''Rainbow? Are you alright?'' Gustavo asked as he saw Rainbow slouch against the wall, rubbing her head. Only recently has she started to look pale, and that was enough to start a small piece of worry. He walked up to her, holding her shoulder as he looked into her eyes, seeing that they were not a colourful as they usually were.
''Y-Yeah. I'm fine, just feel a little woozy.'' Rainbow replied, trying to regain her composure. It was getting darker and they were still searching the buildings for Billy, but found no traces of his whereabouts, except a few occasional trails of blood. ''Where do you suppose he is?''
''I dunno. Hope he's alright. And I really hope that all this blood isn't his. I just don't understand what or who could of taken him like that without a trace.''
''Do you think it was Raiders?'' Offered Rainbow.
''Nah, they barely come around Bethesda. This place has been a ghost town even before the war happened. People feared it because of the ghost stories that are told around here. I personally don't believe in them stories, they are merely just rumours told to scare kids.''
''Yeah, I've had my fair share of ghost stories, too, when I was a kid.'' Laughed Rainbow, ''Ever heard of the Missing Horseshoe? Or the Headless Horse?''
''No...?'' Said Gustavo slowly as he raised a brow at her. ''Why? Any good?''
''You bet! I'll tell you them later at some point, preferably when we find Billy or if we...AHHH!'' Rainbow screamed as she fell on her side, clenching her stomach.
''Rainbow! What's wrong?!'' Gustavo asked concernedly as he leaned down and held his hand to her chest, using the other to keep her head up.
''Hurts...so...bad!'' Rainbow cried, her groans echoing through the death-silent building. ''Oh my...! Make it stop!'' She begged as she rolled around in pain, still clenching her stomach. Gustavo supported her as best he could, injecting a syringe of Med-X into her system when he got her stable enough to administer it. Eventually, she stopped fidgeting and didn't move. He checked her breathing, sighing in relief as he found it was normal. He cradled her in his arms gently, supporting her.
While they have been going through the building and a couple buildings lately, Gustavo noticed she seemed a bit different. She acted a little more jumpy, quiet and even a little paler. He just passed it off, but now all of that was truly confirmed, indicating that something was indeed wrong with her, but he couldn't tell what it was. He even noticed a small tear go down the side of her face as he held her there, being motionless.
In the distance, gunshots could be heard, drowned out a little by the rain. Whatever it was, is sounded like an assault rifle or ordinance of a higher calibre. Gustavo picked Rainbow up in his arms, holding her close as he carried on through the building. The sooner they got back to Megaton, the better. Outside, the rain had picked up and started a slightly heavy drizzle, dark, green-grey clouds hanging in the sky above, and that usually meant they were in for a bit of a storm. Looks like they were gonna have to stay in Bethesda for a while...
The gunshots grew louder and louder, meaning that whoever was shooting was getting closer to them. Wondering if it could be a Raider, Gustavo set Rainbow down in the corner, kneeling beside her, gun at firing-point. The gunfire died down for a while, but then came back, followed with a few screams of agony that were what sounded like both men and women being killed by someone. Then footsteps were heard nearby, inside the building. Judging from how heavy the steps were, it was possibly the person or creature was carrying heavy equipment or armour, which would be a problem seeing as Gustavo barely had that much ammo left on him - only about two and a half clips for the assault rifle he was carrying. The footsteps stopped just outside of the room where him and Rainbow hid, and now Gustavo was becoming nervous.
Squeezing himself towards the wall next to the door, Gustavo waited. Soon enough, a figure entered the doorway - a man in green combat armour, battered and scratched, wearing no helmet, revealing light brown, flat-top hair. Weather this guy was a mercenary or a Wastelander, Gustavo couldn't tell. Now sneaking behind the unsuspecting person, Gustavo grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back, tripping him with his leg and throwing him into the floor with a dull thud, pointing his assault rifle towards his head.
''Try anything and I'll blow your head off.'' Gustavo told him, seriousness in his voice.
''If you think I came to attack you, think again. I'm not here to hurt any civilians.'' The man tried to reassure him, clearly not trying to put up a fight, but Gustavo wasn't taking any risks.
''Who are you? You sure as hell don't look like a Wastelander, and I don't think you're any kind of Regulator, so who are you?''
''I'm a Ranger. I'm with Reilly's Rangers. I'm a mercenary.''
''Alright, fine, but if you try anything, I'm going to shoot you. Got it?''
The mercenary grunted as a response, and then the barrel of the gun was aimed away from his head. Getting up, he turned to face Gustavo, whom now saw that this mercenary was just about in his thirties, much like he was. On the scratched, deep green breastplate he wore, it indeed read 'Reilly's Rangers' in a worn white colour, two swords crossed behind the words.
''So you really are one of Reilly's Rangers. You wasn't lying.'' Gustavo said, lowering his rifle but still being cautious, ''Who are you then?''
''Butcher. I'm the team Medic. And who might you be, because you seem out of place in that armour.'' Butch said, motioning to Gustavo's khaki Tenpenny Security barding.
''Yeah, about that, I used to be one of Tenpenny's guards. I'd rather not go into detail on that one. I'm Gustavo by the way. Why are you here, anyway? Thought Rangers stay in groups, near D.C.?''
''What? You've not heard about it? Damn Enclave put up a bounty on someone's head not too long ago. People are out for her, and the Reilly's Rangers are gonna try and stop that. Enclave isn't really our problem, but whatever the boss says goes.'' He reached into his pocket, taking out a piece of paper, unfolding it as he passed it to Gustavo, whose face went a little pale at what it said -
For whoever is reading to this, you are only reading it because you are interested in the job being offered to you. Not long ago, we got reports and sightings from some of our guys on patrol about seeing some kind of rainbow-maned horse with a rainbow lightning bolt on its flank whom is traveling with some guys in a merchant group. If you want this job, find her and take her. Alive.
Don't kill it under any circumstances. For whomever gets it to us soon at Raven Rock, we would gladly pay you a sum of 5000 caps.
This message is for anyone who is willing to get their hands dirty.
Enclave Lieutenant Matt Ainsley.
''There's a bounty on Rainbow?''
''Rainbow?'' Butch asked, giving Gustavo a look of confusion.
''Its about Rainbow - Wait! You said you were a medic? I need you to help me.'' Gustavo turned to Rainbow going over to her still motionless form. At first, Butch was a little shocked. He hadn't expected anything like this to be what the Enclave were after. He approached her, kneeling to her level, inspecting her. She was pale, she felt warm on the forehead and her breathing was normal. She looked bad, but with Butch's medical knowledge, he knew that it wasn't as bad as it looked - or at least, he hoped it wasn't. He would need his tools to run a full diagnostic, but without them, he can only diagnose with symptoms of illnesses or viruses present in the patient.
It wasn't an illness, though. Anyone with enough medical sense would know that she wasn't just ill, but from Butch's diagnostic, he was guessing she was -
More steps were heard outside the room, and moments later, the rest of Reilly's Rangers came through, along with Billy. He had a few scrapes and cuts on him, but it was a relief to Gustavo to know he wasn't dead. The Rangers in Reilly's Rangers only consisted of four people, all wearing the trademark, green painted combat armour. One of them, carrying a minigun, was called Brick. She appeared to be muscular, and from what Gustavo could guess, a bit of a tomboy. Like Butcher, Brick had the same kind of hair, flat top and of a dark brown colour. Donovan, however, carried a Chinese assault rifle and wore a combat helmet, only small pockets of his black hair visible. He also appeared to be the youngest of the group. Reilly, though, was something different. She had ginger hair that sparkled and seemed to shine, her skin appeared to look quite smooth and well cared for, but her eyes were deceiving. Something in her eyes would tell anyone that she was just another female bystander, but wronging her would more than likely release the beast.
The group of mercenaries talked to each other about various things, and after a short while, the topic of what to do about the Enclave came up. If others found the contract, they would surely go after Rainbow, possibly at gun-point. During the conversation, Dash groaned softly as she lay there, head on some old rags to keep her comfortable. Butch had a rough idea what may be wrong with Rainbow, but he had to be sure before a fuss could be started. One thing was for sure, though - they couldn't stay in Bethesda for long. They had to get Rainbow to a doctor.
Outside, it was raining heavily, heavy gusts of wind seeping throughout the streets. One thing was for sure - they would have to spend the night in town. The only thing at that point in time that made Gustavo feel a whole lot better was that Billy was back and unharmed, and that Reilly's Rangers were with them. At the moment, Gustavo and Billy were sat with their backs to the wall, keeping an eye on Rainbow. The Rangers, on the other hand, looked at and repaired their weapons. Well, mostly Donovan, whom's speciality was repairing things. He even fixed up Billy's revolver by replacing the lens with a camera lens that seemed to make the weapon more accurate than it used to be.
''So, what happened to you, Billy? All me and Rainbow knew is that one second your behind us, and the next you're gone.'' Gustavo asked Billy, cradling his assault rifle.
Billy just sighed quietly through his nostrils as he slouched slightly against the wall. ''Did you even know that there are Raiders in Bethesda? A couple followed us into the building, and one of them managed to take me down. I was just lucky enough to of been found by them Rangers before the bastards could of done whatever they planned to do to me.''
''Well, I'm glad you're alright, Billy. Me and Rainbow thought you were dead.'' Gustavo said as he looked towards Rainbow who was still sleeping soundly. She had been out for hours and barely shown any signs of waking up.
''Is she alright? She don't look too good.'' Billy said worryingly.
''I sure hope so. She wasn't feeling too good when we were searching for you. One minute we were talking, and then she just...fell down and started screaming in pain...then she stopped moving after I injected her with Med-X.''
Moving towards Rainbow, Billy sat next to her. He looked at her for the longest time, as if trying to read her. He rested an ear to her chest, hearing her heart beat softly from within. quietly, he moved away, keeping his eyes on her as he sat back down with Gustavo, worry clearly visible on his face.
''Her heart sounds like its slowing. She needs a doctor.'' Is all Billy said before he began to look at his Magnum, checking the scope. It wasn't hard to tell that seeing her like that was making him uneasy. Hell, it was even making Gustavo uneasy. Right now, though, he was just going to sleep on it. Tomorrow they should head back to Megaton, before Rainbow's condition worsens. Hopefully all will be okay...
*** *** ***
''I really don't know any other way I can describe it to you.'' Doc Church said grumpily as he held a clipboard containing details and medical history of Rainbow. ''I ran a diagnostic on her with all my knowledge in medicine, and I'm telling you that Rainbow Dash is pregnant.''
Billy and Gustavo's mouths hung open slightly, shocked at what they were hearing.
''How though? Why didn't we see this earlier? She was only acting weird when we were in Bethesda! Are you certain, Doc? For real?'' Gustavo said, hoping those previous words were false. His only response was the clipboard being shoved into his face, smacking him in the nose, making him cringe in slight pain.
''For christ's sake, Gustavo, here! Read the damn paper, and tell me different, because what I'm reading says Rainbow is one hundred percent positive for pregnancy tests!''
Gustavo and Billy looked at the data, and the latest tests on Rainbow indeed read positive, indicating she was pregnant. As a reaction, Gustavo fainted, Billy only just catching him before he was about to hit the floor.
''B-But how? She wasn't in any kind of relationship, was she? If so, who?''
''I dunno, perhaps Brady? Wasn't it obvious those two loved each other dearly? The only bad thing is that Brady is dead. Poor guy died of ghoulification.''
''Brady is dead, and you're saying that's the only bad thing?! Brady was a friend of mine, and you're saying Rainbow Dash is pregnant with his kid! She is fucking pregnant! Have you any idea how bad this is?!''
Doc Church pushed a hand on Billy's chest, pushing him away from his face, ''Just calm down, will you? You might as well be an alarm clock.''
''Calm down?! Rainbow is pregnant, Doc! Brady is gone! How do you think she'll take the news?! Do you have any idea how much shit she's been through since Brady died?''
''No I do not. We'll find a way, Billy. We just gotta wait. Maybe things'll turn out better than you think, but then again maybe not. Only time will answer your questions.''
''But that doesn't explain why she was screaming in pain. According to Gustavo, she fell over screaming and passed out after he injected her with Med-X.''
''He what?!'' Doc Church exclaimed, eyes wide.
''...Is that bad?''
Both turned their heads, meeting Rainbow's frightened, magenta eyes. She had heard them talking, and that look on her face was more than worrying. How long had she been awake? How much did she hear? Neither have seen her look so scared before. Slowly, Billy sat beside her, placing a hand to her shoulder as he looked her in the eye empathetically.
''Rainbow...did you...did you hear all of that?'' To his question, Rainbow nodded slowly, like she was dreading of ever hearing that conversation, to which Billy only sighed. Gently, he leaned down and hugged Rainbow, and it wasn't long before she started crying. The doctor had left them alone, thinking it was best, and all through that time, Billy had been trying to comfort Rainbow, even though he knew it wouldn't do much good.
''I...I...I dunno what to do! I can't be a mother! I just can't!'' Rainbow sobbed, hugging Billy's shoulder tightly as he nestled his chin atop her head.
''I'm sorry about this, Rainbow. I truly am. I know you loved Brady...''
''No!'' Rainbow interrupted, ''I need him! I don't just love him, Billy! I need him!''
''He's gone, Rainbow...nothing can bring him back. I wish there was a way, but there just isn't!''
Rainbow hung her head at that, thinking about how stupid she must of sounded. When Billy got up from her side and about to walk off, Rainbow grabbed his arm with a hoof.
''No! Stay with me...please?'' She pleaded, eyes locked in their adorable look, Billy sighing at her cuteness before he cuddled up with Rainbow. The days ahead were not going to be easy, if not for Billy, for Rainbow. Right now she needs him more than ever, including Gustavo.