A little girl hugged Piper as she ready herself to leave.
"Sis... Please don't go." Natalie hugged her sister.
"Don't worry, Big sister can handle herself, don't worry, I will be back as much as I can okay? Be a good girl." Piper patted her head as she walked towards the exit of diamond city.
As the doors of Diamond city closed Piper walked beside Alexander.
"So where to now Boss?"
"Call me Alex, since we have a obligatory contract.. We are heading to Good neighbor, know the place?" Alexander said as they walked towards the outskirts of the city.
"Of course... Been there and back, looking for something?"
"Just received some request that we should head there to see what's up."
Piper held out a Las pistol.
"Wow, did your contacts in the imperium made it?"
"Something like that, There is nothing in the wasteland would dare fight against you... Unless if it's a super mutant, which I know you ain't that stupid to try that out... This is a gift for self defense, you find out more of the weapon as you used it." Alexander spoke.
"But there is another place on your mind yes?"
"A quick detour."
Alexander found himself in a familiar fuel station that bear the name red rocket with a dog looking at him.
"Here boy?" Alexander held out a piece of meat.
"Woof" the dog walked towards him and grabbed the meat from his hands...
"Who's a good boy, yes you are, oh yes you are..." Alexander petted the dog.
"I never took you as a dog person?"
"You didn't asked. Now let's go... I hope... Someone would feed him..." Alexander smiled as he patted the dog head, the dog barked as he returned to the red rocket. Waiting for a certain someone to fetch him.
As they entered the city, they noticed a certain part of the city is undergoing demolition in place. Several gunfire and explosion occured in Boston proper.
Piper wanted to go there and seek a new scoop.
"What is going on there, the downtown?" Piper asked as she hears rockets and explosion occured in the downtown Boston.
"Cleansing, Piper I suggest you might want to stay clear of their operation, I heard from the radio of the raiders that harmed the interest of the imperium and the people that lived in the commonwealth have been marked for death, ordered by the High lord himself..."
"Its ironic, that a mayor we elected is Chicken out of the fact that a small raider group is enough to spook the security teams but some big shot from some faraway land is concerned about our wellbeing...Can we go there?"
"Judging by the screams? Probably tomorrow, you might be in danger of association with the raiders... Their operations tend to be a bit... Messy."
However piper being a thickheaded one, ventured just on the outskirts of the battleground and saw the gore and bullet casings scattered all over the place. Some of the buildings is destroyed outright as missile and lasers erupted, bringing fireworks.
A group of giant men wearing power armor stood by the entrance leading into the downtown with a servitor probe scanning them.
"Halt Civilians, this sector is not clear, return to another way. If there is a slave or prisoner held by the raiders you wished to interview or seek their freedom, go to Fort Adams for their processing."
"Can I asked some interviews about the Imperium?"
"Sadly no, Citizen, please go to another direction for your safety." The giant man spoke with tones of finality.
As piper wants to interview the Astartes.
The astates that lead the group recognize Alexander and spoke to him in his comms.
'High lord, Who is this new companion of yours?'
'A local remembrancer, she knows some parts of this place what the satellites may not detect. Don't informed her of my position.'
'Understood.' the Astartes nodded.
Piper walked up to him with her cheeks puffed.
"Can you believe with those guys. Feels like I am talking like a pile of bricks."
"Can't be helped... They are being professional at the moment... " Alexander sighed with her antics.
They headed the direction to Good Neighbors.
It was a place where people that have nowhere to go have a place to return to, well... Not much people is walking outside since the continuous fire of the downtown have made the people fear of their lives.
A ghoul approach them.
"Welcome to Good Neighbor, Newcomers. I am Dean Hancock, the Mayor of this place."
"What happened around here?"Alexander looked around and found that there is a lot less people that he could recalled.
"Well, it looks like Imps are having a little cleansing operation and they killed our last mayor by a stray shot, Though some of them ended up joining the imperium... Can't say I blame them of course." Hancoo breathed a smoke ring...
"I came here on the behest from the imperium to check the citizens of Good neighbor."
"I heard about it, what's it for us?"
"We will leave good springs alone and we hoped to have a decent corporation. We will provide medical aid and a trading opportunities for the citizens to get back on their feet."
"Hmm... Let me think...what do you think about ghouls Mr ambassador?"
"They deserve a second life, we don't discriminate against ghouls, infact we managed to find a way to reverse their faces back. And they could have a choice to go back." Alexander smiled.
"Interesting... What do you think about the Mayor McDonough?"
"Haven't met face to face with the man, he seemed more hostile towards imperial rule from what I hear from the folks... Maybe because he knows we accept Ghouls that didn't lost their minds?"
"I see... Well you are welcome in Good Neighbor. Weird, I surprised that Finn is not around at the time..." Dean waved goodbye as he disappear into another building.
"Wow, I surprised that he didn't gut you the moment that you mentioned you are from the Imperium." Piper remarked.
"All i know is that we killed super mutants and raiders."
They begn to louter the area, Piper gave some information of her travels here in good neighbor.
And they went at a bar where a singer named Madeline sang while having lunch.
Helped a old lady clear out the library from super mutants...
They arrived at a ammunition shop that housed a strange assaultron.
"Well hello there, pretty lady... Whatcha got?"
"Everything here is guaranteed to injure, maim, or kill at your discretion. Except me. I only kill when I want to." The assaultron spoke.
"Got any Fat man and some ammunition? I could use something to erase some stains in my life"
"Of course, got it from a dead drunk that pissed me off in my journey. 17k caps or 5k thrones."
"You taking thrones now?" Piper chime in.
"With traders come by to good neighbors using thrones and a stable currency from a massive empire why not?"
Alexander held out a pouch of Platinum thrones and handed to the assaultron.
"Will this be enough?"
The robot picked up a piece and placed it on a material detector that is filled with blood.
After confirming it. The assaultron silently nodded and gave Alexander a Fatman with a MiRV Upgrade and several stacks of Mininukes.
"Have a nice day..." The assaultron waved goodbye.
(Why do I got the urge to make a Techpriest x KL.E.O?)
They went at Hotel Rexford to book in for the night.
Where they met Vault tech rep in a surprising fashion.
Alexander was tired of the sweat accumulated in his helmet and the ghoul went out of his room
"You! How are you alive!?" A raspy voice was heard from behind.
"Do I know you... Mister?"
"There is no place on earth I do not recognize that hair and face... Alexander solair... How are you still alive!?" The ghoul screech.
"Umm... Hello?"
"I am Vault Tech representative in Boston branch. I seen your face on the papers everyday. So there no way I can't forget you."
"Well the jigs up, what do want?"
"I want to know how you got that looks of yours, I waited for two hundred years..."
"Been into stasis for two hundred years."
"It seems like... You ain't doing so well. What happened?"
"Well... They promised me that I have a place in the vault... But no... I stood outside, I felt my flesh ripped from my face. The last time I remember I woke up among the ghouls that went batshit insane... I went to my last customer house where a mr. handy was trimming those dead hedges for so long he kept yammering till I fed up and I ended up here ..."
"Must be rough, huh buddy?"
"Yeah, when you have this sorry ass of a face, you bound to make people mad."
"What if I say... There is a cure to return you back to the old face of yours?"
"Really?"
"The imperium from the west have already managed to reverse the ghoulification... And in about a week, there is a outpost in fort Adams set up to fix just that."
The vault tech eyes widen.
"Why do this for me? I worked for a rival corporation against yours?"
"Well, vault tech is gone, why should I let my hatred to spread on to the grunts? The corporation rivalry is over now."
"I see... Make me wished I had joined your company..." The ghoul sound defeated.
"But there is a brand new start for you... After all the world could use a salesman like your expertise." Alexander patted the Vault tech representative. He handed the remaining thrones and a badge to the Vault tech representative.
"Here is your startup funds after you returned to normal, at least you can make a business in the imperial territory. Just don't go out at the moment, as there is a cleaning operation outside of good neighbor, wouldn't want a stray bullet end a new ease of life?"
"Well, thanks for the heads up. If what you said is true... Then I will be a better saleman." The ghoul smiled as he entered his room.
Piper approached him from the back.
"So you are Alexander solair, High Lord of the Imperium?"
"So... You heard? You got good ears."
"So what is our relationship now?" Piper wanted to clarify their standing.
"Just a Trader from Quincy and a Local reporter what wants to have a scoop of the century. "
"I have so much to interview with you, Alexander, about your Policies about Boston... And what do you mean you can revert the ghouls to humans again?"
"One question at the time... Piper-"
There was a scream at the ground floor alerting both of them. And Alexander grabbed his helmet and a shotgun and loaded it with ap slugs and went to the staircase.
Piper noticed his seriousness and armed herself with a laspistol .
They found the sweet old woman that allows them to stay for the night, her guard dead as several rusted looking automatons accompanied by someone waiting for them. Among them is a futuristic looking figure standing among the robots.
Alexander looked incensed at the death of a old woman that died at the counter.
"Are you Alexander Solair?"
"Who the fuck are you?"
"I am X6-17 and I have instructions from the institute to apprehend you for the sake of the commonwealth."
"You do know if you capture me, there will be repercussions? I can simply declare war on the Institute right?" Alexander already alerted the Astartes to apprehend any institute personnel that is walking in the commonwealth, destroy them if necessary.
"Your opinions is unnecessary, this is the only place where your soldiers will unable to aid you. Prepared to be arrested or exterminated, Gen one and Two capture him anyone that is with him, eradicate them."
The gen one and two's rushed forward to the stairwell.
Alexander fired his shotgun at the hordes of synths
And Piper also joined in as she realizes that they wanted them both dead. And she discovered that her laspistol managed to bore a hole into group of synths.
"Wow the institute is real! This would make the biggest scoop of the year!" Piper smiled as she shot haphazardly at the crowd that is shooting at her back.
"That is if we make it out alive!"
The synths flooded into the hotel like crazy. And Alexander switched his Shotgun and replaced it with a hellgun. The second weapon that he was given in the imperium now in his hands...
"Sorry for not using you my friend..." Alexander patted the Hellgun as it seemed to express discontent.
"But now it's a time to shine. Show them what you made of!" Alexander pulled the trigger and golden beams of light eradicated the crowd.
"Piper Cover my rear! Synths are teleporting behind me!!"
"Okay Alex!"
XX6-17 was confused of the fact that their information have backfired upon them.
They already observe the imperial occupation and made plans.
They wanted to make him a synth and control the massive resources that the imperium held from the shadows.
But their blindness as to why Alexander always not accompanied by his armies have made a glaring fact.
He is strong enough to conquer the world by himself.
The moment they become hostile, he immediately disappeared from their sensors, but they know that he is somewhere in the second floor.
He relayed the new information back to the Institute. As he went outside and yelled at the surplus of troops that waited for him.
"Find him before his soldiers come and ruin our operations!" X6-17 yelled at the synths. They ignored the citizens as the target is before their very eyes.
Good Neighbor was in chaos as teleportation beams appeared around their town and flooded into the hotel.
It lasted for a solid 30 minutes until they ran out of reinforcements.
X6-17 was confused as he now stood alone in the Street of good neighbor... How did they managed to stop the horde.
Alexander walked out of the hotel. He is filled with chinks in his armor and motor oil with a hellgun and a powerbat by his side. Piper was tired as she stared at the what would be the closest sight of seeing the institute.
"What now? Should we do this the hard way? Or the Harder way?" Alexander glared at the Synth.
"Seems like that we underestimated your profile."
"I got a message for the institute, I know you have that video feed in that skull of yours, linking to the institute, for those who concocted that stupid plan of yours, by imperial laws, you lot have charges of attempted kidnapping a Imperial Official, Assault, and mass murder... And attack a Sovereign in his lands, that is a Casus Beli of War and stare execution. You can either surrender the one that made that plans or you can hide in that underground bunker of yours and wait for my army to trampled your precious legacy... I wanted to meet you and give you a olive branch to be under the imperium where we could have fixed this world, but you are too fucking greedy to replicate me with a fucking machine...no amount of scraps of metals will save your skulls...I am coming for you shitheads. I already know where you are." Alexander swung his power bat and the Synth Skull is flung with such a force to the direction of where the Institute is located, where he knows the message is already given.
Piper watch in shock of the amount of force that the power bat had flung the synth skull in the middle of the night. As she wanted to asked.
"I know you want to have many answers... But now... Rest and we will talk in tomorrow.. I have a...funeral to make." Alexander grieved for the people that died in the crossfire.
As Piper went up the bullet ridden bedroom, she saw a man that have coffins out of nowhere and place the corpses in them.
"Is he really the same man what the information that is given?" Piper wondered of the man that she followed.
She was told that he is merciless and cold hearted. That he ruled the imperium with a iron fist...
That he is a god that lead the people out of the nuclear fires that envelope the world.
But during the fight, he is concerned about her well being and her sister..and he expressed emotions to people that died in the crossfire. So who is he?
A man that cares or a god that smites?
"A duality paradox..." Piper muttered as she found the bed somewhat intact and slept for the day.
(Somewhere)
A group of scientist have sat around in a table that held the deceased X6-17 skull that held the recording of a furious Man that is spiteful.
"What now?" One of them spoke out.
"Any information from above?"
"No... All their chips imbedded in their skull have confirmed deceased inside the city... The only way we know is through That synth we placed at diamond city and those living in the outskirts of Boston. And we already seen signs of massive wave of soldiers that threatened the balance of status quo... And we have reports of what seems to be a replica of Liberty prime and they numbered by the hundreds. Several ships arrived from space and landed in Boston bay."
"What are our chances?"
"Zero, if we tried to pretend to surrender-"
"Keep your mind off that topic! He would slaughter us all!"
"What happened to Dr Zimmer?"
"He gave a resignation form before he left for the imperium..."
"Who gave the plan a go ahead? Didn't we asked father for his input?"
"At that time he is in stasis... There is no way we would know that capturing him would result to this..."
The scientists for the first time found their plans foiled. And they saw a choice...
They either surrender the ones that made the plan or fight and die...
And most of them agreed to it...
"Alright while father is in stasis... We hold a vote... Do we fight or surrender?"
Many held vote... Some split fifty fifty... Until one in Electrical voted for war.
"You do know we are already outnumbered, but we are not a bunch that will take threats lying down!" The hot blooded youth yelled out.
"How many synths can we produce within acceptable parameters?"
"With the lack of resources? Around 150 per day... 172 if we divert all power to making the synths..."
"Then do it... "
Madison li watch it all unfold... She sighed as her coworkers desiring war that they would never achieve... She went back to her labs and inputted several key noted on her computer.
She known the imperium and their influence in the Capitol wasteland...
It was a time when was part of project purity that is making the water fresh again in the capitol is when they received call from the Imperium that they will assist them.
And they came in with a army that swarmed the local super mutants and raiders alike.
She witness how much they fixed the ruined landscape... And law and order came within a month. She worked for them for three months until she decided to leave.
Before she left not because of their ways of doing things, but because of a broken heart.. Her crush went to lived in a vault with his pregnant wife...
She made way into the commonwealth and welcome into the institute... she noticed the difference between the imperium and the institute.
How many of the deeds been done by their hands... How many settlements were erased from the maps? She managed to gather some like minded people and shown them what they really are up against and agreed to surrender quietly. She managed to get a list of those that approved the war decisions. And hoped that from the flames of the destruction of the institute... May they arise from the ashes of the old.
They became too arrogant to believe that some upstart imperium would picked a fight with the Institute...
What became of tomorrow started a prologue of a One day war...