บท 488: Loyal's Loyalty
For Tamia and the gang in Nellis Airfield, time was quickly passing by. They'd been making good progress getting acquainted with the locals. Though, the jobs they did were incredibly diverse... From teaching children, to clearing out Giant Ant infested areas, to updating the Boomer's maps to be accurate with the current climate.
Veronica seemed to be enjoying herself, but Anja was looking a little exhausted. The fact they had to behave well at all moments as well as assisting the Boomers with anything they might need had the Ghoul and Tamia both exhausted.
That said, they had met some good people while they were here...
Raquel, the master-at-arms that controls the Boomers' supplies and armaments. She'd been a bitch at first but had lightened up considerably once she'd gotten to know them... That said, the way she and Veronica flirted with one another was kinda weird. They'd insult one another until someone couldn't think of a slur and then laugh about it afterwards... Very peculiar.
Argyll, the doctor in charge of all the injured and overall health of the locals. He was an angel in dirty old-man form... Honestly, Tamia couldn't remember someone as kind-hearted at this man, willing to risk his own health for the betterment of everyone else. Tamia wished she could have helped him herself, but luckily Veronica knew enough about medicine to assist in the strange sickness that'd slowly been spreading. Argyll's face was kinda funny when we all realised the sickness was Scurvy, their limited diet and lack of vitamins having led to it.
Loyal, the chief mechanic and certified ancient person. He's a bit rough around the edges (Most likely due to his age), but he's one of the most knowledgeable people Tamia knew, aside from Afton and his scientists of course. The man took pleasure in many things, from working on a difficult project to sitting down with the kids and telling stories of the Boomers' history.
Loyal is actually one of the people who didn't immediately dislike the group on arrival, seemingly optimistic about receiving their help. Though, one thing Tamia found somewhat odd was the look he'd send the group occasionally, as if waiting for an opportunity to ask something.
Last but certainly not least is Pearl, the kindly yet slightly sadistic leader of the Boomers', the woman was friendly to everyone until someone stepped on her toes, then she'd turn into a demon on a warpath... Tamia shivers at the memory of the time some kids thought it would be funny to prank her, putting pins on Pearl's chair...
Yeah, none of the group dared to look the woman in the eye after that incident, and they'd only spotted the perpetrators a week afterwards... Seems as if she'd had them cleaning out the toilets with their bare hands every day since then.
There were many other people Tamia had befriended too, but they were too numerous to mention. That said, the group's effort in helping the Boomers' had slowly brought about a change in their attitudes. Sure, they wouldn't be welcoming any outsiders with open arms, but perhaps they'd be a little apprehensive about blowing them to smithereens.
The artillery hadn't had to be fired for a while, but Tamia put that to George's decaying corpse lying just outside the Boomers' territory, courtesy of Veronica.
Tamia was just about to go visit Pearl to see if there was any work that needed doing when Loyal waved her over with a determined look on his face. "Hey Loyal what's u-"
"Pssch! Try be quiet now, I don't want the others to be hearin' this... You hear?" he quickly says, trying to quieten her.
Tamia just raises a brow but nods regardless, "Err, sure?" she quietly says.
Loyal gestures to the lawn chair next to his and leans forwards slightly, "You've been doin' good work, and I can tell you that we're all happen you're here... But I think that it's time I told you about... The Lady in the Water." he states ambiguously.
...
"Lady in the water?"
He frowns slightly, "Take that look off o' your face, there ain't nothin' wrong with callin' her that... There's not!"
...
Loyal shakes his head at her dull expression and continues, "A long, long time ago, before even the war that created this hellscape, a bomber had crash-landed not far from here... In Lake Mead specifically, hence the name Lady in the Lake." he states. "A bomber was a flying contraption that could drop bombs on anything it flew over, I want to try and raise the Lady in the Lake, just like how those old stories of Knight and Swords used to say." he says with a surprisingly giddy look on his face .
"How did you even find out about this? You're old, but not Pre-War old." she states with a smirk.
"Laugh it up, because I certainly don't feel any younger, and for you information, I read it on a newspaper... Anyway, I need your help in raising the Lady from the Lake. There's no one else I can ask for this, I beg you." he pleads.
"Why can't someone else do it? It's not like the Boomers are forbidden from leaving the airfield." she asks, not sure if the bomber was even there... Newspapers weren't exactly the best source of accurate information.
He shakes his head, "If I ask one person to do it, then everyone else will hear about it... You must've heard about the stories of our history, the legends of the Lady... One whiff of this and everyone will know. I know they are trustworthy, but the NCR and Legion are not, if they hear about it then they'll steal the Lady!"
"Err... I'm also an outsider you know." she points out.
Loyal shakes his head and waves his arm, "In name only. You've proved yourself enough, which is why I'm even asking... You are one of the most competent people I know, more than any of us, which is why I trust you with this... With our dreams." he explains.
...
Tamia nods, "I'll do it, but I doubt I'm going to be able to drag a bomber out of the water with my bare hands..." she jokes, but is still unsure of how Loyal actually wants to go about it.
Loyal shakes his head, "Don't worry about that, I've already got it covered... You just gotta focus on finding, and getting it out." he stands, "Follow me, I'll show you what I've got planned." he says, almost skipping towards the hanger containing their supplies.
Tamia can only shake her head and laugh at the way he's acting. She's never seen a man as old as him so chipper and energetic... Aside from Mr House?
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บท 489: Crossing the Barks
Tamia is led into the hanger by Loyal as shown to a few strange devices, the old man quickly shuffles everyone else out as he gestures exaggeratedly at the small box-like devices. "See these? Their Ballasts, floating, deployable devices that'll help actually get the Lady outta the water..." he says before tossing something else at her, "And that's a rebreather, should let u stay underwater for around an hour." he explains.
Tamia lifts one of the ballasts slightly and frowns at the weight... Despite being intended to float, they were significantly heavier than she'd expected. "Are you sure these'll work? Aren't bombers, like, incredibly heavy?"
Loyal nods, "They are, but-" he kicks over a large container filled to the brim with ballasts, "We got enough of these things to float a building!"
One hour later :
Tamia, Veronica, and Anja were all carrying large backpacks filled with ballasts out of the Airfield. They were currently walking along the heavily cratered road, but their destination wasn't Lake Mead, at least, not yet. First, they were going to head to the teleportation point they'd used to arrive here and report what was happening to Afton... Maybe he'd want to take a look at the bomber before the Boomers got it.
They walk past the mangled corpse of George and eventually reach the point, Veronica using a small device which causes lightning to shoot from the sky and strike them, kicking up a cloud of dust and causing them to vanish.
After returning the group ignores the large new facility they'd not seen before and heads to the Think Tank to find Afton. And, with the help of Glados, they find him in a Laboratory working with Mobius and Klein on his Power armour.
The trio quickly notice the group and Klein scoffs indignantly, "IT'S JUST LIKE HIGHSCHOOL AGAIN! GO BOTHER SOMEONE ELSE, WE HAVE HOMEWORK TO DO!" he exclaims.
Afton just shakes his head at the scientists and looks at the group imploringly, "Something up?"
Tamia nods, "Er, yeah... We were about to raise a literal bomber out of Lake Mead and wanted to let you know about it..." she explains with a sheepish look.
"A bomber?" Afton parrots, excitement briefly showing in his eyes before he recomposes himself, "No doubt this is for the Boomers then?"
She nods again, "They've almost deified the thing and have told us to raise it out of the water with ballasts," she gestures at the large backpacks they were carrying, "They're planning on taking it apart with robots and transporting it all back to their base while they fire artillery near the NCR as a distraction." she says.
Afton rubs his chin at this, most planes hadn't survived the initial nuclear bombs that started the Great War, and those that had were too irreparably damage to actually work, not to mention the lack of individuals who knew how to fly the things...
Aeroplanes weren't like Vertibirds, give someone a couple weeks training and 'wallah' they're able to fly a Vertibird, but for a plane, bomber, or jet? No chance, you'd have a better chance spontaneously exploding than actually getting the thing in the air, even if you did, you'd soon greet the floor very enthusiastically at match speed.
That all said, if someone were to possess such a vehicle in the current day's climate, they'd be an almost unstoppable force... What good would Power armour be against a bomber dropping payloads from a mile above you? None.
Honestly, Afton was tempted to just steal the bomber for himself, but knew that'd likely make him and the trio hated by the Boomers. Plus the fact he had no idea how he'd transport it back to Big Mt, it wasn't like the teleporters could transport something so large.
Still, he wanted one.
Afton glances at Klein and Mobius, "You guys wait here, I've got something to do." he states and gestures for the trio to follow him.
He leaves the Think Tank and heads straight to X-8 where the Cyberdogs could be found. He gathers up a large group of the one's designed by Glados for scouting, scanning, and other miscellaneous tasks. They number around thirty and should be enough to scan the bomber relatively quickly... Once done, they'd send the data back to the Think Tank so they could replicate the bomber.
"Take these guys with you, they'll scan the bomber once it's out of the water, once they're done they'll teleport back... They'll also assist you in combat should you need it." he states.
Tamia nods, "Alright. Is that all?"
Afton grins in affirmation, "Should be. You want me to tag along, or?" he asks.
Tamia shakes her head, "I don't think there'd be a point, plus you're already pretty busy here..."
Afton nods, "Alright, you guys better get to it before anyone notices you were gone... Remember to take the Cyberdogs." he says before returning to Klein and Mobius to further work on his Power armour.
Tamia, Veronica, and Anja quickly head back to the Mojave with thirty Cyberdogs in toe. The teleporters work overtime to move everyone, but eventually, they get back and start heading towards Lake Mead...
On the way they encounter a few obstacles, though, any potential raiders are easily scared off by the army of Cyberdogs. The same could not be said for a huge pack of Golden Gecko's however.
Fortunately, one Cyberdog's sonic bark is enough to send a grown man flying... Times this by thirty and you have a rather explosive result. Any Gecko in the path of the projectile freezes, trembles, and explodes into a fountain of blood and gore.
Tamia wondered what an army of one hundred Cyberdogs would be capable of... Due to the type of weapon it was, it'd most likely instantly kill anyone driving heavy vehicles, which meant that these Cyberdogs were literally the best anti-vehicle weapons in the Mojave, by a large margin actually.
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