Chapter Fifteen
Lost and Found
The land of the Glowing Sea lay quiet in the dim light of the moon. Not entirely flat, it had its jagged uneven rock formations that jetted out of the ground; the destruction from the bomb that landed here more than two centuries ago. The shadows casted from the crater only dampened the ability to see. If there had been any structures, they had been either buried beneath molten rock or blown away.
"How in fucks sake are we supposed to find a cave in the dark?" The ghoul growled out, squinting ahead at the rock walls, "I can fuckin' barely see my own hand!"
Danse rolled his eyes and flicked on his headlamp, he heard the ghoul snort when he shone the light on the wall, illuminating it.
"Well not all of us have fancy flashlights," he grumbled.
It was silent, Danse noted. Even upon entering the sea, there had been sounds. Gas hissing from beneath the ground, rolling thunder from the clouds, the distant hissing of ghouls, even the sounds of various giant bugs, buzzing around. Yet here in this alcove, there was nothing but stillness.
Danse leaned forward, squinting. There were no signs of any life - which in the Glowing Sea meant no hostility - yet instead of feeling relaxed the sense of dread lingered as if he couldn't get warm. He steeled himself as he pushed forward, more alert than he had been.
"So, tin can, what'd ya think we should expect when we find the cave?" The ghoul said breaking the stillness around them, oblivious to the foreboding silence around them.
Danse hesitated before answering, too absorbed in trying to hear if there were any sounds around them. "The cultist had mentioned how Virgil had fortifications in place for unwanted guests. With what, I'm not sure," Isolde neglected to mention what kind of fortifications. "Be on the lookout for triggers or anything of the sort. And be on high alert, Knight Gilmore may not be in any condition to tell this Virgil we are non-hostile - unless he is indeed holding her hostage."
"What are the chances he is?" He eyed ahead, squinting slightly.
"I am unsure; but be ready for anything." There was no telling what awaited them ahead. While he hoped that it wasn't his worst fear; that this Virgil had lured her out here to capture her. He could also be over thinking the matter entirely.
What Isolde said earlier was still weighing heavily on his mind. Virgil had been blessed by Atom. Could the freak be right? Had Virgil turned ghoul? But what had made those large prints? They were too large to belong to a ghoul, but too small to be made by a Super Mutant. Could this be a new mutation all together? Different environments had the potential to produce different mutations, so it could be a possibility.
"Hey crew cut, yah listenin' or what?" The ghoul rasped, breaking his reverie.
He turned to the ghoul and shot him look - which went unnoticed due to his helmet. "What?" He snapped.
"Guess you weren't," he shrugged. "I was curious, why do ya call Em, Gilmore? Seems a bit cold."
He glared off ahead away form the ghoul, annoyed by the personal nature of the question and seemingly out of nowhere. "She is my subordinate, therefor I need to keep a professional air between us."
"Sure," he drawled out rolling his eyes. "I've seen how chummy you two get, nothin' professional 'bout it." He paused looking Danse up and down and added, "just was curious."
"Well keep your curiosity to yourself, freak!" He threw back. It wasn't any of his business. Danse thought while picking the pace up, putting some distance between himself and the ghoul. Why did he care? Did the ghoul have some sort of fondness for Emery, was that why he cared so much? The sudden thought struck him, and he found himself dwelling on it.
Was the ghoul attracted to Emery? He thought, a wave of disgust sweeping over him. While a human and ghoul relationship was not something he sought after, he didn't care if others did. But the idea of Emery and the ghoul, together - well he didn't care for that idea. The ghoul was a terrible influence, not to mention it would be a toxic relationship romantically or not.
But Emery and the ghoul. It sent a sour taste to his mouth and a boiling feeling in his stomach. It was the same emotion he had felt when he watched Emery and Elder Maxon speak together that night. Now he knew just what the feeling was, it hit him like a rock.
Jealously…
But why in the name of Steel would he feel that. Emery and himself were just good friends, yet the idea of Emery with the freak stirred up that feeling. Just as it did with Elder Maxon and Emery.
But Emery and the Elder wouldn't be a bad couple. In fact, it would be a good match if he were honest with himself.
The same feeling bubbled louder with the idea.
He dismissed the very notion of him being jealous, it was preposterous. It had to be something else. He had only a feeling of friendship towards Emery, a deep admiration for her strength and determination. Nothing stronger than that. It would be highly unprofessional. Not to even mention the slight age gap. Even their friendship broke decorum - yet he could allow that. But the notion of something more weighed in on his mind.
He was her sponsor, her mentor and close friend that was all, he told himself firmly.
Wait…
The sudden onset of dread filled his senses, drowning out all other thoughts. The very air around him shifted as alarm bells rang loudly in his mind as if warning him of approaching danger.
The ghoul seemed to have noticed and watched Danse with a muted sense of apprehension. His hand gripping his shotgun, firmly.
Cautiously, Danse began to search, the light casting large shadows as he moved the lamp around.
"I hate the feelin' of being watched," the ghoul said as he moved his hand to his weapon. "Always gives me the jitters - the unfun kind of jitters."
Danse slowly moved the light to the ground, inch by inch he searched until his lamp lit up on an odd shape. He drew the light closer as the shape appeared taller. Long toe claws that dug into the earth. Scales reflecting the lights gleam. Hunched back with spikes jetting out, while razor talons clenched almost as if making a fist.
No…
The beast's slit eyes zoned in on them at once. Its cold calculating gaze almost appeared to be processing a plan as it straightened it spiked back.
A cold realization gripped him like an icy wind. This wasn't any ordinary Deathclaw. Danse reached for his rifle, his body in slow motion. The beast's jaw opened revealing rows of bone crushing teeth, its long pointy tongue rolling out.
"It's an alpha." Danse wasn't sure if he had said it out loud or not. But the monster seemed to have read his mind as it lifted his head up and screamed the most horrendous growl. In that next moment with terrifying speed it lunged towards them, claws primed as it charged. Its arms outstretched almost as if inviting them in for a murderous embrace.
Its speed was incredible, rushing towards them with precision and grace. Danse's eyes widened as it drew closer - it was so much larger than any he had seen. It lunged forward with a single bound and took a swipe at him.
Had it not been for his years of accumulated muscle memory, he would have been caught by the beast's razor claws, the light only illuminating their sharp edges.
The sound of shotgun fire drew Danse and the beast's attention. "Hey ugly!" The ghoul roared, "got some iron for yah!" He fired, hitting the beast in the shoulder. Sticky bluish green blood, sprayed from the wound, yet the beast did not flinch. Instead, it roared a thunderous roar that had so much fury in it, it caused Danse's teeth to ache. The beast's focused zoned in on the ghoul in zero seconds, eyes glazed, calculating as its back hunched.
"Oh shit!" Cursed the ghoul as he jumped for cover.
It began to charge turning it's back towards Danse, giving him the distraction he needed to fire at the hulking terror. In all his years in the wasteland - whether it was in the Capital Waste or the Commonwealth - he never had taken on a deathclaw with such few numbers. It didn't help that this one was not only a full-grown alpha male but judging by the dark scales and jetting teeth it was much older than any other one he had the misfortune of running into. And with age came intelligence.
The beast howled when Danse's energy fire singed its back. It turned to him, its reddish yellow eyes zoned in on its target - him. The beasts mouth parted slowly as it took a step back, both himself and the ghoul were now clearly in its line of vision.
"You know, when I said I wanted to run into a deathclaw, I didn't mean I wanted to be the one to fight it," the ghoul muttered reloading his rifle. "Em was supposed to be the one."
"I'd rather it not be any of us!" Danse threw back, watching the deathclaw slowly begin to circle them. Of course the one deathclaw they ran into would be a hyper intelligent one.
The deathclaw scrapped at the ground once with its hind legs, then sniffed at the air as if checking the wind direction. With its cold eyes it looked past them and Danse swore it grinned. In one swift movement it turned and ran, its shape obscured by the shadows and rocks around them.
The ghoul swore as he searched around, eyes darting in every direction. "Where the fuck did it go?"
"Form a tight formation," Danse ordered at once. "Back to back, it's going to try to take us by surprise!"
"It can't be that smart-"
The ghoul was cut off as the beast lunged from the cover of the shadows and swiped at Danse. It's sharp, steel like claws sliced the first layer of the steel of his breastplate, cutting through it as if made of paper.
Staggering, Danse took a swift step back, avoiding a precise swipe at his head. He fired once and missed, his second shot hit the alpha's tail just as it disappeared into the shadows once more.
Taking a brief check of his breast plate he was relieved to see it had only scratched the surface, ruining his Brotherhood insignia as well as disrupting the coating of his armor. It can be repaired, he reminded himself.
Grasping for ideas, Danse could feel the cold chill of panic set in. If the deathclaw kept this strategy up, it wouldn't be long until it got the right hit on one of them, and the ghoul wasn't wearing any metal. They needed to light the area up, but his headlamp could only provide so much.
The idea suddenly came to him amongst the panic. Quickly, he reached for his kindling kit and dashed in front. It wouldn't be long until the alpha would strike again - any movement would cause it to heighten its senses.
Laying out the kindling kit along a leaking gas vein, he jumped back just in time to narrowly avoid the deathclaw's tail. He fired his rile which staggered the beast, slightly.
Danse quickly grappled for a grenade, his eyes never leaving the deathclaw. He only had the one and would need perfect aim in order to pull this off. He took a few more calculated steps back just as the deathclaw moved forward, standing right above the gas vein.
Drawing the grenades pin, he threw it and prayed it would land where he needed it too. He had only seconds before the ravine was lit ablaze with red and orange hues.
It was eerily quiet as the flames burned. Did the deathclaw jump out of the way at the last second? There were no sounds, only the roar of the fire.
Danse watched in horror as a clawed foot stepped out of the mess of flames and smoke. The beast reared its large head, scales blazing as it opened its mouth, its yellow eyes blazing red from the flames.
"For fucks sake!" Exclaimed the ghoul jumping back, "it still fuckin' alive! Look its still on fire!"
It was angry. Danse's heart rose to his throat, as the very air around them shifted dangerously. It had only been toying with them, like a game of cat and mouse.
It arched its back once more, shaking its head and snorting before it growled. Its scales still ablaze. Danse raised his rifle but froze when he heard gunfire from behind.
The beast howled in pain as one of its horns were shot, cracking it off.
Danse didn't give it any time to recover nor did the mystery gun man. While he shot towards the beast jugular the sniper shot it in the head, grazing its head. Blood splattered in its eyes as it tried in vain to shake its vision clear.
Danse charged and used the bulk of his armor to ram the creature into the high rock wall. Raising his rifle, he shot point blank into its neck, blood sprayed tinging his armor blue.
In a futile response, the deathclaw sunk its claws into the shoulders of his armor, but slowly as the life seeped out of it, so did its strength. One by one the claws slipped out until its body collapsed into a heap.
"Next time I see a deathclaw," the ghoul panted as he dropped to his knees. "I'm turning tail and gettin' the fuck out."
Danse took a moment to regain his composure. Never had he fought such an intelligent beast, and never again would he want to. He never quite believed the old solider's who would tell the young scribes stories about how smart deathclaw's really were. Now he knew not to doubt them.
Clarity soon followed as he was able to process his thought. Danse turned towards the direction of where the sniper fired from. They weren't far, he could make out a distant human shape. Watching he saw the figure carefully climb down - slipping every so often until they stood in front of a cave. Squinting he could see the person was in a hooded hazmat suit.
The ghoul got up and stood beside him, "so, who do you think our mystery sniper is?" He said flicking his hat us. "They're waiting for us in front of a cave - think it could be that Virgil were lookin for?"
Danse weighed his options cautiously. Clearly the mystery sniper was waiting for them – impatiently - judging by the way they were shifting their weight from side to side. They had never shot at them, only the deathclaw. But that didn't mean they were friendly. "We'll approach slowly, in case it's a trap."
"Let's hope not - I'm surprised out."
Keeping their weapons out, they cautiously crept towards their unnamed sniper. Danse wondered with a shimmer of hope if it had been Emery but dismissed the notion with a shake of his head. She had radiation sickness, she wouldn't be in any condition to fire a rifle.
Upon approaching, the masked sniper raised their hand. Danse initially froze, but then they waved.
"I think that's…" The ghoul broke off when he took off in a sprint towards the sniper, arms raised as he wrapped his arms around the sniper - spinning the person around. The movement knocked the person's helmets off causing their long copper hair to spill out.
"Emery," Danse breathed out. He felt all the hours of pent up anxiety and stress pour out of him, causing him to stagger slightly with overwhelming relief. Thank Steel she was alright. He used a nearby rock to steady himself.
He heard them laugh as they fell to the ground, "god you're a sight for sore eyes!" The ghoul snickered helping her to her feet.
She let out an airy laugh and grinned. Though there was a smile on her face, if he hadn't known her as well as he did he wouldn't have noticed that her skin had a pale parlor to it, while green tinged the skin around her eyes. She was still sick. A small part of him wanted to reprimand her for the blatant ignoring of her body, but he found he didn't have the will to do it. He was just too relieved to see her, standing and smiling. He hadn't lost anyone else.
"I'm glad your both alright!" She exclaimed leaning against a large rock. "I thought for sure you two would have killed one another by now."
Danse's brow furrowed as he watched her breath with some difficulty – the action going unnoticed by the ghoul who was still foolishly grinning. He took a step closer, that was when her eyes flew to him. She looked at him as if she hadn't him in years. And in that movement the look of relief flooded her. A smile that seemed to light up her entire face brightened the air around them.
He stared at her wide eyed, transfixed to his spot as if he had been tied down. But slowly her smiled sent warm waves through him and he smiled back. Even though his helmet obscured his face, he knew she could tell he was.
She was safe, he had found her.
I broke eye contact with Danse. I was growing slightly uncomfortable yet excited under his gaze. It was distracting. That was when I noticed their condition. Yes, they were both alright, but not by much.
Up close I could see the full extend of the damage the Deathclaw had done. Danse's armor had large, jagged claw marks across his breastplate. I was relieved that it was only surface layer damage. The wires poked through but looked like they were still intact. His shoulder plates were peppered with what looked like claw holes. My brow furrowed as I tried to get a closer look, there wasn't any blood, but then the armor would obscure it. "Danse, are your shoulders alright?"
He gave them a brief scan, "its only the cosmetic level. The Deathclaw hadn't pierced the metal all the way through." He said with a sigh, "the armor isn't compromised - it can still function against radiation. But if I want it to remain in code, I will need to make the repairs as soon as possible."
Nodding, my eyes traveled between the two of them, both seemed to be almost at the point of exhaustion. Though they hid it well. I didn't need to see Danse's face to know he must have deep purple circles under his eyes. While Hancock was lurched forward more than normal. They needed rest. And soon, "I bet you both have a heck ton of questions." Better get this out of the way first before they met what was in the cave.
Danse cleared his throat and shifted his weight, "yes." He said, his voice sounding heavy through the filter. "We had been informed that you were with, Virgil."
"Had been informed? By who?" Unless, "you went to the Children of Atom's settlement? And they cooperated?" Even saying that aloud made it sound even more farfetched.
"Those guys were wackjobs," Hancock boomed shaking his head. "If you ask me, their brains have been cooking to long out here."
Snickering at the analogy I shifted my back on the rock wall. I was still experiencing the radiation side effects that Virgil warned me about. Slight nausea, vertigo, fatigue, and a massive headache that caused my throat to hurt. Placing the helmet back on I leaned my head back.
Like pregnancy all over again.
Bringing up Virgil reminded me that I had to tread carefully. Knowing Danse's feelings about large green men I would need to pick and choose my words carefully, else I'd end up in the same situation I had found myself when he met Nick.
Every fiber of my being screamed to tell Danse what Virgil was - or was turning into. Virgil was still human, he even helped me, but I didn't know how Danse would react - given what had happened with those Super Mutants back in Boston. But the very idea of hiding things from him again was not something I wanted to do - ever. I was sick and tired of hiding and lying to him and maybe if I told him now instead of later, he won't blow up like he had.
Maybe.
"So, Sunshine, wanna fill us in on your long adventure with the ex institute guy?" Hancock said leaning against the wall next to me, "gotta say, that's some coincidence bumping into him like that."
The suspicious tone had not gone by unnoticed as I felt both of their eyes on me. Glancing between the two I bit my lip. Sure, it was a hell of a coincidence bumping into the very guy we were out here searching for, but they didn't need to be that suspicious about it. "Virgil helped me fend off Super Mutants after I had crashed into a sunken factory."
"We had found where you landed," Danse said tensely as if he was fighting back strong emotions. "And your armor." Judging by his tone alone I knew he had questions and possibly a reprimand ready. His eyes found mine, as if trying to gauge my answers without voicing them.
I didn't get the chance to respond when Hancock pipped in, "yeah it looked in bad shape." He fished out a pack of mentats from his pocket. "And scratched up all over. What did you go toe to tow with the fuckers?"
I casted a cautious look towards Danse who even in his armor was posed rigidly. Relenting I let out a sigh, "well I woke up with debris on me and the legs of the suit badly damaged." I said slowly turning away from Danse's gaze, his look felt too heavy. "The debris was easy enough to clear off, but that's when I heard Super Mutants down the hall - and they did not sound happy by the way. At the time I don't think I was thinking clearly, might have hit my head when I fell or something-"
"Then it's no different from any other time." Hancock cut in, his shoulder lifting as he chuckled.
"Shush, anyway I hadn't noticed the huge hole in the wall that was down the hall, if I had, then I could have basically avoided the brutes." I hesitated for a moment, waiting for the harsh reprimands from Danse. It never came. Glancing towards him, he was looking at me, but his expression masked by the helmet. I decided to continue, now looking past him. "Before I knew it, I was surrounded by mutants." Biting my lip, I felt my stomach doing flips recalling what had happened. "I used what ammo I had for my pistols - which they didn't do much. I tried to use my sniper, but it was way to slow with them charging at me. I held them back for as long as I could but then I ran out of pistol ammo and my sniper would have done nothing for me. So, I had to get creative."
"Oh, did you go in fists blazin?" Hancock interrupted, smiling almost sadistically. "I'd have paid good caps to see you sucker punch a super mutant!"
Danse was eerily quiet even after Hancock's outburst. Looking at him through the corner of my vision, he had his arms folded over his scratched-up breast plate. He wouldn't like this next part, "I did end up having to fight them hand to hand. Your pointers did help by the way," I said turning to Hancock. He had shown me a few tricks a while ago that had definitely come in handy. He gave me a grin as he crunched down on his mentat. "I ended up grabbing one of their boards they use as weapons and fought the rest with that. Thanks to the armor I managed to knock down a few of the idiots, but uh one of them had really bashed up the gears to the shoulder and arm and the damage I had gotten from the fall got worse and well one thing led to another and, uh and-" I had trouble getting it out as I fidgeted with the gloves. It was hot in the hazmat suit and that made my hands sticky with sweat.
Danse was staring at me, still as a statue and I knew his gaze was sharp, even if I couldn't see it. I gulped feeling my hands shake slightly - why was I so anxious, was it just from the mere memory of the fight, the side effects of radiations sickness, or was I just worried about Danse's reactions? "One of the mutants uh - knocked my helmet which made the HUD screen go black, so I had to ditch everything there." I hadn't expected the heat once I left it. My throat goes dry just remembering it. It was as if I walked into a car on a hot summer's day, where the windows had all been closed. "Virgil showed up soon after that, I still don't know why he initially shot at the mutants." I bit my cheek thinking back I had been caught off guard that a mutant would be firing at one of their own. I thought the fall might have messed with my head worse than I thought. "I had been about to thank him when he shoved a gun in my face, kind of reminded me when I first met you, Danse."
His only reply was a snort.
Hancock scoffed, "surprised he didn't just shoot you like he shot the mutants."
I shook my head and glanced back at the cave entrance, "Virgil's just paranoid, but with good reasons. He thought I was an institute lackey and well-" I bit my lip, "I didn't trust him at first either." Considering the fact that he's basically a miniature super mutant didn't help, "it took a bit - but I convinced him I wasn't with the Institute and he told me who he was. Apparently, he thought Kellogg was coming to kill him - which now that I think about it, he had been. But where was I? Oh, so I told him how I took down Kellogg and that I needed his help."
"Let me guess, he didn't want to help you." Hancock said popping another mentat in his mouth.
"Not really no, he was standoffish, said I could follow him to his hideout since I didn't have any radiation protection-"
"Wait a minute there, sister." Hancock once again cut in. "You traveled with Virgil? Were those his great big ass feet? Was he wearing shoes made out of super mutant feet or something?"
Danse's gaze hung over me as they both waited for an answer I didn't really want to say. I knew hiding it wouldn't help, but that didn't make the truth any easier to say aloud. "Well he hasn't really explained it all to me, but I'm guessing he needed a way to be immune to radiation sickness, and turning into a ghoul isn't reversible, though I imagine what he's done to himself is not curable at all…" I said cautiously, my eyes lingering on Danse. "He wasn't that way for the whole time I suppose. I mean he did have this hazmat suit that he let me have…but, where was I?" I knew I was rambling, but that was the point. I didn't want to tell them just yet what he was. I needed a bit more time, "but anyway, I passed out on the way here, I was lucky he didn't just leave me out there, but instead he treated my radiation sickness and let me use the hazmat suit like I said."
Hancock shook his head, "didn't expect an Institute boogeyman to have compassion, wonder why he helped you."
"Wait a moment." Danse cut in, breaking his silence. "You had been about to explain why his prints were irregular - for a human."
Hancock sent him a glare, "ay tin can, I asked first. So wait yer turn."
I felt my brow twitch as I could feel another argument brewing. Before that could happen, I jumped in, "Virgil is well, well for one thing he does have a heart and is very, very, intelligent." I said emphasizing the very. Pushing myself off the wall I closed my eyes feeling the swirling feeling of vertigo mesh into my head. Taking a breath, I said, "he seemed to have a conscious, despite working for the Institute. Though he is very, I don't know, suspicious about things. But then again, if I was an ex-Institute scientist, I suppose I would be too."
Hancock shrugged pushing himself off the wall while stowing his box of mentats in his pocket, "kind of makes sense," he said crunching on his mentat. "We thought he might have kidnapped you or something."
The vertigo seemed to have calmed down, but my headache was still ever present, "nah, I went with him. There was no way I would have lasted out there without protection and I didn't know if you two knew where I was." I couldn't exactly wait for them at the factory - there were probably more mutants deeper in. "I'm grateful for his help and I need to go back in to talk with him. You guys uh, kind of interrupted our conversation." Here we go…
"Alright let's meet the doc," Hancock said straightening up his trench coat and hat.
Glancing back at Danse I felt my neck tingle as my stomach did flips. Please don't let what happened with Nick happened here. In my sorry state, I wouldn't be able - well I wouldn't have the balls to stand up to Danse right now. I was too weak in the knees. Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself as best as I could. If I was calm, he'd be calm. Right? "Danse I need you to trust me," I said cautiously, "and remember we need him."
Even though his expression was hidden I could tell he had a large disapproving scowl on his face, "I don't like that tone, Knight." He said with a sharp tone of suspicion.
I glanced back at Hancock as though he could offer me some back up, but he gave me a shrug, confused. "Virgil like I said, he's an okay guy, and he's very smart - and can do doctor stuff like patching someone up, or curing radiation sickness, you know something complicated like that," I was rambling again, this time out of sheer nerves. "I'm guessing he needed a way to get out of the Institute and a way to be immune to radiation," I still couldn't imagine that he really did turn himself into a super mutant.
"He made himself a ghoul, huh?" Hancock said easing his shoulders, stretching. "What's the big deal bout that?"
"He's not a ghoul." I dismissed, "he's uh well…" How does one say I worked with a super mutant without getting my brains smashed in. "I want to give you a heads up, so we don't have a situation like we had back in Diamond City, so please Danse, trust me."
Danse looked down at me then away. The mask hid his features, but I thought he seemed unsure. Slowly, he holstered his rifle and turned back to me, "I trust you, Knight." His voice gave away the fact that he seemed to be at war with himself.
Smiling, I felt some of the tension leave me. I looked towards Hancock who seemed to be almost surprised by Danse's action, "I'll go in first then Danse and Hancock brining in the rear." I paused. "Virgil has a lot of traps set up so I'll let him know I'm coming in so he can disarm them."
I headed towards the cave, not giving Danse the opportunity to argue about the arrangement. Though he might have put his rifle away, I still wanted some distance between him and Virgil. Calling into the cave I could hear the many different traps disarm, giving me the okay to head in.
No turning back now.
Cautiously walking in I added to my explanation, "right before you guys showed up, I was talking with Virgil, telling him how I found Kellogg."
"He might still be loyal to the Institute," Hancock broached deprecatingly.
"I doubt it, he's more leery of the Institute than people in the Commonwealth are. We're almost in, careful the ceilings low over here, Danse."
He nodded as he walked up behind me, staying close. I hoped he wasn't doing that to get closer to shoot Virgil if he needed to. Maybe I should have taken his rifle - no I have to trust him.
I heard Virgil before we enter the living quarters of his cave, "Emery what happened out there?"
Danse tensed beside me, shoulders drawn up close to his ears when he heard Virgils gruff unmistakable deep voice. I could see the suspicion slowly drop into his posture, "Danse, trust me, its okay." I whispered to him, "I found my friends, they were' pokin' a deathclaw at your front door."
"Guess they don't want to reach a prime old age-" He froze just as we walked in, staring at the shredded symbol painted on Danse's breast plate as if looking at a bullseye.
Meanwhile, realization slowly fell over Danse as I saw every muscle in his body lock up. His hand twitched ever so slightly as anxiety swelled in me with each inch closer to his rifle. But just as quickly as it came over, his tension relaxed - albeit slightly. I realized I had been holding my breath and a small smile played on my face - he didn't grab his rifle. The smile soon faded though as my rational mind began to process things a bit different. He was in shock. His tense muscles, his silence. And he was staring at Virgil. This close I could see though the visor his eyes were wide and transfixed.
Hopefully rage wouldn't follow after the initial shock faded.
Virgil tore me from my thoughts like a torn threat, "when you said your friends were looking for you, you had neglected to mention one was Brotherhood."
I felt Danse shift ever so slightly closer to me. I wasn't sure why, but I didn't bring it up, "you can trust him Virgil." I starting to sound like a broken record.
Virgil snorted and crossed his arms, "I doubt that very much…" He said glaring. "But I don't have much of a choice now."
Hancock stepped out from behind us, and looked at me incredulously, "you didn't say the guy was a super mutant - well a short super mutant."
"Your eyes clearly work, thank you for stating the obvious, ghoul."
Hancock held up his hands in defense, while taking a dramatic step back, "woah, such hostility and we only just met."
"You would be too if you were seven feet tall and over four hundred pounds."
I had expected an outburst, but not from Hancock. Danse was eerily quiet, his face held in a veil of mystery with his helmet was on. I couldn't get a good read on his emotions. If I hadn't been watching him as intently as I was, I might have missed the almost invisible tremor that seemed to snake through him. When he spoke, I was caught off guard at how shaky his voice sounded, "how-how is it your mind is still…you. It shouldn't be possible."
Now it all made sense, the silence, the way his body shook, yet was tense all the same. This was about Cutler to him. I knew the gears in his head were turning, the guilt mixing as it worked. If Virgil was still human despite outward appearance, had Cutler been the same?
Hesitantly I inched closer to him, our forearms brushing against one another. I placed my hand on his forearm, the action had gone unnoticed.
At least by him. Virgil passed a slow glance between us, then narrowed his eyes at Danse, "well, it wasn't my best idea, turning into one of these hulking monstrosities was the only way to…" He said, "well to get here. As you so obviously stated, I have retained by faculties, yes."
A fire was lit under Danse the moment Virgil uttered those words, melting his frozen state of confusion, "you-you did that to yourself? Intentionally?" His hand flew up to his helmet, pulling it off in one fluid motion as I drew my hand away as if burned by his sudden flare of fury. "You intentionally injected yourself with FEV!"
Virgil didn't back down from Danse's fury, despite the trepidation I saw in Virgils eyes, the need to defend himself was stronger. "I had to." He stated tactfully, "I couldn't in good conscious continue working for that insidious operation any further!" Virgil's bravery seemed to die down to embers as he looked towards the cave wall, the early signs of incoming guilt lined the features of his bloated face, "the things the Institute has done - the things I've done, it's-it's indescribable, unprecedented. I couldn't-" He broke off for a moment and shook his head. He looked back at us with resolve behind his eyes, "regrettably this was the only way to ensure my safety, both getting out of the Institute and well, out here."
So it was as I thought then. Couldn't there have been another way? I thought. Surely he didn't have to take such a drastic step. Would he be able to become human again? I felt for Virgil, he wanted out so badly he took any step necessary to get out. Even self-mutilation - well in a sense.
It was still surreal, that he was a fully functioning Super Mutant. If it worked on him - could it work on others? Had they tried it on others? Would they continue knowing Virgil's results? Was this what they were trying to accomplish or was this a side effect?
It was just another horrendous deed added to my ever-growing list that proved just how evil the Institute really was. Commonwealth's boogeyman was just too soft a title. They were much worse than that.
Danse took a step forward, pulling me my out of my own mind. The tips of his ears tinged crimson, his eyes narrow. He spoke firmly, but his voice was thick, he was trying to slip into his rank, to use it as a shield to block his emotions, "how did you acquire a sample of the FEV," his eyes widened, "unless…"
"The Institute had acquired an original sample of the FEV virus, one hundred and nine years ago." Virgil said staring Danse directly in the eyes, his features set in grim resignation. "My predecessors have engineered different strands throughout those years, this-" he paused as he motioned up and down, "is one of the more recent strands that I engineered. The mutants you see here in the Commonwealth are different - the FEV that caused their mutations was released and manufactured by the Institute."
A pregnant silence was thick in the air. Neither Danse nor Hancock spoke, but I knew they weren't surprised by the declarations. I wasn't. I had had my own suspicions on the overpopulation of Super Mutants. Both had their defenses up, I could see the subtle signs, the way Hancock's hand was shaking, Danse's jaw clenching. I couldn't imagine the anger they must be feeling - especially Danse. While I knew Virgil was a good man, they were still leery of him.
"I had inherited the FEV project and I'm not proud of the work I've done." Virgil said as if dispelling the silence around us, "I tried to petition father to shut down the experiments but-"
Danse's anger reached its epicenter before I could even process it, "you're to blame!" He said with an icy sneer, his gripped tightened on his helmet. His anger grew like an ice storm, slow to set in, but piercing with its intensity, "you're to blame for those monstrosities!" He shouted throwing his helmet at the nearby wall, both Hancock and I jumped back shocked at the level of anger he expressed. My heart pounded as my mind race with thoughts to calm him, but I came up with blanks as to how, "thanks to you, many of my brother's and sisters have fallen victim to those abominations!"
"Danse," I reached out slowly, but Hancock's voice made me snatch my hand back.
"Let me take a wild guess on how you 'acquired your test subjects." He spat bitterly, I was taken back by the very air around him. Hancock was normally aloof or played it cool. I had never seen him angry before - or actually angry. "I mean there are tons of 'willing' test subjects above ground, am I right?"
I have to stop this, before it could escalate further and either of them did something they'd or I'd regret later, "guys calm down!" I said taking a step in between them and Virgil, "we don't know the whole thing."
"No." Virgil breathed out, his shoulders slacked, "it's alright Emery, I deserve their scorn."
"You deserve far worse," Danse said grimly.
"For once we're in agreement, tin can." Hancock said crossing his arms.
Oh, now they decide to work together not before when I really needed it but no. I was about to voice this when Virgil said, "I'm not proud of what I've done and saying I was forced is no excuse." His head hung, obscuring his face, yet I could hear the deep seeded remorse and shame within it. The burden of that - I couldn't imagine. Despite his atrocities, base actions, I couldn't find it in myself to hate him. He had most likely been raised down in the Institute and never knew the surface world. Never felt sorry for their hardships because he didn't know. Despite that, he still found what they were doing down there was wrong. That in itself is a step in the right direction.
"But as I left the Institute," he continued he glanced his bowed head towards his work table. "I made sure no one would be able to continue with the project - at least not for many years to come." He paused and raised his head, "I may not be able to atone for my sins, but I can at least do that much."
"And what about the strands a few mutant hives possess, did the Institute produce that?!" Despite Danse's leveled tone, his clenched fist shook with lingering anger.
"I do not know how they came into possession of it," Virgil said breaking eye contact with Danse, "Father did not care enough to investigate it. 'It's not our problem,' is what he said." Virgil spat, grimacing. "But now, we've come full circle. Before I had to escape, I was working on a serum that would serve as a cure for my…condition. I wasn't able to bring it with me - it's still in my lab and well look at me, I need it!"
As If he had been hit by a truck, Danse took a shaky step back, his face drained of all color, "there's-theres a cure."
Chapter Fifteen
End