Disclaimer: I do NOT own Fallout 4 or it's characters. The Fallout series belongs to Bethesda. This is a nonprofit fanfiction written purely for enjoyment. Enjoy.
"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." - Edmund Burke
Prologue
The sun had already found it's perch high in the sky by the time Piper Wright had made her way from Publick Occurrences to Nick Valentine's Detective Agency. To say Piper was surprised that the detective had come to her was an understatement. In all of her years working in the Commonwealth she found it rare that someone actually reached out to a reporter, usually it was the other way around. Piper wondered what the detective could want with her, especially since he was always secretive about his work. 'Client confidentiality', Nick always called it. Piper sat impatiently in the chair in his office. She peered around to see if Nick was coming. When she was confident he wasn't, she stood up and began to snoop around the synth's office. Piper was in full sleuth mode when the door knob turned behind her.
"Hope you didn't break into my office to go through my files," frowned Nick Valentine as he walked into the room.
"Of course not," shot back Piper with a look of mock-sadness, as if the mere suggestion hurt her. "Your assistant let me in," The reporter quickly added.
Nick took a seat at his desk and motioned for her sit across from him. "I'll have to remind Ellie not to do that again," Nick grumbled to himself. Pulling a cigarette from his coat pocket, he set it on the corner of his lips. "I'm assuming you want to know why you're here?" The detective pulled the file from his 'Active Investigations' section of his desk, and placed it flat on the desk. Slowly he pushed the file over to his guest.
Curiosity peaked, Piper took the seat across from Nick. Now directly under the ceiling light Piper could see the synth detective better. Nick made no effort to hide the exposed wiring, or his trademarked yellow eyes. It was probably what made him so welcome in Diamond City, even with the impending fear of the Institute that lingered over the city like a thick shadow. Piper didn't bother herself with Nick's appearance, that was old news. The reporter within her was hungry for whatever Nick had compiled in the file that sat in front of her. When she opened it she wasn't disappointed.
"Nicky," gasped Piper, moving her hand over her mouth. Nick Valentine had compiled a list of the Commonwealth's most recent, gruesome murders. Each photo looked like a massacre in their own right. The file looked very professional, similar to the way a crime scene had been documented before the bombs dropped. Some of the victims were slumped over their food, or in their beds, poor bastards never saw it coming. Other photos looked two armies converged together for one big showdown. Bullet holes riddled the walls, and enough blood spatter to make it look like a cheap thriller movie. Nick had taken the time to document when it happened, where, and tried to identify as many victims as possible. Police work was already hard, and that was before Nick was the last cop remaining in the Commonwealth. Piper started to read off the names when she realized the connection. "Are these all raiders?"
"Bingo," said Nick, lighting the cigarette that had been sitting in the corner of his mouth.
The wheel in Piper's head started to turn as she attempted to piece everything together. "Another raider gang maybe? New kids on the block?"
Nick took a long drag off his cigarette. They didn't serve any purpose, it was just a bad habit from when he was still human. Now he liked to think they help him think, or it was just something to hold onto from the old world. "Something like that," Nick finally spoke.
Piper could tell Nick was holding his cards close to his chest. The reporter knew she was being tested, Nick wanted her to come to some conclusion on her own. She wasn't mad, otherwise Nick wouldn't have needed her help. A sudden realization turned her stomach. "You think all of these are connected?"
"Right again."
There was something else the detective was holding back, Piper could feel it. She scanned the pictures again, looking for any kind of clue. Even after scanning the images again, Piper failed to see how they're connected. The weapons were different at each scene, and the way the killings were done weren't the same either. Some looked similar to an assassin, and others looked like a mercenary gang blew through. "Whoever they are, they're organized."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Nick's yellow eyes were steady on the reporter in front of him. He took off a long drag, there wasn't much left of the cigarette.
"Were these people," Piper started, but she wasn't sure if she wanted the answer to the question was about to ask. This was what Nick wanted to find on her own, this was what he was waiting for. "Tortured?" It's what connected them together despite all the differences.
Upon her realization, Nick pulled another file off his desk and slid it over to her. "Interrogated seems more like it."
"Over what?" Piper furrowed her brow in confusion and disgust. "This seems too organized for raiders."
The next file contained the juicy details that Nick had left out of the first file, confirming that it was a test. Piper suspected that it was originally one file. Nick Valentine always worked alone, Piper figured this was his way of testing for a worthy partner. The second file was by far more disturbing than the original. Most of these pictures were graphic images that depicted torture in one form or the other. This file made Piper's skin crawl.
"Some of these raider gangs were allies," Piper remarked.
"I know."
"What's the motivation?"
The synth shrugged. "That's what we're trying to figure out."
"If all the victims are raiders, how do we know who will be targeted next?"
Nick shook his head in response. "It'll be like looking for a needle in a haystack."
Piper bit her tongue for a second, chewing on her words before deciding whether or not to say it. "Maybe..."
"Maybe what?" Nick started. "Maybe we let this guy kill off the scum of the Commonwealth? Maybe we let him do it, and then go after him when he crosses the line?" The detective put no effort into trying to hide his frustration. "Because he will cross the line, it's the only truth in this world: Power corrupts people," Nick let out a shaky sigh. He was letting himself get worked up. Part of his synthetic heart was filled with guilt for going off on the reporter, he had the same thoughts in the beginning. "No one should be judge, jury and executioner, that's too much power for one man."
Piper saw his points. She opened her mouth to say that Nick had won her back over to his side when her stomach twisted into knots. "You're saying one person is responsible for all of this, carnage?" Piper put an emphasis on carnage, for a lack of a better word.
"Guess I overplayed my hand," Nick admitted. "I just got back from someone who claims they were there."
"You have a survivor?"
Nick Valentine nodded his head. "Yeah, he's saying that he leaves one behind in every scene. To warn everyone else that he's coming for them."
'Great, that's what the Commonwealth needed. Another boogeyman', Piper thought to herself. "He's leaving a Sole Survivor at the sight of every attack? We should go see if we can piece a profile together from their accounts."
"After," agreed Nick. "He was high on jet and tied to a chair when he told me his version. Now that he's come down from it I want to see if he'll give me the same story. Maybe he'll give us something now that he's sober that'll help us catch this Ghost."
Piper stifled a laugh as she raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Please don't tell me we're giving it a name, Nick. He's not a pet."
"What? You don't like it?" Nick mused for a moment. "Spectre?"
"Stay in your lane, Nicky. I come up with the names."
Involuntarily, Nick rolled his eyes. "As long as it's better than Nicky," The synth grumbled to himself.
Author's Note: First off, I'd like to point out the joke for those of you who might not have gotten it. 'Ghost' is the name of my friend The Desert Dancer's character. He writes really well done Fallout stories, you should go check them out! Second, I'd like to thank you for making it through the prologue of 'Scars and Stripes'. I know it's a little short, but the chapters will be longer, I promise. Anyways, please leave a review! Solivore out!
