The giant was on a routine run in the mire searching for scrap and supplies. His power armor creaked through the shallow marshes as he trod through the water. He heard the snapping of a twig. He turned to see figures approaching through the tree line – no doubt some of the tribals following the banner of Cavelord. Perhaps these agitators had not heard the tale of the Giant, or what he was truly capable of. No matter – if they wanted a fight, then the Giant was happy to oblige.
A round of arrows and spears volleyed him from all directions. The giant smiled underneath his power armor helmet as each shot whooshed through the air only to make a satisfying metalic “chink” before falling to the ground. “Big mistake fuckers”. His laser gatling whirred to life as he began unleashing round after round of lasers in all directions. The attackers tried to flee, only for the majority of them to disintegrate into piles of smoldering ash. Just then a sharp pain shot through the back of the Giant as his metal armor tore apart. He turned to see a lone tribal aiming a harpoon gun straight at him.
The Giant became enraged and began charging at this attacker. Panic welled in the eyes of the tribal as he frantically tried to reload his harpoon gun for another shot, but he was too late. The Giant lodged his fist full force into the tribal’s face shattering his skull and sending his body flying into a nearby tree with a satisfying thud. The Giant winced in pain, and got down on one knee breathing heavily. He could feel the harpoon lodged in his back, and no matter how hard he tried he could not reach the harpoon to dislodge it. The power of his fusion core was depleting at a rapid pace. He watched as his power armor dropped from 80% to 55% in a matter of minutes. He activated the radio beacon built into his suit: “Condor….We got a problem….”
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The Prince was just finishing setting up his new encampment. He was proud to have made his way into the Vultures, and now that he had a steady supply of chems to curb his blood lust he could begin fulfilling his duties as resident medic for the raider gang. His radio began crackling “Prince are you there? I got an assignment for you. Get your ass on this radio NOW!” It was Condor, the current overboss of the Vultures gang. The Prince dashed over to his radio knocking over a few jarred specimens in the process. “I’m here boss – what’s the assignment?” He took his finger off the talk button and waited for a response. “It’s one of our veterans – The Giant – sent out a distress beacon out your way in the Mire. Sounds like he got in a squabble with some of the tribal gangs in that area. Harpoon got lodged in his suit. He’s gonna need some serious medical attention.”
The Prince was already beginning to run through various treatment methods in his head. “Send me his location and I’ll head out immediately.” He began packing the supplies he’d need for his journey when the location of the Giant pinged on his pip-boy. The radio crackled again “Coordinates are on your pip-boy. One more thing – The Giant….he’s not really used to being around people. Try to be… diplomatic ok? He’s one of the best damn soldiers we got, and if you can’t save him, then it’s gonna be YOUR ass on the line. Got it?” The Prince had heard tales of the Giant, and knew the pivotal role he had played in various battles between the Vultures and the 5-0 Responders. A ginormous creature, not all together human, with the strength of ten men, and a bad attitude? What could go wrong? “Got it boss. I’m on my way now.”
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The Prince closed in on the distress beacon. As he drew nearer he could see a hunk of metal on the floors of the marsh attempting to drag itself up onto a ledge. The Prince watched as the Giant attempted to lift himself over the ledge only to come crashing down. “Jesus, fuck me”. The Giant let out an exasperated sigh. The Prince approached with caution. “You know, I might be able to help you with that. The Condor sent me.” He reached out his hand to the Giant laying on the ground below him. He stared back looking the Prince up and down – his helmet showing no hint of expression. “You must be the new Quack. Sorry I missed your initiation, but I don’t play well with others – especially mutant cannibal freaks. Just drop the meds and fuck off.” The Giant ignored the outstretched hand of the Prince, and attempted to pull himself up another time. The Prince squinted his birdlike eyes and balled his fist, but kept his anger in check remembering his promise to Condor to ensure the safe recovery of the Giant. He could see the Giant wouldn’t be making any progress soon, so he dropped his medical supplies on the ground, and set out on the road to make a fire before nightfall.
As soon as the Prince was out of sight the Giant released an exasperated grunt. He scrounged through the medical supplies, and quickly grabbed the spare fusion core. He attempted to eject the depleted core from within his suit, but received an error message across the screen of his pip-boy. The power cartridge had been completely blocked by the harpoon still stuck in his back. He checked his readings; 5% power remaining. “Damnit!” The Giant slammed his fist on the ground. He twisted around once again attempting to grab the harpoon so he could wrench the damn thing out. Losing his balance, The Giant falls back into the marsh waters driving the harpoon back, regressing the progress he had made all day. If he couldn’t dislodge this harpoon – and quickly – he’d be stranded out in the Mire, dead meat. He scanned the horizon and could see smoke from a campfire just above the marsh pit. With an agonised sigh he returned to his slow crawl out of the marsh pit.
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Night had fallen on the Marsh, and the Prince hated camping out with such little shelter, but he could see the Giant wouldn’t have the ability to treat himself, and he could hear the crashing of his tin can body attempting to crawl out of the pit. Any minute now he’d have to tap out, and then he’d be more receptive to the Prince treating his wounds. Sure enough the Giant lurched himself over the ledge not moments later panting heavily. His suit’s whirring sound dulled into a low hum, before powering down completely. The Giant’s body went limp, as the metal suit came crashing down onto the road. The Prince made his way over from the campfire. “You’ve proven your point; would you like me to dislodge that harpoon so we can replace the fusion core, and get on with our lives?“
The Giant let out a chuckle. “Oh you waited for me? How sweet. A vulture circling the scraps of prey huh? Maybe you will make it in this gang after all.” The Giant coughed for several minutes lying on his stomach. “I don’t need your help – just leave me to rot.” The Prince sighed walking clockwise around the body of the Giant with his hands behind his back. “Listen, sunshine, my fate is tied with yours, and I can’t go back to the Vultures without you. Condor would have my head. Let me get you out of that suit, I can help you -”
“NO! The suit doesn’t come off. Period.” The Giant was practically growling from within his suit. The Prince was starting to grow agitated with the stubbornness of this fool, and they needed to be getting a move on before the Giant became dehydrated. The Prince knew the Giant needed to cool off, and accept the reality of the situation. “Fine. Sit there then, but. I’m not leaving. I can help you, but you have to let me.” The Giant sat, breathing heavily for several minutes. “Fine. You can dislodge the harpoon from my back, and replace my fusion core, but the suit stays on. Then we head our separate ways.” The Prince let out a sigh of relief. “Sounds good to me. Now just hold still for a minute….this might hurt a little…”
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It took the Prince until sunrise to finally complete the treatment of the Giant. Not only had the harpoon ruptured the power cartridge causing precious fuel to leak continuously, but it had also broken straight through the armor into the back of the being within the suit, luckily missing any serious organs and the spinal cord. While dislodging the harpoon the Prince was shocked to see the tip covered in not blood, but some kind of gelatinous green substance. While recording the Giant’s vital signs the prince was fascinated to see several irregularities between the physiology of the Giant and that of a normal human. The Prince marveled at the medical mystery of the Giant, but did so silently as to not startle his patient.
With the harpoon removed, the two were able to replace the fusion core, however the cartridge was still leaking at an alarming rate, and the giant’s wounds would still need to be tended to. “Do you think you’ll have enough power to make it back to your camp?” The Giant pondered this for a moment, and calculated the distance from their current location. “If I’m lucky, I’ll make it back with about 5% battery. I’ll be cutting it close, but I’ll take my chances.” The two looked at each other for a moment, and then the Giant stood up to head on his way. The Prince let out a disappointed sigh as he watched the man…being….the Giant walk off towards the cranberry bog.
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The Giant had trekked through the Mire, and was nearly back to his home – “the Arse Crack” – out in the cranberry bog. He checked the readings on his pip-boy once again. 8% power left, and he was still fairly far out from his camp. He winced as the wound in his back sent a bolt of pain down his spine. The injuries had slowed him down nearly as much as his attempts to avoid the various creatures of the waste. Determined to make it back to his camp, the Giant pushed through the pain of his wound, and headed towards his camp in a full out sprint. The lurching of his heavy armor stirred the attention of a nearby scorched herd, and they began to pursue the Giant. While continuing his sprint the Giant occasionally turned to blast several rounds at the on-coming horde.
The Giant continued on like this for several hours. Each time he sprinted he noticed his power levels lowering faster and faster. 4% left, but he was nearly back to his camp. If he could get close enough the turrets could take care of the horde, and he’d be able to crawl back into his cave to repair his armor, and replace his fusion cores. Suddenly a roaring screech from the sky rang out as a huge shadow began to eclipse the setting sun. “Jesus fucking -” The creature let out a sonic bellow knocking the Giant off his feet. He landed on his back, winded from the pain. He scrambled to find his footing, turning his attention to the on-coming horde. He fired his lasers, mercilessly obliterating groups of ten at a time.
The Giant dodged the aerial assaults of the scorch beast while eliminating groups of scorched followers. He glanced at the suit’s power levels; only 2% left. He’d have to make his stand here if he wanted to live. He turned his gatling laser to the sky giving the scorch beast every last round he had. His rounds tore through the beast’s wing membrane, and it let out a screeching yowl as he braced for impact on the ground. But the creature was light on its feet, and quickly swiped the Giant with its enormous claws. The Giant went flying back as more of his armor was torn from his power armour chassis, but leaving his body unharmed. The scorch beast charged for another attack, but the Giant was quick to the draw. He fired his laser straight into the head of the oncoming beast, shattering the skull and sending its brains splattering against the nearby rocks.
Suddenly the Giant’s suit powered down, and he crumpled to the ground, his gun sliding just out of reach. “No, no, no! Not now you fucking piece of shit!” The giant turned his head to see the remnants of the scorched horde closing in on his position. Their growls drew closer and closer to his helpless body. Just then, one of the scorched follower’s heads came straight off as an arrow flew through with perfect accuracy. Then another, and another, until the on-coming horde was obliterated. The Prince jumped down from a nearby tree gracefully, and ran over to the Giant’s body. “I told you, you die, I die. I’m not leaving until you’re safe.” The prince hoisted the Giant up, and together they made their way back to the Giant’s cave.
The Giant grudgingly admitted he might not have made it without help.”Yeah, you’re alright, you. I s’pose you can treat me, if the need arises again. Maybe you could even take a look at my insides, see if we can’t improve things?” The Prince agreed to study the anomaly of his physiology to develop his battle performance even further. The Prince gave what seemed to be a smile with his bird-like beak. “I saw how you fought those scorched back there. I can see why the Condor keeps you around. The Vultures are going to need you in the days ahead. I’ll see to it personally that we keep you in tip-top shape. Speaking of – it’s about time we had a bite to eat. I got some ‘iguana’ bites in my pack. Would you like some?” The Giant gave out a hearty laugh. “Sure thing buddy.” With his job completed, the Prince returned to his camp to let Condor know that the mission was a success.
*written by Distant Prince*