SESSION 02: THE ST. LOUIS SUMMIT
General Summary
Previous Session: SESSION 01: A MISSION
Next Session: SESSION 03: SLAMS AND THE BYRDE OF PEACE
Players: (The Heroes of St. Louis): Lex Garridan, Linda, Mister Man, Mouse, Zero.
*26th April, 2317*
(Adventure Day 2)
The group stood on the steps of the old Missouri capitol building, the regional base of the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel. The sun was setting and they had had a long day of travel, looting and combat. They agreed to meet with Paladin Hector in the morning, the Brotherhood granting them free food, drink and beds in the enlisted barracks.
A figure Zero recognized came walking down the capitol steps. It was Mouse, a local scavenger whom Zero had met years ago, far away in The Rustlands.
"Mouse!" Zero called out, waving down the young man. Mouse approached the group casually. "What are you doing here?"
"The mayor paid me to help you," Mouse said plainly. "I've been waiting here for you."
Zero introduced Mouse to the group, announcing that he was a master sneak and scavenger.
Linda took a deep breath and shouted, "Have you felt the divine power of Atom's Glow!?"
"Um, no," Mouse replied. "I've eaten their soup every once in a while."
"They make good soup!" Linda announced.
There was an awkward silence until Lex said, "Yeah. So, I need to eat and sleep. I'm gonna go to the mess and then the barracks."
The group agreed and ended up in the rec centre, taking free food and drink with a group of relaxing Brothers. Zero spotted a group of Brotherhood warriors playing Caravan for money. He bought into the game with 10 caps and soon doubled his money.
Lex noted that she was going to bed, and Zero said, "Yes, sleep is the most important thing for a human. You should definitely do that." And gave Mouse a knowing look.
Lex, Linda and Mister Man went to the barracks to rest, while Zero and Mouse to a casual walk around the base, reconnoitering for John Giscala. They noted that the infirmary was small and poorly equipped, servicing a single patient. Walking near an old train station, they spotted a light and headed that way.
There was a Brotherhood scribe working on a pre-war computer terminal. He turned to Zero and Mouse, saying, "Hey, do you know computers? I'm supposed to be sweeping this area for radiation and mines, but there's a compartment I can't get into without the computer password. You can have whatever's inside, as long as I can sweep the compartment. Unless there's a Fat Man in there, or something.
Zero decided this was a job for Lex and sent Mouse running to wake her. The usually gregarious Lex was annoyed by being awoken, but ultimately agreed to help.
Lex quickly hacked the computer terminal and the compartment opened with a rusty whine. Inside was a strange device.
"Oh, boy," said the Brotherhood scribe. "That's a junk jet. It's a weapon that fires anything you drop into the hopper. Cool, but you'd have to be huge to use it."
The group sneaked up to Linda, still asleep in a Brotherhood bunk and snoring loudly. They slid the junk jet under her arm, a present for the morning. Then they all went to bed.
*27th April, 2317*
(Adventure Day 3)
In the morning, they went to the capitol gallery to see Paladin Hector. Ticho Hector was an old Brotherhood veteran, a busy leader surrounded by staff. He shooed is helpers away and welcomed the group. Linda showed Hector "George" the scepter.
Hector spied the group thoughtfully and said, "There's a diplomatic summit happening soon in St. Louis. I'd like you to come with me. A diverse group who rescued the scepter delivering it to The Capitol is very good optics. We'll be going on foot, but I can offer you free food, water, protection and medical care on the trip. What say you?"
John Giscala had told Lex to help the paladin however she could, so she agreed quickly. Dr. John had also asked Zero to investigate Brotherhood activities, so he agreed as well. That was enough for the group and they agreed to set out in four hours.
With some time to kill, the party wandered the base. Passing the vehicle bay, they noticed road work vehicles, all made post-war in Detroit. Clearly, the Brotherhood was working in some capacity with the corrupt bosses of The Rustlands.
Mouse used his substantial agility to sneak into the bases storage facility. There he found a large amount of road work tools and several large tanks of coolant for use in vehicles.
Linda wanted to go to the firing range to try out her new junk jet. She stuffed a clump of junk into the machine and blasted it into a target. The resounding crash drew all of the Brothers in the facility.
"That's a hell of gun you got there," one of the warriors announced. "You know there's a company record for shooting. A 1.1 inch spread of 10 shots, at 30 yards. Anybody who can beat it gets the company stash. 30 caps!"
Lex was excited, but thought carefully. 10 rounds from her 10mm was worth 20 caps on its own, and if she failed, it'd be lost for nothing. But glory called to her and she took aim at the range.
A moment later, a Brother measured her spread. "0.9 inches!" she announced. "A new company record. The caps are yours. What's your name? For the big board."
"Just put Lex," she said. And with that, the group was ready to go.
The first three days on the road with Paladin Hector were quiet and awkward. The paladin and his two knights barely spoke, even to each other. The dirt road along the Missouri river was a wild wasteland, picked over by scavengers for 250 years. At each old building, the Brothers would step in formation, anticipating a fight. But there was always nothing. No fight. No salvage. Just the lapping of the river and the idle buzzing of insects.
*30th April, 2317*
On the fourth day, the group spotted a wagon coming down the road from the opposite direction. It was a Mr. Handy RoboMerchant with six armed mercenaries.
"I'm sorry," Paladin Hector said softly. "We have to check this."
Hector addressed the RoboMerchant: "Hello there. You comin' from Detroit in The Rustlands?"
"Yeah," the RoboMerchant replied defensively.
"These folks wouldn't be slaves, would they?" Hector asked, putting his hand to his laser rifle.
"You see any collars?" the robot asked incredulously. "They're hired and paid."
"Have you felt the glory of Atom!?" Linda shouted out of nowhere.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" asked one of the mercs.
"Atom loves his children," Linda continued.
"Um, I'M from Toledo. I'M a Child of Atom. You're a super mutant. Atom cursed you," the merc said, offended.
"Atom made me strong!" Linda shouted.
"Atom made you a freak!" the merc shouted back.
There was very tense moment and more shouting. Lex bid everyone to be quiet. The advice was taken, but with serious reservations.
"Okay, everybody calm down," Hector said. He turned to the group. "You mind looking over that wagon? That way, all us fightin' types can keep a good eye on each other. Everyone can stay real calm."
Mouse walked carefully to the wagon and searched it. He found some mundane supplies and a box of Calmex stealth chems.
"They've got chems. Calmex," Mouse shouted as he palmed two doses for himself.
"See? Nice and legal," the RoboMerchant said, making a dismissive gesture.
"Yep. Here in the Midwest. But illegal in the New California Republic. Someone could cook up some Calmex in Detroit and walk it to Denver, where they could smuggle it into California for a tidy profit."
The RoboMerchant was tense: "I suppose they could."
"Alright. Move along," Hector finally announced.
Just then, Mouse discovered a secret compartment in the wagon. He opened it and discovered a dozen mini nukes. He pocketed another two Calmex doses and slunk away quietly.
As the merchants walked away, Mouse quietly informed Paladin Hector of the mini nukes. In brutish Brotherhood fashion, Hector shouted, "Halt!" A fight ensued.
Hector opened fire with his laser rifle, injuring one of the mercenaries. Mouse's quick reflexes kicked in, and he dashed into some nearby bushes. Lex shot with her pistol. The Brotherhood knights and mercs traded fire. Mister Man threw a baseball grenade, missing his target, but vapourizing the merc next to him. Linda launched two heaps of junk into a merc, killing him. Zero charged into another merc and gave him a vicious punch.
And that's when the RoboMerchant reached into the wagon and grabbed a mini nuke. Seeing that he was outgunned, the robot clearly wanted to blow up the Brothers, even if it meant his own death.
The two groups exchanged more fire. Linda was hit by a burst of automatic fire and fell to the ground. Mister Man came to her aid, a life-giving stimpak ready in his pincer. But when it came to treating the super mutant, Mister Man found himself confused. He jabbed Linda deep in a lump of calloused skin, saving her from death, but blundering the treatment.
It was enough for Linda, though. She stood in a rage and killed another merc with her junk jet. Soon the RoboMerchant and its mercs were dead, and the mini nuke was disarmed.
Linda stomped over to the body of the merc from Toledo. She let out a flurry of religious rage, hammering the man's dead body with her fists until it was little more than a wet putty.
Hector and his knights healed the party and thanked them for their assistance. They asked to loot the mercenaries' equipment, but Hector refused them. He explained that he was leaving a Brotherhood beacon, and soon scribes would come to examine the scene. The mercs equipment was evidence and could give clues to illegal activity in the area. But the group could scrap the RoboMerchant for parts, if they wished.
Lex scrapped the robot's hull, but the situation bothered Zero. Summoning their powers of persuasion, Lex and Zero made their case to the Paladin.
"You know, you're right," Hector said. "You were a great help today when you didn't have to be. I can't give you the merc's gear, but please, have this." And he handed his personal .44 magnum revolver to Lex. It was a powerful gun, but Lex was interested in something with more range, so she exchanged the revolver for Mouse's hunting rifle.
As they left the scene, Linda took one last opportunity to kick the religious merc's jellied corpse.
That night, the Brothers were much friendlier with the group, having been bonded in combat. Hector engaged them in friendly conversation. He explained that in pre-war America, each of the 13 Commonwealths had a brass scepter as a symbol of the governor's power. The Capitol sees themselves as the inheritors of the American government, and has sought the 13 scepters. As the artifacts are purely ceremonial, the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel sees it as a worthwhile endeavour to give them scepters and gain goodwill with The Capitol.
Hector explained that the St. Louis Summit was called to facilitate the repair of Interstate 70. The raised highway runs from Baltimore in The Capitol, through The Rustlands, across the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel and into the New California Republic, all the way to the Pacific Coast.
California needs food, and The Capitol has it. With an intact Interstate 70, the NCR gets food, The Capitol and The Rustlands get money and the Midwest Brotherhood fosters cooperation. Of course, there are powers that wouldn't like this deal. Caesar's Legion doesn't want to see a well-fed NCR and Dixie is afraid of an empowered Capitol. Both the Commonwealth and Cascadia were technically national factions, but no one cares what they think. Hector made it clear he felt the deal was good for Emancipation's economy and good for peace.
Lex asked Hector about the Vault 40 experiment, but the paladin knew little. When he had taken his position in Camp Jefferson 9 years ago, he was given a dossier on Vault 40. But, the details of the experiment were redacted, marked civilian top secret. So, clearly the Midwest Brotherhood Elders in Chicago knew the secret, but considered it unimportant to Hector's work. Seeing Lex's frustration, Hector noted that he had been to Vault 46 in St. Louis. The place was nice these days, but apparently they had endured some sort of horrible social experiment. Bees?
*2nd May, 2317*
(Adventure Day 8)
Another two days of walking brought them to St. Louis. Once a city of 2 million, its ruins were now home to a mere 6000. But peaking out of the shattered buildings was the Gateway Arch, still in tact after 300 years.
They made their way through the city, passing through several Midwest Brotherhood of Steel checkpoints. But eventually, they were in Gateway Arch Park, face-to-face with the diplomats of the St. Louis Summit.
"Gentlemen," Hector proclaimed to the diplomats. "I have great news! This diverse group of Midwest citizens has recovered the Scepter of the Plains." He gestured to the group to give the scepter to the envoy from The Capitol.
"HERE IS GEORGE," Linda exclaimed, handing the envoy the hunk of brass.
"I accept this," the envoy said gladly, "for America."
And then there was a ruckus as a woman in a formal suit pushed her way into the meeting.
"Ambassador Townsend!" Brotherhood Elder Ghulam shouted at her. "Your meeting isn't until tomorrow. You have no place at this summit."
The ambassador from Dixie ignored him. "The Great Southern Congress objects to this summit. No formal diplomacy should be conducted with either The Capitol or The Rustlands until their human rights abuses are corrected. This is a mistake."
Elder Ghulam muttered, "Noted." And then he waved for security. A phalanx of Brotherhood knights in power armor pushed Ambassador Townsend away, just as a different group pushed the party in the other direction.
Soon they were out of the park. Hector said, "Well, that was awkward."
"Above my pay grade," said Zero.
"Mine too," Hector agreed. "You did well. Here's 20 caps a piece. Enjoy yourselves in St. Louis. I'm headed to Fort Union, and I'm heading back to Camp Jefferson in the morning. You're welcome to travel with me again, should I expect you?"
The party thought it over and agreed to travel back with Hector. The paladin parted with them and the group headed to the Old Market to trade. With their looting and caps gain, they could afford a little armour, but found that even simple stimpaks were out of their price range.
Lex was eager to visit Vault 46. At the same time, the group wanted to keep Linda away from the local Children of Atom assembly at Atom's Rest, given the Children's hostility to super mutants. So, Zero escorted Linda to the Venice Nuclear Reactor while Lex, Mister Man and Mouse traveled to Vault 46. They all crossed the majestic MLK bridge, the only Mississippi River crossing in St. Louis to survive the Great War, and the only Mississippi bridge on the Interstate 70 system.
Zero and Linda approached the Venice power facility, the excited super mutant hugging a cooling tower and gushing about the glory of Atom. They spent over an hour there, annoying the Brotherhood security officers patrolling the facility. Eventually, a guard retrieved a chunk of spent fuel rod and gave it to Linda as a gift. The overjoyed super mutant gave the man a big hug and left happily.
Meanwhile, Lex and her friends descended into Vault 46, where they were greeted by a vault dweller who identified himself as Dean. Dean told them a long story about the Vault 46 experiment, involving bees and the group bought some high quality honey. Then Lex requested to see the Vault-Tec computers. Dean explained that the vault-dwellers had killed their overseer 50 years ago, and she would have to hack the terminal. Lex gladly broke into the computer system, looking for anything related to Vault 40. She discovered that the terminal contained data on all of Vault-Tec's vaults in the Plains Commonwealth, but that this data was heavily encrypted. Lex uploaded this data to Mister Man's memory, but could not code a program that could defeat the encryption.
The group reconvened at the Anheiser Booch Brewery, remembering the VIP experience tickets they had been given by Booch in Emancipation. The brewery was founded and populated by super mutant veterans of the Calculator War, including Anheiser, who greeted them in the visitor's center.
The party gave their VIP tickets to Anheiser and he received them thoughtfully. He announced they were entitled to all of the free beer they could drink. And when they were ready, they were to follow him to the cellar for a special drink. The group shared a round of Cavern Lager and then rose to enjoy their VIP experience.
Anheiser led them through the brewery and down several flights of stairs into a natural cavern below the facility.
"Brewery built on cave," Anheiser explained. "No refrigeration." And with that, he withdrew a beer barrel, lifting the heavy object onto his shoulder. With his free hand, he pointed to a row of clean mugs on a shelf. "Cavern Lager Oak Barrel Special. Friends only."
Each member of the group took up a mug and filled it with the rare beer. After a quick toast, they drunk. The beer was fine, but indistinguishable from regular Cavern Lager.
The cavern shook violently and the lights flickered. A pulse of radiation hurt Lex and devastated Mouse. Lex needed her one dose of RadAway, but Mouse was on the verge of death. She gave the chem to Mouse, saving him from dying, but not healing him completely.
Anheiser looked stunned, saying only, "I think you should go."
Rising to street level, the party could see the last of a mushroom cloud rising in the sky. There had been a ground detonation of a nuclear device at Gateway Arch Park. The bomb's fireball had passed, but the city would still be intensely radioactive and soon be deadly to the two humans in the group.
They weighed their options. To the west and south was Caesar's Legion and its hostile soldiers and palisade wall. To the east was the radioactive Mississippi River, deadly to the humans. They decided that their best hope was to meet up with Paladin Hector at Fort Union, as the Brotherhood was most likely stocked with supplies.
When they got to Fort Union, the base was on high alert. Knights in power armor scurried around cautiously, ready for an attack. Soon, Paladin Hector spotted the party and approached them.
"Can any of you drive a bus?" Hector asked desperately. They assured him that Lex and Mister Man could, to which Hector offered, "You help me bus people out of here, I treat your radiation. Yes?" And the group quickly agreed.
Lex and Mouse were given several doses of RadAway on the way to the garage. In the garage they found three school buses, two of them operable but one of them damaged by the detonation. Lex set to work repairing the bus. Hector found that the garage door was blasted shut, but it was easy work for Linda to tear the door open with her powerful body. Soon, the third bus was fixed and they were ready to go.
"SLAMS," Hector said. "We need to rescue the cadets there. If anything happens to me, or we get separated, go to SLAMS, pick up as many kids as you can and get them to Camp Jefferson." And with that they started up the buses.
Paladin Hector led the way in his own bus. The city streets were a hellscape. Burned survivors wandered the streets and rubble collapsed into the street at random. Navigating the path was difficult, often requiring Hector to slip through narrow alleys. Lex, Linda and Zero followed in the next bus, tailing Hector as best they could. Mister Man drove the last bus, Mouse standing beside him.
As the convoy progressed, Mister Man found his vehicle caught on the twisted rebar of a collapsed building, eating up precious time to break away. By the time the bus was free, Hector and Lex's buses had pulled ahead significantly. Mister Man plowed ahead, looking to catch up. But he found himself at a Y junction, with no sign of the other two vehicles.
Mouse and Mister Man found themselves lost in a strange city on fire, waves of intense radiation threatening Mouse's doom...
Next Session: SESSION 03: SLAMS AND THE BYRDE OF PEACE
Next Session: SESSION 03: SLAMS AND THE BYRDE OF PEACE
Players: (The Heroes of St. Louis): Lex Garridan, Linda, Mister Man, Mouse, Zero.
*26th April, 2317*
(Adventure Day 2)
The group stood on the steps of the old Missouri capitol building, the regional base of the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel. The sun was setting and they had had a long day of travel, looting and combat. They agreed to meet with Paladin Hector in the morning, the Brotherhood granting them free food, drink and beds in the enlisted barracks.
A figure Zero recognized came walking down the capitol steps. It was Mouse, a local scavenger whom Zero had met years ago, far away in The Rustlands.
"Mouse!" Zero called out, waving down the young man. Mouse approached the group casually. "What are you doing here?"
"The mayor paid me to help you," Mouse said plainly. "I've been waiting here for you."
Zero introduced Mouse to the group, announcing that he was a master sneak and scavenger.
Linda took a deep breath and shouted, "Have you felt the divine power of Atom's Glow!?"
"Um, no," Mouse replied. "I've eaten their soup every once in a while."
"They make good soup!" Linda announced.
There was an awkward silence until Lex said, "Yeah. So, I need to eat and sleep. I'm gonna go to the mess and then the barracks."
The group agreed and ended up in the rec centre, taking free food and drink with a group of relaxing Brothers. Zero spotted a group of Brotherhood warriors playing Caravan for money. He bought into the game with 10 caps and soon doubled his money.
Lex noted that she was going to bed, and Zero said, "Yes, sleep is the most important thing for a human. You should definitely do that." And gave Mouse a knowing look.
Lex, Linda and Mister Man went to the barracks to rest, while Zero and Mouse to a casual walk around the base, reconnoitering for John Giscala. They noted that the infirmary was small and poorly equipped, servicing a single patient. Walking near an old train station, they spotted a light and headed that way.
There was a Brotherhood scribe working on a pre-war computer terminal. He turned to Zero and Mouse, saying, "Hey, do you know computers? I'm supposed to be sweeping this area for radiation and mines, but there's a compartment I can't get into without the computer password. You can have whatever's inside, as long as I can sweep the compartment. Unless there's a Fat Man in there, or something.
Zero decided this was a job for Lex and sent Mouse running to wake her. The usually gregarious Lex was annoyed by being awoken, but ultimately agreed to help.
Lex quickly hacked the computer terminal and the compartment opened with a rusty whine. Inside was a strange device.
"Oh, boy," said the Brotherhood scribe. "That's a junk jet. It's a weapon that fires anything you drop into the hopper. Cool, but you'd have to be huge to use it."
The group sneaked up to Linda, still asleep in a Brotherhood bunk and snoring loudly. They slid the junk jet under her arm, a present for the morning. Then they all went to bed.
*27th April, 2317*
(Adventure Day 3)
In the morning, they went to the capitol gallery to see Paladin Hector. Ticho Hector was an old Brotherhood veteran, a busy leader surrounded by staff. He shooed is helpers away and welcomed the group. Linda showed Hector "George" the scepter.
Hector spied the group thoughtfully and said, "There's a diplomatic summit happening soon in St. Louis. I'd like you to come with me. A diverse group who rescued the scepter delivering it to The Capitol is very good optics. We'll be going on foot, but I can offer you free food, water, protection and medical care on the trip. What say you?"
John Giscala had told Lex to help the paladin however she could, so she agreed quickly. Dr. John had also asked Zero to investigate Brotherhood activities, so he agreed as well. That was enough for the group and they agreed to set out in four hours.
With some time to kill, the party wandered the base. Passing the vehicle bay, they noticed road work vehicles, all made post-war in Detroit. Clearly, the Brotherhood was working in some capacity with the corrupt bosses of The Rustlands.
Mouse used his substantial agility to sneak into the bases storage facility. There he found a large amount of road work tools and several large tanks of coolant for use in vehicles.
Linda wanted to go to the firing range to try out her new junk jet. She stuffed a clump of junk into the machine and blasted it into a target. The resounding crash drew all of the Brothers in the facility.
"That's a hell of gun you got there," one of the warriors announced. "You know there's a company record for shooting. A 1.1 inch spread of 10 shots, at 30 yards. Anybody who can beat it gets the company stash. 30 caps!"
Lex was excited, but thought carefully. 10 rounds from her 10mm was worth 20 caps on its own, and if she failed, it'd be lost for nothing. But glory called to her and she took aim at the range.
A moment later, a Brother measured her spread. "0.9 inches!" she announced. "A new company record. The caps are yours. What's your name? For the big board."
"Just put Lex," she said. And with that, the group was ready to go.
The first three days on the road with Paladin Hector were quiet and awkward. The paladin and his two knights barely spoke, even to each other. The dirt road along the Missouri river was a wild wasteland, picked over by scavengers for 250 years. At each old building, the Brothers would step in formation, anticipating a fight. But there was always nothing. No fight. No salvage. Just the lapping of the river and the idle buzzing of insects.
*30th April, 2317*
On the fourth day, the group spotted a wagon coming down the road from the opposite direction. It was a Mr. Handy RoboMerchant with six armed mercenaries.
"I'm sorry," Paladin Hector said softly. "We have to check this."
Hector addressed the RoboMerchant: "Hello there. You comin' from Detroit in The Rustlands?"
"Yeah," the RoboMerchant replied defensively.
"These folks wouldn't be slaves, would they?" Hector asked, putting his hand to his laser rifle.
"You see any collars?" the robot asked incredulously. "They're hired and paid."
"Have you felt the glory of Atom!?" Linda shouted out of nowhere.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" asked one of the mercs.
"Atom loves his children," Linda continued.
"Um, I'M from Toledo. I'M a Child of Atom. You're a super mutant. Atom cursed you," the merc said, offended.
"Atom made me strong!" Linda shouted.
"Atom made you a freak!" the merc shouted back.
There was very tense moment and more shouting. Lex bid everyone to be quiet. The advice was taken, but with serious reservations.
"Okay, everybody calm down," Hector said. He turned to the group. "You mind looking over that wagon? That way, all us fightin' types can keep a good eye on each other. Everyone can stay real calm."
Mouse walked carefully to the wagon and searched it. He found some mundane supplies and a box of Calmex stealth chems.
"They've got chems. Calmex," Mouse shouted as he palmed two doses for himself.
"See? Nice and legal," the RoboMerchant said, making a dismissive gesture.
"Yep. Here in the Midwest. But illegal in the New California Republic. Someone could cook up some Calmex in Detroit and walk it to Denver, where they could smuggle it into California for a tidy profit."
The RoboMerchant was tense: "I suppose they could."
"Alright. Move along," Hector finally announced.
Just then, Mouse discovered a secret compartment in the wagon. He opened it and discovered a dozen mini nukes. He pocketed another two Calmex doses and slunk away quietly.
As the merchants walked away, Mouse quietly informed Paladin Hector of the mini nukes. In brutish Brotherhood fashion, Hector shouted, "Halt!" A fight ensued.
Hector opened fire with his laser rifle, injuring one of the mercenaries. Mouse's quick reflexes kicked in, and he dashed into some nearby bushes. Lex shot with her pistol. The Brotherhood knights and mercs traded fire. Mister Man threw a baseball grenade, missing his target, but vapourizing the merc next to him. Linda launched two heaps of junk into a merc, killing him. Zero charged into another merc and gave him a vicious punch.
And that's when the RoboMerchant reached into the wagon and grabbed a mini nuke. Seeing that he was outgunned, the robot clearly wanted to blow up the Brothers, even if it meant his own death.
The two groups exchanged more fire. Linda was hit by a burst of automatic fire and fell to the ground. Mister Man came to her aid, a life-giving stimpak ready in his pincer. But when it came to treating the super mutant, Mister Man found himself confused. He jabbed Linda deep in a lump of calloused skin, saving her from death, but blundering the treatment.
It was enough for Linda, though. She stood in a rage and killed another merc with her junk jet. Soon the RoboMerchant and its mercs were dead, and the mini nuke was disarmed.
Linda stomped over to the body of the merc from Toledo. She let out a flurry of religious rage, hammering the man's dead body with her fists until it was little more than a wet putty.
Hector and his knights healed the party and thanked them for their assistance. They asked to loot the mercenaries' equipment, but Hector refused them. He explained that he was leaving a Brotherhood beacon, and soon scribes would come to examine the scene. The mercs equipment was evidence and could give clues to illegal activity in the area. But the group could scrap the RoboMerchant for parts, if they wished.
Lex scrapped the robot's hull, but the situation bothered Zero. Summoning their powers of persuasion, Lex and Zero made their case to the Paladin.
"You know, you're right," Hector said. "You were a great help today when you didn't have to be. I can't give you the merc's gear, but please, have this." And he handed his personal .44 magnum revolver to Lex. It was a powerful gun, but Lex was interested in something with more range, so she exchanged the revolver for Mouse's hunting rifle.
As they left the scene, Linda took one last opportunity to kick the religious merc's jellied corpse.
That night, the Brothers were much friendlier with the group, having been bonded in combat. Hector engaged them in friendly conversation. He explained that in pre-war America, each of the 13 Commonwealths had a brass scepter as a symbol of the governor's power. The Capitol sees themselves as the inheritors of the American government, and has sought the 13 scepters. As the artifacts are purely ceremonial, the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel sees it as a worthwhile endeavour to give them scepters and gain goodwill with The Capitol.
Hector explained that the St. Louis Summit was called to facilitate the repair of Interstate 70. The raised highway runs from Baltimore in The Capitol, through The Rustlands, across the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel and into the New California Republic, all the way to the Pacific Coast.
California needs food, and The Capitol has it. With an intact Interstate 70, the NCR gets food, The Capitol and The Rustlands get money and the Midwest Brotherhood fosters cooperation. Of course, there are powers that wouldn't like this deal. Caesar's Legion doesn't want to see a well-fed NCR and Dixie is afraid of an empowered Capitol. Both the Commonwealth and Cascadia were technically national factions, but no one cares what they think. Hector made it clear he felt the deal was good for Emancipation's economy and good for peace.
Lex asked Hector about the Vault 40 experiment, but the paladin knew little. When he had taken his position in Camp Jefferson 9 years ago, he was given a dossier on Vault 40. But, the details of the experiment were redacted, marked civilian top secret. So, clearly the Midwest Brotherhood Elders in Chicago knew the secret, but considered it unimportant to Hector's work. Seeing Lex's frustration, Hector noted that he had been to Vault 46 in St. Louis. The place was nice these days, but apparently they had endured some sort of horrible social experiment. Bees?
*2nd May, 2317*
(Adventure Day 8)
Another two days of walking brought them to St. Louis. Once a city of 2 million, its ruins were now home to a mere 6000. But peaking out of the shattered buildings was the Gateway Arch, still in tact after 300 years.
They made their way through the city, passing through several Midwest Brotherhood of Steel checkpoints. But eventually, they were in Gateway Arch Park, face-to-face with the diplomats of the St. Louis Summit.
"Gentlemen," Hector proclaimed to the diplomats. "I have great news! This diverse group of Midwest citizens has recovered the Scepter of the Plains." He gestured to the group to give the scepter to the envoy from The Capitol.
"HERE IS GEORGE," Linda exclaimed, handing the envoy the hunk of brass.
"I accept this," the envoy said gladly, "for America."
And then there was a ruckus as a woman in a formal suit pushed her way into the meeting.
"Ambassador Townsend!" Brotherhood Elder Ghulam shouted at her. "Your meeting isn't until tomorrow. You have no place at this summit."
The ambassador from Dixie ignored him. "The Great Southern Congress objects to this summit. No formal diplomacy should be conducted with either The Capitol or The Rustlands until their human rights abuses are corrected. This is a mistake."
Elder Ghulam muttered, "Noted." And then he waved for security. A phalanx of Brotherhood knights in power armor pushed Ambassador Townsend away, just as a different group pushed the party in the other direction.
Soon they were out of the park. Hector said, "Well, that was awkward."
"Above my pay grade," said Zero.
"Mine too," Hector agreed. "You did well. Here's 20 caps a piece. Enjoy yourselves in St. Louis. I'm headed to Fort Union, and I'm heading back to Camp Jefferson in the morning. You're welcome to travel with me again, should I expect you?"
The party thought it over and agreed to travel back with Hector. The paladin parted with them and the group headed to the Old Market to trade. With their looting and caps gain, they could afford a little armour, but found that even simple stimpaks were out of their price range.
Lex was eager to visit Vault 46. At the same time, the group wanted to keep Linda away from the local Children of Atom assembly at Atom's Rest, given the Children's hostility to super mutants. So, Zero escorted Linda to the Venice Nuclear Reactor while Lex, Mister Man and Mouse traveled to Vault 46. They all crossed the majestic MLK bridge, the only Mississippi River crossing in St. Louis to survive the Great War, and the only Mississippi bridge on the Interstate 70 system.
Zero and Linda approached the Venice power facility, the excited super mutant hugging a cooling tower and gushing about the glory of Atom. They spent over an hour there, annoying the Brotherhood security officers patrolling the facility. Eventually, a guard retrieved a chunk of spent fuel rod and gave it to Linda as a gift. The overjoyed super mutant gave the man a big hug and left happily.
Meanwhile, Lex and her friends descended into Vault 46, where they were greeted by a vault dweller who identified himself as Dean. Dean told them a long story about the Vault 46 experiment, involving bees and the group bought some high quality honey. Then Lex requested to see the Vault-Tec computers. Dean explained that the vault-dwellers had killed their overseer 50 years ago, and she would have to hack the terminal. Lex gladly broke into the computer system, looking for anything related to Vault 40. She discovered that the terminal contained data on all of Vault-Tec's vaults in the Plains Commonwealth, but that this data was heavily encrypted. Lex uploaded this data to Mister Man's memory, but could not code a program that could defeat the encryption.
The group reconvened at the Anheiser Booch Brewery, remembering the VIP experience tickets they had been given by Booch in Emancipation. The brewery was founded and populated by super mutant veterans of the Calculator War, including Anheiser, who greeted them in the visitor's center.
The party gave their VIP tickets to Anheiser and he received them thoughtfully. He announced they were entitled to all of the free beer they could drink. And when they were ready, they were to follow him to the cellar for a special drink. The group shared a round of Cavern Lager and then rose to enjoy their VIP experience.
Anheiser led them through the brewery and down several flights of stairs into a natural cavern below the facility.
"Brewery built on cave," Anheiser explained. "No refrigeration." And with that, he withdrew a beer barrel, lifting the heavy object onto his shoulder. With his free hand, he pointed to a row of clean mugs on a shelf. "Cavern Lager Oak Barrel Special. Friends only."
Each member of the group took up a mug and filled it with the rare beer. After a quick toast, they drunk. The beer was fine, but indistinguishable from regular Cavern Lager.
The cavern shook violently and the lights flickered. A pulse of radiation hurt Lex and devastated Mouse. Lex needed her one dose of RadAway, but Mouse was on the verge of death. She gave the chem to Mouse, saving him from dying, but not healing him completely.
Anheiser looked stunned, saying only, "I think you should go."
Rising to street level, the party could see the last of a mushroom cloud rising in the sky. There had been a ground detonation of a nuclear device at Gateway Arch Park. The bomb's fireball had passed, but the city would still be intensely radioactive and soon be deadly to the two humans in the group.
They weighed their options. To the west and south was Caesar's Legion and its hostile soldiers and palisade wall. To the east was the radioactive Mississippi River, deadly to the humans. They decided that their best hope was to meet up with Paladin Hector at Fort Union, as the Brotherhood was most likely stocked with supplies.
When they got to Fort Union, the base was on high alert. Knights in power armor scurried around cautiously, ready for an attack. Soon, Paladin Hector spotted the party and approached them.
"Can any of you drive a bus?" Hector asked desperately. They assured him that Lex and Mister Man could, to which Hector offered, "You help me bus people out of here, I treat your radiation. Yes?" And the group quickly agreed.
Lex and Mouse were given several doses of RadAway on the way to the garage. In the garage they found three school buses, two of them operable but one of them damaged by the detonation. Lex set to work repairing the bus. Hector found that the garage door was blasted shut, but it was easy work for Linda to tear the door open with her powerful body. Soon, the third bus was fixed and they were ready to go.
"SLAMS," Hector said. "We need to rescue the cadets there. If anything happens to me, or we get separated, go to SLAMS, pick up as many kids as you can and get them to Camp Jefferson." And with that they started up the buses.
Paladin Hector led the way in his own bus. The city streets were a hellscape. Burned survivors wandered the streets and rubble collapsed into the street at random. Navigating the path was difficult, often requiring Hector to slip through narrow alleys. Lex, Linda and Zero followed in the next bus, tailing Hector as best they could. Mister Man drove the last bus, Mouse standing beside him.
As the convoy progressed, Mister Man found his vehicle caught on the twisted rebar of a collapsed building, eating up precious time to break away. By the time the bus was free, Hector and Lex's buses had pulled ahead significantly. Mister Man plowed ahead, looking to catch up. But he found himself at a Y junction, with no sign of the other two vehicles.
Mouse and Mister Man found themselves lost in a strange city on fire, waves of intense radiation threatening Mouse's doom...
Next Session: SESSION 03: SLAMS AND THE BYRDE OF PEACE
Rewards Granted
+1 Level
Missions/Quests Completed
Character(s) interacted with
Report Date
02 May 2021
Primary Location
Comments