The Fallout of War
Chapter 7, Danse
The sun had been up for about an hour when the Red Demon marched across the bridge leading into Sanctuary. Half way across he reached up and removed his helmet. Fresh air and home. His dark brown eyes brightened, though his features remained stoic.
Curie floated at his side while Dogmeat ran ahead barking their arrival and disappearing through the wooden gates. He paused at the entrance recognizing the man on duty while Curie whirled on past stating something about finding Codsworth. "Welcome home sir." Matt nodded down at him from his guard post. "Any trouble while I was away?" "No sir. Its been quiet and peaceful." "Carry on."
Danse turned and followed the road into Sanctuary with only two things on his agenda. The first was to see Tanna. Mmm, wonder what she'll have for me today? The corners of his mouth turned up slightly if anyone looked close enough. Four days feels like a week away from her. A few hours, just the two of us closeted at home and then I can deal with issue number two.
The corners of his mouth turned down as did his thick eyebrows. The caravan had been ambushed. That might not have seemed an unusual occurrence except, it was not along a typical trade route. An unused route had been planned due to the amount of munitions they were delivering and it had been obvious their assailants had been expecting them. Add in the worrisome fact the bandits were Synths and he was determined to discover who had tipped them off. No one outside of Sanctuary knew the planned route. I lost a good man in that battle and someone is going to pay.
Passing the market area he saw MacCready jogging out to meet him, he didn't slow his pace. He was probably waiting for the drink stand to open. He's damn good with his sniper rifle, but undisciplined, doesn't follow orders well, drinks to much, uses that addictive crap, likes to stir things up... and use to be Tanna's partner. The latter being what bothered him the most though he would never admit it to anyone.
MacCready intercepted him and started jogging backwards keeping pace. "Hey tin can!" Danse nodded, "Snipe." Both refused to call each other by name. "How did the trip go?" "Successfully." MacCready kept looking behind Danse back down the road. "So, um, where's our girl?" Danse came to an abrupt stop. "She is not "our" girl." "Yeah, yeah, metal man. She's all yours, don't worry, but..." Danse moved out leaving him standing effectively ending the conversation.
He spied Cait ahead in the middle of the street talking with Trash-Can Carla and swerved around them heading for his front door when Cait called. "Danse! Oi never had thought ya fer the romantic type, ya dog." He gave her a quizzical look, but didn't plan on stopping and thudded up to his house.
"Tanna!" Striding to his armor station he exited his PS. He was wearing a black BOS uniform and the Bomber jacket Tanna had given him as a gift. "Tanna?" Dropping his weapons in the armory room, he checked the bedroom. She must be out working around the settlement somewhere. Might as well report in with Preston. He kept tabs on who was working where in the settlement anyway.
He crossed the street to the Workshop area. Sturges was there doing some welding and paused as he approached. "Hey there Danse!" Nodding Danse greeted him, "Sturges." "You're gonna make all us men look bad with the ladies around here if you keep up that romantic stuff." Sturges teased. "What romantic stuff?" Danse asked. Sturges chuckled, "Unfortunately for me, most girls don't consider duct tape too romantic." Has everyone gone daft? "Have you seen Preston?" "He's inside last I saw." Sturges returned to his welding.
Danse entered the building and found Preston at the meeting table with Haylen. Both looked up and immediately put on wide grins. "Welcome back Danse." Preston greeted him. "Reporting in Sir." Haylen got up from her chair and scurried around the table to greet him with a hug. He gave her a light hug in return. Expressing himself was still awkward at times, except with Tanna, but he was improving.
"Danse you are so surprising. So where's Tanna? I have to hear about your little romantic tryst?" She nudged him knowingly. He frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about." "Preston, have you seen Tanna?"
Preston and Haylen looked at one another apparently just as confused. "We thought she was with you Danse." "Why would she be with me? I've been gone for four days." "But, you sent a message for her to meet you... a romantic one over the radio?" Haylen questioned. His blank expression was answer enough. "I've sent no messages." "She thought it was from you and ran off to meet you." "Ran off where? When?" Danse demanded.
Haylen glanced back at Preston who shook his head. "Yesterday morning Danse. We don't know where. It was in some kind of code that only she understood." Preston's voice held concern. MacCready and Cait strolled in catching Preston's words. "What's going on? Trouble?" MacCready inquired.
Frustration was replacing his confusion fast. "So Tanna has been missing since yesterday? No one has seen her?" He glanced around the room at everyone. They shook their heads negatively. "She's suppose to be with you. You sent for her." MacCready accused. Danse gave him a hard stare. "I did not send for her."
"Okay, okay. Let's stay calm and try to figure this out." Preston attempted to calm the anxieties he felt rising in the room. "What was the message?" Danse asked to the room in general. "I didn't hear it." Preston responded dismally. MacCready added, "Me Neither." "Nor I. Just Piper and Haylen were listening with her and Piper left with Hancock yesterday afternoon." Cait informed him.
Danse turned to Haylen who was rubbing her forehead trying to remember. "It was letters and numbers followed by the message, I'll be waiting." Danse leaned over and took her shoulders in his hands. "Think Haylen. You've never failed me Scribe." "It started with a C. I can't remember what was next. I just know the last three numbers were 111 cause they matched her vault suit. I'm so sorry I don't remember the rest." Despair colored her voice.
Danse straightened, his brow creased in concentration. "Hey folks." Everyone turned to Sturges who was standing in the doorway. His welding goggles were raised up sitting on his forehead showing concerned blue eyes. "I couldn't help overhearing, being right outside the door, but I thought I saw her heading for the back gate yesterday mornin. You could ask whoever was on guard duty if they saw her leave."
"No need." Danse announced. "Its the vault." He turned to Haylen again. "C7111. Was that it Haylen?" "Yes! That was it!" Danse was out the door so fast he created a breeze in his wake. "I'll get my rifle." MacCready said and ran for the door followed by the others.
Danse grabbed his rifle and ammo before practically leaping into his PA. He whistled for Dogmeat as he left the house and both headed down the street. The others were waiting roadside and fell in behind him, trying to keep up with his long armored strides.
Nick and Deacon were just exiting the house they had been staying at while visiting Sanctuary and saw the group headed their way. "Uh oh. Purposeful stride, weapons in hand and Danse's deep frown. It doesn't add up to anything good." Nick told Deacon. "Then we should join the fun. " Deacon replied. They trotted out to join the gang that was headed for the back gate and Vault 111.
The group of companions gathered on the vault platform while Danse hit the activation button. He commanded Dogmeat to stay, then joined the others on the metal dais as it began to descend. None of them, except Danse, had entered this vault before because it had seemed like it would be an invasion of privacy into Tanna's past, plus they'd never had reason prior.
As soon as the platform clunked to a stop and the grilled gate had rattled open, Danse was on the move and the metal stairs and walkway squeaked and creaked under the weight of his PA. At the top he began calling for her, his voice booming through the vault's empty halls making everyone wince, but himself. "Tanna! Tanna!" He received no reply.
He stopped before 2 corridors with their doors open, peering down each. Nick, who had bent down to examine the floor, mumbled out what he detected. "Lots of foot prints here. I'd say these small ones are Tanna's, looks like power suit prints also and the rest unknown. What do you think big guy?" Danse studied the floor. "Those are Tanna's and mine, the rest weren't here last time I came with her." Turning his attention back to the hallways he split the group, "Preston?" "Yeah Danse?" "You, Nick, Deacon and Cait take the left door, the rest of us will go right. The corridors meet further in." "Roger that." He nodded to those assigned to him and they passed through the left doorway. Danse and the others headed right into the cyro-chamber section.
There was no need for them to check the other cryo-chambers. The only footprints leading into them were Tanna's from her day of awakening. He could see to the end of her chamber section, but had to walk to the end. His heart was beating rapidly with a fear he would see her lying in it, which was not the case. Danse backtracked with his companions to the side corridor that would wind its way through the vault. His clunking steps were a continuous echo that rebounded throughout the underground chambers.
They were just passing the security office when he heard Preston's shout that they had found something. Danse reached Preston's group just as they were entering the mess hall and heard Nick exclaim, "Uh oh! It's the same here." "Whats the same?" Danse questioned. "The cigars and beer. We found the same in the Overseer's quarters." Preston explained. "What's it mean?" Danse asked earnestly. "Conrad Kellogg." Nick supplied. "That's impossible. Tanna killed him." "Eliminate the possible and that leaves the impossible." Nick deduced. "The evidence is here, course I could be wrong." but his voice was assured of his conclusion. Danse was remembering Tanna's tale of tracking Kellogg with Dogmeat via a trail of cigars, beer bottles and scraps of bloody rags.
Haylen had roamed into the barracks area and her soft voice called to Cait who followed her in. Haylen's face was pale and Cait gasped seeing the items she was holding. She stepped closer and lowered her voice, "Oi don't think the big guy should see these." "See what?" Danse said from behind her.
The others were filing in behind him. He stepped forward and Cait reluctantly stepped aside. Danse saw Haylen's stricken face first and his heart started pounding in his chest knowing she didn't scare easily. Then he looked down at the torn and ripped clothes she held in her hands. The shredded t-shirt was soaked in blood around the neck and down the back.
"The absence of dust on this rail and the scratch marks look to me like someone was cuffed to this bunk and recently." Cait moved to Nick's side, placing a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. "The mattress is soaked with blood, but nothing life threaten..." Nick's voice trailed off when he saw Cait shaking her head at him and then caught the look on Danse's face staring at the clothing he now held in his armored hands.
MacCready stepped to Danse's side to see and let out a loud groan as he backed against the wall and slid to the floor, bowing his head against the arms he crossed over his bent knees. Danse's eyes seemed to glaze over a moment as he stared at the bunk Nick had pointed out and the clothes slipped from his grasp to the floor. His brown eyes suddenly opened wide in a wild crazed stare. "Whoa. Everyone back. I think the big guys' gonna blow." Deacon warned. A deafening roar burst from Danse and a steel fist smashed into a locker crushing it.
Everyone backed to the door except MacCready who remained crouched against the wall oblivious. "I've never seen him like this before." Haylen's voice was a stunned whisper. A bunk bed was flipped over and another bed crashed into a wall. "Oi ve seen others in this state. The rage has him." "Someone stop him." Haylen begged. Another metal locker was pounded with an armored fist. "I'm not sure how you stop an out of control Red Demon." Preston stated warily. "You don't without risking your life." Deacon injected. "I fear there's years of pent up emotions being released from the kid." Nick shook his head. A locker was picked up and thrown across the barracks. "Please! Someone do something! He could hurt himself and its not helping Tanna." Haylen begged.
To everyone's surprise, MacCready was suddenly on his feet and racing across the barracks. He leaped onto the front edge of the armored boots and grasped the metal chest. He was nose to nose with Danse who held another locker over his head. "DANSE!" He yelled into his face. It was the first time anyone had heard him use Danse's name.
Danse's wild eyes seemed to focus on him and MacCready's voice shifted to a low soft tone. "Tanna needs us bud... She needs us now." The fires dimmed in his eyes and the locker was dropped to one side as the two men stood with locked stares for a long moment. Danse was breathing heavily and finally gave MacCready a curt nod. "Then, lets go get her MacCready." Danse said, and the two turned heading for the group gaping at the door. They moved aside as the pair passed and Danse ordered, "Top side everyone. Lets move!"
The ride up on the lift was used to advantage as Danse handed out assignments. "Preston, I need you to contact the Castle. Get word out over Freedom radio to the Minutemen and settlements and you need to stay in Sanctuary as central command for any news that comes in or if she should return on her own." "Roger that." "Nick you need to get to Piper and have her put something out in her paper. Also inform Hancock at Goodneighbor. One of his goons might have caught wind of Kellogg's reappearance." "Consider it done Kid." "Deacon, I need you to get to the RR and get their Tourists to keep their eyes open." "I'm on it Pal." "Haylen, you need to inform BOS one of their own is missing, so the ground and air patrols can watch for her." "Affirmative Sir." "Cait, that leaves you with MacCready and I. Team, our first priority when we get top side, is everyone searching for any tracks leaving the area even though I expect Dogmeat can pick up a scent." "Danse, We had a storm here last night. Any scents were probably washed away." Preston informed. Danse frowned. "
"Lets hope we find a print or something then that the rain missed."
The platform locked into place above ground and the team moved out. Danse pulled Preston aside a moment, "Preston, the caravan was attacked in route by Synths and I lost Jackson. I don't know if there's any connection to Tanna missing, but you know it means someone in Sanctuary leaked the route plans." Preston's brow formed deep creases, "Damn. Jackson was a good man. I'll do some snooping. We'll find out who it is Danse, you worry about Tanna right now." Cait called Danse over to the northwest gate so he turned away from Preston. "Danse, come look at this. This dead log looks smashed in the middle like a PA foot print." Danse nodded in agreement. "Appears to be heading north toward the Commonwealth border."
Nick came trotting up from further west on the trail. "I found this in the weeds on the edge of the path back there and there's a soggy cigar butt near it." He held out a torn piece of cloth that looked to match Tanna's t-shirt.
"Tanna's a smart girl. She could have dropped it to leave a trail. She knows we'd be searching for her." MacCready said excited at the find. Danse pondered their discoveries a moment. "It appears Kellogg with Tanna has headed west and someone in PA split off to the north. There's nothing north of here except the border. MacCready and I will follow the lead west. Cait, see if you can follow that PA north for a ways just in case. It bothers me who in PA is headed for the border and why. If it crosses the border, return to Sanctuary and if you find anything of great import catch up to us."
Danse whistled for Dogmeat realizing he was absent, but the dog didn't show up. "Lets get this show on the road." MacCready said as he turned west. The Red Demon pulled his helmet from its hanger on the suit and clamped it over his head then followed after MacCready. The rest of the group scattered heading on their assignments.
