuckle. "Seriously?"

"You have admirers already."

I pulled out and rested on my back, taking in the stars that now shone ever so brightly. Before the war, because of all the light, you'd barely seen more than a few. Now the sky was brighter than I'd ever seen it. The only time it came close was Alaska. I'd brought down some Rad-x and soap, so we took a dose each and headed down to the river. It wasn't deep at all, but we could sit down in the water and give ourselves a good clean. We'd found plenty of soap in Lexington so was hopeful we'd find plenty more as we scavenged further away from Sanctuary.

After dressing, we headed back towards everyone else, noticing the glances in our direction, so no doubt they heard us, and definitely her. She hadn't been quiet. "Enjoy yourselves?" Mama Murphy asked, a twinkle in her eyes. I was sure she'd pushed Jennifer towards me, remembering our conversation and the fact I'd admitted to feeling a little lonely.

"He made me orgasm!" Jennifer exclaimed, before she covered her mouth and blushed.

"Well, I'm glad he did."

I generally slept outdoors on a bedroll by the fire and Jennifer was quite happy to join me that night. It was nice to have company once again, at least company that wasn't a dog. I loved Max already, but… he did smell a bit. Jennifer certainly enjoyed having me next to her, curling her body against mine and falling asleep rather quickly.

We now had an adequate supply of food but Preston and I agreed that it definitely needed to be rationed until we had regular food coming in from nearby farms. We would send seeds off to both Abernathy and Tenpines, expanding their crop sizes as I had a feeling our settlement could grow to quite a significant number considering the numbers that already arrived. Preston and I agreed we would eventually have to switch off the beacon if numbers grew too fast.

A couple of days later, we were in our usual discussion point in the middle of the street, watching as everyone carried out tasks they thought they should. Everyone pitched in. "So is the plan to still eventually control north of the river?" he asked.

"As much as possible. All the way to the bridges that cross it, controlling who comes and goes. But we have nowhere near the numbers yet, so we'll be sensible. We now have two farms under our control. It would be a good idea to have a couple more. Both farms mostly grow tato. If we can find another couple of farms, hopefully they'll grow something else."

"Tato is quick and easy to grow, Nate. That's why it's popular. But I see what you mean. I definitely want some corn and mutfruit. We have a few planted already."

"We'll definitely want a lot more. I'm talking rows and rows of trees and stalks. And we need good fertiliser. Abernathy are sending us a little bit but it's nowhere near enough."

"There are farms across the Commonwealth but it's convincing them to help us. And what they'll want above all is our protection."

I sighed. "We just don't have the numbers for that. I'll need to find relay towers to expand our signal. The only problem is that the further we expand it, the more people who hear it, including the enemy."

"There's only one way in and out though. I doubt they'll get past the mines."

He had a good point there. The mines were well hidden, and it was extensive on the opposing side.

We had a couple of turrets for Sanctuary, and I was planning on sending one each to Abernathy and Tenpines. That would still leave us two spare as we'd found six turrets in and around Lexington in the end. Sturges was confident he could even make some basic turrets given all the salvage we'd managed to find, but fixing houses was more important at the moment.

"There is another farm you could check out, Nate. From what I've been told by a couple of settlers, whoever was once there was forced out by ghouls. It might be worth clearing out and establishing another settlement."

"Where?"

"South-west of here, basically south of Abernathy Farm. Called Sunshine Tidings Co-Op." I almost burst into laughter. "What?"

"I know about that! It was reported on in a newspaper article I read before the war. It was a communal settlement. People living off the land, giving up most technology. It was part of some movement the government didn't particularly like. You think it's a worthwhile venture?"

"If it provides more food for settlers…"

"Long as it's defensible though. Sanctuary works because of the river. Abernathy has clear sight lines in most directions. Tenpines is fairly isolated." I paused. "But you are right, we need more land and food. I'll head there tomorrow."

I had a vague recollection of where it was. Heading south as usual towards Concord, instead of taking the road south towards Lexington, I followed the road south-west, eventually skirting the shores of a lake I didn't know the name of. The problem with a lot of the water is that it looked refreshing, crystal clear at times, yet I knew it was probably radiated as hell. I'd been told by more than one settler that certain places were full of barrels that carried the symbol of being radioactive. I'd read reports about companies dumping radioactive material. Add that to the radiation that would have been dumped on the ground after a few atom bombs and little wonder mutations had happened. I did wonder how humanity had adapted, what mutations might have taken place. I mean, you could consider ghouls mutations to a point…

Walking up and over a crest, the settlement came into view. Max immediately growled so that suggested there was something around. I took a knee and counted the building. There was a long warehouse and another building that could be used, in addition to at least six cabins, four of them seeming to be in decent enough condition. The other two would have to be pulled down and scrapped.

The place was full of ghouls, our arrival waking many of them up, while others appeared from the cabins and buildings around us. Max and I made short work of them, just making sure we didn't get swarmed. Whenever there were around four or five, I'd just use the butt of the shotgun, watching it cave a head in. If they were close enough when I fired my shotgun, their bodies practically disintegrated.

After clearing it out of ghouls, I dragged all the bodies close together, figuring I should just burn them later. Checking each cabin, I was surprised to find a couple more ghouls and a couple of radroaches as well. I enjoyed just stomping those bastards with the boot of my power armour. I still shudder at the thought of enormous cockroaches.

As I worked, there was a robot, similar to Codsworth, that hovered around. Completely harmless, it was actually rather amusing. Whenever it came close, I tried talking to it, but it didn't seem to be programmed for conversation. When I asked its name, it did reply with 'Professor Goodfeels'. Other than that, it would simply say things like 'Groovy' and 'Far out!' No idea what it was going on about, but as it was harmless, I left it alone.

Getting out of my power armour, I found a deck chair and took a seat, Max immediately curling at my feet as I took the radio out and got in contact. "Sanctuary, this is Nate calling. Do you read?"

"This is Sanctuary, Nate. You have a copy. What's the situation?" Sturges asked.

"Sunshine Tidings is clear of ghouls. Plenty of buildings here to make use of. Land is dry and needs water to start crops but it looks arable enough. I'm not a farmer, so that's just a best guess. It will be defensible enough. Hill to the west might be a concern, otherwise it provides a good lookout to the north, south and east."

"Good to hear, Nate. Are there any supplies there?"

"No, it's rather empty, to be honest. There is an elevated highway nearby and I can see movement upon it. Our arrival here might eventually draw their attention, so if we do start a settlement here, we need to make sure it's defended properly. There's also a church nearby that I'm going to check out. If anywhere was going to provide assistance during a crisis, it would be a church. After that, I'll head back. If it's getting too dark, I'll head directly north to Abernathy Farm and stay there the night before returning tomorrow. I'll keep you informed."

"Stay safe, Nate. Sanctuary out."

I relaxed with a bottle of water for at least half an hour before getting back into power armour and heading towards the church. The overpass ahead was a concern, and I thought walking about in power armour would draw attention, but no-one shot in my direction, so I could assume they didn't see me.

The church roof had collapsed though the steeple was still standing. What I found inside was a surprise. The doors leading in had collapsed, but the rows of sandbags was something I hadn't expected, in addition to plenty of skeletons, including some that seemed to be dressed in the remnants of an army uniform, with two also wearing a helmet. Other skeletons were no doubt civilian. I searched around and didn't find anything except a trapdoor.

"The hell is that doing here?" I wondered to myself. I opened it up and peered down. There was a ladder and faint light, but I couldn't hear anything otherwise. No way I'd fit down there in my power armour, but I wasn't willing to just go exploring with it. Not just yet. Id travel with power armour alone. Without it, I'd want back-up. "What do you think, boy? It is a shelter? A bunker? Or… something else?" He just looked at me and stuck his tongue out, panting as usual. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

It was worth remembering, at least. It would either be empty, full of dead bodies and skeletons, full of raiders or someone else, or it could be the score of a century, full of supplies we could use at Sanctuary and help other settlements with. But, for now, I just logged it in my Pip-Boy for later. There were a couple of ammo boxes, though no sign of any weapons. I grabbed the ammo, mostly .38 caliber but also a box of shotgun shells which would definitely come in handy.

Standing in the doorway of the church, I did gaze at the overpass and was fairly sure there was movement upon it. Whether they were raiders or someone else, I couldn't be sure. I figured some people would have even tried keeping themselves safe on such structures, though after two centuries, it wasn't a surprise to see a lot of it had collapsed. I kept them in mind, though as they would be a convenient way of travelling around Boston.

Heading back north, it was growing dark by the time I reached the outskirts of Concord, but I just kept on walking, confident the road was now safe between there and Sanctuary. The worst I'd face would be a few radroaches or maybe a few mole rats. I'd only ever a couple of them, and like everything else nowadays, they were stupidly aggressive. No idea why.

One of the guards noticed my approach over the bridge and thankfully they recognised me as I had the spotlight on, so it wasn't like I was trying to sneak up on them. A group was sat around the large campfire we now had burning. We'd grabbed a power armour station from Lexington so, after getting out of it, ejecting the core as always to conserve it, I joined the group by the fire. I was offered one of the deck chairs, which I appreciated, groaning as I sat down.

"Long day?" Preston asked.

"I have no reason to complain as everyone is working hard. One thing I can say, hand on heart, is fuck ghouls, at least the feral ghouls. Mindless fuckin' zombies. Attack for no reason. And the fuckers are fast. I thought zombies were meant to shuffle along and be easy pickings?"

"That's what chased away from Lexington, the ghouls, not the raiders. If you get swarmed by them without adequate protection, you're done for."

"When should we send people out there?"

"Give it time. It's clear for the time being. That's enough for now. My concern is what might be a group of raiders on an overpass to the south. If we send settlers to Sunshine, we'll need to do it carefully. I might have to head south, clear whoever is there out, before we do it. I also found something else. That church I checked out had a trapdoor leading somewhere. I just don't know where."

"But you sound curious?"

"I am, because the army had set defences within the church, and I'm guessing it was for the trapdoor. I just don't know why." I paused before adding, "I have had a thought though. We've got a highway to the south and a highway to the east. We're basically boxed in on two sides. To the north and west is nothing but wasteland, so we can ignore that for now. I see no reason why we can't slowly but surely expand our influence in both directions."

"Scouts?"

"Scouts and scavengers. Small teams, well-armed and hopefully with some armour now. Sturges, how is that coming along?"

"The armour we stripped from the raiders has come in handy. I'm training a couple of people to head out. Armoury isn't my forte but I'm moulding leather to metal. Nothing like your power armour but hopefully it will keep them somewhat safe."

"Good. If we can outfit guards and Minutemen with that, they'll have a modicum of protection. If they can find any power armour, they are to log it immediately and I'll head out and grab it myself. You can't just jump in and use it. Takes training, but if we can get more suits, then we will certainly be in a stronger position."

"Should we start our own settlements from scratch?" Preston wondered.

"It's an idea for the future. At the moment, we should get in contact with farms and settlements already established. And the further our signal spreads, hopefully we might get in touch with any Minutemen…"

"Would you accept them?"

"Surely there were small units working not in Quincy?" He chewed on that then eventually nodded. "No doubt once they heard about Quincy, they simply put down their weapons. Can't blame them if the leadership was killed and others turned traitor. Times like that, you will concern yourself with your own survival. So if we can prove the Minutemen are rebuilding, they might return to the fold."

"I hope you're right. It would be nice having a few trained companions and, that way, we can expand operations."

"One step at a time, but the end goal is to spread influence as far as possible. Push the Raiders back, but the more we push back, the higher chance of reprisals. This is fairly well defended now, so the risks to other settlements will be a problem. Abernathy and Tenpines found safety in isolation. By allying with us, they have made themselves a target."

I was one of the last to head to bed that evening, sitting by the fire with a bottle of whiskey, going over in my mind what we could do next. I almost laughed to myself at the position I'd found myself in. No idea how I'd come to be the unofficial leader of all this, but people seemed to listen to what I had to say and followed it. I wasn't giving orders, generally just giving my opinion on certain matters. Mama Murphy had explained why Preston seemed to be happy enough but… I don't know, I guess I gave them hope by taking the fight to the rest?

Eventually being joined by Jennifer again didn't surprise me all that much. As soon as she sat sideways on my lap, the last couple of settlers wished us goodnight, heading off to one of the houses we'd fixed up. I'd fixed up my old home but I wasn't going to sleep in it. I looked at it and simply remembered everything before the bombs. I had thought about tearing it down, but now it served as a home for the survivors. It least something good came out of it.

Jennifer was… eager, at least, wasting little time kissing me, and she giggled when I rose to the occasion. She must have washed as I did smell soap, at least, kissing down her neck as I undid her shirt, smiling to myself as she hadn't worn a bra. When my mouth found a nipple that hardened quickly, she gasped when I ran my tongue over it before I began to tease it. That made her giggle again. I could only lean back. "Did he seriously just stick his cock inside you?"

She looked away but nodded, so I used a finger to make her look back at me. "Well, I think we can rectify that."

We ended up naked on my bedroll as I showered her body with attention. There were signs life had been hard, a few scars here and there. I could have asked, but I had a feeling there were stories every settler had they didn't want to share. Still, as I kissed down her body, feeling it react to every kiss or caress, by the time I reached her pussy, she was soaking wet and eager for my mouth.

The groan she released as I started to lick her slit was almost guttural. It was enough to make me chuckle as I looked up, noticing her blush rather brightly. "It feels… really fucking good, Nate," she whispered.

"Well, you taste fucking good too, Jennifer."

She looked away, I guess a little embarrassed, so I resumed teasing her with my tongue before I got down to business. She loved every second, or at least that's what I figured, with the noises she made, and the way her body reacted. And she definitely experienced another orgasm, her back arching as she cried out loudly, a hand wrapped around each thigh to hold her in place. "Oh god," she cried out. Well, nice to see some things haven't changed in two hundred years. The big guy still gets some praise when a woman is being pleasured.

This time, I kept going through her first orgasm, and when the second one ripped through her body, I think she almost passed out from the sheer bliss she enjoyed. So I figured I should stop, soft kisses up her body before I rested on my forearms, just taking in her youthful face. Despite the hard life, there was a softness that remained. Few more years and it would probably disappear.

She met my eyes as I sensed her shuffle, feeling my cock at her entrance, pushing forward gently to slide inside her. "Yes," she hissed.

Legs around me immediately, I fucked her. That's what it was that night, hands immediately on my back, our mouths rarely parting, as I enjoyed the sensation of her tightness, groaning more than once as we made out. I had to break it and grunt, "God."

"Good?" she asked quietly.

"Best pussy I've had in centuries."

That made her giggle as I started to pump her harder and faster. She surprised me by unhooking her legs and spreading them nice and wide, feeling me even deeper. She moaned loudly at that and I could feel my orgasm approaching quickly.

"Close," I warned her.

"I loved the feeling last time," she said softly.

So I came inside her again and felt the need to relax on a forearm, one of her hands trailing up and down my back, tracing one or two scars, remnants of my war in Alaska. I'd earned quite a few of them during my time up north. We continued to make out, surprised I was hard again rather quickly. Grabbing her, I made her squeal as I rolled onto my back, the smile on her face forming quickly and I think she immediately enjoyed the new position.

I had to give her a little instruction, but once she was confident, I enjoyed her ride my cock by the light of the fire. She had a wonderful little body on her, great pair of breasts, and a body formed by years of working. I'd asked about her life, and while some things she obviously avoided, she'd had little formal education. She could read to some sort of level, though admitted she couldn't really write. That saddened me, to know so many probably couldn't do basic things like read and write.

But I put all that out of my mind while we were being intimate. She eventually leaned forward, changing the angle, and when she enjoyed an orgasm with my cock inside her, that made her shed a tear or two as it was something she'd definitely never experienced before. Feeling the need to cum again, she hung on as I started to thrust up into her, surprised when she asked me to go faster. I kissed her hard and did as she asked, making her cry out more than once before I groaned loudly, a second and final orgasm of the night for me as well.

Resting on my chest, I trailed my hand down her back, feeling scars of her own. Quite a few. "It's why I'm an orphan," she whispered, "Long story."

"Tell me in your own time if you're comfortable. There's no rush."

"Let's just say I'm glad you're killing lots of raiders. Fucking bastards."

No other questions were needed. It was eager to figure out. It was a weapon of war and a weapon of fear. All I did was wrap an arm around her a little tighter. I liked the girl but it wasn't going to last. I'd lost my wife and had no desire at settling down. I didn't think life would allow it going forward. I had a feeling she already knew that, she liked me in return, so we'd enjoy each other while we could.

Eventually climbing into the sleeping bag together, she moulded her body against mine again, holding my hands tight to her body. "Do you miss her?" she asked quietly.

"I do. But experiencing this life? I'm almost glad she didn't wake up. She's now at peace and safe, wherever she is."

"What do you mean?"

I should have known she wouldn't know about religion. I had a feeling it barely if existed at all now. "She believed in god, and believed when she died, her soul would go to heaven. It gives me comfort to know she's there now. Probably watching me bed a woman more than ten years my junior, either impressed or shaking her head in dismay. I like to think it's the former. 'My husband still has it.'"

"Do you believe in this god?"

"Not anymore. Not after all the things I've seen and done. If He does exist, or if He did, then His presence is no longer here. And I wouldn't blame Him for it. We were given paradise and destroyed it." I paused and whispered, "Though you can still cry out His name while we have sex if you want."

That made her giggle, at least. "I won't like it when you go."

"Who says I'm leaving?"

"Mama Murphy. She thinks you'll make a base here then leave. She says your destiny lies to the south. That you will become important in a war still to come."

"I thought I'd had enough fighting. I guess I was wrong. But, this time, I fight for what I believe in. The enemy is clear this time."

"If you go, would you mind… if I found…"

"Jennifer, we're just having fun, right?" She nodded. "I'm certainly not going to be jealous. And I'm obviously not going to be settling down anytime soon. If you find yourself a nice young man you like, then do what your heart and head tells you."

She turned around and cuddled into me, her head resting on my chest as I stroked her back. "Well, I'll just get as much of you as possible before you do leave for longer."

"I will have to eventually. Got to check out this Diamond City. And I have to find the organisation responsible for freezing me and killing my wife. But I found myself wrapped up in all this that I almost felt it necessary to put everything on hold and help. It was the right thing to do."

"Well, count me as someone glad you did." She glanced up with such a look on her face, it was little wonder we ended up making love again, Jennifer on her back, legs spread just enough that I could slide between them, cock buried inside her. It was certainly tenderer than before, her eyes looking into mine, feeling her fingers dig into my back as I gently buried myself with each thrust. "How does it feel so good?" she whispered.

"It should. That's what makes sex great."

Having cum twice, I lasted a long time, but she didn't want to move at all, enjoying running her hands up and down my arms and back, even my chest, smiling away as she mentioned I was more defined than anyone she'd seen. I thought I'd actually lost a bit of weight since waking up, but considering all the hard work, I think I might have even added more muscle.

When I came a third time, I left my cock inside her as I licked my thumb and gently started to fondle her clit. The reaction was what I hoped for, and she seemed to be holding it back, her eyes staring intensely into mine. "Yes!" she hissed, "Keep going…"

"Good?"

"I'm going to cum really hard, Nate. I can feel it."

"Love my cock inside you?"

"Oh, that's what makes this even better." Then she moaned, feeling her squeeze my cock. "I'm so close…" I fondled her faster and that did the trick, watching her body shudder as the orgasm hit her hard, crying out loudly. I'm fairly sure it was loud enough to wake a few people, both of us chuckling once she'd recovered.

That did us both in and we fell asleep quickly.

We were not the first awake the next morning, opening my eyes to see Mama Murphy by the embers of the fire, glancing my way with a twinkling in her eye. Jennifer wasn't awake yet, so I remained where I was, a couple of other settlers wandering over. All they did was glance, grin, then look away. I guess sleeping outdoors meant little privacy. Such things didn't really exist anymore regardless. When she woke up, there wasn't a hint of embarrassment, simply turning around to cuddle and kiss me. "Maybe we should fuck in front of them?" she whispered.

"Exhibitionist," I whispered back, "Last night wasn't enough?"

"I just love the feeling when you cum in me, Nate." She paused then added, "Well, I love your tongue between my legs as well. That definitely makes me feel… funny." Resting her head against my chest again, I had a feeling we wouldn't be rising for at least a few minutes, but when most of the settlers were up, we had to join them. No rest for the wicked, as they say.

She had no problem getting up and wandering around naked, and I couldn't help smile at her carefree attitude. I noticed she received a couple of other appreciative glances as she put on her underwear, then the rest of her clothing. We'd managed to salvage some clothing from Lexington, and agreed it would be a communal set up. People could take what they wanted, wear it, wash it, then put it back.

I at least slid on some underwear before getting up, and there was definitely a few looks. When I looked down, I could understand why, as I didn't have much fat on me at all. Just lean muscle, a reminder of my army days. Throwing on a shirt and jeans, I found my boots nearby and joined the rest by the campfire.

For the next week or so, I either helped with patrols, whether around Sanctuary, while spending a day each going to and from Abernathy and Tenpines, or helping with any building work. The best bit of news was that another suit of power armour was found in a railcar near Tenpines. Someone had to hack a terminal to get at it, but once news was passed, I headed there straight away with an F.C, powered it up, and took it back to Sanctuary. It was a similar model to the armour we already had. I immediately began training Preston in how to use it, as I figured he could use it when protecting Sanctuary, or when leading his own expeditions away from the settlement. He would be left in charge while I was away.

We'd torn down two houses by now, leaving us six that were habitable. We still needed for more beds and mattresses, some people making do with a sleeping bag or bedroll until we could get something better. But considering many were used to lying on the ground, they were happy with anything soft.

But while helping Sanctuary continue to grow felt good, there was a desire to continue exploring, discovering what else was around. Boston as I had once known it was gone so I wondered what remained, or what had replaced it. One evening, I sat down with Preston and a few others and explained what was on my mind.

"I'm heading south for the river. Cambridge is the last suburb before it. It was the home of the Commonwealth Institute of Technology, had a large student population, and would be a great place for salvage, particularly high-tech stuff." I looked at Sturges. "Definitely the sort of things you'd love to get your hands on."

"Further south you go, the more dangerous it gets, Nate," Preston warned, "Power armour is great and all, but you'll run into a lot more raiders, then Gunners, who are certainly better armed, and if you run into any muties…"

"I know but it has to be done. This is my main mission at the moment, but Vault-Tec and what they did remains the primary objective, at least until I have answers. You now have a suit of power armour of your own. You'll be able to keep the region safe while I'm gone."

"Sure you don't want assistance?"

"Appreciated, but for the moment, keeping Sanctuary safe is the most important thing."

"When will you leave?"

"I'll start prepping today and leave at dawn tomorrow. I'll keep in contact as long as I can."