The two wings of Vertibirds landed at Jamaica Plain. The place had improved quite a bit since the last time that Andrew had seen it, the supply lines having remained strong in spite of assaults by the Brotherhood, the few remnants of the Institute (by the look of it, some stragglers still out when the place itself exploded), and other of the delicious variety of beasts to be found in the Wasteland. Things were starting to improve, though. The attacks were of a lesser variety and peace was a far more prevalent thing.
War never changed, but neither did the determination of man to survive.
Soon enough, Andrew, Piper, and Preston disembarked and were met with an escort over to the forward command center - the former Mayor's Office.
"General." The lieutenant on duty stood as they entered, saluting.
"What's the word, soldier?" Andrew asked.
"We lost radio contact with Somerville and Murkwater at around 1145 this morning." The lieutenant reported. "A flare was sent up from Somerville, but not Murkwater. We have picked out a few laser energy blasts as soon as five minutes before you landed."
"Someone is trying to mop things up quickly." Piper commented.
"Yes, Mrs. Tyler." The soldier nodded. "More than that, though, it seems that we didn't just lose contact, their signal was jammed at the source."
"Brotherhood has tech like that, don't they?" Andrew asked.
"Before the Prydwen was destroyed, maybe." Preston said. "Since then, they haven't showcased the capability. That doesn't explain the other inconsistencies, either."
"Right." Andrew nodded. "Alright. Wing 33 is going to head to Murkwater, headed up by Preston. Wing 34 will be under my command heading to Somerville. Let's go." The group dispatched from there, Wing 33 and 34 taking on a few more troops to fill in their ranks. Soon enough, the Vertibirds took to the sky and broke off into separate groups, one heading toward Somerville and the other toward Murkwater.
Soon enough, the sound of laser rifle fire became more prevalent, as would the sickly green globs of plasma fire. Andrew's eyes scanned the field below, seeing several figures in Power Armor going up against the militia for Somerville. Behind that militia, the farmhouse was aflame.
"Those are X-01s!" Piper explained over the chopping of the Vertibird's blades.
"No, I don't think so!" Andrew called back. "Something's up." He noted that their arrival had been spotted by the Power Armored figures, one of which was pointing back to the landed Vertibirds. "Concentrate fire on those Vertibirds! Make them scrap!" The gunners, getting the message relayed by their respective pilots, did indeed start peppering the Vertibirds with shots. The first exploded. Then the second. The third rose from the ground before exploding in a macabre flash of fire and light. On the ground, the militia had clearly taken some heavy losses, but were boxing in the Power Armor-clad figures. "Drop us down!" Andrew yelled to his pilot, who nodded and gave a thumbs up as they began their descent.
On the ground, as the chopping of the Vertibird blades died down, Andrew could hear the fire had died and now there was shouting.
"-NAME OF THE MINUTEMEN AND THE COMMONWEALTH PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT, I CALL FOR YOUR UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!"
"DEATH FIRST!"
"ENOUGH!" Andrew yelled, his voice was surely to be hoarse afterward, but it seemed that he'd gotten the attention of the two groups. The leader of the Armored figures raised his plasma rifle, Andrew responding with three shots from a rifle of his own, specifically a lovely anti-materiel piece that slammed right into the arm plate holding the plasma rifle. The third shot caused the figure to drop the weapon in question. "The fight is over, you have lost. Surrender now and your lives will be spared!"
"Do not listen to hi-" The leader of this aggressive group spoke, only to hear the thud of several rifles being cast to the ground. "Traitors! Traitors, all of you!"
"It's over, sir." One of the others spoke up.
"It is for you!" The leader reached down, pulling a device from his belt. "For the United States! For the Enclave!"
"Stop him!" Andrew shouted, and a variety of laser blasts, .38 rounds, and other assorted ammunition was emptied into the man before he could press a button atop the device. "Get that thing, take those other men into custody!" Andrew ordered. Several members of the Minutemen were moving forward, Piper heading over with the men gathering the device.
"It's...metal. And has a blinking light on the end." Piper said.
"Very scientific analysis." Andrew quipped. "Makes me wish we'd brought Nick. Or Curie."
"Oh, thanks!" Piper laughed.
"I mean it." Andrew said, far more grim than his wife. She took notice of it. "We're going up against an enemy that we know nothing about."
"We might know something." Piper said. "Permission to go check a source, General?"
"What source?" Andrew asked.
"The Boston Bugle offices..."
"What do you mean Retrieval Team Orion is dead?"
"Madame President, I'm afraid it's true." The Enclave officer reporting to her stood before her at the desk that had once belonged to Madison Li. "Retrieval Team Orion did not report in at the allotted time. A scouting team reached the Poseidon Energy facility, downed to the last man."
"Damn it!" Holt slammed her fist against the desktop. "Was the data still retrievable?"
"No, Madame President, I'm afraid not." The officer said nervously. "The scouts did access the terminal, but it had been wiped of all data."
"And the backups?" Holt asked.
"Gone as well, ma'am." The officer said. "Whoever did it knew what they were doing."
"The Minutemen wouldn't have been able to get past the lockdown." Holt muttered, thinking aloud more than addressing the officer.
"Not from the intel we've gathered on them, no ma'am." Holt hissed. "Do you have the autopsy report for Retrieval Team Orion?"
"Yes, Madame President." The officer handed her a holotape, which Holt took and placed into the terminal at her desk. After it had loaded, her eyes scanned the information carefully. There were no clean signs of anything concrete... but to take out an entire squad of well-trained Enclave soldiers... she only knew of one who could have...
"And there was nothing else? No empty shells? No plasma scoring?"
"None that didn't come from our own soldiers, ma'am." Holt frowned more as she still did not look up from the screen.
"Send a new directive to your scouts. If they see a figure in a Vault-Tec jumpsuit, tail them but do not engage. Report it in to main control immediately.
"Ma'am?" Holt's eyes moved up toward him.
"Did I stutter, soldier?"
"No, ma'am."
"Carry out my orders. Dismissed." The soldier saluted, turned, and left the room. Holt was left sitting there, running a hand down her face.
"You breathe a little too loudly."
Curie blinked, surprised as she heard the voice of the man she had been tailing for some time. She could have sworn she'd been quieter!
"Come on out. I won't hurt you." Curie regarded the man in the Vault suit curiously as she emerged from the mutfruit bush.
"Pardonnez-moi, monsieur, I did not mean-"
"I know what you meant to do." The man said, having cut open and started eating from a piece of mutfruit. Despite the beard, he seemed to Curie's eyes to be a rather neat eater. "You were brave to follow me as you did."
"How long did you know I was following you?" Curie asked.
"Since I left the settlement. Never had a person sneak up on me that easily." The man said. "Some robots, maybe, but never a person." Curie smiled a little at that.
"I am full of surprises, I am told."
"I'm certain you are." The man said. "I think it's best that you return to your settlement, though. I'm not exactly the best of company."
"Et pourquoi jamais?" Curie questioned.
"It's a long story." The man said. "One I don't have the time or inclination to tell."
"But wh-" Curie started, but soon found herself cut off by the sound of vertibird blades chopping through the air. "Mon dieu! A Brotherhood attack team!"
"They aren't here for you..." The man sighed. "They're here for me..."
"Quoi?" A trio of vertibirds were descending on their location.
"PALADIN HOWARD! YOU WILL REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE! DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE!"
The man sighed. "Because we apparently learned nothing in Harper's Ferry..." He muttered, any further talk being drowned out by three figures clad in T-60's dropping from the vertibirds into the area around them, Curie nearly being knocked over by the shockwave of the impact of the nearest.
"Paladin Howard! You are under arrest in the name of Elder Maxson." The nearest turned his laser rifle on the man. "You will come with us."
"Bold claim, given that I don't recognize the authority of Elder Maxson or any other Elder you all have put up in the last twelve years." Howard replied. "You had best gun me down right now, because otherwise we could stand here for all eternity and I will never choose to go with yo-" There was a beeping noise, and Curie's eyes caught a familiar blue spherical shape dropped by one of the three. "Son of a-" It exploded - a stun grenade that, while Curie was unfamiliar with it, he was only too familiar.
Howard felt his body seize up as every nerve in his body was overloaded with pain, him unable to even speak beyond a single word to Curie.
"Run..."
And run Curie did, taking off as fast as he feet could carry her.
"Let her go." The paladin who had stunned Howard spoke up. "We aren't here for the Minutemen's pet Synth..."
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