Chapter 16

202 7 21
                                        

I woke up in my bed, surprised to find that I was alone. I sat up, pulling some pants on and searched the restaurant for Gage. He wasn't there. I took the lift down to the ground and stopped a random Raider.

"Hey. Have you seen Gage?"

The Raider thought for a second.

"I heard he went to Fizztop."

I shook my head.

"He isn't there. Are you sure?"

The Raider nodded.

"Alright. You can go."

I walked away from the Raider and towards Fizztop Grille. I looked at the building. Realization hit, and I sprinted towards the entrance to the mountain. I slammed open the doors and ran straight to the cages where I put Sturges and Preston a few days ago. There were shouts from Raiders surrounding the cage.

"Move! Move!"

I shoved through them and reached the cage. In the corner, Gage held a bloodied fist above an even bloodier Preston. He was held up by his collar with a busted lip and bleeding nose. I was stunned by the scene for a moment before snapping into action.

"Gage!"

I pulled Gage away from Preston with as much strength as I could. Preston took the opportunity to wipe the blood away. I shoved Gage up against the bars with my arm at his throat.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

I shouted at him, out of breath.

Gage looked cooly down at me.

"I was makin' him pay."

"For what? Invading my territory? That's what I locked him up for!"

Gage shook his head.

"For... All the pain he caused you."

I lowered my arm.

"His debts to me are paid. You need to leave. Go cool off. I'll call for you if I need you."

Gage slunk away, leaving the mountain. I knelt by Preston and used a stimpak on him to help his wounds. 

"Why are you helping me?"

He looked wary of me. As he had the right to be.

"Because Gage did something that disobeyed my direct orders, and it was not his place to punish you. As I said before, you paid for your injustices. You are free to leave."

Before I could stand up, Preston pulled me closer and whispered in my ear.

"You can still be the hero. It's never too late."

I laughed at him.

"Oh, I am the hero. I'm the hero of my own story. And you, you're the villain."

I stood up and walked away from his cage. The crowd of Raiders dissipated, leaving only a few Disciples and me. I walked to the cage where Sturges was kept and unlocked it. He looked in my eyes and gave a sad smile. I looked away, holding the door open.

"Go on. Don't come back."

The muscular man helped Preston to his feet and they left the building. I took the elevator back to the Grille and stood on the balcony. Sturges glanced behind at me as they walked through Nuka-Town. I leaned on the railing and watched the two figures disappear from view.

Sometimes I wonder how my life would be if only a few things changed. If the bombs never fell, if I had fallen for Sturges, if everyone made it out alive from the Institute. All the things that could have been, and never will. Maybe in a different life, it was better. Maybe there, I had everything. But then again, here, I have a whole amusement park as my stomping grounds. Not to mention the ridiculous sum of caps I had built up over the past year. On second thought, life is good. Well, as good as can be expected.

It's the End of the WorldWhere stories live. Discover now