Chapter 553 - Stormin

Tamia pulls the collar of her Deathclaw leather duster up as she, Boone, Josie, and Dogmeat march through the heavy desert dust storm. It'd been a while since she'd been forced to endure one, but it just refreshes how much she hates it. It's fortunate she'd anticipated this and brought along goggles and a thin scarf to shield her face.

Suddenly, she points ahead of the group at the faint outline of a cabin in the distance, "Look! Let's wait out the storm in there!" she shouts to her companions over the storm. Boone and Josie just nod in compliance and follow her as she leads them towards it, all of them having already gotten their weapons out in case the cabin was inhabited.​​

Fortunately, it seems to have been long abandoned, left to collect dust in the desert sun. There wasn't anything inside apart from some leftover trash, Dogmeat almost leaps inside and starts rapidly sneezing, trying to get the dust from its nose and mouth.

Boone checks the place for traps but doesn't find any, allowing the group to sit around and relax while they wait the storm out...

Tamia sighs at this though, the storm probably increasing the amount of time it'll take to reach Jacobtown by a day or two at least depending on how long it lasts.

She and the other's had watched over Novac for a couple days while Afton was gone, but plans changed when he didn't return at the expected date. She'd only left to do this because she was bored waiting around, yet, now here she was waiting for a dust storm to end... Is this Karma?

Tamia figured that she was better off trying to complete the task House had set for her instead of 'House sitting' as Afton had called it. Though, she hadn't expected Boone and Josie to invite themselves to go with her, even if it was appreciated... One didn't just walk into heavily contested Supermutat/NCR territory alone without troubles... Be it raiders, bored troopers, or even worse, bored AND hungry Supermutants...

She felt that she was a competent person, but that didn't mean she could actl like Afton and stroll around as if a bullet to the face would only annoy him. Urgh, she really needed to learn how to use Power armour... She'd force Afton to teach her once he was back.

Fortunately, Glados had sent Dogmeat with them, allowing them to teleport back should they bite off more than they can chew. It wouldn't be a quick escape, but it'd save them if they were trapped or something.

The group wait there for a couple hours and eventually the dust storm peters out, allowing the group to continue forwards. Tamia leaves the cabin and looks in the direction of Jacobstown... Only to stop in place and gape up at the sight before her...

A large mountain range towered before her off in the distance, with snow-tipped peaks and large amounts of foliage indicating the drastic change of the biome. The path ahead was clear, with sand fading into dirt that was speckled with grass and bushes, and further head with large pine trees.

Tamia rubs her eyes and glances at her companions, Boone was the only one who didn't seem affected by the sight, but she couldn't tell if that was because he always looked like that, or if he actually knew something. Regardless, she'd ask anyway, "What's with the big change in scenery!?" she exclaims, jabbing a finger at the dramatically different territory.

Boone just shrugs, "Snow atop the mountain melts, water flows down and helps plants grow. What's there to say?"

"I didn't hear about this... I thought Jacobstown would be like every other town in the Mojave!"

Boone sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose, "Well, it's not... You ever wondered why the NCR needs a presence here? It's because they can't risk the Great Khans or Supermutants gaining control over the whole area... It's too fertile and defensible compared to the rest of the Mojave. Even General Oliver isn't dumb enough to try and march an army up a mountain after all..." he states.

Tamia just shakes her head, feeling as if House or Afton should've warned her about this... She would've at least packed some better clothes if she'd known. She sighs and continue walking again, "Whatever, let's just go... Urgh, this is gonna be hell on my legs." she mutters as the ground slowly starts to get steeper

Thus begins the long-ass hike up the mountain path, it's relatively easy to stay on track as the yellowish grass was well worn and likely led to an NCR encampment or a camp of Great Khans. Despite the massacre of Khans that occurred at the Hidden Bunker, and the NCR efforts to utterly annihilate them from the Mojave, the Khans were still around... If a bit flighty due to the sheer amount of people targeting them.

The NCR had actually raided the Red Canyon and wiped out a good portion of them, leaving them scattered and unorganised. Though, it wouldn't be surprising to find that they've completely relocated from Red Canyon to Mount Charleston.

The only reason they used the Red Canyon in the first place was due to its maze-like structure, and fantastic placement for trading... They weren't the biggest producers of Chems in the Mojave for no reason after all... Well, former-biggest producers...

Anyway, after around forty minutes the group finally managed to reach a plateau that was covered with a thick forest of pine trees. A chilly wind blows past them, causing the group to shiver slightly... The Mojave sun was still beating down on them, but the wind had certainly picked up compared to before...

As they're about to step into the plateau however, they're stopped by a voice in the distance, "You will stop, or I. WILL. SHOOT. YOU. D'ya understand!?"