Cain, Alex, and Arcade taking out the Fiends in one night. Yes, it's something players of Fallout: New Vegas have probably done themselves, but tossing AlexMercer into the mix puts a spin on it that is every bit awesome as it is new and terrifying.
Arcade showing his increased badassery and cunning by dismantling his plasma pistol and hiding the components in his medicine bag to get through the weapons' check at Cottonwood Cove. Even Cain and Alex are surprised.
Cain dueling Benny in the arena. Sure, he's tired and injured, but hand-to-hand combat is not her specialty, and he makes her work for a win.
Bonus points for being her first and most important win over him. It's the entire reason she went in, after all—she wasn't going to be satisfied with shooting him after he'd been tied up and handed over to her, she wanted to EARN her victory.
While mostly amusing, there has to be something said for the fact that Cain's cooking is so good, cannibals like it.
Alex: Oh, I eat people. But I'm not like you at all. Want to see why?
Alex's first encounter with a deathclaw. He decides to see if he can take it on with as little powers of possible, so he wrestles it. The deathclaw is such a fearsome opponent that it's the first time Alex has actually required to put effort into his battles to win, even if "effort" translates to "removing my self-imposed handicap".
If you thought Alex fighting his first deathclaw was awesome, you'll be blown away by Alex Mercer vs every deathclaw in Quarry Junction.
It features the first appearance of Alex's signature blade, which he whips out and flourishes with style before diving into the swarm.
Veronica: That is the most metal thing I have ever seen in my life.
The deathclaws are no slouch—their claws are actually able to break through his armor, their armor is strong enough to resist his claws, and their sheer numbers eventually get Alex pinned to the ground. Had he been anyone else, it would have been game over for him.
He ends up having to use two Devastators to win, and even then the alpha male survives! Cue them going mano-a-mano, with the victorious Alex regarding the alpha as a Worthy Opponent and eating as much as he can get away with. Not because he's hungry, but because Alex respects him so much he has to assimilate him. Anything that gets that much respect from Alex by far deserves it.
Alex rampaging through the Legion at Nelson in his new deathclaw form is bound to get a few cheers from the audience. They've spent the entire fic being their usual misogynistic, slaving, rapist selves, and gotten away with it because Cain has to bide her time until the right moment to screw them over, much to her and Alex's frustration. Seeing them get any amount of comeuppance, especially saturated in Alex's particular brand of fear, is cathartic.
Cain talking Elijah into letting Alex help her at the Sierra Madre is awesome for two reasons: one, the fact she can talk the literal madman out of making her kill Alex or blowing off her head for not doing so. And two, it's the first time she's been able to exert a little control over her situation. She's been kidnapped, stripped of her belongings, collared and treated like a slave, and faced with increasingly terrifying obstacles, but now she's regaining the upper hand.
Kudos to Alex for tracking Cain to the Sierra Madre in the first place. He spent two whole days traveling across the desert, following her scent, then just fought his way through the Cloud until he found her. Even Elijah is reluctantly impressed.
One for Christine, who calms herself in seconds with breathing exercises after being locked in and mauled by a malfunctioning Auto-Doc, and being released only to find out she's been fitted with a bomb collar by the madman she's hunting.
Steel was right. Christine might have stood small and scarred, but she commanded Cain's respect more than any suit of Power Armor.
Veronica fights two Brotherhood Paladins in full power armor with nothing but her Power Fist and manages to take down one of them.
Before she offs him, Cain decides to alert Dean to just who she's friends with, timing The Reveal perfectly for when Alex busts through the wall. Never have six words sounded so badass.
