Stars Are A Blessing From Mothman

It was warm that afternoon as Vincent walked back home from Sutton Station. He had gone to trade some extra guns he’d picked up while wandering around since his home, Summersville, didn’t have a train station of its own. He had his jacket tied around his waist and his scarf shoved into his backpack. It was about halfway to Summersville when Vincent ran into a young man crouched over a bag. He was wearing a red letterman jacket, the back of it had a poorly embroidered Mothman image with text that read “A Moth”, it was clearly re-embroidered from something else but Vincent couldn’t quite figure out what it used to say. Nonetheless the man piqued Vincent’s interest, though he probably shouldn’t bother him. He kept walking until the man quickly turned to look at him.

“Hello there fellow traveler! Are you too searching for the Holy Mothman?” He asked, promptly standing up. Vincent froze, he was a bit caught off guard by the man’s enthusiasm, though he was glad to not have been attacked on sight.

“Er, uh no. I’m just walking back home from Sutton.” Vincent explained, “Are you looking for him?”

“Why yes I am! I’m Brother Steven, Steven Scarberry. Who are you?” Steven replied. He held out his hand to shake Vincent’s.

“I’m Vincent, it’s uh nice to meet you Steven.” Vincent took Stevens hand in a firm hold. “So you’re part of that Mothman cult, yeah?’ He asked

“ We’re not a cult, it's more of uh….club..thing? What’s the word uhh…. Oh yeah! A family, that’s it, we’re a family in unwavering support of the Holy Mothman!” Steven started “But yes I am a Follower of The Winged One.” Vincent nodded.

‘Why exactly are you searching for him? And why are you searching alone?” Vincent asked, curious to if he had any sort of motive.

“I’m on a pilgrimage of sorts, so I can learn of his glory firsthand.” Steven explained.

‘Ah okay. Y’know I met a Mothman once.” Vincent told him, Steven’s eyes almost immediately lit up. Well I mean what’re the chances he would just happen to meet someone who was lucky enough to be blessed with the Holy Mothman’s presence?

“You have!? Did you by chance see the secrets of his gaze?? Tell me everything” Steven said excitedly, leaning closer to Vincent.

“I’m from Vault 76 and a few days after I had left the vault I was wandering through the forest and there he was. He had an oddly calming presence.” Vincent described it, it was a true story. ‘I’ve had an affinity for the Mothman ever since.”

“How beautiful, may I have such luck someday.” Steven replied in wonder. “Ah but I should let you on your way, safe travels friend.” He kneeled down to pick up his bag.

“Hey wait uh, I know you said you’re away from your cul- I mean family, do you need somewhere to stay?” Vincent quickly asked, he was oddly charmed by the man and most people prefer to not sleep out in the open. “I have some extra space back home.”

“Well I mean I don’t really have any concrete place to stay, I could also use some extra help finding things for the ritual.” Steven mumbled to himself. “Thank you greatly Vincent, in return I shall show you the gift of his light and protect against ‘unwanted guests’ so you may rest easy at night.” He quickly joined Vincent’s side as the two finished the walk to Summersville. He was truly grateful for the offer of a place to stay and another follower to converse with, or at least the next best thing. Vincent was kind of just glad to have someone to actually talk to rather than being alone.

The evening rolled around when the two got to Vincent’s home. The old pre-war house creaking slightly in the breeze.

“What a perfect time to start searching! Will you be joining me Vincent?” Steven asked, remarking on the fleeting sunlight. Vincent looked at him, he was putting his jacket back on before it got too cold.

“Well sure, I don’t see why not.” Vincent replied. He adjusted his glasses and went to follow Steven, who was walking into the nearby forest. Sure they had just gotten home and were now basically walking back the way they came but neither of them really thought about that. Neither of them even really knew exactly where they were going as the trees blocked the light from the already dim sky. Steven insisted that Vincent keep his Pip-boy light down, saying that the Mothman prefers natural light and it won’t help them. So the two wandered through the dark, tripping over sticks, rocks, each other, and basically everything else that could possibly be on the ground. Eventually they reached an opening in the trees. Vincent looked up at the sky, it was dark now and the stars were fully on display, sparkling brightly.

“Woah..” He breathed. Steven moved next to him, their shoulders brushing each other. They stood and stared at the sky for a minute or two before Steven sat down on the dirt. Vincent followed,taking off his hat and laying down next to him. Now that he thought about it, Vincent had never really taken a good look at the stars after he left the vault. It was nice.

“Hey Steven, are the stars always this pretty?” He asked. Steven looked at him, confused.

“What do you mean, have you never seen the stars before?” Steven replied.

“Well I have but this is the first time I’ve ever actually really looked at them.” Vincent said. Steven simply nodded.

“Ah, yeah I would say they’re this lovely every night, they say the more stars in the sky the more likely the Mothman is to appear.” He commented.

“Hm, interesting..” Vincent replied softly. A comfortable silence filled the air after that, only being interrupted by the soft breeze. They had nearly forgotten about their original goal of searching for the Mothman and instead stayed staring at the stars for hours.

The two eventually headed back to Vincent’s house, not wanting to fall asleep in the random opening. They never did find the Mothman that night but it definitely wouldn’t be the last night they went out searching only to get preoccupied watching the sky.