~2 Years Ago~
"Enclave scum" a guard yelled as he threw Conrad to the ground of a cell. He locked the door and spat on the Midwestern soldier, then walked away.
"Nice move pal. How'd that escape plan of your's work again?" a voice said.
Conrad began to stand but tumbled over, his arm reaching to his bruised side.
"Easy there Con" a more familiar voice said, it's owner sitting him down against a wall.
Conrad opened his eyes and took in his surroundings. Aisha sat next to him, looking at the spot on his ribs where the ECs had kicked him over and over. Travis, a tattooed slim man, and Magellan, Sigma's broad squadleader, sat opposite of them, playing cards. Callum, an older gentleman, smoked in the corner, chuckling at Conrad's third failed escape attempt. Third, three times he tried, three times he failed. The battle seemed like just yesterday, but he'd been counting the days, he knew it had been over a week since Sigma Squad was captured after their failed scouting of Maxson's forces on the eastern front.
"How far did you make it this time?" Aisha asked.
"Uh, gate. Then I got punched in the face and kicked. EC motherfuckers" he responded.
Travis looked at the two and shrugged. "What you expect them do to prisoners, Enclave no less"
"Shut your mouth" Conrad yelled and pointed at the Scribe. "We're not them, not anymore. You're just some tribal. What would you know about the Enclave?"
"Heard you all tried killing us before. And this "tribal" an accomplished medical expert. May want to be nice before you get shot" Travis snorted.
"Oh wow, big words" Conrad said.
"And this is what happens when Shepherd assigns newbies to Paladin Lord squads. Never been active anywhere but the bunker" Callum muttered.
"Quiet!" Magellan ordered. "Knight Smith, I told you not to try escaping again. And what did you do?"
"That guard dropped his keys right there, why wouldn't I try making a run for it?" Conrad argued.
"You could have been killed Knight, don't try it again" Magellan said, and then went back to looking at his cards.
"Whatever" Conrad said, rolling his eyes.
"And I will be requesting you be transferred elsewhere. A spot on the frontlines is no place for a reckless idiot, especially in war. And I don't quite care how far up your family goes in command" Magellan threatened.
Conrad leaned back to the wall and looked around the cell he now called home. Grey concrete, bare of any windows, metal bars confining the area to about ten feet wide and across. He wondered if this was one of the "police stations" he had read about. Trips from Savior Installation were few and far between, he spent months away when he was a child but rarely left except on patrol duty for years. When this war was over and he'd had enough time fighting for the Brotherhood, Conrad decided he would tour America, see everything his ancestors built over the centuries. But that dream was seeming more and more out of reach each minute he spent in this cell. Uncle Hampshire couldn't be that far away, or the Head Paladin from Massachusetts he'd heard all about.
Magellan quickly threw down his cards and held up a hand, motioning for silence.
"That noise" the Paladin Lord whispered.
Conrad began to hear it too, whizzing, like laser fire, and stomping. A door on the far side of the building slammed open and yelling could be heard from outside. Loud footsteps quickly approached, and Sigma Squad jumped to their feet to meet this new figure. The inner door to their room burst open and a soldier in advanced power armor ran in and leaned to shoot his laser rifle at a target behind him.
"Paladin Lord Magellan, Sigma Squad. We're here to rescue you" the soldier said, throwing a ring full of keys into the cell. Conrad scrambled for the ring and fished for the one he'd use to escape before, with a plastic baseball on top. He found it and plunged it into the lock, twisting it and pushing the door open.
"What's taking so fucking long?" a heavy voice yelled from outside.
"Sorry, Paladin Gregor. It won't be very long" the soldier yelled back. He unslung a sack from his shoulder and opened it. "You may need these"
Each squadmember reached in and pulled out a laser pistol.
Magellan looked to Travis, then Callum, then Aisha, and finally Conrad. "We have some killing to do Sigma"
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Conrad looked to his left and right and shuffled in his power armor. He and a half dozen other soldiers had been standing around for half an hour, awaiting Elder Maxson and Shepherd.
"Any minute now" Gregor muttered behind him.
"Quiet" Conrad whispered.
"Hey, Conrad. Could I talk to you about something?" Carter asked to his left.
"Quiet" Conrad whispered again.
He couldn't believe he was being made to wait on that bastard Maxson, after all the man had done to his people. At least Shepherd being here will lighten the mood, he quickly thought. From a distance, the hissing of vertibird propellers could be heard.
"About time" Aisha said loudly. Vic looked at her and she shrugged. "What?"
Three vertibirds appeared overhead and began circling Simulacrum. As the farthest east one could go in Midwestern Brotherhood territory, it was the location the Council chose to meet with Maxson. Conrad saw the settlers pointing at the aircraft, and some ran inside nearby buildings. He recalled that his people weren't the only ones the ECs had hunted, and hopefully Shepherd hadn't lost his synths' trust bringing them here. One vertibird, marked with orange stripes, landed at the town's gates, the others parking farther away, but still close enough to make Conrad nervous.
Aisha grabbed Conrad's arm and pointed to a man exiting the marked vertibird next to Shepherd. Conrad had to squint, but realized it was the same man he had encountered two years prior on a mission with Alpha Squad. Elder Maxson, heir to the Brotherhood and sworn protector of humanity, most of it at least.
The pair strode into the town, flanked by four Paladins. General Smith and Elder Hyde stepped forward to greet them.
"Elder Maxson. It is a definite comfort to speak with you again, and know that despite these troublesome times, we are all still Brothers" the mutant scientist said.
"Patience. I haven't decided on anything yet, but I'm willing to hear you out. Paladin... Head Paladin Danse has filled me in on the details regarding this menace. I'm here to find out what this alliance will mean for the Brotherhood in the future" Maxson said.
General Smith stroked his beard stubbles and nodded. "Alright. If you'll follow us to the conference area we've set up, we can get to the bottom of this matter quickly"