The Cure For Curie (Complete!)

Morning's Light

Ten minutes had come and gone. Curie was worried to leave without them. If they were making their way through the tunnel and simply needed just a few more minutes, she did not want to deprive them of that. John was getting harder to control though.

He had begun to act strangely over the last few minutes. While she waited, he had busied himself with trying to grab her or bite off the cable attached to the long pole. However, he had turned his attention back down the hallway. He tried to run from her, his jaws snapping and hands grabbing at the darkness in front of him. He was growling and yelping, desperately trying to go back down into the sewers. She couldn't even begin to guess why.

Curie breathed a heavy sigh of relief when she began to hear the splashing of footsteps coming towards her. She hoped they would show. Confusion crept onto her features when she saw the way light up with a haunting green glow. That can't be good. She adjusted her hold on John, getting a better grip, and pulled her pistol ready for anything.

The large guide came barreling toward her, screaming at her to run. She noticed a man slumped over his hulking shoulder but couldn't see who it was. Without hesitation, she did as commanded, pulling John down towards the exit with her.

She bolted through the access way, the Sole Survivor in tow. The soldier slammed a meaty fist into a giant red button before slipping through the closing doorway.  They rushed down into the labyrinth of tunnels toward the streets of downtown Boston, as the beeping time bomb echoed behind them.

The ground shook beneath them as the explosion destroyed everything they had left. Curie didn't look back, she just kept running, pulling John behind her. Her internal memory guiding them back to the entrance through the twists, turns, and darkness. They just needed out.

Finally, they found the stone staircase leading outside. They bolted up and out as fast as their legs could carry them. Once onto the streets, they ducked into an alley to assess the situation and plan their next steps.

The Minuteman gently laid down what he had been carrying so he could take a moment to catch his breath. It was Preston Garvey, and he looked as though he was teetering on the cusp of death. Curie's heart sunk as she shoved the stick at the man so she could check Garvey's injuries.

His ribs were shattered, and judging by his wheezing, she worried his lung might be punctured. His right arm had been broken in three places and the left shoulder dislocated. There was a worrying head wound across the top of his skull and his eyelids fluttered as his pupils darted back and forth. He was going to need much more than stimpacks, that was for sure.

"Preston? Preston can you hear me?" She asked, pulling open his eyelids checking for dilation.

"Scruggs...Scruggs did it...." He choked out before the coughing came.

"Do you know what he is talking about?" She asked turning to the soldier.

"That's my name, miss." He answered. "We were ambushed by a glowing one down in the sewers. I injured the damn thing enough to slow it down so I could pull the Captain out."

"Oh my! A glowing one? They are real? I have heard John speak about them but I always assumed he was exaggerating to make the men more cautious."

"Well now we know, ma'am."

"That we do, soldier." She agreed turning back to help Preston.

She shot two stimpacks into his right arm. She hoped that would begin the healing process in earnest. Before morning she would expect that his arms would be near full recovery. She was out of RadAway, which worried her most. Those feral ghouls carry so much radiation, and with the fight in the tunnels, she'd wager that he was reaching a dangerous level.

He needed chems that she couldn't provide at the moment. Garvey needed more than anything to get back to Castle. She also didn't think it would be wise for a man in danger of radiation sickness to be travelling with a ghoul that was seeping with it. No, the group would need to split up.

"We can't move Preston tonight. He needs to let the chems work a little more. He will need to get back to Castle as soon as possible. Can you escort him there?"

"I can ma'am, yes. I just have a question, how will you get the General to Vault 81 on your own? It's an awful long walk."

"I'll be fine. I am a pretty good shot thanks to him." She said gesturing at the ghoul next to them. He almost seemed calmer, now that they had left the darkness of the sewer.

John was no longer snapping or growling. He merely stood, arms at his sides, staring off into the distance at nothing in particular. His primitive brain had seemingly accepted it's situation now, going into a dormant like state. That took a little worry off her mind.

"Hangman's Alley is near here. You should head there and get a brahmin from one of the provisioners there. Since the treaty with the Brotherhood of Steel, it has turned into a way station again. You will be able to put Preston on top of it as you make your way to Castle in the morning."

"Sounds good. Are you going to be okay here?" Scruggs asked as he looked at the ghoul and Preston in turn. He seemed anxious leaving her with so much to take care of on her own.

"I'll be fine. I promise." She said.

Curie removed her belt from around her waist and took John's lead from the man. She pulled him gently toward a nearby telephone pole. Slipping the strip of leather through the loop around his neck, she secured him to the pole. He had no give, his head flush against the wood. John's body hadn't struggled at all against the new bonds.

"Just fine, yes?" She said with a smile.

Scruggs smiled back as he nodded agreement. With that he bid goodbye, promising he would return within the hour. She reassured him that everything would be fine. She was a synth after all, she wouldn't need rest and could remain alert indefinitely.

She watched Preston lay there on the pavement sleeping. He looked so peaceful and calm. She hoped he would remain that way. She would have a hard time living with herself if she was the one to cause his death. He would be fine, she was sure of it.

Scruggs would return soon and they would split in the morning. Garvey would get the attention he needed and she would make her way back to the vault. She giggled out loud a little at the thought. All those years stuck there as she watched her loved ones die around her. Only to return with the sole purpose of helping the man who had freed her in the first place.

She supposed it didn't matter where she ended up as long as she had her family. Home wasn't at Castle or any other settlement in the Wasteland. Her home was by John's side forever, looking after the son they now shared. It was as close as someone like her was ever going to get and damn anything that tries to stand in her way. She was going home.