Atomica #4

ISSUE 4: UNDERGROUND

It took several days for the power suit to regenerate itself.

I really need to get ahold of some of its real power cells. It can't keep trying to convert local sources forever.

In the mean time, Allison was making reputation for herself as a decent scav (OK, fine. Scav it is.), so she set out for Minefield in her civilian identity. The mines were easy enough to spot, and easier to disarm. Less easy was dodging fire from the Supervillain who had set up Minefield as his personal amusement arcade. She learned from holotape on the body of a dead raider that he was called Arkansas.

What kind of Supervillain names himself after a state? Who do I have to fight next? Rhode Island?

Running through the exploding cars was not much fun at all. Atomica would return once her powers were back at her command.

The suit was still not up to par. The regeneration chamber indicated it had done all possible repair. Capacity and condition read 65 percent.

It will have to do.

Arkansas put up a fight, and several of his shots did some more damage to her poor suit. Forced to flee to cover, Atomica spent the last of the energy cells on dispatching him, ending his reign of terror of the town of Ridgefield.

Investigation of the remaining houses revealed that this had been a small town, surviving in the wastes, until the Slavers of Paradise Falls came for the people here.

Once I am at full power, Paradise Falls will face its day of reckoning!

Returning to Megaton, Moira had a pair of tasks that were right next door to each other. Slipping into and out of the Mirelurk den was easy in Stealth Mode. The giant monster crabs never knew she was there. The Mole Rats...

If I never see another exploding rodent again, it'll be too soon.

The Raiders didn't help at all.

The exit from the Mole Rat Massacre was some place called Germantown. Atomica was immediately accosted by highly organized, heavily armed mercenaries calling themselves Talon Company. They had a bounty on her head.

“Hey girls! We get to kill a real life superhero!”

“Supermutant!”

“I'm not a mutant.. I'm actually technology origin. Couldn't we talk this out?”

“No, no, SUPERMUTANT!”

The green, hulking monstrosities that swarmed down on them were unlike anything Atomica had ever seen. They sort of reminded her of an old comics character, a hulking brute of limitless strength and rage. As the Talons turned their weapons on the Supermutants, Atomica took the opportunity to gain higher ground and assess the situation. She ran into one of the brutes on a ledge in the nearby ruined building. Double-fisted sweeping power uppercuts left her arms feeling like lead. She managed to swing up on a door frame and finish the brute with a full-mass swing, planting both her boots firmly into its chin. It fell over with a thud, expressing disbelief that it had been defeated by the slight girl in the strange clothes.

There was a moment's silence, then bullets peppered the concrete around her. The Talons and Supermutants alike had left off their skirmish to concentrate on her. The next several minutes were a blur of fists and feet and pain. When Atomica stopped to breathe, the suit was visibly worn, and she was actually bleeding from several wounds that it was not quite containing.

Ducking into a surviving storefront, she met up with a wastelander who had turned an old Radiation King into his personal shop and homestead.

“You must be Atomica. Word around is that you help people. Let me help you.”

A few stimpacks and some clean water later, and Atomica felt more like she could make it home.

“Keep up the good fight, Ma'am. The people need a symbol, something good and pure.”

He pulled out a copy of an old comic book that she had never seen before. Surprisingly, it was from only 25 years ago. There was no company logo.

“They still make comics?”

“The Hubris Comics building is still here, the presses still work. And.. this one is more or less true.”

Atomica looked at the cover with dawning comprehension.

ATOM-1. It was the tale of a mysterious woman who used an advanced type of nano power suit to do justice in the wasteland. No one knew what had happened to her. She had vanished 18 years ago.

“I knew ATOM-1. She was good people. Saved me twice, when I was still living in Big Town.” He smiled. “You look a lot like her. Take care of yourself out there, Atomica.”Offering his hand, she started a bit as he pressed something into her hand. “Show this around Big Town when you get there. They'll know you're for real.”

She looked at the small metal badge he had given her. It was shaped like a shield with a lithium atom on it. It identified the wearer as a member of the Atomic Irregulars.

“Be careful out there yourself.”

Heading back to Megaton, Atomica slipped into her Allison disguise, and squared things with Moira, who was her usual brand of overjoyed. When she asked about the badge, Moira squealed with delight, and dug out her own. “This was my mom's. She used to talk about ATOM-1 all the time! I thought she was making up stories, like Daring Dashwood. But with Atomica living right here in Megaton?” She squealed again.

“Anyhoo. You ready for more work on the Guide?”

The next stop was Rivet City, to learn about local history. After the day she had, Atomica was more than happy to spend time in civilian clothes talking to people instead of fighting monsters. She was slightly taken aback when Moira called her a “Super-Assistant”, but decided that she likely just talked that way. Her disguise was foolproof. She wore glasses, after all.

Heading down to the Sanctuary to try to coax a bit more life out of her suit just in case there was trouble in Rivet City, Atomica drifted off to sleep with far more questions than answers.