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Captain Gilles scowled as she looked at the reports and forms spread across her desk. This had definitely been one of the days when she wondered why she stayed in the military. It certainly hadn’t been one of her worst days. That distinction went to a place called Bitter Springs many years ago in the Mojave wasteland.

She had been a Major then, commanding a reconnaissance detachment that included first Recon. The NCR was just beginning its push into the Mojave, and her orders were to hunt down the Great Khans and end their raids into NCR territory. Intelligence was poor to non-existent, and radio communication was sporadic at best. They had trapped the Khans at what they had been told was their primary stronghold in the Mojave. All initial reports indicated that the Khans were camped in force, and that their numbers exceeded her detachment two to one. Knowing their only chance was to attack from surprise, she gave the order to open fire from the heights overlooking the camp. Finally the shooting ended, and she led her force into the awful silence.

What they found still haunted her every time she closed her eyes. Intel had been terribly wrong and the Khan raiders were not at Bitter Springs. What were there were women, children, and those too elderly to fight. The massacre was a dark chapter in the NCR’s conquest of the Mojave, and one the top brass quickly tried to hush up. As the commander in the field, the blame for the atrocity fell squarely on Gilles head, even though intelligence was faulty and her orders confusing. Gilles had defended herself in a flat monotone, making no attempt to justify her actions. When she finally stood to hear her sentence, she felt no joy at the verdict. She would continue to serve in the NCR, but she was demoted to Captain.

Gilles knew she got off easy, especially with the public outcry about the massacre. However she also understood that her career in the military had effectively ended. There was no chance she would be promoted or sent to a prestigious posting, she would remain a captain in whatever hellhole they sent her to until the day she mustered out. More than once she asked herself why she stayed on, and each time she came to the same answer. Duty. She hadn’t signed up to become rich and famous, she had become a soldier to serve the NCR, and that desire hadn’t been erased by that dark day at Bitter Springs.

Now she was stationed at the remote outpost of Indian Springs, a name that she found ironic. It was built on the tarmac of a pre-war airfield that had served the old U.S. Military. Mostly her job was to watch highway 95 for infiltrators from the Legion and relay intelligence back to Colonel Royez and his detachment at Death Valley Junction over seventy-five miles northwest of Indian Springs. The threat from the Legion was considered small, and thus so was her command, consisting of two-dozen regular troops and the five members of first Recon. Essentially Indian Springs was a tripwire to alert the NCR of approaching hostiles.

Recently there had been reports of fighting in the northern Mojave and Legion troop movements east of the Colorado. Then came the attacks from supermutants, wiping several small communities off the map before vanishing into the desert. Her orders were now to find the raiders and intercept any traffic using Highway 95. Although promised more troops, none had yet to arrive leaving Captain Gilles to attempt an impossible task with meager resources.

“Captain?” Corporal Mueller asked, interrupting her thoughts as he entered the doorway to her office.

“What is it Corporal?” She asked as she pushed back from her desk with weary sigh.

“The report you requested about the prisoners has arrived.” The corporal said as he pushed his glasses back up his nose and entered the tent. Gilles took a holodisk from his outstretched hand and nodded.

“That will be all Corporal.” She said without looking up from the disk.

“Sir!” Mueller snapped as he saluted, then pivoted on his heel to walk out of the office. Meyers activated the disk and began to read the report she had requested about the two prisoners Corporal Betsy and Ten of Spades had captured. Both claimed that they were mercenaries hired by House to hunt for the treasure of the Sierra Madre. The story was obviously fabricated, but they stuck with it. Gilles didn’t have the manpower or facilities to keep prisoners indefinitely, but one of them was clearly some kind of meta-human which required much closer scrutiny. She had sent their images and first names, the only ones they offered back to headquarters, then waited for a reply.

A day later she had received a radio message that a ranch had been hit, and all signs pointed to another mutant raid. After that, she ordered the big mutant, Valeria, subjected to “enhanced” interrogation. This was the second day of increasingly rigorous questioning, and the mutant still hadn’t changed her story. Reports from the medic in attendance suggested that the mutant wasn’t especially stressed by the harsh treatment, leaving Gilles at a loss as to her next move.

The response on the holotape to image of the mutant was to the point. No known alias, affiliation, or record. In fact, nothing was known about Valeria at all which made Gilles frown with frustration. Then she read the text under Veronica’s name. Her eyes narrowed as she continued to read, then she slammed the disk on her desk and stood with her mouth set in a grim line.

“Corporal!” She shouted.

“Sir?” Mueller asked as he entered the door and stood at attention.

“Has first Recon reported back yet?” She snapped as she strode around her desk.

“No Sir!” Mueller replied staring fixedly ahead. “But Lieutenant Goroborts is back from patrol.”

“Good.” Gilles said with a nod. “Bring the prisoner Veronica to headquarters, and have the Lieutenant meet us there.”

“Sir!” Mueller replied with a salute as he hurried out of the tent. Gilles pulled her service automatic out and checked to see if a round was chambered. It was time to have a heart to heart with Veronica, full name Veronica Santangelo, known member of the Brotherhood of Steel.

Meanwhile in a shack near the command bunker Veronica and Valeria sat in the sweltering darkness of their cells.

“We’ve got to get out of here Val!” Veronica said urgently as she reached her fingers through the chain-link separating Valeria’s cell from her own.Valeria tried to smile reassuringly as Veronica’s fingertips lightly brushed the swelling under her eye.

“Don’t smile at me you big idiot!” Veronica snapped. “Are you trying to get them mad at you?” An uncomfortable shift of Valeria’s shoulders made Veronica’s eyes widen with realization.

“That’s exactly what you’re doing.” She hissed as Valeria looked away. “You’re keeping them interested in you and away from me! Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“No.” Valeria replied unable to meet Veronica’s furious gaze. “I can take a lot more abuse then they’ve been able to dish out.”

“If they were going to let us go, they’d have done it already.” Veronica whispered. “We have to escape now!”

Valeria opened her mouth to reply, when the door to the shack banged open. Captain Gilles stood in the doorway at stiff attention as two soldiers entered and approached Veronica’s cell. While one unlocked the chain holding the gate shut, the other soldier kept his rifle trained on Valeria’s face.

“You will come with us.” Captain Gilles announced to Veronica. “If either of you try anything you will be shot. Understand?”

Veronica nodded tersely and stepped forward after glancing at Valeria. Valeria’s eyes burned with anger and fear for her friend as one of the soldiers shoved her toward the door.

“Watch her.” Gilles ordered the second soldier as she jerked her head toward Valeria. The soldier nodded with a nervous look at Valeria, then placed himself in the open doorway, his weapon ready. Valeria glared at the soldier and shifted her weight to stand. The soldier immediately raised his rifle and Valeria carefully leaned back against the fence, still glaring as Veronica was escorted to the command bunker across the highway from the improvised prison compound.

Veronica was soon seated at a table in a bare room across from Captain Gilles while a soldier in a red beret stood near the door, his arms crossed and his face impassive. Giles stared at Veronica silently for several minutes while Veronica glared furiously back.

“Why were you out here?” Gilles finally asked, her face expressionless.

“I guess army life makes you deaf as well as stupid.” Veronica snapped. “We’ve told you more than once and I don’t want to repeat it.”

“Yes.” Gilles said as she held up a holodisk. “But I would like to hear it again miss… Santangelo.”

“You’ve got the wrong person.” Veronica snapped, her eyes narrowing.

“I don’t think so.” Gilles replied evenly. “There’s a file on you. It’s not much I admit, but your name is mentioned as a member of the Brotherhood of Steel.” Giles leaned forward and rested her forearms on the table.

“A form of Supermutant traveling with a member of a sworn enemy of the NCR from Legion territory looks a bit suspicious, don’t you think?” She asked with ice in her voice.

“I told you already.” Veronica growled as she crossed her arms. “Val and I have been hired by House to bring the treasure of the Sierra Madre back to him. I know the law, and you can’t hold us without charging us with something.”

“So you’re familiar with NCR law.” Gilles said with a nod. “But you’re out of date. With the war powers act former President Kendall enacted, the military has discretionary powers to deal with threats against the NCR as long as they represent a clear and present danger.”

“And you think Val and I are a danger to the NCR?” Veronica sneered.

“I don’t need to remind you how many NCR citizens died in the war against the Brotherhood.” Giles replied calmly. “And the threat of the Supermutants goes without saying.”

Veronica sat in sullen silence as Gilles removed the holotape from the table and clasped her hands on the table before her as she leaned forward.

“We are on the frontier and the NCR is under attack.” She said in a low dangerous voice. “I can and will do anything in my power to defend it. Do you understand?”

Veronica glared in response but remained silent.

“Very well.” Gilles said grimly. “Lieutenant Gorobets, cuff her!”

Veronica started and began to rise when Gilles hand dropped to the butt of her pistol. Veronica returned to her chair glaring at the officer while Gorobets quickly handcuffed her hands behind her.

“I’m going to ask you again.” Gilles said as she glared at Veronica. “What were you doing in NCR territory?”

But before Veronica could speak the roar of gunfire suddenly echoed through the room. An explosion followed and screams and shouts filled the air as gunfire crackled and thundered from outside. Gorobets whirled and jerked the door open as Gilles leaped to her feet sending her chair crashing to the floor. Suddenly a line of holes exploded out of the wall filling the air with splinters and chunks of plaster. Veronica felt bullets screech over her head as she flung her chair over and crashed to the floor.

Outside, the soldier guarding Valeria opened the door and looked wildly about as Valeria leaped to her feet. Suddenly the wall erupted in an explosion of shrapnel and splinters as the soldier spun and toppled to the floor almost cut in half. Valeria screamed as a hail of slugs tore through her torso, shredding her lungs and hurling her to the floor. Coughing blood and gagging, Valeria tried to pull herself to her feet as her vision began to go dark. Suddenly a shape blocked the sun blazing through the doorway, and she glimpsed a decaying face with a pencil thin mustache and dark glasses before the world went black.

Debris was still showering from the ceiling as Veronica thrashed herself free from the remains of the chair. Wild-eyed and wary of more bullets shredding the walls, Veronica slithered on her stomach toward the still form of Captain Gilles, sprawled facedown on the floor in a spreading pool of blood. Gasping with the effort and her head ringing from her punishing fall to the concrete floor, Veronica squirmed into a sitting position and facing away from the Captain’s body tried to feel with her bound hands for the key to her cuffs.

Suddenly motion in the doorway made her twist her head to see the Lieutenant pulling himself to his feet using the doorway for support. Blood covered the front of his uniform as he gritted his teeth with effort and raised a pistol toward Veronica. Veronica’s eyes darted desperately about the room for any form of escape, but sitting with her hands bound there was nowhere she could hide. Veronica closed her eyes and waited for the end. She started when the crack of the pistol rang through the room, than realized she hadn’t been hit. She jerked her eyes open and saw Gorobets standing frozen with his mouth open and his eyes staring sightlessly. He slumped heavily to the floor, revealing a man in a gray merc uniform holding a bloody bowie knife.

“Well, well. What do we have here?” Said a cultured voice that Veronica instantly recognized as Dean Domino’s. He stepped forward into a narrow shaft of sunlight from the holes in the walls, and Veronica saw his decaying mustached face, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses.

“It appears fate has decided you’ll be working for me after all.” Dean said with a smile as he wiped his knife on Gorobet’s uniform.

“That appears to be the last of them.” Dean continued conversationally as he crouched next to Veronica, his knife raised between them.

“I’m going to free you.” He announced. “Try to escape and I’ll make you very sorry. In the off chance that you succeed in evading me, you will find my companions much less congenial.”

“What are you doing here?” Veronica gasped as Dean quickly searched Gilles’ body for the key.

“Proving the adage that if you want something done right you have to do it yourself.” He quipped as he produced a ring of keys and inserted one in the handcuffs. “My current associates are not my first choice of traveling companions, but as you have seen they can be very useful when negotiations fail.”

Veronica turned rubbing her wrists to see Dean pointing Gorobet’s pistol at her. “I had hoped to avoid getting the NCR’s attention, but Gaius Magnus and his men are rather excitable and not especially good at subterfuge. Add the heightened alert the NCR seems to be operating under and we have an environment…unfavorable for diplomacy.”

“Gaius Magnus?” Veronica asked as she staggered past the ghoul and into the hall. The air was filled with drifting whisps of smoke and dust and she could see the bodies of soldiers lit by shafts of orange light pouring in from shattered windows.

“You’re working with the Legion?” Veronica asked incredulously.

“Not my preference.” Dean replied sardonically. “But Gaius has proven handy with a mini-gun, the effects of which you can attest to. Sadly in his enthusiasm he neglected to target the radio, leaving that detail to cooler heads.” At that moment Dean turned and fired three times into the device sitting on a desk.

“That takes care of that.” The ghoul announced as he shoved Veronica toward the door.

As Veronica stepped outside, the sight that greeted her was destruction and carnage. Dead soldiers were sprawled everywhere, while Legion soldiers in dark leather armor used knives and machetes to ensure there were no survivors. Suddenly the roar of the mini-gun again tore through the air. Veronica turned in time to see a hulking soldier holding the massive weapon spraying the shack Valeria and Veronica had been imprisoned in.

“Valeria!” Veronica screamed as she tried to run forward before Dean seized her neck with his arm and pressed his pistol against her cheek.

“Hmm, I thought she would have died by now.” Dean said conversationally as Magnus swept his gun across the shack again, causing the roof to sag with a groan as the support beams collapsed. “She caught some rounds when Gaius strafed this place.”

“You saw her?” Veronica gasped.

“For a moment.” Dean replied tightening his hold on her throat. “I felt it prudent to leave her in the cage as time really was of the essence.”

“You bastard!” Veronica sobbed. “You left Val to die!”

“I had neither the time nor inclination to help a dying mutant.” Dean replied calmly. “Since discretion has failed, it is in our best interest to make sure there are no witnesses. With a little luck the NCR will assume this was a more ambitious raid by the Supermutants.”

“Val…” Veronica choked as Gaius turned from the shack, leaving it to collapse behind him.

“Take all the provisions you can carry!” The big centurion shouted to his men before turning to Dean and Veronica.

“Why does this profligate live Domino?” Gaius growled as he turned his scarred face toward Veronica.

“This…profligate has studied the Sierra Madre extensively.” Domino replied smoothly. “She could be very useful, and if not.” Dean shrugged as he lowered his pistol and released Veronica.

“Then she will be your charge.” The Centurion snarled before turning to Veronica who was staring wide-eyed and shaking with emotion. “If you interfere with our mission in any way profligate, you will be begging for death before I finish with you.”

“F*** you!” Veronica screamed as tears streamed down her cheeks. Gaius casually smashed her across the face with his fist sending her stunned and bleeding to the ground. Gaius then turned and brandished his huge weapon over his head and roared. “For the Legion!”

“The Legion!” His men roared in reply, brandishing their bloody weapons as the shack holding Valeria collapsed into a pile of debris.



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