[u]Sentinel Irving, Hidden Valley Bunker[/u] The Head Paladin and his fellow Helios One survivors had proven to be troublesome. They were unable to see the bigger picture, unable to see the Brotherhood's greater purpose. They cited the letter of the Codex without understanding the spirit of it. Was it a matter of honor or vengeance for the defeat at HELIOS One? Was it to compensate for their heresy and disgrace of their former Elder, the same man who led them into disaster? Or was it just the result of years of isolation without having a chance to act upon their duties? In any case, he could not pursue his mission if he had to watch his back for insubordination and mutiny. Nor could he pursue it if his authority as Sentinel was undermined. Hardin may have opted to play with him for now, but Irving's authority would evaporate if he allowed himself to be led around by a subordinate like a Bighorner on a lead. And he was not going to allow his mission to be jeopardized by these insubordinate fools. The relief team was on his way, but he would not be able to join them in person, for there was another matter that needed addressing. Bingo, I've isolated the necessary frequency. This should get you into contact with someone important." "Excellent work, scribe. Return to your quarters and stand by," he ordered the radio operator scribe-the only other person in the radio room. After the scribe departed, Sentinel Irving proceeded to lock the door before returning to the radio equipment. He fiddled with it, closely watching the monitors and instruments. Finally, he reached the necessary frequency that the scribe had mentioned. "Attention, to whoever in the NCR is listening. I have urgent information regarding the Brotherhood attack on NCRCF. Repeat, I have urgent information on the ongoing attack..." ------------------------------ [u]Gloria Van Graff - Van-Graff Regional Headquarters - After Midnight November 18th[/u] The communications room was uncomfortably still as Gloria and her two radio engineers sat in silence. After Major Addams had hailed them at the prison, Gloria had ordered the engineers to keep a lock on Colonel Abernhaty’s encrypted channel. They had discovered the frequency several months before and with a little help from their friends at the La Brea Institute had been able to decipher the messages that were communicated within. She knew Addams had contacted the colonel about the Brotherhood’s attack and she hoped to see how the colonel may respond. Though she had pledged reinforcements to Major Addams at NCRCF she had instead sent her troops to Helios One instead. Half the journey would be done by train, the other half on foot. If they moved fast they would be at the energy facility within the next two hours. Ideally they would arrive before a second strike by the Brotherhood. But even if the prison attack was a diversion and the Brotherhood's true target was Helios One. Her troops would surround their forces at the site and massacre them. Once more the Brotherhood of Steel would face death at Helios One. Hopefully this one was a more permanent death. The radio static crackled and the soft click of a microphone could be heard. Gloria held her breath as she listened. "Attention, to whoever in the NCR is listening. I have urgent information regarding the Brotherhood attack on NCRCF. Repeat, I have urgent information on the ongoing attack..." The voice was firm, not panicked but there was an undertone of concern and urgency. Gloria couldn’t recognize it. The frequency went quiet and she exhaled. “Where is the signal’s source?” She asked the engineers. “It's roving, looks like they’re bouncing it off several towers south of here.” “How many?” “Six it looks like.” “Which one is the largest?” “A signal sourced out of Black Mountain.” The engineer shook his head. “There is no one out there though. Whole area is irradiated” Gloria couldn’t make sense of it at first. Anyone using the radio station at Black Mountain would need to perform at least semi-regular maintenance of the facility. Not many groups had the knowledge or resources to conduct such a task. Especially on the hostile and remote mountain. It wasn’t the Van Graffs and if they were seeking contact it couldn’t be the NCR. Gloria smiled, it left only one likely candidate. “Isolate every tower they are using for that signal. Get their coordinates.” The radio crackled and the soft click came again. Gloria’s command died in her throat as she froze to listen. “This is a secure channel. Just who might you be?” Gloria recognized the voice, it was Colonel Abernathy. She motioned to the engineers to begin a separate recording for the conversation. "You can call me Irving," the Sentinel replied, leaving out the part that he was with the Brotherhood of Steel. It was a moot point- aside from House, the Brotherhood was the only entity in the Mojave with this level of comms technology, and it wouldn't take the Colonel much to put the pieces together. "We don't have time for formalities, so I'll make this quick." Irving hesitated for a moment, gathering the strength to do what he was about to do. "The Brotherhood of Steel attack on the NCRCF is just the first of a multi-pronged plan of attack by the Brotherhood to weaken and hinder the NCR presence in the Mojave. Meticulously planned, but very sloppily executed." "Sloppily executed" was a gross understatement for the mutinous actions that Hardin and his loyal troops had carried out. Irving had fought the NCR long enough to know how quickly the most well-laid plan fell apart upon contact with the enemy, but this was in another league altogether. No doubt Hardin was banking on the Sentinel and his more loyal forces to jumping into the fray and ensuring their attack came back onto the rails. "The Brotherhood attackers will be anticipating the NCR's attempts to send aid to the NCRCF and consequently will have laid mines on the tracks leading to and from the prison. Any locomotives sent to reinforce the penitentiary will be disabled if not destroyed. Meanwhile, with the facility compromised and the NCR presumably scrambling to respond to the attack, the strike force will be swiftly marching north towards their next target- the Van Graff headquarters south of the city." It was with a heavy heart that the Sentinel gave this information to the enemy, but a house divided against itself could not stand. It was imperative that the subversive, insubordinate rot of this chapter be cut out, even if it came at a heavy cost. Gloria felt a flash of fear at Irvings words. She hadn’t expected her family’s company to be a priority target of the Brotherhood, much less a direct assault on their headquarters. It made sense however, the compound would be a treasure trove for the Brotherhood. Filled as it was with preserved knowledge, technical hardware and stockpiles of energy weapons. The loss of the facility would be a devastating blow for the Van-Graff corporation in the region and a catastrophic failure for Gloria. Her family would never let her forget it and she could expect a grueling punishment when word reached the matriarch. That was if she survived the Brotherhood's assault. Could she believe Irving though? Gloria had never dealt with the Brotherhood directly and had no way to discern if the voice was genuine. She wanted to believe he was sincere but why be so forthcoming? The Brotherhood were supposed to be a violent, xenophobic, tech-worshiping cult. Why would one of their own betray the ideals of their people to assist a most bitter enemy? The man didn’t bargain or demand anything in exchange for the information but gave it freely. Irving had been able to crack into a encoded radio channel that the Van-Graffs had only had access to for a few months. But his warning came only after the assault on the prison had started. “It could be a trick.” She whispered. An engineer turned his face at her and she scowled at him to return to his work as the radio crackled again. “Irving, this Colonel Abernathy of the 3rd Infantry.” There was a pause and Gloria cranked the volume knob. “Tell me where we took them. Tell me their names. Until I know you are a legitimate source from the Brotherhood, I have nothing further to discuss. Over.” "Very well, I will verify," Irving answered. "Your Brotherhood captives were Knight Keyes and Knight Maven. Knight Keyes was taken to Black Mountain." Gloria sat still. mouth slightly agape as the revelation dawned on her. The ambush at Black Mountain a month prior! The 3rd infantry had officially labeled the incident as a raid by the Great Khans on an infantry patrol but there had been rumors that the Rough Riders were there and escorting a prisoner. Gloria hadn’t paid it much mind, the colonel’s soldiers had been arresting and imprisoning people in the region for five years. But this exchange between Irving and Denver proved there was more to the story. The prisoner was a member of the Brotherhood and they had clearly orchestrated the ambush to free them. Gloria sat back and smiled. This information was priceless and with the recording as evidence, she would be able to bring it before her aunt. Once word got out that the ambush and the assault on NCRCF was a result of Denver disobeying direct orders so that he could continue his secret little war against the Brotherhood, he would be finished. The president would ensure that Denver face a court-martial, be stripped of his command and sentenced to prison. Gloria could hardly stop from licking her lips. Colonel Abernathy had been a thorn in the president's side since her election and now Gloria had the solution to rid him in her hands. Still, she couldn’t get ahead of herself. For all she knew a Brotherhood strike force was enroute to her position. While she had sent the majority of her CSF troops to reinforce the garrison at Helios One, a skeleton guard still remained. About a dozen agents supported by four Mr. Gutsys, a couple of sentry bots and a handful of protectrons. There was no need to panic and raise the alarm, but she would still increase the watch and ensure preparedness. She moved away from the radio and relayed the orders to her lieutenant.