Ah that's right. Y'all have sinkholes down in Florida. We've heard about them up here. Like, an entire section of road or somebody's pool will just go underground one day. *sweoop!*

Yes it does not matter the era or the place, humans always hold grudges. Look at what's going on in the Middle East lately... all of that began two generations ago. Still, that's pretty shocking the Enclave would bomb what is basically their own territory.

My work shift begins. Let me finish this later...

Yes, there could be all sorts of new monsters down below as they head toward Vault 100. Who knows what new species could be around, right?



I agree with Val, Mariah should just stay home. But she won't! We all know she won't.

I have, fortunately, not had to witness a sinkhole as it was happening, but I have seen them after the fact. People have gotten sucked in and are never seen again. Pretty scary stuff.

Human nature is something I am trying to explore in-depth with this story, in what I hope are unique ways, so always be on the lookout for that.

They are not heading down to Vault 100 yet, though. They do not know where it is. But they may find something about it soon.

The real-life wildlife in Florida helps make for a creative, interesting bestiary. I am a big fan of when there is a varied, well-realized bestiary in games.




[Half-Life Soundtrack – Vague Voices]

The outer limits of the Pre-War capital city was visible in the distance. It was not only Mariah and Valentina’s first time seeing Old Tallahassee. Some of the 25 other soldiers in tow had not previously laid eyes on it either. They all marveled at what they saw. It was not particularly pretty—though it did not look ugly either—but even as far away as they were, some of the city’s impressiveness could be seen. For one, it no longer looked like it took a nuke straight to the face. Mariah was used to seeing bigger cities as either complete skeletons, devoid of any civilized societies, or reinhabited but mere shadows of their former selves. Old Tally was not pristine by any means, but its current aesthetic was commendable, all things considered.

How much had been rebuilt was quite remarkable. It was not quite back to Langston’s depiction of the city as one of the fertile grounds of Pre-War scientific progress—not from what their unit could see, at least—but the buildings looked to be in comparatively good shape to most other Post-War cities. One of them especially stood out, though, noticeably taller than the rest of its neighbors. Perhaps symbolically, it looked to be roughly in the center of the old city.

“Wow,” Mariah said as they kept walking, dragging out the end of the word. “This place got directly nuked? You can hardly tell.”

“That is mostly the handiwork of what is practically an army of automatons,” Langston said. “Some of them were somehow still running when we began to recolonize the city, though I would posit most were construction-oriented machines, programmed to make certain fixes in the event of destruction. They had just been going about their days as if nothing had happened to the city. Davidson and I led the project to reboot the rest of them. Many of our compatriots were experienced fighters who eliminated the oversized wildlife that sparsely populated the streets. And before you knew it, we had a legitimate, burgeoning society.”

“What about that tower in the middle?” Valentina asked. It was obvious which one she referred to. “Looks like that one got some special treatment.”

Langston gruffly scoffed. “Of course, it does. Davidson made sure to have his megalomaniacal, self-absorbed desires tended to, simply calling it ‘The Spire.’ It is what used to be the Florida Capitol Building, where the governor and the state legislature conducted business. The state supreme court was close by, and the preceding Capitol building was repurposed into a museum when the current iteration opened. There is a considerable amount of fascinating history to those places and a lot of others. Although . . .” he trailed off and sighed heavily. After a pause, he continued. “Not like any of that matters anymore. The world went to hell.” Something about these places clearly held some personal meaning to Langston, though nobody pressed him on it. Even Mariah’s inquisitive nature did not prompt her to ask him about any of it. It was best to leave the subject alone. For now, at least.

After about ten more minutes of mostly silently walking, Langston pointed directly ahead. “Over there.” While much of the foliage in close proximity to Old Tallahassee was still trying to grow back from the fallout, there were still many dense pockets of vegetation further away from it, as well as those sinkholes that Langston had talked about before. One such pocket conveniently covered up the facility that he was bringing them to. “In this vicinity. It will not look like much at first, merely pretending to be marginally more than a shed. Yet there is a substantial complex below.”

“So, what exactly are we going to find here?” Valentina asked. “What more do you have to show us?”

“I am not sure of all the contents,” Langston replied. “Ostensibly, Ezra does not even know that this place still exists. The passing of the decades wipes away many memories and traces of the past. Yet with Davidson resurrecting some Pre-War projects, we might be able to find more information on how they started, or what else goes on deep below the surface. Maybe even data on Vault 100. I will peruse any working terminals to see what I can find.”

“Val is really good with computers, too,” Mariah said. “I have seen it firsthand, and she can help—”

“That will not be necessary,” Langston cut her off. It was unusually abrupt from him.

“Why not?” Valentina said, struck by his reaction. “Do you think I cannot do it?”

“Oh, no, no, no, no, no,” Langston stuttered. His facial expression showed that he was scrambling for a response. “Nothing like that, it is just . . .”

“What are you trying to hide, Langston?” Sergeant Waller said, stopping the unit and turning to face the scientist. He was always looking for something to be suspicious about, whether it was warranted or not. “I swear, if you are trying to pull something, I’ll—”

“There is nothing sinister, I assure you,” Langston said, regaining his composure. “I have already told you about my past, so why would I hide anything else?” He cleared his throat, addressing Valentina. “Pardon me, Miss Val. I did not mean to call into question your talents, which I am sure are quite considerable. It is just that these are not going to be your average terminals. They are likely to have formidable security measures, possible setting off traps or feeding you false information. And as this is a former Old Guard depot, I will be the only one with insight as to how this place works. All I need is for all of you to clear out the fiends that inhabit this location, as I am of little help in a fight.”

Waller turned back toward their destination only about 50 yards ahead of them, still sneering at Langston as he did so. “Fine. Just tell us what needs to be done.”

“Of course. I need to operate that terminal next to this entrance first. I used it to close off access.” As Langston stepped up to the screen to type in the requisite password and command, he furrowed his brows. “What? That is preposterous, I did not . . .” He simply trailed off.

“Did not what? What is it, Dr. Langston?” Mariah asked worriedly.

A grave look fell over Langston’s face. “The security has been bypassed. The command prompts were already present. That means only one thing.”

“Somebody else is already here,” Waller said, snarling. “Godd--- it, Langston, what was the password you put in? ‘Password?’ ‘12345?’ I’ve once heard of an idiot who made that one his luggage code.”

“Save your pathetic attempts at humor,” Langston shot back, his facial expression changing from concern to frustration with Waller and the unknown intruders in the facility. “Nobody else is cognizant about this facility’s location.”

“And yet there is someone here. I will have your head for this if you have led us into a trap.”

“Your inflated sense of self-importance will cause your own head to explode before you could attempt that.” Langston got into Waller’s face this time.

Mariah and Valentina were nervous about getting in the middle of what seemed to be the prelude to a fist fight. Fortunately, one of the other GCU officers with them stepped in. “Sergeant! Doctor! Please! We are on the same team here! These trespassers could be just below us.”

Was Waller’s behavior so problematic that officials under him had to often plead with him to stop? Mariah thought to herself. How could this be the temperament of a commanding officer, to the point that a subordinate would have to brave the divide in military rank to beg him to stop? It was astonishing to her and Valentina that when they first met Waller in the Panhandle, there was nothing about him that signaled he would be quick to anger. It would not be the first time Mariah had seen someone show their true colors after first meeting them, however. She started to wonder if taking on this job was worth it.

For all his rage, Waller seemed to be able to be reasoned with, at least by somebody who had enough of a way with Speech. “Normally, I would say you are out of line, Officer Damon,” he replied to the man who tried to be diplomatic. “But you are right. Focus on the task at hand. Alright, people. We have a developing situation on our hands. We have unknown trespassers in this place, and we don’t know how many of them there are, so be on your guard at all times.” He started to direct them into a clear formation, putting Mariah and Valentina closer to the back end but still with several soldiers behind them. “Have your weapons at the ready. We are going in. The primary goal is to find whatever stuff it is that Langston here wants to retrieve. Tread carefully.”

As the door loudly creaked open, what was supposed to be a secret staircase was in the corner of the room. A secret drive on the terminal next to it was what had opened it. Whoever these intruders were, they certainly seemed to be quite adept at hacking, or at least someone among them was.

“No talking unless it is necessary. And if you do speak, keep your voice down,” Waller said. “We might be able to get the jump on these guys.”

As the crew descended into the facility’s depths, there was a feeling of oppression in the atmosphere. Maybe it was just because of what Langston told them, or the knowledge that someone else was here, or the fact that this facility was supposedly abandoned for about a half-century. Yet it felt like there was something more tangible in the air, almost like they could grasp the inevitability of conflict with whoever was already in this place. The unit carefully descended into the dimly lit corridors below.

The plot certainly thickens as Langston spins his tale of new threats, and even a Vault! I wonder what secrets, or horrors, might lurk within Vault 100?

Plenty of conflict to go around here, along with plenty of factions, all with their own agendas. Mariah is going to have her hands full dealing with all these outsized personalities.

So it looks like Vault 100 is the going to be the nexus of this phase of the story. Everyone seems to want what is locked away there. Or at least what they think is in there.

That's one of the cool things about writing fiction in our own regional area, we know what 'works' and what doesn't. For Vicious's tale here in Maryland / Virginia / D.C., this includes radcicadas. In real-life we are getting the 17-year cycle of these little beasts, which means there's this constant white noise going on at all times, assuming it's daylight. So I imagine it's the same way in the gameworld too, especially since it's late summer.

Whoa, that's crazy! So Old Tally was rebuilt by machines, basically. I suppose that's a good way to do it. Anybody wanting to colonize the area (any bad folks) are going to need dealing with bots then, who'd probably been programmed to eradicate any baddies, somehow.





I am guessing it's probably a bot, or bots, which are down there? Guess we'll find out.

Back when I worked at EDS (when it was still a company), the default password they used to put on many of their servers was EDS123. Seriously. Sometimes for shits and giggles I would see how many servers I could log into with that. It turned out to be a lot of them.

*I write this now because the company is long gone, and that password is not going to work on any servers today.*

EDS = Electronic Data Systems?

That is the one. We used to call it Ed's. It was eventually bought by HP, who folded all of it assets, and the people they did not fire, directly into their own company.

Sorry for the delay. Lots of life stuff happening. But I've got the next part of Chapter 16 done! One more part to go before Chapter 17.

@Renee - Have you seen the movie Spaceballs? The "12345" bit was also a reference to one of the many funny scenes in the movie. This one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6iW-8xPw3k

@SubRosa - LOL, that is astounding. You'd think a tech or tech-related company would know better than to do that.






[Wasteland 2 Soundtrack – God’s Militia]

While the corridors were not well-lit, it was not quiet in the facility. Audible machinery in the distance could be heard and several pipes were spewing steam. The first corridor was narrow for a group their size but walking down the steps led to three slightly larger hallways. Waller ushered about half the group—including Mariah, Valentina, and Langston—to come with him, putting Officer Damon in charge of the other group. Clearly, Damon was not some ordinary officer, but Waller had not mentioned what his title was at the end of his tirade with Langston. Several soldiers, including Damon, had two-way radios on hand in case of an emergency. Waller gestured a reminder to stay as quiet as possible, in case they could pre-emptively strike whoever was already here.

As Waller’s group walked down their hallway, a stairwell came up on their left. “I remember proceeding this way,” Langston whispered. “I specifically registered this orientation of the pipes as I ascended. Let us continue this direction. Be prepared for anything.”

“What can we expect here? You’ve been awfully cryptic about what is here,” Mariah muttered.

“Well, that depends in part on your knowledge of the state’s wildlife. The Old Guard were conducting experiments on various creatures before the war, and I recognized what some of them used to be. Their respective biological compositions have been altered, enhanced, in a controlled manner unlike most of what you see on the surface. That is mostly the work of radiation, though not always.”

“And you contributed to this?” Waller asked accusatorily. “This is the kind of thing you did for the Old Guard?”

“I will not profess to being guiltless, but I was not aware of what was occurring here when it happened,” Langston quickly defended himself. “I was not a high-ranking member or someone who participated in these experiments. My membership in the Guard long afterward, however, made me privy to some of it after the fact. There was an abundance of documentation.”

“So, what kind of creatures are we talking about?” Valentina asked. “Are they not native to these parts?”

“A few you may have seen in your travels, but yes, others do not come from around here. One of the monstrosities I recognized from reports: the Prowler.” Langston would silently gesture at the next direction to go, the group still walking cautiously in anticipation of the unknown entrants to the facility.

“Sounds overly menacing,” Mariah quipped. “What’s a Prowler?”

“They used to be what were known as Florida Panthers. They were an endangered species in the Pre-War, only found well into South Florida, but the status of the species overall is unknown. There are some Old Guard cells in that region, but we . . .” Langston cleared his throat again. “Pardon me, they, the division I was a member of, lost contact with those cells some time ago.”

“And a panther is. . .?” Mariah had never heard of any before.

“They’re basically big cats, Mariah,” Valentina said. “I’ve never seen one, but I’ve heard about them from well-traveled immigrants to the GCU. There were also a couple Pre-War books around with pictures of them. There were apparently conservation efforts underway to save them, and they mostly steered clear of humans, but they could certainly be dangerous like other big cats such as tigers and lions. I’m guessing they are much more so now, so don’t take any of them lightly.”

“Indeed,” Langston agreed. “Here. This is the lab where it all happened. At least in the case of the main trials.” The group stepped out into an expansive room with a bunch of different kinds of electronic and other scientific equipment. Much of it looked like it had not been touched in decades, while other parts looked recently examined or used. A large balcony room overlooking the lab, protected by bulletproof glass, sat high above them. For some reason, the lab was well-lit even though it seemed the rest of the place was barely illuminated.

Langston gestured towards some large, broken test tubes that apparently used to house the creatures. “The gallery of experiments also included ophidian creates—snakes—like Constrictors, which used to be Boa Constrictors, and the Burmese Python, an invasive species. Porcupines are not native to Florida, but a small population lived in zoos around the state. They naturally had sharp quills on their backs, and records nicknamed them “Quillbacks” as a result. If you do not know, zoos were Pre-War locations where families could go see animals in close proximity and learn about them, though the animals were usually caged.”

“I’ve heard of zoos in my travels before,” Mariah said. “I came through a town once that repurposed an old zoo. With the wildlife we have now, it’s hard to believe that that kind of thing existed. What else was here? Better yet, what were they even here for?”

“I believe it is best if I just show you. There are bound to be terminals and papers around here, though I suppose they will not make clear the reason everything here was happening.” Langston took a pause and then sighed. He started to type on one of the terminals. “The short version is that members and affiliates of the federal government had been conducting their own secret experiments on wildlife. A disease called the New Plague ravaged the country, and some time down the road, the true puppet masters behind the scenes created FEV, the Forced Evolutionary Virus. They were trying to create living bioweapons, “super soldiers” from human and animal alike. If you have ever heard of Deathclaws in your travels, they were partially the result of FEV.”

“Yeah, I have heard of them,” Mariah replied. She had heard stories about them throughout her travels, though how much of them were true she could not be sure. “Never met one before, which I guess is fortunate.”

“Most certainly, and even more fortunately, you will not find any in Florida. The Jackson’s Chameleon, the species from which Deathclaws originate, was never brought to the state according to intel. Yet we have worse things than those brutes: mutated crocodiles and alligators. Now, before we get too off-track, the Old Guard and what would become the Enclave possessed robust reconnaissance operations. When the damage in the relationship between the federal government and the state government, they employed spies and assassins against each other.

“The Old Guard, or at least what would become the Old Guard, had coincidentally been conducting similar studies of their own—as well as researching a potential new generation of weaponry—to stake their claim to independence from the United States and to decisively slaughter the forces of communist Cuba. While the U.S. and China, the two superpowers of the world when the Bombs dropped, were engaged in a never-ending struggle, Cuba was propped up by China to wage war against America on multiple fronts. It mostly just became Cuba versus Florida at that point, and that history . . . would take an incredibly long time to explain. Time we do not currently possess.”

Most of the unit that came with Waller heard some stories about the struggle between the United States and China and had a surface understanding of the clash between them, but not much had been concretely explained to them beyond some struggles known as the Resource Wars. Waller interjected during a pause in the conversation. “You sure know a lot about what was going on. You sure you’re not hiding anything about your involvement?”

“I have put all my cards on the table, Waller,” Langston said, irritated by Waller’s constant jabs. “And as I said, I had a considerable amount of intel to study after the fact. I was not with the Old Guard when they conducted these experiments. I was also alive then, one of the Pre-War ghouls you have encountered already. I am extensively knowledgeable about what the geopolitical climate was then. In some ways, those conflicts are still transpiring today.”

Before anyone else could say anything, however, an intercom bellowed into life. “Indeed, it does, and ultimately we will be vindicated,” a voice boomed into a loudspeaker. The group quickly looked around, setting their sights on that balcony high above them. A man was standing at the microphone with a group of soldiers in tow. He had somehow heard their conversation, or at least the end of it. As they would soon find out, the intruders were members of the Old Guard.

Panthers, Constrictors, and Quillbacks, oh my!

Oh noes, the Old Guard!

I saw Spaceballs when it was in theaters long ago, would have still been a kid. And now that you mention, I do kinda have a trace memory of the 12345 password. Makes me wonder how many other hidden references are in Fallout: Florida. I always put references in my stories, intentionally or unintentionally. An example is one of the latest chapters, Vicious is in Germantown HQ, with Shorty (Big Town NPC) being held captive in the basement. So I couldn't help but put Get Shorty somewhere in there. "... I'll see if I can go get Shorty..." something like that.

I like how they all explain to each other what zoos are, what a panther is (or was) and so on. All of these things long ago in the past.

Cool. Didn't know the lore behind deathclaws, but I suspected they were the result of lab experiments gone wrong, as well as super mutants. What happened to manatees in this story? In real-life, I just heard there are less than 700 of them in Florida.

Uh oh.

I just watched an old Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau episode on the Florida manatees. They are so adorable! Here it is!

awesome , thanks!

Edit: the Twilight Zone guy, Rod Serling, narrates. Knew I knew that voice.

FINALLY back with another installment. A huge IRL project is coming close to completion, which might free up some time to write for this story. Or maybe not. It depends on a bunch of factors, so we'll have to see.

Also, I unintentionally lied--there is one more section to this chapter. However, it is definitely going to be the last one for Chapter 16 and I more-or-less know what I want to write.

@Renee - I'm not sure where manatees stand in my story yet, but I do plan on having them at some point. Probably dolphins, too. Right now, though, there isn't a reasonable place to insert them in the story. We are too far inland for that. North Central Florida, where Part 3 of this story will take place, has more inland lakes and such, and in my conception of the region in-universe the bombs from the Great War leveled a bunch of land so that the bodies of water became larger and more numerous. I might put manatees there. Water management districts are a key type of government body in Florida, too, so I'm trying to think of ways to incorporate them into the story as well.

@SubRosa - Yeah, they are pretty cute. Unfortunately, they get killed in boating incidents and such kind of regularly. This year is especially bad, breaking the yearly record within only a half-year, IIRC.






“I believe you are on restricted property,” the man continued. He stood at 6 feet and 2 inches tall, though that was not obvious from the angle the GCU unit was viewing him at. He sported a brown crewcut with a thin but noticeable beard of a slightly lighter shade of brown than the hair on top of his head. A noticeable scar crossed his left cheek. “And we don’t care much for uninvited guests.”

“And I believe you can kiss my a--,” Waller replied. “This property belongs to no one but the Gulf Coast Union. This is, and has been, the Union’s territory for some time. Whoever you are, you are part of an illegal entity. Surrender now.”

The man simply scoffed. “No, I am here to put an end to this city’s regime. It is run by a fugitive from our order, and he will be summarily dealt with when we get to him. As far as I’m concerned, your Union is the illegitimate entity. These are the true government of Florida’s lands, unjustly ripped from us because of a War we wanted no part of. It does not belong to this sham “New State of Florida,” and it certainly doesn’t belong to your GCU. You can’t even keep the peace within your borders.”

“So, you are one of the Old Guard, then,” Mariah said. “How did you get in here? This place was sealed.”

“This is Old Guard property, you know. It took some scouring and retrieval of data that we are slowly piecing back together, but we have records on this place. Little by little, we are reclaiming that which belongs to us, including many labs and other facilities. You will know no more than that. We had our ways of circumventing your miserable excuse for a security measure here, not to mention the brilliant folks on my team when it comes to tech. Speaking of which, your doctor friend there seems to know quite a bit about our history. Who are you, doctor?” Langston was not wearing his lab coat anymore, and even if he did, Hawthorne would not have been able to read it from where he was. “You must be a former member of our order, given what you know. That, or you are with those arrogant, imperialistic bas---- from the Enclave.”

“No, who are you?” Waller immediately replied, cutting off any potential response from Langston. “I am doing the interrogating here. The Old Guard are an illegal organization, and as such will not dictate how this conversation goes. How did you hear our conversation?”

“This balcony room captures much of the audio from down on that floor. It took some repairs to the electronics here, but it was in surprisingly good shape, all things considered. Now, even though I asked the question first, I will entertain yours. You can refer to me as Reubin Askew, Standard-Bearer of the Old Guard. A high-ranking member, that is all you need to know.”

Langston laughed out loud mockingly. That was the first time the crew had seen him laugh like that. “Um, Dr. Langston? What are you doing?” Mariah asked, bewildered by his reaction to the mysterious man’s response. “You know, this really isn’t a good time to . . .”

“Is that what the Old Guard is doing these days?” Langston said to the man in the balcony. “Naming yourselves after old Florida government officials? That must be a new development. Are you building a cult that venerates long-dead politicians in this state, too? I suppose that is not surprising, considering the Old Guard’s fixation with all things Pre-War Florida.”

“What do you mean?” Valentina asked.

“The real Askew was a governor of Florida, roughly a century before the Great War. I assume this man has associates that identify themselves as ‘Bob Martinez,’ ‘Haydon Burns,’ and ‘LeRoy Collins,’ too,” Langston said sarcastically. “They were also governors from a long time ago.”

“You certainly know your history,” ‘Askew’ said, still calm and collected. “I suppose there is no point in denying that it was simply an alias. Now who—”

“Wait, I know exactly who you really are!” Langston exclaimed. “I recognize your voice and that scar. Silas Hawthorne. Of course, it would be you, of all people.” Everyone looked at Langston, somewhat alarmed by his words. What exactly did he mean, ‘of course’?

Hawthorne finally indulged his ire at Langston. He did not deny that was his name. “So, we have some personal history, as well. Then answer my question, damn you. Who are you?”

“Remember Operation First Coast?” Langston replied. “I told you directly that you would regret what you did then. That ‘quiet waters mask the dangers underneath.’” It struck Mariah that that was the passphrase he gave her when she and Valentina came to meet with him.

The man stood quiet for a moment, with a scowl on his face. “Vernon Langston. You son of a b----. Always trying to sound oh-so-philosophical and high-falutin. So, trying to break into Tallahassee now? I thought you were Ezra’s pet. Did you upset your master? For a lapdog, you sure are spineless and disloyal no matter who you affiliate with. What did these people offer you? Do they know about you?”

“I’m here to atone for my sins whilst in the service of both the Old Guard and Davidson, though none are anything like what you have done. I—"

“A coward and betrayer wants to lecture me on morality? I stand for something, at least. All you have ever stood for is saving your own skin. Figuratively, of course.” Hawthorne said, referring to Langston’s ghoulification. “I wasn’t going to let you out alive anyway, but now I’m going to take great pleasure in ending your life. Shame that you dragged your newfound friends to the same doom.”

“Wrong answer,” Waller growled. “Quit hiding and come down here with whatever little army you have. If you don’t surrender—which I’m sure you won’t—I am well within my authority to use deadly force against you.” Waller had surreptitiously turned on his two-way radio during the conversation, in the hopes that Officer Damon would hear the situation.

“You have zero authority over me,” Hawthorne snapped. “But I will be more than happy to initiate combat with you. Guardians, come—”

The dialogue was interrupted as the sounds of gunfire and explosions rippled through the facility. The ground shook, causing everyone to stumble slightly. A female soldier for the Old Guard came rushing to the balcony room to Hawthorne, out of breath. “Standard-Bearer, sir, I . . . there’s . . .”

“What is it?” Hawthorne urgently turned his attention to her, leaving the intercom on. “What is going on?”

[Wasteland 2 Soundtrack – War of Borders]

“There’s . . . a hostile . . . group we . . . just encountered.” Noticing the GCU group below, she pointed to them, hands on her knees as she panted. “Same uniforms . . . Union force. Trying to . . . flank us. And . . . more of the creatures . . .”

“At ease, soldier. Catch your breath. We will deal with them summarily.” Hawthorne turned back to the GCU soldiers. All of them took the break to grab cover behind desks, cabinets, overturned tables, and whatever else they could find on the lab floor. “End of the line, Union! Your cowering won’t save you! Guardians, to arms!” And with that, the battle was on. Several doors on the opposite side of the room from the GCU unit, below Hawthorne’s balcony, opened up as a group of these Guardians, of roughly equal number to Waller’s present crew of soldiers, poured out and fired on the GCU’s position.

Mariah was relegated to lifting her firearm just to the side of the table she was hiding behind to fire blindly on Old Guard positions. Popping out from cover was guaranteed death. Valentina, Waller, and the other GCU soldiers with them were mostly in the same position, though Waller managed to put down a couple of the Guardians. But within a matter of moments, the fighting intensified as creatures that were experimented on in the facility approached. Mariah caught a glimpse of one of the Prowlers. It still looked similar to its old form as a Florida Panther, but its eyes were noticeably yellow, patches of its fur had peeled away, and its muscles had been visibly augmented. More curiously, the fur that didn’t fall off had a reddish tint to it similar to the Dreadnaught at Tyndall. Was that a coincidence?

Several Constrictors and Pythons also crawled into the lab. They seemed to not have much interest in each other or even the Prowler. Other monstrosities could be heard echoing through the halls, ostensibly fighting the other Old Guard and GCU units in the facility. For Mariah, it started to feel like the Battle of Holt again, where Radfrogs, Radtoads, and Sirens has sowed chaos between the GCU and Alabama Dissidents.

“Valentina! I require assistance!” Langston called out from behind a table next to his ally, pointing to a nearby wall. “I cannot proceed to the terminal on that wall from where I am located! You are in the best position to do so. There is a secret door along the wall that you can access with the terminal.”

“I thought you said you needed to handle the terminals?” Valentina asked.

“Now is not the time to argue!” Langston shouted back. “Access the terminal now!”

When Valentina readied herself to make a break for it, bullets sprayed the ground next to her. She stayed put for the moment. “Easy for you to say, Doctor!”

Most of the creatures were killed by then by the warring human sides. Hawthorne was about to redirect Old Guard forces to try to close in on where the GCU unit was when Officer Damon’s group came to their rescue, accessing the lab through another door on one of the balconies. His company forced Old Guard soldiers back into their own cover. It provided just enough time for Valentina to dip behind the wall where the terminal was situated. She furiously typed away on the keyboard, but it didn’t take long for her to find the command to open the secret door. Given that this lab itself was supposed to be a secret, the function didn’t need to be well-hidden itself. “Sergeant Waller! We have an exit!”

Waller didn’t want to leave his other unit behind, but Officer Damon urged him to go. “We’ll cover your exit, Sergeant! Go!”

Waller laced a string of profanities under his breath. “Make it back to base if you can, Damon! Don’t you die on me! The GCU needs you!”

“I’ll do my best, Sarge! Just please, go!” Damon ducked as some more weapon fire came his way.

Waller rallied the rest of his troops that were still standing and made a break for the exit. Five of his GCU soldiers had perished in the fighting. Mariah was the last one to run for the door, with a Prowler coming for her, but she tripped. She lost her weapon, leaving her defenseless. As the thought of being panther food crossed her mind, Waller unloaded the last of his chambered magazine into the Prowler’s head, killing it instantly. He quickly grabbed Mariah’s left arm, forcefully pulled her up, and ordered the door slammed shut behind them.

Glad you are back. Been waiting for some FF, but we understand you are busy. By the way, I am pretty sure bastards doesn't have to be bleeped out. I bleep the word b1tch out of my own story, but it's just for effect. Up to you, of course.

I am enjoying all the bantering between Old Guard and New Florida proponents. Langston sure knows his Florida political history. It also is good that Waller has allowed Langston to side with them (sort of), he seems to be a great asset so far, in these depths under Tallahassee. Wow, I just spelled Tallahassee right!

Uh oh. The end is a cliff-hanger. So uh oh.

Well that was an interesting discussion as Langston catches up with old friends.

Another multi-directional battle between the two 'human' factions (I think Langston is a ghoul right?) and paranimals. And a timely escape before the panther's fangs closed in!

Damn, I keep writing more than I originally plan to for a section or chapter. If I realized what was going to happen, I would have broken Chapter 16 up into two chapters. This part is a bit longer than recently, but I really wanted to wrap up the chapter. And as you'll see, I finally got to reintroduce a certain something at the end.

@Renee - I figure erring on the side of caution when it comes to profanity is the best way to go.

It helps that I find Florida's political history very interesting. It really helps to flesh out Fallout: Florida and make it its own thing without relying on concepts from the work of Bethesda/Obsidian/Interplay (the latter being the company that originally developed Fallout), while still (hopefully) keeping it familiar enough and a good fit within the Fallout universe.

If it is easier for you, you can simply say 'Tally.' That is its nickname in real life and how it has been sometimes called in this story.

@SubRosa - Haha, "old friends" indeed. Langston has gotten a lot of people pissed off at him, that's for sure.

Yep, Langston is a ghoul. And I've probably already said it before (with the Alabama Dissidents and Brotherhood of Steel in part 1), but I think it is always more interesting to have 3 or possibly more factions (since technically the animals are their own in this case) in a conflict. But just you wait, because in the next few chapters or so it is going to get A LOT messier on the faction front. I'll just have to be careful not to make it confusing or overbearing.

Chapter 16.5

The door’s hermetic sealing and reinforcement—in part due to being designed to look like the wall it was hidden within—muffled much of the gunfire on the other side. The GCU crew stayed there for a minute to catch their collective breaths. A cool draft permeated the hallway they were in. Soon the fighting on the other side of the door died down, though it was hard to hear exactly what was happening. Waller checked on his whole team to see if there were any injuries. . . except for Langston. After he verified that everyone else was okay, Waller unleashed a furious tirade on him. “What in the flying f--- was that?! You said this f------ facility was secret! You led us into a f------ trap!”

“It should have clandestine. These were unforeseen circumstances. There was no way to predict that the Old Guard would have found this place.” Langston said, standing his ground.

“Your pal Hawthorne apparently begs to differ. This was an Old Guard lab, but you assured us that an issue like this wouldn’t arise. Yet they recovered data letting them find this place.” Waller took a couple steps toward Langston as his rage built up.

“I promised nothing of the sort!” Langston shot back. “And if you did not expect any resistance, why did you bring a force of over 25 individuals? Why did you, a sergeant, a high-ranking official in the GCU, feel compelled to come here? Why—”

“Don’t you f------ lecture me on tactics, you skinless prick.” Waller was only steps away from Langston now. The tension was palpable. “We’re right near this Goddamn city and it was reasonable to prepare for resistance. But that is not the same as close quarters combat in a building where we have no idea how it is laid out, and where supposedly only a couple of stray dangerous animals had made their home. And let me guess, we didn’t even get what we came here for, now did we? All these supposed documents and other intel in this lab that you supposedly needed, and we can’t even access them. Now we’re trapped in this hellhole because of you!”

“You still do not comprehend the gravity of this situation, sergeant,” Langston fumed. “If the Old Guard, and I assume the Enclave, are right on the doorstep of this city, and Ezra Davidson is continuing his operations, then we do not have the luxury of time to deliberately cogitate on this operation.”

“You’ve given us little to go on, Langston. We have to go in blind because of you. You have unnecessarily endangered my crew here. These men and women put themselves on the line enough as it is, and now five of them are dead. And if my regular soldiers don’t mean anything to you, what about these two?” Waller pointed to Mariah and Valentina. “They seem to think of you as a friend, or at least more than a simple acquaintance. They vouched for you. And yet they almost died because of you!” With that emphasis, Waller decked Langston across the face. Despite the tensions between those two, it shocked everyone else that it finally got physical. Even Mariah could not find words to say or try to stop it.

Langston spit out some blood, caressing his jaw while slowly standing up. For once, he relented somewhat in an argument with Waller. “I truly apologize for the loss of life. There has already been enough of it in these wastes. But you do not realize what we are confronting. Letting Ezra continue unabated will lead to graver danger to the people of these wastes, GCU or not.”

“We have only gotten very general information from you about what this wannabe governor is doing. He wants to get into a Vault? We don’t know why! Some secret experiments going on down in a sprawling complex of tunnels? You’ve barely hinted at what those are! You have no plan as to what we are going to do once we get into Old Tallahassee—and knowing how this is going, I assume that is our only destination now. Wait, the fighting died down on the other side. We can exit back out. Valentina, can you get this door open?” Waller asked her, pointing to the wall-mounted terminal. As soon as Langston began to object, Waller immediately cut him off. “Shut the f--- up, doctor.”

“Let me see what I can do, sir,” Valentina replied. But within seconds of her typing away on the computer, she grunted in frustration. “I’m locked out, sir. The Old Guard must have hacked into it somehow. One of them must have given themselves administrator privileges when we got onto this side. Hawthorne said his soldiers were really tech-savvy after all.”

Waller growled and banged the wall with his fist with infuriation. As much as he wanted to punch Langston again, he restrained himself. “Langston, you are lucky we still need you. Otherwise, I’d kill you myself. Now. . .” Waller stopped talking as he looked past his group at a small, spiny creature watching them nearby. “How long has that thing been there? Doesn’t matter. . .” Waller trailed off as he aimed his assault rifle at it. The creature squealed—if that’s what you could call it—readying its spines in defense.

“Wait! Don’t kill him!” Mariah pleaded, finally saying something. “He’s not doing anything to us.”

“Mariah, what do you think you are doing?” Waller was unamused, though he reserved his anger purely for Langston. “Just because you occupy an unusual space within the GCU does not mean you get to be insubordinate.”

“But this little guy hasn’t done anything to us,” Mariah said. She was a little exasperated, but not angry. “He’s sat there the whole time. That must be one of those Quillbacks, right, Dr. Langston?”

“Indeed,” Langston said matter-of-factly. “While their quills have become sharper through radiation and experimentation, they are not deadly. They can certainly induce great pain, however. But Quillbacks are defensive creatures. Their test results did not exactly please their captors, who hoped to use them in real combat.”

“Need I remind you what your trust in Langston has got you thus far, Mariah?” Waller interjected. “He has almost gotten you and your best friend killed, along with fellow GCU citizens and fighters.”

“But he’s so cute.” Mariah said, pointing at the Quillback again. “And he isn’t attacking us. He’s just scared.” She knelt, trying to coax him over to her. There was something so endearing about the Quillback to her. He walked over to her after some hesitation. After he sniffed her hand she held out, he put his spines down, though he wasn’t entirely sure about all these humans yet.

“Have you not had a pet before? You know what, to hell with it. Keep him. Maybe he’ll somehow be handy.” Waller did not feel like arguing the point, and he had bigger issues at hand. “But he is your responsibility. And if he gets in the way for any reason, I will not hesitate to put him down. Understood?”

“Yes. . . er, sir.”

“Good. Let’s be on our way. You better have a way out of here, Langston.”

“I do. Right this way,” Langston said, leading the rest of the surviving group. “I don’t want to be down here anymore than you do. And let me provide you some more words of caution. When we get inside this city, do not refer to it as ‘Old’ Tallahassee by any means. As far as everyone above is concerned, regardless of whether they support Davidson’s regime, this is the only Tallahassee because it was the original one. Calling it anything other than simply ‘Tallahassee’ will immediately raise suspicion. We must be surreptitious.”

The group walked for about five minutes down several hallways. The complex must have been absurdly large, especially considering how dicey it could be to build things underground in Florida. What was it with these Old World government and scientific organizations and their fetish with giant, subterranean facilities? Mariah wondered to herself. Construction had to be exceptionally careful and well-calculated in most places, lest they cause sinkholes or other issues. Then again, that seemed to create even more cover for Pre-War operations by the Old Guard. No one would suspect.

Langston was becoming gradually and visibly unnerved, looking around at any real or perceived noise that echoed through the halls. “What’s your problem this time?” Waller said to him bluntly. “You’re making this more tense than it needs to be.”

“Abominations reside down here. More Old Guard scientific trials. Animals were not the only subjects of tests. Humans were also used for nefarious purposes, as were the tests the Enclave performed with their FEV. That is all I can articulate on the matter.”

“You sure as hell know a lot about all this secret research for someone who supposedly did not participate in most of it,” Waller said.

“There are many things I am guilty of, but experimentation on human beings is not one of them!” Langston rebutted emphatically.

“Hmph. Whatever you say.”

The Quillback that had been walking along with them suddenly stopped in its tracks, raising its spines defensively. But it was not faced at the group. Mariah took notice. “Wait. The Quillback senses something.”

“Damn it, Mariah, we don’t have time—”

The Quillback squealed apprehensively and started skittering nervously. He looked back at Mariah as if to say something, even though he had no such ability. “What is it, buddy? You hear something?”

Waller decided that maybe the creature was on to something after all. “Langston, these experiments you talked about. . . are the subjects still alive?”

“I am not certain. I could not ascertain from—”

A loud banging noise and inhuman roar reverberated from the other side of one of the walls. Everyone was now on edge.

“Move. Now.” Waller ordered. “Langston, hurry us to the exit immediately.”

“Yes, right this way,” Langston said, picking up the pace. Several more clangs and unnatural noises echoed again. Something started pounding on one of the doors behind them. After just a few knocks, the door busted open and a humanoid creature popped out. It still looked mostly human but had clear aquatic features—webbed feet and some slightly scaled skin. It must have been one of those human experiments Langston mentioned. Whatever horrors it had undergone, the monster was certifiably driven insane. When it looked at the group, it let out a horrific shriek as it pointed at them.

“What the hell is that?!” Mariah gasped.

Waller wasted no time shooting at the creature. It was quick to dodge some of the gunfire, but it was eventually struck. Its skin seemed to have some imbued resistance, however, for the creature recoiled and it quickly recovered. What was worse was that the noise alerted more freakish atrocities like it. Some of them looked like the first abomination. Others possessed different animalistic features like patches of fur or oily skin.

“Fall back!” Waller yelled coarsely as he and several other soldiers fired away at the humanoids coming after them. But the corridors were too compact for everyone to start shooting. The Quillback shot some spines from its back in defense, helping the GCU.

The exit was fortunately right nearby, but the door was locked, presumably by Langston when he had escaped the city. Or at least, that was what he thought initially. After furiously typing away, he cursed under his breath. “It is not responding to my inputs! Someone else has accessed this computer!”

“Doctor, with all due respect, you are awful at locking terminals!” Mariah yelled over the gunfire. She was not in a position to shoot at enemies but had her weapon ready in case she needed it. It was the first time she made a verbal jab at Langston, for even she was getting frustrated with him.

“We are dealing with multiple factions of highly resourceful enemies, Mariah!” Langston protested. “This is not my doing. Valentina, I need your assistance!”

“Already on it,” Valentina said, already up at the terminal before Langston finished his sentence. With a laser focus, she looked for any exploit to breach that she could. After about 30 seconds, she got the door open. “Sergeant, door’s open!”

“Good work! Everyone, through the door, now!” The crew all filed in through the doorway one-by-one, with Waller coming in last. The hallway had filled up with enough of the horrors’ bodies that a few of the last living ones had to maneuver over and around their fallen compatriots. When the GCU unit was all on the other side, Valentina used the terminal on the opposite side to close and lock the door. The Quillback squeaked in with them. They were all finally able to catch their breath again.

“So, who the hell could it have been this time that breached your incredible defenses, Langston?” Waller said mockingly. The sergeant had been so angry for so long at the ghoul it felt like he could have had an aneurysm at any moment.

“As aforementioned, a highly resourceful nemesis,” Langston said in his own defense.

“Really? I don’t see how you could have helped your buddy Ezra rebuild this city with machines. You seem to have no clue how to use anything electronic. What he kept you around for is beyond me.”

“I will not have my abilities impugned, sergeant,” Langston said through gritted teeth. “You should be more concerned with your own deficient capabilities.”

“You want me to show you deficient, doctor?” Waller was ready to unload a punch on Langston again.

Mariah finally had it with the two of them. Valentina sensed it but she couldn’t stop Mariah from saying something. “Guys, enough! We’re stuck with each other! We’re a team whether we like it or not. And we need to get out of here.”

Waller and Langston gave her a side-eye, but mostly because they were still fuming at each other. Surprisingly, Waller refrained from giving Mariah a lecture on insubordination. Perhaps he was too concerned with completing this mission, the goal of which had rapidly changed over the span of a few hours. What was once a simple recovery and recon operation had turned into an inside job.

“Mariah is right,” Waller said. “Looks like now we have ourselves an entirely different mission. Going back the way we came is impossible at this point, and with the city above us, it seems that is our only way forward. If the Old Guard, and potentially the Enclave, are already here, I suppose Langston is right that we don’t have enough time to go back anyway. But maybe we can use their presence to our advantage if we need to go at Ezra Davidson’s regime directly. It could cause significant chaos and spread out their resources. We’ll figure it all out soon. Langston, you better have the real exit nearby.”

“It is auspiciously so,” Langston said as he pointed down a small corridor. At the end of it was some rubble and a set of stairs. “There is a dwelling above us that we can use as a safehouse. Though it is warranted that I tell you this.” Langston lingered for emphasis. “There are other occupants above. I assure you that they are harmless. They are . . . strange people. But harmless, nonetheless.”

“That’s really vague, doctor,” Mariah remarked. “There is a lot of ‘strange’ in this world. Especially in Florida, from what I have gathered. What kind of ‘strange’?”

“A Post-War cult. I have encountered them elsewhere in the wasteland. They even had an establishment in your version of Tallahassee. You may have missed it with how little time the two of you had spent in the city.” Langston pointed to Mariah and Valentina. “But they do not have a predisposition toward violence. And remember not to use the phrase ‘Old Tallahassee’ or ‘New Tallahassee’ amongst the citizens above.”

“I suppose that qualifies enough for strange,” Waller said. “In any case, it’s what we must deal with. Let’s go.”

When the crew got to the stairs, Langston proceeded first and knocked on the hatch door at the top. A man in robes opened the door and jovially greeted him. “Dr. Langston! You have returned safely! And you have brought new folks along?”

“Indeed. They are here to aid with . . . the situation in this city. Please give them any assistance you can provide.”

“But of course!” The man in the robes turned to the rest of the group. Mariah noticed an insignia on the front, suddenly recognizing it. “Good evening, folks! Please, come make yourselves comfortable. And welcome to the Temple of New Life.”

***End of Chapter***

I love that Waller checked everyone for injuries, except Langston!

Honestly, Waller really, really got on my nerves this episode. He seems to be incapable of dealing with any adversity that comes his way, let alone any surprises. Sure Langston probably knows more than he is saying. Duh! But trying to blame him for everything that does not go perfectly is ascribing to him a level of omnipotence that no mortal is capable of. He is a whole lot more patient than I am. I would have killed Waller about a quarter of the way into this episode. Even January - who is kind to a fault - would have decked him when he threw that punch.

I am trying to remember the Temple of New Life, but it is escaping me if they are an old Fallout faction. Are they something you created? I was expecting the Children of the Atom. Before Fallout 4 they were a pretty benign faction. Now I remember! The new religion from earlier in the tale. It has been a while since we saw them. Nice to continue their presence here. Carry on.

Oh yeah, Waller is quite the prick. It's a compelling read since he is so abrasive and adverse, but part of me hopes Waller falls into a sinkhole!

I like where it says they shouldn't refer to Tallahassee as "old" Tallahassee. Clever.

Ah see, the quillback is helping them, without even knowing so. Good call, Val, persuading Waller to keep it alive.

Wow, it's a guy wearing a robe. And he's not hostile! Is this the same New Lifer who appeared earlier in the story?

@SubRosa - Oh, good, you found them. Yeah, unfortunately, I haven't been able to include the Temple of New Life quite as much as I have wanted to. It's just how the story has turned out so far. But it might actually work out in my favor as I slowly build them up.

To play a bit of devil's advocate on behalf of Waller (though I would certainly agree with you if I was in your shoes), think about it from his point of view. The GCU already has a full plate with issues in the wastes. New Tally has been getting harrassed by small bands of New State of Florida crazies. Their search for this one ghoul scientist, Langston, is the reason those attacks have gotten more frequent, and he used to work with that enemy. Tensions in New Tally have risen. He is at odds with the mayor and the captain of the city guard in New Tally. And now Langston (unintentionally) led them into what was basically an ambush when the original mission was ostensibly just recon and data recovery. Now they are trapped within the city. And he's already a hardass. Whether right or wrong, his outbursts are somewhat understandable.

@Renee - Ha, well, you'll have to wait and see about Waller.

Nope, he is not the same New Lifer. The one you are thinking of was named Jonah, whose name is going to come up here again.



Well, the protagonists sure are in a conundrum, huh? Let's see what happens next!

Chapter 17: The Inside Job

“The Temple of New Life is here, too?” Mariah said to the robed man. He had an unassuming look about him, with a bald head out in the open since his robes did not have a hood with them.

“You’ve seen these people before?” Waller asked.

“Yeah. There was someone in Pensacola I met. Jonah, I think? And then a young guy named Bryson in Niceville,” Mariah responded to him. Then she turned back to the New Lifer. “I guess you guys are dotted all over the place, huh?”

The robed man’s face lit up at the mention of Jonah. “I am not familiar with this Bryson fellow. But you are truly blessed to have met the Emeritus himself! Jonah is a remarkable man, is he not?”

“Uh . . . sure, I guess.” Mariah shrugged. “He seemed nice enough, but I didn’t talk to him much. For a high-ranking man of a new religion, I kind of expected him to be creepier.” She then closed her eyes and exhaled as she realized she was saying that out loud, silently calling herself an idiot for doing so.

“Geez, Mariah! Haven’t you heard of tact?” Valentina chided her. It’s not that she necessarily disagreed, but she was not the type to normally verbalize such things.

“That’s quite alright, my dear,” the man laughed and assured Valentina. “Do not worry. I understand that an outsider—for lack of a better word that has no negative connotation—is unlikely to see things the way we do. I know she means no harm. You are allied with Dr. Langston after all, which is a sign of positive developments to come. The Temple is not inclined toward violence, but unfortunately we recognize that it is inevitable with the developments of this city.”

“What developments?” Waller said.

“There have been grumblings among the populace about our Governor Davidson’s regime,” the man continued. “But even if the dissatisfaction were widespread enough, no one would dare start a rebellion. The New State of Florida, as they call themselves, has a tight grip on municipal affairs. Yet even that has slipped to some extent, for you are not the only infiltrators in this city.”

“What?” Langston was alarmed. He had been shuffling through some papers on a table until he heard what the robed man just said. “Who is already here?”

“I’m not sure,” the robed man said, slightly frowning. “They would not give us much information to go on, I’m afraid. But they somehow found your passage that you came through. I know you said the caverns and hallways below were sprawling, Dr. Langston, but I still find myself surprised that they discovered your route.”

“Damn it. Do you have any other information to go on?” Waller asked. “What did they look like?”

“Well, their uniforms were a bit strange. They requested—rather pointedly—some different clothing with which to walk through the city in a more clandestine fashion. On one side of their chest was a symbol. An ‘E’ with stars around it.”

“What?!” Langston blurted. If he still had skin, it would have turned pale. “Are you sure that is what their symbol was?”

“Quite so, doctor. Come to think of it, are they those . . . hmm, the name escapes me,” the robed man said, scratching his chin while he pondered. “I know you warned me about their potential presence.”

“The Enclave.” Langston said gravely, his voice dropping. Everyone went quiet at the name.

“Oh no. The Enclave is already here?” Valentina said worriedly after a moment of silence. “And the Old Guard is right behind. Surely Davidson and his cohorts can’t take them and the GCU on, right?”

“If Ezra gets all that he is trying to dig up, you’d be amazed at what he can do,” Langston replied, shaking his head. He turned back to the robed man, whom he finally addressed by name. “But Roger, why did you grant the Enclave entrance here? I warned you about them.”

“I apologize, Dr. Langston,” Roger said calmly, though slightly embarrassed. “I thought that you were the only person who knew of the hatch door, so their presence surprised me. There weren’t many of them, as it seems some of their compatriots died in the depths below. Believe me: I would never have opened the door if I knew that it was not you.” While Langston considered what to say next, Roger added, “But there is something else you should know about, doctor—there are Blackcoats in the city.”

“Wait a minute, who?” Mariah interjected. “We haven’t heard of them before. Who are they? You mean there’s another group in this city?”

“I wish I could answer that for you, my dear,” Roger shook his head. “They are incredibly mysterious. I have no idea who they are. I do not even know what they label themselves. We only call them Blackcoats because of what they wear. But I’m quite sure that they are with neither the Enclave nor the Old Guard. And I’ve seen them from well outside Tallahassee’s limits, so I’m certain they are not with Governor Davidson’s administration either.”

“Quite the party, then. Sure are a lot of uninvited guests in Tallahassee.” Mariah almost added ‘Old’ before the city’s name but remembered Langston’s warning about making the differentiation amongst the populace, though that would not have been a problem around Roger. “Sounds like Davidson’s supposed strength is just for show. Perfect timing to bring him down! What’s next?”

“Do not put the proverbial cart before the horse, Mariah,” Langston said as he threw his hands up in a ‘stop’ motion. “This requires careful planning and foresight. We cannot strike at Ezra head-on, even if there are other enemy groups here to oppose him. We will need to weaken him and his hold on the city. Fortunately, the presence of the Old Guard, Enclave, and Blackcoats will also keep his underlings busy.”

“Langston is right,” Waller said, as much as he didn’t want to give the ghoul scientist credit. He had his arms folded as he rubbed his chin pensively. “Well, we definitely have our hands full now. But what we need right now is some rest. Time may not be on our side but running in reckless is not going to be conducive. So, Roger, is it? Do you have supplies and housing here that we can use?”

“Absolutely, sir! Any friend of Dr. Langston is a friend of mine,” Roger said cheerily. Waller refrained from making a snide comment about being Langston’s ‘friend.’ “Unfortunately, however, there may not be enough room to accommodate everyone in a comfortable manner.”

“I’ll sleep on the floor if I have to,” Waller said, waving his hand like it was no big deal. "I need you to make sure that everyone else here receives as much aid as possible.”

Roger nodded. “Certainly, sir. We have some food and drink here. We may be able to spare a Stimpak or two if anyone has injuries they need to attend to. Dr. Langston’s foresight has helped us to prepare for when help would come to liberate the city.”

“Thank you.” Waller then addressed his unit. “Alright, everyone. You’ve earned yourselves a break. After we rest a bit, we will discuss our next move.” He then pointed to a clock on the wall, the hands of which indicated it was 6:00 PM. “Regroup at 1900 hours. Dismissed.”

As everyone dispersed to do their own thing, Roger came up to Mariah. “Miss Mariah, since you have heard of our Temple before, would you like to learn more about what we believe? We have a few new acolytes in our fold, and we are trying to show them the basics of our tenets. I do not wish for you to feel obligated, however. And your friend is certainly welcome as well.” Roger motioned to Valentina with an open palm facing upward.

Mariah reasoned that if this Temple of New Life had enough presence to spread out across the wastes, it would be worth knowing more about them. “Um, sure, why not? What about you, Val?”

“Sure, I’ll join,” Valentina affirmed, her own curiosity piqued.

There is an old saying “Adversity reveals the genius of a general; good fortune conceals it.”. It does not just apply to war and leadership. Adversity really shows what people are made of. Who will stand by you, who will turn their back on you. Who folds under pressure, who keeps calm and carries on. Waller getting a dose of adversity, and he is not rising to the occasion.

So if you wanted Waller to be someone who is in over their head, and cannot handle the pressure they are under, you succeeded. If not, you might want to go back and revise his behavior to make him more cool and calm.

Uh oh, the Enclave is there as well. Tallahasee is a popular place right now!

And we will learn more about these New Lifers. They seem to be really well dispersed. If I were to say, want to run a spy organization, I could certainly do worse than use them for a front.

The New Lifer guy is just a hoot! It's just so unexpected to find him at this point when everything seemed to be going wrong. In my imagination, I hear his voice as being similar to the Church of Atom guy in Fallout 3.



Nice detail, there. And if some girl gives him a kiss, he won't have to worry about blushing.

I have a feeling now, and it's not a good feeling.

Oh, I don't disagree. We have all sorts of IRL phrases to more-or-less say that adversity shows people's true strength. That's why I said I was playing "devil's advocate" and that I would feel the same way about his character as you if I was in your shoes. The point was just that I'm explaining his behavior. It's not entirely justified, per se, but I wanted to make sure that I had enough reason for him to act this way that was consistent with his character. This is the way I intended his character to be. We'll see soon enough if adversity truly breaks him or not.

And I forgot to mention it last time, before you went back to refresh your memory on the Temple of New Life--there were a few reasons I didn't want to use the Children of Atom.
1) I didn't want to reuse them, of all groups. Sure, I have the Enclave in here and had the Brotherhood of Steel in Part 1 (their time in the sun is done for Fallout: Florida), but I made sure to have them make sense and be lore-friendly.
2) It would be lore-breaking to include the Children of Atom, and while I'm not trying to be a purist about it I am keeping as consistent with the established lore of Fallout as much as possible. (I certainly won't call myself an "expert" on it, but I do love it and try to soak in as much as possible).
3) They don't make sense thematically here. Why that is the case will become clearer as the story goes on.




I'm trying to think of the best way to describe the voice for him that is in my head, but I'm having trouble with that. He does have some similar speech patterns, though. (The guy from Fallout 3 is named Confessor Cromwell, who founded the religion in Megaton.)

It's Fallout. When is it ever a good feeling?

Chapter 17: The Inside Job

As Roger brought Mariah and Valentina over to a small seating area, Mariah inquired about the Temple of New Life’s presence in Old Tallahassee. “Hey, Roger? Can I ask you a question first?”

“Of course, you may,” he said, nodding with a smile.

“So, how did you even get into this city anyway? The New State of Florida is very . . . insular, from what I understand. They let pretty much nobody into the city, I thought.”

“A reasonable question. An expected one, too.” Roger said as he prepared a holotape for insertion into a device that could play it. “It is true that they are not a welcoming bunch. However, they have not always been this way. They billed themselves as a refuge for outsiders, outcasts, anyone who felt that they did not belong anywhere. While they did not just let anyone in, they still needed to grow their population so that it could truly be a remarkable city, especially if they want to be their own nation. These particularly stringent entrance requirements they have now are a more recent occurrence. Fortunately, this Temple establishment was, well, established about . . . hmm . . . six months ago or so. Before this obstinance to the outside world.”

“But why come here of all places?” Valentina asked. “Dr. Langston said you had a Temple in—I suppose we can say this around you—New Tallahassee. Why not just stay there?”

“Ah, but why would I do that, young ladies?” When Mariah and Valentina gave him a confused look, he answered his own question. “The folks at the Temple there are doing a fine job, and we are trying to reach as many people as we can. Thus, we cannot all be cooped up in one place. But more than that—think about what this city is supposed to represent.” Roger spread his arms out wide and looked around in a gesture toward all Old Tallahassee. “This municipality was billed as a haven to the lost. Those who feel they don’t belong, who feel they haven’t been welcomed anywhere else. We want to minister to everyone, of course, but the downtrodden and those who simply want something different from this world are an emphasis. The Temple has a prime opportunity to reach out to these people, especially now that there are grumblings from the populace about this New State of Florida too. I fear that with this discontent, your GCU’s presence, the Old Guard, the Enclave, and the Blackcoats, devastation is imminent. When that time comes, the Temple will be the light for these people.” Roger inserted the holotape into the device but held off on pressing the play button.

“Now, I know you have a lot more questions,” Roger continued before Mariah could ask him about these ‘Blackcoats’. “But I have a feeling many will be answered in this message from The Redeemer himself, and I must tend to the new members of our flock. Speaking of which, let me introduce you to them.” He cleared his throat and addressed the three young men sitting in chairs in the seating area while ushering Mariah and Valentina to open seats. “Welcome to the Temple of New Life, new acolytes! I am Roger, a Sower and Tutor with this wondrous organization. It is a monumental thrill for me to have new faces come into the fold, along with some guests. Please, greet each other.” Mariah and Valentina exchanged a simple “hi” with the acolytes, who greeted them the same way in return.

“Good!” Roger said jovially. “Now, I certainly do not know much about your lives up to this point, but I know why you are here. You are dissatisfied with the state of this world. You wonder why the wastes have to be the way they are. You can’t understand why humanity continues to tear itself apart, even though that is what brought this world to destruction in the first place. It seems that no matter where you turn, the world is completely broken. But rest assured, acolytes. There is indeed hope. I was much like you until I found the Temple of New Life. It seemed to be the only option left, and joining this family was the best decision I have ever made. It truly has given me a new life. Still, despite your openness to our beliefs, you probably still know little of what we are all about. But we must all start somewhere, right? Fortunately for all of you, we have the words of our Great Leader to ease you into your rebirth, your New Life . . . The Redeemer.” At that moment, Mariah remembered the mention of that name, back when she met Jonah, this ‘Emeritus,’ and he had given her a pamphlet that she had long since lost.

Roger finally pressed the play button on the device. The voice of a well-mannered, articulate man echoed from the device. “To all who listen to this holotape recording, I bid you welcome. You are listening to this because you have been newly inducted into our family, an event that never ceases to excite its current members. But as with all new ventures, you naturally have some doubts about this new path you are undertaking. Not to worry. It simply means you are thoughtful, and forging a new life is daunting. I am here to start dispelling those concerns of yours.

“So, what is it that this Temple of New Life is about? I believe this warrants an introduction on my part first. As you first learned about this Temple, you learned about me. You have perhaps heard of me by many names that have been bestowed by my followers. The Great Leader. The Great Guide. The High Trailblazer. And more. But the most common title of all is The Redeemer. Such effusive praise may lead you to believe that the Temple heralds me as a god, but that is not the case. I am not divine. Such hubris is for others, those foolish enough to believe that power and prestige is owed to them simply through virtue of their existence.”

Well, at least he doesn’t deify himself, Mariah thought to herself. Too many denizens of this post-apocalyptic world seemed to think and act to the contrary. But what exactly does he call himself?

Conveniently, The Redeemer answered that very question. “I see myself as a guide. A shepherd of sorts, one who seeks to forge a new Promised Land, as it were. Even then, I must be wary that haughtiness and pride do not overtake me. All of us struggle against our human nature, the nature that not only obliterated the Old World but continues to oppress the globe today. The destruction was, however, only physical. You see, despite prevailing beliefs, the Old World never truly died. It was merely placed on life support. The ills of the past—greed, dogmatic ideologies, hatred, and the like—still plague the planet today. One would hope that taking a single look at the smoldering ruins of once-glorious cities, the desolation of formerly beautiful lands, and the rest of the irrevocable damage on this world would convince those who managed to outlive the Great War to put aside their differences and rebuild the world for the better. Alas, that was not meant to be. The depravity of human nature still abounds as plentifully today as it did then. There is an ever-relevant phrase that I am always reminded of . . .”

There was a long pause, as if to let all The Redeemer’s words sink in physically, mentally, and spiritually. In any case, everyone was gripped by what the man had to say. Finally, he spoke the phrase.

“War. War never changes.” Mariah and Valentina felt like they had heard that specific saying before. They looked at each other, mouthing if the other had thought it sounded familiar.

“But as foreboding as that may seem, what if we can change the course of humanity? What if we actively acknowledge and fight our nature to become something greater? What if we could chart a new path that separates itself from the Old World? What if we could transform ourselves physically and spiritually? That, my friends, is what the New Life is all about. My vision is that one day humanity can reach its greatest heights, freed from its self-imposed shackles. It requires a true understanding of the strengths and flaws of this world, and not just among humanity. I like to describe it as a triangle for those newly minted individuals in our fold. At one point is humanity. The second point is nature. The third point is technology. In its simplest terms, here is what this triangle is about.

“Humanity is destructive and selfish, yet it is capable of immense creativity and innovation. Nature is completely governed by its instinct and the balance of power has tipped too far into its favor, yet it is what makes this world possible and brings about a beauty to life that only nature can. Technology and its abuses, ironically, have led to immense setbacks and stagnation for the world, yet it is the real key to our salvation when used properly and it is the only way for us to reach our fullest potential. It is only when these work in unison that this world can truly heal.

“The New Life is the road to building a new society, free from the chains that bind the rest of this world. It is the road to amplifying the capacities of humanity and to transform it. That is why I founded the city of Eden as a haven for others who want to see this world completely eschew the vestiges of what destroyed it in the first place and rebuild it into something new. Unfortunately, however, there are still those that would stand in our way. As a result, we must be vigilant about what we reveal to others. I can only tell certain people where exactly Eden is, for example. However, as you come to understand more about what we are all about, more of our doctrines will organically be revealed to you. And no, we do not require monetary contributions in exchange for access. All we require is being open to our teachings and to serving the Temple wherever and whenever possible.

“I will leave you with these final thoughts. Do not completely cast aside the rest of the world. It will still be a process for you to immerse yourself in our ways, and you can still reach out to those who are lost, alone, or feel that the world has not had anything sufficient to offer to them. The vices of the Old World still rule this planet. But do not be afraid to take your first step toward enlightenment and toward your New Life. Our set of codes, tenets, and parables are in our text known as ‘The Synthesis.’ Begin studying it, and your mind will begin opening and expanding. Farewell for now, and welcome to your new family. Your New Life.” With those parting words, the holotape clicked to a stop. The Redeemer’s recording ended.

Mariah had no intention of joining a post-War religion—if the Temple even called themselves a religion—but she felt oddly gripped by The Redeemer’s words. Even from the holotape recording, he spoke with a Charisma almost as if he was in the room. No wonder people were being inspired by this man, as strange and secretive as he was. Of course, it helped that many people were in a desperate state in the world, even in relatively civilized lands like the Gulf Coast Union.

Roger stood up to take the holotape out of its playing device. “Even with my experience and tenure with the Temple, his beginning messages are still edifying and comforting for me,” he said with a smile as he turned back to their small group. “They set a wonderful foundation, an accessible first step, toward a fulfilling way of life. How do you feel, new acolytes?”

One of the young men—none of them could have been older than their early 20s—stood up with conviction. “I may be young, but this is the first time in my life that I’ve really felt like I’m a part of something worthwhile. Something different. Something big and meaningful. I’m ready for this new life.” The other two young men with him concurred.

“Such exuberance gives me great joy!” Roger said, clutching his chest as if his heart was beating fast. “And what did you think, Mariah and Valentina?”

“Oh,” Mariah stuttered. For some reason, she didn’t expect the question. She scratched the back of her head as she searched for an answer. “I mean, uh, well, it was compelling, for sure. This world does suck a lot. But this isn’t for me, though.” The words of The Redeemer were still a bit flowery and vague for her, but then again, the recording was supposed to be accessible to newbies—a baby step of sorts.

“It was interesting. I see why others are joining the Temple, but like Mariah, I have my own beliefs,” Valentina said. “Sorry.”

“Oh, no apologies necessary, dear Valentina!” Roger said as he waved off the concern, not breaking his smile. “I know the two of you weren’t looking to join. Nevertheless, I wished to offer the opportunity. You never know who it will speak to, after all. Dr. Langston isn’t much for it either, but he has demonstrated his friendship and trustworthiness to us. As you are his friends, I know that you can be trusted as well. Now, as for our new New Lifers,” Roger beamed as he turned back to the three men. “I’m so pleased to truly welcome you into the fold. Unfortunately, I cannot give all of you your own copies of ‘The Synthesis,’ but I can let the three of you borrow this one. The foreword will give you some pointers about how you should go about reading the book.”

“Thank you, Roger. Or, uh, sir?” One of the new acolytes said, unsure of how to address him.

“My official stations are Sower and Tutor, but just calling me Roger is fine as well,” Roger said, handing over a copy of ‘The Synthesis.’ “I know it is getting late, and I don’t wish to keep you any longer. But I look forward to seeing the three of you tomorrow.” The three acolytes thanked him and said goodbye, heading out the door.

It was perfect timing, too, because Sergeant Waller walked over to them. “Mariah. Valentina. We are discussing our plans going forward in just a minute. Right now, the idea is to have our meeting, get to sleep early so everyone can recover enough to continue, and then strike out early in the morning. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” both women responded.

“Fantastic. Roger, Langston said you would have some valuable information for us on our enemies. This is unusual to ask of someone who would be considered a civilian, but I request that you join us.”

“Certainly, Sergeant,” Roger nodded.

“Good. Let’s go.”

Ha good point!

Yes, Confessor Cromwell, that's the voice I hear, thank you. I usually tend to 'assign' a voice to characters in a story. So for example, I hear Waller's voice as sort of higher-pitched for some reason. I imagine when he went through puberty his voice didn't deepen all that much. Maybe this is a small, subconscious reason why he's so abrasive; he's had to fight to prove his masculinity. Could be wrong of course. Waller is your character, so you know him better.

Roger's explanation makes a lot of sense. He wants Temple of Light to be everywhere, which is quite piously noble in my opinion. I wonder if we should not be trusting him, actually. Hmm.

Actually, It almost sounds like Roger is full of himself!

....“So, what is it that this Temple of New Life is about? I believe this warrants an introduction on my part first. As you first learned about this Temple, you learned about me. You have perhaps heard of me by many names that have been bestowed by my followers. The Great Leader. The Great Guide. The High Trailblazer. And more. But the most common title of all is The Redeemer....

But then he goes on to explain that others have given him these titles. Which he merely shrugs off.

Wow, Roger really goes on and on! Then again, he is a religious man with a mission! Have we ever heard of a religious man with a mission who can't deliver a good sermon?

I like Val and Mariah's reactions to this! That cracks me up.

How many people are left in this group overall? Especially after getting attacked earlier?

Oh, no no no. You misunderstand. That wasn't Roger talking--that was The Redeemer. They are two completely different people. Hence, Roger put in that holotape instead of speaking, and he doesn't talk like The Redeemer does. Roger just heads up the Temple of New Life in (Old) Tallahassee. Remember that Roger says this:

"Fortunately for all of you, we have the words of our Great Leader to ease you into your rebirth, your New Life . . . The Redeemer."

Roger's titles are Sower and Tutor, as he tells the new acolytes. Thanks to that Shortie Thread opened up here, I'm thinking of including passages from the Temple of New Life's codex of sorts, The Synthesis, there. I'll explain different titles there like Sower and Tutor--and Emeritus, as Jonah is called. He was the very first New Lifer in this story, back in Chapter 2 (or was it 3?).

Either way, Roger or the Redeemer, they both know how to talk up a good sermon!

“War. War never changes.”
That line still gives me goosebumps.

Interesting speech on the foundations of the New Life Temple. I liked how you incorporated the triangle of Nature, Technology, and Humanity. It was a nice touch.




nit:
Our set of codes, tenets, parables, and tenets are in our text known as ‘The Synthesis.’
You have a repetition of the world "tenets".

@Renee - If we had game stats, The Redeemer would have over 100 Speech and 10 Charisma. But looks like Roger didn't quite pass the Speech check on Mariah and Valentina, though.

@SubRosa - Whoops, nice catch. I fixed that error now. And thank you.


I need to update my Fallout: Florida map and post it here again, but I don't have the time to at the moment. I'll be sure to do it next post, though.

Chapter 17.3

Fallout 3 Soundtrack – Price of Honor

In a side room was a large round table with a map of Tallahassee sprawled out on it. The city had expanded its boundaries in the years leading up to the Great War, gobbling up smaller communities and integrating them into the greater Tallahassee area. With its increasing technological prowess, population, and significance in the overall political landscape of the region and the country, Tallahassee needed to extend its reach. Even though the city had been rebuilding under Ezra Davidson to mimic a lot of the city’s past glory, the map was still outdated given that it was copyrighted in 2074. Yet for being nearly 60 years old, the map was in pretty good condition. It must have been stored somewhere that helped keep it well-preserved.

“Pay close attention,” Langston said. “This may be a timeworn map, but it represents what the city is today sufficiently. Regardless, the New State of Florida would not disclose what I am going to show you, so newer maps wouldn’t divulge any of this anyway. Here is what we are dealing with.” Langston had a black marker in hand, drawing a circle around what was practically dead center in the city. “This is the heart of the regime here. The old state capitol is there, and a little bit to the north is the Governor’s Mansion. Right next to there is The Grove, a residence for a couple of state governors from long ago but was turned into a museum. Now it houses a few horrifying experiments. Ezra Davidson splits his time between the Governor’s Mansion and the State Capitol building, the latter of which he wishes to build back up its old height of over 25 stories. Much of it was knocked down during the War.”

“Why would he do that?” Mariah asked, puzzled. There didn’t seem to be any logical reason for building such a tall structure. “What’s the point?”

“Hubris. What else would it be for?” Langston replied matter-of-factly. “Ezra is dangerously unstable and full of fragile pride. He wants to demonstrate his strength to the outside world, a world he truly thinks is fated to fall under his rule. Or Florida, at least. But I know how he is. He will never stop trying to take whatever he can. Delusional as such grandiose ambitions are, he is still a danger to the rest of the Sunshine Wasteland.” Langston turned the attention back to the map, tapping inside the black circle he made around these aforementioned points of interest. “We cannot hope to take the NSF head-on. Not yet. Maybe the Enclave and Old Guard will be foolish enough to do so, but we have other avenues to take.” He then made smaller circles near the circle he already drew—one just a bit to the west and one just a bit to the south. “These are what used to be Florida State University and Florida A&M University, abbreviated FSU and FAMU,” Langston said about each of those new marks, respectively. “What had not been obliterated on those campuses is mostly off-limits to civilians unless they have NSF escorts.”

Langston then drew several squares around the outer limits of the city before continuing. “In the southwest is what was Tallahassee International Airport and the headquarters of what was Menendez Security Services. Even before the tensions between the U.S. and Florida state governments blew up in the open, private security companies were setting up shop throughout these lands. I suspect they were already in league with elements of Florida’s government who wanted the state to break away from the rest of the country, as these security companies essentially became small armies. They even got into the business of creating smaller-scale bunkers for families.”

“Couldn’t they have just gotten Vault-Tec to do that?” Valentina asked. “I would have thought they would have had the market cornered on that.”

Langston shook his head. “Even the mighty Vault-Tec only had so many resources. Besides, they were already too close with the federal government to do too much in Florida beyond what they were already here for. Vault-Tec had to complete the Vaults they already were in the process of building. Enter these private security companies, Menendez being the biggest, who could step in and create more cost-efficient, privately tailored bunkers to those who could afford it. As they acquired exorbitant amounts of profit, they also garnered goodwill amongst the population and make the federal government look worse in the process.” Langston realized the tangent he was going on. “Now please, we must focus on what needs to happen now. I can provide more information that is less salient to this matter later.

“Menendez Security Services and its armory were a major partner in Florida’s surge in combat technology. Power Armor became much less available in Florida as a result of the severing of the U.S.-Florida relationship, but Florida’s government and military wanted its own version so that it could stand on its own. Through this partnership between state government and private security companies, they eventually devised their Warsuits. Warsuits sacrificed much of the protectiveness that Power Armor provided, yet it gained greater mobility and decreased mass. They also still provide better defense than armors that you are perhaps more familiar with, even scout and marine armor. Some of these Warsuits are still in that armory in the southwestern section of the city. We’ll need to capture some of these ourselves to stand a chance against Ezra and the NSF, along with the Old Guard, Enclave, and these Blackcoats.”

“And who exactly are these Blackcoats? We have heard nothing about them in GCU intel.” Sergeant Waller said gruffly. It annoyed him that a major faction could possibly be operating in Gulf Coast Union territory without its military knowing.

“That is likely because that is not what you call them. Truth be told, we do not even know who they really are,” Langston said. “No one does. That is simply what we call them because we know nothing else about them apart from how they are dressed. But please, we can come back to them soon. This is a priority here.” Langston tapped the two small circles around the Pre-War universities he mentioned earlier. “The biggest reason that Florida State University and Florida A&M University are so closed off, beyond official government dealings, is that each of them has one potent communications inhibitor on their grounds. In short, these devices control what information comes in and out of the city. If you have tried to contact your base in Wakulla Springs—or what you now call ‘New’ Tallahassee—you will have noticed that you are incapable of establishing any outside connection. In any case, please do not attempt to do so now. These communications inhibitors they have can and will track whoever tries to establish a channel to anywhere outside the city.”

The fact that the northeastern section of the city had no markings by Langston on it caught Mariah’s eye. In a way, that interested her more than the areas Langston was talking about. “What about over here? Why don’t we care about what’s over here?”

Langston stood there silently for what seemed like a whole minute as he looked at where Mariah was pointing. There seemed to be some measure of fear in his expression. Everyone in the room kept looking at him, waiting for him to answer the question.

“Dr. Langston?” Mariah asked again with more concern in her voice. The Quillback from the facility they escaped was sitting at her feet, oblivious to what was going on. “What is—”

“You do not want to go over there. Ever.” Langston said tersely. “That is all you need to know.”

Mariah was somewhat frustrated. She couldn’t stand not knowing something when she realized there was something interesting and/or important to know. “Well, now I really want to know. Why can’t you just say what it is?”

Langston groaned. For the first time, it seemed that Mariah tried his patience, though it may have just been because the subject matter was something he particularly did not want to think about. “If you really must know, Mariah, it is effectively where the prison section of the city is. It is colloquially referred to as ‘the Zoo.’ Some of Davidson’s . . . projects end up there. Remember those deranged humanoids we encountered below the surface? Well, Davidson has managed to round a few of those up, among other things, and put them there. Any individual who offends the city administration in any manner meets a horrifying fate within the Zoo’s walls. It is his method of keeping the population in line.”

“So, those experiments aren’t Davidson’s,” Waller said. “They’re old Old Guard experiments and they’re just one thing Davidson is trying to retrieve.”

“Correct.”

“But if he was once Old Guard, why does he not have an easier time capturing those subjects? Why does he not know more about them.”

“It is as I said before. The alterations in the landscape, destruction of documents, lack of insight as to what remains, and the passage of time have sealed up much of what was done in the past. Ezra also was not involved in every Old Guard experiment, so he does not have prior knowledge about many such trials. His specialty is in robotics. That is why he has invested an immense number of resources towards recovery efforts.”

“Very well.” Waller peered over the map some more while everyone awaited word of the plan he was concocting. He decided to talk it out loud, mostly with himself to better process Langston’s intel but to also explain to everybody else what they needed to know. “Clearly the comms inhibitors and this Menendez depot are the priority targets right now. I’m afraid our unit is too small and under-resourced to go after both at the same time, but if we pool all our efforts toward one of the targets the NSF will undoubtedly try to shore up security at the other when our first objective is complete. I have a feeling that they are going to be more protective of the Menendez depot given what is there.

“The Old Guard, Enclave, and these Blackcoats are wildcards. They probably are more intuitively aware of the Menendez target if they know the city’s history. Whatever happens, however, we’ll need to call in reinforcements. War is right on our doorstep, and we do not have the numbers now to be sufficiently prepared for when all hell breaks loose. The NSF won’t be able to contend with everybody at the same time, and we need to capitalize on that. So, we’re going after the comms inhibitors first. Do you know the exact location of these devices, Langston?”

“I do not possess precise coordinates, but I know who does,” Langston replied. “We are fortunate enough to have certain members of the NSF who also secretly oppose Davidson. I know that a few of them patrol the grounds of those universities. Even if we do not encounter allies, I hypothesize that the devices will be where the schools’ student radio stations were.”

“I suppose that will have to do. Mariah, Valentina, Langston, you’re all coming with me. You as well, Sarah,” Waller said, pointing to one of the other GCU soldiers. “Javier, you are in charge of the rest of the squad. See if you can scout FAMU’s grounds, but do not proceed onto its campus unless you have absolutely no other choice. We are pressed for time, but I’m not about to send you on a suicide mission. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” Javier simply replied.

“Good. In the meantime, my group will be heading to FSU. Take your smaller firearms like your pistols so they are easier to conceal. If you really think you can stay out of sight of any NSF troops, then bring your bigger ordnance.” Waller rolled up the map, trying to think of a safe place to store it. “Alright, people, get some rest. We’re going to move out early when there are less people out and about, but obviously stay alert for NSF. My group will head out first at 6:30 AM, while Javier’s group will leave at 7:00 AM. If we all head out at the same time, we might attract suspicion.” Waller cleared his throat, checking in his head to see if there was anything he missed. “Roger, I understand that you are not the violent type, but do you have any supplies to restock our ammunition?”

“Indeed, Sergeant,” Roger said. He walked over to a loose panel in one of the corners of the room and pointed down into it. “There are a few crates here that can replenish your supplies. The doctor and a few of his allies have arranged to smuggle some of them here.”

“Excellent. Alright, people, make sure you get some good rest. Things are seriously heating up and we all need to be at the top of our game. Dismissed.” And with that, the meeting was adjourned. Shortly thereafter, everyone went to sleep.

***End of Chapter***

Rader, when do you you plan on releasing the rpg to support this story?

It looks like you've really done some neat world building here to bring your future Florida to life, including various factions, political intrigue and the drumbeats of war.

Ha, I wonder what Mariah's stats would look like. Definitely high Perception. Charisma, as well. And Luck. By golly that girl's got some Luck on her side. She's survived more high-pressure, high-risk situations...

That's a good point about Vault-Tec only having so many resources. Indeed, I imagine their primary devotion would be toward political areas, and they'd also be after some profits. But they can only do so much / go so far.

I like the sound of Warsuits. None of my characters so far have been into Power Armor, mostly because they prefer being sneaky & mobile.

The quillback is still with them. Makes me smile. I think I know why Langston won't answer the question. Monsters! Hmm, well I was sort of right.

Seems Waller has cooled off quite a bit. He's getting along with everyone in Chapter 17.3.


Just don't sign up with Avalon Hill! Not without a good copyrights lawyer.

Ezra is sounding very much like Mussolini or Hitler in his grandiose designs for power. Nice touch.

I also liked the private security companies growing in power and going into the Vault business, while edging out Vault Tec. It is a nice comparison to the rise of mercenary corporations in the real world.

The Sunshine Wasteland has a decidedly ironic twinge to it that I find absolutely delightful!

The Warsuits sound neat.

The Zoo sounds nice and creepy. I can't wait until the story goes there!

Time to go back to school!

Um, Rader...

... FINISH this!

Sorry, everyone. Lots of stuff has been happening in real life over the past year-and-a-half. (That includes writing a REAL book and getting it self-published!) So not only have I not had much time to devote to writing this story, but I haven't been logged into Chorrol in forever or reading other people's stories.

BUT I plan on changing that soon. I know more or less where Part 2 of Fallout: Florida is going. I just need to actually get it written down.



Glad to see you are still interested in it, Renee! Hopefully other Chorrolites are too. I can provide a refresher for readers if need be.

I'll get out the next part of the adventures of Mariah and co. as soon as I can.

Nice, glad you have returned. What is your real-life book about? Since it's already published, is there a link we can post to?

I'll show you in a private message. If any other Chorrolites are interested, I may do the same for them. I just don't want it publicly shown on the forums, at least not right now.


And now, after a very long hiatus...it's back to the story of Fallout: Florida! So glad to be able to continue it again, and hopefully my fellow Chorrolites are eager to get back into it. I'll try to read others' stories as much as I can.


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






Sunlight wasn’t even peeking out over the city skyline when the GCU crew were up and about. If it weren’t for the exhausting events of the previous few days, they would have had trouble sleeping. Now everyone was ready to carry out Sergeant Waller’s orders, mostly refreshed.

The quillback, Mariah’s new companion, was skittering about nervously. At first, she didn’t seem to think much of it. As if fed up with her inattention, the quillback gently nudged her leg with one of his spiky quills, not enough to hurt her but enough to get her to notice. “Hey, what’s the big idea?” Mariah gently chided her animal friend. The quillback jumped up and then pointed his quills toward one of the windows near the front door.

“It seems that your little friend senses something outside,” Roger, who was also awake to see them off, said as he went over to the window. The window was too high for the quillback to see through, even though it was larger than a regular porcupine, but it seemed that Old Guard experimentation greatly increased his awareness of the surroundings. The quillback’s suspicions would prove correct as Roger looked out the window and gasped.

“What is it?” Mariah asked. Roger’s gasps had put her and Valentina, who overheard the exchange, on edge.

“Oh no, no, no, no . . . Doctor Langston!” Roger said in a loud but whispering tone.

Doctor Langston had been anxious since he woke up, and Roger’s panic made it worse. “What is it, Roger? This better be of vital importance.”

“Look outside! It’s Constantine! And he has other NSF soldiers with him!”

“What?! Let me see!” Dr. Langston walked over to the window to see a 6-and-a-half foot tall man with a bandolier loaded with bullets and an assault carbine on his back. He was flanked by five other NSF soldiers who were shorter but still well over six feet tall themselves. “Confound it! What is he doing here? The NSF must be on alert already!” Langston quickly shook his head from side-to-side to figure out what to do next. It was unusual for the GCU crew to see him so flustered.

“What is going on, Langston?” Waller inquired, weapon drawn already for whatever trouble was nearby. The rest of the GCU group had their hands on their weapons, ready to pull them out as well.

“It is Ezra Davidson’s right-hand man! He is a ruthless b******, and I have personally witnessed it on multiple occasions.” Langston then pointed emphatically to the basement door that was the GCU’s entrance into this Temple of New Life. “We must get back downstairs now!”

Waller wasn’t going to argue. They couldn’t afford to have any mistakes on this mission, especially when it only just started. “Move it! Downstairs, now!”

Langston saw that Constantine and his crew were about to cross the street toward the Temple. “Roger, I need you to do whatever it takes to drive them off. I suspect they will rummage through here if no one is here to meet them. And we need you to conceal the hatch.”

“Of course, Doctor.” Roger said, trying his best to calm himself and appear unsuspicious to Constantine.

Quickly, Langston, the quillback, and the GCU personnel filed through the staircase underneath the hatch, with Roger quickly covering the door. Not even 60 seconds later, there was a loud knock on the front door of the Temple. Roger waited a moment to open it and then greeted Constantine. A gravelly voice answered, which must have been Davidson’s right-hand man. One could tell that he was no-nonsense just by the sound of his voice. “Hello, priest.”

“Ah, hello, sir. What can I do for you?” Roger said without barely a hint of apprehension in his response.

“I have it on good authority that there are . . . troublemakers. Outsiders that have infiltrated the city and threaten its stability and peace. As a good citizen, you know quite well that it is your duty to report any suspicious activities to NSF authorities. So . . . have you witnessed anything unusual?”

“I’ve heard about these outsiders, yes. Unfortunately, I cannot help you because I have not witnessed such activity myself. But I heard a rumor that they may be operating nearby the . . . Menendez building, is it called?”

“Who told you this?”

“Oh, nobody told me specifically. I was at the UniMart yesterday in downtown and I heard some gossip.”

“Are you lying?”

“No, sir!” Roger said in response to the thinly veiled threat. “I do not want this wonderful city being undermined by insurgents or any outside influences. All I want is to bring new sheep into the flock of this Temple of New Life.”

“Yes, I’m sure you do. Very well. That’s all for today. Alright, troops. Let’s move out.” And with that, the NSF group of soldiers left. Roger let some time pass after they took their leave, in case they came back, before uncovering the secret hatch and letting the GCU members out.

“Was what you told them true? About the Menendez building?” Waller said as he came up the stairs. “Constantine may have a knack for smelling out bull****.”

“Well, yes . . . though somewhat misleading,” Roger said with a nervous chuckle. “I was the one who told somebody else—a trustworthy person who also works against the Davidson administration—while I was shopping at the UniMart. The Enclave soldiers who came up through the same hatch as you, I overheard them as they were discussing their plans. Very arrogant people who must have thought I had no idea what they were talking about or that I wasn’t listening. So technically, I did overhear a conversation at the store.”

“Good work. Thank you, Roger.” Waller said. “Did you overhear anything else?”

“I heard a few names. One stood out in particular because they noted his rank: Colonel Blackburn.”

“Hmm. Yes, I believe I know his name,” Langston said ponderingly. “I am not sure how long he has possessed his rank, but his name does sound familiar.”

“With any luck, the NSF will be focused on the Menendez armory, and they will be less focused on the old grounds of FAMU and FSU,” Waller said. “We need to make haste now. And I’m revising that order about bringing smaller weapons—bring any ordnance that you can take with you. We cannot afford to be spotted, but if we are we need to be able to defend ourselves to the utmost capacity. No sense in handicapping ourselves. Javier, take your group to FAMU right now. My group will head over to FSU immediately. Move out.”

Hey man, welcome back. Just so I make sure I've got the story right, I am going to make a bunch of statements, some of which are wrong.

They are in New Talahassee? And from what I remember, Langston is a ghoul scientist who is knowledgable about some bunker (something like this) in which they are all delving into, right? Sargent Waller and Langston and maybe a couple others are all at odds about their latest mission. Nobody trusts each other.

And they found a quillback, which I believe is an irradiated version of a porcupine. I believe Waller wanted to kill it, but somebody else (Val or Mariah) wanted to keep it around. Which was a good idea because the prickly creature is adding some merit to the party.

Constantine is here. I remember that name. "Are you lying?" asks the soldier? That made me laugh a little. Like, what answer did he think he would get?

Welcome back Rader. Nice to see you back on the case.

I just noted that Mariah has an animal companion. If her father was only a king, she would be a Disney Princess. There is a criteria.

Uh oh, bad guys snooping around.

Time to get a move on while they can.

Old Tallahassee. New Tallahassee is right nearby. With the Great War, Tallahassee was hit hard by the bombs (though that is possibly the work of the Enclave, as the Florida state government and the U.S. federal government were at bloody odds with each other, which leads to the rivalry between Enclave and Old Guard). The former Wakulla Springs, which was growing before the war, was near the original Tallahassee and, with the formation of the GCU, Wakulla Springs became styled as "New Tallahassee." Eventually, "Old" Tallahassee was becoming habitable, but by the time the GCU started trying to operate there, they found somebody else had taken over much of the place.




Hey, Sub! Good to see you again, too. I will get back to reading The Stormcrow as soon as I can.

Yeah, I'm probably going to make the quillback (what used to be a porcupine) the Fallout: Florida version of Dogmeat. Makes for something different but is still a homage of sorts, I guess.



It feels good to get back to this more consistently. Hopefully I can keep that up. Here's Chapter 18.2


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

Chapter 18: Inhibiting the Inhibitors

[FALLOUT 1 SOUNDTRACK – INDUSTRIAL JUNK]

Roger showed the group a backdoor to exit the building more discreetly. Save for Constantine and his posse of NSF soldiers, there was almost nobody out on the streets yet. The two GCU groups kept their wits about them, looking in all directions and sticking to alleyways and other methods of keeping out of sight. They eventually split up so that Javier’s group headed to FAMU while Waller’s—which included Mariah, Valentina, Langston, and the quillback—made haste to FSU.

With Langston’s knowledge of the city’s layout, the group was privy to many nooks and crannies available to them so they could stay out of sight, but it took them longer to get to their destination. The radio station on the FSU campus, call sign WVFS, was dangerously close to other city landmarks. These included the still-ruined remains of City Hall, the Museum of Florida History, and the towering Florida Capitol Building that had the historic capitol building right behind it. Even after being mostly rebuilt by Ezra Davidson’s legion of automatons and human and ghoul workers, one could still feel some of the old Florida town vibe that Old Tallahassee possessed before the War.

Mariah certainly noticed the historic feel. “This place would be amazing to dive into it if it weren’t lorded over by a psychopath,” she said.

“That is an astute observation,” Langston said in agreement. “If only you could have seen it before the bombs dropped.” He sighed at the thought of a dead era that was never coming back.

“So, this is the heart of the city, huh?” Waller remarked. “This place should be crawling with NSF, but it seems awfully quiet. Why?” While it was still somewhat early in the morning, it was expected that there would be a noticeable NSF force hanging around.

“I can only speculate. With the Enclave, Old Guard, and Blackcoats in the city, maybe their forces are strained.”

“You know, for a group dressed so conspicuously, these Blackcoats sure are otherwise mysterious,” Mariah said. “You really know nothing about them?”

“No, but Ezra seemed to have a particular axe to grind with them. He would not tell me anything about them. I suspect he knew more about who they are than what he would say.”

Suddenly, a PA system at the city center blared over speakers wired throughout. Out of the speakers came an exceptionally raspy voice. It was Ezra Davidson. “This is your governor speaking, reminding you of your duties as citizens of our great New State of Florida to report any suspicious activities and individuals.” Even for a ghoul, Davidson’s voice was growly. “We have insurgent factions within our city. It is your responsibility as citizens to do your part in making the quelling of these insurrections as quick as possible.”

He even sounds like a bona fide psychopath, Mariah thought to herself. How in the world did this guy get so many people to follow him?

Ezra’s voice kept rambling, but Waller took the attention away from it to refocus the group on the task at hand. “Forget the wannabe dictator for now. We have a job to do. I don’t know why this place is so lightly defended right now, especially with something as critical as this comms inhibitor, but we need to move fast to take advantage of it. How do we get inside the WVFS station without being seen, Langston? I guarantee somebody is waiting at the front door.”

“There’s an emergency exit around the right side from where we are. It goes down some steps below the ground and is covered up by a wall. And with any Luck, a fellow resistance fighter within the NSF will be here. I know that she is often posted here.”

“Perfect. Have your weapons ready just in case, people,” Waller said. The group traversed the grounds as surreptitiously as they could. There were some NSF soldiers walking the streets nearby, but there weren’t many of them. The GCU group was able to stay out of sight, in part thanks to some tricks Mariah learned from the Apalachee back in the Panhandle. But there was still a nagging question: How could this area be left nearly defenseless?

Whatever the case was, the group safely made it down the steps to a mostly-glass door. And that luck that Langston was hoping for was on their side, as that inside woman was positioned at the door. Waller and company had their weapons at the ready before Langston frantically waved in front of them. “Stop! She’s on our side!”

“Dr. Langston?” The woman perked up. Unlike many other NSF military members, she was not a ghoul. “To be honest, I didn’t think you were ever coming back.”

“You must keep the faith, my dear Akila,” Langston said in a reassuring tone. “I was hoping I would see you here but . . . are you the only one here?”

“I can’t say for certain about the inside,” Akila replied.

“Why is there almost no one from the NSF patrolling the streets?” Waller asked. “This makes no sense.”

“I don’t know, sir,” Akila said with a shrug. “But a lot of soldiers were sent over to the old Menendez building. Trying to protect the Warsuits over there. They won’t say it, obviously, but there is clearly a lot of concern amongst NSF leadership about what’s been going on. I think they know they are on the cusp of losing this city.”

“We can only hope,” Mariah said. “You probably know this already, but we need to destroy the comms inhibitor here at the radio station. Where exactly is it?”

“Sorry, but I’m not aware of what this inhibitor is. Leadership doesn’t tell us about everything. All we know is that there is important stuff here,” Akila said. She then raised her eyebrows in a sort of “a-ha!” look. “You know who might know, though? The DJ.”

“There’s a DJ here?”

“Yeah, his name’s DJ Lowe. He’s here a lot to do the music and all for people living in the city. He has to spout a lot of the propaganda for Governor Davidson’s administration, but I know he complains about many of the constraints they put on him. Told me as much because, well, he’s hit on me multiple times. Fancies himself a ladies’ man,” Akila said, shaking her head and scoffing. “He’s harmless, but he thinks he’s got way more Charisma than he actually does. But some women clearly like him in that way. Not my type, though.”

Mariah and Valentina looked at each other—both had met more than a few men like that.

“Ah, yes. DJ Lowe. ‘The One-Man Show’ as he likes to call himself,” Langston said, clearly unamused by the man. “But that makes sense that he might know. Is he on air right now?”

“Yeah. But there are often two or three soldiers posted at the door to the studio to keep tabs on him. I don’t know how you all made it, but I don’t think stealth is going to get you through them. I would help, but I have been ordered to stay posted out here. If I go against orders . . .”

“We’ll figure out a way. Thank you, Akila. You’ve been a major help,” Waller said, shaking her hand. “Don’t put yourself in more danger than you have to.”

“Thank you, sir. I can open the door for you at least.” Akila took out a pair of keys and unlocked the door. “I’ll have to lock it behind you, but you can still open it from the inside.”

“Whatever you need to do.” It seemed to the group that Waller had softened a bit. Maybe it was just his level of focus on the current mission. Maybe it was just that fortune finally was on their side. In any case, it was a welcome change from his hardened attitude. “Let’s work quickly. Have your weapons out.”

Mariah looked at her erstwhile quillback buddy. His quills were standing on end as if he expected enemies at any moment. Mariah smiled at him, took a deep breath, and stepped through the doorway with her companions.

We get some old tyme Tallahassee charm as the chapter begins. It is nice to compare and contrast the present to the past. Well, often depressing in games like this. But it reminds us that there was indeed a past, and that history is one of the things that created the present we currently live within.

Blackcoats. That sounds like it could be good. The black flag is the symbol for anarchism, going back at least as far as Nestor Mahkno. OTOH, Blackshirts have a distinct OG fascist history. Or granted, it might just be an arbitrary style choice of yet another faction.

I wonder if this area appears so empty because it is a trap? My sense of paranoia is slowly increasing.

DJ Lowe. ‘The One-Man Show’

Hey, just chiming in to say I've read the first three chapters (and the introductory material). As a Fallout fan, it's fun to see how the setting might look in parts of the US that the series hasn't visited. Florida's own unique history would certainly put its own spin on post-nuclear life, and it's no surprise that there'd be a lot more in the way of mutation in such a bio-diverse place.

The GCU's certainly gotten on its feet impressively quickly. Though, as I think you mentioned, northern Florida wouldn't have been bombed as heavily as California or the Northeast. As much of a peril as the wildlife is, as the Kolossi and others demonstrate, it can also be a boon when handled correctly.

Mariah's got a good head on her shoulders. She's of the Wasteland, but not (yet) completely hardened. And as is so often the case in Fallout, she's to some extent a hero of happenstance. Being on that caravan led to one event, which led to another, and so forth. As an outsider, she's well-suited to introducing the reader to the Sunshine Wasteland (what a great name, along with Cooler Heads, which is so wonderfully Fallout). The politics of the GCU, the Dissidents, and others already seem pretty byzantine, however, and it seems that this battle over Holt's Fusion! factory will just be the tip of the iceberg.

"They eventually split up so that Javier’s group headed to FAMU while Waller’s—which included Mariah, Valentina, Langston, and the quillback—made haste to FSU....."

I love how the animal is now part of the group. It occurred to me this past weekend that there's the possiblity the armadillo is domesticated?

Remind me what Ezra is supposed to be like? Skinny? Overweight? Tall? Short? I just wanna be able to picture the guy. Okay, I see he is a ghoul.

But yah, he does sound sort of psychopathic, or at least paranoid. He gets on the loudspeaker and what does he say? Turn in any insurgents! -- Almost reminds me of Jim Jones, during his church's cult's final days in South America. Jim would also get on a loudspeaker, high on whatever, and ramble to his congregation, right up until he made them drink the Kool Aid.

There's a D.J. here?

I love how you keep capitalizing the SPECIAL attributes! Luck. Charisma!

@SubRosa - Something I always thought was particularly interesting in Fallout was the comparison of past and present. So many philosophical questions come out of that. As for DJ Lowe, I was inspired by an actual DJ in the Tampa Bay area of Florida who, while his name is obviously different, he similarly has a tagline that rhymes with his name.

@WellTemperedClavier - Glad to see a new face join the story! And you must be one of the newcomers to Chorrol that joined in my absence, so allow me to give you my "welcome, aboard" myself! Here's a fishy stick. I'll give your own story a read whenever I can, too.

@Renee - Porcupine. And I haven't gone into too much detail about his past, but he was an Old Guard experiment and, despite that and radiation, did not become a hostile animal. But he's got more spunk and toughness that his size indicates. I haven't described what Ezra looks like yet, but you'll see soon enough. He will be met face-to-face.



A little bit later than I hoped, but here's the end of Chapter 18! Meet DJ Lowe, The One-Man Show!

Chapter 18: Inhibiting the Inhibitors

***Chapter 18.3***

The inside of the building was well-lit and quiet, save for some faint mumbling upstairs. Whether that was the sound of NSF soldiers or DJ Lowe doing his thing wasn’t clear from where they were standing. A couple of doors could be heard down the hall and around one of the corners, warranting further caution from the GCU crew. A door to a stairwell was on their right side as they walked down the hall with their weapons drawn. Plastic placards were screwed into the wall next to the door, one of them reading “radio station – 2nd floor”. Waller quietly tapped the placard and pointed upward to his unit, who nodded in affirmation.

As they ascended the stairs, the mumbling was replaced with a song that was being played on the radio, though which song it was wasn’t clear yet. Hearts started pumping as they realized their destination was right around the corner, with likely a couple enemies standing in the way. But curiously, the quillback wasn’t on edge. On the contrary, he seemed rather tranquil, happy to be in the company of his newfound friends. Waller, however, wasn’t going to take chances. He pointed to his weapon silently to signal his unit to keep their guard up.

It turned out that the apprehension was unwarranted, for when they turned the corner the crew saw two dead NSF guards sitting outside the door to the studio the DJ was in. Curiously, there were two “calling cards” featuring a stylized logo with the outline of Florida, one that the GCU crew had not seen before. The guards seemed to have been surprised by whoever their assailant, or assailants, were. If it weren’t so fortuitous, Mariah would have been getting annoyed at the fact that all these would-be obstacles were already overcome. It didn’t make any sort of sense. Were NSF forces really that strained? Was somebody else that was also opposed to the NSF responsible for the lack of NSF defense in the area? What was going on? Mariah couldn’t help but feel that the tides would turn back against them at any moment.

In any case, Waller was just about to break the door down until he heard the song had ended. A cocky voice went into a radio host spiel. “And that was ‘Love Potion No. 9’ by The Clovers. Catchy song, but as the ladies know, ol’ DJ Lowe the One-Man Show doesn’t need any concoctions to find love, ha ha HA! How are you all doing this fine day, eh? If you’re a lady,” Lowe said, briefly changing his voice to sound low and seductive, “I can make it finer. Ha ha HA! Anywho, Governor Davidson wants you all to be rest assured that his administration has got the recent troubles in this city well in hand. And to show you just how normal things are, I’ve got another couple of classics on tap. But you always play classics, DJ Lowe!” Lowe said in a purposely goofy, scratchy voice. “I know, I know. I always give the people what they want. Especially if they are females.”

Does this guy ever stop talking? Mariah thought to herself. Akila was clearly right about DJ Lowe’s thoughts about himself.

“But I’m not just an admirer of the female form,” Lowe continued, suggesting the answer to Mariah’s question in her head was ‘no.’ “I’m a big fan of the female voice. And we’ve got some great lady singers, human AND ghoul, over at the Governor’s Club in downtown tonight starting at 7:00 PM. But for now, we’ve got another Pre-War great. It’s ‘Sh-Boom’! . . . By “The Crew Cuts”.

As soon as the new song came on the radio, that was the GCU unit’s cue. When it was clear that Lowe turned off his microphone, Waller busted the door open. The sudden action turned the voice of the self-satisfied DJ into a startled, almost shrill one. “AAAAHHHH! What did I say?! I didn’t…” Lowe exclaimed, whirling the chair around and getting up higher in his seat, as if it would get him further away from the intruders. “Wait . . . you’re not NSF.” Lowe wasn’t quite a scrawny man. He appeared to be of an average height for a male and had some muscular definition, but he was thin and far from an imposing figure.

Lowe’s gaze met Mariah and Valentina. Struck by their beauty, he recomposed himself, slicking his black, gelled hair back. “Ahem. . . . Hello there,” he said in that low, would-be seductive tone he used earlier.

“Can it. Not interested.” Mariah quickly retorted.

Lowe still had a look of hope on his face as he turned to Valentina, but she simply shook her head with a stoic expression. He sighed, throwing his hands up and slapping his hands down on his chair’s arms. “Ol’ Lowe’s on a cold streak. Knew I should’ve taken some Mentats,” Lowe muttered to himself. “Alright, what’s the big idea? Can’t you see I’m working here?” He gestured towards the radio controls.

“That’s not your priority,” Waller said impatiently. “You need to focus on assisting us. Whatever songs you need to keep playing to make things seem normal to your listeners, do it.”

“Yeesh. Are you competing with the NSF to see who is bossier?” Lowe said, folding his arms. “Another instance of The Man trying to keep me down.”

“And I’ll keep you down if you aren’t cooperative,” Waller said testily.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Take it easy!” Lowe put his hands up as if to calm him. “Look, what do you want? How’d you even get in here anyway?”

“Your guards at the door are dead,” Mariah said matter-of-factly. “Did you have anything to do with that? What are these calling cards with the shape of Florida that we found on their bodies?”

Lowe grinned and sat up straight in his chair. “I’m flattered that you think that. I’m a pretty strong guy, if I do say so.” He flexed his right arm, the bicep of which had a little but not much definition, in a failed attempt to impress Mariah. She pursed her lips to one side of her mouth and lowered her eyebrows, showing she was still unamused. “Lighten up a little, lady. But no, I didn’t have anything to do with it,” Lowe said, back to being serious. “Don’t know anything about those cards, either. If you had nothing to do with it, I have no idea who did. So, who are you people?”

“Sergeant Waller. We represent the Gulf Coast Union,” Waller replied. “We’re here to topple Ezra Davidson’s regime and to thwart whatever these other insurgent groups are trying to do. And you need to help us in that regard.”

“Sergeant? You’re GCU? The little nation outside the city walls? So, you ARE going to liberate this city!” Lowe said excitedly, quickly clapping his hands several times. “Oh, ho ho! This is great! Finally going to stick it to The Man! NOBODY keeps DJ Lowe down or tells him what to do! Well, not for long, at least. Okay, I’ll help you. But on just one condition.”

“You’re not in a position to bargain, Lowe,” Waller said, his impatience already rising.

“Then why come to me, huh? You obviously need me. You don’t even know what I’m going to say!”

“Then what is it you want?” Mariah said. Waller shot her a look. He was expecting to be the sole negotiator and didn’t want any potential complications. Mariah threw her arms up. “What? He’s right.”

“Thank you!” Lowe said emphatically. “It’s simple. All I want . . . is to keep this radio station after you curb-stomp Ezra.” The song on the radio had ended then, so Lowe set the next one to play without interjecting his own commentary to the listeners. He started playing “We Go Together” by The Moonglows.

The GCU crew was surprised. Waller wasn’t buying that that was all there was to it. “What’s the catch?”

“Maybe it’s hard to believe for someone in a position of power, but I’m just a regular guy. I don’t want for much. Money’s nice, sure. Property? Cool. But the radio is my calling. It’s my life. And I just want to get my voice out there, man. There’s this incredible freedom that comes with talking out over the airwaves. And in this day and age, the radio is one of the few things that people can always rely on for some level of comfort. I’m here for the people. All I want is for DJ Lowe’s voice to be heard all across the land.” Lowe motioned his hands as if to paint a picture of what he was talking about. “Well, and women, too. But I don’t need you to give me those. Every woman goes crazy over a DJ. Well, except for . . .” Lowe gestured one of his hands wildly toward Mariah and Valentina.

“Fine. You have a deal,” Waller said. It took little thought to consider Lowe’s proposal, if that was really all there was to it. “Now, back to business. Dr. Langston here says that there is a device here that inhibits communications to anywhere outside the city. Where is it?”

“Dr. Langston?” DJ Lowe said with a raised eyebrow. “Aren’t you that guy that the NSF has been going crazy about finding? You sure stirred up a hornet’s nest. Isn’t that how that saying goes? Anyway, that must be that thingamajig in that locked room over there.” Lowe pointed to a door on the other side of the room. “Going to need a key, though. Can’t help you there. Maybe it’s . . .”

Before Lowe finished his sentence, Mariah took out a lockpick and walked over to the door. It had an unassuming look, as if it didn’t protect a mechanism that was key to Davidson and the NSF keeping their grip on the city. After playing around with the lock for about 30 seconds, Mariah got the door open.

“Well, then,” Lowe said with a look of bewilderment. “Nevermind, I guess. But you’ll need a lot more than that to handle that computer in there. Even a top-flight hacker would . . .”

Now it was Valentina’s turn to demonstrate her capabilities. She walked through the now-open doorway courtesy of Mariah’s Lockpicking skill. Before her lay a large control panel and some large wires leading to the roof, indicating that the comms inhibitor itself was on the roof so that its signal was not blocked. It took a couple minutes for her to hack into the computer, but she got through and disabled the comms inhibitor. It struck them that the computer looked very similar to the one Valentina had to hack in Tyndall Air Force Base, when the GCU and the Apalachee waged that climactic battle against the Alabama Dissidents and the Brotherhood of Steel. It wasn’t one of those RobCo computers, as was so prevalent in the Old World.

“Wow,” Lowe simply said, his mouth agape. “Hot AND talented? Now that’s my kind of women!”

“Mariah and Valentina may be green, but they are quite capable,” Waller affirmed. “That’s why I have them with me.”

“No kidding. Mariah and Valentina . . . what lovely names,” Lowe said, daydreaming about the two women succumbing to his charming abilities that he had inflated in his mind. “Well, I guess that’s that. Any way that I can help, you just call on your pal DJ Lowe—The One-Man Show! Just . . . don’t get me killed please. Can’t talk on the radio if I’m dead, you know.”

“We are doing all that we can,” Waller said. “Just keep doing what you’re doing as if nothing has changed.” Waller turned his attention to his unit. “Grab those walkie-talkies off the guards. Hopefully, we’ll be able to hear what has happened at FAMU and the Menendez building. Then we can regroup with Javier’s group.”

“Roger that, Sarge!” Lowe said gleefully as the GCU crew started leaving. It was time to put the next song on the radio, and Lowe chose “60-Minute Man” by Billy Ward and the Dominoes.

Of course Lowe would pick that song, Mariah thought.

“You all take care of yourselves. Especially you, Mariah and Valentina,” Lowe said. “Don’t forget your most adoring fan, DJ Lowe, after all this!”

For once, the comment managed to get a slight smile from the two women, even though they still had no romantic interest in Lowe. “Somehow, I don’t think we will,” Valentina said. Even that positive reaction from the two of them was enough to make Lowe’s heart flutter.

The GCU crew grabbed the walkie-talkies off the dead NSF guards and dragged the bodies into a broom closet right next to Lowe’s studio, though there were still blood stains on the floor. Langston also picked up one of those calling cards with a stylized logo featuring the shape of Pre-War Florida. “I have seen this symbol before, but I cannot recall where that was.”

“Probably best to take a couple of them with us, then,” Mariah said, picking up one of the cards herself. “Doesn’t look like an Old Guard symbol. Maybe the Blackcoats?”

“Maybe. They don’t seem like the type of organization that does that, but who knows? We still have no intel on them,” Waller said, rekindling his frustration at knowing nothing about the shadowy cabal. “But if it was them, why wouldn’t they disable the comms inhibitor themselves? They oppose the NSF, too. Whatever the case, we need to get moving before any NSF soldiers realize what is happening and come snooping around here.” With their work done, the GCU unit went back down the stairwell toward the door they used to enter the WVFS station.

Thanks! I wasn't on the classic Bethesda forums, so I missed the whole "fishy stick" thing, but I do know of it secondhand. Much appreciated.

Up to Chapter 7. Seems like a true Fallout situation. The Dissidents are definitely troublemakers here, though the GCU isn't quite squeaky-clean either. I suppose moral compromise comes with trying to manage a country.

Regardless, the GCU does seem to be in pretty good shape. Clearly, they've gone for a pretty inclusive approach, which is serving them well. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about the New Life folks, yet, though they seem pretty harmless.

Something like the F.A.C.T. would be a game-changer. I could see it helping the GCU maintain hegemony (and, potentially, giving them an unhealthy amount of power), or enabling the Dissidents or some other faction to break away. The BoS certainly has motivation.

Now Mariah's found it... but the poison's taken it's toll. A tense situation, indeed.

It's good you are reading all the back stories there, Clavier. I'd like to do this too, there's a lot I've forgotten. Only so much time, though...

What a really weird scene Waller and the others are walking into! Like Tallahassee's version of Three Dog. Jeezus, what a love machine he purports to be!

Ha, this music's great!

"Ah, hello there!" ... "Can it! Not interested." ... Omg DJ Lowe is so gross!

I like how obvious their skillsets are in this scene. Mariah has some Thief perks for sure, while Val's trained more in Science. 🖥 Even the DJ seems to have a version of Lady Killer, although it's not really working so well for him today.

There's so much going on with all these groups and organizations in Postwar Florida. I wonder where it all will lead.

Curiouser and curiouser. The calling cards on the bodies makes me wonder if Pickman was in town looking for new models?

DJ Lowe does not seem to be perturbed by the dead men outside door. I wonder if he knows they are there?

That's right DJ Lowe, stick it to the Man!

Mariah and Val show why they are on the team quite efficiently.

Loved the Adoring Fan reference.

@WellTemperedClavier - Yep, I took a bit of inspiration from the NCR for the GCU in the sense of there being some level of moral greyness, though of course with a Gulf Coast flavor to it. You also used the term "byzantine" to refer to the political situation in the region, which is great. As long as its understandable, that's what I was going for. I think it's much more interesting when more than two factions or viewpoints are involved in a dispute.

And thanks for taking the time to read the previous parts of the story. I wouldn't have blamed you at all for skimming or skipping through it since there is a lot there. Similarly to Renee, it also helps to hear your reactions in case I forgot something from then since I had such a long hiatus from writing the story.

@Renee - Hey, cut DJ Lowe some slack. He's just missing a bunch of Speech checks lately.

@SubRosa - Thank you for catching the Adoring Fan reference! I enjoy when people notice the little references I put in. I'm a big fan of the inclusion of Easter eggs in stories, games, etc. It's like playing a little game while reading a story.



Speaking of references, there's a callback to a previous Fallout game that likely no one here will know of unless I link it. So look out for some bolded text with a YouTube link. (It's Fallout 2, which I have only played a couple hours of and is not anywhere near the part of the game that is in the video.) You should watch the whole video, but the specific thing I'm referencing is what I set the timestamp at.

And without further ado, onto Chapter 19! (Would've rhymed if it was Chapter 22...)

Chapter 19: Capital Punishment

Chapter 19.1

For the first time in a while, it finally seemed like things were trending positively for Mariah and company. Murphy’s Law apparently had been in full effect: Troubles from the Old Guard and Enclave; the presence of Blackcoats and no closer to knowing who they are; getting into a firefight with Silas Hawthorne and his Old Guard underlings while being attacked by creatures that were experimented on some time ago; getting attacked by some sort of animal-human hybrids in close corridors; and then getting stuck in the city. But now a communications inhibitor, key to Ezra Davidson’s grip on Old Tallahassee, was down. They hoped, and in some cases prayed, that Javier’s group was successful in disabling the other inhibitor.

But ever the vigilant one, Waller reminded them to stay on their toes. “Well done on this mission, but it isn’t over yet. We need to get back to base. The NSF may be back on the prowl here in downtown, so stay alert.”

As if heeding his words, their quillback companion’s spikes had flared up again. The group stopped before they went back through the door they used to enter the building in the first place. “What is it, little buddy?” Mariah asked.

The quillback turned toward the opposite direction. A few NSF soldiers had turned the corner, assault rifles in hand. “There! More insurgents!” one of them shouted. They must have somehow known Mariah and company were in the building. “By order of Governor Davidson, stop! Put away your—”

“Open fire!” Waller bellowed. He, Mariah, and Valentina unloaded on the NSF patrol, who ducked into corridors connected to the hallway. Even Langston did what he could, even though he wasn’t much of a marksman. But there was only one way for the GCU unit to go, as they had no defenses themselves. “We don’t have any cover! Fall back outside!” Waller ordered. Without hesitation, the group busted through the door.

But as they stepped outside, they found themselves cornered. Four other NSF soldiers awaited them, one of them with a firearm at point-blank range behind Akila, who had her hands on her head. “Well, well,” one of the NSF smugly said. “What have we here? Drop your weapons. Now. Or else this traitor gets it.” Clearly, he was referring to Akila, who had her eyes closed and an emotionless expression.

The NSF soldiers from inside the building came out from behind them, pointing their weapons at the GCU group. There was nowhere to go. “Stand down,” Waller said calmly to his unit as his mind raced to think of how to get out of this rut. As much as Mariah wanted to turn on the impetuous side of herself in this situation, she knew they had no choice. She glared at the NSF soldiers as she placed her weapon on the ground. The quillback skittered behind her ankles—even he seemed to understand the predicament they were in.

“So, you thought you could just waltz into downtown and get out without trouble?” A different NSF soldier, a ghoul, started speaking. “Big mistake.”

“So, this was just one big trap, huh? Probably should’ve done something before we took out your little toy up there.” Mariah said, turning on her defiant tone.

“Mariah, please,” Valentina pleaded, worried that the soldiers would decide right then to end their lives.

“Actually, no. Why any of our superiors thought leaving downtown so unattended was a good idea is beyond me. But I guess it worked out to some extent. We got Dr. Langston himself. Oh boy, are you in trouble now, doctor. Governor Davidson is furious with you, you know. We’ve got orders to bring you and any insurgents with you to Governor Davidson himself, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. See that building over there?” The soldier pointed to the tall structure which served as the Florida Capitol building in the Pre-War era. A large portion of it had been rebuilt by NSF workers and Davidson’s robots, but it was still far from the pinnacle of what it once was. “For you outsiders, that’s what we call ‘The Spire,’ and that’s where we’re going. Now move.”

But before the NSF squad could start marching them to the Florida Capitol building, a new combatant entered the fray, standing atop the wall that obscured the stairs and the level of ground they were on. Though the rays of the sun obscured who he was, his silhouette could be made out enough to show that he was striking a heroic pose with his hands on his hips. “Unhand them, ruffians!” The mysterious man triumphantly said. “No one escapes the reach of sunshine justice!”

“Who the fu—,” the talkative NSF soldier said confusedly. “Who is—? What—? I should kick your f****** ass. Who is this?”

“Hey, is this the guy we saw in WVFS?” One of the soldiers from behind the GCU crew said.

Without answering, the mysterious man leaped down with blazing speed, throwing projectiles at several NSF soldiers. Several of the other NSF soldiers shot at him to no avail. Mariah, Valentina, and Waller took advantage of the confusion to grab their weapons off the ground and kill several of the NSF troops, while Akila took vengeance on the one who had his gun at her back. Even the quillback joined in, shooting several spines right into the throat of another NSF soldier. In a matter of seconds, the fight was over. Seven NSF troops were dead, and everyone else was alive and well.

Akila collapsed to the ground, not from injuries but from the sheer stress of the situation. The strange man held out his hand to help her up. “Are you okay, citizen?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Akila replied, taking his hand to get off the ground. She dusted off her pants. “Thank you for saving me and my allies. But . . . who are you?”

Everyone finally had the chance to get a good look at him. He was . . . dressed as a superhero?

“Why, I’m FLORIDA MAN!” The man shouted emphatically. “The shining ray of justice! The champion of the daylight! The incandescent bane of evildoers everywhere!” Florida Man wasn’t quite buff like the superheroes of comic books, but he had a decent build to his muscular structure. His outfit was mostly white, with orange boots, bracers, the area around his waist, and his mask; though his eyes, nostrils, and mouth could still be seen. Parts of his costume bore aquatic creature motifs like fins and alligator scales, and his chest bore the stylized symbol of Florida with sunrays that the GCU unit found on the calling cards on the dead NSF soldiers upstairs. It seemed that this Florida Man was to thank for a lot of their good fortune here. “As long as there is lawfulness to distribute in this state, I will be there!”

“Um, is this serious?” Mariah said, asking the question that her flabbergasted companions wanted to say. “This can’t be serious.”

“It would appear so,” Langston said in confirmation.

“I mean, I’ve heard of the Silver Shroud and Mistress of Mystery and all that. But . . . Florida Man?” Even many wastelanders knew of those popular Pre-War comic book characters like the Unstoppables, Captain Cosmos, and even K.D. Inkwell.

“Back in the Pre-War days, ‘Florida Man’ and ‘Florida Woman’ were nicknames used to describe residents of the state who performed bizarre acts, usually crimes done in a strange way. They featured frequently in the news, making them the target of many jokes in-state and around the country. The Florida state government commissioned a comic book company in this state to turn ‘Florida Man’ and ‘Florida Woman’ into superheroes instead of buffoons in an attempt at a positive spin on the monikers.”

“So, he’s what, discount Manta Man?” Mariah asked sarcastically.

“I suppose you could say that. The Unstoppables and other Hubris Comics characters like Captain Cosmos considerably overshadowed Florida Man and Woman, even here in Florida. Clearly, however, Florida Man lives on.” Langston appeared to take this bizarre situation all in stride.

“He does, indeed!” Florida Man proclaimed. “And he will never rest until the blazing rays of justness come searing down on the foes of righteousness!” Florida Man’s tone, however, suddenly changed from triumphant to what seemed accusatory as he narrowed his eyes at Langston. “Say, haven’t I seen you somewhere, before?”

“What? Uh—” Langston was taken aback, as if he suddenly recognized who Florida Man was. The side of himself that was at a loss for words was rare to see. “Er, no. I am sure we have never seen each other before.” Waller’s suspicions of Dr. Langston, unsurprisingly, heightened again. But he decided to wait until they returned to the Temple of New Life to question Langston about his reaction.

“Well, we should definitely thank Mr., uh . . . Florida Man here, in any case,” Mariah said. “So, thanks, Florida Man. Can we count on you to help the GCU? We have a lot of enemies in the city, and we could use all the help we can get.”

“Of course, ma’am!” Florida Man exclaimed. He seemed to completely forget about Langston. “You all appear to be upstanding people. If this GCU is on the right side of justice, you can always count on the singing rays of justice from Florida Man!”

Waller briefly brought Florida Man up to speed about recent events, who Waller and his comrades were, and how Florida Man could help the GCU. “And with any luck, we’ll be able to communicate with our forces from beyond the city soon. Perhaps we can call on your services in law enforcement once this ordeal with Davidson is over. Take this walkie-talkie to listen in on NSF comms.”

“Very well, Sergeant! And you, young lady,” Florida Man addressed Valentina. “Here is my card. Always remember you can call on Florida Man’s assistance in your time of need.” The card had no sort of information about contacting Florida Man, so how he expected her to call on his assistance was beyond her.

“Oh, we found a few of them on those soldiers you killed upstairs,” Valentina said with a nervous laugh, still puzzled at the very existence of this self-professed superhero before them. “But, uh . . . thank you. Florida Man.”

“Capital!” Florida Man said jubilantly, proud of the city pun he just made. “I only have a limited number of these cards. It isn’t easy getting a hold of the paper for it—a problem I shall rectify once we liberate this city and its good-natured inhabitants. Farewell, citizens!” And with a speedy, superhumanly high leap onto the wall, Florida Man ran off to dole out more justice. The group stared in awe at Florida Man’s physical abilities. How did he do that?

“Well, that was something,” Waller said dryly. “We don’t have any more time. We need to get out of downtown and back to base ASAP. Hopefully, Javier’s unit will be back when we return to the Temple of New Life.” He turned to Akila, who had recomposed herself. “Akila, why don’t you come with us? In case other NSF know that you helped us too.”

“You’re right. I don’t think there is any choice. You can count on me.”

“Great. Welcome to the squad. Just follow my lead. Now, let’s move out.”

-----------------

NSF troops were starting to filter back into downtown and the surrounding area, making the GCU unit’s return to the Temple of New Life dicey. The return trip took longer than to get to the WVFS station, and by the time the group approached the Temple the sun had almost set. Waller listened in on the NSF’s comms and found out the FAMU comms inhibitor was destroyed as well. But what happened to Javier’s group and the battles around the Menendez building was unclear. Little was heard about the Old Guard, the Enclave, or the Blackcoats.

Waller spoke up when his unit came up to the alleyway they used to leave the Temple of New Life earlier in the day finally came into view. “I hope that’s a good sign that we haven’t heard anything about Javier. It may mean that they escaped capture or a worse fate. Or not. I obviously do not wish to think of the latter, but in my position, you must be ready for anything.” Waller checked around them to make sure nobody had seen them.

“But what about the other factions in the city?” Mariah asked. “Seems strange that we heard nothing about them either.”

“Indeed. Maybe they know we’re listening in, or that one of the other groups are,” Waller speculated. “We’ll go over our next course of action inside the Temple and fill Roger in on the day’s events. And I would be remiss if I didn’t note this: You all did a great job today. It takes a lot of guts to pull off what we just did. Even Mariah’s new buddy assisted,” Waller said, pointing at the quillback. The animal cocked his head curiously at Waller’s finger, unaware of the accolade bestowed upon him by the GCU sergeant.

“Thank you, sir,” Mariah and Valentina replied at the same time. It always felt good to be recognized for their work. Langston, though, said nothing.

“That goes for you too, Akila.” Waller said, assuring her that she could also speak.

“Oh. Um. Thank you, sir,” Akila said. As happy as she was to be with a company of people that were trustworthy and she wasn’t surreptitiously working against, it was still a bit of an adjustment period.

But there would be no time to reflect on their accomplishments nor calculate their next move. As Waller opened the Temple’s side door and walked in, the group noticed a pool of blood on the floor and that some of the lights were turned off. He turned to the quillback, who hadn’t reacted in a way that indicated danger was nearby. “A struggle occurred here, but the quillback isn’t sensing anything,” Waller whispered.

Mariah knelt next to her animal friend. “Hey, little guy,” she said quietly. “Anything off around here?” The quillback simply gave an inquisitive look.

“We can’t take any chances. Keep your guard up,” Waller said, voice still lowered. The group obliged, keeping their firearms up to their chests. As they walked out into the main lobby, they didn’t see any sign of Roger or anyone else.

That is, until a gravelly voice pierced the silence. “It’s advised that you put your weapons down.” A light switch was suddenly flipped as eight soldiers clad in NSF uniforms walked into the room, automatic firearms trained on Mariah and company. But none of them were the source of the voice.

“Stand down,” Waller bitterly said to his unit, who obeyed his command. “Who the hell is that? Reveal yourself,” Waller said.

“Certainly,” said the low voice again. A tall, intimidating man suddenly appeared, casually leaning on a counter in front of them. He had been using a Stealth Boy to conceal his presence.

Langston gasped. “Constantine!”

“Vernon Langston. Welcome back to Tallahassee,” Constantine replied with emotional neutrality.

I wonder who this Mysterious Stranger is? The one from the Perk? Or perhaps the one who killed those guards at the radio station and left the calling cards on them?

It's Florida Man! Now that is perfect! If the Capital Wasteland can have the AntAgonizer and the Mechanist, then Florida definitely has its titular Man.

And another player has entered the chat. I wonder if Constantine has already found Javier's crew? We shall see soon enough...

Finished Chapter 10.

Did a bit of reading on the Apalachee. It does seem that some were being sent to Oklahoma as late as 1901(!), often with promises of getting land. These promises turned out to be lies, in many cases.

Mariah's vision is intriguing. It does seem to be setting her up to play a bigger part in the Sunshine Wasteland, though in a suitably ambiguous way. As a free agent, she can move between the various factions. Some of them, anyway. While the Apalachee could take out the Bullsharks fairly easily, there's no real counter for the BoS's massive tech advantage.

While Mariah making an accord between the GCU and the Apalachee is a useful one, I do have to wonder how long the GCU will respect this treaty. Without the FACT, the Apalachee don't have much recourse if future GCU administrations change their mind.

For the time being at least, it seems they can work together. And work together they must, since the Brotherhood is a dangerous foe. With Gerald's presence, it seems that the Dissidents are also involved, which only deepens the danger.

Yeah, the D.J. kept failing Speech checks because Mariah and Val both have high Charisma of their own!

Is the quillback domesticated? It seems really comfortable around humans. Or maybe it's one of those animals which is wild, but has those genetics which allow it not to be afraid, but also affable, and maybe more perceptive than usual. Then again, I imagine most small animals in the Falloutverse must have higher Perception. Due to Darwinian forces of the best being able to survive...

Ah no. They've been cornered. Whoa, but not for long. Wow, all of them got pwned. Is Chuck Norris anywhere on set today?

No, it's not Chuck, it's FLORIDA MAN!!! 🦸Wow, he saved them all. What a coincidence that both our Fallout stories have super characters this week: a super villian (Mouse Man) in my story, and a hero in yours!

Florida Man seems like he's got Teflon for brains, just like the classic characters in the comics from our parents' generation. Right, how is somebody supposed to call the dude if his card hasn't got info?!

"Capital!"

Whoa, Constantine is here. You're going to have to refresh my memory here. He's sort of a "good" guy, right?


Edit: come and think of it, Florida Man seems to have that odd ability to just 'show up' like the bot we meet in Goodsprings, right? That bot (forget its name) just shows up occasionally in the Mojave as we're going throughout the gameworld.

@SubRosa - It wouldn't be Florida if it didn't have Florida Man/Woman! You'll certainly see and hear more of him later on in the story.

@WellTemperedClavier - Sounds like you are getting fairly close to being caught up. Thanks for taking the time to read it all. Yep, I researched a bit about Native American tribes, and there are a lot of them with a rich history that were or currently are in present-day Florida. At some point in Fallout: Florida, I want to include the Seminole and Miccosukee tribes, who are a couple of the more well-known tribes in the state and play a role in state politics (especially the Seminoles).

@Renee - Constantine is Ezra Davidson's right-hand man, so no, he is not a good guy. But as you will see below, he isn't exactly evil either. That robot in New Vegas you are thinking of is Victor. Florida Man isn't creepy like Victor, but there is more to the wannabe superhero than meets the eye.



Here's Chapter 19.2! And with it, some dark secrets are revealed.

**********

Chapter 19: Capital Punishment

An up-close look at Constantine revealed that the towering figure had black stubble around his chiseled jawline and sported a black crewcut. It was hard to find any fat on his 250-pound frame of pure muscle. No wonder he was the head honcho to a psychopath with a penchant for dictatorial control.

“I’m somewhat surprised you came back, Vernon,” Constantine said, still betraying little emotion. He got up from leaning on the counter and walked toward the GCU group. “Brought some new friends to clean up your mess, did you? Typical.” Constantine uncorked a swift right hook that audibly slammed into Langston’s cheek. A couple of rotted teeth shot out from Langston’s mouth as he hit the ground.

“Hey! Leave him alone!” Mariah found herself blurting out. She had meant to keep the statement in her head, but once it left her mouth, she was going to stand defiant, as scared as she was of Constantine.

Instead of getting angry, Constantine kept his composure as he looked at Mariah. “And what are you going to do about it…” He leaned toward her, lowering his head to her height. “…Mariah?”

Shivers shot up Mariah’s spine at the mention of her name. “How do you know my name?” Mariah said. She tried to sound brave, but there was shaking in her voice.

“I have my ways,” Constantine replied, brushing the flecks of flesh off his knuckles that came from Langston’s ghoulified face. “I’ve learned quite a bit about you and your friend Valentina, here.” Valentina became more nervous at the mention of her name as well. “You’ve been making some noise in the Sunshine Wasteland over these past few months. There are certain people who have taken an interest in you.” He looked Mariah in the eyes again. “So, you’re here to topple Davidson, are you? Bold. But I don’t think you truly realize the situation that Langston here dragged you into. What exactly did he tell you?”

Mariah wasn’t sure what Constantine was trying to play at, but she figured it was information that Langston already told them. “Hate to disappoint you, but you won’t surprise us. We already know he served with the Old Guard. We know he used to run with Davidson and that he helped him bring a bunch of robots online. And we know Davidson wants Vault 100 for . . . some reason.”

“What else?”

Mariah cocked her head to the side. “I mean, he’s showed us some documents and other stuff. But what do you mean, ‘what else’?”

Finally, Constantine displayed something over than neutrality. He let out a single chuckle and looked down at Langston, who was slowly getting to his feet after the blow Constantine dealt him. “Always keeping secrets. Always trying to save your own skin—metaphorically, at this point. Looks like you’ve got some more explaining to do to your friends here, Vernon.”

“What are you talking about?” Mariah said, unnerved about what could be coming next. Was Waller right that there was something more to Langston after all?

“I’m saying your friend the doctor here left out some critical details about his past. Details that probably would’ve ultimately kept you from working with him. Care to tell them, Langston? Or should I?” Langston had gotten back to his feet, though still woozy. Yet he kept looking at the ground. He was clearly ashamed of something.

“Dr. Langston . . . what happened?” Valentina asked. “You have to tell us.”

“Oh, he can’t. Because he’s a coward,” Constantine said, waving Langston off. “First off, his specialty isn’t robotics. Davidson doesn’t need him for that. He has helpers for that, but he is an exceptional mind when it comes to anything mechanical. No, Langston’s area of expertise is anatomy and biology.”

“What?” Mariah said, not sure whether to believe Constantine. “But . . . why would you lie about that, Dr. Langston?” Langston’s head was still hung in shame.

“That’s because he doesn’t want you to know about the experiments he’s performed. Experiments including unwilling human subjects and turning animals into bioweapons.”

“You’re lying!” Mariah shouted. “He may have worked for Davidson and the Old Guard, but he’s . . . he said he was trying to atone for it. He wouldn’t have helped us if that was . . .” She trailed off as the turn of events started to set in.

“Oh, I suppose Langston’s guilty conscience sometimes gets too heavy for him to bear.” Constantine said, looking away from them as he paced back and forth, hands behind his back. The rest of the NSF guards still had their firearms at the ready in case anyone in the GCU made a sudden move. “He’s changed in some ways. But he was, still is, and always will be, a spineless pr***. At some point, he would’ve tried to wipe any evidence of his past dealings he didn’t want anyone else to know about.”

Even the quillback, who had been hiding behind Mariah’s right leg, seemed to have some grasp of what was being said. Perhaps it was because his human companions had all trained their gazes of disbelief or anger at Langston. The quillback hissed at him and acted as if he was ready to shoot some of his spines at the ghoul doctor. Langston seemed to not even notice. Perhaps he was wallowing too deeply into his feelings of remorse.

“You lied to us, doctor!” Valentina shouted at Langston, a rare angry outburst coming from her. “Experiments on people and animals? How could you do that?!”

“Oh, that’s not all,” Constantine said, almost sounding giddy at the fact he was exposing the doctor’s past. “He mentioned that he worked for the Old Guard and for Davidson. But you know what else he left out?” He let the moment of silence hang for an uneasily long time before he turned back to the group. “Another particularly important employer of his. He used to work for Vault-Tec.”

Mariah and Valentina gasped. “V-V-Vault Tec?” Mariah stammered. “THE Vault-Tec? Why . . . why would he leave that out?”

“Because like Langston, there are many things Vault-Tec didn’t want people to know,” Constantine said. “See, they advertised the Vaults as safe havens for people to avoid the Great War’s destruction. And it’s true that a small number of them were designed that way. But many if not most of them had an ulterior purpose to them. Unbeknownst to almost everyone in these Vaults, secret, often unethical and cruel experiments were conducted on their populations, as we came to discover.

“Now, what exactly this was in Vault 100, we don’t know yet,” Constantine continued. “A lot of this information is still new even to Davidson and I. Langston was very good at concealing his past in Vault-Tec even from most of those who knew or currently know him well. We have good reason to believe that he was heavily involved in whatever experiment Vault 100 operated under. Davidson is extremely interested in it, though, almost as if he has some idea of what is there. In any case, it seems that our discovery of Langston’s Vault-Tec ties was ultimately what led him to flee this city like a little b****.”

“That is not who I am anymore,” Langston weakly protested. “I know I cannot completely make up for the past, but I . . . I . . .”

Waller had been quietly steaming as the conversation unfolded, but he couldn’t contain his rage any longer. The blood vessels in his forehead looked like they could burst at any moment. “YOU MOTHERF*****! I KNEW YOU WERE HIDING SOMETHING! I’LL F****** KILL YOU, YOU—”

Langston drew back as Waller lunged at him, but Constantine stopped Waller by grabbing his GCU uniform and throwing him backward to the floor. “I reserve the right to beat Langston senseless, not you! Besides, you know a thing or two about hoarding skeletons in the closet,” Constantine lowered his voice as he leaned over the sergeant. “Don’t you . . . Waller?” Waller’s uniform had his identification on it, but Constantine said his name in a way that indicated he was already familiar with the GCU soldier.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about—”

“DON’T F****** LIE TO ME!” This time it was Constantine’s turn to scream. He grabbed Waller by the throat and lifted him all the way off the ground. It was an incredible feat of Strength as Waller was a tall, muscular man himself. Everyone in the room, even Constantine’s fellow NSF soldiers, trembled in fear. “Maybe you need a reminder!” Constantine yelled as Waller gasped for air. “Remember years ago? A convoy of ghouls and humans at Monticello? You led a unit of GCU soldiers as you scouted for some raiders and ghouls responsible for some nearby attacks! And what did you do? You unthinkingly opened fire on us! You and your unit! You assumed that we were the ones causing trouble! You MASSACRED most of the people that I knew!”

Constantine finally threw Waller to the floor again with all his might, injuring the sergeant. “You were there? It . . . was an accident, I swear,” Waller groaned. “It’s one of my biggest regrets. I never—”

“Shut. The. F***. UP.” Constantine said emphatically. “Your pathetic excuse for remorse does nothing to bring any of them back!”

Mariah and Valentina despaired at how much both Langston and Waller hid from them. For all their bickering back and forth, it turned out they both had a lot to make up for.

After a stunned moment of silence, Constantine continued. His voice now had a slight quiver to it, which was unexpected coming from a man so intimidating. “My wife. My daughter who had just barely turned 18. My son who was still a young boy. All cut down by the gunfire.” Constantine paused, putting his hand up to his chin to keep it from trembling. “Like many wastelanders, I once thought that ghouls were just monsters. But our old settlement became too irradiated to live in, and my family . . . they took in a severe amount of rads. I saw as the flesh gradually peeled away from their skins. They became ghouls.” Constantine took out some keepsakes from his jacket: his wife’s ring, one of his son’s baseballs, and one of his daughter’s hair buns she used before ghoulification erased most of her hair. “I saw that they were still my family. And that’s when I knew that ghouls were still the same people they were before.”

After another moment of quiet, Constantine then put the keepsakes back in his jacket, continuing his dialogue. “From that point on, I swore that I would find a cure to that horrible condition. To somehow reverse ghoulification. To stop them from becoming feral. To prevent others from experiencing the same pain that I did. I eventually found Davidson. He promised that he and his colleague, Vernon Langston, would cure ghoulification. They had a stake in the game, after all, being ghouls themselves. Davidson proclaimed how he was founding a place for the outcasts. The downtrodden. The people who felt the most hopeless in this hellscape we call the world. Davidson boasted how he would one day build a nation for these people. That this New State of Florida would be what the GCU claimed to be but wasn’t.”

Mariah noticed that Constantine never once gave any sort of deference to Davidson. As afraid as she was to speak, she had to know why. “Why don’t you call him ‘Governor’ Davidson? Aren’t you his right-hand man?”

Constantine looked at the floor, scoffing at the notion. “Perceptive of you to notice something was off. Yes, everyone knows me as Davidson’s aide-de-camp. And for a long time, that was true. But things have changed.” He looked up at Mariah. “I’m tired of it, Mariah. I’ve become disillusioned. All that Davidson promised has been lies. He may seek to harness the powers of ghoulification while eliminating the drawbacks, but it’s all for his own purposes. The deranged bas**** is convinced that he is owed control of the wastes. It’s a long story as to why he thinks that. And honestly, even I don’t know all of it. But I know there is a lot that he has kept to himself. No matter.” Constantine started pacing slowly with his hands behind his back again. “He’ll get his comeuppance. So will Langston here. And Waller. But I’ve got plans for those two.”

“I think you have a lot to answer for, too,” Mariah said, regaining some confidence. Although she felt bad for some of what Constantine had gone through, he was still an enemy and had his own misdeeds he committed. “You aren’t exactly clean, either.”

“You’re not wrong,” Constantine replied. Mariah expected at least some protest from him. “I will make up for my own transgressions. In fact . . . I’ve already started to.”

“What do you mean?”

Constantine gave her a half-smile. “Tell me, Mariah: Did you enjoy your stroll in downtown? Didn’t see too much resistance, did you?”

Mariah’s eyes lit up at his implication. “So, it was because of you! That’s why we ran into so few NSF soldiers. You deliberately set it up so that the NSF would be responding elsewhere, like at the Menendez building, so we could sabotage the comms inhibitors. To loosen Davidson’s grip on the city. You let the Old Guard and Enclave in so they could cause more trouble to strain NSF forces and you could try to cover up the fact that you pulled the strings. You could blame it on sheer numbers of the opposition.”

Constantine nodded. “I can’t take credit for everything, but I take a lot of the responsibility for these outside forces being inside the city. When you can’t get through damn-near impenetrable walls, you must go under them. Though I must give recognition for how it has all worked out to someone else. Multiple people, actually.”

“And who are they?”

“My new employers.” Constantine snapped his fingers at one of his NSF subordinates, who brought him a long black coat that appeared to be a duster. It looked just like the one that Mariah had seen that Blackcoat at Tyndall Air Force Base wearing!

“You’re a Blackcoat, now?!” Mariah exclaimed.

“No, that’s just what everybody else calls them when they don’t know who they are,” Constantine said, waving his right hand at her dismissively. “They have an actual name. Harbingers.”

Finally, they could put a name to these mysterious figures! It would be some measure of relief if it weren’t for Mariah and company’s current predicament. “And who do these Harbingers work for?”

“Come now, Mariah. I can’t tell you everything. But truth be told, I’m still learning a lot about them. Still, they have shown me that there is a better future for these wastes. ‘Harbinger’ is an apt title for them.” Constantine took his jacket off, taking out his deceased family’s keepsakes that were in it and placing it in his new coat as he slipped it on. “Your mayor in New Tallahassee also has dirty secrets, but I believe it’s been a long enough spiel from me.”

The mayor too?! Mariah thought to herself. Something certainly seemed off about him when she and Valentina met him back in New Tallahassee, but she didn’t necessarily suspect something nefarious.

But when Mariah was about to ask the mayor, Constantine quickly cut her off. “I don’t have time to explain everything. I’ve got special plans for Langston. And especially Waller. Mariah and Valentina, on the other hand . . . I won’t kill you, like I will these other two at some point. It seems my new employers are too interested in the two of you to do that. However, I have been told I can do something else. If Langston has even a shred of decency, he probably told you about it already.” Constantine paused as if for dramatic effect. “You’ll be going to the Zoo.”

Mariah gulped at how ominous that sounded. In Pre-War times, that phrase would probably indicate a family-friendly outing. But now it sounded more like a death sentence. Then she remembered the fear Langston felt when he first told them about it. That same fear came bursting forth as Langston finally spoke up. “No! Please, Constantine! Do not put them there! You cannot—”

“Oh, caring about people other than yourself for once, Vernon?” Constantine asked sarcastically. “Too little, too late. You’re going to lead me to Vault 100 before Ezra figures out where it is. In fact, we’re going to pay the ‘governor’ a visit at the Spire. But first, you’ll watch as I torture Waller. Seems that the two of you hate each other judging from him going after you, but you won’t be able to stomach what I’m going to do to him. When all is said and done, I’ll put an end to your miserable existence, too, Vernon.” Constantine then addressed his subordinates. “Tie up the hands of Waller and Langston. Put Mariah and Valentina to sleep. And I suppose their little pet can go with them, too.”

One of the NSF soldiers took out a tranquilizer and shot the quillback, which had started chattering and readying its spines again. The animal then quickly fell asleep. Two other soldiers grabbed Mariah and Valentina and started choking them out. The ladies flailed about to no avail. As they slipped into unconsciousness, the last thing they could hear was their commanding officer futilely yelling at the NSF. “Get the hell away from them! Let them go!” Constantine ended his protests by kicking him in the stomach.

Soon, the darkness set in. When Mariah fell into deeper sleep, she began experiencing a horrific nightmare.

So time for some revelations about Langston. I am not surprised. I mean, I never imagined that he was an angel or anything. I always thought of him as similar to any number of Nazis from Operation Paperclip.

Wow, everything is all tied together I see. Constantine, Langston, and Waller, and what is really going on here underneath it all. So I am guessing the Vault is where they were experimenting on reversing ghoulification. Knowing the Fallout games, I assume that whatever actually happened there would constitute a War Crime today.

So Harbingers? Now that is quite an ominous name.