ArcJet Systems wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, aside from all the damn synths that seemed to be never ending. The one good thing that came out of it was that I was able to pick up a nice new laser pistol. That was sure to come in handy in the near future. It was weird to see how excited I got over a new gun, considering back when before everything happened, guns scared the hell out of me. I always made sure that Nate wouldn't bring any in the house, for the fear of it going off. He always thought it was funny how scared I would get, the ass. God, I missed him so much sometimes. It still felt really raw sometimes, but I knew I had to keep my head up and keep moving forward. There were still times where I couldn't help but feel guilty for trying not to think about it so much, but it's what Nate would have wanted. He would want me to keep on keeping on, and he would want me to find our son. He wouldn't want me hiding in Sanctuary Hills, just waiting for the days to pass by. It was still a hard truth to accept though.

Once we left ArcJet Systems, I handed over the Deep Range Transmitter, the one I found left on a synth's body in the control room. Looks like we weren't the only ones who were looking for it. It was my first time seeing, well killing, a synth. Let me tell you something, those fuckers are scary. They don't feel pain like humans, at least that's what it seemed like, so it takes more than a couple bullets to actually put them down.

"Well, that could have gone smoother, but mission accomplished." Paladin Danse said, and I had to admit I was taken aback a bit. I mean, we made it out alive, we got what we needed and we weren't too beat up, aside from him probably getting cooked a bit in his Power Armor from when I turned on the engines…at least we were both in one piece!

"You're joking right? We got what we needed. I'd say it went pretty smooth." I quickly retorted.

"You have a point. Again, I appreciate the assistance."

"No problem, hopefully you can get your distress signal to your superiors." I looked away, not really sure of what to say next, should I go on my merry way to Diamond City? Stick around? What exactly was the next step here? "I guess that's it?"

"Not necessarily, I think we have two more things that would be important to discuss. First, I'd like to compensate you for your assistance during this mission, I think you could find it useful." He stepped forward towards me, well more like stomped. I had to admit, his armor was damn impressive. I remember how I felt like I could take on the world when I was in one of those.

Danse then offered me his personal laser rifle, which he even modified himself. I almost couldn't accept it, it seemed like a huge offering for how little it felt like I did. I hesitated when accepting, wouldn't he need it himself? I even asked, but he assured me that all Brotherhood soldiers always had a backup weapon.

His second proposal was...rather interesting. Basically he thought I would fit right in with the Brotherhood of Steel, and that he was impressed with how I handled myself back in ArcJet Systems, surprisingly enough. It was pretty flattering, not going to lie, considering a couple months ago I could hardly hit a bloatfly. He explained that I could either do small jobs in the Commonwealth for a couple of caps, or be a part of something - something big.

"I'm uh not sure really, I mean what would be expected of me? What would I even do?" I stammered, since I wasn't sure I was going to even get myself into by joining this Brotherhood of Steel. The offer was tempting though, and I had to admit that it was appealing to be a part of something, to make a difference.

"You'd be under my command, and I would expect you to follow orders. You would also have access to advanced military technology and your own suit of power armor. More importantly, you would have the Brotherhood at your back, ready to spill their blood to keep you alive." He seemed honest, and the way he covered me back there gave me faith in not only him, but the rest of the Brotherhood. And to have access to that military technology...would certainly be useful in the future.

It seemed like an obvious choice, but some part of me still remained suspicious. Here I was, only a couple of hours after meeting this strange tank armor guy, and I'm already being offered a position in their ranks. Was there something else really at play?

He was waiting for a response, "So what do you say? I understand it's a big choice to make, so if you want to join - you know where to find us." He started to turn away, probably wanting to give me some time to think. I also assumed that he wanted to get the transmitter set up as soon as possible to get his distress signals out, and here I was wasting his time. I didn't want to pass this opportunity up. I couldn't. Though he was right about it being a big choice to make, it was something I should decide now.

"Wait-" I needed to tell him before he would make his way back to the station, "I'm interested. I want to join you guys, maybe you can help me in return." I didn't want to give too much immediately, but I wanted him to at least know that I was going to need his help at some point.

I could tell he wanted to know about what I needed help with, but he decided not to ask, it seemed like. He gave a small (surprisingly) smile and extended his metal hand, "Outstanding. Let's head back to the station and get you settled in, soldier."

Not a title I was going to get used to anytime soon, considering I am the general of the Minutemen. But hey, it beats the "civilian" title. I followed suit and we started our way back to the police station, with a question ringing through my head: what the hell did I just get myself into?


The pair made their way back to the police station, with their Deep Range Transmitter in tow. Once they arrived, Scribe Haylen was able to use the tech to contact their superiors - and backup was on the way, much to everyone's relief.

Danse was also relieved she accepted his proposal, after all, if the Brotherhood was going to take on the Institute, they were going to need all the help they could get. She might not have been a perfect shot, but he definitely saw potential in her as a soldier, and he had faith that she could only get better. Though he had to admit he was very curious about what the "help" she was talking about was, but she didn't seem open at all to talking about it. As long as it didn't interfere with their missions, it wasn't his business. But the minute it could compromise the main mission of taking down the Institute, it was all of the Brotherhood's business.

The backup they needed arrived in a pretty timely matter, by the time it got dark, there were enough soldiers there that could help resupply and keep watch. Which also meant that Danse could finally get some much needed sleep. Having a man down, in addition to a pack of feral ghouls (that were fortunately no longer a problem) made it hard for him to sleep at all.

He went to recheck his weapons and armor for the second time that night, as he could never be sure. Danse liked to make sure all of his things were not only neatly organized, but in arms reach - especially at the police station they were holed up in. When he was finally satisfied, he was about to get ready to finally get some shut eye.

That is, until he heard the commotion in the main lobby.

"You should learn how to address your superiors, initiate." Knight Rhys spat. He was speaking to Isabelle, who had absentmindedly bumped into him when she was looking at her map on her pip boy. Danse sighed internally, as he was already fully aware of how Rhys felt about the newest member of the Brotherhood. He didn't get in the middle though, not yet at least, because he both wanted to see how she would handle it and he also wanted her to learn how to deal with people like Rhys, as there certainly was not a shortage of people like him in the Brotherhood. Knight Rhys wasn't a bad guy, he was a great soldier in fact, just a little… rough around the edges.

"I-I'm sorry," she stuttered, obviously caught off guard by his animosity. What the hell does he have against me? She thought to herself, but didn't want to cause any problems on basically her first day. She figured the Knight was just riding her ass just because he could. "I was looking at the map to see where you wanted me to-"

He threw his hands up and scoffed angrily, "I gave you orders and you're sitting here wasting my time instead of doing what I ordered you to." He crossed his arms and made eye contact with Danse and continued, "I even told you that you better not show your face around here until you cleared out Faneuil Hall."

She started to speak again, this time not as meekly as before, "Of course…", Danse could tell she was biting her tongue, which he appreciated. The last thing he wanted was to have to break them up if a fist fight broke out. "Sorry again...sir." And then she had to add that part at the end, the "sir" being dripped with sarcasm.

"Watch your tone, initiate." He started to close the distance between them and Danse was about to step in, things were not looking good. "I don't know what the hell Paladin Danse sees in you, but I can assure you that no one else sees it."

Isabelle couldn't hold back a smile before retorting, "Huh, well it's a good thing that you don't make those decisions, right? After all, knight-"

Danse stepped between the two, cutting her off before she could make it worse, which he had a feeling of what was going to happen, "That's enough! Both of you need to cut this shit out now. You're both going to need to learn how to work together, whether you like it or not." He felt like he was talking to two kids, and he was not happy about it.

Her face hardened, while Knight Rhys perked up and apologized to Danse, "Of course, sir." Meanwhile, Isabelle rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, clearly annoyed. "Right, sounds good." She quickly spat out. Danse could feel Rhys getting worked up again, "Is that how you address your superiors?"

Danse turned to him, "Knight Rhys, get some rest - you're going to need it to recuperate from your injuries." Rhys complied, and went to get his injuries checked before going to rest. Danse then turned to Isabelle, "We need to talk, now." He spoke sternly, as much as he didn't want to lecture her, he needed to set some things straight.


I almost couldn't believe what I was hearing. Basically even though Knight Rhys was being a complete asshole, my ass was going to get chewed out by Danse. He started with all this crap about learning how to address my superiors and how to listen to orders, he emphasized that doing those two things will make my time serving with them a lot easier. Which is funny, because it's something I'm willing to do, just not to people who are being dicks for no reason.

"Ok, right, I get it. I'm a lowly initiate and so I have to basically listen to any order I get." I said sarcastically, as I was incredibly annoyed and just wanted to be left alone, honestly. I wonder if Rhys was even going to get any lecture tonight. Seriously, what the fuck was his problem? I could get him not trusting me, since I really am an outsider, but he really really really didn't seem to like me at all. It's like he had a permanent stick up his ass. I asked Scribe Haylen about it earlier, and she insisted it would get better with time. But she seemed to see him through rose tinted lenses, and I had a hunch that she used to have some feelings for him.

Danse sat up straight and sighed, "That's not at all what I'm saying. You just need to learn to respect your superiors - and that includes Knight Rhys. I won't deny that he can be rough around the edges, but it'll be easier for both of us if you just show him you can take orders. He's going to need to see you're capable before he treats you better. Is that understood?" I knew he didn't want to really lecture me, in fact he was surprisingly patient. I really expected him to chew my ass out for my "disrespect".

"Yep." I replied flatly, I just wanted to sleep at this point. The sooner I get to bed, the sooner I can head out tomorrow. "Are we done?"

He furrowed his brow, probably upset with my never ending attitude. "We're done when I dismiss you, soldier. Sit down." He ordered, and I did so. "There was something else I wanted to discuss."

"Oh? What was that?"

"Where were you heading when you heard our distress call? I'm curious what business a vault dweller would have out in the Commonwealth." Damn, I was hoping this wouldn't come up, at least not yet. I know Preston encouraged that I mention Shaun, but it still felt weird to me, and just too soon.

I shot back, hoping to change the subject, "I'm curious what makes you so curious."

"Evading my questions is a sure fire way to get yourself into trouble, I hope you don't act like this around Captain Kells or even Elder Maxson. They're not as patient as I can be." His voice softened a little, I guess to put me a little more at ease and not make it seem like he was interrogating me, "You're under my command now, Isabelle, meaning I'm responsible for you. With that responsibility, I have to know if there's anything about you that can compromise our mission."

I shook my head, but sat down on my sleeping bag next to him, "I can assure you it won't. But it is a long story, and I don't want to bore you with all of the details." He nodded quietly, so I continued, "I was going to Diamond City, I'm looking for my son. He was kidnapped and I'm trying to get him back. I don't know who did it...but whoever did it, it just seemed so organized and planned. It doesn't seem like a bunch of random raiders or junkies did it...I just- I just don't know what anyone could want with an infant? A baby boy?" My shoulders started to shake, God damnit not again. I kept my composure though, I didn't want to just push all of my problems on him, "I was told I could find some answers in Diamond City, so that's where I was heading. Until I heard you distress call and helped you guys out…"

"I'm sorry, I can't imagine what that must be like. I can understand why you would want to head there. I have to ask though, because you're right, it didn't sound like a random kidnapping. Do you know who the Institute is?" I appreciated his condolences, but I knew he couldn't promise me any help just yet. I can't imagine that the Brotherhood looks for missing babies too often, but again, I figured they could help me get closer to the people who took Shaun.

"The Institute? I've heard of them before...never really thought they would be behind it. What could they want with a baby?" My stomach sank a little, as I'd heard of this Institute before and about how it wasn't common for people to go missing because of them, but this still raised more questions.

"I'm not sure. I do know that they're usually behind these types of kidnappings. The good thing is that we're trying to find out how to get into the Institute, maybe that can help give you the answers you're looking for." I nodded in response and gave him a small smile, "Thank you, I appreciate it. I still need to go to Diamond City though." I added, hoping it wouldn't cause any issues.

He paused to think, and he began to scratch his stubble, "Let me come with you. I want to help, and there's a good chance that we're looking for the same thing."

He had a point there, there was a good chance that the Institute was behind Shaun's kidnapping, and them already being on the Brotherhood's radar would certainly prove useful. But there was only one way to find out: by going to Diamond City.