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(A/N: Don't forget to give those power stones to Skyrim everyone!)
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Mary looked at Caleb, her eyes scanning his sharp, handsome features. There was something incredibly familiar about his piercing blue eyes and the calm, unwavering confidence he projected. Arthur noticed her slight hesitation and chuckled. "You actually know him, Mary. The two of you have met in the past, briefly, in the town of Valentine."
Mary blinked, her mind racing back to the muddy, chaotic livestock town.
"When you sent that letter asking me to help your little brother, Jamie," Arthur reminded her gently. "When he got wrapped up with those crazy Chelonian cultists on top of that mountain? Caleb was the man who accompanied me to go meet you, and he was the one who rode up that cliff with me to get your brother back safely."
Hearing that specific, harrowing memory, the pieces instantly clicked together in Mary's mind. She remembered the tall, incredibly intimidating gunslinger who had stood quietly behind Arthur near the Valentine train station, offering a silent, lethal presence that had guaranteed her brother's safe return.
Mary nodded her head rapidly, a sudden, brilliant smile breaking across her face as she remembered it. The man who had helped save her family back then was the same man offering Arthur a golden future today.
"Mr. ,Thorne! Yes, of course, I remember now," Mary greeted the both of them, her voice filled with genuine, profound gratitude. She offered a graceful, polite bow of her head. "It is an absolute pleasure to see you again. And it is wonderful to meet you too, Mary-Beth. Thank you so much for having me in your beautiful home."
Caleb and Mary-Beth immediately returned the greeting with identical, warm smiles. Caleb stood up from his chair, gesturing invitingly to the empty seats across the table.
"The pleasure is entirely ours, Mary," Caleb said, his rich voice echoing in the dining room. "Please, come sit down. Antonio will bring fresh coffee and pastries."
As Arthur pulled a heavy wooden chair out for Mary and helped her sit, Mary-Beth leaned forward, resting her arms on the table. Her dark eyes sparkled with a mischievous, incredibly warm light.
"It is a very exciting moment for me that I can finally, truly meet the famous Mary Linton in person," Mary-Beth said, her voice melodic and teasing.
Mary blushed slightly, taken aback by the title. "Famous?"
"Oh, incredibly famous in our circles," Mary-Beth chuckled sweetly, completely shattering the formal tension in the room. "After all, Arthur was talking about you for quite some time in the past. Even when we were moving through the absolute worst conditions, he would sit by the campfire and stare at the stars, talking about the girl he left behind."
Mary-Beth shot a highly amused look at the massive enforcer, deciding to push the teasing just a little bit further to break Arthur's tough exterior. "And I have to tell you, Mary... when your first letter after a long time not seeing each other arrived last year? He completely lost his mind. He began to talk about you again constantly. He has been pacing holes into the grounds of our camp, terrified of what you might think of him."
Hearing that blatant, completely accurate exposure of his deepest romantic vulnerabilities, Mary immediately glanced sideways at Arthur.
Arthur, the most feared, ruthless enforcer in the state of Lemoyne, a man who had fearlessly gunned down many outlaws and famed criminals, suddenly turned a bright, vibrant shade of crimson. He looked absolutely, thoroughly embarrassed. He shifted his massive frame uncomfortably in his chair and let out a couple of loud, gruff coughs into his fist to clear out his throat, desperately trying to regain a shred of his terrifying reputation.
"Alright, alright, that's enough of that, Mary-Beth," Arthur grumbled, though a small, incredibly fond smile betrayed his embarrassment.
Mary let out a soft, genuine laugh, looking at the big, tough man with eyes full of absolute adoration. To see him so thoroughly dismantled by a simple tease was the most endearing thing she had ever witnessed.
Caleb, watching the scene unfold from the side, let out a rich, booming laugh. He reached out and gently placed a hand over Mary-Beth's, telling her to reign it in just a little bit.
"Now, Mary-Beth, behave yourself," Caleb teased her right back, a highly charismatic smirk on his face. "Do not cause Arthur to be completely embarrassed in front of his lady. He is a very sensitive soul underneath all that muscle."
"I am not sensitive," Arthur mumbled into his coffee cup as Antonio arrived, flawlessly serving steaming cups of premium Guarma coffee and a silver platter of freshly baked French pastries.
With the ice completely, successfully broken, Caleb told the two of them to take a seat and make themselves entirely comfortable. The atmosphere in the dining room shifted from formal introductions to the warm, easy camaraderie of a family sharing a morning meal.
As they drank their coffee, Mary couldn't help but look around the opulent room again. The sheer magnitude of the wealth was still heavily weighing on her mind. She turned her gaze to Caleb, her expression turning slightly serious. She had lived a life surrounded by proper society, but she also knew the dark, violent history of the man sitting beside her. Mary tentatively asked Caleb about the specific nature of this "business" he had mentioned earlier.
"Arthur told me yesterday that he is an executive for your company, Mr. McLaughlin," Mary began, choosing her words very carefully, not wanting to offend the billionaire. "And I can see the incredible success you have achieved. But... forgive my curiosity. What exactly is the nature of the industry that has allowed you to build all of this so quickly?"
Caleb did not dodge the question. He knew that for Mary to truly, fully accept Arthur's new life, she needed absolute, uncompromising transparency. He needed to utilize his max level Persuasion Skill to paint a masterpiece of corporate legitimacy.
Caleb leaned back in his high backed chair, steepling his fingers together. He, of course, talked about the sprawling, completely legitimate fronts of his empire first.
"We are a highly diversified corporate syndicate, Mary," Caleb explained, his voice projecting total, undeniable professionalism. "Our primary focus over the last year has been heavy real estate development and industrial manufacturing."
He began to list the massive, unassailable pillars of their wealth.
"For instance, we have just completed the construction of a massive, multi story luxury hotel complex out in the mountains of Strawberry," Caleb detailed, watching Mary's eyes widen at the scale of the project. "It features a private hydroelectric dam, imported European furnishings, and it will cater exclusively to the wealthiest tourists and tycoons on the East Coast. It is a multi hundreds of thousands to millions of dollar hospitality venture."
"We also heavily dominate the local culinary and entertainment markets," Caleb continued smoothly. "We own and operate a highly successful, rapidly expanding restaurant chain that started in Valentine and has now established a massive flagship location right here in the center of Saint Denis, completely monopolizing the fast casual dining sector."
Mary nodded, thoroughly impressed by the sheer scope of the legal businesses. "That is... that is absolutely incredible, Mr. Thorne."
"And that is only the beginning," Caleb smiled, his blue eyes flashing with visionary intent. "Just yesterday, we officially opened the Thorne-Marlin Firearms factory on the western riverbanks. We are manufacturing the most advanced, revolutionary weaponry on the planet, and we have already secured massive, incredibly lucrative contracts with the federal military and independent security agencies."
Caleb paused, taking a slow sip of his coffee. He mentioned that he had many other grand plans, of course, for new businesses, shipping lanes, textile mills, and agricultural expansion into Rhodes, but it was still a plan in motion.
But Caleb was a man of his word, and he had promised Arthur absolute honesty. He set his cup down and looked directly into Mary's eyes, dropping the corporate veil to address the elephant in the room.
"However, Mary, I will not lie to you, and I will not insult your intelligence," Caleb stated, his voice dropping into a low, serious, and deeply honest register. "You know Arthur's past. You know what he was capable of. And you must know that an empire of this magnitude was not built entirely with handshakes and polite smiles."
Mary tensed slightly, her hands gripping her teacup.
"I am also the undisputed leader of a highly organized crime family," Caleb admitted truthfully, the words hanging heavily in the quiet dining room. "When I arrived in this city, the underworld was run by a vicious, brutal tyrant named Angelo Bronte. He preyed on the weak and poisoned the streets. I took his throne by force. I control the docks, I control the casinos, and I control the shadows."
Arthur looked down, bracing himself for Mary to stand up and run out the door, terrified of the mafia reality. But Caleb didn't stop there. He immediately delivered the absolute, defining truth of his reign.
"But I am currently in the aggressive, highly active process right now of converting this entire criminal syndicate into a fully legal, untouchable corporate structure," Caleb explained, his max-level Charisma radiating an aura of total security. "We are laundering the violence out of our daily operations. We are buying politicians, rewriting zoning laws, and paying taxes. We are transitioning from outlaws to untouchable industrialists."
Caleb looked at Mary, his gaze softening with a profound, protective sincerity.
"I am telling you this, Mary, so you understand the absolute truth," Caleb said firmly. "Arthur is my chief enforcer, yes. But his days of sleeping in the freezing mud, robbing stagecoaches for pennies, and running terrified from the law are completely, entirely over. He is a wealthy, respected executive. He has a permanent, heavily guarded home here. And most importantly, my contacts in Washington are currently erasing his federal bounties as we speak."
Caleb leaned forward, sealing the promise. "You do not need to worry for Arthur's safety anymore, Mary. He is safe. And if you choose to stand by his side, you will be under the absolute protection of my family. No one will ever harm you again."
The dining room fell into a heavy, profound silence.
Mary sat perfectly still, processing the sheer magnitude of the information. She looked at Caleb, recognizing the absolute, terrifying power the young man possessed, but also recognizing the fierce, undeniable loyalty he held for Arthur. She looked around the opulent room, feeling the warmth of the roaring fire and the physical security of the armed guards outside.
And finally, she looked at Arthur. She saw the big, rugged man who had loved her unconditionally for twenty years. She saw that the hunted, desperate look in his green eyes was completely gone.
Mary, hearing that absolute guarantee of a safe future, nodded her head slowly.
"It is... it is almost too much to comprehend," Mary whispered, a tear of pure, overwhelming relief slipping down her cheek. "I have spent my entire life terrified that one day I would open a newspaper and read that Arthur had been gunned down in a ditch. Hearing all of this... seeing this..."
She reached out, grabbing Arthur's massive hand and holding it tightly against her heart.
"It feels exactly how everything is supposed to be in a fairy tale," Mary said, her voice trembling with emotion. "It feels like a dream."
She took a deep breath, steeling her resolve. "But now... looking at you, Arthur, and hearing what Mr. Thorne has just promised... I am assured."
She looked back at Caleb, her eyes shining with newfound courage. "I know that there is a huge danger in the world you operate in. I am not naive to the violence. But with what Arthur has said to me yesterday, and how you have now so honestly said it to my face today... I truly feel that I could rest easy."
At this beautifully emotional, incredibly pivotal time, Mary-Beth reached across the mahogany table. She gently placed her soft hand over Mary's trembling one, offering a fierce, woman to woman solidarity that transcended the violence of their world.
Mary-Beth smiled, a bright, deeply empathetic expression radiating from her beautiful face.
"You can, Mary," Mary-Beth said to her, her voice soft but ringing with absolute certainty. "The running is over. The past is dead and buried. You and Arthur can finally, truly be together again, exactly as you were always meant to be. And you can do it without a single problem in the world."
Arthur squeezed Mary's hand, a single, silent tear escaping his eye as he realized that the nightmare was finally over. The billionaire empire, the factory, the absolute power, it all meant nothing compared to the woman sitting beside him, finally ready to share his golden future.
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Name: Caleb Thorne
Age: 23
Body Attributes:
- Strength: 8/10
- Agility: 8/10
- Perception: 9/10
- Stamina: 8/10
- Charm: 8/10
- Luck: 9/10
Skills:
- Handgun (Lvl MAX)
- Rifle (Lvl MAX)
- Firearms Knowledge (Lvl MAX)
- Past Life Memory (Lvl MAX)
- Knife (Lvl MAX)
- Blunt Weapon (Lvl MAX)
- Sneaking (Lvl MAX)
- Horse Mastery (Lvl MAX)
- Poker (Lvl MAX)
- Hand to Hand Combat (Lvl MAX)
- Eagle Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Dead Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Bow (Lvl MAX)
- Pain Nullifier (Lvl MAX)
- Physical Regeneration (Lvl MAX)
- Crafting (Lvl MAX)
- Persuasion (Lvl MAX)
- Mental Fortitude (Lvl MAX)
- Cooking (Lvl MAX)
- Teaching (Lvl MAX)
- Trilingual Language Proficiency - G, I, & C (Lvl MAX)
- Inventory System (Permanent - 100x100x100)
- Acting (Lvl MAX)
- Alcohol Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Treasure Hunter (Lvl MAX)
- Drugs Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Business (Lvl MAX)
- Leadership (Lvl MAX)
Money: 2,772 dollars and 60 cents
Inventory: 283,392 dollars and 61 cents, 11 gold nuggets, 74 gold bars, 1 Double Action, 1 Schofield, 2 Colm's Schofields, 1 land deed (Parcel), 1 Mauser, 1 Semi Auto Pistol, 1 Lancaster Repeater, 1 Old Wood Jewelry Box, 1 F.F Mausoleum small brass key, 1 Ruby, 1 Braithwaites Land Deed, 1 Broken Pirate Sword, 1 Milton's Safety Deposit Key, Proof Of Marlin-Thorne Firearms Co., 10 Dynamites, 1 LeMat, 1 M1899, 1 Carcano, 1 Ownership deed of Doyle's Tavern, 3 Diamonds, & Important Documents & Deeds Of Cornwall
Bank: -