章 474: Invisible Air-Strike
"Now, I would shake your hand, but you're still covered in muck, so let's just make it a verbal agreement." Afton says as he stands.
Terrence can only give a polite, yet restrained smile at this, all the while thinking 'Who do you think is the reason for that!'
A few hours later :
Tamia, Veronica, and Anja had all returned to Big Mt to report the new task the former had received from House. This might be a faux pas in House's eyes, reporting his dealings to an outside party, but what did he expect? Tamia wasn't going to take her chances while trying to run through a literal artillery strike.
They'd been waiting around and resting while waiting for Afton to return, which he does a few hours after they received the task. As soon as Afton teleports in they quickly approach him, "Afton! The big man has decided to send Tamia to her death again!" Veronica greets, her words sounding sarcastic but accurately describing the task regardless.
Afton raises a brow, "Again? Let me guess, he wants you to attack Black Mountain in your underwear with a butter knife?"
Veronica smirks, "Kinky, but wrong. He wants her to run head-on towards Artillery fire without retaliating, and to ally with the group that'd been shooting as if they hadn't just tried to kill her." she quickly explains.
...
Afton crosses his arms, "I think I'd take my chances one Black Mountain..."
Tamia shrugs with a frown, still thinking on how to accomplish House's task, "Sounds like you just wanna see us run up Black Mountain naked. Also hoping to see a Super Mutant bukake while you're at it?"
"Okay, gross, first of all. And I'm pretty sure Super Mutants are impotent, so, whatever dreams you've had are impossible." he retorts getting a laugh from Veronica before continuing, "I'm guessing this has something to do with the Boomers then?"
Tamia nods while ignoring the anger induced flush of her cheeks, "Apparently they're almost able to bombard New Vegas as it is... That's kinda scary when you think about it."
"Huh... I honestly didn't think they had big enough guns for that..." he mutters.
Tamia sighs, "So, you got any advice for us? I'm not really sure how we're going to get through their artillery strikes... Maybe if we took some Power armour, Mmm, but then I'd need to learn how to use it... Maybe we could sneak up before they notice us?"
"Maybe we should hold up a massive white flag while approaching." Veronica adds, which honestly doesn't sound like all that bad an idea... Surely the Boomers wouldn't fire on surrendered targets?
Afton though just has a smug look on his face as the duo + silent ghoul discuss their options. Tamia eventually notices as her eye begins twitching at him in annoyance, "You got something to say?"
He nods, "You guys seem to forget where you are... Just think for a moment, if you had access to most technology, what would easily allow you to bypass the airstrikes?"
...
...
"Err, teleportation?" Veronica guesses.
Afton just shakes his head, "That'd require getting me or Dogmeat close enough to get the coordinates. Guess again."
...
...
"Run fast?" Tamia asks with no confidence to speak of.
"The answer is Stealth Boys, you brainless women!" he says while palming his face, ignoring their pointed glares at the mention of their gender, "They cannot bombard what they can't see... Use Stealth Boys to approach, and become visible when you approach their gates, then the Boomers would either be forced to fight you head-on, which would be stupid considering most of their weapons are highly destructive, or they would allow you to talk."
...
"Oh yeah..." Veronica mutters, wondering if she'd lost brain cells out in the desert. Maybe all that time spent in the sun was finally getting to her?
Afton just shakes his head at his sisters seemingly diminished intelligence and turns around, "Glados, how has the reconstruction of Stealth Boys been going?"
Glados's body pops out of the Think Tank wall as she goes to reply, "We have five operational Stealth Boys, but research on alternative power sources, increased battery capacity, and decreasing the overall size of the device has been nominal. I would suggest diverting attention from other projects if you wish for any meaningful progress." she quickly explains.
Afton scratches his cheek, "Yeah, don't do that. Stealth Boys are cool and effective, but not more important than robot armies, Power armour, and the other things in the works."
"Robot armies?" Tamia and Veronica simultaneously ask.
"Ah, ignore that for now..." Afton waves them off before diverting the conversation, "Could you retrieve the three Stealth Boys please?"
Glados nods her body and disappears, a minute later Spiderbots flood out of the Think Tank with three devices on their backs. Afton picks them up and passes them to the trio, "Remember, they're currently single use."
"Wait, didn't Glados say there were four Stealth Boys? Shouldn't we take another person then?" Veronica asks.
Tamia answers before Afton can, "The Boomers are an isolated group and clearly very trigger happy... Taking too many people could start a fight, something we're hoping to avoid, remember?"
Afton nods, "See, at least someone's thinking in this group... No offence Anja."
The ghouls shakes her head, "None taken, Sir."
Veronica on the other hand pouts, "I'm thinking, but someone's gotta play devil's advocate..."
"Whatever you say, sis... Now, you guys better get prepared, I got a mission myself I need to attend to." Afton says, but feels the need to explain due to the group's inquisitive looks, "The Van Graffs are having a 'vigilante' problem, and are willing to reward whoever solves it with some sexy gear. I'll probably be done by tomorrow, if not sooner." he says, giving a small wave as he goes to see how the repairs on his Power armour are going.
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章 475: Scorpion-What now?
Afton's Power armour had basically been totalled when the EMP had caused it to malfunction. Though, this was more due to him forcefully breaking the servos to manually move it than anything else.
Fortunately, Klein and Mobius had been working overtime to get it back up and running. Though they had been wanting some more time to test EMP shielding and a number of coolant systems, he and Veronica had both been hit a number of times by Flame throwers while fighting the Legion, this had melted some of the electronics under the Saturnite plating. This was apparently incredibly annoying to repair, primarily due to the sheer strength of Saturnite.
Afton didn't want to head into Freeside without his armour though, the NCR still had a massive presence and he wasn't willing to risk getting trapped in an ambush. Sure, he might be able to avoid or even fight his way out of it, but why risk it?
He was tempted to wait until they found some way to protect the armour against EMP attacks as the NCR would no doubt attempt it, but he wanted to catch this 'vigilante' before things got too hot and they moved somewhere else.
Soon enough, he'd gotten fully geared up, with repaired Bulwark Power Armour, Energy Weapons, Anti-Material Rifle strapped to his back, and his new Ultra Chainsword which hung intimidatingly at his side... While it might not provide many more advantages than the Proton axe due to his various Perks, that wouldn't stop him swinging it around like a maniac Space Marine.
He makes sure to wear the large Deathclaw leather duster to stop people from instantly recognising the Power armour, even if it's a temporary tactic.
Of course, the ensemble wouldn't be complete without the new Bulwark logo stamped across one side of the chest plate. Once everything was done, Afton left and teleported a good distance from New Vegas to prevent large groups of people from spotting the lightning. The last thing he needed was people realising just how their teleportation actually functioned.
It was around midday now, so the sun was still high in the sky as he marched towards the North gates of Freeside. As always, there was a small group of Kings watching the entrance with bored looks... That is, until they spotted Afton approaching them.
"What in the-HOooly jesus, do you boy's see that thang comin' right on here?" the leader mutters, his hand reaching for the revolver at his side.
Afton can only chuckle at their reaction... These guys had seen him come passed many times, once on Dirt-Bird, once on Dirt-Hog, and now in Power armour... Hmm, that reminds him, he wonders how the excavation is going for his next vehicle. He'd sent a number of robots to the vague area he remembered it being, but that didn't mean everything would go completely ok...
"Boy, you better stop where you are, don't come any closer or we'll pop a cap in your shiny ass." the king threatens, but the others in his group look ready to run should shit hit the fan.
Afton just shrugs his shoulders, causing a rough clanking sound to reach them as he begins speaking, "You guys don't recognise me? It's Afton." he states.
This quickly calms them, the King's relationship with the NCR had been steadily degrading since they basically declared war on him... After the 'terrorist' attack that the NCR hadn't been able to link to him it hadn't gotten any better, but it must be remembered that Afton was the one to first help the two groups at reconciling.
He makes small talk with them as they joke and bluster about his armour, but eventually he gets to what he wanted to ask. "So, what's this I hear about 'Vigilante' around here?"
"Oh, you mean that guy? I dunno where he came from, but I ain't ever seen anything like it. He crawls on walls like an insect and can punch men clear through concrete walls..."
...
Afton raises a brow as he hears the vigilante's description, he thought he might've misheard them, but when they repeat themselves he feels like the world is folding in on itself... "Hey... Do you know what he calls himself?"
The King nods, "Yeah, guy's a weirdo calling himself 'Scorpion-Man'."
Afton scoffs but holds his mouth to block the nervous laughter threatening to escape, "S-Scorpion-Man? He doesn't run around in a skintight red and blue suit, right?"
The man shrugs, "No, nothing so stupid... He wears yellow and green body armour with a mask though."
Afton stops himself from facepalming and releases a long sigh, "Alright, I'm gonna try and meet this guy, know where he operates?"
"The boys say he's been beatin' thugs in the Northeastern slums... Might just be rumours though."
Afton nods, "Anything I should know before I head out? He ain't gonna magically shoot a scorpion tail outta his ass or something?"
The King shakes his head, "I never heard him do anything like that... I'd be careful though, must be callin' himself Scorpion-Man for some reason."
Afton leaves the Kings, easily pushing the gate open with his Power armour reinforced strength before stepping into Freeside... Obviously, his presence draws everyone's attention, even the few patrolling NCR soldiers, but no one dares impede his path, no doubt rumours of what went down in the Fort had reached even here.
He pulls up the large hood on his leather duster and heads straight for the slums. Due to the time of day, not many 'thugs' are out and about, but just because their numbers are lower than usual doesn't mean they've disappeared.
He walks around the slums a couple times, his eyes peeled for any movement, but doesn't spot his target... Either he's being avoided, or the Spider-man knockoff has no reason to reveal himself. Afton was honestly betting on the latter, meaning he'd need to make a reason.
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Niggross
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