After creeping around super mutants and brotherhood and praying that I didn’t catch a stray energy blast or ricocheted bullet, I some how made it to Megaton undetected. It was late, but I went to Moira’s. I didn’t want to deal with her Mercenary, so I continued using the unlimited camouflage. I must have made the guy think he was crazy. He saw the door open and close, he even drew his assault rifle, but he didn’t see me walk right passed him and up the loft stairs. I was right in front of him. I found Moira reading by her bed and I materialized before her. I didn’t think this through. She kicked me in the helmet and screamed bloody murder. I ripped off my stealth helmet and let her know who I was. “It’s me! It’s Gawen!” I defended myself, she still got a few more kicks in before it clicked. Just when she stops hitting me, the merc barrels up the stairs and is ready to shoot me. Before he could aim, I put my helmet back on and became invisible again. “It’s me! It’s Gawen! Please don’t fire that thing in the metal shack!” “What the fuck is going on?” The merc said aiming his weapon at different corners in the room. “I think Gawen has something to show me and…” Moira said. “Yeah, yeah. Go to Moriarity’s. I swear to Atom, I’ve had enough of that fucking weirdo.” He mumbled as he headed down the stairs and out the door, slamming it hard on the way out. Moira enthusiastically informed me that she thought I was dead. We added the library archives to her terminal, and then I told her what happened between me and the brotherhood of steel. I shared my loot with her, and she was overcome with excitement to be able to experiment with the technology I brought. We made a fortune from the loot and I of course kept the sword, the stealth suit and the Gauss-rifle. I picked up a dark overcoat from Crow, I wanted to conceal more of my stealth suit, I was paranoid about losing my high-level technology to brotherhood of steel. Sure I had the means to give them a run for their money, but I’m sure they’d figure out a way to catch me if I were on their radar. Other than that, I was fearless in the wasteland. I moved silently and invisibly. Raiders didn’t stand a chance and I got really good at stabbing super mutants. Sometimes before I’d come down on a group of raiders, I’d hear them telling stories about the Wasteland Mist: A mysterious cloud of gas that will electrify anyone it touches. I rather enjoyed the stories, even if I were killing the people who could share them. Oddly Jericho approached me one day, on my way out of Craterside Supply. I’ve always seen this guy around, but he never approached me before. He had a reputation for being a ruthless mercenary in his day. Most people in town avoided him.” “You’re Gawen, huh?” “That’s me.” “You look like you could handle a job. Do you do mercenary work.” “No one’s ever hired me for mercenary work before. But I’m sure I can handle it.” “Good, I have a job, just come meet me outside of town at say six tonight.” “Okay, sounds good.” I was really excited to take on my first mercenary job. I went to Moira and had her repair all of my equipment best she could. I met Jericho outside of town, he was a little late, but he had to tell time on an old watch you had to set; I had a pip-boy. We started traveling and I wasn’t sure how the mercenary thing worked, but I was pretty sure I was supposed to negotiate. “So how much does this job pay?” “It pays well.” “Like two-hundred caps well?” “Like two-thousand caps well.” “Wow, well no doubt about it, I’m in.” I find that Jericho has led me to the Super Duper Mart parking lot. There were some other mercenaries there waiting for us. I was excited to start working with some wasteland badasses. I missed that comradery from the Anchorage simulation, and I was happy to have the opportunity to find that again. “This the guy?” One of them ask. “Yeah this is him?” Jericho answered.
Then everyone started to fire upon me. I rolled away and immediately stealthed (that’s how I describe activating the stealth suit camouflage). The Gauss-rifle at this range was devastating. Then while they were busy firing at the spot I fired from, I was already closing in on them with the shock sword. Soon it was just Jericho and some merc tucked behind a rock. I blew off the mercs head with a VATS shot and cut off Jericho’s forearms. The shock sword immediately cauterized him, so he could answer some questions without bleeding out. “What the fuck Jericho?” “They had a price on you.” “Why?” “Something about disarming the bomb.” “Are you fucking kidding me?” I said as I slashed his head in half. I forgot to ask who. But after scavenging the mercs, I found Jericho’s two-thousand caps, which I guess he was getting paid to bring me. How big was the bounty on my head? While I was scavenging a man with a cool duster came across the scene. I didn’t bother to stealth I just trained the Gauss-rifle at him. “Did you just kill these talon company mercs?” “What the fuck is talon company.” He laughed heartily at my ignorance. “I like you son; the Talon Company are a bunch of bastards. But damn are they hard to kill bastards, and you just dropped what four, five if you count the last guy. I tell you what, do what I do. Take an index finger from each of them, then let’s stop in town for a drink. I’ll explain to you, how to get paid for those fingers.” I grew up in Megaton, but this was the first time I ever set foot in Moriarity’s. I guess it was out of habit of not having caps, and I always bought my whiskey and chems from Moira when I did have caps. Other than that I think I just never felt comfortable going in there. Like I wasn’t good enough somehow. But today couldn’t have been a better day to go for the first time. I learned the duster wearing pistol packing badass was a regulator. He bought me drink after drink telling the whole bar how he saw me drop the Talon Company Mercs. I was quite drunk myself and so when he asked me to introduce myself to the bar patrons I stated. “I am Gawen, the Wasteland Mist!” They cheered me on and then Aaron, the Regulator sits me down and gets serious. “Find your way to our headquarters, just between Canterbury commons and the Wheaton Armory. Once you’re there, talk to Sonora Cruise. Tell her Aaron sent you and give her those fingers. From then on, she will buy the finger of any Talon Company Merc or Raider. Pretty much anybody who the wastes are better without, you hear me?” “How does she know I’ll just bring raider and talon fingers?” “Because Aaron sent ya, and you don’t want to make Aaron look like a fool.” His threat was friendly in a way and I found it endearing. Here I thought I was going to be a mercenary, but I happen upon a new profession; fingers are much lighter than power armor.