Piper was still trying to figure out who that woman she met this morning was, she looked exactly like Ryan's wife, she even had the same name as her! But it couldn't have been her because Piper had been at the woman's funeral back at Sanctuary. Nat had told Piper that Nora had asked her questions about the article she wrote about Ryan back when they first met and Piper was slightly concerned that Nora may have been an Institute agent. She had told Ryan about it after their conversation ended but he seemed as doubtful about the whole thing as she did and the two chalked it up to an overactive imagination. Still, Piper would never forget those vibrant yellow eyes, combined with her dark hair, makeup, and clothing she practically screamed "Hey! I'm evil!" but she had seemed like any normal person and she heard that after a talk with the mayor she left town which made Piper all the more suspicious.
Currently she and Ryan where walking through the Commonwealth after a failed meeting with the Railroad's leaders, who had not been pleased by the new door Ryan had created for them. After a short standoff they had been told to leave but one of their leaders, a man named Deacon, was sympathetic to their plight and promised to see if he could smooth things over for them.
After another few minutes of walking in silence Ryan suddenly spoke up. "We should go see if Nick and Amari have had enough time to get Kellogg's brain ready." Piper had nearly forgotten about that.
"Yeah we could, all our other leads have gone cold for the moment." The two then changed direction and headed back towards Goodneighbor.
Some hours later Ryan and Nick were sitting in memory pods deciphering Kellogg's memories for a way into the Institute. Piper watched Kellogg's memories play out on a screen with Dr. Amari and found that Kellogg's life nearly mirrored Ryan's, serving as a warning of what Ryan could become should he succumb to anger and bitterness.
Once their trip through Kellogg's memories were finished the only thing they had learned was that the only way into the Institute was by some form of teleportation getting them nowhere closer to their goal. The only valuable piece of information they learned is that there was an Institute scientist that left the Institute and was hiding out somewhere in the Glowing Sea. This scientist could provide them with the information they needed but they had no means of getting past all the radiation to reach him. "If we had some power armor we'd be set but I'm sure all the old military bases have been raided already." Ryan said while they brainstormed.
"I hate to say it but I think the Brotherhood of Steel may be our only option." Piper informed him. "The Brotherhood is camped out at the old airport, we could go there and see if they'll help."
Ryan sighed loudly. "Somehow I doubt their just going to give us power armor, probably have to do a bunch of stuff for them first." He grumbled as he headed back upstairs. Piper thanked Nick and Dr. Amari for their help before running after Ryan.
"Listen here you stupid tin can motherfucker! I've been a Lance Corporal longer than you've been alive! Who the hell are you to call me a fucking recruit you fucking boot!" Piper had to quickly pull Ryan away from the Brotherhood sentry stationed outside the airport. Apparently Ryan took offense to being called a recruit, having served four years in the Marine Corps and fighting in Anchorage he was anything but.
"Blue, calm down! Let's go!" She yelled at him as he continued to shout at the sentry. Piper would have found the whole situation humorous had she not been sure Ryan would kill the sentry. At least they had learned that they could get into the Brotherhood by meeting with a Paladin Danse at one of the old police stations, which is where Piper was taking Ryan once he calmed down.
After meeting with Paladin Danse, Ryan and Piper found themselves accompanying him to Arc Jet Systems, a pre-war science facility that had been overrun by synths. Danse had agreed to sponsor the two for membership in the Brotherhood after Ryan told him of their situation and Danse believed Ryan's pre-war military experience could benefit the Brotherhood's military doctrine. Piper however wasn't pleased with having to actually join the Brotherhood in order to gain their help and she was pleased that Ryan wasn't too happy with the situation either. It seemed that Ryan found Danse more agreeable than the other Brotherhood members he had met, even if he was a little to motivated about his job.
Clearing out the Arc Jet building was taking longer than Ryan had thought it would but it was nice to have a walking tank to absorb all the fire for him. After a short mishap with a prototype engine the building had finally been cleared and the three regrouped outside the building to discuss the ordeal.
"That was great work back there, you two really handled yourself like soldiers…" Danse began before Ryan interrupted him.
"We're Marines, not soldiers so of course everything went well it's what we do." Ryan said proudly.
"Right, my mistake Lance Corporal. In any case I promised to help you once this was over and I'm nothing if not a man of my word. Come on I'll take you to see the Elder now."
Ryan and Piper followed Danse as he led them back to the police station. Piper jogged up to Ryan and whispered to him so Danse wouldn't hear her. "Blue, you sure this is a good idea? I mean are we really going to join the Brotherhood?" She asked concerned.
"I don't like it either, but we don't really have any other options right now. This Danse guy seems legit enough, but if they have us try to do anything that we don't like we'll leave alright?" He whispered back. Piper still seemed unsure about this but as long as she and Ryan were in this together they'd be fine.
"Alright Blue, just remember I'm doing this for you not them." Ryan flashed her a smile to reassure her.
"Come on, what's the worst that can happen?"