The Commonwealth
May the 2nd, 2288
9:14

Taking one last look over her shoulder at the fading visage of Diamond City in the distance, Nora Jacqueline Norwich tightened her hands around her revolver. They were really doing it.

Wherever Kellogg was, he couldn't stay hidden forever.

Having sat down, staring expectantly at the detective, the lawyer, and the former cage fighter, Dogmeat happily barked when Nora reassuringly pet him around his ears. When she stopped, he waited for her to begin again only to suddenly begin sniffing the half smoked cigar and dirty ashtray Nora presented him with. Barking again before starting to take off, Nora dropped the cigar and ashtray back into their zip-shut plastic bag, and handed them off to Nick, who slipped the make shift evidence bag back into his inner coat pocket. Then, they were off. A bit too enthusiastically, Cait was never more than a few paces behind Dogmeat, only pausing every so often to swap out which weapon she wanted to have at the ready, pulling one out and dropping the other back into her bag. When she finally settled on a pair of twin knives, she had a mischievous glint in her eye, almost as though she were itching for a fight. Herself much more stricken by fear of what they would or would not find, Nora put as much of her energy as she could into focusing on the act of tracking rather than the reasons for it. Forgetting why they were doing what they were began to grow all the more impossible as it continued to whisper at the edges of her thoughts, however, and Nick's warning rang out in her ears again.

Kellogg is dangerous because he thrives off death, destruction, suffering, violence, and pain.

Shaken by the fear which bolted through her at the thought of Kellogg having done much worse than simply separating her family, Nora tightened her grip on her revolver and closely eyed the surroundings she, Cait, and Nick passed by, pursuing what Dogmeat had managed to get a trace on. Following him out of the city had felt strange, at first, not only leaving behind safety but the known. Yet running through the streets, past old buildings, burnt out street lamps, and lifeless traffic stops had still felt almost normal. It was when they were over the bridge and the city well behind them things began to feel out of place. Everything feels out of place. How could it not? She kept running, but began to slow her pace when she began to feel pain rising in her chest. As she slowed, she saw Dogmeat had paused, looking around for her, Nick, and Cait. When the creature realised the three were still with him, he began barking again, waiting for them to follow. Wary of their surroundings, Nick hesitated, startling when Cait all but chased after Dogmeat, who had begun circling an area near an old, burnt out car and a covered, mostly intact RV trailer. He called out to her, warning her to be careful, only to be startled when she cut him off, waving him and Nora over, Dogmeat still circling the area.

"Lovely place for a campsite," Cait said dryly, stepping into the trailer. "I, for one, would feel incredibly safe sleeping out here in fuck all –"

"It ain't the prettiest place, but it's covered and has a lock," Nick pointedly reminded her, raising an eyebrow when he noticed the table behind her. "Well, would you look at that. Seems someone cut themselves up real bad."

Cait whipped around, nearly slamming herself into the refrigerator. Nora grimaced, but soon found herself just as surprised as the detective. Left on the table, alongside an assortment of useless things, were dried yet bloodied bandages, bent as though they had been once wrapped around a human hand. Slipping off her backpack, Nora pulled out a pair of leather gloves, slipped them on, and carefully peeled the bandages off from where they had been left on the table. Dogmeat perked up when he saw what she was doing, and began to circle around her legs, barking. He stopped when she knelt down and presented the bandages to him, frantically sniffing them. Once he was satisfied he recognised and understood the scent of blood left and dried on the bandages, Dogmeat jumped out of the still open door into the RV trailer, and waited for the detective, lawyer, and former cage fighter to follow him. Nick took the bandages from Nora, who removed her gloves. Then, he slipped the bandages into another zip-shut bag, dropping it into his inner coat pocket alongside the dirty ashtray and half smoked cigar. No more than a minute later, he stepped out of the RV just behind Nora and Cait and quickly followed after Dogmeat, onto the road again.

All but bolting towards the old train tracks, Dogmeat only stopped when the footsteps behind him slowed. He barked happily when he saw Nora, Cait, and Nick, and ran between their legs, eager to inspect them. When he finally finished sniffing them, Dogmeat took off again but suddenly skidded to a halt, crouching close to the ground, growling, and he let out a snarl when a mole rat burst through the ground and let out an ear piercing screech. The first was quickly followed by a second, third, and then a fourth, fifth, and sixth, the vicious burrowers angered at the disturbance. Cursing loudly when one of the mole rats nearly bit her, Cait began stabbing at them with her twin knives. She kicked one off her leg, and began stomping at its head, not stopping until the ear splitting squeals of the mole rats ceased. Nick shot the mole rats away from Dogmeat, who was snarling and biting back at them, while Nora shot them down as soon as they were off Dogmeat. When only the sounds of themselves and their weapons remained, Nick let out a tired sigh of relief, Cait wiped the blood off her knives and sheathed them before taking a look at the carcasses to see if there were anything worth taking off them, and Nora calmed Dogmeat, petting him until he sat up, his tail waving a little, and his breathing steady. Happily, he licked her hands and nuzzled her arms before, taking the hint, began sniffing the ground and trying to find the scent of Kellogg again.

Cait sighed when she looked up at the sky, clouds beginning to form, crossing her arms while she walked, her gait slower than before. When he realised it was only Nora and Dogmeat in his periphery, Nick turned around, and waited until Cait caught up with them to keep going. Catching up to Nora and Dogmeat, the detective and the former cage fighter shared a wary look, the sounds of gunshots ringing out in the distance. Just as tense, Nora let her hands grip her revolver tight, fingers hovering over the trigger. Noticing the change in the movements of his humans, Dogmeat began to circle around them, starting with Nora and then going to Cait before finally turning to Nick. Amused by the dog's interest in his ungloved, mechanical hand, Nick tickled Dogmeat underneath his chin. Giving the creature a few reassuring pats on the head, Nick gently pushed him to focus on tracking again, reminding himself to be patient with him. He's probably been through a lot too. Dogs are strangely perceptive of humans. It'd be fascinating to know if he sees me as human or not. Can the dog tell I'm a synth? If he can, wonder why it don't scare him. Almost absentmindedly and oblivious to the detective's silent walking with them and his thoughts, Cait pulled one of her guns out and fidgeted with it, finally reloading and cocking it. She grinned when she looked over at Nora, who startled when she noticed but smiled back only to lose all levity in her face and stopped short, seeing Dogmeat circling outside the door to a large warehouse well off to the right from the train tracks.

"Sexy," Cait said dryly, kicking aside some cans littered outside the building. "Bet this is a real fancy place to stay, and a real good place to lose your virginity."

"If you want to get tetanus," Nick frowned, entering the building with Dogmeat. "Come on, boy," He said, patting the dog's head again. "Why'd you bring us here?"

Dogmeat let out a loud bark in response, his tail flicking anxiously until he saw Nora had entered the building too. He ran over to her again and began sniffing her hands before running towards a set of uneven stairs, partially obscured by fraying boxes. Cait chuckled a bit to herself, making a dark comment on what could be inside the boxes and causing them to fray. If they heard her, neither Nick or Nora thought much of it. Hesitant, unsure of the integrity of the stairs, Nora slowly made her way down, keeping Dogmeat safely in her sights, Cait walking no more than a step or two behind her. Either unfazed or aloof, Nick all but chased after Dogmeat, the creature seemingly picking up his pace with every step he took. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they found themselves standing in the remains of one of the long since abandoned highways, tunnel access no more than a few feet away from where they stepped off from the stairs. Dogmeat began barking again, running towards something but suddenly skidding to a halt.

That was when they saw the bodies.

Nora let out a horrified gasp, only to swallow back the thoughts beginning to race through her head. Nick grimaced, and slowly approached where Dogmeat was, standing over them and still barking. Cait swore under her breath but, seeing Nora taken aback by the sight and the scent of death that hit them, tried to force herself to take in the scene seriously. Years of dark humour and a life of fighting had dulled the sight, a little, but the one thing she knew she would never be unbothered by was the scent of death. The scent that came with dead bodies was one very few people could become familiar enough with to be unfazed by. So much as she wished she were one of them, death was something that always unsettled her. When she and Nora approached the bodies, it became clear they had been there a little while; not decomposed enough to be considered completely rotting but not recently deceased enough to look just about as they had in life. The slaughtered brahmin nearby, with cases still strapped to it and flies and gnats swarming at and feasting on its decaying flesh, gave more than enough context to the scene. Caravaners, just trying to get by. And now they were dead, their bodies limp and lifeless, stacked on top of each other as though they were worth nothing. It was only when Nick took a closer look at the body of a woman, the woman upon which the other bodies had been cast aside, things felt truly off. Death and robberies happened every day.

But it wasn't every day one of those killed had a chip still in their brain, seemingly undamaged though the skull had been crushed in.

"Is that…" Nora raised an eyebrow, kneeling down beside Nick. "She was a synth?"

"Not sure how else a synth component would be left here," Nick said grimly. "The Institute has gotten good at making their technology durable, I'll give them that, but I don't get the feeling her head was bashed in just for the hell of it."

"All the others are too," Cait said, wrinkling her nose at the smell when she knelt down across from them, right next to the piled up bodies. "All five of 'em, crushed like berries."

"Pleasant thought," Nick delicately removed the synth component from the remaining brain and skull matter before reaching over to close the woman's eyes. "Takes a real nasty person to kill five people so brutally. I think we're on the right track."

"Sure, but why'd that Kellogg bloke want to make sure the people he killed were synths if we're still working the idea he's with the Institute?" Cait said, standing up quickly and brushing herself off. "I reckon they wouldn't be happy about him destroying their property."

"If the Institute thought a synth couldn't be reclaimed, I wouldn't be surprised if they let them be killed rather than out and about," Nick shook his head. "Can't remember much about 'em, far as I've ever been able to tell, no synth can. My story? I got built, I got old, I got tossed, and then I opened up my detective agency. But most synths, the ones everyone's afraid will replace 'em? They all either ran away or are out here for a reason."

Cait snorted. "What reason? Just to replace people for the hell of it?"

"If I had to guess, probably so they can spy on the rest of the Commonwealth," Nick said, bagging the synth component. "They have their early model synths stripping whole towns for parts, killing everything in their way, and, again, you have the newer models who are either out here on purpose, to infiltrate cities, spy on all of us, and pull strings from the shadows, or escaped and trying to get the hell out of dodge. What I've never been able to understand is why. Why does the Institute do these things, and what's the point? You'd think I'd know, being a synth myself, but they're smart enough to cover their tracks."

"Not smart enough to not leave their shit around," Cait darkly remarked. "Why do you want that thing anyways?"

"I have a friend in Goodneighbour who might have use of it. Might be the only woman in the Commonwealth smart enough to figure out any of the Institute's technology," Nick said, slipping the bag into his pocket. "They may be smart enough to cover their tracks, and arrogant enough to throw their unwanted trash into the Commonwealth to fend for itself, but they can't be perfect."

"Sure like to think they are," Nora said, running her hands through her hair. "God damn it. When we find Kellogg, if he really is in league with the Institute, he's going to get the nastiest surprise of his life."

"Fuck around and find out," Cait agreed with a slightly sinister smile. "Nicky's right. They can't be perfect. But," She paused a moment in thought before turning to Nick. "I got to ask – how come you can't remember much about them?"

"It's not just me, it's any synth that gets trashed, left behind, or escapes the Institute," Nick said bitterly. "Some kind of security setting strips or blocks out those memories, probably some kind of failsafe. They wouldn't have cut me loose if I had something on 'em, and they threw me in the junk pile ages ago, just another discarded prototype, and they sure as hell didn't leave me the house keys."

"So…" Nora sighed. "So then what the hell happened here? Kellogg was supposed to find a synth and kill them for the Institute?"

"Either that or they came into contact with someone just as dangerous," Nick said, stepping over to Nora when he realised she was shaking to help her back on her feet. "Nora, listen to me," He said once she was steady enough on her feet. "When we find Kellogg, if he's really the one who kidnapped your son and husband, then he's dangerous, but so are you. No one was there to help me figure out what to do when I ended up out here, and no one should go through that. Cait and I have your back and I mean it when I say you don't need to be afraid of Kellogg or anything else the Commonwealth throws at you."

Capital Wasteland
May the 5th, 2288
19:08

"Interrogation number twenty nine. Interrogators, Elder Arthur Jonathan Maxson, Lancer Captain Alexander Winchester Kells, Knight Captain Aaron Ronald Cade, Proctor Elisabeth Mischelle Ingram, Proctor Marshall Walter Quinlan, and Proctor Keith Skyler Teagan. Subject, Charles Alexander Zimmer."

Glowering at the restraints holding him to a chair and at the table, Dr. Charles Zimmer pursed his lips when he met the critical gazes of the people who had all but condemned him to a fate worse than death in their so-called Citadel for nearly two months. As far as he was concerned, it was not only insulting to his status and intelligence but outrageously unjust. Yet for all the complaints he was prepared to lodge with the rest of the Directorate upon his release and return to the Commonwealth, the one he found most pertinent was the fact an arrogant, twenty one year old boy was responsible for his treatment and the leader of the theoretically benevolent Brotherhood Of Steel. The impression they had made on him was far from a positive one, and it had more than outdone the decade of assumptions he had made on them and their activities. So far as he was concerned, the only good the Brotherhood had ever done was putting an end to the 'Enclave' and their madness. More than ready for them to either release him themselves or inadvertently provide him with an opportunity to escape, Dr. Charles Zimmer took a contemptuous glimpse over his captors. The arrogant boy who had somehow managed to become their leader and his frigid second in command. The medical specialist, the woman who never took off her power armour, the condescending analyst, and the man who seemed to spend all of his time finding ways to get things for them, no matter how underhanded the methods. None of them, to him, even deserved to know about the Institute's existence and, yet, they did.

"I don't see the point in continuing this charade," Zimmer said, his eyes narrow behind his glasses. "You are by now well aware of some what we are capable of. At the very least, you're now well aware of your own shortsightedness, all you having known of robots being those buckets of bolts, those Mister Handshakers and whatnot. Was that not the point of this, you learning not all a robot can be is a glorified tin can?"

"Charming as ever, Zimmer," Ingram frowned. "And, yet again, beyond arrogant. You know as well as we do you haven't told us everything, not the least of which being how you create your dangerous machines and what you have been forcing upon Dr. Li."

"That's Doctor Zimmer to you, Miss…miss whatever your name is. I'd have thought you barbarians would be more interested and more intelligent in your understandings of advanced technology, but it seems I was mistaken," Zimmer let out a hollow laugh. "As for Dr. Li, she is not being forced to do anything for us. Your own assumptions about her grow more nonsensical by the day. Though I doubt you'll understand, Dr. Li is quite valued by the Institute. So much so she has risen to quite the respectable position. As for our synthetic humans, I find it amusing you keep asking when it's more than clear you don't understand my answers."

"Perhaps the lack of understanding is intentional on your part," Quinlan said evenly. "Quite the miscalculation, if you believed we would be satisfied by your quibbling and pretence."

"Indeed," Kells said, referring to a long set of notes from previous interrogations placed between himself and Maxson. "Your comments on what you call the 'FEV,' for instance, have been nonsensical at best and intentionally misleading at worst."

"Ah, yes, the Forced Evolutionary Virus," Zimmer snorted. "Did you not know the 'Enclave' you destroyed had their own version of it they were planning to poison the water purifier you appropriated with? Quite frankly you should be thanking me for making that plan of theirs impossible even before you put an end to their organisation. Had I not found a way into their laboratories to steal their research, they almost certainly would have used it to kill as many of your precious wastelanders as possible."

"A single good deed does not override a life of cruelty and playing God," Maxson sharply replied. "I for one also doubt you acted as you did for the benefit of anyone but yourself and your Institute."

"We did want to examine a form of the FEV we did not synthesise from stolen records of old, long dead projects in the Commonwealth," Zimmer said with a smug glint in his eyes. "It did not wield any results and was destroyed and discarded. The strain of FEV we ourselves developed was extensively modified to coalesce with undamaged human DNA we recovered to create the perfect machine. I was a child at the time of these developments, and my mentor, Dr. Walter, was the mastermind behind the project. Leader of the entirety of the Institute's Robotics programme, as it happens, and a close colleague to the-then quite young Dr. Syverson."

"You corrupted human DNA to manufacture false humans?" Quinlin repeated, disgusted. "In what world is that a reasonable thing to do?"

"One you and your closed minds could never understand," Zimmer said icily. "Really, how do you people live like this? It's as though you believe surrounding yourselves with as much technology as possible will protect you even if you don't know how or why it works."

"That's a rather strange assumption," Kells eyed the man critically. "Over the years, the Brotherhood have completed a multitude of major projects and feats of complex, integrated technologies, perhaps one of our greatest achievements being the Prydwen."

"Yes, your little ship," Zimmer scoffed. "Quite frankly, I find it less impressive than the project you coerced Dr. Li into working on just over ten years ago. It was far from a priority of mine to have investigated, but that oversized bomb carrier you used to put an end to the Enclave is by far the most impressive feat you people have ever accomplished."

"So, you know about Liberty Prime," Maxson met the man's cold stare with one of his own. "Tell me – what do you know about the project and Dr. Li's involvement?"

"She was never eager to discuss it, no matter how hard I pressed her on it," Zimmer said, sounding almost amused. "If you're referring to what I know about what happened with it, I am well aware it was destroyed alongside the Enclave, and what its overall weaknesses are. For instance, as you well know, there's only one person who was ever able to resolve its power distribution and management problems, a person who will want nothing to do with you. Additionally, because of its gargantuan size, the robot is slow and vulnerable to orbital missile strikes and high yield artillery which, in the right bombardments, could destroy its armour. Why are you asking? Are you frightened by the knowledge Dr. Li is with us and has inside knowledge on what your robot is capable of?"

"Quite frankly, it is important for us to gauge how much the Institute knows about us and our capabilities before we arrive in the Commonwealth," Quinlan informed him. "Which brings us to the question you have been most eager to dodge. Where is the Institute?"

"Right in front of your faces, and you can't even put the pieces together," Zimmer snorted. "We are the remains of the Commonwealth Institute Of Technology, or, as it had been called before the 2040s, the Massachusetts Institute Of Technology. I should think our location is therefore quite self explanatory."

"Making a mockery of our intelligence is doing you no favours," Cade warned him. "We're well aware the CIT has been in ruins since the 2080s, and are well aware you have not rebuilt it."

"We've been trying to get this information from him for weeks," Teagan shook his head. "He's not going to give us the answer, not even if we resort to enhanced interrogation techniques."

"Enhanced interrogation techniques?" Zimmer exclaimed, affronted. "Is that what you people call torture as a way to justify it? Perhaps you have adopted the same attitude as the pre-War US military. But you are correct. I am not going to put our work in jeopardy for the sake of amusing and flattering your blasé curiosities."

"Then we have nothing more to discuss," Kells stood up and opened the door, beckoning two Paladins standing guard outside into the Brotherhood's Strategic Command. "Take him away and prepare him for execution."

"Execution?" Zimmer attempted to wrench out of the grasp of the Paladins as they detached him from his restraints. "That was not a part of our agreement! I agreed to answer some of your questions, after which you would let me –"

"For a supposed genius, you're incredibly shortsighted," Ingram sighed. "You know too much, Zimmer, and you are a danger to us all."

"Your 'synth' has already met the same fate," Kells flatly informed him. "Thank you for the information you've so reluctantly given us on that programme. It will be quite useful to us in the process of disassembling and reconstructing it."

"How fortunate for you," Zimmer dryly spat, his gaze darkening when he saw the young woman who had been waiting outside the room for the meeting to conclude. "So, your husband and his army have condemned me to death," He sneered. "I should have let my bodyguard kill you when I had the chance."

"That's more than enough," Maxson said, standing up and stepping over to where the Paladins had paused, still holding Zimmer in restraint. "Take him away," He ordered. "I think it's safe to say we've all heard more than enough."

"Yes, we have," Kells said, watching the man continue to fruitlessly struggle against the strength of the Paladins until they were out of sight around the corner. "Apologies for having to witness that, Missus Maxson," He said, turning to Karissa. "I hope you can take comfort in knowing, at 6:25 this morning, we executed his 'synth' bodyguard by lethal injection and will be executing him in the same manner tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, Lancer Captain Kells," She said with a smile as she shook his hand. "I trust you, my husband, Cade, and the Proctors were able to retrieve substantial information from him?"

"We did indeed," Kells proudly told her. "While he was less cooperative than we had hoped, we still are inclined to believe, alongside information we have received from Paladin Danse and his team, our arrival in the Commonwealth will not only be smooth but ultimately successful."

"Wonderful," She said, shaking hands with Cade and the Proctors when they began to leave too. "Good work, all of you."

As the rest of the Brotherhood's leadership passed by, she watched them all walk down the long halls of the Citadel until they turned a corner and were out of sight. Primly adjusting her blouse, skirt, and blazer, the ever patient and restrained Karissa Alberta Maxson half masked her excitement to see her husband when he stepped out of the Brotherhood's Strategic Command himself, not wanting herself to be a nuisance to security. Still, when the two of them were in close reach, her otherwise rigid body relaxed a little, and she took his hands in hers. The two of them glanced at their surroundings, and the both of them seemed to ease, albeit just a little, when it became clear it was only them and the Knights standing guard at the end of the corridor.

"You have nothing more to worry about, 'Rissa," Arthur paused one last time to ensure they were just about alone before embracing her. "The Institute and their synth menace are well within our ability to destroy once we arrive in the Commonwealth."

"Well, I'm certainly happy to hear it," Karissa said, resting her hands on his chest. "It'll be a fine line in the legacy we'll one day leave alongside our child."

"'Rissa…" Arthur stared at her for a moment, stunned. "We finally succeeded?"

Karissa beamed. "We did, and it only took a year. Quite the wonderful surprise for our wedding anniversary, don't you think?"

"It truly is," He said with a chaste kiss to her lips. "I presume you've informed our medical staff?"

"I thought we ought to together," She replied. "After all, we will be raising the next Elder."

Arthur smiled. "That we will, 'Rissa, that we will."

University Point
May the 7th, 2288
12:21

If there were one aspect of dealing with the Institute no one could ever grow truly accustomed to, it would be their Coursers.

For Gerald Spencer, he supposed, looking back, the town's first interaction with what they would come to recognise as Coursers came in 2277. After a summer of more than enough bad luck, between low crop yield and the increasing presence of violence by the town's gang, he had become convinced things would only continue to deteriorate and, though the-then mayor had insisted otherwise, he had been right. By September, the 'University Point Deathclaws,' as they had named themselves, had beaten a woman to death after deciding she was an Institute synth. As it turned out, they had been right. I don't blame her husband for murdering the entire gang in retaliation for it, never mind his own sins against our town as one of their members. Barbara Chesterfield did not deserve to be lynched, synth or not. Her death had not been the first either, yet it had been different. Why the Institute had treated it as different was something no one could agree on, yet, by November their town had been visited by a strange man who not only intruded on everyone's day to day lives with one pointed and uncomfortable question after another but, by all accounts, dug up Barbara Chesterfield from her grave in the middle of the night before disappearing with her body and never returning. Come the end of the year, they had all decided to not speak of the matter again, with Barbara Chesterfield, her husband, the University Point Deathclaws, and the enigmatic agent long gone. After, an unspoken consensus of the November Man, as he had come to be called, being from the Institute had settled firmly over the town and cemented its fear of the Commonwealth's bogeyman.

When things went on without incident in the years after the November Man's arrival and departure, Gerald had allowed himself to forget about it, far from a superstitious man, and suspicion of the Institute's existence at all returned to him. Jacqueline had continued to grow, taking up her mother's love of books and her curious mind. By six, she had already properly disassembled half of what they had in their family store and put them back together perfectly. By ten, she had, of all the children in the town, changed from one of the smallest and most shy little girls and grown to be the most enthusiastic about learning, and her obsession with understanding the old books left behind before the War on mathematics and computers became one only her aunt, on the occasions she came by, ever diligent in broadening her niece's mind, could truly understand and foster. And Josie gave up a life of comfort and security in Diamond City all to live here, with me, and raise a family. I wish you had forgiven her for it and spent more time with Jacqueline before she left too. By fourteen, Jacqueline had even found a few friends in town who were just as eager about learning as she was. That was when the explorations had begun. And, all too quickly, things suddenly went downhill again. Years of what he had come to disdainfully recall as something of wilful ignorance shattered in a matter of months. The Institute returned, not so subtly the second time, and a mob had begun to form, some of them more than willing to lynch a teenager despite having condemned the University Point Deathclaws for having lynched someone almost a decade prior.

Conrad Kellogg had made them miss the November Man, and, by a miracle, no one died.

But far too many people in the town were silently relieved to have Jacqueline gone, leaving for the Institute, for her father's comfort.

Becoming the de facto liaison for the Institute in the town in the years since had only made it worse.

The appearance of what the town had come to know as a Courser never signalled anything good, but it was to the surprise of everyone, including Gerald himself, to see the Courser to be the escort of a woman they had all come to recognise well, though their opinions on her varied. For most of the town's people, she was a somewhat cold but level headed and reasonable presence who escorted Jacqueline Spencer on her visits home to her father. Mayor Strickland seemed quite fond of her, almost fascinated by her though she was never eager for much talking and, while he had never heard her say it, suspected she was relieved he had gotten Perry Owens and Martha Cole to restrain themselves around her. It was Gerald Spencer, however, who had come to be the most relieved by her presence, not the least of which being because of his daughter's fondness for the woman who mentored her. Yet, when he opened the door to his home to find her waiting for him alongside a Courser escort, every nerve in his body rose in alert. Stiffening, he waved them inside before quickly shutting and locking the door behind them. A bit seized in panic, Gerald ran to shut any and all open blinds, only managing to relax himself a little when he was sure they were not being spied on. Flicking on an additional light switch, he gestured towards the couch, waiting for her and her escort to sit down, still a bit shaken when they did.

"If I had known you would be visiting, Dr. Li, I would have prepared more than afternoon tea," Gerald finally said, pouring himself a cup. "Do you need some? Or something to eat, perhaps?"

"I'm perfectly fine," She said. "Though you really should be careful with that. You're going to burn yourself."

"I…oh, yes," Gerald nearly dropped the still hot tea kettle but, once he managed to set it down, checked to ensure the stove was turned off before slowly walking over to sit down across from her. "My apologies, Dr. Li, you've merely taken me by great surprise. Especially with your…"

"X6-88," The Courser said with a hint of amusement to his voice. "Father sent me to ensure Dr. Li's safety in light of everything that has happened here."

Gerald swallowed hard. "I take it you are more than well aware of the…visit we had from the…damn it, what are they called –"

"Yes, we know about the Brotherhood Of Steel's intrusion," Madison said, raising a hand to silence him. "And we also know it has left all of you on edge, as, frankly, it should. They're more than a bit relentless, and their willingness to step on anyone they view as in their way is not something to be taken lightly."

"I take it, then…Jacqueline is alright, isn't she?" Gerald breathed a sigh of relief when she nodded. "Thank God. I haven't slept well, worrying about what could happen if she were here to have witnessed it, or, if they return, if she…"

"Your daughter isn't going to be in any danger from them," Madison eyed him closely, a bit uneasy. "As for yourself, the good news is Father considers you and your town to be a crucially important Institute asset. I suppose it's also worth telling you he's quite looking forward to hearing my and Dr. Watson and Dr. Filmore's assessment of her doctoral thesis upon its completion next summer."

Gerald smiled. "That's my Jacqueline, always dedicated. It does me good knowing she's surrounded by people who are able to understand her interests so well."

"Miss Spencer is certainly a bright young woman," X6-88 said mildly. "Your pride in her is well placed."

"Yes," Madison said shortly. "That said, I take it your…anxiety has to do with the presence of a Courser?"

"A…a little," Gerald hesitantly admitted. "Is…is there any particular reason for its…presence?"

"Absolutely. After some back and forth, the Directorate have decided it is in the best interests of your town and our own for a Courser to be stationed here as protection indefinitely," Madison replied. "In case the significance is lost on you, this is the first time the Institute has ever done anything like this. If nothing else, it should demonstrate the amount of care we have regarding your town and, of course, the respect for our arrangement with you and your daughter, who, might I add, is doing quite well."

"I appreciate it. In…with everything that's happened, will she still be returning home for her seventeenth birthday, at the end of the month?" Gerald smiled when she nodded. "Wonderful," He nervously glanced at X6-88, who was staring intently at him. "While I wouldn't normally be relieved to have a…one of your Coursers here, I…I don't trust the Brotherhood."

"As no one should," Madison said, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "X6, for the sake of not making things more uncomfortable, please go speak to Mayor Strickland and take up your guard post."

"Understood, ma'am," The Courser took a last, brief cold look around. "I will have you relayed back to the Institute once you are done here."

Madison said nothing, eyes narrowly watching the Courser until he was out of the apartment. After a minute of silence, she turned back to Gerald, who, though still anxiety riddled, had managed to relax a bit. In some ways, it could have been considered to be something of a routine. Quite unlike his daughter, Gerald Spencer was a paranoid man, always worried about something, and, from what she had heard, this paranoia had overtaken him after the first time he had encountered Conrad Kellogg. Where that encounter had emboldened his daughter, it had, apparently, caused him to succumb to paranoia and, though somewhat loathe to admit it, Madison found herself unable to fault him for it. Kellogg. If he weren't so unrestrained, the Brotherhood would probably have had a field day with him as one of their best. As Gerald slowly began to calm himself and fully relax, Madison, finding herself unable to sit still, stood up and began to pace, the sound of her heels clicking against the floor becoming a steady rhythm. It was only when she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror she paused, realising she had dressed for the meeting the same way she had when she had been the Director of Rivet City's laboratories and science programmes. Turning back to Gerald, she crossed her arms, waiting for him to speak and, taking the hint, he did.

"As I said, I wouldn't, under normal circumstances, be relieved to have one of those things here," He finally said. "But there's something about the Brotherhood that leaves me uneasy, and it's not only because they attacked your usual synth guards. It's the lack of apology they had for it, the fact they were angry when I told them to not return, and the contempt they had for me when I told them we want to be left alone. I have no doubt in my mind they intend to come back."

"Which, hence the Courser, we would also like to avoid," Madison frowned. "I never expected them to do something like this but, I suppose, given their obsession with hoarding technology, it could be viewed as inevitable."

"Whether it is or not, you and your Institute showed me, our people, mercy and gave my daughter the life she always wanted," Gerald shook his head. "I'll be damned if I let anyone try to ruin my daughter's life in any way, shape, or form. And, if I might be so honest, I suppose this will be better at keeping them away than if you did what you did with Diamond City."

Madison raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I know the mayor there is a synth, has been since April of 2284," Gerald said, relieved when she did not interrupt him. "To be completely...honest, I probably shouldn't have pressured Jacqueline into telling me so but, after reading the article written by the young woman up in Diamond City, I was curious."

"You would do well to keep that information to yourself," Madison warned him. "That's not something anyone outside of the Institute is supposed to know about."

"I have no intention of speaking about it with anyone," Gerald reassured her. "Certainly not after Jacqueline scolded me for all but forcing her to tell me. I never thought she would be the one trying to protect me. In some ways…I wish I had been able to do more to protect her."

"We all do the best we know how with what we have been given," Madison sighed when his face fell. "I don't know what you want from me, Gerald. You know full well the only other option is for you to give up your life here and join the Institute, and you've been quite indecisive about the idea since it was first suggested last year."

"Because I can't abandon these people, or the relationships I've built over the years," Gerald said. "I'm sure you understand, having been an outsider to the Institute yourself."

"Do you really think I ever wanted to stay out here?" Madison countered, forcing her voice to remain even. "No, I had nothing out here worth more to me than my peace of mind and access to the best and most advanced research facility in the country."

"Seems a bit cynical," Gerald said, though he fell silent at the way she narrowed her eyes. "I'm sorry, Dr. Li, this has all been incredibly emotional for me these last few years."

"Understandably so," Madison said, offering him a sympathetic glance. "But keep the offer in mind, if for no other reason than, though I don't imagine she would be willing to admit it, knowing it would make your daughter happy."

"Of course, though, if I may, why did you want so desperately to leave life above ground?" Gerald said, curiosity getting the better of him. "At least, you seem to have been desperate to from what little I've heard you say on the subject. Life here is just as fulfilling, just as –"

"With all due respect, Gerald, you have no idea what I went through, or the awful choices I had to make, no idea," Madison sharply cut in. "It's none of your concern, and you have no right to judge me."

"No, I didn't mean any judgement, I was only…" Gerald shook his head. "My apologies, Dr. Li. More than anything else, truly, I'm simply grateful you and your Institute have kept your promises, to me and Jacqueline, and are willing to defend us because I sincerely doubt we are able to defend ourselves, not against these Brotherhood Of Steel people."