Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Journal entry #1
February 25th, 2085, 9:48 PM
Day 1: Before the hunt

Tensions are rising within the bunker, General Santiago never liked President Eckhart ethics, his morals, or how he handled business both in and out of the bunker. She especially didn't like how everything was kept from her. The Enclave is very secretive. The Enclave's main directive here is to study the fauna of West Virginia (W.V). Unlike anywhere else, W.V. is sprawling with more wildlife than I saw back in D.C. All the cryptids, some of the legends, are now a reality. Do you want my opinion on that? It's more stuff for me to hunt and bring back to the men with coats. I am an Enclave operative. I work with a friend, and we are one of the few people the enclave sends out of the bunker to handle and help the Enclave with their research on wildlife. We are more “hands on,” with our activity and with the things these guys need for their experiment. Basically, we do the work the boys in the lab are too fragile to do themselves. I was recently sent out with my friend to retrieve samples of a local Cryptid known as the Mothman. The scientist believed It could aid in their research with FEV, but that's all I know. Our only goal is to capture it and obtain a sample. We will possibly be out here for 2 days. They told us that if any other creature appears, our goal will remain the same, neutralize, and get a sample. For now, my friend and I will rest, and we will head north of the savage divide up the train tracks and near the Atlas Observatory where some of the boys there are moving out and coming back to the bunker. As of now me and my friend and I set up camp underneath the tracks near Seneca Mountain by a small pond. We plan to rest up and go to the area where Mothman was reportedly spotted.

End of Journal Entry #1
W.D

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Journal Entry #2

February 26th, 2085, 7:10 AM

Day 2: Catching up

My friend and I continued our journey at around 7 in the morning. We came across a nearby raider group, which we took on ourselves and looked around to see if there was anything of note. Sure enough, they were planning an attack on the observatory. Not that it would've had worked because some of the people stationed there were experimenting with the prototype X-02, and some were already equipped with the X-01 power armor. I myself have a suit of the X-02 because im one of people testing it, but it's stashed in the bunker. We passed by some small camps, and with the info from the raiders, we passed them over to the folks at the Atlas observatory. They were packing up things for they had recently been called back for briefing, and their research at Atlas has been placed on hold due to limited resources. A lot of the research stations had been cut and recalled back to the bunker for the same reasons. Mothman wasn't at the target location, so we had to move further up north, but I couldn't help the feeling that we were being watched. My friend thought so, too. I remember him saying something along the lines of, “hey how do you think they,” “well you know?” I shrugged it off and gave a half ass response. We decided to rest up for a little bit to catch our breath.

End of Journal Entry #2

10:37 PM

W.D

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Journal Entry #3

February 27th, 2085, 3:30 AM

Day 2: Mothman Sighting

We had to get a move on because we have been behind schedule. We shouldn't have stopped to rest, and now we have to travel a little further north. Luckily, we didn't have to wait too long because after some small talk, he spotted  movement nearby. It was him. We were back to back Mothman's wings flapping around us, and whenever we were locked onto him, he would disappear in a black cloud. Its piercing red eyes was one of the few things that gave me the shivers or something like. My friend then had the bright idea to hide behind a rock and use some of the stealth boys we brought. In hindsight, we should've used the stealth boys upon the first appearance of Mothman. We then turned on our stealth boys after going somewhere to hide from it, and with one-shot from my tranquilizer, the target was immobilized. We then gathered the data from the Mothman specimen until we were suddenly called in by Santiago on a separate channel. She told us “The situation is escalating in the bunker,” “report back immediately.” My friend told me about a possible coup he overheard by some of the members loyal to Santiago. I told him, “Such things aren't possible against something equal to the devil.” I reflected my fears of the Enclave to my friend. I knew that whatever was happening at the bunker wasn't good and might even be the end of us, but regardless we decided to go back because we might end up as those who tried to abandon the Enclave. Nothing but bodies to be experimented on.

End of Journal Entry #3

8:47 AM

W.D

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Journal Entry #4

February 27th - March 31st, 2085, 12:00 PM

73 days: Bunker temporarily offline

We traveled back to the bunker under orders from General Santiago. Then we were suddenly ambushed by a group of Snallygasters, and one managed to get me good and burn half of my face, leaving heavy scarring. My friend, on the other hand, was left unscathed. So then we rushed back to the bunker in hopes of proper medical aid to my wound. When we got there it was radio silence. We tried to open the bunker door, but there was no response. We waited a while in a bus outside of the bunker. Days became weeks all we had was the Whitespring resort and its staff. Everywhere outside of the security patrols' reach became infested with hostiles. We would get the occasional Grafton Monster and Honey beast. To keep our minds in check, we would list off what came through and what was left dead by whatever came to claim that part of the resort as its territory. A pack of wolves were left mutilated when a Deathclaw came running around. Then, it left chasing a family of opossums. We also spotted the club start to swarm with Feral ghouls. Things that were once human but left to rot with radiation melting their brain and turning them into mindless flesh eating corpses. It was not long after that the housing area met the same fate. With time for ourselves, we roamed around the inside of the main building. It was clean and left untouched by the horrors of war. It was unsettling to an extent, an empty and clean building. The only things that would ever echo it the halls of This building are the heavy footsteps of its robot staff, Assualtrons, and protectrons. Originally brought in as extra security by Eckhart, but we all knew it was to protect whatever shady business He was enacting behind closed doors. Other than that, this place is an awful reflection of the rich and poor. Everyone who didn't have money either died or was left to rot in radiation to fend for themselves in hope for a better future. The rich stayed behind closed doors in private bunkers and vaults. It was a refresher to the mind to at least know a lot of those with money didn't make it in time for they were too busy grabbing what they could from their lavish homes. My friend, trying to bring up the mood, kept asking weird questions. One thing we had a conversation about was why the Assualtrons had a visible ass and a sexy voice. It got me wondering why would a robot meant to fight off Chinese soldiers have such features? My friend said something along the lines of, “You think if it had a usable hole that I,” “The man with raging hormones who hasn't seen a woman in weeks would be able to you know use it?” I asked him why he would ever tell me something like that? I know it's the apocalypse and everything, but I didn't need to know that, especially since we were still waiting for at least something from the bunker. I had to admit, though, I did catch an eye for some of the ass the assaultrons had. My friend took notice and made fun of me for it. I shrugged it off because this was some of the most fun and warm our conversation has ever been and additionally some of the activities here in the resort made our dull life a little bit more fun and bright. We explored a bit outside of Whitesprings, particularly we scouted outside of Black Water Mine. Originally, it was where the Enclave would've got their raw material for our operations. Now it's infested with Mole Miners. They are mutated humans who live out in caves. They still retain some of their personalities, and some aren't as hostiles as they usually are. Me and my buddy even traded with some. Their appearance is mostly due to the fact that they used to constantly mine in the Ash Heap region of Appalachia and the suits they used for such activities are now stuck to them as a constant reminder of who they once were. My buddy and I didn't do anything to disturb them; they were more of a little cartoon for us to watch and enjoy as they stumbled around like an old lady with fresh pie. My god, would I like to have some of my mother's pie right now. Hope Vermont didn't get hit as bad as D.C. I pray that I am able to come back to them one day, but I know as the days continue that it is likely they are long gone. That fact won't stop me from believing, though. I will end it here for now. I'm going to relax for a bit

End of Journal Entry #4

For the fun times that won't last forever.

W.D

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Journal Entry #5

April 1st, 2085, 8:05 AM

74 Days: The Bunker is still closed

I woke up from my bed first thing in the morning. I tripped and fell. My friend tied my shoe laces together as an April Fools joke. I never mentioned that my friend was avid for celebrating holidays. No matter how obscure it is, he will celebrate it. It can be annoying at times, but it always brings up the mood. Throughout the day, he would pull pranks on me, even going as far as reprogramming a Mr Handy to shoot whip cream out of its nozzle and directly at me. It wasn't really funny, and it made my clothes sticky, and it didn't help that he took it a little far and made an assaultron push me down the stairs. I got a gash on my leg, but it wasn't anything a stimpak couldn't fix. I just thought that part was a little too much. He thought so too and apologized for only that specific “prank.” He then stopped the pranks, and our day continued as normal. He then ran to me and told me, “Walt I'm getting a signal from the bunker,” “ It's MODUS he's calling for us.” I didn't think much of it because I thought it was another one of his pranks, but he kept insisting. I ignored it until the robots in the whitespring resort forced us to pack our things and head to the bunker. It wasn't a joke he was telling the truth. We packed our guns and the samples we collected from a while ago, though I'm not sure how useful they would be now. I still brought it in, for it might be of use for something. MODUS, his voice awfully robotic, was very monotone and soothing. Like death comforting the ones about to pass onto his realm. He said to us “It took me a long time to clean the bunker with all these slow-moving robots,” “but it didn't stop me from monitoring the two of you.”  We were baffled with what we heard, and that wasn't the end of it. “The Enclave in this bunker were incompetent, to say the least, and they were very uncooperative.” “Eckharts represented the best interest of the Enclave, but he was a coward.” He wasn't wrong with Eckharts, but him being the best representation of the Enclave had me with more questions than I could hope to get answered. But MODUS continued, “Santiago was to say at the least not emotionally equipped for our operations.” He then told us about how the Enclave fell from the very moment we arrived here. The rumors of a coup were true. The fight was brutal, and it left several wings in the bunker inoperable and unusable. MODUS revealed he targeted both sides and killed most of them in an explosion and gassed the ones left remaining. MODUS continued with his rambling, telling us about how he alone managed to establish contact with Enclave personnel at the specified locations. MODUS listed them, “Raven Rock, Adams Airforce base, Navarro, bases in Chicago, but this one was particularly hard to contact,” “The Oil Rig, home of the United States President and main base of the Enclave.” “It was hard getting a hold of them because they kept intentionally ignoring us.” “When we finally established contact, POTUS instructed that I alone monitor the activities in West Virginia and a few select locations outside of the region.” MODUS's first order for us was to establish proper contact with bases located on the east coast. He directed our attention at Transmission Station 1AT-U03. He informed us that we had to go through the hard way. The Sentry Bot wouldn't be a problem, he told us. He then elaborated that the building not only functioned as a transmission station but as a bio lab, so our concerns would be with whatever was set loose rather than the mentioned Sentry Bot. He told us to prepare with what was available in the bunker at the moment. We prepared, my buddy outfitted with a usable suit of X-01, and luckily, my prototype X-02 is still in Mint condition. As a matter of fact, it was the only one left. We are now leaving the bunker. We are back to doing what we do best, stalk the shadows and handle the problems that death is too afraid to handle itself.

End of Journal #5

3:02 PM

W.D

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Journal Entry #6

April 2nd, 2085, 6:58 AM

Day 1 of New Mission Objective: Fix the radio tower and clear the Uncanny Caverns of its pest

We followed the main road for a bit till we came across a blockade. It was a simple walk around and up the hill. On our way to Uncanny Caverns, I couldn't help but shake the feeling of what was MODUS really up to? What was his mission objective? My moment of thought was interrupted when my buddy asked if we could go check out Miners Monument. He said it was to pay respect to America's working class or something. He added that it would make MODUS really happy. So, for the sake of being put in the Enclave's good side, we walked up to it and saluted for a solid minute. Until we were ambushed by the monument's local security, I counted 2 Mr Gustys and 4 protectrons. It was nothing much against my gatling plasma. It shredded through them like honey butter. My friend was in a hissy fit all because they scratched this monument, so to keep his mind off of it, I decided that we could simply cut through the forest. He told me it was genius, but I told him that it wasn't that smart and that it was relatively close to the monument. I also told him we walked a little too far from the road to the Caverns. While we traveled through the forest, he asked me about Cryptids he said, “Do you think our power armor is a match for the Ogua?” I asked him what that even is, and he continued, “It's a giant snapping turtle, and it was involved in the disappearance of a boy as far back as the 1740s!” “ oh and it was further popularized in 1983 at like Marion County, and that's all I really know.” “Sorry for blabbering.” I told him it's alright and that I rather enjoyed his fun facts every now and then. We arrived at our destination, and it was filled with feral ghouls. Without a second thought, my buddy shot his gun in the air and told me, “Let it rip Sgt Davis.” Let it all out I did. As my gatling plasma spun, it shot its projectiles out doing the same thing it did to those robots. We went inside and cleared most of them from the top deck area overlooking the cave. Then my Buddy had an idea. “You go over there and take a picture.” “I barely see you smiling.” I urged him that we were on an important mission, but he said he was going to drag all the hostiles here and let me handle them myself. Not that I couldn't do it, I just obliged because I didn't want to waste time arguing over a picture. I took it and he was really happy. He even got it on a little Uncanny Caverns themed picture. We went in and cleared the remaining ferals. But the second we turned back to head out, we were pinned down by a piercing screech. The only things I heard my buddy say was, “ITS A FUCKING WENDIGO.” It was heavily encouraged that we avoid it. The problem with that was I was in power armor, so I rushed towards it. We exchanged blows, and it scratched my armor up badly. So I simply just ripped him in half. My buddy waking up from being incapacitated said something I forgot what it was but he said, “You could've just shot it with my gun.” I retaliated and said “I needed to test this armor out.” He then responded and said, “It's a power armor there is no need too!” I just shrugged it off and went back out the cave to fix the relay tower above us. We continued on and repaired the tower. Then we were contacted by MODUS, “I have been listening in to your activities and I'm glad the X-02 proved useful against wendigo.” I thanked him and continued, “Repairing this radio tower proves vital for communication in the local area luckily this is the only one in need of repair.” He continued, “The rest I can do on my own continue on with your journey.” That's all we got. Before my friend could talk I told him it's was best that we rested here for the time being it was safe and So we spent the night here. I am writing this before I go to bed and this will be all I write for now.

End of Journal Entry #6

W.D 

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Journal Entry #7

April 3rd, 2085, 10:29 AM

Day 2 of New Mission Objective: Power Restoration and Water Treatment

We packed up and took what we could. Our next objective is to retire power at the Poseidon Power Substation PX-02 and to assess whether the Tygart Water Treatment plant is operable and optimal for use. My buddy opted to jump down the cliff for it was a quick and easy shortcut, “lemon squeezey,” he said. We were now below, and we judged that it was our quickest route to our targeted location. All we had to do was pass through some mansions, maybe even gather some supplies if we're lucky. We went into one of the houses thinking nothing much until hostiles with red skin and green crystals popping out of their body ambushed us. Though they really didn't do much to our armor, It was more of the surprise of seeing some of them have enough brain power to wield weapons. We thought they were fucked up ghouls, but it turns out they were something else. My buddy took a picture of the things that attacked us for documentation, and as we were heading out, we saw similar things except they were just standing there. They were stuck in a painful position, and when interacted with, they would crumble to dust and blow away, leaving piles of what was and a green mist that faded. There is something MODUS isn't telling us, and if he was watching us while we made this discovery then only time will tell what he could or will do to us. We passed on and avoided a house full of raiders, we didn't start trouble nor have anyone follow us and ruin the mission. The one thing we couldn't avoid is the supermutants in Summerville. We needed to get past the town in order to get to our targets. So, with no other choice, we picked off the Super Mutants one by one. MODUS told us bits of what caused the coup within the bunker. It was a combination of the release of supermutants in Appalachia and the use of Chinese spy bots. Eckhart hoped to try and get the deacon system down to 1 so he would be able to use the nukes here in Appalachia. We had some difficulty with the supermutants, and luckily, they ran off, but not before one of them said something along the lines of, “We will return,” blah blah or something like that. Supermutants aren't intelligent, and their brains are fried, but I wouldn't be surprised if we come across them again. We finally arrived at the Power Substation, and it took us a bit to repair the thing. Buddy wouldn't stop groaning and moaning about how long it took. He said stuff like, “Maybe if you blew on that part of the lever, it would move better!” Or he would say, “Cut the red one. It's probably Chinese, and I don't like those dirty commies.” One more thing he said was, “If you didn't move at the pace of a goddamn snail, maybe we would have time to rest.” So I told him to shut the hell up because he was really starting to annoy me and piss me off. He then uttered the ugliest set of words to ever come out of his mouth, “but daddy, I really want to go sleep next to you again." I stopped and stared at him for a while. What is this guy on? He noticed that he said too much, so he remained quiet for the time being. I didn't know if the guy was a gal pal or a ladies' man, but one thing for certain is that there is something wrong with him. After we restored power to the substation MODUS contacted us. All He said was good work and to proceed with the mission. At least I didn't have to hear his creepy monologue, because I sure as hell don't like him. We made it to the water plant and to our dismay it was far too damaged for it to be of use. We relayed the unfortunate news to MODUS who wasn't so pleased, but urged us to rest and continue on our mission the next day. He was right because it was pretty dark out. So my buddy did a perimeter check to make sure the area was clear, while I cleared the little pest in the main building. Nothing but a few radroaches and rats. I started writing this at around 9:25 PM. My friend just went to sleep and I'm about to pass out too, so this is it for now.

End of Journal Entry #7 10:00 PM

W.D

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Journal Entry #8
April 4th, 2085, 6:42 AM
Day 3 of New Mission Objective: Capturing Poseidon

We went up early past an old military checkpoint near the Summersville Dam. The place is a wreck place used to be the main base of the Responders. A faction created by the first responders of Appalachia. It consisted of old policemen, firefighters, doctors, and whoever was willing to help. We don't know exactly what happened, but there are people down there who need help. My buddy thought so too, so he jumped down the dam. I followed, but before he could go and aid them, I grabbed him by the shoulder and reminded him of the mission. He got mad at me and said, “Look we aren't on a very tight schedule. As a matter of fact, we have enough time to help them.” I argued back and told him, “MODUS directed us to go to the Poseidon energy plant and put it to working condition.” I continued, “if we don't do that he will call over other men from the Enclave, and if he doesn't execute us he will make us watch as the Enclave tears these people limb from limb!” I apologized and reassured him, “look it's better if we leave them. They don't know about the Enclave, and if we help them, people are going to take note of us, and our mission will be compromised.” I then reminded him that MODUS said that Eckhart was in the best interest of the Enclave, but he simply wasn't good enough, so he was killed for his mistakes and cowardice. He submitted, and we pressed on. All we could hear was the people begging for our help and pleading we come back. I told him to block the symbol so that they didn't know where we came from. MODUS then tapped into my comm and told me, “congratulations for keeping him in check. Now remember, The Enclave always and must remain in the shadows until It is finally our concern.” He then disappeared like always. God, I feel like a horrible person, but the mission is what's important. The Enclave may be horrible, but they are my best bet at seeing what remains of my family, and they are our best hopes to restore this country and beat the Chinese. Shortly before we arrived, my buddy apologized for his rash behavior. He said he was just concerned and couldn't let these people die just like that, and he even thought that the enclave could've used them for help. I told him that his actions were noble, but before I could say anything, we were interrupted. A group of individuals who identified themselves as the Brotherhood of Steel, I've heard of them. The Enclave doesn't like them, so to avoid a fight, I negotiated with them. I said, “Look, we aren't looking for trouble. We just want to restore the power here at this power plant.” The BoS Soldier countered, “Some of our buddies helping the responders there saw you ignoring all those civilians. They needed help, you know.” While I was talking, MODUS chimed into my comms, “ eliminate them and destroy the plant.” He continued, "I will be sending aid.” I went silent. Before they could point out my silence, my buddy talked with them, “You know I much prefer the T-60 over the uh T-51.” The BoS Soldier scoffed, “Oh come on! Not only does the T-51 look cooler, but it bounces off rounds easier than your overly complicated T-60 Power Armor.” He continued, “Say I do want to know what you're wearing, and if you can tell us about it, we'll let you do what you want with the power plant.” He excitedly told me and said, “It's that easy not being a dick.” Before they could continue, MODUS dropped In Sentry bots and assualtrons. MODUS and his forces took on the soldier and he instructed us and said, “re-route the power to the whitespring resort. There is no need to destroy the plant now.” My buddy asked me and got mad at me for knowing about this and not telling him. I stayed silent and he said, “Come on we don't got all day, let's just get it over with.” so we proceeded with the job and we were successful. MODUS assured us that he could handle it from here. So we left, and now we are currently residing in Camp Adams. He didn't want to talk to me. I can't blame him, I was being a dick back there, and I basically killed all those people over there. We didn't even have to kill them; they were going to help us. I'm done. This is for now.

End of Journal Entry #8
W.D

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Journal Entry #9
April 5th, 2085, I can't remember the time
Day 4 of New Mission Objective: Continue the main objective

All was quiet. He didn't want to speak to me at all. It hurts my chest a little, because I really liked how chatty he was. It was charming. No more thinking that it's time to go now. As we head out of Camp Adams and towards the bridge, we spot a supermutant horde with human captives. They were going the same path as us. My buddy said, “I know what you're going to say, and I don't care. We are saving them.” I told him it's ok and that we might have some time to help them. He was surprised, but he didn't waste any more time speaking. So we picked off the supermutants from afar with a plasma sniper rifle. It didn't take long for them to notice us. So they ran. I recognize one of those supermutants , and I'm pretty sure it's the one we saw at Summersville. I told my buddy about it , so we desperately ran to take care of the mutie. As we just barely made it to the entrance, we were intercepted by a group of rogue Mr.Handys from the Orchards. We made quick work of them and dash to catch up to the supermutant. Our heavy power armor shaking and moving the bridge. As soon as we catch up to the supermutant, it stops. He then said, “I was the few from the experiments to retain my intelligence.” He continued, “I don't intend to lose here.” He then monologues about how humanity is inferior and how the supermutants will be the dominant species of the North American continent. Without thinking, I shot the mutant in the head, but he dropped the person off the bridge. My buddy then jumped off and caught her with his power armor, then a loud boom echoed across the forest. I jumped down hoping my buddy survived. I don't think I can do this alone. I just hope he is alive. Alive he was but his armor isn't in good condition. He didn't land on his legs, he landed on his back instead. Luckily I was still able to take him out of the armor hewokee up after I hit him on the chest with a stimpak. He was alive and well. He didn't care about himself, though. His attention was stuck on the person he just saved. To his dismay, she was dead. He hugged her too tight, and the impact from the fall caused her back to snap in half. He was distraught and couldn't control his emotions. I comforted him and told him that he tried his best, but he replied angrily, “You don't get it, man!” He continued, “all you care about is this stupid fucking mission with a damn government that was supposed to be gone a long time ago.” He still continued, “You are selfish and avoidant. I try and try to talk to you and I even try to cheer your stoic ass up, but you wouldn't budge.” Maybe because I wasn't in the right headspace I told him that we didn't have time for this and that we had to press on. He got even more mad and said, “Press on!? Do you not see what I'm saying here? You didn't even bother to try and comfort me.” Before I could speak up, he said, “You know what? I thought you were a pretty swell guy who would do the right thing. Turns out I was wrong, like always.” I then opened up to him, telling him that the Enclave was the only way I could see my people in Vermont. He replied a little more calmly, but maintained the angry tone, “ Look, the reason why I like this is because this is my way of coping with things. Your way is just you trying to distract yourself from reality.” I then replied with slight anger in my voice, “What reality are you saying here?” He then said, “That maybe your family is dead and that you struggle to realize that your only family was with you this whole time.” He then stormed off and said he was going to look for a good spot to camp. I didn't get it at the time, but I just realized writing this. He considered me family and I didn't.

End of Journal Entry #9
I'm sorry,
W.D.

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Journal Entry #10
April 6th, 2085, it's bright out
Day 5 of New Mission Objective: New orders from MODUS

I was the only one up. I woke up early, buddy is still sleeping, and I'm cooking me a radroach. It's not the most appetizing thing in Appalachia, but food is food. If it moves, I'll eat it. I was relaxing, you know, before we continued our mission, I ate and just looked into the wilderness. It didn't surprise me when I was approached by a Chinese liberator bot. It was MODUS, and he said, “shoot this into the air it will distribute a foreign gas I've been working on.” Before I can even ask what it was he gave me the tool along with the gas canister and self destructed. In truth I didn't want to use this, but for the sake of me and my buddie's life I will use it. It's better if he doesn't know MODUS came. I woke my buddy up, but before he could move, I told him, “Look my loyalty belongs to the Enclave, and I know it's bad. Though that won't stop me from loving you as a partner.” I continued, “We're a family, and we will disagree on many things and argue, but I won't let that stop me from protecting you because I really do care about you.” I can tell by the look of his face that he accepted my apology, and he knew that, so he said, “Why don't you just kiss me then?” I looked at him with disgust and made it clear it wasn't like that, but he said, “I'm joking.” He continued, “Look I know how the Enclave operates and I know it's going to be difficult, but I joined the military because I thought I was going to be helping people, not leaving them to die for a shadow entity.” He continued while fixing up his gear and putting his gas mask on, “You're a good person and I know it, it's just you're always on the wrong side. It's up to you to decide where you stand.” He then assured me he had nothing against me. Then he joked and called me a workaholic. He wasn't wrong, especially with all the jokes he threw in. Only if he knew I was the one assigned to test on the people in Flatwoods. I told him that we needed to split up for this part of the mission. He asked why and I said that I needed to head to the radio tower nearby to repair it. When I do I'd signal him and it would aid him in his task of preparing the Vault-Tec Agricultural Research Center. He was skeptical and rightfully so, it was a ploy so I'm free to conduct the experiment on the people of Flatwoods. He went on with his part of the mission. So with him gone I went to the center of the town. Bystanders watching as I stay within the safety of my power armor. They were Responders. All they wanted to do was help people to provide them with a brighter future. A future with hope. It was a shame I had to do this. I planted the device down and inserted the canister. I left for the radio tower, and when I was at a good enough distance, I initiated the sequence to activate the device. From a distance, I saw as people clawed at their faces, and their skin turned rotten. It was that same green mist from those individuals long ago at the mansion. MODUS knew what it was, and it's not far-fetched to think that this was a known fact within the higher-ups at the bunker. MODUS then contacted me through my power armors comms. He said, “The reason why I asked you to conduct this experiment was to see how healthy recipients of the gas would react.” He continued, “This sort of plague was discovered and made by a bunch of scientists down at the cranberry bog, and when it was brought to Eckhart's attention about the possible danger of this plague, he dismissed it and told them to continue. Some folks already infected with the gas called it "The Scorched Plague.” I couldn't get a word out before MODUS cut his feed. So I went to the radio tower and did what I needed to do. Buddy tapped in and told me, “Good work, Walt! I can see you from down here! I'm coming up.” I never felt so guilty. I just wiped out a whole town of innocents. My buddy came and asked why I had such a long face? I responded, “Just thinking about the assaultron's ass and my mind blanked.” He was ecstatic that I made my first joke on this trip and celebrated with burnt carrots. His joyful nature lights up my world. We rested in the radio tower. The next day will mark the end of this trip. I just want him to know that I am sorry, buddy, but I'm not who you think I am. Just know I'll do whatever it takes to see my family again.

End of Journal Entry #10
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal Entry #11
April 7th, 2085, N/A:N/A
Day 6: Transmission Station 1AT-U03

We got up and arrived at Transmission Station 1AT-U03. The anticipation was tense, to say the least. My mind wandered on what we were going to do next. Are we going to be disposed of? Sent on another mission, maybe outside of Appalachia? Would I finally be able to go to Vermont and see my family? I wasn't able to think for much longer because he connected, MODUS has tapped into my feed, and my feed only. His chilling voice said something that would haunt me forever, “I know you want to see your family.” It's like he knew what my answer was. I couldn't even speak out loud because my buddy was trying to get the elevator down to the lab back in working condition. MODUS continued, “If you are to complete this mission, not only will you be able to see your family, but I myself will put in a good word to the Control Station Enclave.” He continued, “The downside for you is that you have to eliminate the pest that is your friend.” I was left in shock. I knew I couldn't do such a thing. “I know it will be difficult, but he will prove a problem to our operations here in Appalachia, if you don't seek his death, I will do it myself and I'll come for you and your family.” He then cut his feed. I was left shocked. I just couldn't believe it. I wouldn't kill my friend, and I don't want to he's more than a friend, more than a brother. My buddy managed to get the elevator back in working condition, and he went in, but noticed I didn't. He was puzzled, he was wondering why I didn't go in the elevator, he knew I wanted to finish this mission badly and that it could possibly help me find my family. He told me, “Look if you're worried you'll never see me again after this. I'll go with you to Vermont. We work together well so I know we can make that journey,” he reached his hand out inviting me into the elevator. I did not want to grab it, then MODUS came back and told me to, “Grab the hand,” then he tapped out again. I ignored his hand and luckily my buddy brushed it off thinking it was just me being my normal self. I told him that there was nothing to worry about and that we will make it past this. We got to the floor headed left to the hallway with broken rad scrubbers, this place was dirty and filthy. When we entered the lab we were in awe of what was in here. Tube's full of creatures from the wasteland three of which are intact and in their tubes and as for the broken tube, lies a dead Yao Guai. A mutated bear. My buddy joked, “At least we don't have to fight that sickle and hammer wielding maniac huh?” I told him those were Russian brown bears, not black bears. He told me it looks nothing like a black bear. So we continued and entered a room, but before we could walk anywhere, my buddy told me to get down. I didn't understand why until I heard the thunderous flap of the Mothman's wings. Except it looked off. It looked exactly like the scorched. I accidentally muttered that last part loud, and my buddy whispered to me, “scorched? That's not a bad name for things with ugly red skins.” Thinking of no other way around it, I told my buddy, “I'm going to jump on him and hopefully the weight of this power armor crushes him.” He told me that it was a great plan for an idiot, so he said if anything goes wrong he will just shoot the thing with what he has. I nodded, then proceeded to jump at the mothman. It then disappeared and I face planted onto the steel floor. Hearing the crash, my friend screamed, “IT'S THE ROOM ON THE TOP FLOOR RUN TO IT.” I rushed up the stairs as the mothman pursued me, and I just barely made it before the mothman used its beak on me. My buddy remarked, “heh, The bitch is too fat to get through hah.” We laughed and continued to an area full of rooms. It looked like a prison for these test subjects. It wasn't that hard to pass through; we left most of them ignored. Though there is a Scorched Wendigo stuck in his cage, I don't want to stick around for that guy. The other side wasn't any different though they were more hostile, they did die with one easy click from my gatling plasma. Me and my buddy took our time to marvel at what was in the lab. We passed by tubes full of wendigos and now there are tubes full of a variety of mirelurks. I think I also saw an alien, but they weren't important. We read through the terminals, but they were just full of entries regarding the test subjects. We pressed on and what was in the next room is what gave us the most trouble. It was a Deathclaw, and so to make it easier, we threw something at the corner and proceeded to the right where the door was at. The Scorched plague might've done something to that deathclaw's brain because it didn't even hear or notice us. As we passed through the cafeteria, my buddy took notice of the deathclaw and said, “Things are going easier than expected, don't you think?” Before I could chime in a word we were suddenly met with gunfire. It was scorched and they are wearing the clothing of the Enclave. “DAMN, these guys have plasma guns now!” Without a second thought i charged my gatling plasma and rushed out to what would've been suicide and blasted whatever I saw move. We ran through the interior, returning fire at whatever scorches were in our way. Then we made it in the control room, which was near where we wanted to be. Except I was out of ammo, and in front of us was a group of scorched one of them wearing the X-01 power armor. It must've read my mind as it dropped its weapon and put its arms up. The other scorched sensing the same dispersed and fired at my buddy. Besides that, me and the power armored scorched traded blows. It hit me good a couple of times, even denting my armor, but it was no match for petty. That's because after a while, I kicked him, picked up the plasma rifle he dropped, and shot him with it until he was lifeless. My buddy recovering from fighting the rest of the scorched mocked, “that was kind of a disrespectful and crude way of fighting.” I told him it didn't matter and what we needed to do was in the next room. So we went into the room, did what we needed and we were met with the room we first arrived in. My buddy stopped me, "Hey do you think there are still maple syrups in Vermont? I'd like to try some." I told him that my mom had some homemade maple syrup at my house and I said, "You won't believe how good her pies are." He then replied, "I was talking about the maple syrup and possible waffles, but a good ass pie sounds really good." We then fist bumped and smiled at each other and pressed on. So we headed to the area containing the Sentry Bot and fixed the transmission station. Now MODUS is able to establish proper contact with all of the Enclave. "Alright the mission is finally complete let's go to MODUS and tell him about our trip to Vermont." Buddy said as I replied with a simple nod, but then we were met with a surprise when the Sentry Bot awoke and MODUS spoke, “Are you going to do your job or are you both going to die.” My friend, confused, told MODUS, “We already already did our damn job quit your whining. We are heading to Vermont now!" Befor my buddy could get another word in he looked towards me and I shot him. The only words that I heard leave his breath were, “I thought we were buddies, hell I think we would've made a perfect married couple because I love you man, its just,” before he could talk any further I shot him in the head. I killed him quickly to save myself from the emotional turmoil. It didn't work. I fell to my knees and cried. MODUS said I was free to leave, but before I could say anything, the Sentry Bot shot at me. MODUS told me, “I couldn't leave any loose ends, I knew you would have revenge and target my operations so trust Me when I say this I'm saddened for my loss.” But before he could finish I rolled a plasma grenade behind the Sentry Bot stunning It and giving me enough time to run out of the building. I left the building and I'm now all alone. I ran for days. I am now in a cave somewhere in Skyline, West Virginia. The weather here is crazy, but it's enough to block out MODUS. I still remember the events from before and this is my first time in awhile touching this journal. Buddy if you're watching I am so sorry and I can't do this anymore without you.

End of Journal Entry #11
October 19th, 2102, 6,418 days from when I killed my only Buddy
W.D.

Chapter Text

Journal Entry #12
October 20th, 2102
I'm the only one left

It's not nice out here in Skyline Valley. Hell, it's probably worse out here than anywhere else in Appalachia. The sky cries of sin, so it gets pretty darn hard to sleep on certain occasions, but I've gotten used to it. If you're living out here in the wasteland, I'm just going to say this; you're not going to be comfortable. These kinds of environments are something you would find in those radio shows from way back when everything was a tad bit sweeter. It doesn't help that some old corporate manic by the name of Hugo Stolz keeps trying to hire me. I'm not your damn hired gun, and I'm sure as hell not going to forgive you for creating those damn ghouls that won't shut up. Some folks that I've met called them the lost because they lost all humanity? I don't really care about that stuff anymore. I'm tired of all these damn experiments running amok. I'm tired of everything. Why did I do it? Why did I kill him? It doesn't matter now, I'm all I have left of him. No power armor, no fancy plasma weaponry, and certainly no damn psychotic ai moaning in my ear about a mission. I am a broken man, and I've done horrible things. Little did I know that today would be the day that steers my life in the right direction. It was like any other day out here in the valley, until I heard some barking. It was Hugo's men who were trying to take the dog with them. Something was strange with this mutt. It looked like one of them “lost”. Maybe that's why Hugo's is so damn desperate for this guy. He damn near sent one guy suited with a damn knockoff power armor. I was going to leave the situation to them for it wasn't my business, but something inside of me told me otherwise. So I counted how many men were around the dog. There were 2 with shock batons, 3 with assault rifles, and that macho in the fake power armor. So I screwed in my suppressor for my lever action rifle, lined up my shot, and hit 2 of the rifle welding dumbasses in vault suits. It wasn't long after till I got the last rifle man. They knew who it was who shot their boys down, It was me. So with orders, the two baton guys ran in my direction, which was really stupid. Not wanting to waste my rifle ammo, I pulled out my pistol, stood up, and effortlessly took them down. Even raiders would put up a fight. Too bad my attention was stuck to those guys because the armored man ran with the damn dog. He was fast, but not as fast as the man who ran from the shadow of old. It wasn't long till the armored man found himself surrounded in smoke. For extra flare and fear I told him the motto of the faction I was previously with. That faction being the Enclave and so I said, “The Price of Freedom is Eternal Vigilance.” I knew that dude shit himself, I couldn't find out myself because I killed him. Simple shot to the dome. That motto was supposed to represent the fact that the Enclave thought they were the last vestige of the old government. It is ironic for them, but it fits me like a dirty glove. For what I was originally doing, I was just about to head back into the territory I swore I wouldn't go back to. That place being Appalachia. I've peeked in a couple times, but I couldn't let myself get caught by MODUS. Though that wasn't my reason for purring back into that hellscape. I heard Reclamation Day was around the clock, so I thought I might head there to watch a new set of idiots walk into a death trap. Right now I'm situated in a lakeside cabin near Summersville and to my luck I wasn't noticed by MODUS's automated vertibirds. Oh, and as for the dog, I saved him which I almost forgot to mention. He's my pal now so it took me a bit to give him a name. Maybe it was nostalgia, trauma, or a mix of both, but I named him off of an old pal I didn't bother to get the name of. I named the dog Buddy.

End of Journal #12
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal #13
October 21st - 22nd, 2102
Some time to spare

I was awakened to the sound of Buddy barking up a storm. I was always in love with animals. I thought they represented the kindness of nature. I mean all that's out of the windows now, especially since every animal looks like an inbred family's dream pet. Nevertheless I took the time to get to know the dog. He is a Doberman and if you ask me how and why is there a Doberman out in the wasteland and still alive? Hell if I know! I got him yesterday. Other than that he was a playful fella. Like most dogs he loved playing catch and he had a good sense of smell. I must've been blessed by the man upstairs, because Buddy’s nose led me to a surplus of canned food in Helvetia. Helvetia is where they would hold those parades with the weird mask. I think it's a holiday called Fasnacht Day. I don't know what it is, I just put it in here. I arrived at a little area near Vault 76 to camp, and thanks to Buddy, we are going to eat good tonight. It was in the middle of the night. I think it was 4am  in the morning when I saw a lady petting my dog. So I instinctively pulled my pistol on her. “Calm down, I was just concerned why there was a strange man on my camping spot.” Not giving a crap I asked her who she was, and it turns out she was the overseer of Vault 76. Obviously, having questions, I asked why she was out before everyone else. She told me it was a mission and part of her job as an overseer assigned to conduct certain activities in the wasteland. I asked her to elaborate on them, but she refused. “So how did you and this good boy meet?” I told her about the lost and Skyline Valley. I urged her not to go and gave her reasons why it wasn't a great place to be at the moment. She understood and continued playing with Buddy. This was the first time in years since I've talked to a real person. Frankly, I find it a bit depressing on my part, but I chose not to make it apparent and obvious to her. Even then, she still caught on to my act. “Hm.. Your actions and your mannerisms, were you perhaps in the armed forces before all this?” I nodded and told her I applied for the US Army in 2076. I told her how I was stationed in D.C. when the bombs dropped. She sighed and said, “A young man from the capital.” “Say how did you find yourself here in the wonderful land of Appalachia?” I told her about Santiago, and when she asked more questions about her, I elaborated. I told her about the white spring bunker and the nefarious deeds of the Enclave. I talked about certain things while avoiding some. For example I told her about the coup and the enclaves experiments and what they unleashed on the wasteland. Though I never told her about MODUS and who the Enclave really was, all I told her was what was needed. I especially refrained from telling her certain things that would get a civilian killed. I most especially didn't tell her about my mission and my long gone friend. She nodded and proceeded to tell me that she was going to be gone by the time I woke up. So I went back to sleep and wouldn't you know, she was gone. She left a note and it basically said, “It would be my utmost pleasure if you helped some of my Vault dwellers survive out here. Also go camp somewhere else this place is for them to get the basics of the wastes.” So I fulfilled her wish to move out. I situated myself further up the hill in a Slocum's Joe. I debated if I should help the vault dwellers. It wasn't really my kind of thing and I especially didn't want to baby sit a bunch of grown children with a naive sense of the world outside of their private domicile. Throughout the day I had this thought in mind. I wasn't a leader and I don't think I have the patience for them. The Overseer thought otherwise and she was a really kind person. So tomorrow, when I see them dwellers outside, I will teach them how to survive properly outside of the vault.

End of Journal #13
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal #14
October 23rd, 2102
Reclamation Day

I woke up in a good mood. Which for someone like me is really strange, but it doesn't matter. What matters is how I'm going to help these vault dwellers. It was the afternoon, and so the vaulties were fresh and out of the vault. It was like a stupid montage. I've seen a bunch of them get chewed up by the little things. Saw them scream and shoot a guy who had a massive tick on him. I've seen another group get munched on by radtoads near the lighthouse. I also saw another group get mind controlled by The Mothman. It was like releasing a bunch of tadpoles to predator infested waters. So I decided to head to Morgantown to see how everything was. I was also hoping that they've made a little more progress than the rest of the other dwellers. Thinking nothing much of it, I left my bag outside because I wanted to loot a building. Apparently, it was ok for them to rummage through my stuff. So I had my gun pulled out, and I told them to back off, till one of them idiots walked up to me. “Sir we are just looking for supplies, so I suggest you back up.” I told him that it was my stuff and asked him what he was going to do and he said the dumbest thing to ever cross my ears, “Sir, you're really pushing my buttons, as for what I'm going to do?” He nervously scoffed, “ I-I'm going to have to use lethal force, so don't make me do something we both will regret!” I looked at him in awe. Like what is going through this stuck-up suburban dude's mind? As I withdrew my gun, I told him to just hit me already. He looked confused and asked me if I was sure. I told him to just throw it. He must've misunderstood me because he threw a damn rock at me and sized me up from a distance. I looked at my dog and asked him if he was serious, and my dog just tilted his head. So, thinking nothing of it, I pulled out my pistol and shot the dweller’s foot. He screamed, and I told the rest of the group that this is their first test to survive the wasteland. There were at least 15 of them when I counted, and so from a roof I watched as the ghouls started to crawl out of the surrounding buildings. They all screamed and ran. Some stayed behind to fight, but they didn't last long. As for the dude that I shot, he got ripped to shreds. There were only three of them left. So I called them over and apologized for my behavior and sick joke. They were understandably pissed, but I assured them that this isn't the worst thing out here. So I dragged them along with me, for they seemed the most capable. They introduced themselves as Woodrow, Kayla, and Margeth. Woodrow is a mechanic in the vault and is heavily interested in finding and using power armor. He asked me if I ever wore one. I told him yes but also said I wasn't interested in elaborating what suit. Mostly due to the fact that it was an Enclave made suit and he wouldn't know much about it. Luckily for me and them, Kayla was an assistant nurse in the vault she was kind and kept to herself. She reminded me of my younger self, excluding the kind part, of course. Lastly, Margeth, I could tell she was a kitty licker. You want to know why I thought that? She asked me if there were any pretty women still out here in the wasteland. She was uncomfortably kinky. I didn't want to know more about that stuff, so I asked her what her specialty was. She said she was a top performing marksman in her vault. The other two backed up her claim. I didn't ask any further questions. I told them to make camp. Make camp they did, as they all pulled out a strange device that could help them with whatever they needed. So we rested for today, and I told them that tomorrow we would check out and see how their buddies are doing. As for my dog, she really didn't do much as there wasn't much for her to do. Tomorrow will be very weird.

End of Journal #14
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal Entry #15
October 24th, 2102
Catching Up

You know, I didn't think I would end up with such a rag-tag group of individuals. They are so incredibly different from each other. They don't get along very well and are really strange. We decided not to check on everyone else. I wanted to but they forced me into a vote. One thing they wanted to do was roam around looking for the overseer. I told them I had actually met her once. Woodrow ecstatic asked me for her location. I reiterated that I had no clue and that we just had a short conversation. So we just roamed around Appalachia. We ended up in Grafton Dam, which is where they first encountered super mutants. Margeth immediately started shooting at them, yelling slurs like mutie, inbred, boogertards, and so on and so forth. Kayla, naturally curious, asked me about them mid shootout. I told them that they were immune to radiation and that they could not reproduce. Margreth said, “so they don't have a gosh darn thing down there?” I nodded, and she continued, “Ah shucks, I was getting a little excited.” Woodrow looked at her with a puzzled face, and I told him, “It wasn't the weirdest thing I heard out here.” Woodrow even more puzzled wondered, "What's weirder than that!?” I didn't answer, and we continued the shootout. We eventually won and took over the dam. Margreth complemented their shooting, but immediately said that even the kid with crutches could aim better. So attempting to make conversation with these guys, I asked them what they wanted to know about what happened here in Appalachia. They each had their questions. Kayla asked me, “Who were the Responders, and what happened to them?” Margeth and Woodrow having a similar question also chimed into asking why we haven't come across another human besides me yet. I talked about the Responders and told them how they were a group of Appalachian First Responders made up of police, firemen, and volunteers who just wanted to help people. Then I talked about their fall in Charleston. It was due to a raider attack and a mini nuke going off at the dam there. It didn't answer their main question though. Where is everyone? I told them about the scorched plague and referenced those humanoid structures that would crumble with a single touch. They wanted to know how it was created. I told them that it's complicated. Margreth sensing something was off asked me, “Who are you?” She continued, “your mannerisms, the way you hold and shoot a gun, the way you talk, and the way you move. It's calculating, you know what you're doing.” I told her that's what happens when you spend time out in the wasteland. She didn't believe me and pushed the fact that I moved like I was in an armed group. I told her it wasn't important and that even if I was, she wouldn't live to tell the tale. The group feeling moved were quiet. I apologized for my demeanor and said, “Look, I was a part of the US military before the war.” I continued, “I enlisted when I was 18 in 2076. In an office in Vermont.” I went on and talked about how I was stationed in D.C. and when the bombs dropped, I found myself on a long journey. I told them about my friend and how he died on that journey. Then I found myself in West Virginia with a cute dog on my side. It was getting late so I told them to get some rest. In the middle of the night, I found myself outside thinking. Should I have told them the truth? Should I have been honest with them? Maybe I should have, but if I did, they wouldn't see me the same way, and they would just go on their own path. They wouldn't survive, though not here. I was deep in my thoughts, still thinking about how I killed my friend in cold blood until I was tapped by Kayla. “I can't sleep. Margeth snores like a middle-aged man.” She said, and I chuckled and asked her what brought her outside. She said she wanted some fresh air as well as a good look at the night sky. “You know we couldn't see much of the night sky back then because of all the light pollution.” I didn't respond, and she told me, “Look you don't have to tell me, but I would like to know, what was your friend like?” I paused for a second. She said I didn't have to answer, but I insisted, “He was the weirdest guy I know.” I told her, “He would always celebrate the holidays and would play pranks on me during April fools.” I continued, “He was the kindest and most charismatic guy I know.” She said to me, “I'm sorry for your loss. He must've been really nice.” I told her that he was the best. I thought about telling her the truth about who I really am and what really happened, till I heard my dog barking and clashing from inside the building. We ran in and saw Margreth and Woodrow being held hostage by some Assualtrons. It took me a second, but I knew who was behind this. He then creeped in with his calm demeanor and said, “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.” It was MODUS, and he said, “Long time no see old friend, you are a slippery one, but your stamina is limited and my machinery isn't." Woodrow, puzzled, asked me if I knew this guy. I didn't answer, but to my surprise, MODUS said, “He was someone I wanted to talk to, but he avoided me because I am simply not human.” Margreth, making a joke out of it said, “Hey don't worry, Walt, I hate clankers too.” MODUS then escorted them to a vertibird, but put me in a separate one. We took off, and he started to hammer about things. “I know you didn't tell them about who you are or what the Enclave does. So I repaid you by not shooting all of you on the spot.” I told MODUS that I didn't want any part of what he's doing, but he told me that he will elaborate what he's going to make us do when we get to the bunker and rest up. That's where we are right now, and right now, I'm just concerned about what he is going to do to them. I hope he doesn't hurt them.

End of Journal Entry #15
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal Entry #16
October 25th, 2102
A Chat With Everyone

I couldn't get any sleep. Maybe it was because of the fact that I'm back in a place where I don't want to ever be back in. I'm really paranoid that if I shut my eyes, MODUS will quietly slit my throat and rid my ability to speak about him. He didn't do any of that, at least for now. All was good till I just remembered. Where is my dog? Where is Buddy? I ran out of my room, and to my relief, he was helping Woodrow fix an old set of X-01. “MODUS said I can modify this armor to the best of my ability. He's such a swell guy!” I looked at him and asked him what he was doing, and he replied, “Well MODUS provided me with some aid to test out this prototype power armor.” He continued and said, “He encouraged me to run my own test and share the results with him.” He then excitedly pulled me with him, “Oh oh and look!” He then planted a heavy weapon I wasn't familiar with on top of a table. “This is a plasma caster.” He continued, “MODUS said that this is the first to come out of the production line a-” I cut him off and told him I'll be back with him later. I asked him, “can I borrow Buddy back?” He nodded, and Buddy ran to me. He is such a good boy. Apparently, he is also a good source of electricity. How would I know? Because he has been holding a lightbulb for a while now, and that bulb has stayed lit the entire time. On a side note, I appreciate the company. It makes me feel warmer. It's like how I felt when I was with my friend. God, he would have so much fun with these guys, especially Woodrow. I went to see Kayla. Apparently, she's in the medical wing. As I approached, I heard screaming, so I ran thinking MODUS had done something because if he did, I wouldn't hesitate this time. I barged in, and it was nothing. She was just messing with a feral ghouls specimen. “This specimen was brought in by one of the protectron butlers as per my request for a subject I can study.” I told her that was a tad bit creepy for her, but she reassured me and said “ I'm just doing this purely to see if there is a way to reverse this or create more ample serums.” I asked her what serums and she mentioned the mutation serums that MODUS always has in stock. I talked to her a bit and I said, “You remember that conversation we had yesterday?” She nodded and I said, “Well I just wanted to thank you for that. I really needed tha-.” She cut me off and said, “if this is a confession it's a no. I don't like older people, but I'm into girls, especially really tough ones.” Before I could speak, I got the sudden realization that Kayla might be into Margreth. I brought it up with her and she started blushing. “I never thought of her in that way.” I looked at her with a look of doubt. “Ok maybe I've thought of her in that way a couple of times, but I've never let it ruin anything!” I asked her where Margreth was and she said she was outside the bunker door testing out certain weapon modifications. I waved her goodbye and she yelled, “You better not tell her anything I beg of you!” I forgot to mention she was French. I don't know why I felt the need to bring that up, but maybe it's because it made her sound sweeter. Also to just reiterate I don't like Kayla like that she's too young and she's a lesbian. I won't tell Margreth, but I'll try to help Kayla out in my own way. I walked out of the bunker door, Buddy by my side, and I see Margreth. She deciding what weapon to use. I suggested using the plasma gun with a flamer function. She asked me how I knew about it. I said, “Woodrow told me about it.” Margreth said, “of course he did. Now, what brings you out here?” I told her I was just checking out the place and that I wanted to see how everyone was doing this fine day. I asked her how her day was, and she said, “I slapped an assaultron's ass. It's softer than you think.” She then continued, “It's also because Woodrow woke me up and asked me to test out a bunch of weapons for him. He knew I wouldn't pass on the opportunity to try out guns no one had ever held before.” She talked about how it was weird that a secret government AI picked us up in the middle of the night, but she didn't care because MODUS was chill with me. I knew the reason why, but I didn't bother to tell anyone. Not yet, at least. “So Margreth,” I said to her, “What do you think of Kayla?” She looked at me confused and wondered why I would ask that, but she said, “Uh… She's cool I guess?” She continued firing the gun. “Well how cool?” I asked her and she replied, “I mean she's like a doctor or something and she's like super caring. It's adorable, to be honest.” I agreed with her and she continued, “Just wish I got to know her more, but nevertheless she's a good friend and I need a lot of those if I'm going to survive out here.” She then asked me, “So what does this MODUS guy want with you anyways? What makes you so good? Also, if you're that good, I'd want to learn from you, you know?” I told her that it was probably due to my past experience in the US military. I also told her that I didn't know exactly what he wanted from me, but that I was going to find out right now. She nodded and gave me a thumbs up. I whistled my dog to come along with me, but Buddy took a liking to Margreth. So I asked her to take care of him and that I'll be back. She gave another thumbs up. I then proceeded to meet our supposed “savior,” for I had some questions for him. I went into a private room, and MODUS spoke, “They seem to have taken a liking to this facility.” I retorted and told MODUS that this was due to the fact they were stuck in a vault their entire lives. I also asked him what he really wanted and to get it over with. MODUS, sensing my displeasure to him, said, “Look if your feelings from before are still projected in your mind, I'm going to reassure you that I have no hard feelings.” I know that cunning bastard is lying, but I urged him to just say what I needed to do already. “I need you to head to Vault 96 and collect me a handful of data from the vault.” Surprised, I asked him if that was it. He said, “ I already collected the codes for the nuclear launch sequence, but I also need you to acquire a Nuclear Keycard at the Palace of Winding Path.” I tried to ask him for further questions, but he cut me off and said that I will start tomorrow and that he will further elaborate on my mission after I complete the task he has already set for me. So I walked out of the room, and Woodrow spotted me. “He gave you a mission, huh?” I asked him how he knew, and he said that I had a determined look on my face. I'm I really that easy to read? I asked him if he wanted to tag along because I might need his technical expertise. He jumped in excitement and agreed under one condition. That condition is that he gets to wear power armor. I said no because he needed the proper training required to wear one. He was sad but understood and still agreed to tag along. He then left me alone, and I went back into my room. I need to sleep because tomorrow an onward i'll be very busy.

End of Journal #16
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal #17

October 26th, 2102

Day 1: Into Vault 96

We were dropped in front of Vault 96 and as I prepared to open the vault door Woodrow combed through the list of terminals we needed to hit. “We are going to look through a personal terminal, specifically Nina's terminal.” I told him to continue, and he said, “We also have to go through some research terminals, but it's no biggie. I just need to insert a holotape into one of them, and we can get the rest of the data there. Then, after that, we need to hit the Overseers terminal, and then we should be good to go.” I asked him if there were any hostiles inside, and he confirmed several assaultrons, protectrons, handys, and gustys, along with the laser turrets. God damn whatever Vault-Tec was doing in there, they must've never wanted to come out. I'm sure Woodrow isn't aware of what Vault-Tec has done either, so he will be in for a surprise on who they really are and how lucky he is. The second we got in Woodrow really proved himself useful. He told me he could conveniently disable the defense system in the vault. I told him it's impossible, and Vault 96's defense system can not be temporarily disabled. He then said, “well MODUS taught me a little something about hacking soooo yeah!” So Woodrow went to the first terminal he saw, and  he inputted codes and managed to hack the system. “Well that was very easy. It's easier than I thought.” He continued, “ok look, we got 30 minutes in here before they reactivated, so we better hurry our asses up.” I nodded, but before I could go, Woodrow gave me a holotape, “here use this to hack into the Overseer’s terminal. I’ll get Nina's.” I nodded and went off to do my deed. This place is so cold. Judging from all the tubes with the black liquid and the cryopods. I'm thinking that whatever was in here must've died from the cold. As for the scientist? Well, I'm pretty sure the robots got to them. To my luck, I finally found the Overseer's terminal, and instead of getting the data, I decided to do more snooping  through the terminal. Why? It's because I'm just naturally curious. I looked through, and I saw that the scientists here were doing an unethical bio- ugh… something something. That Bio stuff isn't really my area of smarts. You know what I mean. As for the reason why they're all dead. Well, I was right. If they didn't finish their quotas on time, the automated security system would eliminate them. I didn't care to snoop anymore as time was running out. We only had 8 more minutes here. So I quickly downloaded the data and zipped it out of there. One thing caught my eye, though. Subject X-001, I didn't think much of it. Probably just another run of the mill unethical experiment by yours truly, Vault-Tec. We got out of there and then hopped onto the Vertibird. Everything was alright until I looked at Woodrow. I was right,Vault-Tec's experiments would rattle him. I didn't think it would do this much to him, though. I asked him if he was ok, but he shocked himself back to normal and gave me a thumbs up with a smile. Then he whispered something to me, “Are you afraid of MODUS?” I looked at him puzzled, but he then told me he didn't want him to hear us. He then asked it again, and I slowly nodded. I whispered back, “Why are you asking me this?” He then said to me, “What's ever they were testing in that Vault wasn't good. It broke out.” I thought back to the Overseer's computer, and I remembered something that caught my eye, Subject X-001. So I whispered to him, “Is this about Subject X-001? I don't know what it is. I only managed to get a glimpse of his name.” He then returned to his shaken state, but before he could say anything back at me, the vertibird started to shake. We were being attacked. We were about to crash. So I told Woodrow to hold on then Boom. 

Chapter Text

Journal #18
October 27th, 2102
Day 2: The Keycard of Unwinding Path

The crash put a number on us, Woodrow here is going to use what he can salvage so we can hopefully reestablish contact with the bunker. In the meantime, I'll go look for that nuclear keycard MODUS wants me to find, and later today, I found out my luck got worse. To my dismay, a bunch of Vault 76 dwellers obtained the nuclear keycard, and what made it worse was that a bunch of supermutants took them into the Palace of Unwinding Paths. So what I was about to do might've been one of the stupidest things I've ever done. I attempted to negotiate with a group of supermutants. “Woah woah, before you shoot me, I got something you want.” I then put up my fist and said, “I got these hands, and I want to fight the strongest.” The supermutant looked at me like how we usually saw them. Nothing but stupid fucking grunts. They asked me what I wanted in return, and I said, “I want the humans in the blue suits. Along with all their items.” They nodded, and I was impressed with myself. Like dang Walter, you did something probably no one could ever do. So they brought me to their leader. A Firestarter supermutant called Firefist. They aren't the best at naming themselves, but his hands are literally on fire. “Puny human want fight strongest supermutant there is?!” Said Firefist. I said yeah then placed my terms on the table. “Puny human Will get what he and my brother wantnt… A FIGHT.” The supermutants cheered on as I stripped down to the point where it's just me and my shorts. Firefighters dropped his guns and put up his flaming fist. “Firefist want fair fight.” He threw a pair of brass knuckles towards me. I told him, “I don't need them,” I continued, “I just need these hands to make your face change colors.” We ran towards each other, and Firefist threw the first punch. I moved to my right, dodged it, and gave him an uppercut to the jaw with my left. Then Firefist kneed me in the gut and played work on me. While being beaten down, I thought that this was going to be the end for me. I go down swinging at a supermutant. So if I'm going to die, I'll at least die looking cool. I mean, hey, at least I know who's waiting for me on the other side. Before Firefist could throw another blow . I caught his fist. Not only did it amazed me that I caught it, but so did everyone watching, supermutants and humans alike. Woodrow even came in just in time to witness it. To witness the indomitable human spirit. I then threw a hard punch to Firefist’s face, drawing blood. I then went down and swiped my leg under his legs to make him fall. No matter what comes my way I'll bring it down no Enclave or fucked up experimental monstrosities could take me down. That's because it doesn't matter if the odds are stacked against me or if no one believes I can do it. All I need is a slim chance and my fist to pierce the wall of impossibility. It must've been the adrenaline because somehow I picked the heavy guy up and threw him across the makeshift arena. I then proceeded to finish him, but plugging my thumbs into his eyes and ripped his face in half. I then raised what was left of his head in the air and the arena cheered. “HOLY SHIT!!! HOW DID YOU DO THAT WALT WOOOO!!!” Woodrow cheered. If this were a game, I'd say my luck and strength stats being maxed would've been the reason, but nonetheless, I saved the dwellers, took the card, and proceeded to go off with Woodrow. Before I could leave, the supermutants offered me safe passage to wherever I was heading. I accepted, and on the way, Woodrow managed to reestablish contact with MODUS. Woodrow then told MODUS about what happened and the involvement of supermutants. “When we get to the bunker, just make sure MODUS does not blast these guys until they leave. They technically helped us get your nuclear keycard. It is only fair if you let them pass, at least until they leave!” Woodrow instructed MODUS. We then started to make our journey to the bunker. I am walking while writing this. It's a little rough around the edges, but I'll fix it when I get back.

End of Journal #18
W.D

Chapter Text

Journal Entry #19
October 28th, 2102

Before I could make myself known, I saw that the Whitespring Resort was occupied. It must've been raiders. How did they get through MODUS's defenses? Hell, if I know! I just need to clear this place out before anyone else gets hurt. So I instructed the Supermutants who followed us and Woodrow to sneak in. It was when we were about to enter I heard a familiar voice, “WALT! WOODROW!” It was Kayla, and with her was Margreth and Buddy along with some new faces. I asked about what the hell had happened here. Kayla said, “While you were gone, the Responders moved in.” I was blown away. I thought the Responders were gone, but low and behold, they are back. I was even more surprised when Margreth walked up to Kayla and kissed her on the cheek. “You guys are a thing now?” I asked. They nodded, and I hugged Kayla, congratulating her on managing to be a real thing with Margreth. Margreth asked us what took so long and why there were muties with us. I recounted the events previously, and Margreth thought I was a fat liar. She said that there was no way I could fight a supermutant with a pair of flaming fists and win. I then told them that as a reward, I saved some dwellers from Vault 76, got the keycard, and now we have supermutant allies. I asked MODUS if it was ok he said, “As long as they keep their activities outside and not indoors it's fine by me, but I am willing to have them be housed within the golf club or the houses outside.” Kayla not giving a crap introduced us to the current Leader of this branch of Responders, Rucker. “You're a decorated man. We could really use your expertise to help aid in our operations.” I thanked him and introduced myself. “So Walter,” he pulled me aside, “say we are trying to negotiate with MODUS to give us a vertibird to help us extend our reach and help more people.” He continued, “if you convince him, we won't tell your friends about what you and your pal, wherever he is, about Charleston.” I pinned him to a wall and asked him how he knew. “Well I'm not only the de facto leader of this operation, but I have responders still alive that speak of you. So I suggest you lower your tone, or I will make things ugly.” I told him that we weren't done and that he would get his vertibird. “I suggest fixing that attitude. I don't want to be near another murder.” I stopped in my tracks and damn near touched my gun. Trying to be a better man, I just walked off and ignored him. Everyone noticed my look when I made my way into the bunker. Woodrow followed suit, “Hey man, I saw Rucker pull you aside. Did he do anything to you, man?” I ignored him, “Hey you can tell me no one else's here.” So I dragged him to the side, and before I could get a word out, I burst in tears. “I am a horrible person, Woodrow.” He said I'm not and tried to reassure me. “You don't get it, I could've helped all those people in Charleston, and I could've saved everyone in the power plant near there.” He asked me what I meant by that, and I told him to turn off his electrical devices. “I killed the Brotherhood at the power plant, and I left the people in Charleston to die.” Woodrow, angry and confused, asked me, “Why would you do that? What motivated you to do it?” It then came clicking to him. The sudden appearance of MODUS's robots kidnapping them at Grafton Dam, the history between me and MODUS, and my friend. “Walter, what else did you do?” I looked at him, stuttering and having difficulty even getting a word out. “I killed the Responders of Flatwoods Woodrow. I killed them and infected them with the scorched plague. My friend didn't even know I did that before.” I stopped, but Woodrow urged me to say what I did, “before what Walter? WALTER SAY SOMETHING.” I couldn't get it out, I just couldn't. Until Woodrow pulled a gun out on me. His body shaking, tears falling down his face. It felt like my whole body turned off, and it felt like my old self came back. I told him with cold blood, “even in this state, I can still kill you. So I suggest you put that gun down, Woodrow.” He clenched it tighter, shaking less, “I think I know what you did to your friend Walter.” He went further, “You killed him for MODUS, and why did you do it? To save yourself from the guilt of being reminded of what you did.” I got up not crying anymore, but filled with rage. He backed up, and I then told him, “I needed to see my family, Woodrow. MODUS offered me an-” before I could finish Woodrow yelled, “WOULD YOU KILL US TOO?” I paused. “We trusted you man, how could you do that?” I said nothing. I continued my march towards him, and then he shot his gun missing me. “WALT BACK UP!” Woodrow said. He then tripped and dropped his gun. I picked it up and aimed it at him, and I watched him form into a ball with his hand out in fear. Instead of shooting him, I gave him the gun. “Do it, Woodrow.” He looked at me in awe as I proceeded to drop down to my knees. “I don't deserve to live anymore, Woodrow. This world changes people. I'm not speaking to plead my case or beg for forgiveness. I just wanted to see my real family again. MODUS was my best shot.” I continued, “it's clear you guys would be better off without me. Shoot me, Woodrow, and don't hesitate.” Before Woodrow could say anything, the rest of them came. “Woodrow what the hell is going on?” Margreth asked. I told them this, “I'm not the man you guys think I am anymore. Have Woodrow tell you the story of Walter Davis; The Enclave Operative.” I then picked up my hat and walked off. I tried to go, but Buddy tugged at my coat. It must be some damn metaphor the real Buddy sent me. He must be telling me to go back. I'm sorry, friend, but it's too late. I proceeded to walk off into the Wilderness never to be seen in Appalachia ever again.

Chapter Text

Act I: Point Pleasant

As the dust settles we come to see Walter beaten and bruised; stuck behind a wall. Walter tried to peek past that very wall, but a stray shot slams into the stone, blasting chunks off the wall. [clenches his bloody fist] Walter takes a glance at the dead mothman cultist next to him and he reflects on his life choices.

“If I'm going to survive and complete my journey to Vermont, I need to be able to handle situations like this on my own!” He says to himself.

Walter originally planned to leave Appalachia through Point Pleasant. He wanted to swim across the North Road Bridge, but found himself stuck in a corner like a helpless feline. To give insight on the individuals engaging Walter they are commonly known as The Mothman Cultist. A new group of freaks in Appalachia who are infatuated with the elusive and ever evolving Mothman. They seem to have situated themselves in Point Pleasant. It was obvious as to why the mothman cultist chose this location, it has its significance to the cryptid of whom they worship like a god. Walter even with his experience got handed an unexpected challenge. What was supposed to be an easy exit proved itself a challenge. Walter can not catch a break. Walter checks how much ammo he has left. Not a lot, but he is resourceful and he can and will make it count no matter the cost.

“If I can beat a supermutant who uses flaming fists as a weapon then I can certainly finish this with scratches all over at the very least!” He said while talking to the dead Mothman cultist beside him. Before he can properly think, one of them comes bursting through the door at the other end of the shop, but before the cultist can attack, he abruptly dies in a trap Walter had set up beforehand. He doesn't have long now and his chances are getting slimmer by the second so he thinks.

He reflects on how he  lost everything, his friends, the guy he would've been with to the very end, and all his essential tools to keep himself alive in the unforgiving wastes of the world. He thought if he was going to die he would do it trying to go see them. He still believed his family was alive in Vermont and that maybe if he got there he would at the very least finally be able to rest. Though the more he stayed stuck in Point Pleasant the more his hope of seeing them dim. [Clenches the gun in hand] So in one suicidal move, he went out with a bang. Trying to take out as many of the cultists he can for the one slim chance to finally be able to see his loved ones again. For in Appalachia he had no one waiting for him so he had nothing to lose at the moment. Then suddenly, as if angels heard his minuscule cries for help, vertibirds can be heard flying above him. Walter's eyes widen and his stomach starts to sink. It's the last individual he would want to see as of right now.

Walter knew who it was and to an extent he was relieved he came to the rescue. Deep down Walter wanted to die in that final assault against the Mothman cultist. Regardless of what he feels, all Walter could feel was a sense of dread because who knows what he will do to him now, especially with the things he has done to have possibly gotten on his worse side. That individual Walter is referring to, is MODUS.

“First Sergeant, Davis Walter.” MODUS called out to him. He fully expects death at the hand of MODUS. He doesn't expect anything less from that maniacal freak of pre-war filth.

“If you’re going to kill me I suggest you do it now.” Walter proclaimed in an empty voice. Opening the vertibird hatch with an assaultron, MODUS reveals a package awaiting Walter. “I did say I would aid in your trip to Vermont, and my vertibirds can only take me so far.”

What was inside was ammo, food, and enough supplies to last him a couple of months. “No power armor?” Walter proclaimed sarcastically.

“The reason for why your X-02 isn’t with you should be obvious,” MODUS then continued that, “its for the simple reason that its enclave property and for the simple fact that the world isn't ready for us yet.”  MODUS then continued talking to Walter. “If you expect me to kill the people you once found yourself close to, just know that I won't." MODUS said in a surprisingly sincere tone.

“Didnt think I'd live to see the day to that this asshole expresses emotions.” Walter said. With a snark reply MODUS said, "don't confuse my generosity for compassion Walter.” MODUS exclaimed.

“Ive grown fond of them and when they get back from their trip to Site Alpha I will reassure them their safety and freedom to do as they please without interference by me.” MODUS said as he flew off.

“We will stay in touch Walter. Don't forget I am always watching.” Just like that MODUS flew off. Never to be seen again; at least for a while. Later and at the dawn of night, Walter had set camp at a hill just outside of Appalachia. It was a quiet moment. He had just finished his failed attempt at making chili with the remains of an opossum. He sighed and reflected on the killer stew that his friends could potentially have made ready for him and everyone else. Before Walter could continue thinking about the good times he was interrupted. The sky had lit up and in the distance, a mushroom cloud had begun to form. He has seen far bigger and far worse in D.C. and Walter knew that something like this will eventually occur somewhere. It's just he didn't think it would be this close. Regardless, Walter knew that MODUS had accomplished whatever he was going to do with the nuclear keycard. Though he was unaware what MODUS’s true intentions were, he is still stuck in a sad state of relief. He hopes that whatever MODUS said about keeping his old friends safe were true. It should be because MODUS isn't the type to lie, for the most part. Before Walter would go to bed he would have had a Journal with him to reflect on events in his life that had recently occurred. Sadly he had left it behind when he left all of them. All of his friends. This had Walter thinking and with no Journal to keep his mind in check he thought to himself.

“The wasteland is cruel in its way of treating people. [Taking a sip from his trusty Vault 76 canteen] It's in our nature to do what's best for ourselves regardless of the well being of the folks around us. The thing is, us humans are glass pillars holding up a brick structure. All it would take is one hit from anything to break the whole thing down. With satisfaction, the outside forces can watch as that structure of bricks comes crumbling down on the glass pillars that we ourselves claim hold us up and make us who we are. [A pause] That's the problem… We try so hard in trying to shape ourselves to who we think we are meant to be, and with ignorance, we ignore the truths that reality tries to convey to us. In turn, that action has us turning our back on how and what really changes us. [Wiping away a stray tear] The World is what shapes the person. Not some fancy dream, drive, or hopeful spirit. You can have those, but against the combined forces of this cruel wasteland and its crude weapon that being time, can really drive a person to the very end of their life faster than they can notice. I was that person. I stayed focused and glued to a mission and I tried to carry everything in my arms at once. I thought nothing could break me. [clenches fist] Instead the world had my friends killed or having those “friends” leave me to rot in the waste. So from here on out I won't fall to the temptation, I won't hold anyone close, I am an operative for the shadow that claims itself as the watchful eye of freedom. I am what the Enclave made me. I am Eternal Vigilance, I am the one who will get it done, and I am the one who will complete his mission…

With that the night has set and it will be a new day in Walter's journey to Vermont. The sun has risen, the nuclear blast still visible in the air. So Walter packed his things and with one look at Appalachia, Walter sets foot into the unknown wilderness that is Ohio. Never to be seen again.

Act II: Empty Pockets Filled With Bullets

There was one thing Walter forgot to take into account for his survival. His monetary income. Walter is broke now. All the caps he had though very little would have proved useful, for the sole fact that at least he would be able to buy a drink in a saloon that's somehow still standing. Through the dense forest and broken roads of 35 interstate, Walter managed to find himself in Evergreen, Ohio. The state of the town was mixed to a degree. It of course suffered the radioactive fallout from the nearby city of Columbus, Ohio. Despite that fact a part of the town managed to survive. Having no other way of making money Walter found himself in search of a bar. The reason why he is looking for a populated bar was for the soul fact that mercenaries typically hang there. To his luck  he found one, Terry’s Tavern. As soon as Walter walked in he had the whole bar looking at him.

One of the individuals within the bar looked at Walter and pointed “Oy! ya aint from around here.” One of his buddies walks up to Walter sniffing him and says, “This boy here smells of southern trash.”

The first guy gets up and introduces himself, “I am the fabulous Butcher Green and ya look valuable.”  Butcher Green’s goons walk around Walter while pointing out what he has on him. “Ay boss!” One of the goons exclaimed, “This guy has a neat sniper! It could be of good use to us!” the other chimes in saying, "Don't forget the caps boy!” They continue rambling on until Butcher Green notices Walter’s revolver.

“Ay ya bitch!’ Butcher called out to Walter, “show us ya side piece you puss!”

Calmly complying, Walter unloads the .357 revolver and takes the Anti-Armor rounds.

“It's a custom Appalachian .357 AA revolver handmade by me. Same goes for the rounds.” Everyone at the bar stared in awe as the revolver was a sight to behold. All but one man in a corner. Walter notices him taking glances every so often. This is the guy Walter needs to speak to.

Walter takes the revolver from the goons hand and proceeds to walk to the guy in the corner. [Pulls out knife] The sounds of guns loading are echoed in the bar. Butcher Green, taking a liking to the revolver says, “I ain't one for a good eye so you can keep that sniper, but that revolver?” Butcher laughs casually, “oooh boy! You're going to hand that revolver to me because that very gun can grant me status in this god forsaken town.” Before any of Butcher and his goons can make a move, Walter throws the 6 rounds in the air and lets them fall into his revolver.

Walter thought to himself, “Seven guys, six rounds.” Walter smirked because he knew that he had already hatched up a plan the moment they spoke to him. Like an old western film, Walter unloads on the folks that dare make a fool out of him. With no ammo left in the chamber Walter picked up a fork, slid across the table to Butcher, and shoved the darn thing in his eyes. Butcher started to scream in agonizing pain for there was and is a fork in his eye.

“OH FUCK!” Cried Butcher. Walter walked up to him and as he did Butcher crawled back. “Before ya do anything to me mister… Can you please reconsider this?” Butcher begged and begged for mercy until Walter shut him up with, “You don't mess with folks for no reason, and that especially applies for people with beautiful weaponry.” Before Walter could get another word out, Butcher grabbed a 10mm off the floor and attempted to fire it at Walter. Luckily, the man from the corner of the bar threw a knife at Walter. With no hesitation Walter sent it to the target deserving of that knife. Butcher Green is now dead. Walter picks up the knife and makes his way to the man in the corner of the bar.

Handing the knife to the man Walter introduces himself, “Good afternoon, I'm Walter Davis.” The man returns the kind gesture, "I'm Leroy Higgins. What can I do for you?”

Without hesitation Walter asked Leroy if there was any gun for hire work he could do.

“A man desperate for caps hm?” Leroy says to Walter as he lights the cigar in his mouth. “I can relate, but I'll have you know that these cigars are from Cuba.”

Walter feeling that this conversation is going nowhere gets to the point.

“Yeah I need the caps, and I'll put a hole in your head, big enough to fit my sniper barrel through if you don't tell me where!” Leroy casually putting his hands in the air,

“No need to rush Mr.Davis.” he said. “You just killed the son of the guy who runs the Evergreen Butchers, and you wiped out six of his men. Seven if we include the spoiled scum who calls himself Butcher Green.”

Leroy then pulls out a paper and writes a location down on said paper.

“If you’re looking for mercenary work, which you are,” Leroy said and continued. “Then head to Liberty Union Middle School. The Tiger Claws can really use a man of your handiwork.”

Leroy then takes himself out of the bar and disappears. This is the moment Walter realized that if he's going to make a living out here; at least until he gets to Vermont he's going to have to make a name for himself. So after buying a cup of bourbon with what he had left, he took the caps from the corpses of the dead Greens and walked off to make his way to Liberty Union Middle School. On the far side of Ohio near Columbus and north of Lancaster. Walter reflects as he still has time to head back to Appalachia. Maybe he can change their minds? No, Walter isn't going to rely on anyone ever again. The thought both saddened and angered Walter, but before he could do anything. He was caught off guard and knocked out. He wakes up to see himself tied up next to a very skinny ghoul. He thought the damn creature was one of them feral ones, but to his relief it was just a regular skinny ghoul.

“So what are you in for?” The ghoul asked Walter and he responded, “I killed Butcher Green and his sissy little yes men.” The Ghoul laughed and remarked, “Oh ho ho… the boy sure had it coming!” The clearly mentally ill man laughed as the guards walked by and went in to get Walter and bring him to their leader.

“My oh my!” Said the leader of the gang, “So you were the damn skunk who wiped his ass on my son.” One of the gang members laughed at the statement for it was a rather weird way to describe his own son's death. So the gang leader shot that member square in the head.

“Who else found that funny?” The room stayed silent and the leader laughed, “Well… I'm Thomas Green and it's a pleasure to meet you.” He said with a smile. He then punched Walter on the right side of the face where all his scars were.

“I know there is still space to put more  scars on that side of your face bitch.” Thomas commented. “Now tell me…” He brought himself down to Walters level directly in front of his face, “What made you think you run this place huh? [breaths on Walter’s face]  What made you think that it was a great idea to kill my son?” Walter smirked and said, “You have a red dot on your nose you stupid fucking clown.” Thomas, confused, asked Walter if that was funny. Walter nodded and said, “Well it's not there yet.” Before Thomas could speak, Walter headbutted his nose and it started to gush blood.

“[covers nose and stumbles] Gah– You… fuckin s-tupid cunt!” Walter laughed and his guards beat him and dragged him back to his cell. Thomas, pissed, told his guards to gut him for food and check if he still had money in his pockets.The guards, after beating Walter, threw him in his cell. “You freak! You'll pay in the morning for doing that to our boss!” one of the guards exclaimed.

Walter was beaten, laid in the ground for awhile. That's when the ghoul woke him up. “Hey can you at least tune up the radio over there! I want to listen to Uranium fever. It gives me a little jig in my hips.” Walter sighed and followed along with his request.

“So what are you here for ghoul?” Walter asked him. “Well I wouldn't fess up where my cap stash was to them. Rumors around Evergreen say that the gang is broke!” the ghoul laughed and slapped his knee. “And don't you dare think I'll tell you where my caps are!” Walter smirked and told the ghoul that he had no money too and that he took the opportunity to impress a guy in the bar.

“Oh so your one of them boot licking homos then huh?” Walter laughing said, “Now now pal I aint a boy lover. I prefer the booty of a nice old American woman.”  Both of them laughed and the ghoul agreed with him. “Na because in reality, the dude was a member of a mercenary group located in Baltimore. I really need the money so I'm going to try and join them.” The ghoul smiling told Walter, “The Tiger Claws. I remember them.” Walter lit up a little bit and asked the ghoul, “Do you have connections to them? If so, do you think you can connect me to them?”

The ghoul told Walter that all he did was trade with them but he said, “You better watch out for them though, they are a bunch of tunneling snakes when it comes to money.” Walter gave that a thought, but remembered that he did not introduce himself to the kind stranger. “Oh I'm Walter by the way.” the ghoul shook his hand and told him that he had no name but was glad to have known who Walter was.

“Look I know you have a plan to escape so I suggest you do it.” Walter brushed it off, but asked him if he knew where his stuff would be. “Yeah, take two rights and a left. That's where you're likely to find your stuff.” Walter thanked him and asked the ghoul whether he would leave once he broke out. The ghoul gave it a thought and said maybe. Respecting his decision Walter pulled out a bobby pin from the compartment in his collar and unlocked the cell door. The guards saw him out of his cell and they sounded the alarm in the building. Walter knowing he was in for some shit put his fist up prepping himself for the ensemble of guards that would come his way.

The guards opened fire at Walter and some of the bullets managed to hit him, but Walter still had enclave mutations flowing within him. So he grabbed the rifle from its scorching hot barrel and elbowed the man in the chest. He then used it to block a baton from another, then proceeded to kick him down towards the ground. He then used the rifle and opened fire on the two guards. Walter, not being very lucky, had the gun jam on him as soon as he killed the two guards. So he grabbed the baton and stared down at the hall full of guards. Walter smiled because none of them had guns equipped.

“So the rumors of yall not having money are true then huh? Can't afford your guns.” Some of them did have small handguns, but it didn't make a difference because Walter is a one man army. [BANG] [BANG] One by one they fell. Screaming and grunting can be heard as both sides obtain heavy losses. Walter is heavily injured but presses on. His baton then broke when he cracked a man's skull open with it; the brain matter from said hit was seen pouring out from under the man's scalp. Clearly out of options for viable weaponry, Walter found and used two bricks to beat several of the men down. He then crushed one of their heads open with said bricks. Then one of the bigger guys came from down the hall, picked up Walter and slammed him around. The big man then rammed Walter into a wall. Before the hulking brute could do anything, Walter bit his ear off and tore the brute's eye out of his eye socket. Screaming in pain he whimpered. Walter stood over him with broken bones and blood all over. Yelling can be heard echoing in the halls. It has left Thomas Green nervous.

“What the fuck do they feed these guys in Appalachia!” Thomas Green yelled. One of his guys tried to explain the conditions in Appalachia, but it was interrupted by an explosion. Walter had found the armory and his stuff. He took this time to breathe because he was in a terrible condition. The guy who had smashed Walter into a wall broke some of Walter’s bones, but that's something a stimpak could fix. There were bullet holes everywhere on his body, some even went through him. Not only that he could barely walk. Even with all the setbacks Walter was determined to teach the Evergreen Butchers a lesson. Walter then reloaded his weapons and checked his belongings to make sure he still had everything. He was ready. Within moments Walter entered the room Thomas Green was in.

“Guess you aren't so invincible huh? You freakin cunt!” Thomas snarked, “You could barely even walk! What makes me think you'll even stand a chance against us?” Thomas taunted as half his guards laughed alongside him.

Within mere moments, the room filled with smoke. All Thomas could see is the orange light illuminating the room through Walters goggles. “Eternal Vigilance has its upsides.” Walter commented. One by one, each of Thomas’s men fell with silence. The only thing Thomas or anyone left alive were able to hear… is the bone crunching sounds of those who fell and their screams forever echoing in the minds of those left remaining. It didn't take long for Walter to dispatch all of Thomas’s guards.

With that, Thomas Green scared shitless. He screamed and put his gun up ,demanding that Walter show himself. The room fell silent as the orange glow of Walters' goggles turned off. Thomas then found a nearby corner to cower in as he didn't hear anything. All he heard was the bone crunching sounds of his men getting killed by Walter.

“All right Silver Shroud! You win! Go and take my money, just leave me please!” Thomas pleaded, “My son was a skank anyways I didn't love that basterd!” It didn't matter because as soon as the smoke cleared; all Thomas could see was Walter standing in the center, surrounded by the mangled corpses of his men.

Walter then walked towards Thomas. He pleaded and pleaded as Walter inched closer. Walter then grabs him by the neck and lifts him in the air. His muscles can be seen through his outfit as he lifts the Evergreen Butcher’s gang leader up. It even made a tight leather sound as the muscles proved too big to fit in Walter’s outfit.

“You know that man… [losing breath] Leroy Higgins." Thomas is slowly losing the ability to breathe. Thomas, who was struggling, said to Walter, “h-he aint– the m-MAN… You think he… F-UCK... YOU THINK HE IS!” Walter did not care in the slightest for he was out for vengeance.

All Walter could hear was, “ple– ase… let… me LIVE!” Walter then placed the pathetic gang leader down. Thomas thanked him for he had thought he was safe. Then suddenly Walter shanked Thomas non-stop while taunting the half dead man. He told Thomas, “If you're going to kill me, you should've done it when you had the chance. Also this serves as a lesson to not make a fool out of me.” Walter then stabbed him in the head with a stimpak. Thomas Green of the Evergreen Butchers is now dead.

“Well that's one way to cut off a loose end.” out of the blue Leroy Higgins appears. He had been watching the whole ordeal from a distance. He didn't see the whole thing but he saw people get thrown out of windows and he did see an explosion go off.

“Sorry for the sudden disappearance boy, I had to take a piss with whatever flesh I had left.” Leroy remarked as he was a ghoul. “So what, you just came here to say hi and run off?” Walter asked Leroy. Leroy nodded and did exactly that.

Not putting much thought Walter proceeded to travel up the road; stumbling and occasionally tripping because of his injuries. That didn't stop him from encountering hostiles during his trip and neither did it soften Walter up to be prey. Walter then came across Vinton. The town is in good shape. So good in fact Walter managed to rent a room right above a bar. Walter breathed a sigh of relief for he was finally able to relax. He stayed in his room for a couple of days waiting for the mutation serums to fully heal him along with stabbing himself at half doses of stimpaks. Feeling better, Walter got up and went downstairs where the bar was located. The bartender was an alright fellow, he had a guard at the bottom of the stairs to make sure no one sneaks into rooms and steals someone's stuff. Though that didn't stop Walter from threatening him if the event were to ever occur.

Walter drank at the bar he mainly sat there listening to the music and overall just trying to relax and feed into the vibe the bar was setting. Though he did hear conversations that interested him.

“Hey man I heard; I might be wrong BUT! I heard some freaking lunatic came crashing into the Butcher Greens base an-.” the Jerry was then cut off by his friend who continued the conversation for him, “and destroyed the place. Yeah I know and I especially know who it is.” Jerry, clearly interested, asked his buddy who it is Abraham, the identity of the man. Abraham then pointed at Walter.

Walter, taking notice of the man's gesture said, “you boys looking for trouble?” The men a little scared said, “no no we were just astonished that you were able to do all of that. ALONE.” The friend nodded but Jerry retorted sarcastically with, “Yeah, but he ain't beating no Caramel Area Creature!”

Abraham groaned in annoyance. “Creature this, creature that! It's another random ass pre-war cryptid you keep bitching about!” Jerry justifying himself told Walter to listen in. Not being busy Walter decided to lean in and listen to the story. “Hear weee go.” Abraham said. Jerry then told the story of the Caramel area creature. “I heard it from a local, ok?” Walter and Abraham nodded, “he told me that a caravan holding a bunch of caps and goodies went missing near the Vinton Furnace state forest not too far from here.” He said he had seen it. “It was a tall, pale figure, it dripped poisonous acids and had a taste for the flesh of lower beings like us!” Walter interrupting asked for further details.

“Ah ah… I'm not done yet, tough guy. I'm almost there.” Walter then continued to listen in to Jerry's story. “Multiple people had heard about the possible treasure from the caravan. They said it came from a trading company somewhere in a place called Vermont.” Lighting up a bit Walter thought to himself, “A trading company from Vermont. Must be really popular then. If I find this missing caravan, not only will it supply me financially, but it would also give me clues on the state's current condition.” After thinking Jerry had finished his story.

Walter, clearly interested in the missing caravan, asked Jerry, “So what are some clues ooor… advice to killing this Caramel creature?” Jerry laughed at Walter and called him plain dumb for thinking of doing such a thing. Abraham then reminded his friend that this was the guy who whipped out the Evergreen Butchers. Jerry said he knew and was about to give him advice anyways, “One well placed shot in the legs will have the darn thing tumbling down that's for sure” Jerry told Walter.

“You think a 50.Caliber round in the chest is enough to kill the cryptid?” Walter asked and Jerry shrugged because he hadn't really seen the thing. Walter having a goal in mind gave pocket change to the two kind men for aiding him. Though a tad bit confused, they accepted Walter’s kind gesture and walked out of the bar. Walter now has a clear goal in mind: rest, gear up, and prepare for the next coming days he will retrieve the items and information from the caravan.

End of Act II