Chapter 1

The compound was heavily overrun with ferals, Rhys was wounded, and the ghouls were slowly beginning to corner them. The police station would act as a barricade for a short while, but the monstrosities would eventually break through and eradicate them. The thought scared the Paladin. His soldiers should look up to him and see nothing but bravery. Instead, they would most likely see cowardice.

Just as he was about to give the order, a flash of blue sprinted behind a barricade and fired five shots.

The five heads closest to him exploded.

He didn't have time to register what had happened when several more shots were fired killing the remainder of the ghouls. The three Brotherhood soldiers stared at the blue clad woman who had stepped out of the shadows. "Are you okay?"

"Who the hell are you?" Rhys snarled.

"Rhys," Danse snapped, "Be respectful. She just saved our lives. State your business, civilian."

"I was making my way towards Diamond City when I heard your distress signal. Figured I could help out fellow soldiers," she shrugged.

He Paladin scowled, his eyes narrowing. "You're a member of the Brotherhood?"

"No, sir."

Rhys laughed dryly. "How is a Vault Dweller a soldier?" He sneered.

"The Vault I was in had us cryogenically frozen; I only thawed out just recently. Which means I've been alive since before the bombs," she answered.

"Before the bombs?" Haylen repeated, her eyes instantly lighting up. "So you know about the technology from back then. What things were like before all the radiation?"

"Yes. I can tell you about it if you wish."

"We can get to that later," Danse was watching the pre-war soldier with trained eyes. From just looking at them he could see scars on her neck and hands where the vault suit didn't cover her aside from the obvious ones marring her features. She obviously knew how to use the sniper rifle she strapped to her back from her military days. She would be a very helpful asset if she were to join the Brotherhood's ranks. "We need to find a Deep Range Transmitter located at Ark Jet Systems. Would you be willing to accompany me to locate it?"

She smiled warmly up at him. "Of course." She stepped forward and extended her hand. Rhys, Haylen, and Danse all stared at it, confused. "Oh, you don't do that now," she blushed. "It's a way to greet people in a respectful manner."

Haylen stepped forward and took it. "My name is Scribe Haylen. That's Knight Rhys and Paladin Danse: he's the one in charge around here."

"Captain Anna Solomon of the United States military. It's a pleasure to meet all of you. I'm ready when you are, Paladin, to retrieve that transmitter."

Solomon was more skilled than Danse had anticipated. He'd already seen how great of a shot she was, but he never thought she could excel at hand-to-hand combat. The two of them had been cornered and their weapons knocked out of their hands by synths. Danse had moved to put himself between her and the robots when her foot lashed out and kicked the head right off of a synth.

Even in his power armor she was able to shove him behind her and block all the attacks the synths threw her way. When those were defeated, twenty more began to drop down. Solomon acted quickly by grabbing their weapons and closing the blast doors behind her and Danse and starting the countdown.

They watched in safety as the synths were burnt almost instantaneously. "That was impressive, Solomon," Danse complimented. "The military must've taught you very effectively."

She didn't turn to face him but instead shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, I guess," she muttered.

He noticed the awkwardness in the air and decided to change the subject. "Once we get on the elevator the transmitter should be up a flight of stairs. Then, we can make our way back to the Police Station."

She absentmindedly handed him his weapon and muttered quietly as if to herself, "It's 11:47: almost midnight. We should find someplace secure to stay the night and keep watch at separate intervals."

Danse furrowed his brow. "How can you tell?"

That seemed to snap her out of her faze. "Military training," she said, turning to face him.

Now I know you're lying." He scowled as he crossed his power armor clad arms. "And I don't like being lied to."

She sighed deeply. "May I explain once we set up for the night?"

He could tell she really didn't want to tell him anything, but she lied to him and that wasn't allowed if she was going to join the Brotherhood's ranks.

After clearing out enough space to make an acceptable sleeping place, Anna made a fire big enough to keep the two of them warm and see around them. Danse watched her as she worked: with experienced hands that have done the same thing dozens of times. He'd seen Paladins stranded by themselves without firepower in unfamiliar territory shaking, not able to do anything, or keep looking over their shoulders as they worked. But Solomon was calm and collected. It made him anxious to hear her answer.

Meanwhile, her mind was reeling. She'd shown too much of her skillset and training during the mission. He must've thought nothing of it until she said the exact time. She cursed herself for it. He would most likely accuse her of being a traitor, but what could she have done? Her husbandhad pinned her to floor. His voice broke through her thoughts. "Enough stalling, Solomon."

"I was a spy for the United States government. I worked to get information on the Chinese as well as assassinate high-ranking officials to weaken their chain of command. I basically did what no one else wanted to do. That's when I found out about…the bombs." Her mind traveled back to the day she discovered the plans. She was about to make contact with her supervisor when her husband had come in with her weapon. He worked for the Chinese and had been sent to infiltrate her life and see if he could find any info to weaken the United States.

He'd already had her pinned when the doorbell rang.

The Vault-Tech Salesmen.

She was eager for him to leave so that Nate didn't hold him as a hostage if their fight escalated.

After the man left, Anna sprang into action and round-house kicked Nate in the face. She began for the nursery, but he had put a knife in her thigh. He smirked as he walked back with their baby in hand. "Looking for this?"

That's when the alarms sounded.

He sprinted out of the house towards the Vault leaving her to pull the blade from her leg. She finally reached him at the elevator just as the bombs were dropped. In her head she could hardly believe what she saw. How could the Chinese actually go through with it? She glared at Nate. "Look at what you've done," she snarled.

Nate looked mortified. "They never told me." His hold on Shaun tightened.

As they entered the Vault and put on the suits, Anna felt that something about the Decontamination Pods wasn't right. It took five men to shove her inside. As the cryostasis took place, she looked over at her son. She would protect him even if she gave her life for the cause.

And then the nightmare of it all started.

A bald man with a scar over his left eye and a woman in a hazmat suit opened Nate's cryo pod and tried to take Shaun. Her baby. Anna's baby.

She pounded on the glass with all her might until she bled, but it was useless. She felt a twinge of pain when Nate was shot, but her world shattered when they made off with her son. "No!" Her voice cracked as the man walked over to her. "At least we still have the backup," he sneered.

Anger coursed through her veins. "I'll kill you! I'll track you down and kill you!"

And then she woke up. She was 200 years into the future with no one to rely on; no one she could call friend; no objective other than to find her son. But where could she look? Her surrounding were completely unfamiliar.

She had almost given up hope until Mama Murphy told her about Diamond City. As a spy she knew never to get her hopes up, but this was her son. If there was anyone who knew where he was she would travel heaven and earth to find them.

She looked away from Danse after recounting her sorrowful tale, not wanting to see pity in his eyes. "And before you say anything I don't need you to feel bad. I just-"

"I understand," he told her quietly. "I know what you're going through… in a way. But I would love to get lessons and tips from you if you'd like to join the Brotherhood."

She was speechless. He understood her pain and wanted to learn her skills? She smiled as she realized how well they'll work together. "Thank you, Danse. So do you have any questions for me?"

He seemed giddy like a little schoolboy as he scooted closer to her. "What was the military like?

She smiled. "A family away from your family," she said softly. "Before I became a spy I was a Captain of the United States military, as you know. During my many tours I probably had saved around one hundred men and women in the midst of battle. Because Nate-my husband- was very abusive I liked to go out with my fellow soldiers. It was like that all the time till I became pregnant with Shaun, my son. Anything else?"

"How long did you train to be a spy?"

"About two years. I already could speak several languages and fight, I just needed to learn, well, spy things," she giggled. The sound was innocent considering what she was.

"If you hated Nate… why did you stay with him?" His tone was careful, nervous he might say the wrong thing.

Anna sighed deeply. "I figured you'd ask that. Back then, society was much different than how it is now. As a woman, once you were married you basically became his property. At first, Nate was sweetest man I'd ever met." She looked into his eyes. "And then one day he just… snapped. He was cooking dinner and cutting some carrots. I walked into the room and accidentally spilled some water onto the counter and he just…lashed out with the knife. That's how I got the scar on my cheek: the one on the far left." Tears filled her eyes and she didn't bother to blink them away. "I was glad to risk my life so that I didn't have to be around him. I guess now I know why."

Danse moved closer and allowed her to silently cry on his shoulder. He knew he shouldn't've asked her such a personal question, but it left his lips before he could stop it. But he was glad they had established this amount of trust between each other. It would prove beneficial. "It's late. We should both try to get some sleep."

She nodded "Thank you, Danse."