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What ever happened after Stiggs escaped from the Crawler?


Scythe Bearer

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What follows is part of a mod I am working on.   The narrative starts at the intrusion into the Crawler at Andrews AFB in Fallout 3.



First entry:

I spotted Stiggs heading towards the Presidential Metro station, and knew he was stealing the two robots he had following him.  I decided to give our modified power armor a field test.  So, I put it on, grabbed a dozen or so Fusion Cells, the weapons we were working on, and set out after him.

He beat me to the metro, so I had to wait for the train to return before I could follow him.  While I was waiting, an explosion sent me back to the entrance to see the destruction of the Crawler.  I knew there was no going back.  

Finding his trail out of the capital building was pretty easy, as the big heavy Sentry Bot left tracks in the dust all the way to Underworld.  From there he traveled the subway tunnels to Friendship Station and then on north.

Second Entry:  

I finally caught sight of Stiggs and the bots early on the third  day.  Stiggs was making good time, since the bots were carrying all the equipment.  He was heading almost due north, which was smart, as it avoided all the major costal cities and their attendant challenges.

It also seems that Stiggs has a specific destination in mind, as he is being deliberate in his route selection.  Is he heading to Canada?  Or where?  I am going to hang back and follow him from a distance until I find out where he is heading.  

Third entry:

Well, Stiggs (and I) got safely past Philadelphia and New York, or what remains of them and Stiggs turned eastward.  He crossed the Hudson River near Poughkeepsie, then turned towards the Northeast.  He isn't headed to Canada, that's for sure.  If he were headed that way, he would continue North.   

Stiggs may have spotted me yesterday.  He was crossing some open ground and I was sitting on a ridge line watching him.  He turned and looked right at me.  Not sure if one of the robots alerted or Stiggs has a sixth sense.  Anyway, I will hang back a little more.  

Fourth entry:

Still heading East.  Crossed the Connecticut River at a place called Thompsonville.  Stiggs has been avoiding cities, towns and any place where he might encounter any remnants of humanity.  That isn't to say he hasn't run into people or ghouls.  It is just that his robots have made short work of anyone or anything that is hostile .  

Quite frankly, following Stiggs is getting to be a bore.  He rises each morning before the sun, eats, checks the robots, travels until early afternoon and then looks for a safe place to spend the night.  If I loose him, I just cast about at the last place I saw him until I find the tracks of that big assed Sentry Bot and I am back on his tail.  

Fifth entry:

Stiggs has been tending East by NE for most of the last week.  He crossed into Massachusetts via a corner of Rhode Island a couple days ago, but he is still tending eastward.  Either Stiggs is getting close to his destination, or he is going to have to change direction soon.  He is running out of continent in the direction he's heading.  

Sixth entry:

Stiggs turned North this morning, near Stoughton.  He is still trending a bit NE, but he is getting into territory where avoiding people and the aggravation they bring is going to be virtually impossible.  

Seventh Entry:

I am having to stick closer to Stiggs, lately.  He is in Southern Boston area, and the chances of loosing him in this once populace area is increasing with each mile.  Add that to the fact that I had to snipe a couple raiders that were sneaking up on Stiggs' camp yesterday, and I need to stay close if I am to find out where the fuck he is going.  It would be a shame to loose him after almost a month on the road.  

This morning, Stiggs finally entered a building, the Old North Church.  Stiggs almost caught me trying to find a back door into the building when he came out.  After he came out, Stiggs collected his robots, crossed the Charles River and headed North again.  

Eighth Entry:

Well, Stiggs definitely knows I'm here.  He went west to avoid a settlement around the Bunker Hill monolith and wandered into the middle of a Super Mutant encampment.  He would have died if I hadn't managed to get high enough to snipe half the Mutants outright, and take out several more as Stiggs extracted himself.  He lost his Mister Gutsy during his retreat, but otherwise he managed to make it out pretty much unscathed.  

Stiggs ran north, across the  Mystic River and stopped.  Waiting.  Watching the bridge.  Knowing I wasn't far behind.  So, I bit the bullet and crossed the river.  

Stiggs recognized the Power Armor when I was half way across the bridge and said something to the Sentry Bot, because it went into a combat ready stance.  

At about 20 paces distant, Stiggs gave it the old "That's far enough".  I stopped and took off the helmet.  Stiggs recognized me immediately, and I was afraid I would have to hastily put the helmet back on.  

But to my surprise, Stiggs just asked "Sgt. Stanley, why are you following me".  I was honest and told him it started because I wanted to stop him stealing the robots, but after the Crawler was destroyed, I just wanted to see where he was going.  

Stiggs seemed incredulous and asked why I hadn't killed him.  I told him I could never find out where he was going if I killed him.   

Stiggs thought for a moment, then asked, "Is that why you killed those Super Mutants"?  

I said yes, but, being nervous with a Sentry Bot waiting for the word to attack, I added, "Could you tell the robot I'm not a threat?  I really don't want to die today, especially after saving you back there".  

Stiggs smiled, gave the robot the "At Ease" and said, "Okay, come on.  I can use the company".  

Ninth Entry:

Turns out we were heading for a church on Nahant point.  We set up camp in the church for the evening, and Stiggs explained that he had found a note while cleaning a Protectron.  The note told of a hidden bunker somewhere West of Boston (aka the Commonwealth).  He said that the note directed him to a strongbox in the Old North Church.  That strongbox contained a note with directions to Nahant Chapel.  Now he just needed to find what came next.  

I was surprised that Stiggs had trusted me with that information, as it carried the risk that I would kill him and follow the clues myself.  

Tenth entry:

The strong box in Nahant Chapel contained another note which directed us to another church in Natick.  Getting there was rather straight forward.  It didn't take much effort to stay out of the way of humanity, and we arrived in Natick in great shape.  

Then, things went horribly sideways.  The instant we approached the church we were attacked by a death claw.  Stiggs went down almost immediately.  I got my rifle out and started pumping bullets into the damned deathclaw as fast as I could, while the Sentry Bot went full on with it's built-in minigun.  But it wasn't enough.  The sentry bot went down, and I ducked into an old tavern for cover.  The deathclaw couldn't get into where I was, so I kept shooting through the windows until the monster was dead.  

I sat for a full half hour, shaking while the adrenaline drained from my system.  Then I searched Stiggs and his robot.  I found the other notes.  I was also amazed at how much a sentry bot could carry.  There was a wealth of ammo, chems and food inside that Sentry Bot.

I searched the church and found the strongbox.  It contained a key and a cryptic note.  The note read "Maintenance escape hatch.  Look for the service tunnel on the south wall.  The switch is in plain sight, but you can't see it".

Eleventh Entry:

I have been remiss in keeping this journal current.  It has been almost a year since I arrived here.  It isn't exactly what Stiggs described, but so much better.  

There was a bunker which was probably build by the crew which built the tunnel where the throughway north of Natick disappears into the hillside.  The bunker was hidden at the end of a heavily booby trapped tunnel, located in a maintenance room inside the vehicle tunnel.  

The surprise is that the bunker had a second exit, out into this valley.  Green grass, fresh water, trees, brahman, and a cabin which was probably build by someone hoping to survive the apocalypse.  The cabin was in disrepair, but I have spent the better part of the last year fixing it up and it is back to livable condition.  

But the best surprise of all, there is a miniature vault under the cabin.  I didn't even find it until I cleared the debris from the cabin, and still didn't recognize the hatch for what it was until I tried to refurbish the wood floors.  The vault is in pristine condition, and I found the skeleton of the previous occupant.  His journal is what prompted me to review mine.  

It turns out that the robot Stiggs found with the original note was sent by the previous occupant to a friend in DC.  The robot never made it.  Stiggs found it, and hung onto the note until he could take advantage of it

I buried the previous occupant outside, and set about getting Stiggs remains here for burial as well.  I know it was a foolish effort, but I have a feeling of satisfaction knowing that I did right by Stiggs and got him here.  

Last Entry:

I was old when I left DC, and I have been here for almost a decade now.  But alas, I have been here alone.  No family.  No friends.  No one left to appreciate this gem.  So, before I die, I am resetting all the locks, traps, and notes, and looking for another robot to send out into the wastes.  Maybe, someday, someone will find it, come here, and bury me. 

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