Tiberius67

How Little We Know

South Boston - Outside the Shamrock Taphouse

Nate pulled up to the curb outside the Tap house, and parked the battered old jeep Isabel had fixed up for him. It was less of a flex than Relaying, even if the Relay were an open secret these days....at least that was what he told Ayo and the rest of the Directorate. While it was true, mainly he liked to be able to drive again, and have time alone with his thoughts. Climbing out of the jeep, he grabbed the mailman's satchel behind the driver's seat and scanned the tables around the building for a familiar redhead. Spotting her, he walked over her table.

"You look well, Cait", Nate said, kissing her on the proffered cheek then taking a seat at her table, "Married life seems to suit you."

"And a Colonel's wife, to boot", Cait replied sardonically. "I'm all posh now, I spend my time presiding over the wives of Robert's officers and men. Quite the change from fighting other bums for a bellyful of booze, is it not?"

"Love the license plate, by the way", she added, "Not sure what a Masshole is, but it sounds oddly appropriate."

"It's what people outside Massachusetts called us before the war", he replied with a chuckle, "It's funny because it's true".

"Indeed", she replied with a laugh. "Anyhow, our friend has arrived, he's waiting for you in back. You won't be disturbed."

Shamrock Taphouse

Inside, the bar was moderately crowded, the population in Southie had trended up ever since the Minutemen reclaimed the Castle. No sooner were the Raiders driven out than the new garrison moved their families in. Right behind them came traders and other businessmen, not to mention the Triggermen (many of their leaders lived here even before the war) willing to play ball, one of which renovated the derelict Taphouse and re-opened for business. Nate ordered two Gwinnets from the bar, then walked around and climbed the stairs to the second floor where off-duty Minutemen, a couple Triggermen, and some civilians were playing pool or darts, or poker. Nate approached the door leading to the back, the Triggerman sitting on a bar stool, sipping a pint of beer, looked at him, nodded and said "General" in acknowledgement, then returned his attenton to the darts game.

Nate walked in and entered what was the break room for the employees. Sitting at a table, that unsurprisingly gave him a view of both entrances, was a wiry black man, dressed like a ordinary Wastelander. He nodded at Nate once he entered, but did nothing else. Nate placed one beer in front of him, then sat opposite him. For a good ten minutes, they sat and silently studied each other as they sipped thier beers. Finally, the man put his now empty bottle down and looked Nate in the eye.

"I hear you have a mission for me..", Irving Gallows said, "....Director? General? You've got a lot of hats."

"You can call me Nate or Nathan", Nate replied with a shrug, "The mission is the same, no matter what hat I'm wearing." He picked up the satchel and placed it on his lap, pulling out a manila folder out and handing it to Gallows.

Gallows opened the file and began to read, occasionally arching an eyebrow, and a couple times looking up at Nate as if he wanted to confirm what he is reading is serious.

"Is it really this bad?", he asked.

"It is", Nate replied, "If Cleveland falls, The Pitt loses 80% of their steel production capacity. All projections are they would fall within 6 months, worst case in only 90 days. They will push for the Coast, their next targets are Boston and Washington."

"What's the plan?", Gallows asked. Nate pulled out a second file and handed it to him. Gallows read through the file, and upon finishing, closed it with a long, low, whistle. "This is the craziest thing I've ever read."

"You in?", Nate inquired.

"Fuck, yeah I'm in", Gallows replied. "I wouldn't miss this for the world. My suit needs repairs, though."

"That can be arranged", Nate said. "If you like, we can supply a newer suit, we've got T-51 suits in production. My jeep is outside, we can be at the airport in half an hour for a full briefing."

How Little We Know

Jimmy - Four days later - near I-76 and Brimfield, OH

As the first rays of dawn came, Jimmy, finally satisfied with his arrangements, settled into the hollowed out log he had found to pass the day. There was a deserted farm nearby that would probably be more comfortable, but the Bosses had driven home to him the point that trying to hide in buildings, especially isolated structures, was a good way to be killed by ferals or Mutants, or trapped by search parties.

He pulled one of his last three pre-war military ration bars out of his satchel and unwrapped it, then after he tucked the wrapper back in his satchel, slowly began to eat it. They were amazingly still edible, after two centuries, but slightly stale and nearly tasteless. He'd eaten worse, especially in his brief time in The Pitt before he was chosen by the Bosses to be sent to Cleveland to work the port....there is a God after all....but the Brahmin jerky that made up the bulk of the food the Bosses gave him would keep fine and tasted better.

Suddenly, the branches at the mouth of the log rustled. Jimmy grabbed his pipe revolver and as he leveled the muzzle at the far end of the log, between his spread feet, something small and furry wriggled up to his side, then began furiously purring as it snuggled up to him. Both relieved and annoyed, He let the muzzle droop.

"Damn cat..", Jimmy exclaimed quietly. "You scared the shit out of me!"

He had found the cat in Akron, or to me more precise, the cat had found him, the only bright spot in what had been turned out to be a huge mistake that had nearly gotten him killed....if he was lucky. The Bosses weren't sure what the situation was in Akron, but some of them were hopeful they had held out. The harsh truth was....they hadn't. The Mutants had taken Akron, and set up there a factory of sorts....turning people they had captured into feral ghouls. Then he got spotted trying to get out of town....if not for the cat and the out of the blue explosion from the area of the "factory", he'd have been killed or worse, gone into one of those cylinders. He picked up the pipe revolver and grimly examined it. He wasn't going into one of those things....he'd blow his own brains out before he allowed that to happen.

Meanwhile, the grey tabby cat began butting his head up against his cheek, clearly wanting attention. He offered it the last inch of his ration bar. After sniffing it suspiciously for a while, the cat eventually ate it, licking the last traces of it off his fingers, then returned to snuggling up against his side. He settled back, suddenly feeling very sleepy.

"Pervitin crash", Jimmy sleepily thought to himself. "Bosses warned me what to expect from this shit." The Pervitin was wildly expensive Pre-War Vault-Tec shit that had been scavenged from a Vault somewhere. Sick Vault-Tec fuckers put them in rolls like candy...these days you could feed a family of four a month on what a single roll would sell for. Bosses had given him three. Basically Jet minus the worst of the physical side-effects is how it had been explained to him. Still addictive AF, but at least it doesn't rot your teeth. But what goes up, must come down and after four days he was coming down....which is why he spent most of the previous night finding this spot. After that, Jimmy drifted off to sleep, musing on the irony of the Bosses, of all people, being the primary defenders of mankind from the Mutants....and resolving to get through so he could join them.

After Jimmy drifted off to sleep, the cat stirred then climbed up on Jimmy's chest, sitting facing him, it's legs curled up underneath it. It stretched it's head forward then began licking his cheek for a good ten seconds then stopped, studying Jimmy's face. After a few minutes, Jimmy slipped into a deep sleep. The cat was unfazed as the arcing and crackling of static electricity built up around them, until suddenly, with a loud crack, Jimmy, the cat, and the log were somewhere else.

Institute, Operations Room

Dr Ayo, looking over the shoulder of the synth at the control panel in the dimly lit red light of the Operations Room, watched with smug satisfaction as video from a Watcher crow showed the log the subject had concealed himself in relay out in a blast of electricity. Unlike Holdren and his vanity projects...like those absurd gorillas...his synth projects had practical applications. Deviant or no, Binet's team had outdone themselves with the synthetic cats. It was totally worth dropping the issue of the synth escapes and writing it off as evidence destroyed in the chaos of Loken and Biggs' temper tantrum. Nathan kept his side of the bargain and escapes plummeted to acceptable levels. That was when he realized Nathan was there to stay and fighting the inevitable was foolish. Without waiting for orders, the synth pushed some buttons and one of his monitors changed to the Main relay, in time to see the unconscious subject be extracted from the log and placed on a stretcher. Before the Gen 2 synths could wheel him away, to Medical, the cat jumped on the stretcher and curled up in the subject's lap. A call came in, Main relay announcing the subject had arrived, Ayo acknowledged curtly and pushed down the cradle, releasing it and dialing a new number.

"This is Dr Ayo", Justin said when the phone was answered. "Put me in touch with the Director at Nuka World, or the senior Courser there available. Call this number once you have made a connection. That is all." He then hung up and dialed a new number.

"Alana, this is Justin", Dr Ayo said, "The subject has just been retrieved. Head to Medical and supervise the brain taping. Remember, per the Director he is not to be harmed. Our friends in Pittsburgh will be notified of his retrieval once recording is complete, we don't know how long we'll have to debrief him once he wakes. Thank you."

Nuka World - Reflecting Pool

Nathan, wearing a urban camouflage Minuteman uniform without rank insignia and navy blue combat armor, the standard these days for every Minuteman, stood at the edge of the massive reflecting pool, looking at the burnt out ruins of Fizztop Mountain. The restaurant had been a favorite of Nora's and behind it were multiple convenient make-out spots for the two of them. But that was a past that was now dead and gone, living only in his own memories and the fading photos in the albums Codsworth (bless him) had saved all those years for him. The "Overboss", and the most vicious gang...the 'Disciples' if he recalled correctly...made their last stand. With multiple LMGs, they held off RJ and his men for two hours before they could move up their howitzer battery into range. The guns made short work of the plaster and cinder block "Mountain". The subsequent bayonet charge RJ led personally behind the barrage finished the Disciples themselves off. RJ's report indicated any surviving Disciple was promptly shot ("because they were sick fucks and deserved it" was scrawled in RJ's spidery hand in pencil on the margins of the copy he sent to him personally). The other survivors were put to work repairing the rail lines leading West to Pittsfield then North to Albany, and from there West towards Scranton, and Pittsburgh's rail net.

As he mused on the vagaries of the past, a sergeant ran up and stopped next to him.

"Begging the General's pardon", he said after he saluted, "The Colonel sends his regards and requests you join him at the old Nuka-World offices."

"Thank you son", he replied as he returned the salute, "Lead me there."

Nuka World - Bradburton's private vault

Robert (RJ) MacReady fidgeted in his chair, partly bored and partly fascinated, as he watched the three way conversation unfold in front of him. Ironically, he knew two of them from DC. George was somebody in the Brotherhood, before Sutler wiped them out. He'd come to Lamplight once, nosing about for pre-war tech. As Mayor, he told him to get fucked, nothing personal, but mungos are mungos. Fortunately he didn't push the issue and left. He'd gotten to know him a little in the years since they came here...he was a OK guy. Their story was sad, they had really tried to help make the Capital Wasteland better, and their reward was to lose everything to that prick Sutler. The woman was a surprise, he remembered Sierra and her crazy museum up North, near that creepy Dunwich Borers place. He and the guys he ran with after he aged out of Lamplight made some caps finding Nuka Cola stuff for her on occasion. Back in those days her teeth were in better shape and her tits perkier, but other than that she's still not bad looking....not that he'd ever say it out loud...Cait would never let him hear the end of it. With that said, she's crazy as a bedbug though. But to make it out of the Capital Wasteland, and survive here with the Raiders for years, she had to have more lives than a cat. The third guy, really a disembodied head, was Thomas-Caleb Bradburton, apparently the guy who invented Nuka Cola back before the War. The story he gave was that...surprise...the Army had screwed him over. Nathan would love this once he learned about it. He knew him well enough to know where he would be...so it shouldn't be long.

Soon enough, as Bradburton and Peabody went round and around, with Bradburton wanting to shut his life support off and Peabody refusing on principle...with interjections from Sierra, who clearly regarded Bradburton with the reverent zeal of a Child of Atom finding a nuke...he hear stirring outside the open Vault door and then Nate poked his head in the room, waved at RJ then turned to George.

"George", he asked, "Could I speak to you for a minute?"

George excused himself, and exited the room. Ten minutes later, he re-entered, followed by Nate. Whatever had been said, George was furious, and doing his best to hide it, though from his body language not at Nate himself it seemed.

"I apologize, Mr Bradburton", but I must take my leave", he said politely, "General Sullivan, here, will take up where we left off."

"Mr Bradburton?", Nathan said as he grabbed a chair and sat facing him, "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

"What?", Bradburton replied, taken completely off guard. He then began to study Nate's face, "Sullivan....wait, I remember you! Memorial Day, 2062...Security caught you behind Mad Mulligan's Minecart Coaster getting fresh with a young woman. Disgraceful! I suspended both your park privileges for a year!"

It was all RJ could do to not laugh. Thankfully, he hadn't been drinking anything at the time. He remembered this story...Nathan had been really drunk when he told him about it at the Third Rail. They got caught making out and got banned for a year. It wasn't the kind of thing he talked about when sober, even with him. The fact Bradburton was still mad about it centuries later was hilarious, though.

"Well, sir", Nathan said with a chuckle, "In my defense, I did marry her in '63, right before I enlisted in the Army."

"Good", Bradburton replied. "At least you did right by her. But that leads to a question.....you're older, clearly, but if the information on my servers is correct, you are over 250 years old. How have you lived so long?"

"Vault-Tec froze me, cryogenic suspension was Vault 111's Experiment", Nathan said, "Woke up little over ten years ago."

"Why am I not surprised", Bradburton replied, rolling his eyes, "I should have taken their offer. It would have been better than this. Fucking Pentagon."

"Not by much", Nathan said, I've crawled enough dead Vaults to know they were just as bad. There is but one functioning Vault in Massachusetts, and that was because the Overseer betrayed Vault-Tec. The price I paid to be sitting here in front of you is almost more than I can bear."

"What about me, then?", Bradburton asked, "I'd rather be dead than trapped plugged into this contraption. Your friend George spoke of a group called the Institute that he is a member of, can they help? If you want my cooperation, you can either kill me, or offer me an acceptable way out of this nightmare."

"There are options available", he slowly replied. He looked at Sierra, who was on the verge of tears, terrified of what he might do to Bradburton. RJ, as expected, was calmly waiting to see what he would do so he could back him up. "RJ, would you take Sierra up to Cappy's Cafe stand her a Quantum or whatever else she might like?

After several minutes assuring her nobody was killing Bradburton, she finally left with RJ. He pulled a communicator out of his pocket and spoke into it.

"This is the Director", he said, "put me in contact with Dr Higgs at Vault 75. The matter is urgent. I also need to speak to Miss Cruz at Robco Facility A. Both of them are to be given priority 1 for Relay transit to and from my position once they are ready."

"I'm a soldier and an Administrator, not a scientist, I'm afraid. Dr Higgs will explain to you the science behind what we propose", Nate said to Bradburton, "Miss Cruz is the best technician we have access to, if there is a way to move you to a more suitable location, she will find and implement it."

How Little We Know

Madison Li - The Pitt - Relay Terminal

Madison felt the briefing had been quite informative. She had been introduced to someone new, Sophia Braxton. Sophia is a Senior Inquisitor for the Midwestern Brotherhood, at the moment the most senior representative in the Pitt, with Paladin-Lord Traven and, according the Sophia, all of their remaining forces at the Front along the Ohio. A rather stern woman, and clearly overworked, she also had a air about her of having suffered a devastating personal loss. She had expressed interest in meeting the survivors of Eowyn's Chapter, knowing Charlotte she invited her to relay to Lexington at her convenience. One of the messages she was sending across was to her, to let her know and to request a copy of her book on the Lyon's Expedition.

Another was a private message to Nathan to immediately inform her about Abaddon. It would be an unforgivable breach of trust if she and her comrades learned of his presence here from an outsider. Madison found it quite ironic, as she knew he had killed people on the surface for much less than what Abaddon had done, that he would now have to talk them down from trying to assassinate him. On the other hand, if anyone could it was Nathan...he was definitely better at it than her.

The main message, of course, was the information from the briefing. The audio recording she had (openly) made, a copy of Abaddon's holomap, her observations, and other documents she had been provided. The Pitt leadership was requesting direct intervention in the deteriorating situation at Cleveland, and they had little choice but to agree. All their iron ore imports came through Cleveland, if it fell their industries would grind to a halt in months, if not weeks. They had to act now.

And finally, a message to her staff to send her clothes for a few days. The hazmat suit made her stick out like a sore thumb, and after the vaccine they had given her, TDC wasn't a concern anymore.

Reaching the terminal and pad, she saw that the work of relaying in the boxes and containers of the MASH unit was already underway, with new shipments relaying into the large open space at the center of the building as fast as the Pitt workers could process them. She had put in a request for enough vaccine to vaccinate the staff of the MASH, with extras, they'd be sent though once they could be vaccinated.

Stepping up to the console, she connected her Pip-Boy and began transmitting the messages to the Institute. Once the screen indicated they had been received, she disconnected the Pip-Boy.

"Thank you", Madison said to the leader of Harlock's men who had escorted her here. "I'm done here, we can go back to Haven now."


Jimmy, Cuyahoga Heights, 11:30 PM

Jimmy sat, crouched in the brush, grimly listening as the firing...the diversion intended to aid in his escape...began to escalate to his north. His instructions were to wait 30 minutes before heading south again. It had taken two of the three Stealthboys he had been given to cross the enemy front line, but between them and the freshly skinned (and reeking) hide of a ghoul the Bosses had sewn him into, he had made it through undetected. The next step was to follow the Cuyahoga River south unti he reached I-80, follow I-80 east towards Akron. The Bosses didn't know if Akron had been taken, but if it was he should head to Youngstown, pick up the Iron Road, and get to the first telegraph station he could find.

Jimmy was a slave, handed over to the Bosses when he was fifteen by his parents when they couldn't pay their tribute of crops for two years in a row. He had been put to work on Whiskey Island as the lowliest of the Ore Hogs...a shoveler who removed from the holds of the iron boats what ore the mightly Hulett unloaders couldn't reach. It was a grueling existance, though it could've been worse as 1) Cleveland is Paradise complared to the Pitt itself, and 2) at least the Boss who ran Whiskey Island for O-Dog was all about efficiency and sustained output and was willing to spend to keep his crews alive if that's what it took to unload any iron boat you care to name in eight hours. But Jimmy didn't want to spend the best years of his life shoveling ore so he volunteered when they asked around for couriers. O-Dog offered him his freedom, and a place on the Crew (with successfully completing the deed being equivalent to winning in the Hole) if he suceeded. They didn't blink when he counter-offered with that and an apprentice spot as a Leg-Man, operating a Hulett himself. One of the most elite jobs in Cleveland. They agreed, on the condition he proved himself worthy of the job, as only the best and most trusted soldiers got to run a Hulett. That's when he realized just how fucked the City was if someone didn't get help. From there it was a week of relentless training on basic fieldcraft and map-reading, and what landmarks to look for on his way out. It wasn't enough, really, but it was the best they could do with the time that they had.

Jimmy heard movement on the road just to the east of him come from the south, heading N. He heard the barking of their mutant dogs, but they did not sound off, so the disgusting outfit the Bosses insist he wear turned out to be worth it, after all. On the Cuyahoga, about 30 yards or so to the West, he noticed a john boat slowly moving upstream, shining lights on both banks as they cruised as fast as the sputtering engine could take them. Eventually, both faded away to the north. After waiting another ten minutes, the half hour had passed, so he cautiously began to head south, periodically veering west to realign with the river.

How Little We Know

Madison Li - The Pitt - The Door of Haven

It had been a lengthy walk from the building they installed the relay terminal, but quite informative, from the glimpses she got through the close formation of guard around her as Abaddon and Harlock led her towards what was almost certainly Haven and an audience with Marie. The deference they showed to Marie's very name made it clear she was very much in command here. Thanks to Charlotte, she was able to read Ishmael Ashur's Scroll. It didn't surprise her at all that the man they described in that Scroll survived being abandoned and fought his way to the top of the Pitt's society. What did surprise her is that James's boy made a uncharacteristically pragmatic move by siding with Ashur. It's something Nathan would probably do, especially with a child involved, but The Lone Wanderer had been an idealist like James, which surprised her.

Abbadon wasn't at all pleased to see Madison Li again, even though her presence was clearly a lifeline they they eagerly sought....the feeling was entirely mutual. She hadn't told Nathan, but she had been in A Ring at the Citadel the day Abaddon's treachery became manifest. She had seen with her own eyes poor Arthur give his life to save Scribe Valaincourt and others from the Sentry Bot. All the Brotherhood's hopes for the future cut down in a hail of 5mm. They promoted him posthumously to Knight and eventually he was buried with Owyn in Appalachia when he passed in turn. Arthur's death was the first of the series of blows that led to Owyn's early death. Valaincourt felt responsible and hasn't been herself ever since. Once her comrades learned Abaddon was still alive, a vendetta would be launched, unless stopped, that was a big problem for Nathan to manage. The former-Brotherhood faculty were every bit as vindictive as Nathan himself, just not as good at hiding it as he is. She knew a lot more about Nathan's doings on the surface than he thought she did. Sinjin and Kellogg were far from the only people he had personally disposed of with ruthless savagery for threatening something or someone that he cared about. She shuddered to think of the repercussions if Father hadn't been alive when he first found his way to the Institute. she squelched that line of thought and turned her attention to now. The antagonism between Harlock and Abaddon could be useful, but she didn't place much store in it. However much they hated each other, they would unify in the face of a external threat...Harlock out of zeal, and Abaddon to survive and hold on to what authority he had here.

It had been embarrassing when one of the Raiders who greeted her had actually started worshiping her, what the street preachers were saying on the walk here was downright alarming. They were turning Atom, Ashur himself, and Marie into a form of the Christian Holy Trinity. An army of religious fanatics, powered by the very real and growing strength of the Pitt's industries, was an extreme threat. If the war was won, the Pitt would only grow stronger. They needed to be prepared for the Post-War situation....hopefully they would be able to maintain at least civil relations, but that couldn't be assumed...There was certainly much to discuss back at the Institute.

She was drawing attention, a curious mob began to gather around them to get a look at her. With a shouted command, the guards began to threaten them with a power tool of some sort to open a path to the gates, they quickly opened, then closed again as she passed through. Now having a better view, she noted the large steel statue of Ashur, and the honor-guard around it. No sooner did they reach the massive doors they opened and they entered. Entering Haven, she saw that it had been completely restored, with great reverence and no expense spared. Then they entered the Throne Room, at the end of the room was aside from guards and courtiers, a slim young woman dressed in white, seated on her throne. Near her was a older woman, a Raider by the looks of it, carrying a staff with a blackened skull, presumably that of Wehrner, affixed to it.

"“You stand before Queen Marie Ashur, Lady of The Pitt, daughter of Lord Ashur," the woman intoned gravely, "she-who-wades-the-three-rivers, Commander of Ashur’s Army, ruler of…”

“That’s enough Lulu…thank you,” Marie interrupted as she rose from her Throne and stepped down off of the dais it sat upon and approached Dr. Li, “You may go.”

Lulu bowed deeply to her God-Queen and stepped away from the throne.

Harlock's body language immediately stiffened as Marie approached. Clearly this was not normal behavior for her. Madison concentrated on making no unusual moves. She looked so young, barely out of her teens, but was the undisputed sovereign of the largest industrial power East of the Mississippi. Hopefully her father had prepared her for the sternest test any of them had ever faced.

“Dr. Madison Li I presume?", Marie asked, "I am Marie Ashur. Thank you for coming here directly, we greatly appreciate your assistance. My soldiers are holding the line as best they can against The Mutant Horde, but I’m afraid that without help we might be overcome in time much like The Brotherhood was. I have sent overtures to Commander Sutler of The Enclave as well who is facing the same threat we are…my hope is that we can all come together in some fashion to coordinate our efforts.”

Madison, knew, of course that the Pitt was in contact with Sutler and his goons....nor did Madison blame Marie for it...but it was still painful to hear that man's name. She idly wondered who would be sent when the time came to open diplomatic channels to Sutler...Nathan was well aware of what happened at Project Purity and would never let her be in the same room with Sutler, even if there weren't standing orders in the Capital Wasteland to shoot her on sight.

"Yes, Ma'am", Madison replied diplomatically. "As the Lead Scientist of the Advanced Systems Department, I am a member of the Directorate, the governing body of the Institute. The Enemy is too strong for any of us to face alone....it will take a concerted effort to survive this, and we are mobilizing to assist in any way we can."

“Abaddon has relayed to me your offers and suggestions for mutual cooperation which you told to Harlock", she continued smiling warmly, "All of them are entirely agreeable to me, and I would like to start right away. For the railway - you probably already know that my raiders have a line that transports goods to DC. We could easily create a branch line which will connect The Commonwealth as well and allow for mass transport of men and material much more easily. Provided, of course, we break the siege of Cleveland quickly and ensure that the ore-road is reopened to allow for production of the rails”

Cleveland, according to Ayo's briefing, was the Pitt's main sea port, it alone in their lands had the facilities for unloading the taconite pellets from the Great Lake ore carriers that the Pitt's steel industry depended on. Undoubtedly, the Enemy also knew that. Madison was a Scientist, not a economist or logistican, but she understood how grave the situation was. Intervention was unavoidable.

“If you have any further questions for me - I will be glad to answer them", Marie concluded, "Otherwise I will allow you to do whatever you need to do to coordinate with your people. As Harlock has no doubt told you, you are also welcome to stay in Haven if you so choose for as long as needed. My handmaids have quarters prepared for you.”

"If I may, Ma'am", Madison replied, "I would appreciate it if you could arrange a briefing for me on what is known of the situation in Cleveland. I will report back to the Institute, perhaps we can assist the garrison there in their defense. Also, I've brought with me reports on what we have on the Unity so far, which admittedly isn't much yet. Any information on the Unity and their forces you could provide would be of great assistance."

How Little We Know

Institute - Director's Quarters

"Anything new on the California earthquakes, Charlotte?", Nathan inquired.

"Still some aftershocks in the Magnitide 1-2 Range on the Richter scale..", Charlotte paused to select a ice-cold Nuka-Cola from the tray Codsworth was holding, and thanks him before continuing, "but nothing like the initial Magnitude 8 event. We've determined the epicenter was in the Los Angeles Metro area, can't pinpoint it any further than that. The damage must have been massive."

"I find it odd", said Madison, who was sitting in the Director's favorite red leather chair and wearing a blue hazmat suit less the helmet, "that this happened just as our Strike Group was returning from the first raid....I think it may be connected somehow." She then accepted a cup of hot tea from Codsworth.

"Could be", Nathan replied, "Justin has been interrogating the ghouls that were handling the ferals, they say one of our Mutants was the leader, and far smarter than the others. Brian has had to keep all three sedated as they have been climbing the walls since they initially woke up...screaming about losing something. He wants to do a MRI on them, but they are too big to fit in our machine."

"Correct", Madison replied, "My people are working with Brian on that, Medford Memorial had an open MRI machine, we've recovered it and it's being refurbished as we speak."

Before Nathan could reply, the phone at his desk, which he was sitting on the corner of, began to ring. Nathan picked up.

"Director speaking", he said, then listened intently until the report was complete. "Thank you, we'll be right down." He then hung up.

"Relay Control reports the Pitt just activated the Relay terminal", he said to Madison, "They are running the calibration tests...you'll be up in fifteen minutes unless something goes wrong." He then looked her in the eye. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes", Madison replied, trying to be inscrutable though Nathan had known her long enough to see some nervousness in her eyes. "You arriving first thing could be taken as an insult as their Queen is not expecting a State visit. And Charlotte has two young children, or should I say three?". Charlotte blushed at this.

"I just got the results two weeks ago", Charlotte exclaimed, "I was waiting until George got back from Nuka-World to tell him."

"Right", Nathan said with mock seriousness as he looked over at Charlotte, "You aren't going anywhere then. Congratulations, by the way."

"Anyhow", Madison continued, "I'm high ranking enough to speak for the Institute, and convey that we take them seriously, but not so high that it'll cause protocol problems. They aren't in a position to threaten my person even if they wanted to...I'm more concerned about the ruined environment, people shouldn't be living in what is basically a chemical waste dump."

"If something does happen, though", Madison concluded while looking the Director back in the eye, "Keep your focus on the Big Picture....they aren't Sinjin, we need them on our side."

"Yes, Ma'am", Nathan replied with a chuckle, mildly surprised she was aware of the stunt he and Hancock pulled years ago, rescuing Kent from Sinjin and his gang. The near overdose of Grape Mentats he took to pull it off left him constipated for a week, but the look on Sinjin's, Hancock's and Kent's faces when Sinjin's own lieutenants turned their guns on him to save themselves was totally worth it. "And now, Ladies, it's showtime".

The Pitt - Supply Depot

Powered on, the device came to life, and the monitor attached to the Control Panel flickered on and the bootup routing began. Once it was complete, the display changed.

>BOOTUP COMPLETE
>SEARCHING FOR REMOTE CONNECTION............FOUND
>LOCATION OF SITE 10 - PITTSBURGH............LOGGED
>CONNECTING TO SITE 5 - LEXINGTON.........CONNECTED
>BEGINNING CALIBRATION TEST...WARNING!!! STAY CLEAR OF PAD!!!!
>SENDING TEST PAYLOAD......

Static electricity and a strong smell of ozone quickly built up to a blue ball of electrical energy passing down through the roof, with no sign of damage, and smacking into the pad with a loud snap. It cleared, revealing two metal cages, each containing a live mole rat.

>TEST PAYLOAD TRANSMISSION......SUCCESSFUL
>RETRIEVAL OPERATION COMMENCING....WARNING!!! STAY CLEAR OF PAD!!!

Once again, static electricity and ozone built up until a ball of energy formed on the pad, and it abruptly darted up through the ceiling and disappeared.

>RETRIEVAL OPERATION.....SUCCESSFUL
>TEST PAYLOAD RECEIVED IN NOMINAL STATE
>CALIBRATION COMPLETE - SITE 10 - PITTSBURGH FULLY OPERATIONAL
>STAND BY....
>STAND BY....
The static electricity and ozone began again

>RECEIVING TRANSMISSION FROM MAIN RELAY CONTROL VIA SITE 5 - LEXINGTON
>TRANSMISSION IN PROGRESS - WARNING!!! STAY CLEAR OF PAD !!!
The charge built up, then abruptly a ball of electrical energy, like before, shot down through the celiving and hit the pad. It cleared to reveal a single individual, about five foot tall, wearing a blue lab hazard suit. On the floor next to the figure was a briefcase.

THE PITT - SUPPLY DEPOT - MADISON LI

Madison found herself in a large, dingy warehouse. The building itself seemed solid enough from where she stood, but was filthy from long disuse.

"I could get tetanus from just looking at this room", Madison thought sourly, knwowing it was far worse outside, "but it will do". She looked around, for the moment seemingly not taking notice of the dozen or more heavily armed Raiders eying her with a mixture of awe and deep suspicion. while careful not to make any sudden movements that would get her ventilated. She herself was unarmed, common sense dictated she would be dead before she could produce a weapon so it was pointless to bring one. Raising her left arm (slowly) she examined her Pip-Boy. Environmental readings were acceptable, if not recommended for long term exposure. She slowly removed the hood of her lab suit, and turned to face the pair that the footage from the Watchers indicated were most likely in charge of the group. One was a relatively young Raider, the superior workmanship of his armor compared to the others marking him as a man of rank....and a much older man, nearly her age, wearing a heavily patched and altered burgundy robe faintly reminiscent of the type once worn by a Brotherhood Scribe. If she did not already know who he was, she would not likely have made the association.

"Gentlemen", Madison said gravely, "I am Dr Madison Li, Department Head of Advanced Systems at the Institute. We have decided that the War against the Unity is just as much our fight as yours, and stand ready to assist you in any way that we can."

"This device", she said, gesturing with both arms at the relay terminal she was still standing on, "Is a terminal for the Molecular Relay, the Institute's greatest achievement. With it, men and supplies can safely be sent to anywhere within range in mere seconds. Until now, it was a closely guarded secret we shared with no-one, even factions in the Commonweath that we are allied to. That we do so now, in spite of our...contentious..past, underlines the depth of our committment to your Cause."

"The first shipment which we have prepared for immediate relay", Madison continued, "Is a fully staffed and equipped 200 bed mobile military field hospital. We only have two that survived the long years since the War, one of which we will give to you. We have other items that may be of use....military robots, repair parts for pre-war machinery, weapons designs suited to mass production in your factories, and more. I will stay until arrangements can be made with your Lady's Ministers to exchange Ambassadors and set up a committee to coordinate the logistics. We would like to re-establish a rail connection between Boston and The Pitt, the Relay does consume a significant amount of power."

"Any further questions, Gentlemen?", she asked in conclusion.

How Little We Know

The Institute - Directorate Board Room

The lights came on as the ending credits rolled on what was a newsreel published by the Canadian War Office, made from film of the evacuation and destruction of Chicago by what appeared to be a multi-faction fleet comprising most of the Great Lake powers. Having been part of the force that was sent in to, in vain, capture or eliminate the Canadian Prime minister and the Governor General during and after the annexation, it really didn't surprise him they had just come down from the wilderness after the War and took up where they left off. He and his predecessors had definitely dropped the ball when it came to what was going on North of the old border...some contacts there would be invaluable right now. As to the impact, the silence was deafening, as the various members of the Directorate sat and looked at each other, completely horrified. Dr Li looked like she was fighting the urge to throw up, Charlotte had been quietly weeping through most of the film, Ayo looked every bit as grim as Nathan felt, and the rest were in various stages of shocked horror.

"There are a few observations I'd like to make", Nathan said as he stood up. "What we've just seen is deeply shocking, but there is a definite logic to it. A slide, taken from the film, appeared on the screen. It showed a massive shipyard complex in the South shore of Chicago. It's five building slips were occupied by three partially constructed large freighters, one small warship that appeared to be a Destroyer, and what appeared to be a cruiser-sized warship. "If the Mutants had captured this facility intact, or in at least a repairable state, it would have been a unmitigated disaster for the entire Great Lakes region. If the Mutants were to seize control of the Lakes, they would have access to the Atlantic. As you know, we have no naval force to speak of. More slides, of factory complexes, clicked by one by one. "Chicago's industrial capacity was only rivaled by that of Pittsburgh, by destroying it to deny it to the Mutants, they have given us a chance to survive."

"Regarding Pittsburgh, there has been a recent development on that front", Nathan continued, "Charlotte will brief you". Nathan sat down and nodded at Charlotte to begin. Composing herself, Charlotte stood and presented her report on the message they had received. Once the report was complete, she sat again and Nathan stood.

"Charlotte and Justin assess that this message is an attempt to request aid, or perhaps an alliance from the Institute". Nathan said, "I find their logic compelling. The putative source of the message is a tributary gang of The Pitt, they would not be warning them of something they already know themselves. They believed, correctly as we all know, that members of the former Capital Wasteland Brotherhood would find shelter here, and hoped to attract their notice."

"If I may", Justin said, "Pittsburgh's forces are holding the Line along the Ohio River...for now...but if the Unity breaks though, and takes Pittsburgh, we all are in mortal danger. Their behavior makes clear they are intent on pushing to the Atlantic. With the industrial capacity of the Pitt at their command, there will be no stopping them, even with our technological superiority. Our survival, and that of everything we've built here, is linked to the survival of Pittsburgh. If they fall, we fall shortly thereafter."

"We have been aiding them covertly for some time now", Nathan added, "using the recently expanded range of the Relay to disrupt Enemy logistics, directing reinforcements...namely the Children of Atom...to Pittsburgh, but we must do more." Nathan then concluded "I put the following motion to a vote...that the Institute directly aid the Regime in Pittsburgh by any means necessary for our mutual survival, and that I be authorized to pursue diplomatic relations with same, up to and including a formal Alliance."

"I second the motion", Holdren said.

"Very well....those in favor?"

Every member of the Directorate raised their hand immediately.

"The motion is carried unanimously, and is deemed adopted. Preparations to open relations with Pittsburgh will commence immediately."

How Little We Know

Switchboard - Head Librarian's Office

"...the meeting is at 1800", Justin said over the phone, "Our assets in Toronto, or Ronto as people topside call it, sent back some video footage. The Director and I have already seen much of it, it's quite grim. Among other things, there is footage of what happened in Chicago."

"Did they...?", asked Charlotte in a pained tone of voice.

"Yes", Justin replied tersely. "The Midwestern Brotherhood destroyed their own city with nuclear weapons. As far as I could tell, thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people died....and God knows how many Mutants. Given some of the other footage, I'm not sure I can blame them. I know enough about the Laws of the Brotherhood to know that using strategic nuclear weapons on civilians is the gravest crime of them all....but it seems that after Barnaky's death their defensive lines crumbled and they shifted their focus to the larger picture, stopping an existential threat to Mankind itself at any cost."

"Perhaps", she replied sadly, "I'll try to keep a open mind. I have to say I'm disappointed in them, what they have done is a unprecedented breach of the Codex, the Order was created explicitly to prevent this from happening again."

Her eyes strayed to a picture hanging on the wall. It was from a happier time...of her, she had yet to marry and was still Charlotte Yearling then, receiving her graduation certificate from the hands of Elder Lyons, the day she took her Oath and became a Scribe. Her parents had been so proud. They were gone now, as was the Elder, in fact most everyone she had ever known. Many of them they hadn't even been able to bury, after that bastard Sutler annihilated most of their fighting strength at Adams. They had to abandon the Citadel, collecting everyone they could find and fleeing into West Virginia, the locals were polite but not terribly welcoming. They didn't want any trouble with Sutler, as they had enough problems keeping a lid on the legacy the Old World had left in Appalachia. When the Elder had died a few weeks after their arrival of a broken heart...she herself had held his hand as he died, Sarah's loss on top of the disaster Sutler had wreaked on them, and Abaddon's perfidy (hopefully Sutler rewarded his treachery with a painful death!), had been too much for him and he lost his will to live. After the Elder was interred in a old Pre-War munitions bunker along with the original mainframes that held the Chapter archives, the surviving Proctors took stock and decided that with only a handful of Knights and Paladins left, barely enough equipment to arm them, the Chapter was doomed. A vote was taken, and the motion to formally dissolve the Chapter carried. The survivors made their final goodbyes then went their own separate ways. Rothschild led a Party West, to try and return to Lost Hills. God only knows how far he got, knowing what she knew now. George, Vallaincourt, and her joined Dr Li's party headed North to the Commonwealth...once the Institute realized how formidable an intellect she was, she managed to get them all in as a package deal. A few headed back to the Capital Wasteland, that didn't end well for the ones who fell into Sutler's hands. The rest decided not to join a faction, and scattered to the winds and could likely be found in ones or twos in any civilized faction. She herself know of several who had come to the Commonwealth but did not join the Institute. Those they looked out for best they could, so they could come in from the cold if they chose.

She was distracted as the door to her office opened. It was Will Jones, he was J6 this month. He was carrying some printouts and was clearly excited about something.

"One moment, Justin", she said and bade him to enter. "What do you have for me, Will?"

"You need to see this, Mrs Peabody", he said as he thrust the printouts at her, "Intercept from Team Golf...some Raiders in Scranton broadcast this a little over an hour ago."

Charlotte scanned the printouts, and her jaw dropped in astonishment. The July 2077 codes were the last Codebook published, the Last Days were upon them before the usual update. A Raider gang using a old codebook wasn't impossible, but why would they be reporting a imminent threat against Pittsburgh? Who would they be sending it to? And the name of the Brother sending it? Will had been a baby during the Last Days, she nursed him as well as her eldest Wendell when his mother nearly died from dysentery on the trip North, so he had no way of knowing, but she knew for a fact Ashur had been lost during the Scourge and years later James's boy found him ruling Pittsburgh as effectively a King. Something is very wrong with this message.

"Good catch, Will" she said, firmly pointing at one of the chairs facing her desk. Will got the hint and sat down, clearly excited that he was getting to break important news. "Justin", she said into the phone, "Is it confirmed that Ishmael Ashur is dead?"

"Yes," replied Justin, "Died around two months ago....natural causes, we were told, if you can say that the environment in Pittsburgh is anything like 'natural'. His armies remained loyal and his daughter succeeded him as planned. Why do you ask?"

"We got a decrypt request from Advanced Systems on a message emanating from Scranton," Charlotte explained. "Turns out it was coded in the last set of Brotherhood codes." She then read it aloud to him, then waited for him to check and reply.

"Charlotte", he said after returning to the phone, "That latitude and longitude corresponds to Ashur's Palace, in the old Cathedral of Learning in the University of Pittsburgh. There is only one logical conclusion....this message was intended for us. The Pitt Raiders are asking the Institute...us...for help. They suspected, correctly, that members of the Brotherhood had joined the Institute and hoped this would get their...your...attention. There is no other option that makes sense to me."

"You should relay over right away", Justin continued, "We have to bring this before the Director, and ultimately the Directorate. With George in Nuka-World, you wield your Department's vote."

"Agreed", Charlotte replied, "I'll be over as soon as I debrief my people." She then ended the call and turned to Will, picking up a clipboard and handing it to Will. "Start writing, young man...and not your usual chicken-scratches, please..this is going to the top."

How Little We Know

The Switchboard - J6 (Signal Operations) Office

G1-49 pulled the incoming message off the teletype machine once it finished printing. She did not know why the humans here always wanted hardcopy of documents instead of simply reading them off the secure terminal, but it wasn't her place to question it. Scanning the printout, it had been picked up by the reclamation unit in Springfield an hour ago, and forwarded for analysis after Advanced Systems at the Institute couldn't decipher it due to the brevity of the message. The source of the Signal had been triangulated to a point outside the Commonwealth, in Pennsylvania...Scranton to be specific. She took it to the office of the Duty Analyst, currently a graduate student in Mathematics all of nineteen. A boy his age Institute side would not have this level of responsibility and authority, but Will's parents had made the trek from the Capital Wasteland with Dr Li, and the Brotherhood refugees did things differently.

"Will", she said as she handed him the printout, "this came in from the Institute side, they couldn't crack it and wanted to know if you could help."

"Thanks, Gina", Will said as he accepted the document and did his best not to stare, synth or not, she was pretty, and quickly scanned it. "Scranton? That's weird." He reached for the phone, and dialed J6 (Intelligence Operations).

"Amanda? Henry here", he said as he leaned back in his chair, and spun to face his desk, "What do we have on Scranton, PA? Team Golf in Springfield picked up a message from that area, and Li's people can't crack it. Ok, I'll wait". He waited while poor Amanda had to take time from preparing her Psych Dissertation to answer his inquiry. He looked at G1-49 and smiled. "I'll take it from here, thanks Gina."

As she left the office, she wondered why she felt so odd when Will smiled at her, a odd warm sensation that wasn't at all unpleasant. She was pretty certain he liked her in the way humans liked each other, to the point of giving her a name (based on her designation), and the idea didn't bother her at all. But it was too dangerous to act on it, Grandfather's policies were quite clear, only widow(er)s could have a personal synth. After a incident involving a small group of Robotics personnel about ten years ago that no-one would talk about, this was strictly enforced. Fraternizing with Will would at best get her sent back to the Institute, at worst mind wiped and reprogrammed. That she couldn't bear.

Meanwhile, Will finally received a answer from Amanda. Scranton was occupied by a gang called the "Athols"...a bad pun on the original home of the Raider Gang, in a town called Athol in the Northern Commonwealth. They had begun as a self-defense gang, but eventually ended up running protection rackets and occasional raids on caravans heading between Boston and Albany. For that, and declaring fealty to the Pitt, they were forced out of the Commonwealth by the Minutemen in the '91 campaign. Definitely not the sort that would be broadcasting such a message.

Will shrugged and scanned the message into the local secure database, which was linked to the legacy DIA mainframe that had been bleeding edge tech before the War, and was still capable of giving Advanced System's mainframe a run for it's money. The Database could only be access from inside the Switchboard, even Institute researchers had to relay in to access it, which is just how everyone involved wanted it. The Database was chock full of things that didn't need to be common knowledge, and also contained their copy of the Brotherhood archives that the elders had brought from the Capital Wasteland with them....the main link to their own history before they joined the Institute. The only other complete copy was buried with Elder Lyons in a bunker in West Virginia....but he was a baby then so had no idea where. With the war with the Unity coming, a operation was being planned to retrieve them, and the Elder himself, so the Muties couldn't desecrate him and the archives.

With the message scanned in, he ordered the search program to execute. Surprisingly, it quickly returned a result.

>MESSAGE FORMAT IDENTIFIED
>VALID FORMAT FOR BOS FIELD COMMUNICATIONS
>CODE AUTHENTICATES FOR 18JUL2277 (FINAL) CODEBOOK
>DECRYPT? (Y,N)

Will pushed Y, and the decrypted message scrolled onto the screen.

>MUTANT ATTACK IMMINENT, LOCATION: 40°26′39″N 79°57′11″W. URGENT ASSISTANCE REQUESTED. -ASHUR, I.

Will used his non secure terminal to retrieve the coordinates in the message. They came up as the location of a building in Pittsburgh, or the Pitt as it is called now. The "Cathedral of Learning", on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh, to be specific. Whatever this was, this wasn't the work of some punk Raider gang, that was for certain. He ordered a printout of the result on the secure terminal, and grabbed both printouts and headed for Mrs Peabody's office. With Mr Peabody away supervising the reclamation ops at Nuka World and Springfield, she was in charge, and would know what to do. After all, she was there for the Last Days and knew more than he did about it all.

How Little We Know

Ohio Route 229 - 2 miles South of Waldo, OH

Richard twirled the handle of the Super Sledge back and forth along his shoulder as he was wont to do when annoyed, as he watched, with bored indifference, the feral wranglers herd their charges across the old bridge and past him, towards their final destiny in the front lines, about 50 miles to the East. While he understood that the Front had to be supplied with ammunition, and ferals are as much ammunition as a bullet or rocket, and it was too important a task to be left to Dum-Dums, he still hated everything about the assignment....the ferals, the insolent and untrustworthy ghouls who they relied on to control them, and the fact he was stuck baby-sitting them instead of being at the front caving in skulls.

Damn that worm Joe! It was his stupidity that got him swallowed whole (and very much alive!) by the Behemoth Lord, his immediate Lieutenants fed to the Centaurs, and the next level of leadership, including him, demoted to "redeem themselves". And all because Joe refused to believe Ronto would lift a finger to help the Brotherhood and didn't deploy nearly enough troops to stop them when (surprise!) the Ronto soldiers in Toledo came down to break the encirclement long enough for the Brotherhood to evacuate what troops they still had in Ft Wayne. Last he heard before his demotion was scouting parties in Michigan were not only finding no-one, but signs that the Ronto and Brotherhood humans were shooting any humans who refused to evacuate.

They were beginning to learn.

Richard was shaken from his internal diatribe by a sudden explosion at the far end of the bridge. He turned left to see, it had caught the lead elements of the baggage train, which had been behind the ferals. His first thought was relief that the ferals were already across the now destroyed span. This was followed by scorn at their unknown assailants, presumably the Pittsburgh raiders, why didn't they blow up the whole bridge and wipe out most of his convoy? Such a small section could be easily repaired by slaves.....this lead to a sick sense of dread as Richard began to suspect that it wasn't an accident. Richard reached for his battered old field radio.

"Get the Ferals off the bridge NOW!", Richard roared, "It's a ambush!"

As the wranglers began herding the ferals off the bridge, Richard saw what looked like the patter of rain fall around the massed ferals. But as ferals began to scream and fall as whatever it was touched them, the unmistakable chatter of machinegun fire from the South...behind him...began, but oddly enough it sounded like it was far away. Richard whirled around to see. Parallel to the road was a field, beyond that about 100 yards or so was a treeline. This was too close for the faint sound of the gunfire. Then he saw movement above the trees and looked up. Arcing above and over the treeline, as it coming from a long distance, was two lines of flickering red tracers that converged with the ferals on and near the bridge, and it was decimating them rapidly. Eventually, the wranglers that weren't hit themselves jumped off the bridge to get out of the kill zone. Richard was astounded by this, he had never seen machineguns used in this manner before.

Richard knew they were all dead if they didn't act fast, and after the harsh tutelage of Mutants that had served the NCR, Brotherhood, and Legion before being reborn in the Unity, he knew what he must do. Ordering the Wranglers to unleash the ferals still under command towards the tree line, he quickly rallied the Mutants on his side of the bridge and lead them forward, towards the tree line, hard on the heels of the enraged ferals. Whoever was spotting for the distant guns was in that treeline, and no doubt more enemies were as well. They had to close with them or they would be cut to pieces.

As they approached, two more machineguns began to fire, this time from the treeline. They were widely spaced apart, catching the whole approach in a crossfire, scything down the ferals with brutal efficiency. But he had anticipated this.

"Target the source of the tracers!", Richard bellowed, "silence those machineguns!"

Obediently, the Mutants began firing at the locations where the tracers were emerging from the treeline. One Mutant had a Fat Man he had picked up from a fallen comrade, and managed to land his only bomb right behind the right hand machinegun, the explosion sending the blazing weapon flying into the air towards them, striking and crushing a feral directly. Parts of the crew rained down around them.

A body with both legs and left arm blown off landed about 10 feet in front of Richard, who glanced at it as he ran by, noticing the rubbery cover that looked like a mockery of human skin, and clear mechanical parts underneath.

"A robot?", Richard thought, "what kind of robot is that?" He didn't have time to investigate, luck was finally breaking his way and he had to exploit it while he still could.

"Flank right!", Richard exclaimed, "Get out of the line of fire of the other gun!"

As the remaining ferals charged headlong into the treeline, Richard and his remaining Mutants headed for thier right, hoping to flank the Enemy on their left and roll them up. But as they advanced, they found only dead ferals, and a lesser number of downed robots, all in white outfits with white armor and armed with some sort of laser rifle. Ahead, they heard the snarls of ferals and the sound of energy gun fire, the other machinegun had stopped firing. As they neared the firing, a grenade dropped from above and began to emit a voluminous cloud of smoke. As they fired into the trees, with no target in sight, suddenly one of the mutants cried out. Josh, who had their only flamer, crumpled to the ground, blood gushing from his neck. After that, the smoke was too thick to see further than arms reach, all around him were the cries of Mutants as they were attacked, one by one. Rushing out of the smoke cloud, he finally came face to face with his enemy, who suddenly winked into view, after the tell tale pop of a Stealth-Boy failing. He was a tall black man, with closely cropped hair and wearing a leather trenchcoat that reached his calves and sunglasses. His face was completely expressionless as he leveled a single shot grenade launcher at his chest. Richard rushed forward, winding up his Super Sledge for a swing, but it was far too late. The human fired, and the projectile struck him square in the chest, knocking the wind out of him and toppling him over. Before he could recover, the human dropped the grenade launcher, produced a grenade and pulled the pin, and hurled it at him. It exploded with a loud pop, coating him in foam which rapidly hardened upon exposure to air, completely immobilizing him.

Finding himself trapped, Richard began cursing the human, not that he appeared to care. One of the robots approached the human.

"Report", the human said in a voice as flat and emotionless as his expression.

"Enemy force neutralized", the robot said in a odd buzzing voice. "Eight Gen2 units destroyed, fourteen damaged but assessed repairable. One support weapon destroyed. Two other Mutants and five non-feral ghouls in custody, three wounded. The cut-off force has disengaged, heading West towards the occupied settlement of Waldo."

"Half our force", the human said flatly. "We underestimated them. Prepare the prisoners, damaged units and support weapons for immediate relay out. Collect all destroyed units that can be found in fifteen minutes. All units will be relayed out in twenty minutes, sooner if the enemy approaches. Execute".

Richard resumed his cursing, adding in the casualty report for good measure. The human knelt next to him, and spoke, for the first time showing a hint of emotion.

"Shut up", X6-88 said as he injected a sedative into the Mutant's neck. As the sedative began to take effect, and the world began to dim, his last thoughts were of his old Warboss Joe.

"You bastard", he though bitterly, "I hope you lived for a while in there....."

How Little We Know

The Glowing Sea - Site Prescott - a few minutes later

"Are you sure about this, sir?", X6-88 asked, "Atom cultists are extremely dangerous. We can relay in a strike team and secure the facility easily."

"I am sure", Nathan replied serenely, "We're going to walk in there and secure this facility without a shot being fired. They want what we want, all that needs to be done is explain that to the Children and they'll cooperate gladly...you'll see".

"Very well, sir", X6-88 reluctantly agreed. He had seen Grandfather do some amazing things out in the Wasteland with his own eyes, and heard stories of others from his human traveling companions, but in his opinion convincing Atom Cultists to willingly give up what they held to be sacred relics was ambitious even for him, which is why he had quietly assembled a strike team prepared to relay in on a moment's notice if he was wrong. As the old saying went, it's easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission, and Grandfather's life was his personal responsibility.

"Let's go", Nathan said, then strode towards the old pre-war installation without any attempt at concealment. X6-88 followed, scanning the area as they walked. "Remember, let me do the talking, and don't produce a weapon unless I tell you to."

As the pair approached the crumbling guardhouse at the ruined perimeter fence, a very young woman dressed in the sackcloth robes favored by the Children of Atom darted out to confront them. In her hands was an R-91 assault rifle in surprisingly good condition. While it wasn't pointed straight at them, she was clearly prepared to use it.

"Stop where you are strangers", she said sternly, "This is Holy Ground, there is nothing here for unbelievers that is worth dying for!"

X6-88 noticed a glint from the top of the pyramidal facility that had to be a sniper. Or worse...the Children had no compunctions at all when it came to using atomic or even nuclear weapons, even if they or their fellow cultists were caught in their own blast. His training told him he should order the deployment of the strike team, but his gut told him that it was too late for that, he could only trust Grandfather and see how events played out.

"You but speak the truth, Sister", Nathan replied gently as he held up a odd, crudely fashioned wooden figurine of a woman with her arms at her side, "but for the Faithful, dying to protect the relics of Atom inside is a Sacred Duty".

The effect on the woman couldn't have been more profound, immediately the suspicion and hostility drained from her face, replaced by shock, then reverent awe, then contrition in rapid succession. Her arms went limp and the muzzle of the rifle drooped to aim at the ground and tears began streaming down her face, leaving tracks in the everpresent dust coating her face.

"I...I had no idea you were the Herald of Atom", she sobbed, "P-Please forgive me for threatening you!"

"You have done nothing to be ashamed of, child", Nathan said comfortingly as he gently wiped away the tears running down her face, "your willingness to face a stranger in power armor with just a rifle only proves your devotion to Him." He glanced up at the pyramid the back down into her eyes. "The brethren on the roof..."

"Jessica, my name is Jessica. Oh, yes..almost forgot", she exclaimed. She then turned around to face the facility, and held her rifle over her head and waved it in a elaborate gesture. The glint disappeared, followed by three flashes from a flashlight or spotlight. She whirled around, her demeanor back to reverent awe an continued, "They understand you are one of us, you may enter in peace. They will take you to Brother Henri, he is Atom's Steward here. Atom keep you!"

"And Atom keep you as well, Sister Jessica", Nathan replied.

"Sir, X6-88 asked as they strode towards the front door, "May I ask how you did that?"

"Far Harbor. It was before we met", explained Nathan, "I was helping out Nick, ended up joining the Children myself and living with them for a time". He chuckled at X6-88's reaction and continued. "Nick's assignment required we entered the old sub base they lived in, and the only options to proceed were to join or shoot my way in. As the leader..and trainer...of their fighters was once a high-ranking member of the Capital Wasteland Brotherhood, I would have gotten lit up fast so I went on their quest to join. And someone or something led me to this icon. They call her the 'Mother of the Fog'. I'll be frank, I saw some things on that quest that I still cannot explain. But anyway, when I returned with it they thought I was the neatest thing since sliced bread. It's come in handy ever since....I used my status with the Children and the Minutemen to broker a peace between the Children and the rest of the Commonwealth. For the most part, they are only a threat if persecuted."

"I'm impressed", X6-88 replied, "Kellogg would have used....different methods."

"Correct", retorted Nathan with a hint of cold ferocity in his tone, "That is why I'm still kicking and that cocksucker is dog shit!", after a pause he continued in his normal tone, "Kellogg and his methods were very nearly the Institute's undoing, I think Shaun realized that on some level. Before he passed, I had wondered why he didn't take the trash out himself..I only understood once I inherited the Directorship and could see the situation from his point of view. He didn't have the political capital to get the Directorate to let him take out their favorite Enforcer. It must have been pure hell for him to have to work with the bastard that murdered his mother when he wanted to paint the nearest wall with his brains so bad he could taste it. He then added flatly, "But what he could do is unleash me...I found a microfiche copy of my real service record in his papers, which apparently Zimmer found in the Pentagon before he disappeared...he knew what would happen."

"My point is", he concluded, "and I've spent the last decade driving it home to the Directorate, is that we can't afford the enemies we were making. We have to work with the surface dwellers, not rob them and use them as lab rats, and don't get me started on the Watcher program. Eventually someone would have found a way to strike back and everything we've done to preserve and advance science would have been swept away in a tidal wave of hatred. It doesn't have to be that way, my policies are starting to bear fruit and in the end both the Institute and the Commonwealth will be better for it." Nathan added as they reached the door, "Showtime. This will actually be the easy part, they see us as brethren now so they will hear us out."

Site Prescott - Control Room - a few minutes later

Nathan, having left his suit inside the door to reveal he was now wearing the robes of a Child of Atom, and clutching the effigy to his chest, and X6-88, who removed the helmet from his hazmat suit, were shown into the control room. Awaiting them there was a tall, almost skeletally thin bald man in the robes of a medium high member of the Children of Atom. His eyes, set in his weathered face, had the glint of a true fanatic. In a corner was an Assaultron, the white star painted over with the symbol of Atom. It was studying them, but was not in alert mode.

"I am Brother Henri, Steward of Atom for this Sacred Place", he intoned in a friendly, but curious tone, "Sister Jessica signaled that you were of the Faith, whom do I have the honor of addressing?"

"I am Nathan, Brother," Nathan replied, "I am from the Church in the North, the Nucleus in Mount Desert Island. My companion, X6-88 is seeking the Truth".

"You have come far then", Henri said, impressed that he had traveled so far, "have you come to make a Pilgrimage?"

His mind clicked on the fact that Brother Nathan's companion was a synth, but he was distracted when he noticed what Nathan was holding to his chest. He then spoke again, his voice trembling slightly.

"Brother Nathan", Henri asked, gesturing respectfully at the effigy, "If it's not too impertinent, may I see what you are holding?

"But of course, Brother", Nathan replied as he placed it reverently into Henri's outstretched hand.

Henri studied the effigy, his face lighting up with awe and transcendental joy brighter every second. He then handed it back with extreme reverence. He had expected them to be pilgrims, a joyous event to be sure, but not this. His years of faithful toil had been rewarded. The Herald of Atom had come, and Atom's mighty gaze was upon him.

"I have lived for this glorious day for twenty years", Henri said exultantly, "Pray tell me, what is Atom's Will?"

"You, and your Brothers and Sisters, are part of Atom's Plan, Brother", Nathan replied, "Your charge, which you have faithfully carried out, was to keep the relics here safe until they were needed. That time has come. To the West, a blasphemous force has arisen, determined to force mutation on every man, woman and child on this continent, if not the world, and cut them off from Him forever. Even now they are marching on the Pitt. It is the Will of Atom that the His city, The Pitt, and the infant Church there, stands! The relics here, and other places, shall be readied and unleashed to fulfill the purpose Atom set for them long before his first Child was born, to bring down upon the heads of the so-called, blasphemous "Unity" the irresistible brightness of Atom's Light, and the scourging touch of the flames of His Wrath. By this Act of Faith we shall save both His Church and His Children, as well as those unbelievers who may yet be brought to His light!"

He then folded his arms, still clutching the effigy, and intoned with all the authority he could muster.

"Thus", Nathan said, "is the Will of Atom!"

The room was dead silent, except for the occasional beep from the consoles and whirring of motors in the Assaultron. Coursers don't scare easily, but given all the Children who had filled the room behind them, and the stairs leading up to the Control room, silenty digesting what Grandfather had said and waiting to see how Brother Henri responded, X6-88 was well aware that if Henri gave the word, they'd be torn to pieces before they could react....there were too many, too close. He was clearly considering what he had just heard, but the impassive expression on his face gave no clue to what he would do.

After a full minute, which seemed like eternity, Henri threw his arms out wide and exclaimed in a voice that carried out into the stairwell, immediately spreading to the entire room as the others, including Nathan and then him, joined in.

Behold! He is coming with the clouds!", Henri shouted with a voice only someone with absolute conviction could use, his face lit up with transcendental joy, and tears of joy streaming down his face, "And every eye will be blinded by His Glory, and every ear shall be stricken deaf with the thunder of His Voice! Let the men, women and children of the Earth come forth to gather and witness the power of Atom! These ancient weapons of war were hidden here long ago by Atom for our salvation! They are the very symbol of Atom's Glory! The blasphemers shall exist no more, they will be washed away by Atom's Glow, burned to ashes in the fire of His brilliance!"

Henri was beside himself with joy. The years of isolation and loneliness and toil, which he had suffered gladly, were irrelevant now. Atom had bestowed upon him the greatest reward he could receive next to Division. He was aware of the Unity, the Prophet had summoned all the Faithful not needed to secure and tend to the Holy sites in the Commonwealth and it's environs to the Pitt to aid the secular ruler, Marie, who had been clearly received Atom's Blessing and more, in defending His city. She was clearly part of His plan too, and it was his sacred task to aid her.

"Atom has spoken", Henri said to Nathan, "And we will answer. But restoring the systems in this place requires materials and skills we don't have....unless Atom provides."

"The Institute will provide both", Nathan answered. "A team is ready to survey the facility and determined what is needed, then a repair crew will work with your technically minded Brothers and Sisters to restore this facility to operational status. As far as the others, this sacred ground must be protected more than ever. Being mutants, the Unity can enter the Glowing Sea, so we must take the possibility of a ground attack into account. We'll provide any weapons you require."

"We could use some heavy lasers", Henri replied, "As far as guns our brethren in the Pitt buy them and send them to us. What we really need is good armor, Combat or Marine armor. It's frowned upon for those with the Gift to use power armor, as you know. Atom's Glow is too severe here for those without the Gift to survive as a permanent member of the congregation. We simply lack access to enough Radaway and Rad-X to support new converts dwelling among us, just Pilgrims."

Institute - Dr Li's Quarters - Later

"You mean to tell me", Dr Li said skeptically, "that he just walked in there and convinced them to hand it over."

"Yes ma'am", X6-88 replied, "I did not believe it possible, but he proved me wrong. Though it would be more accurate to say he convinced them to agree to share it with us. They are providing security as well as assisting in the reactivation effort. Initiating a launch requires two keys, one is held by their leader and the other by X5-14, we do not assess them as having the technical skill to override the pre-war PAL system. In the worst case scenario they will not be able to overcome our force there and initiate a launch before strike teams can be relayed directly inside to stop them".

"It doesn't surprise me", Brian said, "he has a web of friends, contacts and favors all across the Commonwealth. Look at me, he made sure I survived comfortably until he could convince the rest of the Directorate to pardon me. Our predecessors should have disposed of Kellogg and woken up the three of them....he'd have the surface eating out of our hand by now. God knows what he's managed to achieve down here....you and I can't be the only people who owe him one."

"What did he do before the War?", Dr Li exclaimed. "according to his service record he was a common infantryman who served in Alaska and the Canada Annexation, he got a Silver Star at the Battle of Winnipeg....which I think is in Canada....why would they assign a man with his talents to a front-line infantry unit? Even the idiots running the country into the ground weren't that foolish."

"He hinted that that was not his actual service record", X6-88 replied, "He said something about finding his "real" service record amongst Father's papers after he passed. Said Dr Zimmer had forwarded it before his disappearance. He also said he believes Father released him from Vault 111 to avenge himself against Kellogg."

"I reviewed his papers before we turned them over", Dr Li said, "there was no dossier like that in Father's effects like the one we retrieved from the VA branch in Boston, just some old pre-war...", her eyes widened as something clicked and she sat down heavily. "..microfiches. Which I didn't bother to review. Damn it, I had it in my hands!" She folded her arms and crossed her legs, disgusted with herself.

"Does it really matter at this point?", Brian asked, "It's been two centuries."

"Probably not", she replied, "I generally agree with his policies, we have a responsibility to the people above that none before him were willing to shoulder. And no one else could have secured that pardon, Clayton and I were the only two lobbying for it before this "Unity" mess began. Ayo even went so far as to send Kellogg to kill you, Brian...fortunately Grandfather found him first. But he's been Director for ten years now and he is still as unknown a quantity as the day he found his way here. I don't like that."

"Grandfather?" Brian asked, "Is that his title now?"

"The synths started calling him that five years ago", Li answered, "It's catching on amongst the faculty more and more. It's true from a technical aspect so there is no point in complaining about it."

"X6-88", Li said, "You're dismissed. And not a word of this conversation to anyone, even the Director."

"Yes, ma'am", X6-88 replied.