Hi @yellowcandraw! Iâm sorry this took so long to post!Â
âRoxie!â Courier Six shouted as the cyberdog bounded toward him. His head whipped around wildly, scanning for danger. After an incident with a deathclaw nearly tore all of them to shreds near the entrance to the Mojave Drive-In, Six was on constant high alert.
Just behind Six, Arcade stood with Rex at his heel, head tilted in the Big MT sun. Six turned to face him, to gesture toward the miracle of science in front of him, and saw the look on his face. Six could see the cocked eyebrow and confused look a mile away. Beside him, Rexâs tail wagged, and he stood up on his haunches to investigate the newcomer with his owner.
Roxie rushed toward her target, heedless of the cry of her new master. After defusing the crisis with the Think Tank and retrieving his organs, Six made a beeline for back to the Mojave to retrieve Arcade and Rex. He prayed Arcade might be able to figure out how to crack the programming keeping Roxie stuck inside X-8. He knew what the Think Tank had done â created the cazadores, the night stalkers, and God only knew what else. He shuddered to think of what would happen if they got ahold of Roxie. Would they experiment on her? Tear her down to bolts and fur? They certainly wouldnât leave her alone. After all, Six had denied them the pleasure of tormenting the Mojave â they would want something to entertain them, even for a short while. It was decided before heâd even left for the Mojave â Roxie would just have to come back with them. It would be another mouth to feed, but theyâd make do. He just hoped Roxie got along with Rex. If they didnât, truthfully, Six wasnât sure what heâd do. Speaking ofâŠ
The cybernetic dogs were now circling each other, sniffing. The confused scowl on Arcadeâs face deepened, and Six could almost see the gears turning in the Followerâs head. He ran the final few yard to his companions, both human and animal, waiting to have to jump in to separate a puppy fight.
To his joy â and surprise â Rex initiated the first friendly contact, a firm lick to Roxieâs snout. After that, all bets were off. The two barked at each other, haphazardly giving each other a good sniffing before playfully trying to tackle the other.
âOkay, so whatâs the story here, Six? First you were gone for two weeks, then you come rushing out of the Drive-In like a deathclaw is on your tail, yelling about helping some dog. What the hell am I missing?â Arcade asked, speaking slowly as one would to a toddler.
âThatâs Roxie! I found her! As for what happenedâŠwell, ya see, this is how it wentâŠâ Six explained. Arcade groaned, knowing he was in for an exceptionally longwinded tale of adventure and intrigue. Honestly, he wasnât even sure how Six was alive at this point. Heâd survived being shot in the head, was at the center of the rapidly brewing war for control of Hoover Dam, had helped Joshua Graham â the fucking Burned Man â defend the Zion from the White Legs, and now whatever heâd done after investigating the signal coming from the Mojave Drive-In.
Arcade fingered the key sitting in his left coat pocket. It unlocked the locker containing his fatherâs Enclave armor, his deepest and most treasured secret. He hope one day â one day â he would finally be able to share it with Six, but felt he couldnât until the courier made a decision on the fate of Hoover Dam. If it fell to the LegionâŠ
He shook off thoughts of the future as Six rambled about the cybernetic dog heâd created in the X-8 research center. The more Six talked, the more Arcade wanted to explore thisâŠBig MT himself. Scientific curiosity was eating him alive!
 When Six finally finished, he was hoarse, and lying at his feet were two happy cyberdogs cuddled close together. He grinned to his human companion.
âSee! They even get along!â Six proudly noted, gesturing toward Rex and Roxie. Arcade just rolled his eyes and set about trying to crack the code. He had to admit, watching the two dogs was pretty cute. He supposed it wouldnât hurt taking the new dog back to the Mojave with them. After about an hour staring into the terminal screen, he whistled for Rex, and Roxie followed, both standing at attention. Six just grinned.
âCome on, pups! Itâs time to terrorize the Mojave!â Six declared, sweeping his arms out broadly. Arcadeâs mutter of, âdrama queenâ was lost in the excited barks of their canine companions.
Who knew what the future would bring â the Mojave could rise as its own power, push back the imperialistic NCR and the dictatorial Legion, standing on its own two feet once and for all. Or the Mojave could fall to either â annex and taxed by the NCR, or ruthlessly conquered by the Legion. All that Arcade knew for certain was that, in the end, the decision rested firmly on the shoulders of the no-name courier in front of him. Currently, said courier â said fate-maker â was laughing raucously as Rex and Roxie nipped his heels, and Arcade had a sudden sense that everything would turn out just fine in the end.
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