Issei blinked as he remembered what happened. "Oh yeah... I forgot about that part." He said with a groan.

"You got shot in the head..." Belle said, looking at the courier with a blank look. "Twice..."

"Yeah, fucker got lucky I was drunk." He said as he looked at her. "And not in the right headspace... I swear... I should have ripped that asshole apart!" 

"TWICE!"

"It's only 9mm; it'll take stronger calibers to take me out, " he said with a shrug as he looked at her.

"How?!" Wise asked as Issei grinned and took a key he had.

"No!"

The key struck his skin but bounced off it, leaving not even a bruise.

"Radiation has some interesting effects on the body, that along with my training in the Divide gave me some powerful mutations, making my body more durable than usual. Regular bullets would have a hard time damaging my body and the lower the caliber, the less effect they have," Issei explained with a grin. "Melee weapons and unarmed combat are different, the only way to deal significant damage on me per blow would be if my attackers are stronger than my natural durability," 

"Wait, so just like the movies?" Anby asked, leaning in to get a better look at Issei. "Like dousing yourself in radioactive wastes will get you powers?" 

Issei blinked, frowning a bit before he approached Anby and pinched her cheeks, stretching them some. 

"Ow..." 

"Do not. I repeat, DO FUCKING NOT, Douse yourself in radioactive wastes or any form of harmful radiation," He said with a shiver. "Trust me, you'll get yourself cancer or... it'll cook you inside out. If you're lucky, you'll become a ghoul," 

"A Gwhoul?" Anby asked, looking unbothered at the pinching of her cheeks. 

"A human who survived a large amount of radiation in their body essentially no longer being affected by time," 

"Wait, you can become immortal with radiation?!" Nicole asked, looking at Issei with money symbols in her eyes Issei chuckled and suddenly blurred in front of his seat much to everyone's surprise as he looked at them. 

"Yes and no. You can become a ghoul but the process is pretty painful," Issei said, putting on a pair of glasses. "You see, to become a ghoul, you need a compatible body and a large amount of radiation, either by prolonged exposure or being near ground zero of a large-scale nuclear explosion," Seeing the ghouls, Nicole blinked and frowned. Yeah no, she'd rather not sell the plans to be one. 

The rest watched in fascination. 

"Can you eat them?" 

"Soukaku!" Yanagi said, looking at the oni. 

"Well, yes. But that's only if you want to be a cannibal and risk a Russian roulette of painful death via radiation," Issei said with a shrug, ignoring how the audience looked at him weirdly. "What? I had some ex-cannibals working for me," 

"Wait, working for you?" Seth asked, looking at his friend and drinking body. 

"Yup, but it's a spoiler so I can't tell you anything," He said with a shrug before appearing next to Belle with a grin. 

"No fair! Tell me!" 

"Nope!" Issei said, popping the 'p' as he smiled at Soukaku, enjoying the Oni's antics. 

"Behave, Soukaku," Yanagi said with a sigh. 

The screen blinked to life, a blurred ceiling came into view as Issei came to consciousness. 

"You're awake. How about that." Hearing that voice, Issei suddenly sat up with his hand reaching for the gun on his hip, only to feel nothing where his gun should have been, only for a searing headache to burn in his head. 

"Nice instincts," Yanagi commented, remembering her days in service. 

"He's nice," Belle commented as Issei gave her a nod. 

A small fond smile on his face at the face of the doctor who saved his life. 

Well, that was until they saw the state Issei was on.

"Whoa, easy there. Easy. You have been out cold a couple of days now." The doctor said, holding Issei's shoulder, helping him sit properly. The screen suddenly panned away and instead of seeing through the eyes of the courier. "Why don't you just relax a second? Get your bearings."

It showed Issei's back, covered in scars from blades and bullet wounds along with some that came from the terrain. There were some tribal tattoos on his shoulders and for someone who looked thin in his clothes, he was toned and with a swimmer's build. 

A low whistle came from an impressed Lighter as he saw the scars. Bullet wounds littered Issei's back along with some from blades. 

Belle looked at the screen, her eyes wide as she watched each detail of his body. Burnice giggled at the sight while Caesar blushed. 

However, Jane frowned as she noticed some scars. A frown that did not go unnoticed by Seth. 

"What's wrong, Jane?" 

"Torture," She whispered to the police officer who blinked. 

"Let's see what the damage is. How about your name? Can you tell me your name?" 

"Issei, Issei Hyoudou..." With a wince, the young man shook his head as he grabbed his head. 

"Huh. Can't say it's what I'd have picked for you. But if that's your name, that's your name." The doctor gently looked at Issei's head with a frown before smiling as he introduced himself. "I'm Doc Mitchell. Welcome to Goodsprings. Now, I hope you don't mind, but I had to go rooting around there in your noggin to pull all the bits of lead out. I take pride in my needlework, but you'd better tell me if I left anything out of place. I take pride in my needlework, but you'd better tell me if I left anything out of place. How'd I do?"

"As good as an auto doc," Issei praised as he felt his  scars, the only thing missing were the pieces of flesh that would surely scar 

"Well, I got most of it right, anyway. Stuff that mattered." The doctor said with a chuckle. "Okay. No sense keeping you in bed anymore. Let's see if we can get you on your feet. Good. Why don't you walk down to the end of the room? Over by that vigor tester machine there. Take it slow now. It ain't a race." 

The courier nodded, getting off the bed with ease, and started stretching his feet a bit before taking several steps toward the device. 

Suddenly, his body blurred, teleporting himself face-first into a nearby wall. "Ow..."

The audience turned towards the courier, looking at him intently.

"One of my mutations. I call it Zero Shift, it's pretty handy in Melee and unarmed combat," Issei said with a shrug. "Or sniping," 

"You can teleport?! That is so cool!" Billy gushed, looking at the courier in a renewed light. Hell, he was even animatedly bouncing in his seat. 

"Thanks, Billy," The courier said, flushing a bit. 

"Wait, didn't you say you already have enhanced durability for your mutation?" Miyabi said, looking at him with curiosity. 

"I did, well, I gained the ability to Zero Shift a few months after I started creating supply lanes to and from the Divide," Issei said with a smile. "I'm not sure, but I was hunting someone with a similar ability and powerful mind control abilities as a job for NCR rangers," 

"And how did you take care of this person?" Miyabi asked. 

"Hmm... it was difficult. I had to weave in and out of this guy's cult headquarters and had to sabotage the base's electrical grid by putting a bomb on it and using that sudden distraction to try and snipe him. He was able to Zero shift but I managed to cut off a hand with a bullet," Miyabi took a mental note of this. "But, sadly he managed to escape deeper and challenged me in a duel."

"How did you beat him?" 

"Take me out on a date first, Miyabi," Issei said with a wink and the young woman frowned, no longer able to gather any more information at one of Issei's abilities. 

"No thank you," 

"Your loss," 

"Boo, you suck," Veronica jeered before chuckling at a playful punch to her shoulder by Issei. 

"Looking good so far. Go ahead and give the vigor tester a try. We'll learn right quick if you got back all your faculties." Issei nodded as he held the Vigor Tester's joystick and suddenly, values came on the numerous attributes. 

"I guess that explains how you're still alive. You're built solid as an oak." The good doctor commented. "Let's go into the next room. I've got a few more tests I'd like to run."

"Well, we know your vitals are good. But that don't mean them bullets didn't leave you nuttier than a Bighorner dropping. What do you say you take a seat on my couch and we go through a couple questions? See if your dogs are still barking."

The members of Public Security, Lycaon, and the others noticed something. It was a psychiatric evaluation and most of them decided to take some notes to get a proper hold on the courier's personality.

"All right. I'm gonna say a word. I want you to say the first thing that comes to mind." The doctor said and the courier nodded. "Dog,"

"Cat," 

"House" 

"Target" 

"Night"

"Shroud" 

"Bandit" 

"Crush"

"Light" 

"Dark" 

"Okay. Now I got a few statements. I want you to tell me how much they sound like something you'd say." 

"Got it," Issei answered with a nod. 

"Conflict just ain't in my nature."

"I strongly agree," Issei replied, surprising the audience especially Caesar and Lucy who had seen him hunt raiders. 

"I ain't given to relying on others for support."

Issei was about to answer when suddenly, memories of a place assaulted his mind. Of a beautiful settlement through powerful storms. A place that changed his life. "I disagree," 

Seeing the settlement covered in storms, the audience looked at the screen in shock. How can a settlement like that exist?! Veronica's eyes sparkled at the sight of old-world technology while Christine frowned at the storms.

Miyabi, who happened to look at Issei blinked as she noticed a slight flinch. A reaction noticed by Grace, Billy, and Lycaon. 

"I'm always fixing to be the center of attention."

"I strongly disagree," Issei immediately replied. While he would have loved to be the center of attention by women in his teenage years, it serves nothing as a burden to him since being at the center of attention made his job even harder than it should be. 

"I'm slow to embrace new ideas." 

"I agree..." Weakly replied the courier with a flush on his cheeks. It took him a while, around a few days before it sunk in that he was no longer in his original world and even longer to get used to killing things. But hey, it helped him be the man he is today,

"I charge in to deal with my problems head-on."

"I Strongly Disagree," surviving in a post-nuclear wasteland made it easy for him to stop rushing headfirst, especially since it often led to him getting beaten in spars by his mentors when he was still training all those years ago. 

"Almost done here. What do you say you have a look at this? Tell me what you see." The doctor pulled out a paper with ink blotches on it. 

Seeing the blotches, Soukaku giggled as she looked at the pictures, even some of the less mature people in the audience. 

"A shadow in a doorframe," Issei replied. Memories of his training in the Divide appeared in his mind once more. A training where he had to play hide and seek with the instructor as he used every sense he had to escape them. 

"A ship at sea," Issei replied after seeing the second photo as his mind drifted to his youth when he used to watch movies with his parents. 

"A bearded man," Issei answered as he looked at the last photo. 

Well, that's all she wrote." The doctor said with a fond smile. |I don't have nothing to compare it to, so maybe you'd better just have a look at the results. See if it all seems right to you." Handing a piece of paper to the courier, the courier looked at it and nodded before handing it back. 

"Before I turn you loose, I need one more thing from you. I got a form for you to fill out, so I can get a sense of your medical history. Just a formality. Ain't like I expect to find you got a family history of getting shot in the head." Chuckling at this, the young courier took the form and signed it before handing it back to the doctor. "All right. I guess that about does it. Come with me. I'll see you out."

Getting off the couch with ease, Issei stretched a bit, cracking his spine a bit before following the doctor to the door. Issei blinked as he saw a familiar Duffle bag, his own supplies containing some of his travel equipment. Luckily, it seems like the idiots did not plunder his stuff. 

"I hope you don't mind but I gave the note a look. I thought it might help me find a next of kin. But it was just something about a platinum chip. Well, if you're heading back out there, you ought to have this." The doctor said, showing a device in his hand. The same device Issei currently has on his left arm. 

"A Pip-Boy?" Issei looked at the doctor with wide eyes before seeing a picture of a familiar man. "Wait... you know James? James Shidou? As in scientist guy with a suicidally good-natured heart and love for the bible?" 

Hearing this, the good doctor's eyes widened before smiling brightly. 

"Yup, James, Catherine, my wife, and I. Used to live in Vault 21 before he and Catherine went to the Capital Wastelands," The Doctor said with a soft smile. "Last I heard him, he died four years ago or so," 

"I... I met James when I was helping his daughter get to him. He was a cool guy... threatened to lobotomize me if I touched his daughter," Issei said with a soft smile, remembering the man he befriended. "He has a memorial now and he's one of the reasons why drinkable water is much more common," 

"Project Purity," Hearing this, Issei's eyes widened. "What about James' Daughter," 

"No clue... Last I heard of Irina, she was still with the Brotherhood of Steel's Lyons Pride chapter," Issei said with an ashamed look in his eyes. "Knowing her, she's fine. Irina's one mean and tough cookie. She went from a wide-eyed Vaultie to a badass paladin in a few months," 

"That's good to know, I assume you know how to use a Pip-boy?" 

"Well, in theory... but doesn't it have a biometric lock? How... oh right... doctor," 

"Hehe... you're alright, kid," The doctor said with a smile. "Ain't much use to me now, but you might want such a thing, after what you been through. I know what it's like, having something taken from you,"

This time, Issei who was sitting in the audience visibly flinched, and a look of shame formed in his face. 

"Issei?" 

"I'm fine..." Issei replied as he looked at the screen. "The hardest part is letting go..." He whispered with only Ben, Lycaon, Seth, Billy, and Miyabi being able to hear it due to their enhanced senses. They could hear the sheer self-hatred in his tone. 

Christine heard this and gently squeezed Issei's hand, after all, she was the only one who would know. 

"And put this on, too, so the locals don't pick on you for lacking modesty. Never was much my style anyway." Chuckling, Issei took the Vault 22 Vault Suit and easily managed to slip inside the Jumpsuit. Grabbing a pistol from his pack with a modified belt with pouches and holsters, the young man wrapped it around his waist and nodded to himself. 

"God, Irina would tease and rip on me if she saw me like this..." Issei said with a fond smile. 

Hearing this, Belle's opinion of Irina lowered a bit. What? She was not jealous, she was just annoyed someone would rip on her friend like this. 

"Thanks for patching me up, Doc," 

"Don't mention it. It's what I'm here for. You should talk to Sunny Smiles before you leave town. She can help you learn to fend for yourself in the desert. She'll likely be at the saloon. I reckon some of the other folks at the saloon might be able to help you out, too. And the metal fella, Victor, who pulled you outta your grave.  Anyway, you ever get hurt out there, you come right back. I'll fix you up. But try not to get killed anymore."

"I won't ranger's honor," Issei said with a salute as he started to tinker with the Pip-Boy and at his bag. 'I need to drop some things off in one of the safehouses.'

"WAIT!? IT CAN HEAR MY THOUGHTS?!" Issei asked. "NO!" 

"Shut up!" 

As Issei opened the door, sunlight ran blinded the courier for a second. 

Suddenly, the screen blinked to life and started showing different people. 

An old man with a balding man clad in red and sitting on a throne. 

A general sitting in his office with a pair of men clad in black armor and helmeted masks with red visors guarding it.

A Robot with the same features as the one that rescued Issei but alone in a dark room.

A screen on top of a building surrounded by numerous of the same robots. 

The screen then showed a bandaged man performing maintenance on some pistols with smooth and clinical precision. 

An old man dressed in a blue robe studying technology

A group of floating machines with three monitors each 'looking' at some screens

Lastly, 

A man wearing a mask and a sleeveless duster with a flag on his back. 

The screen then paused, showing a picture showing all of them at the same time.

Seeing the montage, the audience blinked and looked at the Mojave trio and Ed-E. 

Christine glared hatefully as she looked at the old man in contrast to Veronica's pained look. 

Issei looked at the man with the flag on his back and frowned before he glared at the man in red on top of a throne. A cold glare that made those who saw it or even looked at him feel uncomfortable. 

The screen started to dim before the words 'Let go' in bold gassy red appeared. 

Seeing the gassy texture, Issei's hands reached for his neck and started scratching, scratching, scratching. The coolness of a metal collar, the beeping in response to exposure through radio waves... 

'I can't breathe...' Issei thought before a hand on his back. The moment it did, an image of one of the ghost people flashed in his mind. In that instant, he grabbed the hand on his shoulder, throwing it over his shoulder, and raised a foot. Stomping his foot on the ground with enough force to crush several inches of the floor, he frowned as he saw the person that touched his back and blinked as he saw Lycaon in a battle stance. 

"Master Issei!" 

Hearing his name, Issei blinked and saw Lycaon looking at him with wide eyes. Feeling something, he looked at his hand and noticed that he now had one of his straight razors he often hid in his person in the absence of any of his weapons. 

"You okay?" With practiced ease, Issei folded the straight razor in his hand before storing it away in a hidden compartment on his Pip-Boy. 

"I am fine, Master Issei," Lycaon said with a nod. "You have great instincts," 

"Sorry about that. Just got reminded of some things," He said to the Therian who shook his head. 

Miyabi looked at the red gas-like texture on the screen and filed it away inside her head for later.