Time seemed to slow as he watched the perpetrator attach the package to the underside of the truck... He honestly couldn't care if the truck was destroyed. The loss of the truck would be a massive blow to the NCR, for their overall resources as well as their morale.

The disruption to the supply line would also be incredibly effective in allowing a Legion ambush to successfully tackle them further down the road. Depending on how powerful the explosion is. the entire convoy may be forced to stop, allowing Legionaries to potentially destroy or capture the trucks and resources they hold... ​​

But, that isn't what Afton is concerned about... No. The thing that worried him the most was his seeming 'Double-Agent' status among both sides of the war. The NCR had no idea he working with the Legion, but once they found out they'd probably do their utmost to assassinate him...

If the NCR found out that he had ties with the Legion, and was also present when a bomb was planted on the convoy, fingers would not doubt be pointed at him... If he stopped them though, he could simply say that he was 'their' double-agent, working to gather information and stop Legion plots.

Of course, stopping the sabotage attempt would have many repercussions with his 'handlers' in the Legion. He knew he was in a disadvantaged position due to the information they were holding over his head, and any sign of resistance may just lead to them resorting to drastic measures...

...

He rubs his face, damn. When did this shit get so complicated?...

He has no idea how he wants to go about this, but... Perhaps he could find a solution that'd leave him in the clear? Yeah...

Afton gestures at the truck in the lead, "Man, I wonder where that scuff on its bumper comes from."

"The what!?" Josie exclaims, quickly marching over to examine it as Afton excuses himself.

He briskly walks over to the sabotouer and pats him on the shoulder, causing the man to whip around with a hand resting on his holster, "C-can I do something for you?" he quickly asks in surprise, no doubt wondering if he'd blown his cover.

Despite it still being up in the air as to who the man's loyalties lied with, Afton was almost entirely sure it was the Legion... So, Afton flashes the strange coin with a cross on it. Afton suspiciously looks around before quietly saying "Ave, true to Caesar."

The man blinks at him in surprise before quickly nodding and reciprocated, "Ave, true to Caesar... Who sent you? I was not told I would have assistance during my briefing." he asks.

Afton nods, "Of course you wouldn't, if you were captured my duties would be in jeopardy. Is your task complete?"

The man nods, "It is, as long as their route remains the same, our men should be in position. It will be a devastating blow to our enemies."

"I see, quickly, come with me, my task has encountered some.. Interference." Afton says as he briskly walks away from the convoy, behind a building in a location almost no one seems to visit.

The spy stops and looks at him expectantly, so who was Afton to leave a man hanging... Afton bends down to tie his shoes and draws a knife from the boot, immediately lunging forwards and stabbing the man in the throat, abruptly cutting off the scream in his throat.

He gurgles and tries to push Afton off, but his strength doesn't match even half of Afton's. After a couple more seconds of squirming, the man drops dead and Afton gently lowers his body to the floor, wouldn't be good for someone to hear it and discover the body.

Afton wasn't really sure what to do with the body, burying it would take far too long, people would notice if he burned it, and leaving it here would allow it to be noticed eventually... He shakes his head, whatever, as long as no one links the man's death with himself then there was nothing to worry about.

All that needed doing now was removing the bomb planted under the truck. Fortunately, that would be the easiest part of all this... He activates the Stealthboy and quickly makes his way to the truck, reaching under and disconnecting the bomb and retreating to the toilets before anyone was the wiser.

Once inside he deactivates the Stealthboy and begins examining the bomb, his Max level Explosives Skill allowing him to quickly figure it out. Obviously, the bomb was some kind of plastic explosive, most likely C4. If this amount had been left under the truck, it may have destroyed more than jus the single truck it'd been planted on...

The amount of C4 he currently held in his hand was enough to level a large building if placed correctly. He was quickly able to deactivate the timer mechanism attached to it as well, leaving him with a large amount of usable C4... He wasn't really sure what he'd end up doing with it, but it was better to have it than to not!

Once he double-checks that it isn't activated, he stows it away in his backpack and leaves the bathroom, arriving back where Josie was 'coddling' the truck.

"How's that scuff looking?" he asks from behind her with crossed arms.

"Which one... They're all covered in them! It's as if they're not taking care of them!" she exclaims, apparently having not noticed his momentary absence.

In the end, Jackson lets the Ranger leading the convoy know about the Long 15 having been cleared, but they made sure to radio into Camp McCarren to confirm this... A couple hours later, and everything was checked, allowing the group to travel north and not worry about Legion ambushes.

The convoy leaves and Jackson profusely thanks the group for their services towards the NCR. He even attempts to get them to stay longer, but Afton didn't pay any mind to it. He'd rather get moving before the NCR could discover the spy's corpse, any links between it and them wouldn't be a welcome one.

Most would say that they were walking away with nothing, but that isn't neccecarily true... Atleast, not for Afton.

[NCR Rep gained!]

[NCR Rep : Liked]