POV Rio
After the Trinity Tower excursion, we got back on our journey to Diamond City. The rest of the journey was not that bad. A sound like that drew away what few Feral Ghouls remained in Boston, and everyone else was also more focused on the massive skyscraper collapsing than a small group of people passing through the area. The most attention that anyone paid to us was the Diamond City Security that patrolled outside the walls. They only told us to follow the signs to get to Diamond City.
When we reached the gate, it was closed, but I didn't see the scene of Piper being stuck outside the gate. Instead, it was just closed because we had arrived after closing hours. The gate had a schedule for when it could be opened or closed. Once it got dark outside, the gate closed because most power was diverted to the people living in the city. That and nighttime brought out the freaks and dangerous creatures.
"Are you sure you can't make an exception and let us in?" I ask over the intercom.
"Sigh. Look, I would like to help you, but orders are orders, and especially with that building collapsing, Boston is going to get a bit chaotic. The only time that the gate can be opened is to help the guards retreat into the walls," Officer Flint responded.
"I understand, officer. Could I have permission to enter the City? I won't need you to open the gate, I will go over it," I ask.
"Uh? Let me check real quick," Officer Flint responds, and the intercom goes quiet for a few minutes.
"Uhm, I looked into the rules, and technically, there are no rules or laws against going over the gate. So I guess you can do that. If you do manage to do that, I ask that you come to the security office so I can get you recorded in my notes," Officer Flint requests.
"Thank you," I reply and then grin at everyone.
"Oh no! No, no no no no! You are not carrying me like a sack of potatoes again!" Cait says with mock anger.
"That happened once, and admit it, your Irish Blood liked it," I respond.
Cait lifts her index finger to argue, but after a few seconds, scowls and changes her finger. I stuck out my tongue and blew raspberries. Cait responded by gesturing rudely with her second hand.
"Anyone else have issues?" I ask.
Everyone shakes their heads, and I start flying them over the walls one by one. While doing so, I think how odd it is that there are so few flying dangers in the Wasteland. The last person to go was Cait, and since she was being rude and I knew she would be a fussy flyer, I gave her an evil grin.
"Have a nice flight," I say while having at her.
Cait looks confused, but then feels herself get lighter.
"Fore!" I yell as she goes flying over the wall.
I put my hand over my eyes in a mocking gesture as if I were seeing how far she flew. Then I decided to add a bit of fun on top of it.
"RIOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!" Cait is heard screaming in terror.
"Looks like Cait is Blasting Off Again!" I yell back.
I was in control of how far and fast she was going, but I made sure to overshoot the distance by a considerable amount. She would land at the entrance to Diamond City, but she would go much higher than she needed to. In fact, she goes so far that I swear I hear a distinct ding sound and a spark of white light, as if she were really from Team Rocket. But as the famous quote goes, what goes up must come down.
Which meant Cait came down from the sky, but I stopped her safely before she hit the ground... Right in front of me. Then I levitated her up and over the wall. Then I flew over to join everyone. Cait was a mess. Her hair looked like a rat's nest, and she had a distant look as if she was still processing what happened. I had wasted a large amount of Mana on that little stunt, but it was worth it if only for the funny reactions. The others were looking at Cait with amusement.
It took Cait another minute to come back to Earth, figuratively speaking, and when she did, I was surprised by her response.
"Again!" Cait said with a look of a person high off their kite.
'Huh, was that what that person meant when she said she likes Kites? No, it must be a coincidence.'
My bizarre thoughts on a being I would likely never meet aside, I focused back on Cait.
"What?" I ask.
"That was the most exciting thing I had experienced in the last 3 years," Cait said with a smile.
"What happened 3 years ago?" I ask.
"Not important!" Cait says with a blush.
I just let it go and decided not to open Pandora's box. I also ignored her request to do that again, as it was exhausting and not as fun after the first time. We started to walk to the security office. But I didn't notice that Cait didn't follow right away.
POV Cait
Once they walked far enough away, I ran to the railing and let it out.
Puking sounds
The ride was as fun as I said it was, but I wasn't being completely honest. I had been feelin' like absolute sh*te for a couple of weeks. And my vomit confirmed what I had been afraid to see. It was bloody, and I knew it wasn't from the excitement. I was shakin' and I felt cold. My hands automatically went for a dose of Psycho, but I knew I couldn't... not with them so close.
'Okay, Cait, put on a smile and act like nothin' happened.'
I used my well-practiced acting skills and walked to join Rio and the others. My body was feelin' god awful, but I wasn't goin' to let Rio worry over me. I got this far. I can go for a little while longer.
POV Rio
After talking with Officer Flint, I noticed Cait wasn't around. I was going to go find where she went, but she walked into the office before I could get up.
"This is Cait. She is the last member of my party," I tell Officer Flint.
"Thank you for coming to check in. Makes my job much easier," Officer Flint responds.
"Of course, you are just trying to protect the innocent civilians of Diamond City. And I understand having to do the night shift. Anything to make your job easier would be only fair," I reply with honesty.
"Thanks, you have no idea how many people come and cause problems at the gate every night. Especially the drunks coming to hit on me. But I shouldn't keep you. Oh, and if you are looking for a safe place to sleep for the night, you can use my house. I won't get off shift until 5 am, so as long as you clean up after yourselves and don't bother my neighbors, then you can stay. Oh, and stay out of my room. It's one of the only two closed-off rooms my house has," Officer Flint says while offering her house key.
"That's very generous of you. May I ask why?" I ask.
"You've been kind to me, and I am a fan of the Minutemen. My Grandfather was a Minuteman. He was one of the men who died defending Diamond City from the Super Mutants. Anything I can do to support the cause would make me happy. That and I know that the streets can be a bit risky at night. Not to mention the difficulty of finding a place to sleep this late at night. It's practically impossible. While my house may not be large, it should fit your whole group," Officer Flint says.
"Then all I can say is thank you for your kindness and generosity. And I promise we will not make a mess," I reply with a smile.
It was meeting people like her that made my efforts worth it. Seeing genuinely nice or kind people surviving in this messed-up world makes my efforts to protect them all the more important. After speaking a bit more with Jessica, which was her first name, we followed her directions to her house and we started getting settled in. We didn't need to sleep, but having a place to rest was always welcome. I also already thought of some ways to repay that kindness. But for now, I had a chem dealer to talk to.
I left everyone else to explore Diamond City and instead went to the Colonial Taphouse to make contact with Henry Cooke, or at least get some info from him. However, when I arrived, the bar was closed.
'Odd, it's late but not that late.'
Sniff Sniff
'Blood. A decent amount.'
I pick the lock and enter he bar. Inside, I see the corpse of Henry Cooke. I run inside and make sure to avoid touching anything. The murder was messy. Very messy. Henry had been stabbed 17 times.
'Personal, most likely. The amount of rage someone would have to feel to stab someone that many times is not something an ordinary person could do.'
I search the bar for any info and find a hidden stash of items under a floorboard. I don't take anything other than a small ledger. Then, perfectly place everything as I found it. Then I sneak out of the Colonial Taphouse, heading back into the city. I duck into an alley and transform into someone else. Then I go back to the Colonial Taphouse and scream.
"By the Nine Divines! Murder! Someone's been murdered!" I scream while running away.
I enter an alley and vanish again. This time, I head back to Jessica's house. I knew no one would be able to leave the city once they found Cooke's body. That will give me the perfect alibi. I could leave the city and crash the Chem Deal going down tonight, or rather this morning.
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Author's Note:
A bit of a cliff hanger, and I imagine many of you who have played Fallout 4 might be able to guess who dun it. Also, you can start to see how things are not going like how they are in the game. It is sort of the Butterfly Effect, but it's also just that Rio can't be everywhere at once, and some events take time. For instance, Piper has likely been locked out of Diamond City many times. She also likely gets right back in after a while. Rio will be there for some things; others will come and go without Rio being there. After all, this isn't a video game, at least not in the context of this novel. Until next time, Ciao.