Traveling with the Diamond Dogs was safer than Applejack had expected. Aside from the obvious benefits of moving in numbers, the Dogs had incredibly sharp senses capable of detecting danger long before it came into view, and immense strength on par with any powerlifter. Bands of feral ghouls and roving giant ants were all snuffed out by bursts of violence as swift as they were brutal.

“Is this the way we’re supposed to be going?” Adam asked as the Dogs regrouped after bludgeoning more ferals to death.

“Hell if I know,” Wernher replied. “I know we’re supposed to take one of the turnoffs from that junction, but I don’t know which one. Either way, the Skavvers will know which way to go. No-one knows these tunnels like they do.”

Applejack glanced back at him. “Are you sure they’ll help?”

Wernher gave a confident nod. “I’ve got a few chunks of magic crystal from the Pitt, it’ll be enough to get us a guide.”

Hearing that he had at least thought ahead enough to bring something to trade put Applejack a little more at ease. It wasn’t caps, but she didn’t know whether or not folks living underground would even use caps.

“Not far now, just around the next corner,” one of the Diamond Dogs called back.

Applejack sat up a little straighter and looked ahead eagerly. Wernher had called the Skavvers creepy, but she couldn’t help wondering what sort of settlement people could actually build in an underground rail line. Unfortunately, when the group rounded the next corner, they found the path blocked by a massive wall fashioned from layers of welded metal plates. An assortment of different-sized steel spikes jutted randomly out from the wall.

The leader of the Diamond Dogs barely slowed her pace as she called out, “Diamond Dogs and travelers coming to trade! Open up!”

Barely a moment later, the makeshift barricade split down the middle and swung silently inwards, revealing itself to be a gateway.

“Okay, that’s kinda cool,” Applejack admitted.

Beyond the gateway was another identical one. As soon as everyone was through the first gate it slowly closed again, enclosing the group in a worryingly cramped space ringed with spikes, but the Diamond Dogs just waited calmly as if this was normal. Only when the first gate was fully closed did the second one finally open. Applejack couldn’t help but gasp in awe when the handcart rolled through the second gate.

The tunnel ahead opened out into a vast cavern, with one set of tracks curving around to reach a wide concrete platform that linked the railway to an underground highway. Dozens of platforms and shacks had been built on the floor, the walls, on stilts in the middle of the area, and even dangling from the ceiling on chains. A complicated network of ladders, bridges and cables connected everything together.

Well over a hundred people were dotted around the strange little settlement. Even more were coming and going through the highway exits, carrying everything from scrap metal to crates of bottled water. Most of them were deathly pale and wearing either practical work clothes or swathed in thick hooded robes that completely obscured their bodies.

As Applejack watched, a gaggle of robed figures approached the visitors. Most of them went to the Diamond Dogs, speaking with the warmth of familiarity, but two of them made a beeline for Applejack’s group. “Travelers looking to trade?” One of them asked in a raspy voice.

“Yeah, we need a guide to the Pitt,” Wernher replied, hopping down from the handcart.

The Skavver bobbed his head and gestured for him to follow. “This way. Show us good stuff and we’ll get you a guide, yes-yes. Boggle will deal with other guests.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow as the two walked away, leaving her and Adam with the other robed Skavver. “Ah’m guessin’ you must be Boggle?”

“Yes, I’m Boggle,” the Skavver replied. “Here to trade as well?”

Applejack glanced at Adam. He shrugged and shook his head, so she replied, “Nah, all we really need is a guide right now.”

Boggle bobbed his head instead of nodding. “Fair.” He gestured to a shack near the platform. “Toilets and food-places that way. All Skav Clans welcome outsiders who don’t cause trouble.”

“Is that why you’ve got at least six hidden guns and…” Adam sniffed loudly. “Two flamers pointed at us?”

It took a second for Applejack to realize what he had said, but, to her horror, Boggle just chuckled dryly. “Observant, for a human. Skav Clans welcome outsiders that don’t cause trouble. If outsiders cause trouble, jezzails make trouble go away, yes-yes.”

Applejack felt her blood run cold. What Wernher had said about the Skavvers being creepy suddenly made a lot more sense. “Ah’m, uh, Ah’m gonna sit and wait with the handcart.

The ruins of the Citadel looked completely and utterly forlorn. From what Luna had heard, it had once been a proud fortress; a scarred but proud icon of strength and courage in the Capital Wasteland. Now, all that remained were a few skeletal walls teetering around the edge of an enormous crater.

“I wonder if the traitors left anything valuable behind?” Hobbes muttered.

“The Brotherhood salvaged everything even vaguely useful or sentimental,” Luna told him. The Outcast soldier had started mouthing off about the regular Brotherhood the instant they were through Project Purity’s defenses, and it was beginning to grate on her nerves.

Unfortunately, Anne didn’t seem particularly inclined to shut Hobbes up. She just sighed and turned away from the ruins, shaking her head. “Enough dawdling, I want to get to and through the metro as quickly as we can.”

Sonata’s head whipped around so quickly Luna half-expected to hear a snap. “Hey, you didn’t say anything about going through the metro tunnels!”

Anne raised an eyebrow at the siren’s outburst. “What’s wrong with using the metro?”

“Uh, everything!” Sonata exclaimed. “There’s feral ghouls, black-eyed monsters, those weird freaks with red skin, and giant bats!”

The Outcasts snorted and tried to hide their laughter, which prompted Luna to speak up in support, “The monsters Sonata mentioned were present at the attack on Rivet City, too; they’re feral ghouls that have been mutated by magic. As for the people, the Brotherhood and the Enclave call them the Scorched, and the bats are called-”

“Scorchbeasts?” Anne finished. Her expression was skeptical. “Those things went extinct over a century ago, I know my history.”

“You know Brotherhood of Steel history. Your people aren’t the only ones to have encountered Scorchbeasts over the years.” Luna decided not to mention that the creatures had been bred by the Enclave at Raven Rock. “I agree with Sonata, is there any way other than the Metro?”

Anne shook her head. “If we could forge a path through the ruins, I’d say yes, but even power armor can’t handle that much rubble.”

“I’ll do it! Just show me which way we need to go!” Sonata offered eagerly.

Anne glanced from Luna to Trixie and back, as if expecting them to refute Sonata’s claim. When they didn’t, she shrugged and pulled a small folded-up map out of a pouch on her hip. “If we’re taking a direct path, then…” She pointed across the ruins near the remains of the Citadel. “That would be the way, roughly.”

“Got it, everybody stand back!” Sonata confidently strode in the direction Anne had pointed, while Trixie, the only one out of the group that had seen Sonata in action in this world, backpedaled as quickly as she could. Luna figured that Trixie probably had the right idea and joined her in backing away, just in case.

“You, uh, you might want to cover your ears,” Trixie said in an undertone.

Luna glanced at her in alarm, remembering full well the power the Dazzlings had unleashed during the Battle of the Bands at CHS, and clamped her hands over her ears. Sonata was already standing at the base of a pile of rubble, performing what looked like breathing exercises. Seconds later, she reached a hand up to her torc and sucked in a deep breath.

The sound crashed over Luna like a tidal wave. The sheer force of the siren’s song made her very bones vibrate, almost driving her to her knees. As powerful as the sonic attack was from where Luna was standing, it was vastly more so at the point it was actually targeted, waves of physical force pulverizing stone, reducing concrete to dust and blasting nearby debris away like dry leaves in a gale. Eventually, the song stopped and the echoes slowly died away, leaving a ringing silence in its wake.

“Jesus H Christ,” Hobbes spat. “What the fuck was that?!”

“Magic, obviously,” Trixie replied bluntly.

The three Outcasts stared at Sonata in stunned disbelief. Luna tried to keep her own expression as unfazed as possible, but she was just as shocked as anyone at the raw power of Sonata’s magic. The fact that it provided a stark reminder of just how much conflict there was even in this barren part of the world. Luna glanced at Trixie, who just shrugged at her.

“You still think going back to Lyons is a bad idea, Hobbes?” The other Outcast soldier asked.

“Fuck off,” Hobbes hissed.

Blissfully unaware of the effect she was having on the others, or perhaps fully aware and enjoying it, Sonata waved at the group with an ecstatic grin plastered across her face. Anne visibly steeled herself before addressing the others, “It looks like our new friend has opened up a path for us. We may as well use it.”

Sonata planted her hands on her hips and threw her head back haughtily as the group approached. “So? How’d I do?”

“Well every bastard from Point Lookout to Arroyo knows that we’re here now, but I guess this means we won’t have to use the metro.” Anne ignored Sonata’s celebratory fist-pump and stared at the canyon smashed through the ruins. As everyone watched, a badly ravaged building collapsed under its own weight, throwing up a cloud of dust and snow. “Keep an eye out for falling rocks,” Anne added drily.

The group advanced cautiously, keeping an eye out for weakened structures or any hostile beings dumb enough to move towards the deafeningly loud burst of magic. Thankfully, not much of either variety appeared on the trek through the even-more-devastated ruins, even after the group left the area that Sonata had blasted open; just a couple of unstable walls and the occasional feral ghoul that the Outcasts dealt with.

Soon enough, the group emerged into a war-torn street lined with tall office buildings and the like. “How far out are we?” Hobbes asked.

Anne raised an eyebrow at him. “You got some place you need to be?”

“We’ve never been able to get through this way before, I’ve lost my bearings,” Hobbes replied evenly.

“Fair enough.” Anne checked the map again, muttering under her breath as she figured out where they were. “I think we’re past the old Mason District, so Bailey’s Crossroads should be right around the-” She was interrupted by a guttural roar from up ahead, followed by a lone gunshot that sparked off of her armor and made everyone flinch. “Shit! You three, get in cover!”

Trixie was already running towards the nearest building, so Luna grabbed Sonata and belted after her. The door protested on rusty hinges as Trixie slammed it open. Luna shoved Sonata through first, whipped her rifle off of her shoulder and braced herself against the wall to look outside. Bullets and laser fire whizzed through the air as the Outcasts fought back against whoever was attacking them.

“Who is it? Is it Talon Company again?” Sonata asked anxiously.

“I don’t know,” Luna replied, trying in vain to spy where the enemy fire was coming from. “If you get a chance to use your magic without catching us or the Outcasts, Sonata, do it. Trixie, just stick to your promise and… Trixie?” She glanced around only to find that Trixie was nowhere to be seen. “Where is she?!”

Sonata just shrugged. She opened her mouth to say something, but Luna was distracted as a monster lumbered down the stairs behind her. It looked vaguely like Fawkes, though it was a little shorter and lacked any of the heavy armor he bore, and it held a blood-stained sledgehammer in one meaty fist. The Super Mutant blinked in surprise as it spotted the duo, but recovered quickly and raised its hammer as it yelled, “Rainbooms!”

“Get down!” Luna snapped her rifle up and fired a short burst into the Mutant’s chest as it made to charge. The creature swayed on its feet but, terrifyingly, glared at her with an expression more of anger than pain.

“I will brea-” The Mutant shuddered as Luna fired again, emptying her magazine into it until it finally keeled over, dead.

Sonata gave her an appreciative look. “Nice one. I thought you teachers were all pathetic, but I guess-” The backhanded compliment was cut off as heavy footsteps thundered down the stairs.

Two more Super Mutants barrelled down the stairs together, one clutching a rifle, the other holding a nail-studded wooden stick. Sonata immediately touched her torc and started singing; a simple yet haunting melody that Luna had heard before, one that slipped into the mind and made you feel like wonderful things could happen if you would only listen. Unfortunately, the Super Mutants were either resistant to the song, or just slow on the uptake, as the one with the gun grimaced and spat, “Dumb noise!”

The Mutant fired from the hip, the bullet miraculously missing and cracking the wall over Sonata’s shoulder, but it made her stop singing and yelp in fright. Her torc amplified the sound, turning a frightened yelp into a sharp blast that made everyone stagger and set Luna’s ears ringing. Gritting her teeth, the VIce-Principal raised her gun and blasted the gun-wielding Mutant before it could gather its wits, bullets striking every part of its upper body as recoil fouled her aim.

The second Super Mutant bellowed in rage as its compatriot fell. Luna turned her weapon on it, only for it to click empty right as the beast charged. She backed away as she tried to reload, but she fumbled the magazine in her haste. “Come on, come on!”

“Got you!” The Mutant smashed the rifle out of Luna’s hands with a single swing. She narrowly dodged several more strikes, each aimed at her arms or legs. “Hold still, Rainboom!”

“No!” Luna snapped childishly. She hopped back from the next swing and felt her back smack into a wall. The Mutant grinned victoriously, then suddenly frowned in confusion and turned around. Sonata’s knife was sticking out of its back. The siren herself looked utterly dumbfounded that stabbing hadn’t worked.

Seeing her chance, Luna pulled out Excalibat and smashed it into the Super Mutant’s knee. The Mutant barely even stumbled. A second swing buckled its leg and dropped it to one ruined knee. Now that the monster was brought down to size, Luna aimed for the head. Her first strike smashed the raised nailboard to kindling but only glanced off of the Mutant’s skull. The next hit slapped into the creature’s palm.

The Mutant snarled over its shoulder at Luna. She snarled back and yanked on the bat, the sock easily slipping off the end freeing the weapon. Staring in bemusement at the sock dangling from its grip, the Super Mutant didn’t react in time to stop Excalibat from slamming into its temple. Enraged and desperate, Luna laid into the monster, smashing it in the skull until it finally slumped to the ground and stopped moving.

Everything seemed to go quiet all at once. Gunfire could still be heard outside, but it all sounded strangely muted. It took Luna a few seconds to realize that she was still bent over the dead Mutant. She groaned and slumped back against the wall, barely managing to keep hold of Excalibat. Her arms felt like they were made of molten lead, her lungs felt like they were packed full of broken glass, and her legs were shaking so much it was all she could do to keep herself upright.

“Uh, are you okay?” Sonata asked cautiously.

Luna nodded. “Ju… just let me catch my…” Before anyone could say another word, there was a loud bamf and the room was filled with smoke. “What the-”

The sounds of a scuffle echoed through the room; loud grunts and sickeningly loud impacts, making Luna flinch and look around wildly. The smoke cleared just in time for her to see Defender Morgan stamp a Super Mutant’s head into paste in the doorway.

“God-damn Frankensteins,” Anne huffed. “I think that’s the last of them. Nice thinking with the smoke bomb.”

“R-right.” Luna whipped her head around and was stunned to see Trixie standing in the corner of the room, determinedly avoiding looking at the Super Mutant corpses.

“Anyone injured? No?” Anne glanced around at each of the trio, then turned and gestured for them to follow. “Let’s get moving. The outpost should be just around the corner, and I think we all want to get there before any more of these assholes show up.”

Luna pushed herself to her feet, ignoring the way her body protested, and looked over at her fallen assault rifle. The barrel was bent at an almost ninety degree angle thanks to the force of the Super Mutant’s attack. “Figures.” Luna shared a weary look with the girls. “Come on, let's get away from this awful place.”

Next Chapter: Chapter 192 - Hangways and Holograms Estimated time remaining: 3 Hours, 22 Minutes