"It was a vault of horrors, Mr. Cantelli." Adam said slowly, he paused to sigh as he prepared himself to share the story. "I have seen enough of the wasteland to know most things out there are scary, sure there are dangers, there are enemies out there. But there are very few creatures out there I would specifically call monsters." Adam paused again.
"These were monsters, Mr. Cantelli."
"Explain." He said back eyebrows raised, no longer looking annoyed, instead he looked interested.
"Creatures of human like form, tall, lanky, easy to damage but hard to stop, they did not feel pain. And worse than that, according to the logs I read, they were all once human, or, perhaps, descendants of those who were once human." Mr. Cantelli scratched his chin, absorbing the information.
"Go on." He bid Adam to continue.
"There were… I'm not sure, hundreds of these creatures in there. It took all we had to just reach the lab. Inside I found the logs of the man who headed up the research team of the vault. He claimed he was trying to enhance human genes but instead created monsters. The serum he created was the cause, the thing you sent me for." He paused again.
"And there was no serum left?" Cantelli asked inquisitively.
"No sir. The scientist, realizing his mistake in his final moments, destroyed what remained of his serum as well as the documents needed to replicate it. By the time we got there, there was nothing but monsters and an apology written by the man who created said monsters." Mr. Cantelli studied Adam's face for what seemed like an eternity, but was likely only a few seconds. This was it. If he didn't believe him all hell might break loose, Adam truly had no idea. But this was his only way forward. He could, possibly, have told the truth. Told him it was he who smashed the last vial. But this seemed to be the smarter option, after all, no one was there other than Deccanus and Adam. He had to believe this story.
After several tense seconds Mr. Cantelli rubbed the space between his eyes, where his nose would be, but of course there was no nose there, and then leaned back on his chair.
"What a shame." He said with another sigh. "But you did well to survive that mess and bring me back information. Sounds like there is nothing of value left in that vault." He said disappointed.
"No sir." Adam agreed. "I do not think there is ever a reason to open that Vault again." He said seriously. "Honestly, if you want my opinion. You should let people know that Vault 54 should never be opened, spray paint the door with a 'do not open' sign, and blow up the stairway leading to the Vault. If that vault stays buried forever all the better."
"Quite a drastic take, but I respect it." Mr. Cantelli said with a soft shrug. "It's a shame you couldn't get the item I requested but a deal is a deal." He said as he began to reach into his desk, procuring 500 caps worth of slips. "As agreed, 250 caps for you and 250 caps for your partner." He said, sliding them over.
"Actually I did bring something back." Adam said before even touching the slips. "It's not a serum, nor is it anything as impressive, but I figured you might want it at least as a momentum of the attempt."
"Oh?" Mr. Cantelli said, interested again. "What do you have for me?"
"It's a weapon designed by the creator of the 'aberrations' in the vault. It is back with the rest of my gear at the entrance to this area. If you would allow me to go get it for you-"
"No need." Mr. Cantelli said before snapping his fingers and one of the men left the room to retrieve the item. Meanwhile he leaned in. "I must say, you are quite the find, Mr. Baxter."
"What do you mean?" Adam asked, confused.
"Your skills I mean." he grinned. "It's not everyday that I stumble across a man so perfectly suited to my needs."
"I simply have a specific set of talents, that is all."
"Not at all." He corrected with a wag of his finger. "You went into a vault of horrors, in your own words, and came out of it alive, and with a story to tell. Most would have died."
"I would have if it was not for my partner." Adam added.
"Perhaps, but I'm sure you saved him just as much. Besides, your partner, Deccanus, he is former Legion yes? I don't know, or care, much about what happens way out west, but the Legion aren't exactly known for being fans of Vaults, so you spearheaded this effort." Adam was momentarily surprised he not only knew Deccanus was working with him but also that he was Legion. Deccanus had only joined him a few days ago. Mr. Cantelli noticed the look on Adam's face but only just grinned.
"Let's just say that you have caught my attention, Mr. Baxter."
"May I ask if that is a good or bad thing, Mr. Cantelli?" Adam asked, unsure. There was a pause before he shot Adam a dangerous smile.
"That remains to be seen." He said back almost menacingly. A moment later the door opened and a man walked in carrying Adam's gear, clearly unsure where or what it was Adam was referring to. He brought the stuff to Mr. Cantelli and dropped it on his desk in front of him gently.
"It's in the backpack, large pocket." Adam said, deciding to save them both time by simply telling him where it was. Mr. Cantelli reached into the bag and then pulled out one of the bobbleheads Adam had in the bag. The one that looked like a scientist, he looked at Adam confused and then put it on his desk. Reaching in again he pulled out the other bobble head, the one holding a little wrench and placed it down on his desk. He gave Adam another confused look.
"I collect them, I think they are cute." Adam chuckled, a bit nervous but mostly embarrassed. It was a bit like having a dirty secret found out, though truthfully it was nothing to be embarrassed about.
Mr. Cantelli said nothing about it and kept rooting around in the pocket until he found the sonic emitter.
"This it?" He asked curious as he showed it to Adam. Adam nodded.
"Yes, that's it." Mr. Cantelli began to look it over while Adam spoke. "It's a sonic emitter of some kind. It produces an intensely loud shriek and a blast of air alongside it. It was the only true defense against the aberrations. They seemed to despise the sound more than even we did and so it scared them off long enough for us to make progress."
"It uses a fusion battery?" he asked, curious.
"Yes, it does, but that battery is completely out of juice, you'd need a new one." Mr. Cantelli snapped his fingers again and one of the men left the room to walk down the hall. They came back a few moments later holding a fusion battery. As Mr. Cantelli began to swap out the fresh battery for the old one Adam spoke up.
"If you are planning to fire it, I suggest everyone in this room cover their ears." Adam offered advice before he slowly put his hands over his ears.
Mr. Cantelli raised an eyebrow and then shrugged, put one ear tight against his shoulder and covered the other with his hand, then fired the gun at the ceiling. The sound was just as Adam expected.
The men in black suits had not expected the sound to be as loud as it was, only one of them had covered their ears, all of them were caught off guard. Papers blew around the room for a moment in the shockwave of the blast and a few objects fell off of their shelves. Mr. Cantelli laughed as he uncovered his ears.
"Well." he grinned. "Now this is interesting." He looked at Adam. "This may not be super soldier serum, but it is quite the find. I'm sure I can find a use for it." He said as he put it on the shelf behind him. He then reached into his desk again and put another 500 caps worth of slips on the desk again, now totally 1000 caps on the desk.
"I'll consider an additional bonus of 250 for retrieving this item. You have done well, Mr. Baxter."
"Thank you, Mr. Cantelli." Adam said, sensing it was time to leave. As he got up mr. Cantelli stopped him.
"Mr. Baxter." He said before Adam left. Adam turned around to look at him again. "I'm sure I will contact you again soon. I look forward to hiring you again." He grinned,the same dangerous grin he had given him earlier. Adam just nodded and then walked out the door, putting the entire thing behind him for now.