Escort Mission, Pt. 2

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

It takes a while, but Ellen's fire eventually does its work. When William finally wakes, there's a distinct smell of roasted meat in the air- and a distinct tension on Ellen and Dogmeat's part. "William," Ellen murmurs, "don't move."

A gaunt, haggard, human... oid... figure is staring at them from the gaping dark of a half-collapsed building's doorway.

"I think there are ghouls here. Feral ones. They used to be people. They might attack, or they might not- but don't startle them."

Comments

[not_his_pa]

William has to quell his urge to startle and nods at Ellen while staring at the figure watching them.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

It... doesn't look good.

"That's what happens to you if you're exposed to too much radiation and don't have the good fortune to die," Ellen says soberly at the figure shuffling forward. "Radiation poisoning's nasty stuff even when you can get treatment for it. If you don't, you wind up looking like that. That one... looks like he's probably gone feral. I don't think he's got much of a brain left, poor fellow."

[not_his_pa]

"What should we do?"

He doesn't want to do anything quickly and his horse is nervous due to the ghoul.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Wait here."

Ellen gets up and reaches slowly for her gun. The ghoul freezes, watching, head low and arms raised in a claw-like posture. "Move it," she orders the creature. "No one's going to hurt you, but get moving."

It doesn't seem to understand the words so much as the tone as it backs up a step or two.

"Good move." Ellen gestures sharply, as if she were picking up a rock to throw. "Now go."

It hisses, a low, half strangled sound, and lopes off into the ruins with the awkward gait of something that hasn't figured out what's wrong with its legs yet.

Ellen sighs and sags back to the ground. "Poor thing," she says. "I don't think he's long for this world."

[not_his_pa]

"Should we get movin'?"

After seeing that ghoul, he doesn't think he'll be able to sleep again.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"I think so. There'll be other places we can eat," Ellen says. "He can have what's left of the carcass- it's not like I was able to butcher it all."

[not_his_pa]

"And we can't leave any water behind,"

His voice is still hoarse and William stands up to realize how sore he is, but he's ridden worse.

He pats Les and starts saddling him and repacking his saddlebags, "I can eat in the saddle too."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Definitely not," Ellen agrees. "Not that I think he'd know what it was. Ferals are too far gone to remember things like how to use tools or open cans- anyway-"

She'll stomp out the fire and get everything else reassembled and ready to go. Just because there haven't been raiders here in months doesn't mean there's any reason to tempt them into coming back.

[not_his_pa]

William helps her and it's not too long before they're ready to start off again,

"Horrible thing to have happen."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen nods. "I know," she murmurs. "It gets worse the more you know about it, too. Something about that condition means you don't really get any older- a ghoul can't die of old age. Unless something kills them, they just go on existing like that."

[not_his_pa]

"Hell,"

His voice cracks as he gets into the saddle and starts getting the herd in order.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Not all of them are feral. Some of them are still human inside- they're just rotting on the outside," Ellen says. "But even so... it's not a fate I'd wish on anyone."

She whistles to Dogmeat and swings up into Shiphrah and Puah's saddle.

"We should get moving before things like the scorpions get active."

[not_his_pa]

"No, I wouldn't either. Which way are we headed?"

The landscape looks different now that he knows there are creatures like ghouls out there along with mirelurks and other things. There's something wrong with something that was once human looking like the pictures of corpses and walking around.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Northeast," Ellen says. "Under the overpass ruins and along the remains of that road. Canterbury's about half a day's walk from here, on top of a good-sized hill. There's an old barn and silo outside of town, and the remains of a water tower- that's my usual landmark."

She's not going to tell him about the Glowing Ones, or the greenskins, or, God help them all, the tongue monsters. Not unless she absolutely has to.

... oh God they're gonna pass the entrance to Vault 108. Please, God, no Garys.

[not_his_pa]

"Right, ain't too far. Come on, Dogmeat, let's get these Brahmin movin',"

He's done his best to get the herd into some sort of order again.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Whurf," says Dogmeat, or something like that, and runs to start chivvying the steers along. Ellen prods Shiphrah and Puah into motion, and the whole group starts moving out.

"There used to be raiders here," Ellen notes as they pass under the overpass. "Not so much rustlers as general outlaws, only with more chems and less alcohol. Unpleasant people. They've got a base in Bethesda, a little ways east of here, but it looks like they're not roaming this far west at the moment."

[not_his_pa]

"Yeah, most outlaws seem to be that way and some are killers,"

That's what Charlie Prince was, he made Ben Wade seem polite.

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"That's pretty much the raiders around here," Ellen says, "except for the ones that're slavers instead. Most of them are gone, though. We took down their central operation last year, so there's hardly anybody left to carry people off as slaves."

[not_his_pa]

"Good, it ain't right to do that to another person."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen nods. "To be honest," she says, "I think they were just a front for someone else. I've met runaway slaves in the Wasteland, and I've shot plenty of slavers, but I've never met anybody here who had an actual slave. Except maybe Dukov, but I don't think he owned those women, exactly."

[not_his_pa]

"What kind of person would want to use slaves to cover somethin' else?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Not to hide their tracks," Ellen says. "To get what they wanted from the Capital Wasteland without having to come here themselves. There's probably somebody farther west who wasn't as badly hit as we were during the War, and they were probably buying slaves to work their land from Paradise Falls instead of having to hunt them down themselves, the way slave traders would buy captives from local chiefs in Africa before bringing them back to the States."

[not_his_pa]

"Oh, that sort of person. They're some of the worst."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

Ellen nods. "I don't know who they are, or where they are," she says, "but I'd bet they're out there. There's no point to the slave trade otherwise-"

She stops, and points to a lurching shape in the distance.

"Protectron. It's a kind of robot from before the War. They think anybody they come across who isn't in United States Army uniform is the enemy."

[not_his_pa]

"How do you get around it?"

It doesn't seem to be moving terribly fast which is nice.