May 21, 2013

Field Logs: Log #22

As soon as I got out of the General's office I saw a Legion squad attempting to assault the head engineer. God, I had no idea they were already that close. Me, Craig and ED-E were able to neutralize them before they did any harm. We were going to give everything we got. This was the last stand.

We fought through the Power Plant and into the Dam's Lower Level. I started to fear for my ammo and health supplies. Should've re-supplied when I had the chance. We cleared all the Legionaries in the Lower Level - the ones making the ambush - and then returned to the Power Plant level.

I started looting the dead bodies as much as I could. I mean, my mission was to take out the Legate himself and we all knew only a portion of what he could do. I had to be prepared.

And finally we got to the exit. But outside there was hell too. We had help from Rangers, but even so it was hard. They didn't even make it to the Dam's checkpoint. So from there, we thought we were on our own.



It was pitch black dark when we got out of the checkpoint. Harder for them to see us, but harder for us to see them, too. But just when we were advancing Craig called me and told me to look back. A whole unit of Veteran Rangers was assigned to assist us with our assault on the camp. I told them to follow me, we would attack the Legate head on.



And so getting to the camp was easier than I expected. And there we were, at our enemy's base. The Rangers orders were that only one went to the camp with me. I spat on the ground, hoping they didn't see it. Inside the camp we killed all the legionaries. There weren't as much as I thought there'd be. But at the end of the camp, there he stood... The Legate. So big, so tough. I honestly didn't think we were a match for him.



But still, there he stood. I aimed my gun at him from the distance and saw him look right through the scope. He also thought we were no match for him, so he let me, on purpose, take the first shot. And by that shot, the battle was decided. He took the shot like the beast he was and ran towards us. Then everything happened very fast. I saw the Veteran Ranger being decapitated, then a huge, huge pain. even blacked out. When I woke up I couldn't feel my leg, the left one. Hell, I didn't have it. By my side there was ED-E, or what was left of him. Looked up and Lanius, full of holes, had trespassed Craig with his blade. I didn't scream, I couldn't. I reached for my gauss rifle and shot him one more time. That did it. I guessed. The shot made a blast - like any other gauss rifle shot - and when I was able to look at the Legate, he was gone. No body. Found both of his arms, his blade and his helmet, only. God damn it. GOD DAMN IT.



I was able to drag myself through the camp. Towards the end, General Oliver and his men appered. they grabbed me and took me away, because I needed medical assistance. The General talked with me while on transport. Telling me I did a damn fine job and that he was surprised I got out alive. What about Craig? And the fallen Rangers? ED-E, even. But I couldn't say that. Didn't have the strength in me. I asked what would happen next. He told me I'd be awarded with the Golden Branch and that the NCR would take control of the entire Mojave, at last.

Freedom for everyone. The Republic would assure that.

Everyone but me.

I'm a prisioner of my failures and my loneliness. I am a dying old man, with no leg. Lost all my friends, if I ever had any. Spent my life following orders. And this is where it led me. A life of endless roam, forever alone.

Frank over and out.

May 19, 2013

Field Logs: Log #21

We struggled with ourselves to get back to Hoover Dam. Fortunatle the President was coming to visit. Morale boost. As I said, God knows both meand Craig could use it.

On our way we were attacked by the Legionarie Assassin's squad. We were so full of anger and disgust that this one seemed the easiest squad to deal with so far. But then another one hit us. It was so unexpected, so close to one another that I was unprepared and they did a number on me.

We got to the Dam. Our base. The Republic's base. That does mean it is our base. We have prooven ourselves to be of the Republic, probably more than anyone else.

I reported to Colonel Moore and she was relieved that the Brotherhood had been eliminated. She... she... How can she say such things. How could she imagine what they got through and even what I, the killer, got through?!

My plans to boost morale with President Kimball were cut short when Moore assigned me to the security squad. She was sure the Legion would try to assassinate the President and I had to prevent it from happening, no matter what. It was a mission I took gladly, even in my state of mind. I was to report for duty to Ranger Grant.

When I reported, Grant told me we had much to do and not much time. Figures. I asked for everything, full access, visit itinerary and any other information they may have had. I had to look out for direct attacks and sabotages.



While checking the order dispach computer I noticed another person aside Ranger Grant. It changed the text, but it was still similar to Grant's writting. Probably whoever hacked it used a code so that we wouldn't know specifically what they were talking about. I only knew that I should beware of the sniping locations. I also found out that an engineer would be given access to the President's vertibird. Had to make sure he wasn't a saboteur.

Then I found a woman engineer who was looking for her friend, who was supposed to meet her there. Poor woman. I guessed she had lost her friend permanetly and the person who killed him took his engineer jumpsuit to sneak up to the vertibird. Shit.

I looked for the missing man around the visitor's centre. I found a bloodstain on the supply closet, with a bloody wrench next to it. He was dead alright. But no body.

I went ouside and checked the Visitor Centre's roof, where the vertibird would land. There was nothing there. Also checked the AA gun console and nothing unusual. Then Craig told me where would he be if he was the one sniping. The Visitor Centre's roof and the tower behing the stage. Those two were secured by our own Rangers, but the Legion could try something.

I took a deep breath. I couldn't do anything more but wait for the attackers to take action.

I reported to Ranger Grant and the vertibird appeared on the horizon right next. It landed safely. That's a victory already. Still need more victories, though. I didn't look away from the tower behind the stage. And, unfortunatly, it paid back. I saw someone appear behind the sniper and push him off the tower. I ran there as fast as I could. I couldn't let him take the shot. I got there and shot the bastard in the face, no questions asked. Couldn't afford the time for questions. I went back to the Visitor Centre's roof and examined the vertibird. It already had a bomb planted... Christ. I got nervous, but Craig told me to relax. The worst part was to find it, and that I had done. So I defused it and removed it, calmly.

I couldn't think of anything else. I was at the Centre's roof, preventing anyone to go there and kill the other sniper. I was sniping myself, taking a look around over the audience. There was only one engineer. It seemed fishy, but didn't actually mean anything.



And so the speech ended. Sadly, the President forgot the microphone was still on after he finished and we could all have a glimpse of what he thought of the Mojave's NCR. "Let's get fuck out of here." I... Sometimes I feel ashamed. But we have to live with rules and by the rules. So I keep supporting the NCR. To the end.

I reported back to Colonel Moore. She congratulated me on a job well done and told me to report to General Oliver, who had arrived in the meantime at Hoover Dam and was waiting for me in his office. Yes sir.

He was in a rush. told me we had to be quick if we wanted to keep the element of surprise. I didn't know what he was talking about though. He told me that because of the tasks I had completed we had conditions to attack directly The Fort. Once he told me that though, a soldier stormed in saying the Dam was under attack and that the Legionaries were coming from a camp from the eastern bank, cammanded by someone called Legate. So my new mission was to neutralize the Legate and stop the attack on the Dam.

I'm logging out for now.  Have to focus on the upcoming event. For the Republic.

Frank out.

May 18, 2013

Field Logs: Log #20

We went to HELIOS One, since Colonel Moore told us there was a passage there that led to the location where the Brotherhood had been spotted.

On our way there we were attacked by the Legion. They were more and more ferocious by the attack. Well, only makes sense, right?

I passed by the HELIOS One station and then found the path that Colonel Moore informed us about. She didn't tell us it was a radscorpion nest, though. Jesus Christ, I had never seen so many scorpions together in my life. But we handled them. That's what we do.

I found the place. It had a fence, lots of danger signs and bunkers hidden in the dunes. I had to find out in which bunker where they holed up in.

I must be pretty damn lucky; or pretty damn UNlucky. The first bunker I went into was the Brotherhood's. I went down a flight of stairs and through a door, but the door locked itself and left me alone in a room, while Craig and ED-E staid behind. After that three Brotherhood of Steel soldiers walked in the room by a door oposide to the one that locked itself and told me to get undressed and unarmed. I was outnumbered and the weapon I had readied wouldn't even make a scratch on their armor. So I complyed and they took me to their Elder - the leader.

The Elder wanted to know how did I find them, at first. But what he really wanted was the help that an outsider like me could give him. He wanted me to do jobs for them. Before I could even reply he had his goons strap me an explosive collar. If I wandered too far my head would blow off. The first job was to get rid of a NCR Ranger that was staying on one of the bunkers. They were worried he might find them out. I had no choice but to do it.



I went out the Brotherhood's bunker and headed south. Caught the NCR Ranger leaving on patrol. I followed him as fast as I could, so that I wouldn't catch him too far off the valley and collar would go off. I knew the model though, so I knew that once it would start beeping it was time for me to back down. I told him he had to leave because the Brotherhood had their base there and they'd sent me after him. He looked at my collar and believed me, or at least gave me the benefit of the doubt. He knew how to disarm the collar. He took it off and told me to head back to his camp to go over what I had seen and to know for sure if I indeed had seen the Brotherhood of Steel. Once he took the collar off Brotherhood members came out from behind a rock and started attacking. They must have had a microphone put in the collar and were spying on me. We killed them all, the plasma grenades I had stacked prooved quite usefull.

Dobson, the Ranger, believed me by then. He said he'd report it to the base. Now all I had to do was neutralize the Brotherhood, as was asked. I recovered a weapon from their bodies that would help me do that. Seemed quite powerful. Also recovered the bunker key from one of them. That would give me the access I needed.

I entered and they were all looking out for me. So much death... So much destruction... For the Republic. I try to blame it on them. To put the blood on their hands. But I can't wash it out of mine. Never will be able to do that.



We cleared the first level. It was rough. Both the fight and the act. I would I live with myself after this? And there was still another level to go.

The second level was filled with both scribes and heavy soldiers. And even their leader, McNamara, joined the fight. Didn't last long.

I found the Self-Destruct terminal. True that I had killed them all, but I wanted to blow it up anyway. I told myself it was to prevent more Brotherhoods to settle or to prevent raiders to get in somehow and find all that tech. But the truth was I didn't want nobody to see that. What I did. What I was made to do. So I had to find three keycards. The computer told me which ones, so I picked them up from the corpses., inserted them and ran like hell. Once I got outside, heard a big boom, the earth shook and smoke started coming out of the vents that connected the bunker to the outside.



I can't stop shaking, crying. Got to lay down,

Frank out.

May 14, 2013

Field Logs: Log #19

I reported back to Colonel Moore and she congratulated me on the good job with the Omertas. Then she said they had discovered something much worse. Mr. House. Not discovered HIM, but discovered his intentions. He was planning something to do on the Hoover Dam battle, but she didn't know what. But still wanted me to kill him. I wasn't confortable with that, Mr. House was a great man that had done sacrifices. We may not see eye to eye, but I don't think it's fair... I asked her if they had proof. She said Securitron had been sighted spying on the NCr and the Legion and that the estimated Securitron number was four times the expected. Then I asked if killing Mr. House wouldn't be bad for New Vegas. "It's not my problem".

It's for the Republic, right?

Me and Craig keep telling ourselves that.

We went all the way up to The Strip again. It was starting to get tiresome. Morale was low. Very low.

We could see the Strip in the horizon. I could only focus on the Lucky 38. It was like House was watching me, every single moment. Except this walk would be the last he'd see from me, because once I reach my destination...



I threw up on the way. Craig pat me in the back. He understood me. Following orders had never been easy. But I never had this spec ops job. I was just the medic. All this killing, we don't even know for sure if they deserve it...

Fiends... Just what I needed. And I mean it. It actually felt good to shoot my gun knowing that someone was getting what they had coming and not just because I was ordered to shoot my gun. But when I pulled my gun he had disappeared. I investigated the area where I saw him and saw a manhole. I went down and saw nothing. Was I hallucinating? Craig didn't see him, too. I'm becoming an old crook.

Only when I got to The Strip I thought: How would I get to Mr. House? I knew he had to have a body somewhere, only didn't know where. Probably would be too safely guarded and the way could only be opened by House himself. So Craig gave me the idea of a masterkey. What if there was a master key? And so I thought... The Platinum Chip. House wanted it so dearly that it should be useful for all his systems! Best shot we had, anyway. Where was the Platinum Chip?

Benny.

I went in The Tops and was stripped out of my weapons, as in the Gomorrah. So I couldn't just blast my way through the casino threatening Benny. I had to think. I saw a man on the entrance counter that looked like one of the big guys, because every staff passed by him asking questions. So I talked to him. I told him Benny was making his own play and showed him the cigarette butts that were by my grave and the lighter that I took from the Khan at Boulder City. He told me I had to find something to get him arrested and I said it was too late for that, he had to be dealt with. I just said that because he probably had the Chip with him, so I couldn't let the guy keep him of his suite.

They gave us our weapons back and we took the elevator. I was nervous. The guy did shot me in the head.

I found him. He was afraid, too. He thought I went there to kill him. He was actually too nervous. Reached for his pocket. Me and Craig put holes in him like there was no tomorrow. We needed an escape valve, Benny was it. I took the Platinum Chip out of one of his pockets and headed out.



To make matters worst, I remembered that nor Craig nor ED-E could go up with me to the Penthouse.. It was a solo mission.

I got to the penthouse and didn't say a word to the giant monitor that represented Mr. House. He was expecting me to say somthing so he didn't talk either. Once he saw me go to the terminal on the left of the monitor, though... Securitrons started rolling towards me, I flashed the Chip and inserted it. It worked! The wall opened and a room with an elevator revealed. I got into the elevator before getting too shot up. Gt some grazed wounds only. Locked the elevator behind me so I didn't have any more problems.

Then I arrived at the control room... A cryogenic capsule with a shrivled body inside. That's what the great Mr. House was. But still... I can't imagine being alive for that long... The pain. I've been around for little more than 60 years and I'm sick of this, I can't even imagine more than 200! I opened the chamber with the terminal besides it. A platform held his body vertically, gripping him and preventing him from falling off the platform and being broken like a dry leaf.



"Why have you done this? Centuries of preparation, so much good undone." What if he's right? What if he could be the best ho-- God damnit what am I saying?! The NCR... What could provide a best future than the NCR, right? I told them I was only doing this for the NCR. He called them... Snakes... And called me a... A sad, misguided whore. I froze for a second. What if he was right. All this ordering around... Just because they want to... But... Democracy... Republic... It's.. It's the best for everyone. Yes.

I quickdrew my rifle and shot him twice. I didn't even wanted to look. Just had to leave that place.

All the Securitrons on the Penthouse just stood still as I walked by and went for the elevator. A sad day for New Vegas... I guess...

Craig didn't ask any questions. Just nodded and then we went on our way to the Dam.

Colonel Moore was glad that Mr. House was not a threat anymore. She told me that President Kimball was coming to visit and preparations were being made. That was great. We needed the morale. At least me and Craig did. But she had one more mission for me before the President came though. She wanted me to find and destroy the Brotherhood of Steel. More killing. I asked if there was no peaceful solution and she just mocked me.

So I know what I must do. We're getting some rest here, then we're of to kill. For the Republic.

Frank out.

May 5, 2013

Field Logs, Log #18

We looked at each other for a while, me and Craig. We had done our mission. We were good soldiers. But did that make us good people? We wouldn't talk about it, just looked at each other. Then I finally got up. Craig looked at me for a while longer and then got up too. We met Colonel Moore at her office and told her the Khans were neutralized. "Good riddance" she said. God.

Then she gave us our next mission. We had to go The Strip, to the Gomorrah, Casino, because she thought the Omertas were having an operation against the NCR. She told us to meet Liza O'Malley at the Embassy. So we left Hoover Dan for yet another mission.

We were still stressed about the last mission so we had to blow off steam on our way. We did some target practice on ravens and bloatflies, as we found them.

So, back at the Strip. I am too old to like the noise, the lights, the casinos, the drunk people. At that point it was just annoying to have to go back there. I looked at every Securitron I passed by on my way to the Embassy, knowing that House was looking back at me. Another reason for me not to like The Strip.

We hadn't had any sleep since our mission at Red Rock, so once we arrived at the Embassy we went straight to the common rooms.

In the morning I went to the front desk to talk to O'Malley. She told me that the Gomorrah's receptionist owed the NCR and she could tell me all she knew about the Omertas as a return of the favor.



Once I entered Gomorrah I was approached by the bouncer, who wanted all my weapons. It's not like I had any choice. I talked to the receptionist and she sounded sad to be asked for the favor. I ignored that reaction. Then she told about an Omertas Lieutenent named Cachino, who had been doing side business that the rest of the Family wouldn't like. I'd try to talk to him.

The receptionist was a loudmouth. I didn't even did a two minute search and I saw a bald man coming towards me. He was Cachino and already knew I wanted to know something about him. I told him that I knew something about his side business and he acted like he didn't know what I was talking about. I couldn't get him to talk. I tried to find his room, gather as much information as I could. When I found it, though, it was locked. I found Cachino again, sitted on the back of the strip lounge. It was dark, probably he didn't want anyone to recognize him. Good pick for a pickpocket. I didn't find any keys but managed to grab a note-pad-like journal. I went in the corner to read it and it had all the intel I needed. Seemed like he sold weapons and drugs aside from the Omertas. I approached him, threw the journal on the table and sat next to him. Then we started talking. His attitude changed real quick. I was able to sold him back the journal for 300 caps and get him to help me. He said the Bosses were getting weapons like they were going to fight a war with help from hire named Troike. There was also another new hire, to run the place, named Clanden. Troike was a junkhead who smuggled weapons into the Strip and had recently killed a prostitute and Clanden was just a... "shifty character". He gave me a key to the Omertas' private club and told everyone I was his friend so I could move around easily.



I had to look into Clanden and Troike. I looked around the Gomorrah. First one I found was Troike, in the Lower Lobby. I asked him about the prostitute. He said he had blacked out and when he woke she was stabbed next to him, by a knife. I asked him where did the knife come from and he said it was his own switchblade, I asked him what did he took and he told me buffout, jet and whiskey. As a medic, I knew that wasn't enough for him to blackout so much time. It seemed to me like they killed the girl and pinned it on Troike so that they could have leverage on him and make him smuggle the guns. We had to find the evidence.

I went in Big Sal's - one of the bosses - room and logged into his computer. I unlocked the safe and inside was a note confirming my suspicion. So I went back for Troike. He wasn't very pleased to know it. He'd use the note as a "get out of jail card", in case they decided to rat him out to Mr. House or the NCR. Then he was ready to tell me about the gun shipments. He said they kept the guns in the basement, that they came from a contact of his inside the NCR. That was bad. To destroy the weapons, he told me he had thermite, that could melt them all. He gave me the thermite and told me what I should do. He'd just disappear after we talked.

I went in the basement, placed the thermite on all the crates - which were a lot - and then left the room and turned on the switch he said would provoke a spark that would ignite the thermite. The whole place melted down. I had to be fast.



Returned to Cachino to see if there was anything more to do after destroying the weapons. He told me it was a nice job, but it wouldn't count for much if Big Sal and Nero, the bosses, were still alive. He had a meeting with both of them, which would be one of the only oportunities to catch them both together. He gave me a gun and led me to them.

At the meeting Big Sal told me that he knew what I had done and that I had only slowed them, not stopped. Just like Cachino had said. So I pulled off the gun Cachino gave me and started the gun fight. Blew both of their heads off. Cachino would take over the casino from there. I told him I'd keep my eyes open for trouble in the Gomorrah, so he's better watch it.

After all that it was time to return to Hoover Dam. Like the trip to The Strip, we didn't have any problems. Once again, it was nightime when we arrived so we went straight for the dorms. We smiled at each other before going to bed. I'm off to sleep now. First thing in the morning is reporting to Colonel Moore.

Frank out.

May 1, 2013

Field Logs, Log #17

Good soldiers do what they're told. Yes.

I didn't get much sleep after I've been given the new assignment. I suspect Craig didn't get any sleep at all.

But we are good soldiers. Yes.

We did some trading at the 188 Trading post to get more ammo and to see if there were weapon modifications we could use. We didn't find anything special, so we went on.

It was a long trip. None of us talked. We couldn't. I had never received orders to neutralize so many people. And Craig... Craig had his history with the Great Khans... But the NCR had given us the orders, it was something we had to do.

We were attacked by a Legionarie assassin's squad on our way. Again. Even Craig was starting to grow tired of their attacks. And each one could be the last for us... Sooner or later we had to make Caesar learn that the NCR members are not to be meddled with.





Ahead we found two Powder Gangers. They were being attacked by Fire Geckos, big ones. We could not save them. Not sure if I'd want to. I haven't run into Powder Gangers in some time, but until now they had been nothing but trouble.

We found more Powder Gangers as we got near Red Rock. They... were not hostile, as I'd thought they'd be. Especially since Craig was wearing NCR's outfit. They were near a parking lot with a shack on it. The shack, almost totally destroyed, had a manhole inside. We didn't go in. We had a job to do.

Killed two deathclaw cubs. Relativelly easy kills, if you engage them from a distance and continue firing as they come near. One of them even tried to run off.

Bonnie Springs was swarming with gangsters. We knew their kind, didn't even have to approach to know they had to be neutralized. Good target practising actually.

As I was about to enter the Great Khans lair I saw a basement door to one of the burnt down house that didn't seem destroyed. We went in, approaching with caution. Turned out to be a Great Khan armory.

We looked at each other and took a deep breath. It was as good as a place to start as any other. They didn't even see it coming. For them, I was just an old guy showing his young companion the sights.



So it had begun. We had the rest of them to neutralize. We exited the basement and got to it. Used my scoped laser rifle to desintegrate any of them walking by, one by one, without any of them noticing. As night fell, so did the Khans, one by one, shot by shot. I tried to do most of the killing, for Craig's sake.

Two poor souls had just gone to sleep and I planted a grenade on one of them. Maybe that's for the best, didn't know of anything, died on their sleep.

By 1AM only the Great Khan longhouse was left for us to kill. We assumed that would be where the leader was.

Everyone but two people were awake at the longhouse. No one knew what was going oon, so no one was bothered when a stranger walked inside. They got a little bothered when the old stranger pulled his shotgun out. A whole lot bothered when the stranger started doing what he had to do. We killed everyone. Their leader didn't even had a chance, walked out of his room to my left, still on his pajamas, scared expression because of his men, immediatly got shot in the face because of my quick reflexes. Only one man was left standing. He was not hostile, so we didn't attack. He talked to me. Said he was warned about me, because I was a great enemy of Caesar. I asked who he was and he said he was a Legion's missionary, sent to the Great Khans as a token of their alliance. The conversation ended there.



The mission was completed.

Good soldiers do what they're told.

Good soldiers do what they're told.

We made our way back to the Hoover Dam as fast as we could. We need confort and we could only find that in the arms of the nation that we love. Or it's bunker.

On my way back to Hoover Dam the Sun was rising right in front of me, over the mountains. It felt good, the warmth... I... I... The warmth of the sun on my face got mixed with the warmth that came from the tears streaming down from my eyes. For all I know, those people were trying to be peaceful and got mislead by Caesar. I... I've got no way to know now... Orders are orders...

We're back at Hoover Dam, decided to rest before reporting in to Colonel Moore.

Frank out.