Irradiated Changes

***

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“Damnit LeBlanc, turn that shit off!” Sentinel Lyons whispered furiously, causing the Lone Wanderer to quickly press a few buttons on the device wrapped around his wrist.

“My bad.” he muttered, leaning down to pick up his weapon again.

Chrysalis, despite hearing all of it, wasn’t overly interested in their conversation. Actually, she was interested in the group of humans that she was watching through one lense of the Knight’s... binoculars, he had called them. Equestrians had simple telescopes and such, but commercial devices such as this were beyond the Changeling Queen’s knowledge. It was both fascinating, and useful, given that she was observing them from probably a three hundred yards away.

She waited patiently as Moth kept observing long after she’d pulled her eye away from the lense, letting him keep observing through his good eye on the opposite side. Eventually, he too pulled his away, letting her have the device. It took him a few moments to give out the finer details to the others, though he did point out a few things Chrysalis herself failed to notice, Five humans in total; three females and two males. Equipped in light patchwork armor of metal and leather, armed with weapons similar to the Lyon’s Pride’s smaller weapons, though in poorer condition. Also possible explosives and close-quarter blades. Civilian pseudo-military design.

Very little love in them, though. Chrysalis idly noted, her stomach rumbling lowly. She handed James’ binoculars back to him. As the Knight placed them back into his gear bag, she began voicing aloud, “This, is going to be a problem.”

She tapped the soft chitin of her stomach for emphasis, earning another growl from it, “We have enough love to last about three days, but even then we’ll be heavily restricted. Sluggish, unable to use our more potent magic, and possibly even unable to fly if our condition worsens.”

“I’ve been wondering about that, actually. You keep on mentioning love and magic, and I’ve done my best to avoid questioning it, but, well, it’s not like we’re going anywhere for the moment. At least until Dusk and Colvin get into position, that is...” the Knight elaborated, earning a pause from the two changelings.

The other three changelings were hanging back about another dozen yards or so with the rest of the Pride, in case they were spotted too soon. They likely didn’t need to, given their distance, but Chrysalis was being careful, given this was their first sign of actual combat with humanity.

Said Changeling Queen ducked down below the rock they’d used as cover and sat down, “I suppose if we have the time. I could bore you with a lecture on the magic and spells relating to the topic, but it is much simpler to say that we changelings are able to siphon off emotions from sentient life, and then use it as energy for both magic and a food source in general. Love simply provides the most energy when absorbed, and since our biology doesn’t allow us to consume traditional food for sufficient energy, it is our primary source of nourishment.”

The Sentinel nodded slowly, “Given all that’s happened in the Wasteland regarding aliens, I suppose I can accept that, so long as you can explain magic and spells as well...”

James shrugged as well, not seeming to have any objections either. He’d been somewhat quiet since they’d started traveling, actually.

Chrysalis continued regardless, “Very well. Without going into overly complex detail, given the situation, imagine Magic as simply using that energy in order to carry out actions, no different than how energy is used to move the body. It’s mostly restricted to unicorns and alicorns regarding the pony races, and several other races have their own methods, but every changeling is able to perform magic, to some degree. We refer to specific uses of this energy as spells. Levitation and teleportation being common ones, but changelings are adept in the use of body-altering spells specifically. The reason my changelings and I were so exhausted is that the spell used to bring us here must have drained us of most, if not all, of our magical energy and the reserves of love we had stored in our bodies.”

The two gave a short nod-shrug motion that gave off a vibe of ‘Seems likely.’ James then poked his head above the rock, then ducked back down while checking the clip in his weapon, “So, given that you said Love is the most powerful, that means you can take in any emotion to produce energy, right? Like, rage, sadness, glee...” he idly listed off.

This time it was Chrysalis’ turn to shrug, “Yes, but generally they also have other side-effects. Sadness is like painkillers, rage improves strength and adrenaline functions, and so on. Why do you ask?”

“...Well, can’t you just siphon off emotion from these Raiders?” he proposed, causing Chrysalis and Moth to look at each other, Would it be wise to explain to him?

Hacksaw came over the hivemind, Mother, if I might offer my input.

You may. the Queen of the Changelings responded calmly

If these... raiders, are to be executed regardless, the more lethal method of siphoning for a larger supply of emotional energy crystals would likely be a more profitable option in terms of gathering the emotions and energy needed to survive. It’s not much love, but.... he proposed.

In truth, the Changeling Queen had already been considering it, but Hacksaw was likely merely trying to reinforce the point, “...We could. So long as you’re able to keep them distracted so that we can get in close. I... won’t lie to you however. Beyond our usual methods of gathering love by transforming into someone another loves, and taking the place of the one we took the form of so that the other would give us that love intended for the person we replaced, the methods for siphoning other emotions can be... drastic. Simply put, we are able to literally drain them of all emotions from hoof-to-hoof contact, which results in little but a husk being left. And by husk, I mean the body literally begins to deteriorate. It is... cruel; excessively so, which is why we began looking for alternative feeding methods as soon as we began to realize this.”

James and the Sentinel looked at each other for a moment, with a look of something... deeper. Chrysalis could tell a sort of unspoken conversation passed between them, even though she was not entirely sure if they had a hivemind-like connection.

After a moment, the Sentinel turned back to her, “...I’ll call back Dawn and Colvin. LeBlanc and I will provide covering fire. Raiders will likely attack the larger threats first, but move quickly.”

Moth and Chrysalis nodded simultaneously, and the three other of her changelings began slowly creeping towards them, attempting to remain hidden as they went. Steel’s concerned thoughts came over the Hivemind, Your Highness? Not that I have any moral hindrances regarding the killing of what the Knight described as drug-taking psychopaths, but is this... safe? I’ve never put much thought into voicing a question about this method of emotional gathering before...

It is simple, Steel. she explained, passing over the necessary information for the spell to him, as well as Cocoon upon her questioning. In all honesty it wasn’t that difficult a spell. The trouble was getting close enough to make hoof-contact...

“...This is going to probably hurt like Hell, isn’t it?” the Lone Wanderer idly noted, putting his scoped weapon over the stone to have a clear line of sight at the Raiders.

The Sentinel raised her own weapon, “Yeah, for me maybe.”

He turned his head to her, the annoyance showing even through the helmet, “Hey; I still feel pain on most of my body, Sarah. I’m not invincible, even if it seems like it. I’m still, human... mostly...”

Chrysalis filed that bit of information away to ask the Knight about later, then waited as the two ‘snipers’ of the Pride returned and fell back to give the changelings some space. Chrysalis gave James a slight nod before dashing off, hovering low to the ground with her five children close behind. It was at that moment that James flicked on his music again and opened fire with a battle cry of, “GET SOOOOOOOOOME!”

***

The loud weapon barking sharply behind them in tune to the whirs of the Sentinel’s weapon firing beams of red energy, the changelings managed to stay unnoticed by the Raiders as they moved closer and closer. Using the various stones and decayed vehicles for cover, they never stopped until they were close enough to actually draw the Raider’s attentions.

The six changelings paused for the first time since they’d taken flight, pressing themselves behind stones and metal, waiting until the humans began reloading their weapons. Then, in one swift, collective movement, they vaulted over their collective covers and charged.

Chrysalis herself fell upon the closest one, who was looking at her in shock as she drove her hooves into his body. Green magic surged around them before he could even raise his smaller weapon. Immediately after she began the spell, multicolored crystals of raw emotion began to erupt from his body, though no blood escaped from his decaying form.

Slowly, he began to deteriorate in her grip, clawing at her legs with his hands, even as they turned to dust and began to blow away in the wind. All in all, while it might have been horrific and disturbing to those of a weaker stomach, it was supposed to be a ‘painless’ process in which the victim slowly lost self-awareness until they ceased to exist, broken down to their most basic of parts, leaving only their emotions behind to be consumed.

Then again. she idly thought, In all likelihood he’d murdered and raped dozens while high out of his mind... Does this mean we’re now doing good for this world?

While it was more of a personal thought, it did spark some form of questioning and personal thinking between her changelings. While not her intention, it caused a ghost of a smile to flit across the Changeling Queen’s features when she realized that instead of thinking collectively, the five were thinking as individuals, presenting possible outcomes and coming to personal grips with what they’d just done. Most found it simply a case of survival of the fittest, while Hacksaw simply thought it a necessary evil.

Perhaps it was, but at the moment, she was too hungry to care; there was a small sliver of love, enough for maybe a day or two, in the pile of emotion crystals at Chrysalis’ hooves. She swallowed it whole without a second thought, sitting down to look over the small haul of emotions as James and the Sentinel walked up.

COMPLETED (Chrysalis): Find a source of Love until you get back, or before you die.

The Knight let out a low whistle, “Woah. Now that’s magic, all right...” he bent down beside her, picking up the Raider’s weapon, “Decent haul too. Kill the flesh, leave aside the guns and supplies.”

“Is that what those weapons are called?” Cocoon idly asked, picking up a similarly shaped device with a levitation spell and looking over it, then popped a small rectangle from the bottom. Chrysalis idly levitated the clothing the Raider had been wearing and went about tying a few knots to the tire, connecting the quilt pieces to form a crude sling. She then put this over her neck to rest against her left side, loading in the crystals as she idly stuck a much less potent, if more enticing, crystal of solidified Fear in between her lips.

She then turned back to James, listening as the other members of the Pride came forwards to prepare for more walking, “Well, these cheap weapons, yeah. Ten millimeters, some thirty-twos; small-time pistols, but great for concealed carrying and decent if you maintain them correctly.” he picked up a much larger weapon, “Ooo, combat shotgun. I’ve been looking for one of these to repair my Terrible...”

The Changeling Queen idly shook her head and loaded the pistol and its apparent ammunition into the sling, then went about rifling through the remains of the Raider’s clothing pockets, wondering if there were a few crystals that hadn’t poked through the material. All she ended up finding was more ammunition and a few bottle caps, which she almost tossed aside before Lyons stopped her with a hand, “Keep them. I don’t know what kind of currency you use, but Caps are about the only one that’s worth knowing in the Wasteland.”

She nodded, then put the small supply into the sling as well. Predictably, Hacksaw was gathering up anything and everything his siblings didn’t want, with Moth ignoring the inventory entirely and placing what crystals he wasn’t crunching on between the plate of chitin where his neck and back plates met. Steel was helping Cocoon with, predictably, the largest weapon she could find, which was the larger, bulkier weapon similar to the Combat Shotgun the Lone Wanderer had picked up. Cicada was just bouncing around, a rather large crystal of solidified Glee in her mouth.

After a minute or so, the initial rush of finally having food wore off and they began walking again. Chrysalis herself hovered over the ground slightly, turning over the newly aquired pistol in her hooves. A ten millimeter handgun, from Paladin Kodiak’s description.

***

“You okay?” James quickened his pace slightly to keep up with the buzzing of the Queen’s wings. She didn’t look at him, instead removing the magazine and sliding into one of the holes of her hooves, inspecting one of the bullets.

Finally after a few moments, she spoke, “Thinking. Hacksaw’s always been working on a project to allow for distance-based gathering techniques... and while I supported him, I’ve never diverted many resources for, obvious, reasons... I have no moral dilemmas with killing psychotic murderers and rapists, so...”

The Lone Wanderer could see where this was going, “So you’re thinking you can use magic with guns in order to allow for safer emotion gathering than just running up and hoping to dodge bullets.”

She nodded, earning a shrug from the armored man as he kept speaking, “Given that there are generally more assholes than saints in the Capital, I’d support it. It’d help with clearing out the trash, that’s for sure...”

Chrysalis nodded, “My thoughts as well, though the... moral, as well as future, impact gives me pause.”

She clicked the bullet back into the magazine and loaded it into the pistol, levitating it slightly with her magic, “We changelings don’t kill anymore, James, no matter what Equestrian textbooks sa-.”

He spoke up then, giving a mental sigh, “Look... your highness. In all honesty, I don’t judge people who ask questions first and shoot later by their past deeds. Until I see you kill an innocent, steal from those who need it more, or the equivalent, I’ll aid you however I can.”

She sighed, “Yes, yes; I understand that much. What unnerves me is the implications of what we can do with it outside of your world. Equis hasn’t been such violence so close to the Empire for... years.” she hesitated at the end, drawing a raised eyebrow from him, impossible to see behind his helmet.

Nonetheless, he nodded, “It’s understandable. You fear the technology boom will be too quick for your society to handle.”

She sighed, replying with a short, “Yes, but also that of our enemies. If they are able to acquire such things from us, it could mean an even bloodier conflict next time. I just fear that by using these guns, we might grow too dependant and take them back with us...”

James shrugged his shoulders, “I think I get it. In all honesty, though, I also think you’re thinking too far into it. Not to put a damper on your hopes of returning home, but... well, if you end up stuck here, you might have to use them as a reliable gathering method. So, y’know, you’ll kind of have to get used to them.”

The Changeling Queen paused, but eventually gave a slow tilt of her head to acknowledge him, “I suppose.”

They both heard a low whoop of excitement the second she finished her sentence; likely Hacksaw listening in and glad he’d get to try his experiments now. Chrysalis managed a small chuckle, and the Knight grinned to himself.

He then paused, his legs still moving on mental auto-pilot as he considered what the decision would mean for the six changelings, before deciding to offer, “...If that’s the case; you want a few shooting lessons once we get to the rendezvous? The trip from there to the citadel should be a good half hour or so, and our transport should be stocked with enough ammunition...”

Chrysalis nodded immediately, “If you would. I’d like to be able to use these... guns, or yours without taking five minutes to hit something...”

She idly paused mid-flight, ears and eyebrows raising in obvious surprise, before she suddenly began moving again, shaking her head. James picked up on this immediately and voiced the obvious, “...Something wrong?”

It was at that moment he too heard a sound; like a toned-down version of a Minigun constantly spinning up. He tilted his head slightly in either direction to pick up on the source, only to find the usual barren wastes as they trekked along. Chrysalis tapped his pauldron, before pointing down, where one of the changelings was... rolling around, on spiked tread-like devices attached to its hooves. Given all that had happened, the Lone Wanderer wasn’t all that surprised; more intrigued, if anything.

They appeared to be held on similar to some kind of cap-like horseshoe, designed to fit snuggly over the ends of the hooves to keep them from falling off, or maybe they had some sort of sliding piece that rose up to keep them like that. Regardless, he could easily see small spikes jutting off of the paint roller-like wheels, kicking up a minor bit of dust and debris behind them and making four miniature dust waves behind the changeling.

They also seemed to elevate its height by a good three or so inches, as the average changeling only came up to about two-foot-eleven, not counting Steel, who was maybe a good inch and a half taller, subtle as it was. James gave a low whistle, “...Cool.”

The changeling looked up, answering in a voice that made him obviously Hacksaw, “Thanks. Managed to jurry-rig them; save up on strength.”

The Changeling Queen had gone back to examining her ten millimeter, idly voicing out, “Pocket Dimension?”

The smaller changeling nodded, “Pocket Dimension.”

James blinked behind his helmet, again voicing the obvious question, “What?”

Hacksaw chuckled, “Magic. It’s like a miniature storage space. I keep my Industrial Diggers in it for travel reasons, though I’ve not gotten the chance to use them on account of a lack of Love to power them.”

The moment he finished his sentence, a second changeling in similar devices rolled past, albeit moving much faster and shaking his head. Hacksaw snorted, “Yeah, well, we can’t all have the idea to power ours via combat crystals Moth!

Moth did a quick, sharp turn, beginning to roll backwards in the same direction, before raising one hoof and turning it upside down. The Lone Wanderer didn’t need a translation to understand that one.

Hacksaw snorted again. Moth span back around before speeding up, moving towards the front of their little caravan. James decided then to re-begin his line of questioning, “So, what are they, exactly?”

The medical and repair changeling grinned slightly, a bit of obvious pride showing as he kept moving forwards with his eyes closed, “These are one of my older and more reliable applications of changeling technology; Industrial Diggers. They’re a useful little mining tool, both for travel and tunneling, though honestly their exact designer and origin escapes me...”

James’ eyebrow threatened to raise again, before he narrowed his eyes at the bulletproof glass of his visor, remembering it was a moot action. He just spoke instead, “You mean you didn’t make them?”

Hacksaw shook his head, opening his eyes and tilting his head in the direction Moth had gone, speaking up again, “I based them on Moth’s and changed over the internals to be powered by Love instead of the original being powered by more negative emotions like Hate and Rage; more performance output for a smaller supply of energy. Beyond that, they’re just copies of his.”

The Knight nodded, looking down at the small devices again. Now that he thought about it, they vaguely reminded him to the Auto-Axes he’d grown accustomed to whilst in The Pitt. Odd, but he supposed that would be a good thing if either of the two changelings got into a close-quarters fight; if they were anything like an Auto-Axe in terms of sheer power and damage-dealing, then they’d rip right through anything in their path.

This then lead him to the concept of how the two changelings stored such devices, “Hey, Hacksaw.”

The changeling looked up at him, “Hm...?”

James popped the question about the work of magic, “So can you create those Pocket Dimensions for anyone, or-”

He was suddenly cut off by a very loud cry from behind him, “Oh hell no!”

He turned and knew immediately that the voice belonged to Dusk, who quickened from behind to catch up with him, “Hero or no hero; I’d like at least a minute to start running before you pull that overpowered Fat Man out of your ass and cause a nuke detonation bigger than the one that decommissioned Liberty Prime!”

He chuckled, “Aw, too scared of the big bad sniper with an even bigger gun Dawn?”

She snorted, flipping him off, before grumbling, “I still call bullshit on that contest...”

James saw Chrysalis look up out of the corner of his eye, before asking with a raised eyebrow, “What contest?”

He grinned to himself. Dusk groaned.

***

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“This is so...” Twilight Sparkle, Element of Magic and personal student of Princess Celestia drifted off, her eyes wandering around the base with wonder.

Beside her, Rainbow Dash was walking in slightly less slack-jawed a state, “Awesome?”

“Fascinating!” Twilight corrected, looking around at the various high-tech, to her at least, technologies this ‘Enclave’ possessed, regardless of the fact that they were military. The functions mattered little to her, as she could only take in the sheer mass of advanced technology and the possible knowledge she could glean from it all.

It was at that moment that Sergeant Ramirez, who’d been following beside them, spoke up, “In accordance with the Colonel’s orders, you’ll find your rooms in the Bomb Storage building, which serves as our barracks. Level Two clearances extend from the pathways and Mess Hall made from the CO’s Quarters through the bomb storage facility, ending at the stairwell to the storage proper guarded by two Tesla Troopers. The Personal Offices are also fully in the Level Two clearances, so you basically just need to not rush past the stairwell and you’ll be fine.”

“What’s so bad about the storage room, um, that is, if you don’t mind my asking...” Fluttershy spoke up quietly beside him.

The Sergeant’s voice crackled through his speaker with a slightly dark chuckle, “Slight radiation levels due to some of the bomb casings being cracked. We’re still trying to salvage and clear the place. From what I remember, most of Bomb Storage is taken over by our reserves and patrols, but I believe the Armor Storage Room should have a few unclaimed beds... Plus it is about the cleanest room on-base before we arrived here...”

Twilight pulled herself away from the wonders around her, blinking as she heard Rarity speak up, though an obvious huff of irritation was present, “Well, any room cleaner than this dreadful place sounds like a welcome respite.”

Twilight nodded, looking up at the armored face of the Trooper, “That’ll be fine, sir. Thank you.”

He shrugged, “Just following orders. The Armor Storage is just inside the main room, past the office and blast doors. Anything else I can tell you?”

Fluttershy nervously spoke up again, “Um..., I don’t suppose you have a garden or some forest close-by? Something maybe a little more green?” Sergeant Ramirez tilted his head to the side slightly, obviously confused.

Thankfully, the prismatic pegasus that was Rainbow Dash spoke up for her friend, “Fluttershy’s more of a nature type than the rest of us.”

He nodded in quick understanding, “Very well. I believe a buddy of mine was talking about the scientists setting up a few fruit and vegetable gardens in the parking lot behind the Offices.”

Applejacks’ ears perked up out of the corner of Twilight’s vision, though whatever words Fluttershy was whispering to her went unheard. The farm pony spoke up with a bit of an evasive tone, “...Well... I suppose I might check it out regardless... Apple growin’ is mah livelyhood after all, and, well; it’s not like we’ve got much ta do while we wait fer the princess ta be done talkin’ with the Colonel...”

Before anyone could respond, the two quickly walked off from the rest of the group, Fluttershy flying low to the ground while Applejack maintained a quick trot. Rainbow Dash then extended her wings, “Well, I don’t know about you girls, but I’m going to go practice up in the clouds. See ya!”

Before any of them could protest, she too flew off, though much more quickly than the two nature ponies. The Trooper turned to glance down at the remaining three ponies, probably expecting them to go off on their own as well. Rarity shrugged her shoulders slightly, “Well, I believe our own room would be personal enough to freshen up after trekking through this dreadful land... er... no offense, Sergeant.”

He shrugged, not seeming to care one way or the other and letting the comment slide right off of him. Pinkie, who’d been bouncing around them, completely oblivious as she hummed a tune to herself, suddenly stopped and gasped in realization, “Ooo, ooo; I just realized I have to go prepare!”

The two unicorns blinked, though it was Twilight who asked the question, “Prepare for what, Pinkie?”

The bubbly earth pony then spoke as if it was obvious, “A ‘Treaty between Equestria and the Enclave’ party of course!”

She then bounced off, leaving the two unicorns and human standing there in slight confusion. After a minute, the Sergeant spoke up again, “Ah... not to be rude, ma’am, but is she always like that?”

Twilight shook her head with a sigh, “Pretty much, though, please, just call me Twilight. I’m not really the formal type...”

He nodded, following after again as they walked towards what he’d indicated as Bomb Storage.

***

“Huh. When’d Three Dog find new songs?” James idly wondered aloud, tapping the stock of his Reservist’s to the beat.

Cicada, who was currently buzzing beside him, shrugged, but just as quickly started bouncing in the air to the beat with her eyes closed and her mouth in a smile, clearly content to just enjoy the music amongst the foot and hoofsteps, buzzing wings, and gentle whir of her siblings and the Pride. After Chrysalis had accepted his offer to train the changelings with weapons, they’d all settled into a decent rhythm of walking, with exchanges of culture and information between the more sociable Pride punctuating the time. So far he’d learned next to nothing, but the Knight was fine with that, content to answer a few basic questions about the Capital Wasteland. Especially considering he’d been to basically everywhere that was anywhere in the place...

He snapped out of his thoughts as they reached the gate to the VAPL-58 Power Station, the soldiers and changelings passing by without incident. Cicada buzzed atop his head and lay down, idly tapping the top of his helmet, “So we’re staying here for lunch?”

The Knight almost nodded, before realizing what that would mean shaking her loose. Instead he just spoke, “Yeah. Rest up, resupply on rations, then head down to Arefu to hop on the Gambit. Then we roll on down the river for a bit and get dropped off at the Citadel.”

From the shifting weight he deduced she was likely nodding. James, unlike the others, stayed outside, content to wait as the Pride rested up and resupplied. After about two minutes, Cicada spoke up again, “Sooo... you’re not going with them?”

He shrugged, “Not really. I don’t need much at this point in my life. By the by, I need my helmet off.” he felt the same shifting weight again, before her full weight left his head and settled on his pauldron. he fiddled with the seal of his armor for a moment, before the dusty, slightly warm Wasteland air flowed into his lungs.

He clipped the helmet to his waist before digging around inside his gear, pulling out a blood bag. He could’ve sworn he heard a low set of collective gasps as he closed his eyes and jammed his teeth into the plastic, letting the slightly warm blood flow onto his tongue...

Wait.

He opened his eyes, seeing that he actually was hearing correctly... well, slightly. The rest of the changelings, except Chrysalis for some reason, stood in front of him. In reality, only one looked sick, while another tried to help her calm down, and the other two were blinking rapidly. James pulled his mouth out of the bag, “...I can explain?”

“Ew... ew, ew, ew...” Cocoon muttered, putting a hoof to her mouth.

Steel raised an eyebrow, “I didn’t know humans were cannibalistic...”

The Lone Wanderer sighed, “Family Member, actually, but basically. I’m not your standard cannibal, but I’ve learned blood packs are better than Old World food... Wait, no, I’m not even a cannibal. See, just...”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, “Let me finish lunch real quick, then I’ll explain, okay?”

They all nodded collectively, even Cocoon, before the Heavy Ordinance Drone flew off. James sighed and stuck his teeth back into the slightly dripping blood bag before anymore of his lunch dripped out, The shit I put up with when blood comes into the equation...

***

“Figure out about the blood?” Sarah’s question startled Chrysalis out of her own slight shock, blinking rapidly herself. The Changeling Queen nodded subconsciously, causing Dusk to chuckle. The dark tone of Glee was almost palpable to the insectoid monarch.

The Sentinel spoke up again, “Yeah. Generally that’s how people who meet us act around lunch.”

Chrysalis’ nodded in understanding. Well, no, she wasn’t understanding. How could the Lone Wanderer be a vampony, or... whatever the human equivalent was.

She was vaguely aware of Sarah’s voice again, “He’s not a vampire, first off. That’s generally the first assumption. He’s... well, the story he told us is that it involves Arefu’s protectors, The Family, and the necessity of food. Basically, they’re some group of reformed cannibals that James aided, and made a deal with Elder Lyons to put under Brotherhood protection, since we’re already stretched too thin with securing the rest of the Capital Wasteland. Instead of eating flesh, they drink blood, or, rather, blood bags from Pre-War hospitals and first-aid kits.”

“Is it normal for her to be in shock this long?” that was probably Vargas.

Kodiak answered with, “Maybe. Remember that guy who turned out to be an Enclave scientist who actually had ethics? James had to carry him a half-mile to the Citadel...”

***

“And that’s how I learned to drink medical blood. Since then, it’s about the only thing that tastes decent that I can eat when I don’t have the time to cook.” James finished, wiping a few droplets of blood off of the plates of his armor with a rag.

Hacksaw, who’d borrowed a pen and clipboard from one of the Paladins, was still taking notes even after the Lone Wanderer had finished talking. He, for once, didn’t seem like he was going to be asking questions. Steel was doing his best to keep Cocoon calm, as she apparently found it sickening due to a around blood; something the human found somewhat ironic for someone who handled larger weapons. Moth and Cicada had strangely taken the news well, though with Moth it was up to his siblings telling the Knight what he was feeling.

Speaking of Cicada. As James replaced his helmet, she flew atop it again and voiced what was probably the most-asked question besides the vampire one, “So... do you drink Raider blood?”

He paused, contemplating lying and saying that no; he did not intentionally slash Raider throats whenever he was forced into close range combat, just so he could get a meal that consisted usually of blood overloaded with chems and gave him only more of a boost in combat. Then he remembered that he was currently surrounded by a race that ate and absorbed emotion, and for all he knew were passively absorbing what he himself didn’t need, or was giving off to them without knowing. That, and the fact that James had only lied maybe five times in his life.

He decided that the truth would probably be best then, “Yeah, whenever I risk or have to get close enough.”

Before any of the other changelings could voice their own questions, Chrysalis appeared from the doorway into the station proper, with Sarah following. The Changeling Queen looked like she’d just come out of some deep talk, or, the more likely case, been told the same story he’d told her children.

James tilted his head in the Sentinel’s direction, earning a shrug, “She took it better than Whitley did.”

The Lone Wanderer nodded, mentally sighing, before Chrysalis snapped out of her stupor and looked at him, “...One question.”

He shrugged, giving a quick, “Shoot.” before standing up from the wall and stretching his arms slowly.

Chrysalis looked him up and down as if searching for the answer already, “How do you keep the blood from going bad?”

“Oh, that’s simple. Refreezable ice packs.” he answered nonchalantly, the rest of the Pride slowly exiting the building as well.

As the Brotherhood and changelings were about to head out, a Paladin walked over to them from one of the sandbags, waving towards James, “Sir.”

The Knight turned, the Paladin stopping in front of him and holding out a rather large black shoulder bag, “A wastelander passed by about an hour ago requesting this be given to you. One of my buddies noticed your face, so I figured...”

“Thanks, brother.” he gave a quick nod and took the bag, slinging it over one shoulder, tucked behind his gear bag. The knight then began moving to catch up with the rest of the Pride and changelings, Cicada still balancing on his head.

“Hellooooo Capital Wasteland! This is Three Dog, Ahrooooooo! Comin’ to ya loud and proud from Galaxy News Radio.” Chrysalis swivelled one of her ears slightly to catch the smooth voice of the speaker from James’ Pip-Boy as they left, heading towards their transport.

He seemed to keep an excessively sarcastic, if upbeat, tone, “Here’s the latest news; unemployment is down, stocks are up, and the You-En has just declared world peace forever...”

Despite the obvious sarcasm laced in his voice, ‘Three Dog’ pressed on, “Now the real news... Ugh...”

Not a moment later he returned to his previous cheer, “Today’s Weather; eeeexcessively violent, with a chance of dismemberment. Tune in later for our five day forecast!”

The Changeling Queen considered asking the Lone Wanderer to get the music playing again, but quashed the thought at Three Dog’s next words, “Now for something I know you’ve all been clamoring for details on children; that fucking huge nuclear detonation out west of the Potomac. Well, I’ll tell ya this; if there really is a God who symbolizes Radiation, he walks amongst us here in the Wasteland children, and his name is James LeBlanc, Junior, might I add. If you haven’t heard the newest word on our power-armored boy in the Lyon’s Pride, I’ll give it do ya damn straight; next Super Mutant you see is going to be lacking a few body parts, because that fucking huge explosion was by their irradiated home of Vault 87. Apparently LeBlanc’s been up to his usual psychotic bag o’ tricks we saw deal with most of those Enclave assholes, because yes indeedee; that was him.”

Meanwhile in the hivemind, all six of them were having their own reactions and freak-outs to this newest news. It didn’t seem to stop there, however, “On another much less day-to-day for us kids, it seems the Pride has picked up some out-of-this-world stragglers during their mad dash right back into the Good Fight. Unless my sources got into Ultrajet all of a sudden, they’re not only walking away from a nuclear detonation like the power armored boys and girls who eat steel and spit lead that they all are, but they’ve also got some black and blue bugs following them around, and no; that’s not because they survived getting stepped on.”

He continued without missing a beat, “They’re about twice the height of your average Radscorpion and built like your normal pooch, more holey than swiss cheese for the Pope, and seem to be lead by a bigger queen who, get this, even comes with her own crown. Only in the Capital Wasteland, ey kiddies?”

Chrysalis slightly blushed at that, though whether it was due to her anger at being talked down to be a voice or at being possibly complemented for once, she was unsure, “I don’t know about you kids, but I’m definitely going to keep an eye on this one. James is always trundling along the Capital Wasteland with all sorts of folks; from the sophisticated Super Mutant Fawkes to his old Vault buddy Butch, and Hell, our newest bug queen might be goin’ with him out into the Citadel next. Until next time, this is Three Dog, Ahooooo! And you’re listening to Galaxy News Radio... bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts... And now, some music.”

***

By the time that she spoke, they’d already made it to the town of Arefu, where Sarah had said they would be getting onto a riverboat bound for the Citadel, “...Who, the buck, was that?”

Most of the Pride, excluding Gallows who’d gone off on his own again, chuckled. Sarah answered her question, “That, was Three Dog; DJ of Galaxy News Radio, the only radio station beyond Agatha’s that’s worth listening to out in the wastes. He and the Brotherhood have a long-standing and permanent alliance; he gives us a port in the storm of downtown DC, and we keep him alive.”

James’ joy was coming off of him in waves when he added in, “He’s also one of the few guys who gives a shit about the common wastelander around here. Helped me out about three months ago... Plus he plays good music, which helps with the walking.”

Before Chrysalis could further question about this apparent man of music and words, they stopped, the mighty riverboat taking refuge underneath the bridge, water lapping at its sides. Despite it’s apparent aging, the boat looked somewhat clean and refurbished, with the named painted above its circular windows in gold at the back, a Brotherhood of Steel logo next to the window at the front. Its sole occupant and apparent captain was leaning against the railing; an orange-haired girl that the Changeling Queen had been informed of as Nadin.

She gave them a quick wave as they, one by one, stepped aboard, “Good to see ya, Sarah. LeBlanc. I’m guessin’ from the huge mushroom cloud things turned out okay?”

James offered her a light fist-bump, his mirth still wafting off of him, “Like fish in a barrel, Cap. Oh, and we’ve got a few extra passengers for the trip back.”

He turned to Chrysalis, giving a short motion to move out from behind Kodiak and Glade. She obliged, stepping forwards as Steel and Moth moved to be by her sides. She mentally prepared herself, throwing on the mask of hidden emotion she normally wore, “I am Queen Chrysalis. The Pride has offered to help us with returning back to our own world after we arrived in the Wasteland...” she extended a hoof to shake, “It’s... a pleasure to meet you, Captain.”

Nadine smiled, “Well, don’t that beat all. Glad to metcha Chrysy.” she gave her hoof a firm shake, though Chrysalis herself was thrown off by the sudden nickname.

The boat captain didn’t seem to mind as she stood up and walked towards the center of the boat, “Whelp, if the intros done, let’s head out; last patrol I dropped off said they’d heard something about Raider’s down by Springvale getting ready for an ambush. Guess they didn’t hear Galaxy News...”

As the mighty steam engine of the riverboat began to belch black smoke from its ornate top, Sarah began giving out orders, “Alright, you heard the woman! Colvin, Dusk, LeBlanc; get up to the second floor for overwatch! Glade; give ‘em the usual hell before they get nasty and roll out the missile launchers. Vargas, Kodiak, you’re with me on the prow, and Gallows...”

The calm Knight Captain hopped on board as the boat began to chug away from its original place along the river. He spoke his own order, “With Glade to keep the heavy hitters heads down.”

The Sentinel nodded, the Paladins and Knight Captains quickly moving about the ship, getting into position, checking weapons, and generally preparing for battle.

Chrysalis flew up alongside James as he rapidly ascended to the top, “What can we do to help?” he stopped at the top of the stairs, not even winded, “What do you mean? Like, carry ammo?”

She sighed, “No, I mean actual help.”

He paused, then shook his head upon realizing what she meant, “Your highness, with all do respect; I’m not putting you in the line of fire with the entire Raider gang in Springvale. These guys are more organized than the roving group you took down, and-”

She held up a hoof to silence him, making her voice as stern and clear as possible, “It’s not a suggestion, James. You’ve already helped us far more than you had to, and you promised us lessons on shooting. If my changelings wish to take shelter, then I will not force them, but I’m staying with the Pride.”

For a moment he kept his gaze level with hers, his eyes visible behind the visor of his helmet, before he finally relented with a sigh, “This is going to be a habit, isn’t it?”

She gave one of her more sadistic grins, “Maybe.”

He shook his head, then rapidly descended, his mouth moving as fast as his legs, “Fine. First things first though; we need to get you a sniper rifle.”

***

“Woah.” Steel was the first one of the changelings to speak after James opened the door to the ship’s aft, revealing the once sleeping quarters to be what had taken him two weeks of non-stop scavenging, trading, and more than a little looting to gather. It was a virtual armory of some of the best weapons he could find in the Capital Wasteland that he didn’t keep himself, as well as a handful of alien weapons he’d taken from Mothership Zeta on his last run, emphasis on run, to and from the place.

A row of Sniper Rifles, Lever- and Bolt-Action Rifles, Chinese AKs, as well as Laser and Plasma Rifles lay upon two whole cabinets, five each, with boxes of their respective ammunitions lying below each column of the horizontal lying weapons. Next to that, seven well-maintained Infiltrators, ten Silenced 10mm Pistols, six Scoped .44 Magnum Revolvers, Three Alien Blasters, Four Alien Atomizers, and three Dart Guns took up another cabinet, their respective ammunitions below as well. Finally, the last two cabinets were dominated by a gatling laser, minigun, and fat man on the left, also with ammo, and several boxes of Pulse and Plasma grenades on the floor of the right. The main portion of the cabinet on the right was taken over by three Rippers, four Trench Knives, two Axes and Chinese Officer Swords each, and a Mauler he’d commissioned from The Pitt after a Raider band had made it aboard. This was the port side of the wall, the windows covered up and keeping light out on its end.

On the starboard side sat two beds, two trunks, and a bolted-down desk taking up the space of two window lengths, serving as the sleeping and general living quarters of the boat. Four Vault lockers and one other cabinet took up the rest, the cabinet holding five helmets for the two suits of Brotherhood-modified and repainted Tesla Armor, two suits of standard Brotherhood Power Armor, and single suit of Hellfire Armor, repainted and modified the same as the Tesla Armor. In addition, one locker held four suits of standard Combat Armor and several backpacks, either for those untrained in powered armor, or simply preferring to wear it.

James quickly went about picking up a Sniper Rifle near the top of the set, tossing it to Chrysalis, before the rifle was suddenly engulfed in a bright green glow.

The Changeling Queen gave him an impish smile, “Levitation spell.”

He grinned beneath his helmet, “Nice. That’s the same model as my Reservist’s Rifle; three shots at higher power than the five lower power rounds of the standard Sniper Rifle.”

He turned to the rest of the changelings, gesturing around him, “Take your pick, and ask any questions you have for the time we all have before the inevitable.”

All at once the five other changelings tossed their various belongings from the Raiders into the trunks before buzzing around, looking over each of the guns and choosing their own.

The Lone Wanderer turned back to Chrysalis, then crouched down and pulled a magazine out of one of the sections that divided the different types of ammunition. He held up the magazine and ejected the round, “Hollow Point Three-oh-eight bullet. High damage against weak armor. Takes out your average Raider in one shot, and... Hang on.”

He went over to the locker containing the Combat Armor suits and reached inside, pulling out six faded army-issue gear bags, not that different from his own, and passed one to Chrysalis before distributing one to each of the changelings as they flew around. She dropped the sling she’d made of Raider Armor and flew above the floor long enough to put the gear bag on, “Thanks. That was beginning to chafe...”

He shrugged, “No problem. Want a... better, pistol while you’re at it?” she nodded, then looked at the various pistols, before levitating both a Silenced 10mm and a Scoped .44 Magnum, examining each carefully.

“...” she looked at him, indecision written on her face as she voiced her question, “Which would you recommend?”

“Honestly? Both. The Magnum” he gestured to the revolver, “Has more damage for fewer shots, but the ten-millitmeter is silenced and has a larger magazine. They’re both fairly lightweight, so you should be able to carry both with ease.”

She nodded, before stowing both of them inside of her bag, as well as taking a few magazines from their respective ammunition boxes. Apparently finished, she gave him a quick nod before levitating the door open with her magic, “I’ll be upstairs with the others.”

He gave her a thumbs up before she departed and closed the door behind her. The changeling Queen taken care of, he turned upon hearing a slight tap on his armor, seeing Cocoon holding a Missile Launcher in her hooves, though the light glow of her own levitation spell told him it was only partially under her own strength, “Hey, James? How do you load this...?”

He picked up one of the missiles from its ammo box and grabbed the metal tube that served to help the user steady the weapon, and set it on the ground, “Here, let me show you.”

He quickly went about sliding open the launcher and placing the missile inside, then slid it close and handed it back to her. Cocoon nodded, levitating several dozen missiles into her own bag before flying out with a quick, “Thanks James!”

He gave her a light wave at the words, then turned to see how the other four were doing.

Steel was levitating both of the Alien pistols, looking back and forth between them slowly, before he finally decided on the Blaster. James quickly walked over to one of the trunks by the beds and lifted it open, digging around inside before he pulled out two small bottles of the Alien Apoxy he’d found surprisingly useful for repairing the rarer of his arsenal. While these were generally for only his most fragile weapons, he always kept them lying around in random places, on the boat, in the Citadel, in most of the major towns and cities, and several Brotherhood Outposts; in case of Weapon Maintenance Emergencies.

“Hey, Steel.” the changeling commander looked up, catching the two small bottles in his levitation as the Lone Wanderer tossed them at him. He raised an eyebrow in unspoken question, earning a reply of, “For the blaster. The things tend to break easily.”

The Commander nodded, then levitated an Infiltrator and several magazines into and over his bag before flying out as well.

The Knight idly noticed Moth looking over a Dart Gun, a .44 Magnum already sticking out of his bag, as well as more than enough ammunition for the lone changeling. He grabbed a box of darts from its container and flew out without a word, apparently satisfied.

That only left Hacksaw and Cicada, the former apparently more interested in writing down observations about the weapons than actually choosing one, “Y’know the Citadel has a much more varied arsenal you can look over when we get there, Hack.”

The physician and maintenance expert grinned sheepishly, then took an Alien Atomizer from the wall, checked it over to understand how it stored ammunition, then loaded up on its Alien Power Modules before buzzing out. James walked towards the door, stopping as he noticed Cicada was sitting on one of the beds, sighing. He bent down to her level, “Everything alright?”

She shrugged, “I just don’t see anything that I could really use. Most of the others have experience with Equestrian Crossbows and such, but I never really liked them; too slow, and the recoil always messes with my shoulders...”

James nodded, “So basically a case of same principle, different weapon.”

He sat down beside her and looked over the massive arsenal, “Normally I’d offer the suggestion of using a handgun, but I’m guessing you’re not too keen on them either?”

She shook her head, “Not really, no.”

“Figured. Well, in all honesty, you don’t have to help y’know. You can just stay here, relax, and enjoy the ride until we get to Springvale...”

She sighed at his offer, “I know, but I really want to be able to help my family and stick by them. I’ve never really been... accepted, by the others in the Elite Guard...”

She paused, “Well, I mean... we’re all a family, and we all care for each other, but... it’s just like...”

The Lone Wanderer knew what she was getting at, yet couldn’t describe, “Like you’re the Ef-En-Jee.”

She looked at him, tilting her head, “Ef-En-Jee?”

James nodded, “Fucking New Guy. That person, or in your case changeling, who comes in after everyone else; replacement, need for strength, coming into a group of people who already knew each other well beforehand... er, hoof. The Fucking New Guy.”

She nodded, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof, “I... guess. I mean; I’m not a fighter like Cocoon and Moth. I just disturbed out the emotions to the rest of the hive, trying to keep everyone happy before mom asked me to join the Guard. I think... yeah; it was for morale, since we’d lost our explosives expert in a fight with another Swarm.”

James blinked, something not quite clicking in his mind, “Wait, I thought your swarm was an Empire?”

She shrugged, elaborating, “We’re only an empire because we’re one of the most advanced and largest Swarms in the Badlands. There are plenty of others; King Metamorphosis’ hive in the east, Queen Aphrodite in the south, and maybe twenty other hives with their own Swarms in the Griffin, Dragon, and Minotaur kingdoms. Not to mention our cousins in the San Palomino desert...”

She idly licked her fangs, “They make really good love-based cupcakes. I remember this one time when I was on a diplomatic trip with mom to Queen Ovi’s hive; the queen and I, since we were old drinking buddies from the last few trips I went there, got into a contest eating the things and passed out from the sweetness... I think I actually won that time...”

The Knight chuckled, “I’ll have to try one sometime.”

He tapped the bed with a finger, his eyes passing over the weapons a second time, before he got an idea, “Hey, Cicada? You any good at baseball?”

She blinked, “Baseball? Does it involve a ball and a bat?” he nodded, “Ohhhh. Yeah; we call it hoofball, but basically the same thing. Why?”

He grinned slightly, then walked over to the box of plasma grenades and tossed one too her, “How good is your pitching?”

She caught the explosive and blinked, her face slowly beginning to show her realization, “Pretty good. Um... but; I don’t think I can through past a few feet onto the shore for it to actually hit someone very hard...”

He chuckled, “You don’t have to hit someone. Here; grab a few dozen and I’ll show you while I’m giving shooting lessons.” she shrugged, but did as asked and tucked a few more plasma grenades into her bag before following him outside.

***

“So, what’s lesson one?” Steel asked from between Chrysalis and Colvin. Before James’ arrival, the Changeling Queen had been having a fascinating talk with the Knight Captain concerning his role in the Pride and how he viewed it. How, however, she set that aside and levitated the rifle to her hooves when the Knight finished ascending the stairs.

He paused, pulling his helmet off and scratching his hair, the look of consideration apparent on his eyes. Finally, he reached into his bag and pulled out an empty bottle and spoke, “Well, first, I want to get a baseline. Just see where everyone’s general shooting skills are...”

Colvin and Dusk took the hint and moved aside, going to sit on the benches to either side of the ship. Moth and Hacksaw both moved aside as well, leaning against the railing to either side of the deck. Cocoon levitated her Missile Launcher with her as she sat down a few feet in front of Dusk, leaving herself and steel near the railing closest to the Lone Wanderer, and Cocoon sitting on James’ shoulder, “On three.... One... two...”

He threw the bottle in a low arc out into the river, tilted to the right and with enough strength to give it several moments of hangtime. The Changeling Queen quickly levitated the Sniper Rifle to her shoulder and steadied it with a hoof on the forestock, copying that observed amongst the Equestrian Royal Guard when shouldering a crossbow. Since unlike said weapons the rifle was made for those with smaller, opposable appendages, she saw fit to merely pull the trigger in a burst of telekinesis, jerking the piece and setting the gun off.

The recoil threw herself, and several of her children from the thumping, off-balance, sending her flying onto her back and the rifle smacking her roughly in the snout. She grumbled beneath her breath in annoyance, levitating the Sniper Rifle again and picking herself up, denying the aid of Steel to help her up with a quick wave of the hoof.

Cicada levitated the bottle back to the Knight’s hand; a single chip missing from the mouth and nothing more. James spoke up with a bit of attempted enthusiasm, “...Well, at least Steel was close.”

The changeling commander coughed into a hoof, a slight tint of peach beneath his chitin giving away his embarrassment as quickly as his thoughts did, “I was aiming for the bottom...”

“...Ah. Well, I can safely say that you can fire your weapons, at least.” he pointed out, “How are you doing that, by the way?”

Hacksaw shrugged, answering the question for them, “Telekinesis spell; variation of levitation that let’s us move objects in any direction, not just up.”

“Huh,” James noted aloud, “Useful. Still; I see one major problem that’s a simple fix, and should save you from headaches. You have to squeeze the trigger, not jerk. You jerk it, the recoil only gains more momentum to fly up and hit you, as well as throwing off the shot from where you’re aiming.”

He leveled his own rifle, and threw the bottle with one hand again, inhaling sharply before squeezing the trigger. A moment later the bottle shattered, bits of glass falling into the river, “Another is to aim down the sights whenever you can, and make sure they’re sighted for your preference. Since... almost, all of you are carrying a scoped weapon, I’ll just state the obvious; put the cross on a target and fire. if the bullet’s not firing through the center, then adjust it until it does.”

Several gunshots, reloads, and sight adjusting later, and the Changeling Queen, as well as her children who’d picked up these ‘scoped’ weapons, were fairly certain they’d sighted them correctly. James spoke again, “For those that don’t; align the back two sights with the right front and you’ll be fine. Finally, and probably one that is helpful in more ways than one, is to crouch down. Maybe even sit if you’re far enough away and behind something. You can steady your weapon if it’s a rifle by laying it onto something, or use both... wait, telekinesis; nevermind. Anyway; it also makes you a smaller target for whoever’s shooting back. Now, if they have a missile launcher or a fat man, however...”

He tapped the weapons on his back, giving the changelings an idea of what he was talking about, “My suggestion would be to run, hide, and pick them off from a distance in which they can’t accurately aim at you. Blowing their hands off with a well-placed bullet also helps if you have the chance to fire first...”

He shook his head, having apparently wandered off-topic, “Anyway. Above all; practice. I don’t think even Sarah or I could fire a rifle correctly the first time, and personal experience is better than what any book or magazine can teach you.”

He pause for a minute, then turned to walk back down the stairs, “Hang on a second; I know we have a few tin cans somewhere on this boat for Nuka Grenades. I’ll see if I can get a target range set up for some quick practice...”

***

James passed Chrysalis another clip, the Changeling Queen levitating it into the gun before sliding back the bolt and putting the rifle to her eye again. He nodded as she fired again, knocking a clean hole into the tin can set up on the other end of the ship’s starboard side, “Not bad.”

After about half an hour of shooting with each of their various guns, as well as teaching Cicada how to properly throw grenades, the rest of the changelings had decided to simply wait and chat with themselves and the Pride before they passed Springvale. Despite their willingness, and even desire, to be in the fight as well, James had managed to convince them to fire from cover as much as possible and let the Pride’s power armor tank anything that would be thrown their way.

Well, except Cocoon, but she’d be firing from the starboard side, near the middle of the boat and using the wall as much as possible. He’d not managed to convince them of less, however, which worried him slightly...

Then again, with luck they’d be in heavy fighting for what amounted to twenty minutes tops and then be on their way smoothly again, “Hey...”

James looked down, giving Chrysalis a glance before crouching to her level, “‘sup?”

“Not that it’s really much of a concern... but we’ve been drifting past quite a few other boats that have sunk under the water... should we be worried about the same happening?”

He blinked at the random question, but shrugged, “Not really. Most of them simple get stuck after the dry season hits. Since the Capital went back into the wet season about a month back from trade winds bringing in plenty of rain and sweeping the ocean water back in, we’ve been able to take the Gambit further upriver for a while now.”

She nodded, “Very well then. Thank you...”

He raised a concerned eyebrow, deciding to investigate, “Why? Something wrong?”

She shrugged half-heartedly, “Most of us can’t swim. I know Moth and Cicada are quite strong at it, but-”

He realized what she meant, “Oh, yeah. Honestly I wouldn’t be too concerned; when I landed in the river with you guys on your arrival, you were buoyant enough to float. Well, except your legs, but that’s on account of the... ah...”

“Holes. I assumed as much for them, but I was unaware we were so naturally buoyant...” Chrysalis shrugged, “Something new we’ve learned in the Capital Wasteland, I suppose... Wait, landed in the river?”

James chuckled nervously, “Well, y’see, you were flying through the air rather quickly when I first saw you, so...”

She put a hoof to his lips, “I don’t think I want to know.” he nodded.

Before the rapidly approaching awkward silence could overtake them, he heard Sarah’s voice begin to yell orders, “Two minutes until the hot zone people! Lock and load!”

Chrysalis lowered her hoof from his mouth and levitated her Sniper rifle onto her back, flying a foot or so above the ground. The two silently walked up the stairs and onto the second floor of the boat, where Colvin and Dusk had taken up position already. The Lone Wanderer loaded a fresh magazine into his Reservist’s Rifle, then put his helmet back on. The familiar taste of filtered air pumped into his lungs as he took position the middle of the upper floor.

As he’d suggested, Chrysalis set herself up between him and the bench nearby; a now solid metal piece after the wood on the previous benches had rotted away. She kept the stock against her shoulder and the forestock lying on the top of the bench, taking a few deep breaths.

The school slowly came into view, and it was of no surprise to the Knight when he saw several dozen raiders set up inside and around the school, an apparent leader yelling and making gestures with his hands from atop a pile of rubble. The loud bark next to him and the leader’s head snapping back a moment later confirmed to him that the quick training had done at least something; Chrysalis had sniped him from a moving boat.

With their leader dead and the loud engines of the steamboat chugging along, the Raider gang quickly began to charge in the general direction of the river. Several were already screaming wildly with their automatic weapons, bullets flying far off of their targets and hitting little to nothing. James let out a low scoff under his breath and scanned their ranks for a moment. His eyes narrowed as he began to get a hunch in his mind, and figuring that he had nothing better to do given their sheer wave for firepower onboard, looked through the scope and further inland.

“Shit.” for once, he hated to be right; several heavily armed Raiders, an assortment of missile launchers, chinese assault rifles, and shotguns in their hands,clad in leather and metal armor, were attempting to leave the area while the Pride chewed away at the cannon fodder sent to distract them.

James abandoned his spot and ran to the front of the boat, “Sarah!”

The Sentinel fired off a few shots from her laser rifle before looking up at him. James pointed towards Megaton, “We’ve got trash armed for siege escaping while we’re picking off the fodder! Request to break off and take them out?”

“What the Hell for? Simms and Stockholm should be able to take out any idiot with a gun that comes within sniping distance.”

She replied back, then fired once again, burning a Raider down to ashes. James ground his teeth slightly, “It’s not Megaton I’m worried about!”

She paused at that, moving behind the cover of the Gambit before nodding, “Fine. Just get back to us in one piece at the Citadel, you read me?”

He nodded, the grin evident in his voice, “Wouldn’t dream of it!”

That done, James quickly snapped his rifle onto his back before moving to descend the stairs. Chrysalis looked up from her Sniper Rifle, “Is there a problem?”

He nodded, “Saw a few heavily-armed raiders heading in the direction of my old home. They’ll eat through the residents in minutes if they don’t try to destroy Megaton first. I’ll meet you all at the Citadel; just stay low and pick off any idiot with a big fucking gun like Dusk and Colvin.”

She nodded, and he rapidly descended to the main deck, “Hey, James!”

He turned, a bullet idly pinging off of the back of his helmet and knocking his head forwards slightly. He shook it off, turned around, and entered VATS before firing into the head of the Raider who’d gotten a lucky hit on him.

That done, he turned back, seeing Hacksaw and Moth standing near the boat’s center, just outside of the armory doorway, “We’re going with you, Knight!”

“Hell no you aren’t! I’m in full power armor and carrying heavy ordinance; I can take shots from this trash all day! I’m not letting you two throw yourselves out there just to get shot helping me!” he yelled, fully intent on preventing both of them from heading to an unnecessary death.

Moth just shook his head, Hacksaw nodding in agreement with his sibling, “We weren’t asking!”

The Lone Wanderer sighed, every second wasted being one less he could spend protecting Vault 101 and/or Megaton, if the raiders started firing from a distance with their Missile Launchers, “God damnit... Fine! Head for the far end of the school and run like hell until you catch up with me! And for God’s sakes; stay low!” both of them nodded, “Got it! See you there!”

They then flew off from the starboard side and high into the air, attempting to stay out of range of the Raiders as to not make themselves enticing targets. James sighed, then reached inside his bag before pulling out his favorite pistol; the Firelance, “Alright scum. Let’s see what new tricks you have...”

With that final thought in mind, the Lone Wanderer took a running start, not bothering to consider any other way off, and jumped the six feet from the boat to shore, tucking as he landed and rolling to his feet. He immediately fired off a shot from the Firelance a moment later, charring a raider to a blackened corpse in seconds. He grinned beneath his helmet, Ah, it’s good to be back...