Capítulo 526: Verti-Fuked
Elijah frowns as he listens to the group go to sleep, it seems as if his initial fears had been realised... That malfunction when the group first met Dean wasn't a malfunction at all. This became apparent when the same thing happened when the group met Christine...
This could mean a few things, but the direst of all the options would be that the signals were blocked while his collars were modified... This would also be the reason why that damned ghoul wasn't afraid of his ire any longer. What was there to fear when the collar was ruined and dog was dead?
Elijah knew it was only a matter of time before the group retreated to their Vertibird and escaped, leaving along with any chance of him gaining the treasure he so desired. Fortunately, he'd considered this eventuality. He sneers to himself as he changes the monitor view to the plaza where the Vertibird had landed, using the controls to fan the Cloud into it.
He watches with rapt attention as the Cloud envelopes the vehicle, and after an hour or so, he allows the Cloud to leave the area. Upon looking at the Vertibird again, he smirks at the rusted, melted, and utterly ruined sight of the Vertibird.
The outside might look potentially repairable, but Elijah knew the machinery and internal components had been completely ruined... It was nothing more than scrap metal shaped like a Vertibird now...
Now that the group had no way to escape, his plans could continue. He may have failed the last time he attempted to breach the Casino due to the unexpected traps laid by it's former owner, but now he knew what was needed.
Elsewhere :
The next day Afton's eyes flutter open as he awakens from his sleep, his gaze immediately looking towards the barricade that had gone unmolested during the night. He releases a sigh at the fact everyone was still alive and well before getting to his feet.
He glances at Christine, Veronica, and Anja who were still sleeping somewhat peacefully, somewhat due to Christine's occasional shudders and twitches. He checks the time with his Pipboy and finds that it's around 9AM... He hadn't checked what time it was yesterday, but this was probably a good time to get moving.
He claps his hands, his gauntlets clinking and ringing out, awakening the group... Dean shudders with a start, immediately pointing his revolver at Afton before lowering it once he realises where he was.
It takes around ten minutes for everyone to get ready to move, Christine equipping her assassins armour that they'd found yesterday. Veronica had helped wipe the blood from her face, yet she still looked terrible. Her bald head covered in so many scars that it'd be a wonder if she was able to grow any hair at all.
Regardless, they could try and heal her once they escaped the Sierra Madre... Afton was somewhat curious about what the treasure was, but he'd rather get out and save Christine than potentially lose her looking for Elijah and the treasure.
Veronica gave Christine her Plasma pistol as the group starting backtracking through the Medical District, Veronica still assisting Anja due to her blindness.
"Alright, we're heading back to the fountain where we landed... I don't want to stay long enough for Elijah to trap us or fuck us-" Afton starts, but is stopped when Christine claps her hand to get his attention and rapidly shakes her head.
...
"You don't want to leave?" Afton questions with a raised brow.
Christine nods, dragging her thumb across her neck while gesturing at the collar, indicating that she still wanted to kill Elijah.
Afton sighs, "We can always come back, right now the most important thing is to make sure you're safe. I think Veronica will agree that your vendetta can wait, one we're home we can outfit you in the best equipment we have, we'll even come with you to hunt Elijah." he states, but his words don't seem to convince her much.
Veronica grabs Christine's shoulder, "Look, we know that you want revenge, we do too, but running in headfirst will get you and all of us hurt. Do you want to make getting Anja treatment harder just for Elijah!? Is he really worth that much?"
...
Christine looks down at the floor, her hand trailing along her throat as her expression gradually changes to one of hate and rage. She nods adamantly, twirling the plasma pistol on her finger, ready to fight.
Afton upon seeing this releases a long sigh, he's about to speak but Anja starts first, "Sir, don't mind me... I can wait, if Christine feels like Elijah is a bigger priority then I can wait..." she says, a small smile on her lips.
Christine upon hearing this looks surprised, her eyes wide as her top lip quivers slightly... She looks to the floor once again before looking to Afton, shaking her head and gesturing at Anja.
"Er, does that mean you want to leave or kill Elijah? For the latter nod twice." he says, confused at her meaning.
Christine shakes her head and nods once, meaning she wants to leave, a dramatic change compared to her earlier intentions. Seems like Anja's heartfelt words had reached her... Huh, and Afton thought he was the one with maxed out Speech...
Dean shrugs, "Looks like you're leaving." he states, continuing to lead the group back outside the Medical District and towards the plaza where they landed.
The group cautiously makes their way over the rooftops, eventually reaching the plaza where they'd landed the Vertibird... Unfortunately, despite the lack of Ghosts, something seems to have happened to the Vertibird...
Afton facepalms with a hand resting against his helmet, "The Cloud... The Cloud fucked my Vertibird! I hadn't even named it and it still got destroyed! What the fuck!!" he exclaims, wondering why the world hated his vehicles so much. Maybe he should name the next vehicle 'Definitely Going to Die-Bird', maybe then it'd be spared from the world's wrath.
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Capítulo 527: Trap yet sprung
"*Bzztch!* Hm, seems like the Cloud caught you off guard like it has so many others." Elijah's voice states from Christine's collar. Christine herself immediately tenses at this and furiously glares down at it, as if she were mentally commanding it and him to explode.
Dean chuckles at this, "Yes, how strange considering you have control of the town's systems right now... Let me guess, trying for round two?" he asks, sneering with crossed arms.
"Round two?" Afton questions, having already expected Elijah to be responsible for his ruined vehicle... Though, there was a small chance of using [Mechanicus] to fix it... Still, that would reveal his supernatural abilities to everyone here, included Elijah... Who knows what that man would try to do if that was revealed.
Dean shrugs, "It means, the old man wants to try and breach the Casino again."
"The Ghoul is correct... The only way to get out of the Sierra Madre is to gain control of the Casino, and more importantly, the systems held inside..." Elijah's gruff voice explains.
Afton frowns, "And what stops you from lying to us? For all we know, the key to our escape is out here amongst the town... Maybe where you're currently located?"
Elijah chuckles through the radio, "Believe what you want, but if you ever wish to leave this place, YOU'LL LISTEN. Now, do we all understand each other?"
The group glances at one another (excluded Anja for obvious reasons), looking to see if anyone had a better plan than simply following what Elijah says... Unfortunately, simply walking out of the Sierra Madre isn't possible with the Cloud blocking all possible pathways.
"Good. As you all know, I've been in this place for a while now, and have slowly been unlocking the secrets to this place... The door is the Casino, but finding the key is the hard part. The Casino's security systems are on almost permanent lockdown, reinforced doors, windows, and walls that even Mini-Nukes wouldn't be able to breach, and those are just the defensive measures...
Offensively, the Casino is fitted with thousands of auto-turrets, from machine guns, laser fire, and even missile turrets. That's just the beginning of it however, thousands of Holograms patrol the outskirts, vaporizing anything that steps anywhere near the Casino's boundaries...
The only way to destroy the Holograms is to destroy their emitters... Unfortunately, their emitters are protected by a sort of Forcefield, one no doubt provided by those creatures at Big Mt." Elijah lists off the various defences, the group's eyes all going wide at the picture Elijah just verbally painted.
For all intents and purpose, it sounded impenetrable, and if you add the everpresent Cloud to all the defences he'd listed off, not even the Brotherhood of Steel's headquarters could even match up to it. If what Elijah said was true, it was probably the most well-protected thing in the entire world, nothing even came close to it.
Afton scowls, "And do you want us to break in somehow? Yeah, fat chance!" he scoffs at the man.
Elijah growls over the radio, "I said LISTEN... Fortunately for you all, the Sierra Madre wasn't built to be a fortress, but a Casino... This means there's an avenue of entry, though, this one is only possible due to the Great War occurring on its opening day." he explains.
"The Gala Event." Dean states.
"Indeed." Elijah grouses, "The grand opening event. Once started the doors to the casino swing open, the Holograms are set on passive, and the automated defences are temporarily turned off. Access to most of the Casino's rooms, halls, and apartments are granted to all who enter. Though, some people of interest still hold higher permissions..." he trails off ambiguously.
"And I suppose we need to open it?" Afton asks, feeling like they were playing to Elijah's tune.
"Correct. For more information on your tasks, speak with the Ghoul, he's done this once before after all.*Bzztch*" Elijah states before turning off the modulator.
The group all look at Dean with appraising looks, wondering whether or not the Ghoul had more secrets that he wasn't telling them. Clearly he hated Elijah, and the collar around his neck made it obvious that he wasn't his ally, but that didn't mean he was their ally either.
Dean just limply shakes his head at their suspicious gazes, "Before you ask, yes, I've been trying to get the Sierra Madre treasure for many, many years. And no, I've never willingly worked with HIM."
"Didn't stop you from failing to tell us about this..." Veronica sniffs, Christine slowly nodding her head in agreement.
Dean shrugs, "What do you want from me? My life story? All you need to know is that I've spent two hundred years trying to claim the treasure of the Sierra Madre, obviously, with not much success... To think it took a madman with explosive collars to crack the first layer, only to fail on the second." he chuckles with a hand over his face, clearly resenting that fact.
"Alright, enough of this... What do we need to do to trigger the Gala? I know we don't all trust Elijah, but I think getting inside the Casino is probably the best place to start looking for an exit..." Afton says, not mentioning his intentions to find whatever system controls the Cloud.
"Well, there are four components to it that need to be attended... Puesta del Sol Switching station needs someone versed in technology to reroute the power elsewhere.
The south of Puesta del Sol has a damaged cable which would require repair or.... Someone to connect the circuit with their own bodies... I wouldn't recommend this one lightly." he states with a shiver before continuing.
"The south of Salida del Sol has a fenced off switching station, from what I remember, the switches are heavily rusted and corroded, meaning we someone with immense strength to operate it." Dean says, sending glances at Afton and Veronica.
"Last but certainly not least, the actual activation switch which sits in the most dangerous part of the Sierra Madre by far... The north of Salida del Sol, the switch itself is atop the belltower, but getting there in the first place is the hardest part... That should be everything unless something else has been damaged since the last event." Dean explains.
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