Big Trouble in Big Town

Capital Wasteland; Near Germantown Police HQ

8:30am:

The young mercenary spots a large fortification in the distance.

"A NCR outpost?" She wondered as she walks the other way "Better keep my distance…"

She then proceeded to the direction of where Agatha's House used to be, while avoiding the main road…

Big Town, Northern Gate; An hour later:

*With the Super Mutant threat gone, Big Town became the safe haven it was rumored to be by the kids of Little Lamplight which enabled the small town to expand.

In the years prior to the NCR's arrival, Big Town was famous for its training courses which taught wastelanders how to properly handle firearms.*

Ellie arrives at the outer edges of the town as she is stopped by a tall female teenager; she was wearing a merc troublemaker outfit and armed with a R91 Assault Rifle.

"What's your business here?" the teenager said with a threatening tone

"Whoah" Ellie responded as she tries to calm the teenager "I come in peace"

"Are you NCR?" the teenager asked as she points her rifle towards the young mercenary

"No I'm not" Ellie replied

"Why should I believe you?" she said as she cocks her weapon

"Believe me" Ellie said as she turns around to show the rebel insignia painted in the back of her leather armor.

It was a picture of two rifles, with their barrels intersecting one another, and a sword, whose tip overlaps the barrels of both rifles.

"Isn't that…" the teenager said with her eyes wide open "The symbol of the Sons of Liberty?"

"Yes it is" Ellie replied "I'm part of that rebel group"

The teenager frowned and said "Fine… Come with me"

The young mercenary then proceeded to follow the teenager into the town

Big Town Main Hall; a few minutes later:

With a rifle pointed on her back, Ellie walks into the town's main hall. There, she is met by a tall dark-skinned woman, who appeared to be in her early 50s. Apart from that, she appeared to be wearing an all-red jumpsuit.

"Red" the teenager said "I spotted this suspicious person in the town's vicinity. What do you think?"

The woman then gazes at Ellie, looking at her from head to toe.

Noticing the young mercenary's new Pip-Boy, Red eyes widen as she says

"What's that on your arm?"

"This?" Ellie said as she checks her left arm "It's a Pip-Boy"

"You're a Vault Dweller?" Red asked

"Uh no" Ellie replied "This was given to me by my friend"

"Your friend huh…" the woman replied with a serious look

"Red" the teenager interrupted "She claims to be part of that rumored rebel group, the Sons of Liberty. She has the insignia on her jacket but I dunno…"

Red eyes narrow as she walks closer to Ellie and says "You're part of that rebel group?"

"Yes I am" Ellie replied calmly

For about 2 minutes, there was nothing but silence as Red stares at the young mercenary.

"You good with a gun?" the mayor asks with a smile

Confused with the sudden mood change, Ellie could only mutter "Huh?"

"Well you see, we got a little problem" the mayor replied

"Wait a minute" Ellie said in protest "I'm in a hurry. I just happen to pass by your town and-"

"Well tough luck, kid" Red responded "We're not really trusting of strangers recently"

"Why?" Ellie asked

Before the mayor could respond, a middle-aged man bursts through the doors. He was drenched in sweat and was gasping for air as he leans on the wall.

"Red…" he said as he continues to pant

"Timebomb?" the mayor answered with a concerned looks in her face "What's going on?"

"The…The..." the man replied as his panting continues

"The what?" Red asked "Keep calm and tell me what's going on"

Taking a few seconds to compose himself, the man quickly stands upright and says "NCR troopers are at the West gate!"

Like the sound of a gunshot in a quiet neighborhood, Red's expression turn to shock as she says "WHAT!?"

With a serious look in her face, Red turns to Ellie and after pointing a finger towards the mercenary, she says "You! Come with me!"

"Huh?" Ellie uttered

"You too, Longshot" Red said as she faces the teenager

"Right" the teenager responded

Having no choice and with a rifle still pointed at her back, Ellie had no choice but to come with them to the West Gate.

Big Town, Western Gate:

As the young mercenary nears the gate, she notices several teenagers, armed with a variety of weapons from R91 Assault rifles to NCR standard Service Rifles… In line with that, each is wearing a different type of armor with some wearing merc outfits while others are wearing leather armor.

The trio arrives at the west gate as tensions begin to rise.

Red quickly approaches another middle-aged man, armed with a Hunting Rifle and is wearing reinforced leather armor.

"What's the situation, Flash?" the mayor asked in a serious tone

"Not good, Red" Flash responded "These bastards just keep coming back! A few shots have already been fired!"

"Again with this…" Red muttered in a dejected tone "…It's their 20th attempt already. Don't they know the meaning of the word 'no'?"

"I say we shoot em down!" Flash said with conviction "Let's show these NCR assholes that we're not pushovers!"

"No!" Red sternly replied "We can't afford picking a fight with the NCR right now! Remember our 'problem'!"

"Damn..." Flash said "...Fine but we have to do something about this shit storm..."

"I got this..." Red replied

As Ellie observes the unfolding scenario, a deep male voice echoes through a megaphone. It was coming from the other side of the gate.

"Red!" the voice said "I know you can hear me!"

The trio then climbs the steps on the side of the wall as the male voice continues to call Red.

Reaching the top, Ellie notices an estimate of 4 squads of NCR Troopers. In the middle was a tall NCR trooper holding a megaphone.

"You can keep coming back if you want but my answer's the same!" Red said in a loud voice

"So you still refuse to peacefully annex to the NCR?" the trooper asked

With a squint, Red shouts "My answer still stands!"

"Are you sure you're in any position to say that?" the trooper replied "How are you food, water and medical supplies holding?"

Red didn't respond but her face showed how irritated she was.

"I'll say this again" the trooper said "Surrender Big Town to the NCR and I'll see to it that your little town sees a bottle of purified water again"

The NCR troopers then retreat as Ellie stares at them with disgust.

She turns to Red who was trapped in a predicament.

Big Town Main Hall; a few minutes later:

Back in the same room she was about an hour ago, Ellie didn't waste anytime to ask "What's going on here?"

Red sat down and with a serious look in her face, began to tell the young mercenary of the events that transpired in her town.

Flashback:

You see, kid. 20 years ago, this town wasn't always a safe haven… back in 2277; this place was a death trap and almost a ghost town… If the Super Mutants fail to either kill or kidnap you, the raiders will come then the slavers will take whoever's left alive... One day, someone happened to arrive in town and no one would have guessed that he'd be able to rescue two people who were captured by Super Mutants… I was one of those people… But the story doesn't end there. After the rescue, he taught all of us how to properly handle firearms and even provided some weapons that he found inside the place where he rescued me. And with his help we managed to fend off attacks from both Super mutants and raiders. Big Town finally became the safe haven that we were led to believe while we were still little kids living under the caves of Little Lamplight…

After the Sons of Liberty raided that NCR prison camp, this gave hope to a lot of people. Using that as an inspiration, a lot of rebel groups became more aggressive in their insurrection against the NCR and several towns and cities across the Capital Wasteland began to defy the NCR, Big Town was one of them…

Of course the NCR didn't like that… Just days before that raid, Big Town, like many places around the wasteland, was occupied by the NCR and used as a staging ground for a lot of their operations across the region. When news came that a small rebel group managed to raid a NCR prison camp, defended by NCR Rangers no less, well… That was enough for us to pick up our guns again and push those bastards out of town…

In response, the NCR tried to use force to recapture the town but we always manage to push em back. Eventually, they discovered a weakness in our defenses… We depended on caravans and travelling merchants for supplies, such as ammo, food and medical equipment. Once the NCR found out about that, they cut off our supply lines… Its only been a few days but even I know that we can't last forever especially with a dwindling water supply. I've already begun to ration the water and food but that won't save use form starving in the coming weeks…

Back to the present:

"Is that why I got that kind of welcome?" Ellie asked

"Sorry about that" Red replied "Everyone's been on edge lately… We need to find a way to supply the town or else, we have no choice but to submit to the NCR…"

Ellie pondered to herself for a while and said "How is the NCR cutting your supply lines?"

"They have checkpoints set around the roads leading to town…" Red said "But even if you destroy every last one of them, the NCR's just gonna rebuild them overnight…"

The young mercenary then begins to ponder a solution to the town's problem… If Red is right, then destroying these NCR checkpoints would be a waste of time & ammunition. Worse case scenario, the NCR may use the same tactic they used during the Battle of Jefferson Memorial.

It took a while but an idea soon pops in her head.

"I got it" she said

Red raises her dejected head as she hears the mercenary's words

"What are you talking about?" she asked

"You have a radio?" Ellie asked

Red then leads the young mercenary to an old pre-War ham radio. Ellie then begins to tinker with the machine.

A few minutes later, she begins to operate on it as she says "Echo do you read me?"

There was no response…

"What are you doing?" Red asked

The young mercenary doesn't answer and simply begins to slowly change radio frequencies.

"Echo do you read me? This is Blade" she said

It took a while but a voice finally came from the other end.

"Blade" the voice said "This is Echo. You're a tad bit early… It's only been a day…"

"I haven't exactly made it there yet…" Ellie said nervously

"What?" the voice replied

"Well…" Ellie continued "I'm in Big Town right now and uh…"

"And you just contacted me, all the while showing, whoever is in that room, the frequency of our radio…" the voice replied with an angry tone

"Come on, Johannes" Ellie said nervously "Give me a break…"

Ellie heard Johannes sigh before he said "…Fine so what do you want?"

"You know some people from Canterbury Commons right?" Ellie said

"Yeah…" Johannes responded

"You think we can use some of em to supply Big Town with ammo and food?" Ellie asked

For a few minutes, there was no response from Johannes' end…

"Johannes?" Ellie said "You still there?"

"I'm still here" Johannes responded "I think I can pull some strings but those caravans need to be protected by our men…"

"So what's the problem?" Ellie asked

"Did you forget yesterday's skirmish?" Johannes said

Remembering the events of the previous day, Ellie could only mutter "…Oh right…"

"Yeah… Who's to say that they won't raid OUR caravans?" Johannes said "We're already on edge with the caravans headed to our base…"

Ellie ponders to herself for a while then says "What if we disguise the caravan as another NCR convoy?"

"That could work…" Johannes responded "…But where are we going to get the equipment?"

"Leave that to me…" Ellie said "Just bring about 4 men here to Big Town"

"Alright…" Johannes said "Want me to go with em?"

"Yeah sure, why not?" Ellie responded "Anyway, head to Big Town. I'm gonna collect the materials you need, Blade out!"

Ellie then turns the radio off as she stands up and prepares to leave.

"Where are you going?" Red asked

"Where's the NCR checkpoint between here and the Temple of the Union?" the mercenary asked

Red then marks the location on Ellie's Pip-Boy as she asks "You sure about this?"

"I'm sure" Ellie replied confidently

"Need any help?" Red asked

"No" the mercenary responded "I can handle this on my own."

"Alright…" Red said

Hallowed Moors Cemetery; NCR Northern Checkpoint

1:00pm:

Ellie spots the NCR checkpoint up ahead.

Wasting no time, Ellie activates her 'eagle vision' and scouts the enemy position.

She counted 5 men covered with the red aura, which meant 5 targets. Two were guarding the road, one seems to be sleeping in the tent near the road, another seems to be using a workbench behind the tent and the last one is aimlessly walking in the church.

Sensing an opportunity, the young mercenary made her way towards the church before that lone guard could reach it. Using her skills in sneaking, she easily avoided detection and quickly reached the front side of the church.

Quickly going inside, she uses the podium as a means of reaching the wooden planks above. Once she was in position, she by the corner, shielded by the church's roof as she waits for her prey to get closer.

Seconds later, the NCR trooper walks into the church and begins to look around. The young mercenary hides herself further into the corner and hopes that the trooper doesn't look up.

As the guard made his way to the doorway, Ellie quietly positioned herself just above the trooper as he nears the doorway.

As he was about to exit the church, the mercenary leaps from her position and with her right hidden blade, she plunges it into the unsuspecting trooper's throat. With one down, she then proceeds to her next target: the trooper who was by the workbench.

As she checks the distance between her and her target, she notices that there is little cover, which meant that she could easily be detected if that man were to turn around. Deciding to take a risk, Ellie slowly walks over to the man, hoping he doesn't turn his attention elsewhere…

As she drew closer, she notices that the trooper was about to turn around. With adrenaline pumping almost immediately, Ellie ran towards her target. Hearing her footsteps, the trooper quickly faces her but before any words could escape his mouth, the young mercenary jumps and manages to cover his mouth with her left hand. As the two fell to the ground, Ellie quickly plunged her hidden blade into his throat. By the time the trooper hits the ground, he was already dead…

She then crept into the tent and, as expected, there he was, the sleeping trooper.

But to Ellie's surprise, he opens his eyes and sees the mercenary right in front of him.

He was dumbfounded at the first thing he saw after waking up… Ellie then smiles at him as she covers his mouth with her left hand and plunges her hidden blade into his throat.

"Shh… No tears just dream…" Ellie whispered to his ear as he tries to resist but fails.

With him dead, Ellie just had 2 targets left; the two men by the road.

It was almost too easy as she slowly walks up to the two unsuspecting men and, once she reaches striking range, unleashes both hidden blades at the same time and cuts deep into the throats of both men.

An hour later:

Johannes and 4 other rebels arrive at the checkpoint with their rifles raised. They were expecting a fight but instead they were greeted by their friend.

"Hi guys" Ellie said playfully

"Uh… Hi" Johannes awkwardly replied

"Well" Ellie said as she shows the rebels the uniforms she looted "Here you are! Genuine NCR trooper outfits!"

"I'm not even gonna ask how you got this…" Johannes said "So you want some of my men to guard the caravans while wearing these uniforms?"

"No. I got a better idea" Ellie said "I need 5 men stay here and continue to act as if nothing happened… Not only will we secure a route for the caravans to enter Big Town, we can also gather some useful intel from the NCR… So long as we don't arouse suspicion…"

"Wow…" Johannes said in astonishment "…You're a better strategist than I thought… I guess I underestimated you…"

Ellie simply smiles as she takes those words as a compliment.

"Alright" Johannes said in an enthusiastic tone "Let's set up shop and start sending those caravans!"

Big Town Main Hall; 2:45pm:

Ellie briefs Red of the situation and the mayor couldn't help but smile as she hears the good news.

"Not bad…" Red said "You really are part of that Rebel Group. Anyway, thanks again for helping Big Town, you don't know how much this means to us"

"No problem…" Ellie replied with a smile "…I'd do anything if it meant making the NCR's life harder."

"You really hate the NCR that much huh…" Red said

"Yeah!" Ellie replied "They're evil shitheads that destroyed the peace of this place! I'd kill every single one of them in a heartbeat if I could!"

Red then walks up to the young mercenary and says "Kid… There is no such thing as a totally evil organization… The NCR may be ran by a couple of douchebags but that doesn't mean everyone from the NCR is bad. I'm willing to bet that there are also people within the NCR that don't approve of what their government is doing…"

Unable to grasp the meaning of the woman's words, the young mercenary could only utter "What do you mean?"

Red simply smiled and said "You're still young. Just keep in mind that not everyone associated with the NCR is as evil as those goons who started all this… How old are you anyway?"

"24" Ellie replied

"Still young…" the mayor replied as she closes her eyes, as if trying to reminiscence an old memory, "You've got your whole life ahead of you so don't waste it…"

"I won't" Ellie replied

"Are you leaving?" Red asked

"Yeah…" the mercenary replied "I still need to get to Smith Casey's Garage…"

"Alright…" Red said "…Be careful out there…"

"I will" Ellie replied as she leaves the hall

Big Town Southern Gate

3:15pm:

Red accompanies Ellie to the southern gate as Longshot arrives.

"Hey" the teenager said "Sorry for earlier… I had to make sure you weren't working for the NCR"

"It's ok" Ellie replied "You were doing your job"

"Right" the teenager replied as she turns around and returns to her post

"Anyway" Red said "You should continue southwest from here. There's a place called Jury Street Metro Station. You should stay the night in one of the nearby buildings"

"Right" Ellie replied as she nods "Thanks again"

"Take care" Red said as she waves goodbye

As Ellie was about to continue her journey, she suddenly remembered another question she wanted to ask

"Hey Red" Ellie said "Do you know who was that person who rescued you from those Super Mutants?"

"To be honest, I never really got his name…" Red replied "…We all know him as the 'Lone Wanderer' but other than that, we don't have a clue! Try going to Vault 101 if you can, maybe you can get some info on him there since it was where he came from after all"

"Right thanks!" Ellie said as she waves goodbye and continues her mission.