Nick Valentine idly paced around the exit area of Goodneighbor. He had an idea what Carter might be up to as he saw him and Magnolia speak privately near The Third Rail. The synth stuck another cigarette to his mouth and reached around his many pockets to find his lighter.

"Damn it," he cursed as the lighter won't emit anything more than a few sparks. "Outta juice." he shoved the lighter back deep into his trench coat pocket. His bright yellow eyes scanned the area for someone that might be able to lend him a hand, which would be quite rare in a neighborhood like this. His sights landed on a scruffy young man sitting by his lonesome on a bench. The sniper rifle sitting beside him looked gigantic compared to his slightly scrawny frame, and he seemed utterly unfazed by his surroundings as he took sips of Gwinett Ale he kept concealed underneath a paper bag.

"Excuse me," Nick greeted. "Was wondering if—"

"Look, man," the other man interjected. "If you're here to preach about Atom or whatever, you got the wrong guy." he continued sipping his ale without looking at the detective. "If you're looking for a hired gun, though, maybe we can talk."

"Heh. Was just gonna borrow a lighter, but I guess we got different interests in mind." Nick looked at the man sitting before him and shrugged. "Well, thanks anyways."

As Nick was about to walk away, the man suddenly realized who he was speaking to. "Hold up. You're Nick Valentine, right? From Diamond City?"

Nick was used to being recognized around the Commonwealth, as it would be pretty hard to forget a mug like his. "I know you from somewhere?" he asked.

"Well, no. I'm MacCready, I operate around these parts after Hancock let me through," he picked up his sniper rifle and holstered it around his back. "I think I might have a job for you." MacCready's eyes lit up with anticipation.

Nick hesitated, and let out a sigh. "I'd love to help you, kid, but my hands are kinda full at the moment. Why don't you run this by my assistant over at Diamond City?"

"I promise I won't take much of your time. I got caps, whatever you need." MacCready took out a small bag and gave it a little shake, emitting a jingling sound from within.

"It ain't about the caps, it's just—it's a long story," Nick shook his head. "But sure, what do you got for me?"

MacCready sighed in relief and adjusted his hat. "Alright, so here's my predicament..."


After leaving Goodneighbor, Carter was immediately reminded of his days in the army. He and Nick had to skulk around behind car wrecks or walk close to walls as though they both had bullseye painted on their backs. Their concern wasn't completely out of proportion; the downtown area was crawling with gunners and raiders alike who won't hesitate to empty their guns on them.

As they made their way further from Scollay and towards Cambridge, a familiar monument caught Carter's eye, and he reflexively pointed at it like a child. Nick's eyes followed the direction he was pointing at. A grey stone tower reached up to the skies with slight glints of hanging lights reflecting in the dim daylight.

"There," Carter said. "I can't believe Bunker Hill's still standing."

"Better believe it. It's actually a pretty established settlement at this point, all the caravans and traders you see walking around the 'Wealth always come through here." Nick explained. His mind wandered to the memories he had about Bunker Hill, and the synth looked at the man next to him. His metal chest felt heavier as he was awash with nostalgia.

Nick shook it off and cleared his throat. "Well, the precinct's over that way. Guess we ain't going through the Hill today." he said.

Carter's eyes were still fixated on the tower and made a mental note to visit. He remembered strolling around the area with Nora, their fingers intertwining as they shared stories and laughter. He was worried that the Hill would be reduced to rubble, but hearing that it became a thriving community provided some degree of relief to him.

"We should drop by sometimes," he said.

"You seem to be real fond of the place." Nick mused.

"Heh. Be lying if I said I wasn't." Carter let out a chuckle. "Anyways, who was that guy you were talking to when we left Goodneighbor?"

Nick was reminded of the conversation he had with the scrawny mercenary he stumbled upon.

"A prospective client. Guy's name is MacCready, a small-time merc, he was," Nick explained as they continued walking down the empty street. "Told me something was up with his kid. He's terribly sick, said he had blue boils all over his body."

Carter's eyes went wide at the mental image. "Shit. Will he make it?"

"That's the thing. That merc traveled all the way to the Commonwealth from D.C to find a cure, I guess it's up to the synth to find where it might be."

The thought of someone else losing their child made Carter's stomach churn. Nick seemed to notice his shift in expression and nudged him.

"I guess if you're up for it, you can put on a detective hat. MacCready promised he'd work for us as an extra gun for free if we can find it."

Carter shrugged. "I don't know, Nick. What makes you so sure he won't plant a bullet in your head?"

"I don't. That's one of the main thrills of this line of work."

The two walked in silence for a brief moment as Carter was lost in his thoughts. The pre-war moral compass within him repeatedly reprimanded him for the fact that he was hesitant to lend a hand to a fellow father to save their child.

"Think I might need to have a few words with this guy," Carter said. "Can you send word to Goodneighbor, maybe a few days from now?"

"Count on it." Nick replied, a satisfied smile splayed across his face.


Carter couldn't believe he was looking at the same police precinct he set foot in a week ago. The courtyard that used to be filled with rotting feral corpses were cleaned up, replaced by military barriers and humming live turrets that were ready to fill any intruder's insides with lead. A group of Brotherhood soldiers roam the area, a couple of them fully decked out in power armor and heavy guns. Spotlights mounted on tops of the building illuminated the surrounding area, minimizing any chance of raider ambush or any more ferals slipping into the precinct.

"Hold it right there!" a female soldier raised her laser rifle towards the two men approaching the precinct. Nick's mechanical appearance stuck out like a sore thumb, and Carter had a feeling the only reason she didn't open fire was because he, as a human, was standing next to him. "State your business, wastelander, or take a walk."

"Easy," Carter slowly lowered his arms and cautiously approached the soldier. "My name's Carter Howard, I've been granted the rank of initiate by Paladin Danse."

The female soldier remained unfazed. "You think I'm an idiot? Where's your uniform, initiate?" she asked condescendingly. "What's this—this thing you brought with you? Get out of my sight, synth, before I melt you to slag." she aimed her barrel towards Nick, still with his hands up.

"Knight! That's enough!" a familiar commandeering voice erupted from the precinct's main door. Carter looked over to the source of the voice. Danse made his way down the steps towards the courtyard. The Knight lowered her laser rifle and saluted the paladin. "Sir, this wastelander brought a synth to the premises, and—"

"Yes, I heard you before." Danse interjected. His thick brows furrowed at Carter and looked disapprovingly at Nick.

"Paladin Danse," Carter greeted, he was filled with relief as he crossed paths with the stoic paladin once more. "I need your help." he continued with a tone of urgency in his voice.

Danse's stiff military posture remained unchanged. Carter didn't expect Danse to treat him like an old friend, but the fact that he saw very little reaction from the paladin made him anxious. He was reminded of his early days in the army.

"Initiate. Get yourself inside and change. We'll talk soon." Danse commanded. Carter's shoulders drop as the tension decreased. He looked over at Nick, still standing uneasily behind him.

"Let's go." Carter motioned at the synth to follow him.

"Not so fast," Danse turned around and pointed at Nick. "I won't have this abomination set foot inside my station." he remarked sternly as he shot Nick a dirty look, as though he was nothing but rotting mole rat carcass splayed on the pavement.

"Well. Aren't you a ray of sunshine," Nick scoffed as he sat on one of the vacant chairs near the barricades. "Go on then, kid. I'll be right here."

"That won't be necessary, synth. Make yourself scarce." said Danse.

"Wait, Paladin, I don't think—" Carter tried to defend the synth, and he would soon realize that his efforts were futile.

"That won't be necessary, Initiate." he dismissed Carter.

Nick let out a heavy sigh as he stood back up, adjusting his hat. "Guess I'll see you around, kid." he muttered. He gave Carter a quick wave goodbye and made his way out of the station.

"Be safe, Nick." Carter shouted from afar. He mouthed an apology to the synth as he followed Danse inside the police station.

The main lobby of the station had been turned into a mess hall of sorts. A couple of tables and sets of chairs take up a good amount of space in the room, along with food and water supplies filling the shelves. More Brotherhood knights mingle inside, each of them busy with something. One of them ate Cram straight out of the can, another polished their laser rifle, and some others bantered with one another.

"Things have been improving since the Prydwen arrived," Danse said as he noticed Carter's look of awe upon re-entering the station. "You saw that ship, didn't you? If the Prydwen's here, that means Elder Maxson's also here."

Carter racked his mind and remembered Danse mentioning Maxson. Before he could ask any more questions, a knight promptly showed up and handed over a standard-issue Brotherhood uniform. The fabric felt unfamiliar as it grazed Carter's hands, the orange color reminded him of fighter pilots' uniforms back before the war.

"You know, you could've been nicer to Nick back there." Carter remarked, he felt his chest flush as he was visibly upset at the way Brotherhood soldiers treated the old synth.

"I won't give a technological abomination my time of day, and neither should you. You're lucky we didn't shoot you on sight." Danse said sternly.

"I'm not saying you should exchange friendship bracelets. Not treating him like garbage would be a good start." Carter spat.

"I don't intend to discuss this any longer, initiate." Danse put emphasis on Carter's inferior status as he bore his eyes on him. "And if I recall correctly, you're the one who needs my help. The Brotherhood's help."

Carter felt defeated, and saw no point in arguing. He swallowed his pride and replied, "Yes, Paladin."


Later that night, Carter laid everything on the table to Danse. His heart pounded as he was faced with millions of different outcomes, very few of which ending up with possible reunion with his son.

"My God," Danse exclaimed. They were speaking privately in the former interrogation room of the precinct and after Carter told him the details of what he saw in the memory den, Danse was nothing short of perplexed. "Initiate, don't you see? You might hold the key to infiltrating this Institute."

"Which won't be possible without all the help I can get," Carter replied. "I will most certainly die exploring the glowing sea all by myself."

"What do you propose, Initiate?" Danse inquired, his expression skeptical.

"All I need is a vertibird to come see Virgil," he stated. "I know the coordinates, it's located far to the south. If I want any chance of surviving, this is it." he sighed heavily, knowing what a long shot his request was now that he said it out loud.

Danse paused, putting some thought into the initiate's request. After briefly pacing around the interrogation room, he came to a decision.

"Tomorrow, you're going up to the Prydwen."

Carter's brows furrowed. "Up the Prydwen? Why?"

"You'll be reporting to Maxson yourself and propose your idea. With any luck, he'll grant you the rank of knight and provide you the necessary support." Danse rested his hands on the table. "I'll act as your sponsor, hopefully that should convince the higher-ups easier."

"All right," he complied.

"In the meantime, you should go and do some recon with Haylen and Rhys—familiarize yourself with Brotherhood ideals, so what happened in the yard won't repeat itself." Danse continued sternly. Before exiting the room, Danse stopped in his tracks and turned to Carter. "Oh. Also, put your uniform on."

Soon enough, Carter folded the clothes he had on him and stored it on one of the intact lockers at the lockup. The uniform felt snug on him. The somewhat stretchy fabric exposed the shape of his backside a little bit more than he's comfortable with. As he re-entered the mess hall, he was once again met with Knight Rhys. His familiar sharp gaze punctured Carter, and he had no doubt Rhys had already heard about the incident with Nick.

"Wasn't sure I was gonna see you again, wastelander." said Rhys gruffly. "Bringing a synth to our base. What kind of—"

"I was told to do some recon work with you, so why don't we skip the pleasantries and get on to brass tacks, huh?" Carter interrupted.

"Fine." Rhys spat. "We're to clear out the ghouls from College Square, and I mean every single last one of them. Unless, of course, you're too much of a bleeding heart to do that?"

Carter rolled his eyes. "Let's get to it, then."

The two men reluctantly packed their ammunition and made their way out the door. Rhys handed Carter a spare standard-issue Brotherhood armor, and the impact of the material hanging on to him immediately made him feel 10 pounds heavier.

"College Square is right next to the precinct, place's crawling with ferals. We're here to make sure other soldiers have a safe passage coming in and out of the station without having to detour all the way around Cambridge," Rhys said, strapping his laser rifle to his back and loaded a fresh fusion cell into its chassis. "Ready to roll, rookie?" he asked as he secured his armor.

"Sure am." Carter replied. Rhys nodded and they made their way through mess hall and into the courtyard.

"Hey, come on now, I know the guy! Carter Howard? Tall, shaved head, Pip-boy on his arm?" a familiar shrill voice could be heard all the way from where Carter was standing. He held in a chuckle as he realized who might be waiting for him.

"I'm sorry ma'am, civilians aren't allowed access to the base unless it's an emergency. It's protocol."

Piper looked over the female knight and landed her sights at Carter, who flashed her a hearty smile. "Well, I mean, if it's protocol," she shrugged. "What can you do, right?"

The female soldier was slightly puzzled by the reporter. She turned around and saw Carter and Rhys making their way to the outer perimeter of the base. The female soldier scoffed. "You sure keep the strangest company, don't ya, initiate?"

Carter brushed off her comment and gave Piper a brief hug. Rhys groaned at the sight and impatiently tapped his feet.

"Are we gonna stand here all day? Let's go, we got a job to do."

Piper looked at Carter and crossed her arms defiantly. He let out a heavy sigh and put his hand on her shoulder. "You're not gonna let me tell you to stay, are you?"

"Nope." she grinned.

"This mission is not suitable for civilians. I won't be held responsible if anything happens to her." Rhys said as he glared down at Piper. She was way shorter than him, and Rhys was ready to scold her like he would a child.

"I understand," Piper said. "I'll follow your lead, Knight."


The three of them set out to College Square, less than a mile east of the precinct. Sure enough, what Carter remembered as the buzzing center of intellectuals were infested by ferals. They were perched atop diner roofs, stumbling in the middle of the street, even some of them were gnawing on the flesh of some poor dead wastelander splayed across the concrete. The smell was enough to spin the head of anyone unfortunate enough to be in its proximity.

Rhys took a vantage point up top, above an old bookshop while Carter positioned himself behind a road barrier, with Piper perching by his side. He aimed his rifle at one of the ferals stumbling mindlessly near a newsstand, and pulled the trigger. The laser beam split the creature in half, until it fell to the ground and twitched out its last slivers of life.

"So," Carter said, fingers still lingering around his trigger. "How'd you find me here?"

"Nick told me about what happened when he got back to Diamond City," Piper said, keeping her voice low to avoid alerting the ferals. Another feral was shot down by Rhys from above, and another feral by its proximity lost a leg from the laser beam. "Pleasant surprise, huh?" Piper continued.

"Be lying if I said it wasn't," Carter replied, putting down another feral. Piper felt herself blush at his words.

"Hey, um," she pressed her lips together. "Why don't I try my hand at this?"

Carter quietly scooted over and let her take over. His left hand holds the rifle steady, as Piper positioned herself beneath his arms, with her eyes looking through the crosshairs.

"Alright, steady," Carter whispered, his right hand lingered around Piper's fingers on the trigger. "Get that one right there, up top."

Piper felt his breath hot against the back of her neck, and she won't lie—it gave her chills. The feeling of his body protectively positioned over her made her feel as fragile as a bird. She steadily aimed the rifle at the feral on the roof.

"Okay, now!" Carter quietly exclaimed, his fingers intertwined with hers and the rifle let out a hum as it fired its laser beam. Piper felt herself fluster more and tried to readjust herself. Her shoulder accidentally bumped the rifle's handle and bent the aim to the opposite direction.

The beam went right over the feral's head and onto a series of can chimes near him. The sound blared throughout the courtyard, alerting every single feral ghoul in the area, as they frantically ran around looking for the source of the noise.

"Shit!" Rhys shouted from the vantage point as he rapidly shot at every feral that dared come near him. Carter did the same, as he hastily picked up his rifle and aimed for the legs of ferals charging at him. Bullet casings fall and echoed from Piper's 10mm as she joined the two men in annihilating the ferals.

Rhys jumped down from where he stood and on to the top of a pickup truck. A horde of ferals tried climbing up to where he was, only to be blasted by his laser beams. Not long afterwards, Carter noticed one feral ghoul that wouldn't fall down no matter how many beams or bullets they put in him. The feral was blackened, as though he was incinerated all these years after the war, and he had a distinct green glow emitting from within him.

"Blue! Watch out!" Piper called out. "It's a glowing one!"

Carter didn't hesitate to rain down his laser beams on it, but it didn't flinch. It lurched itself towards him, and he very narrowly avoided his grasp. Piper continuously fired shots towards its cranium, which further agitated the glowing feral. The feral made a beeline for her. Carter desperately tried to cripple its legs by shooting at it over and over again, to no avail. "Rhys!" Carter shouted. "Help us out!"

Rhys ran towards them and his automatic laser receiver hailed down on the feral. The light emitting from his weapon and the liquid substance coming from the feral glowed in the dark night. The feral launched itself at Piper and rode her like a piggyback. Piper exclaimed in pain as its radioactive substance dripped on her skin, burning it like a corrosive. Her head spun as the radiation levels within her spiked. She was immediately dragged to the ground, and the glowing feral dug its claws at her arm, pinning her down. Piper winced in pain as the feral's talons drew blood, and her vision grew darker from the radiation poisoning.

Carter and Rhys dislodged the glowing monstrosity off of her and pinned at its arm with their feet. With both men's combined weight, the feral was easily overpowered. Carter stomped at its face, destroying its jaw. Rhys dealt the final blow as he bashed the feral's cranium with his laser rifle's heavy handle. Twitching helplessly on the ground, the glowing feral croaked one last time before lying still on the pavement.

Looking over nearby, Carter rushed over to Piper's side, groaning helplessly. He saw the blood running down her forearm, and her bloodshot eyes signified her radiation levels were so much more than she could handle. "Pipes, stay with me." he exclaimed, his arms holding her steadily.

"We gotta get her back to the station!" Carter said, with obvious panic set in his tone. "Rhys?"

Rhys hesitated, he knew he shouldn't have let a civilian join them in this mission, but she was human, and it was his responsibility to lend a hand to his fellow man. He eventually nodded. "Let's go, she might just make it." he said as he propped Piper's arm around his shoulder, helping Carter safely transporting her back to the precinct.

"Blue," Piper croaked out. "I..."

Carter hushed her. "We're close, Piper. We'll make it." he reassured her.

"No, I'm...uh," she struggled with her words. She coughed and tasted the thick, salty blood coming up her throat, threatening to spew out. "I'm a real bad shot... aren't I?"

He chuckled as they arrived at the outer perimeter of the precinct. Brotherhood soldiers gathered around and helped her up on a gurney. Carter stayed by her side, pushing the gurney along the courtyard and inside the station.

"You could use a lesson or two." he said, squeezing her shoulder. His other hand removed her brown leather press hat, and brushed the hairs sticking to her forehead. Piper managed to tug a tiny smile before her wooziness took over, and her vision went black.


The next morning, Carter barely slept a wink. As a result, he couldn't remember the last time he was this tired. He let himself rest in the makeshift dorm area of the precinct, and he heard the door creak open as he started to drift off to sleep.

"Initiate," Danse's heavy voice snapped him back awake. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

Carter looked over and saw that Scribe Haylen was right behind him. He stretched himself out and let out a sigh. "Apparently not, Paladin."

Danse's expression remained stoic as he set down his cup of coffee. "Well, I hope you have enough energy to go up the Prydwen today."

"I'll be fine," Carter said. "It's just that, Piper Wright? The woman who fought beside me and Rhys last night?"

"She's stable as of now, Initiate." Haylen replied. "Me and the other scribes are working around the clock to make sure she's okay." she nodded, rubbing Carter's arm reassuringly. Carter smiled gratefully at her.

"Well, then. Shall we? Kells is not one to wait." Danse said, turning around to head upstairs. "I'll be waiting for you at the rooftop. Time is of the essence, Initiate." he continued.

Danse left the room, and Carter looked over at Haylen. "Thanks, Scribe Haylen." he said. "I really don't know how to thank you."

"Look, it's not the wisest move that you brought a civilian into a firefight. But you're one of us, now. And we take care of our own." Haylen said, smiling briefly at him. "Now come on, I believe you got an appointment with Kells."

He nodded and didn't waste any time heading up to where Danse waited for him. Carter tied up his boots and headed up the roof where a vertibird was perched, and Danse was already in the cabin. He motioned his hand, telling Carter to go on up as the whirring of the vertibird grew louder.

"Welcome aboard, initiate," the pilot greeted over the sound system. "We'll be taking off in a moment."

The vertibird lifted off the ground, and within the span of a few minutes, Carter saw just how ravaged the Commonwealth was from the skies. In more harrowing moments, he saw multiple super mutant nests and mutated creatures attacking civilians down on the ground.

"The minigun's loaded and ready to bring the pain. Make sure you know what you're shooting at, we wouldn't want to have a misfire and harm any civilian." Danse said, patting the minigun next to him.

Carter took the minigun and blasted everything he could from above. His ears were deafened by hailing bullets coming from the gun.

"Easy! Watch your fire, initiate!" Danse yelled, and it literally fell upon deaf ears. Carter felt his head ringing with all the overwhelming noise around him and plopped himself back on one of the cabin's seats.

The vertibird apporached the Prydwen and latched itself on one of the ship's landing pods. Hopping out, a tall, black man in blue Brotherhood fatigues await. Danse promptly saluted him and reported their arrival.

"Report, Paladin." the man said.

"Captain Kells. This is Initiate Howard. I've granted him the rank of initiate, and I'd like to sponsor his knighthood."

"Yes. I've read your reports," Kells turned his attention to Carter, still flushed red from the adrenaline. "You should go up and report to the Elder. Know that it is an honor for a soldier like Paladin Danse to vouch for you like this."

"Yes, sir." Carter replied.


Hey look! Piper's back in the picture! I've been itching to write more tender moments between these two. It's quite a slow burn so far.

Thanks for staying tuned!