Right on Time (Fallout: New Vegas)

Bomb Squad No. 666 · Aug 21, 2022

Hi! I'm new to writing, at least in this type of format, so any feedback you could give would be wonderful! This is a Fallout: New Vegas fanfic that's going to be containing elements from Van Buren and some cut content from New Vegas itself. I'll do my best to stay within the lore of the series, if something looks off about the world I'll make sure to correct it. But if something seems off about the Courier, that's cause I've added things! Please, enjoy the story and tell me what you think!

Chapter 1: A Minor Setback

The first thing I heard when I woke up, aside from the ringing in my ears, was the sound of a static-y song being belted out over one of those Pre-War radios. I couldn't quite place the tune, but it put a smile on my face, as if I'd listened to it all my life. The second thing I heard, almost an echo in my head, was a repeating line haunting me: 'The game was rigged from the start'.

"What fucking game?" muttering as I began to sit up before hissing as pain threatened to crack my head open like an egg. "Woah now! Easy does it, no need to push yourself," an old voice called out from nearby. Slumping back, my eyes cracked open, harsh light filling my vision before adjusting, revealing a dusty little house. A creaky fan above me, a squeaky bed below me, and a elderly man sat beside me. He had one of those old people smiles while looking at me, like he was almost making fun of my haste, before getting down to business.

"Well now, it's good to see you awake. Was worried a bit that you'd end up passing along there, but you managed to pull through. The name's Doc Mitchell, I've been the one rooting through that thick skull of yours and removing bits of lead. Not everyday someone gets back up from being shot in the head. You remember at all what happened to you?" Doc perked an eyebrow towards me, expecting at least some type of answer.

"Shot in the head? I don't-" A bang. A flash. A checker-suited bastard staring down at me smugly. White-hot anger thundered in my head, causing my forehead to burn in pain. Clasping my face, I gasped a bit before regaining my composure. "That bastard. That fucking bastard shot me!"

"Woah now, no need to get yourself in a tizzy. Whoever it was is probably long gone by now, you've been out of commission for a while. Let's take it step by step. Obviously, you remember who did it. Let's try to piece together what else remains in that head of yours. Starting off with a name perhaps?"

Letting my hand fall, I carefully push myself up into a sitting position to actually look the Doc in the face. "Right. Sorry. I'm... uh, my name is... Time? Yeah, that's right, it's Time." Doc chuckled and I shot him a look. It wasn't that weird of a name... okay, now that felt like a familiar response.

"Sorry sorry, unusual name or not I guess it's what your parents wanted for ya. Well Time, we found you buried in our cemetery just outta town. Or well, I should say Victor did, he's the one that spotted ya and dug you up. He's one of them robots with a TV for a face. Fancies himself a cowboy. If you want more details, you should probably bug him over it."

Nodding, I file the name away for later. Victor. Need to talk to him about my would-be killers. Ugh, I could already feel a headache coming on again. Rubbing my forehead, my fingers brushed over scarred flesh. "Huh?"

"Ah right. Here, I'm not exactly a plastic surgeon but I do pride myself in my needlework. Tell me if anything looks off about that mug of yours." Handing over a handheld mirror, I flipped it over in my hand to get a good look at myself. It was cracked, but the reflection was easy to make out. Blue eyes stared back, framed by wild blonde hair. Sharp nose and mouth connected by a scar from the left nostril to its matching lip. A scratchy beard sprawled across my chin, grown out from my time resting. God I hated that thing, it looked like a weird yellow leaf got plastered over my jawline. But now it had competition, as in the center of my forehead, just over my eyebrows, laid a scarred ring, still pink, fresh and ugly. And accompanying that was a scarred line scoring over my right temple. That checker-suited bastard had shot me twice. But that was far from my most pressing concern.

"Is this my face?" I felt unsure. I tried to recall what I looked like before, anything that could help, but I came up with next to nothing. Flashes of combat, other people's faces, but no connective tissue between them. Doc frowned at that unsure question. "What do you mean by that son? Don't you know what your own face looks like?"

"I don't think I can remember much at all Doc... bits and pieces, but nothing concrete like my name or that checker-suited bastard that shot me," shaking my head, I wondered just how much I actually ended up losing from that bullet to my gray matter. The Doc hummed for a bit as he looked me over, taking the mirror back and putting it away.

"Hm, that's a damn shame. Sounds like you've got quite the bout of amnesia there. We can host you here in Goodsprings for a bit to help get you back on your feet, if you don't mind doing a bit of work," the Doc offered. I nodded, expecting nothing less. It was a fair deal, and I wasn't gonna turn down help when I desperately needed it. Offering my hand for Doc to shake, it was then I realized I was only wearing my underwear. Doc noticed the flush in my cheeks and gave off a slight chuckle. "What you had is in the trunk by the bed, including your clothes. I'll be waiting in the other for ya, I've got a small test that should help you figure out what you're good at at least."

Doc shook my hand and left the room, much to my relief. Standing up, it took a bit to find my legs. "Man, get shot in the head and your body just doesn't move the same, huh?" Chuckling to myself, I popped open the trunk and my humor immediately dried up. There was a white cotton shirt, ripped blue jeans, some random papers and several .44 casings. There were things missing, things I couldn't remember and it pissed me off. "Fucking bastards took my shit as well," grumbling, I grabbed the clothes and changed into them. "Couldn't even leave a cap on me? I swear, whenever I find that checker-suited bastard I'm going to force him to walk through the desert naked."

Shaking my head, I look about the room for a moment. It was a bit of a mess, but I wasn't about to rag on the Doc about being disorganized. The things that stuck out to me were a chemistry set, a Robco computer terminal, some medical supplies just sitting out and about, and the one that made my eyes light up was a broken 9mm submachine gun. Taking it in hand, I looked it over briefly and saw that it was jammed. Discharging the casing inside, I took it apart quickly to make sure that was all. Nodding to myself, I reassembled it and took it into the next room with me.

"Hey Doc, I went ahead and fixed this gun of yours. Figured I might as well start early on the whole 'helping around' thing." Doc's widened at seeing my quick work. "Huh, I figured that old thing was done for. You know what, feel free to keep it. The recoil knocks me on my ass anyway, I prefer using pistols." Shrugging, I sat on the couch opposite from the older caretaker, setting the gun beside me.

After a quick exchange of questions which I really didn't get the purpose of, Doc Mitchell let out a low whistle as he looked at my results. "Well now, seems wherever you came from they really wanted to make sure you were prepared. You know your guns and how to fix em and machinery in general, you've got some martial technique, and your survival skills are unmatched! But it seems you've got quite a few weak points. Can't stealth a lick, your haggling makes prices go up, you can't tell the difference between a securitron and a terminal, and the further you are away from a surgeon's scalpel the better. Looks like you've been precision-designed for roughing it out in the Wasteland my friend."

I blinked a couple times before tilting my head. "How the hell did you get all that from just a few psych questions?"

"You fixin up that gun played a bit of a part, but you can tell a lot about a person by the way they speak, how they respond to certain things. And you, my friend, are a natural fighter. Hell, you managed to survive being shot in the head! If fighting ain't in your blood, I don't know what is. Now come on, let's get you out in the sun," his piece said, Doc Mitchell got up and popped some old bones. I joined him, popping my neck before both of us headed towards the front door. Pulling the old wood aside, Doc led me out. The sun was harsh, but warm and welcome. It felt nice, like I was always meant to be in its embrace. Doc cleared his throat and I looked over at him and the things he held in his hand. Curiously, I took and looked through it all. A handful of caps in a pouch, a Pip-Boy, and a Vault jumpsuit. Looking at the old man questioningly, he gave a small smile."Victor was the one that paid for your surgery, and he told me to give whatever was left over to ya. The jumpsuit and Pip-Boy are things I don't have need of anymore, they'll suit a person like you more than an old man past his prime."

I cracked a smile at the kindness shown. "Thanks Doc, I really appreciate this. Feels good to have some protection and caps on me. I'll have to go thank Victor as well. Actually, where is everything in town?"

"Trudy's bar, the Prospector Saloon, is just down the way. Sunny and Easy Pete hang around there most often, but everyone makes their way through eventually. Right next to that is the General Store, Chet's pride and joy. He's a fierce salesman though, don't expect discounts or handouts. And off the way to the right is Victor's shack. Then there are the homes all about, the abandoned schoolhouse, and the gas station. Not much to be honest, but it's what we've got. Feel free to go where you like, and if you ever get hurt come by again, I'll patch you right up." And with a firm pat on the back, Doc headed back into his home and I was left on my own. Running a hand through my hair, I took a step towards Victor's shack-

*Rumble*

-only to immediately be cut off by my stomach's rebellion. "Right, food first. Ugh, I'd kill for a Sunset Sarsaparilla and some cooked meat right now." Course corrected, I ran off to the saloon. Answers could wait, introductions could wait, hunger and thirst could not. Blowing past the old man with leathery skin on the patio, I blasted through the door and plopped my butt down on the stool in front of the wooden counter. The lady behind the bar looked surprised at my sudden entrance but offered a patient smile.

"Well hey there. You're an unfamiliar face around these parts. You the one in Doc Mitchell's care? You've been causing quite a stir around town." Giving a sheepish grin, I nod as I run a hand through my hair. "Yeah, that'd be me. My name's Time, you're Trudy right? Doc told me this was your Saloon."

A quiet chuckle escaping her, she nods. "Yep, that'd be me. So, what can I do for you?"

"Anything cooked and a Sarsaparilla please, I'm dying to eat a solid meal."

"Alright hun, give me just a few moments to cook up some stew for ya. Here's that Sarsaparilla you wanted." Reaching below the bar, a golden bottle clinked down before me after a moment. Thanking Trudy as she walked a bit away, I cracked the bottle open and started downing the sweet, sweet nectar. Fizzy, warm, sweet and bitter in a way that just clicked together beautifully. "Ah, finally," sighing, I put the bottle down after downing about a third. As much as I just wanted to down it all in one go, I wanted to savor it and have some to go with my meal. Taking a moment while Trudy cooked, I reflected and started poking around in my head

Trying to find anything, something to latch onto, my eyes drifted shut as I gripped my bottle. Flashes of imagery, sweeping emotions, and the crackle of a radio. Eyebrows knitting together, I focused more on the images passing by, desperate to at least get a clear picture. Some remained and cleared up, but with little context: thick, countless trees going up a steep mountainside; a giant grouping of people, men on one side and women on the other; a pyre of burning bodies, his hands gripped so tight blood flew from his palms; him holding a gun at the head of someone that looked so sick they were about to keel over; and finally, the image of a blonde woman with green eyes waving at him.

"...what does it mean? I still don't know what any of these scenes are supposed to be," saddened at my failure to truly grasp those memories, my shoulders slump forward and I rest my chin on top of hands. Now that the anger had died down a bit, I felt hollow inside. There was hardly anything to fill the gap left by the amnesia, just a weird mix of emotions tied to nebulous concepts. "Ugh, this is getting me nowhere fast. Wonder if there's any Pre-War tech that can cure amnesia," wondering aloud, I stuff my hands into my pockets and feel something crinkle in my hands. Eyes widening, I pulled them out, having completely forgotten about the papers that were with the rest of my stuff.

Sifting through them, I quickly recognized several as recipes for some pretty neat stuff. One of them for a substance called 'Blood Shield' wasn't in the same hand-writing as the rest. Weird, must've picked that up from somewhere else. Continuing to go through the notes, I stop on one in particular. It wasn't anything complex, just a delivery log for giving a package to someone named House in New Vegas. But the contents, 'one platinum poker chip,' something about it bugged me. Focusing on it, my eyes widened as a scene played out in my head.

\-/

Three men standing in front of me, my hands and legs bound. In the dead of the night, having been ambushed while I rested just outside of town. Two raider scum, and the checker-suited bastard himself standing dead-center, admiring the platinum chip. They were talking - I couldn't quite understand them, but I knew the black one was complaining. The head honcho pocketed the chip before walking up to me. He looked so damn smug, like he managed to win some twisted game before it even started. Struck me as the type of guy that'd rub me the wrong way even if he wasn't threatening to execute me after robbing me. Stopping several feet away from me and out of any potential attacking range, he took the chance to gloat at me.

"Sorry kid, but it looks like this is gonna be your last delivery. It's just the way of life that little people like you get mixed up in business bigger than you can imagine. From your point of view it must look like an eighteen-"

"Christ alive, can you go three seconds without making me want to take your head off? Do yourself a favor and dome me already before I break these stupid things and beat you to death." I cut him off without remorse. He looked thrown off, like he never expected in a million years that I'd just cut him off. Good. Pulling more on my bindings, I could hear it straining. So could Benny though, close as he was. Panicked, he whipped his engraved 9 mm out and pointed it right at my head, a final smirk pulling his greasy face wide.

"So long, Tex. Truth is, the game was rigged from the start."

A flash. A bang. The world collapsed into darkness as I fell.

\-/

"You good there hun?"

Snapping out of the memory, I looked up at a worried Trudy. "Sorry, you say something? Was kinda lost in thought for a minute there."

"Yeah, no kiddin. You were so deep in it you didn't even notice that bottle you were holdin break." Looking down, I was surprised to see blood and sarsaparilla dripping from my clenched fist down onto broken shards on the counter. Jumping up, I immediately started picking up what had fallen onto the ground.

"Sorry, sorry! Guess I'm still getting used to my own strength, heh," chuckling weakly, I let the shards tinkle back onto the counter. Rolling her eyes, Trudy took a dustpan and broom from behind the counter and swept up the broken bottle before disposing of it. "Yeah, sure thing hun. You promise you won't do that again? I don't mind cleaning after folk, but I'm not gonna feed into the problem."

Cringing internally, I reached into my small pouch and pulled out ten caps, enough for two and a little more as an apology. "Here you go. I was just trying to remember more about the men that put me in this position. You wouldn't happen to know more about them, would you?"

"Oh, you mean that New Vegas type and his lackeys? Yeah, they came through here. Expected some rounds on the house, but I got em to pay up. They knocked my radio over after the fact though. It can hardly play without bursting into static now." Looking past her to the radio in question, I could see it had a pretty large dent in the side. "I can probably fix that for you. If it fell then it's bound to just be a bit banged up on the inside."

Perking up, Trudy took me up on my offer. Bringing the radio as well as my stew and sarsaparilla over, I gave her a grateful smile before digging in, looking over the radio as I did so. Making sure my hands were dry when I poked around inside of it, I teased out some of the busted wires and patched them up with duct tape Trudy gave to me. Screwing the side back on, I turned the radio on and smiled as Mr. New Vegas' velvety voice reverberated through the room.

"Well I'll be damned, you got her sounding better than before those nasty men busted her up. Thanks hun, lemme rustle up a few caps for ya. The stew is on the house as well." Smiling at providing at least some minor service, I was happy to prove I was at least somewhat reliable. She came back over, handing me about fifty caps. Pocketing it, I decided to get back down to business. "So, do you remember them saying anything about where they were going next?"

"The two with the smooth-talker kept chattering, even he hushed them up. I think they were Great Khans, the one with the mohawk kept twitching in this weird way. Anyways, they mentioned heading back to The Strip, but I doubt they'll be going through Quarry Junction." Something about that bugged me, and I asked her why they'd avoid the place. "To put it simply, that place is chock full of critters that just get angry if you shoot at them. You'd need more than just two junkies and a guy in a suit to get past them. I reckon they went down the I-15, probably went through Primm to circle their way over."

At hearing her say they most likely went to Primm, something unpleasant formed in my gut. At first I thought it was the stew she gave me, but I realized it was a pit of unease and worry. For what reason I couldn't fathom, but I just knew I didn't like it. "Hm. Thanks Trudy. I'll need to make my way down there ASAP. I'll-," standing up quickly, too quickly, stars formed in front of my eyes and exploded with the force of a thousand suns. Stunned and unable to move I had to grip the counter to stay upright and not fall on my ass.

"Woah there, you okay? Take it easy big boy." Blinking, my vision slowly cleared. Trudy was standing beside me, holding out her hand to catch me in case I tumbled.

"Mm. Ah, shit. Sorry, guess I'm still not quite at a hundred percent."

"That's fine hun, you can stay around here for a while. Give yourself some time, those men can only go so fast. Hell, if you go after them the way you are now, you're likely to die in the wastes before you even reach them." Flinching slightly at her words, I have to concede her point. If I locked up like that out there even a bloatfly could do me in.

"Thanks. I need to get back into fighting form. Can I... do you have somewhere I can rest? I think I'm done for today," I said as I gripped my head, feeling as if it were a fragile little egg again.

"Sure do. It's a bit cramped, little more than a closet, but it's got a bed and privacy." Taking me across the Saloon, she ushered me through the door and made sure I laid down. As she left and closed the door behind her, I breathed out a small sigh.

"I'm so damned weak like this... need to kick my ass into gear again. I'll give it a week, but I need to be out and about by then. I can't give that checker-suited bastard too much time to slip away from me." I didn't quite know what I was talking about, but I knew where I was now was pretty far removed from where I was before I got shot. If those men could get the drop on me back then, I needed to get even better. Or reverse the situation on them. But if what Doc said was any measure to go by then I couldn't expect to sneak up on them unless they were pretty deep into dreamland. A plan would have to be made, and equipment scrounged up somehow. The bastards would pay, one way or another, and I'd take back everything they took away from me, including that damned chip. I still needed to make that delivery to House after all.

"Here's hoping he won't mind me being a few weeks late on that..."

Shaking my head, I turned on my side and let my eyes close. My brain wanted to keep going, but my energy couldn't sustain it, even on a full stomach. Slowly, surely, I drifted off to sleep. That whole night I dreamt of nothing but walking through the endless desert.

\-/

I awoke at the tail end of night. I felt better, but that wasn't saying much since those paralyzing episodes could happen at seemingly random times. Rolling off of bed, my feet hit the floorboards softly. Tying on my boots and putting on my cotton shirt again, I booted up the Pip-Boy to look up the time. 5:39 a.m., October 20, 2281. A bit before sunrise, and definitely earlier than Trudy would be up. Boards creaking underfoot, I crept out of the building and took in the night air and looked up at the starry sky. It was beautiful, but so far out of reach. Unbidden, my eyes wandered over to a hill that poked up above the skyline nearby. The cemetery. Before I knew it my feet were dragging me over, curious to see if there were any clues left to find. It was a short walk, barely five minutes, and I found myself cresting over the hill.

My breath left me, a light haze on the wind as I surveyed the top of the hill. Graves all around, tombstones detailing so many people's lives. Walking past several, I noticed a small snow globe, depicting a Pre-War version of Goodsprings. So small and fragile... I pocketed the little souvenir. It wasn't on a grave, so I doubted anyone left it there in memoriam. If I was lucky, one of the bastards that had shot me left it there instead. Speaking of the bastards in question, my footsteps stopped as I reached the back of the cemetery. Here, at the ass end of the cemetery for Goodsprings, was an empty grave with no tombstone. My grave. I stood over it, simply staring. Staring and letting my thoughts roll around and collect some weight of their own. Death had almost claimed me, and I would've left nothing behind to show for my life. Hard fought years of survival against everything that had been thrown at me, from raiders to tribals to those god awful Cazadores. Nothing but years of-

"Well howdy pardner! You're out pretty late, now ain'tcha?"

Shaken out of my absorbed thoughts, I turned to see who had snuck up on me. It was a giant Securitron propped up on a wheel, a flickering tv displaying a cowboy's face on it. Frowning for a split moment, realization dawned on me.

"Yeah, I suppose so. You, you're Victor right? The one that pulled me out of this grave?"

"Darn straight! Hoo boy, those fellers were something nasty, I tell you hwhat! I managed to sneak up after they cleared out of here and dug you up. I was simply amazed you were still alive and cut a quick skedaddle to Doc Mitchell's house!"

So he'd as good as stood by and watched me get shot. That was... honestly, it made me a bit mad, but I understood why. Three on one, even if he was a Securitron, wasn't good odds for anyone. I couldn't even say if I would've done the same or not.

"I see. Thanks for digging me up and getting me over to Doc Mitchell. Suffocating to death doesn't sound any better a way to go than getting shot in the head."

"You're telling me pardner! I've been shot at more times than I can count, but I can't even start to imagine that kinda horror! Makes me glad I'm metal and tubing, not fleshy like you folks."

"Hm. Well, pushing aside mortal limitations, do you know anything about the people that did this to me? Trudy already told me about that checker-suited bastard's companions being Great Khans and them heading out towards Primm."

"Anything about those fellas, eh? Sorry pardner, can't say that I do. Snakes like that don't slither over here that often. Sounds like Trudy said everything I could've told ya and more!"

A great sigh escaped my nostrils. Victor was my biggest lead for them, and he couldn't offer anything extra. That sounded about right considering how rotten my situation was.

"It's fine, I've gotten enough information to act on already. The only issue is getting myself into fighting shape first. If I go out as I am I'll just end up getting myself killed."

"Hm, I see... say pardner, what would you say to a bit of a training program? Sunny goes through it with me already, it'd be great to have another sucker- er, training partner!"

Raising my head in interest, I noticed the sun slowly peeking up just past the hill, offering its gentle rays across the Wasteland. A beautiful new morning, with all the opportunity it provided. A smile tugging at my lips, I looked back at Victor and offered my hand. "I'd be glad to join the two of you!"

Victor looked down at my offered hand before raising his clawed arm and latching it around my wrist. Grasping the equivalent of a wrist for him as well, we shook on it.

"Glad to have ya with us pardner! Now come on, we do morning exercises at 6:30! Hup two three four, hup two three four!"

Dragging me along, I began to wonder if I hadn't just made a huge mistake. Eh, it couldn't be that bad, right?

\-/

Sweating, coughing, and maybe throwing up just a little bit, I cursed myself something fierce as I laid on my hands and knees. I'd lost count of the hours spent under the overbearing heat of the sun and how many times I'd seized up. They were varied, sometimes with me losing consciousness for minutes at a time, at others simply losing control of my arms and legs in a weird, gawky dance. But after barely a couple minutes to recover I was forced back into action by that terrible slave driver Victor. Was that why he dug me back up, to torture me like this? "Ugh, I should've just stayed dead…"

"Hey now, it's not that bad right? I know Victor is pretty intense, but he's just making sure we can take care of ourselves," a voice sounded off from my right. Turning, I grinned up at Sunny Smiles. She was younger than me, but a hunter in her own right. Easy on the eyes too, but I doubted she'd say the same of me what with the big ol' hole in my head staring at her. Gathering my strength, I stood up, a full head taller than her.

"Yeah yeah, I know. Ugh, my ass still smarts from all those kegels," rubbing my behind, I smiled as she giggled at the joke. "I'm sure it's just all those weird episodes holding me back though. These exercises are good to help fight that off."

"Oh yeah tough guy? C'mon, let's go get some water from the source. It's about time I went and made my rounds with Cheyenne anyways." Barking, the German shepherd trotted up beside the woman upon hearing her name. The gecko hunter kneeled down and rubbed her behind the ears, eliciting some happy panting and tail wagging.

"I'd love to, but you said there's usually geckos running over there, right? I can punch pretty well, but I'd feel better if I could shoot em. Doc let me have a 9mm submachine gun, but I don't have any ammo for it."

"You didn't have a weapon?" Seemingly shocked, Sunny hummed to herself for a moment. "Guess it makes sense those assholes wouldn't just leave any weapons on you if they thought you were dead... Here, let's stop by Chet's real quick. I don't carry 9 mil ammo on me, I'm more of a rifle girl. He's bound to have some you can buy up."

Nodding, I follow her as she leads the way over to the Goodsprings General Store. Stopping in front, Sunny nodded her head at the store as she sat down outside and looked over her own rifle. Creaking the door open, a bell tingled as I entered and approached the counter at the back. A tanned man stared back at me, a hard-set face showing no room for quarter.

"Well well, the local amnesiac finally stops by, eh? What can I help you with?" Eye twitching at the casual mention of my current issue, I brushed it aside and focused on my shopping.

"Chet right? I wanted to buy some 9mm ammo for this submachine gun I have, and maybe a revolver and ammo for that if you got it." Nodding, Chet ducked behind his counter for a moment before popping back up with a container with boxes of ammo inside of it.

"Afraid I don't have any revolvers on me at the moment, but I've got 9 mil ammo like you wouldn't believe. That'll be four caps per round."

"What!? Four caps a round, for a god damn submachine gun!? You're fucking crazy!"

"Alright alright, if you feel that strongly about it I can cut it down to three caps a round. Can't go lower than that I'm afraid, I've got a shop to run. However, if you buy in bulk I might be able to give you a slight discount."

I stared in abject shock before shaking my head and pawing through my caps. I winced, only seeing 152 caps to my name. "How much is in a box, and how much would it cost me?"

"Hmmm... a box of 9 mil ammo is about fifty bullets. Including a discount, that'd rack up to one twenty."

My heart sank. So much for so little, the townsfolk were severely understating how cut-throat of a businessman Chet really was. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that and expect to keep feeding myself after the fact. Do you have anything cheaper?"

"I suppose I got surplus ammo. It's worse quality and it'll jam up your gun more easily, especially considering that SMG you got. That being said, I'm willing to trade. You have anything on you that you're willing to part with that's worth parting with?"

I seriously wanted to laugh in his face, what with all the nothing I had to trade with the bastard. "I've got some papers with recipes on them, but next to nothing besides the clothes on my back. Doc Mitchell gave me this Pip-Boy and Vault jumpsuit, but it kinda feels like spitting in the old man's eye if I just turn around and sell it across the street from his house."

Chet rolled his eyes but went along with it. "Alright, pull out these recipes and we'll see what you've got." Doing so, I laid them out nice and neat in front of him on the counter. The merchant looked over them, seemingly interested in some of them. "Huh, this is better stuff than I expected you to have. It's a wonder that that New Vegas-type city boy didn't take them with him, but that's his loss. I'll pay to copy your Blood Shield, Turbo, and Black Coffee recipes. I won't ask how you got these things, but make sure you don't show these chem recipes to any lawmen."

"Alright, I'll make sure to keep that in mind. How much will this net me?"

"Hm... I'm not quite adept enough to make the Turbo myself which'll hit the value I can glean from it. But I'll give you three boxes of normal 9mm ammo for these." Sighing in relief, I put my hand forward.

"Alright, I can work with that. Consider it a deal." Chet clasped my hand, shaking it before reaching into the box and putting three boxes in my hand. That done, he got to working on copying and I loaded my gun. A hundred and fifty bullets wasn't bad, but I'd have to watch my fire rate with this SMG. Each of us getting done at about the same time, I took the original recipes and nodded towards the store owner.

"A pleasure doing business with you, sir. Have a nice day, and make sure to show Sunny a good time!" The man cackled to himself as I rolled my eyes and left. Feeling the sun kiss my skin once again, I looked down to Sunny.

Hearing me exit, she had gotten up and turned to look at me with a cocksure grin on her face.

"Well, are you finally ready to go out and get some water?"

"Heh, ready as I'll ever be. Sorry if I kept you waiting, let's get at it." And together, the two of us wandered to the edges of town.

\-/

A green gecko lazily walked about the metal structure. Licking one eye and then the other with its abnormally long tongue, it let out a low hiss as it tasted the air. Only light radiation, mostly clear, the reptile's head dunked down into the water as it lapped it up. A pebble skipped off of a stone behind it. Head perked back up at the slight bit of sound, its neck jerked and twisted behind it to see a tall creature with a yellowed mane atop its oblong head holding a shiny instrument pointed at it. Recognizing the death stick, the gecko let off a hiss to alarm its brethren before charging at the threat.

Seeing the hissing gecko charging at me, I simply angled my gun at its bulbous head and squeezed the trigger. Bullets ripped through the gecko's pathetic skull as it became a fine red paste, I let go after five shots. A scream echoed out past the hills, grabbing my attention away from the recent kill. Looking over to Sunny perched on a rock and looking through her rifle's scope next to me, she nodded. Cover fire was so damn nice when you had it.

Charging past the rocks, I saw a woman running towards us being chased by about seven geckos. Bringing my gun up, I aimed and took steady steps ahead to not mess up my accuracy too much. Zeroing in on one to the left I had a clear line of sight for, I unloaded into center mass. Two whizzed past it before the next three sunk into the fleshy underbelly, the final two going high and one even popping an eye.

I heard three shots pop off from Sunny in the time it took for me to dispose of the first and find a new target, a gecko to the right losing its leg before finding two bullets lodged in its skull. Aiming towards the middle of the pack, I shot into it to break them up and make easier pickings. Five went wide, two lodging into the side of a gecko in the dead center and one striking a rock on the ground and flinging it into another gecko's eye on the right. Two more shots from Sunny and the gecko with the ruined eye was completely dead. Hearing her reload, I strafed to the side of the running woman to get a clearer shot at the closest gecko to her.

Nipping at the settler's heels, the gecko found its legs riddled with four bullets as two more whizzed behind it, ruining its ability to run and taking it out of the fight. Sunny's gun rang out as she finished reloading. Looking for my next target, I paused as I noticed Cheyenne pounce onto the gecko I had just downed, ripping out the back of its neck. An uninjured gecko decided to go for the closer target and lunged at the dog, before four shots pierced through its back and cut the attempted attack short.

Breathing out, I looked at the final two geckos, one injured and the other still right as rain. Hissing, the injured gecko lunged towards myself forcing me to unload my last four bullets into the gaping maw flying at my ankles. It collapsed, dead, and I let my gun fall to hang from my belt, the ammo utterly spent. Sunny, seeing the last gecko standing, took her own final shot and it sunk beautifully into center mass. But the animal did not go down, and it lunged towards me like it's last felled brethren. Instincts taking over, my foot lashed out and caught the underside of the gecko's jaw, forcing it shut as it bit the tip of its own tongue off. Having stunned the creature, I brought my hands together and crashed it down atop the critters head, the cracking of its neck echoing out.

Adrenaline flooding my veins, I breathed in and out as I observed what remained of the skirmish. All in all, that took about twelve or so seconds. Letting out a sigh of relief, I turned and saw Cheyenne feasting on the gecko it had already killed. Looking further up, I saw Sunny get up from her perch and hop down to talk with the settler. Rolling my shoulders, I picked my SMG back up and looked it over before reloading it and flicking the safety back on.

"Well, that turned south pretty quick. And to think, we didn't even get that water yet. Eh, at least we managed that pretty well. Ain't that right Cheyenne?" Woofing in agreement, I smiled before whistling for the dog to follow me back up to Sunny. Making our way back up to the two, I heard the settler thanking Sunny for her work taking out the geckos.

"Thank you so much! Ugh, I thought I was a goner for sure. You can bet I ain't going back out here without someone to watch my back," the settler groaned, rubbing her arm. It looked like she got scratched, but it wasn't deep or even that bad.

"It's not a problem Luanne. Why don't you go get checked out at Doc Mitchell's, make sure you didn't catch anything nasty from those geckos?" The settler nodded like a bobble-head, running off at Sunny's suggestion. Sighing to herself, she turned to me. "Well, that got more exciting than I thought it'd be. But look at you! Seems like you've got some moves on ya, huh?"

"Heh, guess so. Honestly, it was just instinct at that point. The trigger discipline, knowing where to kick to stun that gecko... kinda makes me wonder what else I know without knowing." Scratching the back of my head I silently thanked that I didn't have one of those weird episodes again, that woman might've died if I had.

"Well, wanna see if you know your way around a campfire? There's one nearby and I got some stuff to craft with. Let's go get that water and do that, okay?"

Smiling, I nodded and followed her back to the well. Maybe today was gonna get better.

\-/

The two of us, three if you counted Cheyenne peeing over by a brush, sat by the fire enjoying our cartons of water. After prying how much Chet had tried to force me to pay for a simple box of ammo, Sunny had shook her head and tutted at me before handing fifty caps for helping her take care of those geckos. I accepted, both because I needed the cash and because I knew she'd call me a dumbass if I refused. So there we sat, with me messing around with some broc flower and xander root and Sunny skinning and tanning the hides of the geckos we had slain. After making some Healing Powder, I caught myself taking out an empty bottle of Sunset sarsaparilla. Deciding to follow my gut, I made a second dose, this time stuffing the congealing components into the bottle and adding a splash of water and corking it. Shaking it vigorously, I uncorked it and sniffed it.

A smell not dissimilar to a desiccated bloatfly stuffed with the enough nightstalker droppings to kill a Deathclaw hit my nostrils with the force of a Super Sledge. Immediately corking it I dry heaved, but there was nothing left to be expelled from my gut. Coughing hard enough to bring tears to my eyes, I shook my head as I looked in horror at the terrible thing I had created.

"Whatcha got there?" Snatching the bottle out of my hand before I could warn her, I watched in slightly morbid curiosity as the gecko hunter uncorked it and sniffed herself. Her face scrunched up and her mouth formed a perfect 'o' shape as she held it out far away from her. Coughing up a storm, she was indisposed enough for me to lean over and pluck the bottle and cork out of her hands.

"That is an abomination I made on a whim. I'd almost say it's a weapon in and of itself, but I used the same stuff for that Healing Powder. I think it's called Bitter Drink?" Deja vu knocked at the back of my head, but it slipped from me before I could grasp it. Sunny finally got herself collected before looking at the bottle in my hand in disdain.

"Ugh, that's way too mild of a name for something that foul. Do me a favor and don't make that again while you're here. I don't think my stomach can handle that again. Please tell me it's a miracle cure, I don't think anything less can justify just how awful it is."

Chuckling, I shook my head. "See, that's the thing. I got the idea and the name, but not much outside of that. So whatever this thing can do? Has to be good if I can make it, and it has to be better than the Healing Powder at the very least. But yeah, I think I'm done experimenting. Wanna hand me some of that gecko meat? Not sure how good of a cook I am, but I can promise I won't burn it."

Cracking a smile at me, she reached next to the cloth laid out next to her and handed over a couple hunks of gecko meat. Taking them, I skewered each on a spit and held them over the fire, waiting patiently as the flesh popped and boiled, fatty juices steaming off of them. As Sunny and I went about our business, silence descended as we focused on our given tasks. It was pleasant. So absorbed in it, I almost didn't notice when she tapped me.

"Hm? What is it, Sunny?"

"What was that you were humming just now?"

"Humming? I wasn't humming," I stated, confused. Sunny quirked an eyebrow before insisting on it.

"Yes, you were. It was kinda nice actually, I wanted to learn it. It didn't sound like anything on the radio."

After thinking about what she said, I tried to recall if I had been humming and what it could've been, but it seemed to be just outside of my grasp. "I'm sorry, but I really don't remember. If my memory gets jogged I'll be sure to tell you though."

Sunny looked a bit disappointed as she went back to the last of her skinning with a pout. It was kinda cute and plucked at my heart, making me wish I could've given her the answer right away.

'Man, that girl is way too cute. It's almost too nice of her to take pity on me the way she has, helping me like this.'
Soon enough, the meat was done, as was Sunny's skinning of the geckos. Taking the meat off the fire, I handed her a stick before biting into my own. Chewy to all hell and back, but tender and moist in just the right ways. Hunting did have its upsides with all the fresh meat you could want, but the kitchen was probably better for actually cooking it than the great outdoors.

"Thanks again, for all the help you've given me. I know you didn't need to, and it really means a lot." Looking up in surprise, Sunny looked at Time with a tilt to her head.

"What do you mean? I've barely done all that much, I've just taken you out for water."

"You've also helped me through Victor's training, getting me to buy ammo, gotten me used to shooting and even finding out I have some gecko killing moves, and even up to now with the Bitter Drink and the fact I hum some type of song. It's the little things, getting back pieces of what I've lost that really mean the most to me."

After the confession, the two of us fell into silence, eating the gecko meat. Idly, I wondered if I made things weird, or if I said something that'd make her resent me. Knowing my big ole mouth it wouldn't surprise me if I ruined my chances with another girl.

Taking a moment to pause, I looked back at that thought. What did that mean? Was that my subconscious speaking out, like with the Bitter Drink? What did that say about me, my past? Did I strike out with a lot of women? Was I a player, or someone that kept casual relations? Holy shit, did I have a woman out there waiting for me? What about kid-

"You know, I honestly wanted to impress you when I took you out here."

Snapped out of my thoughts, my attention was immediately stolen by the woman sitting next to me. She looked hesitant and stared straight in front of her, her cheeks flushed. Curious as to what she meant, I urged her to go on.

"I-I mean, I wanted to get to know you better, but that's kinda hard when you don't even know yourself, so I thought the next best thing would be to just do things with you, like this da- hangout! N-not a lot of men my age live here, the only one really being Chet but I refuse to even start with that. Not to mention you're the only one that even tries to participate in my training with Victor and you have that mysterious air about you and your voice really reminds me of a Ranger that used to come through here that I had a crush on and I really like it when you scratch the back of your head in that cute way of yours whenever you're embarrassed about something and-," cutting herself off with a giant inhale of breath, she turned to look me right in the eye.

"And then that woman almost died and it reminded me that life is short, cruel, and violent! Do you wanna make out?"

Blinking once, then twice, I don't think I had thought as hard or as fast as I had any time before that moment. Everything Sunny had done, everything she'd said, it all almost fell into place before my eyes. And then the sweeping kick of a question she just plopped on at the end as if it wasn't even that big of a deal. It was at that moment I had to decide - to take the opportunity presented before and potentially fuck up any prior relationship I might've had? Or abstain in the hopes I had a relationship with no guarantee of that very specific thing?

As Sunny had put it, life was a fast-paced and often unfair thing in the Wasteland. Was it fair that I'd gotten shot in the head and had almost all my memories removed? No. No it was not. Was it fair to any potential spouse I had that I no longer held any memory of them? No, not at all. Was it fair for me to use my amnesia as an excuse to potentially cheat? Not in the slightest.

But was I gonna do it anyway?

"Yes."

Giving her my answer, I leaned forward and mashed my lips against Sunny's. It wasn't elegant, and there was next to no skill involved on either side, but the passion was definitely there. As our lips moved, tongues inevitably started poking through as well. Our hands started exploring each other, patting and slipping under a layer or two. I swear I almost heard Cheyenne perk up from a ways away at some point. It was hot, heavy, and everything I imagined it would be. It was, to put it simply, wonderful and an excellent stress relief.

And then I seized up and bit the tip of Sunny's tongue off.

\-/

Head held in my hands, I sat outside of Doc Mitchell's house, absolutely mortified at what had happened. Cheyenne sat beside me, licking herself as I wallowed in my absolute shame.

"God, what a way to fuck up an intimate moment. Truly, the bachelor of the year award goes to you, Time..." I couldn't even bring myself to marvel at the fact that was when I'd hit an episode. Was that my body just betraying me, or some fucked up Karma finally biting me in my ass? Such questions dominated my mind as the door to the Doc's house opened and Sunny and the man himself walked out. Sunny looked embarrassed and couldn't bring herself to look me or the Doc in the face. Doc Mitchell on the other hand looked like some weird mix between the molerat that caught the canary and exasperated.

"You know, if you were experiencing those types of episodes you could've just told me? I can help with more than just open wounds like a bit tongue." I could almost feel the heat from Sunny's face as she flushed, and I wasn't much better.

"Sorry Doc, I thought it was something I could just beat back. Do you, um, have a cure or a treatment?" My hand rubbed the back of my head as I offered a sheepish smile to the older man.

"I don't have an Auto-Doc so I can't cure it, but I do have a little homemade remedy back from my Vault days. It's a bit of crushed Mentat mixed with yucca fruit and bourbon. I'll go get you a few doses, take one in the morning when you wake up and one in the evening before you go to bed." With the doctor heading back into his house for a moment, it left the two of us outside. Awkward tension grew to the point I couldn't really handle it.

"I'm so sorry about the whole- the biting thing. I didn't even feel the episode coming on, and it was just so hot I guess I didn't think straight and-"

"You thought it was hot? I mean, it's fine, I should've known. Honestly, I should've forced you to go to Doc's house the first time you started jerking around on the floor like that. It was dumb of both of us."

Breathing out, I felt some of the tension ebb away. "So, how long did the Doc say it'd take you to recover?"

"Thankfully it was just the very tip of the tongue. Not even enough to cause a lisp, just enough to spout out blood and cause panic." We both laughed at that, the tension easing out of our bodies. "That said, he recommended I hold off for a couple days, at least until you manage to get your episodes under control."

I perked up at that. The way she said that implied there was a raincheck for the make out and that she still wanted to. But still, I had to be safe.

"So uhm... does that mean you still want to when I do get them in check?"

She blushed and looked to the ground for a moment before looking back up. There was a fire in her eyes, like she was determined. "Hey now, you can't scare me away with a little biting. Just, maybe save that for somewhere else, huh?"

At that, my brain felt like a wrench had just been stuck into its cogs, halting all possible thought. I wasn't a virgin, that much I could tell from the images that that implication sent racing through my mind, but the possibility still sent me reeling. Not that Sunny even gave me a chance to respond, giving off a giggle as she walked away, a sway to her hips that hadn't been there before. It was that sight I lingered on, and the reason why when Doc Mitchell came back out I was looking down the street with a goofy grin on my face. Snapping his fingers in front of my face broke me from my stupor and brought me back to the present.

"Ah, you youngins. I swear things get easier and easier as time goes on. Here's your medication sonny, and take a word of advice will ya? Make sure you've got all your ducks in a row before you make a commitment. Sunny ain't stupid, she knows you won't stick around, but make sure you keep your relationship clear from the jump."

Taking the sage advice and mulling over it, I nod along. It would be needlessly cruel to just mess around with Sunny and lead her on to something bigger, especially when I had frankly a lot of pressing concerns to address. "Thanks Doc. Have you ever been in a relationship before? You don't look disfigured, I bet you had at least one girl on your arm at some point or another."

And just like that, the grandfatherly look withered and pain could be seen behind his eyes clear as day. I couldn't help but immediately regret asking. I tried to tell him he didn't have to tell me, but he preempted me and cut me off with a raised hand.

"It's fine sonny. It's been a long, long while since she passed, even if the pain is still there I can honor her memory by talking about her. We both came from the same vault. She stayed when we got kicked out, I went and roamed the wastes as a doctor. Eventually, I came back and took her with me. She... she didn't make it. Her immune system was crippled, stunted by a life in the vault with no exposure. Now she rests just outside of Goodsprings, over in that there cemetery. She was a delight, the love of my whole life. I couldn't bring myself to keep moving away from her, so I set up shop here in Goodsprings, and here I'll remain until I join her one day."

I stayed silent, marveling at the man's story. Such a deep love, to not be willing to leave her even in death... it made me wonder if I could find and foster a love like that one day. Looking down at the gun tied to my belt, I could almost hear it telling me no. That I was meant to die in the Wastes. Maybe I was, I already almost had, but I'd be damned if I didn't fight as hard as I could first.

"Thanks for telling me about her Doc. It's kinda put some things in perspective. I'll go talk with Sunny later and make it clear what we both want. I'm honestly amazed she even wants to hook up with an ugly guy like me."

"Hm? Sonny, are you blind? Only thing ugly about you is how little you understand surgery and how little self-esteem you got. If you're talking about that tiny ring on your head, you'll need to look in a mirror again. It's an accent to the rest of ya, like any scar. It's a story about how you survived, and a testament to how thick that skull of yours is and how lucky you are. Now go on and git, it's been a long day and I'm tired. Go get some sleep, then talk with your girlfriend."

A brand new flush hit my cheeks, and before I could say anything in return the Doc had already slinked back into his home. Grumbling to myself about teasing old folk, I made my way back to the Prospector Saloon under the cool night moon. A good dinner and night's rest beckoned to me, and I couldn't find it in myself to delay. I could figure out what to do about Sunny tomorrow, when we talked it out between us.

\-/

Shutting the door to home closed, Sunny calmly went to her bed, Cheyenne close behind her. Sitting on the frame, she took the flimsy pillow in her hands, pushed it into her face and screamed in abject embarrassment.

"I can't believe I said all those things to him! God, why did I have to tell him about the Ranger crush too! He's going to think I'm weird pushing it on him like that! Ooooh, Cheyenne, what am I going to do?"

The dog huffed and panted, eager to receive pats and not quite getting his owner's emotional distress. Sunny groaned and laid back on the bed, her dog hopping up as she did and curling into a ball at her side. A tough and rough woman the gecko hunter may be, but she'd never bared her heart like that to anyone before. Honestly, she wouldn't even say she was good with emotions in general, usually just keeping them repressed and not shown to anyone else. The only time she'd cracked was back when her mom had passed, and Trudy had been the one to comfort her. Trudy was good like that, being the emotional backbone of the town, almost like the town 'mom' of sorts. She'd even accidentally called Trudy mom once. It was mortifying to remember, but the woman had smiled so brightly that day it made Sunny happy she'd made the mistake.

But none of that related to boys and men! Maybe she could pick Trudy's brain on it tomorrow, see what she was supposed to do, but that risked the relationship officially becoming town business, something she was not prepared to do. Doc Mitchell was bad enough, but he at least knew how to keep his mouth shut about sensitive topics. It almost reminded her of back when she'd first asked him about where babies came from and he'd given her a three hour lecture on sex.

Maybe she'd just have to bite the bullet regardless. Sunny didn't know if she'd bitten off more than she could chew, but she was desperate enough to give it all she had. It wasn't every day a cute man your age with decent morals and gun knowledge just dropped into your lap. Even if it didn't last she'd get some experience with romance and lo- okay probably not that, but still. She just had to calm down and not think about it as much. She just... had to relax and go to sleep. This could be solved tomorrow.

As Sunny rested on her side, snuggling up to Cheyenne, she couldn't help a smile creeping across her face. She was honestly excited to see Time tomorrow, even if just the thought about him sent her heart beating nervously. Sunny just wasn't the type to stalk around what she wanted, she'd take it if it was there and up for grabs. Exhaling, she let herself drift off to sleep with but a whisper.

"Can't wait for tomorrow..."

Thanks for taking the time to read through all of this! I'll update when and if I can, I really want to get better to the point I can write an actual book one of these days! If you want to help with that, then please leave reviews and comments.

Have a wonderful day!

Bomb Squad No. 666 · Aug 31, 2022

And we're back with chapter 2! For those of you watching and reading, I hope you enjoy!

As always, feel free to leave feedback, it's how I improve as an author.

With that out of the way, let's get on with the chapter!

Chapter 2: Day After Day

October 22nd, 2281

Time was blasted out of his bed by the sound of a horn just outside of the wall next to it. Shooting back up on his feet in a panic, the blonde stopped to glare through a hole in a wall that had a flickering TV screen behind it.

"What!? What the hell is it Victor?"

"You haven't forgotten your training now, have you pardner? I've got a ten mile run with your name on it! That'll be another mile each minute you aren't out here!" His piece said, Victor wheeled away from the wall before the blonde could respond. Time cursed briefly before throwing on his clothes and heading for the door. Pausing momentarily, he reached into his sack and pulled out one of the doses of medication Doc Mitchell had given him to help stave off those episodes. Popping it in his mouth, Time dashed outside hurriedly.

Running into the crisp morning air, Time slowed down as he got close to Victor, looking around. "Hey, where's Sunny? Didn't you say she was part of this?"

"She is, but everyone needs their off days! Well, unless you're a machine that doesn't get tired. But! That's besides the point here. You owe me an eleven mile run!"

Groaning, the courier shook his head as he started jogging, Victor hot on his heels as the robot shouted 'motivational' phrases at him to get him to run faster. Time may have known very few things, but one thing he knew above all else was that he was not a morning person. If nothing else, he could at least appreciate the morning sun on his face.

"C'mon, you move like a gimped old grandma! Yah! Yah!"

Though he could do without the Securitron yelling insults at him.

\-/

Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Sunny looked across the bar at Trudy. As much as she didn't want the entire town knowing her business, she needed Trudy's insight for her particular plight. Granted, she knew the older woman could keep a secret if pressed to, but that wouldn't save her from any amount of teasing. Cheyenne yawned from her place laying down on the floor, tail lazily wagging across the wooden boards. Finally, Trudy turned back to her and set down two plates of gecko meat for them to eat while they talked.

"So, what did ya want to talk about hun? Not everyday you come to me all fidgety like this," Trudy inquired.

"It's, um... So you know the new guy in town, Time?" Sunny started off nervously.

"Yeah, I got him set up in the small room. What about him? He's out with that weird robot Victor right now, did he do something to you?" Trudy's voice took a worried edge. The man had seemed fine despite his peculiar lapses, but if he had laid a single hand on Sunny she couldn't promise there'd be anything left of the blonde courier after she was through.

"No no- well, kinda, but it was an accident! Look, that isn't it at all. Have you... you're an experienced woman right? Have you ever had any... guys in your life?"

Trudy's eyes widened as surprise got the best of her. Sunny had never talked about this kind of stuff with her before, she'd never so much as looked interested before! It made her heart warm that the younger girl would come to her for advice like this. Well, best not to disappoint the girl.

"I've been with a few men in my time, yes. Has something caught your eye hun?"

Sunny's eyes darted downwards before she forced them back up, a slight tinge of red to her cheeks. "K-kinda. I suppose you could say that. Let's say that if I wanted to try to get with someone my age, what should I look for? Things to say and do, stuff to avoid?"

Trudy couldn't help the smile from crossing her face as she heard her little Sunny splutter and try to string her words together. Even if she was in her late twenties the girl hadn't so much as even tried to flirt with somebody before and it showed. Strong and tough the young gecko hunter might've been in her own element, but this was like kicking a kid into a pool without teaching them to swim first.

"Sunny, sweetie, this can go a lot smoother if you just admit you like the man. Have you told him?" Stiffly, the young woman nodded her head, not quite trusting her voice with the memory of the kiss playing in her head.

"Alright. What all do you like about him, then? I need to know what we're working with here." Hesitating for a moment, Sunny acquiesced and started jogging her thoughts for what all she liked about the blonde courier.

"Well, he's my age for one. Helps that he's only a bit older. Second, he's nice like Chet ain't. He's a good shot and doesn't seem like the violent type. Not to mention he's kind of a mystery and he can do all these weird things." As Sunny listed off her reasons, Trudy couldn't help it as the corners of her lips tugged down. She was listing a lot of admirable traits, but not a whole lot of things about the man in question.

"Hun, you can stop there. I'm hearing what you're saying, but I'm not sure if you are." Sunny gave the older woman a confused look at that, to which she explained further.

"You're saying a lot of good things about him, about what makes him better than what you got available. But what Time himself? Does he click with you? What aspects of his personality helps complement yours?"

Frowning, Sunny looked down at her plate of gecko meat. She'd barely touched the meal, so absorbed in her questions and problems as she'd been. What did she actually like about him? What kind of question was that? She'd been talking about all the kinds of things she'd liked about him. Looking, she told the other woman just that, making Trudy shake her head with a displeased frown.

"Hun, I don't think you're clicking with the boy the way you think you are. As much as I don't wanna paint a bad picture, he's lost quite a few of his marbles. He doesn't remember the way he was, which means you can't know that for sure either. Guy like that is a blank slate but a whole past just waiting to catch up with him. What you've talked about so far, you just like the fact he's new and he's bendy enough to fit into the mold you were making. You were even talking about how he reminded you of that Ranger you had a crush on."

Shushing Trudy in embarrassment, the redhead gave her a bit of a mean look. "Yeah, and? Isn't that the whole point, to get with a person and try to make it work between the two of you? We're getting to know each other, what am I doing wrong?"

Somewhat shocked at the sudden bout of defensive anger, Trudy shook her head with a sigh. "Do you hear yourself? That ain't how this works at all. If you really want to be with someone, in the way you're talkin, you need to know them like no other. It isn't about forcing the relationship to work. But I guess you're still in the early stages. Do me a favor though? Don't rush things. I know he won't be around forever, but make sure that he's what you really want."

Huffing, Sunny simply took the gecko steak in front of her and began chewing it, but nodded all the same. That was all Trudy could really ask for, she supposed. Finishing off the last of her meal, she took her plate and began washing it, taking Sunny's when she was finished as well.

Soon enough, the door rang out as it opened and a familiar mop of blonde hair walked into the bar. Waving her hand in greeting towards the boy, he gave her one in turn before Sunny stood up and dragged him out the front.

"Come on Time, I still got a lot of things to show you around town! We're burning daylight just standing around!"

Too tired to really fight her, the man simply chuckled and walked with her instead of being dragged out the door. Trudy couldn't help but shake her head at the two of them.

"Oh that girl. She's gonna run that poor boy ragged."

\-/

October 23, 2281

Slowly moving his hands as he balanced the open Locksmith's Reader on his knee, he teased the bobby pin from side to side until he heard a satisfying click echo out as the door slid open. Yanking it to the side, Time grinned widely upon seeing the wealth of items and loot inside. Grabbing it all, he counted the caps before setting a few in another pouch. As he did so, the blonde heard several buzzing sounds behind him as well what sounded like a wet cracking, not unlike the breaking of a Deathclaw egg.

Turning, his grin took on a slightly manic edge as he saw several giant mantises skittering towards him. Standing up to his full height, the blonde jumped and landed on the nearest insect's head, crushing it completely underfoot. Several of the green critters chattered to one another nervously, but yet more swarmed forward. Laughing to himself, Time met the tide of mantises head-on.

\-/

Picking at her nails in boredom, Sunny looked up in interest as her companion exited the schoolhouse.

"Hey, welcome back! You find anything good in there-"

*Squelch*

Cut off by the wet crunch, she looked at the blonde man closer before feeling a bit green. Looking up from the headless mantis in his grasp, Time smiled at Sunny, showing all the viscous fluids coating his teeth.

"Heya Sunny! You were spot on about that safe, it had a ton of goodies inside of it! Here, I got a few caps for ya as well as that magazine you let me borrow to help crack it open." Digging through his satchel, he took out the magazine with roughly twenty caps resting on it. The redhead had to hold back from dry heaving as she looked at the bug fluids all over the items.

"You - hmp, you can keep it. You went in after all. Speaking of, are those things even safe to eat?" She gestured towards the bug hanging limply in the courier's hand. Shrugging, he stashed the magazine and caps back into his pouch. If she didn't want it, she didn't want it.

"Yeah, they're perfectly fine so long as you remove any venom sacks first. Really good source of protein too. You want me to get you one? There's plenty more back inside."

"No! No, I'd rather not. Let's uh, let's just move away from here, yeah? Still gotta show you around some more after all."

Turning around and walking away with a quickness, she couldn't quite hide her disgusted flinch as she heard another wet crunch from behind her as Time finished off his impromptu meal.

\-/

October 24, 2281

Time sat with Easy Pete on the porch of the Prospector Saloon, both of them taking a load off, with Pete telling the youngster about his prospecting days and the courier telling him about what he'd found in the safe the day prior. As he finished the tale by recounting stomping on the puny insects, their attention was drawn towards the road as they heard gunshots off in the distance. Squinting, Time could make out what looked like a caravan down the way, the Brahmin jerking back and forth as they panicked. And beyond them, he could see what he assumed to be raiders wearing blue jackets and flashes of gunfire coming from them.

"Shit, looks like we got some rough company heading our way Pete!" Running for cover, Time ran closer to the road as Pete went around the back of the building to get his own weapons. Picking up his SMG, the courier clicked the safety off before looking out at the road. The caravan had gotten close, close enough to yell at the panicked man riding front and center.

"Hey, hey! Get around the back, I'll cover you!" Shouting, Time waved the man down, ushering him towards the saloon. The driver, not wanting to look the gift horse in the mouth, went straight back behind the saloon, keeping his caravan safe for the moment. Pete hurried out and took shelter behind the rusted husk of a truck and together the two men fired on the men out in the distance.

Time could tell with certainty that his shots weren't going to hit anyone from so far out, but Pete had a better gun for aiming and managed to pop one of the men right in the head. There was a lot of shouting among the raiders, but sure enough they began to run away, not wanting to take on an entire town with defensible positions with so few numbers. They pulled back and cleared out, but that didn't stop Time and Pete from continuing to shoot at them. Eventually, they both ran and dry and there was nothing left worth shooting at but tumbleweeds.

Sighing to himself, the blonde stood up from his cover and walked over to Pete who was slowly getting up and cursing his aching joints all the way. "Good shot there Pete, way to knock that raider ass over teakettle. Do you need any help getting into the saloon?"

"Pah, I don't need no help getting over there. Get on and make sure whoever that was that came into town is a trustworthy sort, Ranger boy." Cracking his back, Pete took his time to make sure he was good and ready to head out. Giving the older man a look over the strange nickname, Time hurried up and headed into the saloon. Upon entering he saw that Trudy was already addressing the man that had fled into Goodsprings. He seemed happy if a bit hassled over being shot at the way he had been. After another word from Trudy he nodded before leaving through the back door again. Walking up, Time lifted an eyebrow up at the older woman.

"So, is he a pleasant fella? Worth me Pete shooting at raiders and getting shot at?" Trudy turned towards the blonde and gave him a smile as she nodded her head.

"Yeah, his name's Ringo. He said he's with the Crimson Caravan. Apparently the poor guy ran into some escaped convicts while doing his route and had to high-tail it here from about a half mile off. I told him to go up to the gas station on the hill to rest for a bit. Doubt that'll be the last we hear from those convicts though."

Clicking his tongue against his teeth, Time shook his head in disgust at the thought the convicts would mosey on up and try their luck again. "They can come and try, they'll just get blown away. No better than raiders the way they are now."

Trudy gave the blonde a curious look before shaking her head. "We can't afford to do that, or at least I'd like to stay out of their way. If anyone's gonna fight it's gonna have to be Ringo that asks the others for help."

Heading behind her bar, Trudy got back to cleaning several dirty glasses she'd left during the commotion. Finding himself staring in disbelief at what he saw as the older woman not being willing to act, Time shook his head before heading out to the gas station. He'd get the measure of this Ringo guy himself and make sure he was ready to fight to survive.

\-/

Picking his way past rubble while going up the hill, Time moved towards the gas station before pausing as he heard a clicking sound. Recognizing the sound as the hammer of a revolver being cocked, the blonde put his hands up as the man in the abandoned building stood up to look through the window, gun pointed straight at Time's chest.

"That's close enough. Who are you, and what do you want with me?" The man looked frightful and was bleeding from a gash on his forehead. It looked like he'd been in the middle of patching himself up before hearing movement outside of his hideout. Eyes drifting to the dangling arm not holding the gun, the courier could see that it was obviously broken.

"Name's Time, and I was checking out the guy Pete and I killed a few raiders to save. Mind putting that gun down so we can actually talk like men?" Looking surprised, the injured caravaneer holstered his firearm and waved the blonde in. Putting his arms back down with only mild annoyance, Time closed the distance to the gas station and made his way in. Looking around, the blonde let out a low whistle as he looked at everything Ringo had laid out. Weapons, ammo, food items, medicine, crafting supplies, and water for days and days.

"I took everything out of my caravan and put it all in here. Didn't want to risk those people sneaking past me and robbing it in the dead of the night. Name's Ringo by the way," Ringo grunted as he sat on a chair and wrapped a bandage around his arm. Nodding along with his logic, Time grabbed a chair and set it across from the merchant before sitting in it. Ringo kept about setting and fixing his arm before putting it in a sling to rest.

"Looks like you got pretty banged up out there. Least you still have your shooting arm to defend yourself. Mind telling me a bit more about those raiders that chased you across the I-15?" Inquiring about a potential enemy, the courier brought out a bottle of purified water and sipped from it. It was a hot day and adrenaline did a wonderful job at drying anyone's mouth out. Seeming to think the same, Ringo grabbed a bottle of water and took a swig himself before responding.

"They're escaped convicts from the NCR Correctional Facility. Giant structure to the southeast, apparently the prisoners flipped the tables on their captors and took over the place. Call themselves Powder Gangers after the explosives that they used to do it. And apparently they think they're tough enough to take on the Crimson Caravan. Managed to take a few out myself before running into town, but I don't think that'll stop em. And if what you said is true, it sounds like the town is going to feel their ire too."

A sinking feeling opened up a pit in Time's stomach at hearing that. An entire prison's worth of convicts managed to break free, and he'd as good as helped to paint a target right onto Goodsprings' back. He couldn't help but feel as if he'd broken some sort of taboo as shame pulled at his heart, but the courier shook it off. Vague feelings had been cropping up every now and then whenever he did certain things or activities, the most recurring one being anger whenever he heard about raiders and the one time he'd talked about the NCR and Legion with Easy Pete. He couldn't afford to waste time poking his own empty head for answers that weren't coming.

"So you know they're gonna be gunning for you. Are you prepared to fight them if - when - it comes down to it? Raiders aren't the type to let shit go, they'll just hunt you down even if you skip town."

Shaking his head, Ringo's face contorted in anger and frustration before going slack as if giving up. "I can't fight them like I am. Even when it was just a handful of them they had me running, now I'm injured and they probably got dozens more waiting in the wings. Maybe if I had a full company with me I could fend 'em off, but that's no dice."

"You're just going to give up like that!? Roll over and die like some kinda hound?" Incredulous, Time shot up from his chair as anger blossomed in his chest. Ringo looked surprised before shaking his head bitterly.

"If I could win I'd fight, but I've got no chance. I need people to help me, but I ain't got none here!"

Before Time could retort, the door opened and Sunny peeked through, looking between the standing courier and the sitting caravaneer.

"Um, am I interrupting something between the two of you? I heard there was a new arrival in town and I wanted to see who they were."

Looking between Sunny and Ringo, Time shook his head and backed away towards the door.

"No, I was actually just about to head out. Have fun Sunny." And with that, the blonde left. Stalking away from the gas station, he looked down at his shaking hands. Balling them up into fists as tight as he could, he couldn't make them stop. Time didn't understand why he was so angry, it was just when Ringo had been talking about not having the people to back him up to keep fighting-

Gasping, Time held a hand to his head as a crack of pain thundered out through his skull, a scene overtaking his vision.

\-/

Summer, ???

A young black man and Time stood at the back of a crowd in a bar, shuffling backs and echoing voices ringing out from all around them. It was dull, muted to the blonde who tuned it all out. All the young man cared for was his own anger at the situation, that they were forced to pull back even though they could keep fighting. He knew it, they all knew it, everyone was just too scared to risk their necks to do anything! Growling to himself, Time's fists shook before he slammed one into the wall behind him.

"Goddamn cowards, turning to the NCR! We can take them! We can still fight! Come on Cain, you have to agree with me here!" Sighing, the other man turned towards his blonde friend.

"We could, yes, but there are too many moving parts for us to tackle by ourselves. If we slip up, we'll be wiped out in no time flat. You've seen the Legion, Time. You know how they operate."

Brutally swift and effective. Damn it, he knew that! He knew it when he'd seen friends and other fighters be cut down by machetes and gun fire. Those were the lucky ones, the ones that died instantly when they went down. Biting the inside of his cheek, Time forced himself to stop going down that line of thought. It only made him angrier.

"I know, damn it! But that's why we need to keep up with it! Imagine all the people we're going to leave to be picked up by the Legion, how many families are gonna be murdered and worse!"

"So you're fine throwing your life away for complete strangers? Leaving your mother a wreck just so another tribal kid can fight and die for his mother to weep over him as well?"

Time could feel his temper flare before stamping it out. Cain was trying to rile him up in that cold and calculating way of his. Get the blonde to act out so the others would lock him up so he couldn't go out and stir trouble. Cain's brown eyes stared down into Time's blue, daring him to say or do something. Before the blonde could snap, their attention was drawn by the sound of hands clapping and boots clicking on the floor towards them. Looking at the new arrival, Time and Cain stood up straighter.

The face was - it was blurred. The scenery started blurring all together too. Gray smears blending through sight and sound, distortion ringing out over all of it, drowning the scenery. But through it all, he could hear a deep voice with a tempting offer.

"How would a couple of boys like yourselves like the opportunity to keep fighting against Caesar's Legion in our own way?"

\-/

Snapping back to reality, Time gasped as he caught himself before he fell. Dropping to one knee instead, he stared at the dirt below him in wonder as thoughts pinged around at a thousand miles a minute. He remembered something else. It barely made sense, but it was something to latch onto. If he had to guess, Time had barely been a man in that memory, just like that Cain. Cain. That had been a friend. Cain had known more about him. Maybe if he found this person then he'd be able to learn more about himself, about what he was like! But there was one niggling thought pestering the blonde in the back of his head.

"But that man... at the end. He wanted us to fight against Caesar's Legion. Why did I want to fight them? Are those two even alive still? Ugh, that'd be just my luck. First solid memory I get, and it's of two dead people. Fuck it, I just need to keep my ear to the ground. Worst outcome, they're either dead or want to kill me."

Standing back up, Time looked about him. It looked like no one had noticed his little episode, abandoned as the area was. Shaking his head, he headed back to the Prospector Saloon. He needed to mull over his thoughts and these new pieces to the puzzle of his past. If nothing else, it did give him insight to one part of his personality.

"So I've always been a bit of a hothead, even as a kid. All these things that keep making it flare up are echoes of that, huh? And I guess that whole deal with Ringo not wanting to fight was the cherry on top of it all. Ugh, I need a drink. Hope Trudy has something strong enough for this headache."

Dusting himself off, Time finished his journey to the Prospector Saloon, unaware of the robot watching him the entire time.

\-/

October 25, 2281

"I've played nice with you damn townies, but I'm getting sick of this. Hand Ringo over or I'm bringing some of my friends over and we'll burn this shithole to the ground, you got that?"

That was the very first thing Time and Sunny heard upon entering the saloon after their morning training. Sharing a glance between each other, Time nodded towards the bar while pointing to the back wordlessly. Wordlessly, the redhead nodded in turn and crept to the back of the saloon to cut off the other exit. Drawing a breath, Time rested his hand on his belt next to his SMG before walking out of the foyer. Greeted by the sight of an angry man wearing a blue jacket shouting at Trudy, the blonde could feel his nostrils flare as his own anger spiked. A Powder Ganger. Noticing the new person, the ganger pointed at Time with a sneer.

"You! Do you know where fucking Ringo is? His ass belongs to us, we know he's here!" The Ganger shouted, demanding an answer from the blonde so he could hunt down an innocent man. Opening his mouth to respond, Time found himself cut off from his angry retort as Trudy slammed her fist on the countertop.

"For the last damn time Cobb, if you want Ringo you're free to go out and look. Stop bothering us, especially him. He's new in town, hardly knows anyone or where anything is." Lips slamming shut, Time shot a look towards Trudy but she refused to look at him. Her eyes were locked right onto Cobb's. Cobb looked between the two of them, snorting with derision before moving past Time and shoving his shoulder aggressively out of the way. As he did, Time couldn't help sticking his foot out to trip the raider.

Crying out, Joe Cobb hit the floor. Cursing up a storm, he picked himself up and got into the blonde's face. "You think you're fucking funny!? Try that shit again, I'll blow you to fucking pieces you shitstain!" Finger shoved into Time's face, he couldn't help but smirk down at the convict.

"I'd love to see you try. Now get that finger out of my face before I break your hand," Time said, trying to keep his own cool. It was hard with such an easy target to provoke and help feed his own fire, but Trudy obviously didn't want any trouble in her bar from how she had been diverting Cobb beforehand. He'd already fucked up on that end by tripping him, he needed to reign himself in. Hand moving off of his SMG, it caused enough noise for Cobb to look and realize what the blonde was packing.

"Wait, a blonde with an SMG. You're one of those pricks that shot at my boys yesterday! Fucking bastard!" With a swiftness, Cobb smashed his fist into the blonde's cheek. Taken by surprise, Time didn't roll with it but collected himself enough to catch the next fist hurtling towards his gut. Instinctively, he grabbed the man's elbow before cracking the arm over his knee. A sound not unlike a piece of dry firewood meeting the business end of a sledge echoed out as Cobb's firing arm created a new joint between elbow and wrist. Letting go in surprise, the Ganger collapsed with his broken arm to his chest, gasping in pain.

"What the fuck was that?" Time questioned himself as he looked at his hand, backing up a few paces from the man on the floor. Trudy had backed away a few paces, her hand under the counter reaching for something. And just beyond her Time could barely make out Sunny watching from the hallway in the back. Before he could do anything, Cobb managed to stand back up.

"That's it! I'm bringing my boys tonight! You better say your fucking prayers, cause we're gonna kill every last one of you!" His piece said, Joe Cobb ran out the front door, all the while cradling his arm to his chest. Time watched him run off as a familiar sinking feeling settled in his core. That... was not supposed to end this way.

"Well, there goes all that hard work trying to shake him off our tail," Trudy lamented as she brought her hand up and laid a rifle on the countertop. Sunny slipped out from behind the wall and fixed Time with a questioning look. He simply shrugged, unable to come up with an adequate answer.

"I'm sorry Trudy, I'm not sure what came over me there. He took a swing at me and then my body just reacted without me putting any thought into it. This is-"

"Just like the geckos. When the one got close to you, I remember. That's... kind of concerning Time. You don't have control over it?" Sunny cut in, expressing some legitimate worry over the blonde's autonomous action.

"...It doesn't seem so, no. But that's beside the point right now. We've got raiders coming down on us tonight because of me," Time finished with some slight disappointment in himself. He'd totally flubbed that whole situation and made it actively worse, to the point the town was actively in danger. But he couldn't wallow in self-pity, he needed to make this right. "Alright, we need to get everyone ready to beat them back in that case."

"Obviously. My gun is ready to put some convicts down any time. Cheyenne too." Sunny's furry companion barked in agreement. "We'll need Easy Pete's explosives, Chet's supplies, and Doc Mitchell's medicine to keep everyone patched up. Everyone that can fight will need to chip in."

"Got it. I can get Pete to give some dynamite, I've talked with him and he's shown me a thing or two. I'm sure anyone can get Doc to help with how good that man is, but we're gonna need someone to strongarm Chet."

"Leave Chet to me," Sunny said with a cocksure grin. "I can get him to see reason if he tries to throw a fuss about his damned 'profits' over the safety of the town. But it'll probably take a while. Could you go get Doc after? Maybe direct him towards Ringo so we can have an extra hand to shoot at those Powder Gangers too."

Nodding, Time made a mental note of it. It made sense, numbers played a big part in any gunfight. As did location. Turning towards Trudy, the blonde voiced his next question carefully. "Trudy, I know you didn't want any part of this and I'm sorry that I've dragged this all down on your head. But we've got to fight, and your saloon and the store would make a good bit of cover for a lot of people. Can we please-"

"Hun, I'm not going to just leave everyone to die out in the open. Not to mention you'd probably use it regardless if the going got tough enough. As much as I dislike it, it's become fight or die, and I'm pretty darn keen on living to tan your hide after the fact." Chuckling sheepishly, Time nodded and accepted it. He as good as deserved it after such a big fuck up. But that secured where the battlefield would be.

"Alright, thanks! Can you try to get some barrels and crates and stuff out to act as potential cover in the meantime? Anything at all can help. Now, let's go protect Goodsprings!" All of them sounding off in agreement, they began their preparations in earnest.

\-/

Easy Pete was simple to convince as he took Time at his word, and he'd seen Cobb hobble off earlier. The old man wasn't too keen on giving up any more of his homes to raiders, and he'd taken a shine to the blonde man. Or maybe he just liked that Time actually knew how to handle explosives without losing his fingers or causing property damage unintentionally. He'd gone off to dig up his old cache and promised it'd be out within the hour. After getting through with talking to the leathery prospector, the sun had begun to dip, showing only a few hours before nightfall.

Next on the list had been Doc Mitchell. The balding man had given Time an earful about endangering the town, but ultimately agreed to lend his supplies free of charge. The Doc had made it abundantly clear he wasn't fighting and would strictly be there to help mend those actually fighting. The courier didn't press the doctor for anything more, the medical expertise and supplies were all he needed from the man in the first place. The sun was getting low, sunset and night being just around the corner as Time set off for his last task to convince Ringo to fight alongside them.

Knocking on the door, Time waited for several seconds before knocking yet again. Still with no answer, Time's eyebrow twitched before he knocked on the doorframe instead, to reverberate more. With still no answer, the blonde shook his head before an idea came to his annoyed mind. Kicking the door to the gas station open, Ringo jumped in his chair, magazine flying from his hands, and fumbled for a gun as Time strode inside. "Get your ass ready, I broke Cobb's arm and the Powder Gangers are coming to town."

Ring stared at the blonde in shock and horror, his mouth refusing to work momentarily before he regained control of it and responded appropriately with the thousands of thoughts popping up in his terrified head. "WHAT! What kind of asinine idiot are you! He's going to tear this town apart, rip your arms off, and then he's going to shove dynamite down my throat! Oh god, he might bring the entire facility down on our heads, it's going to be a massacre, why the fuck did the NCR imprison so many people over there, why do they even have a jail he-"

*Slap*

Having heard enough of Ringo's panicked rant, the courier had closed the distance and slapped the man across the face, cutting him off mid-sentence. Shaken, the caravaneer staggered back several steps before looking up at the blonde. "You done losing your shit?" questioned Time. Ringo nodded hesitantly.

"Good. We've already got the rest of the town ready to fight, you're the last one. If you still can't use that arm, I suggest jamming a stimpak in there cause we'll need every fighter we can get. We've got the homefield advantage and cover out the ass that we can arrange in whatever way we want. They have one way they can come from and they'll be out in the wide open wastes. This is the single best shot you'll get at dealing with this before they catch up and kill you."

Understanding dawned on Ringo as the situation was laid out before him. Laying a hand upon his red cheek, he nodded slowly. "A-alright. I'll make sure I'm ready then. Also, fucking ow. Did you have to wind up for that?" The blonde just shrugged at the caravaneer, drawing a groan out of Ringo. "Just go already, lemme get ready," waving the courier off with his good hand, Ringo shifted through his laid-out supplies and picked out a stimpak. The last thing Time saw as he left was Ringo injecting himself with the medical miracle and flexing his broken arm to test it.

Leaving the gas station, Time looked off to the horizon to see the sun stradling the desert, its harsh yellow radiance mellowing into soft shades of red. The Powder Gangers would be coming soon, more than likely under the cover of night to make it harder to see them. Making his way back to the saloon, Time regrouped with Sunny and Trudy, as well as Doc Mitchell, Chet, and Easy Pete who had reconvened inside with a whole host of supplies. Leather armor, Med-X, dynamite, guns, ammo, stimpaks and even mines and grenades were all laid out across several tables.

"Hey, I just got done talking to Ringo. He'll be down here in just a bit. I see you managed to get Chet to help with this," Time said as he walked next to the bar's counter. Sunny smiled up at him and nodded, but Chet looked like he'd sucked on a gecko's eyeball. "That's good. Is there anything else we need, or can we focus on prepping our defensive front?"

"We've got all the supplies we'll need," Trudy spoke up, grabbing the blonde's attention, "and I've gotten some things set up outside to use for cover. If you want to rearrange them feel free, but we should focus on a plan of attack. I also got some of the settlers and farmers to spread the word to come around to help us protect the town soon."

"Great, we'll definitely need more people to help fend them off. I'll go outside to check things over, but first we need to focus on making a strategy to keep them off of us. They'll be coming under the dark of night, so we have to take advantage of it."

"We've got dynamite and mines to lay out for traps," Easy Pete said. "I'm an old hand at making tripwires and the like, very helpful for making sure raiders couldn't sneak up while I was searching inside houses. I can rig up the street and the perimeter of town, but that'll be all the traps I can lay out. Wouldn't want one of them getting off a lucky shot on some explosives right next to us." The man gave a leathery smile before going off and picking up a few mines, weighing them in his hands before taking out spools of wire to begin measuring and cutting. Doc Mitchell cleared his throat, getting the attention of the rest of them.

"I've been here and there, especially around the Strip, and I know a thing or two about defending in the night. We're gonna need to turn off every light we've got in town and set up some decoy lanterns, draw fire away from us. Only issue there is they'll know right away where we are when they get close enough and when we start shooting back."

"Actually," Chet cut in, sounding a bit sheepish yet excited, "I might have a way to help out with that. It's something I've been looking for an excuse to use ever since I won them off a bet at the Gomorrah."

Doc chuckled before standing up. "Alright, let's go see what you got then. We can go take care of the lights and whatever this little surprise will be." Nodding eagerly, Chet shot up and led the Doc back to his store, leaving the rest of them in the saloon.

"Alright, so... what do we do now?" Trudy questioned. Time stood up and walked over to the laid-out supplies, picking up a silenced .22 and examining it before responding.

"We gear up and make sure we're ready to kick ass."

\-/

Joe Cobb was many things. Clever, a bit brash, handy with dynamite, and more than willing to kill to get what he wanted. All of these things helped to put him a rung above the rest of the rabble that made up the Powder Gangers and secure him a semi-leadership position. Something to set him apart like he damn well deserved. He never wanted the responsibility of being the top dog, but he was more than happy to play ball with his own squad of men to rough up traders and whatever NCR folk they could get their hands on. He was happy with this sweet spot in life compared to the years of imprisonment he had faced prior. What Joe Cobb was not, however, was a patient man or one willing to forgive slights against his person.

First it had been Ringo, that caravaneer bastard, who had broken through their shakedown and even killed some of his men. Second was that damn town Goodsprings, shooting his men when they came and refusing to give him what was rightfully their kill. Then the third and last straw that broke the bighorner's back, that blonde bastard. He'd made a fool of Cobb, tripping and provoking him after being turned away from that bitch behind the bar. And to top it all off, the bastard had broken the Ganger's arm when Cobb tried to instill some respect. He'd had to lie to the rest of his boys when he ran back and say he'd fought off the whole town, that they were Psycho-fueled demons.

It was all this that Cobb carried with him as he marched towards Goodsprings with three dozen Powder Gangers behind him. It was all that ran through Cobb's head whenever his barely patched together arm throbbed in pain. It was all these things that blinded Cobb to the possibility that the townies had taken his words to heart and that they'd prepare. He only took note of the absence of lights in the town itself, and his grin grew as he took it as a sign that they'd gone to bed. Raising a hand up, the group paused just outside of town, right next to a lantern set up next to the road so the men could get a clear look at Joe Cobb as he spoke.

Joe Cobb screamed in rage, with passion, to the men before him. "Powder Gangers! That's what we are! We've broken free from the NCR! Free from their imprisonment, and taken their damn jail as our own fortress! Our men to the south are attacking and taking over Primm to the south as we speak!" The raiders preened and smiled viciously, liking the sound of their accomplishments being laid out before them. "So what's one more town!? Especially when they spit in our eye and take our mark!" The men began to rumble and get aggressive, pitching in with their own yells and pumped fists. Joe Cobb smiled as he raised his arm in the air, hiding his wince of pain with a manic grin of his own.

"To burn Goodsprings! To kill Ringo! To kill them all!" The men hooted and hollered, picking up 'kill them all' as their chosen chant. With their warcry echoing across the plains, Cobb yelled in the air before running towards the town.

The Powder Gangers roared in turn. The men followed their fearless leader in his blind charge. And they had a marvelous view as Cobb tripped a wire and had his legs blown off in front of them.

\-/

Time had to stifle his laughter as the loud jackass got himself blown up. He must've been steaming mad if he didn't even bother to be quiet about the attack. The blonde observed the rest of the Powder Gangers from behind the corner of the crate he was hiding behind, a smile creeping inch by inch across his face as they scattered. Mines beeped, wires snapped, and the raiders fell victim one by one. Some of them were quick on their feet and turned off mines, others pulling back friends inches away from tripwires, but there were very few capable of thinking clearly among them.

"Goddamn, they're gonna make this easy aren't they?" As Time whispered his wonder, he winced as he was shushed by Sunny beside him. She had left Cheyenne in her home far from the violence to make sure she didn't accidentally catch a bullet between the fire from both sides and was now shooting him a disapproving look. "Sorry, sorry." Holding his hands up in surrender, Time mimed zipping his lips shut before turning his attention back to the spectacle.

Explosions rocked the landscape, great spews of sand and dirt erupting from mines, occasionally accompanied by body parts. Dynamite detonating into balls of fire and force, scarring and blowing apart any who tripped them or were simply too close. The rain of fire, hell, and blood lasted for but a few minutes, and soon the smoke cleared. The Gangers had finally crossed the trap line and were wildly disorganized, having been separated amidst all the explosions. Roughly half had died or been indisposed of from the traps, leaving twenty raiders left to deal with. Nodding to Chet across the way, the merchant offered a wide grin to the courier before he stalked over to a giant circular object. Fiddling with the back of it, Chet couldn't quite contain himself and peeked over the rim to shout at the Powder Gangers.

"Hope you liked the fireworks! Now how about a light show!" Flipping a switch, Chet dove back behind cover further away as radiant light pierced the eyes of the raiders who had looked to the voice mocking them. Several cried out in anguish, clawing at their eyes to no avail. Others, smarter or simply not looking and tending to wounds, shielded their eyes from the blinding floodlight. Some even scrambled to get guns aimed at the fierce light or lob their own dynamite at the floodlight, but their shots went wide without properly aiming.

Putting his fingers to his mouth, Time whistled a sharp note to the rest of the town as the final piece was set in place. Popping his pistol above the crate he was kneeled behind, about ten other guns clinked and clacked from all around as they were set into position as well. Eleven fighters were all they had managed to rustle up for this fight. Himself, Sunny, Easy Pete, Ringo, Trudy, and several other settlers that were willing to fight. Even Luanne, that one Sunny and he had saved by the well, had shown up and was fighting to protect her home. As one, their guns barked and sent a volley of death towards the Powder Gangers.

Those blinded fell in the initial volley, unable to defend themselves. The others simply ran to the sides, diving for cover and one even running back the way they had come. A ringing explosion sounded out the futility of that notion. It also reminded the remaining Gangers that they had no options left to them but to fight or die. They fired blindly in return, some fire focused on the floodlight still blinding them. A shattering of glass rang out, echoed by Chet's cry of anguish, as the floodlight was finally hit. Its bulb was busted, cutting off the blinding light that had been inhibiting the invaders' aim and allowing them to mount a more accurate offensive.

A bullet whizzed past Time's cheek, splitting flesh open and splattering blood across his face and shoulder. Wincing in pain, the blonde simply steeled himself and returned fire, hitting the one that had grazed him in the neck. Ignoring the man as he choked on his own blood and fell, Time ducked back down and discharged his spent magazine, carefully shoving a new one in place and muttering all the while. "Goddammit, bullets fucking hurt! Ugh, if I had better gear this'd be over already."

Before he could stand up again, his attention was grabbed by a pained yell from across the way. Eyes shooting towards the sound, they widened as Time saw Easy Pete fall on his back, hands clutching his chest. Blood spurted between his clenched fingers, staining them and the ground he laid on. Out of the corner of his eye Time could see Doc making his way to the injured man, but he was too far away.

Briefly, Pete locked eyes with the courier. His mouth moved, words escaping him that Time was simply too far away to hear. A shaky hand started to reach towards him before falling flat, eyes glazing over as the life drained out of him. Time could only stare at the life that had been snuffed out in front of him, at the man he had been casually talking to not even a day ago.

It had taken all of five seconds between the man falling and dying. The courier grit his teeth and peeked back over his cover. Now was not the time to falter nor to dwell in what little grief he might've felt. Taking aim, he left off several shots, riddling a Powder Ganger's chest with bullet holes. The man fell with little resistance, but one of the other Gangers caught him as he fell. Using the dead man as a human shield they pressed forward. Time tried to get a good shot in but couldn't quite find the opening he needed. And that's when he heard it, the sinister hissing of a stick of dynamite.

Eyes widening, he saw the approaching Ganger take out the lit dynamite and chuck it straight at him. Panic shot through the blonde and desperately he raised his gun higher to track the explosive, left hand slapping his wrist by accident in his hurry to aid his aim. "Sunny, run!"

"Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System activated," A robotic voice echoed from Time's wrist, drawing his attention to the Pip-Body. "Surroundings Check complete. Calculating trajectory... target acquired. Likelihood to hit: 95%. Engage." His arm moved instantly without his input as an unpleasant feeling of needles sinking into his flesh followed the strange voice. Muscles no longer his to control, the courier watched helplessly as his aim was corrected slightly and as his finger pulled the trigger.

For a moment there was nothing but the sound of the bullet ripping through the air. And then the next an explosion ripped through the air, singing Time and Sunny's faces with the heat. They both blocked their faces from any debris with their arms and hands, the blonde being knocked on his ass from the shock. After regaining his senses, Time got back up on his knees and surveyed what had happened before letting out a low whistle. "Damn, I need to find that button again."

The dynamite had detonated mid-air due to his shot, saving the both of them from its destructive wrath. However, what was not spared was neither their cover nor the side of Trudy's saloon. The crates were in tatters and there was a new entrance right on the corner of the building. He'd probably catch earful from Trudy about that if they both managed to survive

"Hurry, we need to move!" Sunny cried out, already moving to the hole in the saloon to take new cover. The blonde nodded, trying to get up fully before being pinned down under a hail of fire. Falling flat on his stomach, he rolled until he laid flush with the saloon's patio, his head and body covered by just enough debris to offer cover. Waiting until the gunfire let up for a moment, the courier looked down the field to see how the fight had changed.

There were eight Powder Gangers remaining, who had all taken up their own cover however they could. Three were using their dead friends as human shields like the one who threw dynamite at Sunny and Time while two others were behind stacks of the bodies as cover. The last three were coming in hot, switchblades, dynamite and baseball bats held at the ready. All of them had murder in their eyes and gleeful grins at the promise of up-close violence.

Looking behind him to the rest of Goodsprings defenders, he saw that Doc had gotten Pete and two other settlers into a secluded area to look after them and patch them up as quickly as possible. Trudy was defending the small makeshift hospital and drawing fire from the fortified Gangers. Ringo was still dutifully firing among the other settlers, coordinating them to fire into the men with shields and blocking them from drawing their weapons to return fire. And by his side in the saloon was Sunny, trying to pick off the rapidly approaching Gangers with melee weapons.

"Alright, looks like that's the role I need to play." Springing up from his position lying down, the courier reached to his side and drew a knife before running into the fray. Sunny had insisted that he bring one just in case, and it looked like that case just popped up. "Come on, let's dance!" Time screamed as he ducked under the swing of the first Gangers baseball bat. Rising up he thrusted the knife into the side of the raider before pulling out and backstepping away before a second could cut the blonde in a similar manner.

Kicking up, Time broke the other knife-wielder's wrist, sending his weapon flying. Taking advantage of the opening, he grabbed the man's broken wrist, ignoring his pained scream as he shoved him into the swing from the first Ganger. A hefty 'whoomph' echoed out as the bat landed solidly into the man's gut, forcing him to the ground as he choked and took haggard breaths. As Time let go of the man's broken arm, he found himself being sucker punched in the back of the head. Staggering forward a few steps from the force, the courier turned it into a roll that caused the next swing of the bat to go wide overhead.

Whipping his knife out to the side, a grim smile spread across the blonde's face as the bat wielding Ganger screamed in pain at the cut tendons in his calf. Unable to support himself, the man hopped on one leg and tried to tackle the courier but came up short without the stability of both legs to support him. Dispatching the man with a swift kick to the back of the neck, a crack echoed out as Time looked back up to the third Ganger. He was close, within arm's distance and now sporting a bloody hole in the center of his head. Grinning as the last man crumpled to the floor, he waved to Sunny. "Thanks for that!"

"You're welcome! Now go blow up those assholes!" Nodding, Time took out some of the dynamite Pete had given him earlier. The human shield toting Gangers were still pressing forward, but one of them had gotten knocked down and they were still being fired upon by the settlers and Ringo. That left the two still huddling behind their makeshift cover of bodies. Lighting the wick on his dynamite, Time ran up to the side of them and tossed it, watching as it landed right between them. One tried to run, the other whipped his gun toward the blonde, but both were too late and were caught in the explosion before they could fully act.

"Thank you Pete... now to deal with the re-" before Time could finish, he heard another explosion followed by a hail of bullets. Looking to where the last three raiders had been, he saw only gore and body parts riddled with bullets. "...or not. Eh, less work for me at least. Guess that means it's time for damage control." With that final bit of fighting finished, he regrouped with the town to begin their wrap-up.

\-/

October 26, 2281

Dawn broke over Goodsprings, its gentle rays kissing upon the destroyed terrain on the border of the town. It washed over the residents, toiling away to fix what damages had been wrought on their home. Great craters in the ground, body parts strewn about hither and thither, and three buildings with holes blown into their sides. Three Goodsprings residents dead, four injured, and the rest just glad to have survived. And among them was the courier, the blonde man having taken it upon himself to take care of the raiders that littered the landscape.

The corpses and body parts had been tossed into a shallow pit just outside of town. It had taken hours, from clearing the field of the rest of the mines and traps that hadn't been tripped, to digging the hole, and finally transporting everything. The radio playing over his Pip-Boy had been helpful for taking his mind off his task, but even the dulcet tones of Mr. New Vegas could only do so much to distract him. Upon moving the last bit of raider in, Time tore off the gloves Chet had lent him for the task, tossing them on top of the nearest body.

"Doc had better be damn right about getting rid of these bodies to avoid disease and carrion," the blonde muttered to himself as he took out a box of matches. Taking one out, he struck it before flicking it towards the gasoline-soaked bodies. Watching for a moment as the flames danced and spread across the soaked flesh, the blonde eventually turned away from the sight and placed his attention firmly on the Powder Gangers that were still alive.

Eight Powder Gangers, lined up in a row and forced to watch as the bodies of men they used to know and even be friends with were set alight and burned to ash. Eight men that remained silent, unwilling to show weakness even in the face of defeat. Some seethed in anger, others were groaning in pain from their permanent injuries. The unique one among them was Joe Cobb, simply lying on his back. He'd miraculously managed to survive the explosion that had robbed him of his legs, but it didn't take a medical expert like Doc Mitchell to realize the man's days were numbered without his lower half. Joe Cobb simply stared up into the sky, his eyes glassy and unfocused. Time would've thought him dead, had thought so, until the man's lips had moved and his voice carried resolutely.

"Just kill me now. I know you want to," the man stated flatly. He'd been telling anyone that came close to kill him, but no one had. How many hours had he been suffering like this, Time thought. He couldn't even begin to imagine it. Maybe the explosion had knocked something loose in Cobb's head or seared away his ability to feel pain. That was the only explanation the blonde could think up for why Cobb wasn't screaming in absolute agony. Walking up, Time knelt beside the lead Powder Ganger and turned down the volume of his Pip-Boy.

"Don't worry. I'll put all of you out of your misery soon enough. Goodsprings has passed judgment on you all, and they don't take kindly to people trying to burn their town to the ground. But first, I want questions answered," Time licked his lips before pressing on.

"Earlier you mentioned Primm, back when you first charged in. I couldn't make much else out, but looking back on it now... what's happening there?" Time didn't know why he felt compelled to ask. But there was something deep inside of him that begged to know, that absolutely needed the answer at any cost. Cobb simply turned his head to the blonde, eyes not quite able to lock onto Time's but getting close.

"Now why the hell... should I tell you that?" Cobb questioned, breath labored and words hard to string together.

Time scowled down at him before replying. "Because if you don't I won't kill you. I'll drag you all around the Mojave until your body gives up. And your boys will be pushed onto the fire themselves instead of getting a quick death."

Many of the Powder Gangers stilled at the threat, eyes darting between the blaze in front of them and the courier. One even began to weep before being elbowed in his side by another Powder Ganger, silencing him through the pain. But the damage had been done and Time kept staring down at the prone form of Joe Cobb. Closing his eyes, Cobb turned his head to the sky before taking in a breath and letting it go.

"Primm is where... some of our boys are setting up. Wanted to make... a new HQ. Don't know much else. Not top of the chain. But... we're running all around the place. From what I've heard... even the NCR have been called to handle it. Now keep your word. Make it quick."

Time's heart leapt to his throat. He didn't understand where the intense feeling of panic, the sheer urgency to leave to the south immediately came from. His mind itched, memories floating before his eyes but just out of reach, merely shades of what they might have been. A great wooden construct, a small plot of farm, and a parcel with a letter. A woman with blonde hair and green eyes.

Standing abruptly, Time cranked his Pip-Boy's volume to the max, radio blaring out a peppy piano tune with a man singing about balls of fire. Taking his gun out, he clicked the safety off before executing each Powder Ganger, one by one. The courier saw each face, the fear, the regret, and even the slight relief whenever he pointed his gun and pulled the trigger. They each fell without any grandeur, jerking and slumping after the bullet passed through until the only one left was Joe Cobb, already splayed out on the floor.

"...you deserve to burn for this. For Pete, Luanne, and everyone else you killed," Time spat, the hatred dripping thick from his words. He may not have known this man, but he knew his type. Every single one of them was sick and twisted and didn't care who they hurt as long as they were allowed to do it. But as Time's glare tried to burn a hole through Cobb's head, the man only offered a smirk.

"For the people I killed? Heh. I ain't even... kill those people. For damn sure. I did a few... but your voice. The way you fought. You've killed way more. For damn sure. Go ahead. Burn me. Shoot me. You'll kill me. Just like... all the others... for damn sure..." Cobb trailed off, his eyes drifting shut.

Time could only stare. Stare in disbelief. Rage boiled in his gut, indignation at being proclaimed worse than the raider in front of him. His ears rang as he fired into Cobb's body, precision tossed to the wayside in favor of draining the rest of his magazine into the raider. His throat burned as the blonde picked what remained of Cobb up and tossed him into the flames. And as he watched it burn away with bloodshot eyes, he finally gave into the scream building within him.

"WHO AM I!?"

\-/

It was Sunny who noticed first that Time had come back to the saloon. The redhead had gone up to give him a smile and ask how he was feeling but paused. The blonde she had grown familiar with over the course of a week wasn't there. In his place was a man she knew nothing about and who stared at her in much the same way. Just how little she knew him struck her once more, but she tried to push through it still.

"H-hey, are you doing okay? Your radio is kind of loud, can you turn it down? Did those Powder Gangers give you any trouble?" Time looked at her for a moment before twisting a knob on the piece of pre-war tech, muting it.

"I'm fine. Those raiders didn't give me any trouble either, they actually gave me some valuable information. I need to head for Primm." His voice came out flat but hurried, as if he was in a rush.

"Oh, okay! Well I'm sure after we get this place patched up in a few days I can-"

"No, I need to go now," Time cut her off, voice sharp and unforgiving. "I'm leaving within the hour, I just need to resupply first."

Sunny flinched at the abrupt cut-off but tried to push on regardless. "Are you sure that's a good idea? You've been up all night, we all have. It's okay to take-"

"Take a break? Like I have been? No, I need to leave. I need to find out who I am and why I feel so desperate to go defend Primm."

Having been cut-off a second time, Sunny's temper began to fray, anger slipping into her tone. "What? You don't even know why, you just feel like it? Is it really that pressing that you need to run off all gung-ho like this!"

"Because I feel like it?" Time questioned, his nostrils flaring. Emotion was bleeding back into his voice, but he kept a hold of it all the same. "Sunny, Primm is under siege. The NCR is involved. And I keep having these visceral reactions, I just- I know something is in Primm, and it somehow relates to me. I need to know more about myself, and I'm going to go find out before whatever it is either gets killed or destroyed!" Time finished with a shout, unable to hold back how he truly felt.

Sunny took a step back in shock before slowly shaking her head. "Fine. Go ahead, Chet and Trudy will be glad to help you. Ringo too, so long as you don't scare him again. Good luck Time. I hope you find what you're looking for." Shoving her way past him, Sunny stepped out of the saloon.

Time stared off after her, rubbing his shoulder. "What's her problem? It's not like it's her life being questioned..."

"No, but her home did just get shot up and nearly invaded." Trudy chipped in from around the corner. Time turned towards her as she continued, "But not like I can blame either of you for being blinded by your own circumstance. So, you need to skip town I hear?"

"I need to get to Primm ASAP. I plan on leaving within the hour. Would you be willing to part with some supplies? I'll pay, same as always." Time offered.

Trudy simply looked at the blonde before nodding, waving for the courier to follow her. "Aye, that I do hun. I'll get you a travel pack and some canned food. Not bad after you get past the radiation. It'll shake out to a hundred and fifty caps total."

Time nodded, reaching into a sack tied to his waist and placing the cash on the counter. His pockets had gotten slightly heavier after going through the pockets of several of the dead raiders. "Thanks Trudy. I wish I could stay to help but-"

"Hun, I'd say you've done more than enough. As much as I'd like to keep my promise of tanning your hide, this whole affair has left me running on empty. You've helped us nip that Powder Ganger problem in the bud as well as getting us prepared for them. It's a shame what happened to our friends, but at least we can keep living with their memory. Hopefully those Powder Gangers can do the same if they settle down to farm or something."

Time grew silent, unwilling to respond as Trudy finished packing a backpack for him. Accepting it, he gave her his thanks before leaving the saloon. Chet had been next and he'd given him an earful about returning the guns and armor he'd 'borrowed', but grudgingly relented and let Time keep them. After buying some more ammo as well as a rifle and a couple modifications, the courier left to go find Ringo. Managing to corner him just across the street, the caravaneer had given Time praise as well as a promise to give him a greater reward if he met him at the Crimson Caravan headquarters just outside of The Strip.

And so with a goal in mind, a heavier cap pouch, and supplies for the road ahead, Time set off for Primm and whatever answers lied in store for him.

Trek · Aug 31, 2022

The courier had so much potential, too bad he squandered it in the game, he could have made a proper empire, hell he did in the DLC, recovered so much tech, lead humanity to a better path.

davelll · Sep 5, 2022

ok good story i like it and want to see more.

Bomb Squad No. 666 · Sep 30, 2022

Hello, welcome back! Thanks for sticking with me if you have. It's been a busy and jam-packed month for me, it's why this is coming out so late. Friend of mine found out he was cheated on and his ex broke his nose over it. So its been a lot of time spent making sure he's okay.

Anyways, I won't keep you any longer. Remember, if you like or dislike something please tell me! If you see a way for me to improve I'd love to hear it. Have fun with the chapter!

Chapter 3: Who Are You?

October 27, 2281

The sun beat down on the desert wastes, waves of heat hazily rising off the ground. That same overbearing heat sat like a heavy weight on the courier's shoulders, dragging them down and making his breathing labored. Time's only true solace from the sun were the cartons of purified water he'd picked up from the well outside of town as well as a snazzy hat he'd managed to pick up off the side of the road in the remains of a fridge. Enjoying the slight shade that managed to keep his eyes covered, he gulped down a bit more water before gasping out.

"Fuck me, this was easier when I ran with Victor. Guess that's the difference carrying all my shit makes," Time whispered to himself. Out of curiosity, he looked at the positioning of the sun and the shadows of the rocks around him. It was getting into the evening, the sun beginning to get lower and closer to the horizon. Nodding to himself, Time took a few more steps before pausing. Bringing up his right wrist, he clicked his Pip-Boy on and stared at the displayed time and date in the corner.

Six o'clock. He'd been walking for hours, trekking over hot desert sands and blistering pavement. It also didn't help that he'd gotten into a couple of fights along the way. Leftover Powder Gangers that hadn't joined in the fight in Goodsprings and that had been loitering a mile or more out. A smile snaked along his face at remembering how he'd tricked a group of three into checking out a crate of dynamite. A good toss of a rock and well-placed shot had put an explosive end to their lives. Closing his eyes and exhaling through his nose, the courier let himself relax for a moment before focusing back on the present.

"...just gonna chalk that one up to the sun and exhaustion so I don't feel like a complete idiot. Ugh, I guess I should probably sleep. If I get to Primm like this I'll just end up getting riddled with holes." Looking for a moment, Time's eyes settled on a shaded cliff face with bushes all around the base of it. That would do, offering cover from above and making it harder to find the blonde for any potential raiders.

Making his way over, he brought out his tent and set it up, even making a small fire to heat up a bit of food. Downing a meal of hot noodles and water, the courier retired into his tent and sleeping cot. Using the cliff as support to help sit him up, the blonde sighed before allowing his eyes to drift shut.

"Just a few hours... a quick nap."

\-/

*Crunch*

Time's eyes shot open. Darkness had fallen, the tent flaps no longer lit up by the sun. And there had been the distinct sound of brush being crushed underfoot just outside. Someone, or something, was outside.

Pushing the cloth blanket off his body, the courier picked up his silenced .22, only a slight clunk echoing out as the metal was lifted. Bringing it up to aim, Time waited for any hint of movement or noise to lock onto. The silence hung heavy, weighing on the blonde's mind and forcing him to evaluate the situation he was in as minutes ticked by.

'Couldn't tell where that first sound came from,' Time mulled over, allowing his freshly awakened brain to work itself and fully wake up. 'But there hasn't been any more noise after I picked my gun up. That means whatever it is is intelligent. Possibly human. Most likely human.'

Taking a breath in, the blonde looked about for a moment before his eyes settled on the hat he'd taken yesterday. Nodding to himself, he picked it up with one hand and snuck up to the tent flap. Taking a breath, he swung the flap open before throwing the hat into the air.

Three shots echoed out, two managing to score straight through the hat's brim. The third one had come dangerously close to Time, sailing right above his head and punching a hole in the tent. But it had missed him as well as showed where his mystery visitor was.

As the hat fell out of the air, Time rushed out of his tent to the left, gun aimed at the shadowy figure. "No sudden moves! Get up nice and slow so I can see you." The courier kept his gun trained on a shadowy figure hiding within the foliage. It was good camouflage to hide with, a dark mask and completely black bodysuit. The issue came with the moonlight and how it gave such hard edges to their outline. Her outline, Time noticed as she rose and her body came fully into sight.

She was a shapely woman, at least from the front, and about as tall as Time to boot. In her hands was a 10mm pointed at him just like he was at her. It looked well-worn, like it had seen years of constant use. The mask she was wearing was a dark and verdant green, almost black, with wild gray lines dancing about from one corner to the next.

"You're a tribal," Time deduced, the blonde's words hanging over the empty air between the two. "Why are you here? Who are you a part of?" He didn't fully understand what he was saying, but he knew that people like this didn't just come out here without a reason. Usually if their tribe needed help, they were going on a hunt... or blood feuds.

The woman let out a scoff before lowering her gun. Cautiously, Time did as well after a moment. "So it is you. You know, I was wondering if that smug ass of yours had actually settled down after I saw you milling around that town for days. But no, you never stick around, do you?"

The courier squinted, taking in the mystery stalker's words. "That answered exactly zero of my questions, but alright. How about a soft one to put us on even footing? Since you obviously know me, who are you?"

"You don't-? Ah, the mask." Reaching up, she took hold of the mask from the chin and lifted it up completely. No longer concealed or held up, amber hair dropped to her shoulders, framing a frankly cute face with several scars on her jaw. "How about now? You remember me?" Sharp brown eyes looked at him expectantly, lip jutted out as if challenging him to say otherwise.

"...yeah, I'm drawing a complete blank here." Time freely admitted, causing the woman to gawk at him. "Look, I need names and maybe a refresher on how we know each other? I got-"

"Asshole!" Fist suddenly flying in his face, Time ducked back as it whiffed through the air above him. But the mad woman's assault was far from complete as he felt another punch land squarely in his side. Grunting in pain, the courier rolled with the force, body tumbling across the sands before righting himself and pushing onto his feet again.

Wiping blonde hair out of his eyes, Time shot a glare at the woman. "Hey, hey! What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" The woman asked, eyebrows arching as she pointed at her chest. "No, what the fuck is wrong with you! Seven years, and you don't even bother to remember my face after what you did to me? To my people!"

A surge of anger and panic stabbed through the courier's chest. What he'd done? What had he done? An action that warranted such vitriolic anger... "Woah, back up a step now. I haven't done anything to anyone that doesn't deserve it. Okay, you hear me? I'm not some maniac that goes around shooting honest people out of the blue okay-"

"Look, bullshit me however you want but I'm going to make this blatantly clear for that thick ass head of yours," the assailant cut in, stopping Time in his tracks. "Since you've clearly been sooo busy ruining other people's lives that you forgot, I'm gonna give you a refresher course. I'm Yvana," she paused to see if Time reacted to the name. The blonde gave nothing away, causing her to roll her eyes before pushing on. "And you ruined the reputation of my tribe, the Daughters of Hecate."

"Oh, that's it? Huh, here I thought I did something awful like- ow!" Before the courier could further express his relief, he found his cheek stinging red from the powerful slap Yvana had delivered to him. Staggering back a few steps, he stuck a finger in his ear in a vain effort to try to stop the ringing from the blow. "Fuck! God, why do you bother with a gun when you hit like that!"

"'That's it?' No! That is not it! You-!" Biting her tongue, she looked to the side as heat creeped up her neck before fighting it down. "No! I thought maybe you changed but you're still the same pig-headed, forgetful asshole from back then! So much for all that bullshit talk about just making the places you go better, huh?"

Rubbing his jaw to work out the ebbing pain, the blonde felt his anger begin to spike again. Here he was in the middle of the night, getting hit constantly by this insane woman that refused to elaborate and who was unknowingly hitting every nerve he'd discovered. Hell, maybe she did know how to nettle him, she'd said they met seven years back. If that was the case, that just made him more pissed off. Not to mention on top of all this he still needed to get a fucking move on to Primm to get there in time, and all of that was before he even started to touch that checker-suited bastard and that damn platinum chip! It was all of this anger he brought to bear against her, face twisting into a snarl as the words flew out of him.

"Can you stop giving me the damn run-around here! I don't remember you! I don't remember that worthless tribe of yours! And I damn sure don't remember whatever the fuck I did to get you to hunt me in the middle of the night years after the fact! Now unless you have a way to give me those memories back, feel like laying it all out in detail, or have a damn book on my life, get the hell out of my face! Fuck, I better have killed someone for this big of a hate boner!"

Panting, Time let the words hang in the air between them. As his rage left him feeling cold inside, he waited for Yvana to blow up on him again. But nothing came. Curious, the courier looked into the tribal's face.

Her lips and eyes were pinched shut, fingers clenched hard enough to bite into the flesh of her palm. As the seconds ticked by and he heard her blood dripping onto the sands, he couldn't help but feel uncomfortable at the mounting tension. It felt like there was some thin string just barely holding a tidal wave of emotion and violence back. A string he inadvertently broke as Time took a step back, the crinkle of his tent being stepped on causing Yvana's brown eyes to snap open.

With a roar of fury, the redhead launched herself at the blonde, hands poised to tear his throat out with her hands. However, Time now had experience and preparation on his side. Catching her hands, the courier rolled back with her lunge. Planting a foot on her stomach as they fell, he pushed her off to continue her journey through the air with added momentum.

Crack

Cringing at the crunchy sound of flesh meeting solid stone, the courier rolled over and pushed himself off the ground. Walking to the downed body of Yvana he looked her over. Putting his fingers on her neck and hand in front of her mouth, he let out a slight sigh of relief. She was still alive, just unconscious. She had a giant gash on the top of her head where she'd been personally acquainted with the rocky cliff, and more than likely just as big of a concussion underneath it. Idly, he wondered if she'd become an amnesiac like him before shaking his head.

"Yeah right, as if I'd be that lucky. Now what am I going to do with you..." the courier muttered to himself. Taking out medical supplies, he covered her open wound and forced his vial of bitter medicine down her gullet. As he looked over the knocked out woman for any other wounds, his eyes lingered on her hips and chest. He couldn't help as certain thoughts invaded his mind, coloring his cheeks. Forcing himself to cough, he shook his head to clear those thoughts. "Nope! Not gonna entertain that line of thinking. Come on, get your head in the game. Just tie her up and take some of her supplies."

Rummaging around in her pockets, he soon found himself a hundred caps richer as well having some additional ammo. Careful to leave her with enough to keep traveling after she got back up, he tied up one of her legs to an odd rock structure nearby. Measuring it mentally, he took a knife sheathed on her hip and planted it a bit away from the end. Just out of reach enough that she'd have to crawl for it. Breaking down the rest of his camp, Time gave one last look to the unconscious Yvana before pausing, a sudden thought plaguing him.

"...why did I help you when you tried to kill me?"

The question lingered on his lips, as there was nothing left to answer him. Nothing but an internal sense of past regret and a tint of sadness. Swallowing the phantom emotions, the courier forced himself to face the road and continue on his path. He still had a town to purge of convicts and questions that demanded answers.

\-/

Dawn welcomed the courier in all its brilliant radiance as he walked the wastes. It was like a warm kiss to his tired skin, invigorating him to finish climbing the hill before him. As he crested the hill he was greeted by the sight of a partially destroyed town with a giant wooden construct weaving between its buildings. Primm.

A smile broke out across the blonde's face as a laugh escaped him. Despite the circumstances, he couldn't help but feel like he was coming back home for the first time in ages. It was a warmth spreading through his chest like a hug before he remembered why he was there in the first place. Rubbing his face and wiping the sand out of his eyes, Time broke out into a trot downhill.

There was a tall fence circling the settlement, but there was a bridge connecting to the town mid-way across the road with an opening into it. Just a hop and a skip over and he'd be in the thick of it. As his feet hit pavement he could hardly keep from breaking into a sprint. It was so close, so many answers just within reach-!

"Halt!"

Stumbling, Time just barely managed to keep from eating the pavement by throwing his hands in front of him, catching himself. Pushing back onto his feet, he looked to and fro trying to see who had called out to him.

"Right here! Come on over here, civilian."

Whipping his head to the right, he was greeted to the sight of a man in brown fatigues leaning against a wall. Squinting into the man's eyes through his weird goggles-and-helmet combo, Time could see he was still a bit groggy, like he'd just woken up. Putting up a hand to wave, the courier strode over, hopping over a rock before coming to a stop in front of the military man.

"Alright, I'm here. What's up?"

"'What's up?' Primm is under fire by convicts is what's up. There are Powder Gangers crawling all over the place and they've holed up in the center of town. Hell, there're so many you can see them walking like they own the place," the trooper informed Time.

"The hell! They've got in that far already?" Time questioned, voice raising in sheer disbelief. Looking back at the town he tried to spot any raiders but his attention was brought back before he could make out any.

"Sir, calm down," the guard held his hand in front of the blonde, forcing him to take a step back. "We're doing all we can to quell the threat, but this town lies outside of NCR jurisdiction. If you want to aid us, I'd recommend talking to Lieutenant Hayes in the camp." Taking out a clipboard, the guard looked at Time expectantly before sighing. "Your name? I need to make sure you aren't a convict or dangerous criminal."

Rolling his eyes, the courier muttered to himself. "I'm a convict? Like hell, only thing I've done is put right what the NCR has fucked up. It's Time. No last name, and that is my actual name."

As Time waited for the man to mark his name down and look at other various papers, he took a step away and looked out at the town. Being closer and on even ground with it, he could see it was in bad shape. Blood splattered across almost every surface, bodies lying about in the middle of the street and propped up against buildings. He could even see one or two raiders walking about now that his full attention was on them. The urge to take out his gun and pop one of their heads was overwhelming, but it wouldn't amount to anything until he got into the town proper.

Taking off his hat, the courier ran a hand through his hair and shook it loose. He needed something to distract himself before his temper flared up and caused him to do something stupid. "Man, I don't understand how you can stand wearing those stupid hats all day. I think I'd go crazy just-"

"Freeze! You're under arrest!"

Muscles tensing up, the courier's eyes darted back to the guard. The man had a gun pointed straight towards Time's head, the metal frame shaking faintly. Wide, trembling eyes were focused on the blonde's, darting between him and the clipboard on the ground. Licking his lips, Time slowly put his hands up, deliberately showing his palms to make sure the guard understood he was unarmed.

"Look, I don't know who you think I am, but I assure you-"

"Shut up! Hey, I need back-up out here!" The guard cut off Time quickly, unwilling to entertain anything he might say. "On your knees! Hands behind your head! Move wrong and I will put you down!"

Biting back whatever anger and defiance that danced on the tip of his tongue, Time complied. Locking his jaw shut, he clasped his hands into his hair. Touching down on one knee gently, the other followed shortly after. The guard circled around the courier, gun not dipping so much as an inch even when he kicked the blonde to his stomach.

Grunting in pain, Time heard three other sets of feet stomp over and surround him. Chatter flew over him like buzzards over a corpse, going fast and thick with coded terminology. But the courier didn't pay it any mind, his attention too focused on what lay before his eyes. The clipboard the guard had thrown down in his panic. And prominently displayed was a wanted poster with his cockily grinning face staring right back.

\-/

It was about an hour later that Time found himself shoved into a chair across from a stern-looking man. Hands tied behind him, he'd been stripped down to a white shirt and boxers and had everything else taken off of his person. Meeting the military's man disciplined visage with no small amount of anger, he felt the need to get the first word in.

"You know, if you wanted a striptease I'm sure there's a lot of girls down on the Strip that'd be happy to. Prolly even some men, seeing the way I'm being treated by yall." It was petty, but it felt good. The man, Lieutenant Hayes he assumed, did not seem amused by his attempt at witty humor however.

"Do you know why you're here, scum?" A frown pulled at Time's lips at the man's matter-of-fact tone. Seemed like he wasn't in a joking manner.

"Yeah, I'm here to save Primm and your boys got a damn mix-up with who I am. That or they reeeally wanted to perform that cavity search on me. Just let me out of these damn cuffs already so I can get on with it." Time tried to stretch his arms apart for emphasis, but the two men guarding the exit pulled their firearms up to his back. Lips drawn flat at the sound of clanking metal, the blonde rolled his eyes and sat back in the stiff chair.

"Hm. How charming," drawled the man in charge. "And my men have not made a rookie mistake by mis-identifying you. I've even got Sergeant McGee's account of having seen you in person. Spitting image from about a decade back, or so he says. Though that begs some other questions considering where you are," Hayes leaned in, eyes narrowed on the courier's face. So a terrorist and deserter like yourself is going to defend these people? Would you mind telling me why and how? I've got a squad of a dozen fine men and women doing their best and we can barely keep the flow of convicts to just Primm."

"Woah, back the fuck up? I'm pretty damn sure I'd remember signing up for the NCR even with my amnesia, and what's this terrorism crap you're spouting?" If he'd been able, Time would've slammed his fist on the table in outrage from the bizarre claim. As he was, the courier managed a stomp before the sound of shifting metal once again echoed from behind him and put a stop to his struggles.

"Amnesia?" A look of intrigue crossed the lieutenant's face before he schooled his expression back to neutrality. "Regardless, that doesn't make you any less of a criminal. Even assuming you're telling the truth, a lack of memories does not equate to a lack of action. Now, on with the explanation. Why are you here, and how are you planning to help these people?"

"The why is something I don't quite find myself willing to tell people that bound me up the first chance they could get. Sorry if that ruffles your feathers, but I can promise it's not anything yall would consider illegal or 'terrorism.' I need this place still standing." Licking his lips, Time could feel a few beads of sweat roll down his temple. As useless of a question as it may have seemed, alarm bells had gone off when he'd heard it. These men could not know he was here for answers about his past. If he did share a connection to the town and exposed it to these people, he didn't know what they might do, especially with the fact he apparently had a rap sheet. Seriously, what the fuck did he do to warrant terrorism as a charge?

"The how is something I'm working on though," Time pushed on. "I need to see more of the situation, get a feel for where the enemy is. And I kinda need all the crap you took away from me if I want to have any chance at success."

"Quite the mouth on you, wouldn't you say?" The lieutenant observed. "Blowing right by half of my question and not even having a good answer for the other half. It's truly a wonder why you're traveling by yourself."

Gritting his teeth, Time just barely managed to keep his mouth shut. Going off on a guy like this wouldn't serve him well and might just see him on the other side of a cell for the rest of his life. That meant no answers and no revenge. For the sake of his own personal mission, the courier swallowed his angry snapback before replying calmly.

"Not knowing how isn't a bad answer. Look, I'm willing to get dirty and bleed for this, something you all clearly aren't willing to." The soldiers behind him shifted again but halted as Hayes raised his hand. "I'm not budging on the why. I don't have to tell you. But the 'how' is because I'm motivated and willing to get shot to put those goddamn raiders 6 feet under once and for all. So cut me a deal here!"

"I'm not in a position to cut deals with career criminals." Hayes shot back coolly. Time grit his teeth and was set to fire back before being cut off. "However, what I lack in political power I make up for in field reports. I can't make deals with people I've never seen."

"...what?" Time asked dumbly. He wasn't quite able to connect the dots thoroughly here, much to Hayes' annoyance as the man rolled his eyes.

"You go and deal with those convicts and my company will all agree that we never so much as saw you. As far as we know, a random courier strolled by for a job, saw the commotion, and handled it. Or died in the crossfire," Hayes threw in coldly. "So long as you only turn your gun on those Powder Gangers and leave the town to us afterwards, I'm willing to settle on this."

Time blinked. Just like that? Either this group of NCR troopers were in a way worse situation than he figured or he was a lot more badass in their imaginations. So why not use their imagination to his advantage? A grin cut across the blonde's face, causing Hayes to look uneasy for the first time in their entire exchange.

"Deal."

"It isn't a deal. It's an agreement. You two, get him out of those cuffs. Sergeant McGee will see you given back the gear that was taken from you. Everything legal that is," Hayes stressed before standing. The two soldiers nodded and approached the courier but came up short as a warped snapping sound echoed out in the tent. Rubbing his wrists, Time sighed in satisfaction, both from the shocked look on Hayes as well as letting his arms move about.

"Word of the wise, get sturdier cuffs. Now, let's get my shit."

\-/

Walking out of the temporary encampment with all of his equipment and sporting a brand new shiny black eye, the courier grumbled to himself about stupid, overreactive guards. Taking his guns out, he made sure they were fully loaded before nodding to himself. Looking through his medicinal pouch, a frown tugged at his lips before he turned back to look at the rather unremarkable Sergeant McGee.

"Really? Took all my chems too?" Time questioned with no small amount of annoyance in his voice.

"You had Psycho in your possession," McGee listed off, the explanation rolling out without any hesitation. "There's no telling what else you managed to spike with it. You're lucky we're letting you keep anything with a needle."

Groaning, Time set the matter to the side as he looked through the rest of his supplies. "Man, I was only carrying that for emergencies... what kind of school keeps Psycho in a safe anyway- woah woah, hold up!" Waving his arm at McGee to stop him from walking away, the courier marched over and shoved an empty sack in the sergeant's face. "Where are my damn meds? I need that medication!"

"You mean that banana-Mentat mess?" McGee scoffed. "If that's medicine then I'm the damn President. Feel free to indulge in however you get high after you clear out this town and get out of our hair, okay?"

And with that McGee turned and walked back into the encampment, leaving the courier with several more empty bags than he would've liked. Time groaned and shoved the empty bags to the side. If he was lucky he'd find some off the bodies of raiders to refill his stock. He might not have partaken of them regularly, but they had niche uses. The main issue was going to be getting mentats, but he had the better part of a day to do that.

Breathing in deeply, Time walked towards the town. Walking across the wooden bridge, he disarmed the mines with a simple press of the button on top before pocketing them. No telling when a strategic opportunity to use them would arise.

Boots stomping down on asphalt once again, the courier kept a watchful eye out for any raiders. The few he'd seen before entering the NCR encampment were no longer out and about, but that would change if anything alerted them. Sticking to the fenced wall, Time began his scouting by heading to the left.

"Get the layout of the place," Time muttered to himself, trying to get his plan of action together. "Secure more firepower. Find where their base is. Locate what passes for leadership for those damn cons. Get answers where I can. And above all else..." He muttered as he brought his rifle up to eye level. Aiming down sights towards a junkie with a mohawk next to the twisted remains of a gas station, the blonde steadied himself as he drew in a breath. Releasing it in an exhale, he clicked the safety off as the raider's head settled into the center of his iron sights.

The courier squeezed the trigger, his repeater coming to life as it barked out a bullet with a cloud of fire. With a beautiful whistle that could've put a marmot to shame, the bullet sailed through the air before finding its home in the gray matter of a Powder Ganger.

"...eliminate every raider I see."

As the convicts' lifeblood splattered across the pavement and metal struts three more raiders perked their heads up at alert. Kicking off the ground, Time ducked as bullets riddled the walls at his side, debris and dust being shot up behind him as he ran. Loading another shot as he slid behind a mailbox, Time paused and waited until he heard a break in the fire from the convicts. Closing his eyes, he took a moment to clear his mind and just breathe.

Breathe in. Breathe out. No fears, no doubts. Inhale. Exhale. Controlled, measured breaths. Letting out a final breath to focus his mind, Time opened his eyes as the echoes of gunfire faded away. Slinging his repeater over the mailbox, the courier wasted no time analyzing where the enemies hid. Two behind the frame of a car loading their guns and another approaching with a switchblade in hand. Eyes narrowing and thoughts flying at a thousand miles a second, the blonde decided his course of action.

Swinging his gun to the car, Time rested it on the mailbox as his other hand reached behind him. Firing rounds with one hand, the bullets ricocheted and glanced off the metal, landing no clear hits on the raiders behind the car but more than keeping their attention. Kept it long enough for Time to bring out a grenade. Ripping the pin out, he let it cook for two seconds before throwing it.

A clink echoed out as it landed behind the car. A startled gasp and a gurgle of surprise. Then an unholy twisting of metal sounded out and a plume of smoke rose from the explosion site. The one raider that had been running in with the switchblade stumbled, looking back to the fiery corpses that had once been his comrades.

"Bad move!" Time exclaimed from behind the ganger.

The convict whipped his head around, wildly swinging his weapon at the courier. Leaning away from the slash, Time brought his pistol up to the raiders head before unloading. The bangs ran into each other, unable to be counted. Blood and viscera painted the ground he stood on as well as his face. Short, panting breaths flowed out of Time's mouth, the rush of combat leaving him.

Wiping his face off, Time looked back and forth to see if there were any reinforcements incoming before squatting beside the headless corpse. Grasping through his pockets, he found some ammunition as well as a pair of shades that hadn't been worn. Throwing the spare ammo into his inventory, the courier looked down at the shades.

"Well, at least it'll make sure I don't get blood in my eyes if I have to do that again." Slipping the shades on, Time quickly ran away from the smoking wreck and bodies. "Hopefully those raider assholes chalk that up to the NCR picking off a few of their guys. Need to be silent when I can, out in the open like this."

Fortunately, there weren't any other raiders coming down on his head just yet, giving him ample time to clear the rest of the distance to the end of the wall segment he'd been following. Back slamming into a dilapidated shack, Time tried to peer through several holes in the wall before opening the door. Shoving his gun through first, he took a second to get a clear look around.

No hostile life, or any life for that matter. Honestly, the entire place looked like a giant mess, like someone had come through with a bat and wrecked everything they could get away with without the building collapsing. Putting his gun down, Time scanned the floors but failed to find any trace of a trap. Stepping carefully around broken bottles and scattered papers, the courier went to the doorway to the back room to see if anything was hiding there. As he did, his nose started to twitch, a god awful stench assailing his nostrils.

Breaking into a coughing fit, he eventually had to clamp a hand on his nose before moving through the doorway. What greeted him was a grisly sight. A bed coated in blood and gore with two headless bodies lying atop it. A man and a woman. They were pale and naked, with numerous marks and wounds all across them. If it hadn't been obvious by the smell, the miniature cloud of flies and bloated limbs gave away that these two had been dead for a damn long while.

"Fucking hell," Time muttered to himself. He spared a look around the rest of the room before shaking his head and stepping away. "What in the hell did they do to deserve that? They had to have been the first victims."

Looking about the front room, Time's eyes landed on a desk. Shuffling over to it, he tried to power on the Robco terminal but groaned as it was completely shot. Searching for anything else, a glimmer of light caught the blonde's eye on the floor. Bending down, he scooped it into his hand and examined it.

It was a badge with five points. 'Sheriff' was proudly listed at the top. Time felt the corners of his mouth tug down as his hand clenched tightly onto the badge. Murky memories were forced to the forefront of his mind, of shared laughter between him and a brave man. Poured drinks and toasts, fine suits and happy tears.

"McBain... I'm sorry. I'll get the bastards that did this to you and your wife."

Stuffing the badge into his pocket, Time walked over to the backroom one more time, looking the space over before pausing on a duster on the coat rack next to him. Grabbing it, he spared one last look to the bodies on the bed before shaking his head. Tossing the duster over his armor, the courier marched out of the home, unable to stand another minute inside.

Less than an hour of searching, and he'd already found an answer from his past, albeit one he didn't like. But the man had died ages ago. There was nothing Time could've done, with or without amnesia, that would have prevented this from happening. Aside from not going on that stupid delivery anyways.
Growling at the anger pooling into the pit of his stomach, Time's head snapped up when he heard voices. To his left, down the alley between the fenced wall and the giant building, were about seven raiders who apparently had just taken note of him as well.

"Shit!" Darting forward, Time grunted and stumbled at feeling a bullet rip through him. Catching and righting himself, the courier kept running as he held his side, blood spurting out from the bullet wound. He kept running, feet slamming into the dusty ground as he tried his best to clear the rest of the square building he was next to. "Fuck, cover or hide, cover or hide?" Questioning himself, the blonde looked behind him as well as all around. Dilapidated buildings were damn near everywhere, including the gas station that still had a smoking car next to it.

An idea striking him, Time pulled out the mines he'd collected earlier and tied string between two of them before arming them. Using both his hands, he threw the connected mines at the same time. It was sloppy, and just off-mark, but they landed roughly next to the gas station and a ridged portion of the giant building.

Shouting reaching his ears, he could see the group of seven turn the corner. Facing forward one more time, Time ran before jumping a piece of broken down wall to hide on the street side for a moment. Setting down his last armed mine next to the wall, he stopped to gasp in pain and clutch his side.

"Fuck, come on! Just get inside, why the hell doesn't this big ass place more entrances!?" Thumping his fist on the casino by his side, Time forced himself up before running across the street. As he did, he could hear the mines he had set before go off, one after the other, followed by the crunching and collapsing of concrete. "Good, thank god that actually worked. That should hold them for a moment."

Slapping a bloody hand on the building he'd managed to run to, Time grunted as he staggered to the door. Yanking it open without any care he dove straight in. Just as he pushed it closed, he could see the first of the raiders jump over the wall that he had. The raider, a woman, had her mouth open, ready to yell just before landing on the mine he had planted.

Shutting the door fully to avoid being pelted by any stray debris, Time held his shoulder to the door as the explosive went off. A concussive blast sounded out, and a hail of concrete from the broken wall decimated the raiders that remained. Or so the courier hoped, as he slid down to the floor.

"Well, that makes ten... I think? Fuck, I need a stimpak. My side is killing me," Time muttered to himself as he popped one of the miracle syringes from his pack. Uncapping it, he wasted no time in jamming it into his side and injecting. A warm feeling spread through the blonde as he felt his insides begin to stitch themselves up. After about a minute it capped off as the hole in his side scabbed over and scarred, eliciting a sigh of relief from Time. "Man, that's the good shit. Alright, time to see what fresh hell I've walked into."

Forcing himself to stand up with some effort, Time finally got a proper look at the building he'd stumbled into. It was... shockingly nicer than the shack he'd just been in. Instead of sheet metal put together haphazardly, there were well-built wooden walls that reminded him of Trudy's saloon. It wasn't clean by any stretch however. Papers, scrap metal, oil, loose wires, all that and more was all over the place without any sort of organization. Walking about a bit, the courier shifted over to the main desk that housed what he could only describe as a giant metal ball.

Poking and prodding it yielded nothing. It was inactive, or too damaged to operate. Shrugging his shoulders, Time picked up a screwdriver sitting next to it and began to work on it. Whatever this machine was, it could probably assist him in killing the raider scum littering the street. Unless it was a cleaning bot, in which case he was fucked and wasting his time.

"Wonder if those convicts would keel over from being bathed? Ah, too hopeful," Time mused to himself. "Hey, maybe you can distract them by shoving soap in their mouths while I dome them? Heh, that'd be a lousy way to die."

Tugging the exterior plate off, Time hummed to himself as he looked at the wiring inside. "Huh, you got quite a bit of damage inside of you. Fixing you with nothing would be pretty damn challenging. Gimme a sec to look around."

Standing up again, Time looked around and searched for spare parts that he'd need for the repair. It was plentiful and all around him, he just needed to find what best suited the bot. Couldn't exactly cram a whole radio in him and hope for the best, right? There were rules to repair, laws that couldn't be ignored but could sure as hell be trivialized with shortcuts.

It was during this search that Time wandered into the back room. Stepping past the bed, he threw the wardrobe open. It was filled to the brim with dresses and oil-soaked work clothes. The courier couldn't help but lift an eyebrow at the sight.

"Huh, guess a woman lives here. Or at least used to." Shaking his head, the courier shoved the clothes to and fro before picking up a sensor module hidden in the back. "Weird place to hide something like that, but I won't judge. Organization clearly isn't her strong suit."

Pulling back from the wardrobe, he closed it before heading back to the front room. However, as he did so, he couldn't help but notice a picture frame on a nightstand. It looked clean, like it wasn't a thousand years old. Brow furrowing, Time stalked towards it and picked it up to examine. In doing so, he caught a good look at exactly what the photo was of.

Two blonde people, a man and a woman, hugging each other on the side. They were both extremely familiar. The man with his blue eyes and god awful beard. And the blonde woman with green eyes.

Time blinked and snapped back to attention as the sound of glass shattering reached his ears. His empty fingers twitched in the air before he kneeled and picked the photo back up. Free from its frame, the photo hung limp but still held the same exact image. Time couldn't help but stare at it. Stare at her. The woman that had plagued his mind every time he'd thought about Primm. Those same memories were nowhere to be found now however.

It was like an endless chase. Every time he closed the gap ever so slightly when he remembered, it burst even wider with a thousand new questions that begged his attention, dragging him behind. And yet here he was, staring at something that should provide so many answers for him, but nothing was clicking. He knew she was important to him, but the nature of the photo suggested nothing about their relationship. Flipping it over and back didn't show any hidden names or dates. For as happy as he felt he should be, he couldn't help but feel like he'd come across a giant dead end.

\-/

"System initializing... all clear. ED-E Online."

Putting the screwdriver back on the table, Time gave an exhausted but happy smile to the not-quite small eyebot that floated just above him.

"Hey, welcome back to the world of the living. ED-E, that's what your internal drive calls you, right? Mind if I call you that as well?" Time offered a handshake before blinking and putting his arm back down. The eyebot chirped and beeped back at the man, bobbing up and down in the air. "That's good, thank you... I think. Anyways, you can call me Time. And I kind of really need some back-up right about now."

More chirps and whirrs came from ED-E before a plate slid back and a small laser weapon popped out from the eyebot.

"Yeah, exactly like that. Glad to see we're on the same page. And glad to see you aren't a cleaner bot... Anyways, the town's been taken over by a lot of nasty folk. If anyone starts shooting at me or you, or if I shoot at someone else, feel free to join in. Are you game?"

ED-E booped and beeped, the AI reviewing the request and the situation before nodding and hovering over Time's shoulder. Sighing to himself, the courier stood up from his seat and pulled the duster back onto his shoulders. Eyes straying momentarily, he sighed before picking the photo back up. Looking at it, begging for something, one last time, the blonde shook his head before stuffing the photo back into his pocket.

"Alright, let's get down to business. Daylight's burning and I want the NCR and those raiders exactly nowhere near this damn town if I can help it." With his new robot follower at his side, Time drew a single breath before throwing the door open and walking back out into the open.

The sun was hanging in the dead center of the sky, its midday heat enveloping the courier as he walked into the street once more. The remains of the wall and raider that had been blown up earlier were still on display. A new hole bisected the bricks, turning it into little more than rubble that somehow still managed to stand. What remained of the raider was bits of flesh and blood here and there.

Walking back over to the rubble, Time peered over it and saw two raiders knelt over the remains of their allies that had stumbled into the first two mines and their cement trap. Motioning with his fingers to ED-E, the loyal bot hovered next to him and saw what the blonde had. Pointing at himself and then the one on the right, Time mirrored the motion at ED-E and raider on the left. The bot gave off a cheery beep of confirmation as its laser gun popped out. Nodding in relief, Time decided to go silent and brought out the silenced .22. The raider he was gunning for didn't have any headgear so as long as he nailed him there shouldn't be a fight.

Setting his arms on the bricks and aiming down sights, Time took a few breaths as he settled himself once again. Lining up the shot was easy, he just needed to make sure he didn't miss. Wind was fine, no interference there. So with an exhale the blonde clicked the safety off and-

*BZZZT*

Flinching from the sudden blasting sound, Time whirled to ED-E. Its blaster was aimed behind the two, forcing Time to follow it to a flickering man with a hole through the center of his chest. The man, clad in the blue jacket of the powder gangers, fell to his knees before landing face-first on the ground. A Stealth Boy clattered on the ground and slid to Time's feet.

"Huh, thanks for the save ED-E," Time muttered. "Guess you're an observant little guy. Let's save this for later." Grabbing the Stealth Boy, the courier wiped some of the blood off with his sleeve before stuffing it into his pack. Bringing his attention back to the two other raiders from before, he swore seeing them walking over. "ED-E, get behind cover!"

The eyebot looked between Time and the approaching men before fully turning to the raiders. Popping its laser out again, it began shooting rapidly as it floated through the air in pretzel motions.

"Shit!" Tossing caution to the wind, Time stood up and started firing blindly at the raiders alongside ED-E.

Bullets bounced off the pavement and lodged into limbs. Harsh bangs echoed off the walls, reverberating all throughout the town. Screams, yells, and beeps filled the air alongside the bangs until, finally, two bodies fell to the ground. Panting and clutching his left arm, Time squinted at the bodies of the raiders. Hissing in pain, he brought his hand up and squeezed off several more shots into the two.

Beeping beside him, ED-E vibrated in mid-air, facing to the north. Paying attention to the bot, how it was vibrating and the beeps it was emitting, understanding slowly dawned on the courier.

"Wait, can you sense where enemies are? Ah hell yeah, you just keep getting better and better little buddy! Ow!" Caught up in his excitement, Time had tried to fist pump with his left arm. Taking hold of it and examining the damage, he grimaced as he saw several bleeding holes. "Fuck, that hurts. Okay, can you sense where the town survivors are? That needs to be a priority right now."

A beep followed by a lengthy chirp came out of ED-E, the machine rotating in a full circle before it stopped facing the giant building they were next to. Screen flaring a luminescent blue, white pixels formed to display a vibrant 35.

"...so does that mean you sense 35 friendlies or they're 35 feet away?" Time questioned, eyebrows scrunching in confusion.

Another beep, slightly annoyed, came out of ED-E as it hovered away, the display ticking up the further from Time it got. And further from the giant building.

"Okay, that's distance. Come on, let's find a way in before we get even more shot up!" With a quickness to his steps, Time ran around the exterior as ED-E floated behind him. Rounding the corner and coming face-to-face with a blockade in front of the main entrance, the courier swore before whipping his head side to side in search for another way in.

There! A set of wooden double doors just to the side! The courier wasted no time snapping over and pounding his good hand on it to alert the folks inside.

"Hey, let me in! I'm here to help, my name is Time! I fixed up your eyebot-!"

Before Time could even finish his statement the door swung open wide. The face of a worried older black man greeted him before he was yanked inside. He just barely managed to keep the door open long enough for ED-E to hover in as well.

Fully inside now, Time tried to get a good look around the interior but was distracted by the man that had let him in. The blonde felt himself stiffen unnaturally as the older man wrapped his arms around the courier and hugged him with a firm slap to the back. As Time quietly questioned exactly why this stranger was doing this, the man in question spoke up.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Time. Thanks for coming back when you realized we were in trouble. Ruby's in the back, she can get you something to eat while you get yourself patched up. Do you need anything else? You look a bit light on your armor, what happened to your older set?"

Time could only stare at the man. It felt like a Deathclaw had just ragdolled him and broken his brain like an egg. This man, this stranger, knew him. Knew him enough to recognize him, what he usually looked like, as well as to apologize for something. Mouth feeling like he'd just chugged several handfuls of the Mojave, it was all Time could do to form a single question.

"Who are you?"

"Who am- son, this is not the time for messin around!" The elderly man snapped at Time. "You just saw me over a week ago for that delivery. What, did you get knocked on your head during that delivery or something?"

"Something like that," Time answered sheepishly, rubbing his forehead. "I got jumped and was shot in the head. Doc Mitchell in Goodsprings managed to patch me up, but my memory is in tatters. But this place stuck out to me, so here I am to help and be helped. Plus I heard the bastard that shot me drifted through here, so I'm gonna keep on his tail."

"You were shot in the head? Well then, it's a miracle you're still alive. You can call me Johnson, Johnson Nash. Husband to Ruby Nash. And head of the Mojave Express branch in this town. I'd be happy to help jog your memories, but we're in something of a crisis right now." As they talked, Johnson motioned for Time to follow him.

The two walked about the casino, Johnson filling him in on the Vikki & Vance. They passed other settlers, some waving at Johnson and others waving at Time. The courier waved back with a bit of hesitation, not quite sure what to make of it.

"It's a damn shame you don't remember us. Some of these folk, 'specially the youngins, look up to ya. Used to teach these survival classes," Johnson explained at Time's confused expression. "Here's Ruby. I'll be right back with a couple of things for you."

Time watched as Johnson left into a room off to the side before returning his attention to the bar and the older woman behind it. The woman, Ruby, gave him a kind smile before gesturing for him to sit down.

"Welcome back hun. It's good to see you again. I'd offer my radscorpion venom casserole, but we've run out."

Time smiled back at Ruby as he sat onto the stool. She reminded him of Trudy in that same motherly fashion, but there was a lot more familiarity here.

"All good. Honestly, I'll take whatever you can spare, I'm hungry and hurting." Popping a Stimpak out of his pack, Time injected himself once more as Ruby prepared a meal for him behind the counter. Groaning in slight discomfort from the enhanced regeneration his body was forced to undergo, he decided to dig a bit deeper into the situation at hand. "So, is everyone in town holding up in the Vikki & Vance?"

"Yep, everyone that wasn't killed or taken hostage," Ruby sighed. "The first victims were Sheriff McBain and his wife. Heard the gunshots in the middle of the night. Fortunately there were only a handful of convicts at the time so only a couple more died in the exchange. But Deputy Beagle managed to get himself captured. That takes most of our dedicated fighting force out. However, now that you're back in town we should be right as rain!" Ruby finished with a giant smile as she slid a plate of meat and veggies his way.

"You really think so?" Time couldn't help but ask as he shoved a forkful of food into his mouth. "I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I'm just one guy." An indignant beep sounded out from above his shoulder. "Sorry, one guy with a great eyebot by his side. This is ED-E by the way."

"A pleasure to meet you ED-E." The robot beeped in appreciation of the compliment, causing the older lady to chuckle. "And what are you talking about? You've been braving the Wastes your whole life, you ain't gonna let a few punk gangsters intimidate you now, right?"

Before Time could reply, Johnson stormed back and slapped a shotgun down beside the blonde.

"Here, a bit more firepower for ya. Also, did you see Marin? She's been gone ever since she tried going back to her home for supplies."

"Hm? No, I didn't. Who's Marin? Was she the one trying to fix up ED-E?" Time found himself intrigued. Was this that woman he'd seen in the photograph? Some solid answers and figuring out how she fit into all of this would be wonderful for him.

"You don't-? No, of course not." Johnson palmed his face, his fingers working along his lips as he tried to string his thoughts together. "Well if you didn't see a body then she's probably alive."

"Time, what do you mean you don't remember her?" Ruby questioned the courier with concern.

"He's taken a few lumps to the head darling, his memories are scrambled," explained Johnson, no small amount of pity in his eyes directed towards Time.

"Yeah, kind of why I came here in the first place. Can someone tell me who Marin is? Is this her?" Time pulled out the photo he'd taken from the home and showed it to the pair. They both nodded, making Time excited. "Great! Now who is she? How is she important to me?"

"...Time, you might want to sit down," Johnson told the courier, putting a hand on his shoulder. Blinking, Time noticed that in his excitement he'd gotten up from the stool.

"I don't need to sit, I need answers! Come on, just tell me-"

"Sit!" Johnson barked out, his voice firm as he pushed down on Time's shoulder. Thrown off track, Time sat uneasily on the stool and looked up at the older man. "Ugh, this isn't going to be easy..." Looking at the counter, he leaned over it and grabbed a bottle of whiskey, popping it open and downing a gulp. Gasping in relief from the burning sensation, Johnson turned back to the courier.

"I just talked to one of our lookouts on the roof. They noticed that some of those gangsters were congregating on the roof of the Bison Steve. 'Bout four of them surrounding a blonde working on the tracks of that damn thing." Time's heart fell upon hearing the report, but Johnson pressed on regardless. "She looked unhurt, and with you saying she isn't in her home, I'm inclined to believe the blonde on the roof is Marin. Either she pleaded that she could be useful or they connected the dots themselves, but regardless they're using her to do something with that giant construct that goes around town. Might want to try to make some sort of defense network. Or they just want some way to shoot at us without being completely in the open. But I-"

"Johnson," Time cut him off, voice low. He tried to calm himself, his fingers digging into his thigh through the leather armor. "Cut to the chase."

The elderly man looked down on Time with a look of absolute pity. The courier realized now that this was what Johnson had meant back at the entrance, what he had been apologetic over. What he'd been building up the courage to say since he was informed of Time's amnesia. Taking yet another swig of whiskey, Johnson looked Time dead in the eye before speaking.

"Marin is being held captive by raiders alongside Deputy Beagle, Time. And as far as how she's important to you... Marin is your mother."

Right on Time (Fallout: New Vegas)

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