Waking up the next day, Mason found Heather on top of him, finding it normal at this point. Getting out from under her without too much difficulty, he left to find Curie. Finding her near a guard tower, she greeted Mason as he approached her.

"Good morning, monsieur," she said as Mason pat the top of her dome. "I do hope you had a pleasant rest."

"Thought I told you to stop calling me that," Mason said, laughing. "Might start calling you mademoiselle."

"It surprises me you know French," Curie said, making Mason chuckle. Why'd she have to be like Codsworth with a likable personality?

"Elective in high school," Mason responded. "Took three years of it and continued studying in my free time while in the military. Helped my sister while deployed since she wanted to know the language as well. Now can you be ready in fifteen minutes?"

"But of course."

Leaving to grab his bag, Mason found Dogmeat playing around with some teenagers, leaving a grin on his face. It was good to see teens that knew how to have fun. It'd be bad if they were all like the ones from Sunshine. They could've become raiders. Grabbing his bag from the bed he'd slept in, Mason took it out to the bar and began putting his armor on.

"Howdy, partner," Mason told Heather as she came up while he was adjusting the straps. "Glad to see you're awake."

"That was the best sleep ever," she smiled happily. "We cuddled the entire time."

"Well, I was asleep, so I didn't do much. Ready to head out?"

"Anytime," Heather responded, holding out Mason's helmet to him.

Putting the helmet in his bag, Mason looked at Heather. "Let's get moving."

Grabbing Curie and Dogmeat, Mason told the settlers they'd see them around. After strapping their bags onto Curie and getting into their Power Armor, they began walking, not running into any problems until they got to Concord. Fortunately, it was an hour and a half after they started walking, and it was just a few raiders.

"Wait here," Mason told Curie as they neared the city. "Heather and I will take care of them. Dogmeat, you stay as well."

Mason got into a running position before charging the nearest raider.

"Oh shi-" the raider yelled before a shoulder got slammed into him, breaking his chest from the force.

"Fuck!" one raider yelled, seeing her friend lying on the ground, struggling to breathe. Pulling out her rifle, Heather shot them in the leg before hitting her in the face.

Mason went to step forward before a raider came from behind, hitting the armor with a pipe. Bending, the pipe was ultimately useless as Mason grabbed them by the throat, lifting them off the ground. Throwing him into his raider friend, Mason kicked back, hitting a raider attacking. Sending him flying through a wall, more than likely killing them.

"Well, guess you guys messed up," Mason muttered, stepping towards the two fallen raiders. One of them tried to shoot Mason, the bullets bouncing off the armor.

"Three of you chiennes down, two to go," Mason muttered, a switchblade breaking against the armor when a raider tried to stab him. Grabbing him by the throat, Mason lifted him before punching him in the stomach, the metal fist going through the stomach.

Turning to the last raider, he saw Heather had taken care of her, and although she couldn't see it, Mason was smiling.

"Fall in!" Mason yelled to Curie, who grabbed Dogmeat to catch up with him and Heather. Walking, it only took half an hour to get to Sanctuary.

"Home… Home at last," Mason muttered, taking off his helmet as they walked through the gates. Looking up at Sturges, Mason grinned. "Hey Buffy, how's the neighborhood?"

"Hardly recognized ya, General," Sturges said, laughing when he saw Mason's suit. "I'm guessing the trip was worth it."

"Yep. got a suit of T-51 Power Armor. Gonna upgrade it when I have the two missing pieces. Any newcomers?"

"Just three more," Sturges replied, coming down the tower to look at the armor. "Didn't know where you wanted them, so Tyler assigned them to scavenging duty."

"That… unnecessary. He's in charge of the place…" trailing off, Mason walked the Power Armor to his place, setting it in his living room, needing to make a place for Power Armor to store and upgrade. "Where's he at?"

"Think he's in the mess hall. Must've missed him."

Getting out of the suit, Mason sighed as he started undoing the straps on Curie, setting the cooler on the bar and the bags on the couch. "Can you tell him I need to talk to him?"

"I'll go get him right now," Sturges said before turning, walking to get Tyler. Digging through his fridge, Mason took a swig of Nuka-Cherry, enjoying the taste after having water for a few weeks. Setting the drink down, Mason began going through the junk, sorting it between what would be kept vs what would go to storage. While setting some guns to the side, Tyler came into the house, approaching Mason.

"Sturges said you needed me, Mason," Tyler said, closing the door behind him.

"Look, I'm not gonna tell you where to put people," Mason told him. Tyler went to speak before Mason held his hand up. "I'm trusting you with Sanctuary… because I won't be here all the time. I can't put Sturges in charge, he'll probably be a member of the Minutemen soon. Can't put Murphy, because she's too old. I think the Long's speak for themselves."

"Fair enough," Tyler said, hands on his hips. "I just figured it'd be a good idea to run it by you."

"Tyler," Mason said, stepping up to the man, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I trust your judgment. We may not know each other well at the moment, but something tells me you're a good leader."

Taking a deep breath, Tyler sighed before saying, "I suppose. I used to be a… leader of sorts. Suppose I can put what I learned to use." Looking down at the couch, Tyler raised a brow. "Hauled all this from your trip?"

"Heather and Curie helped carry it. That's the… uh… Miss Nanny that's following me around."

"Ahh," Tyler said, looking through the pile. "Found some good rifles. Prefer my assault though."

"Sure. Be back in a minute."

As Tyler left the place, Mason began putting the junk for storage into a bag, having finished sorting it. After emptying the bags at the storage, Mason walked back to his place, finding Tyler sitting on the chair with the rifle.

"Now that's nice," Mason said as Tyler handed the rifle to him. Checking out the gun, Mason mentioned a few modifications.

"Advanced receiver," Mason questioned as he checked the trigger, making sure it was pointed away from everyone.

"Yep. Sensitive trigger, less likely to waste bullets," Tyler grinned, surprised by Mason knowing the specific trigger.

"Nice. The stock compensates for the recoil, allowing you to fire more, the drum allows you to fire more before reloading. Where'd you find a beauty like this? I mean, not my kind, but I appreciate guns nonetheless."

"Fixed it up myself," Tyler told him, his tone becoming more somber. "Only part that's still there from when I first got it it, the, uh… the frame," Tyler said, his voice barely cracking. Mason, noticing the crack, lowered the weapon, walking over to Tyler.

"Here," Mason said, handing Tyler the rifle. "It's not my business right now, but if you'd like you can tell me about it someday."

"Yeah," Tyler said, heading towards the door. "Come by the dining hall. We have dinner every night at six every night."

Mason found it confusing, but after putting everything away, he headed towards the hall. Setting Overseer's and his rifle by the workbench, Mason set his armor on the armor, planning on working on them the next day. Putting the bags in his room, he headed to the dining hall, finding people already getting food and sitting down.

"Hey, General," Sturges said, bringing Mason a plate with a radstag steak and a bowl of vegetable soup. "Got a good haul in. The provisioner between here and Red Rocket brought a Rad Stag from his last hunt. Actually got two, but they kept one. By the way, how's Preston doin'?"

"Didn't hear?" Mason questioned, surprised he hadn't come through here. "He's getting recruits to retake the Castle. It's all goin' down in three weeks."

"Really? That's good to hear. That'll help you guys in the long run."

"Yeah, well I've been thinking," Mason said, interesting Sturges.

"About?"

"When we get bigger, there's gonna be different branches. I figured, given the time, you could take over being in charge of one of 'em. The one for technology, including maintenance on stuff," Mason told him, surprising Sturges.

"Well, uh… I'd have to think about that," Sturges said. "Gonna have to give me some time. Any particular reason why?"

"You're the only one I've met that knows a lot about mechanics," Mason stated, making Sturges laugh.

"Fair enough," Sturges chuckled, almost choking on his water as he drank it.

"Hey, don't choke," Mason said, patting Sturges on the back. "Can't have you dying."

"Says you," Heather said as she sat down by Mason. "You almost do that everyday."

"Ah, fair enough," Mason said, drinking his soda. "But, ain't gotta worry about me. It'll take more than a deathclaw to put me six feet under."

"Fight another one, Mason?" Sturges questioned with a stern look.

"Yeah," Mason said, scratching the back of his head. "Blew its head off with a grenade."

"Mason, what is Heather gonna do with you," Sturges said as Heather ate her food.

"Make sure I don't die. That reminds me, gotta gun for you at the house," Mason informed him, surprising Sturges.

"You didn't have to do that."

"Found it while traveling," Mason explained. "If you don't use it, I'll give it to a settler. Figured you could use one first."

"Well, shoot," Sturges said. "I'll come by for it tomorrow before my shift."

"Do it in the morning," Mason said, grinning. "I gotta fix it up for ya first." Eating his food, Mason felt something nudging his leg, looking down to see Zeus. "Don't worry, bud," Mason said, rubbing the top of his head. "Not gonna forget ya." Taking Zeus back to the house, Mason laid in bed, Zeus laying on top, Dogmeat at the foot.

The next day, Zeus laid at Mason's feet as he worked on Sturges rifle, making it easier for the guy to handle. Codsworth was talking to Curie, making Mason grin while working. He was glad his two robots were talking. After he finished putting a reflex sight, Mason stepped back to admire his work.

"Hey, Cods," Mason said as Codworth approached him.

"Good morning, Mr. Black. How is Mr. Garvey doing?"

"Not sure at the moment. He's in the middle of gathering people for a job."

"Excellent news, sir! Miss Curie dows make for excellent companionship."

"I know," Mason said, rubbing the top of his body. "We'll be heading out later. I'm sorry can't stay longer."

"Before I go, Mr. Sturges and Mr. Kynigan had this thing they wanted me to give you.," Codsworth said, holding out a locket to Mason.

"I'll… see what it is later," Mason said, not sure why they'd give him a locket.

Setting Overseer's on the workbench, Mason got to work on it, still trying to figure out why this one got a name. While working on it, Curie brought Mason water, reminding him to hydrate. Setting the rifle to the side, Mason made sure it was unloaded, and the safety was on. Couldn't be too careful with weapons.

Coming up to Mason while he was working on armor, Sturges was surprised by his hands. Sturges knew a lot about fixing things, but Mason was taking duct tape and metal to make the armor more effective, yet somehow making it look like part of the armor and not as if he put it on there himself.

"You know how to work a hammer," Sturges said, gaining Mason's attention.

"I suppose," Mason said as he set down his tools, using his free hand to reach over to the workbench. "Here you go. The recoil shouldn't be too horrible now, and you got a better scope for aiming. Anything else, you'll discover on your own."

Sturges laughed as Mason went back to his armor. "Headin' out later?"

"Yeah," Mason sighed. "Got one more area to explore before we head over to the Castle."

"Dangerous?"

"More than likely."

"I'll leave you to your thing."

"Good talking to ya."

Spending the next hour on the armor and helmet, when Mason finished, he got the supplies they'd need. After putting his armor on, Mason found Heather ready to head out.

"Mind grabbing Curie and meeting Dogmeat and I in five?"

"Of course."

Mason didn't know why, but as she left, he found his gaze on her longer than usual. Strapping his pistol to his waist, Mason shouldered his bag, holding Overseer's in his hand. Grabbing Dogmeat before petting Zeus, they began moving, meeting the others by the gate.

"Fall in," Mason said, Heather getting in the middle with Curie at the front. As they were walking, Mason waved to the settlers at Red Rocket as they passed, them waving back. Taking the long way to leave Concord to avoid the smell of crap and piss, Mason saw machines as the campsite he and Codsworth had cleared. Pulling out Overseer's, Mason saw four, two eyebots, and two… swarmbots? That's what he was going to call them.

"Curie, Dogmeat, hold positions," Mason said, Curie stopping where she was, Dogmeat sitting beside her. "Heather, fall in."

Moving forward, Heather stood behind Mason, able to understand where he needed her by his tone. Moving closer, they ducked behind cover as Mason aimed his weapon.

"We'll go for the eyebot's then the swarms," Mason said, Heather aiming her weapon.

"Got it."

Pulling the trigger, Mason got pushed back further than he expected. He had no idea why, but he grinned. More recoil means more power. Firing two more times, Mason began to get used to the power, hitting the eyebot with each shot. Turning his attention to the swarmbots, Mason aimed for one of them. Firing at the thruster, Mason rolled forward as it swung a blade, ending up behind it. Shooting the inhibitor, the machine got disabled, falling to the ground. Sticking the head of the swarmbot he just destroyed into his bag, Mason collected some fusion cells, thankful for the ammunition.

"Fall in!" Mason yelled, Curie and Dogmeat coming as he did. Stopping by Thicket Excavations, Mason decided to see if anything was there. Seeing a shack by the road as they walked in, Mason found a water pump, something wrong with it as the water was almost as high as the pump. Finding a man sitting by a campfire, Mason sighed and approached him.

"Lookin' to earn some caps?" the man greeted as Mason approached him. "I could use a hand here if you're all done gawking, you know."

Mason found it odd how the man was asking for help from the first person he met.

"Help with what," Mason questioned, hand on his pistol.

"Hey now," the man said, seeing Mason's hand placement. "I'm just trying to fix this old water pump. Should be plenty of scrap here - if I can get it drained out."

Mason knew that was a lie. And scrap in the water was unusable or worthless now.

"What are you really up to?" Mason questioned, staring down at the man.

"Maybe I got some friends who like to go spelunking. Maybe I need a new hole to throw smart guys like you into. You gonna help or what?"

Looking down at the man, Mason scowled. The man was nearly two heads shorter than him and thin as a stick. A gun wouldn't help him with as close as Mason was, and the man would be stupid to pull a gun on him.

"I'll help. But you have to tell me… what you need help with," Mason said, anger evident.

"The pump isn't in top shape, but it should at least start. There must be some leaky connections flooding me out. Think you could fix 'em? The leaks should be underwater. Look for bubbles and you should find 'em."

"Alright," Mason growled before turning to the others as he took his armor off. "You three stay here. Imma go find these leaks."

"Rad-X, good idea," Curie said as Mason pulled a container from his bag.

"I can be suicidal, not stupid. Most of the time," Mason said, swallowing some pills.

Stepping to the edge, Mason looked down into the water, finding the best spot to dive into.

"Monsieur Black is healthy, yes," Curie asked Heather, Mason diving into the quarry as she did.

"Physically, yes. Mentally, not so much," Heather responded, keeping an eye on Mason's bag.

"How long have you known him?"

"Few weeks. He knows how to fight. Gets me around."

"You guys are leaving after this," Sully said. "Don't need your kind around here."

"Whatever do you-" Curie began before someone shouted.

"Took care of the leaks," Mason yelled, pushing his hair out of his face.

"Well, that's… new," Heather said, seeing Mason without a shirt for the first time. Walking up to them, Mason took his bag back from Heather, pulling some rags out to dry himself off.

"What's with her?" Mason questioned as Heather turned away.

"My sensors indicate her heart sped up," Curie said as Mason strapped his armor on. "Her body temperature is rising as well."

"Hmm," Mason said before digging through his bag. Handing Heather a bottle of water, Mason spoke. "Here, can't have you getting sick."

After strapping his helmet on, Mason walked up to the pump before pulling the switch. Hearing Dogmeat growl, Mason spun around, hands raised for a fight. Seeing two mirelurks, Mason groaned.

"Come at me, morceaux de merde," Mason growled.

Moving forward, Mason pushed a claw up, preventing it from hitting Curie. Punching it in the face, Mason stomped on its leg as it reeled back, breaking it. Punching it in the face again, it screeched as it backed away.

"It's like construction," Mason said, dodging its claws. Pulling his fist back, Mason swung around, catching it in the face, the face splitting. As the mirelurk fell, Mason saw Heather had taken care of the other one, a piece of metal sticking out from a pile of ash. Picking it up, Mason noticed it looked lighter and made for running, which he supposed made sense with mirelurks. Putting the armor away, Mason walked up to the man.

"Mirelurks," He said as Mason approached him. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that stirred 'em up. Anyway, I've still got some tinkering to do in this thing. Shouldn't be too hard now, though." He turned to leave before putting caps in my hands. "Thanks for pitchin' in. Here's a little something before you clear out."

Counting seventy-five caps, Mason pocketed them before pulling out his rifle as they got ready to move. While looking around the place, Mason found a tattoo magazine, something Mason wasn't too excited to find. Putting it away, Mason grabbed the others before leaving, thinking about the man as they walked. Didn't seem trustworthy.

"Ah, screw it," Mason said, approaching the bridge leading to Tenpines. "Probably won't run into the bâtard again."

"Is everything all right, Mason?" Heather questioned, concern written on her face.

"It's good," Mason responded. Putting an arm over her shoulder. "Got a bad feeling about that guy."

Walking into the place, the most notable change was the wall and towers built. The only downside was the lack of new people, which is why Mason wasn't surprised the building was together.

"General," Katherine said as Mason walked past, tending to the crops. "Didn't know you were. Would've had the first floor built for you."

"Just staying here for the night. Gonna help you guys finish the floor so you can set up the beacon."

"Don't you have other duties?"

"Nah, just exploring for the time bein'. Gonna help you first. My friend and I will help with the first floor, enough room for twenty seven people. Be on our way after that," Mason told her as he took his armor off.

"No need to thank me," Mason said as Katherine tried to thank him. "Gotta help each other in this wasteland."

Grabbing supplies from the workbench, Heather came up to him.

"Need any help?"

"Yeah, we need beds," Mason said, picking up a box of nails. "Curie's gonna help with the floor."

"On it."

Grabbing the materials needed, Mason took them to the area they would be working, grabbing Curie as he did.

"Gotta cut wood every once in a while," Mason informed Curie as she brought lumber over. "Don't think stamping, punching, or bending will get a clean cut."

"But of course," Curie said, making Mason chuckle at her accent. He found it rather adorable, especially since she was too innocent for this world.

Getting to work, Mason would use the wood for the frame, hammering in most of the nails at an angle so it'd be hard to come loose. At one point, Mason his thumb.

"Putain de merde," Mason growled, clutching his thumb.

"Is everything alright, monsieur?" Curie asked, clearly concerned, which is why it didn't annoy Mason when she said that.

"It's fine," Mason said, grunting in frustration. "Gonna be bleedin' under the skin for a bit. Just give me a minute."

Biting the top layer of skin off the wound, Mason made sure to avoid biting too deep to avoid scarring. While it wouldn't scar, it would take a few days to heal since he wouldn't use a stimpak for it. Grabbing a rag, Mason tore a small piece off, sticking the rest of it in his bag. Tearing a strip of duct tape off, Mason wet the piece of rag before putting it on his wound, using the tape to keep it in place. Getting back to work, Mason got to work putting the planks down, knowing the place would look more like a motel over a house or hotel.

"You're definitely a builder with those hands of yours, General," Katherine commented, finishing her work for the day. "Need any help with that?"

"Just some lamps with oil," Mason said, surprising the woman. "Gonna need five at the most. Likely to be done with this by midnight."

"I'll get right on it, sir," she replied, making Mason sigh. More than likely, she only said that because of his position. Most would've treated a request like that with disdain.

Getting back to work, Mason had finished half the floor in six hours, stopping to get a drink of water. Using his rag to wipe the sweat off his forehead, Mason gave Dogmeat the rest of the water bottle as he grabbed the lamps Katherine set out. After getting back to work, Heather ended up setting the beds she'd made under the foundation, for the time being, Mason having finished a majority of the floor by then. After finishing the floor, Mason laid down in one of the beds, getting rest for the night.

The next day, Mason put together a beacon and generator, Heather having time to put her armor on as he did. After putting on his own armor, Mason shouldered his bag, held Overseer's in one hand, then grabbed the others.

"Ready to head out," Mason said as they met him by the gate. After nodding, Mason faced away from the settlement. "Let's go."