Piper Wright hadn't stayed at the Castle, despite it being where the news was, with the Commonwealth in upheaval with it's first overt war since the bombs, she had decided that she was needed back in Diamond City, with Nat and the others while they waited tensely for news from the Minutemen's counterattack. She had moved quietly, but unbothered for the entire trek back to Diamond City, it was almost as if everyone and everything in the Commonwealth knew that something big was happening that demanded everyone's attention.
Reports from the fighting was hard to get and track, first the Brotherhood had apparently gotten their hands on a giant robot, and that had cut a swath of destruction and death from the Airport towards C.I.T, and then they suddenly the explosions and everything had stopped, and then where there had been constant fighting and explosions for the whole night, there was silence.
Diamond City itself was tense, everyone in the city hated the Institute, and all were silently rooting for the Minutemen and even the Brotherhood to emerge victorious from the battle. She was barely able to keep her own anxious worries out of her mind.
She hadn't been able to write anything, despite knowing what to say, she couldn't bring herself to actually type anything onto her terminal. She sighed in disgust with herself and the whole situation. She hated the Institute, why couldn't they just leave the Commonwealth alone? From what John had said, they had everything they could ever need down there, but instead they choose to attack and harass normal people? She couldn't wrap her head around it.
Deciding that she needed fresh air, and that she wasn't going to make headway on an article tonight, she headed downstairs, found Nat, still awake. "Nat, lets go for a walk" She usually didn't like Nat being out late at night, but with everything going on, she figured that security would be extra vigilant"
"Okay Piper" her sister jumped up and followed her out the door.
The main market of the city was bustling, with people crowding around the noodle stand, straining and listening to several radios, one playing Radio Freedom, the Minutemen's radio station that they used to spread news, and another playing Travis's radio station. She recognized Ellie, the receptionist and secretary to Nick Valentine and walked up beside her.
"Any news?" she asked.
Ellie shook her head and responded "No, the Minutemen nor Travis have said anything" Ellie paused and then asked "You were at the Castle, what were they planning?"
Piper shook her head "All I know is that the Minutemen and the Brotherhood were going to counterattack, and Joh- I mean the General wouldn't tell me anything more"
"Well-" a massive noise, one that seemed like it shook the ground and sent shockwaves through the air, cut her off.
It drowned out the radios and everyone speaking, it felt like it was shaking her and several people fell. Slowly, the rumbling stopped, and then the terrible noise stopped, and then someone, with a pointed finger towards the north yelled out "Look!"
Piper checked on Nat, who had turned to stare at where the man was pointing, and Piper followed her gaze to a giant cloud of black smoke. Her mind ran through all of the possibilities of what had caused that, and only one made sense. The Institute must have been destroyed.
"I'd say that Pershing's gotten it done" Ellie muttered to Piper as she stared at the smoke. It seemed like the city, which had been so full of nervous energy only a few moments earlier, now just started quietly at the smoke.
There wasn't a sound for what felt like hours, as everyone tried to come to grips with the new reality that they found themselves in. The sound of rotary blades shook the town out of it's collective bewilderment, Piper tore her gaze away from the smoke and too the vertibirds that were now circling overhead. "What are the Brotherhood doing here?" and then before she knew it, she and Nat were rushing towards the entrance, with everyone else in the marketplace, to try and figure out what had happened.
They were able to get through before security snapped into action, and blocked most of the rest from getting outside. She and Nat ran up down the stairs just in time to see McDonough, with the wall nearly open. Outside of the gate stood two men that Piper hadn't expected to see together. To her relief, she saw General John Pershing and she also saw Elder Maxson. Both were flanked on both sides by Minutemen and powered armored Brotherhood soldiers.
McDonough, for his part, was diplomatic as he approached the two leaders, his arms spread in a welcoming gesture, and with his signature fake happiness that he had used to cajole so many in Diamond City "Welcome" he opened "As the elected representative of our fine city, I welcome you to Diamond City" the happiness faded from his voice as he then asked "What are both the General of the Minutemen, and the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel doing at my city"
She noticed how he had called Diamond City, 'his' city, and she took a mental note to bring that up in the next issue. John was the one to answer him "I assume you noticed the explosion to the north around twenty minutes ago?"
"Of course" McDonough replied "It was certainly hard to miss, but that doesn't -"
Elder Maxson cut the mayor off "That was the Institute, they have been laid low by our combined forces were going to use your radio station to make the announcement to the Commonwealth"
John continued "The war is over, and we need to make this announcement" It wasn't a question, Piper recognized. John was ordering McDonough to do what he wanted.
McDonough stood speechless for several moments, before he stood aside and waved them into the city. John caught her gaze as he passed and smiled at her and Nat, but he didn't stop. She took him in at that moment, and saw how tired he, and the others, were. Preston stopped by her side.
As he disappeared into Diamond City proper, she turned and looked at Preston "I can't believe they're gone"
"It was a hard fight, the Institute fought us every step of the way" Preston said as he idly rubbed his eyes.
"Did the Minutemen lose a lot of people?" She didn't like writing or hearing about the Minutemen dying, but it was a part of life now with them fighting all over the Commonwealth.
Preston shrugged "Yeah, war is a terrible thing" he paused and let out a long sigh "It could've been far worse" the radio cracked on the old ticket booth that Diamond City security used as a checkpoint "I want to hear this"
Piper did as well and so she and Nat followed him towards the radio.
Sergeant Will Boeker sat, eyes closed but still alert, as Sunshine slowly came back to life. Corporal Jane Navan was giving him a report as the settlers slowly repaired the damage of the short lived Institute Occupation "Our scouts report that the artillery didn't hit anything important, so it looks like there will be no lasting damage when it comes to that."
Boeker nodded his head. He had been worried that the Institute would attempt to destroy what they couldn't take. "Good" he looked at his second command, she was tired, they all were "Go and get some rest, I think we've all earned it"
She nodded and walked off towards where the Minutemen had set up camp within the settlement. Boeker was getting ready to follow her when Knight Sergeant Wilks approached him. His arms were wrapped in some gauze to deal with the electrical burns that the pulse grenade and the laser burns. He looked as tired as Boeker felt, with large,dark bags underneath his eyes.
"What can I do for you, Knight Sergeant?" Boeker asked as he stood from the foldable seat. Wilks and the Brotherhood as a whole, had earned his respect, they had stepped up and helped retake Sunshine, and they had helped secure Starlight before it.
"Scribe Mathon just got in contact with the Prydwen, it appears that that large explosion from Cambridge was indeed the Institute, just as we thought" That left a silence with the three. Boeker wondered what happened now. He knew that the whole reason that the Brotherhood had come to the Commonwealth was the Institute, while the Minutemen would just go back to normal operations. Wilks continued on "Captain Kells has sent out a vertibird to pick us up, so we won't be in your hair for much longer"
Boeker nodded his head, that would be a relief to many of the settlers and the minutemen in the north. Most still didn't trust the Brotherhood after all, and most of the settlers wanted to put the last day behind them and forget it happened.
"Very well" Boeker responded and extended a hand "Its been an honor fighting with you
" His soldiers and the settlers may have had their opinions on the Brotherhood, but after seeing them in action, he could at least see why they were as effective as they were. He extended an open hand.
Wilks looked at it for a moment, and then grabbed it "It's been an honor" he let go of the hand "The Minutemen surprised me, most in the Brotherhood have a low view of you, that you lack discipline, but what i've seen tonight disproves that"
Boeker nodded his head "Were stronger than you know" he answered. The Minutemen had been his heroes growing up, and he had been heartbroken when Quincy happened, and he was proud to be in the new reformed Minutemen. "Were your superiors angry with you for supporting us during the battle?"
Wilks shook his head "No, quite the opposite in fact, Captain Kells sounded very pleased with how things turned out" he sighed and then said "Sounds like we were just a small part of the war"
Boeker chewed on the side of his cheek "What do you mean?"
"The Institute attacked everywhere, just like we thought, and the Brotherhood and your Minutemen were the ones who counterattacked"
"Good, then at least we're done with it" Boeker answered and there was the humming of a vertibird in the distant south. Both turned south to look at it and watched the vertibird as it got closer.
They watched it as it landed quietly and the other members of the recon squad loaded themselves up. Boeker hiked up next to Wilks as he finished loading up the only wounded initiate onto the vertibird. Wilks turned and grabbed a hold of the minigun and gave Boeker a single nod, which he returned. "Lets get going Lancer!"
The vertibird lifted up off the ground and Boeker turned and headed towards the makeshift camp that his minutemen had set up, where he found everyone hunched up around a single radio. "What's going on?" he asked Jane as he took a place beside her.
She leaned in and whispered "General Pershing and the Elder are going to give a speech"
"Are they?" he leaned in, he figured he would want to hear this.
Elder Arthur Maxson didn't miss all of the awed stares coming from the people of Diamond City as the entourage walked through the main street of the city. People, and the fabled, Diamond City security, which wore nothing more than a baseball uniform that had been reinforced. Maxson had thought that the strongest and largest settlement in the Commonwealth would have better armed security. Rivet City back in the Capital Wasteland could at least afford to arm its security with combat armor and more sophisticated weaponry.
There was barely any sound from them as they cut through the circular market area of the city, and then passed what looked like a meeting area, and then came to a tiny trailer, held up out of the standing water but two metal poles, with wooden stairs leading up to the door. At the base of the stairs stood a man with motley black hair, wearing a red and white jacke.
"Its all ready for you General…. And uh Elder" he said as he looked between the two of them.
"Thanks Travis" and Maxson simply nodded and they followed the man into the trailer. The inside of the building was packed, with a bed on one side, and the radio operating equipment on the other. A desk stood, packed into the corner with three chairs and a single microphone on the desk. They all took a seat while the radio operator flipped a switch and began speaking "Folks, we've got breaking news. I have the privilege of having General John Pershing of the Minutemen and Elder Arthur Maxson of the Brotherhood of Steel here in Diamond City Radio, and they have a message that they wish to broadcast to all of the people in the Commonwealth"
Pershing was the first to lean in and say "People of the Commonwealth, I have no doubt that many of you witnessed, felt or heard the explosion that came out of Cambridge a short time ago" he paused for what Maxson could only assume was effect "That was the Commonwealth's boogeyman, the Institute."
Maxson then leaned in "After years of the people of the Commonwealth being afraid of the Institute and its synths, you are now free to live your lives in peace." he paused and and then said "This is a victory that was achieved only with the hard fought and hard won sacrifices of Brotherhood and Minutemen soldiers"
Pershing then continued "With the destruction of the Institute, the Commonwealth has been freed from the Institute's grasp, the paranoia, the kidnappings, all of those things will be left in the pass. This victory changes nothing for the Minutemen however, we will still be ready to defend the Commonwealth at a minutes notice"
Maxson then jumped in, he needed to make sure that the people knew that the Brotherhood would continue the campaign in the area "This also changes nothing for the Brotherhood, our main mission to stabilize and secure the Commonwealth, and with the destruction of our chief enemy, we can move onto super mutants, ferals, and any rogue synths still left in the area"
"Just know this" Pershing stated "Take pleasure in the fact that the Minutemen and the Brotherhood have victory over the Institute" he looked at Maxson with a questioning glance, one that Maxson assumed he was asking if he had anything else to add, he didn't and gave him a head nod. "This concludes the broadcast"
The radio operator flipped the OFF switch and leaned back in his chair while Maxson and Pershing both stood. Maxson was suddenly struck by how exhausted he was, he hadn't been this tired since the final days of the war with Shepherd. "I must return to the Prydwen are you going to remain here or are you going back to your Castle?" he asked
"I need to get back to the Castle, my sons there, and I need to get everyone reorganized" he paused and chuckled "I also need some sleep, I haven't gone this long without it since we retook Anchorage"
There were times when Maxson forgot that Pershing was from before the bombs, and there bad been times when Maxson had thought to ask Pershing if he had ever come into contact with his own ancestor, Roger Maxson, but he had often thought better of it. "Very well, we'll take you and your group to the Castle, and then head back to the Prydwen"
They left Diamond City with little fanfare, and boarded the vertibird and there was no talking as they made the quick flight to the Castle, as everyone was either too tired or had too much on their minds to talk. The Minutemen portion left with little fanfare after they landed and before Maxson really knew it, the vertibird had docked with the Prydwen.
Kells and Quinlan were waiting for him on the flight deck, Kells with his hands behind his back, and Quinlan with them at their sides. "Elder" Kells said "May I be the first to congratulate you on a well earned victory"
Maxson nodded his head in thanks at the Captain but said "The credit goes to our hard fighting soldiers of the Brotherhood" he rubbed his tired eyes "Is there anything immediate to report?"
"We've received all of the expedition forces and they are being treated for any latent radiation from the explosion, we also received Recon Squad Artemis from Sunshine"
"Good, I want to speak with Knight Sergeant Wilks in the morn-" the shining light of the rising sun caught his attention "later" he clarified and dismissed both men with a brotherhood salute. He waited for a moment, and then headed towards his own quarters, where he was hoping to get some much needed rest.
John Pershing stepped off of the vertibird alongside the other Minutemen, Danse and Preston Garvey. All of the men were obviously tired and exhausted as they trudged up the road towards the entrance door of the Castle, which had been flung open. From the outside of the Castle, they could hear the celebrations taking place inside of the walls, and Pershing hoped that similar celebrations were happening all over the Commonwealth. They threw open the doors and saw a sheer amount of celebrating, with alcohol being freely served, music being blared over the main speaker, and a general sense of exhilaration clear in the air.
"Well, the men are certainly celebrating" Danse said, Pershing could sense that he was itching for an order to restore discipline.
"Wait and let them enjoy this, Danse" John said, as he slapped Danse on the shoulder "I think we've all earned a little break"
"Well at least it's over, General, you've changed the future of the Commonwealth for the better, now we just need to continue the mission" he paused "Lets just hope our alliance with the Brotherhood holds"
"It will, Elder Maxson may seem to be uncompromising, but he's not, the fact that he came and helped us shows that he wants to work with us" Danse answered.
In truth, John couldn't bring himself to think about this right now, his mind was too tired and exhausted to deal with such things. "We can talk about the future later" John said "Right now, let's celebrate and get some sleep"