Andronicus23

Of Petty States: A Warhammer NRP

Realm of Azzsar

Faction Name: The Realm of Azzsar



(Old banner hanging with Azzsar's throne room, a tattered remnant from Old Strygos)

Held territory: A deep cave system within the Grey Mountains which serves as the Court of Azzsar. The tunnels and side passages that make up Azzsar’s realm are dark and twisted, with paths that lead both to the Underway and to the deep warrens and brood nests of the verminous Skaven. Some passages lead to great cavernous openings, like the one that serves as Azzsar’s great ‘throne room’ while others meander and wind through the mountains, take deep vertical dives, or simply end abruptly forcing explorers to backtrack miles. Few dare to brave these passages and none who do come back out alive. Safe paths through his realm are known only to those of his court: namely the ghouls, spirits, and wights that are his devoted servants. The Ghoul King constantly wars with the Skaven, Dwarfs, and others over these tunnels, and skirmishes and battles are fought deep within this hellish underworld beneath the mountains completely unknown to the wider world.

Ruler: Azzsar the Dreamer, Blood of Ushoran and Prince of Mourkain. Azzsar is a vampire of the Strigoi bloodline, and a former lord of the once great land of Strygos. After the fall of Strygos and the flight of its broken people, Azzsar made his way into the lands of the Old World. Constantly hunted both by humans and by vampires of the other bloodlines who wished to see the Gets of Ushoran wiped out, Azzsar was driven deep into the Grey Mountains, where he took to hiding within its many deep caverns. There he found a tribe of degenerate ghouls living within these same caverns and quickly bent them to his will, becoming their lord and master. Following this, Azzsar carved out a territory for himself within this underground world, and set up a court of his own from which he might continue to act the part of a noble of Strygos. This act is just that however, and is a pale imitation of his former glory. No longer can he command legions of disciplined warriors, instead the beastial ghouls of his realm are his to lead. His former princely robes are exchanged for ghoul and Skaven-hide garments, and his throne of gold is now one of bones and stone. Here, deep within his new realm he waits, and has slept for years on end as he dreams of past glories and the promise of better days yet to come. Yet recent stirrings in the mountains and beyond has led him to awaken and become more active within his dark kingdom.

Azzsar as a Strigoi Ghoul King is an immensely strong fighter, even more so than a vampire of the Blood Dragon bloodline. What the Strigoi lack in grace and skill in their fighting style, they make up for with sheer strength and raw power. The body of a Strigoi is heavily muscled, monstrously large, and with long sharp claws which might rip and tear apart any who would dare disturb him.


(Ushoran, first of the Strigoi and sire of Azzsar)

In addition to brute strength he is also a gifted caster. Like many of his kin, he is adept at Necromancy and the Lore of Death, and can wield great power in this regard. Raising new servants into unlife and imbuing himself with unholy power. He is a dangerous foe by any measure and only the strongest or the most foolish would ever dare to challenge him directly in battle.

However he is not without his weakness. Like all vampires Azzsar has an aversion to the sun, but in his own case this is particularly egregious. As is the case with many Strigoi in hiding, Azzsar has spent so many years cloaked in almost total darkness that his body, were it to come into contact with the rays of the sun, would almost assuredly begin to burn his skin instantly. Some vampires, especially those of the Von Carstein and Lahamian blood can resist or even completely overcome their weakness to the sun, but this is not the case with Azzsar and his Strigoi kin. It would be almost impossible for him to ever return to the surface without the shielding blackness of night.

Economy: The Strigoi Lord rules over a primitive undead kingdom of ghouls and ghosts, not merchants and traders. His economy is almost non-existent but despite this there is still some opportunity for trade. Great seams of warpstone run throughout his realm and when he is not actively at war with a Skaven clan over them, he might trade with them for trinkets or human slaves from the surface to sate his bloodthirst. In addition when he fled from Mourkain Azzsar brought with him a trove of treasure that he keeps hidden within his throne room: a small horde of gold and jewels from Strygos. While he would be loath to use what is left of his old wealth in barter, he might still use a small sum of it to bribe humans or otherwise part with it in a time of great need.

Of course for those who desire it, Azzsar can also offer the unbridled promise of necromantic power and even the kiss of unlife should he deem them worthy to be sired. More than one necromancer has tried to seek Azzsar out so they might learn secrets he offers, only to be horribly dismembered by his servants or hopelessly lost within the labyrinthine passages of his realm.

Resources: Azzsar’s realm despite its rather primitive state is rich in natural resources. Veins of precious minerals and even warpstone run readily throughout the passages and caverns which he lords over which cut deep into the bowels of the earth. This makes his holdings attractive and eminently desirable to the greed of Dwarfs and Skaven. In the case of the Dwarfs, this is a matter of reclaiming their lost mines and Underway holdings which their ancestors once held. For the Skaven: this is purely greed and taking what should rightly be controlled by the Children of the Horned rat.

Of course for a Lord of Mourkain there is also limitless potential within these cavernous depths. Passages which tunnel under graveyards or into ancient barrows that provide thralls aplenty to serve in the Strigoi King’s armies along with ancient weapons and tomes he might make use of. Even the ghouls, bestial as they are, are valuable: they provide a valuable source of blood for the vampire as they are still technically living. Obviously whenever possible, Azzsar would much prefer to capture and drink the blood of untainted humans.

The Teeming Undead: Azzsar has at his disposal thousands of ghouls and undead creatures. The bulk of his army are indeed made up of ghouls, the tribe of which he has dominated since his arrival in the grey mountains. Ghouls are not particularly reliable fighters, but they are fierce, quick, and deadly in swarms. Their weapons of bone and rock are also more often than not poisoned by decay and filth, which can lead to a slow and painful death to an enemy even if they survive an encounter with them. They are also actually living creatures, being humans that have devolved into animalistic creatures due to indulging in cannibalism. While this means they do need to eat, drink and sleep: it also means they will breed and grow without need of expending magic to raise them. And moreover, it means that they can sometimes go places where other undead creatures may not. Such as in some cases: holy ground.

The rest of Azzsar’s servants are made up of either undead zombies (mostly Skaven but also dwarfs and humans), a number of wraiths and ghosts ( summoned or created from wizards or necromancers unlucky enough to come into Azzsars clutches) and a small number of Wights. The Wights are Azzsars favored servants as unlike the zombies or ghouls, they have some semblance of intelligence and military tradition about them. They consist of the remains of ancient human soldiers raised from the barrows deep within the mountains. Unlike other undead, they retain a small aspect of their soul and thus retain the martial prowess they once held in life. Accordingly, Azzsar uses them as commanders and captains of his undead hordes.

Deep with the darkest caverns of the mountains, there also lurks the potential for other beasts to be raised into service. The mighty Terrogheist is one such creature that, when killed, could be raised into unlife and pressed to serve the Strigoi King.

Regiments of Renown: “The Horrors in the Deep '' a number of Crypt Horror “honor guard” that Azzsar has raised to his service from the teeming masses of the ghouls of his realm. Crypt Horrors are created in a bastardization of the blood kiss, in which a vampire will open their veins and let a ghoul drink of his vampiric blood for some amount of time. Upon which the ghouls grow larger and larger until they become a monstrous mass of flesh and muscle many times their normal size. These abominations guard Azzsar’s ‘throne room’, and protect his person when he slumbers within his stone sarcophagus. Allowing a creature such a ghoul to drink of their blood is considered completely abhorrent by almost all vampires. Only one of the Strigoi would likely ever consider such an act unless the need was great indeed. For Azzsar however, it is but a small price to pay for having such powerful creatures to guard his tomb.

The Horrors of the Deep are a particularly brutal batch of Crypt Horrors, and carry large clubs of stone and mammoth bone. Azzsar has allowed them to drink so many times of his blood, that they have gained particularly enhanced healing and regeneration abilities, giving them an even more dangerous aspect.

Foreign Policy: A Strigoi has few friends and many enemies. Even amongst other vampires the Strigoi are considered outcasts and undesirables. Other bloodlines, especially those of the Lahmian brood, consider them foul and uncouth: the spawn of Ushoran who stole the elixir of life from Neferatra and did not ‘earn’ it as their sires did. Even the Necrarchs, dark and twisted as they are, tend not to associate themselves with a Strigoi, for fear of bringing down the wrath of other bloodlines onto their secret lairs and towers.

And yet there is still some hope for the Strigoi to navigate that wider world. Azzsar has the loyalty of many wandering Strigany caravans: the exiled peoples of Strygos who yet still hold to the old ways and the old tales. Tales of how the vampires once ruled over them beneficently and gloriously, drinking only the blood criminals while defending them from all manner of threats. Rumors abound amongst those who seek Azzsar that he yet might be contacted through the Strigany....

As for the verminous Skaven: Azzsar is not opposed to working with them when it suits his purpose, but he must be careful not to favor one clan too much: for the rat men are notoriously treacherous. Better to let them fight amongst each other and battle them when and where the opportunity presents itself within the deep warrens of the mountains.

Culture: Azzsar still clings to the noble concepts and ideals of Strygos. Although that empire is long gone. He lords over his ghoulish and undead servants like a true king, and expects utter deference and respect in return. He constantly drills his “soldiers” and trains them for war, although the ghouls can do nothing but obey his every order regardless and have little in the way of thoughts of their own.

Notable locations: The deep tunnels of the Northern Grey Mountains, the Realm of Azzsar, Azzsar’s Throneroom, and the Great Pit (a great chasm within the mountains which is one of the deepest locations in the region).

Of Petty States: A Warhammer NRP

Obviously still interested in this and planning on playing a Strigoi Vampire somewhere in the Grey mountains.

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

New Horizons Coalition

Tactical Recovery Team Zulu 43 ‘Night Stalkers’ - Paris, France
Recovery Operation ‘Hammer Fall”

Commander Vahid had stumbled upon something terrible.

Zulu 43 had made their way to the warehouse in quick order, and on his command, had breached the doors and began their raid with pinpoint precision. Initial resistance from the smugglers had been light, as expected, and Vahid had anticipated that the raid would proceed as a standard operation.

What had quickly become clear was that this was far from a typical smuggling ring. The intelligence that had been gathered over the past month had not indicated anything out of the ordinary. The smugglers were suspected to be affiliated with contacts in North America, and the artifacts that had been positively identified as in their possession were not considered to be dangerous. More than likely they’d been acquired either through illegal zone scavenging operations in eastern europe or via illicit artifact trading within the city itself. All in all it was considered a low-level bust, with the potential to at least reveal some valuable info on higher level targets.

Things had started to go sideways once they'd cleared the first floor, and proceeded down into the warehouse basement level. Zulu 43 had neutralized resistance quickly, but soon found themselves staring at an unanticipated makeshift tunnel deep within the basement’s structure. It had seemingly been carved out recently by the smugglers themselves, and a safe bet would assume it was some manner of escape tunnel that potentially connected to other buildings in the surrounding area. Not wanting to lose the initiative and potentially allow any high-level targets to escape, Vahid had made the risky request that Zulu 43 continue pursuit immediately down the tunnel. A request that had quickly been granted by Operation Command.

Activating their night vision optics, and leaving two of their members behind to guard the entrance and await reinforcements, the Recovery Team had probed the darkness beyond. The tunnel appeared to be wired for electricity, but in their haste to escape the smugglers had either not activated it or had shut it off to deter pursuit. Overall the tunnel appeared stable and surprisingly well constructed, which immediately began to tip Vahid off to the notion that this might be for more than just a quick exit.

Those suspicions were confirmed when the team began encountering rooms: living quarters and storeroom areas. Some of them even appeared to be well furnished, especially given the circumstances. They cleared each and every one before proceeding onward. In one of these rooms, Vahid had found and picked up a book of some sort, lying on a nearby table upon which strange symbols had been carved. The cover had multiple languages, French, Latin, Russian, and English. The title had read simply:

“The Prophecies of The Thousand Eyes”

“Shit,” Vahid cursed, as he showed the book to his lieutenant, “I knew something was off here.”

“Thousand Eyes,” The Lieutenant gave a whistle, “Didn’t think we’d seen those psychos here. How the hell did they get into Paris unnoticed?”

Vahid shook his head, “No idea, but we need to fall back. Now. There’s no telling what's up ahead.”

“Commander! Contacts!” One of the soldiers shouted, right before he began opening fire further down the tunnel.

“Damn it!” Vahid cursed, and swung his M4 back up.

Screams echoed further down, and twisted almost inhuman forms could be seen manifesting in his night vision. Unchecked NLC mutations, especially those utilized by the Cult of the Thousand Eyes, were loathsome to behold. Thousand Eyes was a Post-Visitation Doomsday Cult dedicated to the idea that humanity was unworthy of its place in the universe, and ultimately believed it to be only deserving of enslavement or eradication. By hastening this end, members of the cult hoped to be found worthy of transcendence by the ever-watchful ‘thousand eyes’ within the black void of space.

The hulking form of a heavily muscled man-creature covered in all manner of ritualistic tattoos barreled down the tunnel towards the Zulu 43 members as it threw aside lesser mutates in its way. In the confined space, it seemed nigh impossible to bring the NLC mutant down with small arms without it reaching them first. Vahid began waving the rest of his team away to make for the exit back where they’d come.

“Ramón! Light it up!”

One of the soldiers detached a flamer nozzle from a device on his back, and he aimed it down the tunnel towards the rapidly advancing mutant. As it came within feet of the pair of them, the nozzle unleashed a hellish torrent of fire. The sounds of screaming filled the tunnel and the fire illuminated deformed faces caught in utter agony.

“Go go!’ Vahid ordered, and he and Ramón began to beat a hasty retreat to follow the rest of Zulu 43 back out the tunnel.

Svalbard Global Operations Headquarters

“As all divisions are currently present, the meeting may proceed.”

A woman in a cleanly pressed black dress suit took her seat at an empty table in a dimly lit room, all around her on the wall were various screens, upon which six other individuals in similar attire were displayed as they transmitted remotely from locations across the globe. Their faces were obscured and their backdrops were nondescript, a certain degree of anonymity being the desired result.

“I’d like to start by going over the report from Paris, an artifact Tactical Recovery Team, codename Zulu 43, engaged elements of the Cult of the Thousand Eyes during a raid on a suspected smuggling ring. Once it became clear that the cult was involved, Zulu 43 immediately retreated and relayed a request for assistance. A close quarters combat specialist team was deployed and the nest was immediately purged. We’re still gathering evidence regarding the Cult’s activities there in cooperation with French authorities.”

“Thousand Eye’s presence in a major European city is disturbing to say the least,” One of the figures on the screens stated, “We need to make sure everything is being done to ascertain how they were able to slip past Coalition intelligence and establish such a strong foothold.”

“A foothold right under our very nose….” another added solemnly, “Aurora any thoughts on that point?”

The woman perked up at her codename, “I’m taking the necessary steps to do just that,” she replied, “I should have an initial report from my subordinates within the next day or two.”

“Very good, I don’t mean to suggest that this was a lapse in your division’s operations. It is a concerning development that affects us all.”

Aurora nodded, “I take no offense, and concur with the assessment.”

“Very good, we’ll continue monitoring the situation then, and raise our threat level regarding the Cult of The Thousand Eyes worldwide. It's clear that we’ve underestimated their capabilities. Their dangerous use of NLC artifacts poses a threat to mankind as a whole, and they cannot be allowed to spread unchecked.”

“Agreed.” Came the unanimous reply.

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

New Horizons Coalition

Name:
New Horizons Coalition or NHC

Headquarters: The NHC maintains a military installation and monitoring station in Svalbard, Norway which serves as its Global HQ.

Ownership:

Empowered and entrusted by many of the world’s major national governments and private entities, the NHC is a group dedicated to the defense and preservation of humanity in the wake of The Visitation along with the study, containment, or elimination of the world’s anomalous zones (AZs) and the artifacts that can be found within.

History:

The NHC as an organization was founded directly following the Visitation and the tumultuous events that transpired after it. In its wake, many governments throughout the world felt helpless and completely unprepared as they grappled with a stark wake up call: our undeniably insignificant place in the universe, and humanity’s utter lack of knowledge regarding the horrors caused by the introduction of New-Langium Compounds. Fear gave way to resolve and in a joint accord governments and private entities across the globe funded the creation of the New Horizons Coalition which was to be a collection of scientists, researchers, engineers, and military assets from around the world dedicated to one goal: fighting back.

Since its formation, the NHC has expanded rapidly, with an initial explosion of funding and resources, which resulted in the creation of numerous black sites and exclusion zones across the globe under international jurisdiction. While the NHC is ostensibly a clandestine organization whose existence is kept from the general public, its continued operations are the subject of much debate and speculation amongst conspiratorial circles, most of whom are convinced it is the start of a New World Order and other nefarious ends.

Pressing Issues:

The NHC operates beyond political and national jurisdiction, and its purpose is to foster cooperation and utilize an unbiased scientific approach to the problems and opportunities brought about by The Visitation.

However, inevitably this same desire for unity and international cooperation inevitably has led to infighting and debate, as various groups and political affiliations vie for dominance of the Coalition and control of its direction. This includes the handling of exclusion zones and the artifacts recovered within. All while trying to continue to pursue its goal of eventually getting humanity to the point where it might stand even the slightest chance against whatever lies beyond the boundaries of our known universe.

While the Coalition continues to face growing internal problems, many within the NHC including its highest echelons are beginning to plan for an inevitable shift: as their loyalties now lie more with the Coalition and its goals than in the nations they previously called home.

Budget:

N.E.O. - New Earth Oracle

New Horizons Coalition

Name:
New Horizons Coalition or NHC

Headquarters: The NHC maintains a military installation and monitoring station in Svalbard, Norway which serves as its Global HQ.

Ownership:

Empowered and entrusted by many of the world’s major national governments and private entities, the NHC is a group dedicated to the defense and preservation of humanity in the wake of The Visitation along with the study, containment, or elimination of the world’s anomalous zones (AZs) and the artifacts that can be found within.

History:

The NHC as an organization was founded directly following the Visitation and the tumultuous events that transpired after it. In its wake, many governments throughout the world felt helpless and completely unprepared as they grappled with a stark wake up call: our undeniably insignificant place in the universe, and humanity’s utter lack of knowledge regarding the horrors caused by the introduction of New-Langium Compounds. Fear gave way to resolve and in a joint accord governments and private entities across the globe funded the creation of the New Horizons Coalition which was to be a collection of scientists, researchers, engineers, and military assets from around the world dedicated to one goal: fighting back.

Since its formation, the NHC has expanded rapidly, with an initial explosion of funding and resources, which resulted in the creation of numerous black sites and exclusion zones across the globe under international jurisdiction. While the NHC is ostensibly a clandestine organization whose existence is kept from the general public, its continued operations are the subject of much debate and speculation amongst conspiratorial circles, most of whom are convinced it is the start of a New World Order and other nefarious ends.

Pressing Issues:

The NHC operates beyond political and national jurisdiction, and its purpose is to foster cooperation and utilize an unbiased scientific approach to the problems and opportunities brought about by The Visitation.

However, inevitably this same desire for unity and international cooperation inevitably has led to infighting and debate, as various groups and political affiliations vie for dominance of the Coalition and control of its direction. This includes the handling of exclusion zones and the artifacts recovered within. All while trying to continue to pursue its goal of eventually getting humanity to the point where it might stand even the slightest chance against whatever lies beyond the boundaries of our known universe.

While the Coalition continues to face growing internal problems, many within the NHC including its highest echelons are beginning to plan for an inevitable shift: as their loyalties now lie more with the Coalition and its goals than in the nations they previously called home.

Budget:

War Never Changes 2 : A Post Nuclear Nation Roleplay

Dr. Xavier Morales - The Institute

Xavier sat with a piping hot cup of fresh brewed coffee in his hands whilst he read through the data files plastered on the screen before him. The blue hued glow of his terminal was now the lone source of light within his dimly lit quarters. Quiet hours had fallen over The Institute, and although most of its residents lay asleep, Xavier had business to attend to which required solitude.

The data that the Courser unit had managed to abscond with from the lab was a treasure trove of pre-war knowledge. Information about the facility's purpose, its funding sources, the scientists stationed there, along with detailed notes and reports about the research they’d all been pursuing: all of it was now his to study at his leisure. The terminal he was currently using was secure and isolated from The Institute’s network, an act which was in and of itself a clear violation of internal security protocols. However that particular misdemeanor paled in comparison to the far greater crime that Xavier was committing with the data he had in hand: nothing less than an act of treason against The Director herself.

“The CODE Program,” Xavier said softly in between sips of his drink. The bold headline of the dossier he’d just opened was underscored by subtext which read ‘CLASSIFIED’ along with the official seal of the pre-war Defense Intelligence Agency.

Xaviers eyes grew wide as he delved deeper into the report, the vast potential of the pre-war findings that the scientists at the RobCo Facility discovered grew more and more apparent with each passing paragraph.

He sat his coffee down and leaned back in his chair, a plan and a potential use for the research already forming, especially in light of the errant scrapping of the Gen-3 program. First thing was first however, as with all pre-war knowledge they discovered, he needed to replicate and verify results using The Institute’s own strict experiment standards. Innovative and daring they may have been in many cases, but the minds of the pre-war world were often tainted by the influence of corrupt politicians and meddling corporate concerns: exaggerations and outright falsifications were not uncommon. He needed hard data and proof that what he was seeing was not mere conjecture or outright fantasy. And he needed to do this all without any arousing any suspicion whatsoever from Dr. Li.

The Laboratory in Vault 88 would be invaluable of course, but he also did not want to simply entirely entrust the research to Dr. Zimmer and Dr. Holdren. Holdren he trusted, for the most part, but Dr. Zimmer was another matter entirely, he had no intention of allowing his erstwhile rival to have sole control over this research material and be able to do whatever he wished with it while Xavier was tending to duties in The Institute. For the moment, both of them wished to see Dr. Li removed from power, but afterwards once the Directorship was up for grabs: things would get much more complicated.

He would need some time to think on this and come up with a good solution. For the moment however, he’d have to share his investigation with Zimmer and Holdren first, and then figure out where to go from there. He couldn’t risk giving Zimmer any further reason to distrust him this early on.

Xavier looked at the time on his terminal, it was nearly 6:00am in the morning. He’d spent all night reviewing the material, and he’d have to report for work at the SSIB at 6:30. He quickly shut off the terminal, and left his quarters hurriedly.

---

Xavier strode into the SSIB facility at 6:20, cradling his umpteenth cup of coffee for that morning. He’d stopped on his way to grab it and a few nutritional supplements from the Commissary, so at least he’d be functional during his shift.

“Director,” a young woman in the black and white of the SSIB approached him, clipboard in hand, “Good morning sir. I think you’ll want to take a look at this right away.”

Xavier immediately took the clipboard and after a brief examination he set his coffee down at a nearby table and began to scrutinize it intently, a surprised look on his face. The clipboard contained a brief report and several surveillance images taken from Quincy by a Watcher pod.

“Just came in this morning sir, shortly before you arrived,” The woman stated, “Watcher pods were performing routine imaging of the area surrounding Quincy, and happened to capture it. It appears to be…”

“A VTOL aircraft, yes I’m fully aware, “ Xavier replied curtly, with a bit more of a bite to his tone than he really intended. He immediately regretted it, “Sorry Clara. I didn’t get much sleep last night. I’m a bit on edge this morning.”

“Think nothing of it sir,” Clara replied with a nod.

“Any other information?”

“None at the moment. I’m not even sure where or if it landed in The Commonwealth. All I can give is a general location of where it might have gone based on its apparent flight path.”

“That’s good enough for the moment, well done Clara.”

“Sir...do you think it's The Brotherhood? Are they back?” Clara asked, a hint of anxiety detectable in her voice.

“It's impossible to tell any insignia from the details here...but it's a possibility. However, I wouldn’t jump to conclusions just yet. But I’ll need to report it to the Director right away. She’ll want to be informed.”

War Never Changes 2 : A Post Nuclear Nation Roleplay

Nick Valentine - Diamond City Mayor’s Office, The Commonwealth

Nick waited patiently, sitting inside the Mayor’s office alongside Wiseman and Becky Fallon. Down the hall, in a separate room where a lone Security Officer stood watch outside, was where Kessler was currently interviewing, or rather interrogating, The Mechanist herself: Isabel Cruz. She’d been at it for nearly five hours straight now and Nick was beginning to feel as though Kessler was going overboard.

“Think we should go in and stop it?” Wiseman said, echoing Nick’s own thoughts, “Mechanist or not...what could Kessler possibly be asking her about that she needs this long?”

Becky started shaking her head before Wiseman had even finished, “No. She gets as long as she needs. That was the agreement. We don’t get to dictate how long it takes her to judge Isabel’s sincerity. She’s stuck to her end of the bargain...so we stick to ours.”

Nick reluctantly nodded, “I just hope she doesn’t need all night.”

Mercifully, as if in answer to his statement, the sounds of footsteps could be heard echoing down the office halfway. The three of them immediately perked up and looked expectantly towards the door. Kessler opened it and stepped through, it was immediately apparent that she was exhausted. Her expression had softened and the look of righteous fury that she’d gone into the interview with had long since disappeared and been replaced with a subdued sense of satisfaction.

“I believe her,” Kessler said after a moment’s pause, “I was so sure that it was all an act. That she was putting on a show just to escape punishment...but I think...I think she’s truly remorseful about what she did. That’s enough for me I guess.”

“So you’ll drop the call for execution then?” Becky asked, hopefully.

“Yes. She doesn’t deserve that. That still doesn't mean that I think she should be set free.”

“Of course,” Nick agreed, “I think we all still agree that she needs to make amends the rest of her life for what happened. It was a mistake...a costly one, but she deserves a chance at least to try.”

“So what’s next?” Wiseman asked.

“Well since Kessler is satisfied with Isabel’s sincerity, we move forward with the council’s vote to keep her under some form of house arrest and of course give her the choice of helping us by utilizing whatever expertise she has in service of The Commonwealth. Only time will tell if that ends up being worthwhile,” Becky replied.

“Sounds fair,” Wiseman nodded.

“Nick...I think it's best that you keep an eye on her when you can spare it, ” Becky continued, “I don’t want to put you on the spot to be her sole minder...but I feel you might be able to help her more than anyone here.”

“I’ll do what I can,” Nick replied with a nod.

“And what of Dr. Li’s request?” Wiseman asked, “Regarding that...proposal she put forward on Isabel.”

“Like hell we’ll accept that,” Kessler replied, “Sincere or not...she doesn’t get a free pass to The Institute. Li can blather all she likes about how much good Isabel would do with access to Institute technology...she can forget it.”

“I tend to agree...although not with those exact words.” Becky grinned, “I think what Isabel needs most now is to work directly with the people of The Commonwealth. Not with Institute scientists of whom I’m sure I don’t need to mention….”

Becky looked to Nick before continuing, who gave a quick nod of assent. He’d thoroughly checked the office for Institute Watchers when he’d arrived. It was safe to continue,

“.....that we all still have our own suspicions of. Chief among them now is the attack that occurred while Nick and the team were within Isabel’s facility.”

“I don’t understand, it was a super-mutant attack was it not?” Wiseman asked, confused.

Becky shook her head, “Think about it Wiseman. How often have super-mutants shown that level of coordination? What they just so happened to stumble upon a secret back-entrance to this pre-war facility just at the very moment that we were attempting to apprehend Isabel? It doesn’t add up. Not to mention the inexplicable loss of power the moment the mutants attacked.”

“Coincidences like that are never just coincidences,” Nick said, “I’m not necessarily sure that The Institute was somehow behind the attack, but it's a logical conclusion. No-one else but the Council knew about the facility. Isabel confirmed that the place had been abandoned since the war when she arrived...and she never gave out its location to anyone but us. While I’m not sure Dr. Li herself is directly involved...others inside The Institute might be.”

“To what end though?” Kessler asked.

“That’s the question that still bugs me,” Nick said, “But I have a feeling if we dig more into the facility...we just might find an answer.”

War Never Changes 2 : A Post Nuclear Nation Roleplay

Boston, The Commonwealth

Nick Valentine had taken the lead of the small team that the Commonwealth Provisional Government had decided they’d send to the Service Center to determine exactly who The Mechanist was and how she should be appropriately brought to justice. A one Captain Joseph Martin, appointed directly by General Shaw, had led a group of seven armed minutemen from The Castle. As had been agreed upon by the Council, their squad had met up with a woman by the name of Wilma Bardin at Bunker Hill who was to be the representative for The Bunker Hill Caravaners, the group perhaps most affected by The Mechanist’s transgressions. Nick had then met them all outside of the ruins of the Old North Church, and from there they’d taken a ferry boat across the channel to East Boston where the Mechanist’s lair was supposedly located.

On the boat ride over, Nick couldn’t help but think of the old pre-war theatrical dramas that had so often played over the radio in Goodneighbor: that of the stalwart Silver Shroud, the daring Mistress of Mystery, and the evil Mechanist. They’d always brought an amused grin to his synthetic face as he contemplated the irony of a robotic Detective listening to a pre-war play about how a vigilante crime fighter would stop a mad-man who wished to replace humans with robots. Now that same Detective was off to stop the Mechanist himself, so did that make him a twisted version of the Silver Shroud in this little farcical play? Perhaps...or perhaps the real tale was far more complicated than those pre-war stories could have ever hoped to portray. After all, was this Mechanist really evil? Or was she simply a girl who’d hoped to change the world for the better and failed? That’s what Nick wanted to find out most of all here.

Outside of the Robo Sales and Service Center the group had met up with the final member to take part in their expedition. Robert MacCready stood leaning up against the brick wall of the building when they approached and he was certainly outfitted for just about any situation. He was armored head to toe in a full suit of heavy combat armor and he wore a belt across his chest and waist with grenades of various types strapped to it. A heavily modified plasma rifle unlike any Nick had seen before was propped up against a railing nearby. It was clear The Institute kept their newest above-ground operative well supplied with both caps and armaments. MacCready regarded the group with a casual glance as they approached and he stood up to grab his rifle before making his way towards them,

“New toy you got there?” Nick quipped, pointing at the rifle.

“Yeah, you could say that. Something the egg-heads gave me to test. A little something they’ve been working on. Ooh boy...do I love it. I figured we’d sure as hell need some real firepower here if it comes to a fight. Other than those cute little glowsticks you’ve got there.”

“Watch it,” Captain Martin replied, “Our laser muskets can still blow a hole through that pretty armor of yours with no problems...egg-heads give you that too?”

“Matter of fact they did,” MacCready smiled, “And really...I doubt it would.”

“Cut it out with the dick-measuring contest,” Wilma interrupted, “Let’s talk shop. Where’s The Mechanist?”

“I did a little recon before you all came,” MacCready began, “Took a look around inside the shop and around the perimeter. There’s some sort of massive pre-war security door in there, which must have been hidden behind the wall before the war. Damn near closest thing I’ve ever seen to it is one of those Vault doors. If we would have had to actually break through that...I’d say we’d have been here until the next Judgement Day...but looks like The Mechanist is welcoming us. It's wide open, just like she said it would be.”

“Welcoming us, or it's a trap...” Captain Martin replied.

“Doubt it,” Nick shook his head, “If what you said about that door is true then this is the real deal. The pre-war facility that The Institute was able to identify must actually be in there, and if that’s The Mechanist’s lair, it makes no sense for her to lead us here if she just intended to kill us.”

“The Mechanist’s Lair?” MacCready chuckled, “You’ve been listening to one too many of ol’ Kent’s broadcasts there Valentine.”

Nick gave a shrug, “The Mechanist obviously thought that old character was important somehow. Important for her to build an army and kill over it: intentional or not. The way I see it, we should take that characterization seriously.”

“And they’ll answer for their crimes accordingly” Wilma said definiantly, ‘Lets go.”

“After you,” MacCready said with a grin as Wilma pushed aside and entered the building.

--------------------------------------

A short time later and the group had reached the elevator that the Mechanist had identified to them in her message. It sat behind the main security check-in for the facility and, just as she’d said, the elevator was unlocked and operational. Without much ado, the group piled into the elevator, only 5 of them were able to fit at one time and so Captain Martin gave the order for most of his Minutemen to stay behind and follow once the elevator returned. It was yet another risk they were taking, and if this did turn out to be some sort of trap, they’d be split up for a brief window of time.

Luckily however, when the elevators opened at the bottom there appeared to be no such welcome waiting for them. They were greeted by a dimly lit hallway instead. Cautiously, and with weapons drawn, they made their way down the hallway, passing a room which looked to be some sort of living quarters for whoever was down here. Finally, they came to a door, MacCready gave a nod to Nick, and the detective opened it, revealing a large control room with consoles and robobrain automatons clicking away at inputs.

Suddenly a figure appeared from out behind one of the consoles, a young woman with dark hair in a green jumpsuit now stood before them. Her posture easily denoted nervousness, perhaps even fear, as she clutched her arms together. The woman raised a single hand to brush away strands of hair that had fallen across her face,

“H-h-hello.”

“Isabel?” Nick said, as he began to walk towards her, “Are you Isabel Cruz?”

“Y-yeah, one and the same. Just me down here...well aside from the robots but...I..um….”

“So are you The Mechanist then? Wilma stepped forward aggressively, gun raised “Do you have ANY idea what you’ve done?”

Isabel put her hands up reflexively, “Y-y-yes I am, but I didn’t do it! I mean….I didn’t mean to. I thought I had everything figured out...but I made a horrible mistake. Please don’t shoot!”

“Wilma! Put the damn gun down!” Nick yelled, and with a huff the Caravener agreed, lowering her weapon. Satisfied, Nick turned his attention back to Isabel, who had begun to cry, “We aren’t here to kill you Isabel, but we are here to take you into custody. Do you understand?”

“Yes….I understand,” Isabel sobbed, “I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to kill anyone. I was just trying to help.”

“Yeah...help...about that….define ‘help’” MacCready replied with no small hint of sarcasm in his voice.

Nick shot him a glare, and MacCready rolled his eyes in response.

“I believe you,” Nick offered his hand, “What’s done is done. Now you need to focus on making amends. I’ll do what I can to help you.”

“Thanks,” Isabel nodded, wiping her tears and nose with the sleeve of her jumpsuit, “I-I really want to try and make things right. I just don’t know how I can do that.”

“Well you can start by….”

A loud alarm suddenly sounded all around them, red lights lit up and klaxons blared through the room,

“Oh no, what?” Isabel suddenly stood up and ran to one of the panels.

“What the fuck is happening?” Captain Martin yelled, trying to be heard over the alarms.

“It's an intruder alert. Someone is inside the facility. Did you bring anyone else with you?” Isabel asked.

“No,” Nick shook his head, “It was just us.”

Isabel quickly clicked a button and a video feed was brought up on the monitor,

“Mutants!” She shouted, shocked at the sight, “They’re coming down the service elevator.” She pointed through the glass windows towards a large open door on the other side of what looked to be a large open area, “I don’t know how they found it! It's okay though I can just shut down…”

The power suddenly cut out, leaving the room in total darkness,

“Uh oh,” Isabel said simply. A few seconds later and the lights returned, but it appeared only the control room they were in was lit up. The rest of the facility appeared to still be in total darkness.

“What the hell was that?” MacCready asked.

“Something’s wrong,” Isabel clutched her head frantically, “The power just got cut and we’re on auxiliary power only now. I don’t understand…” She looked desperately towards Nick. Just as she did so, they all heard a loud screech of metal on metal as something came to a stop.

The elevator…

The sounds of large heavy footsteps followed by the yells and jeers of brainless mutants could be heard streaming towards them,

“Minutemen on me!” Captain Martin yelled, and raced down the hallway to a doorway that led to the area the mutants were coming from, followed swiftly by his men. They each took up posts on either side of the door and behind it, trying to get as many muskets down range as they could. They cranked their Laser Muskets and waited.

MacCready stepped forward to the glass windows as the sounds of the mutants had seemingly died down,

“Fuck,” He muttered, just as the hulking green shapes began to emerge from the darkness beyond what little light the control room was giving off. All of the sudden the shouts began in earnest and a mutant wielding little more than a large board ran towards the open doorway, followed swiftly by three more mutants similarly armed with rusted pipes, sledgehammers, and other random implements-turned-war-clubs.

“OPEN FIRE!” The Captain yelled, and The Minutemen opened up with their muskets, the powerful laser blasts ripping into the mutated abominations and downing three of them. As they fell, muscled mutant hounds raced out from behind and made a beeline for the doorway.

“Fall back!” The Captain yelled, just as the first hound burst through the doorway and tore into one of the Minutemen, before swiftly turning on another. The others began falling back, firing their laser muskets as quickly as they could and finding that the thick hide of the creatures made it difficult to kill them outright.

“Get behind me,” Nick told Isabel as he held up his pipe revolver. Isabel however ignored him, and was furiously typing away at a nearby console, “Come on...come on…” she muttered. Wilma had drawn her own gun and taken up a position behind one of the consoles, beads of sweat poured from her face.

“God-fucking-damnit!” MacCready shouted as he stepped forward and readied his plasma rifle. The sound of the weapon charging up briefly could be heard as static filled the air before he loosed three shots in rapid succession. Blue plasma bolts ripped through the still-living hounds and melted gaping holes in each of them. The remaining Minutemen formed a line beside MaCready and continued firing, killing two more super-mutants as they raced down the hallway with weapons raised.

Things grew quiet as the last of the mutants fell.

“Was that all of them?” Captain Martin asked, looking to no-one in particular to respond.

The sounds of the elevator making its way down again answered his question. Now even more abominable shouts and the howls of mutant hounds could be heard coming from the direction the first wave had just come.

“Got it!” Isabel yelled out excitedly. Just then the lights in the entire area came back on, and the facility road to life as the power was fully restored. The second group of mutants was already halfway to the doorway when suddenly a set of metal security doors to the left of the loading dock opened up, and out strode a massive Sentry Bot that seemed to have been heavily modified,

“Tankbot activated. Beginning security protocols. Civilians standback.”

The robot opened up with two gatling lasers attached to its arms, felling the mutants and their hounds in rapid succession as one after the other fell to its substantial firepower.

When the last mutant had fallen, Isabel turned to the group with a faint smile,

“Uhh...got security back online,” She said quickly, indicating the Tankbot.

“And just in time too,” Nick said with a thankful nod.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Right as the fighting commenced S3-47 pulled out the holotape from the security terminal at the front desk of the facility. The network scan was complete, and he’d gathered what data he’d been able to from it. The program had worked just as Dr. Morales had intended it to. It shut down the facilities defenses and allowed a brief window of time to access its valuable data repositories while the mutants provided a sufficient distraction for his operation.

S3 placed the holotape in a briefcase, reactivated his stealth field, and proceeded out the main entrance.

Once outside the Robco Sales Building and safely hidden in the ruined alleys of East Boston, he sent an encrypted message to Dr. Zimmer,

“Data retrieval complete. ”

---

Enclave Operative Issac Jabsco - Poseidon Energy Plant

Following the sending of his message, Issac had commenced reading through the mission debriefing documents that had been loaded on his pipboy: a little *light* reading before bed. It’d been some time since he’d reviewed them last, and he wanted to make sure he had a firm understanding of their contents.

He skimmed the first section,

Establish intelligence overview of the political situation of the COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS. Known entities include: the INSTITUTE, the MINUTEMEN, the COMMONWEALTH PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT, and THE GUNNERS. The INSTITUTE is considered a MAJOR security threat to the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. They have the capacity to produce energy weapons, combat robots, and other unknown high-tech capabilities. Additionally, there is unconfirmed intelligence regarding production infiltration robots.

Issac thought back to the Synths he’d encountered down on the lower level, the ones that had killed whatever raider gang had been held up here. They certainly couldn’t pass for humans, but if the stories were to be believed, and he’d heard a number of them on his way to The Commonwealth from passing traders, there were Synths that looked just like humans: down to being able to bleed the same as any man.

He continued, skipping down some paragraphs,

Confirm location and status of VAULT 81. Determine if VAULT has been compromised by external personnel and extent there-of.

He’d heard little to nothing of Vault 81, but the information provided for the Enclave gave its location data. It was a secondary objective, but nonetheless an important one. The Enclave’s interest in acquiring still intact Vaults was one that had been known by nearly everyone in the Capital Wasteland after they’d taken over 101.

Issac continued on down to the final section of the debriefing, skimming down to the phrase that always caught his eye:

It is imperative that OPERATIVE does not permit their capture by the INSTITUTE. In the event of probable capture, place muzzle of side-arm under jaw to ensure the maximum destruction of brain tissue. If unable to access firearms, OPERATIVE has been provided with suicide pill in glass ampule.

He fumbled at the dog-tags around his neck, feeling the tiny glass vial that had been attached to them: a lone pill inside. Enclave High Command was taking no chances when it came to The Institute. Of course, they had no assurance that Issac would actually commit to such a self-sacrificing act should the need require, but Issac thought of it less as a way to keep Enclave secrets secure, he knew little of them anyway, and more as a final insurance for himself. There were many, many fates that could befall him in the wasteland where death was infinitely preferable to the alternative. He’d seen that far too often already in his life.

His review was suddenly interrupted by an incoming reply on his pipboy. Direct from EnclaveNet,

<STANDBY_FOR_FURTHER_COMMUNICATIONS._SUPPORT_ENROUTE_ETA_48_HOURS._CONFIRM_BUILDING_SECURITY_AND_MONITOR_LOCAL_RADIO_CHATTER.>

Issac was stunned as hadn’t expected that Sutler, and this could only be an order from him, would send reinforcements so early on into his mission. He’d only just arrived in The Commonwealth, and it was Issac’s expectation that he’d only receive support if and when his objective was complete. That Sutler had given the order for support to be sent now could only mean one thing: he was taking this mission far more seriously than Issac had even previously thought. There was no doubt about it now, Sutler was going to be monitoring this operation closely,

“Just 48 hours…” Issac muttered, “That doesn’t leave much time.”

He immediately activated the nearby Gutsys standing guard with a simple voice command,

“Begin maintenance protocol immediately, get this place cleaned up.”

As the Gusty bots sprung into action, Issac laid back down on his bedroll, he’d grab a few hours of much needed sleep and then would be ready to start his own preparations.

-----------

As the 48 hours came to an end, Issac waited atop the roof of the building expectantly, watching the skies for any sign or sound of the promised support. As he did so, he took stock of what he’d done to prepare for their arrival.

The Gutsy bots had managed to clear away most of the offending debris from the majority of the plant’s office and plant floor spaces. While they lacked the tailored programming of a Misty Handy, the Gutsy units were still efficient enough at completing such tasks and continuously rotated among themselves between performing guard duties and cleaning the plant. Issac, meanwhile, had completed his own personal preparations. He’d been monitoring the local radio chatter as requested, and most of what he’d heard concerned ‘The Minutemen’ who appeared to have an encampment of some sort in the nearby town of Quincy, a short distance north from the energy plant. All his notes on what he’d heard had been compiled and would be given to whoever the CO of the support contingent was. Along with that, he’d placed the remains of the destroyed Synths inside one of the office rooms in the plant for potential observation. Finally Issac had also managed to repair the plant’s auxiliary power generator, the completion of which he was quite proud of himself for. The building now had limited power, and thus some essential operational systems were restored.

That all done there was little enough time left to do anything but wait. Wait until he could hear the sounds of rotary blades ripping through the air which, before long, he did. Issac rushed down to the plant’s parking lot as the vertibird drew closer and closer, and before long finally extended it’s landing gear and touched down in the center of the vacant lot. Issac stood sharply at attention near the entrance.

The commanding officer that exited the bird was none other than Colonel Granite. It was all Issac could do to contain his surprise, the Colonel was one of the highest ranking members of The Enclave currently and a close friend of the Supreme Commander: that much at least Issac knew. He’d no inkling whatsoever that the Colonel would be the one to arrive here however.

As Granite approached, Issac remained firmly at attention, and raised his hand in the usual salute style of the Americorps, with his palm facing forward,

“Colonel, sir, welcome to The Commonwealth.”

OOC: Report that will be provided to Granite:

Operative Report

Radio Transmissions Report
Field Operative ORION
Enclave Americorp

Field Report:

...Numerous mentions of 'Commonwealth Provisional Government’ made in multiple transmissions, along with ‘Minutemen’, no mentions made yet of ‘Institute’ or associated personnel. Radio transmission for presumed military operations follow a standard broadcast protocol, and appear to be encoded. A separate radio frequency seems to regularly broadcast with information pertinent to the safety of Commonwealth residents, including what appears to be calls for assistance and aid from ‘Minutemen’ forces (see Addendum A.)

Other noteworthy radio broadcasts in the area include a station out of ‘Diamond City’ run by a mentioned Travis Miles. Broadcast format appears to be standard news reports and local happenings, accompanied by music….,

Addendum A.

(Broadcast Begins at Approximately 0600 hours)

[Voice of woman heard over radio, along with sounds of gunfire]

“Hello! Hello? Are there any Minutemen listening to this!? Our Caravan has been ambushed! [Inaudible] attack! We need help! Please!”

[Voice of a man responds after a short pause]

“Caravan, this is the Castle. Where are you? Over.”

“[Inaudible]...hold up in a house. Don’t think we can keep them off much longer. Please hurry!”

“Roger. I’m contacting Colonel Garvey, his detachment is closest to your position..[inaudible]..if you can and...[inaudible].”

[No further transmission from either source recorded. Approximately one minute after transmission ends, a red flare incendiary was visible in the sky five miles due north west of Poseidon Energy. Within several minutes a second flare is seen coming from the location of Quincy. No further activity observed.]

War Never Changes 2 : A Post Nuclear Nation Roleplay

<Snipped quote by Andronicus23>

Huh. Tried, it's says 'invalid'. Are you using a new server or the previous RPs old and ancient one from the Eighties?

@NecroKnight

Gotcha. Old link might have expired. Thought it was set to never expire, but maybe not.

Put a new link on the OP post. Try again and see if that works for you.

War Never Changes 2 : A Post Nuclear Nation Roleplay

Dr. Xavier Morales - Vault 88 Underground Laboratory

A bright flash of blue brought Xavier squarely inside of the Vault 88 caverns as he re-materialized from the molecular relay. His eyes adjusted to the relatively dim light of the makeshift laboratory carved out within. The caverns he now stood in were a result of tireless months of work and unceasing labor provided by absounded Institute Synths. Shielded from the surface’s background radiation and well hidden from prying eyes, it made for a perfect location from which they could continue to conduct research, and remain completely undetected by the CPG. A lone ghoul claiming to be Vault’s overseer had been the only impediment standing in the way when they’d first occupied it, but that had been swiftly dealt with.

“Hey welcome back Xavier,” the cheerful voice of Dr. Holdren greeted him from behind a large console amidst a plethora of electronic equipment and large tanks of bio-med gel which gave off a sickly green luminescent glow that bounced off the cave's ceiling and rock walls.

“Clayton...yes...good to be back indeed...” Xavier replied, looking around, “Where’s Zimmer?”

“He’s topside at the moment. He took S3-47 and Z4-22 with him. I’m expecting him back any moment now.”

Xavier nodded, “I see…I’m afraid I don’t have all that long. So I’ll ask straight-away: anything you have to report?”

“Ah! Yes, there’s been a number of updates since you last visited here. I know it's been some time so I’ll bring you up to speed briefly.”

“Yes it was impractical to slip away. The ….Director...kept me busy with some unforeseen work. A matter on which I’d like to speak to Zimmer when he arrives in fact.”

“Say no more,” Dr. Holdren said with a wave of his hand, “But yes come over here and have a look.”

The former Bioscience Division Head ushered Xavier over to one of the bio-med tanks, allowing him to closely inspect the contents within. It appeared to be a grossly mutated animal of some kind, a mole rat perhaps at one time, although there was no doubt a mixture of different animal species within. Great numbers of legs protruded from its abdomen and enlarged incisors stuck out violently from the abominations mouth. The effects of the Forced Evolutionary Virus were incredibly pronounced and always manifested rapidly. Whatever horrors the creature(s) experienced in its last moments would have been utterly unbearable,

“A failure, to be sure, but I’m close to replicating my previous results. As you can see, the cellular structure of the creature bonded quite….aggressively with that of the other two subjects: a canine and a roach respectively. It's proving quite difficult to create a stable chimera formula, but I’ve no doubt it's possible. Some time and more specimens is all it requires.” Dr. Holdren beamed with pride, “I should think I’ll have something workable soon.”

“And you’re confident you can create a...living creature in this manner?”

“Oh absolutely. Based on information from the data Dr. Zimmer provided on The Capital Wasteland and my own understanding of numerous pre-war experiments with FEV genetic engineering, it's very much a real possibility. Although the creatures created post-war in such a manner...Centaurs I believe they’re called….are at best pitiable abominations. They’re little more than the results of Super-mutants playing around with FEV and throwing anything and everything they can find into their vats. I fully intend to perfect such a creation and ensure its stability as a living creature, the uses for such an organism are virtually endless.” Dr. Holdren’s smile widened, and he looked to Xavier to be positively enraptured with his work and the creativity of it all. Xavier had to admit it was more than a little unnerving, but certainly praiseworthy.

“Imagine being able to essentially cross-breed species with ease: eliminating negative traits in both and enhancing positive ones, and what's more doing this in such an impossibly short amount of time. Spitting in the face of evolution itself...it's fascinating frankly. To think that pre-war science was already dipping their toes into this line of work with remarkable results. I intend to build upon the foundation they left and perfect it.”

“Fascinating...truly,” Xavier replied, “Although I’ll be honest Clayton I’m less interested in the science of it all and more concerned with practical applications to solve our current predicament.”

“Oh of course, I’m still considering that a top priority. The current line of research I’m pursuing is weaponizing an organism in such a manner that would suit our needs. I expect promising results in that area, and if you like to delve further on that topic, we can discuss the other branch of FEV research related to it.”

Dr. Holdren led Xavier round a bend and towards a large dip in the cavern, below them lay a natural pit on top of which an energy barrier had been erected around the rim. Inside this pit, a number of super-mutants could be seen meandering about, all seemingly lost in a daze brought on by numerous sedatives. Gen-2 Synths patrolled the rim of the pit, closely monitoring the mutants below with their energy weapons ready to vaporize any that might become unruly,

“Human trials are on-going, but I’m afraid it's more of the same. I never expected to make much progress with this line of research considering how much effort was poured into it by the FEV Lab back at The Institute. Irradiated wastelander subjects continue to produce the same strain of unintelligent mutant organisms, as always. However, with Dr. Zimmer’s assistance we’ve made progress on the control chip,” Dr. Holdren held up a small vial containing a tiny electronic device, “The programming was relatively trivial as you know, but it's been difficult to figure out how to produce it in sufficient quantities without access to our manufacturing facilities. Help from some pre-war equipment has done the trick however, and Zimmer is actually out looking for a final component we can use to begin actively developing them. I’ve taken to calling this little endeavor the ENFORCER protocol.”

“And you’re confident that you can give them complex commands with it enabled?”

“Of course! I can understand the hesitancy, let me demonstrate,” Dr. Holdren snapped his finger and reached for a nearby device, “Lets just do something simple first…”

Holdren pressed a button on the control device and the super-mutants immediately snapped out of their previously dazed state and moved swiftly into an ad-hoc square formation. They stood silently with eyes forward, not moving a muscle,

“Pacification protocols are enabled by default, and the voice command module is active...step forward two steps!” The mutants complied, each striding forward twice.

“Turn around!’ Again the mutants complied.

“Now for something a bit more complicated…” Dr. Holdren grinned ear to ear, “Pacification mode off...there we go….now...kill the third member of the front row!”

There was a short pause, as the mutant’s implant seemed to register the command, and the mutants quickly began to lunge at the singled-out mutant. The mutant in question had no sense of self-preservation, and simple stood silent as its brothers tore it limb from limb.

“Incredible….” Xavier said, awestruck, “You’ve outdone yourself Clayton.”

“Thank you,” Holdren replied with an exaggerated bow, “Frankly I’m just glad that I was finally able to get something useful out of the FEV trials, other than synthetic organics of course. To think that years of human experimentation went by and no-one thought to pursue this line of research...boggles my mind frankly. I think Father made a grave mistake when he decided against allowing further cybernetics projects. The melding of biological life and artificial constructs is a fascinating area I’d like to continue to explore.”

“Rest assured that won’t be the case anymore….once we’ve reclaimed The Institute from Li and her ilk….we can freely pursue projects like these. You’d have my full support in such endeavors.”

“Spoken like a politician,” the voice of Dr. Zimmer came from behind. He wore a cleanly pressed pre-war suit, in lieu of an Institute lab coat, and beside him stood two Coursers, the last of their kind, in leather armor looking much the part of hired mercenary protection for the old man, “You act like you’re already The Director, or that you are guaranteed to get the position when the dust settles on this.”

Xavier chaffed under the rebuke but smiled nevertheless, “You misunderstand me Doctor. I’m merely suggesting that once The Institute is back into our hands, we’ll be the ones setting policy and approving research projects. Not short-sighted individuals like Li and the rest.”

“Indeed and we’ve a long way to go to achieve those ends…no need to get ahead of ourselves...Dr. Holdren, I acquired the component you were looking for. And I’ve identified a few more locations we might use for sweep and retrieval to acquire more materials.”

“Excellent,” Dr. Holdren clasped his hands together, “Thank you Dr. Zimmer.”

“Vic--Dr. Zimmer,” Xavier corrected himself, knowing how much Zimmer hated the use of his first name, “There’s another more important matter that needs to be looked into. The Commonwealth Provisional Government is meeting on the surface today with regards to a particularly sensitive topic of discussion.”

“You’re referring to The Mechanist?”

“Indeed,” Xavier nodded, “I believe they intend to send an expedition to the facility we identified in scouting. I’ve no doubt they intend to meet with this Mechanist and potentially secure some manner of cooperation with them.”

“Hmmph. No doubt they’re seeking to make use of the facility too,” Dr. Zimmer furrowed his brow.

“Naturally I provided Li what details on it I needed to deflect suspicion, but there was one element I left out: it was a laboratory specifically dedicated to the creation of Robobrains, making use of some rather cutting edge pre-war technology to achieve the goal of the proper use of wetware to drive inorganic processing. Additionally, one phrase kept appearing in memoranda over and over: CODE. It was related in some way to brain reconditioning. I’m sure you can agree that sort of research could be of great interest to us.”

“Agreed, let's not simply allow the CPG to walk right in and help themselves to whatever is down there. I assume you have some sort of plan then?”

“I believe I do,” Xavier grinned, “Thanks to you both. Clayton, how would you like to get more substantial test data on your Enforcers?”