After wrapping things up with Bill, I headed back to my boat to spend the rest of my day peacefully. I had a strong feeling it would be a long while before I was able to take a day to myself. I double checked all my gear, sorted out all the supplies I needed, bagged a mutated deer with eight legs for Gus, and spent the rest of the day reading. After a short sleep I headed out at what was either very late night or very early morning. I liked to travel in the dark for the most part, bad people had a harder ti seeing , but I didnt have any trouble seeing them.
Heading west was a little concerning for , that was the direction of Kind and Boon, but it was easier to walk the 10 than it wouldve been to try and take a different route. At this point I expected the heat to have died down for the most part, but it was still concerning. My first day of walking I made solid progress with very little issue. Passing through so now-familiar deadzones and munching on a deer leg Id kept for myself as I walked. The only break I took was a short catnap in an irradiated bog.
The next day I started contending with what was oftentis my greatest enemy on the road, boredom. I usually found ways to occupy my thoughts as I walked. Counted the ammo and supplies I had in the ntal inventory I kept, considered new ways to kill the various things Id encountered in the past or would in the future, and pondering whatever book Id read last. In the past Id tried to read while walking, but that made less likely to notice when sothing was wrong, which could potentially be a death sentence. It was always a better idea to keep your eyes open and your nose scanning for any sll of danger that could cross your path.
I decided to take the radio Bill had given a while back, and try once again to listen to the music of the wastes, or maybe even find that signal Id heard before. I fiddled with the nobs of it a bit, adjusting it slowly back and forth, scanning for anything. I heard so odd variations of hissing stating or other sounds, then suddenly, a voice.
-fellow Aricans. The nuclear destruction that has shattered our beautiful country has done damage to us beyond anything that has ever happened before. Our people are scattered, a remnant of the great and powerful civilization we once were. In spite of that though, we thrive. We continue building, and growing. We are a nation of farrs, and the seeds of our rebirth are being planted across the shattered wasteland every day. We were brought low by the communists, and the socialists, and their wicked and destructive ways, but unlike their countries and the shattered husks weve made them, Arica can return. We can reunite into the great and powerful state we once were. Now I know, there are groups that claim to be the leaders of the wastes today, and so may even claim to carry the flag forward for our nation, to be bringing it back, but these people are false prophets. The TRUE United States of Arica, will return to cast these hollow imitations aside, and re-unite our country into the perfect and prosperous place that existed before. Be on the lookout! A new dawn is coming, and it will make itself known, very soon!
The voice cut out after that, and I listened to about a minute of silence before it started back up again. It was the sa voice, a mans, deep and commanding, and it was giving a speech in much the sa vein as the one Id already listened to. I kept listening for two or three more speeches, before I started to find them even more boring than silence and flicked the radio off. From what I understood, only short range radios had been working for a long long ti, but it looked like now a new signal was coming through. I wished it had been sothing with music rather than a man giving tired speeches. Id t a few people who collected records or tapes, and always enjoyed hearing songs from before the bombs fell. Id tried to barter or trade for a few of my favorites, but they were all fiercely protective of them. Deux had a particularly good collection of what he called punk that hed happened to find while hiding out in a ruined garage. The content on those tapes was almost the antithesis of what I had just listened to on the radio.
The content of the speeches was confusing to . Id known a few communities that still considered themselves aricans, but for the most part wastelanders took a more local approach to how they self identified. At least thats how it was in Horde territory where the Khan left most people to themselves aside from his routine collection of tribute. The idea of uniting everything and calling it all Arica again, seed ridiculous to . It hadnt worked out too well the first ti, why give it another shot.
I flicked the radio back on and listened to one more speech. Their ntion that sothing would make itself known soon felt concerning, but for all I knew, this was just so nut whod figure out a way to broadcast. I clicked the radio off, and noticed I received a notification.
Congratulations Citizen! Youve just earned an additional rank in NATIONALISM! Youre doing your part in recognizing that Arica is the greatest country in the world!
That was interesting. I hadnt earned a rank in nationalism in years. The last ti it happened was because I accidentally stared at an old flag for too long. Id been using it to wrap a wound at the ti. Far as I knew there was no benefit to a higher rank aside from the number being bigger. Id t a man with a thirty in it before, but considering he said the pledge of allegiance any ti he was in trouble like it was a prayer, I didnt feel he was getting much value out of it.
While the radio content itself hadnt been too interesting, it had given sothing to think about, which made the second stretch of the journey a lot easier to deal with. I took a side path around the road to Kind after noticing so foot traffic on the road and deciding to go around it so I didnt have to deal with anyone. Soon I was on the road between Kind and Boon, walking through the ruins of so other town. There were a number of buildings overgrown with vines and kudzu, and the gentle buzz of insects filled the air.
I paused, taking a deep breath. There was a scent in the air that was making my teeth itch. Gunpowder, I was able to pick that out right away, and sweat. My eyes widened and I dove behind the rusted out husk of a nearby car. At just that mont, a single shot rang out and where I had been standing was a small crater left by a large caliber bullet.
I pulled out my rifle and started looking around. The sniper was in an elevated position, further into the town. I could sll generally where they were, but I didnt have an exact location. I crawled under the car I was taking cover behind and moved up to another one. I risked a quick peek in the direction of the sweat and gunpowder sll. Light of so kind reflected in my eyes and I ducked back down just before another shot cut through the car just beneath where my head had been.
I cursed and hunkered back down. They were good, and patient. I wondered what they were doing on this particular road since it was out of the way, but that question wasnt a major concern at that mont. I took off my backpack and slid it beneath the car in front of . I was going to need to move quickly. I considered bolting out of the town, but the idea of a bullet hitting in the back as I ran wasnt one I relished. No, it made more sense to remove the threat.
I shattered the car mirror next to , picked up the largest piece, spat on it, and wiped it clean with my sleeve. I took the mirror shard and used it to peek around the side of the car. I was able to take note of the nearest pieces of cover, but before I could figure out where the shooter was, the mirror shard was shattered by another of the sniper's bullets. Fragnts of it cut into my hands and a small bit broke off and cracked one of my goggle lenses.
I took the cloak Id found in the Black Woods bunker and threw it up above the car. There were several shots into it and I bolted in the other direction, ducking behind a ruined wall before the shooter could re-orient themselves. I didnt stop, just kept moving from cover to cover as quickly as possible, toward the direction of the bullets. After a half dozen near misses, I realized that the tallest building, one a little forward and to the left of , had to be where the shots were coming from. I braced myself, and made a mad, straight dash right for it. A bullet took in the shoulder and spun around, but I managed to roll forward and keep my montum until I was through the buildings front door.
I felt a pull on my legs as I entered and looked to the side where I saw a grenade without a pin, and a tripwire being pulled behind . I kept moving and dove behind the first piece of cover I could find, receiving only a nearly lethal amount of shrapnel, rather than a fully lethal one.
I pulled myself up, dropping my rifle to the ground and drawing my pistol. My right arm was torn up, and I couldnt hold the weight of a rifle anymore, at least not until my enhanced healing did its work. I found so stairs leading up, and took them. I reached the rooftop access quickly, but there was a problem. The sniper knew I was in the building and on my way. Theyd heard the explosion and were almost certainly waiting for to co through that door. I stopped, and looked around. There was nothing around that I could use to block a sniper's bullet, but there was a window a single floor down that was busted open. I went over to it and peeked up. There was so exposed rebar there I could use as a handhold.
I stuck my gun carefully between my teeth and readied my good arm. I leapt, careful to be as quiet as possible and grabbed onto the rebar. It was a struggle to pull myself up with one arm, but I managed it, and swung a leg over the side before rolling behind the remains of an old industrial AC unit. I took the gun out of my mouth and put it back in my hand before I slowly peeked out of cover.
There was a woman there, standing with a rifle trained on the door Id been about to enter a few minutes before. There was sothing familiar about her that I couldn't place. Maybe I was just so used to people with guns trying to kill , they all looked familiar at this point. I slowly moved out of cover, activating my freeze ability once I was almost in close enough range to be certain of my shot.
The woman strained her head trying to turn toward , but it was too late. I lifted my pistol and shot just as the freeze effect wore off. The woman tried to stand, even with the bullet in her head, but I shot once more and she stumbled back, falling over the buildings railing. I heard a thud, and then nothing.
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