Leon snuck in the door to see that it wasn't just Butch and Officer Park but Susie Mack, Christine Kendall and one other guard that he couldn't identify. The guards had all their attention on his former classmates and hadn't seen Leon. Butch had seen Leon out of the corner of his eye but not fully. Thinking quickly he tried to create a diversion.
"So what the hell's going to happen now?"
Park sneered. "We're taking you to the security room just like everyone else. Once we've got everyone the vault door's getting closed, this time for good. All except 'hero boy', that is! When he turns up..."
"...You're totally screwed?" Park's blood turned to ice as he heard Leon's voice right behind and he turned his head to face the livid Lone Wanderer pointing his Metal Blaster straight at him.
"I-Is that you?"
"Did you need a cheat sheet to work that out, asshole?" Leon's mad voice sounded even more terrifying coming through the T-51 helmet.
The other guard turned out to be Officer Taylor. He slowly turned his gun arm around but this didn't escape Leon's notice.
"Don't even think about it, old man. Drop that gun and get against the wall. If you don't I'll start with him and then I'll finish with you, now drop it!"
Taylor wasn't much of a fighter and he quickly complied. Butch swiftly snatched up the gun and turned it on Park. Park quickly followed suit and Christine snatched his gun up as Leon slung him against the wall to join Taylor.
Leon wrenched down his helmet to reveal his furious face. "Now what are you jokers up to?"
Park was sweating at Leon's eyes and expression. Both were stone cold. He knew they probably wouldn't change if Leon put a laser beam through him either.
"Allen Mack thought he should have taken charge and the vault door should never have been opened and..."
"Tell me something I don't know, "Leon snapped impatiently. "Like where the hell is Amata and how many of you morons went along with Mack? Let me guess, just the guards right?"
When neither one answered Leon knew he was right. Even though he knew he was resented by Stanley, Pepper Gomez and the like he also knew Mack and his police state was going to be liked even less.
"She's in the security office," Taylor said. "Most of them are."
"This doesn't change anything, you little delinquent shit!" Park unwisely mouthed off. "The Overseer's counting on you coming back. He and the rest of the guards will kick your ass!"
Leon sneered in contempt. "Didn't know any of them could kick that high. Now I'm just going to go get my vault friends out with the help of my other friends."
Park's face was a real picture as he saw the Brotherhood platoon enter the vault. So were his classmates. Butch, Susie and Christine knew of the Brotherhood and had dealt with them on the trade runs they'd made for the vault but they'd had no idea that Leon was in with them.
"Who's the little shit now, eh?" Leon taunted Park. "Now as I said I'm getting the others out and then I'm giving Mack a steel enema...or a laser one if he's dumb enough!"
At hearing that Susie's face became panic stricken. "Leon, I know you and my dad aren't friends and he's gone way too far this time but..."
"I know, Susie. He's still your dad. But you know this can't stand. Vault 101's secret is out and blown. Locking the vault again is not going to work no matter what he says or does; hell Amata's father was smart enough to figure that out."
"Let's get your friends out before we decide what to do next, ok? " Sarah suggested. "If we can do that Mack and his friends will be isolated and I bet they'll think twice before taking us on."
"Good idea," Leon slammed his helmet back down and pulled Park to his feet roughly. "Now you are going to lead us down to the security office and open it up for us. Try anything else and you're dust."
Vault 101 security office
Goddamned Allan Mack and his tunnel snake brat! Where the hell did I go wrong? Amata Almodovar had been asking herself that question for god knows how long now since she'd ended up stuck in the security office along with most of the civilian vault population including the whole Gomez family (Herman Gomez was the one guard who refused to serve Mack), Stanley Armstrong, Edwin Brotch, Butch's mother Ellen and the previous Overseer Alphonse Almodovar who was looking in deep concern at Amata.
"Can't believe it came to this," Stanley was muttering.
"Me neither," Officer Gomez pounded the wall in frustration." I always knew Mack was arrogant but I didn't think he was a simpleton as well."
"Yes arrogance and stupidity in the same package is a fatal mix," Alphonse agreed. He hated to see his daughter paying the price for his own errors. "Fortunately I was taught that lesson before I went too far. Not that it seems to matter now."
"I just hope he doesn't believe that message I sent and stays away," Amata sniffled. She felt ashamed of herself for having sent it even though she'd been forced.
"I think you underestimate your friend, Amata," her father took an assuring tone. "He bested me more than once, remember? I have no doubt a fool like Mack will not have any success either."
Freddie Gomez grunted. "I hope he does come back to kick Mack's ass!"
As if in answer to Freddie's wish the sound of gunfire and laser fire suddenly rang through the vault...
Vault 101 Overseer's office
Allen Mack was starting to get a little concerned about the way things were playing out, or not playing out depending on your point of view. Although he managed to take over the vault most of the residents weren't cooperating. He'd placed the bulk of them in the security office but that was no long term solution. It didn't matter what he used: threats, persuasion, bribery, all were useless. His coup had turned them solidly against him. If they wouldn't come out voluntarily and return to their jobs to keep things running then his coup was all but meaningless; the vault just wouldn't function, period. As if that wasn't enough he'd not heard a word from the door. He'd been putting the transmission that he'd forced Amata to give (by threatening to blow off her father's head) all day but there'd been no response from the door at all.
Perhaps I should have sent more men to guard the door? He quickly quashed the thought. There was no way that second rate punk would get out of this one. God only knew how he'd got that radio station fawning over him and spouting all that crap but Mack determined that it would end here. Suddenly he was jolted awake by several red flashes that he saw through the office window. He quickly looked out and was frozen in sheer disbelief by what he saw.
The Brotherhood platoon was forcing its way through the main hall; actually they were just striding through the hall against pitiful opposition. Nearly all the guards were fleeing in terror from their much better armed, armoured and trained opponents after seeing two of their own cut down like dogs. Leon and the Pride wasted no time going through the hall and past the cafeteria. From there it was virtually just a stroll up the stairwell and through to the security office. Allan Mack was at a complete loss as to what to do now. Instead of a lone punk he'd hope to trap he'd ended up with seven soldiers in power armour and armed with lasers. How they'd accessed the vault in the first place was a mystery but not important right now. Running over to the main console Mack activated the hidden Overseer's tunnel access and fled immediately.
On reaching the wide open vault door he quickly moved to shut it down again, hoping he could lock it down and use it as a means to bargain with his unknown attackers. On pulling the lever however he received a rude shock as it refused to work! Leon had anticipated a cowardly move of this sort and, together with the Pride's tech expert Paladin Glade, had rigged both controls by pulling out vital circuits and jamming it open.
"DAD!" Mack looked up to see his terrified son Wally running out of the main hall corridor.
"Wally! Thank god you're all right, what's happening?"
"Those tin men just blew right by us dad! We couldn't stop them, what are we going to do now?"
Mack got no time to reply as a nearby wall intercom came to life with the voice of Paladin Tristan.
"This is a message to the terrorist usurper Allen Mack from the Brotherhood of Steel, respond immediately!"
They know me? How the hell is that possible? Mack was taken completely by surprise. As he absorbed the message however his arrogance soon returned as he strode over to the intercom.
"Who the hell is this and who the hell do you think you are?"
"This is Paladin Tristan of the Brotherhood of Steel," was the calm response. "Who is this?"
"I am Allen Mack the rightful Overseer..."
"...Ah the usurper," Tristan cut Mack right off. "I'm afraid I'm standing right next to the rightful Overseer and the previous one right now. Needless to say they're none too happy with you, nor are the organisation I represent. You have just had a foretaste of what happens to those who foolishly attempt to attack one of our order. However Overseer Amata is offering clemency if you will surrender now. This is her jurisdiction so I will oblige this time."
Mack was starting to sweat. As they'd reached Amata he knew his claim to legitimacy was kaput. Still he was not ready to just give up and die.
"I still have at least 30 vault guards to protect me and the safety of this vault. How many do you have?"
"Seven."
"You come in here to destroy my vault with only seven soldiers?"
Tristan was now losing patience. "Firstly this is not your vault. Secondly we are here to liberate not to destroy and thirdly we could destroy your vault with just one soldier. Your guards are superior in only one respect."
"What's that?" Mack was trying to stop shaking with nerves.
"They're better at dying as you'll find out first hand if you don't surrender now!" Tristan snapped. "Here's what will happen. Your guards will proceed to the security office. On the way in they will be searched, their weapons will be confiscated and then they will take the place of the residents in the cell. Once this is done we will meet you in the main hall along with the Overseer where we will accept your surrender. Do not even think of trying anything. Thanks to Overseer Amata I know exactly how many guards there should be so you and your men have five minutes to begin surrendering. After that your lives are forfeit."
Security Office
The last hour had been exhilarating for Amata and her supporters. At first the sight of the power armoured soldiers had been a terrifying one as they saw Officer Armstrong, who unwisely tried to take them down, reduced to ashes by their lasers. That didn't last long as they saw Susie, Christine and Butch alongside their new allies.
"Amata! Are you ok?" Christine asked as they shoved Officers Taylor and Park into the cell and onto the floor.
"I'm fine. Who are your friends?" Amata had been agape at the sight of the Brotherhood.
Sarah pulled off her helmet. "Sentinel Sarah Lyons, Brotherhood of Steel eastern chapter. A mutual friend sent us to help."
"I never thought I'd say this to outsiders, but thank you for your help," Alphonse replied in gratitude.
"I'm not the one you should be thanking..." Sarah looked over to the entrance door where Leon was removing his helmet.
Amata was stunned. "L-Leon! You came back!"
"Yeah, surprised the shit out of me too," Leon said bitterly. "I didn't think I'd ever come back here."
Amata looked down in shame as he said that. So did a lot of the other vault dwellers.
"Speaking for all of us, we're real glad you did," Mr Brotch finally broke the ice.
"Speaking of which we're still not done, we have that double crossing snake to deal with," Leon nodded at Paladin Tristan who'd gone over to the intercom to implement the next part of the plan.
It worked like a charm as Mack didn't have any choice in the end. His men voted with their feet and surrendered by themselves. Forty minutes later Mack and Wally were the only rebels that remained free and outside the cell. The thought of fleeing into the wasteland was anathema to Mack and he didn't even consider it as Leon known he wouldn't. He could only walk, half in a daze, down to the main hall as he had been instructed along with Wally.
Paladin Kodiak watched him and Wally enter from his vantage point in the Overseer's office window before going back to the security office.
"The emperor's new clothes are in the hall now trying hard not to piss his pants."
"Shall we go?" Leon asked the crowd around him as he replaced his helmet. "I think we've all got a few things to say to him, don't we?"
"More than a few, that's for sure!" Amata's anger with Mack had nearly reached boiling point. "In fact, I've got an idea how to solve this once and for all."
Even Leon was stunned when he heard what Amata had in mind. The vault dwellers, especially her father, had all frozen up in shock.
Leon stared at Amata hard. "Are you serious?"
She nodded. "Deadly. I should have done this last time you were here instead of sending you away and I really should have known this vault wouldn't hold together with Mack and his stupid thugs in it. I have no right to ask this, I know, but will you help us again? You're the only one of us who can."
Leon nodded. "Let's go break the news to the Overseer wannabe then. I can't wait to see his face when we tell him!"
Mack, meanwhile, was sweating like a pig in the main hall. This only got worse as he saw a fuming Amata and Alphonse Almodovar accompanied by the Brotherhood squad and quite a few other angry vault dwellers. He knew that his future was looking decidedly bleak...
Vault 99 Overseer's office
Miles away from the action at Vault 101, Dan Kerrigan was using the computers in the Overseer's office of Vault 99 to view the data from the black box that he'd recovered from Raven Rock, mainly footage from all of Eden's security cameras. He wanted to be fully prepared for the upcoming strategy meeting with Major Houser.
"Find anything interesting on that?" Typically the Major was early.
Dan nodded as he flicked through the camera footage. "Yeah, quite a lot actually, confirmed a lot of what I suspected. Is Kayla with you?"
"She'll be here soon; she's just getting the Mayor to join us."
Kayla showed up five minutes later along with the Mayor/Sheriff of Baltimore Haven, a red haired 55 year old by the name of Jim Lawson. He looked real sombre.
"I hope you guys have got some good news. We lost Martin and Abby last night!"
Dan sucked in a breath. "They hit again? That's four in as many weeks now!"
"If they keep going at this rate we haven't as much time as we thought. We'll run out of people by the middle of next year!" Kayla was just as fraught.
To tell the truth so was Houser. He'd upgraded the security sensors and cameras around the vault and the surface of Baltimore Haven and put on extra patrols. What difference had it made? Not a jot. He hid all this a lot better than his subordinates however.
"Rest assured, Jim, we're working round the clock on this and we are sending for help. I know these abductions have got us all scared but we must keep our heads. I'll send out more search parties for you." He left unsaid what everyone was thinking: that this wouldn't do any good. Previous searches certainly hadn't. Houser also wisely left out the not so minor problem that they didn't have any help coming at all.
"Well I hope you get more luck soon. Yuna's beside herself, Abby was one of her best friends! Speaking of which I'd better go make some house calls, see how everyone's doing." Jim's expression indicated he was looking forward to that no end.
Kayla and Houser looked hopefully at Dan as the Mayor left. Of all of them Dan had always been the one to pull their nuts out of the fire in an emergency and they were hoping for the same now.
"I do have an idea. But I can tell you right now you're not going to like it."
"I like the situation we're in a whole lot less," Houser didn't mince words."If we don't stop these attacks or at least find out who or what is behind them soon this settlement will turn on us! God only knows what we'll do then."
Dan nodded. "I know that. But my solution could kill us faster than these attacks will if it's not done right." He went over to the monitors leaving them with puzzled expressions. "As you know I've been looking over this all day. I've identified who blew up Raven Rock."
He brought up the image of the interrogation cell before hell had swept through the base.
"Who's that?" Kayla asked.
"Leon Kallan, sound familiar?"
Houser recognised it first. "Kallan? That's the same name as the head scientist from that Project Purity that Eden was obsessed about, wasn't it? The one killed in that botched raid?"
"The very one."
They all watched Colonel Autumn's less than successful interrogation. All he got was two words: fuck and you. Well, that and a face full of spit before Eden had called him away.
"Hard to believe that dick was ever our leader," Kayla snorted.
"No arguments there," Houser agreed. "Subtle as a Super Mutant on Jet."
In fact that was one thing everyone in their unit could agree on: Augustus Autumn hadn't been fit to run a cold let alone the Enclave army. He had been an able tactician and military leader but he'd no other talents apart from scoring high in the asshole division and having an ego as big as the Capitol Building.
"Keep your eyes on the next part," Dan warned them as they watched the Lone Wanderer rearm himself before their view changed to the camera in the corridor outside.
By now they could see another Enclave officer ordering Leon back into the cell. Leon's response was beyond ruthless as he raised his Blackhawk and blew the officer into the next life. Despite the 'truce' offered by Eden Leon went through the base firing at every Enclave soldier he encountered mowing through them like he was like a well oiled combat machine. The look of sheer hatred on his face as he killed all before him would have chilled even the bravest of souls. No one on that floor survived his wrath. Not even Anna Holt, his father's old associate. Her reward for deciding to help the Enclave was a shotgun blast to the head.
"Whoa..." Kayla pretty much summed it up with one word.
"You haven't seen the best parts yet," Dan brought up another view they recognised. This one was from Eden's main screen on the top level of the base.
"Can you get sound on this?" Houser asked.
"Hang on...there, that's got it." Dan flicked a few switches and the old voice of President Eden came on.
"...Your country needs you."
"What country?" Leon snorted in derision. "Everything's been destroyed for 200 years in case you hadn't noticed."
"That's a bit of a bleak outlook don't you think? The United States has fallen on hard times but it can be healed."
"Eden could usually talk an old man out of his dentures, couldn't he?" Kayla joked at Dan.
"Not today," Dan replied without a trace of humour. As they looked at Leon on the screen they suddenly realised what he meant as the conversation went on. The look of sheer hate was coming back.
"..Your father's work may..."
"My dad's work was going great until your fuckwit Colonel and his thugs showed up."
Eden suddenly realised this wasn't going as he'd planned."Colonel Autumn is not subtle and his actions were not sanctioned by me. I can only apologise..."
"Apology NOT accepted! " Leon's hurt and rage was coming out all at once. "You attack my dad's work, you kill him in front of me, you kidnap me and then you have the fucking gall to ask for my help!"
Stunned by the level of bile coming at him Eden was momentarily stunned and lost for words.
Leon didn't give him any chance as he broke out in a cruel smile. "Well here's my full answer and I can only say I'm 'sorry' for this!"
Leon then used the base's self destruct code that Autumn had unwisely left lying around his quarters for him to find, snatched the FEV virus to hand over to the Brotherhood, and left via the base front door.
After taking a full half minute to absorb all that they'd seen and learned Houser brought up the obvious question. "This answers a lot of questions, Dan. But how does this pertain to our current situation?"
"I've also got these. They're recordings from Galaxy News Radio; you know that radio station that has ties to the Brotherhood of Steel?"
"You listened to that?" Houser raised an eyebrow.
"Best source of independent information around. Besides Eden and his music sucked compared to Three Dog," Dan joked. "Listen to this."
Mr Vault 101 was spotted over in Arefu...
Now I've got word from the settlement known as Big Town that...
Great news out of the town of Megaton...
I've gotten word that a band called Reilly's Rangers...
Dan played these and a few other GNR news clips.
"Ok...this Lone Wanderer sounds like a great guy so what's your point?" Kayla asked.
Dan was surprised his friends hadn't quite joined the dots yet but went on. "My point is that he's probably the only one who could pull us out of the frying pan we're in now. He seems to be the patron saint of the impossible. He's ruined the Slavers at Paradise Falls, he's survived Super Mutant attacks and rescued some of their victims and done all that stuff you heard on the radio."
Houser was only starting to catch on. "So your plan is to find this hero and get him to help us but we don't know where he is now and that's our problem?"
Dan shook his head. "No, that's a problem but it's not the problem."
"So what is?"
"Well how can I put this...you saw him on that screen a few minutes ago!"
Dan looked at his friends as the realisation and the horror set in.
"Oh shit, you mean...?"
"Yeah, Colonel Jesus Christ Almighty and that crackpot computer managed to make an enemy of Leon Kallan aka the Lone Wanderer aka Mr Vault 101 aka Wasteland saviour etcetera etcetera etcetera." Dan was steaming about the situation and for good reason; it had been wholly avoidable. "Remember what happened before we were sent out here? The screwed op on Project Purity?"
Houser nodded. "How could I forget? It was the main reason I gave Eden a piece of my mind and how we ended up assigned out here in the first place."
That wasn't exaggerated. Houser had been beyond furious when he'd learned of the Project Purity fiasco. The op was a bungle in any man's language. At the end of the day they'd lost James Kallan unnecessarily, they'd lost 16 men unnecessarily, they'd tipped their hand and word of their existence unnecessarily and all for a water purifier that hadn't even been operational at the time. Their informant, Anna Holt, had jumped the gun in saying that it almost was. No doubt she'd thought, wrongly as it turned out, that James would cooperate and welcome Enclave assistance. Houser knew that he might have done if the leader that day had been different and had negotiated.
"In short we were screwed by our own leaders and made an enemy of the one person in the whole wasteland that we couldn't afford to," Kayla despaired.
Both Kayla and Houser collapsed into chairs as the gravity of the situation became apparent.
Houser was the first to speak again. "So even if we do find this guy..."
"...odds are he'll kill us on sight rather than help us. If I were in his shoes and someone had done that to my dad I wouldn't give half a shit what they had to say. Eden learnt that the really bad way as we saw. I've no doubt he's also the one who totalled Adams Air Force base and our mobile crawler too."
"That's why you were down in the wasteland for so long, wasn't it?" Houser realised. "You were getting all the information you could."
"It gets worse," Dan went on. "Apparently he's also a full member of the Brotherhood of Steel."
Houser was getting more of a migraine by the minute. "So let me get this straight. We're under attack by an unknown enemy and the only person you think can help is someone who'd see us dead in a heartbeat?"
"I said you wouldn't like it. But it's the only idea I've got and the only one that's likely to work. What's the alternative? Abandon these people who've put their trust in us? Cut and run? And let's face it where would we run to? Without the crawler we'd never reach NORAD and going back to Washington would be a death sentence."
Houser knew he was right. There was nowhere to run to now; that would be true even if they'd still had the crawler. After the Enclave's humiliating defeat by the NCR and the Brotherhood in the west they'd fled to NORAD first in the hope of setting up shop there. However it had been hit hard by the Chinese nukes during the blitz and was half irradiated when they'd stopped by forcing them just to scavenge, resupply and move on. Odds were by now it was uninhabitable. Also his men were not President Richardson, Eden or Colonel Autumn. They were men of their word and would rightly butcher him if he even thought about abandoning Baltimore Haven. Dan's plan did seem the only viable option but how the hell were they supposed to convince or even approach the Lone Wanderer? Then he got an idea of his own.
"There is one way we could do it. Kayla, can you go get Jim back here once he's finished his house calls?"
"Sure. What have you got in mind?"
"If he won't listen to us then maybe he'll listen to wasteland settlers in need. He doesn't seem the type to ignore that sort of cry for help."
Dan caught on. "We take some residents down there and have them ask him?"
"That's it. I know that's only a temporary fix and he'll still be hostile to us but you said it, what choice do we have?"
"Just one thing you might not have considered, Major. If we are involving our friends here we might have to be...candid with them don't you think?"
Houser knew what Dan was saying. They would have to tell Jim and the other settlers the whole truth about the Enclave and the Lone Wanderer if this was going to work.
"It had to be done sooner or later, might as well be now. While l do it, you go make sure your Vertibird's prepped. You'll be going with whoever's chosen sometime tomorrow."
Author's note: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Nice to know I've been doing something right up to now. Sorry if this seems long winded and slow going but I have to get the background right so this may be going for quite a few parts yet. As always feel free with the constructive criticism/questions/ideas etc. I'll need these to keep going and beat writer's block.
