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 “Where the absolute fuck have you been!?” Amy demanded to know.

Her hands were on her hips and she had a fierce glare on her face. She wasn’t usually an intimidating person, being around a foot shorter than him and built like a pole, but at that moment, Drew found himself feeling a little intimidated, which was strange considering he’d spent the last day with a bunch of Greenclaws.

“Where were you, Drew? We were worried.”

It wasn’t how he had wanted the conversation to start. He honestly wasn’t sure how he wanted it to go. Less hostile, that was for sure.

Drew raised his hands disarmingly. “I met up with some old friends and lost track of time,” he said. “Now, listen, I need you to gather everyone and get them to the cafeteria in ten minutes.”

She folded her arms with a pout. “Why?”

“There’s something I need to tell everyone. Something very important.”

Amy frowned. “And that is?”

“We’re going to be having some house guests.”

“Okay,” she said, giving him a cautious look. “You gonna tell me who they are?”

Drew had anticipated problems, but that had been after he had introduced their new half-mammal/half-reptilian guests.

“I know you’re pissed about me not coming home yesterday, but believe me, when I introduce them you’ll understand why.”

Her harsh gaze softened. “You look nervous. What’s wrong?”

“You’ll find out soon. Just gather everyone, it’s very important.”

“Is everything okay? Who are they?”

“Again, you’ll find out soon. Just get everyone gathered, please. You’ll understand once I tell you.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’ll go do that.”

“Thank you. I need to check on something in the main office, first.”

“Will we need weapons?”

His eyes widened. Did she know something? “Why would you need weapons?” he asked quickly.

“Well, by ‘old friends’ and ‘guests’ and the fact that you look like you’re about ready to shit yourself, I’m guessing they’re not welcome.”

“Amy, no one will need weapons, I promise. It’s just that these are people I never thought I’d see again.” He rubbed his eyes. “Now can you please gather everyone.”

She eyed him suspiciously before she finally shrugged. “Okay, sure. I’ll go tell everyone to head to the cafeteria.”

“No weapons.”

“Sure, no weapons.”

“I mean it Ame. No weapons.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll go get Jack and Sarah.”

With them both going their separate ways, Drew rushed up to the main office and sat himself down behind the terminal. The old computer was networked, meaning he was able to shut down the turrets from there. With that dealt with, he stood back up only to notice the intercom system attached to the phone sat on the desk. He realized that he could have probably just told everyone to gather in the cafeteria using it.

“Too late for that now,” he muttered as he made his way downstairs. “Time to check up on Amy and the others.”

As he approached the cafeteria, he realized that he should probably find the patrolling Gutsies and shut them down for the time being. The last thing he needed was for them to start blasting at Ayma and Neka.

Thankfully, their patrols were set so they weren’t hard to find. He shut them down before he continued on his way to the cafeteria, finding everyone gathered, including the Miss Nanny, Suzy.

Jack looked confused. “What’s going on, Drew? Amy mentioned you bumped into some old friends. Are they other survivors from Paulson?”

“I’m going to be honest,” Drew said with a long sigh, feeling his tension reach breaking point. “Things are about to get really fucking weird. I’ll explain in a minute. Please wait here for me to get back.”

He left the cafeteria and jogged down the long hallway to the foyer. As he opened the thick front doors, his hands began to tremble.

“This is fucked,” he muttered as he stepped outside and jogged across the parking lot towards the security office by the gates where the two Greenclaws were waiting patiently.

“Turrets are down,” he shouted. “So are the Gutsies. Should be safe to approach.”

Both Ayma and Neka began to walk forward and he slowed to a stop until they reached him. He then turned around and walked with them towards the main building.

“I have everyone gathered in the cafeteria,” he told them. “I’m going to go in alone and ready them up before asking you two to enter. I am expecting this to go very, very badly.”

“We’ll try not to scare them too much,” Neka said.

Ayma grunted. “Let’s try not to scare them at all.”

Drew appreciated the sentiment but knew that scaring the shit out of them was an inevitability. They were deathclaws in every way except their eyes and their chests.

“We’ll have to find a way to ease them into it,” Drew said. “No matter what happens, when they see you they’re gonna be scared shitless.”

Drew pushed the doors open and stepped inside with Neka and Ayma practically having to get on all fours to get through.

It was evident as they made their way down the hallway towards the cafeteria that while the others couldn’t see their reptilian guests, they would undoubtedly hear them due to their heavy thumping feet.

He glanced back. “Can you try to walk a little lighter,” he asked. “We don’t want to scare them before they even see you.”

The two slowed down and much to Drew’s surprise, their footsteps became a lot lighter. He could still hear them, but they weren’t nearly as imposing. It sounded more like someone was slapping meat on the ground rather than a giant predator coming in for the kill.

“Okay,” Drew said as they reached the doors to the cafeteria. “I’ll head inside and try to prepare them for what the hell is about to happen.”

The two of them moved out of sight as he stepped inside. Everyone was looking at him and they all looked worried.

Jack was the first to speak. “Who the hell have you invited in? I heard thumping.”

Drew could feel himself starting to sweat.

Amy picked up on it immediately. “What’s wrong?”

Drew raised his hands up in a disarming manner. “All I’m asking is for you not to freak out.”

“Freak out?” Jack asked. “Why? Did you bring the Brotherhood of Steel in here or something?”

Sarah raised her hand. “Uh, what’s going on exactly? Amy said you’d brought guests. Who are the Brotherhood of Steel and why did those footsteps sound like really big animals?”

“Okay, so this is gonna sound like I’ve gone nuts, but the reason they sound like big animals is because they are big.”

Amy didn’t look happy. “You brought wild animals into the factory!?”

“They’re not wild,” he tried to explain. “It’s really complicated.”

“What is?” Jack asked sounding increasingly worried. “What’s going on?”

This was already going poorly, but how was he supposed to explain that the green deathclaws were in fact their old pals and loved ones from the place they used to live. That they had been altered by some kind of super secret goo, which also had been responsible for making the super mutants.

As Drew ran his hand through his hair in exasperation, wondering how the hell he was going to explain everything, he remembered something. He had saved the recordings of the scientist responsible on his Pipboy. Those recordings were the best and pretty much the only way of conveying what was happening quickly and easily. Though he also knew that it was only the start. He anticipated a lot of terror when Ayma and Neka finally stepped through the doors. Even if they were friendly, outwardly they were still horrifying killing machines with big teeth and claws. Well, they also had big tits but that was definitely secondary to everything else.

“Listen,” he said as he walked over to the table they were sitting at and pulled up a chair. “I am going to play you some audio logs.”

“What does this have to do with anything?” Amy asked.

“Everything,” he said, resting his Pipboy arm on the table.

“It better,” Jack said. “Because so far you’re coming across as a crazy person.”

“Listen carefully,” he said. “Because this will explain everything.”

He scrolled down through the stored recordings to the first one before he pressed play. Everyone sat there and listened as the unnamed man’s voice came through the small speakers. He spoke about being a prisoner to the Greenskins and the FEV.

The moment it finished, Amy frowned. “What is FEV?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Drew said as he selected the second recording. “This will explain.”

Pressing play, it explained almost immediately. It told of how it was a mutagen and how deathclaws were made by the US before the war.

With the end of the second tape, no one asked any questions so he started the third. They all listened intently to what the man said. About the Greenskins catching a wastelander and how he considered altering the FEV so it killed him quickly and didn’t turn him into another super mutant.

The third recording ended and Drew played the next few tapes

Jack spoke up when the batch of recordings came to an end. “This is fucked up.”

Amy was glaring at him. “You didn’t bring super mutants here did you?”

“Wait,” Jack said his eyes growing wide. “Are you trying to tell us that people from Paulson were turned into super mutants?”

Drew shook his head. “No, not super mutants.”

“Then what?”

He hit play on the next batch of tapes and they listened to the man talk about a small town across the border in Canada and how he had sent the Greenskins there. He also told of how he had integrated deathclaw DNA into the FEV. Sarah gasped at this, covering her mouth as the rest of the recording played out.

“Oh, no,” Sarah uttered once it had finished. “Those Greenclaws. They were people.”

Drew nodded as he played the rest of the recordings. They all listened intently, a mixture of negative emotions etched on their faces.

It was a tough sell, he knew that, but the man laid it out in a better way than Drew ever could. Mainly because he had been the one responsible.

“That’s all there is,” Drew said as the final recording came to an end.

“I don’t understand,” Jack said in confusion and shock. “Those Greenclaws used to be people? Is that what that man is trying to say?”

“No way!” Amy said. “You can’t turn people into deathclaws. It’s not possible.”

“They’re monsters,” Jack said.

“They chased me and tried to kill me,” Sarah added.

“They’re not monsters,” Drew said, knowing that he could quickly lose control of the conversation.

“Then what are they?” Amy asked. “They’re certainly not people.”

“They are people. Just changed.”

Amy’s eyes went wide. “And you fucking brought them here, didn’t you!? You fucking idiot!”

“Fuck no!” Jack said. “I’m not staying here with fucking deathclaws you crazy bastard!”

“Jack, Amy, they’re from Paulson,” Drew said quickly, trying desperately to diffuse the situation before things got out of hand. “The small town up north he mentioned was Paulson. Those people they took were our friends. Our loved ones.”

“No!” Amy yelled. “Angela is not some abomination. They took them and ate them. She’s dead. They’re all dead!”

Jack looked at her, uncertainty etched on his face. “But what if it’s true?”

“No!” she yelled again.

“But what if it is?” Jack said, tears in his eyes. “What if Grace is still alive? What if…”

“What if she is!?” Amy demanded to know. “You gonna fuck a monster!?” She looked at Drew. “No, this has to be a joke, right?”

Jack stared at Drew’s Pipboy. “You heard those logs.”

Amy shook her head. “He didn’t come back last night, which meant he had more than enough time to make them.” She glared at Drew. “Did Jarik put you up to this? Is this some stupid prank?”

“No, Amy, he didn’t. The reason I wasn’t here was because I was with the Greenclaws. They’re not inhuman monsters. Well, not all of them anyway.”

“Prove it!” Amy spat. “Prove that this isn’t some fucking joke!”

He glanced back towards the doors. Feeling that it was still to early to ask them to come in, he decided on a different tactic, at least at first.

“Ayma, Neka, you can speak now if you want.”

It was Neka that answered first with her deep yet still feminine voice. “What do you want us to say?”

Drew watched as their eyes all grew wide as they stared at the doors.

“Anything,” he shouted back.

He heard Ayma speak. “You heard what the man said in the recordings. We don’t remember much. Our memories are fractured.”

Amy looked at Drew. “How many are there!?”

“Two,” he told her. “Well, there’s two here. There’s twelve back at the place they’re staying and more elsewhere.”

Sarah gulped. “How big are they?”

“The two here? Big. One is around ten feet tall and the other is maybe eight-and-a-half.”

Jack gripped the side of the table so hard the ends of his fingers turned white. “Can we-uh. Can we see them?”

Amy added. “To make sure this ain’t some sick joke.”

Drew looked back at the doors. “You heard them. Time to show yourselves. Make it nice and easy.”

He took in a deep breath and gulped hard. This was the moment he had been dreading.

Before they’d even entered, he got a reaction just from the sound of a first footstep. They all stared, wide-eyed towards the doors. With a squeak, he heard the doors open and somehow their eyes grew even wider as they entered.

“Oh, fuck!” Amy uttered.

“Shit,” Jack breathed.

Sarah’s reaction was quite different. Her eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she slumped forward onto the table.

Suzy, who had remained quiet, focused all her eyes on Sarah’s unconscious form. “Oh, dear,” she said. “She ’as fainted.”

Honestly, it was a better reaction than he had been expecting. Far better. Still, Jack was holding on to the side of the table so hard it looked like he was about to snap his fingers off, and Amy looked like she was ready to leap from her chair and flee.

Drew looked behind, seeing the two Greenclaws standing inside the cafeteria by the doors. They looked massive in front of the door frame and more than terrifying. He’d had the benefit of getting used to them over the last day or so, but to the others this was their first actual meeting.

He wasn’t expecting the following few minutes to be pleasant.

Then something unexpected happened.

“I know you two,” Ayma said, staring. “I know you.”

Jack shook his head, his mouth falling open.

Amy also shook her head, but she also pushed herself backward, her chair squeaking across the floor. “No!” she yelled. “No, this cannot be real. It’s impossible. They’re talking!”

“It’s real,” Neka said. “And you also just heard us talking outside.”

“This is fucked!”

Drew had to agree. “It is, but it’s also real.”

He wondered if he should tell them that he believed Ayma was Gemma but decided against it. At least for the time being.

“This is going well,” Neka snarked.

Ayma took a step forward, her heavy feet pounding against the floor.

Jack ducked down behind the table. “Don’t come any closer!” he yelled.

Ayma raised her clawed hands, palms outward. She was trying to appear non-threatening, though it was proving difficult. “We don’t mean you any harm,” she said. “I just wanted to get a better look at you.”

“Why?” Jack asked, his face turning pale as he peeked over the edge.

“Because I know you. The same as I knew Drew.”

Ayma continued to stare at them, which was clearly not helping their fear. She then looked at Drew.

“I remember them,” she said. “I knew them before I met you. You found us and we were scared of you.”

Amy jumped up onto her feet, tears streaming down her face. “No, don’t you dare!”

“Amy,” Ayma said out loud. “Jack.”

Jack stared. “It knows our fucking names!”

Amy was shaking and it wasn’t out of fear. She looked distraught.

“You can’t be Gemma,” Amy wailed as she collapsed against the table. “This can’t be real. You’re dead. Angela is dead. They’re all dead!”

“I’m starting to remember,” Ayma said with a sniffle. “I’ve missed you.”

Amy lowered her head into her hands as she began to weep while Jack slowly pushed himself up onto his feet, his hands resting on the table. “You’re really Gemma?” he asked.

“Yes, I am.”

“No, you’re not,” he said, shaking his head. “No, this is a trick. You’re both robots or something. You have to be.” He looked at Drew. “You almost had me going there. Really sick prank to play, though, you piece of shit.”

“They’re not robots,” Drew assured him. “And when it comes to Gemma, you know I would never play a prank like this.”

“He’s right,” Ayma said. “We’re flesh and blood.”

“Flesh and Blood? This is fucking crazy!” Jack shouted. “What the fuck even is this!?”

“It’s messed up,” Drew agreed. “But they’re real and they’re people.”

“Those are not people!” Jack yelled, pointing a finger at them. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

“It wasn’t my idea to bring them, and I know it’s difficult to understand or even accept. I’m still struggling with it myself.”

Jack stared across the room at the two Greenclaws then back at Drew.

“It’s okay,” Drew said. “They’re not gonna hurt you.”

“How can you say that!”

“Because I know them.”

Jack closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.

“The big one is Gemma,” Drew said. “It’s Gemma. She remembers me and now she’s starting to remember you.”

Jack looked back at her, hesitation on his face. “I don’t understand how this can be real.”

“It’s real,” Neka muttered, her voice coming across as more of a growl.

Jack took in another deep breath. “Are you really Gemma?”

“Yes, I am,” she said, looking at Drew. “I am Gemma. That is my name.”

Drew smiled wistfully. Out of all the scenarios that had played out in his head, none of them had gone nearly as well as it had in reality. It had positively gone fantastic, far better than he could have dreamed. Though he knew they had only taken the first step and there were a lot more to go.

Jack asked the pertinent question. “What happens now?”

Drew looked at Sarah who was still slumped in her chair. “They’re staying for a week,” he said.

“Good,” he heard Amy sniffle quietly.

“A week!?” Jack asked in disbelief, his eyes wide.

Amy rested her hand on top of Jack’s. “If that really is Gemma, then she won’t harm us. She has to stay.”

“Why?” Jack asked.

“Because It’s Gemma.”

Jack looked conflicted.

“And we have so much to catch up on,” Amy continued.

“Yes, we do,” Ayma said as she looked at Drew. “First thing’s first, I don’t think I want to be called Ayma anymore.”

“You want to be called Gemma?” Drew asked hopefully.

Gemma nodded. “It’s who I am. Who I was. It feels right.”

“It is right,” Drew said smiling. “We’re back together again after all these years.”

“Together,” Gemma repeated.

There was silence.

The initial encounter wasn’t over yet, but so far things were going better than he had anticipated. They were starting to accept them, though he knew one wrong word or one wrong move and it could easily come undone like a loose threat snagging on a tree branch.

“You’re scary as fuck by the way,” Amy said with another sniffle. “But it’s good to see you.”

“Thanks,” Gemma said warmly.

Jack sat back down at the table. “That can’t be her. It can’t.” By the way he said it, it sounded like he was trying to convince himself, but Drew knew that deep down Jack knew it was true.

“It is,” Drew said. “And you know it is.”

“I don’t think I’m ever gonna get used to this.”

Drew disagreed. “It’ll take a while, but I think you will.”

The moment was ruined by a loud scream.

All eyes snapped towards Sarah who leaped out of her chair and staggered back, her eyes on the two Greenclaws. She was clearly terrified and was reacting in a way that Drew had honestly expected everyone to react.

Drew stood up and quickly made his way over to her, putting his arms around her in an attempt to comfort her. “Sarah, it’s okay. They’re not hostile.”

“Th-they chased me,” she uttered. “They were gonna kill me!”

Neka dismissed the claim. “No, we weren’t. We just wanted to scare you away. There was a lot of good stuff there we wanted. Couldn’t have you take it.”

“It talks!” Sarah screamed.

Neka snorted. “You forget already?”

Ayma, no Gemma, scowled at Neka. “Be nice, she has a right to be scared. We were scared of each other at first.”

“Speak for yourself,” Neka said.

“Fine, I will.” Gemma looked at Sarah. “We don’t blame you for being frightened of us. I hope that with time you can overcome it.”

Sarah pulled herself free of Drew’s grip and hid herself behind Suzy. “Are they leaving soon?” she asked.

“They’re staying the week,” Drew answered, knowing that it wasn’t at all what she wanted to hear.

“Oh,” she said, her voice a squeak.

Jack could empathize. “I feel the same way,” he muttered. “I’m just about ready to shit myself.”

“Boo!” Neka shouted loudly.

Jack jumped back in his chair so hard that one of the legs broke and he found himself falling to the floor. Sarah, on the other hand, whimpered and cried.

“Neka!” Gemma shouted. “Stop that!”

“Why? It’s fun.”

“You’re being nasty for no reason.”

Neka shrugged. “Fine, fine.” She held out her arms wide. “I’m sorry. Can I hug you both better?”

“No,” Sarah said, gripping hold of Suzy tightly as she receded even further behind the Nanny robot.

Drew waved his hands over his head, getting everyone’s attention. “Okay, okay. This is uncomfortable and scary, I know that. So what I think we should do, is have Gemma and Neka sit on the far side of the room to keep a safe distance and we talk to each other for a few hours. We need to get to know each other if we want a chance in hell of this working.”

Gemma had another idea. “Maybe we should all sit in silence and not force conversation. Get used to each other’s presence.”

“It’s up to you,” Drew said.

Neka stomped over to the far wall and sat down on the floor, while Gemma walked more lightly, almost looking like she was tip-toeing so as to not seem as threatening before she sat down beside her.

Drew started back for the table before he decided he could make a statement by sitting between Gemma and Neka on the floor. With his legs crossed, he leaned back against the wall. Taking his lead, Amy did the same and sat down on the floor next to Gemma on the far side.

Jack and Sarah stared at them from the table as if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. A week ago, Drew doubted he’d have believed it either.

“It’s only skin deep,” Drew said out loud, placing his left hand on his heart. “It’s what’s in here that matters.”

He heard a snort from his left. He looked to see Neka roll her eyes.

“What?” he asked dumbfounded. “It’s true.”

Neka didn’t say anything.

“You think what I said is cheesy, don’t you?” he asked.

“A little,” she answered.

Gemma showed her support for Drew. “I thought it was beautiful.”

Neka shrugged her massive shoulders. “I guess it is a nice sentiment.”

“And it’s true,” Gemma said.

“Sure.”

Neka didn’t seem convinced.

“Um…” Sarah started suddenly. “I think Suzy and I should head back to the office and continue indexing all that data we recovered from the hospital.”

She didn’t wait for a response as she ran out of the room, leaving Suzy behind.

“I ’ad better go and ’elp,” Suzy said as she calmly followed.

Neka couldn’t help but comment on it. “I guess she’s had enough.”

Drew sighed. “No doubt.”

Neka yawned. It was a sight that was absolutely terrifying to behold. “I’m feeling tired, anyway. Is there anywhere we can sleep?”

Drew pushed himself up onto his feet. “There are some rooms down in the basement area. We don’t have anything for you to lay on, unfortunately.”

“That’s fine,” Neka said. “We usually sleep on the floor anyway.”

“Come on,” Drew said. “Let’s get your rooms set up. It’s getting late.”

So far, the day had gone rather well. He just hoped the rest of the week went just as well.

Chapter End Notes:

This story will be updated once a week from here on out. This Sunday I want to start posting another shorter story.

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