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The Commonwealth had heard them. Now it was time to see who was ready to be part of something bigger, and hope there no fighting because of this.
The next morning, as the sun climbed over the Commonwealth's skyline, Sico found himself walking the worn dirt path toward the newly built cattle farm. The air was crisp, carrying the familiar smells of Brahmin, freshly tilled earth, and the faint, sound of metallic tang.
While he was anxious to hear back from the census teams, he also knew that securing a stable food supply was just as critical. The Commonwealth could have the best defenses in the world, but if people were starving, none of it would matter.
Jenny had been instrumental in getting the cattle farm up and running, using her knowledge of animal husbandry she learn from what little was left from before the war and some good old-fashioned wasteland ingenuity. The Brahmin were thriving, and with enough effort, they'd be able to sustain more settlements without relying on traders for every scrap of food.
As he approached, he saw Jenny standing near a wooden fence, scratching behind the ear of a particularly large Brahmin that leaned into her touch with a low, contented grunt. She looked up as he drew near, a smirk already tugging at her lips.
"Well, look what the dust dragged in," she teased, wiping her hands on her trousers. "You here to admire my handiwork, or is this a business visit?"
Sico chuckled, resting his forearms on the fence. "Can't it be both?"
Jenny raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. Spill it, Sico. What do you need?"
He grinned. "Chickens. Any chance you've gotten your hands on some?"
Jenny let out a slow whistle and leaned against the fence. "I'm already told you that getting Brahmin are easy—but every scavver with half a brain knows to round up any they find. But chickens?" She shook her head. "They're a different story just like I told you before. Small, fast, and damn near impossible to find in the wild anymore."
Sico exhaled through his nose. "I know, but if we can get a few breeding pairs, it'd change the game for food production. Fresh eggs, steady meat supply… we'd be a hell of a lot better off."
Jenny nodded. "You're not wrong. I actually put the word out to some traders a while back, told 'em I'd pay well if they found any. Problem is, they know how rare chickens are, so the price isn't exactly friendly."
Sico rubbed his chin. "How bad?"
Jenny gave him a pointed look. "Bad enough that even I hesitated. And you know I don't hesitate when it comes to feeding people."
That wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, but it wasn't unexpected either.
"Damn," he muttered. "Well, we need 'em, so I'll make sure you have the caps to get as many as you can."
Jenny tilted her head. "You sure? Ain't exactly what the tax money was meant for."
Sico shrugged. "It's for keeping the Commonwealth stable, and food security is a big part of that. If people aren't starving, they're less likely to do something desperate. Beside we have caps, but it can't sustain for a long term."
Jenny grinned. "You always got a way of making things sound real official, don't you?"
He smirked. "It's a gift."
Jenny pushed away from the fence. "Alright, I'll make sure we get some. Might take time, but I'll get it done."
"Appreciate it," Sico said, before glancing at the farm. "How's everything else holding up here?"
Jenny sighed, rolling her shoulders. "Not bad, all things considered. Brahmin are healthy, crops are growing—just wish we had more hands. The settlers we've got are doing their best, but farming ain't easy, and most folks in the Commonwealth never learned how. It's slow work."
Sico nodded. That was another problem they'd need to tackle eventually—rebuilding lost knowledge. The pre-war world had entire institutions dedicated to farming, engineering, medicine… now, people were scraping by with half-remembered skills and whatever books hadn't been burned or rotted away.
Sico leaned against the fence, staring out over the farm as he considered Jenny's words. The lack of skilled workers wasn't a new problem, but it was one they couldn't afford to ignore. If the Commonwealth was ever going to move beyond mere survival, they had to rebuild—not just their settlements, but also their knowledge.
"We need a school," he said, breaking the silence. "Not just for kids, but for adults too. If we can teach people skills—farming, mechanics, medicine—it'll make a difference."
Jenny gave him a skeptical look. "Sico, we already got a school for the kids. We got a little place set up where they learn to read and do some numbers. But I ain't ever heard of a school for grown-ups. Ain't exactly something folks are asking for."
He turned to her, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "That's because they don't know what they're missing. People in the Wasteland get by with what they can, but think about what it'd mean if they actually had a chance to learn—really learn. Imagine if a farmer knew how to make irrigation systems work, or if we had more people who could repair weapons and armor without trial and error."
Jenny crossed her arms, considering. "Alright, let's say I buy into this idea. Who's gonna teach 'em? Teaching ain't exactly a job most people pick in the Wasteland. Hell, half the folks alive today never even met a teacher."
That was the real problem. The Commonwealth didn't have the luxury of trained educators just waiting for a job offer. But Sico wasn't about to let that stop him.
"We find them," he said simply. "Start with what we have. Piper could teach literacy—she's a writer, after all. You could teach farming. Sturges knows a hell of a lot about engineering. And I bet there's a few people out there who picked up some pre-war medical knowledge."
Jenny raised an eyebrow. "You really think people would go for that?"
Sico shrugged. "We won't know until we try. But we start small—offer lessons here in Sanctuary first. See who's interested. If it works, we expand."
Jenny let out a slow sigh, rubbing the back of her neck. "You always got these big ideas, don't you?"
He grinned. "Someone's gotta think ahead."
She shook her head, but there was a smile on her face. "Fine. You wanna build a school, let's do it. But don't come crying to me when folks start complaining about homework."
Sico chuckled. "Deal."
Over the next few days, word about the school spread through Sanctuary. At first, the reaction was mixed—some people dismissed it outright, saying they were too old to learn, while others were intrigued but unsure if they had the time.
Piper, for her part, was surprisingly on board.
"Teaching kids to read? Sure, I can do that," she said, leaning back in her chair at the command post. "Hell, I've spent half my life trying to get people to care about what's in the news. Might as well start by making sure they can actually read it."
Sturges was just as willing. "You want me to teach folks how to fix things? Shoot, I do that already. Just gotta get 'em to listen instead of messin' around with stuff before they know what they're doin'."
The hardest part was finding someone for medicine. There were plenty of scavvers and chem users who knew how to patch up a wound, but an actual doctor? That was rare.
Sico drummed his fingers on the wooden table inside Sanctuary's meeting hall, thinking. They had farming, mechanics, and literacy covered, but medicine was another story. There were plenty of people in the Commonwealth who could stitch a wound or mix up some healing chems, but an actual doctor? That was something else entirely.
Then it hit him.
Curie.
She wasn't just a doctor—she had the accumulated knowledge of pre-war medical science stored in her mind. Originally built as a Miss Nanny robot, she'd spent centuries in Vault 81 studying diseases, treatments, and medical theories. And now, with her Gen 3 synth body, she could put all of that knowledge to use in ways she never could before.
Sico pushed back his chair and stood up. "I know who we need."
Jenny, who had been sitting across from him, raised an eyebrow. "That look on your face tells me you got something up your sleeve."
"Curie," he said simply. "She has more medical knowledge than anyone left in the Wasteland. If we're gonna have a school, we need her teaching medicine."
Jenny whistled low. "Curie, huh? Can't argue with that. But you think she'll go for it?"
"She wants to help people," Sico said, already heading for the door. "This is the best way to do that."
Finding Curie wasn't difficult. She was at the clinic, working alongside the town's current medic, treating a settler who had taken a nasty fall while repairing a roof. She looked up as Sico entered, her face brightening.
"Ah, monsieur Sico! A pleasure, as always."
He smiled. "Curie, I need your help with something."
She straightened. "Of course. What is it?"
"We're starting a school. Not just for kids, but for adults too. We need to rebuild knowledge—engineering, farming, literacy. And medicine."
Curie tilted her head, curiosity sparking in her eyes. "A school? This is a most excellent idea! But… you wish for me to teach?"
"You're the best person for it," Sico said. "You have more medical knowledge than anyone left in the Commonwealth. If we want people to stop relying on half-remembered first aid and superstition, we need someone like you teaching them the right way to do things."
Curie put a hand to her chin, thinking. "It is true that many in the Wasteland treat injuries and illness with… how do you say? A crude understanding. Teaching them proper methods could save many lives."
Sico nodded. "Exactly."
She gave a firm nod. "Then I shall do it. It will be a joy to share knowledge again."
Sico grinned. "Glad to hear it."
By next week, the school slowly took shape.
Sanctuary's old meeting hall, which had mostly been used for town discussions and storage, was repurposed. Settlers pitched in to clear out the debris, rebuild the walls, and bring in whatever furniture they could find. It wasn't much—mostly old desks and chairs scavenged from ruins—but it was enough.
Piper set up one corner of the hall as a small classroom, gathering books from her personal collection and whatever they could trade for. She focused on literacy, teaching kids and adults alike how to read and write.
Sturges set up an area with scrap metal and tools, showing anyone willing to learn how to fix weapons, armor, and machinery.
Jenny worked outside, turning a patch of dirt near the farm into a demonstration field where she could teach people proper crop rotation, soil management, and Brahmin care.
And in one corner of the hall, Curie set up a small clinic space, complete with old medical textbooks, scavenged supplies, and even a few pre-war anatomy charts she had somehow managed to find.
Sico stood near the entrance of the school, leaning against the wooden frame as he watched everything unfold. It had only been a week since they had properly set up, but already, something about Sanctuary felt… different.
The Wasteland had a way of making people hard, forcing them to think only about survival—food, water, shelter, weapons. But here, for the first time in a long time, people weren't just surviving.
A group of settlers sat cross-legged on the floor in Piper's corner, brows furrowed as they carefully traced letters onto scraps of paper. One of them, a man in his forties with a thick beard, muttered to himself as he copied down the alphabet. Sico knew for a fact that he had spent most of his life running with raiders before deciding to turn things around. Now, here he was, struggling to write his own name but determined to get it right.
Not far from them, a few kids huddled around a makeshift chalkboard, taking turns sounding out words as Piper encouraged them with an easygoing smile. "Alright, who can tell me what this word is?" She tapped the board with a piece of broken chalk.
One of the boys, no older than eight, squinted at the letters before hesitantly speaking. "Uh… ra… ra-di-o?"
Piper grinned. "That's right! Radio! See? You're getting it."
The boy's face lit up, and Sico couldn't help but smirk.
On the other side of the room, Sturges was in the middle of a hands-on lesson. A few adults, mostly scavengers and traders, stood around as he explained the inner workings of an old rifle laid out on the table. "Now, the trick with these old pieces is keepin' 'em clean. You let dust and rust get in here—" he pointed at the trigger mechanism, "—and next thing you know, it's jammin' up when you need it most."
One of the settlers, a younger woman with oil-stained hands, nodded. "Yeah, had that happen last time I was out in the Glowing Sea. Damn thing almost got me killed."
"That's exactly why you gotta maintain it," Sturges said, wiping his hands on a rag. "Here, let's go over takin' it apart again."
Outside, Jenny was knee-deep in soil, showing a few farmers how to properly space out their crops. A couple of Brahmin wandered nearby, lazily chewing cud as the group dug into the earth. One of the older farmers, a grizzled man with sun-leathered skin, listened intently as Jenny talked about irrigation.
"You're sayin' I should be collectin' rainwater?" he asked, scratching his chin.
Jenny nodded. "Exactly. The more water you can store, the better. And if we can get some proper filtration set up, you won't be wastin' time hauling clean water from the river every damn day."
Sico shifted his gaze to Curie's corner, where a mix of grown-ups and kids sat in rapt attention as she explained basic first aid. She held up a piece of cloth and carefully demonstrated how to wrap a wound.
"In an emergency, stopping the bleeding is most important," she said, her French accent making the words sound almost melodic. "If you do not have bandages, clean cloth will do. But you must make sure it is as sterile as possible—otherwise, infection will set in."
A teenage boy raised his hand hesitantly. "What if… what if someone's got a bad cut and you ain't got no stims?"
Curie nodded approvingly. "An excellent question! If stimpaks are not available, you must clean the wound and close it. Here, let me show you another way…"
She picked up a curved needle and thread, demonstrating how to stitch a deep cut. The boy's eyes widened, and a few adults leaned in closer, murmuring amongst themselves.
Sico crossed his arms, watching all of it unfold. He saw the way people listened, the way they asked questions, the way they focused. Some of these folks had spent their whole lives just trying to make it to the next day. And yet, here they were, eager to learn, eager to be better.
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• Name: Sico
• Stats :
S: 8,44
P: 7,44
E: 8,44
C: 8,44
I: 9,44
A: 7,45
L: 7
• Skills: advance Mechanic, Science, and Shooting skills, intermediate Medical, Hand to Hand Combat, Lockpicking, Hacking, Persuasion, and Drawing Skills
• Inventory: 53.280 caps, 10mm Pistol, 1500 10mm rounds, 22 mole rats meat, 17 mole rats teeth, 1 fragmentation grenade, 6 stimpak, 1 rad x, 6 fusion core, computer blueprint, modern TV blueprint, camera recorder blueprint, 1 set of combat armor, Automatic Assault Rifle, 1.500 5.56mm rounds, power armor T51 blueprint, Electric Motorcycle blueprint, T-45 power armor, Minigun, 1.000 5mm rounds, Cryolator, 200 cryo cell, Machine Gun Turret Mk1 blueprint, electric car blueprint, Kellogg gun, Righteous Authority, Ashmaker, Furious Power Fist, Full set combat armor blueprint, M240 7.62mm machine guns blueprint, Automatic Assault Rifle blueprint, and Humvee blueprint.
• Active Quest:-