My new fic. Furrout: New Vegas

[Lion King Stu]

Hello there one and all, been a while since I really posted anything on Lea but lately I finally gave in and once again I'm trying to do some writing again. I'm hoping it will turn out a little better than the 'Under a night times sky' fic that me and Shadow were trying to do several years back...and several blue screen of deaths and computer crashes which inevitably made me lose all my work, and thus my desire to continue with it. More than anything I sort of need help from you guys and girls if it is possible with feedback and changes that I can make since I have a lot of weaknesses with grammar a lot of the time which has never been a strong point of mine.

Anyway onto the story I'm trying to do, it's based around the Fallout gaming series which I hold very dear to my heart and have been a fan ever since the first games release all the way back in 1997 pretty much all the way through to the latest one Fallout New Vegas which is the game I'm solely focusing on for this story. It's a furry, anthropomorphic based story with my character Twilight (http://t.facdn.net/10779156@400-1370541964.jpg) which will probably follow a lot of the main story from the game, with a few new twists and turns no doubt which I will add in over time and get into this project a little more. The story is set in Las Vegas (New Vegas, the newly adopted name to the place), the Mojave desert and slightly beyond two hundred years after the world experiences full scale nuclear war.

This is just a first draft of the prologue as I have it so far, full of small mistakes and grammatical errors as it stands at the moment but will be correcting and changing over time no doubt. I hope you enjoy it and look forward to any feedback :3....Also on a small note I'm looking for someone to make me a small thumb nail picture so I can use it on Fur Affinity, if anyone can do that please drop me a PM I just need something basic and I don't have any program to do one on my laptop when I'm away on tour : /

[Lion King Stu]

Furrout: New Vegas
Prologue

Heat and sand.

These two simple things you can expect to experience in excess should you ever find yourself in the desert for yourself, skin roasting heat during the daylight hours and bitter cold that freezes to the bone during the darkness, an extreme on both ends of the spectrum with no real comfortable middle ground. These two simple things which haven't changed much in thousands of years, but one significant event 207 years ago would finally change all that, when nuclear fire rained down from the skies across the world.

Since the beginning of furkind, since our first ancestors discovered the killing power of rock and bone, the world to date has been built around the lives of those who have fallen and whose blood has been spilt. God, justice, greed, the list pretty much goes on for excuses and reasons why the world spilled blood and made the world dangerous and violent. Eventually on the 23rd October in the year 2077 the powder keg of tension between nations finally reached a boiling point of no return, exploding dramatically, and the one situation furkind had always predicted but never thought in reality would ever happen. Nuclear war.

Just two hours was all it took for the world to be changed forever as nuclear fire fell from the heavens across the world leaving great cities reduced to rubble and dust, millions of lives extinguished in the blink of an eye before man, woman or child could take notice. In a way it was almost biblical, as if god himself finally had enough once more, for once he flooded the world if you believe the bible. This time he sent fire to cleanse the world of evil, furkind nearly making itself extinct with the nuclear weapons each country held to defend themselves.

But what should of been the end of furkind was not quite as many would of predicted from a worldwide nuclear war, despite millions of lives being extinguished in a blink of an eye. Some of those who didn't die right away in the initial explosions did so days, weeks and months later from radiation poisoning and as those months turned into years did the darkness for the thirst of blood and violence arise like a phoenix from the ashes once again to take a strangle hold on the wounded and scarred world.

It has been told by the ghouls (those who survived the bombs but who were infected with large doses of radiation but didn't die or go feral like a lot would end up doing) who have remained sane and in control of themselves 204 years on from when the bombs fell. The stories they tell is that those first 20 years were the darkest and most violent before the first underground vaults opened up once more.

Not everyone was above ground when the bombs did fall, throughout the United States deep under the ground were massive facilities called Vaults. These Vaults were specially built in case nuclear war was ever to break out, they would house those lucky enough to meet the selection criteria. Those who made it into the vaults normally were selected for their specific skills, social standings and those who were deemed important enough to be needed and kept safe for the future. The idea was that they would be kept safe in their underground shelters to ride out the war, to stay under the ground until the world above was deemed habitual and safe once again when radiation levels dropped to survivable levels. The vaults themselves were a miniature haven for those lucky enough to live in them, well stocked with provisions and fresh water, filled with the most up to date technology to keep their occupants alive and comfortable for many years.

With everything on the ground being destroyed and with no functioning government, military or police enforcement to neutralize and control the problems, who was going to stop them? Gangs which were largely for the most known as raiders took to try and control what was to become known as the wasteland, though many split themselves into different groups such as the Khans who over time would finally be known as the Great Khans.

These raider groups would attack and raid settlements, hold up supply caravans, they weren't the kinds to shy away from violence and bloodshed to get their own ways. But along with the bad came the good, many survivors would band together and create functioning and thriving communities who branded out their own justice and laws throughout the destroyed lands and adapt to the new way of living. Eventually after a few years life pretty much seemed to go back to normality once again, an even balance between good and bad in a polluted and scarred land. The stubbornness and adaptiveness of furkind lived on much like it did in the past, and with that the new chapter in furkinds history had begun.

New Vegas. This is the name now adopted to the once great city known as Las Vegas, the city of sin as it was called and still holds to this day. A lively, bright and colourful strip of casinos and hotels where the tables are hot, the drinks are flowing and the girls, or guys if you prefer come cheap, if you've got the caps to hand. But not everything is bright lights and good times, the strip is surrounded by a slum called Freeside filled with those down on their luck, hooked on drugs or both. Step down the wrong alleyway, turn the wrong corner in Freeside and you could find a knife in your back and being freed of your hard earned bottle caps as well as your life. However, turn the right corners and you can find some good trade, bars and good times, like anything in the wasteland it's all about keeping your wits about you and having eyes in the back of your head.

The city of New Vegas itself managed to avoid a direct hit by any nuclear weapon, a few landed in the desert but far enough away to avoid causing the city too much in the way of problems, still for the next two hundred years nuclear fallout from the bombs that landed in the desert and the radioactive particles carried by the winds from all around the United States spread across the desert sands.

There are many strong patches of heavy radiation scattered around that will kill anyone who lingers in those areas for too long, for the most they are bearable and weak enough areas that you'd easily cleanse your body of any radiation absorbed with a foul tasting medical solution called rad-away. Till this day with the world being scarred by nuclear fallout even as far as the desolate sands there really isn't many clean and safe areas where you can feel content in being, even surviving meant keeping a good eye out on certain areas you were travelling as to avoid conflict with mutants or raiders. The main problems and reasons for death in the desert is all down to not holding the bare essentials you would need to survive and not end up like many who foolishly took to the sea of sand without enough, just ending up as bones after the wildlife has finished with you before being swallowed up from all existence by the sands.

The Mojave has seen in past years a great war between the NCR or New California Republic as they are known who control many areas throughout the Mojave and Caesars Legion who control a large majority of land and states ranging all the way back to the east coast of the United States. The legion felling a lot of clans and settlements in their drive across the United States, killing many and wiping all knowledge of their history and existence from memory, but more than most absorbing them into their vast army. The legion made an assault on Hoover Dam in an attempt to take it before making it's inevitable push and assault on New Vegas and beyond, the NCR had other ideas and stood their ground despite being pushed back from the dam at one point. With all looking lost that day, one master-stroke of a last stand was conducted in the small city of Boulder just beyond the dam. The decision was made to rig the whole city full of explosives, the trick to lure the legion in and blow the town up around them, the plan worked a treat killing a large majority of the legion as well as minor casualties to some of the NCR who sacrificed themselves to make the trap work. A counter attack began and the NCR forced the legion back across the dam and beyond, the day was won and the Legion fell back with their tails between their legs. Both sides suffered great losses that day, but luck and the day was on the side of the republic. The Legion set up camp just beyond the dam at a place called Settlement Hill which overlooks the dam and beyond, but for now they bide their time for the inevitable second battle for Hoover Dam.

And so this is where the story begins, with a young courier new to the sands of the Mojave and how a small, almost insignificant silver poker chip marked a defining moment in the wastelands history which would change everything.

[Sadiki]

You should have started the story with. "The war... The war never changes" Besides that Fallout is also one of my favorite series, even though I must admit that I still wish they kept it in the original form rather than the FPS, but at least they are still doing something with the series.

I didn't really read whole story yet, just first few paragraphs, but it seems good so far... I will try to finish reading it later and maybe can give few pointers, though I cannot correct your grammar. :lol:

[Lion King Stu]

That would be the typical way of starting it like the games alas I wanted to try a different angle on that one :p...I will get that inthe story eventually just not right off the bat if I can help it :lol:
Hope you enjoy the rest of it none the less when you get around to doing so :3

[Lion King Stu]

Well I have been very busy lately with the navy lately so haven't been able to dedicate a whole lot of my time on story writing. I have finally had a few hours the last day or so with things being just a little more calmer to get a very rough draft of chapter 1 finally done. I will be going back at some point so that I can get the prologue and touch this chapter up to correct a whole load of pending grammatical errors, spelling mistakes. Just really wanted to see what everyone sort of makes of it and as always would like some guidance about what they like and what they don't so I can improve in the future on other chapters I do.

I will give some warning now this story is pretty much going to be for the age ranges of 15/18+ as it will contain quite a lot of violence, blood...and maybe some of the naughty in the future....*coughs*

Anyway I hope you enjoy :3

I have noticed the swearing filter is on as well, there is a fair bit of that in the fic as well sadly...I will be eventually posting that on Fur Affinity as well which I will eventually link here as well.


Furrout: New Vegas
Chapter 1 : Couriers

"It is said war - war never changes. Men do, through the roads they walk"

So, where does a lion possibly begin with trying to explain how I ended up in the sandy, rocky wasteland known as the Mojave? How, and why I decided on the paths in life to walk upon? I guess the only way to make any real sense of it is to firstly turn back time to the month of April, on the 19th day in the year 2266 in a small settlement known as Roach. A small, safe haven 4 days hard trekking west of the Mojave outpost, close to the long 15. A settlement that got its well earned name from the frequent infestation of giant radroaches (big mutated versions of cockroaches) that turned up time to time but caused no real harm or trouble to the small community which we were, generations on, quite the experts and efficient in the extermination of the mutated bugs.

Our town wasn't the biggest but it had a small hub for the occasional trading caravans that used to travel the long 15, one of my earliest memories are those of seeing the two headed brahmin (mutated versions of cattle) up close, loaded with goods come into town led by their traders and guards. We also had a small wooden saloon called 'The Water Hole' in the middle of town where a majority of the population spent a lot of their free time, a small church a few buildings down which doubled its use as a small school and a general store in the settlement itself among the homes of the population. On the outside was a ranch, its lands spreading out far into the distance as the eye could see, the grass not perfect, most of the time on the shade of light brown with some green, but just about right for the brahmin herd to be kept content and full. Some of my fondest memories is being out with my father in the fields, watching the sun go down in the distance while he smoked, telling me stories of what it was like outside the boundaries of the ranch and the settlement walls which I suppose heavily fueled my desire to one day leave and see the world outside for myself.

I was born into this world to my young, school teacher mother, Aluna Moonlight and my middle aged, ranch hand of a father, Bomani. They decided to call me Twilight Leonardo Moonlight, my mother had her way with the name, she didn't give my father much in the way of a choice, it was just less hassle to just accept it, but did so, under an ultimatum that my middle name be that of his father which my mother, thankfully accepted. They were a happy couple, much like everyone in the settlement back in those easy, peaceful days where no real trouble had been seen or experienced in many long years, now forgotten to the pages of history.

I grew up an only child, I guess it was down to being quite the handful growing up that my parents didn't seem to want to go through all the hassle for another like me on their hands again, even with my mother being a school teacher, putting up with other children is one thing, putting up with your own is quite the other. However, they loved me dearly none the less as much as I loved them back and did everything a loving parent could do to see me grow up right, I tried to do right in their eyes but as children do I got myself into my own fair share of scrapes and mischief that made me see many a time the back of my fathers hand and the disappointed look of my mother. As the years went by and I turned the age of 9 I was growing up strong and charismatic like my father, smart like my mother, that was the year things changed for the worst in my life.

Many long, peaceful years had come and gone when I was growing up, I can't remember anything more bad happening apart from the odd radroach bite when they showed up, I think someone even accidentally shot himself in the foot after drinking too much of Elton McClaire's home made moonshine in the Watering Hole before trying to clean his revolver. I had always heard my fathers stories about raiders and all the other evils in the world, being in such a quiet and peaceful environment you never think such a day would come when the bad things come knocking on your very door. The town was set upon by a gang called the Marauders, a newly formed gang of escaped criminals, convicted murderers and low life, junky scum picked up along the way, the sort of type who'd never shy from killing adults to even children, most of the members originating from the Mojave reaching out to pastures untouched in search for riches and blood.

They came into town one evening before sundown, it was pretty much a normal day like any other, when everyone put down tools and sought refuge in their homes or at the bar for well earned rest and relaxation. The gang didn't have too many in the way of numbers, didn't truly have much in the way of great conditioned weapons be it guns or hand to hand weaponry, the town itself outnumbered them easily 15 to 1, but sometimes extreme violence, confusion, being out of your mind on drugs and single mindedness on a goal can turn the tide in the face of such odds.

The next twenty or so minutes that passed went in a blink of an eye, the town in the end managed to survive and kill all the gang members but paid a heavy price for its defense, my mother and father were both killed, blown up in the room next to my own in a hail of grenade shrapnel as I cowered and hid under my own bed. It was hours before I came out from my hiding place, my fathers last words still ringing in my ears to hide and not come out until he told me to do so, when the fighting stopped and the words didn't come, I remained until some of the other villagers came to see if everyone else was alright. I was carried out of my home with much struggling and fighting, myself being in such a state of confusion and shock, my eyes glancing on the blood stained white sheets that were placed over the form of two bodies on the floor in front of the fireplace as I was taken away, my father shielding my mother in a protective hug at her back, sadly, none the less, it ended up still costing them both their lives.

[Lion King Stu]

The town also lost its only doctor, a handful of ranch hands and several locals that first day, sadly a few more deaths followed the following days, without anyone having the sufficient medical knowledge or skills to help the more severely injured and also those who got serious infections, there wasn't much anyone could do but keep them comfortable until their passing. The church was the makeshift hospital and morgue, the small doctors office we did have went up in flames after the unarmed doctor was riddled with half a magazine of a 9mm SMG rounds, what drugs we did have went into the raiders backpack which thankfully we reclaimed. As a community we kept our own dead to one side to be buried, the bodies of the raiders were stripped bare of anything that would be of use, ammunition, weapons and what ever meager supplies they carried before being placed in a heap on the outskirts of town to be burnt, ending the very short reign of the Marauders, however brief a time it was, leaving a massive, lasting dent in our small community.

The evidence of the fighting very clear throughout the tiny town, many broken windows, the bullet and shrapnel peppered interiors and exteriors, many buildings coated in now dried blood, the dusty and cracked path down the middle of town covered in a carpet of spent shell casings. Many weeks went by and we fixed the damage, we lived on but with a ever more careful and watchful eye on the horizon, being more suspicious of new joiners to the town or those merely passing through.

I was taken in by my fathers boss Elijah Thorn at the ranch, he took a few bullets in the fighting but luckily a majority went through clean, bar one, he walked with a painful limp where the bullet was lodged deep into his thigh, too deep and risky for even the new doctor that finally moved into our town a few months later to operate on. He taught me how to look after the ranch and do small jobs about the place, as years went on I took on more responsibilities to the point I nearly was doing what my father used to do. It wasn't the most exciting of work, some of it was quite literally ****, shoveling brahmin pies under the baking hot sun and the pleasant smells that came with it, however my spade skills were second to none, as useless as a skill in reality that was.

I finally got the courage to move back into my parents old shack when I turned the age of 15, which since the fighting was cleaned and fixed up, it had lay dormant and untouched but I felt too scared to move back in while I was still at the young age of 9, preferring to stay with Elijah and his family, to feel safe and have a family atmosphere around me. It felt too weird to sit in the living room in front of the fire at the end of the day, being in the very room just feet away from where your parents were slain in cold blood.

I had found my fathers stash of whiskey hidden away in a locked cupboard in the kitchen during the first day, I didn't quite take to the stuff right away having tried a little out of curiosity that first night. Over that next year I took to it a little more, enjoying the numbing feeling it gave to my feelings and helping me too relax and sleep some nights, my dreams often plagued by the events of that one day when the raiders came to town, visualizing what could of been their final moments in quite graphic detail and almost in slow motion, myself but a ghost, a silent, unwilling spectator. Those nights I would wake up screaming, cold sweat at my brow and shuddering under the covers, in a lot of ways it was quite pathetic I suppose. I spent a lot of time sitting beside my parents gravestone most days, sometimes until the last light of the day shining down, the long shadows slowly turned into night, total darkness apart from the light from the moon, the twinkling stars ever watching from above.

And so finally came my 19th birthday, the year I finally decided to leave the settlement of Roach, what started as a small but niggling idea in the back of my head only kept on growing, I felt like I needed to do this. With troubled thoughts and a few sleepless and whiskey filled nights in front of the fire I spoke to Elijah over a period of a few days, naturally he tried to talk me out of my decision saying it was much safer in Roach than what was awaiting in the greater unknown where raiders just like the Marauders run rampant and that wasn't including the wildlife which could be equally as dangerous as any raider. In response I discussed that I couldn't see a future being stuck in the small town for the rest of my life especially being young and that there had to be more to life than just a mundane and routine existence that would only interest me in my later years when I maybe had enough of exploring the wider world. My answer only made him smile and laugh a little, he had known my father for a very long time and said that I was just like him in his early years, finally he agreed that maybe it would be for the best for me to follow my idea after all and that I would be missed but was always welcome if I was to ever come back.

With the bottlecaps I had saved up I bought the essential supplies I thought would be good for a few days worth of traveling, my fathers weathered and aged 10mm pistol sitting in its holster at my right thigh with a full magazine. I had Elijah check over my gun and to also give me a short crash course in gun maintence and how to fire, even at 19 years old I never once had to fire a weapon, the only weapon I had ever needed was a spade, turns out that was quite effective in stopping the occasional radroach.

When the sunrose that next morning I was on the road, going further than I had ever gone before. A mixture of both excitement and nervousness coursing through my body, evident on my face and in my eyes which gave both my caravan compatriots a bit of a laugh but assured me all would be well as long as I kept a keen eye out on anything that looked slightly suspicous. I listened to their stories of places they had gone and the dangers they had experienced and seen, it filled me a little more with dread but mostly more with excitement from having lived a very sheltered and safe life which I was told was quite a rare thing in itself. They went on to talk about how people survived the nuclear war by living safetly underground in massive underground shelters called Vaults to ride it out, I wasn't too sure if they were really yanking my tail with that one, the thought of being sealed in and living burried underground for many years didn't quite appeal to me too much the more I put my mind to it.

A few days of less than eventful traveling on cracked, desert highway and finally we made it to the Mojave outpost and finally I got a good look at what civizilation was like other than my own settlement which was full of movement and voices and this was just a meer outpost. Our stop was quite brief, it felt strange to see so many different other caravans much like our own waiting to go both out onto the trail we just came and some resting up to go deeper into the Mojave and onto their own respective destinations. I took notice of many others dressed in the same uniforms and carrying assault rifles, these I was told were soldiers of the NCR (New California Republic) wearing the emblem of the two headed bear on their shoulder, the very same as the flag that lazily blew about in the soft breeze.

From having a brief conversation with another guard on another caravan he told me that they controlled and protected many areas around the Mojave pushing all the way back to a place called California which my father had mentioned a few times in stories from the many threats that ever plagued the desert and its teritories and ever made their job a headache. Even in all my years living in NCR controlled teritory we never saw the soldiers in our town, a fact that burned and angered me a little knowing that my parents maybe wouldn't of died if they had taken a little more interest in our protection, or snuff out the Maruders before we had to. The end goal of the NCR was to try and claim all regions within the Mojave and have them all under the banner of the two headed bear before making their slow crawl further east trying to annex yet more.

The only problem was while they trying to make a slow push east a faction called Caesers legion had been making a rapid advance west destroying and absorbing fallen settlements and its people into their vast army on their aggressive, rapid advance. The forces of the two headed bear and the bull faced off at opposites side of the Colorado river, the NCR stronghold of Fort Aradesh was taken by force by the legion leaving no survivors before they marched on, swarming, and took the fight onto Hoover dam itself and against the bulk of the NCR troops.

[Lion King Stu]

The fighting was intense and casualties on both sides high, blood flowed freely over the concrete and cracked tarmac of the dam, the dismembered limbs and gore heavy on the ground among bodies no longer moving or just barely, sounds of death screams and war cries filling the air over the sounds of yelled commands, gun fire and explosions. Despite the willpower and command the NCR were slowly forced further back across the dam, with all looking lost elements of the NCR Rangers and the 1st recon battalion threw all their chips and went all in on an all or nothing gamble. If this plan failed then there would be nothing to stop the legion from swarming and claiming New Vegas and the Mojave all for themselves, but if they pulled it off then there was a chance the Mojave would face another sunrise with the flag of the two headed bear flying high.

The rangers and first recon withdrew and fell back to the small city of Bolder just past Hoover Dam, the city that would face the Legion as they first stepped foot on NCR soil and sand. The city itself was rigged with explosives, enough to level the whole city in what they hoped would kill as many of the Legion as they could if they could lure them in unknowingly, enough for them to consider withdraw.

The cards were flipped and they were just in the NCR's favor, the plan worked as the city was leveled and still to this day it is not known exactly the numbers of how many of the Legion perished, some even say the place is haunted by the spirits of those who perished. However it wasn't just the Legion who perished in the city, some of the NCR who weren't quick enough to get out of the city or who found themselves pinned down by the Legion also perished that day.
After the city was leveled the NCR counter attacked the heavily weakened and shaken forces of the legion back across the dam with tails between their legs. The day was won, but only just.

As the years went by the legion continued to pester and attack any forts or NCR strongholds on the east side of the Colorado river until they all fell under the banner of the Legion. There is a shaky and intense standoff between the two which has lasted for years, only time would tell when the second battle of Hoover Dam would happen.

A memorial to the fallen was erected on the outskirts of Bolder just before the dam, 107 rangers and soldiers for the NCR fell that day and many times more living with the scars both physically and mentally of that very day. A day that would happen again because war- war never changes.

After leaving the Mojave Outpost we traveled to the small town of Primm, the main hub for the traveling caravan I had traveled with. The town had two casinos facing against one another across the street, The Viki and Vance casino and the Bison Steve casino with its now long condemned roller coaster that had once snaked around the casinos building, many large sections of track long fallen away and many more sections destined in time to meet a similar fate.
The Mojave Express, a courier service that delivered packages and goods across the Mojave and any place that threw bottle caps their way. A quite popular and quick service in getting things from A to B, a very simple job that even a former ranch hand/brahmin pie shoveler like myself could easily achieve. I had only been in town literally less than 24 hours when I got my first package, a small platinum poker chip now nestled in the bottom of my bag and destined for the bright lights of New Vegas itself.


************************************************** *************

“....and that pretty much sums up my story as to how I ended up in the Mojave” I said opening the bottle of my water canteen, lifting it to my slightly dry lips and taking a mouthful to swill about my mouth a moment, spitting it onto the ground beside me before taking a long gulp. It felt like I had been speaking for nearly the best part of an hour to my courier companion, an old coyote called Kenny on the better side of 50 years, his long hair turning the shade of silver as he glanced over to me with a smile on his face “Well, you did ask for my life story, and you got it” I laughed softly to him as I placed my canteen back into my bags side pocket before I readjusted my dust goggles and black baseball cap, the soft breeze kicking up sand against us both as we walked down the badly, cracked and ruined highway.

We were both heading to the bright lights of New Vegas on what was just a straight forward courier run, a lot of the couriers had been leaving throughout the day which was a little unusual I was told but all this business meant earning caps and that was nothing to really complain about. Myself and Kenny had left the town of Primm late afternoon as the sun was beginning to lower in the sky, the plan was to stay the night in a town called Goodsprings and then in the morning continue our journey toward New Vegas and hopefully make it there in the late part of the afternoon if we made good speed.

“For someone so young you've had quite the past so far” he replied in a gruff sounding voice, reaching into his pocket for a packet of cigarettes before placing one to his lips and swiftly lighting it with a well used and aged zippo lighter “I think you'll find there won't be too much in the way of dull moments out here, that I can guarantee” he said glancing my way a moment as he inhaled a deep drag before looking away and softly puffing out the smoke through his nose “If adventure and danger is what you're wanting, you'll get it sooner or later be it being a courier or just some poor and unfortunate traveler” he said glancing over to me a moment “I'd say you were a fool to leave your safe haven, but I guess at your age I can understand wanting to see what the wider world had to offer you....just a shame that will probably be a gun somewhere on a deserted highway much like this, or on the end of a switch blade in your chest during a game of poker” he chuckled, coughing slightly “Give it a few more years and a few caps richer, I'd give an arm and a leg to peacefully live out my days in a safe, quiet haven much like that” he said almost dreamily, a big smile on his aged face as no doubt he daydreamed of such a time a lot on the trail like this to pass the time.

“Well when ever you wish to finally hang up your bag and finally retire, you're more than welcome to take resident at my parents old shack back in Roach” I smiled a little looking ahead as a deserted “If you wanted of course, better than it just being deserted and collecting dust. I think you'd like it very much, if you're after quiet and somewhere with quite an ample supply of whiskey and pretty good moonshine” I smirked at Kenny as he looked over to me and tapped the cigarette with his fingers, the ash falling to the road, a rough chuckle escaping his mouth as he placed it back to his lips and took another deep drag.
“I'd much appreciate it kid” Kenny finally replied back after a short moment of silence before coughing again slightly, his eyes continuing to look ahead down the road “But I sort of feel like you'll be my next and last little project for a little while before I consider doing anything along those lines” he glanced over a moment to me, taking out the butt of his nearly burnt out cigarette from his lips and flicking it into the sand beside him as we continued to walk, approaching a long abandoned fueling station, its forecourt covered in the husks of long abandoned, rusted and ruined motor vehicles.

“What do you mean by project?” I asked confused looking to him through my goggles, my eyebrow raised but sure he couldn't see it beneath the peak of my baseball cap, none the less the tone of my voice and the pretty sharp look in his direction should of been evidence enough for him to know I wanted some more details behind his words.

“Well, let's look at the facts and just hear me out on this one. I don't mean anything offense I will say first, but let's face it you're not anywhere near ready to survive in the Mojave on your own just yet” he looked over to me, a serious look on his face “You've lived all safe and sound in your little haven all your life, sure you've experienced raiders once, but you've never had to fight them...I'm sure you've never fired that weapon of yours at a raider or one of the many varied mutated beasts either have you?”

I listened to his words, feeling a little anger build up in me, but it was all true at the end of the day as I looked ahead and let out a loud sigh “No, just about know how to take it apart and clean it” I finally said, slipping my 10mm pistol out of the holster and looking it over “Never had to fire it at anyone before, even on my journey to the Mojave I never once had to take it out of my holster yet alone ever aim it at something living and breathing”.

“Sometimes even the dead can be a problem” Kenny quickly answered back “So to speak anyway, depends on what you class the feral ghouls as I suppose” he shrugged looking over and this time keeping his eyes looking at me “But you better learn quick and soon how to use that weapon, life and death usually always matters on how quick on the draw you are and whether you got the courage to pull the trigger. If not you'll end up like so many have, dead, forgotten and life will go on....a sad fact but that's the difference between life and death.

My gaze continued to look down at my gun, taking his words in I felt a little uneasy and nervous. It was a kick of reality that I needed, but it still kind of sucked. I slipped my gun into the holster and looked down the road “I'd much appreciate any lessons I'll need if you're willing to pass it on to the next generation old man” I muttered a little, feeling a little sore at his truthful words.

[Lion King Stu]

“Stick with me kid, I'll see you right” my traveling companion laughed and playfully ruffled the baseball cap on top of my head, swatting his hand away as I looked back at him with a smirk, the brief feeling of frustration within me disappearing a makeshift sign coming up in the distance as we walked the highway seeing a road leading off. Goodsprings 3 miles.

By the time we got to Goodsprings the last light of the day had nearly all but gone, the stars bright and twinkling in the twilight, a full moon on show as it looked down on us from above. The bright lights of a few houses among a few by the look of it had long fallen down an age ago, the odd bit of crumbling wall and timber the only parts remaining on show. We could see on the far side of town a small school and what I was told was a small first aid post, on the very edge of town was an old abandoned refueling station with a few long abandoned, rusted vehicles still on the forecourt and the mechanical bay. What dominated and took my eye the most in the town was the cemetery high up on a hill behind the town, a big water tower on top only making it seem that much taller. My gaze dropped to catch sight of the towns bar, its colorful neon lights burning brightly in the near darkness, an old hound in a rocking chair outside smoking a pipe and wearing a straw hat slowly rocked and watched our approach.

“That's Pete” Kenny said as we slowly walked toward the bar “He used to be a prospector until he retired a few years back, not like the days of old where they used to search for gold...more going through old buildings and long deserted settlements for anything that would make him caps. I've heard stories of some even finding old vaults, long left empty and open to the world...I've heard some really bad stories about some of those, enough to make your toes curl kid” he chuckled a moment and smiled as we got to the front of the bar “Sure I'll tell you some, one day” he patted me on the back before nodding his head to the old hound “Evenin' Pete, how's life?”

“Not too bad” the old hound replied back, looking up to Kenny a moment “New recruit?” he nodded his head towards me as he raised a bottle of sunset sarsaparilla to his lips and took a long, noisy gulp.

“Fresh into the Mojave, just showing him the ropes. On our way to New Vegas in the morning” Kenny smiled to the old dog before patting me on the shoulder, opening the door to the bar to motion me through.

“Make sure you don't get him into too much trouble, you know for a fact what it can be like losing all your caps and getting into trouble there” Pete grumbled a little and looked away back into the darkness “If you're after some easy caps sometime I've heard of a few rumors where I hear pickings are quite good”
“Long gone are those days, usually anything with rumors means danger and I think I'm a little too old for the hassle” Kenny could but laugh softly in his reply as he followed me into the bar and shut the door behind me.

For a long moment I looked around at the interior, blinking a little as my eyes got used to the lighting inside which wasn't fully bright, just a little dim in some places, none the less still better than being stuck outside. The sounds of western music I'd never heard before was playing on the jukebox in the far corner of the bar next to the pool table on one side of the room separated by a wall which on the other side was the main bit of the bar. The sound of lively conversation, chatting and laughing filled, the smell of alcohol and a faint smell of sweat in the air. I followed Kenny to the bar, several sets of eyes watching us which felt a little unnerving to myself but didn't seem to effect Kenny since it seemed like he had some history in the past with the town no doubt, the eyes suddenly turning around back to their own business once again apart from a few at the back of the room who I noticed kept their gaze on us for a few more moments more before going back to their own business once again.

“Hello Trudy, long time no see. I see business is still going well” Kenny said sitting on a stool at the bar and winking to the young looking Raccoon who I guessed ran the place as I sat down beside him on a free stool.

“Kenny, my favorite courier. It has been a while” the Raccoon smiled walking over to our side of the bar and gave my friend a peck on the cheek, making the old coyote blush just a little and a chuckle escaped his lips “It's been what, five months? You got to pass on a message to your boss to let you come by this way more often” she winked to him before noticing me, my eyes looking at her own as she looked me over and smiled “Who's your friend?”

“This here is Twilight, he's a new courier and new to the Mojave” Kenny replied and patted me on the back, a slight puff of dusty coming off into the air.
“Is that so?” Trudy questioned looking to Kenny then back to me “Where did you come from Twilight?” she questioned sounding interested as she cleaned a glass with a rag.

“I came from a small settlement called Roach, about 3 days trekking west of the Mojave outpost. I managed to tag along with a caravan which brought me to Primm and well the Mojave Express took me on and I tagged along with Kenny” I said with a smile, looking to Kenny then back to Trudy “And now he's stuck babysitting me, just convenient we both got a courier job in the same direction”

“Where you boys heading? Red Rock? Camp McCarran?” she questioned, placing a glass down onto the bar behind her and leaned back on it still looking at the both of us “Don't go telling me New Vegas, you know the trouble you got into last time Kenny” she said rolling her eyes a little and smirked.

“That was years ago” Kenny defended himself with a laugh “Besides, it wasn't me who started that fight with the NCR soldier. That was him drinking too much, having a loose tongue with a varied vocabulary of colorful language....and a very weak, glass jaw. But yes, well Twilight is, I got a package for Freeside”.
“So you keep saying, just lucky you didn't end up arrested or killed. You know how those bad those boys can get sometimes” Trudy smirked back to him and winked “Anyway, you boys must be thirsty from your trip on the trail. So what can I get you? These ones are on the house”

“I'll take some of your special moonshine of yours, strong enough I'm sure to power that generator of yours” Kenny replied “Sure you won't tell me that recipe for it still?“You know I'll make it worth you while” he said almost flirtingly to the younger bar owner making her blush just a little.

“Shut up you ol' dog” she smirked and playfully punched him in the shoulder “My family's secret recipe, passed down from generations. You'll have to do better than that” she teased back with winked, swaying her tail a little. I looked them back and forth during the conversation, a quiet spectator to the little bit of flirting and chemistry that was coming off them both but I could guess there was some sort of history there, maybe she liked the older man.

“I'll just take a whiskey Miss” I managed to say between a moment of quietness as they both shared a moment at looking into one anothers eyes, feeling a little bad for breaking the moment just slightly. On the other hand I was a little glad, much more of this and I feel like I would excuse myself to be a sick just a little.

“Sure thing hun, and call me Trudy if you please” she finally smiled to me, a little blushed as she turned around still swaying her tail and hips just a little as she went about getting our drinks together, during this time I looked to Kenny with an eyebrow raised, nodding my head in Trudy's direction.

“So I'm guessing there is some sort of 'history' there?” I said emphasizing my word “What ever did she see in you?” I joked as I took off my hat and dust goggles, placing them on the bar and taking my bag off to place it at the bottom of my chair.

“A true gentleman never tells my young apprentice” the coyote coolly replied back to me with a wink and tapping his hands on the bar which pretty much answered my question right there.

“Lucky fucker” I said a little surprised under my breath which only made my coyote friend chuckle a little louder and pat me on the shoulder once more, she was very much the definition of cute which my old town was pretty much lacking in such girls.

[Lion King Stu]

After a few moments Trudy made a return with our drinks, placing mine in front of me before leaning down a little and showing a little cleavage to the old coyote making the old boy blush, before she chuckled and went back to serving a few others down on the other side of the bar.

“Well....I guess I can understand what you see in her” I smirked and teased Kenny giving a little playful shove as I took a sip of the whiskey feeling it burn all the way down from my throat to my stomach, making me shudder just a little at the strength, a little more body to what I used to “I have a feeling the whiskey back in Roach may of just been a little more watered down than this” I gave a chuckle looking down at my tumbler and coughed a little.

“Only the best alcoholic beverages in the Mojave are served here kid, make a note of that” Kenny smiled to me and tapped his glass against my own before taking a deep swig of his own drink, himself giving a shudder of warmth as it went down.

For the next few minutes we made idle small talk and laughed as I looked around over the other customers in the bar with interest wondering what their stories were and what they did on a day to day business. I still had a bad feeling in the back of my head we had eyes on us still though I could never catch anyone's eye, but the table at the back of the bar where the eyes had lingered on us made me feel uneasy still but tried to forget that as I drank my whiskey soon finding my tumbler was empty.

“Trudy, can I get another whiskey?” I asked as she got a little closer after serving another customer at the bar, she looked over and smiled taking my tumbler away and filling a fresh, clean one before bringing it back to me as I reached into my pocket for the small bag of bottle caps I carried on me.

“Don't worry about that hun” she smiled to me as she placed the tumbler in front of me “A friend of Kenny's is welcome to what they can handle, just don't go too crazy ok?” she smiled to me before turning to move away.

“Could I ask you a question?” I asked catching her attention as she turned to me, still a smile on her face as she leaned on the bar and looked in my direction.
“Sure thing hun, what's on your mind?” she asked with curiosity.

“Those furs at the back table in the corner? Any idea who they are?” I asked nodding my head in the direction as I did my best to look through the small crowd of head and bodies in between as Trudy glanced over for a long moment to study the group and looked back to me.

“I'm afraid I don't, but they've been in town all day. They haven't been causing trouble, which is a good thing, though they don't seem to be doing too much in the way of anything constructive. Why do you ask?” she said glancing back over to me with interest.

“They're just making me feel a little....uneasy” I replied back looking at the group as best I could, seeing a set of eyes lock onto mine for the briefest of moments before he broke it and talked with the rest at his table, my own falling to my tumbler and tapping at the glass.

“You'll find that quite a common thing in this part of the world, especially with new faces showing up. I'm sure they aren't here for trouble though, just curious about who would be out this late traveling about. The Mojave can be equally as dangerous at night as it can be during the day, just glad you played it smart and came into town when you did” she said with a small smile “I'm going to take a wild guess and suppose you two don't have a place to stay tonight do you?” she questioned looking at both me and Kenny slowly in turn seeing the look on our faces which only made Trudy smile and roll her eyes “I take that as a no, well you can both stay at mine for the night that case then you can continue your travels in the morning” she offered us which we both nodded to and both thanked her “Right, now I got to keep the rest of my customers happy. Speak to you both later” she winked and went about her work once again.

“Everything ok?” Kenny said glancing over to me as he placed his glass on the table and looking over to see the concerned look on my face, the hairs at the back of my neck felt a little on end and still the group at the back table made me feel more nervous than ever, a strong feeling in my gut felt like they meant no good.

“Yeah, I think so” I said slowly in reply, my words not sounding totally convinced as I looked at my tumbler and placed it to my lips letting the warm feeling hit my throat hoping the alcohol would make me calm down just a little bit, this land an environment still new to me and these unsure feelings I was having really were nothing at all.

Several minutes of quietness went past as me and Kenny made small talk and he told me about the gambling and games that went on in New Vegas that perked my interest just a little. I had played some card games before but had never really much in the way gambled and did so more for fun than anything else, he said some furs even made a living from doing so and making quite a crazy amount of caps. But with the ups was also the down, a man could very much find himself very poor in New Vegas and lose everything when it came down to gambling, it could be even more addictive as drugs and alcohol.

“So how about it? Want to play some good old fashioned poker?” Kenny smirked to me as he reached into his bag and pulled out a very worn pack of playing cards held together with a rubber band before taking it off and expertly shuffling the cards like a pro.

“Sure, sounds like fun” I nodded to him as I placed the tumbler to my lips and took another swallow of whiskey “I don't have much in the way of caps though if you're thinking about bankrupting me” I let out a little smile to him which made him laugh.

“Not a problem, sure you'll get a winning hand sooner or later. That's the wonderful thing about gambling the odds finally turn in your favor and go on a hot streak. Just be sure to be smart enough and get out of there before the streak goes cold” he smiled “Because a few times in the past I've fallen into that hole and it only ever gets deeper” he said tapping the bar with his hand and taking a long swig of his drink before getting up and moving to a free table away from the bar and sitting down.

I moved over with my gear, placing it under the table at my legs and sat the opposite side of the end of Kenny, placing my tumbler in front of me as I looked across at him. And with that the cards slid across the table and we played a few hands, caps exchanging between both our hands and at one point finding myself on a bit of a hot streak wining with a flush and a few three of a kinds. We both laughed, joked and drank another round of drinks, my head feeling a light and my body feeling relaxed.

“Mind me and my friend join in the fun?” a young coyote with short cut hair and a folded bandana across his neck and wearing worn denim jeans and a red plaid shirt said coming up behind me along with his friend, glancing over I could see he was a horse of similar age to myself with low hair that hung just over his eyes and tied at the back in a short ponytail, wearing very well worn and torn jeans and a similar shirt to his friend.

“Sure thing boys, what are your names?” Kenny smiled to them both and offered them a seat at the sides of the tables as he waved for Trudy and motioned for her to bring over another round of drinks for himself getting a nod and yet another wink off her before he went about shuffling the cards once more.

“Mighty kind of you” said the horse as he took a seat to my right as his coyote friend took a seat to my left “The names Jessup, my friends name here is McMurphy” he replied back placing his tumbler of whiskey in front of himself as the coyote I now knew as McMurphy placed his bottle of beer onto the table and got settled “So what brings you boys to Goodsprings?” he questioned with a smile.

“We're both couriers” I replied in response, draining the last bit of whiskey from my tumbler before placing it back down just in time for Trudy to swoop it up and place a fresh glass in front of me, another glass of her special moonshine for Kenny and went back to the bar “We're just in town for the night, heading back out in the morning...at least that is the plan, this rate I can't see us getting up early” I said with a soft chuckle and tapped my glass, cards sliding across the table to all of us.

“Yeah, you'll tend to find plans don't seem to always stick to how you plan them out these parts. More than most when alcohol is involved, or a decent bit of tail” McMurphy said in response with a laugh as he took a sip from his tumbler before looking at his cards “So who do you work for? Crimson Caravan? Mojave Express?” he said to which Kenny replied 'Mojave Express' before making a colorful remark or two about the owner of the Crimson Caravan calling her a '*****' and a few other choice names making McMurphy laugh hard as he placed down his card before looking around the table at all of us, what followed was a few short moments of looking at the cards and caps sliding across the table into the middle and some bluffing before the first hand went the way of Jessup with a three of a kind.

“A good start” the young coyote chuckled as he raked in the caps and made a small pile in front of him as card deck was moved onto McMurphy and once again the dance of sliding cards and bottle caps were spun, flicked and slid into the middle of the table as Kenny won the hand with a straight on this occasion as it looked like for one moment I had won the hand after Jessup had slid his cards away in defeat after the first round of raising and McMurphy thought he had us both bluffed with a pair of kings.

[Lion King Stu]

A few more hands passed and caps went in every direction, with Kenny going on a hot streak for three hands before making a costly mistake after getting a little cocky, the luck seemingly for the moment moving onto Jessup. I played it as smart as I could, folding on a few hands as we idly chatted and joked away.
“So what do you two do for a living?” I asked with interest as the cards moved onto me, sliding two out to all of us and placing the rest of the pack in front of me for the moment, glancing to them both in turn as I raised the tumbler and took a deep gulp of my drink.

“We trade in the drugs and chems business” Jessup said in a slightly hushed voice as he leaned in a little towards me so only the rest of us on the table could hear it and not the prying ears that might be listening “It's the one trade us Khans seem to be quite good with at the moment, when the ever watching eye of the NCR aren't sticking their noses into our business...we've lost a few good friends their way over the years in jail or killed, but it's profitable business and the risk is still kind of low. If you know your way around that is” he said with a smile and stretched out in his chair a moment before looking over his cards “Still it's a little safer work to what the Khans used to do in the past” he said looking to me with a slightly disturbing smile.

“Oh, really What was that?” I said a little in surprise as I slid three cards into the middle of the table and flipped them over “And dare I ask what that used to be?” I said in response, a little unsure I really wanted to know, even Kenny looked a little unsure as for a moment as he glanced between the two of them and I had a feeling he had a good idea what they meant as he seemed to move about in his chair slightly.

“Being raiders” the disturbing smile still on Jessup's face that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, I took a moment to look behind me at the table where the group that made me feel this awkward were earlier but now seeing the table deserted apart from the array of empty and half full glasses that filled it “But that is long in the past, we wouldn't do that again unless we saw a lot of bottle caps come our way” he chuckled and looked away, making me feel really unsure of the situation me and Kenny were in as I glanced to McMurphy and let out a nervous chuckle before looking at my cards, what followed was the most awkward few minutes as caps slid into the middle of the table and we glanced around at each other. From the look I could see in Kenny's eyes I could see he knew what I was feeling as Jessup and McMurphy smiled to each other, things didn't feel like they were going well in our favor somehow even more so now the table behind us had now cleared like most of the bar as time was getting on.

I noticed that both Jessup and McMurphy had their cards down low to their lap, I looked to Kenny with a worried look in my eye as he looked back to me trying to play it cool as he eyed them both over without making it obvious.

“Well I guess we flip them” McMurphy finally replied as me and Kenny flipped out cards onto the table, what I didn't expect was for what out Khan friends had to put onto the table as each threw down two blood covered identification cards, each of our fellow couriers as both mine and Kenny's eyes went wide. What happened next went in a flash, with chairs flying back across the room our two 'friends' had 9mm pistols placed to our heads.

“Now, no quick moves dip shits” Jessup said pressing the gun hard to the side of my head “What I said before, about not doing this sort of thing anymore. We got paid a lot of caps” he said with a smirk “Now, don't make a mistake like your friends did and try to play the hero. Give us what we want and no one gets hurt, our benefactor is after a small package. A poke chip to be exact, now your friends didn't have it so it's down to one of you we've seen the manifest of what has gone out of Primm and we want it” he said glancing to us both, my eyes going a little wide for one because I was the one that held that package and number two as I noticed some of our friends from the back table had taken positions in front of me and a reflection in a glass framed picture behind us as well.

Smartly it seemed the remaining bar customers made a hurried exit as thankfully did Trudy who threw us both worried glances as she ran out of the building as quick as she could, and who could blame her.

I looked to Kenny and closed my eyes with a sigh, my head dropping to look at the table before looking back to him “I have it” I said admitting defeat as this was a hopeless situation and lying wasn't going to see us get anywhere apart from being killed.

“Smart kitty” Jessup chuckled and for a moment pulled the pistol away from my head but keeping it close by all the same “Now, tell me where it is and we can end this charade and go about our different paths out of here”

“It's in my bag, at the bottom” I said looking back to Kenny as Jessup knelled down and relaxing his gun to his side to root through my bag, continuing to look to Kenny as looked back, rolling his eyes to the side where McMurphy was holding a gun to his head still whose focus was now down on my bag as did the rest of the Khan goons at both ends of the bar. I had a bad feeling about what Kenny had in mind as he nodded his head slightly to Jessup, the bad thing was I knew what he meant and the idea was pure suicide, but in reality I think we weren't getting out of this alive somehow either way.

Two quick gunshots went out, deafening sound filling the air taking everyone by surprise as two bullets rippled through McMurphy's thigh, the horse yelling out in pain as they went clean through and slammed into the side of the bar, splashes of blood and chunks of leg muscle and flesh being ripped away as the horse went down, firing a shot over the top of Kenny's head into a light above sending down a shower of glass and a spark of electric down upon him. The same time I brought a strong knee up into Jessup's face as he turned toward the sound of gunshots and screams of his friend, catching the young coyote square in the chin and sending him sprawling unconscious to the floor without a word.

In all this, just two seconds had gone by as stunned looks from the rest of the Khans tried to make something of the situation as Kenny quickly flipped the table onto it's side and we both dived for cover behind it but not before I flipped the one just behind to try and shelter us from the others and not a moment too soon. The sounds of multipal shotguns fired in our general direction, chucks and splinters of wooden tables and chairs flying through the air, the tables managing to absorb, if only temporary from the buckshot. I could feel blood pouring from my cheek from catching a few splinters from the table protecting us, seeing also that Kenny had caught a few.

“What now?” I said to Kenny, wide eyed and scared but feeling pure adrenaline flow through me, my heart thumping hard and quick.

“We fire back” he said simply, as the sounds of a few Khans snapping open to reload their one shot shotguns, taking these few seconds to kneel up for the briefest of moments to fire off another two quick shots as both found marks in two khans but only catching them one in the shoulders and another in the leg but enough to send them sprawling as blood sprayed onto the wall and floor followed by much colorful language declaring how much they wanted to kill us both and how they'd love to kill us slow. Just as quick as Kenny had got the shots off another bomburst of shotgun shots came back our way, making us both hit the deck in the fetal position as I hugged my knees and cried out, slowly feeling myself being deafened to the loud shots.

“Get a hold of yourself Twilight” Kenny yelled out to me “I need you” he said angrily to me, the scared look in his eyes that no doubt matched my own “Now, get your gun out and fight for your life...because no one else is going to” the sounds of Jessup's moans audible from the other side of the table and McMurphys screams just as much as he slammed his fist into the floor, trying to crawl away toward his fellow khans.

I tried my best to get up, managing to slip my gun from it's holster and snapping the saftey off lying there for a moment still feeling scared as another wave of shots fired in our general direction once again, this time the tables were falling apart in chunks and would only take maybe another barage or two before they would be useless and our odds slipped even more hopeless. Feeling intense anger building up and my survival instincts start to kick in I let out a loud cry, getting to my knees I aimed my gun toward the khans at the back of the bar as Kenny focused on the two still standing his end. I fired my first shot wild, it smashed several glasses on the back table sending shards of glass and liquid over the four. I bought myself enough time just for a moment as it startled them long enough before firing another quick barage which found homes in one Khan's eye and out the back of his head, sending skull, brain and blood to redecorate the back wall, the body slumping backwards hard like a rag doll. The second shot find home in anothers throat, his hands going to his neck hopelessly trying to plug the gaping wound as blood flowed freely and he chocked, gargling a horrible deathly noise I feared would live with me if I survived as he was trying to breath, falling to his knees, then onto his side as his life flowed from him rapidly, eyes rolling into the back of his head.

[Lion King Stu]

I ducked down just in time as another barage of buckshot came back our way, fewer in number now but equally as deadly, Kenny managing to kill another Raider with a shot to the middle of a foxes forehead, spraying yet more gore and blood across the bar.

“We got to get out of here, we'll take your exit” Kenny said sliding over to me as he unloaded the magazine and checked out how many rounds he had left before snapping it back in “I'm low, so got to make these shots count, you still doing ok?” he asked as a thin streak of blood from his cheek and shoulder.

I quickly unloaded the magazine and checked seeing I was nearly out myself and shook my head to him with an unsure look on my face “Nope, I'm nearly out and my magazines are still in my bag the other side of the table” I said with a sigh as I slid my magazine back into my pistol.

“Well, we better make the most of what we do have then. Make them count. I you make it through this then I think you have a fighting chance to survive out here, at least your gun work is a strength” he said with a slight chuckle a moment and patted me on the shoulder “On the count of three we make for your exit” I nodded in understanding, as the Khans were now playing it smart and hiding behind cover, now waiting for us to make the first moves as not to end up like their friends.

The next three seconds seemed like a lift time and almost went into slow motion as soon as he said 'go'. We made our rush to the exit, trying to cover ground to the back as fast as we could but not before I scooped up my bag. The two Khans still at the back turned in to take shots, but we were just a little quicker on the trigger as their eyes went for a moment wide, firing off the rest of the shots sending them both sprawling and dead against the back wall, riddled with both 10mm rounds as both our guns snapped back empty. We nearly made it, at least I did as shots from the other side of the bar flew our way, I could hear McMurphy cry out angrily as he unloaded with his 9mm pistol in a quick burst and felt Kenny push against me hard into safety before hitting the deck, crying out in pain.

I looked down at him, seeing he caught a few in his back as he looked up at me and mouthed for me to get out of there, I felt pain and guilt flow through me, I nodded to him knowing that if I helped him I would end up the same and made for the exit. I turned away reluctantly and crashed through the back exit door and maybe got a few steps before someone in a checkered suit stepped around the corner and pistol whipped me around the face before I could react, then there was darkness. I had blacked out and there was silence, but not before I heard one shot behind me that wasn't meant for me.



************************************************** *************

Slowly my ears twitched to the sound of talking, it sounded angry almost arguing that made me stir back to the real world. My eyes still closed as pain and confusion flowed through my head where the pistol had cracked me sometime ago, still I had no idea how long I was knocked out for. I tried to bring a hand around to rub at my temples but quickly I came to realize they were tied up behind me, after a few moments of trying to move them I accepted that it was useless as a pained groan escaped my mouth, it tasted like copper and I could tell I was missing two teeth as my tongue made a quick assessment of the damage in my mouth.

"Hey, looks like our little courier is finally awake" a voice sounded close by almost mockingly and with the sound of joy in the voice. I only managed to open one eye, the other swelled shut from being cracked hard but I noticed it was still night but now we weren't in the town and in fact we were up at the cemetery on top of the hill on the outskirts. The many crooked wooden crosses and weathered, nameless grave stones surrounded me as I looked about slowly, my eye finally looked and focused firstly on the lifeless body of Kenny whose dead, lifeless eyes looked at me before I noticed the small crowd before me. The checkered suited bobcat who I had for a brief second outside the bar earlier took a step forward, dropping a cigarette before grinding it out into the dirt with his heel.

"Looks like it's time to cash out boys" he said reaching slowly into his pocket and picked the silver poker chip I had been carrying between his finger and thumb "Our work here is done, just need to tie up this one loose end"

"Benny, would you hurry up and be done with it already" Jessup replied behind him, sounding both angry and fed up, the coyote with arms crossed, his jaw and cheek already bruised, red angry eyes glowing slightly in the light of the bright gas lantern on the ground nearby "I don't fancy we'll be alone for too much longer after that gun fight, rangers and NCR will no doubt come to investigate sooner or later. Sure they heard it all the way in Camp McCarran" I could see the injured form of McMurphy sitting down, bandages thick and bloody around his leg as he injected a stimpack into his thigh with a painful grunt through clenched teeth.

"Maybe Khans kill people without looking them in the eye, but I ain't a fink, dig?" replied the checkered suited bobcat I now finally knew by name, a smirk I noticed on his face as he looked back to me, flashing the silver chip to me and rolling it between his fingers before placing it back into a pocket on the inside of his jacket before replacing it with an ivory handled 9mm pistol and aimed it in my direction. One of the khans behind me dragged me up and forced me onto my knees before pulling my head up by my hair, another groan of pain escaping me as my focus was now all on Benny.

"Sorry you got twisted up in this scene kid, but you've made your last delivery" he said, a smile disappearing and actually for a moment looked saddened, before a sick smirk came back to his lips. Still the bastards words were bitterly ironic seeing as this was probably the worst first day on the job in history.

He cocked the pistol putting a round into the chamber and looked at me a moment longer, my body was shuddering with both cold and nerves realizing I was dead. How pathetic I must of looked in his eyes I could only imagine, I felt warmth at my crotch that spread to my legs, almost glad in this light they could not see as I shamefully pissed myself. The khan at my back moved away as I kept focus on Benny for myself, shuddering and scared, my heart nearly exploding out of my chest with the way it was beating.

"From where you're kneeling it must seem like an 18-carat run of bad luck. But, truth is...the game was rigged for all 6 of you couriers" he stepped closer and stopped two foot away, holding the gun out to my head, my one good eye widened but only for a moment, heart continuing to race.

I never heard the bang of the gun but I felt my head snap back hard before my body slumped with dead weight into the shallow grave behind me, suddenly all there was once more was darkness and silence.

Footnote: Level up.
New Perk: Swift Learner: You gain an additional 10% whenever experience points are earned