บท 359: Sabotage the Saboteur!
Time seemed to slow as he watched the perpetrator attach the package to the underside of the truck... He honestly couldn't care if the truck was destroyed. The loss of the truck would be a massive blow to the NCR, for their overall resources as well as their morale.
The disruption to the supply line would also be incredibly effective in allowing a Legion ambush to successfully tackle them further down the road. Depending on how powerful the explosion is. the entire convoy may be forced to stop, allowing Legionaries to potentially destroy or capture the trucks and resources they hold...
But, that isn't what Afton is concerned about... No. The thing that worried him the most was his seeming 'Double-Agent' status among both sides of the war. The NCR had no idea he working with the Legion, but once they found out they'd probably do their utmost to assassinate him...
If the NCR found out that he had ties with the Legion, and was also present when a bomb was planted on the convoy, fingers would not doubt be pointed at him... If he stopped them though, he could simply say that he was 'their' double-agent, working to gather information and stop Legion plots.
Of course, stopping the sabotage attempt would have many repercussions with his 'handlers' in the Legion. He knew he was in a disadvantaged position due to the information they were holding over his head, and any sign of resistance may just lead to them resorting to drastic measures...
...
He rubs his face, damn. When did this shit get so complicated?...
He has no idea how he wants to go about this, but... Perhaps he could find a solution that'd leave him in the clear? Yeah...
Afton gestures at the truck in the lead, "Man, I wonder where that scuff on its bumper comes from."
"The what!?" Josie exclaims, quickly marching over to examine it as Afton excuses himself.
He briskly walks over to the sabotouer and pats him on the shoulder, causing the man to whip around with a hand resting on his holster, "C-can I do something for you?" he quickly asks in surprise, no doubt wondering if he'd blown his cover.
Despite it still being up in the air as to who the man's loyalties lied with, Afton was almost entirely sure it was the Legion... So, Afton flashes the strange coin with a cross on it. Afton suspiciously looks around before quietly saying "Ave, true to Caesar."
The man blinks at him in surprise before quickly nodding and reciprocated, "Ave, true to Caesar... Who sent you? I was not told I would have assistance during my briefing." he asks.
Afton nods, "Of course you wouldn't, if you were captured my duties would be in jeopardy. Is your task complete?"
The man nods, "It is, as long as their route remains the same, our men should be in position. It will be a devastating blow to our enemies."
"I see, quickly, come with me, my task has encountered some.. Interference." Afton says as he briskly walks away from the convoy, behind a building in a location almost no one seems to visit.
The spy stops and looks at him expectantly, so who was Afton to leave a man hanging... Afton bends down to tie his shoes and draws a knife from the boot, immediately lunging forwards and stabbing the man in the throat, abruptly cutting off the scream in his throat.
He gurgles and tries to push Afton off, but his strength doesn't match even half of Afton's. After a couple more seconds of squirming, the man drops dead and Afton gently lowers his body to the floor, wouldn't be good for someone to hear it and discover the body.
Afton wasn't really sure what to do with the body, burying it would take far too long, people would notice if he burned it, and leaving it here would allow it to be noticed eventually... He shakes his head, whatever, as long as no one links the man's death with himself then there was nothing to worry about.
All that needed doing now was removing the bomb planted under the truck. Fortunately, that would be the easiest part of all this... He activates the Stealthboy and quickly makes his way to the truck, reaching under and disconnecting the bomb and retreating to the toilets before anyone was the wiser.
Once inside he deactivates the Stealthboy and begins examining the bomb, his Max level Explosives Skill allowing him to quickly figure it out. Obviously, the bomb was some kind of plastic explosive, most likely C4. If this amount had been left under the truck, it may have destroyed more than jus the single truck it'd been planted on...
The amount of C4 he currently held in his hand was enough to level a large building if placed correctly. He was quickly able to deactivate the timer mechanism attached to it as well, leaving him with a large amount of usable C4... He wasn't really sure what he'd end up doing with it, but it was better to have it than to not!
Once he double-checks that it isn't activated, he stows it away in his backpack and leaves the bathroom, arriving back where Josie was 'coddling' the truck.
"How's that scuff looking?" he asks from behind her with crossed arms.
"Which one... They're all covered in them! It's as if they're not taking care of them!" she exclaims, apparently having not noticed his momentary absence.
In the end, Jackson lets the Ranger leading the convoy know about the Long 15 having been cleared, but they made sure to radio into Camp McCarren to confirm this... A couple hours later, and everything was checked, allowing the group to travel north and not worry about Legion ambushes.
The convoy leaves and Jackson profusely thanks the group for their services towards the NCR. He even attempts to get them to stay longer, but Afton didn't pay any mind to it. He'd rather get moving before the NCR could discover the spy's corpse, any links between it and them wouldn't be a welcome one.
Most would say that they were walking away with nothing, but that isn't neccecarily true... Atleast, not for Afton.
[NCR Rep gained!]
[NCR Rep : Liked]
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Niggross Hope you bois liked the chap, if I missed anything please let me know. Thanks!
บท 360: Back at it again with the red assassination...?
When all was said and done the group departed from the Mojave Outpost the day after the convoy arrived and left. They headed directly east towards the ruins of Nipton, the town that'd been destroyed by the Legion months ago.
They walk through the now void of life salt-lake and spot the destroyed town... Afton thought that people might have started migrating to settle there now that the roads were cleared, but apparently not. It was still as empty and desolate as when the Legionaries first arrived.
The group passes through uneventfully and eventually reach Camp Searchlight. The green fog that used to pervade the place had thinned out slightly, this is most likely due to Afton and Karl closing the container of radioactive waste when they first arrived.
They continued to walk towards the camp and eventually spotted Sgt Astor. The man seemed surprised to see them, but happy nonetheless, even if the bags under his eyes gave him a tired and miserable look.
Afton and Karl greet the man, and he warmly reciprocates. The Smalltalk lasts for a couple minutes until the Sgt gets to the crux of the issue...
"Yeah... To be honest, I don't know if you guys stopping the source of the radiation is a good thing or not..." Astor admits, rubbing his eyes tiredly.
Afton raises a brow at this, wondering why clearing radiation would ever be a bad thing. "What do you mean?"
Astor sighs and leads the group inside a military tent, gesturing at the map of the local area. It had many dark coloured pebbles stationed around a pencil-drawn circle which indicated the irradiated zone of Camp Searchlight. "Each of these pebbles signals a squad of legionaries... We've received reports that they're getting more aggressive north of here, and might be looking to pass through nearby us."
"And you think once they realise the radiation is fading, they'll send a full force before the NCR can send reinforcements?" Karl asks.
Astor gives a grim nod, "That's exactly the situation we're looking at. I'm sure you guys know how thin our forces are already spread, the only reason me and my men have survived this long near their main encampment west of the Colorado is because of the radiation. Once they notice the fog is clearing, I don't think there'll be anything we can do to stop them." he explains.
Karl nods, "If they breakthrough here, they'd be able to attack the Mojave Outpost and flank the other positions North of here... It'd be a massacre, I reckon the NCR would have to give up the Dam and converge in Camp McCarren to hold onto the Mojave..."
"Isn't there something we can do?" Josie asks, not looking happy with the situation at all.
Boone shrugs and looks to Astor, "You hear about what me and Afton did in Nelson a few months ago?"
Astor thinks for a moment before chuckling slightly, "That was you? Good on ya'."
Boone nods noncomittally and continues, "Well, I don't see why we can't do the same here." he says, prodding a finger at the Legion positions.
Karl grunts, "I don't know if that's a good idea... You know better than most just how many Legionaries are down in Cottonwood Cove. I don't know if we are ready to take on numbers like that yet, though, I'd be willing to try..." he looks to Afton, "In the end, it's up to you kid... You haven't led us wrong yet."
Afton frowns in thought and leans against the desk, thinking what they should do... If they did this, he'd have to assassinate his target not long after, otherwise once the Legion learned of his actions they'd 'cut him loose'.
The actual task itself wouldn't be all that difficult, they had the equipment for it, the opportunity of surprise, and the skills to make use of it. Though, even if they got rid of the squads, the Legion would eventually send more... Doing this would only delay the conflict slightly, and that's only ignoring the many other strategies the Legion could potentially use.
"I think we might be able to do it... Under one condition." he eventually says, looking to Astor who straightens up as if he was being addressed by his superior.
"Yes?"
"I want you to claim responsibility for clearing the squads away... I don't want our names to be attached to it, it'd make our lives significantly more difficult that it has to be. Can you do that for me?" Afton asks, sending a hard look at Astor to show just how serious he was.
Astor quickly nods after processing the information, "That's fine... I'll make sure my men are aware of this as well, no mention of your name will leave our lips, you have my word."
Afton shakes his head, nothing could be hidden forever, especially a secret as big as this that's known by so many people. Someone is bound to slip up... But hopefully he'd be ready for it when it's brought to light. "Alright. We'll do it." he says, turning around and looking at his companions, "Me, Boone, Anja, and ED-E will go deal with the squads. Karl, Josie, and Dog-meat will scout around the area to make sure we won't miss anyone. That good with you guys?"
They all nod in affirmation, and he continues, "I'll just say this outright, take no prisoners and let no one escape. People cannot know we were here... I'll leave what to do with any hostages or slaves to your discretion..." he says meaningfully, though, Josie is the only one who seems a little put off by his last order.
She was the newest member of the group (aside from ED-E but he didn't count), so she'd not experienced just how brutal the jobs could sometimes be... She honestly wasn't sure if she could make herself execute an innocent person like Afton was not so subtly suggesting...
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