//------------------------------// // The Screams of Brahmin Part 1 // Story: Queen Of The Wasteland // by Jest //------------------------------// As Ada Straus began her work on Twilight's relatively minor injuries, a thought occurred to the deathclaw. “Does the name Twilight Sparkle ring any bells to you?” Twilight asked, pausing to wait for Janey’s pipboy to translate. Ada blinked. “Hmm, thought I read a book with that title before, but that's about it.” “What about Pinkie Pie?” Twilight pressed. “Yes!” Ada declared, her eyes lighting up, and lifting Twilight's spirits. “That's the name of a prewar snack. They used to come in these bright pink boxes but I haven't found any in years. Think they might have finally gotten picked clean.” Twilight sighed. “She ain't your friend there, Princess,” Janey remarked, pausing to wince. “Wait, why am I the one waiting when I’ve got a bullet hole in me?” “Because you aren't as interesting as Princess here,” Ada reported. Twilight chuckled and looked away as the doctor went to work healing her wounds. As she relaxed, and let the anesthesia do its work, Twilight noticed that the man with the red hat was approaching them. He had been talking to the other caravan guards, and the traders until that point, though his business with them had evidently concluded. “Uh hi. I’ve been told you can talk,” greeted the man, who was barely able to look Twilight in the eye. “In morse code, but yes,” Twilight replied. “Well shit. When Ranger Andy came bursting out of his house and declared a talking deathclaw was headed our way I very nearly had him restrained,” he exclaimed. “Guess I owe the old fart an apology.” “That would probably be the best idea,” Twilight offered. “The name’s Janey by the way,” interrupted the courier. “Yeah, I figured that was you considering your rather famous traveling companion here,” stated the man. “Oh and I’m Manny, Manny Vargas.” “Are you a sheriff or something?” Twilight inquired. “Something like that. I work the dayshift as the sniper up in the dinosaur,” Manny answered, gesturing to the fake dinosaur not far away. “After I heard the commotion I figured I’d come by to see for myself.” “I don't suppose you’ve heard of someone calling themselves Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, or Rainbow Dash by chance, have you?” Twilight inquired. “We’ll I’d certainly remember someone who called themselves Rainbow Dash, that's for sure,” Manny muttered. “But no. My counterpart, Boone might know more, he works the night shift, but I doubt it as ain't many folks that walk the roads at night. Isn't exactly safe out there.” Twilight sighed. “Speaking of information,” Janey picked up. “You wouldn't happen to have seen a man in a checkered coat, have you?” “Sure I know him. What do you want with him?” Manny replied. “He killed me,” Janey retorted. Manny blinked and raised an eyebrow. “I got better,” Janey added. “Right. He sure seemed like the type to cause problems for other people. Well see I got problems too,” Manny Vargas continued. “Problems you and your uh, towering friend may be able to help with. That's if you want to trade.” “You’d really stand between a murder victim and their killer?” Janey retorted. “Hey hey, it's not like that. We just both got something the other needs so why not trade?” Manny pressed. Twilight shot Janey a glare. “Fine,” Janey spat, crossing her arms over her chest only to stop and wince. “What do you want?” “Ya see Novac, it's home for me now. I want that to be for good. I like it here, and I’ve left too many homes behind over the years,” Manny began. “But the only resource we got here is junk. Without that people wouldn't have anything to trade. They’d all have to leave.” “We get most of it up the road from the old rocket test site. But a bunch of ghouls showed up one day and took it over. We can't get in there now,” Manny concluded. “So you want them dead then,” Janey stated. “It doesn't matter to me what you do. As long as the ghouls are out of there that's good enough for me,” Manny retorted. “So long as they are sapient, I’m sure we could come to some arrangement with them,” Twilight declared. “Like I said. So long as they are gone,” Manny repeated. “Shouldn't be too hard either way,” Janey exclaimed. “There we are, all done with you,” Ada Straus exclaimed. Twilight blinked and looked down to find that she was more or less completely healed. Her fresh wounds had been bandaged, cleaned, and dealt with but that wasn't all. The older injuries had also been tended to, with the doctor having done a better job than expected given her unusual bearing. “Look. I gotta get back to the dinosaur before some legion fuck decides now is a good time to come sneaking into town,” Manny declared before turning and walking away. “Why the sudden interest in where Benny went? I thought you already knew that information,” Twilight inquired. Janey winced and shot Ada a glare before looking back at Twilight. “I know where he is, but I don't know where his buddies ended up. Second, it's a big world out there. I got to thinking and decided that it might be worth gathering a bit more intel before we hit the strip.” “You want to kill the other people involved with your attempted murder,” Twilight intuited. “I may want to have words with them at some point, but that's between me and th-yowch!” Janey yelped, turning her baleful gaze on the doctor treating her injury. “Watch where you stick that thing.” “Sorry, pulling out bullet fragments ain't easy,” Ada Straus declared. “At least wait for the anesthesia to kick in,” Janey retorted. “Oh right. I probably should have done that. Can never quite get the dosage right for humans though, so if it feels like your heart is about to stop, scream or something,” Straus declared, stepping away from her patient and grabbing a syringe. “Wait what. How were you so good with Twilight but terrible with me?” Janey demanded. “I may have a real degree from a very accredited source, but we only learned on animals. Something about it being cheaper than finding some dumb wastelander willing to let a couple of trainees learn on them,” Ada retorted. “Right, this may sting a bit.” “Are you even trying to hit a vein?” Janey shouted. “Hey, I hit it on the first try, I think,” Ada muttered. Twilight rolled her eyes. Over the next hour, the deathclaw sat patiently at the edge of the tent, watching as people moved about the town. Some came to gawk at her, but they were few and didn't bother Twilight so the attention didn't bother her overmuch. The one thing that did strike Twilight was the strange man who she had spoken to not long ago. The male was chasing a tumbleweed down the road while shouting something about ‘wind brahmin’. Twilight grunted, catching Ada’s attention while she was cleaning a scalpel with water from a dirty bottle. “What can you tell me about that man?” Twilight inquired. “Oh, No Bark?” Ada chuckled. “Guy’s taken one too many rad scorpion stings to the head. Plus if the rumor is true he supposedly crashed a car not far from here, but that would have been decades ago.” “Did he grow up around here?” Twilight pressed. “They say so, but when I first moved in and started asking around no one could tell me who his parents were or what house he lived in,” Ada explained. “Weirder still, I’ve never actually seen him do any trading or scavenging, yet he always has caps for caravan if you know how to play. Weirdly good at it too.” “He wouldn't be the first wastelander I’ve met who's gotten by on gambling alone,” Janey remarked. “Either way he's nuttier than I don't know, some kind of bar made out of almonds,” Ada dismissed. “Oh, and you’re done by the way. Should probably find a spot to rest for a few hours though. With a liberal application of stimpacks, you shouldn't need those stitches for long but if you wreck ‘em before you have a chance to heal, well that’ll be another fifty caps.” “Mind if we just hang around here?” Janey asked. “It doesn't look like you have many other customers.” Ada scowled. “That's because Bertha is here stealing all my business. Just because she trained with the followers she thinks she's too good for us wasteland doctors.” “Yeah, that's great. Look, I’m gonna catch a bit of a shut of eye before the med X wears off,” Janey muttered before closing her eyes. Twilight nodded and remained where she was crouched. Over the next few hours, the deathclaw would get up, and wander around the tent whenever her legs felt like they were about to fall asleep. Sure enough by the end of it, she felt just about back to a hundred percent, with even a few older aches having gone away. “If only I could bring this technology back to Equestria,” Twilight thought aloud. “Imagine how many people we could save if we didn't have to rely on old remedies, or what few unicorns have the talent for healing magic.” Making her way back around to her spot, Twilight crouched down into a strangely relaxing pose and waited. She didn't stay that way for long, as a sudden gasp from Ada grabbed the deathclaw’s attention. “That is weird,” muttered the doctor. Twilight snorted. “Oh uh, it's nothing. Your blood just kinda tastes like psycho. Looks like it too, under the microscope that is,” Ada declared. Twilight carefully pinched her brow with her claws. “Whos your supplier anyhow? Cus this stuff looks better than regular psycho. Stronger too, it feels like my tongue is on fire,” Ada declared. The deathclaw stood up and moved over to Janey, shaking the woman awake. “What, what is it?” Janey muttered. “I was wondering who was supplying you with this weirdly powerful, and organic-looking psycho. For medical curiosity reasons, of course,” Ada hastily added. Twilight glared hard at the courier. “I only used it on you once, I swear. Maybe it's just, lingered in your system or something,” Janey explained. Twilight wanted to press the matter, but as opposed to the other times Janey had lied, now she was staring Twilight straight in the eye. The courier didn't flinch, look away, or ball her fists like when she said something untrue, or only partially true. “Could you help clean my system?” Twilight asked. “Oh, that's a bit beyond me. Whatever this is, it's lingering in your system for far longer than normal. I could remove the addiction but it would come back the moment it hits you again, ” Ada admitted, scratching her head. “As much as I hate to say it, the followers of the apocalypse medical clinic up near Vegas may be the only place that could help you.” “We’ll head there on the way,” Janey dismissed, pulling out her pipboy. “See? It's past vault eleven but not quite to where we need to go.” Twilight wanted to argue but couldn't deny that it was the most logical conclusion given their end goal. “Well either way you two should be about healed up,” Ada declared, pulling the bandage free of Janey’s shoulder to reveal scarred, but uninjured flesh. “Sometimes I even impress myself.” “Not me though,” Janey muttered, pulling herself out of the cot. “Come on. Let's ask around town for any other details about my killers, and your friends.” Twilight bowed slightly to Ada. “If you ever need help again, you know where to find me,” Ada Straus declared as the pair began to walk away. Together they approached the motel and were surprised to find a familiar boxy robot waiting for them. “Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit, if it ain't my two friends from Goodsprings,” Victor declared. “It's good to see you, Victor,” Twilight greeted. “Likewise friend, likewise. Is there anything old Vic can do you for?” Victor replied, the robot not needing Janey’s pipboy to translate before replying. “We might need some supplies and a bed, but that won't be for a while. That nap really gave me the energy I needed,” Janey declared. “Well this ain't New Vegas, but I reckon you can find what you need here. Try the office out front,” Victor answered, gesturing to the office. “What are you doing here, anyway?” Twilight inquired. “Don't rightly know. I just got the notion to make my way to New Vegas. Reckon I’ll find out when I get there,” Victor stated, somewhat halfheartedly. “We’ll meet you there Victor. Until then, see ya round,” Janey declared. “Be seeing you, partner,” Victor replied. Twilight wanted to stay and chat with the robot some more, but Janey was already on the move again. Following after the courier, Twilight made her way into the office space of the Novac motel. “Now that's plenty close enough,” declared a female voice the moment Twilight stepped inside. “They say yer pet deathclaw ain't likely to eat no one, but I don't want to take any chances. So unless you need a room or some supplies, kindly hit the trail, courier.” “Look we just want to ask you a few questions, and we’ll get out of your hair,” Janey exclaimed. “I don't have to answer anything, so beat it,” declared the woman. Janey bit her tongue and hesitated, in the quiet moment Twilight inspected the room she was standing in and the woman before them. The quaint little office wasn't overly large but had evidently been as well maintained as possible for the wasteland. The woman had a similar feel to her as the room she occupied, her hair pulled neatly behind her head, her glasses sparkling clean, and her outfit sporting not a single spot of dirt. “Fine,” Janey declared, having seemingly made up her mind. “We’re going.” “And don't come back unless you need something,” declared the motel owner. Twilight sniffed the air, having caught a whiff of something familiar. The scent reminded her of the legion raiding camp to the south, but she couldn't say why that was. “Come on,” Janey declared, interrupting Twilight's train of thought. “We got other people to chat up. We don't need her.” Twilight nodded and reluctantly stepped back outside. “We will not be staying here tonight. Heck, I don't think we should even stay in town. I’ve got too much energy to bed down anytime soon,” Janey stated. Twilight nodded again. The next few hours were a blur of questions, answers, and a whole lot of shaken heads. No one seemed to have any information on Twilight's friends or Janey’s killer. There were rumors sure, theories, but that was about it. The people that lived in the little town were unique, to say the least, one was a singer, another a former NCR sniper that worked alongside Manny. An old woman with an oddly intense look to her claimed to have never seen something interesting but Twilight knew otherwise. Then there was the gift shop owner, and the retired ranger, who both had a lot to say, none of which was useful. Beyond that, there were farmers, ranchers, scavengers, and drifters who had about as much information as the rest. The only person they couldn't seem to locate was No Bark, the old man mysteriously absent during their search. “Well that was a waste,” Janey muttered, turning on her pipboy light. “And it's nearly midnight no less.” “Want to head towards that Repcon place they talked about?” Twilight inquired. “Might as well. We could at least scout the place out before retiring for the night. Hopefully somewhere far from here. I’m already sick of this place,” Janey muttered. For once Twilight couldn't help but agree, though she refused to let Janey get the satisfaction of knowing that. The pair made their way towards the Repcon facility, neither overly concerned by the fact that it was pitch black out. Twilight could see relatively easily, and Janey’s pipboy functioned like a flashlight after a bit of tweaking from the courier. They were nearly out of town, having just past the Mc Bride house when they heard something strange. The whirring click of a minigun spooling up, and close no less.