In The Shadow of Steel (Paladin Danse)

Part Twenty Two

   "That's all four actuators, delivered and done. Nice work."
Proctor Ingram stood smiling beneath the burning sunshine, satisfied even as the fingers of sweat trickled down her cheeks. To her left was Professor Scara, who was shifting uncomfortably under her lab coat; if she were as pleased as Ingram was, her facial expression sure didn't show it.
   "Right on schedule." She stepped forward, attempting to roll up her sleeves. "I've completed the restoration of Prime's basic functions and he's ready to go. In fact, it's getting difficult to explain to the system why it can't move right now."
 Every word was a grumble, every sentence a moan.
   "Well, as soon as my scribes get those actuators in place, we'll have his arms and legs installed in no time. Which brings me to your next assignment." Ingram smiled and naturally my eyes narrowed.
   "Why do I get the feeling you're about to send me out on another dangerous wild goose chase?"
   "If you're implying that geese were supposedly perilous before the end of the world, I'd hate to come across the post-apocalyptic version. Sorry..where was I..?" She shook her head, chuckled away the thought. "Right, it won't be long before Prime can walk and talk, but he's missing one last important element. His nukes. Without them, his offensive systems aren't operating at peak capacity."
   "Figures. So what's he armed with?" I folded my arms.
   "Prime has two weapon systems: his eye laser and his nuke pack. The eye laser can target a hostile from hundreds of yards and take it down with pinpoint accuracy. His nukes are modified with Mark 28 Nuclear Bombs, the same type of bombs that were dropped from aircraft during the Great War. Just one of the nukes is equivalent to about three or four Fat Man shells. Basically, whatever it hits isn't getting up again."
I raised my hand and held it in the air, frowning. "Wait, you mean to say that we're going to fire off the same nuclear bombs that ended the world? How can you justify that? It'll just be Armageddon repeated!"
   "See that's where science comes into it." Scara spoke up. "The bombs dropped from the aircraft in the war were designed to impact a larger radius, so naturally had a larger amount of fissile materials to fit the arsenal. However, since Liberty Prime is a grounded offense, his nukes will have a more concentrated amount of fissile materials. In child-friendly terms, the blast radius will be a lot smaller, and will be directed only at the Institute's location. If we have done our research correctly, the impacted area of damage will stretch out to possibly 1.61km (1 mile) or less."

My stomach clenched, knotted together so tight I found it difficult to breathe. My mind flooded with the memory of the day the world as I knew it ended. Faces of the people I never knew who lost their lives on that day, and those who've been losing them in all the days that have followed.
War crushes the prospect of a peaceful life in its bloodied hands and wipes them with the lives of innocent people. The select few who find themselves at odds with one another are the ones who pull the strings and destroy. How many undeserving people have to suffer because of it? Am I now not another of those at the controls?

   "Knight? Are you in there?"
I felt sick.
   "Hey, you OK?" Ingram's hand was on my shoulder, the touch regaining my focus.
   "S-sorry, what were you saying?"
   "You zoned out whilst I was discussing Prime's offensives, so I'll just repeat the basics. His eye laser is almost ready to go, but without his nukes to load into his packs, he's fighting at less than half his capability."
   "That's no big deal, just tell me where they are."
   "I wish I could. The Commonwealth was a major staging area for the military's air force, so we assumed we wouldn't have any trouble finding them. But since we arrived, our scouting teams haven't located a single bomb."
   "That's going to be a problem." The professor had now ditched the lab coat, revealing pale and scarred arms from years of conducting science experiments. "Without a fully loaded nuke pack, Prime won't have the firepower needed to take on the Institute."
I frowned, wiping the sweat from my brow.
   "Can we build the nukes like we did the actuators?"
The Proctor released a troubled breath and shook her head no.
   "I could build you a thousand casings right now, but we've got nothing to put inside them. Concerning what Professor Scara was saying, the Mark 28's have a specialised nuclear payload that requires the correct balance of fissile materials in order for them to detonate properly. In other words, I'd love to mix you a cocktail, but I'm all out of liquor. Before you give up hope, there's actually a silver lining here. Proctor Quinlan has located some records regarding a military installation which was used as a nuclear weapon storage facility. We're fairly certain this included a stockpile of the Mark 28's." She pulled out a map of the Commonwealth and flattened it on a countertop, before using her finger as a pinpoint.
   "The catch, is that the installation is located somewhere in the Glowing Sea."
   "Brilliant, just the place I was thinking about jetting off to for my next vacation. I could use a break from all this danger." I smirked, though the two women could sense the dismal behind the sarcasm. "I'll head out there immediately."
   "Good, because that's exactly what we're asking you to do. Scribe Haylen will be establishing a communications point on the frontier of the Glowing Sea. I suggest you head out there first and establish a signal protocol with her so that the nukes can be airlifted out once you've located them. Hopefully by the time you've returned, we'll be ready to wake Prime up and you can say hello. Good luck, Knight."
   "Yeah, yeah. Ad Victoriam and all." I waved them off, and with a quick glance at the robot on the tarmac, I headed inside the airport and caught a lift up to the Prydwen.


I found Paladin Danse in the barracks. He was preoccupied with a selection of children, all training to be squires for the Brotherhood. I noticed Shaun had snuck in, trying - and failing - to blend in at the back. However, the excitement I glimpsed on his face held me back from both approaching him and interrupting Danse.
   "What's your advice on fighting a Deathclaw?" A child the same age as Shaun asked with his hand in the air, fascination in his eyes.
   "My advice for hunting a Deathclaw?" He paused, pretended to think hard about his answer though he already knew exactly what to tell them. "Run. Return to base and forget about it. You'll live longer."
I let out an airy laugh through my nose and focused my attention back towards my son. He was giggling with a few of those sat around him. He's making friends, I pray they be with him for life.

   "Did you know that Elder Maxson fought a Deathclaw when he was thirteen?!" One jumped with enthusiasm.
   "Yeah! And that's how he got his scar!" Another elaborated.
   "I bet he didn't run away scared."
   "No, he didn't." Danse spoke louder with strict authority, regaining everyone's attention including my own. "And he almost got himself killed because of it. Elder Maxson got lucky. Being a part of the Brotherhood is all about being brave and taking risks, yes. But we don't do stupid things that are likely to get us killed. We aren't heroes, so don't try to be. We're an army who protect those who can't protect themselves. And what good will we do those people when we're all dead because we went chasing after foolish missions?" His fierce and strong eyes scanned the faces of the children for another witty remark, but got none. And then he tagged me in the corner. "Alright, everyone back to what they were doing." He ushered them away as a wave of whispers erupted between them. I stepped towards him with a calm smile.
   "Do you think I was too harsh on them? Too abrupt?"
   "Not at all. It's not right that children this age are training to fight in wars that shouldn't even concern them, so it's good to convince them to avoid unnecessary danger."
He sighed heavily, "yeah, that's sort of what I was hoping to get at."
   "You did good. Hey, you know what? I think you'd have made a decent History teacher." I smirked to which he chuckled.
   "Well I do like to brush up on old-world facts in my free time."
   "I know you do."

I removed the laser rifle from its sling across my back and headed towards my bunk. Danse followed behind and perched on the bed opposite, watching as I cleaned the weapon's chamber.
   "So Ingram gave me my next mission. Getting Prime's nukes." I raised my gaze to meet his. "I've got to head back out to the Glowing Sea."
   "I think you mean 'we've'."
   "Danse-"
   "I'm coming with you, Evie."
   "It's dangerous-" 
   "Exactly! I'm not letting you go out there alone. You watch my back, I watch yours, remember?"
   "I don't want you to get hurt."
   "This is not up for debate. We're doing this together, and that's an order." His voice grew stern, and my temper was spiking.
   "You can't just go around saying 'that's an order' whenever we disagree on a decision!"
   "Yes I can, and I will. I am your Commanding Officer, and right now you're being insubordinate, so stand down!"
   "Fine!" I released a defeated sigh, inhaled slowly and placed my head in my hands. A silence followed. In the midst of the argument I'd raised up to my feet, so I allowed myself to fall back down onto my bed. Then it was his turn to sigh.
Removing my hands from my face I met his sorrowed gaze. "Look, I've been out there before and I'm lucky to be able to tell the tale. Just like you told those kids, one wrong move out there and you're dead. When I went I did it solo. It's so hard to see, the air is green and thick with gas and fog. How can I look out for you if I can't see where you are? What if I lose you and what if I can't protect you?"
My heartbeat was thumping with such an intense ferocity that I hadn't felt the tears form in my eyes and cloud my vision. Beneath the dew, Danse was frowning and reached to take my hands in his.
   "Evie, don't you understand? Those fears you just listed are the exact reason I'm not going to allow you to face this alone." He brushed his thumb across my cheeks, erasing the weakness. I sniffled and forced my lips up into a half-hearted smile.
   "Together?"
   "Together."