Once both emissaries had left Tamia slumps her shoulders and finally walks towards the group, tossing the large bag of caps on the ground as she sits on a nearby step, holding her head in her hands, "Urgh, when did shit get so complicated?"
"Oh, I don't know... Maybe when you stepped into an ancient casino with an equally ancient supposedly immortal businessman?" Veronica retorts.
"Well, when you put it like that, everything would convoluted!" Tamia exclaims, a slight smile on her face.
Afton leans forwards, interjecting himself into the conversation, "So, what did House want?"
...
"Tamia?" he asks again after not receiving an answer.
"Urgghhh. It's complicated... I may or may not have entered a partnership with House." she sheepishly explains.
Afton raises a brow, "Like romantically? I didn't think you were into that... What do you call the opposite of a Couger?" he jokes, laughing at the disgusted look on her face.
"You know what I mean." she pauses, "Look, I'd rather not talk about this in public. I'm honestly still comprehending the conversation, not gonna lie."
"We can talk in the truck then... At least there we won't risk being overheard." Afton states, getting up and picking up his own sack of caps.
The rest of the group nod and follow along as they walk back to Dirt-Hog, occasionally getting glared at by the NCR military police who were involved in the massacre clean up. The Securitrons at the gate seem to defer to Tamia as they group pass, giving Afton a good idea about what'd actually gone down...
Once the group get back, they're greeted by Anja, who gets out of Dirt-Hog which was, again, surrounded by bodies...
"This shit never gets old, huh?" Afton mutters, giving one of the bullet-ridden corpses a nudge with his foot.
"To be fair, this thing is literally like a pile of gold just sitting around alone unguarded... Even if there were bodies scattered around it, a few would still be willing to risk it." Josie adds.
Afton just shakes his head, "Whatever, everyone get in the truck, it's gonna be a little cramped but we need to discuss shit." he states, climbing in the back of Dirt-Hog, followed by everyone else. As he said earlier, it was a little cramped, especially with Dog-meat and ED-E sitting in there with everyone else.
Before Tamia can discuss what'd happened in the Lucky 38 though, Afton speaks first.
"Alright. So before we talk about what you and House had said, I need to tell you and Veronica our plans for the future. This is non-negotiable, and I want you to know before you get involved in shit you don't want to. Cool?" he asks but no one responds.
Afton just nods at the silence, "Cool. Alright, we are planning on breaking into, sieging, or whatever method comes easiest into the Fort-"
"The fuck? Are you trying to kill yourself, Afton?" Veronica suddenly asks, her brows almost reaching her hairline at the incredibly stupid goal he'd just presented... What's worse is the fact no one else seemed even slightly bothered by it, as if they'd known about it all along. Tamia herself was simply gaping at Afton as if he'd explained the meaning of life itself.
"Veronica, just shut for a minute while I explain, alright?... We aren't just trying to break into the Fort for jollies or a prank. We are doing it to find Karl's daughter, an ex-NCR soldier who'd been captured by them. I promised him I'd help when we first met, and I intend to fulfil it. If you two have a problem with it, you can forget about this conversation and part ways... Though, if you ghost me again Veronica we're gonna have problems." he states, semi-sarcastically.
Veronica just looks at Tamia, wondering why her friend looked as if she was considering this... "Don't tell me-"
"I'm in." Tamia states.
...
Afton releases a breath, "Huh, I thought I'd need to persuade you a little more, but, whatever works I guess." he shrugs.
Karl looks at Tamia, "I'm not a guy who'd usually say this, but... Thank you." he says, and everyone there is surprised by the sheer sincerity in his voice.
Tamia blushes slightly, "Don't mention it... Oh, perk up Veronica, this actually helps with what House asked me to do." he says, causing everyone to sit up straight, wanting to hear what a supposedly immortal man wanted with her.
"House wanted this." She says, showing the Platinum Chip, "And he wants me to infiltrate the Fort and use it in an underground facility directly below it..."
...
Afton slaps his knee and bursts into laughter, quickly followed by Karl who also for some reason finds this situation hilarious. "What a fuckin' coincidence eh? Man! I thought you were gonna say the old fart wanting to rule the world or something!" Afton exclaims.
...
The laughter slowly peters out as Tamia stays silent and looks away...
"He isn't trying to conquer the world, right?" Afton asks after a moment...
"Err... I mean, he is, technically? But he explained everything really well and convinced me." Tamia sheepishly says before shrugging.
...
"Huh, what'd he say to convince you?" Veronica asks, knowing Tamia to be a rational enough person to not be persuaded by false promises or outright lies.
"Well, we spoke about the wasteland, prewar, and the future... And basically dismantled everything the big three factions actually stand for. I've never felt more against the NCR, Legion, and Brotherhood than I have now..." she admits, getting weird looks for a few in the group.
"You sure he ain't lying?" Boone asks, Josie nodding in agreement.
Tamia shakes her head, "I'm not really sure, but I believe him. You don't live for two hundred years and become the richest man in the wasteland for nothing. I think you guys would have to speak to him yourselves if you wanted to understand his goals..."
...
Afton just shrugs, "Whatever he wants, I don't really care right now. All that matters is that our goals align for the time being, once we start disagreeing, then we can try and sort out our problems."
Hope you bois liked the chap, if I missed anything please let me know. Thanks!
If you like my content or want to read ahead please go to https://www.p.atreon.com/Nagross, I'd appreciate it.
Also, thanks to my patrons for their support :
Joseph Suh
Chris Lindsey
With everyone in the group now aware of some of their future plans, it was now time to start preparations in actually infiltrating the Fort. Tamia had explained that she had been given permission to use as many caps as she needs to complete the task, making Afton almost fall unconscious with uproarious laughter.
It was perfect. They now basically had infinite funds to do something they were already going to do... Man, things were seriously 'Coming up Afton!'.
Now with the 'go ahead', Afton intended to make full use of their new expendable funds. First off heading to Doctor Usanagi's clinic. Once there the group basically bought all stock of her implants. Sure, the doctor was surprised, but as far as she was concerned, the purchase of all available implants would literally fund one hundred years of research...
Afton's body was durable enough to take some more implants so he finished his set, buying Intelligence, Charisma, and Luck implants to boost his stats.
[Perk granted : "Empathy Synthesizer" Charisma Implant]
[Charisma Implant] : +1 Charisma
[Perk granted : "Logic Co-Processor" Intelligence Implant]
[Intelligence Implant] : +1 Intelligence.
[Perk granted : "Probability Calculator" Luck Implant]
[Luck Implant] : +1 Luck]
[For enhancing all of your stats with technology, Perk granted : The Cyber Punk]
[The Cyber Punk] : You know your way around tech, especially when it's surgically implanted into your body... Stops your body from rejecting implants, and boosts your effectiveness when using active ones.
The Perk appears in his peripheral vision and has a Cybernetic-looking Vaultboy sitting on it in the corner... Though, the Vaultboy itself seems to be glitching out for some reason... A bad omen perhaps?
Afton wasn't really sure what to make out of his new Perk, he'd never actually considered the chance of implants being rejected by his body... But, since he didn't have to worry about that now, maybe he should look into getting some more.
Regardless, he 'persuaded' most of his group to get implants, even if there was the potential of their bodies rejecting them. Though, the only one he made sure they receive was the "PHOENIX" Monocyte Breeder, an Implant that allows the body to heal significantly faster than it usually would.
Of course, Afton didn't bother getting that Implant as his body was already far, far more effective at healing. That, and he wanted to leave room in his already tech-filled body for a different, more effective implant should it come up.
In addition to the healing implant, Karl got the Agility and Endurance ones. Though, Afton was sure the latter was more to help his sore back...
Boone got a Perception and Agility Implant, but ended up rejecting the latter, forcing Usanagi to remove it or risk infection, and a litany of other health defects.
Josie got an Intelligence and Endurance Implant, getting lucky and keeping both.
Veronica tried to get Strength, Endurance, Agility, and Intelligence, but her body rejected the latter, forcing the Doctor to remove it... Though, three Implants was the best result (aside from himself) they'd seen so far.
Tamia herself tried to get all the stat Implants, same as Afton, but her body rejected Agility, Intelligence, and Perception. Allowing her to keep Strength, Endurance, Perception, Charisma, and Luck... Still, Mr House had to foot the cost of all the rejected Implants as they were rendered useless afterwards...
Afton was glad he didn't have to speak to the man, otherwise he might feel guilty about taking advantage of his offer to Tamia... But he'd get over it pretty quick, so, 'meh?'
At the point, everyone had gotten Implants apart from Anja... But there was a good reason for this, in Doctor Usanagi's words, 'I have no idea if Implants would even work on a Ghoul'...
Yeah, apparently their anatomy was similar, yet different enough for the Implants to have an affect, but not necessarily the one you want. Regardless, the group paid for Anja to receive the Endurance Implant, and Usanagi was willing to sell it to them for half-price due to her professional interest in seeing what'd actually happen.
The operation was relatively quick, but afterwards everyone realised they needed to remove the Implant almost immediately... Anja wouldn't stop screaming until the tech was removed, but no one knew why she reacted like that.
Regardless, it seemed like Anja was the only one who wouldn't receive an Implant out of the group. It wasn't 'too bad', but it was still a bummer for the Ghoul, who felt that she'd be more useless than she was before.
Once the group had finished at Doctor Usanagi's clinic, they moved on and headed towards the Gun Runners to stock up their equipment... Veronica and Tamia needed a complete set of equipment.
Afton's group were already kitted out with their preferred gear, so that didn't really need to be changed. They had good weaponry and good armour for their desired role... Though, once Veronica spotted the heavy reinforced combat armour Afton wanted her to wear, she immediately rejected it.
"I am NOT wearing that!"
Afton just raises a brow and sighs exasperatedly, "Why not? You wanna die from some puny 9mm round or something?"
Veronica just shakes her head, "No, but if I wanted to walk around all day in sweaty, heavy armour, I'd grab some Power armour!"
...
"You have some Power armour to use?" he asks, suddenly very interested.
Veronica just shrugs and nods, "There's a safehouse North East of New Vegas that should have a spare set... It's barely used, and I doubt the Paladin that maintains it would mind too much..."
Afton's face breaks into a huge grin as he hugs her, "Veronica! You've made my day!" he exclaims, tossing her up in the air as if she were a small child.
"Wait! Let me down! Afton, stop!" she yelps but can't stop herself from giggling at the intimate byplay. Of course, the rest of the group and the Gun Runner Vendertron watch this all occur with dull or amused looks.
Hope you bois liked the chap, if I missed anything please let me know. Thanks!
Also, thanks to my patrons for their support :
Joseph Suh
Chris Lindsey
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