[u][b][color=8493ca]Issac Jabsco - Talon Company, Enclave Operative Designation “ORION” The Commonwealth[/color][/b][/u] Issac’s long journey north was finally coming to an end. The broken highway beneath him had given way to wet marshlands some time ago, and it had been an increasingly difficult slog to make his way through the terrain of the southern Commonwealth. Wading through the disease-ridden quagmire had been bad enough, but evading the numerous mutated abominations that called it home had made it nigh intolerable. He’d seen more than enough Bloodbugs to last him a lifetime. If it wasn’t for the accompaniment of his Mr. Gusty escorts and a hazmat suit he doubted that he’d have made it. [i]Certainly marking that down as a potential obstacle for any military operations or trade missions here. Enclave ecological data needs a major update.[/i] He thought. Issac had taken a rest tucked inside of a rocky outcropping, where at least he’d have solid ground to lay on while he waited for the scout he’d sent out to return. The three Mr. Gusty units that carried his supplies and now helped guard his position were spread out in the corners of the outcropping’s perimeter. The military robots, supplied by The Enclave, hovered motionless above the bog, silently scanning the area for signs of hostile life. Issac had come to rely heavily on the bots throughout the trek since they provided him much needed additional security and, at the same time, served as adequate pack mules. Before long a soft electronic hum could be heard, and a floating eyebot meandered back to the makeshift shelter looking no worse for wear. Issac quickly pulled forth a pip-boy from a waterproof bag strapped to one of the Gutsy units and plugged it into the floating scout. “Poseidon Energy...excellent,” Issac mumbled as he shifted through the data, “It’s perfect….just what I was looking for.” ---------------------- En route to the Poseidon Energy plant that the eyebot had identified, Issac took stock of his situation. In his time in Talon Company, he’d performed all manner and stripe of jobs: hits on well protected warlords and kingpins, sabotage, and espionage...he’d made himself a name in certain circles for being able to pull things off that most mercenaries would balk at. Yet despite this, it was his older brother, Joseph Jabsco, that had taken the reigns of power in the organization, eventually becoming Talon Company’s Commanding Officer. When that had happened, Issac had redoubled his efforts, performing nigh suicidal actions that made him the most sought after mercenary in the Capital Wastes. While he’d made quite a name for himself all on his own, he never quite managed to bring himself out from behind his brother’s shadow. And when Joseph was killed in action, Issac was passed up for the Commanding role. It was shortly after that when The Enclave had rolled their gargantuan mobile base crawler to Megaton. In spite of the collective hopes of the region’s populace, The Brotherhood had finally been defeated at whatever climatic battle had heralded the end of the war. The Enclave had emerged triumphant, and The Capital Wasteland swiftly fell under their thumb. Issac knew when he saw the base crawler which horse he intended to back. The Enclave had shown their technological and military might to any potential challenger and it was clear they were dominant over all. Through this Issac also saw a potential ticket to power of his own. He knew that despite their victory, The Enclave had been weakened by The Brotherhood and they’d no doubt have need of men such as himself: guns for hire willing to ply their skills to the highest bidder. He was right, they paid him well for his skill set and he’d netted himself a substantial sum of caps, weapons, chems, and ammo. His ill-gotten gains hardly appeased his appetite however, and he craved more. He wished for the one thing he yet been able to attain: citizenship. Above all else, Issac wanted to join The Enclave as a full member and be given an officer’s commission. It was a lofty goal, to be sure. Issac was no fool, he understood that The Enclave looked down on wastelanders and very rarely hid that disdain. That feeling seemed particularly true for Supreme Commander Sutler. Yet he was certain if he proved his worth an exception might be made. Such a reward would indeed give him the prestige and power he craved so deeply. Visions swirled in his head of him being placed in command of Talon Company, lording over even The Commander and able to do as he saw fit with them. Perhaps, in time, he’d earn even greater accolades. Yet there was much to do before he could hope to achieve such a prize. First thing first was to complete this current objective. He knew the lengths to which Supreme Commander Sutler would go for vengeance, and it seemed the best way to ingratiate himself with the Enclave leader. Bringing him the heads, or better yet still living bodies, of those who had wronged the Supreme Commander so deeply might just be enough to win Sutler’s gratitude, and in turn, perhaps his favor. That was the very reason he’d journeyed this far north to The Commonwealth. For one of the most sought after targets of Sutler’s was here. The looming concrete facade of the Poseidon Energy plant finally came into view as Issac crested a small hillock. As the data had suggested, it was an excellent location from which he might start a forward operating base. Practical, defensible, well-intact with a large parking lot out front to provide a serviceable area for a potential vertibird landing, which if he succeeded in his mission would no doubt be required. It was also, surprisingly, uninhabited which Issac thought noteworthy given his own appraisal of the plant’s usefulness. It had to have been occupied at some point in the recent past. His suspicions were confirmed when he stepped inside the plant’s doors and found evidence of human remains scattered about and clear signs of a struggle. “Burnt clothing and bones,” He said, picking through the remnants, “Scorch marks on the walls….likely killed with laser weaponry.” His eyes then caught sight of something else on the ground, a metallic skeletal frame unlike anything he’d seen before. “Synths,” He said, and drew his 10mm from its holster. “Voice command module active, confirm,” Issac turned to the Gutsy bots behind him. “Confirmed,” One of the Gutsy’s replied, “Ready for orders sir.” “Sweep the building. Fall back if hostiles are encountered. Do NOT engage.” “Well I guess it's the commies lucky day then! We’ll hold off on sending them to meet their maker for now!” With that the Gutsy units enthusiastically began clearing the plant room by room. He doubted there were any Synths still lingering around, but if there was, he did not intend to commit to combat with them. He’d retreat if it came to that. From what he understood, The Institute wasn’t likely to just overlook an attack on their property without investigation. “Don’t need to draw attention to myself this soon,” Issac muttered, and he followed the Gutsy bots deeper in to the building. ----------------------------------------------------------------- A couple hours later and the sweep was complete, there wasn’t much left in the plant but at least it was fully secure. Issac setup a temporary camp inside one of the pre-war offices and set his robots to guard the immediate area. He’d barricaded the front doors as well, and was confident that if anyone came sniffing around, he’d have adequate warning. For good measure, he’d set the eyebot to patrol the facility while he slept. Before he laid down for the night however, Issac pulled a cylindrical object out of his backpack and set it down. He extended the object’s folded up tripod legs and then pulled the cylinder outwards to form a long antenna. With the press of a button on the base, a small dish expanded around the tip. That done, Issac plugged his pip-boy into the now fully extended portable deep range transmitter. The transmitter was an invaluable tool that he’d been given from his Enclave contact and apparently Sutler himself had approved its use in the field for the operation. It enabled a direct encrypted connection to [i]EnclaveNet[/i] even from a great distance. Issac logged his progress, [b]“”[/b]