176 Vol. III Chapter 47 "Now and always." (Part 2 of 2)

Chapter 47 "Now and always."

John woke at six, like always, his bed empty. The first tradition of the day. Rosie spent the night next door. He took a long shower and ate a light breakfast. He knew the morning would be busy, yet he didn't really know what to expect in the afternoon. He caught sight of Robco and went out to help.

"Today's the big day." Robco led them to one of the outbuildings. "You nervous?"

"No, well maybe a bit." John wondered how Rosie felt.

"If you're going to call it off, you're on your own." Robco joked. "I ain't getting on the wrong side of Lou today."

Robco opened the door to the butcher's shed. A freshly gutted and drained pig on the stone table. "Get a grip on that." Robco took a long metal spike from the wall. John put his weight on the pig while Robco skewered it.

"On three." Robco counted down and they heaved the pig onto their shoulders. Even John found it a strain. They hurried the few metres to the unlit fire, hanging the pig above it. "Never should've let Rosie choose the pig." Robco panted, his hand on his back.

John spent the next few hours helping out where he could. He went round getting chairs from every house, placing them in neat rows in the centre of the Rest. He helped Mike carry crates of vegetables from the stores. And a dozen other little things that had to be done.

"Ronin, Styx. At the rv. How copy?" Styx came over the comm.

"Solid copy. Sit tight, coming in from the north." John went and found Robco, basting the hog turning over the fire. "First guests have arrived, can we take the truck and get them?" John asked.

"John, this is a fine art, delicate work." The fire hissed as grease dripped down. "Keys are in it, you go." Robco tried to hide his smile.

"Seriously?" John had never driven the truck alone before.

"Forward to go forward, back to go back. It ain't complicated, not like hog roasting." Robco waved him away.

Half an hour later, John trundled down to the road. A sharp whistle brought him to a stop.

"She's a beauty!" Styx appeared from cover, inspecting the truck. Carol and Roxy followed, laden with bags. And behind them, Virgil and Suzette. John felt surprised by how happy it made him that they'd come. He helped load the supplies and passengers, finding Styx riding shotgun.

"Are we forgetting someone?" John asked playfully. "I seem to remember hiring both of you."

"And I seem to remember giving you a serious discount." Styx had demanded a single cap in payment. Eager to make inroads with the best arms dealer in town. He broke squelch twice on his radio and pointed backwards without looking. John turned and saw a figure up the hill, scoped rifle in hand. He realised Acheron had him covered the instant he'd left the Rest.

"Show off." John turned the truck and headed up.

John stopped next to Acheron. "I ain't riding on that thing." He seemed oddly distrustful of the truck.

The gates swung open, John brought the truck to a stop. "Where's the kitchen?" Carol asked as soon as Acheron helped her down.

"Carol." Roxy said sternly as Acheron helped her next.

"I know, fun. I just want to make a start." She grabbed two bags and John pointed her to Mike's.

"And the bride to be?" Suzette asked, piling garment bags onto Roxy's arms. He nodded to Robco's. "We'll dress the ladies first." She strode off at a determined pace.

"What's an old man gotta do to get a drink around here?" Virgil complained, ignoring Acheron's offer of help as he hopped down. Robco walked over to greet the guests.

"These are my friends, Sam and Cliff. This is our host, Robco." John made the introductions. Styx shook Robco's hand. He held up his free hand, flicking his wrist to make a business card appear from nowhere. "The Brother's Hood. At your service." Styx turned on the charm. Acheron gave a nod.

"How did you do that?" Wallace piped up, impressed with the trick.

"My grandson Wallace." Robco gave him a stern look. "Who forgets his manners."

"My name's Wallace, it's nice to meet you sir." Wallace corrected himself, standing tall and shaking hands.

"Styx. And the trick is a trade secret my lad." Styx paused, as if weighing up Wallace. "But I tell you what, you find two mugs of hot coffee and I'll teach you."

"Deal!" Wallace made it three steps before turning back. "Milk and sugar?"

"One with both and one with neither." Styx answered, making John laugh.

"How bout a real drink?" Robco nodded to John and he walked them to the still.

"Tell me Robco," Styx launched into his spiel. "What's the number one thing a place like this needs?"

"Well," Robco tried to answer before Styx cut him off.

"That's right, security. And we have got some top notch…" Styx trailed off as he saw two Assaultrons. One watering the crops, the other feeding the pigs. "Plumbing supplies." Styx didn't miss a beat, getting a laugh from even Virgil.

They found Grimm waiting. Acheron laid a piece of firewood on the still, gaining respect from Robco. He poured the strong Private Reserve into mugs and tin cups and handed them out.

"Gentlemen." Acheron spoke up first, uncommonly so. "I'd like to thank our host. We appreciate it's no small thing to have people you don't know here. Thank you."

"Well, you're welcome. John here, he's a good man and I trust him with my life." Robco clinked his cup.

"As do we, Brother." Styx did the same and they drank.

"Were you ever married Virgil? Before Suzette I mean." Styx asked, trying to make conversation.

"Once or twice." Virgil tried to deflect.

"Once or twice?" Styx questioned with an amused look. Robco let out a snigger.

"Five times." Virgil lit a cigarette. "Six including Suze, but we're not actually married. I'm a romantic." That brought a laugh that eased the tension.

"Any advice?" John asked.

"You're asking me?" Virgil's response brought another laugh. He sat back smoking, his gaze far away. "Those first four times, too young, too poor, too busy, too rich. But Clara and I, your...we liked the same things. She'd have loved this, I can tell you that." A look of warm remembrance crossed his ravaged face.

"Suzette and I don't agree on anything." Virgil continued. "Music, books, food, bars. Not a damn thing. We've been together eighty years, longer than most folk live." He sounded shocked by own longevity. "She still surprises me." Virgil took a long drag on his cigarette, smoke escaping as he half grinned. "Nothing worth having comes easy. Shit, I don't need to tell you that. Make the time kid, no matter what." Virgil's black eyes locked with his. "That and pick up after yourself."

"John?" Anne's voice came over the comm. "I think your friends are here." She sounded unnerved.

"Coming Anne, it's alright." John got up, getting a look from Grimm. "Recon."

"Cocky sons of bitches." Grimm shook his head, amused.

John stood with Robco as the gate opened. Four figures approached, clad in black and well armed. A radstag with a single arrow left in it, carried on a branch between Paul and Matt.

"Robco, this is Brandon, Rosie's…" John didn't know what to say.

"Family." Brandon shook Robco's hand. "My Second Charlie, and her husband Paul. The young fellow is my ward, Matthew." Brandon made introductions. Matt rolled his eyes. "My men brought this down on the way here, for the feast." He extended his arm without looking and Charlie passed him a dusty bottle of pre war whisky. "And for our host. Thank you for the invitation, we are at your service."

"Well If I'd known you'd bring this you could have come sooner." Robco stepped aside, inviting them in. "Welcome to the Rest."

Rosie enjoyed a leisurely morning, until Suzette arrived. Her arrival spurred a whirl of activity, centred on Rosie. She stood on a box in the dress while Suzette made her final alterations. Louisa and Jenny helped do her hair and makeup while getting ready themselves.

Louisa answered a knock at the door. "Hello, I'm looking for…" Brandon peered in and saw her. His face made the pin pricks worth it. "I'm looking for Rosie, greasy hair, mucky hands, generally in need of a good wash." Brandon joked as he and Charlie stepped in.

"Don't worry, we won't wear them to the ceremony." Charlie covered the long moment it took them to disarm.

Louisa poured them a drink and sat them down. "The dress is beautiful. You're very talented." Charlie made an effort to talk to Suzette. "Is that what you did before?" Charlie's dig went unnoticed by everyone but Rosie and Brandon.

"Heavens no, I was a structural engineer." Suzette answered, earning respect in the room. "My mother, she was the fashionista." Suzette weighed up Charlie with a glance. "If she was here, she'd have you walking with a stack of books on your head." She smiled, putting on a pose and accent. "'Walk like a lady, do no trot like a sow.'"

"Where was she from?" Brandon asked, keen to hear stories of the old world.

"Paris, the city of lights." She smiled with a sadness in her eyes.

"Sounds beautiful." Rosie struggled to imagine an entire city of lights.

"It was." Suzette stepped back, taking in her work. "And in that dress, you'd have fit right in." Suzette helped her step down from the box. "Can we get a mirror?"

"No need." Rosie connected to Janey, seeing herself through the robotic eye. Rosie drew in in a sharp breath, clasping her hands to her mouth.

The dress of pure white quivered and moved as she did. The alterations made it cling to her figure, held up by impossibly thin straps. She felt like a woman in a picture from the old world.

"That better be waterproof mascara." Charlie added.

"She's a crier is she." Suzette reached out, tilting Rosie's head up and pinching her arm.

"Ouch." Rosie said sarcastically.

"You're not crying though. Say 'merci, Madame Devereaux.'" Suzette smiled. "Who's next?"

"Major Briggs. Front and centre." Brandon gave a direct order. Charlie scowled.

Suzette chose an outfit for Charlie, after dismissing her own choice. A dark green dress with a high collar, long slits that showed off Charlie's legs. "See, gives you length, doesn't wash you out. And you don't look like a harlot." Suzette teased, Rosie caught Charlie admiring herself in the mirror.

Charlie sat while Louisa did her makeup. "Do you have something old?" Suzette asked.

"Shit. Sorry Suzette I forgot." Louisa stopped working on Charlie. "How's it go again?"

"A bride needs something old, something new. Something borrowed and something blue. It's a tradition." Suzette seemed to think it important. "I'm sure we can find them. You must have something old that's special to you?"

"My sword." Rosie answered instantly, getting it wrong. "Seventeenth century." She sounded defensive.

"Something new?" Suzette asked.

"The boots Lou made me." Rosie saw Louisa appreciate that, and it meant not wearing heels. She pointed to the leather boots by the door and Brandon passed one to Suzette.

"Well these are lovely." Suzette admired the black roses carved in the leather. "Who taught you to make such lovely things Lou?"

"You did, Suzette." Louisa had a warm expression. "And something blue?" Suzette asked again. Rosie didn't own anything blue, deliberately so.

"John's eyes." Rosie shifted awkwardly. Suzette pinched Brandon's arm. "What about something borrowed?" Rosie asked. Suzette reached for her things, pulling out a long, thin box. Rosie opened it, seeing a string of perfect pearls on red velvet.

"Madame Devereaux would want you to wear these." Suzette ran her finger along the pearls, they clearly meant a great deal to her. "Of course if she knew you'd be carrying a sword and wearing riding boots, she'd spit on the floor."

"Thank you." Rosie nearly cried. Ashamed for ever thinking of Suzette as less than human.

John sat, listening to wedding related stories, when a voice came over his comm. "Ronin, Valkyrie. Request accurate bearing. How copy?" Val struggled to hide her annoyance.

"Solid copy Valkyrie." John started to request her current position, but stopped. He used the system, the data from the broadcast transposed into a green blip on the horizon. "You overshot." John tried to hide his pleasure at her making the same mistake he did. "Head north, north west, two klicks."

John went to get Brandon, the senior officer on site. He knocked on the door to Robco's house. It opened and slammed shut instantly. "I need Brandon." He shouted through the door.

"Bad luck to see the bride, John." Brandon squeezed through the door.

"I know, Tempest is inbound sir." John saw he'd done right.

John led Brandon down to the Pass. Piles of rocks and logs dotted around. The containers serving as a temporary landing pad. "You have been busy." Brandon said as he surveyed the site.

"Yes sir. Another month and it'll be close to done." John looked around and what he still had to do. "Six weeks." The noise of a Vertibird landing stopped him from adding another week.

"I told you we'd overshot." Valkyrie yelled as the engines spun down.

"I told you to fly slower." Crixus shouted back, helping Beverly out first then Jen.

"Can it you two." Sara stepped out, putting an end to the squabble.

"This place looks great." Beverly glanced around the place she'd inspired.

"How are they, my, your guests?" John had resisted checking on the first batch of evacuees, knowing he had to keep some distance.

"Great." Beverly seemed genuinely pleased. "Six of them have already found a place to live. They're tough people."

"You sure the comm is going to hold?" Sara asked as they walked up to the Rest.

"Rosie says it will, I'm sure she'd be happy to explain it to you." John tried to set her mind at ease.

"The world won't end if you take a few hours off." Brandon added. "Not again, probably."

"Boss told me you got a pet robot up there." Jen seemed sceptical, like she was being set up.

"Her name is Janey, and she doesn't like being called a pet." John saw her eyes widen and pace quicken.

John led the final arrivals to his house, finding Suzette waiting. He tensed up as Sara saw her, luckily Brandon stepped forward. "Suzette, may I present my daughter Sara."

"Hello." Sara forced a smile.

"She's the best man." Brandon covered the awkward moment.

"How very modern, but I only have suits left." Suzette swapped her glasses over and beckoned Sara over. "Let me get a look at you. Come on, I don't bite. Not yet anyway." Suzette's joke caught Sara off guard.

Suzette weighed Sara up, making her stand straight, holding shirts up against her. John paced nervously, yet he saw how determined Sara looked. She wouldn't disrespect Brandon, or him.

An hour later everyone had changed. Grimm, Styx and Acheron wore brightly coloured shirts. Each more garish than the last, something of a contest. Brandon, Matt and Paul, wore their own suits. Each with a tie and pocket square like his. Made from the soft, white fabric.

He turned and saw Sara. Suzette had altered the suit to fit, matched with an open collared dress shirt. "You look fucking great Boss." John instantly wished he hadn't sounded so surprised.

"I do?" Sara seemed uncharacteristically unsure of herself.

"What about me?" Valkyrie wore the same thing, only without the dress shirt.

"I need help with my tie." John asked Suzette.

"I got it." Virgil shouted in from outside, cigarette smoke blowing in. John headed out back while everyone went out the front.

"Sit down, I can't do it backwards." John took Virgil's seat, next to Robco. He sat as Virgil stood behind him. Even with his prosthetic, he tied a neat knot in a few seconds. "Looking sharp, kid." He stepped back and lit another cigarette. "You got a minute?"

"I'll head out there, don't be too long." Robco left to give them a moment.

"I'd like to say a prayer." Virgil had a hushed reverence to his voice. John nodded, not fully understanding. Virgil shut his eyes and took John's hand. "Lord, we ask you watch over John and his family. Grant him strength when he is weak. Let him find comfort from the storm. And bless him with peace as he walks his path. Amen." Virgil took a moment of silence and let out a deep sigh. John still didn't understand fully, yet couldn't fault the sentiment.

Virgil stopped as they walked out into the centre of the Rest. "Here, wedding present." He tossed something to John from his pocket. A rock, about the size of a golf ball, one side machined flat. "It's a rock." Virgil rasped.

"I see that, thank you." John thought it might be one of those stones for getting rid of dry skin.

"Yeah, a rock. A lot like the rocks round here." Virgil took a long drag on his cigarette, a glint in his black eyes. "Only it ain't from round here. Turn it over." John looked at the flat side of the rock, rubbing the dirt off the writing.

"Recovered from the Sea of Tranquility, April twenty forty eight. Where's that?" John asked. Virgil nodded over his shoulder. Hanging low in the cloudless and bright winter sky, John saw the silver semi circle of the Moon. "Wait, are you telling me that this is from there?!" John held the rock like it might break.

"Cost me a prince's ransom at auction." Virgil chuckled to himself. "But yeah kid. That right there is a four point five billion year old certified piece of moon rock. Did the carbon dating myself."

"Thank you." John could barely speak.

"You're welcome. It's good that it stays in the family." Virgil hurried off as the moment threatened to overwhelm them both.

Rosie peeked out of the curtains, seeing everyone gathered. "Now?" She asked.

"A little longer." Brandon replied. "It's better to make a big entrance sometimes, remember." He walked round the now empty house, peering into Wallace's room. "You know it's not too late to call it all off. Say the word, we'll be over that wall and in the wind." He only half joked.

"I'm right where I want to be." Rosie couldn't picture her life any other way. She didn't want to.

"I know, but what kind of father would be if I didn't ask." He took her hand. "Now." Brandon opened the door.

John turned at hearing the wedding music. His breath caught in his throat as he saw Rosie. Walking on Brandon's arm. Flowers in one hand, sheathed sword in the other. He couldn't believe how good she looked, like a picture in a magazine.

Rosie made her way down the aisle. Brandon took the sword with an exaggerated shake of the head, and sat.

John looked into her eyes for the first time today. A spark of excitement between them. He turned and cast his gaze across the faces around him. Almost everyone he'd met on his journey, everyone he knew in the world. All except one. Robco stood at the podium next to them, and clicked on the radio.

"My children, my children, my children. Lady Luck is with you, and she's got something real special for you today." The smooth voice sounded giddy. "The only thing more precious than luck in this world is love. Out there are two brave souls, ready to share their lives together. And I'm lucky enough to be the one who makes it official. Repeat after me.

John and Rosie put a ring on each other's hand, then repeated the words together. "Wherever you go, I go. Whatever I have, you have. And if someone wants to get to you, they have to go through me. Now and always."

"With all the power of the Tower vested in me, I now pronounce you married. You may kiss." John and Rosie kissed to cheering and ringing bells over the radio. "Pour one out for me baby! Lady Luck is with you. Time to celebrate!" They walked back down the aisle to applause and tears.

"I always leak ocular coolant at weddings." Janey piped up. "That was a joke, my ocular coolant systems are functioning effectively."

"Alright, let's eat." Robco shouted, prompting a rapid rearrangement of chairs and tables. Robco served roast hog. Paul and Matt served the venison. Charlie and Janey mixed cocktails. Everyone enjoying the party.

As the eating finished, Sara stood, and began knocking on the table. The Brotherhood custom soon echoing all around. "Brothers, friends, family." Sara brought the knocking to a close with a raised hand.

"Today I am the best man, and tradition demands I tell you things that embarrass John. Which leaves me with a problem. Do I tell you fine people about the time he thought he'd eaten mole rat. Or the time he ran screaming from one. Do I tell you about the time he tried to shake Grimm's hand." That brought more knocking.

"The problem with every story is that they didn't embarrass him. Didn't slow him down or hold him back. Every new challenge faced head on. Every time he got knocked down, he got back up. So while today, I'm honoured to be the best man, tomorrow I won't be." Sara threw him a wink and raised her glass. "To John and Rosie. May your bond be strong as steel."

"Nice speech Boss." John leant in to say, over the knocking and clapping.

"I learnt from the best." Sara nodded past Rosie as Brandon stood.

"Brothers, friends, family. I first met Rosie after the worst day of her life. Beaten and bloodied, half delirious from starvation and dehydration. Still she fought, tearing her own stitches and iv lines. Trying to get to John. In the time that I have known her, she has done things that redefined what I thought possible. She has saved lives. She has freed the enslaved. She has risked her life for strangers on the road. And I am proud to call her family."

"This world did not welcome Rosie. Not the way that you good people have welcomed her. To see her at home in this wondrous place, brings me peace. I thank you for it." Brandon seemed to hesitate for a moment. "I know some of you have mixed feelings about the Brotherhood. I can't defend everything we do, I won't. I will tell you though, every sworn knight I have ever known would stand outside that gate. Ready to give their lives for a place like this. So we can have days like today." Knocking built all around.

Brandon held out a bottle of pre-war champagne at arms length. Rosie stood to his side, sword in hand. "Ladies and gentlemen, pray charge your glasses and be upstanding." Everyone stood and raised a glass. Rosie opened the champagne with a precise slash. Brandon didn't even flinch. "The bride and groom."

"The bride and groom!" Everyone cheered, filling the Rest with life and music.