The Empire of Steel

Prologue

War... War never changes. After the battle at Helios One the Mojave Brotherhood of Steel retreated to Hidden Valley. The Brotherhood was devastated by the loss of so many soldiers and the desertion of Elder Elijah. In response, the Elders in Lost Hills sent Knight Christine Royce of the Circle of Steel to hunt him down. She tracked him from the Mojave Big Mountain to the Sierra Madre Casino where a Paladin from the Brotherhood helped her to bring him down. This Paladin is named Leo Storm, and he wants to reform his new family. Life in the Brotherhood is about to change.

Upon his return to the Mojave from Old World ruins like the Sierra Madre, Big Mountain, and the Divide, the former courier unleashed an armada of previously unheard of technology to strengthen his brothers. Holograms became an integral part of Hidden Valley's security. Electrical technology provided a new class of weapons for the Knights and Paladins. Farming technology, although not something commonly seen by the scribes, proved invaluable in reducing the Brotherhood's dependence on outsiders. Stealth based technology granted the Brotherhood the ability to spy on its enemies much more effectively, and finally give them an idea of what the outside is like. And with a teleporter in the bunker capable of sending soldiers to Big Mountain, this is only a fragment of the technology at the Brotherhood's disposal. But in Leo's mind, his greatest contribution was bringing Christine Royce home, and reuniting her with Veronica.

Paladin Storm also also eliminated potential enemies on the home front. He vanquished half a dozen Legion bases as well as Caesar himself. He allowed the Boomers to reconstruct a massive bomber before wiping them out. He felt guilty, but his sense of duty outweighed his guilt. He knew the weaponry here (and not to mention the bomber) would be essential to establishing the Brotherhood as the dominant faction in the Mojave. He convinced the Khans to abandon the Mojave as a whole. He wiped out the Fiends and the Powder Gang down to the last man. He reunited a group of Enclave Remnant then destroyed them so their bunker could be occupied by the Brotherhood. He killed Mr. House and led a slaughter on the Strip and then in the surrounding area with the help of a dozen mercenaries, none of whom survived the day. He activated an army of robots underneath Fortification Hill to supplement Brotherhood soldiers. Paladin Storm did all this in preparation for molding New Vegas and the Mojave into an Empire of Steel. He did not, however, ask Elder McNamara first.

Chapter 1

"Wait. So you're telling me that you're the guy who wiped out half the Mojave?" Elder McNamara shouted, taken aback. "May I ask why?" The enraged Elder ignored Veronica and Christine, the two who were helping Leo. They would likely be the next to face his wrath, unless the Paladin could calm his superior.

"To prepare the way, sir," Leo said, stone faced. Despite having both rank and reputation, he looked out of place. Instead of power armor he donned a black duster with the BoS insignia on the back: a gift from an old friend.

"Prepare the way for what? I'm still not completely understanding your batshit plan."

"The Battle for Hoover Dam is approaching and if we don't sieze this opportunity, the NCR will control the Mojave. If not, it'll be the Legion. Neither are good for us."

"We have a treaty with the NCR. They won't do anything."

"If they don't do it themselves they'll pay someone else to come wipe us out," Storm shot back. "I'm not saying we go to war with them, but we can't just sit on our hands when we could take control of the situation."

"And just how would we take control of the situation? Sacrificing our soldiers to pacify a hostile populace. It's madness."

"I have already neutralized every major threat. The only places to pacify are a few towns who would likely be more than willing to join us. In any event we have securitrons to back us up. Not to mention an armada of roboscorpions and cyber dogs we can get from Big MT."

"Wait a second, you said 'join us.' Are you saying we should recruit those towns? Now I know you're crazy."

"I'm not saying we recruit them so much as incorporate them. We can't force them to join the Brotherhood, but they could certainly join the Empire of Steel."

"Empire of Steel? Do you have any idea how crazy you sound? And why even bother having those towns? Why not just take Vegas?" McNamara argued, seeming to give in a bit.

"So the NCR can occupy them and enforce an embargo on us? We need the whole Mojave, as far as the Outpost."

"We don't have the manpower to secure the whole Mojave. And with our soldiers spread so thinly how are we supposed to collect technology?"

"We certainly have the manpower, it just happens to manifest is dogs and robots and holograms. And we wouldn't be confiscating technology."

This drew a confused look from the Elder. "Okay I don't know what organization you're in, but in the Brotherhood we preserve technology."

"Yes, and a little too well. Why have this technology if we don't use it to rebuild the world. Why do you think I went out of my way to retrieve agricultural technology? And an excess of Auto Docs and Molecular Converters from the Sierra Madre? If we are to become a nation, we'll need more than just big guns. We'll need a civilian sector. We'll need agriculture and medicine. And we'll need to share those things, instead of stealing every stray sensor module."

"The Empire of Steel..." the Elder pondered to himself.

"A force for good in the world. With the Brotherhood acting as the military, the Circle serving as internal affairs, and civilian representation from the towns under our jurisdiction," Storm explained.

"What's to stop the NCR from going to war with us? And what will make these towns support us?" McNamara asked, almost convinced.

"If we send soldiers to fight the Legion when fighting at the Dam starts they'll warm up to us. And we can make them sign a treaty once I redirect power from the Dam to activate the securitrons. And as for those towns, most will be happy to have security and food. And as for Vegas itself, well it's a ghost town." Leo could see the Elder needed just a little more convincing. "And, we can finally have Helios One."

With a moment's hesitation, McNamara scribbled something onto a piece of paper and handed it to Leo. "You're a courier, right? Take this to Colonel Moore at Hoover Dam. It states that we will send soldiers to help push back the Legion in the upcoming battle."

"Thank you, Elder. You won't regret this," Paladin Storm said before leaving the bunker, flanked by his female companions.