The General Side Stories

The Mutant

Mason's plans didn't include becoming a part of the Minutemen. He should've seen it coming when he realized the Minutemen kept Abernathy Farm safe from raiders. It wasn't that he hated them, quite the opposite. He had just assumed they would be wiped out soon until he heard about how they were recruiting again to take back the Castle. When he heard about that, he grabbed the weapons and clothing that had been his father's and signed up, deciding it was better than letting his training as a child go to waste. When he had met the guy collecting people, he had mistaken him for the General, which was odd to him considering his size and build, but understood they were two different people in the end. And he, along with the recruits and cowboy, was walking through Concord when Raiders started firing at them.

"I thought they were taken care of," the man in charge said. "Last time the General was here, he wiped them out!"

"Probably new ones then," Mason said as he fired at the raiders from behind the wall of a building. The sandbags were too short to cover him completely. "You know how many there are?"

"There's twenty raiders!" he heard their sniper yell from the roof of the building. Well, this was going to be fun. He turned to the two other recruits with them and grinned.

"Draw their fire," he said as he started to turn the other way. "I'll circle around and cut them off from behind. One of you inform Snipes to cover me."

"Why should we listen to you," the man said as he cringed every time someone fired a weapon like the noise was physically hurting him. "We don't know you."

"It's that, or we be stuck in this firefight all day. Your choice."

The man pondered it for a minute, looking conflicted before grunting. "Damn it! Evans, go inform Snipes of the plan. I'll tell Garvey what this maniac wants to do."

"On it," Evans said as she ran into the building and up the stairs to the sniper.

"Let's hope this plan of yours works," the man said as he turned to Garvey. He made some gestures to Garvey, who understood and fired at the raiders. When Evans came back down, she let Mason know the sniper knew the plan, didn't want to follow it as it was a dumb idea but said she'd watch his back. He set his weapons, minus his pistol, which he kept strapped to his side, in his duffel bag and left them there as he grabbed some knuckles and put them in his back pocket. They were about to see why his old man gave him the moniker Grognak, even if he didn't have an axe. He went around the back, making sure to keep in sight of the sniper's scope. When he was sure he was behind the raiders, he got into position and gave them the signal. He pulled out his pistol and took a deep breath. After releasing it, he aimed his weapon and yelled.

"Hey!" his voice boomed as he pulled the trigger, the bullet flying into the head of the nearest raider. "Over here, you pieces of shit!"

After firing two more rounds into two raiders, hitting them in their knees, he put the pistol away and put the knuckles on. When he saw he had gained a few of them' attention, he grinned before running towards them. One of the first things his father had taught him, never to run in a straight line. Make it easier to shoot. He felt a bullet graze his shoulder and side, but he held his tongue and swung up as he charged a raider, sending him flying back into one of his friends.

"Come on!" he yelled as he dodged bullet fire. "Don't tell me this is all you sacks of shit have!" Using the two he had knocked down, he grabbed them by the necks and lifted them off the ground. Before they could comprehend what was happening, he threw one into a raider he had previously shot, making them fall to the ground, while he threw the other in front of the other raiders, effectively gaining their attention.

"What the hell!" one of them yelled. "Who is this-" was what was said before the raider found his teeth broken, Mason punching him square in the mouth. The raider fell back, unable to comprehend what happened.