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Guest
Guest
Nyyargghhh! Here it is! And for future reference, because I can't figure out how to make italics on this darn board '*' will represent it! You'll see what I mean 
Hope you enjoy! ::falls over::
Aftermath
Part 5
Pain.
Horrendous, unspeakable, indescribable pain.
“What the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know, but she’s off the charts!”
Insides on fire, twisting and resizing, improving themselves.
“Christ! Look at her heart rate!”
Bones grinding together as they lengthen, destroying blood vessels that quickly reform. The agony is too much.
“Lord have mercy…”
“She’s going into cardiac arrest!”
“Somebody sedate her!”
Everything dulls, the forced growth finished…for now.
“What…? Did she stop?”
“Yes…her vital signs are returning to equilibrium.”
“Did someone record this?”
“Yes.”
“Run some scans on her, and update the data we took when she first came in.”
Sleep.
**
Trill watched Ella go through another explosive growth spurt, cringing as she let loose another mind rending scream. Her scream held more weight than before, and the plexi-glass between the operating room and waiting room shook. The doctors were panicking, even though Trill had described to them in detail what had happened the previous time. Finally, the poor girl’s suffering finished. However, she was no longer a girl…she was a woman.
One of the doctors left the room, and approached her.
“Did you find anything helpful?” Trill asked hopefully. He sighed and shook his head.
“We won’t know anything until we go over the data,” the doctor shrugged, “Sorry.”
“It’s alright,” Trill said, watching Ella breath evenly on the operating table, “Do you need me here? I think I should go tell my friends what’s going on.”
“No, go ahead. We’ll contact you if we find anything.”
Trill nodded at him, shook his hand, and headed for the elevator. Although she was loath to leave Ella alone with strangers, she had a hunch she could trust the Vault doctors, even if Lynette was less than trustworthy. The elevator toned as she reached the ground floor, and she stepped out, heading for the courtyard.
***
Goris barely got out of the way as Cassidy made a dash for the door, and he cringed when violent retching followed his hasty exit. No matter how immune to alcohol some humans thought they were, the day after heavy drinking seemed to prove them wrong.
Now considerably paler, Cassidy staggered back into the bar and slumped on a chair, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, holding his head.
“Here’s some advice,” Cassidy finally said, “Never try to drink a super mutant under the table.”
Goris chuckled and nodded, taking a seat next to the sobered human, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“What I wouldn’t give for some painkiller’s right now,” Cassidy muttered, rubbing his temples tenderly. Goris shook his head at the man, patting him carefully on the back.
“You’ll live,” Goris assured him, and added wryly, “You got this far.”
The door creaked as someone pushed it open, and Goris looked up.
“Hello, Trill,” Goris greeted, waving at the tired looking tribal. Cassidy looked up and turned, a smile gracing his normally scowling face.
“Look who decided to stop by.”
“Hi Cassidy,” Trill said, crossing to the bar tender and giving him a warm hug. She drew away quickly, her nose wrinkled.
“Ugh, you smell terrible,” she observed. He laughed weakly.
“Ever the diplomat,” answered Cassidy, scratching at his five o clock shadow. Trill shook her head at him, and then looked around.
“Where’s Marcus?”
“He’s still passed out in back, I think.”
“Oh Christ, did you two have another drinking contest?”
“No,” Cassidy muttered sullenly. The tribal rolled her eyes and headed for the back room, muttering derogatory comments about men in general.
Sure enough, as Trill entered the back room, the loud snores of Marcus, as well as the pungent aroma of alcohol, greeted her. The table he was leaning on looked like it had seen better days, and was tilted in his direction. As she approached him, she suppressed a laugh, noting a small puddle of drool next to his open mouth.
Trill said his name softly, but he didn’t respond. She repeated it more loudly, but his snores continued to thunder over her voice. Normally he wasn’t a very heavy sleeper, but she supposed a night of unabashed drinking would tend change a person’s sleeping habits.
An evil thought happened through Trills mind and she grinned broadly. Should she? It would certainly be worth a good laugh…until the Sheriff decided to wreak his vengeance. The Chosen One sat in contemplation for a few moments, but could stand it no more.
She gave the precariously balanced Marcus a hard shove.
Waking up halfway through his fall, the super mutant barely had time to yelp as he slammed into the rough concrete.
“Good morning!” Trill said cheerfully, backing quickly towards the door. Marcus sat up quickly, a furious expression twisting on his rough features. Before he could speak, however, he seemed to turn a little greener than usual.
“Oh God,” he muttered, putting a hand over his stomach and mouth simultaneously, searching for an exit. The window! Staggering to the dirty pane of glass, he pushed it open frantically and hung his head out. Trill made a face and looked away while he expunged his body of alcohol.
When she looked back, she was met with a murderous glare.
“Hey, Marcus,” Trill said evenly, now in the doorway between the back room and the main floor of the bar. He scowled nastily at her.
“That was uncalled for,” he growled threateningly. Her mood shifted quickly, and she frowned, putting her hands on her hips.
“I suppose drinking yourself into a catatonic stupor is fine, then?”
“Well,” Marcus looked away, his anger abating somewhat. He supposed she had him there. Considering the seriousness of their visit, getting smashed wasn’t entirely appropriate although, it had seemed like a good idea at the time.
Trill sighed, her arms falling back to her sides, and approached him again, “Sorry…I’m just really worried about Ella.”
“Don’t apologize,” Marcus said, looking at her, “You have a point.”
She sat on a chair with a sigh, elbows on the table, holding her head in her hands. He pulled up a chair next to her, concerned.
“Ella changed again, this morning,” Trill said quietly. Ella’s tortured screams lingered at the back of her mind, and she couldn’t seem to rid herself of them. Marcus remained silent, nodding grimly. He peered at her, and frowned, wondering when she had last slept. Her normally bright eyes seemed dull and distant, and dark circles lurked under them.
“You need sleep,” he observed, putting a hand on her back. She shook her head, putting her palms face down on the table.
“I need to stay awake in case anything happens,” Trill argued.
“Trill,” he said with an aggravated sigh, “You won’t be of any use to her if you’re a zombie.”
She looked up at him, exhaustion and frustration apparent in her haggard face, “You’re right.”
Cassidy poked his head into the back room, “Everything all right in here?”
“More or less,” said Marcus, absently smoothing Trill’s hair, not looking up. Cassidy raised an eyebrow at his actions, but said nothing.
“Damn,” he said, getting a better look at Trill, a bit more recovered from his hangover, “You could use a nap.”
Trill smiled weakly at him and nodded, standing. Marcus stood as well, a hand on her shoulder.
“You still have those rickety cots around?” she asked, leaning against the Sheriff. Cassidy nodded, and motioned for her to follow. The three of them walked back through main bar area and into another, smaller, back room. Inside, there was an unmade bed and a few other cots.
“You can use my bed, if you want, but only if you can stand the smell,” the old bartender said sarcastically, eliciting a small smile from Trill.
“Thanks, Cassidy,” she said, choosing one of the cleaner looking cots. Marcus kissed her forehead.
“Sweet dreams.”
She smiled back, and curled up on the cot. The two men left, joining Goris at the table he was still sitting at.
“Good morning, Marcus,” Goris said, a smile in his voice. Marcus rolled his eyes at the Deathclaw and groaned.
“Leave me alone, Goris,” he said, putting a hand to his head. He felt as though someone had hit him in the head repeatedly with a sack of doorknobs, and as far as he concerned, they still were.
“Lightweight,” sneered Cassidy, putting his booted feet up on the table and leaning back in his chair. Marcus raised a brow at him.
“You passed out first.”
“Doesn’t matter! Least I can handle my hangover,” Cassidy shot back.
“Hey, not all of us are career drinkers,” protested Marcus. Cassidy laughed heartily.
“I suppose that’s true. ‘Course, I don’t have a woman to keep me distracted.”
It was Marcus’ turn to chuckle, and he shook his head at Cassidy, “I was wondering when you were gonna start on that.”
“Christ, man, its not everyday super mutants and tribals get friendly with each other,” he said incredulously, “I know I didn’t see anything like that comin’.”
“Me either,” Marcus said, scratching the back of his head. Cassidy laughed at his response and smiled knowingly.
“Women are like that. You never know what the crazy bitches are gonna do.”
“Tell me about it.”
“How about you Goris?” Cassidy asked, turning to the Deathclaw, “Any lovely Gecko’s in your life?”
The grey scholar smiled at Cassidy’s jest and shook his head, “Sorry to disappoint you.”
Inwardly, Goris wished his friend would not broach the topic again. When Horrigan and his Enclave underlings had destroyed his kin, a certain female he had been fond of had died. Although only the Alpha Male and Den Mother were allowed to breed, he had found joy in just being near her. Now, he was destined to be alone until he died, the only survivor of his special pack.
“So how long have you two been at it, eh?” Cassidy said, turning back to Marcus.
“Almost a month now, I’d say.”
He glanced at the door that Trill was behind, and leaned closer to the super mutant.
“How is she?” he asked conspiritously, a lecherous look in his eyes. Marcus favored him with a confused look for a moment, and then he was reminded of when Goris had asked a similar question from Typhon. However, Marcus had no qualms about teasing Cassidy. His face broke into a half grin and he leaned back in his chair, saying nothing. Cassidy interpreted his silence as gloating, and slammed a fist on his chair.
“I knew it! Damn, shoulda made my moves when I had the chance.”
Marcus snorted derisively and shot the bartender a snide look.
“What? Hey, I would’ve had a chance! I mean, she’s into ugly guys and all.”
The lighthearted insult was left untouched for a moment, and then Marcus pushed Cassidy’s boots off the table, causing him to impact harshly on the floor.
“Ugly and green guys,” Marcus corrected, looking down at the human. Cassidy swore profusely at the super mutant, righting himself and dusting off his clothes.
“Yeah, well, I could always paint myself green,” the angry man muttered, righting his chair and sitting in it.
“Since when were you interested in her, anyway?”
“Who said I was?” Cassidy said defensively, his face coloring a bit.
“You did,” observed Goris, “In so many words.”
“Ah, never mind. I need a drink.”
Marcus made a face, “How can you even think about drinking after last night?”
“Easily.”
**
Trill slept, but she did not have sweet dreams.
Ever since she had dredged up her darkest memories of Navarro to stop Ella, they had refused to go back from whence they came.
Trill was again standing amidst the broken bodies of the Navarro. Something was different…she didn’t have her power armor or Gauss rifle, just the Vault jumpsuit she had received so many months ago. The smell of blood was overpowering, and she fought not to throw up, bringing her hand to her mouth.
She stopped before she did so, and found that her hands were soaked in fresh blood. It dripped freely from her hands, as if she had reached her hands into a fresh wound.
“Murderer,” said a quiet, but harsh, voice. Trill’s head snapped around to determine the source, and she quickly regretted it. A soldier stood before her, soaked in blood, entrails hanging limply from a large hole in his midsection. He took a slow step forward, barely keeping upright. One of the eyeholes of his helmet was shattered, and a baleful eye glared out at her.
“No,” she whispered, horrified, backing away from the monstrosity.
“Murderer,” the soldier simply repeated, pointing at her. Trill screamed as a hand grabbed her ankle. On the ground was the upper half of another soldier, but this one did not have the benefit of power armor. He looked as though he had been ripped in half.
“Murderer,” rasped the fallen man, blood leaking from the corners of his mouth.
“No!” Trill protested, shaking off the man’s grip, “I’m not! You were going to kill everyone!”
“Does that justify it?” sneered a horribly familiar voice. Slowly she turned, and found herself facing Frank Horrigan, who, strangely, looked no worse for wear.
“Who are you to accuse me?” the tribal said nervously, backing away from the humongous mutant.
“I didn’t kill a base of people without provocation, or destroy an oil rig full of people.”
“Murderer,” hissed another corpse, rising and approaching her. Many others followed suit, painfully picking themselves off of the blood soaked ground, dragging themselves over to her.
Trill turned and ran, unable to deal with the situation any longer, but it felt as though her legs were in mud. She pumped her legs as fast as she could, but her monotonous pace didn’t quicken. A large hand yanked her backwards, and twisted her around.
Horrigan held her by her shoulders, laughing.
“You can’t run,” he scoffed, “We’ll always be with you.”
Hands grabbed at her, tearing at her clothing, leaving long bloody scratches on her legs.
“Please, no!” she begged, struggling violently.
“You didn’t give me mercy!” screeched one of the foul corpses, most of his face gone. Horrigan suddenly dropped her into the horde of them, and they fell on her like rabid dogs. She shrieked as they tore into her, struggling to find a way out of the mass of dead soldiers.
Frank Horrigan laughed as the Chosen One was torn into bits.
**
“No, no…that card is tapped! You can’t use it!” Goris said, exasperated. Marcus frowned at him.
“What the hell do you mean?” the super mutant peered at the card, “This guy looks really tough!”
“That doesn’t matter…they can only go once!”
Cassidy tossed his cards on the table, “I fold.”
Growling in aggravation, the Deathclaw put a hand over his face and shook his head. Ever since Lenny had taught him how to play Tragic, he had wanted to play a game with more than one person. However, teaching Marcus and Cassidy to play was turning out to be impossible.
“What about this one?”
Before the highly agitated scholar could reply, a bloodcurdling scream cut the air, emanating from Cassidy’s bedroom. All three of them turned, stunned by the noise. Trill had been asleep for a few hours, and they had grown accustomed to the silence.
“Christ, sounds like she’s being murdered in there,” whispered Cassidy. Driven to action by the humans comment, Marcus headed for the room as quickly as he could. He threw open the door, and found that although she was not being murdered, she was indeed distressed. She seemed to still be asleep, having some sort of nightmare. Trill was no longer screaming, but she was writhing, a look of terror on her face. Drenched in sweat, the sheets clung to her, and she got herself more and more entangled in them.
Marcus firmly put both hands on her shoulders, holding her down, “Trill! Wake up!”
She awoke with a start, breathing loudly. Looking around in alarm, her body rigid, Trill clutched at the sheets.
“You were having a nightmare,” Marcus said calmly, trying to catch her wild gaze. Her eyes met his, and he cringed inwardly. Her dark blue eyes were filled with confusion and pain so intense, he could almost feel it himself.
“Marcus,” she said breathlessly.
“I’m here,” he said, sitting at the edge of the cot. It groaned in protest to his weight.
“They…they’re gone,” she whispered. Marcus nodded, although he had no idea who ‘they’ were.
Trill buried her face in his chest and began to shake violently, sobbing. He held her tightly, remembering her outburst weeks earlier, after the ordeal with Kunshan. Were they related, or was she this worried about Ella? He decided to ask her later, and hoped it would be the latter. Marcus liked to think that she would confide in him if she was having troubles.
“I killed them,” she gasped suddenly, pulling away from him a few inches, looking down.
“What? Who?”
“All those people…I murdered them.”
Marcus frowned at her, confused. What was she talking about?
Cassidy and Goris, still neat the door, glanced at each other, but neither had any hints for the other, and they turned their attention back to the unfolding mystery.
“What do you mean?” Marcus asked gently, rubbing her back lightly. She looked up at him, desperation now added to her mix of emotions.
“Navarro! The oil rig!” she said, her voice taking a hysterical edge. The super mutant frowned.
“Shit,” Cassidy muttered. He too remembered Navarro. Trill, when she had been in sight of the place, started ranting about how the Enclave had been responsible for the death of her village. Then she just snapped, howling and blasting every living thing in sight. It was all her comrades could do to keep up.
“Trill,” Marcus said, trying reason with her. She cut him off with a violent shake of her head.
“No! There are no excuses!” she shrieked, “I’m a murderer!”
She broke down into hysterics. Although it Marcus’ first instinct to coddle her, he had a feeling that nice words and gentle cuddling would not help the situation. Instead, he grabbed her chin firmly and forced her to look at him.
“Hey! Stop it, right now!” he shouted, his voice fierce, quieting her for a moment. She looked up at him, shocked.
“But…”
“But nothing. You killed them! It’s over, it’s done!”
“You don’t understand…”
Marcus laughed bitterly, “Oh? And what do you think I did when I was in the Master’s army? Serve nuka-cola? I have a fairly high body count myself. I sure ain’t proud of it, but I don’t let it get to me. Know why? Because if I did, I couldn’t make it through a day.”
Trill remained silent, sniffling. Marcus’ stern demeanor shifted to a softer one.
“I know it’s hard to accept it, Trill, but what’s done is done. You can’t dwell in the past.”
She leaned into him again, although she didn’t cry. Trill held him tightly, and he reciprocated. They remained so for a short time, and Trill slowly pulled away.
“Thanks,” she said, looking into his eyes, “Once again, you’ve saved me from a nervous breakdown.”
Marcus shrugged and smiled, wiping the tears from her face, “All in a days work.”
A frantic knock reached them in the back, and Cassidy volunteered to answer the door. Goris took it as an excuse as well, leaving the two alone.
“Yeah?” Cassidy said, giving the man before his door a skeptical glare.
“Is Citizen Trill here?” the clean cut man asked, returning Cassidy’s glare with one of his own.
“Hold on a sec,” said the bartender, slamming the door in his face. He called to Trill, and she replied she would be out in a second. Cassidy opened the door again.
“Come in,” he grumped, motioning for the human to enter. He took a seat near the door, casting an uneasy glance at Goris. Finally, Trill entered the room, and greeted the man.
“Doctor Bretford,” she said, taking a seat, “What brings you here?”
“I have some interesting news about Ella,” he said. As he spoke, he quickly amassed and audience, and soon everyone was sitting around the table. Cassidy hoped he would get more insight on the girl he had heard so much about the night before.
“Go ahead,” said Trill, more than a little eager to hear his report.
“Well,” he began, “After reviewing our data, we came to an interesting conclusion. Not only is she growing rapidly, she’s evolving herself.”
“Evolving?” Cassidy interrupted, dubious. Trill shot him a ‘shut up and listen’ glare, and turned back to the doctor.
“Yes. We compared the scans we had taken of her, and found that not only did she age, her physiology had changed. It was…better, somehow. More efficient, if you will.”
He paused, and Trill urged him on with a hand gesture, “Which means…?”
“Which means that she is a very remarkable girl!”
“But won’t she die of old age soon?”
“Ah, we thought so at first, too…but her cells are far from decayed. If anything, they’re resistant to decay.”
“So you don’t see any danger to her?”
“Well,” Bretford hesitated, “We aren’t entirely sure. Her metabolism is insane. After she woke up from her transformation, she ate veraciously!”
“So, basically,” Trill said, sounding more than a little irate, “That you haven’t found a way to stop her growth?”
“No, we haven’t…but I don’t think that there’s a problem! The girl is rapidly evolving-“
“An experience that cause her indescribable pain!”
He frowned at her, then sighed, “Look, why don’t you come to the lab and talk to her? That’s mainly why I came. She refuses to talk to anyone but you.”
“All right, then. Let’s get going. Anyone else going?”
“I’ll go,” volunteered Marcus. He wasn’t sure what kind of state Trill was in, and although she had said she was fine, he wanted to be nearby in case she found she wasn’t.
“I think I’ll stay put,” said Goris. He knew most Vaults looked similar, and he didn’t want to be reminded of his destroyed home. Cassidy nodded in agreement.
“Shall we?” said the doctor, motioning for the door.
**
Ella perked up when she felt Trill and Marcus’ essence touch her mind. Finally, people she could trust! Since her last transformation, information seemed to flow to her when she needed an answer, and she finally understood what exactly she was. As they came closer, she felt that both of them were troubled, Trill more so than Marcus. What was troubling her? The unique girl delved deeper, and was saddened. Trill’s memories of Navarro, the ones she had used to stop Ella earlier, had been tormenting her.
Marcus was just, as usual, worried about his lady love. She could sense a small feeling of betrayal as well…Ella looked into it, and nodded inwardly. He was upset Trill hadn’t spoken her feelings to him.
Someone entered her room, one of the Vault staff, a woman.
“Your friends are here, Ella,” she said cheerily. Although she meant well, Ella could sense only fear from her. The woman was afraid of Ella. With a polite smile, Ella rose from her cot and followed the nervous woman.
Soon, she found herself face to face with her ‘rescuers’ and she smiled broadly at them. Trill smiled back, glad to see that she had recovered from her earlier ordeal. Marcus looked at her in shock, his mouth agape.
“They grow up so fast,” Trill said with a wink to Ella. The Sheriff nodded, and cracked a smile.
“I’ll say.”
Trill embraced Ella, now taller than her, and looked at her in mild concern.
“How are you doing?”
“Better than ever,” she replied cheerily, motioning for both of them to take a seat. Ella herself sat, and regarded the two of them for a moment.
Marcus could hardly believe his eyes. Not only had Ella grown into a full blown woman, it was as if her mind had evolved along with her. Of course, he supposed he shouldn’t be terribly surprised, considering what Bretford had told them.
*I have something to tell you, but I can’t say it out loud*, a voice said suddenly. Both Trill and Marcus heard it however, and they looked about in confusion.
*It’s me, Ella…I’m speaking to you telepathically*, she said. They turned to face her, but before they could speak, she held up a hand.
*No, just listen*, Ella said, *I’ve come to realize something about myself. I…I don’t belong in this world. I wasn’t meant to be. The reason I’ve been…growing so quickly is because I have so much pent up energy. However, releasing it could be devastating…which means that I can wait for my body to burn itself up…or I could do it voluntarily.*
Her explanation weighed heavily in the room, but neither human nor super mutant spoke, regarding her with sad eyes.
*I didn’t want to do it until I told you, so you wouldn’t feel as though you have failed me*, she continued, smiling warmly at them, *It’s better this way.*
Trill approached her, and whispered, “Are you sure, Ella? Is it the only way.”
Ella nodded, her tail waving sinuously behind her, apparently content with her decision. Marcus approached her as well, putting a hand on her shoulder and smiling. While both of them were near her, she put a hand on each one of them, hoping to help them out before she left. Both of them jumped as their minds touched.
Trill felt Marcus’ worry and slighted feelings, Marcus further understood Trill’s mental discord about her past actions. As quickly as she began it, Ella broke the contact, and the two gasped audibly in response.
“Maybe you two should talk more, hmm?” Ella teased, speaking up this time. Trill and Marcus shared a sheepish glance, and smiled at Ella.
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Well, is this goodbye then?”
“I’m afraid so.”
Trill embraced the girl again, feeling strangely attached to her. She could still picture the shivering, dirty toddler that Goris had brought from the alley in her mind. However, she no longer saw pain and confusion in Ella’s ruby eyes…only contentment resided there now. Her inner peace calmed Trill as well.
Feeling awkward, Marcus squeezed Ella’s shoulder. He had felt a certain kinship with her as well, and was reluctant to see her go…wherever it was she was going. She had awakened a strange paternal instinct in him that he had not known he had.
Ella took a step back from them, closing her eyes, focusing her mind.
As Marcus and Trill watched, Ella’s skin seemed to shimmer and waver, as though she was losing consistency. Soon the wavering became severe, and the sight of her became too intense to watch. As her power rose, lights flicked and equipment shorted out.
Suddenly, there was a blinding flash accompanied by a resounding boom, and the lights in the Vault failed, plunging the residences into darkness. Not even the emergency lights turned on, but neither Marcus, nor Trill needed light to know she was gone.
“Don’t worry,” shouted a muffled voice, “When the power comes on, the doors will start working again!”
Engulfed in darkness, Trill nestled closer to Marcus, smiling, “Looks like we just got a hell of a lot of time alone allotted to us, huh?”
“Looks like,” he answered, putting an arm around her.
“Guess we can have that talk, then,” she said, rubbing his chest affectionately.
“I was thinking the same thing.”
**
Back at the bar, Goris and Cassidy both sighed when the lights went out.
“What do you suppose they did this time?”
“Well,” Goris pondered, “There wasn’t an explosion, so I’m not to worried.”
“Yeah, I hear ya.”
They sat in silence for a while, and then Goris spoke up.
“Do you have a flashlight?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Want to play a round of Tragic? I have a feeling the power will be out for awhile.”
“Jesus, not that game again. How about we sit here in quiet contemplation?”
Goris did not reply, and the two were once again plunged into silence. After what seemed like eternity, but was in reality only a few minutes, Cassidy sighed and clicked on his flashlight.
“Okay, you’ve convinced me…but I’m not playing with that crap-ass white deck this time. Gimme something with a little more power!”
“Your on,” Goris said with a fearsome smile.
To Be Continued!
Will Cassidy triumph in tragic? Will Trill and Marcus have a successful heart to heart talk? What will Lynette do, all alone, in her office?
STAY TUNED! (heh heh, and yeah, I was kidding about the Lynette part...get yer minds outta the gutter!)
-Slinky Avenger
SlinkyAvenger@yahoo.com
ICQ#: 42929444
AOL IM: SlinkyAvgr
Hope you enjoy! ::falls over::Aftermath
Part 5
Pain.
Horrendous, unspeakable, indescribable pain.
“What the hell is going on?”
“I don’t know, but she’s off the charts!”
Insides on fire, twisting and resizing, improving themselves.
“Christ! Look at her heart rate!”
Bones grinding together as they lengthen, destroying blood vessels that quickly reform. The agony is too much.
“Lord have mercy…”
“She’s going into cardiac arrest!”
“Somebody sedate her!”
Everything dulls, the forced growth finished…for now.
“What…? Did she stop?”
“Yes…her vital signs are returning to equilibrium.”
“Did someone record this?”
“Yes.”
“Run some scans on her, and update the data we took when she first came in.”
Sleep.
**
Trill watched Ella go through another explosive growth spurt, cringing as she let loose another mind rending scream. Her scream held more weight than before, and the plexi-glass between the operating room and waiting room shook. The doctors were panicking, even though Trill had described to them in detail what had happened the previous time. Finally, the poor girl’s suffering finished. However, she was no longer a girl…she was a woman.
One of the doctors left the room, and approached her.
“Did you find anything helpful?” Trill asked hopefully. He sighed and shook his head.
“We won’t know anything until we go over the data,” the doctor shrugged, “Sorry.”
“It’s alright,” Trill said, watching Ella breath evenly on the operating table, “Do you need me here? I think I should go tell my friends what’s going on.”
“No, go ahead. We’ll contact you if we find anything.”
Trill nodded at him, shook his hand, and headed for the elevator. Although she was loath to leave Ella alone with strangers, she had a hunch she could trust the Vault doctors, even if Lynette was less than trustworthy. The elevator toned as she reached the ground floor, and she stepped out, heading for the courtyard.
***
Goris barely got out of the way as Cassidy made a dash for the door, and he cringed when violent retching followed his hasty exit. No matter how immune to alcohol some humans thought they were, the day after heavy drinking seemed to prove them wrong.
Now considerably paler, Cassidy staggered back into the bar and slumped on a chair, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, holding his head.
“Here’s some advice,” Cassidy finally said, “Never try to drink a super mutant under the table.”
Goris chuckled and nodded, taking a seat next to the sobered human, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“What I wouldn’t give for some painkiller’s right now,” Cassidy muttered, rubbing his temples tenderly. Goris shook his head at the man, patting him carefully on the back.
“You’ll live,” Goris assured him, and added wryly, “You got this far.”
The door creaked as someone pushed it open, and Goris looked up.
“Hello, Trill,” Goris greeted, waving at the tired looking tribal. Cassidy looked up and turned, a smile gracing his normally scowling face.
“Look who decided to stop by.”
“Hi Cassidy,” Trill said, crossing to the bar tender and giving him a warm hug. She drew away quickly, her nose wrinkled.
“Ugh, you smell terrible,” she observed. He laughed weakly.
“Ever the diplomat,” answered Cassidy, scratching at his five o clock shadow. Trill shook her head at him, and then looked around.
“Where’s Marcus?”
“He’s still passed out in back, I think.”
“Oh Christ, did you two have another drinking contest?”
“No,” Cassidy muttered sullenly. The tribal rolled her eyes and headed for the back room, muttering derogatory comments about men in general.
Sure enough, as Trill entered the back room, the loud snores of Marcus, as well as the pungent aroma of alcohol, greeted her. The table he was leaning on looked like it had seen better days, and was tilted in his direction. As she approached him, she suppressed a laugh, noting a small puddle of drool next to his open mouth.
Trill said his name softly, but he didn’t respond. She repeated it more loudly, but his snores continued to thunder over her voice. Normally he wasn’t a very heavy sleeper, but she supposed a night of unabashed drinking would tend change a person’s sleeping habits.
An evil thought happened through Trills mind and she grinned broadly. Should she? It would certainly be worth a good laugh…until the Sheriff decided to wreak his vengeance. The Chosen One sat in contemplation for a few moments, but could stand it no more.
She gave the precariously balanced Marcus a hard shove.
Waking up halfway through his fall, the super mutant barely had time to yelp as he slammed into the rough concrete.
“Good morning!” Trill said cheerfully, backing quickly towards the door. Marcus sat up quickly, a furious expression twisting on his rough features. Before he could speak, however, he seemed to turn a little greener than usual.
“Oh God,” he muttered, putting a hand over his stomach and mouth simultaneously, searching for an exit. The window! Staggering to the dirty pane of glass, he pushed it open frantically and hung his head out. Trill made a face and looked away while he expunged his body of alcohol.
When she looked back, she was met with a murderous glare.
“Hey, Marcus,” Trill said evenly, now in the doorway between the back room and the main floor of the bar. He scowled nastily at her.
“That was uncalled for,” he growled threateningly. Her mood shifted quickly, and she frowned, putting her hands on her hips.
“I suppose drinking yourself into a catatonic stupor is fine, then?”
“Well,” Marcus looked away, his anger abating somewhat. He supposed she had him there. Considering the seriousness of their visit, getting smashed wasn’t entirely appropriate although, it had seemed like a good idea at the time.
Trill sighed, her arms falling back to her sides, and approached him again, “Sorry…I’m just really worried about Ella.”
“Don’t apologize,” Marcus said, looking at her, “You have a point.”
She sat on a chair with a sigh, elbows on the table, holding her head in her hands. He pulled up a chair next to her, concerned.
“Ella changed again, this morning,” Trill said quietly. Ella’s tortured screams lingered at the back of her mind, and she couldn’t seem to rid herself of them. Marcus remained silent, nodding grimly. He peered at her, and frowned, wondering when she had last slept. Her normally bright eyes seemed dull and distant, and dark circles lurked under them.
“You need sleep,” he observed, putting a hand on her back. She shook her head, putting her palms face down on the table.
“I need to stay awake in case anything happens,” Trill argued.
“Trill,” he said with an aggravated sigh, “You won’t be of any use to her if you’re a zombie.”
She looked up at him, exhaustion and frustration apparent in her haggard face, “You’re right.”
Cassidy poked his head into the back room, “Everything all right in here?”
“More or less,” said Marcus, absently smoothing Trill’s hair, not looking up. Cassidy raised an eyebrow at his actions, but said nothing.
“Damn,” he said, getting a better look at Trill, a bit more recovered from his hangover, “You could use a nap.”
Trill smiled weakly at him and nodded, standing. Marcus stood as well, a hand on her shoulder.
“You still have those rickety cots around?” she asked, leaning against the Sheriff. Cassidy nodded, and motioned for her to follow. The three of them walked back through main bar area and into another, smaller, back room. Inside, there was an unmade bed and a few other cots.
“You can use my bed, if you want, but only if you can stand the smell,” the old bartender said sarcastically, eliciting a small smile from Trill.
“Thanks, Cassidy,” she said, choosing one of the cleaner looking cots. Marcus kissed her forehead.
“Sweet dreams.”
She smiled back, and curled up on the cot. The two men left, joining Goris at the table he was still sitting at.
“Good morning, Marcus,” Goris said, a smile in his voice. Marcus rolled his eyes at the Deathclaw and groaned.
“Leave me alone, Goris,” he said, putting a hand to his head. He felt as though someone had hit him in the head repeatedly with a sack of doorknobs, and as far as he concerned, they still were.
“Lightweight,” sneered Cassidy, putting his booted feet up on the table and leaning back in his chair. Marcus raised a brow at him.
“You passed out first.”
“Doesn’t matter! Least I can handle my hangover,” Cassidy shot back.
“Hey, not all of us are career drinkers,” protested Marcus. Cassidy laughed heartily.
“I suppose that’s true. ‘Course, I don’t have a woman to keep me distracted.”
It was Marcus’ turn to chuckle, and he shook his head at Cassidy, “I was wondering when you were gonna start on that.”
“Christ, man, its not everyday super mutants and tribals get friendly with each other,” he said incredulously, “I know I didn’t see anything like that comin’.”
“Me either,” Marcus said, scratching the back of his head. Cassidy laughed at his response and smiled knowingly.
“Women are like that. You never know what the crazy bitches are gonna do.”
“Tell me about it.”
“How about you Goris?” Cassidy asked, turning to the Deathclaw, “Any lovely Gecko’s in your life?”
The grey scholar smiled at Cassidy’s jest and shook his head, “Sorry to disappoint you.”
Inwardly, Goris wished his friend would not broach the topic again. When Horrigan and his Enclave underlings had destroyed his kin, a certain female he had been fond of had died. Although only the Alpha Male and Den Mother were allowed to breed, he had found joy in just being near her. Now, he was destined to be alone until he died, the only survivor of his special pack.
“So how long have you two been at it, eh?” Cassidy said, turning back to Marcus.
“Almost a month now, I’d say.”
He glanced at the door that Trill was behind, and leaned closer to the super mutant.
“How is she?” he asked conspiritously, a lecherous look in his eyes. Marcus favored him with a confused look for a moment, and then he was reminded of when Goris had asked a similar question from Typhon. However, Marcus had no qualms about teasing Cassidy. His face broke into a half grin and he leaned back in his chair, saying nothing. Cassidy interpreted his silence as gloating, and slammed a fist on his chair.
“I knew it! Damn, shoulda made my moves when I had the chance.”
Marcus snorted derisively and shot the bartender a snide look.
“What? Hey, I would’ve had a chance! I mean, she’s into ugly guys and all.”
The lighthearted insult was left untouched for a moment, and then Marcus pushed Cassidy’s boots off the table, causing him to impact harshly on the floor.
“Ugly and green guys,” Marcus corrected, looking down at the human. Cassidy swore profusely at the super mutant, righting himself and dusting off his clothes.
“Yeah, well, I could always paint myself green,” the angry man muttered, righting his chair and sitting in it.
“Since when were you interested in her, anyway?”
“Who said I was?” Cassidy said defensively, his face coloring a bit.
“You did,” observed Goris, “In so many words.”
“Ah, never mind. I need a drink.”
Marcus made a face, “How can you even think about drinking after last night?”
“Easily.”
**
Trill slept, but she did not have sweet dreams.
Ever since she had dredged up her darkest memories of Navarro to stop Ella, they had refused to go back from whence they came.
Trill was again standing amidst the broken bodies of the Navarro. Something was different…she didn’t have her power armor or Gauss rifle, just the Vault jumpsuit she had received so many months ago. The smell of blood was overpowering, and she fought not to throw up, bringing her hand to her mouth.
She stopped before she did so, and found that her hands were soaked in fresh blood. It dripped freely from her hands, as if she had reached her hands into a fresh wound.
“Murderer,” said a quiet, but harsh, voice. Trill’s head snapped around to determine the source, and she quickly regretted it. A soldier stood before her, soaked in blood, entrails hanging limply from a large hole in his midsection. He took a slow step forward, barely keeping upright. One of the eyeholes of his helmet was shattered, and a baleful eye glared out at her.
“No,” she whispered, horrified, backing away from the monstrosity.
“Murderer,” the soldier simply repeated, pointing at her. Trill screamed as a hand grabbed her ankle. On the ground was the upper half of another soldier, but this one did not have the benefit of power armor. He looked as though he had been ripped in half.
“Murderer,” rasped the fallen man, blood leaking from the corners of his mouth.
“No!” Trill protested, shaking off the man’s grip, “I’m not! You were going to kill everyone!”
“Does that justify it?” sneered a horribly familiar voice. Slowly she turned, and found herself facing Frank Horrigan, who, strangely, looked no worse for wear.
“Who are you to accuse me?” the tribal said nervously, backing away from the humongous mutant.
“I didn’t kill a base of people without provocation, or destroy an oil rig full of people.”
“Murderer,” hissed another corpse, rising and approaching her. Many others followed suit, painfully picking themselves off of the blood soaked ground, dragging themselves over to her.
Trill turned and ran, unable to deal with the situation any longer, but it felt as though her legs were in mud. She pumped her legs as fast as she could, but her monotonous pace didn’t quicken. A large hand yanked her backwards, and twisted her around.
Horrigan held her by her shoulders, laughing.
“You can’t run,” he scoffed, “We’ll always be with you.”
Hands grabbed at her, tearing at her clothing, leaving long bloody scratches on her legs.
“Please, no!” she begged, struggling violently.
“You didn’t give me mercy!” screeched one of the foul corpses, most of his face gone. Horrigan suddenly dropped her into the horde of them, and they fell on her like rabid dogs. She shrieked as they tore into her, struggling to find a way out of the mass of dead soldiers.
Frank Horrigan laughed as the Chosen One was torn into bits.
**
“No, no…that card is tapped! You can’t use it!” Goris said, exasperated. Marcus frowned at him.
“What the hell do you mean?” the super mutant peered at the card, “This guy looks really tough!”
“That doesn’t matter…they can only go once!”
Cassidy tossed his cards on the table, “I fold.”
Growling in aggravation, the Deathclaw put a hand over his face and shook his head. Ever since Lenny had taught him how to play Tragic, he had wanted to play a game with more than one person. However, teaching Marcus and Cassidy to play was turning out to be impossible.
“What about this one?”
Before the highly agitated scholar could reply, a bloodcurdling scream cut the air, emanating from Cassidy’s bedroom. All three of them turned, stunned by the noise. Trill had been asleep for a few hours, and they had grown accustomed to the silence.
“Christ, sounds like she’s being murdered in there,” whispered Cassidy. Driven to action by the humans comment, Marcus headed for the room as quickly as he could. He threw open the door, and found that although she was not being murdered, she was indeed distressed. She seemed to still be asleep, having some sort of nightmare. Trill was no longer screaming, but she was writhing, a look of terror on her face. Drenched in sweat, the sheets clung to her, and she got herself more and more entangled in them.
Marcus firmly put both hands on her shoulders, holding her down, “Trill! Wake up!”
She awoke with a start, breathing loudly. Looking around in alarm, her body rigid, Trill clutched at the sheets.
“You were having a nightmare,” Marcus said calmly, trying to catch her wild gaze. Her eyes met his, and he cringed inwardly. Her dark blue eyes were filled with confusion and pain so intense, he could almost feel it himself.
“Marcus,” she said breathlessly.
“I’m here,” he said, sitting at the edge of the cot. It groaned in protest to his weight.
“They…they’re gone,” she whispered. Marcus nodded, although he had no idea who ‘they’ were.
Trill buried her face in his chest and began to shake violently, sobbing. He held her tightly, remembering her outburst weeks earlier, after the ordeal with Kunshan. Were they related, or was she this worried about Ella? He decided to ask her later, and hoped it would be the latter. Marcus liked to think that she would confide in him if she was having troubles.
“I killed them,” she gasped suddenly, pulling away from him a few inches, looking down.
“What? Who?”
“All those people…I murdered them.”
Marcus frowned at her, confused. What was she talking about?
Cassidy and Goris, still neat the door, glanced at each other, but neither had any hints for the other, and they turned their attention back to the unfolding mystery.
“What do you mean?” Marcus asked gently, rubbing her back lightly. She looked up at him, desperation now added to her mix of emotions.
“Navarro! The oil rig!” she said, her voice taking a hysterical edge. The super mutant frowned.
“Shit,” Cassidy muttered. He too remembered Navarro. Trill, when she had been in sight of the place, started ranting about how the Enclave had been responsible for the death of her village. Then she just snapped, howling and blasting every living thing in sight. It was all her comrades could do to keep up.
“Trill,” Marcus said, trying reason with her. She cut him off with a violent shake of her head.
“No! There are no excuses!” she shrieked, “I’m a murderer!”
She broke down into hysterics. Although it Marcus’ first instinct to coddle her, he had a feeling that nice words and gentle cuddling would not help the situation. Instead, he grabbed her chin firmly and forced her to look at him.
“Hey! Stop it, right now!” he shouted, his voice fierce, quieting her for a moment. She looked up at him, shocked.
“But…”
“But nothing. You killed them! It’s over, it’s done!”
“You don’t understand…”
Marcus laughed bitterly, “Oh? And what do you think I did when I was in the Master’s army? Serve nuka-cola? I have a fairly high body count myself. I sure ain’t proud of it, but I don’t let it get to me. Know why? Because if I did, I couldn’t make it through a day.”
Trill remained silent, sniffling. Marcus’ stern demeanor shifted to a softer one.
“I know it’s hard to accept it, Trill, but what’s done is done. You can’t dwell in the past.”
She leaned into him again, although she didn’t cry. Trill held him tightly, and he reciprocated. They remained so for a short time, and Trill slowly pulled away.
“Thanks,” she said, looking into his eyes, “Once again, you’ve saved me from a nervous breakdown.”
Marcus shrugged and smiled, wiping the tears from her face, “All in a days work.”
A frantic knock reached them in the back, and Cassidy volunteered to answer the door. Goris took it as an excuse as well, leaving the two alone.
“Yeah?” Cassidy said, giving the man before his door a skeptical glare.
“Is Citizen Trill here?” the clean cut man asked, returning Cassidy’s glare with one of his own.
“Hold on a sec,” said the bartender, slamming the door in his face. He called to Trill, and she replied she would be out in a second. Cassidy opened the door again.
“Come in,” he grumped, motioning for the human to enter. He took a seat near the door, casting an uneasy glance at Goris. Finally, Trill entered the room, and greeted the man.
“Doctor Bretford,” she said, taking a seat, “What brings you here?”
“I have some interesting news about Ella,” he said. As he spoke, he quickly amassed and audience, and soon everyone was sitting around the table. Cassidy hoped he would get more insight on the girl he had heard so much about the night before.
“Go ahead,” said Trill, more than a little eager to hear his report.
“Well,” he began, “After reviewing our data, we came to an interesting conclusion. Not only is she growing rapidly, she’s evolving herself.”
“Evolving?” Cassidy interrupted, dubious. Trill shot him a ‘shut up and listen’ glare, and turned back to the doctor.
“Yes. We compared the scans we had taken of her, and found that not only did she age, her physiology had changed. It was…better, somehow. More efficient, if you will.”
He paused, and Trill urged him on with a hand gesture, “Which means…?”
“Which means that she is a very remarkable girl!”
“But won’t she die of old age soon?”
“Ah, we thought so at first, too…but her cells are far from decayed. If anything, they’re resistant to decay.”
“So you don’t see any danger to her?”
“Well,” Bretford hesitated, “We aren’t entirely sure. Her metabolism is insane. After she woke up from her transformation, she ate veraciously!”
“So, basically,” Trill said, sounding more than a little irate, “That you haven’t found a way to stop her growth?”
“No, we haven’t…but I don’t think that there’s a problem! The girl is rapidly evolving-“
“An experience that cause her indescribable pain!”
He frowned at her, then sighed, “Look, why don’t you come to the lab and talk to her? That’s mainly why I came. She refuses to talk to anyone but you.”
“All right, then. Let’s get going. Anyone else going?”
“I’ll go,” volunteered Marcus. He wasn’t sure what kind of state Trill was in, and although she had said she was fine, he wanted to be nearby in case she found she wasn’t.
“I think I’ll stay put,” said Goris. He knew most Vaults looked similar, and he didn’t want to be reminded of his destroyed home. Cassidy nodded in agreement.
“Shall we?” said the doctor, motioning for the door.
**
Ella perked up when she felt Trill and Marcus’ essence touch her mind. Finally, people she could trust! Since her last transformation, information seemed to flow to her when she needed an answer, and she finally understood what exactly she was. As they came closer, she felt that both of them were troubled, Trill more so than Marcus. What was troubling her? The unique girl delved deeper, and was saddened. Trill’s memories of Navarro, the ones she had used to stop Ella earlier, had been tormenting her.
Marcus was just, as usual, worried about his lady love. She could sense a small feeling of betrayal as well…Ella looked into it, and nodded inwardly. He was upset Trill hadn’t spoken her feelings to him.
Someone entered her room, one of the Vault staff, a woman.
“Your friends are here, Ella,” she said cheerily. Although she meant well, Ella could sense only fear from her. The woman was afraid of Ella. With a polite smile, Ella rose from her cot and followed the nervous woman.
Soon, she found herself face to face with her ‘rescuers’ and she smiled broadly at them. Trill smiled back, glad to see that she had recovered from her earlier ordeal. Marcus looked at her in shock, his mouth agape.
“They grow up so fast,” Trill said with a wink to Ella. The Sheriff nodded, and cracked a smile.
“I’ll say.”
Trill embraced Ella, now taller than her, and looked at her in mild concern.
“How are you doing?”
“Better than ever,” she replied cheerily, motioning for both of them to take a seat. Ella herself sat, and regarded the two of them for a moment.
Marcus could hardly believe his eyes. Not only had Ella grown into a full blown woman, it was as if her mind had evolved along with her. Of course, he supposed he shouldn’t be terribly surprised, considering what Bretford had told them.
*I have something to tell you, but I can’t say it out loud*, a voice said suddenly. Both Trill and Marcus heard it however, and they looked about in confusion.
*It’s me, Ella…I’m speaking to you telepathically*, she said. They turned to face her, but before they could speak, she held up a hand.
*No, just listen*, Ella said, *I’ve come to realize something about myself. I…I don’t belong in this world. I wasn’t meant to be. The reason I’ve been…growing so quickly is because I have so much pent up energy. However, releasing it could be devastating…which means that I can wait for my body to burn itself up…or I could do it voluntarily.*
Her explanation weighed heavily in the room, but neither human nor super mutant spoke, regarding her with sad eyes.
*I didn’t want to do it until I told you, so you wouldn’t feel as though you have failed me*, she continued, smiling warmly at them, *It’s better this way.*
Trill approached her, and whispered, “Are you sure, Ella? Is it the only way.”
Ella nodded, her tail waving sinuously behind her, apparently content with her decision. Marcus approached her as well, putting a hand on her shoulder and smiling. While both of them were near her, she put a hand on each one of them, hoping to help them out before she left. Both of them jumped as their minds touched.
Trill felt Marcus’ worry and slighted feelings, Marcus further understood Trill’s mental discord about her past actions. As quickly as she began it, Ella broke the contact, and the two gasped audibly in response.
“Maybe you two should talk more, hmm?” Ella teased, speaking up this time. Trill and Marcus shared a sheepish glance, and smiled at Ella.
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Well, is this goodbye then?”
“I’m afraid so.”
Trill embraced the girl again, feeling strangely attached to her. She could still picture the shivering, dirty toddler that Goris had brought from the alley in her mind. However, she no longer saw pain and confusion in Ella’s ruby eyes…only contentment resided there now. Her inner peace calmed Trill as well.
Feeling awkward, Marcus squeezed Ella’s shoulder. He had felt a certain kinship with her as well, and was reluctant to see her go…wherever it was she was going. She had awakened a strange paternal instinct in him that he had not known he had.
Ella took a step back from them, closing her eyes, focusing her mind.
As Marcus and Trill watched, Ella’s skin seemed to shimmer and waver, as though she was losing consistency. Soon the wavering became severe, and the sight of her became too intense to watch. As her power rose, lights flicked and equipment shorted out.
Suddenly, there was a blinding flash accompanied by a resounding boom, and the lights in the Vault failed, plunging the residences into darkness. Not even the emergency lights turned on, but neither Marcus, nor Trill needed light to know she was gone.
“Don’t worry,” shouted a muffled voice, “When the power comes on, the doors will start working again!”
Engulfed in darkness, Trill nestled closer to Marcus, smiling, “Looks like we just got a hell of a lot of time alone allotted to us, huh?”
“Looks like,” he answered, putting an arm around her.
“Guess we can have that talk, then,” she said, rubbing his chest affectionately.
“I was thinking the same thing.”
**
Back at the bar, Goris and Cassidy both sighed when the lights went out.
“What do you suppose they did this time?”
“Well,” Goris pondered, “There wasn’t an explosion, so I’m not to worried.”
“Yeah, I hear ya.”
They sat in silence for a while, and then Goris spoke up.
“Do you have a flashlight?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Want to play a round of Tragic? I have a feeling the power will be out for awhile.”
“Jesus, not that game again. How about we sit here in quiet contemplation?”
Goris did not reply, and the two were once again plunged into silence. After what seemed like eternity, but was in reality only a few minutes, Cassidy sighed and clicked on his flashlight.
“Okay, you’ve convinced me…but I’m not playing with that crap-ass white deck this time. Gimme something with a little more power!”
“Your on,” Goris said with a fearsome smile.
To Be Continued!
Will Cassidy triumph in tragic? Will Trill and Marcus have a successful heart to heart talk? What will Lynette do, all alone, in her office?
STAY TUNED! (heh heh, and yeah, I was kidding about the Lynette part...get yer minds outta the gutter!)
-Slinky Avenger
SlinkyAvenger@yahoo.com
ICQ#: 42929444
AOL IM: SlinkyAvgr
