Chapter 8 — Preparations For War
"Do you all have everything?" Nate asked the group of four synths standing before him.
The group was dressed in a mismatched assortment of wasteland clothing. The rag tag group looked more at home in a refugee camp than they did in the Institute's pristine whitewashed hallways. He suppose that was the point, though. In a few short hours, these synths would be integrated into the wasteland just like any other farmer, mercenary, or merchant. They would be able to hide in their anonymity and live out their lives as wastelanders, not as Institute synths.
A tan and dark-eyed woman with a military buzz cut spoke up. "So to clarify, you wont be keeping tabs on us once we go topside? There will be no way of returning back to the Institute?"
Nora spoke up, "Unless you worked as a Courser, your synth component prevents you from remembering how to get back to the Institute. In a few minutes after leaving the relay you will not remember that the molecular relay even existed, nor will you remember how to get back to the Institute. So you need to be sure that you are leaving for the right reasons because you will not be coming back."
The group looked at Nate; some looked frightened while others looked restless but nobody said a word. "Nora informed you all of the dangers in your last briefing. I will be connecting you with people who will get you established, but I suggest laying low for a while as you get use to the wasteland and its dangers."
Now group shifted nervously like a herd on high alert for predators, but nobody spoke out or raised their hand. In fact, a pale-skinned, blond-haired woman looked almost blood-thirsty. Nora frowned and Nate noticed the woman's look as well.
"Remember," he addressed the crowd but looked directly at the blond, "if you commit a crime, you will be punished with the wasteland's sense of justice. The safe houses that I will bring you to are equipped with agents who can set you up in a lifestyle that you choose, but that doesn't give you permission to become a raider. The Railroad is always looking for more members, and the Minutemen always need help with farming, defending settlements, and clearing out areas for new settlements to be created. There are other options in the wasteland than stealing, raiding, and murdering."
Nora nodded in agreement. The Railroad could hook these people up with support and help, but the wasteland life was harsh, and it would be naive for her to think that none of them would be tempted by raider lifestyle, but this time, none of them would be permitted to wipe their minds. She made sure that Desdemona was clear about that After all, she didn't want another issue like Libertalia to deal with.
"Will we get to see a deathclaw?" Shaun's high-pitched, childish voice broke away from the crowd. He wiggled his way through the adults and came to the front of the pack.
Nate's mouth pinched at the corners. Nora noticed the how Nate's eyes turned steely and the muscles in his jaw clenched. When she asked Nate to take Shaun to Sanctuary Hills during his next synth run, she didn't realize how the existence of this synth child might affect Nate's already confused memories.
"I hope for all of your sakes, that your lives are deathclaw-free." Nora interjected. She gave the child a warm smile before addressing the group. "Now's the time to say your goodbyes to each other. As soon as we arrive topside, you'll be separated and escorted to different safe houses by Railroad agents."
As the group made small-talk, said good-byes, and exchanged hugs and handshakes, Nora skirted around the group and went to Nate. It had been only a week since he had arrived with Nick in tow, but that week seemed to have passed a lifetime ago.
"Are you sure this is safe?" Nora murmured discretely.
Nate was adding bullets to a .44 magnum pistol that was modified to hold a small recon cope. The black handle was stained with rust and dirt, but the gun itself looked familiar.
"We don't have much of a choice. We need to get as many synths topside as we can before the Brotherhood advances on the Institute. After this group gets settled in, I'm expected to escort six more by the end of the week." He replied. "Desdemona seems to think that the Brotherhood will attack sooner than she expected."
Nate snapped the barrel back into the pistol, holstered it, and drew his larger laser rifle.
"Six?! That's more than we've ever sent topside before." Nora growled between her teeth hoping to not draw attention to her consternation.
"And that's two more than I feel comfortable shepherding on my own." He replied. "That's why Liam has offered to help me with the next batch of synths. He threw his hat into the ring when I met with that Minutemen cowboy and asked about leaving Shaun with them."
Nora was about to refuse. After all, Liam had escaped execution by the skin of his teeth because his father appealed to Father's small shred of humanity. She couldn't imagine how Dr. Binet would react to know that she put his son back in the middle of danger. Then again, she knew that Liam was the kind of kid who would do what he wanted, risk be dammed.
"Can you relay him here to meet with me?" Nora asked. "I'm not saying 'no' but I want him to know the gravity of what he's about to do. This isn't like last time where he was doing this for the challenge. He's putting himself in unimaginable risk."
Nate frowned. "Liam is old enough to make his own decisions Nora. He is almost an adult. He was the exact age that I —" He sighed, "— that Nate was when he signed up for the army."
"I understand that. But we're not his parents and I think his dad has a right to know what he plans to do, and I think Liam should at least tell them himself. According to the Institute's governing policies, an exile can be reconsidered if the Director who issued the exile is removed from his position or dies. And I formally revoke Liam's exile."
"I see your law degree is coming in handy." Nate smirked. He slung the laser rifle over his shoulder and nodded at the group. The four made their way into the relay room and Nate followed behind them.
"Goodbye Nora!" Shaun exclaimed. His bright eyes twinkled in childish merriment at the promise of this new adventure.
"You listen to Nate, okay? You do everything that he tells you."
"I will." He promised.
Nora activated the relay when everyone was inside. Her heart raced and she was panting for air without realizing it. The sight of Nate and Shaun walking hand-in-hand poked at a raw wound in her heart.
In that moment, the two looked so natural in the roles that science had bastardized that the untrained eye wouldn't be able to tell that they were just realistic clones.
No, in that moment, Shaun and Nate weren't just synths. They looked exactly like father and son.
The Directorate meeting that evening coursed with a hum of anxious energy. Dr. Li's vacant seat sat conspicuously, but nobody dared remove the empty chair from the table. Like a ghost or a wraith, the white plastic chair sat empty and haunted.
Nora cleared her throat and stood in front of the team. "I suppose I should acknowledge the elephant in the room and address Dr. Li's absence from this meeting. Dr. Li has left the Institute and has returned to the Brotherhood of Steel."
The hum of anxious energy spiked into whispers and murmurs of outright consternation.
"And you didn't stop her?" Dr. Secord asked. "She has over a decade of sensitive and confidential information in that brilliant mind of hers. She admitted to building this Liberty Prime monstrosity in the Capital Wasteland, yet you just let her go?"
Nora opened her mouth but closed it. She wanted to respond to Dr. Secord's questions with the same flash-point anger and venom that impulsively sprung to her mind, but she knew that the woman made some good points.
She sighed, "I know we've been dealt a significant blow. We've lost one of our most talented and intelligent scientists to the enemy. That loss may come across as sabotage, or worse, subterfuge on my part, but consider the kind of woman, scientist, and friend that Dr. Li was before we cast too many stones. The Institute, for better and for worse, was her home. She loved this place. I don't know her as well as many of you but I do know that she would never betray her friends."
"Nora is right." Dr. Binet replied. "Dr. Li would've never done anything to put the Institute at risk. She must've left for a good reason."
Nora nodded, "They way I understand it, I don't think she had a choice. Before she left, Dr. Li showed me how the Brotherhood contacted her. The ultimatum they sent her was clear: return to us or we will attack the Institute."
"I'd like to see them try." Dr. Holdren scoffed and leaned heavily back in his chair. "We're buried underground like a vault. Our ancestors survived the bombs. I think we'll be fine."
Dr. Secord rolled her eyes at Dr. Holdren, "Don't be an idiot. I'm sure that a para-military organization like the Brotherhood of Steel has more than enough firepower to chip away at the flimsy dirt, concrete, and rock above us." Then she addressed Nora, "What would you have us do?"
"What I need you all to do is to prepare for a war. The Brotherhood may not attack right now, but they will attack. We need to be prepared for that inevitability. Dr. Holdren, I need your Bioscience team to start stockpiling as much food product as possible in case something happens to our hydroponics labs during an attack. I'm no military strategist but I do know that hunger will be the quickest way for a mutiny to start if we're forced into a desperate spot."
Dr. Holdren nodded and he began scribbling notes on a yellow memo pad and muttering under his breath as he thought aloud.
"Dr. Secord and Dr. Binet, I need you both to collaborate on amassing as many synths that are willing to fight as ground forces. Dr. Secord, I'll need a number of Gen-1 and Gen-2 synths that are operational enough to work as diversion units to run interference if we need to overwhelm a few individual soldiers. Dr. Binet, I need you to talk with the Gen-3 synths and get names of people who are willing to fight and refer them to Dr. Secord for additional training."
"What if they aren't willing to fight?" Dr. Secord asked.
"Then we will find a place for them to hide if the Brotherhood manages to breach into the Institute." Nora replied. "I will not punish anyone for not fighting. Besides, we will need to start preparing some of our lower barracks to act as triage and rudimentary living quarters if we have to go deeper underground. Dr. Filmore, can you look into that?"
"Of course." She replied.
"I'll be meeting with Rosalind Orman tonight to inform her of her promotion as the Advanced Systems lead. She will be in charge of rolling out the new modifications to all of our laser weaponry. You all can expect her to be at the Directorate meeting next week."
The group nodded and Nora's sureness faded. She had just commanded this team of people like a General commanding troops. That idea was too surreal for her to wrap her head around.
"Um … I … I also need a way to communicate with the wasteland. My job will be to start recruiting people to fight —"
"— No wasteland scavver is going to fight for us." Dr. Secord snapped. "You're wasting your time."
"I agree." Nora replied, "I can't think of one person topside that would fight on our behalf. But that's not what I'm asking them. Are you familiar with the phrase: 'the enemy of my enemy is a friend?' If I can convince a couple of integral settlements to fight against the Brotherhood of Steel rather than fight for the Institute, then we'd have support indirectly."
"Which settlements do you have in mind?" Dr. Binet asked. "I was under the impression we were universally hated by the wasteland."
"You are but I thought I'd start with Goodneighbor." Nora agreed. "My work with the Railroad will hopefully give me some credibility with the townsfolk. But remember that anyone who joins us wont be fighting for us, they will be fighting against the Brotherhood of Steel."
"I'm not sure about this." Dr. Filmore replied. "There's a lot of risk having you go topside for the small chance of a reward. None of these people owe us anything. Why would they help us?"
Dr. Secord frowned. "Goodneighbor? Why do I know that name?" The blond woman thought for a moment and then her eyes snapped to Nora's. "He's the ghoul you've been … fraternizing with."
Nora winced at her accusatory and disgusted tone but Dr. Secord continued, "Did you know that your ghoul boyfriend gives raucous speeches from his little balcony lambasting the Institute? We're his enemy. Why would he or anyone in that town help us?"
"Because I will ask him to." Nora said through clenched teeth.
"So we're going to leave the fate of the Institute up to whether or not your lover will raise a militia on your behalf?" Dr. Secord asked.
Nora bit her tongue hard enough for her eyes to water. This was a crucial meeting and she couldn't cave to her temper, not again. But she also knew that Dr. Secord was right. She was asking an entire group to fight with the very demon they had feared for most of their lives. The Brotherhood hadn't done anything to them yet. The Brotherhood weren't the ones that snatched loved ones in the night and replaced them with synth copies. The Brotherhood didn't release Super Mutants into the world. The Brotherhood didn't kidnap infants from aVault to further some scientific experiment.
She sank heavily into her chair and looked helplessly at Dr. Secord. "What would you have me do? We need help. I need help. And so far, we are asking the wasteland to trust us without giving them good reason to. We cannot fight the Brotherhood off alone."
Dr. Secord bit her lip and some of the steel in her eyes softened. "Nora, why is the wasteland worth saving? I just don't get it!"
Her question wasn't accusatory and was without her typical venom. For all intents and purposes, her question could've been "What's for dinner tonight" for as innocuous as it sounded.
"The people who I love are there." Nora replied quietly. But then the real reason tumbled to her lips. "…And because the way you think about the wasteland — like vermin that needs to be exterminated — is the exact same way they think of you all. When I made the decision to come back here, many people in my life were against me, but I came back because I believe that you are all good people. There are terrible, monstrous people in the wasteland. There are people who rape, and exploit others, and murder for fun. But there are many others who are normal. They are husbands and wives. Brothers and sisters. Traders and farmers. Should we lump them in with the rest of the horribleness?"
"They helped save my son." Dr. Binet spoke up. "Liam would be dead if it wasn't for Nora and her friends."
Dr. Holdren looked slightly green and didn't meet her eyes but Dr. Secord sat stony faced and stoic.
"Do you really think we can be redeemed?" Dr. Filmore asked quietly. The woman's question broke the mounting tension and Nora nearly laughed in relief.
"Yes. If that's what you want. And I think this is the first important step in that redemption. What do you say?"
Dr. Secord chewed her lip thoughtfully before speaking, "I still say no. At least like this. The world above will not do this for free. Nobody works for free. But if we can offer something as payment, then maybe they will see a benefit in saving us."
"What could they want from us?" Dr. Holdren interjected. "We have nothing of value here."
Nora shook her head, "You do though. You have an entire underground laboratory filled with the smartest minds in the world. You have the possibility to end hunger thanks to your hydroponic studies. We have medical tools and technology that people could only dream of. You have generations of unlimited power thanks to the beryllium agitator. The Institute is the most prosperous place in all of the Commonwealth."
"So you're suggesting that we open our doors to wastelanders?" The distain in Dr. Secord's tone was back. "I was merely suggesting we pay them off with tech or raw salvage."
"If we want them to fight with us, they need to know what they are fighting for." Nora replied.
The entire table was quiet for a several minutes. Nora could feel her own heart thumping wildly in her chest. The adrenaline coursing through her veins made her feel like she was practicing for her mock trials again. The case of the Institute's isolationist policy was a tough one, but she hoped the jury would err in her favor.
"I think it would be a good idea." Dr. Binet replied. "But we need to start slowly. We can reach out to wastelanders that we've been looking at for recruitment anyway and bring them into the folds."
"I also have a couple scientists in mind. Dr. Amari is a brilliant neuroscientist who has done a lot of work with the synths that made it topside and Dr. Carrington works directly with the Railroad to help synths transition to their new lives." Nora remarked.
Dr. Secord shook her head. "Father would be spinning in his grave if he heard this."
Nora ignored her comment. "This can only work if you all take the lead and communicate this with your teams. Exhibiting bigotry and intolerance will not convince people that we are worth saving."
Dr. Holdren frowned, "Alright. I agree. Although I can't believe I'm saying this."
Nora looked at Dr. Filmore and Dr. Binet who both nodded slowly. "Dr. Secord?"
She spoke slowly and deliberately. "I do not agree, but what choice do I have? I would rather see wasteland scum in these halls than have them destroyed by artillery fire and bombs."
"Thank you." Nora replied. "Thank you all. This is not an easy choice, and I know that. Now the last thing on the agenda is to name my replacement while I'm gone. You'd be mostly in charge of the day-to-day operations. I don't plan to be gone longer than three days. Is anyone interested?"
The scientists looked at each other with faux humble reserve. She figured that anyone who threw their name into the ring would get shot down by others over something petty. No, Nora had to choose.
"Dr. Secord? I'm nominating you."
The steely woman was caught off guard, "W-what? Why? Why me?"
Nora smiled, "Because I think this is the first meeting we've gotten through where you and I aren't snapping at each other like some rabid dogs. And because I am showing you that I trust you. All of this will fail miserably if we don't trust each other."
Dr. Secord gaped at her like a dying fish but shook her head slightly to clear her head. "I … Okay…I — I will do my best."
"I know you will." Nora replied. "Now unless there's other business to discuss, I'd say that this meeting is adjourned."
"Freeze! Stop right there wastelander. State your business." A fully armored Brotherhood Knight leveled a gatling gun at the woman dressed in threadbare military fatigues.
"My name is Dr. Madison Li. Elder Maxson has requested my presence." She replied in a steely voice.
The Knight pressed a button on the side of his Power Armor helmet to radio up to the airship while keeping the massive gun trained on Dr. Li. In fact, she was sure that if she made even one misstep, the hulking soldier would have her pumped full of lead before she could blink.
She adjusted the small pack that held most of her personal belongings. None of it was of value to a scavver but the documents, blueprints, books, and personal journals that she carried where what remained of her personal and professional life.
"Elder Maxson wants to see you right away." The Knight said. "Leave all weapons with Scribe Boyle and then please follow me. I will escort you to him."
Dr. Li didn't protest. She left her Institute laser rifle and an entire belt of plasma grenades with the Scribe before following the Knight into the airplane hanger and onto a vertibird. As the metal beast rose from the docking station to land on the Prydwen, Dr. Li could see the amber glow from the setting sun reflecting off the white marble CIT ruins. The place that had been her home for a decade now looked awash in fire.
The vertibird jostled roughly as it docked on the platform and she shot a hand out to grab the metal handle near the open door. Her stomach plummeted when she looked down to see the rocky shoreline below and a cold sweat washed over her.
"Disembark quickly and then follow Paladin Danse. He will escort you to see the Elder." The Knight ordered.
The man he pointed out to be Paladin Danse was without a Power Armor helmet which Dr. Li thought was odd. Maybe it was because they were over three hundred feet off the ground, but walking around in an active war zone without a helmet seemed like an unnecessary risk.
"Ma'am." He addressed her politely. "I will be escorting you to talk with Elder Maxson. Do not do anything rash or foolish. You may be from the Institute but you will not make it off this airship alive if you threaten us."
"I know how to conduct myself in the Brotherhood." Dr. Li snapped. "I was there at the Citadel when Liberty Prime was created."
Paladin Danse glanced sideways at her as they walked across the bridge that led to the Prydwen's top level. "I beg your pardon ma'am. I don't recognize you. I was not that familiar with Elder Lyon's team as I was still undergoing training."
"You're from the Capital Wasteland?" She asked idly.
"Yes Ma'am. Rivet City, actually." He replied.
Dr. Li was glad that the dark corridors masked her reaction. She knew as surely as she knew her own name that this Paladin Danse never lived in Rivet City. She knew each and every citizen personally up until the Brotherhood came to gut her home like a hunted animal.
"You've lived in Rivet City your entire life then?" She asked evenly.
"Yes Ma'am."
"And what was your name again?"
"Paladin Danse, Ma'am." He replied. Suspicion edged his voice now. "Is there a problem?"
"No. It's just living as long as I have means you conflate some details from a long time ago. I'm sorry for badgering you with questions. Senility will do that to you sometimes." She replied with a absent-minded smile.
Danse grunted noncommittally and led her down a tight staircase.
Dr. Li followed his hulking form slowly as she chewed on how these events were unfolding. She knew that this Paladin Danse thought he lived in Rivet City. Nothing about his tone or behavior indicated he was lying, so he must believe that it was the truth. Which meant that these memories of Rivet City were artificial … or synthetic.
She looked at Danse with new eyes. She didn't recognize the synth in front of her, but then again, she rarely saw synths during their creation process. That was Dr. Binet's division. He was probably constructed to be a Courser which meant if he made it to the Capital Wasteland, then he would be one of the early model Coursers.
"Wait here while I notify the Elder that you are here." Danse ordered.
Two more armed Brotherhood soldiers flanked the large double doors that led to Elder Maxson's war room. Dr. Li waited less than a minute before Paladin Danse emerged from the heavy steel doors and beckoned her in.
"Elder Maxson will see you now." He rumbled.
Dr. Li nodded and squared her shoulders. She never formally met Maxson as Elder. She remembered him as the devout and somewhat morose boy that watched her from the shadows as she soldered joints and computer components onto the robot's metal hull. When he was a boy, he seemed observant and intelligent. But he never struck her as the paragon that he had somehow transformed into. That transformation must've happened after she had escaped to the Institute because the man standing with his back to her looked nothing like the young boy hiding in the Citadel's shadowy alcoves.
"You've summoned me." Dr. Li responded.
"It's been a long time Madison." He rumbled. His back was still turned to her and she knew he was making a power play, but his churlish bravado annoyed her.
"Please call me Dr. Li."
That made Elder Maxson turn around.
"Doctor Li." He asked in a sarcastic and wry tone.
He was baiting her and she knew that. "Yes. I am a doctor and I'd like you to address me by my title, Elder."
He frowned. "Interesting. See I thought that the term doctor described someone who healed others by using medicine."
"The term also means scientist." Dr. Li replied drolly, "Which is a term that means an intelligent individual who doesn't get hung up on the semantics of professional titles."
Elder Maxson smirked. "Dr. Li why are you here?"
"Are you kidding me? You were the one who summoned me. Surely you must know why I'm here."
"That was a rhetorical question Doctor. You are here to rebuild Liberty Prime. But you didn't walk into the proverbial lion's den to just feed yourself to the lions. So once again I ask, why are you really here."
"This is ridiculous." Dr. Li complained. "I'm here to follow through with the agreement that I made with the Brotherhood ten years ago. I am here to help you."
Elder Maxson's dark eyes looked almost black in the setting sun. The fading light casted an ethereal glow against his powerful silhouette. He scrutinized Dr. Li with the same intensity that Father had once appraised her. He was trying to decide if she was an enemy.
Maxson snapped his fingers and two scribes immediately marched onto the observation deck with a gaunt and filthy man being dragged between them. His snow white hair was matted with blood, filth, feces, and vomit, and his pale face held a sickly blue-grey tinge.
The scribes dumped him unceremoniously onto the metal paneled floor and then stood at parade rest near the door they had just come through.
"James." Dr. Li choked out but regretted her outburst when she saw Maxson's thin mouth crack into a satisfying smirk.
Watery blue eyes fluttered open, and James's overly dilated pupils fixed on hers. She could see how his pupils expand and contract spasmodically and irregularly. He was clearly doped up on many different chems. He'd have to be considering the state he was in. But that didn't take away the anguish she felt in her chest.
"M-M-M-Maddi." He murmured. "Maddi. Maddi?"
"Consider this a good-will present." Elder Maxson spoke. "As you can see, this man needs desperate medical attention. Now our Scribe Neriah is good at what she does, but she works squarely in pathology. She spreads diseases rather than heals them. Captain Cade, on the other hand, is overworked as it is with our soldier's needs. This man needs a doctor and a good one. If you save him, and if you follow through with your promise to help rebuild Liberty Prime, then I'll let you go. I'll let you both go."
"N-n-n-no. Ma-Maddi. Please." James whispered hoarsely.
Dr. Li fixed her eyes squarely on the Elder.
"I'll need access to a sterile environment and a list of everything that Neriah has done to him. He looks like he's strung out on chems, and I can only imagine why."
A small storeroom in the airport hanger has been repurposed to be your quarters. Do whatever you need to that room to make it suitable for your purposes. I will send a Knight down with details of what has happened since he has been in our care, but I can assure you that if we hadn't found him, he would've died.
James coughed weakly on the floor. The hollow rattle coming from his chest was the only response he could muster.
Dr. Li looked at James's shivering and sickly form like one would look at a beaten dog.
"Is there anything else you require of me?"
"Not at this moment. Proctor Ingram will be speaking with you tonight to start work on Liberty Prime. Your survival is contingent on how well you work with her, so I advise you to obey every order that she has."
Dr. Li nodded but she noticed the Elder move towards her. She suppressed the instinct to flinch away or to strike out by balling her hands up into fists.
Up close, the Elder looked just as young as his age betrayed. The coldness in his eyes was calculating like a man who was constantly engaged in a game of chess. In fact, she was so taken with his eyes that she didn't notice him pull out a device from his overcoat until he had fastened it around her neck.
The heavy metallic collar sat against her skin like ice. She didn't need to look at it to know it was a slaver's bomb collar.
"This is just added encouragement for you to not do anything reckless." Elder Maxson said.
"So I'm your slave then?" She asked trying to bolster her courage despite her pounding heartbeat.
"I wouldn't say that. Consider this as encouragement to do your job well." He replied.
Elder Maxson snapped his fingers again and two Knights picked James up off the floor while a third grabbed Dr. Li by the arm and wheeled her around.
"Take some time to get settled in." Elder Maxson said. "You are to report to Proctor Ingram at 0800 tomorrow."
She glanced once more at Paladin Danse as she was led out of the room. He glanced down at her but she couldn't see anything other than pure stoic resolve.