"Gun down, now!" James shouted. The Brotherhood Knight refused to budge.
"You first!" the Knight shouted back.
"Rhys, stand down. There's no need to get into a fight." The Paladin next to him said, trying to grab at the Knight's laser rifle.
"Yeah, listen to him. Then you might not get your head blown off." Preston yelled from behind the cockpit. They all stood across from one another with the crashed vertibird in the middle. Most of it, including the passenger was concealed by the building wall, meaning James had not gotten time to inspect it yet. Kodiak, Colvin, Gallows, and Glade stood behind James. Clad in X-02 power armor, it was difficult for James to tell them apart. The Brotherhood patrol seemed to consist of a single paladin four knights and a single scribe. Surviving Minutemen from the church lined the rooftops and formed a firing line behind the Brotherhood patrol. The Knights all wore T-60 suits and covered on another. But despite all their armor, James could tell the Knights were scared.
"I'm ready to go down fighting, Danse. I'm ready." Rhys shouted.
"And I admire that, Knight. But stand down, that's an order!" Danse shouted. James recognized Danse. Danse was one of James's students. After Paladin Krieg died, James toke over mentorship of Danse for a while. Then after teaching Danse everything he knew, James left for the Pitt for the last time. He still felt betrayed that Danse would accept Maxon's vision and leadership over Lyons's.
"Stand down." James said.
"Okay, now that we've all cooled our heads a bit. Please call your men off. I don't want anyone to be killed." Danse said, standing in front of his men.
"That a threat?" Preston asked. James motioned at Gallows and Colvin to start digging the vertibird out of the rubble. Glade stepped forward, hefting his gatling laser and spinning the barrel.
"Only if you want it to be." Danse warned. "The Brotherhood knows we're here. Our men will be here soon."
"Why the hell are you here?"
"We were just a patrol moving through the Commonwealth." Danse answered. "We got lost"
"Why are you here in Quincy?" Preston repeated. "Neck deep in Gunners territory with only a few troops. You know there's some heavy ordinance out here. You know the threats around here. So tell me, what the hell are you doing here?" Danse held up his rifle.
"Now, calm down." Danse suggested. James lifted his own rifle and Glade loaded a new fusion core into the gatling laser.
"Don't do it." Glade muttered.
"Come on, I dare you." Rhys grunted.
"Everybody just calm down." James suggested.
"I have a shot at the whack guy in front." Boone's voice whispered over the radio.
"Don't shoot unless fired upon." Nathan's voice quickly followed.
"What are they doing back huh?" Rhys asked. He took a step forward. The Minutemen began to get antsy, weapons ready to fire. Rhys looked up at the Minutemen lining the rooftops. "They're digging up weapons aren't they?"
"No, we're trying to get to our people." James responded. Rhys took another step forward.
"Rhys. Stand down." Danse warned. Rhys ignored him.
"I remember your armor. And a vertibird? Where'd you get one of those?" Rhys hissed, lifting his laser rifle. "There's only one group I heard of that has advanced X-02 suits and vertibirds."
"Oh shit." Glade muttered.
"Enclave. Ad Victoriam!" Rhys shouted. James took aim.
"No, stop!" Danse shouted as he rushed for Rhys. Suddenly a gunshot rang out silencing Rhys and preventing anyone from opening fire. The laser rifle flipped into the air and landed a few feet from James's feet.
"Target disarmed." Boone whispered. Danse grabbed Rhys by the collar and tossed him to one of his Knights.
"Get back there!" Danse hissed. He looked up at James and raised his rifle. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" Glade stopped the barrel on his gatling laser. James looked over at Glade and back at Danse. Regardless of what happened, James is still asking the Pride to fight against former Brothers and Sisters. James reached for his helmet, the Brotherhood Knights raised their weapons at him, but James simply took off his helmet. And let it drop to the ground.
"Sir, I would advise you not to do that." Eden's voice said from the helmet.
"Already took it off, genius." James muttered.
"It's the thought that counts, no?" Eden responded.
"James." Danse said. James noted that Danse hadn't lowered his weapon.
"Danse." James repeated. "Lower your weapon. Tell your man to stand down."
"And then what?"
"We'll have to take you in." James responded.
"Why?"
"You're fighting for the wrong team, Danse. You're just too blind to see it." James said quietly.
"The wrong team?!" Danse asked. "You're fighting for the Enclave. I'd say the wrong team terminology has flown out the window."
"Maxson is a tyrant. He will kill anybody who aren't up to his standards." James argued.
"And you aren't?" Danse spat back.
"No, I'm not." James sighed. Glade tore off his helmet as well.
"He's telling the truth, Danse. Maxson, just doesn't have the right vision for the people of the Commonwealth." Glade commented.
"Glade? You too?" Danse asked incredulously. James could tell that the Knights were green, they had no idea who they were looking at. "Don't tell me the whole Pride's turned against the Brotherhood."
"We never turned against the Brotherhood, Danse." Colvin said as he took off his helmet.
"The Brotherhood turned against Elder and Sentinel Lyons." Gallows finished, though he did not take off his own helmet.
"And that's something we will not stand for." Kodiak said after digging out the rubble. "General, the bay's has been dug out and the passengers secured."
"Katherine's unconscious, but she's fine, General." Preston evaluated. "Nick's trying to get his hand to work again and it looks like your friend's power armor is compromised, but it looks like everyone is going to be fine, sir."
"Put down your weapons, Danse." James implored. "It's for the best." Danse's expression hardened.
"No." he muttered. "Ad Victoriam, Knights!"
"Ad Victoriam!" The Knights echoed as they began to open fire. Kodiak groaned as a laser bolt grazed his cheek. James opened fire with his shotgun forcing the Brotherhood into cover. Preston granked his laser musket before standing up and firing. James reached into his grenade pouch, produced a pulse grenade and paused. If he primed it, he could kill Danse by frying the suit. James thought for a moment before priming it and lobbing it behind the Brotherhood's defenses.
"Pulse grenade, move!" Danse shouted. The Brotherhood vaulted over the car they took cover behind, met only with plasma and gunfire from the Enclave and Minutemen. The grenade exploded showering the Brotherhood with a wide blue electric current. The wave was at right distance to disable the armor with causing too much damage to the wearer. Most of the Kngihts collapsed to the ground or on their knees. The Scribe was knocked out cold, with Danse kneeled above her. "Traitors, all of you!" Danse shouted, unable to move. James sighed as he picked up his helmet and placed it back on top of his head.
"Sturges, I'm gonna need a transport here as soon as possible. We have a couple wounded we need to bring home."
"Understood, sir. Storm's just about letting up, I hear the P-80s are itching for some warm up." Sturge's voice chirped over the radio.
"Tell them to warm up fast. I get the feeling we're going to need to soon." James said as he stared up at the fleet of silver vertibirds hovering above him,
"Stand down, Paladin." Elder Maxson's voice said over the loudspeaker. "Or I'll make you."