My Kingdom of Rubble

Jesus Christ, this is sad.

After what felt like hours of walking, Chrysalis led Ozzy back to a cave in the middle of a mountain range, one which she used as a home. She claimed that she engaged in a battle to the death with one of this area's most dangerous creatures, a snow Yeti, just to make this her home. Of course, it was still just a cave in the middle of a mountain range that barely staved off the cold. Damp, with lots of sharp icicles hanging from the roof, ready to impale some unfortunate soul who happened to be standing underneath.

The cave had an attempt at interior decorating, with several poorly-prepared pelts lining the wall, all of which had every ounce of meat carved out of them. The incessant sound of water dripping somewhere deeper in the cave was a bittersweet circumstance, as the sound of water constantly dripping would drive someone mad, but the formation of several naturally-filtered puddles and pools of clean water were a bonus.

Several mementos also lined the walls, such as a musty crown hung from one of the natural formations in the rocks.

Definitely a queen. Couldn't let go of the crown.

The crown, now broken and cracked, appeared as though it were made from some cheap metal, something that would suit a prize from a cereal box, not something that would sit upon the heads of royalty. There was a tiny hole formed in the center of the cave, sticks and rocks surrounding it. Obviously used as a makeshift fire pit for cooking game.

A picture frame, made from a material akin to beeswax, sat near a torn mattress lying on the floor one corner of the cave. The picture depicted Chrysalis, healthy and lively, while wearing a magnificently long cape, sitting in a queenly pose. She was wearing the crown that hung from the cave wall, except that it appeared more polished and regal, giving off the air of royalty. If that wasn't bad enough, a creature that appeared to be some sort of cave worm slithered out of one of the many tears in the mattress, leaving a trail of transparent goop. Grimacing at the sight, Ozzy turned his attention back toward his cave hostess.

Chrysalis, for her part, was beginning to feel her anxiety decrease around this 'Ozzy'. Even if he tried to kill her, she knew she wouldn't stand a chance against it. Her malnourishment taking too much of a toll on her form, Ozzy would steamroll her within seconds. Accepting her fate, the most she could do is attempt to be a decent hostess and hope that she appeases him.

Walking towards the fire pit, she realized just how little she had. Of course general pride was at stake, as appearing as a bad hostess would not only damage her dignity, but may very well cost her her life. "I apologize for not having any food, currently. I am... having an unlucky streak with hunting game." Her vision fixated on the fire pit so as to avoid the judgmental eyes of Ozzy. "It's alright. If I had any food to share, I would gladly do so."

Guessing she likes meat.

You don't say? What gave that away, the animal carcasses?

Ignoring his other half, Ozzy took a seat close to the unlit pit. "If you couldn't tell, I do not have many guests." She rested on all fours opposite of Ozzy, the only light originating from the mouth of the cave. "I apologize for the state of my home." She spoke, making a point to not meet the gaze of Ozzy for fear of him making a meal out of her. Ozzy looked at Chrysalis, while an idea was forming in his head. "I'll tell you what: you took me in. Maybe I'll have better luck hunting." Without a moments hesitation, Ozzy stood up and began walking towards to entrance to the cave.

Chrysalis barely had time to speak to him before he ran out the opening.

I hope he brings back a plump fox.

Thaaaaat's right. Just a little closer.

Moments after he exited the cave, Ozzy began working. With the blizzard still raging around him, he began learning the patterns of the animals and beasts around him. Normally he would use 'This Machine' for the job of hunting, but not wanting to scare away a potential meal led him to use the broad machete.

After he had picked up a trail that showed a small fox was in the area, and deciding that that was the best place to start, Ozzy began tracking it. After catching up to the evasive fox, Ozzy found himself resting behind a grouping of rocks leading into yet another field of snow. Machete in hand, Ozzy spied the fox about five yards away from him. Preparing himself for the takedown, Ozzy placed his free hand on the smooth surface of the formation and tensed his legs.

That was before an ear-piercing roar was heard near his position. The fox, no doubt having heard the roar, sprinted off into the wintery abyss. Ozzy sat there, a grin forming on his face.

That. That thing is what I'm eating.

You're going to need the rifle for whatever that was.

Ozzy slung the machete onto his back, replacing it for 'This Machine'. Surveying his surroundings, his eyes found the source of the roar. Eight feet tall, a four-armed beast walked out from behind another nearby snow mound. The white fur covering its entire body did nothing to hide its form to the keen spectator. Horns poking out of its temples, curving downwards in a circular motion increased its intimidation factor, as did the razor-sharp claws that adorned its three-fingered hands. Its skin color appeared to be a paler gray, offset by the singular yellow eye in the middle of its face. A row of pointed teeth sat in the mouth of the beast, a testament to its killing prowess.

As the Yeti surveyed the snow, its eye settled on the brown, armored figure that was the Courier. Letting out a low-pitched growl, followed by a forceful roar, the Yeti began charging the rock formation which Ozzy sat behind

This is going to be fun.

Let's do this!

Letting out his own battlecry, Ozzy trained the rifle on the beasts head, and fired.

Chrysalis sat there, contemplating what just happened.

He just left. Like that!

She was befuddled, to say the least. This creature, who no less than an hour ago had nearly killed her, was now fetching her food.

This must be some sort of trick. That 'Ozzy' will never return and probably perish out in the snow.

Although, deep down... Chrysalis wanted this alien, this 'Ozzy' to return. If he could fool the mistress of the hunt then she was, then surely he had to be a capable hunter himself.

In the meantime, I should most likely get a fire going. This is the first time I have had a guest in... I cannot even remember how long.

With that, Chrysalis began scrounging up as much dry firewood as she possibly could. The wood she has was gathered from trains passing through the frozen north, of which she... 'Borrowed' for the time being. Alright, she stole them, but it was to sustain what little sanity she had left. Gathering up as much as she could, she set them in the center of the pit and attempted to light them.

Yes. 'Lighting' them.

Being drained of magic, she was forced with two options: sit there and strike rocks together, or completely exhaust herself and inflict potential bodily harm to herself. Being the impatient mare that she was, Chrysalis chose the latter. Standing to her full height and leveling her horn towards the wood, she conjured up as much magic as she could from her very being. Exert, pant. Exert, pant. This went on for minutes, until she exerted herself to the point where she could barely breathe.

This is it. This is the one.

With every fiber of magic that she had left, she channeled all of it directly towards the fire. Clenching her eyes, she began to feel very tired and nearly passed out. That was until she heard the gentle ember spark into existence, directly on one of the pieces of wood. Gasping at her success, she knelt down and began to lightly blow on the ember, willing it to grow in size and warmth. After a few seconds, the ember grew into a gentle flame, then into a sufficient fire. Placing the log alongside the others, she fed the fire with other splinters of wood, hoping that it would remain burning.

The fire burned in a bright, warming glow. Her body began to thaw, a feeling which she had forgotten of how amazing it felt. Gazing at the fire, her thoughts returned to Ozzy, recalling his goal of securing dinner for the pair of them.

I hope he is succeeding.

"That's what you get, you fuzzy prick!"

Fuck yeah!

As the beast lay bleeding in the snow, Ozzy realized just how dangerous this species truly was. After two clips of the normal .308 rounds had seemingly no effect on the Yeti, he switched to his spare hollow-points. After those didn't work, Ozzy attempted to slice up the competition, only to find that the skin of the best required at least five strong swings from his machete to even open a wound.

All of that Ozzy learned while the beast was attempting to remove his head from his body. Being tossed, punched and slammed against rocks more than a few times by those incredibly muscular four arms demonstrated that only those who knew the anatomy of the beast could succeed. Add to that the occasions when the Yeti nearly impaled him on those horns of his, this beast was akin to a Deathclaw in more ways than one.

Only after Ozzy shoved a live grenade down the beasts' throat did it submit. The blast took off the lower half of his jaw, allowing Ozzy to stab the beast directly through his mouth, up into the brain. After the Yeti drew its final breath, Ozzy celebrated on his most recent kill, adding that to his overall count.

Plus, this one is on an alien planet. I need to start a new roster for that.

Satisfied with the hefty meal he acquired, Ozzy heaved the carcass of the Yeti onto his back, and began trekking back through the snow.

Fuck, which way was the cave again?

"I'm back!" Ozzy called into the cave, hearing his voice resonate against the walls. "And I've got a nice goddamn meal with me!"

Chrysalis, who had dozed off by the fire waiting for Ozzy to return, was astounded by what he was carrying. There, draped across his back, was one of the most hostile creatures to ever roam the frozen north. At a loss for words, Chrysalis jogged towards the man, bombarding him with a myriad of questions. "How did you best a snow Yeti? Where did you find it? Were there anymore with it?" All of these questions implied that she had not expected Ozzy to make it back with such a prize.

"First, no, there were no more with it." He dropped the body near the pit. "Second, it found me while I was hunting a fox. Lastly, I tossed a grenade down its throat and stabbed it straight through the brain." Ozzy plopped down onto the ground near the fire, the heat immediately warming his body. Chrysalis, still in awe, inspected the corpse of the beast, finding that its jaw was indeed removed, and that a single stab wound on the roof of the mouth was the killing blow.

She stood there, a flurry of emotions invading her thoughts. "Why did you do this?" Ozzy turned his head to see Chrysalis, who was still fixated on the Yeti. "Why did you so nearly embrace death?" She turned, a quizzical look upon her face. Ozzy pondered that for a moment, then shrugged. "I did it because you were hungry, I was hungry, and I wanted to kill something. Sound good?"

This response only heightened her confusion. "To clarify: you nearly kill me, then you willingly share food with me, that food being one of if not THE deadliest creature in this region." Ozzy stared blankly at her.

She's making it sound like that's a problem.

A lot of people tend to not trust someone who almost murdered them with no rhyme or reason.

"Yeah, that seems to be it."  Ozzy stood and neared the corpse, unsheathing Blood Nap from his hip. Slowly but surely, he cut out a hefty portion of the beasts' mid-section, stuck it on the edge of his knife, and set it near the fire. Chrysalis, for her part, was more confused than ever. Without any other options, Chrysalis moved closer to the fire, never letting Ozzy out of her sight. "I have never met someone like you. You are a peculiar one, to say the least." Ozzy looked at her, a smirk forming on his face. "I take that as a compliment. Also, I feel as though I should properly introduce myself." He held out his right hand, Chrysalis recoiling slightly at the action.

"My name is Oswald Slava Acerbi, but I prefer to go by Ozzy or the Courier. I am the head of the First Committee of New Vegas." Chrysalis pondered his name, as well as the outstretched appendage. Staring blankly at it, Ozzy continued. "You're supposed to shake my hand." With that, Chrysalis held up her hoof and moved it toward his 'hand'. Once her hoof was in reach, Ozzy gave it a gentle handshake, or hoof-hand shake as it were. Chrysalis was just perplexed by this Ozzy, or Oswald, or whatever his name is.

"Very well. I am Queen Chrysalis, former leader of the Changeling Hive." Ozzy smiled at that. "Sounds like you were ousted. Care to expand on that?" Chrysalis for her part was not so keen to revisit the events which led her to her current political and housing status. "I do not care to share the whole story, but I will tell you this: I attempted something, I failed, and certain members of my hive staged a coup and overthrew me. They then banished me to this wretched place."

The Courier nodded, reaching to test the meat that had been cooking. "I'm sorry. That sounds rough." After feeling that the meat was not quite done, Ozzy returned his gaze to Chrysalis. "You don't seem like that bad of an... Individual. What were you trying to accomplish?" Chrysalis looked away from Ozzy, towards the fire. "I will not reveal that information. It is too damning." She look backed to him. "What about you? You are a leader of sorts as well?"

Ozzy shrugged, looking back towards the meat. "I suppose. I'm head of a committee who is in charge of a small, but prosperous sovereign nation." Seeing that she was expecting more, Ozzy continued. "Listen, my story is long and complicated, and I doubt you want to hear the entire thing. Plus... I did some things that I'm not proud of." Chrysalis smiled at that. "I understand that. How about a compromise? I will tell you my tale, minus the sections that I choose to keep to myself, and you will do the same. Sound fair?"

Ozzy, being the gentleman that he is, agreed. "Fair enough. A meal and a story? I can dig it." Reaching towards the meat and finding it decently warm, he removed it from the knife, cut it in half, and handed one half to Chrysalis, who gladly accepted.

"Very well. I will start." Chrysalis said, before taking a generous bite from the warm meat.