Chapter 4: Meeting the Brotherhood
Can't believe we are at Chapter 4 already, but there is quite a bit more to go. I wanted to also let you know that there is a point during the interaction with the Brotherhood in this chapter that I wish I could have done in the game. Can you figure out which part?
Also, thank you to those leaving reviews. Keep them coming! I wanted to quickly respond to Ridley before I get on with the chapter, as I couldn't respond back to the review. Send me a message with more about your OC. I have much of the story planned out and parts are already written, but who know what I can work in. :)
Thanks and Enjoy!
Danse couldn't believe a team outside of the Brotherhood could pull off a defense like what he just witnessed. To take on a horde of feral ghouls, and to not get a scratch on them was very impressive. He looked at the assembled team and then to Cap, as she had been the one to first address him. "Thank you for your assistance, citizen. Seems like your timing is impeccable."
"I'd say. Few more minutes and you would have all been ghoul food, no offense Cookie." Boomer chimed in, looking down at them from his perch on the scaffolding. He jumped from the upper level to join the group.
Cookie shrugged. "None taken." He said in his normal gruff tone. He looked at the Paladin chuckled. "Haven't seen the Brotherhood since we left the Capital Wasteland." He added as he walked to stand at Cap's side. Twoey stood behind the Cap, his gun still at the ready.
"What would the Brotherhood of Steel be doing way out here?" Cap asked, tilting her head, questioningly.
"Our mission is classified, though I am surprised locals like yourselves are familiar with the Brotherhood. Which settlement are you from?" Danse inquired.
"Come on now, Paladin. You answer my question, and I answer your's." Cap replied.
Danse huffed, but let out a sigh. "We are in the Commonwealth looking for signs of the Institute. We are to report any evidence of their involvement in the Commonwealth. We were trying to make contact with our main force by using a radio tower on the roof of this building when we were attacked. "
"Sir. If I may?" Scribe Haylen spoke up, her delicate features looked tired and worn out under the hood that she wore. She fixed her hat as she spoke, the padded vest, pants and long sleeve shirt looked uncomfortable, even in this cool weather.
"Proceed, Haylen." Danse said, looking over his shoulder at her.
"What, do they have to ask for permission to wipe their asses too?" Boomer asked under his breath to Twoey, who nudged him to be quiet, but smiled at the joke.
Haylen continued, "Sir, if we can boost the signal, we should still be able to reach the Prydwin. And I think I know where we can find some tech nearby that can make it possible."
"Good work, Haylen. Get Rhys inside. We will regroup and work out a plan of attack." Danse said with a nod in agreement. He turned his attention back to the mercenaries. "Why don't you come inside and sit for a moment? After that fight, I'm sure you could use a break."
Cap looked at her team, who nodded, a motion that told her they could use a rest. "Lead on, then." She replied with a smile.
The group started to head into the police station, Scribe Haylen pulling the knight in the orange jumpsuit off of the ground and draping his arm over her shoulder to get him inside. As he could tell that she was struggling and almost dropped the wounded man, Cookie rushed to them and caught Rhys' arm, attempting to put it over his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll help ya get him inside."
"Get away from me, you disgusting freak." Rhys said, pushing the helpful ghoul away from him.
Scribe Haylen smiled sadly at Cookie. "Sorry. I got him. Thanks though." She said politely and brought Rhys towards the door.
Cookie smiled after Haylen. "At least let me hold the door for you." He said. The woman nodded in thanks and walked in, Cookie's white eyes following her as she did so.
Boomer walked in afterwards the scribe. He looked at Haylen then back at Cookie as he passed through the open door and bounced his eyebrows with a winked to his ghoul companion. Cookie growled at him and pushed him away. Twoey followed the laughing Boomer into the station. Cap took the door and let Cookie and Danse go in before she crossed the threshold.
Cap closed the doors to the police station behind her and proceeded inside the main foyer. She followed Danse to the receptionist area, which was now used as a weapons and ammo dump. She spoke to the Paladin while the rest of her team started to get comfortable.
Cookie took a look around, entering some of the back rooms, only to find debris and junk thrown about everywhere. The only room that was cleared out, for the most part, was a side room where Haylen was taking care of Rhys, joking that she probably would need to put him down. "You're all heart doc." The knight joked back.
The ghoul decided not to bring up hostility and avoided entering the makeshift infirmary, and Rhys. He joined Twoey and Boomer, who stayed in the main entrance room, Twoey leaning against the crumbling plaster wall, keeping an eye on the Paladin.
A few minutes later, Rhys was back on his feet thanks to stimpacks and a few stitches. He walked out of the room where he had received treatment and looked over at the hodgepodge group of mercenaries. "What they hell are you all still doing here? I'd figured you would take whatever payment the Paladin gave you for your work and run."
"Easy there crew cut. We are just taking a breather before heading out. Saving a whole Brotherhood squad takes alot outta ya, ya know." Boomer replied meanly, turning to look at the jarhead. He squared his shoulders off to confront Rhys.
Boomer hated the Brotherhood. While living in the Capital Wasteland, they strong-armed people, and pushed their weight around to get whatever they deemed worthy of taking. He saw teams of power armor clad knights attack settlements to bring "dangerous tech" under their control. So when Rhys started to pick a fight, Boomer was all too ready to jump on the chance to attack.
Rhys took three steps towards Boomer, challenging him. "Better keep your mouth shut, scumbag. You're nothing more than raiders with an agenda. I've seen your type before. You'll do anything for caps. You stand for nothing."
Boomer walked the rest of the distance, standing almost nose to nose with the Brotherhood knight. "And what do you stand for, hm? Did it hurt when they took your free will and ability to think for yourself? Or did ya just bend over and take it like a bitch?"
Twoey's smile spread across his face. His disdain for the Brotherhood was almost as deep as Boomer's, so he didn't lift a finger to stop his teammate.
When Rhys' smug smile changed to a scowl, Cookie ran between them. "Alright, enough. Cool it Boomer." He said, his hands on Boomers chest, pushing him back.
"Yeah. Listen to your ugly little boyfriend. It's funny that the mindless monster here is the one with the most brains in your entire outfit." Rhys shot back past the ghouls head, the insult felt by each of the mercenaries. Haylen was about to stop Rhys or scold him. Before she could, the mild-mannered Cookie curled his right hand into a fist, turned his body, and swung all of his weight into a punch that connected with the knight's nose.
Rhys reeled back from the hit, holding his face as blood ran from his nose. Boomer broke out into a fit of laughter, patting Cookie on the back before the familiar tone from a disapproving Cap rang clear through the room. "Boomer! Cookie! Back off!"
"Stand down, Rhys!" Danse shouted back as the two walked towards the commotion. Cookie was still glaring hotly at his beaten opponent, but his expression softened when his eyes met Haylen's, as she stifled a giggle behind her hand. Cookie smiled slightly before he turned to Cap, who was waiting for an answer.
"He started it, Cap." Cookie responded with a shrug.
Evelyn sighed. "Let's go. I think we overstayed our welcome." She said and her team picked up their gear. "Thank you for letting us rest for a few minutes, Paladin Danse."
"The offer still stands, Captain." He added quickly as she swung her sniper rifle over her shoulder and started to lead her team out.
Cap stopped and looked at him over her shoulder. "No, it doesn't. The Brotherhood is not my idea of a group I can support. People like your knight there are shining examples of why me and my team will never join such a bigoted organization." With that, she followed her team out the doors.
Once outside, Cookie sheepishly grumbled an apology to Evelyn, who smiled in response. "If you hadn't done it, I probably would have." She patted the ghoul on the shoulder and they continued on to college square for their meeting.
The group of raiders that the mercs were after had taken up temporary residence in a coffee shop near College Square. They had cleared out the feral ghouls in the area for the time being. As three of the mercenaries approached the hive of raiders, the two raiders on the outside of the building raised their weapons.
"You got a reason for being here?" A skinny raider asked, his face twitching, clearly high on Jet.
Twoey took a step forward and held up a wooden box that had tape wrapped around it. "Yeah. You got something I'm supposed to pick up. Something you took from Goodneighbor." His face was set in stone and he looked at the raider showing no emotion.
The man lowered his gun and smiled. "Boss! Your caps are here!" He shouted to the building behind him.
Through the broken glass windows of the store front, Twoey, Boomer and Cookie counted about nine raiders inside, including a hulking figure in plated armor. The massive man walked out the front door of the shop, a huge smile on his face.
"Can't believe the bitch got all of the caps! 2,000, right big guy?" The leader of the raiders walked confidently out into the open, eyeing the mercs that were there to make the exchange. He addressed Twoey, but took note of the big rocket launcher on Boomers back, and the ghoul that they traveled with.
"Yup. Where is the package?" Twoey asked.
The leader whistled sharply. Two more men in raider gear dragged a third out of the shop. Mr. Richard Grady was in a dirty, grey, pre-war suit that was ripped in places from his captivity. He looked up at the mercs, showing off two black eyes and bruises on his face. "This the guy you are looking for?" The heavily armored raider asked.
Twoey nodded. "Yup. Looks like it." He held out the box. "Let him go first and then you get this."
The boss nodded and motioned with his head for Richard to start walking. "Been real fun Grady. Make sure you buy another round next time we are in Goodneighbor, yeah?"
"Screw you…." Richard said, but under his breath. He stood next to Boomer.
"When I say run, you get behind that car back there, got it?" Boomer whispered to Richard as he stopped beside the merc.
Grady looked to his left and saw the car. "Got it." He replied softly.
Twoey put the box into the raider's outstretched hand. "There you go. We good?"
"Not so fast… need to count it. Make sure I'm not getting scammed." He said as he started messing with the tape, trying to open it. As he did so, Twoey took a few steps backwards, trying to seem nonchalant about it.
"Don't you m-move!" The twitchy guard who greeted them on arrival said, raising his gun at Twoey.
Twoey looked at him and sighed. "Screw it." He said and rolled his shoulders.
In an instant, a shot glided through the air, lodging itself into the box and setting off the explosives inside, blowing the leader's face off. Twoey took a step back to avoid the blowback of the explosion and swung his rifle out. He took a shot at the Jet head, piercing his neck as another sniper shot blasted a hole through the skull of a knife-wielding enemy, who got within three feet of the big merc.
"Run!" Boomer said, pushing Richard towards the car. The hostage slid into cover as Cookie blew a hole in the closest raiders chest. He then charged towards the building, pumping more shotgun rounds into the raiders.
Boomer stood near the car and shot anyone that came close to himself or Grady with his pistol. With his team in front of him, using the rocket launcher would do more harm than good.
Within another minute, Twoey and Cookie had cleaned up the rest of the gang, making quick work of any stragglers. They regrouped by the car, Twoey bleeding from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. "Everyone alright?" He asked in his deep voice.
Richard nodded, shaking from all of the action. "You… Thank you… I. I thought I was done for. I didn't think my wife could come up with that kind of money."
"Well, she better come up with something by the time we get back to Goodneighbor." Boomer said, holstering his gun. He waved to what looked like an empty building. "We don't do jobs for free, you know."
Richard looked at him, nervously. "And what happens to people that don't pay?" He asked, unsure if he wanted to hear the answer.
Cookie shrugged. "We always figure something out. Come on. The Cap is waiting. And I could use a drink when we get home."
"They should be back by now?" Mrs. Grady said, wringing her hands as she paced the street outside of the Maiden's Inn. "They have been gone for hours now."
"It's k-kind of a long hike, Mary. Give 'em some time." Kent said. Mary had been wandering around inside the Inn since Cap and her team had left. It started to drive him nuts, so he suggested that they go outside for some fresh air.
"What if they don't come back? I mean… I didn't give that woman any caps. How is she going to get Richard out?" She asked, more to herself.
"He'll b-be fine. Trust me. If there's one person that knows how to handle raiders, it's Cap." The ghoul replied, tilting his fedora back. A smile broke across his ghoul face as he leaned against the brick wall. "I bet they are on their way back right now. With your husb-band."
Mary Grady sighed heavily and wiped away another tear. "I hope you're right…"
As he was about to continue to try to calm her down, he heard the faint sound of the metal door to Goodneighbor open. A moment or two later, the rescuers turned the corner with Richard among them. Kent smiled. She's like a real superhero… He thought to himself. Like Mistress of Mystery!
Mary's hands shot to her mouth as she saw Richard walk in. He smiled at her and she ran into his arms, hugging him tight and crying into his shoulder. "Oh god… I was so worried!"
"I'm sorry, lamb. I'm here. I'm ok." He said softly to her and held her close.
After a long hug, she let go of him and wiped her eyes, smiling from ear to ear. She turned to Cap and the others. "Thank you. Thank you all so much." She said. "I… I can never repay you for what you did for us."
"Never repay us? Well, could ya try anyway?." Boomer said, only half joking.
Cap shot him a hard look and he backed off a bit. "I'm glad we were able to get him out of there." She said with a smile. "No more Third Rail visits for a while, alright?"
He chuckled. "Yeah. Maybe never again." He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Look… we don't have much to offer as a reward. We do alright with what little trading we do, but… we don't have much to spare. Would… 100 caps do?"
Cap thought for a minute. "Trade, you say? I didn't know you were a trader."
Mary nodded. "Yes. Richard knows more than a few caravans that travel through Goodneighbor. He makes deals with them all the time."
Cookie smiled. "We could use a steady supply of food for the inn."
"My thoughts exactly. I tell you what, Grady. You find me a caravan that will give us a good deal on food, and we will say that your debt to us is square." Cap continued, making Boomer huff in disapproval.
"Really? I mean… of course! I can do that. Give me a few days for another caravan to come through and I'll take care of it." Richard said, eager to help them.
"Then it's settled. Now, I think we all could use some rest. Take good care of him, alright?" Evelyn said to Mary, who smiled and put her arm around his waist.
"I will. Thank you. All of you. It's good to know that there are still some decent people out here." Mrs. Grady started to walk away with her husband, heading home. Cap turned towards the door to see Kent there.
"Hey Kent. The place give you any trouble?" She asked as she went to open the doors.
"Nope. No trouble. No one really came by, honestly." He said, following her in. "Well, no one except Mayor Hancock."
Cap threw her gear bag on a table and sighed, happily. As many bad memories this place gave her, it still was great to come home. "Mayor Hancock? What did he want?" Kent looked like he wanted to reply to her but he was cut off by Boomer.
"Probably came to make more gooey eyes at you, Cap." He said, falling into a chair and kicking his feet up after setting his gear down on the floor. "As drunk as I was at the party, even I could tell the guys has a thing for ya."
Evelyn waved it off. "From what I hear, he makes those eyes to anything with two legs and tits." She smirked and stretched.
"I don't know boss… He seemed to really like ya. Didn't leave the bar at all that night. Just kept hoggin' your attention." Cookie piped in with his opinion, pouring some water.
"Get some food started, would you? I'm going to go get changed." She turned to walk upstairs.
"C-cap… Mayor Hancock is still here. H-he said he wanted to see the view from the roof. Said he hadn't been up there in y-years. I didn't see a problem with it, so he went up there. Probably about ten minutes before you guys got back to town." Kent said quickly before Evelyn made it up the stairs.
She stopped at the bottom step to listen to him. She sighed again and nodded. "Thanks. I will go see him then." She started the climb up to the roof. "Feel free to stay for dinner, Kent!" She called down. Hadn't been up there in years… She thought to herself.
Reaching the door to the roof, she pushed it open and walked out, something she had been avoiding since they arrived at Goodneighbor.
